Blood feast

In a lush forest with tall grass, lay five lifeless bodies. Their blood-stained forms created a stark contrast with the natural beauty of the surrounding environment. Next to the deceased lay a man, his ordinary appearance obscured by a curtain of jet-black hair. The only distinctive feature about him was his piercing emerald eyes; otherwise, he would easily fade from memory.

The man was engaged in a shocking act, one considered taboo in contemporary society. His hands, stained with blood, were occupied with collecting the crimson liquid in glass bottles. Sometimes, the flow of blood would cease, prompting the man to make deeper incisions with a knife resembling flint. Coupled with his icy expression, this gruesome sight would surely disturb anyone with a fragile heart.

After successfully filling five bottles with blood, the man turned to one of the lifeless bodies and sank his teeth into it, slowly consuming as much blood as possible. One by one, the bodies began to wither due to their loss of blood, eventually resembling mummies. The man himself was astonished by the vast quantity of blood he had consumed.

The man was Frederick, who, after dying once more, had gained Blood Dominion. He made his way directly to Hiro and Alexei, employing a similar strategy as before to convince them to create a bag for transporting food. However, this time, he decided not to interfere with Ethan and Amely, allowing them to meet Hiro and Alexei.

It didn't matter whether the 'bloody grandma,' the original user of Blood Dominion, killed them or if Frederick did it himself. He considered it a waste of time and energy, as the result would yield the same amount of experience points.

Instead, he shifted his focus to a group of soldiers and conducted the same trade as before, exchanging valuable information for a knife. This time, the knife wasn't primarily for self-defense but an additional tool to make corpses bleed more effectively for blood collection. Strangely, Thomas, the soldier with the ability to detect lies, consistently wore an anxious expression during their interactions.

With the knife in hand, Frederick wasted no time. He promptly began harvesting experience points and authorities from Bloody Grandma using the same stone. During this process, he took the opportunity to collect some blood for future use. He planned to hunt down potential candidates before entering a side story, with hopes that the Chronicles would send him back to the realm of Ascendia rather than a more challenging one due to his newfound Blood Dominion.

Despite Frederick still being too weak to effectively wield his newfound authority, he sensed a unique connection with blood developing within him. As Frederick collected blood, an eerie sensation overcame him. Every drop felt like a part of his own body, forging an unsettling connection he couldn't quite explain.

After completing his gruesome 'meal,' Frederick headed towards Talia and her father. He contemplated whether to save them and guide them to a nearby city or eliminate them. Gavin's previous act of killing him held little significance for Frederick; revenge was of no value to him. From his perspective, life was an unending struggle for personal gain, with no distinctions between enemies and allies.

Upon reaching the tree where he had hidden his bag in his previous life, Frederick considered his next move. He ultimately decided to attempt building a "positive" relationship with them. While he could potentially acquire Talia's authority, he opted not to use it on himself, as her curse seemed too inconvenient. Furthermore, even if he wanted to obtain her authority, he had no means to forge it without another authority smith.

Frederick gathered all the authorities and placed them in his bag, patiently waiting for a few hours until darkness began to envelop the forest. When he spotted the faint glow of a campfire in the distance, he knew he had located Talia and Gavin. Armed with his knife, Frederick made his way toward their location. Finding them wasn't challenging; their campfire provided the only source of light in the dark forest. As he approached their campsite, he revealed himself slowly and cautiously.

Gavin and Talia were taken aback by the sudden appearance of a stranger at their campsite. Unlike their previous encounter, they couldn't detect Frederick this time, as he hadn't brought the orbs with him.

Gavin stood up, suspicion evident in his voice. "Who are you, and what do you want from us?"

Maintaining a calm demeanor, Frederick introduced himself. "I am Frederick Field, and I have no intention of harming you."

He continued, "To be honest, I can offer you my assistance. Surviving out here without water or food will be challenging. The power I obtained from here doesn't grant me great strength, but it allows me to gather valuable information."

Gavin expressed his concerns. "Why should we trust you? You could be a murderer trying to take our lives for experience points."

Frederick, growing impatient, interjected before Gavin could finish his sentence. "Well, it wouldn't be entirely without a cost. If you truly don't want my help, you can both choose to face death, either from dehydration or at the hands of these monsters. It doesn't matter much to me either way." With that, he began to leave.

