[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 77 - Blursed

In a dingy corner of a small governmental office in a tiny settlement in the countryside by Pittersville, there was a door. Behind this door was a little room. In the center of it, there was a stone tablet with four photographs placed face-down and a paper detailing an encrypted report. 

Legally, every settlement with more than 1000 inhabitants had to have a room like this somewhere. The purpose of the tablet was simple—so that any government officials could contact the central. Naturally, this also applied to any four-star archhumans who had accepted the duty and responsibility of lordship. 

Madam Morleppe smiled gently as she placed another small note on the remaining free corner of the tablet. The paper held a code that only she was privy to. Every lord got such a code once a year, and if they decided to use it, their message would immediately become the highest priority. And the highest-priority messages went directly to the empress of the American Empire, Empress Kaiya. 

Once she was done placing everything on the surface, she infused it with her essence, and the stone tablet scanned the surface, projecting a copy to the central, where it would be forwarded to a higher-up. 

She collected the evidence, placed it in her storage ring, and sat on a nearby chair, waiting for the response. Pulling out a cocktail from her ring with a puff of air, she sipped on it impatiently and sighed. 

Frankly, she wasn’t thrilled with her discovery. Peter Vane’s father—Matthew Vane—had been brutally murdered, as she had dutifully recorded with her camera. The crime scene hadn’t been concealed so thoroughly that nobody would know what happened, but it had been done cleverly enough to prevent discovery for what had been well over a month at that point. 

Was any of this proof of her theory that the man by the name of Peter Vane was actually some form of a double impostor who had also stolen the body of Freddy Stern? Well, not exactly, but combined with the evidence of the anomalous realm she had found, it was proof enough that the expedition under Harold Maskaart wasn’t secure.

The only reason the Kraven Clan had gotten a slot for the expedition was that they could prove that the company was being run well enough that their operations wouldn’t pose any undue risk to Starhold or New Earth. Allowing a bodysnatcher to sneak in like this… She smiled. 

That was enough to justify an in-depth audit and investigation of their activities, which would undoubtedly reveal the illegal slave trade they were running, and Basilisk would have to take all the responsibility. 

The thought of that made her giddy. Oh, how she craved to see that man’s face wrought in agony and despair. If his image fell far enough, she could even possibly justify challenging him to a duel and killing him before he could attempt to seek revenge. 

Or, perhaps even better, she might get priority to buy off the rights for the expedition slot. Reselling them could net her some extra funds.  

She anxiously waited for the empress’s response. Naturally, the final outcome would be up to that woman’s decision, and heavens knew she hated being used as a tool by quarreling Lords. 

Her thoughts were interrupted as the tablet’s surface lit up. She walked over to it and spotted the glowing imprint of a response letter.

HELLO, NARCISSE, the letter started. IT’S BEEN A WHILE SINCE YOU LAST CONTACTED ME. I AM CURIOUS ABOUT THE CONTENTS OF YOUR LETTER. I WANT TO DISCUSS THE ISSUE AT LENGTH. I AM MOMENTARILY BUSY WITH MY WORK IN STARHOLD, BUT I WILL BE RETURNING TO NOVA YORK IN TWO WEEKS. 

WE HAVEN’T SEEN EACH OTHER IN QUITE A WHILE, DEAR. 

I WOULD LOVE TO CATCH UP.

BEST REGARDS,
KAIYA. 

Madam gulped as a nervous smirk quirked up on her lip. The empress could be pretty whimsical, but that was rarely a good thing. 

Did I anger her somehow? she wondered and hoped that wasn’t the case. 

She was also quite busy but would have to cancel her plans. Nobody could reject the Empress’ invitation—not if they valued the thing that kept their heads and bodies attached to one another. 

Sighing, she swallowed the stress cramp that was inching up her throat and headed out of the building. 

Her thoughts wandered as she walked out and headed to the carriage waiting for her. What actually happened to Freddy Stern? From what she could feel, his body was still alive and well. Perhaps his true soul was indeed dead, but such an outcome left a bitter taste in her mouth. She wondered…

Would there perhaps be a way to get him back? After all, whatever he had lived through must be quite the story. 

And she didn’t have a good interview in a long, long time. 

***

Freddy had been hesitant to reveal Bloodshed to Sophia, but with their lives on the line and her holding much information that could save them from their predicament, he had decided that this wasn’t the time to be keeping possibly invaluable tools hidden. 

But… he had expected quite a bit more from her reaction. Honestly, he had been hoping to see her eyeballs bulge and mouth drop in shock as she spluttered, screamed, and ran away at the sight of a bona fide spirit under his control… but her reaction was quite different. 

“Whoa!” she said, inching closer with curiosity. “I had no idea you had a bound spirit! Holy crap, where did you get that ring!? That thing must have cost a freakin’ fortune!”

He stared at her and blinked slowly. “Do you already know what this is?” he asked incredulously.

“Well… duh?” She chuckled. “I’ve spent countless years studying in preparation to become a full-fledged cult member. My knowledge of etherology is way ahead of yours, buddy,” she declared teasingly.

