Blood Magus

With every minute that passed, Zeth’s heart beat faster. His own blood dripped from his chest and arms, his hands leaving red prints behind anywhere he planted them. He felt his fingers shake from the pain he felt, taking care to not allow himself to sink into his work in the way Vile Focus allowed him to do. It would’ve let him pass the time without feeling any of it, but he also wouldn’t notice if the guards came back ahead of schedule and he had to erase the circle and flee.

Vile Focus, despite Zeth ignoring its secondary effect, still Ranked up once as he worked, apparently not needing him to indulge it in order to make progress. Zeth was extremely glad to see it happen, since even the extra two-point-five percent discount to the time required could make a difference here.

Soon, as he traced line after line of the intricate pattern, he felt the circle begin to near completion. The twenty-eight Shaping he’d accumulated so far allowed him to feel the latent mana energy emanating from it, growing stronger and stronger as he continued to work. Eventually, he could practically feel the air around the circle humming with power.

It was at that moment he heard a distant knock.

Three bangs echoed out from the house, followed by a shout. “Ma’am, we’re back to search the area!”

He heard the door of the house open and faint conversation as his mom spoke with the guards.

No, no, no! I just need a little more time. C’mon…

Holding his focus on the ritual, he continued frantically drawing, hoping against hope that he’d be able to complete it in the next couple minutes. He could feel it getting closer and closer. He knew it wouldn’t be long.

Mom, invite them inside for a drink or something before you start. At least have some extended conversation about their process, or something. Sophie, ask them a bunch of questions about how their magic works. Please!

But that didn’t happen. After a brief conversation he couldn’t make out the contents of, Zeth heard a group of people walk out of the house, shutting the door behind them.

For the first time since he started drawing, Zeth paused his work and stood up, his arms shaking from the constant pain and exertion, and crept over to the door of the shed to peek out. Thankfully, it didn’t seem like they were making a beeline for the shed. The group of people—his mom, Sophie, the three guards, and another woman who must’ve been the mage here to do the actual detecting—were first searching the area around the house. The mage slowly examined every surface, squinting at the grass and stone foundation, presumably in search of any chalky red lines. The guards just tagged along, keeping his mom and Sophie in their sight. Zeth supposed that was just a security measure to ensure they didn’t run away in case one of them did end up being the Blood Mage.

The moment he saw they weren’t coming for him yet, he dove back to the floor and continued working.

I can’t let everything go to waste. This circle, the blood—they’re the tools I have to slaughter that fucking mage for killing my friends. Every single minute that passes when that person is still alive is a personal failing on my part. I cannot let myself be set back by even a second.

He traced line after line, the internal pattern of the circle growing more and more complex, absorbing more and more mana from Zeth with every motion. The time remaining must’ve passed below a minute now; he could feel the circle whirring to life beneath his fingers.

Just then, he heard a voice from far off. It was his mom. “Is that the house done? Oh, good, I’m so glad it’s safe. But, before you search the rest of the farm, do you mind checking this shed we have out back? It’s where my son works, so I want to know as soon as possible that it’s safe. He’s been acting so recklessly lately, I’m worried he might not notice something dangerous like that even if it was there.”

No!

He leapt back up to his feet and peered through the crack in the door. Just barely in sight was everyone walking around the house and toward the shed.

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If he waited even a second longer, they’d have the door to the shed in sight and would see if he left. He had to leave right now if he wanted to keep himself from getting caught.

But…!

He just needed a few more moments. Any sort of a distraction.

His eyes fell on the pig he’d tied up by the doors. Without hesitation, he reached out and untied the rope that kept it bound here. It stared at him without moving. So, he raised a foot and kicked it in the butt.

With a loud squeal, the pig bounded off, running over to a nearby crop field in its panic.

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“Is that…? Oh, gods, that’s my pig!” his mom shouted, and he could just barely glimpse her changing direction, running off after the animal as he closed the door and dropped back to the ground, shoving his finger back into the lines of the circle.

“Ma’am, get back here!” one of the guards shouted.

“It’s going to eat my crops!” she yelled back. The sounds of many feet running around in the field commenced—and none of them were headed toward the shed.

Seconds. All I need is a few seconds, he thought, willing with all the might of his mind that the circle glow to life this instant.

And then, as if it finally decided to listen to his command, it did.

He felt the circle finally meet the requirements for Empowerment Ritual and instantly reached over to grab the hardened shirts, slamming them against the circle. Please, be enough.

