Chapter 110: Not Fond Of My Nickname

I sometimes thought.

If there was a turning point in my life.

'When did it start?'

Was it when I admired the pro gamer, Han Seojin?

Or when I wanted to become a pro gamer like him, but was frustrated by my mediocre talent?

Then, when I started a game.

Getting hooked on it and holding onto it for seven years, doing nothing else.

Was it when I entered the world of that game?

It seems like my life started going off course from that moment.

I sighed.

The person who suddenly appeared, claiming to be the Sword Saint's cousin.

It was because of her.

"So, what do you want?"

"I heard you handle the sword quite well. This big sister here is going to give you some guidance."

"…Who are you calling big sister?"

I frowned and looked at the woman who introduced herself as my big sister.

Brown hair and green eyes.

She was looking at me with a confident expression.

"Isn't it obvious I'm your big sister?"

"Well, let's just say that's true."

Honestly, there was a part that pricked my conscience as well.

My mental age was very high.

'In the 40s, I'd say it's manageable.'

I sincerely thought that way.

However, if there was a problem…

'This person's mental age is a bit…'

It seems much younger.

Not in her 40s, but she could be mistaken for early 20s, or even late teens.

However, there were a few things I could guess.

Usually, those at a high level were mostly insane.

Or…

'Could it be dementia?'

That might be it.

Those at the supreme realm were all crazy in some way.

"So, what are you doing now, little brother?"

"Researching about flames."

The Divine Flame of Eternity.

Since obtaining it, my body had changed.

'When I killed the head of the Iron-Blood Sword Clan, I grew stronger.'

I was not talking about physical strength.

As my body got stronger, my realm naturally increased due to the realizations I gained in my previous life.

'However, increasing my realm blindly isn't necessarily good.'

As the realm increased, how high could one go?

This was important.

So, one built a foundation called the body and stacked their own knowledge on top of it.

This was how heroes raised their levels.

No matter how good I was, it was hard to surpass this immediately.

'Well, even if it's immediately, it won't be long before I surpass it.'

It has been half a year since I came here.

I had already reached the state called High Realm here.

The class was divided into the beginning and the mature state, and I had completely embodied the realm.

'I could move on to the highest class, though.'

The current method of advancing to the highest level was not very good.

Although it was easy to ascend, I wanted to do so in an ideal state, intact.

'I want to learn more about the traits.'

Eternal God.

As soon as I obtained its divine name, an alien power flowed into my soul.

It strengthened my magic formula.

It strengthened the Ice of Destruction, Glacial Heavenly Moon.

'So, the harmony of the Brilliant Blazing Fire was broken.'

I temporarily couldn't use the power of the Divine Thunderbolt.

Yet, even in that state, my overall strength doubled.

'So I need to strengthen the Brilliant Blazing Fire.'

This was quite a headache.

Glacial Heavenly Moon with the added attribute of 'Eternity.'

In that case, I needed to attach something of equal rank, or at least a step lower, to the Brilliant Blazing Fire.

'If Eternity is ice, should I go with the spatial side?'

Abilities related to the spatial side were extremely tricky.

For me, it was just the ability called Severance.

But Severance was an offensive space-related ability.

It didn't match with Brilliant Blazing Fire.

It was designed that way from the start.

The Flame of Healing, the Flame of Harmony.

Brilliant Blazing Fire was also called that.

'Space attribute and flame.'

This is something to think about a lot.

"Hey, little brother?"

"…"

"Hey, are you listening to me?"

"I'm listening."

"But you've been speaking informally for a while now."

"If you don't like it, leave."

"This is the charm of a younger man?"

"…"

I was really going crazy.

I held back from looking at her with a ridiculous expression.

Reacting as if each of these reactions was amusing.

Ignoring her, I searched for information about space-related attributes.

"By the way, I'm disappointed in you. Using a sword and being interested in elemental attributes. If you're a swordsman, you should focus on training your sword to kill your opponent."

"It's better than fighting stupidly with just a sword."

She stopped speaking after saying that.

The place I was in right now is the teacher's office. It had been my personal space for a long time.

However, I sensed someone in front of the office.

'Abel?'

There shouldn't be any reason for him to come today.

Because it was a day off.

Since the incident I caused was significant, I gave all the students about three days off.

'I was planning to complete the Brilliant Blazing Fire during that time.'

That was my plan.

"Come in."

Creak.

As I opened the door with telekinesis magic, I saw Abel raise his arm as if he was about to open the door.

"You noticed."

"Because you were leaking your presence all over the place."

"What, it's a vampire. Should I get rid of him?"

"My student."

"No wonder, he has clear eyes."

"…"

Abel was sweating, sensing a threat to his life.

"But why are you here?"

"Can you help me?"

"…I don't do things like destroying families."

"…"

"…?"

