Kingdom Bloodline

Chapter 182 Gentle Kiss
No.

Thales slowly clenched his back teeth.

He can't give up.

It's not over yet.

still have a chance.

Didn't Black Sword say... a strong person...?

We must take all factors into account and bet everything!
All for the final victory.

Bargaining chips.

What other bargaining chips do I have left?
Thales gritted his teeth and forced himself to calm down in just a few seconds.

The Northern Army's swordsmanship, which he had only practiced for a month, was almost useless.

The River of Hell's Sin, far exceeding the body's limits, is almost unusable...

The Blade of Purification, lost amidst countless lives...

The inexplicable magical energy that had just transformed him into an impenetrable phantom...

The title of Prince of the Stars, the status of a candidate for Magic Master...

No.

and many more.

and also.

There's one more chip.

The same in the end.

Thales stared intently at the first monster charging towards him, his fists clenched.

Giza's smile grew increasingly relaxed.

The next moment, Thales gritted his teeth and stretched out his trembling right hand behind his back.

When he withdrew his hand again, there was now a weapon on it.

It was an insignificant dagger.

One side of the dagger was stained with blood from inside the tentacles.

Two letters were reflected on the blade.

JC
Giza was slightly taken aback by his actions.

Thales, panting heavily, tremblingly raised his dagger at the monster so close to him.

"A dagger?" The mage chuckled. "That's not some legendary anti-magic weapon—are you going to use that thing to stab me?"

dagger.

Giza watched silently as the boy holding the dagger was surrounded and attacked by monsters.

This scene.

Doesn't it look familiar?

Thales lay on the ground, his lips trembling, weakly pulling open his iron body stance to block the first monster.

"clang!"

"No." Thales rolled to the side in pain, dodging the monster's spikes, feeling his muscles growing increasingly sore.

He gasped for breath, straining to lift his head, ignoring the other monsters continuing to rush towards him, and stared straight back at the Blood Mage.

"I'm not stabbing you..."

The next moment, Giza was taken aback, and then looked at the boy with a puzzled expression as he put the dagger into his left palm.

Thales said quietly:
"It's a thorn in my side."

Two monsters lunged into his arms, thrusting their sharp spikes at him.

The boy, his face ashen, simply pulled hard on the blade of the dagger in his hand.

Pain and warmth came from the palm of my hand at the same time.

With his physical strength at its limit, Thales' eyes glazed over as several monsters pounced on his body.

She tackled him to the ground.

The familiar burning sensation came from within my body, slowly turning into a scorching feeling.

Scenes flashed before Thales' eyes.

He raised his dagger and charged at the vicious Quaid.

He lay on Yara's back, and the two raced through the streets.

In the dungeon of the vineyard, he reached for the locks on Rolf's body.

He stood in the Hall of Stars, clenching his teeth, and addressed the kingdom's lords.

With his hands bound, he struggled to his feet as he faced Serena, who seemed certain of victory.

He held Arakka tightly around the neck amidst the bloody encirclement of Black Sand Territory.

He struggled to pick up the greatsword before the five grand dukes of Exeter.

Under the piercing gazes of Ashida and Black Sword, he raised his hand and spoke, his scalp tingling.

It's just another game.

A familiar and gentle voice rang in his ears.

The burning and scalding sensation intensified.

He needs to win.

This all needs to be put to an end.

The best approach is needed.

need……

Giza squinted as she watched the countless little monsters rush towards Thales on the ground, covering him completely.

"Hiss..."

She was satisfied.

She knew that her little darlings would mercilessly kill the boy who wasn't even a magic user yet, but had inexplicably knocked on her door.

But that's about it.

The Blood Mage seemed to sense something, and his whole body trembled violently!

what?
A beam of red light emanated from the boy's direction amidst the dense horde of monsters.

Then the second, third, fourth...

The light grew brighter and brighter, illuminating this cavern of flesh and blood.

Giza looked at the scene in astonishment.

Until those pitch-black monsters all trembled!
A few wisps of dust drifted out from the gaps between the dense monsters.

The ashes are increasing.

The pitch-black monsters fell helplessly, shrinking, dissolving, and charring.

Then it turned to ashes.

Finally, most of the dark monsters disappeared, leaving only a few barely escaping by hiding and dodging.

The Blood Mage stared in disbelief at the boy who had risen again from countless piles of flesh and ashes.

"how come……"

Thales knelt on the ground, his right hand on his knee, bending over and panting.