He was immeasurably disappointed at the fact that his situation was something others already knew of, but he wasn’t surprised. Countless archhumans had lived and died during the past 200 years. Some people must have seen wilder stuff than he could imagine. 

Ignoring the bruise on his ego, he squatted down to pet Bloodshed on the head. “If you know what this is, I’d like to hear more about it.” 

This had turned into a priceless opportunity to learn more about the nature of the shell in his soul and its connection to the ring on his hand. The thing he wanted to know the most was how he could evolve the power. Bloodshed was no longer growing in strength, no matter how much stuff it killed. If he had a way to empower it, well…

She frowned at him, lifting an eyebrow and slightly cocking her head in confusion. “Uhm… Do you not know what it is?” she asked. “How did you even get your hands on it?”

“That’s a story for another day,” he said. 

She squinted at him and growled in frustration. “Ugh, fine,” she said. “Well, not like there’s much to know about it. That ring on your finger is a spirit artifact. It has no powers attached to it other than the spirit that is sealed within. When you release it, it acts as a familiar that fights for you. That thing is completely mindless, and if you attack something, it will fight by your side, as you must have already learned.”

Freddy stared at her, utterly baffled. “Uhhh… What?” he spat. “No, you’re, like, completely wrong; none of what you said is true.”

“Master,” Bloodshed finally spoke. “You shouldn’t listen to this ignorant woman’s words.”

Sophia’s face suddenly paled. “Did that thing just talk?”

A massive, shit-eating grin spread on Freddy’s face. “Looks like you’re not as wise as you thought, Miss Cultist.”

She slowly got up and walked back, sweat visibly pouring down her face. “Liam… I mean, Freddy… Listen to me; that isn’t a bound spirit. If that thing decides to attack us, we’re dead,” she declared, whimpering slightly. 

“How insolent,” Bloodshed declared. “How dare you presume that I would assault my master?”

“What the fuuuuck!?” Sophia cursed through gritted teeth. “You better explain what’s happening here, or I’m leaving you to your fate.”

He couldn’t stop himself from laughing. “Oh, yeah… that’s the reaction I wanted to see.”

“Liam! I mean Fre—whatever! This isn’t funny!”

“You’re right,” he said, laughing harder, “it’s fucking hilarious!”

“You idiot!” she shouted. “That’s it, I’m leaving!”

“No, no, no!” he yelled after her. “Stop, wait, let me explain.” 

She stopped but stayed at a distance from him and the bloody skeleton. 

He proceeded to explain how Bloodshed, as a remnant, became obsessed with protecting him. Then, he vaguely explained how it entered his soul and built a shell around itself and how the ring on his finger could release it.

Sohpia stared at him blankly, completely dumbfounded. “It’s a spirit ability,” she said. “You have a spirit ability in your soul… and a ring bound to the spirit in the shell!? I can’t believe it.”

“Spirit ability?” He latched on to what she said, half disappointed and half excited that she seemed to recognize what it was.

“Yeah.” She nodded. “And if what you’re saying is true, then the way you obtained it is completely unprecedented. And if it can leave the shell, that skeleton can’t be an ordinary spirit…” she noticed. 

He grinned. “You’re right. It isn’t. It's a unique.”

Her mouth dropped, and her eyes bulged. 

Freddy grinned harder. “See?” he raised his hand, manifesting Gore Knuckles. “I even got the blood affinity.”

She gripped her head, unable to process what he was saying. “Yup, that’s new.” But her apprehension didn’t go away. “Still, that thing isn’t really bound to you in any way. If you can release it, it's just a wild spirit. Are you really, really sure that it won’t suddenly decide to attack us?”

“It’s already saved my life before,” he said, ruffling its bony head a bit. “I have faith that it won’t pose any threat to me.”

“What about me?” she asked. 

Freddy was about to say she had nothing to fear, but honestly… he wasn’t sure. He wanted to believe that he could tell it not to do anything to her, but it had a history of ignoring his commands if it found reason to act against them. 

“Fear not, Master,” Bloodshed said as if it could read his mind. “I will never do anything against you or your allies.”

He wanted to believe it. But he could sense that a part of what it said had gone untold. Unless my life was in danger… he mused internally. If hurting Sophia meant saving him, he knew for a fact that Bloodshed would do so without hesitation. 

Huh, okay, he decided, mentally shrugging. I can live with that. 

“Don’t worry,” he said. “It’s going to be fine. I’ve already introduced it to a friend once, and it didn’t do anything to him.”

She didn’t seem entirely convinced. But she sagged a bit anyway, cautiously approaching the two of them.

“Either way,” he said, " we should get back to the topic. I introduced Bloodshed to tell you about the ability it’s attached to.” He then proceeded to explain in depth how Blood Sacrifice worked. 

This time, nothing about his explanation surprised her. “That’s an outstanding spirit ability.”

“Speaking of that,” he said, “what the hell is a ‘spirit ability?’”

“Blood Sacrifice is a spirit ability,” she said, shrugging. “Although usually they’re obtained through quite different means. Have you ever heard of prime spirits?”

He frowned. “Prime what?”

