Kingdom's Bloodline

Aida shook her head. She gazed at Kaslan intently as if to find an answer.

She did not understand.

However, Kaslan did not let her wait for long.

"Many years ago, I killed Xyra Darkstorm at Thirty-Eighth Sentry Ground..." The old man with white hair gradually opened his mouth to answer Aida’s questions.

"He struck me in the chest with an axe before he died." Kaslan stroked his left chest. With a complex expression, he looked at the machete by his side, and then at the Soul Slayer Pike. He sighed. "Who knows how many ribs were shattered... At that time, I was already awaiting death."

Aida’s complexion changed.

"That day, a mad military doctor called Ramon and a dwarf artisan with an exceptionally long name... snatched me back from the hands of the ferryman on Hell’s River with a bit of luck, trickery and creativity of either a genius or a madman."

Kaslan laughed bitterly and hit his chest.

*Clank! Clank!*

A strange sound came from his chest cavity. Unexpectedly, it did not sound like a part of the human body.

’This sound...’

Aida was stunned and her eyes gradually widened.

Kaslan sighed and told the truth, "Those two fellows used specially-made metal to replace and repair my poor ribs... God, the pain tortured me for an entire year."

A silence fell between the two for a while.

That was until Aida recovered her long-forgotten breathing after the shock.

The elf’s surprise surfaced on her face as her pupils slowly contracted. "Ribs made from... metal? How was it done?"

’Impossible.

’Whether it was to control the bleeding or handle the fractured bones, the fragile body of a human simply cannot withstand it...’

Kaslan inhaled in pain. His lungs were like damaged bellows as they produced gusts of awful airy sounds.

"I don’t know... kkhack."

Kaslan coughed violently and spat out a mouthful of blood. "The mad military officer said they used forbidden methods...

"Anyway, they were taken away by people from the Secret Room after that. Since then, they’ve disappeared without a trace."

Aida closed her eyes and frowned hard.

Drenched in cold sweat, she shook her head remorsefully. "So, my blade definitely hacked your chest, but it got stuck in the metal.

"That’s why I couldn’t kill you just now."

Kaslan laughed miserably.

"That’s right.

"If you had used a narrower dagger or short sword instead, you could have pierced through my blood vessels and I would’ve died.

"But as it happened, you had to use a machete with such an exaggerated arc." The old man shook his head, his eyes filled with subtle emotions.

Aida did not say a word. Lying on the ground, powerless to move, she sighed begrudgingly.

"Also, because of that previous ’accident’, my lungs suffered severe injuries. Until today, it still affects my breathing—I don’t how much longer I can live." Kaslan breathed excruciatingly and coughed foams of blood. "If we had continue fighting for a few more minutes, I wouldn’t have been able to persist anymore."

Aida’s complexion changed again, her mouth opening to form an O.

"What?" She endured severe pain as she resolutely straightened her body up. Her eyes were gaped open in an exaggerated manner. "If only I had known earlier..."

Kaslan revealed a bitter smile to her and nodded.

Aida did not seem to be behaving in the manner of a defeated person. She heaved a sigh of remorse and fell back to the ground with a thud. She had a grieved expression.

’God. Damn. It.

’If I had known earlier, I would’ve continued to drag the battle further.

’Why on earth did I stake everything in one throw?’

"And your psionic ability was a huge eye-opener for me." Kaslan smacked his chest and chuckled after a burst of coughs. "Fortunately when we first met, this matter didn’t cross my mind. Otherwise, you’d definitely be prepared..."

Aida looked as if she no longer cared about living as she subconsciously shook her head.

"You’re very intelligent as well, brat," she said dispiritedly. "Leaving only the two notions of ’survive’ and ’kill’ in your head, and handing over the rest to your own instincts... so that my ’mind reading’ wouldn’t be able to detect anything."

Kaslan’s smile froze.

He lowered his head and the white hair on the back fluttered.

"That was not intelligence," he plainly said. His eyes were dull and his tone was low.

Kaslan closed his eyes and slowly said, "On the most brutal battlefield, you will only have these two notions."

Aida raised one of her brows.

"Is that so?" The elf was seemingly trying to find something to distract herself from the excruciating pain in her shoulder. She puffed up one side of her cheek, and senselessly exhaled from the corner of her mouth before she silently said, "You’re not very old, only in your sixties. But... it seems like you’ve had plenty of experience on the battlefield."

"The battlefield?"

This time, Kaslan’s voice was very firm. "It’s hell.

"It’s a boundless hell that turns ordinary people into monsters.

