Record of a Thousand Lives

Whoosh!

A brilliant tower of light shot out from the burning hair, and the massive pressure from the sudden release of energy extinguished all the flames in Kang Yoon-Soo’s vicinity.

“Ah…” A naked angel fluttered her wings and flew down from the sky.
She brought with her a clean and holy presence, her aura filling the space around her.

[The angel, Yuriel, has descended.]

[The holy being has lit a light in the darkness.]

[The followers of goddess Sylphia will receive her blessings.]

[All forms of black magic will be nullified before the angel.]

[The angel will be corrupted if she kills a lot of innocent creatures.]

[Be careful how you use the angel.]

[This is the angel’s first descent onto the continent!]

[Time Remaining: 12 hours]

Yuriel blinked her large, clear eyes a few times before exclaiming, “So this is the continent! It is quite a bit darker and more sinister than I imagined!”

“Yuriel,” Kang Yoon-Soo called out.

“Oh! You emotionally challenged creature! Long time no see!” Yuriel responded, flying down excitedly after spotting Kang Yoon-Soo.
However, when she saw the flames that were still clinging to him, she exclaimed, “You cannot go to heaven when you die!”

“I have no plans to die,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

Yuriel lightly waved her hands, and a fresh breeze suddenly blew from somewhere and extinguished the fires on Kang Yoon-Soo.
She looked down at the burns Kang Yoon-Soo had sustained and admonished him with a worried expression, “You stupid creature! Why did you get hurt so badly?”

She took in a long breath before exhaling it onto Kang Yoon-Soo, and the sweet scent of her breath tickled his nose.

[The holy being’s breath has healed your wounds.]

[Your wounds have healed without leaving scars behind.]

[You have received the blessing of your guardian angel.]

[The experience points you gain will be doubled for a week.]

Kang Yoon-Soo stretched his body.
The angel’s breath was more effective than a top-grade healing potion.

As Kang Yoon-Soo silently held the Angel’s Hair in his hand, Yuriel sulked and complained with a pout, “Are you not even going to thank me for healing you?”

Kang Yoon-Soo stared at her for a moment before saying, “Let’s have a glass of red wine after the fight is over.”

“Wine? What is that?” Yuriel asked, tilting her head in confusion.

“Alcohol,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

“Wooow!” Yuriel exclaimed, smiling brightly.
It seemed she had no plans to keep her promise with the goddess to abstain from alcohol.
She asked excitedly, “So, when are we going to start fighting?”

Then, Argoric yawned as if to openly express his boredom.
Yuriel looked at the pale vampire and tilted her head before asking in confusion, “Who is that?”

“The enemy,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

“So we have to fight that?” Yuriel asked.

“Yes,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

Yuriel pondered for a moment, as an angel would be corrupted if they killed a lot of innocent creatures.
Then, she asked seriously, “Is he good or bad?”

“Bad,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

“How bad is he?” Yuriel asked.

Kang Yoon-Soo pointed at the people who were standing around dazedly and said, “That vampire brainwashed all of these people, and he also enslaved hundreds of creatures.”

“Then I can fight against him!” Yuriel exclaimed, fluttering her wings and flying into the air.

Argoric and Yuriel were now staring at each other high in the air.
The black-winged Vampire Lord and the white-winged angel seemed to be inverse reflections of each other.

“Are you an angel?” Argoric asked.

“Can you not tell?” Yuriel replied curtly.

Vampires were naturally weak against holy power, and as Argoric had just sucked the blood of a demon, he had become even more vulnerable to it.

‘A fun enemy has appeared,’ Argoric thought as his curiosity was ignited.
He had thirsted for such a powerful enemy the entire time he had been stuck in Sanguineum.

Argoric stared at Yuriel with his blood-red eyes, and Yuriel furrowed her brows and asked, “What are you doing?”

