Bloodbound Codex: I Grow Stronger in Secret

A low growl moved through the darkness.

Atlas stopped at once.

The sound was not loud, but it changed the situation immediately. Until now, the lower floor of the Eternal Ruin had only carried his breathing, the faint pulse of the Bloodbound Codex, and the small cracks made by his newly strengthened body. This growl meant something else was inside the sealed chamber, and from the weight in the sound, it was not a weak creature.

Atlas kept the Sanguis Stylus clenched in his hand and listened.

Another growl came.

Closer.

He turned toward it slowly. The Codex floated beside him, its dim light revealing broken pillars, cracked stone, and the nearest section of the floor, but everything beyond a few steps remained difficult to see. At first, there was only movement between the pillars. Then a large body stepped into the edge of the light.

Atlas’s throat tightened.

”A... Hybrid Muxical...?”

He had never seen one before, but he knew the name. Some monsters were famous enough that even commoners in Ormolio knew about them through taverns, drunk guards, merchants, and old explorer stories. A Hybrid Muxical was a B-Rank predator.

The creature looked like a wolf only from a distance. Its body was too large, its limbs too heavy, and four tails moved behind it with different rhythms. Dark fur covered its frame in uneven sharp layers, and every breath made the muscles beneath its skin shift. Its red eyes stayed on Atlas, but its nose angled toward the Codex, as if the scent of blood and relic power interested it.

Atlas swallowed.

His body wanted to freeze again, and that was the real problem. Strength 9 had changed his muscles, but it had not removed fear or improved his combat experience. His body still remembered the black monster above. It remembered being pierced through the stomach before he could react. Now another monster stood only a few meters away, and this one was also beyond what he should be able to handle.

Atlas forced one step backward.

Crack.

The stone beneath his foot split from the pressure.

The sound was small, but the chamber was too quiet.

The Hybrid Muxical stopped.

Its four tails froze at the same time.

Atlas understood the mistake immediately.

’Shit! It reacts to sound and movement!’

The creature lowered its body.

Its muscles gathered.

Then it moved.

Atlas saw the start of the leap, but he did not see the middle. The next moment, something slammed into his right shoulder and twisted his entire body sideways. Before he could adjust, jaws closed over his flesh.

”AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!”

The scream came out before he could stop it.

The monster’s fangs sank deep into his shoulder, cutting through muscle and nerve. Strength 9 prevented his body from breaking instantly, but it did not stop the bite. Atlas reached forward by instinct, trying to grab the creature’s neck or fur, but the Hybrid Muxical pulled back too quickly.

It took a piece of him with it.

Atlas staggered and nearly fell.

Blood burst from his shoulder and soaked his clothes within seconds. His left hand clamped over the wound, but the pressure only made the pain sharper. His right arm shook violently, and the damage made it harder to control the strength he had forced into his body.

The conclusion was simple.

He had strength now, but the monster was faster.

Then Atlas noticed his blood.

It was not falling normally.

Thin strands lifted from his wound and moved toward the Sanguis Stylus in his hand. The stylus absorbed them the moment they touched its crystal body. Once it tasted fresh blood, the pull became stronger. It was not only collecting what spilled out. It was using the wound as an open source.

Atlas’s face twisted.

”Stop—!”

The stylus did not stop - It drank.

The rule was becoming clearer with every second. Blood was ink. The wound had created supply, and the Sanguis Stylus used it without caring whether Atlas could afford the loss. The crystal body filled faster, and the red liquid inside moved as if excited by the fresh offering.

Atlas lifted his eyes.

The Hybrid Muxical stood a few meters away.

In its jaws was his flesh.

Crunch...Crunch

Atlas stared at it, and his mind went quiet for a moment. The monster had bitten him, retreated, and was eating his flesh while watching. It was not desperate, It was not afraid. It was testing him and feeding at the same time. To it, Atlas was not an enemy. He was prey that had survived the first bite.

His breathing became uneven.

Fear remained, but rage rose beneath it.

The Royals had thrown him into the Eternal Ruin because he was a commoner. The black monster above had pierced him like he was nothing. Now this B-Rank beast was chewing his flesh while waiting for another chance to tear more away.

