Born in Blood



"You're actually crazy!" Nord shouted as he laughed thrillingly, even as the Bloodguards were readily closing the distance.

Liam ignored the remark and flew towards Rin next. 

The deaf girl's feet boomed with a burst of explosive flames as she barely managed to intercept the ride, grabbing onto Nord's hand and rolling onto the tufts of bat fur.

Niveh and Nessa followed right after. With the added pair of hands, they pulled each other up with relative ease. 

From then on, Liam headed straight towards Jack's location. 

"Contact Jack, tell him we're coming and bringing some friends."

Liam's voice was disturbingly calm, but that only instilled confidence in his group. 

Nessa instantly took out her Jade and did as he instructed.

Tailing them not far behind were about two dozen armored Blood Bats, with a tall, mean looking lady at the forefront, standing atop her beast. 

"We're dead! We're dead!" Niveh uttered repeatedly, anxiously looking over her shoulder and meeting the woman's bloodthirsty gaze. "That's Madam Ursul, the Sanguine Witch!" 

As she said those words, the Legionnaire flicked her wrist.

Coagulations of blood gathered around her palms to form two long, transparent sickles. 

She hurled them at Liam's back with unreal speed, but as he evaded, the scythes clipped off a large chunk of flesh from the bat. 

The beast let out another screech of pain, its speed dulled once more.

Meanwhile, Liam's eye held a dark light as he swerved his ride and barely dodged the flurry of attacks shot at them. 

'If I eat another Rank 3 Nexus, won't my blood manipulation get stronger?' 

Nord and Rin blocked most of the attacks aiming for the bat's main body, but the Bloodguards shifted their attention to the wings. 

Liam looked over his shoulder as his group struggled to defend against the tide of vampires. 

Nord used most of his spells to push back the assault, his face growing slightly paler. 

Nessa was in the same boat, but she gulped down an elixir and resumed shooting streams of water from her hands. 

In between, she'd sneak in a 'fire surge' potion at them, which erupted into red flames that killed two of the chasers. 

Nessa burst into cheers, oblivious to her change in personality. 

Meanwhile, Rin was the most effective in countering the attackers. She hurled inscribed daggers that exploded upon contact with the bats, along with fireballs and lances of fire. 

The number of chasers were halved, yet the biggest threat was not taken care of.

"Coat the bat's wounds with your strings," Liam suddenly ordered Niveh. Letting go of the bat's reins, he looked to Nessa. "You drive."

The noble looked confused, but Liam already left the bat's head and walked to its back. 

"Where are you going?!" Nessa asked with an incredulous tone, but grumbled with a curse and gripped the bat's mane. 

Liam's probing gaze locked with the Legionnaire's, sparks forming in their scarlet and golden irises as they gauged each other's strength.

'She's stronger than Vxich, that's for sure,' Liam's eye turned cold. 'But then so am I.'

Slowly, the Sanguine Witch was getting closer. Her red lips curled upwards to form a sadistic smile, displaying her razor-sharp canines. Another pair of sickles formed in her hands, but she didn't throw them. 

Nessa continuously swerved and moved in unpredictable ways to evade the incoming attacks, but the chase wasn't close to being over.

They were still two weeks of flying away from reaching Jack's location, after all.

Nord and Rin gave Liam a worried side glance.

Why were they looking at each other like that? 

Liam simply had his black blades unsheathed as he stared at the Rank 3 vampire in calm silence. 

The distance was readily getting closed, and the Sanguine Witch's smile grew broader.

Suddenly, under everyone's incredulous gaze, Liam crouched, activated Fleeting Foot, slid his feet behind the bat's rear, then leapt forward like a tightened spring at the Rank 3 vampire.

Madam Ursul smiled joyously at Liam's arrival. From just a glance, she knew what he was planning to do. 

All she needed to do to end the fight then and there was to change her bat's direction and let Liam plunge to his death. 

…But she didn't. 

Her cheeks were flushed red as her sickles smashed against Liam's wakizashi and katana. 

CLING! 

"I LOVE THE CRAZY ONES! BECOME MY PET!"

A barrage of instantaneous attacks followed as soon as Liam found his footing. 

Liam focused all his pressure and bloodlust on the vampire, making her wince in pain and recoil, but the smile didn't leave her euphoric face.

Shards of hardened blood and dark bone from their weapons started to shatter.

Deep, corroding cuts started to appear all over the vampire's body. 

Liam let loose his chains and needles, followed by quick executions of his martial arts.

Slowly, the smile on her lips started to die down. As the fight continued, her elated expression changed to one of worry.

She hadn't landed a single strike!

Any time she was about to, her sickle went straight through Liam's misty body.

Meanwhile, entire chunks of her flesh were cleaved right off.

Ducking under the sickle that was nearly severed off his head, Liam activated Cartilage Brace and shot four needles at Ursul's neck, then weaved in and attempted to thrust his katana into her chest.

The Sanguine Witch sidestepped while her pores secreted a membrane that slowly covered her body, barely evading the needles.

Liam watched in slow motion.

It was his first time fighting seriously since advancing to a Rank 2 Magus, but every movement he made was crisp and precise, like his mind and body were one. 

Not to mention, he predicted every one of the vampire's attacks and didn't attain even a single wound. 

What he saw before as an impenetrable defense, was now filled with openings he could take advantage of. 

Liam's shortsword tore through a spot in the membrane before it fully formed, piercing through the Witch's abdomen. 

Before she could counter appropriately, Liam's katana changed trajectory mid attack. 

Instead of aiming for the chest, it changed target and swiped horizontally against the woman's neck, cleanly severing off her head in one swift movement.

The last thing she saw before her vision went dark was Liam's grim and mocking smile.

"You said something about a pet?"