Gavin and his daughter were momentarily speechless. Talia, concerned about their dire situation, hastily inquired, "Wait! What do you mean by monsters?" Gavin quickly followed up, "What do you want from us?"

Frederick inwardly smiled and stopped. He understood that his more aloof approach would likely be perceived as more trustworthy than someone offering benefits without expecting anything in return. Deliberately using keywords like dehydration and monsters, he hinted that they would be in danger without his assistance.

If they hadn't attempted to halt his departure, Frederick would have abandoned his initial plan to befriend them and instead opted to eliminate them. From Frederick's perspective, Talia's authority held immense value. He had considered her useful even before discovering he could retain authorities after returning in time. Now, with this newfound ability, he viewed her as potentially life-saving.

However, Frederick's time was even more precious. He couldn't afford to fall behind other candidates in terms of levels or authority. The beginning of the Chronicles presented the best opportunity to acquire powerful authority. Once other candidates became aware of their abilities and began leveling up, obtaining interesting authority would become increasingly challenging.

Frederick chose to keep his response concise and said, "I want a favor later."

Both Talia and Gavin frowned upon hearing this. However, Gavin's frown appeared somewhat less intense than Talia's. They exchanged whispers for some time before finally agreeing, with the stipulation that the favor wouldn't involve harming anyone, including themselves. Frederick nodded in acceptance and clarified, "So, you agree to receive the information I have to offer in exchange for a favor that won't cause harm to anyone, correct?"

Talia and Gavin continued their murmured conversation, ultimately agreeing to Frederick's proposal. Talia responded, her annoyance evident, "Yes. Now, just give us the information—". However, before she could finish her sentence, both Talia and Gavin experienced a sudden, mild pain in their chests. They exchanged confused and concerned glances, ready to defend themselves or flee if necessary.

Frederick, appearing exhausted, took a moment to catch his breath. Despite his throbbing headache, he explained, "That's a contract. You both agreed, and one of my abilities is to create soul-binding contracts." It was a bluff, as Frederick had merely manipulated a small part of the blood within their bodies using Blood Dominion. This idea was inspired by his previous encounter with the soldiers and Gavin himself.

Upon hearing this revelation, their expressions shifted from wariness to sheer horror. They felt as though they had been duped by the devil himself. Without giving them a chance to protest, Frederick shared some of the information he possessed while deliberately withholding crucial details, such as the existence of the hidden food chest.

Like their previous encounter, Gavin promptly extinguished the campfire upon hearing about the potential threat of monsters approaching. The more they learned about the Chronicles, the darker their expressions became.

When Frederick concluded his speech, both Talia and Gavin fell silent. It was only when he pointed them in the general direction of a town populated by candidates that they simultaneously sighed and asked, "How did you obtain that information?"

Ignoring their stupid question, Frederick simply turned around and cautiously departed. This left Gavin and Talia feeling somewhat bitter, but they put their frustration aside and began discussing their plans. Ultimately, they decided that taking shelter in the town was their best option, as they had no other viable choices. Without access to water, their prospects for survival were grim.

On Frederick's side, he was feeling pretty satisfied with this interaction. He would be able to forge another authority later on… Well, that is if they survive. Putting this aside, he quickly headed toward his hideout while not forgetting to take some short detours. Once he arrived, he filled the narrow entrance of the tree hollow with grass and then quickly fell asleep.

After waking up, Frederick began his day by consuming two full bottles of blood along with some bread. Knowing that he wouldn't be able to keep the blood fresh, he had to finish all the bottles in under 2 days. Afterward, he set out in a random direction. He didn't want to get too close to the town. While there might be many potential experience points there, he preferred hunting solitary individuals rather than dealing with groups.

Walking through the forest with determined strides, Frederick continued his journey expressionlessly. After several hours, he finally spotted a human figure in the distance. Without breaking his focus, Frederick immediately started to track his newly found prey.

Frederick had been stalking his target for hours in an attempt to discover any information on his target. His cold emerald eyes scanned his surroundings, ever watchful for any signs of movement. The lone figure was walking through the woods. This was the one he had been waiting for, the perfect opportunity to test his newly acquired authority, Blood Dominion.

As Frederick closed in, he could feel the power of Blood Dominion coursing through his veins. It was a strange and unsettling sensation, like a dark hunger gnawing at the edges of his consciousness. He quickly discarded these thoughts and made a plan. Ultimately he decided that he would try to deceive his target, to lull them into a false sense of security before striking. As he approached, he realized that this might not be as easy as he had thought.