He almost bit his teeth off.

I don’t know when.

The Blade of Purification—that lost, magical little red sword—has reappeared in his trembling left hand.

The sword's edge was crimson, gleaming brilliantly.

"Is it your ability again?" Giza stared at Thales's left and right, his face grim, as if trying to bore a hole through his palms. "No, you're going further and further down the path of misfortune..."

Thales frowned.

Unlucky?

"Magician...this is not a talent or a blessing..." the magician said slowly, his eyes filled with severity and hatred, "it is a curse and misfortune..."

Thales braced himself on the ground, listening to her words, gripping the Purifying Blade that had suddenly appeared in his left hand, and spat out a mouthful of saliva.

"enough!"

The second prince roared in frustration.

Giza stopped talking and looked at him in surprise.

“You madman who won’t listen to anyone,” Thales struggled to his feet. “Listen up!”

He stepped forward and cleaved one of the intercepting tentacles into ashes with a single sword strike.

“Aishida wants to force me to become a mage,” Thales felt unsteady on his feet and his body ached, but he still gritted his teeth and walked forward step by step: “And you, you want to stop me from becoming a mage?”

“Go to hell,” Thales gasped, “go to hell with you all.”

The Blood Mage watched him silently.

"Since coming into this world, I have always done the same thing."

Thales exhaled and with another strike, pierced through two of the monsters that were trying to sneak up on his left leg, watching it turn to ashes under the blade.

“Struggle, survive, that’s all,” Thales said, taking a difficult step forward, “whether you’re a beggar or a prince.”

Giza squinted, her gaze complex and profound.

“But I don’t like this world. I want the freedom to choose, to choose the life I want,” Thales said hoarsely, taking another deep breath of the foul, rotten air.

"Choose the person I want to be—without being pushed, forced, or pulled by anyone else!"

"I struggled with this."

Thales walked up to Giza, his eyes resolute and determined.

"This is the real me."

"Tales Shining Star".

The Blood Mage stared intently at him, without uttering a word.

But the next moment, something unexpected happened!

"boom!"

It was as if a torrent surged through Thales's veins and throughout his body!
In an instant, Thales felt a tearing sensation travel from the Blade of Purification in his hand to his hand.

It felt like someone was cutting his palm.

Thales suddenly looked down at the Blade of Purification in his hand—and saw that the red light on it was growing stronger.

what happened?

In the next instant, the cutting pain escalated into excruciating agony!

It spread throughout the body.

"Ahhhh!"

Thales could no longer bear it; his face contorted in agony as he screamed.

The Blade of Purification...is rejecting him?

The pain traveled from his arm into his body, causing Thales to tremble and kneel on the ground.

Oops……

Oops!

The pain was getting worse and worse—it felt like the weapon was destroying everything he owned!
He remembered:
The legendary anti-magic weapon... is the nemesis of magic users?
Despite the excruciating pain and trembling, Thales desperately tried to shake off the Blade of Purification in his hand... but he couldn't get rid of it at all!

It's like it's stuck to your hand.

He recalled Serena's words with deep regret.

He also recalled the stinging sensation he felt when he was on Arakka's back, when the Immovable Bow was activated.

But the stinging pain back then is nothing compared to the excruciating pain I feel now!

Just then, Giza laughed.

“You’re still too young,” Thales said, looking at the Blood Mage’s expression in disbelief as she gently said, “You wanted to deal with me, so you had to get your hands on a legendary anti-magic weapon, right? And you did succeed—with your still-developing magical energy.”

“But…haven’t you almost forgotten,” Giza sighed, “that you’re practically a half-magician yourself?”

"Ah!" Thales cried out in pain.

Panic struck again.

Giza...

Has she even thought of this much?
He recalled Giza's words: "That's not some legendary anti-magic weapon, is it—are you going to use that thing to stab me?"

So… Thales thought regretfully: Back then, when she had the upper hand, she had already hinted to herself and made arrangements for her possible counterattack later?
Just to limit his vision to the Blade of Purification?
“Hehehe,” the Blood Mage shook his head and said, “Look, this is one of the tragedies of mages—this little thing can suppress us so completely.”

"Even if you are not a true mage, the mage energy you have used before is enough to make it effective."

"And if you truly become a magic user..."

Giza looked at Thales, who was screaming in agony, her smile fading, and a look of sorrow appearing in her eyes:

"The moment you touched it, you lost consciousness and power forever, entering an eternal seal."

