Core Chamber

I could hear war cries, clanging weapons, and destruction in the distance. Making it to the end, the hall opened into an area where the goblin forces were battling against a giant clad in armor with a large glowing gem where the heart should be.

"What the hell is that thing?" I thought.

I witnessed the giant destroy the goblins. It looked as if they had been fighting for days to no avail. But the eighth prince seemed to be able to mark the armor which repairs itself after a short period of time, usually before the Prince could manage to mark it again.

It was apparent that I had two options in this situation. The first is to let them all die. The second would be to help. Kill the giant, resurrect it and have it kill them all. Either way, whatever it was guarding would be mine. And one less enemy in the Royal Uhnok family would be best for me.

the problem was that besides the gem of a heart, the armor-clad giant had one more distinct trait and the was the runes inscribed on the brow of its helmet. Which point to hit?

I waited and analyzed as more goblins grew weak and died. This was when power and experience conflicted. I need the power to take on the giant alone. The experience could help me con the Prince, but once I resurrect the giant, it still leads to a war that I'm not strong enough to handle.

Fuck it! The undead giant should even the odds, even if its deathcore replaces the beacon on its chest.

I abruptly used my telekinesis to send all twelve of my flying daggers into the large glowing gem embedded in the giant's chest.

I learned that my telekinesis-controlled flying daggers are less powerful than those controlled according to the Ten Thousand Minds technique. But with twelve daggers hitting the same spot, it got the job done beautifully.

The gem shattered. It was surprising that nothing was within the armor. But I was surprised more was that the gem shards faded and green golden energy flowed from the shards, into my body.

[Alert! The host has encountered a Titan's heart]

[Host is absorbing the blood Essence of a Titan]

[Vessel in is threatened!]

[Alert! The system is forcibly sealing blood essence of a Titan]

[Host can unseal blood after achieving 100 percent purity of the Uhnok Bloodline]

The party on goblins followed the energy and focused on me. Unfortunately, I couldn't resurrect a hunk of metal because it started moving again.

"Dodge!" I shouted.

A giant hammer crushed a goblin.

"Aim for the Helm!" I roared as I used Shadow Drift to blip around the room.

The Prince engaged putting the giant on defense. At the same time, my daggers and the attacks of the remaining goblins bombarded the helm, splitting it open. The Giant thrummed before exploding into metal shards.

'So you have to destroy the heart and the head...Good to know" I sighed. Unfortunately, now the damn thing really couldn't be resurrected.

"You're the one that came with Prince Bai Yi." said the Eight Prince.

"Hmm. I am." I replied.

His eyes narrowed then he relaxed. "Thanks for the save. We've been fighting that thing off and on for five days. We tried to look for information in the library but couldn't find a thing. How about you?"

I knew the prince was testing me. All of Prince Anon's texts were written in Earthen languages. Languages not spoken in Atoria. Even heroes have their native language magically converted upon summoning. But they still knew the language.

Prince Anon wanted his tomb to be inherited by someone like him, a reincarnated, or a hero who managed to stumble upon his tomb.

"I couldn't read the books. They were in some weird language. But I figured the gem was the most exposed part and it was shinning. So I wondered what would happen if I shattered it." I explained.

"And what if you had just destroyed a treasure?" A guard growled.

I laughed. "Treasure? I'm still level eight. It was no treasure to be had if I could destroy it."

"Enough." the eighth prince sighed, "What's done is done. But it was the helm that was the source of its demise. If we encounter another, you must all remember that. You, why are you here? I told Bai Yi this place is mine."

"Bai Yi is gone, he said I could roam as I pleased. I just ended up here. I don't want any trouble." I put my hands up.

The eighth prince took a moment then said, "Join us. With your contribution today, you're worthy enough to be a servant of my Uhnok family. Be happy."

"Thank you, Lord Prince," I replied with faux gratitude before following him.

I then noticed the bodies of fallen goblins. They weren't as good as the Titan but they could help me.

My hand twisted discreetly as I murmured, "Argatlam Riasa."

Shadows spilled from my body and dark magic impregnated the corpses and they rose one by one. But they did not move. They waited silently until the prince's party entered the next section of the tomb.

We soon arrived a the last boundary --a large stone wall with English text written across it.

'Only the blood of Uhnok may enter. All else will perish.'

I stifled my chuckles and decided to run a little short con.

"Eighth Prince, maybe there is a chosen person that Prince Anon is waiting for. They should try to open the doors first. If not, we may have to fight another titan."

"Little guy. You hide your presence in that beast cloak yet you give advice. You say your level eight but I can not see that. Remove the cloak, be honest." he said.

I bowed and removed the cloak.

The moment my appearance was known, the eighth prince was shocked.

"That explains a lot. I thought you were just a lucky merchant." The prince recognized me instantly. "Were you the one that used the Tier 7 Elemental Establishing Pill?"

"Yes, Lord," I replied.

"So the Goblin avatar belongs to you...Do you know what it means?" he asked.

"No lord. I'm just a simple goblin looking to get rich. As for the pill, I stole it from a shopkeeper. I thought It would raise my level."

