The giant had forged a monstrous body

through training that ordinary humans

could never hope to achieve.

With a single glance,

Ethan understood that whatever training

Jackson underwent to maintain such a physique

must have been utterly inhuman.

Something Ethan couldn’t even begin to imagine.

Because of that,

Jackson could unleash this level of strength

without even using Aura Armor.

And that...

was exactly what irritated Ethan the most.

"Jackson! Fight seriously already!

Use your Aura Armor!"

Ethan shouted at the giant,

demanding he unleash his full power.

If Jackson actually did that...

the monster siege would collapse instantly.

He might even be capable

of annihilating the entire horde by himself.

In response,

Jackson’s smile widened.

"I refuse."

Punching another monster apart,

he laughed lightly while rejecting Ethan’s request outright.

Ethan found himself unable to understand

the bizarre giant standing before him.

But fortunately,

Jackson was generous enough to explain himself.

"Remember this, boy.

I still haven’t been convinced

that you and your companions

can truly change anything in this cursed city."

"Agreeing to help you is one thing.

Fighting with my full strength...

is something else entirely."

"If you and your companions

can’t survive this situation

without forcing me to go all out..."

"Then there would be no point

in following you at all.

Because eventually...

you’ll fail and die regardless."

Jackson’s answer struck Ethan

like a cruel reminder of reality.

The giant was willing to help—

but only at the bare minimum.

To the point where he still hadn’t activated Aura Armor,

relying solely on his raw body

and natural strength.

He wanted to see

how Ethan and the others would handle this situation.

He wanted to know

what they were truly capable of.

"I’m starting to understand

what kind of person you are, Jackson."

Ethan spoke while forcing a smile onto his face.

"If that’s what you want...

then fine."

Closing his eyes briefly,

Ethan finally chose to rely on the very last option

he had wanted to avoid until the very end.

Because Jackson refused to fight seriously,

Ethan now had no choice

but to compensate for what the giant could’ve done himself.

Their role in this battle

was to ease the pressure on the other hunting squads,

giving them enough breathing room

to reorganize themselves

and wipe out the monsters entirely.

And Ethan knew exactly

what those squads were capable of.

Especially Luna Heart,

who could continue casting spells endlessly without stopping.

Which meant...

’Drawing the monsters away from them...

that’s what I need to do now.’

Opening his eyes once more,

determined to overturn the entire battlefield...

Ethan made a decision.

He poured mana into the one place

he absolutely should not have touched.

The Bloody Eclipse Mark.

The seal surrounding the mark

had already reached its limit,

threatening to shatter at any moment.

And the instant Ethan injected mana into it—

the barrier collapsed immediately.

The Curse of the Beloved of Darkness activated at once.

The moment it did,

blood began dripping from the mark itself.

The symbol bled violently,

while a dark haze started spreading across Ethan’s body,

emanating an ominous pressure.

Jackson’s eyes slowly widened in genuine shock

the moment he sensed

the cursed power erupting from Ethan.

"What the hell is that?!"

It was suffocating.

As though the gates of death themselves

had opened from within that boy.

Ethan gritted his teeth hard,

enduring the unbearable agony tearing through his mind,

while countless voices of the dead

began echoing around him.

It sounded as though

the ghosts of Ashvarn’s dead

had started screaming beside his ears all at once.

Taking a shaky breath,

he resisted with everything he had,

trying to stop himself

from fainting or collapsing into convulsions

beneath that horrifying pressure.

The Beloved of Darkness

allowed him to hear the voices of the monsters.

Their regret.

Their suffering.

Their pain.

The human voices they once possessed

before becoming monsters.

It was horrifying.

Because hearing those voices

meant that somewhere inside

those grotesque abominations...

a fragment of humanity still remained.

And if that was true...

then what they were killing right now

were technically still humans.

But Ethan had no time

to dwell on that reality.

Instead,

he focused entirely on the curse’s other effect.

The Beloved of Darkness

was a terrifying curse

that drew every monster toward him,

forcing them to prioritize him above all others.

And Ethan possessed

the strongest Fifth-Level Bloody Eclipse in existence.

Which meant...

its effect was utterly monstrous.

The instant the curse activated—

Every monster.

Every abomination.

Every calamity present on that battlefield...

All of them turned around simultaneously,

staring directly toward him.

It was a breathtaking scene.

The kind of sight people would never witness in their lives.

Even Jackson—

who had survived for centuries—

was seeing something like this

for the very first time.

Gustav and Moon were equally stunned

when the monsters that had been trying to kill them mere moments ago

suddenly turned around,

completely ignoring them.

Only a few seconds passed before the creatures began charging backward instead,

howling with horrifying screams

that shook the very foundations of the city.

They ran like rabid beasts,

their killing intent focused toward one person—

and one person alone.

At that moment,

Ethan laughed quietly.

A dry, distorted laugh,

one he used to hide the madness and instability

slowly surfacing within him.

"Looks like it’s finally time for the main course...

you filthy monsters."

Jackson, standing beside him,

stared at Ethan in genuine disbelief for a moment

before turning toward the monstrous horde

rushing toward them in overwhelming numbers.

"You’re insane."

Preparing for battle,

Jackson stepped to the very front.

Ethan moved beside him afterward,

then gestured toward the others behind them.

"All of you, fall back!

Do not interfere in the next battle!"

He shouted those words with difficulty.

Even speaking alone

had already become painful for him now.

But unlike Alicia ...

who fled immediately the moment she saw the incoming horde—

Raiden refused to retreat.

"If we survive this,

then you can blame me all you want afterward."

"And if we die here...

then come find me in hell."

Standing their ground before hundreds of charging monsters,

Ethan and the others prepared themselves for battle.

His Bloody Eclipse

had drawn every abomination toward him.

Every single one.

The curse’s influence grew so overwhelming

that it reached far beyond the battlefield itself...

reaching a forbidden place.

Seated upon a shattered throne,

inside an empty chamber where no one else existed—

the Golden Knight’s eyes slowly began to glow.

After remaining dormant for countless years...

he had finally reacted.