The vast majority of the dried blood stayed right where it was, refusing to be absorbed by the circle. As he’d suspected, it needed to be in liquid form for the ritual to accept it. But there were just a few drops within the cloth that had retained their wetness, hidden deep within the folds of the fabric, and Zeth watched as they were drawn out by the circle as if being sucked up. They sank into the floor, the completion percentage leaping by massive bounds with each droplet absorbed.

After a number of seconds that felt like an eternity, it finally hit one hundred percent.

[Ritual complete: Empowerment Ritual.

Sacrifice given: Small amount of strong monster blood.

Level Up!]

[Empowerment Ritual’s Rank has increased to 4.

+1 Skill Point. You have 8 Skill Points.]

[Blood Magus’s Level has increased to 5.

+3 Endurance. Your Endurance is 21.

+1 Awareness. Your Awareness is 5.

+2 Poise. Your Poise is 10.

+7 Shaping. Your Shaping is 35.

+3 Skill Points. You have 11 Skill Points.]

[Requirement fulfilled: Blood Magus Level 5.

You have unlocked Blood Magus Skill: Demonic Covenant.]

[Requirements fulfilled: Blood Magus Level 5, Vile Focus Rank 5.

You have unlocked Blood Magus Skill: Resonant Whispers.]

Before he could read any of the System notifications he received from his Level-up, Zeth grabbed the cloth he’d used to cover up the circle and swept it across the floor. The chalk disappeared easily with just a few swipes. The moment it was gone, he leapt to his feet and sprinted over to the shed door, glancing back and forth to see if the coast was clear.

“I will not be delayed any further!” the mage woman’s voice carried across the plains, over the panicking people and squealing of the pig. Zeth was pretty sure he could even hear Sophie running around giggling as she played with the escaped animal in the cacophony of noises. The woman continued, “You said there might be something in the shed, I will check the shed. There are too many other people’s properties on my list to waste any more time here. Guards, keep an eye on them. I’ll do this myself.”

He saw the tip of her head cresting a nearby hill, but she wouldn’t be able to see him just yet. So he rushed out the door and ducked around to the other side of the shed before she came too close. Once he was on the other side, he pressed his back against the wall, praying that she’d check the inside before the outside.

“You said your son does butchering in here?” the woman’s voice called from the other side of the shed. “He sure leaves a mess behind. There’s dried blood on the door handle. Or…is it wet? Has he been here recently?”

Zeth cursed himself. He’d been covered in blood that whole time, dripping it everywhere.

He heard his mom’s voice draw closer, clearly out of breath as she’d been forced to chase a loose pig around the fields. “He hasn’t been in here for the past few hours, I don’t think.”

“Well, someone has.” The woman’s voice was grim. “Blood is not a good sign. Guards, come over here! Woman, child, stay behind me. There may be danger.”

Slowly, the sound of the doors creaked open, and Zeth heard a set of footsteps walk in.

“Is there a monster in there?” Sophie asked.

“No, honey, I think it’s empty,” their mom replied. “But don’t go any further in, okay?”

“Hm. No obvious sign of ritual circles…” the woman muttered. Her boots stepped further into the shed. “What is this curtained-off section?”

“I…don’t know,” his mom replied. “It wasn’t there when I was last in here.”

“Oh, I saw it this morning,” Sophie supplied. “Zeth was working behind it. I think he had a dead pig behind it and put the curtain there so I wouldn’t see.”

A boot splashed in a puddle.

“It certainly looks as though dead animals have been here. But not as long ago as this morning. The blood would have dried by now. This is recent.”

Zeth winced, wishing he’d had the time to clean that mess up. Please, please just decide it must be leftover from butchering and leave it alone. There are no ritual circles in there, so there’s no hard evidence, right?

“So you think the Blood Mage has been here? Conducting those rituals?” his mom asked in a fearful voice.

“Let me see.”

After the woman said that, the shed went silent, and slowly, a blue glow began emanating from inside the shed, peeking out through tiny cracks in the walls. As the seconds passed, the glow only grew brighter and brighter, until the blazing light grew so intense, it rivaled the glory of the sun.

Zeth frowned, gazing at the light spilling out of the cracks and coloring the grass bright blue in thin lines. What is that?

“Woah…” Sophie muttered.

“Oh my—oh my gods,” the woman gasped. Her cool composure had completely broken. “This is…!”

“What is it?” Zeth’s mom asked.

“This is supposed to be a visual representation of the mana that’s passed through the area in the past few days,” she muttered. “And this—this is far more than I’ve ever seen in my life.”

“What? What does that mean?”

There was the shuffling of clothing, like the woman had grabbed onto his mom’s shoulders. “Ma’am, it is likely that one of the most powerful casters in this town—no, in the entire empire—has been here, personally performing magic in your shed.”