Bloodbound Codex: I Grow Stronger in Secret

[Name: Atlas Mariorett]

[Goal: Killing the Human King and all Nobles in the Human Continent]

[Possession: Null in pure form]

[Warning: Further information on this figure will require the Universe’s Laws to bend. To accomplish this, Host would need to sacrifice his soul and would never be able to reincarnate again.]

The moment Kael saw the information displayed by the System, his eyes widened in utter shock. He had expected something unusual when he asked the System to analyze the mysterious Human who had suddenly appeared on the battlefield, but he hadn’t expected an answer like this. His gaze immediately moved from the name to the goal, then finally stopped at the warning displayed beneath the information. The longer he stared at those words, the more difficult it became for him to process what he was seeing.

’Bend the laws of the Universe just to know his information? What the fuck is he?! Is he even Human?!’ Kael’s thoughts were filled with disbelief.

His System had already analyzed countless Individuals throughout his time in this World, and although there had been a few cases where he couldn’t obtain everything he wanted, nothing had ever come close to this. The warning wasn’t simply saying that the information was hidden. It was saying that obtaining more information would require something as extreme as bending the Laws of the Universe, and the price would be his soul and his ability to reincarnate.

That alone was enough to make Kael take the warning seriously.

He quickly turned his attention back toward the battlefield just in time to see the scene that had already unfolded between Atlas and Azarion. He watched as Azarion suddenly punched Atlas from behind, sending his body deep into the enormous chasm beneath them. For a brief moment, Atlas disappeared completely from sight, but the next instant, his figure suddenly emerged directly in front of Azarion.

Kael’s eyes widened again.

He hadn’t sensed Atlas moving.

Not even a slight fluctuation had reached his perception before Atlas appeared there. There had been no obvious movement, no gradual increase in speed, and no trace of the transition that could explain how he had crossed the distance so quickly. Atlas had simply disappeared from one location and appeared at another, leaving Kael unable to understand what had happened.

’What the hell...?’

Kael stared at Atlas as he realized something that made him feel strangely uncomfortable. His Unique Abilities had always been one of the things he was most confident about. Uriel’s Observation alone was supposed to allow him to perceive the status of Individuals regardless of their cultivation rank, abilities, or stats. Yet now, after everything that had happened today, he was beginning to wonder whether the abilities he had once considered ’cheats’ were actually as impressive as he had believed.

His attention then shifted toward Atlas’s fist just before it landed on Azarion.

Kael narrowed his eyes as he carefully observed the strange force surrounding Atlas’s hand.

’System, that force coating his hand... it’s Null, isn’t it?’

The response came almost immediately.

[Yes Host. It is Null, and that man has an advanced grasp on how to use it. He also seems to know that Null is not an Energy like everyone here thinks.]

Kael’s expression became even more serious.

’Damn... So how can he possess these things and you also cannot analyze him?’ He paused for a moment as another possibility suddenly entered his mind. The more he thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed from his perspective, ’Does he also happen to have a System? Is he also a transmigrator or reincarnation like me?’

As someone who had spent years reading novels on Earth, Kael naturally had certain expectations about how Systems worked. In most of the stories he had read, one System couldn’t properly analyze another System or the person possessing it. It wasn’t a rule that applied to every story, but it was common enough for Kael to consider the possibility now.

If Atlas had another System, it could potentially explain why Uriel’s Observation had failed and why even his own System was unable to obtain complete information about him.

After a short pause, the System responded.

[No Host. He doesn’t possess a System. If he possessed one, the System wouldn’t have been able to analyze even that much information.]

Kael remained silent for a moment before slowly nodding.

That explanation made sense. If Atlas possessed a System similar to his own, then there was a good chance that the System wouldn’t have been able to obtain even his name or goal. The fact that it had managed to reveal several pieces of information meant that Atlas’s abnormality came from somewhere else.

’Sigh... Forget it then. His goal is to kill Azarion, the Human King, right? Isn’t my Quest almost the same?’ Kael’s eyes shifted toward the distant battlefield once again. The strange information continued occupying his mind, but he eventually decided not to waste any more time trying to understand something the System itself couldn’t properly analyze. Whatever Atlas was, he was clearly connected to something far beyond what Kael currently understood.

His twin daggers disappeared from his hands as they were returned to the System’s Inventory through a slight fluctuation in space.

Just then, Kael sensed a familiar presence behind him.

He immediately turned around and saw Eliana standing there.

A smile appeared on her face as she looked toward him, but Kael immediately felt a chill when he noticed the expression in her eyes. He knew that smile. It was the same kind of smile she used whenever she already knew that something was wrong and was simply waiting for him to admit it himself, ”Have you finished your side of the hassle, my perverted Disciple?”

Kael awkwardly scratched the back of his head, ”Ahaha! M-Master, I have finished my side of the hassle, as you can see. W-Why don’t we go near that fight now? There is an interesting person who just came over there.”

He pointed toward the battlefield while trying to redirect the conversation as quickly as possible. Eliana’s eyes remained closed as her smile widened slightly. To Kael, that expression looked far more threatening than an ordinary angry face would have.

”I knew you were hiding your strength. That is why I didn’t protect you when those Monsters attacked.” Kael’s awkward smile immediately froze.

Eliana finally opened her eyes, ”We will discuss this matter when we return home. For now, let’s observe that interesting person.”

Kael swallowed as he watched Eliana disappear from her position without waiting for his response. Her movement was so casual that it almost seemed as though she hadn’t just threatened to deal with him later.

Kael remained where he was for a moment, staring at the place where his Master had disappeared.

’Oh boy... I’m dead meat this time. She’ll beat the shit out of me, won’t she, System?’

There was a brief silence.

[...Highly likely, Host.]

Kael’s expression immediately changed.

For the first time, the System seemed to be making a joke about the situation rather than simply providing information. That realization caused Kael to burst into laughter.

”Hahahaha!” His laughter echoed briefly across the battlefield before he shook his head and finally moved.

Whatever happened when they returned home could be dealt with later. Right now, there was an even more interesting matter standing on the other side of the battlefield, and Kael’s curiosity was already pulling him toward that confrontation.

With that thought, Kael’s figure disappeared as he followed after Eliana.