Selt’s words almost sent Sett to the ground.

He could not defeat them? What was the point in doing all of this if he could not defeat the enemies that laid in wait outside? Would it not be completely pointless? All the pain and suffering would have been for nothing.

Sett wanted to stare at Selt with disbelief but found no one to direct his disgruntled stare at. Surely the old god had suddenly acquired a humour, right?

“Surely you jest?”

Sett spoke with a wavering voice.

“My word is always true, mine kindred. As it stands currently, you are a mere fledgling in the world of ascendants. A fledgling with great and overwhelming potential, true. But a fledgling, nonetheless. Even the so-called master has been alive for more than a hundred years, how much power do you think he has acquired throughout the years? It would be a very simple matter for him to extinguish your life with a single slap.”

Selt’s words immediately and brutally destroyed any hope that Sett had harboured.

“Then how do we escape?”

“It is simple, we simply wait for an opportunity.”

Wait for an opportunity? Was that not like praying to the gods that a superhero would swoop in and save the day? Having learned that gods were, in fact, not beings of unlimited power, Sett found himself not quite believing in this overly optimistic plan.

Furthermore, time was ticking. The realm was steadily collapsing, threatening to release them into the material world any minute.

“What is this opportunity that we are waiting for then?”

Sett would have to work on Selt’s enigmatic behaviour.

“Actions tend to attract reactions, mine kindred. I believe you humans call this term ‘the butterfly effect’. What has transpired in this realm, has not gone unnoticed in the material realm. The destruction of the heart of darkness would attract the attention of even the mortal people on Gliese, the ascendants need not be mentioned. There exist countless forces out there who would relish in our captor’s demise. We simply have to wait for those forces to make their move. In essence, the false children of blood have set in motion their own demise.”

They really were waiting for a saviour, like a damsel in distress. The only difference to the earlier scenario that Sett had thought of, was the fact that this plan did not rely on happenstance according to Selt.

“And how do we know that these ‘forces’ arrive?”

“Though the realm might seem like a completely different reality, it is quite strongly bonded with the material realm. Any ascendants above the minimum tier should be able to resonate the boundaries of the realm with their abilities to the extent that we will be able to notice it.”

Sett mulled for a few seconds. If he understood correctly, once someone outside began to fire off magic, the realm would shake.

Since that was the case, Sett decided that it would be for the best to join the many humans on the floor of the garden and relax a little bit before the showdown. Alas, he did not get the time to do so.

The moment he had sat his bottom on the mossy floor of the garden, a wild shake almost sent him flying forwards. The force behind the shakes was so terrifying that the towering flowers above were even sent whipping back and forth.

“What in the world was that?!”

“Hmmm…” Even Selt had a little bewilderment in his voice due to the shaking. “Interesting. This force… Could it be a peak tier two… perhaps a newly ascended tier 3 ascendant? I had not expected that the false children of the blood would be hated to this extend.”

Was that bad? Sett had absolutely no clue how this tier system that Selt was speaking about worked. He had no idea where the master fell on the spectrum nor where Selt would be placed.

“Is that good?” Sett asked but did not receive any answer for a good few seconds. He gulped. “Bad?”

“Potentially. Our enemy and captor will be easily felled, but the saviour might be an entirely new problem… If it is anything above a newly ascended tier three, it will almost be impossible for them not to notice your peculiarities about you. Err on the side of caution. Attempt not to approach the ascendant.”

“Understood.” Sett took a deep breath. It was time to leave. “Let us see just who is here to save us from certain death.”

Having learnt from his earlier attempts. Sett easily figured out how to snuff out the realm. It was surprisingly simple. A single tear in the right place and the whole place would come crumbling down.

Sett tugged and the realm was no more.

Light-filled Sett’s eyes and then immediately turned to darkness. Immense vertigo assaulted him, which would have made him throw up if he had any control of his body.

Finally, Sett’s eyes shot open. With deep breaths, he greedily reclaimed the air that had long since left his lungs. After toiling for many days in the heart of darkness, he was back in the material realm.

Yet, he did not have time to celebrate his return. The great black hall had turned to chaos.

“Crusaders!” A loud voice filled with overflowing vigour shouted from somewhere within the great hall. “Protect the mortals and slay the monsters! Today we will bring justice to all those who have been slain by the villainous vampires. Today we will bring death to the heretical vampires!”

Following immediately after the words, a grand war cry came from a massive group of men and women.

The first thing Sett noticed was the massive battle that had erupted just beneath the platform on which he had been sacrificed. It was almost like a war. Two sides fought each other intending to kill each other to the last. One was valiant and dressed finely in battle garbs, almost resembling heroes from the fantasy stories that would sometimes gain popularity. The other side was that of horrendous monsters, something that was a perfect fit for an opponent of the armoured heroes.

