Bloodbound Codex: I Grow Stronger in Secret

While everything else was happening across different places, the day had already begun drawing to an end. The bright sunlight covering the city Solara, gradually dimmed as evening approached, and at that moment Atlas could be seen walking back toward the Guild.

The spirit bag hanging behind his back bulged slightly because of what it carried, making it noticeably heavier than before. Dried blood still stained parts of his clothes from the exploration, though all of it belonged to the monsters rather than himself. As he walked through the streets, some Explorers and civilians instinctively moved aside after noticing the blood on him. Atlas paid none of them any attention as he continued walking with his head slightly lowered.

He had just returned from clearing the Cataclysm-rank Ruin.

Unlike the previous Cataclysm-rank Ruin, he had not wasted any time measuring the Boss Monster’s rank or testing its abilities. The first chamber had been cleared within seconds, every monster dying almost immediately after coming into his range.

The only reason he remained there for several minutes was because the Codex’s Stylus needed time to absorb the blood of every monster before extracting their Traits. After that, he entered the second chamber and repeated the same process before finally reaching the last chamber where the Boss awaited him.

The battle there...couldn’t even be called a battle.

The moment the Boss Monster appeared before Atlas, it was already dead. Just like the SS-rank Explorer earlier that day, the Boss had lost its life the instant it came face to face with him. It never managed to launch an attack, nor did Atlas need to exchange a single blow with it. One movement was enough to end everything before the monster even realized what had happened.

The reason was simple.

Mu-ho.

Atlas had originally intended to avoid using that Technique because every activation consumed a considerable amount of Null. Earlier, when facing the SS-rank Explorer, he had not even considered that drawback. Every fiber of his being had only wanted one thing—to kill the man standing before him. As for exposing the Technique...even if that thought had crossed his mind, he doubted he would have cared at that moment. The anger inside him had completely drowned out every other consideration.

Now, however, his mind was calm enough to judge the Technique properly.

After using Mu-ho against the Cataclysm Boss, Atlas finally experienced its speed with a clear state of mind instead of the nearly blank state he had been in during the earlier battle. His conclusion was straightforward.

After reaching S-rank, Mu-ho made him so fast that unless someone possessed perception comparable to the Guildmaster of Solara, they would never be able to follow his movement. To everyone else, it would simply appear as though the target had suddenly died without warning.

As that conclusion settled in his mind, Atlas continued walking through the streets while quietly calculating something else.

’Though it’s an extremely fast movement Technique...the amount of Null it consumes is also quite high.’ His thoughts paused for a brief moment before another question surfaced. ’If those other four SS-ranks hadn’t been frightened...would I have been able to kill all of them using only Mu-ho?’

He silently calculated the amount of Null each activation consumed, comparing it against the number of enemies. After reaching an answer, he slightly narrowed his eyes.

’...Yes.’

Even when the amount of Null he currently possessed that wouldn’t have been enough to eliminate every one of them using only Mu-ho at all.But still...he could still kill all of them if it had come to it, However, that wasn’t what bothered him.

Atlas possessed several other Abilities, Traits, Techniques and even Relics capable of killing them if necessary. The real problem was that he would have been forced to reveal those cards. Mu-ho allowed him to eliminate an opponent before they even understood what had happened, keeping his other abilities hidden. If Mu-ho alone wasn’t enough, he would have to expose more of his strength than he preferred.

Once that line of thought ended, his attention naturally shifted toward another matter, ’This time I only obtained two Traits...’

He recalled the Boss Monster’s extraction while comparing it with his previous experiences.

’Just like the Crowbeast...and that S-rank monster carrying Null.’ Atlas frowned slightly as another possibility formed in his mind. ’Does the number of Traits depend on the environment the monster lives in?...Or is there another condition I haven’t discovered yet?’

A brief pause later, Atlas stopped himself from thinking any further about the matter regarding Traits.

He had already learnt long ago that continuing to think about something without enough information only wasted time. No matter how many possibilities he came up with, none of them could become the correct answer without enough evidence to support them. Rather than continue making assumptions about why some monsters possessed one Trait while others possessed two or even more, he simply pushed the matter aside for now.

’Let’s forget this...’

With that thought ending there, his mind naturally shifted toward another matter altogether.

The Ruin Cores.

The moment he had reached the final chamber after killing the Boss monster, he immediately remembered what the Guild Receptionist had told him before entering the Cataclysm-rank Ruin. The Guildmaster had specifically asked him to retrieve the Ruin Cores if he managed to find them. Atlas himself also wanted to know what made those Cores important enough for the Guildmaster to personally request them, so after killing the Boss he hadn’t left the Ruin immediately.

