Chapter 323- Bloodletting

A mighty Jaga curled in the corner of the open hall. The thick smell of blood, and the scattered bodies of the freshly slaughtered, did little to entice the carnivore.

Presently, if possible it would have burrowed through the slit-like shuttered windows to escape this luscious banquet.

Primal instinct warned the beast that any sudden movement spelled death.

Thoughts of climbing had long fled this feline.

Buried within the nook between the wall of the shuttered window, and the rear of the dais, the bulbous red eyes watched the proceedings in fear.

"Who are you?"

Lord Arash trembled while clutching the arm of his previously occupied wooden throne. Clean-cut Harky stood on his other side with his sword drawn.

The little demon stepped forward with her arms to the side, as if deciding to walk through a flower garden.

The picture of a delicate, defenseless girl.

The smoldering Sersen sprawled out lifeless behind her, and the carnage occupying the hall depicted otherwise.

"Clean-cut Harky. Unsatisfied with killing Lin, you took pleasure in baiting and killing members of our Behemoth Gang."

It dawned on Lord Arash that ever since this girl entered the great hall, she never placed him in her eyes.

She moved another step forward to the Sersen.

"You owe the families of the dead an explanation."

Clean-cut Harky disappeared from beside Lord Arash.

In a flash, he arrived before the girl, towering above as his sword came slashing down from over his head.

As a man who reveled in the underworld for most of his life, the massacre around him foretold his future.

Only a fool would expect to survive here tonight.

He did not sense this brat's previous attack, but she would not catch him unaware.

The unspoken rule governing a fight between speed-type Sersens.

'The one who gained the first opening wins.'

Clean-cut Harky sliced through his attack with a velocity that sent him stumbling forward.

His falling sword clanged onto the dais, as he clutched the wrist of his bleeding hand. In the thick of the confrontation, the redhead severed the tendons on the wrist of his right hand.

Choking the urge to scream he turned while searching for his opponent. Defiant, he completed a full circle only to find a dagger speeding towards his left eye.

Activating his skills to retreat, the dagger seemed to slow...

But then it vanished.

Clean-cut Harky screamed in agony while dropping to his knees. He cast a horrific look at the redhead holding a dripping dagger.

Like a seasoned butcher, she towered, standing above a dead carcass to dismantle.

Fear flowed from the Sersen's eyes as he processed the unthinkable.

The incoming dagger had moved far faster than possible for a normal person.

In Frost City, no one could come close to such a speed without activating their ability.

The impossible occurred after he activated his power.

Forced to counter with his speed-type talisman, this young girl then activated a power of her own to incapacitate his left wrist. During that spell, her speed rendered her invisible.

The disparity between them was like heaven and earth.

 'This girl was a Sersen and an unbelievably high-ranking one.'

A ripping of cloth awoke him from his stupor.

The girl tore off the sleeve from his right shoulder.

Clean-cut Harky looked up at his side to stare into the hungry green eyes. A smile parted the lips, revealing pearl white canines,

"You're proud of this, aren't you?"

He followed her ravenous eyes to the faint, barely visible wildcat tattoo on his skin. The coin-size impression appeared vulnerable in front of this little witch.

The unmistakable look in her eyes betrayed her intentions.

His eyes dropped towards the drop of blood loosely hanging from the polished iron point.

With a terrified scream, Clean-cut Harky scrambled backward on his ass and then fled towards the exit. As his foot touched the stone beneath the bottom step, he activated his skill in a bid to escape.

Halfway across the long hall, he coughed blood while overdrawing on his limits. A few paces away, lay the broken exit and release.

"We said it before. You own the families of our gang."

The words sounded out softly on his right,

Clean-cut Harky screamed while tumbling and rolling to a heap on the floor. A line of splattered red dyed the white stones. A pool of blood splurted from his armless shoulder.

Halfway between him and the bloodied yet delicate fingers holding the dripping dagger, lay a lifeless yet warm arm.

Cleanly sliced off from below the shoulders. 

***

The muscled figure of Boss Dermal screamed in silence while watching the demonic wolf flick Jink away with a paw. He turned away to press towards the exit when his three underlings collapsed.