Thales had no interest in listening to her; he felt as if he was about to be swallowed up by the power emanating from the sword!
"Don't worry, I'll help you get out of this predicament."

Giza sighed. "If becoming a mage is your inevitable destiny," the mage said calmly, "then let me save you."

"As I promised."

save?

Save my ass!
Thales kept his eyes tightly shut, enduring the repulsion from the Blade of Purification.

He really wanted to let go.

But in the extreme pain, his face contorted, he could barely feel his own hands.

Giza took a deep breath, and with the power of the mage's consciousness, another batch of tentacles grew out of the flesh and blood beside Thales.

Slowly aim at the boy who was being repelled by the legendary anti-magic forces and unable to move.

Once again, Giza flashed a charming smile.

The flesh and blood beneath Thales' feet transformed into a trap, firmly binding him.

The tentacles slashed out with sharp spikes, preparing for the next attack.

No.

Thales kept his eyes tightly shut, his whole body trembling.

Do not!
Just at this time.

A burning sensation, similar to the one I felt when I first grasped the Blade of Purification, suddenly came from my hand!

The red light on the sword's edge gathered as if it were tangible, and traveled along the edge to Thales' left hand.

Thales was jolted awake!
In that instant, it felt as if he had been touched by a hand.

It seems even the pain has subsided?

The red light continued to slowly climb upwards along the veins on the back of Thales' left hand.

It looked as if glowing blood was flowing through a blood vessel, which was extremely eerie.

For some reason, after the Blade of Purification emitted a red light that he found intensely hot and entered his body, Thales suddenly felt that the feeling of being cut and repelled was actually beginning to diminish!

Thales took a deep breath—he had been holding his breath for so long in extreme pain that he had forgotten how to breathe—and felt his hands again.

The excruciating, cutting pain gradually subsided into a slightly tolerable stinging sensation.

What is the principle of this?
It actually... alleviated the legendary anti-magic forces' rejection of me?

Thales trembled, his suspicions about the sword deepening.

But he was saved after all.

Thales slowly stood up.
He raised his head and stared intently at Giza, a strange look in his eyes.

Giza's expression shifted, noticing his unusual behavior: "You..."

Thales looked at her, then at the flesh trap beneath his feet and the tentacled spikes around him, feeling the stinging and burning sensation from the blade in his hand.

“Perhaps one day I will become a mage,” Thales said slowly, enduring the sensation in his hand, “but certainly not because of some unavoidable fate or a choice I had no other choice.”

Giza's pupils contracted on the "wall".

"It's because I want to become a mage."

Thales bit his lower lip and lowered his head.

"I will use my own eyes to see clearly what a magic user is, and I will judge and understand what magic power is for myself."

"What kind of power will we gain, and what kind of risks will we face?"

“Then, I will decide whether or not I want to become a mage,” Thales raised his head, his eyes filled with unwavering determination: “and what kind of mage I want to become.”

"How far I can climb and what kind of scenery I can see are not important. What is important is that it must be my own choice."

"This is what I have struggled for and worked hard for ever since I came into this world."

Thales let out a final breath.

Then, he raised his sword and slashed across the trap beneath his feet and the tentacles surrounding him.

From the ashes, Thales, supporting his trembling legs, stood up again.

Giza's eyes flickered.

"Don't think about it!"

The girl parted her lips in a smile, her eyes cold and aloof.

Soon, Thales felt his feet sway!
The continuous, layered tremors that had previously caused him to fall to the ground and lose his grip on the sword reappeared beneath Thales' feet!

Thales swayed and staggered.

But he had been there before, and Thales reacted quickly by kneeling down, lowering his upper body, and simultaneously plunging the Blade of Purification deep into the flesh beneath his feet.

To prevent him from falling again.

The flesh sizzled like it was being roasted, slowly dissolving, evaporating, and turning black.

Then it turns to ashes.

The ground, made of flesh and blood, contracted with the tremors, as if groaning in pain.

Giza let out a low, angry howl of resentment.

Thankfully… Thales thought to himself: He managed to stay upright despite the same tremor.

The next thing to do is...

"Forget it."

Giza stood a dozen steps in front of him and said coldly, "You can't even stand up, let alone get close to me, let alone seal me with that weapon."

Thales frowned.

"Let's see..."

The flesh around Thales bulged up again, and the outlines of monsters emerged from it.

The Blood Mage narrowed his eyes, staring at the Purifying Blade that Thales had planted in the ground:
"Is that sword of yours... meant for maintaining balance, or for eliminating enemies?"

