Chapter 23 - The Darven Blood hunt

Kael stared at the man above him.

For several seconds, his mind refused to process what he had just heard.

My father has a younger brother.

The words didn't make sense.

His father had never mentioned having a brother.

Not once.

Not in the books.

Not in the recordings.

Not even in the final moments before his death.

Kael raised the Darven MP-01.

“Prove it.”

The man's expression didn't change.

“I expected that.”

He lifted one hand.

A ring appeared around his finger.

Kael's eyes immediately widened.

The same Darven crest.

But different.

His father's crest had been a sword surrounded by a circle.

This one was a sword surrounded by three beasts.

The moment Kael saw it—

his katana reacted.

CLANG!

The blade jumped from its sheath.

Crimson energy spread across it.

The stranger looked at the sword.

“So he really gave it to you.”

Kael caught the blade.

“You know this sword?”

“I know exactly what it is.”

“Then tell me.”

The man's eyes narrowed.

“Not here.”

He snapped his fingers.

Every monster surrounding Kael suddenly moved.

The battle began.

The First Wave

A Crimson Claw Wolf lunged from Kael's left.

Kael didn't turn.

The MP-01 rotated in the air.

A short burst forced the wolf away.

At the same moment, an Ironhide Stalker attacked from behind.

Kael spun.

His katana intercepted its claws.

CLANG!

The impact pushed him backward.

Kael immediately activated Metal Control.

The broken metal fragments scattered across the ground shot upward.

They became a swarm of blades.

The Stalker raised its armored arms.

CRASH!

Several fragments bounced away.

Kael didn't wait.

The GL-02 rose over his shoulder.

He fired.

The magical projectile struck the ground directly beneath the creature.

The blast launched it into the air.

Kael jumped.

His katana flashed.

One clean strike sent the creature crashing into a tree.

[Ironhide Stalker defeated.]

[Combat experience gained.]

Kael landed.

Another monster attacked.

Then another.

Then five.

Kael's weapons moved around him like a metallic storm.

MP-01—

GL-02—

SR-01—

katana—

Metal Control.

He wasn't simply firing anymore.

He was fighting with an entire arsenal simultaneously.

The inheritance was changing the way he thought.

Instead of asking:

Which weapon should I use?

He was asking:

Which weapon should attack next?

A Nightfang rushed him.

Kael stepped backward.

The MP-01 fired.

The creature dodged.

Exactly as Kael expected.

The SR-01 fired from behind.

The creature jumped directly into its path.

Impact.

The monster fell.

Kael immediately turned.

An Ironhide Stalker was already above him.

Its claws came down.

Kael crossed his katana with both hands.

BOOM!

His knees buckled.

The creature was stronger.

Kael gritted his teeth.

“Metal Control!”

The Stalker's own armor suddenly twisted.

The creature froze.

Kael wasn't controlling the monster.

He was controlling the metal embedded within its armor.

He pulled.

The armor shifted sideways.

The creature lost balance.

Kael kicked it away.

The GL-02 fired.

The explosion sent it rolling across the ground.

[Ironhide Stalker defeated.]

Kael's breathing became heavier.

Then—

[Level Up.]

His eyes widened.

[Level 11.]

[Rank advancement detected.]

[E-Rank Apprentice — Early.]

Five attribute points appeared.

Kael immediately allocated:

• Strength +1
• Agility +2
• Vitality +1
• Intelligence +1

His body felt noticeably stronger.

But the System wasn't finished.

[Darven Bloodline Threshold reached.]

[Secondary Bloodline Function awakening.]

Kael froze.

The black metal bullet in his pocket began vibrating.

Then every weapon around him stopped.

His MP-01.

His GL-02.

His SR-01.

Even his katana.

All of them floated into the air.

Crimson lines spread across their surfaces.

[Bloodline Ability detected.]

[Metal Control evolution initiated.]

[Metal Control: Intermediate → Advanced]

Kael's eyes widened.

[New Bloodline Skill unlocked.]

Darven Arsenal Domain

For a moment, Kael couldn't understand what it meant.

Then the weapons around him multiplied.

Not physically.

Copies formed from condensed metal and mana.

Pistols.

Submachine guns.

Assault rifles.

Shotguns.

Sniper rifles.

Machine guns.

Grenade launchers.

Heavy weapons.

Hundreds of weapons appeared in the air.

Kael stared.

The masked Darven finally smiled.

“Now you understand.”

Kael slowly raised his hand.

Every weapon pointed toward the monsters.

“Fire.”

The forest erupted.

The Darven Arsenal

Magical projectiles streaked through the trees.

The monsters scattered.

Kael controlled the entire formation mentally.

The pistols targeted fast creatures.

The assault rifles suppressed groups.

The sniper rifles targeted larger monsters.

The grenade launchers forced enemies out of cover.

The heavy weapons broke the monsters' formation.

Kael wasn't physically building each weapon.

The inheritance was temporarily constructing them from surrounding metal and mana.

But there was a price.

His mana dropped rapidly.

[Mana: 31%]

Kael gritted his teeth.

“So that's the limitation.”

The Arsenal Domain was powerful.

But he couldn't maintain it forever.

A massive Ironhide creature suddenly broke through the barrage.

Kael's eyes widened.