“So you can’t be brainwashed, just like demons,” Argoric mused.
He waved his hand, and the eyes of the creatures beneath his feet who had been dazedly staring into the air suddenly regained focus.
Then, the Vampire Lord gave out a command.
“Kill the angel.”

“Uwaaaaaaaaah!” The vampires, the werewolves, and the slaves all shouted in unison as they charged toward the angel who was flying in the air.

The vampires transformed into large bats and flew toward the angel; meanwhile the werewolves and Iris threw large boulders, the Vampire Hunters fired silver bolts, Shaneth and Sally shot their flames, and Mini-Lich and Acle fired their magic at her.
Henrick moved his mana threads and commanded Rick to fly up and attack the angel, but Rick did not budge an inch.

“You… You are a very bad child, aren’t you?” Yuriel remarked, furrowing her brows as she formed a sign with her long, slender fingers.

Right as all of the attacks were about to hit the angel…

Fshwooooooh!

An intense light exploded from Yuriel’s hands, and the whole square was engulfed in a blinding light before being filled with unexplainable warmth.

[The angel, Yuriel, has turned Sanguineum’s square into a Sanctuary.]

[Twelve Heavenly Statues have been erected in the Sanctuary.]

[A Heavenly Paladin has appeared to root out evil in this place.]

[Any demon that enters the Sanctuary will immediately be expelled from it.]

[The Sanctuary is overflowing with the purest form of holy power.]

[Unicorns and fairies will appear and put a flower crown on your head if you bring a tasty snack to Yuriel.]

A Sanctuary appeared!

The square started to shake as twelve white statues slowly emerged from the ground.
The twelve statues resembled an owl, a mynah, a falcon, an eagle, and several other kinds of birds.

“Riken, Orne, Chiman.”

A Holy Knight adorned in white armor stood before the angel.
The knight, who was holding a shield that seemed to be able to block all attacks, opened its white wings wide.

It was a Heavenly Knight—a Paladin! It was the highest class of summon, that none could measure up to.

“Paladin, go and teach that vampire a lesson for me,” Yuriel said as she pointed toward the Vampire Lord.

“Hamon, Uron, Chisweel.” The Paladin said a few foreign words that seemed to be of the heavenly tongue, then flapped its wings and flew upward.

While looking down at the square that had been illuminated, Argoric furrowed his brow and muttered, “That light disgusts me…”

The biggest advantage the Vampire Lord had as a vampire was the fact that Sanguineum, the city surrounded by sinister fog, was his home ground.
However, his home ground advantage was now gone due to Yuriel declaring the square a Sanctuary.

‘Argoric is now going to be on the back foot,’ Kang Yoon-Soo thought while watching Argoric fight against the Paladin.
The Paladin continuously pressured and attacked Argoric with its shining holy sword, but Argoric did not let the Paladin land a single blow even as it used all sorts of high-class magic spells.

‘It’s really strong, that’s for sure,’ Kang Yoon-Soo thought as he stared at the Paladin.
The Paladin was a top-ranked summon, and one had to have at least the Absolute Pope class to be able to summon it, but Argoric was not giving an inch to such a summon.

‘Argoric’s combat power must be unbelievably strong if he can fight head-on against a Paladin with the holy property, which is all vampires’ weakness.’

That was the precise reason why Kang Yoon-Soo had tried to tame Argoric into becoming his summon.
Of course, Argoric’s personality had made it difficult for him to use him properly at all.

The Vampire Lord looked down at the armies in the square.
The brainwashed mobs were still screaming while struggling to kill the angel.

“Kill the angel!”

“We have to kill the angel!”

It was then that one of the statues that had been erected in the square suddenly shone brightly.

[The Holy Statue (Owl) has activated its effect.]

[Argoric’s mind control has been canceled.]

[Argoric’s mind control is too strong!]

[The Holy Statue has failed to cancel the mind control spell.]

[The Holy Statue (Eagle) has activated its effect.]

[It has amplified the powers of the previous statue.]

