Chapter Summaries

Arthur realized his new divine might could let him face the tentacle that had nearly killed him, then used [Mikhailo's Touch (Incomplete)] to entice the imperfect Vampire Ancestor Insect inside [Devoted Blood]. The creature agreed to Arthur’s terms and signed eighteen contracts, leaving Arthur with a new servant named Abel.

• Arthur concluded that his new bloodline’s trace of divine might could counter the tentacle’s manifested spirituality.
• Arthur brought [Mikhailo's Touch (Incomplete)] close to [Devoted Blood], repeatedly enticing and frustrating the imperfect Vampire Ancestor Insect within it.
• After the creature roared its surrender, Arthur drafted seventeen contracts covering its identity, service, loyalty, and conduct.
• Arthur added an eighteenth contract stating that he could impose further terms and that his will would prevail.
• The imperfect Vampire Ancestor Insect signed the contracts with its name: Abel.

Arthur used additional contracts to bind Abel, then fed [Mikhailo's Touch (Incomplete)] to the incomplete Vampire Ancestor Insect and restored part of its body. The changed [Devoted Blood] gave Arthur new Blood Clan powers, and he planned to bring his Blood Scion alter ego back into action.

• Arthur questioned Abel about its origins and signed three more contracts, bringing their total to twenty-one clauses.
• Arthur placed [Mikhailo's Touch (Incomplete)] on [Devoted Blood], causing Abel to emerge as a tiny green insect with only its head remaining.
• Abel ate [Mikhailo's Touch (Incomplete)] over ten minutes and restored enough of its body to grow a neck.
• [Devoted Blood] gained Blood Child and Contract attributes, granting Arthur entry-rank Blood Clan abilities while making Abel obey him.
• Arthur decided to reactivate his Blood Scion alter ego and announce its return.

Yura received a new position from the High Priest of the Church of Pain while secretly resenting her, and Arthur used what he learned to prepare for a meeting with the church’s upper echelon. As Yura approached Arthur on the ship, his expression changed in shock.

• The High Priest told Yura that she would become the Church of Pain’s new Priest of Suffering and instructed her only to notify Arthur about a meeting that night.
• After the Communication Stone went silent, Yura threatened the High Priest and hypnotized Lucius into believing he had passed tests that would help him rise through the church.
• Arthur deduced that the meeting would take place on the shore and sent the Blood Scion there with equipment and instructions.
• The Blood Scion used Freeman’s Communication Stone to make contact, while Bloody John noticed his departure and returned to sunbathing.
• Yura changed into practical clothes and approached Arthur on the terrace, and Arthur exclaimed in shock when he saw her.

Yura met Arthur aboard the Eastern and was mistaken for the High Priest of the Church of Pain, which sharpened her resentment toward the woman who held the position. After Yura left, Malinda noticed Arthur’s increased strength and gave him a silver cufflink to conceal it.

• Yura met Arthur, who praised her as the High Priest of the Church of Pain and explained that he sensed her strength and divine grace.
• Yura corrected Arthur, saying she was only a Suffering Priest and had come on the High Priest’s behalf for that night’s discussions.
• Arthur sincerely praised the church’s future under its High Priest, and Yura left after resolving to act on her resentment.
• Malinda confronted Arthur about no longer concealing his increased [physique] and [spirituality], and he claimed the Mystic Item hiding them had been damaged.
• Malinda warned Arthur that the Church of Pain was dangerous and tossed him a silver cufflink to conceal his strength.

Arthur accepted Carmen's Concealment from Malinda and arranged for her people to escort the Eastern, while saying he would not send anyone to Dordot Harbor. Freeman and Amuel caught up with the Blood Scion, who tasked Freeman with secretly protecting the Eastern, bringing the people Arthur needed into place.

• Arthur fastened Carmen's Concealment cufflink and treated it as Malinda's admission ticket to their partnership.
• Malinda said her people would board the Eastern as guards and escort it in speedboats, while Arthur refused to send anyone to Dordot Harbor.
• Freeman took Amuel after the Eastern on a Blood Bat, promising her two Collector's Dolls from Bruto as a reward.
• The Blood Scion asked Freeman to secretly protect the Eastern while he attended to unexpected personal matters.
• Freeman accepted the mission, and Arthur recognized that all the actors were in place.

