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Chapter 103: The Mermaid and the Witch

After soothing the little maid, Roy finally felt free of worries and could calm down to make his final preparations back in his room.

Thanks to the fierce battle with the Death Knight, the bloodline of Iron Blood surged dramatically, leading to unprecedented progress.

Roy had a feeling he was just one step away from Sequence 7.

If luck was on his side, in the next life-and-death battle, he could take that final leap and officially join the ranks of Sequence 7.

Roy was well aware that his talent could hardly be called bad, but it wasn’t strong either; he was clearly a tier below the likes of Charlotte and Nia, those heavenly prodigies.

Strangely enough, the more powerful the bloodline, the harder it was to advance. Roy had only just reached the threshold of Sequence 7, while Charlotte and the others had long since stepped into Sequence 7, standing at the pinnacle of low-tier Extraordinary Beings—the issue was, in the original work, their progression wasn’t nearly this fast.

Especially Alice, who started off slower than Charlotte and the rest; in the original, she hadn’t caught up with them until nearly every plotline’s conclusion.

Every time Roy thought about the gap between himself and them, he couldn’t help but feel embarrassed.

However, with his rich experience of competition from his past life, Roy’s mindset remained relatively stable.

The need for a life-and-death battle to advance with Iron Blood matched quite well with the unfortunate destiny of the False King bloodline…

Besides, Iron Blood was just one aspect; it didn’t represent all his power.

For instance, the lottery.

It’s worth noting that his reputation points had recently surged unexpectedly.

That underground auction battle had once again made the name of the Sword Demon resound. Earlier, as a member of the Lionheart faction, defeating the South Sea faction had also earned him some reputation.

Now he finally had enough for a ten-pull.

【Ten Pulls: 1000 Reputation Points have been consumed】

Magic Potion x3, Holy Water x3, Health Potion x3.

Purple Item: Heart of the Earth:

Description: A secret treasure forged by the descendants of dwarves, the founding craftsmen of the Golden Sands Kingdom in the Third Era. Crafted using the techniques of Earth Spirits and dwarves, along with the scales of pure-blooded Earth Dragons. It has the power to withstand a blow from a high-tier Extraordinary Being and was once a royal treasure of the Golden Sands Kingdom, but was lost during the demon race invasion. Although the crafting techniques were passed down, due to the lack of materials, this item cannot be recreated by human hands.

Looking at the gem in his hand that glimmered vividly with dark golden patterns, Roy really wanted to let out a cheer, but he held back, fearing it would wake Alice.

Even though it was just a ten-pull, the quality was surprisingly decent!

A protective treasure that could withstand a strike from a high-tier Extraordinary Being was practically a national treasure!

Goodness knows what sort of demons would show up at the next critical turning point, it’s always better to have more survival items.

In this day and age, it’s better to be over-prepared than underprepared!

But, wow, a national treasure from the Golden Sands Kingdom…

Thinking back to how he had just acquired Mermaid’s Tears, and now had gotten the Heart of the Earth, Roy felt just a tad embarrassed.

What the heck, how come he keeps snagging other people’s treasures?

But since he had them, he might as well make use of them, so he wouldn’t disgrace the item’s purpose.

After putting away the Heart of the Earth, Roy took out the Mermaid’s Tears.

Whether it was Iron Blood or Extraordinary items, their power was quite limited.

For Roy, his true trump card was still that False King title that allowed him to borrow demi-god power.

Only by sharpening this trump card could he hope to turn the tides at the critical junction.

【Warning: Certificate of Kingship detected! Would you like to consume a Fate Point to activate?】

【1 Fate Point consumed, activation confirmed!】

A water-blue halo surged in like waves, plunging Roy’s consciousness into darkness.

He had no idea how much time passed, but in the hazy abyss, Roy felt as if he had sunk to the bottom of a lightless ocean.

He wasn’t in pain and didn’t struggle; he let himself sink quietly with the current, catching glimpses of drifting fragments of time that symbolized the past, as if traversing infinite ages, entering the rifts of time and space as a mere traveler.

When he finally reached the ocean floor, a glimmer of light appeared in the distance amidst the darkness.

Though he could not stand still in the flowing water, with a thought, his figure floated forward with the current, and in the blink of an eye, he crossed the distance to reach the light’s end.

A blinding light rushed in.

Roy shielded his face with a hand but couldn’t help but widen his eyes through the gaps between his fingers.

An endless blue sky, softly drifting white clouds, and in this lovely weather was a throne piled high with silver shells, dazzling jewelry, and coral that was worn but full of years.

Roy suddenly realized.

This was a hidden paradise on an island, forgotten by the world, resembling another realm, aside from the underwater cave he just passed through and the unreachable sky above.

On the coral throne sat a blue-haired girl with her eyes closed.

Underneath her water-blue hair was skin as fair and delicate as pearls, and a frail figure. However, that sheer blue dress wasn’t covering feet but a tail more flawless than a sapphire.

Upon closer inspection, one could see faint fish scales glimmering on the girl’s waist, arms, and even the tips of her ears.

The princess of the mermaids, resting upon the coral throne.

Such a fairy-tale-like scene made Roy hold his breath.

But he knew he was merely a witness to the past, not a true visitor.

As he had expected, a black-haired, black-eyed, alluring figure soon traversed the tunnel to visit this place.

She possessed a beauty not belonging to mermaids, yet her aura was entirely different.

With smoky eye shadow, a gracefully alluring figure, black magic robes that were barely concealing the midriff, and an aura that couldn’t be hidden, it told tales of her true identity.

A dark sorceress?

Is this the Second Era?

The Second Era was the era of magic, when sorcerers were on the rise. Thousands of schools existed side by side, and dark sorcerers once thrived but quickly fell in the internal wars among sorcerers, eventually becoming the defeated.

But how could there be mythological creatures like mermaids in the Second Era?! Didn’t they go extinct in the First Era?!

After a moment of confusion, Roy didn’t dwell too much on it.

Well… historical records can sometimes have lapses; didn’t the kingdom’s annals write that the Crimson Blood Dragon was gone, only for it to resurrect eighteen years later?

But isn’t this literally a fish that slipped through the net?

Roy thought to himself, feeling a bit disrespectful towards mythological creatures.

Perhaps it’s the influence of his atheistic past life; even in the face of demigods, Roy felt they were merely stronger beings rather than some lofty, nebulous existences.

However, he quickly discovered that his little thoughts were nothing compared to what was about to unfold.

This woman was the real disrespectful one!

To Roy’s horror, the black-haired girl giggled and stepped forward, grabbing the mermaid princess’s cheeks.

“What a cute kid!”

The next second, the mermaid girl slowly opened her eyes.

Just a moment ago, the clear blue sky was suddenly overshadowed by dark clouds, foreshadowing a storm.

In the mermaid princess’s water-blue eyes, a supreme pressure that seemed to rival an emperor emanated, accompanied by an overwhelming sense of oppression, she coldly shouted.

“Mortal, I told you not to touch—!!”

That should have been a commanding rebuke, piercing and frosty.

But under the black-haired girl’s unabashed kneading, the mermaid’s voice and her pinched, deformed face turned soft.

 

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