Atlas’s fingers tightened around the Sanguis Stylus.

”You... bastard...”

The Codex flickered beside him.

The open page waited.

[ PROFILE ]

[ Name: Atlas Mariorett ]

[ STATS ]

Strength: 9 [ LOCKED ] [ LOCKED ]

Stamina: _ [ LOCKED ] [ LOCKED ]

Agility: _ [ LOCKED ] [ LOCKED ]

Spirit: _ [ LOCKED ] [ LOCKED ]

Strength had not been enough.

He could crack stone with his hand now. If he landed a hit, he could probably hurt the Hybrid Muxical. But if he could not react to its movement, his strength meant nothing. The monster would keep biting, retreating, and bleeding him until he collapsed. If the next attack aimed for his throat, there would be no third chance.

He needed to move.

No, before that, he needed to survive long enough to move.

Stamina and Agility.

The conclusion came quickly because there was no time to make it complicated. Stamina would help him endure blood loss and pain. Agility would help him follow the monster’s movement. Spirit remained dangerous because he did not understand it yet, so touching it now meant gambling with something deeper than muscle and breath.

The Hybrid Muxical swallowed the flesh in its mouth.

Then its body lowered again.

Atlas understood the timing.

It was going to attack.

***

Far away from the Eternal Ruin, the Human Imperial Palace was bright with celebration.

Warm light spread across golden pillars and polished floors. Nobles, ministers, Royal relatives, and invited guests filled the grand hall in elegant clothing, speaking with relaxed voices while servants carried wine, roasted meat, fruit, and delicacies that could have fed an outer-district family for months.

At the center of the hall, the Emperor raised a glass of deep crimson wine.

”Cheers to all.”

The nearby conversations lowered.

The Emperor smiled as he looked over the gathered nobles.

”Today is a special day for humanity. After a thousand years, an Eternal-Class Ruin has finally appeared within our reach. If it is cleared properly, the relics, inheritances, and knowledge inside may raise our continent above every other power in Eliomor.”

The word Eternal-Class changed the atmosphere at once. Some nobles smiled openly. Others exchanged looks filled with greed. They all understood the value. A ruin of that level was not an ordinary dungeon where Explorers entered for coin and monster materials. It was a treasure vault for an Entire continent even if only one Relic came out.

The Emperor let their anticipation grow before continuing.

”Of course, the first entry was dangerous. Someone needed to trigger the internal reaction and confirm whether the Boss Monster would respond.”

A few nobles chuckled.

They understood what he meant. The first person had not been sent to succeed.

The first person had been sent to take the danger.

The Emperor took a slow sip of wine.

”The scout was a commoner from Ormolio. If he survives, he will have served the kingdom well. If he dies, he will still have served the kingdom well.”

This time, more laughter spread through the hall.

A noblewoman hid her smile behind a fan. A young heir raised his glass while whispering something to the man beside him. Several older nobles nodded as if this was normal policy. To them, spending one commoner life to open the path into an Eternal-Class Ruin was not cruelty. It was efficiency.

The Emperor lifted his glass again.

”Humanity does not rise because every life carries equal weight. Humanity rises because those with value know how to use those without it.”

No one objected.

They drank and laughed.

***

And far beneath the ruin they wanted to claim, the person they had thrown away was bleeding again.

The Hybrid Muxical’s body tensed.

Atlas looked from the monster to the Codex.

His wounded shoulder continued feeding the Sanguis Stylus. His hand shook from pain, but the stylus was full enough now. The bite that should have weakened him had also given him ink. The monster had created the condition for his next change.

His lips moved.

It twisted into refusal.

If he hesitated, he would die, if he ran, he would die.

whatever he did he would die but what he was about to do would change everything.

Stamina: _ [ LOCKED ] [ LOCKED ]

Agility: _ [ LOCKED ] [ LOCKED ]

Spirit: _ [ LOCKED ] [ LOCKED ]

The Hybrid Muxical moved.

Atlas did too.

The Sanguis Stylus touched the next blank.