Blood Nemesis

Caressing the sharp edge of the alloy knife, Oliver glanced at the superhumans running out of the building, standing with weapons in their hands.

Most of them were weak. Those who could barely be classified as rank E.

Occasionally, he could sense the aura of D rankers amongst them. But there were no B or higher ranks nearby. He was sure of that.

'They want to help…'

Oliver muttered in a barely audible tone.

They were looking at the sky, just like him. Waiting for their chances to eradicate the blood beetles—the pests that wanted to destroy their home.

Meanwhile, the swarm was dancing over the clouds, taking many chaotic shapes while still maintaining cohesion.

'Help…They want to help.' Oliver chuckled.

'Can these fools even help? It would be better if they stayed inside.'

'The swarm of mutant blood beetles are not dangerous. It will fly away when they realise there is no food for them in the city.'

'However, coming out of the building and deciding to fight, they were simply delivering food.'

'These fools…' Oliver looked at the school building nearby.

'They have no tactics, nor any strategy. They just want to help half-assedly.'

Oliver looked at the superhumans standing outside with pity.

They were indeed pitiful.

Their will to fight was admirable, but were they suited to take on the job?

Oliver didn't think so.

The swarm could easily overwhelm the weaker ones. If they are not careful, they could die.

At times like these, it was better to retreat strategically and wait until the storm is over. After all, there are heroes and military personnel out there who are being paid to take down the monsters.

'The civilian superhumans shouldn't have come out.'

Oliver said to himself.

'Anyway, it doesn't matter.'

Oliver shook his head and stretched his body.

'I decided to shoulder the burdens of this world the moment I regressed. Not for me, but for my family, friends and everything I loved.'

'It doesn't matter if the world is filled with fools; it is my decision to save them.'

'Only by doing so could I keep everyone I love happy.'

Oliver tightly clutched the alloy knife in his hand.

"There is no turning back," he said firmly.

"It's time to begin the conquest."

"It's time for the golden fiend to show he is a friend of humanity."

"It's time to be a hero." A wicked grin emerged over Oliver's face.

He chuckled softly.

Everything he did had purpose. And this time, the decision to save the city also had one behind it.

He was never a person to be purely altruistic. It was all just an elaborate performance to get what he wanted.

"A hero, me…ha ha ha."

Oliver laughed and looked within himself, into the blood sac.

He had filled it in the past few days after buying blood from the butcher houses across the city.

Therefore, it held 80,000 litres of blood.

Instantly, Oliver decided to burn half of it, converting it directly into mana.

At the same time, the alloy knife he held in his hand sliced open the veins on his forearms and wrist.

*Splurts*

The blood flew out of his body like a geyser.

Oliver used his hands to control it and cover himself in blood, staining his clothes and skin.

The Golden mana he generated also came into view, seeping out of his body like a flood. It pulsed and fused, creating an illusory, but sturdy armour around him.

The bright light from the mana shone over the blood, making him look like a walking corpse with an eerie aura.

Those who were nearby watched the scene in absolute shock.

What Oliver had done was tantamount to killing himself. They were witnessing a suicide attempt, they thought, until they saw the golden mana shine brighter and brighter, illuminating his bloody body.

Meanwhile, Oliver chuckled like a madman and dashed over to the tallest building he could find.

It was an old tower standing just next to the school building.

With blazing speed, Oliver climbed the tower and stood on top, gazing at the blood beetle flying towards him.

He created a ten-centimetre-wide ball of blood and coated it with mana before throwing it to the sky.

The ball exploded after travelling a couple of hundred meters in the air, spewing out a cloud of blood and emitting a pungent iron smell.

As the name suggests, blood beetles consume blood to survive. They were extremely sensitive to the smell of blood.

As the blood ball exploded, it sent waves of enticing scent towards them.

The scent of Oliver's blood.

Below them, he grinned, standing on top of the tower.

"Come to your death, bastards."

Oliver called out to the beetles.

By doing that, Oliver achieved two things. He attracted the beetle to the ground and also familiarised them with his blood.

Once they taste the sweetness of his blood, they would swarm towards him, instead of rampaging like usual.

He was thrilled.

Oliver grabbed the alloy knife tighter and extended five mana tentacles out of his body.

He prepared for the swarm to fly towards him.

—

Somewhere outside the city wall, below the swarm of blood beetles, a group of people wearing black clothes could be seen.

They were swiftly moving through the thick jungle outside.

At the vanguard of the group stood a sickly figure. He was coughing as he led the group to their destination.

A few minutes later, at the same time as the beetle swarm, the group of people infiltrated the city.

They acted like heroes from other cities and helped kill the blood beetles.

However, their real purpose was not to slay the blood beetles.

With each passing second, they slowly inched their way towards the examination centres across the city.

A few even moved to East High School.

—

Oliver lifted his head and grinned when he noticed the swarm suddenly change shape and come towards him.

His blood bait was successful in capturing their attention.

"This is going to be fun."

The overflowing mana in his body had turned into sturdy armour. It had enhanced his defence and strength.

The beetle wouldn't be able to pierce his golden armour.

Oliver watched the swarm inch closer and used his mana tentacles to press down on the ground. Like a spring being compressed, the mana tentacles compressed in size and dug into the tower roof.

Then, with an audible "whoom", they expanded and released all the force.

Oliver flew into the sky like a rocket, accelerating towards the beetles.