"Detonate Mark." His voice rang out on the loud battlefield, yet the moment it did, all hell broke loose.
The monsters that had been fighting just moments ago halted, allowing his team to finish them off more quickly.
But what was even more surprising was the boss monster, suspended in the air, its body convulsing gruesomely.
That did not last long, as the skill's effects began to show more prominently.
All the monsters that had yet to be killed by his team suddenly exploded, similar to the Scrapfang Mini-Boss.
As for the Venomous Wasp Queen? Its body was as big as a balloon, yet its extremely strong skin prevented it from exploding.
Even that did not last long, as he dashed toward it and attempted to swing his right arm.
However, he immediately felt something off—his sword hovered beside him, his severed arm still gripping the hilt.
Immediately, the pain hit, but with a groan, he bore through it.
Raising his left hand, he held it out. Evangeline, other hand.
[Quite bossy today, aren't you? Oh, reckless one.] She remarked with a snicker before arriving in his arm. With a simple stab, he was able to pierce the boss monster.
Just as he did that, it finally popped, its innards flying everywhere—including onto his head.
Even with his attempts at dodging, he was unsuccessful, but since the toughest part was finished, he could only exhale an exhausted sigh.
The blood rained on him as he walked back to his stunned team and sat down right before them.
"Aella... Can you reattach my arm?" Neraxis spoke with a small smile, trying to hide the pain he was currently in.
However, he was met with a shake of the head. "I know I said I'm the best, but I can't reattach something like... that," she said while pointing to his arm.
It was cleanly ripped off at the elbow, yet it still hurt—a lot.
"It's fine, just make the bleeding stop at least," he expressed while glancing to the side. There were quite a lot of notifications surrounding him.
[156x (F+ Ranked Monster) Venomous Wasp Slain! Reward: Stigmata 0% -> 15.6%]
[2x (E Ranked Mini-Boss) Venomous Wasp Mutant Slain! Reward: Stigmata 15.6% -> 30.6%]
[1x (E+ Ranked Boss Monster) Venomous Wasp Queen Slain! Reward: Stigmata 30.6% -> 55.6%]
Damn, the boss sure gives a lot, huh? He stared in amazement as Aella went up to him and began slowly healing his arm—this time, without hitting him.
The gushing blood subsided, leaving him with an arm he would, unfortunately, have to go through the pain of reattaching.
While it might not be as excruciating as mending bones turned to dust, you never know.
"Done... I hope," Aella heaved a sigh of relief before standing back up and walking to the rest of the team, healing them.
I'd say this was a good haul, right? He thought to himself, yet a sudden bonk on the head by his own sword got him out of it.
[A good haul? Right. Don't you use three skills at once again. What are you, an idiot?] She reprimanded him before continuing, [Two skills are already considered difficult, which you somehow managed to pull off. However, three is a no-go—it kills most people.]
I've used six at once before. I know what I'm doing, Evangeline. I just kind of overestimated myself a tad bit. Neraxis chuckled inwardly.
Noticing he wasn't backing off, she decided to change the topic. [The skill I gave you is very unique—it descends from a Progenitor Vampire clan. I tweaked it so it doesn't turn you into a full-blown vampire, but still, you should try drinking someone's blood.]
And how exactly am I supposed to bring it up? "Hey, let me drink your blood"? Really? He questioned with disbelief, turning his gaze toward the team.
It seemed like Aella and Raeny were chatting about something, with Aurelia standing by the side looking directly at him.
Evangeline, what happens if I drink blood?
[As the skill says, you will nourish yourself. That is to say, you'll basically cast a heal on yourself. It might not be as effective on its own. However, Sanguine Ascendancy is a bit more overpowered than you might think.]
Fuck... I'm going to sound like a weirdo. Neraxis took a deep breath before gesturing for Aurelia to come over.
She looked puzzled but nonetheless walked up to him and sat down.
"Aurelia, I have a favor to ask of you," he spoke, feeling the inner embarrassment practically welling up inside of him.
"Yes?" she responded with a tilt of her head. It seemed that, after all that had happened, she was too tired to act shy anymore.
Neraxis went straight to the point. "Can I have a bit of your blood? There's something I want to try."
As soon as his words fell, her expression contorted into weariness. She looked around, noticing Aella and Raeny still talking among themselves.
But just as she was about to call out to them, he said, "Wait... I don't mean it in a bad way. I have a skill that lets me heal when I drink blood."
She slowly turned her head toward him. "A-Are you a vampire?"
Neraxis inwardly facepalmed at hearing that but shook his head in denial.
"But only vampires drink blood..." Aurelia shot back.
Noticing this was going in circles, Neraxis decided to drop the topic.
"Aurelia, it's fine if you don't want to do it. I'll be healed either way when we're back at the academy," he said while standing up and grabbing his other arm out of the air before quickly desummoning the sword.
Can you store my hand in that little storage of yours?
[It's still counted as alive. I'll be able to in a couple of minutes, though,] Evangeline answered before falling silent again.
That silence was interrupted when Aurelia grabbed him by his tattered academy uniform, turning him around and stretching her wrist toward him.
"H-Here, but only a little," she said reluctantly, closing her eyes.
"...Did I not just say I'm not a vampire?" Neraxis replied but proceeded to go along with it anyway.
Since he didn't exactly have fangs like vampires, he opted to use his sword.
"Don't move," he warned before slightly cutting the tip of her finger. Immediately, as the blood began dripping down, he began licking it.
Aurelia immediately let out a startled yelp, but before the others could turn around, he was already done.
The amount of blood he drew was little, and it healed quickly because of her abnormal regenerative factor—one of the perks of being awakened.
However, he could feel a tingly sensation in his arm, right at the stump.
Noticing the opportunity, he put his severed arm there, and immediately, the blood vessels and veins all began connecting, until eventually, they were fully combined.
His hand still felt cold, but he could move it freely once again.
Evangeline... is this?
[Yup, a budget regeneration skill—one much higher in rank than the one you were bragging about in the auction house. The more blood you drink, the more you stimulate the healing.]
Neraxis stared at his reattached arm in wonder. No pain, and nearly instant.
Just from a single drop of blood...