Ascension of the Dark Seraph

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Realization dawned upon them as the lance blew past Lucivar.

Master Tobias managed to deceive them for years without anyone suspecting a single thing.

It wasn't bold to assume that he was a master of the mind.

His intelligence, coupled with his ability to execute, was a cut above even the best deceiver.

Keeping the focus of the others exactly what he wanted while making his move from behind—hiding intentions so tidily that not even a sign could be spotted, and even layering every move he made with a trick that always came unexpectedly.

Nothing about him seemed how it seemed.

He might make it look like it was obvious and straightforward, but in truth, it was anything but.

Lucivar and Mirel snapped their heads over their shoulders.

Both of them watched in enthrall as the blood lance cut through the air with extreme speed, faster than even a bullet was moving, but gradually slowed and made a beautiful crescent arc, as it made a sudden turn to face Leandra.

Not any slower than Master Tobias, Lucivar's entire body blasted with unrelenting power.

Each burst cracked the blood lances pinning him in place, and as soon as he was free, he charged straight ahead. His burst of speed broke the level of speed that the battle had set, creating a booming sound as he broke through the sound barrier.

His flesh, muscles, and bones strained from how fast he was going.

Anyone else would have shattered under the strain of exerting such speed.

Most mortal bodies would break apart from the sheer force.

But the heated hammer of hell forged his body to a greater height—pushing him beyond mortal levels, allowing him to endure the strain perfectly. And in the blink of an eye, Lucivar arrived a step away from Master Tobias.

Even when the blood lance was nowhere near Leandra, he already readied his sword.

Splash!

In the next second, the sound of flesh tearing and the splashing of blood dropping in large quantities rang.

Lucivar's eyes narrowed as he stared into Master Tobias' eyes.

Downward, the tip of the black blade penetrated through Master Tobias' chest.

A smirk crept to Lucivar's face, but his smirk faltered when blood drizzled down to his chin.

His eyes flew wide as blood burst from his lips, drizzling down to his chin, only then realizing that his body was snared once again with even more blood lances than before. It seemed Master Tobias had already prepared a trap beforehand, expecting him to do something like this.

It wasn't perfect; the black blade nicked him, but it worked.

Time seemed to slow down as Lucivar's face twisted into one of shock.

He wasn't shocked because Master Tobias anticipated his move.

Considering how Master Tobias deceived them, it didn't come as a surprise to him anymore.

In fact, he broke free from the blood lances with brute strength and attacked Master Tobias, fully aware of the risk that such a trap was waiting for him. Only a fool would believe that a few crimson lances could restrain a half-human, half God like him.

And Master Tobias was no fool.

But what surprised Lucivar was Master Tobias' calmness and unwavering focus.

'I stabbed him. It wasn't much, but a stab from this sword should—at least hurt him…' He looked over his shoulder and watched as the blood lance descended steadily. 'How is his focus this unwavering? No reaction at all.'

Possessing full mastery over the attribute was no easy task.

Perfect master was only reserved for the most talented and hard-working Hybrids around.

A lack in either of them would make it impossible to reach perfect mastery.

Even Lucivar, with the help of Loki's strength, still couldn't control his two attributes well.

It would take time.

So, he refused to believe that Master Tobias—has already reached that realm of mastery when most of the time, he pretended to be someone with no power. He simply didn't have enough time to train to the point of achieving this level of mastery.

Regardless, reality has shown that Master Tobias was unwavering.

No twitch in the blood lance's trajectory at all, even though he was stabbed a little.

Behind, as Lucivar attacked in hopes of breaking Master Tobias' focus—and causing the blood lance to miss a vital spot, Mirel did the complete opposite. Instincts kicked in. His body surged with sparks of yellow lightning as he hurled himself forward to shove Leandra out of harm's way.

But as he stumbled to make his first step, he realized that he was already too late.

His eyes widened as he could only watch the lance descend like a meteor, aiming at Leandra's heart.

Leandra looked up and saw a faint gleam of the blood lance heading towards her.

She was hurt, and the loss of blood made it hard for her to focus.

All she could do was close her eyes, accepting that this was how she was going to die.

Clang!

A thunderous clang echoed as the blood lance stabbed into the ground.

"Krrggh…!"

Following it was a painful grunt, but it didn't come from Leandra.

Even Leandra frowned as she could feel the push from the blood lance's tip, slamming her into the earth, but the pain was minimal. It wasn't the kind of pain that should stem—from being impaled. As a matter of fact, she only felt a sting at the center of her chest.

Silence followed.

Slowly, Leandra opened her eyes.

For a few seconds, her blurred vision adjusted to the light.

And when her retina processed the light properly, she sucked in a cold breath.