“Yeah, I thought so.” She relaxed a bit as she slowly sat on the ground before him. “Spirits can swap between the Netherecho and the real world. Sometimes, if they stay in the real world for too long, they get trapped there, turning into prime spirits. They’re pretty similar to prime vestiges, but their shape is irregular rather than perfectly round. 

“Just as you can with prime vestiges, you can accept prime spirits into your soul. Then, you get a spirit ability. In essence, they’re just abilities constructed around the different concepts related to the spirit. The biggest difference between a regular ability and a spirit ability is that they don’t cost essence to use but instead have an entirely different price.”

He scratched his chin in thought. “I’m surprised I’ve never heard of this.”

“I’d have been surprised if you had,” she said. “Not only are they rare, but few are willing to use them.”

“Why?”

“Freddy,” she called his name as she looked him in the eye with a severe expression, “your spirit ability is exceptional. Most of them have a far nastier price attached to their use. 

“The most common is setting people’s stars back in progress, but I’ve heard of examples of them cutting into the lifespan, costing entire stars, severely mutilating the users upon use, and even costing the user’s life.” She let the last part sink in. “The leader of the cult I grew up in also has a spirit ability, and he only used it once. It cost him an entire arm, and nothing, not even supreme-quality healing, can grow it back out. Do you now get why Blood Sacrifice is so good?”

He slowly nodded. “Yeah.”

“And that’s not even the whole story,” she continued. “Just having a spirit ability in your soul slows your growth by 33 percent.”

He nearly choked. 

“Oh, relax,” she said, rolling her eyes. “That’s more than a fair price to pay for what you’re getting in return.”

But he didn’t relax. In fact, his face looked like he’d just licked a public bathroom toilet seat. “Yeah… Uhm… What would happen if someone, hypothetically… had two spirit abilities?”

She stared at him blankly for a few moments. “Motherfucker!” she screamed. “What the hell are you!? Seriously, I’ve never heard of someone so anomalous in my entire life! You’re like the most cursed-slash-blessed person I’ve ever met! You’re, like, blursed or something.”

He snorted at that. “Is it what I’m guessing?”

“Yeah, it’s what you’re guessing! Your growth is slowed down by 66 percent! Wow, that’s really gonna suck for you later,” she said. “But now… urgh,” she groaned, blowing air through her lips. “What does the other one do?”

He briefly explained how Levaithan’s fury worked. 

“Damn!” she exclaimed. “That’s also really good. Usually, using that thing would be suicide, but with your talent…” She bit her thumbnail, looking at the ground for a few moments. Then, she met his gaze. “Let’s talk about our plan.” 

“So…” he started. “What do you think? Do you think Bloodshed can—”

“First, let me ask you something,” she interrupted him. “Usually, bound spirits can’t go into the Netherecho. Can Bloodshed?”

“Yes.” He nodded.

She smiled a bit, nodding excitedly. “That’s great.”

“Do you have a plan?” he asked.

“Look,” she said, getting up and stretching a bit. Suddenly, the night turned to day, marking one of the shortest nights either of them had seen in this realm. “Well, that was short. Either way, it doesn’t matter.” She raised seven fingers. “This realm has seven passages other than the one we entered through. From what I know of the cult, their plan will probably be as follows:

“First, they’re going to try to crack open every sealed passage they can, including those who have been transformed into delvable realms. This will take a while, perhaps a week or so. Then, they’re going to rile up the gorels, killing every queen until the rest of the workers start running around and causing mayhem. Those gorels will be used as bait for stronger monsters that will come looking for food through the opened passages. 

“Once they’ve completed these two steps, they’ll start eliminating anyone who is trying to cull the monsters, and finally, they’ll take care of anyone else who is left.”

“So… how do we fight them?” he asked.

“We don’t,” she said. “My guess is that the strongest member here will be a three-star. They’re likely running several hits like this at once to cause maximum chaos, and they’ll need support from the outside to ensure that the passage isn’t simply surrounded and contained, completely nullifying their work. Even then, a higher-up will be far too powerful for us to handle, even if we use both your spirit abilities to our advantage.”

“Are they really that strong?” he asked skeptically. He wasn’t yet willing to share this, but he had killed a four-star elite with Blood Sacrifice, so he knew for a fact that it was capable of taking care of a three-star. 

“Freddy, the average age at which a Child becomes a member is 29. Until then, they spend their entire life training. These are elites among elites, and fighting dirty is their primary weapon. Not only that, but they’re psychotic; any one of them is willing to sacrifice their life for the cult’s purpose.”

“So what do you suggest we do then?”

“Once they’re done with step one, we’ll have to enter one of the passages they open and hide there. They’ll guard them so nobody can interfere, so we’ll have to get ready to fight several members at once. Luckily, you brought us the perfect tool to get some easy power.”

He raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“You have a pet spirit,” she chirped. “I’m a one-star, and you’re a two-star. I can’t think of a single better method to grow our stars but to go fight some things in the Netherecho,” she suggested with a sly smile.

“That’s insane,” he said. “Even with Bloodshed supporting us, we’ll have to put ourselves at risk to make any progress.”

“True, you aren’t wrong.” She grinned wryly. “However, the risk is way lower than without the spirit’s help. 

“But I believe the reward will remain exactly the same.”