Chapter 272

The humans, who had no choice but to wait for their deaths while restrained to the poles, cheered once they were freed, rubbing their wrists and ankles.

“Yahoo! We’re free!”

“W-we’re saved! Thank you very much!”

Wang Chen rapidly freed the remainder of the restrained humans as he shouted, “Stop fucking around and get out of here!”

“Assist the weak ones! Those who can fight, take the lead!” Gerard also shouted, manipulating the Steel Piano Wire.

The humans altruistically supported those too weak to move and began to leave the blood collection site.

“Let’s go! Get up!”

“We’re getting out of this fucking place!”

“Whoooaaa!”

“Huff! Huff! Huuu...” Wang Chen panted heavily after freeing the last group of humans from the blood tank.

The rescuees stared at him and expressed their gratitude.

“Thank you very much!”

“We will make sure to repay this favor!”

“Thank you!”

“I’ll take your gratitude once we’re outside, so get out of here!” Wang Chen shouted as he gestured to the exit.

The last batch of rescuees expressed determination as they followed those who were already escaping.

“Huuu, it’s over,” Gerard said as he looked around, canceling the Steel Piano Wire summon.

Over a thousand giant blood tanks were laid out like giant ant eggs, but no one was there to provide them with the nutrition they needed.

“Not yet. I’ll regroup with Tigrinus at the avant-garde and pave the way. I’ll act as a playmaker attacker,” Wang Chen said. He then turned to look at Hector and Gerard to say, “Hector will be a second attacker in the mid-garde, and the White Devil will be a libero in the arriere-garde.”

“Oh, now I’m a tank, all of a sudden? In the rear, no less?” Gerard mumbled with a smirk.

“You’re more than capable of handling multiple positions, aren’t you?” Wang Chen remarked.

“I will be at the vanguard, too,” Hector said. He was physically exhausted, but his eyes were filled with vigor.

Wang Chen shook his head. “No, you should gather your strength as you act as the second attacker, Hector. We need your powerful attack if we come across an unexpected obstacle. If that time comes, you will switch to a wiper attacker. I’ll leave the timing of the switch to your discretion.”

“Okay,” Hector nodded as if it couldn’t be helped.

Wang Chen looked around and said, “Lastly—”

“I will follow one step behind you all as an observer,” Sang-Sik said, interrupting Wang Chen as he approached from the opposite side of the exit.

His expression seemed somber for some reason.

“An observer? I think it would be fine if you continued as the volante—”

“The path is the same as the way we came in. A rudder position is pointless. What’s more important is to prepare for unexpected variables. It is possible with my D Weapon.”

Wang Chen thought momentarily and replied, “Okay, good call. Let’s move!”

He sprinted first, and Hector and Gerard followed behind him.

“Call for me if you are in danger. I will come to assist,” Gerard said, looking behind him as he ran.

Sang-Sik smiled and lowered his head as if expressing his gratitude. Once everyone left the blood collection site, Sang-Sik lifted his head, revealing his stiffened expression.

“Now, then... All that’s left is to wait.”

***

Pwoo! Delicious! Bulgasal trumpeted excitedly as it sucked the chains restraining the giant as if they were spaghetti.

“Wow! Second Knight, Second Knight! I’ve never seen someone this big before!” Echo said as she flew around the unconscious giant, her golden hair fluttering and her golden eyes shining.

“Hurgh! Pantagruel! You’ve become so small... so thin! It must be malnutrition!” Gargantua shouted as he bawled his three eyes out.

Seong-Hwi stared at him in silence and thought, That’s small? Holy crap.

“YOU BASTARD! HAEMA SANGUIS! HOW DARE YOU TURN MY SON INTO NOTHING BUT BARE BONES?! I WILL MASH YOU UP AND TURN YOU INTO BABY FOOD FOR PANTAGRUEL! GRAAAAAHHH!” Gargantua roared so ferociously that it seemed as if he would spit fire.

Gargantua the Glutton. The Sun Wolf King had mentioned him, Seong-Hwi said inwardly as his eyes shone, recalling his conversation with Pseraslav.

“Oh, and I have to tell you something. Gargantua might infiltrate this dungeon. If you find him, try to bring him to our side.”

