Panic lit Calixan’s eyes. He didn’t understand what was going on. It was like he was fighting three opponents in the body of just a single one. One was a Vampire Lord, the other some bastion of light, and the last a Paladin Lord.

The middle of the three was one Calixan had never seen before, but he could feel a Perfect Frame when he saw it. Though it was less impressive at the Proving Class, a Perfect Frame was still a Perfect Frame.

The other two, though... they were simply legendary.

The Vampire Lord Frame was one that could only be awakened by the vampires of purest blood. Even if you were the child of a Vampire Noble, it wasn’t guaranteed even at the Proving Class.

This was why Calixan had never even thought to question the idea that Grey was a Vampire Lord. Who else but a Vampire Lord could ever have such a Frame?

But, the other Perfect Frame, the last of them...

’Paladin.’

It was a word that shook Calixan to the core.

Holy Knights seemed like they had so much prestige, but the truth of the matter was that they were only given a meaningless preface to a weak title. It was the Paladins that they mimicked and learned from, Paladins that they could only manifest the smallest bit of power compared to, Paladins who were the truest and closest worshippers of the Goddess outside of those Marked by the Gods themselves.

There was no way a Paladin Spirit would choose a Vampire of all things, that was the antithesis of everything they were.

"IMPOSSIBLE!"

Calixan vanished, teleporting away before Grey’s follow up strike could land.

Grey cursed as he felt Blood suddenly appear behind him, slamming down with not just one, but two fists.

The power was to the point where he felt like the wind alone might have forced him to his knees, a suffocating presence bearing down on him.

Just when Grey was about to dodge.

BOOM.

The force slammed into him, his eyes widening as he felt all his ribs crack at once.

His face was pressed into the ground, the blood he wanted to cough up not having the room to do even that. A ripping pain crawled up his spine. Even it seemed like it was just a moment away from snapping apart for good.

’Fuck...’

Grey coughed as he felt the pair of fists leave his body. Wait, leave his body? It really did feel like they had been embedded into him.

His vision swam, darkness clinging to its edges.

’Move... I need to move... Shit...’

"KILL HIM!" Calixan roared.

’What a fucking annoying voice.’

BOOM.

Grey vanished just as a second hammer fist was about to fall from above, appearing to the side in pools of steps he had taken earlier.

He slashed out at Blood’s side, trying to cut him in two. But—

Chi.

Grey’s eyes widened as his blood saber shattered to pieces, his wrist nearly going with it. Heart Lance was at Core Sync now, not to mention Level 13. He had activated his Vampire Lord Frame in full. His blood sabers shouldn’t be this weak.

No... it wasn’t that his blood sabers were weak...

Blood’s body was just that strong.

A rain of golden bullets came from the side.

"FUCK YOU’RE ANNOYING." Grey roared in frustration.

Calixan sneered but didn’t say anything. He simply formed another sphere of gold around himself while Blood launched a counter attack.

Grey hopped back, sliding onto the lake and out of the way of Blood’s swinging fist.

Blood followed.

"NO!"

Blood stopped moving and Grey looked like he had come to a stop before he suddenly vanished, appearing right in front of Calixan.

Calixan’s eyes opened wide. He didn’t expect that Grey could teleport so far, and because of the darkness hanging around, it was impossible to see where Grey had left his footprints.

Grey could have used it before, but he had waited specifically for this exact moment.

He slammed down.

BOOM. Calixan’s back slammed against an opposing wall. He hadn’t put as much power into his shield this time, thinking he’d have more than enough time to react to Grey if he came again.

He didn’t.

"I’m fucking tired of you." Grey growled.

Calixan waved his staff again, already prepared to teleport again.

Grey vanished first.

Calixan vanished second. He was too late to react.

Grey’s blood saber ripped right through Calixan’s chest, his Paladin Frame radiating with a dense might that covered the surroundings in his Resonant Frame.

He had already seen Calixan’s teleportation once. Unfortunately for Calixan, that teleportation required him to use his Resonant Frame as well, and that was something that Grey could sense. Even more unfortunately for him, he had teleported somewhere Grey had steps nearby.

So long as Grey reacted first, he was able to slash before Calixan even registered anything in his surroundings.

All it cost Grey was a shit ton of stamina.

Blood roared and Calixan grabbed Grey’s wrist with almost a little too much strength.

"I... won’t... fall... here..." Calixan growled, blood drizzling down his chin.

"Yes the fuck you will." Grey growled. He swapped to his Helion Frame and his arm began to burn with the light of the shining sun.

Calixan’s flesh sizzled on contact, but to Grey’s surprise, the man didn’t let go of his arm at all. That much would have been fine by Grey. After all, his original plan was to burn Calixan from the inside out with his blade.

Unfortunately, a blood blade didn’t react to Helion Resonance the same way a metal blade did. The heat transfer was too slow, almost like he was microwaving plastic.

By the time Grey realized this and thought to use Iron Veil to maybe help the transfer along, the light of madness in Calixan’s eyes had reached a breaking point and what little light there was coming from the lake was swallowed up by a shadow.

It would have made sense if the shadow was Blood, but it was not. Grey would have known. He had a very special way of making certain.

No. The shadow came from the lake’s depths, and it swallowed up Calixan’s body whole.

BANG.

Grey was sent flying.