Catherine led the Church of Pain’s Calamity Cavalry toward Xilond to investigate the Eastern and test Freeman, while Freeman watched the ship and detected an approaching group of people and horses carrying the scent of kerosene. The cavalry vanished on its way to the harbor, and Freeman disappeared from his lookout to meet the approaching threat.

• Arthur expected Freeman to clash with the Church of Pain while both sides tested the possibility of cooperation.
• Catherine prepared to lead the Calamity Cavalry to Xilond and discreetly assess Freeman, while Jacqueline reminded her to drive out the Inner River Cult.
• Catherine received Jacqueline’s blessing and rode with the invisible cavalry toward the harbor where the Eastern would dock that night.
• Freeman and Amuel watched the Eastern from a tree, and Freeman joked about his former greed and his transformation into a Blood Fighter.
• Freeman spotted people and horses, smelled kerosene, and vanished silently into the treetop.

Barry prepared Albert to take over as captain while Arthur and Pendragon sensed danger near Xilond’s riverbank. Freeman ambushed the Church of Pain’s forces, revealed his Blood Fighter abilities, and drew the Doom Knights into an apparent trap that began with an explosion.

• Barry reminded the Eastern’s guests to return for dinner and told them the crew would help if they encountered trouble in Xilond.
• Barry invited Albert out and regaled him with crude stories while Arthur listened and covered Pendragon’s ears.
• Pendragon sensed malice in the woods, and Arthur recognized that a fight was beginning.
• Freeman killed a cavalryman, caught an arrow, and fought the Church of Pain’s knights while laughing and healing rapidly.
• Catherine ordered the Doom Knights to kill Freeman, while Amuel realized Freeman was calmly luring them into a trap.
• Freeman counted down, and an explosion erupted.

Freeman and Amuel ambushed the Calamity Cavalry with explosives and poison, but Catherine pursued them into the woods and captured Freeman. As Catherine inflicted agonizing pain on him, Freeman mouthed an insult at her.

• Freeman detonated liquid explosives inside his body and blasted the charging Calamity Cavalry with steel pellets, while Amuel followed up with poison potions.
• Amuel dragged the badly injured Freeman away and used Healing Potions to restore him as Catherine pursued them.
• Freeman taunted Catherine until she suspected a trap and slowed her advance into the woods.
• Catherine used a Mystic Art to confirm there was no ambush, then charged into the woods and knocked Amuel aside.
• Catherine pinned Freeman to the ground with her lance and amplified his pain, and Freeman mouthed an insult at her.

Catherine tortured Freeman to uncover his memories, but Amuel distracted her with a Fecal Bomb and tried to escape with Freeman. After Catherine erupted in rage and threw her empowered spear, the forest changed.

• Catherine struck Freeman with Pain Whipping six times, but failed to read his memories and became intrigued by his resistance.
• Amuel threw a Fecal Bomb at Catherine, splattering her boots and briefly stunning her with its foul smell.
• Amuel's Crystal Beetle flung Freeman's head toward her, but it struck a tree, and Freeman tasted the fecal liquid.
• Amuel kicked Freeman's head along as she fled, while Freeman silently cursed her.
• Catherine screamed, unleashed her blackish-gray power of pain, and hurled her spear into the forest.

Amuel and Freeman relived the traumatic memories that had shaped them while Catherine prepared to torture them with the Spear of Pain. The Blood Scion intervened, revealing his overwhelming strength and striking Catherine before the confrontation could escalate.

• Amuel relived her father's abuse, her mother's death, and the moment she killed him, while Freeman was forced to confront his own past.
• Catherine watched Amuel and Freeman suffer and prepared to pierce them with the Spear of Pain, intent on trapping them in their painful memories.
• A freezing force halted the black spear, and Catherine recognized Freeman as the Blood Scion after seeing him silently form the word "Father."
• Catherine tried to use her trump card, but the Blood Bat struck her with a sound wave and sent her flying.
• The Blood Scion's killing intent pinned Amuel and Freeman in place and shattered both spears, while Arthur realized he had finally drawn Catherine out.