Despite Sett having gotten somewhat used to the concept of magic, it still felt strange having to watch people fight with swords and shields. It almost felt like a play. Still, Sett knew that it was anything but a play. The swords that were being swung below were beyond sharp and could easily cleave anyone that dared step too close.

If the gory displays did not convince you, the magical prowess would. Though not everyone of the so-called crusaders seemed to be able to use it, some of the higher-ranked ones were able to wield it. For those that seemed to wear a priestly garb, they expelled beams of light that would disintegrate anything that met it from their hands. For others who wore the warrior’s clothes, they lit their swords on fire, turning the already deadly weapon into something even more terrifying.

It was Sett’s first true sight of magic and it enthralled him. Someday, it would be him wielding the powers of magic, felling the powers of evil wherever it may surface.

The monsters, or the vampires as the crusaders called them, did not lose out much either. What they lacked in strength, they made up for in numbers and ferocity. They far outnumbered their opponents at almost twenty to one. When one was struck down, another one would immediately take its place, leaving the crusader without a moment of respite.

Hiding among the tentacle vampires, were the true vampires. They were shrewd. They knew that they could not fight the armoured crusaders one on one and thus decided to strike from the shadows or the mass of tentacles as it was. At times, they would catch their opponents off guard and get a lucky strike on their body, but never a killing blow.

The difference was simply too big. Over time, the powers of discipline and individual strength of the crusaders easily won over the numbers and shrewdness of the vampires. One by one, the true vampires had to leave the battle behind, discarding their tentacle vampire pawns. In truth, it was kind of anticlimactic.

Despite him doing close to nothing, Sett could feel excitement wash over him of the prospect of victory. Yet, he had failed to consider that nothing in magic was as simple as it looked.

The vampires were being beaten back steadily, but how could they lose so easily? It was, after all, their own home ground. A home ground they had occupied for the last one hundred years. Furthermore, neither the so-called master of the vampires nor the one that had spoken earlier from the crusaders' side had shown themselves.

The battlefield beneath the platform had turned into a mess of blood. Hardly any of the tentacle monsters still stood against the superior enemy. Only their mushy corpses and sickening blood was left. The true vampires had all long since retreated to the place underneath the grand golden statue, which Sett only now realised looked a lot like Selt.

The true vampires looked shaken, their willpower waning in the face of their demise. Only the master, who had not moved from his place at his table, looked composed and without fear.

“Tell me.” When the fighting had quieted down, the master addressed the crusaders that had gathered beneath the platform. “Who is it that dares invade this master’s abode?”

“Hmph!”

From the crusader’s side, someone scoffed at the master’s words. The small army of white-clothed men and women split in the middle, allowing a single man to pass through them unobstructed.

“Do not flatter yourself, old man. You are no master, but a mere low-borne vampire which ate the forbidden fruit.” The loathe in the man’s voice was clear. “Low-borne vampire Elias Simonson! The Council of Gliese has ordered the arrest of your person and the dismantling of your faction, the blood moon vampire court, due to the atrocities that you have committed. The crimes and atrocities you have committed are as follows: mortal abduction without prior approval, mass murder of mortals, heresy of the grandest order, monopolisation of ill-begotten arcane goods, multiple accounts of disobeying the orders of the council…”

“Do not speak to me of my actions! I know them all too well!”

A small vein popped out on the crusader's face.

“Am I to assume that you will not comply with the arrest and dissolution of your faction?”

“Hah! The council is nothing! They will gain nothing from this day, except your deaths!”

“Hmph. It will be as you wish.” The crusader did not seem to be afraid but only slightly annoyed. “Let it be known that I, Crusader Thomas, will comply with the council of Gliese’s command and bring justice to Elias Simonson.”

“Do not think me so easily defeated, young crusader.” The former master, now Elias, lightly laughed. “I have greater power than you could ever imagine. Do it!”

With Elias’s words, all the remaining vampires swiftly gathered at the base of the golden statue of Selt. In one collective motion, they all slit their wrists, allowing a great torrent of blood to easily flow. The blood dripped onto the golden statue and was immediately absorbed into it.

“You shall regret coming here today! You have slain many of my pets and you shall pay with your lives! My children and I shall feast on your blood as you squeal in horror from the heart of darkness!”

Elias yelled with a voice that heavy with insanity.

Over time, the statue absorbed more and more blood and became slightly tinted red. It began to slightly shake as more and more blood was pumped into it.

“A colossal construct…”

Crusader Thomas lightly murmured. He drew his sword and shield looking much more serious than he had before.

“Crusaders! Move to secure the vampire’s prisoners! This battle is mine and mine alone.”

The colossus construct finally broke free of its constraints. One leg broke free from the stone platform it was standing on sending many shards of stone flying, followed swiftly by the other. The pressure was overwhelming to all. All except Sett. He recognized this pressure.