【Name: Velariss】
【Level: LV76】
【Racial Talents: Rapid Adaptation, Shadow Affinity】
【Skills: Shadow Shuttle LV10, Shadow Mark LV10, Shadow Manipulation LV10, Charm Voice LV10, Physical Resistance LV10, Magic Resistance LV10… Regeneration LV9, Abyssal Magic LV9… Multiple Wills LV6…】
Fellow patient club…
Velariss looked like a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old girl. Her violet eyes carried a subtle, seductive gleam; clearly she had the most common succubus bloodline among half-demons.
Yet the tail swaying behind her wasn’t the usual heart-shaped succubus tail, but longer, more flexible, ending in a sharp black arrowhead that restlessly flicked with her mood.
Black patterns coiled across her petite body, shifting and writhing as if alive with her exaggerated laughter.
“Hahahahahahahaha!”
The girl’s mouth split into an almost tearing grin. “I, I’ve never seen such a round vampire before! Hey, if you turn into a bat now, will you be too fat to fly?”
She even reached out giggling to pat Sigmund’s belly, only to be blocked by his expressionless hand.
On the surface Sigmund remained calm, but inwardly fury surged; not at Velariss’s mockery.
He had long expected ridicule from Velariss, Elinore, even his old rival Alama over his current shape.
What truly caught him off guard was—
“Pfft hahahaha, fat bat!” The culprit’s carefree laughter in his head nearly drove him to mutual destruction.
Velariss laughed until she was done, then tilted her head and spoke in an almost cloying tone. “But… chubby looks pretty cute too. I like it, Sigmund~”
Her voice seemed to carry special power. Several Blood Knights behind Sigmund grew dazed.
But Sigmund, long on guard, was unaffected. The instant she said “like,”
**Blood Manipulation: Barrier!**
Blood instantly condensed into a thick shield before him. At almost the same moment, shadow spikes erupted from Velariss’s shadow, slamming into the blood shield with muffled thuds.
Blocking the sudden strike, Sigmund retreated several zhang in a surprisingly graceful motion despite his bulk, putting safe distance between them and Velariss.
The Blood Knights behind him snapped out of it, drew weapons, and locked killing intent on Velariss, awaiting only their lord’s command to attack.
Yet Sigmund merely stood there, face cold, saying nothing.
“Tch.” Velariss put on a deeply wounded expression, as if she hadn’t just tried to kill him.
Her arrowhead tail thumped the ground irritably, making soft “tap-tap” sounds.
“Really, I just said I liked you and you dodge like that… I only wanted to get closer~”
“Spare me.”
Sigmund had no interest in dangerous banter with this unpredictable lunatic. He turned to Velariss’s resting army and asked what mattered most. “Where is your abyss beast?”
“You mean my little cutie?” Velariss blinked her violet eyes. “Visarius borrowed it to play with.”
“His Highness took it…” Sigmund felt a twinge of regret. He had counted on using that thing to crush Alama.
“Your arrival here can’t stay secret long. We must lay plans quickly. I’ll brief you on details later. Until then, you and your troops…” His tone hardened. “Stay put. Don’t wander.”
Without waiting for Velariss’s inevitably flippant reply, blood light flashed. Sigmund turned into a fat bat and flew back toward the Scarlet Spire.
Truth be told, he would love to stay far away like Elinore and avoid this madwoman entirely.
But among the three dukes, someone had to handle coordination. This rotten job fell to him.
At least he had only been probed with an attack this time. Could have been worse.
“Why did she attack you?” Lin Jun’s voice in his head had lost its joking tone. After all, Velariss had just attacked their shared precious body!
“Who knows what that madwoman is thinking…” To protect their body, Sigmund hid nothing and warned seriously. “But whatever you do, don’t let her ‘like’ you.”
“She can control shadows? What kind of hybrid is she?”
“Troll, succubus, shadow demon.”
“Troll and succubus I get… shadow demon? Aren’t those closer to elementals? Succubi are that versatile?”
“I don’t know the details,” Sigmund replied. “All I know is His Majesty brought her out of an accidentally discovered Demon King laboratory.”
“Demon King’s… laboratory?”
Lin Jun wanted to learn more about the Demon King, but whether Sigmund truly knew little or simply refused to say, he got no further information.
Back in the Scarlet Spire, Lin Jun received bad news.
His two loyal half-vampire lackeys had only returned… three-quarters whole?!
…
Meanwhile.
When the abyss beast appeared on the horizon, the morale of the United Kingdom army visibly plummeted.
It was a blasphemy against the very concept of life.
Dragon head, bear body, scorpion tail… and a pair of massive, tattered wings from different owners. A terrifying patchwork enlarged to mountain scale.
Each step made the earth groan. The tremors shot up soldiers’ spines, shattering courage.
It didn’t look naturally born; more like a monster that had clawed its way out of the deepest nightmare.
Commander Duke Brennus’s voice was dry and tight. He unconsciously wiped cold sweat from his brow, soaking his expensive silk gloves.
“W-what do we do?”
He instinctively looked to his side, as if it were his only reliance.
Sword Saint Airaven slowly swept his gaze across the silent kingdom camp, finally settling on the distant beast. His voice carried helplessness. “Guess we’ll just have to try cutting it down… That purple glow in its chest is probably the core, right?”
Fifteen asked worriedly, “Master, will you be alright?”
Airaven rested a hand on his sword hilt. “First time facing one. We’ll see when I try.”
(End of Chapter)