"Over there, there are only two types of people.

"The dead, and the almost dead."

On the ground, Aida rolled her eyes.

"Thank you, though I can’t remember clearly," Kaslan seemed to have recovered a lot. He gloomily said, "Although I can’t remember it clearly, the feeling earlier... was just like returning to that hell, being faced with four to five different and terrifying opponents in an instant.

"Forcing me to unleash all my potential once again."

Aida snorted.

’Four to five opponents?

’He could even feel these things.’

Aida looked at the sky and asked weakly, "The Wrath of the Sea, correct?"

Kaslan’s brows twitched as he appeared a little surprised.

"You’ve realized." A few seconds later, the old man put on a faint smile. "I always thought that my Power of Eradication was a hidden secret—when I was serving in the army, all of them thought it was the Thawing of Glaciers."

Aida nodded indifferently. "The Wrath of the Sea, a rare Power of Eradication. Its amplification towards power and speed is small, but it can give you superb instinctive response. You will be able to react to any unforeseen situations."

"Just like the sea," Kaslan sighed as he confirmed. "No matter how terrifying a perilous situation is, the sea is unswerving from the beginning till the end, never shaken for tens of thousands of years."

Aida shrugged. However, this movement stirred up the severe injury in her right shoulder, which caused her to grimace again.

"Though there are some differences, that boy, Keira has the same Power of Eradication," Aida hissed and panted while she gritted her teeth. "I only thought of it when you took that horizontal shot."

Kaslan’s expression changed again.

"Prince Keira?" Kaslan’s tone was laced with a hint of agitation and excitement. "It is a great honor to actually be mentioned on the same terms as the legendary Enemy of the Wolves."

However, Aida’s face drooped just like a child refusing to admit defeat. She lay on the ground and shook her head firmly.

"How awful. If I hadn’t recognized it, I wouldn’t have decided to take the risk and strike with my blade." She stopped shaking her head. With a pitiful expression, she coldly said, "To trade injury for survival and break out of this stalemate while charging head first into death—this is the best way to face Keira and the Wrath of the Sea."

Kaslan smiled vaguely and slowly nodded.

"Sure enough, the Sacred Elves who started out with war and massacre are different from the conservative White Elves after all. Even if you give up your psionic ability, you would still be a terrifying warrior." Kaslan cast a glance at Aida and sighed. "Ultimately, you’re all not the same as those fellows who only know how to shoot arrows."

"I’ll accept your compliment, brat." Aida exhaled in boredom.

The both of them were silent for a few seconds.

"And you actually know of the Enemy of the Wolves from a hundred years ago... These so-called eternal beings coupled with hundreds and thousands of years of experience are indeed no joking matter," Kaslan slowly said. "Instructor Aida, may I take the liberty of asking for your age?"

"Age?" Aida’s eyes widened and her pupils whirled around. "Wait a minute, let me make some conversions..."

In that moment, Aida seemed to be in deep thought.

"My age," she plainly said.

"I was born in the ninth century after the Dragon Massacre War, the fourth century after the Battle of Survival and the day before the Eternal Tree withered," Aida’s tone turned low, but it carried a steady weight.

"The same age as the Empire."

There was an extra something in her gaze, but it settled down silently.

Kaslan was stunned. In that instant, the elf gave off the feeling of an innocent child who suddenly grew into a mature adult.

"Dragon Massacre War?" Kaslan tentatively asked.

"The last large-scale battle between the elves and dragons," Aida plainly said. "Humans also enlisted and engaged in the war as the elves’ servants.

"And towards the end of the war, it was known as the Holiness Exorcism Campaign when your people resisted the ancient orcs."

Kaslan suddenly trembled.

’The Holiness Exorcism Campaign... Then, wouldn’t that be...’

But at the next second, Aida swung her head.

"However, I was actually a late bloomer," her tone proceeded to turn soft and regained its previous indifference. "I used a full one thousand and eight hundred years. It took until the eve of the Third Peninsular War before I grew into adulthood."

In her heart, Aida wailed in anguish and sighed.

’Unlike elder sister’s abnormality of being fully grown three hours after birth.

’Right, I definitely can’t let her find out that I slandered her like this.

’Forget it, forget it, quickly forget it.’

Kaslan frowned.

’The... same age as the Ancient Empire?

’So, an elf over two thousand years old?

’Even if you start counting from adulthood, she’s also at least three hundred years old already.’

Kaslan silently scrutinized the elf on the floor and sighed. "A supreme class among elves, a monster amassed through time and experiences."

