I lay on the cold, cracked ground, my chest rising and falling in short, painful breaths. Blood trickled from the corner of my mouth. My arms felt like lead. The sky above was gray with smoke, and the air smelled of dust and death. Demons circled us, their red eyes glowing like hot coals. Their roars shook the earth. Smoke poured from their nostrils in thick, black clouds. Their huge red-and-black bodies towered over us, blocking out the sun's light. The world felt dark and heavy.
Jacob stood over me. His dark armor was cracked in places, but he looked strong. Unbroken. He stretched out his big hand. "Here, let me help you," he said. His voice was calm now. Not angry. Not mocking. Just steady.
I looked up at him. My hand shook as I reached out. "Thanks," I said. I took his hand. His grip was firm. He pulled me up slowly. My legs wobbled, but I stood. Pain shot through my ribs. I ignored it.
We turned back-to-back. Our fists clenched tight. The demons watched us. Their claws scraped the ground. Their teeth gleamed. Their roars grew louder. Deafening. Like thunder rolling in from every side.
I wiped blood from my lip. "I thought the Horde left the kingdom," I said. My voice was low. "So what's going on here?"
Jacob drew his blue great sword. The metal sang as it left the sheath. "The Horde moved on," he said. "But a few stayed. After our defeat… they think this kingdom is theirs now."
I nodded. "And now, to them, we are the invaders."
Jacob smiled. A real smile. Sharp. Ready. "Let's slaughter them," he said. The air around us grew hot. His aura flared blue around his body.
"Agreed," I said. My voice was colder than the steel in my grip. I pulled my dark long blade from my back. It felt heavy. Familiar. Like an old friend.
"Arghhhh!"
The demons roared together. The sound hurt my ears. The ground shook. Then they charged. From all corners. Left. Right. Front. Back. Claws raised. Mouths open. They ran fast. Their feet pounded the earth like drums.
Jacob moved first. "You take the left side," he shouted. "I'll handle the rest." He dashed forward. His sword became a blur. Blue light flashed. Towering demons fell. One. Two. Three. Their heads rolled. Blood sprayed. Their huge bodies crashed to the ground.
I smiled a little. "Show-off," I muttered. "I'm not going to let you kill more of these bastards than me."
I sprinted toward the demons coming at me from the left. Six of them. Huge. Red eyes. Sharp claws. Fangs dripping. They roared. I roared back.
One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six.
"This is for you, Lily," I whispered. "And for you, my son."
"Blade Arts: One Thousand Strikes!"
I chanted the words. My blade glowed crimson. I moved faster than the eye could see. My sword flashed a thousand times in a second. *Slash. Slash. Slash.* I cleaved through their flesh instantly. Arms flew. Heads fell. Bodies split open. Blood splashed through the air like rain.
"Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud."
They collapsed. One after another. Their corpses hit the earth with heavy sounds. Blood pooled around them. The smell was thick. Metallic. Sickening.
But it wasn't over.
More came.
From the shadows. From the ruins. Dozens now. Maybe hundreds. Their roars never stopped.
Jacob parried a claw strike with his sword. The impact rang like a bell. He grinned wide. "Ha!" he shouted. "He killed six instantly and still claims his wounds haven't recovered. I'm not falling behind—even though your talent is superior."
A huge demon towered over him. It raised its claws high. Sharp. Long. Deadly. It swung down fast.
"Swordsman Style: God Shield!"
Jacob chanted. A blue glowing lion head appeared around him. Huge. Ghostly. Powerful. The claws hit the shield.
"BOOM!"
Dust flew everywhere. The ground cracked. When the dust cleared, Jacob stood untouched. The lion head roared. Then vanished.
"Swordsman Style: God Cutter!"
He chanted again. A golden towering sword appeared in the air. Massive. Shining. It split the sky. It came down fast. Shearing through demon flesh like paper. *Swish.* Ten demons fell at once. Limbs severed. Guts spilled. Blood painted the ground red.
"Thud. Thud. Thud."
Their corpses hit the earth. The stench of blood covered the air. Thick. Heavy. Unescapable.