"Then why are with the beast prince?" he asked.

"The elixir that I sold in the market. He wanted to know where I got it. In exchange, he let me join him here." I lied.

"Hmm. You are forbidden from touching the door. And when this is over, you will return to the palace with me. You'll be my Swordboy."

Swordboy was a term similar to squire but fitting all the needs of Goblin noble.

"Yes, Lord." I put my fist to my chest and dropped to one knee. The Eighth prince placed his hands on the magnificent doors and pushed.

"Ahh!" he hissed.

The door had taken blood and the next moment it rumbled. When a crack formed, dust blew out like a sand storm. Finally, the door fell to crumbs and relieved a treasure room with a single coffin at the end. Behind the coffin were three headstones made of obsidian.

Filled with treasure and money by the pile. The goblins rejoiced and praised the eighth prince. He believed on the Uhnok could open the way and wore a prideful smile.

"No one touches anything. This is the place of my Uhnok family. The shit probably booby-trapped like the rest of the tomb. Follow me and stay close." He spoke regally and all attendants saluted him as he stepped over the threshold into the core chamber.

The prince first picked up a pair of gauntlets and put them on. The resized to fit him. "Demon claws of the Wraiths. Prince Anon stole these during his raiding years." The Eighth Prince was in awe. "Many thought Prince Anon was too much of a thinker to inherit the throne when he showed his skill in battle, he quickly became feared. But when he died, everything he earned disappeared. It was a huge blow to our race. Now that I have founded it, the Dragon Hunt will end with our victory."

The goblins that listened murmured in agreement of the bright future that awaited the Goblin race in less than a year.

But they would never get to see it. Each of them began to sweat and emit low moans of discomfort.

"W-what's happening!?" The prince screamed as his people began to combust around us.

There wasn't the slightest chance that the tomb's attack could be defended against. The flames of a level 100 existence were tyrannical. The bodies burned to bones in a few breaths. The prince looked at me with red eyes, but how can a level 8 goblin possibly kill so many high-level fighters in an instant.

But there was one thing that the prince couldn't get over.

"How are you alive?" He asked.

"Because I'm like you," I replied as walked around the chamber looking at piles of Beast teals, Common coin, demon crystals, and Ahng. The four currencies of the continent.

"So you know what you are?" The prince looked offended once he realized I lied to his face. "Y-you knew this would happen! How?"

"Long before the Uhnok Avatar appeared. And the text on the door clearly said, 'Only the blood of Uhnok may enter, all else will perish'. That's one way to clear the field right?" I laughed as I picked up a silver dagger with runes etched into the steel.

"Y-you're just like them." he stammered.

I figured he was speaking of the elder princes.

"And you aren't?" I asked with amusement. I heard he was just as psychotic and found his chock and contempt amusing.

"I was going to protect you!" he roared, "The youngest has no place in the game of thrones. Our first sister is a monster and Second Brother is as cruel and vile as our father."

"Hahaha, Eighth Brother. Well, Ninth Brother, I am your Second Brother. And besides our sister, According to Royal law, I am the only one who has a legitimate claim to the throne. I am not a bastard."

As the prince was putting my words together, I was finished talking as I rose the dead guards and while those waiting finally entered.

"Eighth Brother, you have to die here. In this world, not even your own mind is safe from people with a strong enough curiosity and the abilities to satisfy it."

The prince laughed hysterically. "All this time I remained guarded. I pitied the boys and girls that were born bastards to my father and killed by my siblings. I wondered why the elders picked on the younger. But now I see why they do such things."

With a single thought, my undead soldiers pounced, and all of them attacked the prince, never tiring or retreating in pain or fear of death. Though the prince was obviously stronger than the average, it meant nothing under the siege of the dead with similar strength. Not to mention my dark affinity enhanced my necromancy.

I determined to make this a new secret weapon of mine as Necromancy had the sweet addictive taste of the Chthonic energy found in Ahng.

Watching the bloody battle, The prince slowly took advantage and I had to respect his power.

"Eclipse the sun: Dark Emersion!"

My Shadow Dragon manifested and his roar conjured a two-level magic circle that consumed the mana in my shadow pool at breakneck sped.

A moment later the core chamber went dark.

"Enough!" My brother roared and green energy erupted from, shattering my dark field.

Swish! Shunk! Crack!

As the dark field fell, I flashed stepped but the prince was ready for me. My knife pierced through his weakened body and into his heart. At the same time, the demon claw gauntlet made it halfway through my chest as my Iron Body emitted raw power.

"What the fuck are you? Gahh!" The prince said his final words and spit blood as my Shamanic Smelting flames pulse and ruptured his heart.

He then slumped into a corpse. The Demon claw ripped from my chest as the weight of my brother's body dragged it along with him.

I collapsed soon after as I struggled to breathe. The Demon claw had managed to punctured my lungs. An now that it was gone, I felt the damage.

'C-Clarissa! Help...Me!' I transmitted in mental distress as my lungs were pooling with blood.