Becoming the Dark Lord

Now that Angie had reached class level 8, she could finally use the equipment. At that same level, new skill options had appeared, and she had already made her choice.

[Critical Pierce (Uncommon)]: The Valkyrie adjusts the balance of her spear and executes a precise strike, capable of piercing defenses and striking vital points with an increased chance to land a critical hit.

Charlie pulled her mouth away from Luke’s neck.

“Did you manage it?” he asked.

“Yes. I completely filled my Blood Core, Master Luke.”

[Blood Core: 100/100]

“Damn, you look pale as hell,” Artemis commented.

Even at Rank E, anyone who lost that much blood would feel awful. It was not just HP that Luke lost when Charlie fed on him. With too little blood in his body, organs stopped functioning properly. Lose enough, and it could kill him.

“Nothing a few potions can’t fix,” he said, quickly downing an entire potion in one gulp.

The damage from massive blood loss is worse, which means my own HP will be consumed just to replace the blood I lost. In the end, the potion will barely restore anything. I’m going to burn through more potions than I planned.

He looked at Charlie. “It’s fine, Charlie. I’m okay. What matters is that with your Blood Core full, we can safely test that epic skill of yours.”

[Blood Familiar I (Epic)]: The Blood Familiar is a loyal creature bound to a Blood Death Knight, forged from the Knight’s own blood through the sacrifice of the [Spectral Soldier]. It shares not only a vital bond with its master but also fragments of the Knight’s own power.

(Note: This skill is compatible with [Spectral Soldier]. By sacrificing [Spectral Soldier], the Blood Death Knight can forge a powerful familiar from their own blood, creating a permanent bond through which both master and familiar grow stronger together.)

During the tutorial, the skill had been useless. Charlie was a skeleton back then, and skeletons did not have blood. Now, that limitation was gone.

They could have tested it earlier, but since it seemed tied to her being a vampire, they had decided to wait until her Blood Core was full. If the skill consumed too much Blood Energy, it could push Charlie into a state where Vampiric Hunger took over. The system did not always warn them how much energy a skill would cost, which made it a real risk.

“Master Luke, can I activate it now?” Charlie asked.

“Yes. But first, tell me what knowledge the skill gives you now that you have a body with blood,” he replied.

She paused, thinking. “Not much. I just need to sacrifice my Spectral Soldier with my sword, after bathing it in my blood.”

Luke used Identify on Charlie’s class.

[Blood Death Knight]: When night rises and the world falls asleep, the Blood Death Knight awakens. They are not merely a knight; they are a harbinger of ruin, marked by blood and vengeance. Their blade is cold and silent, shaped by the touch of death, reflecting only the insatiable hunger of a soul that devours both hope and life alike.

The night is their cloak. Blood, their inheritance. Every strike is a ritual, every battle a sacrifice, every fallen foe a tribute to the dark power that sustains them. No army to command, no pact to uphold. Only the pure will to corrupt, consume, and grow stronger with every life taken.

Their skills are not mere attacks. They are living curses, echoes of necromancy and blood magic. Doomblade, Mark of Doom, and Doom Explosion are only the beginning, signs of a deeper power where blood and curse intertwine to transform each confrontation into a crimson ritual.

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The Blood Death Knight is forged on the edge between life and death, between blood and darkness. Many were Death Knights betrayed, warriors who crossed the threshold of death and returned forever changed. They seek not legions or glory. They seek transcendence through the power of blood.

Only those marked by trauma, curse, or a special bloodline can walk this path. In the hands of the Blood Death Knight, blood is not merely fuel; it is weapon, shield, and offering. With every battle, they draw closer to their true destiny: to become not just a knight of death but a lord of blood and perdition.

I think I get it now. A Blood Death Knight was betrayed, and the ritual to awaken that power is basically his revenge, sacrificing his own army. Or maybe it’s him sinking so deeply into corruption that he’s willing to betray even his own soldiers in exchange for strength.

He set aside the deeper implications of what that really meant.

Either way, it wasn’t as if Charlie and I were particularly attached to the orc Morvat.

Charlie removed her glove and sent it to her inventory. With her sword, she sliced open the palm of her hand. Blood welled up, and she dragged her bleeding palm along the blade, staining the black steel red.

“I’m going to summon the Spectral Soldier now,” she said, extending her hand.

Spectral energy surged forward, white smoke threaded with green light tearing through a piece of reality itself. From that rift, Morvat emerged on his knees.

“Your orders, my—”

He never finished the sentence.

The blade plunged into his chest. The orc’s eyes went wide. His body began to fracture, cracking into jagged fragments. The fissures flared red.

[The Spectral Soldier skill has been permanently destroyed.]

The orc’s color shifted, deepening into crimson. His form melted, dissolving into liquid until all that remained was a pool on the ground.

“Is it over?” Luke asked.

“Not yet, Master Luke.”

Charlie clenched her bloodied hand, letting a single drop fall. That drop glowed red as it hit the pool. The liquid began to bubble, as if it were boiling.

[The Ancient Bloodline of Vespertilio is corrupting the Blood Familiar…]

“That was unexpected,” Luke muttered, staring at the notification.

The red liquid started to evaporate. Several droplets of blood lifted into the air, condensed into a bright crimson mass, then rushed toward Charlie and vanished into her.

“What just happened?”

“My Blood Core. Something changed.”

“Good or bad?”

“Um… I don’t really know how to explain it.”

She looked at her palm. The wound had already healed, but a red mark remained, like a single drop of blood permanently stained into her skin.

[The Blood Familiar is being formed within the soul of the Blood Death Knight and will remain in hibernation for a time.]

***

They walked through the city of Sirius. Angie stayed close, her armor and clothes concealing her gray skin. The city was crowded, loud, overwhelming. It felt like standing in the heart of New York, if New York had been built with medieval stone and iron. As if the Incas of Machu Picchu had somehow collided with sixteenth-century France.

Luke stopped to ask around. He wanted to know where the rift entrance was. As he moved through the streets, a restless energy stirred inside him. He was eager. Hungry for progress. At a tavern, he took a seat. Most of the patrons had weapons openly displayed. That was normal here. For the moment, he was alone. If he wanted information, tavern keepers were always the best place to start.

“Drink or food?”

“Both.” Luke set a few coins on the table. “And information. Where’s the famous dimensional rift everyone’s been talking about on the road?”

“That’s mercenary guild business. They handle things like that. The rift itself is at a military checkpoint.”

A military checkpoint?

After eating, Luke left the tavern. Charlie was waiting outside. She and Angie had gone shopping for clothes. Now that Angie could make her wings disappear, she could wear normal outfits instead of adventurer gear.

“Did you find out anything, Master Luke?” Charlie asked.

They walked down the street together.

“The dimensional rift is a source of enormous wealth,” Luke said. “Mining operations, people hunting to grow stronger, all kinds of things. From what I’ve heard, it’s busy. And it’s not small. It sounds massive, like an entire kingdom inside it. Wild. Untamed. Completely unknown.”