Rumble!
A portal opened amid a burst of light, and Zeke emerged into the heart of the forest alongside the Third-Eye Clan siblings and the children of the Irregular, arriving at Nigel's wooden house.
Nigel's wooden house appeared ramshackle from the outside, but in truth, it was enveloped by multiple layers of grand-scale defensive magic circles laid down by dragons.
This place was the safest spot in the forest, even if a legion of demonkind invaded.
At that moment, Nabu stepped out from inside the house.
"Huh? What the—?"
Nabu had been working with Manna to reinforce the Seal of the Black Star. The sudden arrival of Zeke through a portal had caught him off guard.
Zeke brushed past the surprised Nabu and carried the children of the Irregular into the house, laying them down on the beds.
Nabu approached Zeke, eyeing his actions.
"I sent you to raid the supply depot, and instead you come back hauling a bunch of kids?"
After settling the children, Zeke turned to Nabu.
"These kids were the energy sources powering the Gate with mana."
"Huh?"
Nabu's eyes widened at Zeke's words. A moment later, he formed a circle with his thumb and forefinger, peering through it at the children lying on the beds.
He recoiled in surprise and lowered his hand.
"These are Irregulars?" Zeke nodded.
"I think so, but even Irregulars can't supply infinite mana to a Gate, right?"
Nabu nodded at Zeke's question and approached the children on the beds.
This time, he formed circles with both hands and peered through them with his eyes.
"Hmm..."
Nabu let out a thoughtful hum as he examined the three children of the Irregular.
After staring for a long while, he nodded.
"Well, this is a rare case." He turned to Zeke.
"These kids are triplets."
"Triplets?"
He had suspected they might be siblings given their similar hair color and features, but triplets? That was unexpected.
Nabu stroked his chin.
"Ancient records mention that twins are born with mysteries that defy interpretation from the start. Triplets, even more so, would carry profound enigmas."
"Does that mean these children possess infinite mana because they are Irregular triplets?"
Nabu shook his head at Zeke's question.
"Not exactly. The reason they emit infinite mana is that they carry sacred blood."
"Sacred blood... You mean they're of Nephilim lineage?"
"Yes, though it's extremely rare, offspring can be born from unions between Nephilim and humans. In ancient times, such children were called 'children of angels.'"
"Children of angels... So these kids were born against impossible odds: triplets, Irregulars, and bearers of sacred blood." Nabu nodded.
"Honestly, the chances of such a combination occurring naturally are hard to fathom. In any case, it seems these children have an innate ability to draw in surrounding mana and accumulate infinite magical power within their bodies."
"Infinite mana... That's incredible."
"It's actually a common trait among children of angels. But even with sacred blood, their bodies are human. According to ancient records, children of angels have short lifespans and die before age ten."
Zeke glanced at the children on the beds.
"They look older than that."
"My guess is that their Irregular nature allows their bodies to withstand the accumulated mana. Being triplets probably helps too."
Irregulars were stigmas created by the God of Chaos to tear rifts into the Phenomenal World.
They could transcend the laws of a normal world, so Nabu's explanation made sense.
Zeke looked away from the triplets and asked Nabu.
"Can these children be saved?"
Nabu pondered, gazing at the kids.
"Hmm, I'm a scholar, not a doctor, so I can't say for certain."
"If even you don't know, who would?"
Nabu gave Zeke a puzzled look at his words.
"What do you mean? There's someone more skilled in medicine than me on the
High Table."
"Who's that?"
Nabu shook his head.
"You didn't know that old hag Nigel is exceptional at medicine?"
"What? My master?"
In his past and present lives combined, Zeke's memories of Nigel were filled with beatings, so he had never considered her skilled in medicine.
"Come to think of it, surviving those beatings means she must know a thing or two about healing."
Moreover, opening Zeke's middle dantian as a human—that wasn't something ordinary knowledge could achieve.
Nodding at Nabu's words, Zeke said.
"Then I need to retrieve my master from those demonkind to treat these children."
"Yes, Nigel could probably do it. But are those kids outside Irregulars too?"
"It's a bit complicated to explain... You can think of them as descendants of the ancient
Third-Eye Clan who have chosen to follow me."
"Huh? The Third-Eye Clan... You sure attract all sorts of wondrous folk." As they caught their breath amid the conversation, it happened.
Screeech!
A sound like the sky tearing apart echoed from outside.
Zeke and Nabu rushed out of the wooden house in alarm.
Titus and Yulina, waiting outside, had their Blood Eyes activated, on high alert.
Zeke drew Ascalon and positioned himself in front of the Third-Eye Clan siblings, glaring at whatever was causing the anomaly.
Sizzle...
A crow formed of black energy appeared, cawing on the ground as its body began to grow.
Crunch!
Moments later, the crow unfurled wings spanning over two meters, revealing a massive form.
It resembled the Zoin tribe overall, but the wings on its back set it apart.
The transformed crow demonkind looked at Zeke's group and spoke.
[The adopted daughter of the Demon Archlord, craftsman of demons, princess of the
Demon Realm who commands ten thousand demonkind, bearer of inescapable allure—!] Swoosh!
Before the crow demonkind could finish, Zeke unleashed a sword strike.
Boom!
The strike exploded, kicking up a cloud of dust.
As the dust cleared, the crow demonkind emerged, having wrapped itself in its two wings to block the attack.