Bakar loomed before her, his broad shoulders eclipsing even the full moon above, shrouding her in the protection of his shadow. The blood lance had already struck—tearing through his crossed arms before driving mercilessly into his chest.

His muscles trembled against the force, veins bulging as he held fast, refusing to yield.

As it turns out, the gentle shove Leandra had felt seconds ago was nothing but the remnant of the blood lance momentum—most of it had been swallowed by his own flesh and bone. Crimson steamed down his arms and chest.

Even though he decided to offer up his body as a shield, the sight of the blood lance still shocked him.

It was clear from how his body stiffened upon looking down.

In the span of a few seconds, Bakar had already gone through shock, dread, and then acceptance.

Using the last bit of his strength, he twisted his body just enough to glance over his shoulder.

His eyes met with Leandra's horrified gaze.

"I predicted him—I predicted what he was aiming for. You see?" Despite knowing that he had met a dead end with no path ahead in sight, Bakar cracked a weak smile. "I'm not a dumb knucklehead. I can be smart if I want to…"

Almost instantly after uttering those words, Bakar's knees gave out as his body folded.

He dropped down to his knees, and his head hung low.

No illusion this time.

No path to save him from death's grip.

Bakar gave up his life to protect Leandra, and he succeeded.

From the moment he stood tall to the instant his body collapsed to the ground, Leandra could only stare, stunned beyond belief. She drew several sharp breaths, her chest rising and falling as her mind struggled to grasp what she was seeing.

Once she realized what truly happened, her pupils quivered with the weight of realization.

"Haa—Haah…" She let out a sound that tore from her throat, one that had no meaning in words but was heavy with anguish, a raw cry that any ear could understand. "Bakar…! Bakar!"

She crawled forward—the pain she was suffering suddenly went numb.

Some of her strength returned momentarily, helping her drag her own body to where Bakar was.

Desperately, she reached for Bakar's body—her trembling hands clutching his stiff, chilling frame. She pulled him close and sat beside him, rocking him back and forth—as if sheer will could rouse him. But no breath came, no warmth returned.

Only the unyielding cold that confirmed the truth her heart already feared.

"No, this can't be happening…" Leandra's voice quivered as she clutched Bakar's collar with both of her hands. "You said you wanted to avenge Dinda for her wrongful death! Why did you do this?! Why did you save me?!"

Her scream rang hollow.

Just earlier, Bakar was vigorous enough to talk back to her.

He was determined to avenge Dinda's death with his own two hands, regardless of what Master Tobias did to the others. It shows that he was selfish. Even when he sided with Master Tobias without saying a single thing was in line with his inner selfishness.

So why? Why did he take the blow?

Leandra couldn't answer those questions, and that made the realization all the more painful.

Tears blurred her vision as she clutched at Bakar's blood-stained clothes, her grip tightening in anguish as the warmth of his blood traced over her hand. "Why did you have to try and be smart now?" Leandra loathed in bitter truth—that Bakar had seen through Master Tobias' intent when even Lucivar and Mirel had failed. "Why… why choose the worst moment to finally be smart?"

No matter how much she questioned it, the answer would never come.

Perhaps it was a man's instinct, or perhaps he felt guilty—Leandra would never know.

"YOU!!!"

Mirel turned around—and spent every single ounce of his ether to rush at Master Tobias, bloodlust had already overwhelmed him completely. He reached his lightning hand forward, aiming to grab the master and make him pay for what he had done.

But at that exact moment, he landed on the same fate as Lucivar.

Instead of lances, a blood circle flared beneath him, from which the head of a wolf—formed entirely of congealed crimson—lunged upward and clamped onto his right leg. Its fangs sank deep into his flesh, tearing past muscle and bone, dragging a hiss from his lips even through the haze of bloodlust.

Another one appeared and clamped down on his right arm, all the way to the shoulder.

Mirel was pinned the same as Lucivar.

On the other hand, Lucivar forced his hand forward, trying to reach Master Tobias with all his might.

He didn't care if he was tearing open his flesh as long as he reached Master Tobias.

Master Tobias watched this with complete nonchalance.

Once again, he summoned another blood lance and stabbed Lucivar's reaching hand.

"It's frustrating, isn't it?" Master Tobiass took a step forward, placing his face a few inches away from Lucivar's lethal hand. "When you can't do anything about it. But it shouldn't be like that, you can take it the way it is. A gift from me for making you stronger. Until you realize that, you won't be meeting me again."

Master Tobias' fangs protruded out as his crimson eyes glowed, "Goodbye."

In one swift motion, he sank his fangs into Lucivar's neck and sucked the blood out of him.

And in haste, the world was drowned by darkness.