Two pairs of eyes turned towards me.

"They say you openly destroyed the Iron-Blood Sword Clan."

"After smashing the Namgoong Clan, then the Wi family, and then the Iron-Blood Sword Clan… never mind."

When I subtly released a killing intent, Abel fell silent.

Vampires.

They were the clan of the night.

Just being exposed to sunlight damages their bodies.

That's why they moved only at night. Hence the nickname, the clan of the night.

It was the punishment that vampires bore.

A price paid for the innate talent passed down from birth.

The fate bestowed upon them to inherit the blood of life.

But there existed a being that surpassed that.

The Progenitor.

Called the true vampire, the progenitor of all vampires.

They had even overturned their own nature, absorbing the strength called the essence and traits of others.

Thus, they were a blessed clan.

But they were lazy.

They could not move when the sun was up, only moving at night.

Moreover, even during the night, they could only move for 2 to 3 hours a day.

Thus, they were a cursed clan.

The curse of sloth.

A celestial punishment that all vampires were born with.

In that sense, Abel was a mutant.

A mutant that should not exist.

He did not suffer from the curse of sloth or sunlight.

Of course, his ability to absorb essence was not very good.

However, with the inherent physical abilities of vampires.

And the unique attribute called blood flame.

Even with that, he was sometimes called an elite in human society.

"Do you know why I want to unify the back alleys?"

"No, I don't."

"It's simple. There's someone I want to protect."

"Someone you want to protect?"

"Yes, have you heard of the Vampire Princess?"

"No, I haven't."

However, there was something that could be inferred.

When Abel first showed me the blood realm.

'Was it the being that was hiding back then?'

There was a distinct ominous temperament.

Like the Abel visible before my eyes now.

"If it's the Vampire Princess, I know."

"So what about her?"

"Younger brother, are you ignoring me now? The Vampire Princess is…"

"One of those who inherit the blood of the Progenitor."

"But isn't it better to kill all vampires? They seem a bit dangerous."

"That's right, the one currently aiming to unify the vampires. The one I serve desires peace and rest. In fact, they are forging friendly relations with humans. That's why I work under Principal Kwon Sora."

"Is that so?"

I think I understood.

There's someone who wanted war, and they aimed to drag the Vampire Princess, whom Abel wanted to protect, into it.

"And you want to take that Vampire Princess away from there."

"Yes, that's correct."

"Hmm…"

I pondered for a moment.

Vampires.

Some of them were endlessly malicious.

In my second life, among those who opposed the empire, there were those who were called the Empire of Evil.

Their territory was no more than a kingdom, but their power was enough to be called an empire.

Vampires.

Those guys could absorb other people's unique temperaments through blood and use some of them.

'It's similar to Unique Traits here.'

If I had awakened the status window in the second round, it would have classified my Unique Trait as 'Heavenly Eyes.'

The Heavenly Eyes was such an excellent vision trait that it could be called the source of my power in the second round.

Anyway, the ones who called themselves the Empire of Evil didn't care much even within the Empire.

They lived in remote, barren lands, so there was no particular concern.

But they started to cross the line.

They took imperial citizens and made them slaves for bloodsucking.

'I wiped them out.'

They were so vile that they started calling me the Duke of Destruction because I destroyed everything in my path.

'People like me were called by such terrifying nicknames.'

Suddenly, I felt bad.

"The reason we need to save the Vampire Princess is…"

"She will be of help."

"No definitive reward?"

"My everything."

Abel knelt before me.

"I will give you my everything."

Putting others before oneself.

After hearing up to that point, Nam Daram was on the verge of tears.

"Romantic, pass!"

"What?"

"Brother, when someone with such a heartbreaking story begs so earnestly, let's help!"

"…Well, if he's even kneeling, that makes sense."

There was something bothering me.

The Insect Dragon King.

That guy, I mean.

Why did I attack the Iron-Blood Sword Clan?

It was because the Dragon King was scheming some plot for his resurrection.

So I tried to stop his resurrection, found the Iron-Blood Sword Clan suspicious, talked to him, and struck him when my doubts turned into certainty.

'Originally, I should go help Abel.'

But in a situation where you never know when the Dragon King might resurrect, it's hard to just go help Abel blindly.

"Let's find out a bit more first."

However, seeing Abel come out like that, my heart naturally softened.

Maybe it's because Abel is struggling like a grad student.

'I have to think as positively as possible.'

Even among vampires, there existed a hierarchy.

More precisely, those who inherited the bloodline of the primordial vampire, known as the Progenitor.

They inherited the Unique Traits of the Progenitor.

And they used their traits to establish their own families.

And now, from one of these prestigious families, a loud explosion erupted.

"Everyone, run!! Han Seojin, the master collector of family heads, has appeared!!"

"…"

Why did my nickname turn out like this?