That instant.

Thales suddenly had a strange feeling.

Monsters were being born from flesh and blood all around, but Thales paid them no heed—he no longer cared what kind of creatures they were or whether they were dangerous.

He seemed to have entered that state again.

That feeling of being detached from emotions and lost in ethereal thoughts, which I had experienced before, surged up again.

It's just... not as thorough, as wonderful, or as... enjoyable as "before".

Thales glanced at Giza in the distance.

It's a distance of about ten steps.

With the ground trembling endlessly, I couldn't even stand up straight, and it seemed impossible to get any closer.

but……

Even though it seems far away from him.

For some reason, Thales knew that his sword could pierce Giza.

Yes.

Thinking about it this way, the stinging sensation in my hand suddenly intensified!

Thales smiled slightly.

He understood somewhat.

He knew that in this state, he seemed to be able to utilize more magical energy.

Even though he didn't even know what magic power was.

but……

Since the Purifying Edge's rejection of him has intensified once again—

That's right.

Thales grinned, his smile growing wider and wider.

Giza remained expressionless as her monsters once again advanced towards Thales.

But Thales just gasped for breath, clutching the Cleansing Blade stuck in the ground.

Then pull it out!
In the instant that countless fleshy monsters rushed toward him, Thales knelt on the ground, raised the Blade of Purification in his hand, and gently pushed Giza, who was a dozen steps away.

boom!
The sound of his blood vessels surging rang in his ears.

At that moment, the pain and cutting sensation that the Blade of Purification inflicted on Thales, and its rejection of him, were greater than ever before!
But Thales didn't care.

He succeeded.

Giza lowered her head in disbelief.

"When..." the girl asked, puzzled.

I don’t know when.

Thales had already covered a distance of more than ten steps in an instant.

He knelt before the mage.

The red blade in his hand was already deeply embedded in Giza's naked abdomen.

Thales remained calm.

Giza stared at her wound, trembling, then glanced at Thales.

But the next second, a look of relief appeared on the girl's face.

It was as if she had been waiting for this moment for a long time.

"So, this is our ending."

Giza spoke casually, as if he didn't care at all.

Completely disregarding the fact that a legendary anti-magic weapon was currently embedded in his abdomen.

Thales withdrew the Blade of Purification.

Blood seeped from the sword's edge and the girl's abdomen.

Then it slowly evaporates and dissolves.

Along with it, all the tissues in the abdomen withered and charred.

In that instant, Thales pulled himself out of that strange state.

Thales took a deep breath, like the first breath of air upon surfacing.

Many emotions returned to his mind.

He stared blankly at the Blade of Purification in his hand.

He then raised his gaze in a daze, looking at the Blood Mage with a gentle expression and a relieved demeanor.

"Thank you for your hard work, kid."

Giza slowly reached out and gently stroked Thales's face: "Take care of yourself."

For some reason, Thales felt that Giza was filled with complex emotions at this moment.

“I’m sorry, I couldn’t help you,” Giza said softly.

what happened?

Thales' breathing gradually calmed down.

"I'm sorry." Giza's eyes welled up with tears. "You'll have to walk the rest of the road yourself."

At that moment, Thales felt absolutely no hostility towards this young girl.

The lovely girl slowly lowered her head, and the purplish-red markings on her body gradually faded away.

She gently lowered her soft lips to Thales' forehead...

A gentle kiss.

Thales trembled slightly!
Seeing Thales' reaction, Giza chuckled softly, then slowly exhaled:

"Watch out for Ashida."

These were the last words of Giza Trillman, the Blood Mage.

The next moment, the girl with the gentle smile began to crack from her face.

Her face, along with her smile, slowly crumbled like a broken sculpture.

Then it's the neck, chest, abdomen... the whole body.

In just a few seconds, the Blood Mage, along with the interior of this enormous tentacle, turned into countless ashes of varying sizes.

The night sky over Dragon Sky City reappeared before Thales' eyes.

Ashes rose into the air.

Like countless black butterflies.

Scattered across the sky.

In the distance, all the creations of the Blood Mage—flesh, monsters, tentacles, and severed limbs—withered, charred, and dissolved simultaneously.

All turned to ashes.

Only Thales remained, dazedly holding onto the Blade of Purification, watching the ashes around him drift away with the wind, utterly bewildered.

Wow, I actually updated twice!

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(End of this chapter)