The Awakened Arcane Legacy

Exchange Of Life

“Well, well! We’ve finally found the lost sheep!” a voice echoed from behind. It belonged to the assistant demon leader, accompanied by other S-Class Ranking demons. The two S-Ranking ladies had reduced the number of S-Class Rankers, dealing a heavy blow to the demon clan. The town had been burnt to ashes, killing everyone in it.

“Thought you could run, but you were still found. Guess you’re not so lucky. Just the fact that your husband killed our master will be your death sentence. I thought you were still pregnant. I would have ripped the baby out of your womb if you were,” glared the assistant demon leader, giving a wicked smirk to Stella.

“Take the child away, drain its blood, and kill the mother too,” he ordered. The remaining demons approached Stella, each wielding different weapons, some with guns and arrows.

“I wouldn’t let you guys harm my baby! Not now, not ever!” Stella exclaimed. As the words left her mouth, her baby levitated in the air, her eyes glowing gold like a torch in the dark night.

“Mech shield!” she uttered, her voice carrying immense power. But before the shield could materialize, a dark spear shot towards her heart. She immediately coughed out blood, disbelief in her eyes. The assistant demon leader had launched the spear. He knew that if she succeeded in creating the Mech shield, not even an SS-Class Ranker could break it. However, the shield consumed life energy, meaning the individual’s life would eventually be depleted. But it had the advantage of teleporting anyone inside.

“You think I would give you the chance to use that trick? That mistake won’t affect the demon clan twice,” he sneered. With a terrifying accuracy, the spear was launched with dark essence straight for Stella’s heart.

She gasped in shock as the weapon pierced her chest, droplets of blood escaping her lips in disbelief. Her concentration faltered and the mystical shield dissolved, leaving herself and her child exposed once more.

As if sensing that his mother was about to leave this world, Talon, the baby, who had been soundly sleeping, began to cry. The levitation effect faded, and Talon’s body slowly lowered to the ground. Stella, too, fell from the sky, dark blood staining her mouth with the dark spear impaled in her chest.

“Eyaaa!... Eyaaa!” cried baby Talon as he moved relentlessly

“B… baby… Talon, don’t cry,” Stella barely managed to utter the words, trying to comfort her baby. The ground beneath her was soaked with blood, spreading towards the white blanket where baby Talon lay.

The assistant demon leader approached and lifted baby Talon, wrapping him in a dark energy that levitated him.

“Nooooo!” Stella cried bitterly from the ground. She couldn’t save her only remaining hope. She reached out her bloodied hands towards her son, but could do nothing but watch.

Talon screamed and cried relentlessly, but they didn’t stop. Suddenly, the dark mist surrounding him and entered his mouth.

“Noooooooo!!!!!!!” Stella's cry pierced the air. Stella wailed, fighting against death’s grip to reach for her son with outstretched hands. But she was too weak, forced to watch in horror as the vile ritual commenced.

Few seconds later, the dark mist flowed out of baby Talon’s body, revealing a reddish liquid within. The lively boy, full of life just moments ago, now lay pale and lifeless on the ground. The dark mist went to the demon, who captured it in a bottle.

“I think my job is done here… Bye, it was nice doing business with you,” he said, approaching Stella. He removed the impaled spear from her body, causing her to bleed profusely.

“Oh, how could I forget my spear… Noooooo! That can’t happen,” he nodded, replicating his actions. Then, all of a sudden, the entire demon league vanished with a dark mist.

“My baby… can’t be dead… This can’t happen,” Stella clawed towards her lifeless child with her bloodied hands. Summoning her last remaining strength, she sat down to hold her one-day-old lifeless baby. She hugged him tightly.

“Aaaaahhhh!... Why me!!!!! Ahhhhh!” She screamed in anguish, weeping blood. The intensity of her pain was much.

“Lord, hear my last prayer. Bring my son back to life! Take my life instead!” Stella uttered those words, and immediately took her last breath, collapsing on the floor with her lifeless baby