Catherine discovered that something was wrong with her memories as the Marquis of West Berlin arrived and unleashed Ironblood Slaughter. While Catherine and Amuel feared his power, Auben greeted the confrontation with excitement, then abruptly reacted in surprise.

• The Blood Bat's sonic attack grievously wounded Catherine and left her confused by memories that kept disappearing.
• The Marquis of West Berlin arrived, and his killing intent from Ironblood Slaughter made Catherine struggle to sit up and Amuel panic after recognizing her as his daughter.
• Amuel blamed Freeman for provoking the West Berlin Family, while Freeman trusted his father to face the marquis.
• Auben watched the approaching confrontation with excitement, and Catherine sneered that he would die.
• Auben said he had long looked forward to this moment, then stopped in surprise.

The Blood Scion accepted Freeman as his son, transforming him into a Blood Warrior, and rewarded Amuel with a mystic art item. After the Blood Scion vanished, the force behind the killing intent arrived as the sky darkened.

• The Blood Scion offered Freeman blood kinship, and Freeman accepted before swallowing a wax pill that restored and transformed him into a Blood Warrior.
• Freeman pledged himself to the Blood Scion and stood between him and Amuel, while Amuel recoiled from his lingering stench.
• The Blood Scion gave Amuel the [Paralysis Ring] as thanks, and Arthur hoped the gift would draw her into his planned New Blood Clan.
• Catherine reconsidered the Blood Scion after seeing his generosity and composure under the killing intent.
• The Blood Scion dismissed the unseen challenger and vanished into mist, prompting the sky to darken as the challenger arrived.

Arthur released a vast deathly aura and confronted the Marquis of West Berlin in the sky above Xilond. The marquis answered Arthur’s greeting with killing intent, and Arthur threatened to use his swordsmanship.

• The Marquis of West Berlin’s killing intent spread over Xilond, driving people indoors and sending the Eastern’s passengers back from the harbor.
• Old Barry abandoned his plan to take Albert to a club and prepared to tell him about the mystical side, while Old John went to bring in the laundry.
• Old John returned to his cabin in terror, recalling how Arthur had risen into the air and unleashed an immense deathly aura.
• Arthur used Silent Continuous Steps and Hands of the Void to approach De'erqiao Otto von West Berlin, who wondered whether Arthur and the Blood Scion had obtained the Blood Marquis’s legacy together.
• Arthur greeted the Marquis without an honorific, prompting the Marquis to unleash killing intent; Arthur responded by summoning Sharpness and warning that he knew swordsmanship.

Arthur used his Breath of Death to strip the deathly aura from the Marquis of West Berlin’s three thousand cavalry imprints, making them vanish and collapsing Ironblood Slaughter. As the Marquis retreated and suspected Old Charlie had deliberately raised Arthur to target him, cannons emerged from the void.

• The Marquis of West Berlin summoned three thousand cavalry imprints with Ironblood Slaughter and sent them charging at Arthur.
• Arthur chose not to draw his sword and used Breath of Death to extract the deathly aura from the cavalrymen, causing all three thousand to disappear.
• The Marquis retreated behind twenty-nine shields of killing intent while Arthur realized Distortion might let him turn deathly aura into killing intent and learn from Ironblood Slaughter.
• The Marquis concluded that Old Charlie had concealed his ambition and deliberately raised Arthur to target him, then killing intent stirred and cannons appeared from the void.

Arthur recognized that the Marquis of West Berlin was not backing the Church of Pain and saw an opportunity to negotiate by appealing to the marquis’s family interests. He unleashed his deathly aura and kingly bloodline power, and the marquis shouted for him to wait before the confrontation could turn deadly.

• Arthur deduced that the Marquis of West Berlin was using his daughter and the Church of Pain to protect his family and pursue the tentacle Mihailo.
• Arthur concluded the marquis would be easy to bargain with because of his concerns over choosing an heir.
• Arthur prepared to leave, then turned back and invoked his Creados lineage while unleashing his deathly aura and [Bloodline Mark: Lionheart King].
• The Marquis of West Berlin feared the consequences of killing Arthur and shouted for him to wait.

