Horus!

A week had gone by since Baladan had left for the housing district. Many changes had happened with his absence.

Harry, Chris, Rick, Gary, and Rosa had each stopped going out of the safe zone. Instead they trained their abilities, each having their own training spot.

Fortunately Aria's team had come back by themselves the morning after Baladan had left. They had gone to a kindergarten school where they had faced off against a horde a shadow corpse children and adults!

Fortunately the teachers at the school fought hard for the kids even sacrificing themselves for them to escape. This had resulted in many children being saved, once Aria got there she had used everything she could to wipe out the zombies around before gathering what they could to head back.

That was a happy day for mostly everyone, some kids reunited with their parents. Some was left alone unable to find their family, and some parents mourned their children.

With the added people from Baladan's old school boss had completed the construction on the metal barricade as well as cleared the schools of vehicles and people in the learning district.

———

Baladan a day after leaving

Bal: 'This place is a mess! The Central District is filled with all sorts of creatures… I should only have to worry about the actual beasts that haven't been turned yet though so I should be fine'

Baladan had been leaping rooftop to rooftop passing large numbers of Shadow Corpses. Currently he was in this New York style time square that had been covered in blood and destruction. Limbs were all over the place, broken cars, glass shards. You name it, it was carnage.

The young man just ignored most of it though, he didn't have the ability to go back and save those people so he didn't cry over spilled milk.

When he leaped over to another building over looking time square he noticed many very familiar creatures gathering and securing the zone for themselves.

The creatures had large physiques, each with red skin and large black horns forming different shapes around their heads. These beings weren't what caught his attention, what did was a opening in the center of the area that looked to lead to another world!

He watched these beings casually walk in and out carrying many materials as well as weapons.

Bal: 'One was already bad enough… now I have to deal with an army of them? Fine, you want to invade my world then I'll just have to show you why you don't mess with us!'

He remembered the arrogant creature who tried to slaughter him and his friends during their fight. He would never forget the way that beast looked at all of them, it made his blood boil as time went on.

Bal: 'But that will have to wait, first off… it's time to take care of that bird!'

In a fraction of a second his body suddenly vanished reappearing in what looked like a dark underground cave.

What greeted him was a massive bird like being perched on a boulder across the room. It seemed to be waiting for something as Baladan swung his crowbar taunting the beast.

Bal: "What are you waiting for? If you aren't going to attack me then I'll go first!"

He yelled at the creature as a white glow surrounded his figure before latching onto his gun.

Bal: "I as the owner of Pure Mana I demand you to heed my call! [Enhance] + [Power] = [Enhanced Attack Power]"

With the aura enhanced gun along with his added spells his gun turned into a holy looking pistol with a grim reaper on it!

Once he pulled the trigger it felt like he was shooting a cannon! A massive white beam fired out of the barrel forcing the bird to dodge only to have one of its legs pierced by the bullet. This left a massive hole in its leg as it swooped down going after Baladan.

He didn't feel much threat from the bird, he had just felt the terror a Lich could bring. This was child's play in comparison.

He immediately combined both spells placing it on his crowbar this time as he jumps at the beast clashing against its beak!

Unfortunately the bird had the advantage in the air, the moment Baladan jumped was the time the bird pulled it's body back disrupting his attack as he got slammed to the side of the wall by the creatures wing!

Baladan couldn't stop himself from coughing up blood! Upon hitting the wall he felt like his rib cage had cracked all over!

He forced himself up as fast as he could before running at the bird again! This time he formed a scythe out of his Aura around the crowbar swinging it out to clash against the beasts talons and beak.

Bal: "Just die already!"

He yelled out as he threw his gun into the air, his hand aimed for the hole in the birds leg before clenching his fist tightly.

Pure Mana: 200 (183—> 130)

The bird let out a loud screech shaking the earth around them as red metal spikes began to form out of the creatures blood! Baladan even made a metal clamp around its leg pinning it there for the moment as he jumped up grabbed his gun and unleashed a barrage of shots towards its body and head.

He knew shooting the body wasn't going to kill the creature. That wasn't his intention, instead he riddled the bird with holes making it bleed more as well as cause the bird to slow down since it was now losing vital muscles used to move its body!

The bird felt that it couldn't move around as much anymore, it's agility was crippled however it quickly corrected its self by using Death energy to fill in the gaps connecting its muscles together so it can move however with a massive energy drain!

It immediately dived down onto Baladan, it's large body just fell over on top of him as it tried to attack him with its beak. It's very damaged leg unable to get out of the lock so it was stuck on the ground as Baladan assaulted it with large swings cutting up its body.

After a long hour of hacking at the birds toughened body it finally went limp on the ground the moment he poured half his remaining Aura into his Metal Manipulation causing massive red spikes to impale the birds body pinning it on the ground as he beheads the creature.

[Congratulations! You have slain a level 35 First Circle Shadow Falcon!]

[Congratulations! You have defeated a Shadow Falcon in Shoel! It will now be reborn into a new being under your control!]

The body of the bird began to vanish, all that was left is the blood and the red metal spikes where it used to be.

Soon a being of pure energy was formed, it's body now white just like Baladan's Aura and Mana. It looked like a holy bird the same size as its previous body!

When Baladan looked at it he was in awe, he didn't expect the creature to look like some kind of holy bird descending from the heavens!

Bal: "Now what shall we name you? Hmmm how about… Horus?"

The bird bowed to its master as it nodded its head liking the sound of its new name and its new look.

Horus: "Thank you master…"

Bal: "Huh!? You can talk?"

Horus: "Yes master, since you have cleansed me of that filthy form I have acquired some intelligence from my connection with the master"

Baladan looked at his system trying to find the amount of slots he had left after finally defeating Horus.

[Slots: 0/100]

Bal: 'Looks like this was heavily influenced by that ability as well…'

———

Last Night

Baladan was laying in a bed he found in an abandoned apartment above an old mom and pop shop. He was examining the skill crystal thinking about what he should do.

Bal: 'Should I use it? Metal Manipulation sounds great, I could think up many different ways to use this…'

He instantly fused with the metallic portion of the crystal in his hands. Instantly a black color filled in for the now missing metal, the more Baladan looked at it the more tempted he became.

Bal: 'Should I? I know Necrosis said something would happen after death but… would this interfere with that?'

After an hour of contemplation he sighed before absorbing the Necromancer and Reading abilities.

[ERROR! Ability not granted! ERROR! ERROR!]

[System Rebooting…]

[System Update Required!]

[System Updating…]

[System Update Complete!]

[System has completed fusion with [Death System] Necromancy has been implanted into [Death System] Warning! Changes have been made to Death Child abilities!]

Bal: '…What? What just happened? I thought they were already fused completely? Don't tell me it needed the necromancer ability to work as a medium to complete the fusion!?'

He began to look over the changes, he soon realized that his abilities had additional effects added to them however they had been locked.

[Hosts body isn't strong enough to support new Death Child skills. Please become a 3rd Circle Being to gain access to your abilities]

With that Baladan decided to close his system, he had already checked the surroundings only finding Shadow Corpses so he decided to lock the doors to the whole building before falling asleep peacefully while being surrounded by death from every side.

Bal: 'Why do I feel so comfortable? This is way to weird but… whatever I am tired'