“Gargantua? Gargantua the Glutton?!”

“Yeah. I fed him information that he can’t ignore.”

“How am I supposed to recruit him?”

“That’s for you to think about! Gahaha!”

I see, his son was held captive here, Seong-Hwi thought.

He licked his lips as he stared at the giant, whose restraints were coming undone. The giants were a superior race like dragons, demons, and angels. Despite that, they were on the verge of extinction because their population had not even reached ten thousand back when they began to be Lost. They were usually not included among the three great superior races because there were so few of them.

That’s why they care greatly for their fellow giants, especially children.

There was a famous event that had occurred more than ten years ago, before humans began to be Lost. The undead had devised a plan to use the corpse of a giant to create a powerful undead. However, it was almost impossible for a mere inferior race like the undead to kill an adult giant. Hence, they targeted a young giant and succeeded in killing them.

A week later, ten giants invaded the undead capital, Sepulcretum, destroying half the city. The ten giants leisurely returned after retrieving the body of the young giant. After that day, it had become taboo in the Mirror World to lay one’s hands on a young giant.

Forget laying a hand on them; they’re a hard race to encounter, even.

Despite that, the vampires had kidnapped a young giant. Not just any young giant, but the son of the World Ranker, Gargantua. This went beyond the realm of insanity. The Sun Wolf King had seemed irresponsible when leaving Gargantua’s recruitment to Seong-Hwi, but in truth, he had absolute certainty that Gargantua would be hostile to Haema Sanguis.

That aside, what a shame, Seong-Hwi thought as he glanced at the enraged Gargantua.

If he had not been here, Seong-Hwi would have devoured the young giant with Desire. Such opportunities were extremely difficult to come by because giants were so difficult to meet.

I suppose I should be satisfied with just this.

Seong-Hwi approached the giant brass tank and whispered to Desire, “Drink up.”

A silver star momentarily shone in Blood Castle’s sky and disappeared.

[Gene of the race Giant absorbed.]

[Converting Fifteen Wings to Sixteen Wings.]

[Available Stats: Battle Force, Sorcery Force, Harmony Force, Draconic Mana, Demon Force, Wraith Force, Kinetic Force, Holy Force, Chaos Mana, Mineral Force, Beast Force, Seismic Force, Nature Force, Blood Force, Titanic Force.]

[Heightening caliber.]

...

Seong-Hwi clenched his fists as he thought, It wasn’t enough to write history, but I absorbed a gene. Titanic Force!

Titanic Force was the giants’ secondary force. He had obtained a tiny portion of the giants’ enormous physical strength, developed through enduring the immense gravity in Gigas, their home dimension.

“Hm? What did you just do?” Gargantua asked, sensing the flow of unique caliber.

“I disposed of your son’s blood so that those filthy vampires can’t use it,” Seong-Hwi lied as naturally as he breathed.

“Thank you,” Gargantua replied, moved by Seong-Hwi’s consideration.

Seong-Hwi smiled virtuously and replied, “Not at all. Humans have suffered a fair deal from the vampires as well. They treat us like casks.”

“I have seen it, too. I can’t believe Consanguineus has been dealing in such atrocities inside a dungeon! I will testify against them to the Sēmen!”

“Aren’t you afraid of retaliation from Haema Sanguis?” Seong-Hwi asked.

Gargantua smirked and replied, “Haema Sanguis is the one who should be afraid of retaliation from the giants.”

“In that case... Why don’t you join us?”

“Us?”

“Barbaria and Underground, to be more exact.”

Gargantua’s expression hardened. “You... joined forces with the Sun Wolf King?”

“I have.”

“Giants have always maintained neutrality.”

“Despite that, they destroyed half of Sepulcretum in the past,” Seong-Hwi argued.

“And Gigas paid for that act,” Gargantua said.

“What do you mean?”

“The ten giants who had returned from Sepulcretum were sentenced to the Atlas penalty,” Gargantua explained the events after the invasion.

“Atlas penalty?”

“A punishment in which one must carry a gravity boulder for the rest of their lives. The one who gave them the sentence was... Lord Grandis, the Guardian Titan.”

