Chapter 1098 Phantoms



After Gael's attack which was executed by him at full severity, staying alive was almost impossible. Alucard didn't resist in any way, and it didn't matter whether he wanted to or not, so every Gael's swing reached its target.

Even Liang, in his Form, could hardly stay alive after something like that. A sharp blade and free streams of ash following their master's will would simply turn him into nothing. That's exactly what happened to Alucard, but Gael didn't worry since he knew that for Alucard it couldn't be a problem.

"How do you like my attack? I haven't gotten weaker?" Gael asked, staring intently at Alucard.

A few seconds was enough for from a few clots of blood, Alucard returned to normal again, becoming who he had always been.

"Not bad. Despite the obstacle of the stone barrier, your attacks were just as accurate as if I had just stood motionless in front of you. Although..." Alucard's gaze traveled to the ash sword, a dangerous gleam, calm and deadly, traveled along its sharp blade.

Gael was wary. He wasn't really prepared for criticism from Alucard, who was a true expert in this regard.

"You acted even faster than usual. Looks like you enjoyed cutting me apart, are you sure you're my friend? Hahahahahahahaha!" Alucard's laughter echoed around, reaching the ears of everyone who was in the colosseum.

Such a response could only be the result of one thing - Gael's smile, light and carefully concealed, yet extremely obvious.

Then, Alucard glanced at Krana, who was too nervous to approach him. In fact, she felt guilty for what had happened, if it wasn't for her blood, then Gael wouldn't have had to kill Alucard, yet again.

"Hey, you don't have to worry so much. I'm fine, see?" Alucard slowly swung his arms from top to bottom, following from his torso to his feet.

Krana nodded uncertainly, biting her lip. She realized that it was exactly as Alucard had said, the cuts couldn't have left permanent wounds on him, but it wasn't about the physical damage.

"Agh... So much trouble with you... Do me a favor - don't make me regret the decision I made." Alucard shook his head, with a deep sigh before stepping forward.

Whooooooooooooooooooosh.

Alucard turned into streams of blood, finding himself in front of Krana and abruptly taking her hand. His other hand ended up on her waist, pulling her against him, in a special pose like a pair of dancers.

"I'm sorry, but I promised my friend I wouldn't bother him anymore, so... We'll have to get out of here, to a better place." Alucard smirked, looking predatorily at the puzzled Krana, "After all. We're all just spectators here, it's not us who are the protagonists now, it's these two."

Step. Step. Step.

In a few movements, moving from one point to another in a bloody dance, Alucard and Krana left the battlefield and returned to Beastfolk World from the open space.

A place had already been prepared for them - next to Liang, Nila, and Nitra, right where Alucard used to stand, alone, but now he had a pet.

"You did it after all, didn't you?" Liang glanced at Alucard, not bothering to turn fully towards them.

Alucard shrugged with a satisfied smirk, "Sure. Could it have been any other way? Although, I must admit that there were some problems with World of Darkness, but they were temporary."

Liang didn't reply anything, but a smirk appeared on his face, which was enough to show his feelings and thoughts.

Then, Gael turned to Ereg, whose gaze became much more serious. The fact that Gael had shown his sword meant that they had moved to the next stage and now he had to do the same.

Whooooooooooooooooooooooooosh.

Gael rushed forward, in a flash surrounded by flames heading towards Ereg, who was standing in one place.

"Fine, I was ready for this from the start. I didn't expect us to have to show our weapons under these circumstances, but none of that matters anymore." Ereg muttered as he closed his only eye.

At the same moment, behind him, the ghosts reappeared, one big one that consisted of ten small ones, but this time their number was not going to increase.

On the contrary, the dark spirit disappeared, turning into nothingness in an instant, as if Ereg was giving up his power for something greater.

Then, he opened his eye, which now held two seals. They looked much simpler than the others, in the form of three stripes, jagged and imprecise. However, every reasonably experienced fighter, on the level of instinct, felt that this could not be something insignificant.

After all, Ereg was one of the Progenitors, with his Title and power over an entire race. He was worthy to fight Gael, The Invincible, who had given his word of a powerful and serious duel.

"Agh... It was a long time ago, very long..." Ereg whispered as the world around him plunged into immense darkness.

It wasn't an illusion or hallucination, that was simply the effect of Ereg's summoning weapon.

The entire Colosseum was engulfed in a thick darkness through which nothing could be seen, only his silhouette, around which a red and dangerous aura of powerful energy was accumulating.

Gael, who was aiming at Ereg, with his sharp sword capable of cutting through anything, was also the target of the darkness. However, his powerful aura and the ash particles around him prevented the darkness from achieving its goal, all of which was useless against a creature of his level.

'Oh... The last time he did this, it was much easier, his aura was much weaker... Well, that was to be expected. After all, he was sure he could give me an equal fight.'' Gael internally muttered as his gaze became darker and more serious.

Then, the darkness quickly returned to Ereg, but behind him remained two silhouettes with a frightening crimson aura. Unlike ghosts, these ones were more like phantoms, capable of killing their target at any command of their master.

Liang's pupils narrowed, his gaze directed towards the phantoms and he suddenly got goosebumps. It was unexpected for him, not even Nitra had ever been able to make him experience something like this.

'Not bad. These Phantoms could pose a serious threat... I didn't expect that a simple preparation for a weapon release could have such a terrifying aura.'' Liang internally uttered as he glanced at Nila.

Even though she was one of the loyal servants of Ereg, her King, and was in the Transcendence Stage, she was now trembling with fear. A chill ran down her spine, and her instincts told her to run away, only her mind, which realized that it was not necessary, allowed her to stay put.

Even Krana was in the same state, only Alucard and Nitra could easily withstand the pressure coming from Ereg.

"Damn... I've waited so long for this moment. It's so good to use you again against the most important opponent of my life..." Ereg muttered as a slight smile filled with happiness appeared on his face.

Whoooooooooooooooosh.

The two phantoms transformed into two weapons of thick darkness that were something between brass knuckles and combat gloves. The bands of darkness clung tightly to Ereg's wrists, covering his palms but not restraining his movements at all.

Three long claws emanated from the knuckles, constantly emitting particles of thick darkness that could outshine even the brightest light.

At the same moment, Ereg sighed, and the two runes in his eye became crimson, sometimes pulsing as if they were covered with blood vessels beating in unison with his heart.

Gael had already gotten close enough to attack as his sword emitted streams of ash, coming at Ereg at breakneck speed.

Ereg's pupil narrowed, followed by a lightning-fast reaction. He raised his hands up, crossing his claws, creating a shield of six long and incredibly sharp claws woven from the purest darkness.

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

Shockwaves spread from the collision, causing chaotic wind currents. Yet, for some reason, instead of growing stronger and moving on, they quickly disappeared, replaced by a sepulchral silence.

It seemed as if all sound had vanished, and that was what actually happened. It was all about the Colosseum that tried to absorb the destructive energy, but it had to increase its power, making even the sounds disappear.

"What a strange feeling... No sounds except my voice and heartbeat..." Gael muttered, looking at Ereg with a cold stare, "Are you sure this colosseum can withstand our power?"

"No. I just hope that those who constantly interfered in our fight can take care of it." Ereg muttered before swinging his claws in different directions.

Sparks came from the claws scraping away, throwing Gael off to the side, who smoothly and gracefully landed first on one foot, then touched the ground with the other.

Gael's gaze traveled to Alucard. That brief moment was enough for Alucard to realize what had to be done.

He smirked and replied with a slight nod.