Chapter 26: Gardening In Another World!

Lucifer dropped his body, placing his right hand behind him to propel himself to the side, almost smashing into the furthest black tree in the area.

'Damn, such a rookie mistake! This is not the game so boss monsters won't wait for the first attacks!'

He snapped back to the group of enemies before leaning forward, his black spear slipping through his palms, the cold sensation calming his racing emotions.

Since regaining a beating heart, Lucifer felt more passionate, which delighted him, but a negative was the feeling of anger and other emotions that also became more powerful.

He never expected his already sky-high lust to worsen, then anger and impatience grew no longer like a doll, but he was not unhappy!

The feel of his spear twisting in his right hand, the sensation of the blood magic bubbling and swishing in his left palm.

These sensations before were so dulled it might even have made his physical self numb to pleasure, sensation and all the other senses but his hunting-related ones the moment he became a vampire.

But because they were already beyond his normal human sensations, he didn't notice till being reborn, and everything changed.

'I regret becoming a lord, though; maybe I should have waited until after getting these flowers.'

[Why]

Suddenly a cold voice sounded; the soft and gentle tone was beautiful, but she seemed unhappy and with a trace of weakness.

Lucifer's body shot forward—his eyes focused, the wind dancing around his body as he thrust the crescent spear's twin tips through the first treant's eyes, penetrating it with a disgusting pop as the heart of the treant was ruptured, killing it instantly.

Snap!

He yanked his spear out, lifting his left hand to grasp the heavy branch that smashed towards him from the large black treant, causing his body to sink slightly and blood to surge.

It hurt!

It hurt even with the pain tolerance skill!

"Ow, motherfucker!"

A loud explosion rocked the clearing, the force of the attack shattering the branches and sending pieces of wood flying across the forest.

Lucifer groaned as he rolled along the floor, holding his left arm close to his chest and glaring at the remaining four black treants while the elite that attacked him seemed stunned momentarily.

'I can drain their life force!'

He grasped the shaft of his spear, performing a serpent strike like an eastern dragon swooping in the clouds for its prey. Lucifer lunged towards the four black treants first, striking twice with each spear tip, cutting through the air and stabbing deep into the bark of the nearest trees.

With a slight wince, Lucifer yanked his spear free, rolling away from the three remaining treants, using his superior speed to dodge the massive swings of their limbs.

'This is too slow,' he thought, snapping his gaze over to the elite that had just recovered from the blast.

His dark red eyes glowed brighter than ever, focusing on the enemy before him.

'Now!'

The three treants turned to follow Lucifer, their lumbering pace far slower than his current speed.

They were moving closer, ready to crush him beneath their giant limbs.

"Tsk," Lucifer clicked his tongue as he glanced at the elite.

It was only two steps away from him, standing tall on two stout legs, its face twisted into a snarl as it looked down at Lucifer, hatred burning in its eyes.

Its long thin arms were pulled back, ready to launch another devastating attack.

Lucifer lifted his spear in both hands, gripping it tightly as he stood straight.

"Die."

The sound of thunder filled the air, the crack of lightning tearing through the sky as it struck the ground near the elite, blowing soil and dirt into the air.

The rain fell fast, splashing onto Lucifer's skin and soaking his hair.

"Ha, ha, ha." Lucifer laughed loudly, staring at the elite monster slowly approaching him.

'Is it trying to intimidate me?' Lucifer smirked as he shook his head, "Pathetic."

He tightened his grip on his spear, the wooden shaft creaking slightly as he did so.

'My vampiric abilities are growing stronger!'

Lucifer grinned widely, 'And this time, I am ready!'

The elite charged at Lucifer, its thick muscles contracting as it raised its fists above its head, aiming to bring them down onto Lucifer's skull.

'Dive!'

Lucifer dove under the swinging fist, dodging the attack easily.

He quickly leapt backwards to evade the following swing, jumping back again to avoid the third attack.

'I need to move faster!'

The elite swung its arms repeatedly, missing Lucifer with each attack.

Lucifer stared at the elite, his expression turning serious as he moved to dodge the fourth attack.

