Chapter 248: Red Execution

Lord Draven lay in the center of the courtyard.

His body was badly damaged, and the blood robes that had covered him were completely gone.

Without the thick streams of liquid surrounding his body, he looked much smaller than before.

His pale grey skin clung tightly to his bones, and the dark red veins beneath it had stopped glowing.

The once-feared blood manipulator no longer resembled the powerful noble who had threatened Holden only minutes earlier.

He was simply a dying man.

Draven’s eyes remained open.

He stared at the broken floor beneath him, struggling to understand what had happened.

Everything he had spent months building had been destroyed by one person.

The same person he had blamed for the downfall of his family.

His lips trembled.

For a moment, it seemed as though he wanted to say something.

Perhaps another threat.

But whatever words he had intended to speak never came.

A faint breath escaped his mouth.

Then his body went completely still.

Lord Draven was dead.

A moment later, faint red light began spreading across his remains.

The glow grew brighter before his body slowly broke apart, turning into tiny particles of dark red ash.

The process continued until nothing remained of the patriarch.

Only a thin layer of red ash covered the damaged floor.

The wind blowing through the shattered gate began carrying some of it away.

And just like that, the man who had once ruled House Draven was gone.

Holden landed a short distance away.

His boots touched the ground lightly as his Abyssal-Bone Wings folded behind him.

The Eclipse-Sun Sword remained in his right hand, its flames slowly settling.

He looked toward the place where Draven had fallen.

Then he sighed.

"All that trouble, just because you couldn’t accept losing."

There was no satisfaction in his voice.

Draven had been powerful, but his obsession had destroyed whatever judgment he once possessed.

Instead of moving on after the fall of his family, he had chosen to build an army of monsters and work with the Eclipse Syndicate.

And in the end, it had cost him his life.

Holden shook his head.

A familiar notification suddenly appeared before his eyes.

DING!

[Lord Draven (Rank 4, 1-Star) Defeated!]

[Rank 4 Boss Eliminated!]

[Syndicate Operative Down!]

[Base KP Earned: +80,000!]

[2x KP Booster Active!]

[Total KP Earned: +160,000!]

Holden glanced at the notification.

One hundred and sixty thousand KP.

Not bad.

After reaching Rank 3, 9-Star, his balance had dropped considerably. But the fights in the Southern Wastes were already helping him recover what he had spent.

Between the Blood-Ghouls, the elite guards, and Draven himself, he had earned a decent amount of KP.

And he still had two more powerful targets to deal with.

But before Holden could think about his next move, another notification appeared.

DING!

[Rank 4 Boss Reward Generated!]

[Diamond Chest Available!]

A bright glow appeared above the red ash.

Holden turned toward it.

Countless tiny lights gathered in the air, slowly forming the familiar shape of a Diamond Chest.

Its crystal surface reflected several different colors as it hovered above the ground.

The chest spun once, giving off a soft, brilliant glow that stood out against the dark red surroundings.

Holden smiled.

"Another one."

He stepped forward and reached for it.

The moment his fingers touched the chest, its glow grew brighter.

Then the entire object disappeared into his Inventory.

[Diamond Chest Acquired!]

[Stored in System Inventory.]

Holden dismissed the notification.

He was already looking forward to opening the chest.

The previous one had given him the Crimson-Ward Ring, which had proved incredibly useful against Draven.

Without that artifact, the battle might have been much more troublesome.

And considering how dangerous the remaining Syndicate members were, another powerful item would certainly be welcome.

But the chest could wait.

There was something else he needed to do first.

Holden returned the Eclipse-Sun Sword to his Inventory.

The blade vanished from his hand, taking its remaining flames with it.

Then he reached into his Inventory again.

This time, he retrieved a familiar leather-bound journal.

Vespera’s journal.

The cover was worn, and the pages carried the same sharp handwriting he had seen countless times since beginning his hunt for the Eclipse Syndicate.

Holden opened the book.

Inside was the list of names Vespera had left behind.

Seven targets.

Seven people connected to the conspiracy that had led to her death.

One by one, Holden had been tracking them down.

He turned to the fifth entry.

5. Lord Draven. Rank 4, 1-Star. Blood and decay specialist. Location: Southern Wastes.

Holden stared at the name for a moment.

Then he retrieved a black pen from his Inventory.

It was the same pen he had used to cross out the previous names.

He placed the tip against the page.

And drew a firm line through Lord Draven’s entry.

Five down.

Two remaining.

Holden looked at the final names.

Commander Zahn. Rank 4, 2-Star. Military tactics and command.

The Architect. Rank 4, 4-Star. Leader of the Eclipse Syndicate.

Two more targets.

The first was a powerful military commander who had taken control of a mountain fortress.

The second was the leader of the entire organization.

The man hiding at the Abyssal Epicenter.

The same place where Vespera had died.

Holden studied the final entry for several seconds.

Even after everything that had happened, he could still remember the day he learned of Vespera’s death.

The anger.

The disbelief.

And the promise he had made afterward.

He hadn’t forgotten any of it.

But he was closer now.

Much closer.

With Draven gone, only two names stood between him and the end of the list.

Holden slowly closed the journal.

"Two more."

He returned the book and pen to his Inventory before looking around the courtyard.

The fortress had suffered considerable damage during the battle.

Large cracks ran across the bone floor, while broken pieces of crystallized blood lay scattered around the raised platform.