"Defeat is defeat," Aida snorted indifferently. "Besides, you’re already considered remarkable among inexperienced humans who can only rely on reflexes and quick-wit to make up for their inferiority."

"It’s just your bad luck." Kaslan smiled amiably and hit his chest.

"Right, such bad luck.

"I first meet a warrior who can seal his own consciousness and thoughts, hindering my biggest advantage." Aida spread her hands out, and with a helpless expression, she said, "Then, he ’decides’ to have a set of steel ribs."

Kaslan laughed out loud. His laughter triggered the old injury in his lungs and the old man began to cough violently.

"Battling with you... cough... was an honor in my late years." Kaslan had a tormented look on his face. Amid his coughs that seem to tear through his lungs, he grabbed his Soul Slayer Pike and forcibly said, "To be able to battle with Zakriel’s instructor after retiring from the military... I wouldn’t have dared to even think about it."

Aida twitched the corner of her mouth.

At the next second, her expression changed.

Kaslan reached out and picked up the Soul Slayer Pike.

Aida’s mood darkened.

The old man heaved a long sigh as he rotated the impressive, famed legendary anti-mystic equipment in his hands.

The head of the pike was slowly aimed at the elf on the ground.

Watching the sinister, pitch-black blade of the pike, Aida’s heart thumped.

The elf revealed eight beautiful teeth as she displayed an unsightly smile.

"I mean, can we talk this over..."

Not knowing if it was due to the pain or sadness, Aida scowled miserably as she spoke to the owner of the Soul Slayer Pike in a low voice, "Legendary anti-mystic equipment can’t be used misused, right...?"

Nevertheless, Kaslan’s following actions stunned her.

The old man smiled faintly as he propped up the pike on the ground and slowly stood up.

Leaning against the pike as support, Kaslan turned around and stepped across Aida’s side.

"I’m leaving now, Instructor Aida."

He limped away and turned his head around. He was beaming as he said, "You have to take care of yourself."

Aida’s expression turned rigid.

"Hey?" Aida braced her right shoulder and exposed her doubts with a pained expression. "You’re not planning to kill me?

"Or hold me captive?"

Kaslan exhaled and shook his head with a smile.

"I’ve already achieved my goal to ’deal with that supreme class elite’," the tavern owner said ruefully. "Also, you’ve already lost the strength to fight and you aren’t able to influence the situation anymore. That’s enough."

Aida’s eyes widened before she breathed a sigh of relief.

She pursed her lips and rolled her eyes.

In the next moment, the elf opened her mouth,

"So... will your boss agree to your actions then?"

Upon hearing that, Kaslan could not help but feel a little stunned.

’What?’

Immediately after, he unveiled a smile and impatiently said, "Yes, there’s that as well. Since you mentioned it, it’s not ideal to report back like this after all..."

Kaslan extracted the Soul Slayer pike that was propped on the ground. "In that case, I’ll act in accordance with your desire..."

The colors in Aida’s face changed in an instant.

"Hey, hey, hey, I was just saying it casually..." In a matter of a second, Aida’s face reverted back to its sorrowful mode. "Look, I’m already in such a state..."

Kaslan laughed out loud.

But a few seconds later, Kaslan restrained his laughter.

His expression slowly darkened. His brows twisted as he seemed a little pained.

"What I am doing now cannot be pardoned anymore."

Kaslan lowered his head and looked at the machete on the ground. His eyes were shrouded with complex and deep emotions. His tone was heavy and his words were desolate.

Aida concentrated her gaze slightly.

"I’m already at the point of no return." Kaslan’s gaze seemed distracted as he subconsciously said in a low voice, "At the very least, I can do something insignificant in these last moments to somewhat make up for it and console myself."

Aida stared at him blankly.

Kaslan just raised his head. Step by step, he stomped out of the wrecked street while he held up the Soul Slayer Pike.

A few seconds later, Aida struggled to sit up. Due to the pain in her right shoulder, her face was pale and cold sweat flowed down ceaselessly.

"Hey, brat." As she looked at Kaslan’s figure from the back, Aida hesitated. Eventually, she panted as she spat a few words out.

"We will meet again."

Kaslan paused for a moment.

With his back against Aida, he suddenly began to laugh.

His laughter was prolonged, its meaning desolate.

"No," he plainly said, without turning his head.

"Instructor Aida, I have a feeling..." The old man raised his head towards Heroic Spirits Palace in the distance. In a terrible mess, his white hair billowed in the wind. "I’m afraid we..."

Kaslan heaved a sigh and shook his head.

"...will not meet again."