[The mob has been freed from mind control.]

“W-What?!”

“What was I doing?”

“Look at the sky! The Vampire Lord and a large knight are fighting against each other!”

“Look! There’s also a woman with white wings over there… Don’t tell me… Is that an angel?”

The mob had been freed from the mind control spell, and the vampires, werewolves, and slaves all looked at each other for a moment.

“Why the hell am I with these bastards?!”

“Do you want to die?!”

It was right when that an intense battle was about to break out again that a bright light shone again.

[The Holy Statue (Dove) has activated its effect.]

[The fighting between armies will enter a forced ceasefire.]

The vampires, werewolves, and slaves could not move their bodies.
They were burning with hatred toward the opposition, but they could not fight at all.

Kang Yoon-Soo looked at Yuriel and thought, ‘Angels are also monsters, just like demons.’

Angels did not possess hostile and aggressive spells like demons, but they possessed the ability to impose crowd control and dispel all sorts of curses and mind control.
The declaration of the Sanctuary alone had been more than enough to turn the tide of battle.

“Oh, you expressionless creature,” Yuriel called out as she landed next to Kang Yoon-Soo with a pout.
Kang Yoon-Soo merely looked at her as she pointed toward the Vampire Lord and said, “I will give you strength, so can you go and kill that vampire for me?”

“Why?” Kang Yoon-Soo asked.

Tears welled up in Yuriel’s eyes as she pleaded, “I cannot kill him! I have never killed a single creature in my life! I could be corrupted, you know?”

Yuriel seemed to be very scared of being corrupted, even though Argoric was such an evil being that it would not matter if she killed him or not.

‘What happens when an angel gets corrupted?’ Kang Yoon-Soo thought. ‘A fallen angel?’

He had never seen one in his life.
Would it be something similar to a demon? He was full of questions, but he decided to nod and agree to the angel’s request.
He replied, “Alright.”

“Wow! Thank you!” Yuriel exclaimed, hugging Kang Yoon-Soo tightly and kissing him on the cheek.
Then, his body was suddenly filled with a new kind of power.

[You have received an affectionate kiss from your guardian angel, Yuriel.]

[The angel’s powers have temporarily been bestowed on you.]

[Your body is overflowing with holy power.]

[The Sword of Revelation has become much stronger.]

[You have turned into a demon once.
The holy power in your body has been reduced slightly.]

‘She can transfer her powers to me as well?’ Kang Yoon-Soo thought as he opened and closed his hand.
The sensation felt similar to when he had transformed into a demon, but it was slightly different this time.
A strong but dangerous power had flowed through him when he turned into the Frost Demon, but the power that flowed through his body this time felt warm despite its strength.

Kang Yoon-Soo looked at Yuriel and said, “Give me a ride.”

“Alright!” Yuriel excitedly hugged Kang Yoon-Soo and flew up into the sky, in full view of the armies on the ground.

“T-The angel gave Kang Yoon-Soo-nim a ride!”

“What the hell is that guy?”

Meanwhile, Argoric gathered blood in his hands as he prepared to cast a spell.
“Blood Storm.”

The blood in his hand started to spin wildly, turning into a deadly whirlwind before swallowing the Paladin.
The Paladin tried to block it with its shield, but its armor started to become chipped and dented the longer it tried to withstand the attack.

The Holy Knight staggered and let go of its holy sword, groaning, “Ramak… Oruk… Siman…” It then turned into dust and disappeared.

Argoric rubbed the scar on his chest and thought, ‘I don’t have much life force left.’

In truth, he was quite exhausted as well.
He had fought against a lower-ranked demon, and just now against a Paladin; every time a part of him had been cut by the Paladin’s sword, that part had crumbled into dust.
Above all else, the Sanctuary that filled the area with holy power created an environment in which the Vampire Lord would be unable to use his full powers.

‘Demons and Paladins are no match against me.’