The enormous gate he had kicked apart earlier was still missing, leaving a wide opening in the outer wall.

Through it, Holden could see the endless red dunes of the Southern Wastes.

The wind continued blowing, carrying sand into the ruined courtyard.

Without Draven controlling it, the blood scattered across the ground had stopped moving.

The strange iron veins running through the fortress walls were also growing dimmer.

Their once-steady red glow had weakened, and several sections had already gone dark.

Holden watched the change.

It seemed the fortress had been relying heavily on Draven’s cultivation and the blood-pumps surrounding its walls.

With its master dead and the pumps being destroyed, the entire structure was slowly losing power.

Soon, it would be nothing more than a collection of enormous bones standing in the desert.

Holden turned toward the gate.

He had no reason to remain here.

The mission was finished.

He started walking.

His boots crunched against broken bone as he crossed the courtyard, passing the place where Lord Draven had fallen.

The last traces of red ash were already being scattered by the wind.

By the time Holden reached the shattered entrance, there was barely anything left.

He stepped outside.

The hot wind struck him immediately, bringing the familiar smell of iron and decay.

Red sand shifted beneath his boots as he walked away from the fortress.

A moment later, his earpiece crackled.

"Master Voss, can you hear me?"

It was Cora.

Holden touched the earpiece.

"Loud and clear."

"We’ve finished destroying the blood-pumps. All twelve are disabled, and the barrier around the central tower has disappeared."

"Good work."

There was a brief pause.

Then Cora spoke again.

"Master Voss, we heard several explosions coming from inside the fortress. Is everything all right?"

Holden glanced over his shoulder.

The damaged bone fortress stood behind him, its towers casting long shadows across the red sand.

"Everything’s fine. Draven’s dead."

Silence followed.

Then Cora spoke again.

"Lord Draven is dead?"

"Yeah. The fight’s over."

Another pause.

"Understood, Master Voss. I’ll inform the others."

Holden smiled faintly.

"Tell them to regroup at the front gate. There’s no reason to stay here any longer."

"Of course. We’re already heading toward your position."

He was about to end the communication when Cora spoke again.

"Master Voss?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you injured?"

"No. I’m fine."

"You’re certain?"

Holden chuckled.

"Pretty sure I’d notice if something was wrong."

Cora didn’t laugh.

Instead, her voice softened slightly.

"I only asked because Lady Lyra has been worried. She wanted to come after you when we heard the explosions."

Holden shook his head.

"Of course she did."

"She said you have a habit of getting into dangerous fights without telling anyone how bad things are."

Holden smiled.

"Did she now?"

"Yes, Master Voss."

"And what did you tell her?"

"That you would contact us if you needed help."

"Good answer."

Cora hesitated.

"Master Voss, may I ask you something?"

"Go ahead."

"Are you really all right?"

Holden’s smile faded slightly.

He understood what she meant.

Cora wasn’t simply asking whether he had been injured.

She wanted to know how he was handling everything.

Since Vespera’s death, the Twins had followed him through several dangerous missions. They had watched him hunt the people responsible, one after another.

And now another name had been crossed off the list.

Holden looked toward the distant dunes.

"Yeah, Cora. I’m all right."

He paused for a moment before continuing.

"Draven made his choices. Whatever happened to his family, it doesn’t excuse what he was doing out here."

Cora remained silent, listening.

"He was creating monsters, using captured creatures to power his fortress, and working with the Syndicate. If we’d left him alone, more people would’ve suffered."

"I understand, Master Voss."

Holden nodded slightly.

"Besides, we’re almost done. Only two names left."

"Commander Zahn and the Architect," Cora said.

"Exactly."

There was another brief silence.

Then Cora spoke more quietly.

"Lady Vespera would have been proud of how far we’ve come."

Holden stopped walking for a moment.

His gaze remained fixed on the endless red desert.

He didn’t answer immediately.

Then a faint smile appeared on his face.

"I hope so."

"We’ll see this through, Master Voss. All of us."

"I know."

He looked back toward the fortress.

"Now come on. Let’s get out of this place. I’ve had enough of the smell."

For the first time during their conversation, Cora laughed softly.

"Understood. We’ll be there soon."

The communication ended.

Holden lowered his hand and continued walking.

Behind him, the bone fortress stood silently beneath the dark red sky.

The wind moved through its broken entrance, carrying loose sand into the courtyard and covering the marks left by the battle.

Soon, the desert would begin reclaiming the structure.

The iron would lose its glow.

And the huge bones would slowly disappear beneath the shifting dunes.

Lord Draven’s fortress, once the center of his plans to rebuild his family’s power, would eventually become another forgotten ruin in the Southern Wastes.

Holden didn’t look back again.

He had already finished what he came here to do.

Now there were only two names left in Vespera’s journal.

Commander Zahn, the Rank 4, 2-Star military commander who had taken over a mountain fortress.

And the Architect, the Rank 4, 4-Star leader of the Eclipse Syndicate, hiding at the Abyssal Epicenter where Vespera had lost her life.

Two dangerous enemies.

Two more battles.

And beyond them, the breakthrough that would finally take Holden into Rank 4.

The Realm of Kings.

Holden looked toward the distant dunes, where his team would soon appear.

Then he continued walking through the red sand.

The hunt wasn’t over.

But the end was finally in sight.