Chapter 15: The Origin of the Transcendent Races

“The front line is dangerous. I will send men to take you to Riverbend Town; it will be much safer there.”

In the command room early that morning, the Count said this to Kana.

Facing the Count’s arrangement, Kana had no complaints.

If he had an experience bar for killing monsters, he would certainly have found a way to stay on the front line, but unfortunately, he did not.

Since that was the case, being sent to the safe rear to focus on quickly training and improving his attribute values was indeed a good choice.

Mainly, with his current physical fitness, he could only handle level-two blood slaves; relying on his past techniques to kill monsters above his level was already his limit.

But what kind of place was Riverbend Town?

The reason he was willing to go to the rear was that he was very familiar with the areas closer to the "newbie village."

He had many ideas in his mind, though it was obvious that the names of some places had changed significantly over the years.

Just like how Rubble Village used to be Meat-Eater Village.

After all, this region had not yet been completely corrupted by the evil power of the Blood Clan.

“Where is Riverbend Town? May I see a map?”

Hearing this, the Count pondered for a moment before pulling a rough map from a nearby drawer.

It contained no strategic information, only marking the locations of a few villages and towns.

He pointed to a river bend downstream of Lake Sevier.

“Right here.”

Looking at the location, Kana’s eyes lit up.

So it was here—Blood-Weeping Town.

After a brief moment of thought, he said, “I hope to receive some supplies and money, at least enough for me to form a militia guard. My experiences along the way have left me feeling very insecure.”

Hearing this, the Count fell silent.

He frowned, stared at Kana, and thought for a moment. “The two pieces of information you brought earlier are worth that much. You are my aide-de-camp now, so that town is under your command. However, I hope you know what you are doing. Black will follow you to ensure your safety. Now, is there anything else before you depart?”

Aide-de-camp? How cunning.

He was arranging some work for him while he was at it.

After all, Kana knew that the Count would not be able to hold the line.

When the time came, he would inevitably flee to Cohen.

Therefore, that town was a territory destined to be abandoned anyway; he could do whatever he wanted with it.

As long as he didn't go too far, it would be fine—after all, Black would be watching him.

If Kana could actually accomplish something useful, that would be even better.

Kana did not refuse; this was not bad, as it was at least helpful for his own goals.

“One more question: how can I awaken the power within my body?” Kana asked.

As a member of the royal family, he naturally possessed the power of blood magic within him.

The so-called Blood Clan were merely creations of mages through self-modification.

As mentioned before, all the unreasonable factors in this world stemmed from the changes brought by the Creation Stone.

A complete Creation Stone could bring forth a race with extraordinary powers, altering the physique and appearance of that race.

Many of the world’s races came about this way.

Elves, dwarves, orcs... essentially, they were all humans changing themselves.

Some powerful mages also wanted to replicate this ability; many magical beasts, evil entities, and synthetic monsters could be said to be their products.

Like goblins, werewolves, and the current Blood Clan, etc.

However, according to the game’s background lore, the initial birth of the Blood Clan actually involved the operation of a Creation Stone.

It was just that fragments were used, but the mage who obtained these fragments harbored the delusion of creating a perfect race.

He then modified the original Blood Clan. Since the Creation Stone was so rare, he naturally used himself as the source.

This resulted in the Blood Clan being far from as perfect as races like the elves, but they were still significantly stronger than those creations made entirely by mages.

And this Blood Calamity was precisely the process by which that mage’s family once tried to make the Blood Clan perfect.

As a member of the royal family who had inherited a certain amount of power but had not undergone magical transformation, Kana naturally inherited this power created by the Creation Stone.

He believed the Count knew how to use such power.

After all, the Count’s class in the game was Blood Knight.

He was also the mentor and founder of this class.

By completing a series of quests, one could obtain a certificate at the start of version 2.0 to change classes.

Kana had experienced it before; he had an alt character with this class, and once the power was awakened, he could master it relatively easily.

“You can already feel it?” The Count was somewhat surprised.

“I can’t feel it, but I know it’s there,” Kana said truthfully.

“Is that so? Then you only need to follow the knight’s training step-by-step. Once you reach a certain level, you will be able to feel that power.”

Hearing this, Kana frowned. He turned his head to look at Aliris, who had been following him.

“Aliris, can you feel it?”

Aliris did not hide it either. After thinking for a moment, she nodded. “I don’t know what kind of feeling you are referring to, Your Highness, but ever since I began recovering from my injuries in the basement, I have indeed been able to feel a strange power in my body. However, I cannot activate it, nor can I use it. I don’t even know if it’s just my imagination.”

Hearing this, the Count glanced at Aliris, then back at Kana, his eyes filled with inquiry.

He wanted to ask if this was another one of his illegitimate children.

Unexpectedly, Kana said directly, “I suspect she was a test subject of my mother’s. Perhaps she also has the power of blood magic in her body.”

Hearing this, Aliris turned pale. In her heart, she recalled what Kana had previously said about his mother, the Queen.

But Kana did not give her time to think, saying directly, “Aliris is a knight I trust. Since I cannot use this power for the time being, let Aliris learn it. I believe that with her talent, she will be able to receive your guidance.”

Aliris wanted to say something, but was stopped by a look from Kana.

The Count pondered for a moment, observed Aliris, and then nodded.

“Step forward, Knight, and let me examine you.”

Aliris stepped forward, and the Count began to teach her how to utilize this sensation and master the power.

However, Kana, standing to the side, couldn't quite understand it.

In the real world, training for extraordinary power was clearly not as simple as clicking an upgrade button in a game to unleash a skill.

After a period of instruction, the time had reached the afternoon.

The Count also became busy.

Kana and Aliris bid farewell to the Count and were guided by a knight to the city gates.

There, three knights were already waiting for him.

By this time, Aliris had changed into a set of well-fitting armor and a brand-new sword.

The leading knight was the familiar Black.

Black dismounted and bowed to Kana.

“Your Highness, the Count has sent us to protect your safety.”

Kana nodded and exchanged a few pleasantries.

He mounted the spare horse.

“Let’s go.”

The five horses formed a formation, with Kana in the center, and headed toward Riverbend Town.