He had almost died a few times, but he had been the victor in the end; still, Argoric felt that he wanted more.
He looked around hungrily like a starving beast as he thought, ‘I have to fight more.
I haven’t had enough yet…’

He wanted to fight.
He was desperate for a good battle.

It was then…

“Abyssal Sword.”

Kwachik!

Kang Yoon-Soo fell from the heavens, stabbing Argoric’s heart in the precise spot where the Paladin had damaged the Vampire Lord previously.
Argoric vomited blood when holy power managed to infiltrate into his body through the wound.

“Kuheok!”

“Chain of Light!” Yuriel shouted.
A golden chain shot out from her hand, binding the vampire and Kang Yoon-Soo together.

“Kuuaaak!” Argoric screamed in pain and struggled, but the chain that was imbued with holy power did not budge an inch.
The golden chain seemed to greatly weaken the Vampire Lord, draining all of his powers.

Kang Yoon-Soo continuously stabbed the Vampire Lord, repeating, “Abyssal Sword.”

Pukeok! Puek! Pukeok!

Kang Yoon-Soo suddenly sensed danger and braced for an attack.

Argoric smiled while vomiting blood, calling out, “I guess you were a worthy opponent after all! Blood Storm!”

A blood vortex shot out of the Vampire Lord’s hand toward Kang Yoon-Soo, but he twisted his body in mid-air like an acrobat and avoided Argoric’s attack.
However, the movements he displayed were not something anyone should have been able to do, even if one assumed he had anticipated the attack.

“Abyssal Sword.”

Kang Yoon-Soo continued to stab the Vampire Lord with his sword, and Argoric continued to vomit more blood as damage accumulated.
The merciless barrage of sword strikes continued without regard for the Vampire Lord’s current state.

Kwachik!

Argoric’s movements began to visibly falter, and even his wings started to flutter weakly, as if he might crash into the ground at any moment.
However, the Vampire Lord made a last-ditch attempt.

“Kyaaaaaak!” Argoric screamed before digging his fangs into Kang Yoon-Soo’s shoulder.

[The Vampire Lord is sucking your blood away!]

[Your life force is quickly depleting.]

[You have 69% remaining…]

[You have 51% remaining…]

[You have 38% remaining…]

Kang Yoon-Soo’s life force depleted at an alarming rate as Argoric sucked it away, and at the rate things were going, he would die if he did nothing to stop it.
Thus, he gritted his teeth and muttered, “Life Drain.”

A bluish-white aura started to drain away Argoric’s life force, but all it managed to do was slow down the clock, as Kang Yoon-Soo was still at death’s door.

It was then…

“Creature! Catch this!” Yuriel shouted, throwing a sword toward Kang Yoon-Soo—it was the Paladin’s holy sword!

Kang Yoon-Soo caught the sword in his left hand.

[Paladin Maximillian’s Sword]

He had no time to check the sword’s stats or information; instead, he began wielding a sword in each hand, stabbing away at Argoric with both of the holy power-infused swords.

“Abyssal Sword.”

Kwachik! Kwachik!

[You have 39% remaining…]

[You have 26% remaining…]

His life force was depleting because the vampire was sucking it away, but Kang Yoon-Soo was not fazed at all as he continued to stab Argoric.
His vision blurred and his body started to tremble, but he did not loosen his grip on the swords.

Argoric’s wounds gradually started to widen.

[You have 17% remaining…]

[You have 9% remaining…]

Kang Yoon-Soo’s shoulder was being crushed between the Vampire Lord’s fangs, but he still did not loosen his grip on the swords.

[You have 1% remaining…]

[Danger!]

[You are about to die!]

Kang Yoon-Soo raised both swords up high and swung down with all his strength, dealing the final blow.

“Abyssal Sword.”

The two holy swords stabbed into Argoric’s heart, piercing through it completely.

[You have killed the Vampire Lord, Argoric.]

[You have completed the ‘Legendary Quest—Vampire Lord’.]