A strange-shaped flying dagger protruded from different points in their skull. 

He raised his eyes from the twitching bodies to the raven-haired girl standing about fifteen footsteps away. The same demoness who dispatched his brother in seconds.

He blinked his bushy eyelids to find the girl now standing at arm's length away.

"Ball buster!"

His world turned dark with pain. 

***

"Hey baldy, get off the stage."

"Huh?"

Lord Arash turned around in a daze from witnessing the unfolding spectacle.

A frontal kick to the midsection launched him off the dais and sent him bumping along the slabs below. Spluttering, he groaned to his knees. Tears flowed from his eyes, a product of his broken ribs.

Grimacing, he shot daggers toward the boy holding a crossbow. That uncouth stubble chin seemed to magnify his hate. The hatred melted into pure fear, as his eyes gravitated to the green-eyed girl occupying his wooden throne.

A painful moan originated from his side as Jink and Dermal crumpled beside him. Doug and Singh had tossed them like lumps of trash and retreated.

As for the other terrors, he dare not turn his head to search for them.

The enormous diabolical wolf walked onto the dais and circled behind the chair. Lengthening itself out, it lay down beside the redhead with its yellow eyes looking down uncaringly.

Lord Arash followed the others by fixating his eyes to the floor.

Who knows if that four-legged beast might determine eye contact to be a blatant provocation?

"Singh, send the signal. Let Chong take Clean-Cut to the slums alive."

Singh walked out while holding a candle and makeshift shade. Ming followed him from the dais.

Dyna sighed,

"The one named Jink. Slice off your hand and feed it to that stupid pet of yours. The stable face called Dermal, I want..."

A light cough interrupted the devil on the stage.

Lord Arash glanced at the leather boots which stepped up next to him.

The one sitting up there displayed actions similar to a vindictive, bloodthirsty beast. Similar in nature to that fearsome demonic wolf.

Was there someone who could reason with that savage?

"Master Arash, Boss Jink, and Boss Dermal are upstanding members of the syndicates. As such they must be treated with respect. You cannot butcher them."

The voice floated across him as the boy raised a question to another,

"Doug, what are the rules of the Bloodnight Society concerning these types of matters?"

"All spoils go to the victor. As for the areas controlled by the defeated, the Society will search for potential candidates. This is to prevent the accumulation of power from falling to one person."

Doug replied after thinking for a minute. He was sitting on a chair bandaging his bleeding leg.

"Hey Chu, I'm back with this one."

A muffled thump followed by a weak groan sounded from behind Lord Arash.

He recognized, however, that despicable voice.

The boy beside him clapped his hands while walking to the front of the dais. The boots turned to face the three kneeling men.

"Then as stated by the rules of the Society. Miki, go find some quill and paper. It's time to claim some properties."

"Hahaha..."

Lord Arash tittered into a burst of laughter as if his mind had broken. With red eyes, he stared at the teenage boy. Finding calm despite the abhorrent background, he raised his bald head.

"The Bloodnight Society can reclaim the tokens from us, but they will never own the districts. That ancient society will soon be pounded into dust. The titles we own have already been transferred to one man."

The nobleman smirked,

"The slum district would have solidified his hold but no matter. There will be no sharing. One man will rule the underworld."

 "Are you crazy? Swallowing Frost City means controlling not only the local gangs but their Sersens as well. With such a force, you could sweep across the underworld of the other cities unhindered."

Doug remarked. This Lord Arash aimed big indeed. With control of the noble district, an iron claim over the stables, and ownership of most of the pleasure houses and taverns, this guy sunk his fingers into the highly trafficked areas.

He had cornered the prime sources of wealth, information, and connections.

Doug looked down in shock at the smirking and grinning faces of the three bosses who were supposed to control their areas separately. He never suspected these three didn't serve their own interest but one master.

A rasping cough sounded from behind them.

"You bastards. What have you done to my Bloodnight Society?"

On recognizing the voice, the four leaders turned their heads around.

On the floor, trussed up in torn cloth, and battered to near death, Elder Kruss's bloodshot eyes bore through them with a vehement gaze.