[Threat Analysis.]

[Ironhide Ravager — Variant]

[Level: 24]

[Grade: Boss]

[Species Potential: Lord]

[Trait: Darven Hunter]

It charged.

Kael dismissed the Arsenal Domain.

All the temporary weapons vanished.

The Ravager swung its massive arm.

Kael jumped.

The attack destroyed the tree behind him.

Kael landed on a branch.

The creature roared.

Kael raised his hand.

The SR-01 appeared.

He fired.

The shot struck its eye.

The Ravager staggered.

Kael immediately summoned the GL-02.

Fire.

The creature's armor cracked.

It still kept moving.

Kael smiled.

“Good.”

He summoned the MP-01.

“Let's see how far this inheritance can go.”

The three weapons fired together.

The Ravager charged through the attacks.

Kael waited.

Five meters.

Four.

Three.

Two—

Kael suddenly dropped the weapons.

He grabbed the Ravager's armor with Metal Control.

BOOM!

The creature stopped.

Its own armor locked its limbs.

Kael's eyes widened.

He could control its armor.

Not perfectly.

But enough.

The Ravager struggled.

Kael pushed harder.

Bloodline energy surged through his body.

[Metal Control: 48%...]

[50%...]

[51%...]

The Ravager broke free.

Kael was thrown backward.

He rolled across the ground.

His shoulder struck a stone.

Pain shot through him.

He immediately stood.

The Ravager charged again.

Kael raised the katana.

The Darven crest burned crimson.

For a moment, Kael saw the First Darven standing behind him.

The ancient warrior raised his sword.

Kael did the same.

They moved together.

One slash.

CRACK.

A deep fracture appeared across the Ravager's armor.

The creature stumbled.

Kael didn't hesitate.

The GL-02 fired.

The MP-01 followed.

The SR-01 finished the combination.

The Ravager collapsed.

[Ironhide Ravager defeated.]

[Level Up.]

Kael stared at the System.

[Level 12.]

Five points.

• Strength +2
• Agility +1
• Vitality +1
• Intelligence +1

Then—

[Bloodline Progress: 6% → 7%]

Kael stared.

His progress was accelerating.

But there was another message.

[Darven Arsenal Domain proficiency increased.]

[Current proficiency: Beginner.]

[Temporary Arsenal limit increased.]

Kael smiled.

Then the smile disappeared.

Because Nightfang was staring at something behind him.

“Kael.”

“What?”

Nightfang didn't answer.

Kael slowly turned.

The black-armored Darven was standing beside the fallen Ravager.

He placed one hand on the creature's head.

The crimson mark disappeared.

The Ravager's body dissolved into black particles.

Kael immediately raised his weapon.

“You killed it?”

“No.”

The man looked at him.

“I released it.”

Kael froze.

The creature wasn't dead.

It had simply been carrying out an order.

The man looked toward the distant mountains.

“You have twenty-three hours.”

“For what?”

“Before they arrive.”

“Who?”

The man finally answered.

“The people who destroyed your family.”

Kael's eyes hardened.

“Then I'll fight them.”

“No.”

The man shook his head.

“You'll run.”

Kael frowned.

“I'm not running.”

“You will.”

The man pointed toward Kael's katana.

“Because if you fight them now, you will die.”

Kael said nothing.

The man continued.

“You have inherited the first true Darven ability.”

His eyes became serious.

“But you haven't even reached one percent of what the bloodline can eventually become.”

Kael looked at his hands.

The Arsenal Domain.

The enhanced Metal Control.

The rapidly increasing levels.

It was power.

But apparently—

barely the beginning.

The man turned away.

“Reach Level 25.”

Kael looked up.

“Why?”

“Because that's when the second Darven inheritance awakens.”

Kael's eyes widened.

“There's another one?”

The man smiled.

“Your father only showed you the first layer.”

He disappeared.

Kael stood silently.

Then the System appeared.

[New Main Objective.]

[Reach Level 25.]

[Reward: Second Darven Inheritance.]

[Estimated Bloodline Progress: 10%+]

Kael looked toward the distant mountains.

He finally understood.

The inheritance wasn't simply giving him weapons.

It was unlocking the history of his family piece by piece.

And every threshold made him stronger.

But it also brought him closer to whatever had hunted the Darvens for generations.

Kael picked up his weapons.

“Level twenty-five.”

Nightfang looked at him.

“And after that?”

Kael smiled.

“Level fifty.”

He looked toward the horizon.

“Then a hundred.”

His grip tightened around the katana.

“And eventually…”

He remembered the three legendary beasts imprisoned somewhere within the inheritance.

The Shadow Lion.

The Verdant Serpent.

The Bone Sovereign.

He wasn't anywhere near strong enough to face them.

Not even close.

But now he finally had a path.

First—

Level 25.

Then—

Level 50.

Then—

Level 100.

And someday…

he would enter the deepest part of the inheritance.

Where the three Legendary Beasts waited.

But Kael didn't know one thing.

The Shadow Lion had already opened its eyes.

Thousands of years of imprisonment had finally been disturbed.

And somewhere in the darkness, crimson eyes stared toward the human world.

A deep voice echoed through the ancient prison.

“Another Darven…”

The chains trembled.

“…has awakened.”

[End of Chapter 23]