"The Bureau will definitely try to use that vacuum as a medium to usurp the current system, and we have to avoid that," Langdon stated calmly. "We need a new person to assume administrative control of the city."

"Yeah, yeah, this definitely has nothing to do with me." Seth waved his hands in sharp dismissal, his brows knitting in annoyance.

'Why does this guy have to be so stubborn?'

Langdon thought, his composed expression momentarily crumbling. An idea quickly sparked in his head.

"Nexus will really need someone he trusts to assume the position, so he doesn't have to worry about any attacks on the orcs anymore. Oh well," Langdon sighed, turning abruptly to leave the area. "I guess you can't handle a job like that."

Seth felt as though a bolt of lightning had struck him. "W-wait!" he stuttered, quickly stepping in front of Langdon. "If it's for the boss... of course I can help!"

Langdon paused, turning back with an almost imperceptible smile.

"I can't take on the position myself, as that would require that I drop my title as the Guild Master. The title is quite helpful, so I can't," Seth explained quickly. "But I'll have someone from the guild take the position. He's also a very strong adventurer."

"Awesome!" Langdon beamed, the small smile finally spreading across his face. "That'll be great. I'll arrange for the person to take the position immediately."

Seth caught Langdon's gleaming eyes, and his own flashed with annoyance, his lips twitching into a frown.

'Why do I feel like he lured me into this?' Seth thought to himself, but he quickly threw the suspicion to the back of his mind.

Langdon looked toward the injured orcs, his expression instantly turning serious.

"I don't know how Hale will react to this move Akhil made, but this would also be a critical time to draw a line and end this scuffle," he said sternly. "We have to make it clear that the orcs aren't our enemies, and we must start working with them."

Seth glanced at him, letting out a deep breath. "You're not wrong. If things continue like this, the major conflict will start sooner than any of us would want."

He couldn't deny the seriousness of the situation. He knew that the Titan of Discord must have amplified the tension among every side, potentially escalating the conflict into a full-blown war even before the Titan made itself known.

Langdon dipped his head in acknowledgment. "True. But right now, what's more important is to help the orcs rebuild. Their entire camp has been destroyed. That will be a good start for a fresh and healthy relationship."

"I couldn't agree more," Seth said softly.

Langdon turned to the orc leader. "Nibo! We'll be heading back to the orc camp. You can prepare your people; we'll take you out safely."

Nibo merely glanced toward Langdon. "Alright," he replied bluntly.

Seeing the terse reaction from Nibo, Langdon couldn't help but rub his forehead.

"We've truly drawn a sharp line between ourselves and the orcs," Langdon murmured. "It will take a lot of time to fill that gap."

"Mindful of your words," Seth scoffed. "I don't remember joining you to do that. Anyway, I'll be joining you as well... I'd like to meet the boss again."

'This idiot only cares about Nexus,' Langdon thought, tired annoyance forcing him to facepalm. 'Speaking of which, how is he fairing now?' Langdon wondered, looking up at the facility ceiling.

----

It was a quiet flight back to the orc settlement, but the silence allowed him a few moments to clear his mind and reflect.

He decided to check the system notifications that he had ignored since his evolution.

{New skill acquired: Blood Synthesis}

{Blood Synthesis:

The user commands blood as a creator commands clay. From it, flawless replicas can be shaped, each as real as the original. Torn flesh can be restored, lost limbs reformed, and broken bodies rebuilt with a precision impossible to medicine. Where blood flows, creation follows—the boundary between injury and perfection no longer exists.

The Prime Genus doesn't heal wounds… he manufactures reality out of blood.}

{Blood Dominion Array (Mosquito Bite!):

The moment it manifests, a crimson sigil spreads beneath the user. Any attack that enters its domain is not blocked, not resisted—it is devoured. Energy, matter, magic, life... all are dragged screaming into the blood-etched void and erased without remainder. Flesh that steps within does not bleed—it is unmade, absorbed into the array as if it never existed. Escape is impossible once the circle acknowledges you. What stands upon blood, becomes blood. As your hunger grows, so will the array.}

'Damn, I didn't even read this description before using this skill,' Akhil thought, feeling a shudder at the sheer depth of the two abilities.