'If I use my full strength, I could do some damage, but it would be hard to avoid every attack—I am the 72nd Lord!'

'The Hero will target me naturally—the world will target me, even the church and goddess...'

'I can no longer be happy as a mere strong fighter.'

'I HAVE to become the strongest, starting from here...'

He twisted his body, dodging the blow of the elite treant, pushing out his leg to kick the bark between the eyes of a regular black treant, crushing the wood so it impaled the monster's core, leaving only a single black treant and elite alive.

'I must use this elite to hone my body, improve how I fight and dodge! Until I can avoid its attacks completely, I will not strike the finishing blow!'

The elite punched out its left fist, launching a punch at Lucifer's stomach.

Lucifer held his spear sideways, easily crossing the shaft and blocking the punch.

"Not today, asshole!"

Lucifer stepped forward, pressing his spear against the elite's neck to guide the monster's next attack.

The elite's left fist hit the top of the spear, cracking the wood and throwing sparks into the air.

Lucifer kicked off the ground, sliding backwards as he avoided the next attack.

"Too slow!" He spat towards himself.

He spun his spear in his left hand, slashing diagonally to slice through the trunk of a nearby black treant, leaving only him and the elite alive.

'I can do this...' Lucifer's mind upon becoming the Vampire Lord became free, the binding chains of insecurity, fear and lack of confidence all now free and gone.

Closing his eyes, Lucifer abandoned the attack—watching the spear master moving in his memories.

'Use those memories, images from before!'

He began to master the defensive arts of using a spear and basic combat— the old man could no longer be happy as an old man, and the childish desire that all human boys have slowly faded as they grow up.

That flame, desire to be the best, and stand at the pinnacle of the world was reignited!

Clang!

Woosh!

How many hours had passed?

How many blows did he deflect and suffer?

How many times did he fall to the ground, bleeding from his nose, mouth and ears?

How many times did he scream in pain as his bones broke, his muscles tore, his organs ruptured, and his flesh torn?

All this information came pouring in, overwhelming him as he sat on the floor of the clearing, the corpse of the elite treant slowly fading his grimoire once again filled with a huge amount of Anima. At the same time, the cuts, bruises and scars on his face began to heal slowly.

The sky is still light, with maybe 2-3 hours of daylight remaining.

'I guess I should gather some and start heading back... Take a wash in the river and buy a nice set of robes and clothes for tonight...' He thought, looking at his tattered clothes filled with dried and fresh blood.

Lucifer wiped the sweat from his brow, glancing around the forest momentarily before taking a deep breath.

'Let's get started!'

After returning to the village, Lucifer took a second quick shower in the communal showers before heading to the store, where he purchased new clothes.

As for the flowers~ hehe, that's a secret even for you!

He bought an expensive cloak rather than a robe with a dark black colour, made with wool, thanks to being a vampire he didn't feel the cold so with this if anything happened while travelling with Gwen he could keep her warm with his cloak...

A sad old man's consideration.

Because he was a little late, he could only hand in the items from slaying monsters and herbs, but the receptionists were ugly women, so he didn't spend too long and would bring the real loot back another time to see Marina and that elf.

He had more than 23 silver, thanks to the poisonous herbs he gathered in perfect condition for antidotes just before the hunting season started.

The cloak he bought cost 3 silver, with the enchantment to reflect dirt and mess, while he also bought 2 different sets of clothes for daily use.

A former noble black tunic, red outlines and buttons, matching pants and leather boots. It looked as vampire lord as you could get, and the old man felt it looked cool! Or rather, his childish heart that enjoyed this kind of thing.

The second was the same style, with the large collar and expensive style but in white with black buttons.

They cost him 10 silver altogether, leaving him with 10 silver for tonight's meal, which would be easy after checking the prices, booking a table at a warm, cosy place, and paying for the deposit.

He would be fine even if Gwen drank a barrel. Of wine! The food and wine were quite cheap, thanks to this village's fertile vineyard!

"Let's go meet the princess." He whispered, putting one of the dark red roses in his chest pocket, holding them in his left hand while rushing to the little shack to invite Gwendolyn on an evening date together.