I stood at a distance. I flicked blood off my blade. Drop by drop. It hit the ground. "Too easy," I sighed. My crimson aura surged around me. Hot. Wild. Like fire. I walked toward Jacob. My red ninja clothing was torn in many places. Rips across my arms. My chest. My legs. My blue eyes stared at him. My black hair moved with the wind.
Alucard was much smaller than Jacob. Jacob was seven feet tall. A giant. But Alucard's aura pressed down on him. His skin prickled under the weight of it. A suffocating heat. It made his grip tighten on his sword.
"You exceeded my expectations, Alucard," Jacob said. He sheathed his sword with a soft *click*.
"I will have to train harder to catch up to your kind of strength."
I smiled. A small one. "Ha," I said. "Surely you jest. You're incredibly strong for a swordsman. In all my years, I've never come across any swordsman on your strength level."
Jacob started walking. I walked beside him. We left the battlefield. Blood and bodies behind us. "Getting to this level of strength wasn't easy," he said. "Becoming the king's guard commander was even harder. I had to train all day. Every day. From sunrise to sunset. Still, there's a limit to the strength of every talent and skill."
I shook my head. "You're wrong about that," I said. "Growing and evolving has no limit. If you've unlocked every skill given to you, then create your own. Your talent reached its limit? Breakthrough it. Get to the next level."
My smile faded. My eyes turned serious. "Limits are lies we tell ourselves. Death's the only truth. As long as you still draw breath, there's no such thing as a limit."
Jacob looked at me. His smile disappeared. "Heh," he said. "I can't believe your words are affecting me. Though it's easy for you to say when you're not a swordsman."
I shrugged. "I know," I said. "According to the ranking system our world established—Blade Arts is ranked SS+. Magic Mage ranked SS. Sparta Style ranked S+. Swordsman Style ranked S." I stroked my chin. "Huh. Your ranking isn't bad. Your talent comes fourth in the world system."
Jacob frowned. "Being in fourth place is pathetic," he said. "Sparta Style is supposed to come fourth. All they do is carry a shield, a long spear, and make noises. While we swordsmen train and train with just our swords and bodies alone."
We kept walking. Through the destroyed Kingdom of Aslan. Broken buildings. Burned homes. Corpses everywhere. The wind carried ash and smoke.
I raised my right hand. One finger pointed to the sky. "Sparta Style has every reason to be above Swordsman Style, Jacob," I said. "They begin their training from the age of five. Swordsmen begin at fifteen. At age ten, Sparta children start ten years of brutal training. Only twenty percent succeed. The rest—eighty percent—either die from the weight of the training or are killed by demons."
Jacob looked at me. His eyes studied my face. "How do you know about their training style?" he asked. "I'm told not even our dead king knew about it."
I sighed. "Ahh," I said. "In order to activate my Blade Arts talent, I trained in the Kingdom of Sparta."
Jacob stopped walking. His eyes went wide. "What?!" he said. "Activate how?"
He grabbed my shoulders with both hands. Hard. "Tell me!"
I pushed his hands away. "You're annoying," I said. "Not everything needs an answer, friend. Sometimes secrets are better when they stay secrets. If one knew everything, then life would be boring."
I started walking again. Jacob followed. "You speak the truth," he said. He looked around. His eyes scanned the ruins. "Follow me. We cannot casually exit through the kingdom's front gates. Though they've been destroyed. Everywhere is still filled with the remnants of the Horde."
We walked in silence for a while. The ground was uneven. Broken stone. Burned wood. We stepped over bodies. Human. Demon. Didn't matter.
Then—
"Breem."
Jacob stopped. He knelt down. His big hands pushed open heavy underground tunnel plates. Metal. Rusty. They groaned as they moved. He looked around one more time. Left. Right. Behind. No demons. Not yet.
He jumped in. His armor clinked as he landed.
"Let's go, Alucard," he said. His voice echoed up from the dark. "This tunnel leads all the way out of the kingdom."
I stood at the edge. I looked down. The tunnel was deep. Dark. Wet. The air smelled of mold and earth. I sighed deeply.
"Alright," I said.
I climbed down slowly. My hands gripped the cold metal ladder. My feet found each step. One by one. When I reached the bottom, I looked up. The circle of gray sky above was small. I reached up and pulled the plate closed.
*Clang.*
Darkness swallowed us.