Seong-Hwi remained silent at the mention of the most influential name in the Mirror World.

“Lord Grandis punished them as per the Sēmen’s laws, but there was naturally backlash,” Gargantua explained.

I can more or less guess what happened, Seong-Hwi thought.

It was a natural sequence of events. They were punished in accordance with the Sēmen’s laws, but the one who had created the Sēmen was Grandis. It was only natural for the giants of Gigas to feel dissatisfaction and a sense of betrayal by his actions.

“Master Pangu, the leader of the ten giants who attacked Sepulcretum, held great animosity toward Grandis due to his decision, and left Gigas with eight of the nine giants.”

“Pangu... the Eighth Fiend?” Seong-Hwi asked.

“Yes, Pangu, the Giant of All Creation. He rejected the Atlas penalty and formed Aegaeon. That is why he became a Fiend.”

Seong-Hwi organized the information from Gargantua in his head, then asked what he deemed to be the key question. “In that case, which faction do you support? Gigas or Aegaeon?”

“I am... a member of Gigas. I have been, from the very beginning. I trust Lord Grandis, but...” Gargantua trailed off.

Pwoo! Bulgasal trumpeted after having devoured the remainder of the chains restraining Pantagruel.

Pantagruel began to lean now that the chains supporting him were gone, but Gargantual stopped the massive leaning body with one hand, displaying his immense physical strength.

“Now that I experience something similar for myself... I can understand how Master Pangu felt!” Gargantua shouted, his blue eyes shining with Titanic Force. “My desire to tear apart every single vampire in the Mirror World to bits is boiling!”

“How does this sound, then?” Seong-Hwi said, staring directly at Gargantua. “I wouldn’t dare request reinforcements from Gigas, but... You can participate.”

Gargantua had more than enough justification to do so.

“If needed, I will testify to the Sēmen that you were avenging your son. You are completely innocent.” Seong-Hwi hammered the nail in the coffin.

Gargantua stared at Seong-Hwi with serene eyes and mumbled, “You’re making it difficult for me to refuse.”

I did it! Seong-Hwi shouted inwardly. He had placed yet another World Ranker on the stage. You will die, no matter what, Ninth Fiend!

***

Over a million blood soldiers were marching in one direction, toward the malnourished-looking Haema Sanguis. Once they reached a certain distance from Haema, he used Blood Drain to suck the blood into his pores with a powerful absorptive force.

“Hmmm...Haaaaahhh!”

His skin thickened the more blood soldiers he absorbed, and slowly gained more moisture. However, Haema did not seem satisfied in the slightest.

“Mmm... It’s not enough... I need more!” he shouted, his ruby eyes flashing. “I need more pureblood!”

Haema obtained beast blood and illusory blood by absorbing the blood of the Amor and Melos bloodline’s vampires. However, no matter how thick their blood was, it was like a drop of blood in a cup of water compared to the blood of Scite and Erzsebet.

“Erzsebet... It was you!” Haema mumbled with certainty.

She was the rat who sneaked into the private chamber while I was away dealing with the Sun Wolf King!

If the instinctive Scite Amor had been the one to discover Lord Mulleus’s body in the coffin, she wouldn’t have been careful enough to erase the memories recorded in the blood. Hence, Erzsebet was the true culprit.

“Do you seriously think I won’t be able to find you once you’re out of the dungeon?”

Haema’s blood boiled. The blood that had originally been one could instinctively detect the locations of the other purebloods.

It’s impossible to run from me!

“My descendant...” a voice echoed inside Haema’s head as he was about to move after absorbing all the blood soldiers.

“Who’s there?!” Haema shouted as he looked around, but couldn’t sense any presence.

“My descendant,” the voice echoed inside Haema’s head again, carrying a sweet sense of charm. “I am Mulleus Rubens Sanguineus, the first and last vampire.”

“Lord... Mulleus! He’s awake!” Haema shouted, his eyes widening as he immediately drew out his Blood Force.

Just then, the progenitor continued, “Be not afraid, my descendant. I have made up my mind to coexist with you.”

The unsettling sound of the wind mixed with the tense heartbeats. A mist of blood spread throughout the surroundings.

“Now, let us rewrite the history of unification!”