Queen of Blood

Claire suddenly stood up in my arms. I took one look at those Violet Eyes of hers and practically forgot how to breathe.

"Claire, your eyes... they’re different."

It wasn't just the color, though. Her whole vibe had shifted into something way more mature, and the quality of her Magic Power felt like it had been swapped out for a premium version.

But the real kicker? Her wounds were literally closing themselves.

The massive gash on her stomach was still stained red, but the blood started writhing, coalescing into a giant Blood Mass that hovered in mid-air.

It was a carbon copy of the Queen of Blood’s signature move.

"Now then, I wonder how much this body can actually take..."

Claire—or whoever this was—muttered to herself. Her voice was steady, calm, and her way of speaking was a total departure from the girl I knew.

"Are you even really Claire...?" I managed to ask.

Right then, the Queen of Blood’s Blood Mass exploded.

It shattered into a spray of Blood Arrowheads, screaming toward us with the kind of speed and density that basically spells "you're dead" for anyone in the way.

Everyone else was frozen, just waiting for the inevitable despair to hit.

Well... everyone except her.

"A pity. But I’m the original..."

Claire whispered it like a secret, then detonated her own Blood Mass.

Her blood scattered into tiny, microscopic droplets, turning the air into a thick Blood Mist.

That mist latched onto every single incoming Blood Arrowhead.

"Huh?"

I was the only one who let out a sound, but I’m pretty sure everyone else was busy rubbing their eyes in disbelief.

Those terrifying Blood Arrowheads suddenly lost all their momentum. They just went limp and fell to the floor, drip-drop, like leaky faucets.

"Taking control of blood once it’s left a body isn't exactly rocket science. I couldn't hijack them all, though..."

Claire gave a dangerously sexy smile. My eyes followed her gaze to find Elisabeth, the Queen of Blood, looking like a pincushion for a handful of her own Blood Arrowheads.

Claire had used that Blood Mist to flip the script on a few of them. The rest? She just shut them down.

It was the kind of power that made you realize "human" wasn't a word that applied here anymore.

It felt like watching two Queens of Blood go at it. Honestly, none of us could find the words.

"You won't beat me with projectiles. Which means you've only got one real option left."

Claire licked a stray drop of blood from her lip, staining them a vivid, bloody crimson.

Then, the Queen of Blood made her move.

She healed the arrowhead wounds in a heartbeat and reshaped her Blood Dress.

Massive Blood Tentacles erupted from the fabric.

They multiplied so fast it made my head spin.

"Yes, there we go. That’s the right answer..."

Claire gave a little nod and sprouted her own Blood Tentacles. It was like looking in a mirror.

The Red Tentacles fanned out, basically snarling at each other in mid-air.

And then, all hell broke loose.

The tips were as sharp as spearheads, lunging for the kill.

Tentacles burst from the floor and dropped from the ceiling, a swarm of red filling every square inch of the room as they closed in from all sides.

It was a meat grinder—the tentacles crushed and shredded each other, and only a lucky few even got close to their target.

As the swarm bore down on her, Claire summoned a Red Great Scythe, while the Queen of Blood extended her Red Claws.

They clashed, both of them cutting through the chaos in a single, devastating stroke.

It was a dance of gore—tentacles thrashing, crushing, and being sliced to ribbons until the whole room was painted in vivid red. Red Moonlight poured through the hole in the roof, acting like a spotlight for these two beautiful, terrifying women.

Their speed was insane. My eyes couldn't even track them. This was a battle between monsters.

I couldn't look away. None of us could.

"Incredible..."

"What a hell of a fight..."

I couldn't tell if they were evenly matched or not.

To a bystander like me, there was no way to judge who was winning.

The only thing I knew for sure was that neither had landed a finishing blow.

The storm of Red Tentacles raged on for a while until Claire finally let out a bored sigh.

"This is getting us nowhere... But I think I've done enough, don't you?"

She flashed a mischievous, almost cat-like grin.

"You've breathed in quite a lot of that Blood Mist by now, haven't you?"

A second later, the Queen of Blood dropped to her knees.

She started hacking up blood, and Blood Tears began streaming from her eyes. It was gruesome—blood was literally geysering out of every pore and opening in her body.

"Cough... urgh..."

For the first time, the Queen of Blood actually sounded like she was in pain.

"If you're going to inhale my power, you really should learn how to control it."

Claire didn't waste a second. Her tentacles swarmed the kneeling Elisabeth.

The Queen tried to fight back, but she was just overwhelmed by the sheer mass of the attack.

A wall of tentacles completely obscured the Queen of Blood—and then, a fountain of blood sprayed everywhere.

When the dust settled, only a pool of red remained.

"Not even close to full power, but I guess that’ll do."

Between the mature attitude, that cryptic smile, and the literal god-tier combat skills, not to mention the Violet Eyes... the girl standing there with her arms crossed wasn't the Claire I knew.

"Claire... who are you, really?"

She glanced at me and gave a slightly awkward, troubled smile. For a second, I saw a flash of the real Claire in that look.

But then, the vigilance returned to her Violet Eyes.

A thick Blood Mist started swirling around the room again. It began to pull itself together, molding into a human shape.

"Here we go again..."

"No way..."

"You've got to be kidding me. She's still alive...?"

While everyone else was panicking, I kind of expected it. If this was the Elisabeth I remembered, it wouldn't be that easy.

But the despair was gone.

Because she was here.

As long as this "not-quite-Claire" person was around, she could handle Elisabeth.

With her on our side, the Tragedy of a Thousand Years Ago wouldn't happen again.

I actually started to feel hopeful.

But then, as a perfectly unscarred Queen of Blood stepped out of the mist, Claire’s body hit a wall.

She literally swayed on her feet before dropping to her knees.

"Damn... I guess this body really is at its limit..."

She sounded pained, and blood started leaking from her mouth. It turns out a human body can't exactly handle "transcendent" power without breaking.

Suddenly, the tables were turned. Claire was on her knees, and the Queen of Blood was looking down at her.

"Oh, come on, give me a break..."

"This is bad..."

"No..."

My heart sank.

If Claire went down, there was nobody left to stop Elisabeth.

The Tragedy of a Thousand Years Ago would just repeat itself. Everything would end, and my master would be left alone in despair, crying again...

I didn't want to feel that ever again.

And I sure as hell wasn't losing another precious friend.

"Claire!"

I ran straight to her.

"I can still fight!"

I drew my sword and stood between her and the Queen of Blood.

"You..."

"Even if your eyes changed color, Claire is still Claire, right?"

"...I’m just borrowing the driver's seat for a bit. Claire is still Claire."

"Then you're my friend, and you're important to me."

A thousand years ago, I basically gave up. I knew how strong Elisabeth was, and I convinced myself I couldn't do anything to stop her.

But... maybe if I hadn't quit back then, things would have been different.

If I’d stood my ground like Claire did, maybe a miracle would have happened for me, too.

I wasn't going to make that mistake twice. I leveled my sword.

I had to believe something would happen.

And I wasn't the only one. Everyone there was praying for someone—anyone—to stop the Queen of Blood.

"You don't need to do this..."

Claire reached out and stopped me before I could charge.

"My job is done. I only had to buy enough time for him to get here..."

She gave me this beautiful, confident smile.

"Him...?"

"Yes. He’s here."

And then—a black shadow dropped from the sky.

"My name is Shadow. I lurk in the shadows and hunt the shadows..."

The moment she saw him, Claire looked like the weight of the world had been lifted. She closed her eyes and passed out cold.