Chapter 41
The Blood Moon at its peak.
The Hell Star’s army surrounded the trio of young demons.
The exhausted blood mages stood around.
The trio knelt on the ground, their feet and hands bound.
The Hell Star’s hammer was raised high in the air, that huge chunk of beautifully crafted demonic blood ore.
“Die, fools,” said the Hell Star, and swung it down.
At that very moment, a sweet female voice, exhausted, screamed:
“Stop, Father!”
Just an inch away from Leo’s face, the bloody chunk of metal stopped.
Leo slowly opened his eyes, realizing he was still alive.
A slender figure clad in armor from head to toe stepped forward, clearly exhausted from the previous ritual.
The trio looked up as she removed her helmet, revealing beautiful silver hair shining under the Blood Moon.
Leo smiled. “It’s been a while,” he said.
“Father, they are my friends. Let them go,” she said.
Ryan whispered, “Bless you, Captain. Maybe you married Lady Luck in your past life.”
The Hell Star asked, “Riley, are you alright?”
“I am fine, Dad,” she replied.
“Untie them,” said the Hell Star.
Riley rushed to Leo’s side and untied him.
Melody, instead of relief, narrowed her eyes, her brows raised.
“Who is she?” she asked in a terrifying tone.
“It’s his childhood friend,” Ryan said.
Riley spoke, “What are you doing? If this ritual doesn’t complete now, none can save the Demon Realm. Leo, just what were you thinking?”
“Did you just say… Leo?” interrupted the Hell Star.
He removed his helmet for the first time, revealing a face filled with dignity.
“Yes, Father. This is my friend from the castle, Leo,” Riley answered, confused, never having seen him with such an expression.
Hearing this, the Hell Star’s face changed.
A tender expression appeared. He bent down, his huge frame lowering, closing in on Leo’s face.
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“What the hell is happening now?” Melody asked.
“First the daughter, now her father,” Ryan muttered.
The Hell Star’s eyes filled with tears. He stood up and whispered:
“My King… he lived.”
His massive frame fell to the ground on his knees.
He lifted his head and slammed his hammer to the ground.
His voice shook the heavens.
“Hell Knights, on your knees!”
The entire army knelt in unison, the ground trembling.
He continued, “Your servant, Gray Bloodstorm, greets the young prince.”
The Hell Knights joined in, their echoed voices shaking the very core of the earth.
“Greetings, Prince.”
“Forgive my insolence for not recognizing you, my Prince,” said the Hell Star.
After a moment, the scene shifted.
The knights re-prepared the ritual.
The trio sat inside the carriage of Gray Bloodstorm with Riley.
Leo broke the awkward silence.
“Why are you trying to destroy the tomb guarding the people?” he asked.
Gray replied, “My Prince, the stories were lies. The Tomb of Life was never a protection to the land. It was a parasite. It sucks the souls of the dead, never letting them pass to the afterlife, rooting into the ground, slowly crawling its claws into the land, sucking life out of it.”
“But didn’t the tomb give life to the land, keeping it lush?” Melody asked.
Gray sighed. “That’s what we all thought. But the tomb slowly sucked the life out of the land. The excess that leaked gave the illusion of lush lands, never allowing rest to the demons of the realm.”
“It was twenty years ago that someone noticed it. The resentment of the souls poisoning the land. My son was the first to notice the changes. He tried to warn us. We were too drunk on our glorious history. We failed to heed his words.”
“We didn’t see the truth until the curse matured and gave birth to the undead. The last Blood Moon, when nature’s mana was at its lowest, the cursed energy overwhelmed the land and raised the dead.”
“That night, when the fate of the kingdom was almost sealed.”
“Almost?” Ryan asked.
Gray continued, “Yes, almost. That night, the Hell Knights and I were in the Central Kingdom, celebrating a party in our honor hosted by your father. The estate had the bare minimum guards. I was foolish, drunk on power.”
“I didn’t do anything great in my life, but I raised my son right.”
“He was preparing. He knew the underlying danger. He, his guardian, and the castle mage of that time together created a pair of artifacts—an emerald orb and an ivory staff, the Abyss-Devouring Staff—capable of breaking the tomb forever.”
“They stood before the tomb. The dead rose. They fought. The staff was assembled. They focused their mana into it. But the dead rose endlessly.”
“At my son’s command, the guards were sent to the town. They fought while evacuating the people. Demons were dying.”
“When all seemed bleak, a crimson light rose in the sky, blinding the eyes of the whole kingdom.”
“After a brief moment, the light faded. The tomb was suppressed. The undead were cut down. The cursed mana was sealed within the grave.”
“My son, the castle mage, and the staff were gone.”
“The curse was not erased—only suppressed. It burst out every time the blue moon became full.”
“It was too late.”
“After months of searching, I found my son… as a mindless undead.”
“The staff was forever lost.”
“They worked three whole years to create it. We tried to replicate it. It worked for the past twenty years.”
“Finally, we created something equivalent—the Blood Tear.”
“Today, I shall end this twenty-year feud. I will destroy the tomb on the same Blood Moon day, when its grip on the earth is weakest.”
Gray finished, tears streaming down his face.
Riley hugged him. “Father, we will avenge him today.”
Leo spoke, “Forgive me, sir, for stopping you.”
Gray smiled warmly. “Do not worry, my Prince. There is still time. I will tear that cursed thing down.”
The carriage door opened.
Butler Goodwin spoke, “My liege, it is time. Let us go.”
The Hell Star wore his helmet and stepped out.
“My Prince, permit me,” he said.
The Hell Knights took their positions.
The Hell Star stood at the center.
He spoke:
“Let the ritual begin.” And so it begins.