Instead, he began destroying the entire last chamber.

Punch after punch landed against the walls with enough force to collapse huge sections of stone. Cracks spread through the chamber before enormous pieces of rock broke apart one after another. Atlas already knew the Cores weren’t located inside the Boss chamber itself. According to Harleks, they always remained beyond the walls surrounding the final chamber, almost as if the Ruin itself protected them until everything inside had been cleared.

After making several holes through the walls, he had finally found them.

Several crystal-like spherical objects remained embedded deep behind the broken stone, each one releasing an astonishing amount of Spirit. The Spirit surrounding those Cores was so dense that even standing several meters away, Atlas could clearly feel it flowing continuously around them. It almost looked as though the Spirit inside them was circulating on its own instead of remaining still like the cores he had got, which belonged to an Abyss rank Ruin.

For a brief moment, even Atlas couldn’t help narrowing his eyes after seeing them.

Though that surprise only lasted for a few seconds, ’This is a Cataclysm-rank Ruin...’

That single thought was enough to calm him down.

Compared to Abyss-Rank Ruins, a Cataclysm-rank Ruin naturally possessed monsters that were many times stronger. If even the monsters born inside carried that level of Spirit, then the Core maintaining the entire Ruin should naturally contain an even greater amount. After reaching that conclusion, Atlas simply broke the remaining stone surrounding the Cores before placing every one of them inside his Spirit Bag.

Those very Cores were the reason the Spirit Bag behind his back looked slightly stretched now.Atlas unconsciously adjusted the strap resting over his shoulder before continuing to walk through the gradually quieting streets of Solara.

Even now he still didn’t know what purpose those Cores actually served.That thought ended there as another one naturally surfaced.

His Relic.

More specifically...theRelic that rewoned time and shift Location.

His expression didn’t change as he quietly thought,’If someone tries to get in my way...or tries to steal what’s mine, I’ll kill them with everything I’ve got.’

There wasn’t any hesitation behind that conclusion.

Inside the Eternal Ruin, Atlas had accepted the Hollow emotions sleeping inside himself instead of continuing to reject them. After leaving the Ruin, he had spent enough time thinking about that decision with a calm mind. The conclusion he reached was simple.

Those emotions weren’t changing what he wanted.They only made him acknowledge what he already intended to do.

From the very beginning, Atlas had never planned on forgiving the Human Royals or the Nobles who treated commoners like disposable tools. Whether it was Ormolio, the Eternal Ruin, or everything else that had happened throughout his life, every single one of those events had already carved that answer inside him.

One day...

Every one of them would die by his hands.

That resolve hadn’t changed.

It had only become clearer.

A few moments later another matter related to this matter entered his mind, causing him to narrow his eyes slightly...The Guild’s Relic Registration.

The more he thought about it, the stranger it seemed.

Everyone knew Relics could be stolen.

The Guild knew that, Explorers knew that.

Yet despite something so obvious, every Guild branch still recorded every Relic discovered by Explorersfor now reasonat all, if they registered it then why didn’t they help keep it safe for the owner? On the surface it looked like simple record keeping, but Atlas found it difficult to believe that was the only reason behind it. If ownership of a Relic could change at any time, then continuously recording them seemed almost meaningless unless the Guild gained something else from doing so.

’There’s probably another purpose...’

That thought remained in his mind for several moments before he shook his head once again.

’Forget it.’

Whether there really was another purpose or not didn’t matter to him right now.

If someone eventually came to take his Relic away, he would simply deal with them like he dealt with every other obstacle standing before him. There was no point worrying about enemies that hadn’t appeared yet, especially when he still lacked both information and strength.

For now, there were only two things he needed from the Guild - The details regarding the Relic he had just obtained...And the information Himalton had spoken about the Divine-rank Ruin.

Without realizing it, Atlas had already arrived before the Guild while thinking through everything. Evening had almost settled over Solara nowwith the Rainfall also stopping. Several Explorers entered and left the Guild while merchants hurriedly closed their nearby shops before night fully arrived.

Atlas lifted his head and stepped toward the entrance.Just as he was about to enter, his perception caught a familiar presence approaching from behind.

He immediately stopped walking.

That presence was already familiar enough for him to recognize without even turning around.

Atlas frowned slightly before slowly looking over his shoulder.

’Lady Seraphiel?’