Chapter 22: New Ability
[Raven, I want to test something. Can you place your hand on the Orc's chest?] Zera's voice echoed within his mind.
Raven didn't fully grasp her intent, but he nodded and approached the cart.
As he neared the corpse, a powerful stench of blood hit him like a hammer. The odor of rotting flesh mingled with the sharp, acrid scent of urine. His stomach churned violently. He gagged and turned to the side, vomiting onto the cobbled path.
"Don't push yourself, Raven. You can give instructions from a distance," Shirley said gently. Her eyes were filled with concern as she hurried into the house.
She returned moments later with a jug of water, letting him rinse his mouth.
"I'm okay," Raven murmured, wiping his lips. "I want to see it up close. Help me, sister."
Athena nodded silently, her expression unreadable. She stepped forward, lifted him effortlessly in her arms, and placed him on the cart beside the corpse.
Even now, the Orc Commander's body radiated an oppressive aura of violence and death. The putrid scent still lingered, drilling into Raven's senses. His legs trembled slightly as he stepped onto the creature's mottled skin. Still, he forced himself forward, ignoring the slick blood that stuck to his hands and knees.
His heart pounded.
[Place your hand over the chest wound,] Zera instructed.
'What are you trying to do?' Raven asked.
No answer.
Suddenly, a flurry of messages in blue boxes flashed before his eyes.
…
[Bloodline Devouring System activated!]
[Warrior Orc's Bloodline Essence detected.]
[Analyzing purity of bloodline...]
[5.3% purity of Rank-1 Warrior Orc bloodline confirmed.]
[Absorption is possible. Do you wish to activate Bloodline Devouring? Yes/No]
…
Raven blinked in stunned silence.
[This Orc Commander is likely a descendant of a Rank-1 Warrior Orc. Raven, choose 'Yes.']
'Wait—what is this system? What's going on?' he demanded.
[I only know fragments,] Zera replied, her tone unusually solemn. [But I'm certain absorbing this bloodline could help extend your lifespan.]
His eyes narrowed. If there was even a chance it could heal him… was it worth the risk?
He exhaled slowly and said aloud, "Yes."
A strange force surged from his palm when the word left his lips. A pull, unnatural and primal, reached into the Orc's lifeless chest.
Blood began to seep from every part of the corpse—beads of dark red slowly gathering and swirling toward Raven's hand like droplets drawn to a magnet. The blood twisted, condensed, and vanished into his palm.
Athena stepped back, startled by the unnatural sight. Shirley froze, her eyes wide.
Then—
…
['Bloodline Devouring' ability activated.]
[Randomizing Bloodline Ability Extraction…]
[Selected Ability: 'Iron Resilience.']
[Purity too low. Downgraded to: Regeneration.]
[Skill Acquired: Regeneration (Incomplete).]
[New Class Obtained: Warlock.]
[Rank Up: Mortal → Level 1 Acolyte Warlock.]
[Stat Increases:]
Spirit: +1.0Vitality: +0.3Strength: +0.2Agility: +0.1
[Warning: Host's body is undergoing mutation.]
…
Pain exploded through his body.
He opened his mouth to scream—but no sound came out. The agony twisted through every muscle and bone like a branding flame.
Athena noticed first.
"O-Oh no! Something's wrong!" She leapt onto the cart, gathered his shivering form in her arms, and gasped. "He's burning up! His body's like a furnace!"
Without a second thought, she jumped off the cart and dashed toward Shirley.
"Don't panic," Shirley said, placing a calming hand on her niece's shoulder. "I don't sense anything life-threatening. His aura… It's changing. This might be a breakthrough of some sort."
She glanced toward the street and sighed in relief—no one had seen them.
"Bring him inside. Let him rest. We'll wait until he wakes. For now… we need to dismantle the Orc and extract the Heartstone."
Athena nodded grimly and rushed Raven inside, laying him gently on his bed. Though fear gripped her heart, she knew there was little more she could do.
Outside, the dismantling of the Orc began in silence.
…
Thirty agonizing minutes passed.
Then, the pain in Raven's body finally started to ebb. He lay on the bed, drenched in sweat, his chest heaving.
Within the quiet of his mind, something stirred—an emerald-green hexagonal symbol, rotating slowly.
…
[Soul damage partially repaired using absorbed blood essence.]
[Current soul damage: 72.4%]
[Lifespan increased by 12 years.]
[Body status updated.]
…
[Name: Raven Sillalus Jorvot]
[Age: 7 | Nationality: Zenith Empire | Title: 66th Prince]
[Level: 1 | Class: Acolyte Warlock (0th Circle)]
[Soul Rank: Mortal (72.4% damage)]
[Pathway: Beginner Alchemist]
[Attributes:]
Strength: 0.5Agility: 0.5Vitality: 0.6Luck: 1.0Spirit: 2.4
[Bloodline Spell:]
Regeneration (Incomplete)
[Additional Skill:]
Instant Memorize
[Affinities:]
None
…
[The Regeneration skill will help you recover minor injuries over time,] Zera said. [Your body is now comparable to a ten-year-old's. But be careful—don't overexert yourself or get into fights. You can't use Knight Techniques anymore. You've stepped onto the Warlock Path now.]
'Does this mean… Can I become as strong as Athena one day?'
[Not yet. Not easily. First, you must focus on physical training and raise your body stats to 1.0. In the meantime, continue your alchemy studies. Brew potions to enhance your lifespan and awaken affinities. When you turn fifteen, I'll teach you the Elemental Circle and Spirit Circle techniques.]
"Elemental Circle? Spirit Circle? Why wait until fifteen?" Raven asked, confused.
[If we start too soon, it may hinder your physical growth. These techniques are foundational for Wizards, Warlocks—even Knights.]
[Elemental Circle gathers specific elemental energy into your Inner World. There are ten circles total. Each stores one elemental type and links to spell models in your mind.]
[Spirit Circle, on the other hand, gathers spirit energy to strengthen your soul.]
"Strengthen… So can it heal my broken soul?" Raven asked softly, hope flickering.
[No. Spirit power can't repair soul damage. But... the bloodline essence did.]
Raven's eyes widened. "Then… if I absorb more bloodline essences, I can heal completely?"
[Yes—but only if the essence contains remnants of will. And acquiring such corpses won't be easy.]
Raven sat up. "Even so… I'll try. For now, I should help Aunt and Athena. They're probably dismantling the corpse for alchemical parts."
He climbed out of bed and stepped outside.
The once-menacing Orc Commander now looked pale, shriveled—a husk of what it was. The smell was gone.
'Was it removed during the bloodline extraction?' he wondered.
He spotted Athena standing silently over the body, lost in thought.
"Sister?" he called.
She startled and turned sharply. "Raven? You're awake already?"
She rushed to him and placed a hand on his forehead.
"You feel… stronger," she said with narrowed eyes. "What happened earlier? That blood… it gathered into your hand like magic. Then you collapsed."
Raven hesitated.
'What should I say, Zera?'
[Tell her it was your teacher. Say he used a secret technique to transfer life force.]
That was close enough to the truth.
"I'll explain once Aunt returns," Raven said calmly.
He looked back at the corpse. "Did you remove the Heartstone yet?"
Athena blinked, surprised by his composed demeanor. "Not yet. We were waiting for the body to settle."
"Then let's do it now," Raven said, stepping forward.
Something had changed within him.
He was no longer just a sickly boy with a cursed soul.
He had taken his first step onto the path of power.