Arthur negotiated with the Marquis of West Berlin, who sought an alliance against the Inner River Church and the Church of Pain. Arthur hinted that he knew where the being behind the Church of Pain was, and the marquis began considering how to benefit from that knowledge.

• The Marquis of West Berlin blamed the Church of Pain for his daughter Catherine's disgrace and apologized to Arthur for past events.
• Arthur and the marquis discussed their troubles with the Church of Pain and the Inner River Church, while the marquis speculated about Arthur's ship and abilities.
• The marquis offered Arthur trading rights at Dordot Harbor, then the Inner River Church's holdings there, but Arthur refused both offers.
• Arthur emphasized that the being behind the Church of Pain was the greater concern, and the marquis mouthed a question about whether Arthur knew where she was.
• Arthur said that he did, claiming that he was a Medium, and the marquis began weighing his options before an idea occurred to him.

The Marquis of West Berlin tried to bargain with Arthur by offering Catherine, Jacqueline, and access to the West Berlin Family’s Mystic Arts. Arthur rejected the proposal by saying he already loved someone and had a child on the way, but the Marquis responded by asking whether he would take two more lovers.

• The Marquis of West Berlin praised Catherine and offered her to Arthur, along with her dowry and promises that her contamination could be removed.
• Arthur thought about a shameless friend he had once met at a barbecue stall and concluded that the Marquis was even more shameless.
• The Marquis offered Jacqueline as well as free access to the West Berlin Family’s library and Mystic Arts, including [Ironblood Slaughter] and [Cannon Formation].
• Arthur said he already had someone he loved and that his child would soon be born, then glanced toward South Los.
• The Marquis asked Arthur whether he would be willing to take two more lovers.

Arthur proposed cooperating with the Marquis of West Berlin against their shared enemies, demanding the Church of Pain’s and Inner River Church’s holdings in Dordot Harbor as compensation for Malinda. The marquis admired Arthur’s devotion and boldness, then asked him to explain his plan.

• Arthur rejected the marquis’s proposal to marry his daughters, declaring that Malinda was the love of his life.
• The Marquis of West Berlin abandoned his idea of killing Malinda and reflected on his love for his first wife and his plans for his eldest daughter.
• Arthur said he and the marquis could cooperate against the threat in the Inner Bay because each possessed something the other needed.
• Arthur demanded the Church of Pain’s and Inner River Church’s holdings in Dordot Harbor to compensate Malinda for the deaths of her sixteen trusted subordinates.
• Arthur acknowledged that his plan could make enemies of the marquis, the Inner Bay, and the force behind the Church of Pain, but remained confident.
• The Marquis of West Berlin admired Arthur’s resolve and asked what he intended to do.

Arthur and the Marquis of West Berlin finalized a Contract that secured Arthur access to West Berlin territory and arranged for Jacqueline and Catherine to attend a banquet. As the Eastern reached Xilond, Sir Oter welcomed its passengers to a feast, while Arthur waited aboard for a particular guest and the item they were bringing.

• Arthur and the Marquis of West Berlin agreed that Arthur would learn the target’s whereabouts and gain access to territories in Dordot Harbor, while the marquis would leave Arthur’s holdings untouched for three years and keep away from his attack.
• The marquis promised to host a banquet the next evening and ensure Jacqueline and Catherine remained in Arthur’s sight throughout it.
• Arthur returned to the Eastern, where Pendragon and Kili dried off and played on the terrace.
• Sir Oter welcomed the Eastern and invited its passengers to a Xilond banquet featuring roast wild boar, and Arthur approved the gathering.
• After most passengers went ashore, Arthur’s awaited guest arrived with the item he had been expecting.

Yura visited Arthur to propose a deal, believing she could use their cooperation to gain influence over the church. Arthur recognized that the coiled [Mikhailo's Touch] she presented was different from the earlier one.

• Yura dressed in a black gown, comforted Lucius, and left him behind as his hatred and pain grew.
• Arthur reflected on hatred while Pendragon ate, then prepared orange tea and waited for Yura.
• Yura arrived on the terrace, and Arthur criticized the Holy Maiden to draw her into speaking freely.
• Yura offered Arthur a deal and revealed a coiled [Mikhailo's Touch] that made him frown.