Chapter 7: The First Execution Ritual
1256 Words
"Don't ask too many questions! This is an illegal execution list signed directly by the Wolf Faction!"
The senior warden shouted roughly while pointing at the black-sealed paper scroll on the table. His breathing was still ragged in the dimness of the basement.
Albrecht stared at the crumpled paper without blinking behind his iron mask. He picked up the scroll, unrolling it slowly.
"Three prisoners without names," Albrecht muttered coldly. "You want me to execute them right now in the main room?"
"Yes, move fast! The Wolf Faction doesn't want any other peasants seeing this secret execution," the warden snapped impatiently.
Albrecht stood up from his fragile wooden chair, letting his black cloak trail against the stone floor. He hooked the giant executioner's sword onto his back.
"Take me to the Main Execution Room," Albrecht ordered flatly. "Make sure no one interferes with this ritual."
The senior warden nodded quickly, leading the way in front. Their footsteps created a rhythmic clanking in the cold stone corridors of the tower.
They climbed the spiral stairs leading to the middle floor, where the Main Execution Room stood grandly. The pungent smell of old, dried blood wafted heavily all along the path.
The thick iron door carved with skull symbols was pushed open. The giant, high-ceilinged room was greeted by the dim light of torches affixed to stone pillars.
In the center of the room stood a large black wooden block that had turned dark from absorbing the blood of thousands of condemned prisoners over time.
Three men covered in dull cloth sat kneeling in front of the wooden block. Their hands and feet were bound with thick iron chains to floor rings.
Two royal guards in iron armor flanked the prisoners. Their eyes flicked sharply as Albrecht stepped into the room.
"You are the new executioner?" one of the royal guards asked in a condescending tone. "Finish it quickly. We don't have much time in this cursed place."
Albrecht did not reply to the guard's words. He walked toward the back of the wooden block, drawing his greatsword from the scabbard on his back.
The thick steel blade, gleaming cold, reflected the light of the torch fire. Albrecht held the hilt with both hands, feeling the weight balance of the weapon.
He approached the first prisoner, a middle-aged man who kept his head lowered. The man trembled violently, unable to lift his face.
"Surrender your soul," Albrecht whispered softly, barely audible to anyone in the room.
With a single swift, firm swing, Albrecht brought his greatsword down vertically through the first prisoner's neck.
Cles!
The prisoner's head was instantly severed from his body, rolling across the wooden platform before falling onto the stone floor. Fresh blood spurted heavily from the severed neck.
Right as the red blood soaked the wooden block, Albrecht activated the flow of Blood-Aether energy within his body.
Without anyone noticing, a faint red mist of energy crept out from the sword's entry wound. The pure energy flow from the condemned man was forcibly pulled into Albrecht's body.
Every drop of remaining life force and Blood-Aether belonging to the victim was absorbed completely through the steel blade, flowing directly into the palm of his hand.
A sensation of warmth enveloped Albrecht's blood vessels. His bones, which had cracked from past torture, vibrated softly, gradually restoring his physical stamina.
"One," Albrecht muttered without any emotion at all.
He shifted in front of the second prisoner, who began screaming in half-mad terror. The man tried to struggle against the binding iron chains on the floor.
"Please! Don't kill me! I was only receiving orders from—"
Before the man could finish his sentence, Albrecht's horizontal s***h swept across his neck with extreme cleanliness. The sound of the scream was cut off instantly.
Fresh blood splattered forcefully again, hitting the lower part of Albrecht's black cloak. The energy absorption process occurred again invisibly.
The transmission of Blood-Aether from the second victim felt much thicker and wilder. Albrecht could feel his energy core inside his chest pulsing heavily.
The two royal guards standing beside the platform watched Albrecht's movements with furrowed brows.
"The way he swings his sword is extremely neat," one guard whispered to his companion. "He is not just some market executioner."
"Yeah, but his body is a bit strange. Why does it look like he isn't tired at all swinging that heavy iron?" the second guard replied in confusion.
Albrecht paid no attention to the whispers of the two royal guards. He was already standing directly in front of the third prisoner, who was the final target.
This third prisoner lifted his head slowly. The gaze in his eyes did not radiate fear, but rather the cold resignation of a discarded soldier.
"Do it quickly, Executioner," the third prisoner said firmly.
"Your wish is granted," Albrecht replied briefly.
The giant sword was raised high into the air, piercing the dark shadows of the ceiling. In a single lightning motion, the steel blade struck the last prisoner's neck.
Brak!
The third prisoner's body collapsed forward, spilling all remaining blood and the last bit of Blood-Aether energy onto the execution block.
Albrecht absorbed the remaining strength of the third condemned man completely, leaving nothing behind. The surge of energy entering this time far exceeded his expectations.
Three streams of Blood-Aether united inside Albrecht's blood vessels, triggering a chain reaction that surged wildly inside his body.
Albrecht's chest throbbed violently as if struck by an iron hammer. A soft hissing sound was heard as the thick red energy flooded his entire energy channels.
An extraordinarily dense killing aura suddenly overflowed from the pores of his skin, filling every corner of the Main Execution Room.
Albrecht tried hard to suppress the giant surge of energy so it would not explode openly in front of the royal guards.
He gripped the hilt of his sword tightly until his leather gloves creaked loudly. His eyes behind the iron mask glowed bright red for a moment.
The senior warden standing near the door backed up two steps, feeling his goosebumps rise from the creepy cold wind that suddenly blew.
Both royal guards grabbed the hilts of their respective swords by reflex. They felt a immense threat of danger coming from the direction of Albrecht.
"There is something wrong with this guy..." one guard muttered as he stepped closer to the execution platform.
Albrecht stood rigid in the middle of the pool of blood from the three corpses. His body muscles tightened hard as he tried to tame the new power surging inside him.
Faint flashes of red energy began to creep along the surface of his blood-stained execution sword blade.
"The work is done," Albrecht said in a voice that sounded deeper and trembled from the internal energy pressure.
The royal guard who approached narrowed his eyes. He caught something extremely unusual about the figure behind the iron mask in front of him.
A thick red light appeared to glow faintly behind the gaps of the black cloak and the slightly exposed skin of Albrecht's neck.
"Hey, Executioner! What is wrong with your body?!" the royal guard shouted suspiciously while drawing his sword half an inch.
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