Shadow Monarch: Heroines Could Hear My Thoughts?!

Chapter 182- Rage (Part 1)

The aura quickly grew more and more pronounced with each passing second. Along with it, weird changes started happening to the dagger itself. The cracked blade was visibly getting fixed in real time.

The grey color of the handle was also turning into a red, blood-like color. Then, from the lowest point of the dagger, weird runes started appearing around the handle, reaching the guard of the dagger. The pommel had completely transformed from a plain one to something akin to 4 long fingers of some kind of creature.

From a grey, plain dagger, it turned into an ominous weapon that planted fear into the bravest of hearts.

[The Blood Eye Dagger linked with the host.]

[Blood Eye Dagger: A dagger forged by the hands of the Blood Godsmith. Its power is unmatched by most weapons. With a swing of it, the blood of a million enemies is shed on the battlefield.]

[You have learned the dagger's skill: Blood Manipulation.]

[Blood Manipulation: Blood is the purest and the most tarnished form of life at the same time. The Emperor Of Blood shall be reborn, ready to wreak havoc in the lands and coat them with the color of blood. Activating this skill allows you to control your blood and the blood of others to a certain extent. Requires mana to be used.]

'So, it was indeed true. This dagger is great! But, what does it mean by the Emperor of Blood?' Rin thought as he read the content of the messages that appeared in his retina.

The skill and item description has always been a mystery for Rin as they were always encrypted and hard to comprehend. No matter how much he tried to solve them, he ended up in failure.

'Ugh, whatever... It's not time for it anyways.'

Turning around, Rin quickly submerged himself in his shadows and went back to the prison area. He wasn't intending to leave the citizens alone but since he had to get his hands on the blood dagger.

It's risky but Rin needed every possible thing in his arsenal to fight Cid or Evelyn and Elise in case they were to attack him.

Quickly, he reached the prison and went down. But, what he found there made him halt as his eyes widened. His pupils shrank to the extreme.

'No...'

Leaking on the ground was a clear, red liquid moving down a small stream between the cracks of the stone.

The liquid was coming out of every prison cell.

'No, no, no, no...'

Rin's mind was submerged in dark dread and fear of what must've happened during the time he was out to get the dagger.

Approaching the first cell, he hesitantly checked inside. Much to his horror, what he predicted was the truth. The ones inside the cell had their necks slit and were slumped down on the ground, completely motionless.

'No...'

Shaking his head, Rin clenched his teeth till they threatened to crack then quickly moved to the second cell. His hope of finding the others at least alive was still there, as faint as it was.

But, reality merely destroyed that hope completely. Each and every person inside these cells was brutally murdered.

At some point, Rin had halted his movements. His eyes fixated on the ground as the realization of what happened dawned on him.

Lifting his hand, he touched his face in disbelief.

*Step* *Step*

"That was truly a magnificent plan, Rin. I was almost tricked."

Cid's mocking voice reached his ears. But, Rin didn't move nor reply at all.

"You told them to not move and pretend that you are asleep, didn't you? But, sadly for them, acting isn't everyone's talent."

"..."

"How horrible for them to die in such a manner. Truly a sad day for humanity." Tapping on his hand, Cid continued.

"You know. Since we are now considered friends, I will tell you a secret. If you didn't discover this place, I would've not resorted to killing everyone. They could've just stayed here and minded their business the same way you should've minded your own. But, as they say, curiosity killed the cat. In this case, 200 cats were brutally murdered and all the fault is yours, haha haha!!"

Each word stabbed Rin where it exactly hurts. Coupled with the confused state he is in, it would only strengthen the effect that Cid will have on him.

"Tsk, tsk, truly a bad decision, Rin. Because of you, these innocent citizens died in vain. It's all your fault. The lives of many are on your neck."

'I killed them... Me? I have killed them because of my stupidity...' Rin's thoughts were as such. Chaotic yet also eerily calm.

'If I didn't leave, then they would be alive... If I didn't assume my plan would work, they wouldn't end up dead...'

*Click*

Then, with a snap of his finger, many men wearing armor and bearing swords and spears came inside the cell, closing the place completely as they stood around Cid. They were the lord's guards that he hypnotized.

No matter where he would look, Rin won't be able to escape at all. His mana was already low enough as it is after using many summonses in a short time span.

From that group, Elise and Evelyn also came out walking toward Cid before they stood behind him as if they were his bodyguards.

"Now, all of this shall end... I played with you long enough. Was it not for the fact that you caught my interest, I would've not gone along with this. Give up."

*Silence*

Rin, the target of all of this, didn't say anything. He just stood there like an unmoving statue.

"Tsk, no reaction. Well, how boring. Catch him, guards..." Cid said.

Immediately, the first group of guards approached him. However, what happened next made Cid's relaxed expression turn extremely sour.

Rin had suddenly vanished from where he was standing and reappeared behind the group of guards. Instantly, blood splurted out and the group fell down... dead.

Rin... had killed them.

"W-What..." Staring at him, Cid felt a chill run down his spine.

Rin's eyes looked empty, emotionless, and quite literally the most horrifying eyes Cid had ever seen in all of his life.

[Due to the host's unstable emotional state, the berserker skill has been activated.]

A notification appeared in front of Rin but not only did he not give it a single glance, but he also didn't even realize it appeared in the first place. All of his focus was on one single person.

"W-What is wrong with you?!! What are you two waiting for? Attack him!" Cid shouted as he quickly retreated back and ordered his guards to attack Rin.

However, before the guards could even do anything, Rin moved first. He lifted his hand with the Blood Eye Dagger in it.

Mana circulated through his veins at an inhuman speed. The dagger's color intensified as the fingers running through its handle moved slightly.

Then, from the tip of the dagger's blade, a small red ball of mana appeared.

Blood manipulation has been activated. The skill that was attached to the Blood Eye dagger had quickly come to use and the results of it were horrifying, to say the least.

*Pop*

Suddenly, the sound of something exploding echoed in the room as one soldier fell down to the ground. From his eyes, blood leaked out as his eyeballs turned red. The veins in his brain had exploded out of nowhere.

Then, another popping sound reached Cid's ear before another guard fell down dead. Then another one and another one after that. Quickly, men were dying of unknown causes. Each one of them didn't have time to resist or do anything.

'What is he doing?!'

Cid had no idea that the Blood Eye Dagger existed so he could only panic seeing this power.

"Stop him, quickly!"

The rest of the guards abided and dashed toward, Rin.

But, by the time they reached him, everyone had fallen down dead. Silence loomed over the place.

'H-How... He killed everyone... What kind of power is this?... Why did his whole demeanor change?!'

All kinds of questions popped into Cid's head but he couldn't find an answer to them.

As he was like that, Rin put down his hand and then pulled out his other dagger, the shadow monarch dagger.

Then, he pointed it at Cid with his cold emotionless eyes gazing at him as if he was prey ready to be hunted down.

That mere look sent a shiver down his spine. He felt it, the looming death, the sense of fear that filled his heart. Rin was going to kill him if he stayed here, that fact had settled in his head. Whether he survives or not had become something uncertain.

'I still have these two women! He won't dare to kill them, would he?!' Staring at Evelyn and Elise, he thought.

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