The man he was trailing was tall and imposing, his presence radiating strength and confidence. Frederick did not doubt that this man was not to be underestimated. With a deep breath, Frederick decided to initiate the encounter. Although he couldn't get much information at all, Frederick was in a hurry so he couldn't afford to wait more.

He concealed his bag nearby, took a deep breath, and stepped out from behind a tree, making himself visible to the stranger. The man halted in his tracks, his sharp eyes locking onto Frederick.

"Who are you?" the man demanded, his voice a low and dangerous growl.

Frederick adopted a friendly smile, trying to appear harmless. "Uh... H- hi! Do you know what's happening?" he replied, his tone casual and even a bit uncomfortable.

The stranger's eyes narrowed, suspicion etched across his face. "No, I don't know," he replied cryptically.

Frederick pressed on, trying to keep the conversation going. He needed to lull this man into complacency. "Uh … How about we team up or something-"

The man's response was not what Frederick had expected. Without warning, he lunged forward with astonishing speed, drawing a paper-like dagger from nowhere. The blade arced through the air, aimed directly at Frederick's throat.

Instinct kicked in, and Frederick barely managed to evade the lethal strike. He felt a rush of air as the blade whizzed past, mere inches from his neck. The stranger, fueled by determination, continued to unleash a flurry of attacks. However, he appeared to be taken aback by Frederick's dodging ability and was rapidly wearing himself out, likely due to the strain of using his authority.

Frederick swiftly retreated, his heart racing as he moved backward. He could feel the power of Blood Dominion surging within him, granting him greater strength and perception. However, Frederick also sensed a growing thirst for blood within him.

The stranger was a formidable adversary, his movements were ruthless and he even seemed experienced. Frederick struggled a bit to keep up but patiently waited for an opportunity. Suddenly his vision seemed to sharpen, and he could finally sense the flow of blood within his opponent's body. With a grim smile, he used his newfound authority to manipulate that blood, sending waves of pain coursing through the stranger's veins.

The man staggered, his attacks faltering for a brief moment. It was all Frederick needed. With a swift and precise strike, he sent a needle of blood directly into the man's chest. Blood welled from the wound, and the stranger cried out in agony.

But the man's resolve was unbroken. With a fierce roar, he swung his dagger one final time, a desperate and deadly strike. Frederick tried to evade, but the blade caught him lightly across the shoulder, sending a mild pain through his arm.

They both stumbled backward, the intense fight having taken a toll on their bodies. However, it was evident that one of them had a clear advantage. The stranger's eyes blazed with fury, his wound still oozing blood. As he prepared for another attack, Frederick suddenly proposed, "How about we stop here? What... what do you even gain by attacking me?"

The stranger coughed several times, panting heavily as he responded, "I agree... Let's part ways... here and act like we never met. Is that a... deal?" He felt fortunate that Frederick didn't seem to know that killing someone yielded experience points. For now, he only wanted to escape and perhaps get revenge later on.

Frederick's expression swiftly changed as he seemed to be deep in thought. The man, growing impatient and increasingly weakened by his bleeding wound, finally broke the silence. He impatiently declared, "We're both losing in this fight... I'm going to leave, and you'll never see me again."

However, Frederick was still silent and kept glaring at him with deadpan eyes. It suddenly dawned on him that Frederick had no intention of letting him go and had merely been waiting for him to weaken further. By the time he understood this, it was already too late. He attempted another attack, but his movements were sluggish at best, and he lacked the strength to flee.

Frederick swiftly dodged the feeble attacks and seized the opportunity to thrust his dagger into the man's right eye, killing him instantly. With a heavy thud, the man's lifeless body collapsed to the ground and a green authority orb fell on the ground.

Frederick, despite his victory, was in excruciating pain. His earlier decision to bluff instead of launching a direct attack was rooted in sheer exhaustion. The act of manipulating someone's blood while they were in motion had demanded a tremendous effort from him. Coupled with the strain of using his abilities to create a blood needle, he felt on the brink of collapse, his head throbbing with a relentless headache. However, now was not the time.

He retrieved his dagger from the man's eye socket, and a gruesome mass of eye and brain matter spilled out on the ground. Without wasting any time, Frederick directly took the newly obtained authority orb and started to feast on the body.