Its eyes, visible between the wings, blazed red.
[Humans without a shred of manners...]
Zeke stepped forward, raising his sword.
"I have no intention of learning etiquette from demonkind. You'll regret breaching the barrier to reach here."
Humm!
As he spoke, radiant light surged from Zeke's sword.
The light, infused with energy lethal to any being with demonic qi upon mere contact, emanated from the holy sword.
Sensing the ominous power of the holy sword, the crow demonkind panicked and retreated.
"W-Wait! I bear a message from Her Highness Anastasia of the Demon Realm!" "I have no need for messages from demonkind." Crackle!
Lightning of light erupted from Zeke's holy sword, striking the crow demonkind's body.
It tried to dodge backward in haste, but to no avail.
Crackle!
Struck by the light's lightning, the crow demonkind turned to black ash and scattered before it could scream.
Nabu and the Third-Eye Clan siblings gaped at Zeke's decisive elimination of the demonkind.
But then, black miasma rose from the scattered ashes on the ground.
The rising miasma coalesced into a face.
A woman's face with horns protruding from her forehead formed from the miasma, and a voice emanated from it.
[To kill my messenger in one blow... You're quite to my liking, Zeke Draker.] This was the top-tier demonkind who had sent the message.
Anastasia herself had appeared.
Her face, formed from miasma, looked at Zeke and spoke.
[Zeke Draker, you must know that your master Nigel is with me.]
"Why did you take that dangerous woman? Don't do something pointless and get yourself obliterated—send my master back quietly." Anastasia laughed loudly at Zeke's words.
[Just like what I saw in Nigel's memories. I like you even more.]
Zeke didn't miss Anastasia's mention of "Nigel's memories."
"Peering into the memories of my master, a High Table member... So she's a demonkind with mental world abilities."
The crow demonkind had introduced Anastasia as the adopted daughter of the Demon Archlord, craftsman of demons.
"If she's an avatar of the Demon Archlord and can wield that authority, she's no one to underestimate. She could harm my master with it or even uncover the seal's method..." He needed to find a way to rescue Nigel as quickly as possible.
At that moment, Anastasia looked at Zeke and said.
[Listen, Zeke Draker. I have a proposal for you.] She smiled seductively.
[You'll come to where I am to destroy the Gate anyway. Instead of that, let's make a bet.]
As far as Zeke knew, one had to be most wary when demonkind mentioned bets or contracts.
But given the situation, Zeke decided to hear her out first.
"What kind of bet?"
[Come to where I am and face me in combat. If you win, I'll hand over Nigel, and we'll withdraw from here. However.]
Anastasia's miasma-formed face drew closer to Zeke.
[If I win, the Black Star and you—both become mine.]
*
Baron, the Black Stage Captain, entered the family head's office at the Four Seasons Star.
"Family Head. You called for me?"
Receiving no response, Baron scanned the office, but Arthur was nowhere to be seen.
He slowly proceeded to the inner room.
Passing Arthur's private storage for personal items, Baron went deeper and stood before a crystal orb on the inner wall. He removed his glove and placed his hand on it.
Humm—
Surprisingly, the orb reacted to Baron's hand, activating a portal.
The room's scenery shifted, revealing a cavern chamber.
Baron, familiar with the path, traversed the corridor and stopped before a door emblazoned with the Draker crest of the Absolute Sword House.
As he reached out, the door slowly opened.
Rumble!
This secret space, which even Karina and Abel had never seen, opened easily for Baron.
Baron passed the Sword God Statue standing in the secret chamber and entered through the arched door.
The Sword Grave appeared, with swords of past Draker family heads embedded in the floor.
There, Baron found the family head, Arthur Draker.
Arthur Draker stood before a crude black claymore.
Unknown to the world, it was the sword of the Draker progenitor, Sword Saint Shattan Draker.
Arthur Draker gazed silently at the sword.
Baron approached and bowed his head.
"Family Head."
Only then did Arthur snap out of his trance and turn.
"Baron, you've come."
He glanced at Baron briefly before returning his gaze to the black claymore.
Then, he spoke to Baron.
"Zeke couldn't draw this sword either."
At Arthur's words, Baron lifted his head and opened his mouth.
"Did you hope the sword would be drawn?" Arthur smirked at that.
"Who knows... Seeing Zeke stirs complicated feelings. I'm not even sure what I want from that child."
He turned to Baron.
"This is a first for me. No, not the first. Laura Agamemnon was the same." At the mention of Laura Agamemnon, Arthur's eyes darkened.
It was an expression that had never been seen on his usual face.
Soon, Arthur composed himself and reached out, grasping the hilt of the black claymore.
Rumble—
A tremendous energy rippled from his body, shaking the entire Sword Grave.
It seemed as if the place might collapse at any moment.
Yet the sword did not budge.
Finally, Arthur released the hilt, and the surging energy vanished.
"Hmm."
He stared at the unmoving black claymore for a moment before turning away.
Then, he said to Baron.
"Baron, it seems we can't just sit idle like this. With the Red Moon rising soon... That plan
I mentioned last time. We need to implement it." Baron raised an eyebrow at Arthur's words.
"Executing that plan will have a massive impact on the entire Midland."
"Yes, that's the point—it has to."
Arthur smirked and patted Baron's shoulder.
"Spread word of my death across the continent. That's how we'll draw out the rats hiding in the shadows."