He had used the Blood Dominion Array earlier, but it was more instinctual than purposeful. It was almost as though he just knew which technique to deploy, instinctively understanding the skill even before reading the description. Yet, seeing the full text still sent chills down his spine.

More than just obliterating his opponent, the skill also seemed to feed his own strength. He could feel his power had increased by leaps and bounds, and all his senses were now much sharper and keener. But amidst all that raw power, there was also a strange undercurrent.

'The feeling when I used the skill... Should I be worried about that?' Akhil couldn't help but think back to his fight with Samxon.

There was a strange hunger that accompanied the array of dominion—a hunger for chaos, a hunger for destruction. An insatiable taste for blood, far more addicting than simple blood absorption. If it weren't for the intense anger he had felt at that moment, he was sure the feeling would have completely consumed him.

And truly, he wasn't lying when he said he enjoyed Samxon's death. He had felt every drop of blood being drained, filling him up with that same potent energy. He felt as Samxon's very soul was being torn apart and devoured. It was as though he had become one with the array; during that time, he felt no other emotion than pure satisfaction and thrill.

That feeling, while incredibly satisfying, made one thing clear to Akhil.

'I have to be careful with that ability,' Akhil took a mental note. If he was to use the blood array again, it had to be very much worth the risk.

He also thought back to the coast city.

The coast city was undoubtedly left in chaos after the news of Samxon's death spread, and he was sure rumors about him being the cause would spread immediately.

'I should have told those two to fix things up... but it doesn't matter either. This will serve as a lesson,' Akhil thought, letting out a sigh as he finally spotted the camp in the distance.

He flew slowly toward the settlement. From above, the sight of the destroyed camp still sent a piercing sting through his chest. He could only clench his fist as he approached.

Below, most of the orcs had tears streaming down their faces as they grieved the few friends they had made in the camp—friends who had turned into family. Some were slowly trying to build back the destroyed tents.

But it didn't take them long to notice the white figure flying straight toward them. Upon seeing him, they instantly pulled out their crude weapons, watching him with extreme caution.

Ryan walked forward, his tall, gigantic figure casting a sharp shadow over the earth.

Akhil quickly sensed their fear and slowly reverted to his orc form. It was only as his body returned to its previous, familiar shape that the surrounding orcs began to calm down.

Ryan stepped aside slowly. He could see Akhil's body was covered in blood that clearly wasn't his. He knew that Akhil must have done something terrible, but at this moment, what did it matter?

Akhil walked toward Aria, whose body had gone completely pale, barely hanging on to what little life she had left.

Akhil calmly placed his hands on the bullet gash in her stomach. Under his influence, the blood within her body pulsed, forcefully pushing out the silver bullet.

She coughed roughly, her body quivering slightly from the intense pain.

Akhil continued.

{Skill—Blood Synthesis Activated}

The blood around the wound churned, moving and wriggling as though alive. It stretched into a thin surface over the gaping hole, covering it up. Slowly, the entire injury was covered, now replaced by new, flawless skin. Aria's breath instantly steadied, and her expression calmed as the pain vanished.

The orcs stared in amazement as they watched the miracle occur before their eyes.

Akhil calmly walked over to Grandma Gino and performed the exact same miracle.

One by one, all the orcs who were on the verge of death were revived. The orcs all stared at him as though he were a God. Unfortunately, for those who were already dead, his ability could not work, but regardless, seeing Akhil perform such feats was a miracle to them all.

As he finished, he stood in the center of the settlement. All the orcs stared at him with profound reverence in their eyes.

"Thank you, Sir Nexus!"

"Sir Nexus!" They roared his name in collective praise.

A small smile spread across Akhil's face. He opened his mouth to speak, but just then, he felt his vision swim, his legs suddenly going weak like noodles.

As he fell toward the ground, only one notification appeared in front of him.

{Ding}

{Blood Essence has been Exhausted!}

{Host Will Die In 10 Hours without blood}

"Huh—" Akhil barely completed the startled word as his vision faded completely.

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