I. The Murmur of Blood
Three days after the fall of the Fifth Seal, Edenfall was bleeding from within. Literally. Artificial veins, urban arteries, nutrient distribution conduits, and information microcircuits began to exhibit anomalous behavior: vibrations, tremors, and an irregular pulsation in the main channels.
"It's not a physical attack," Lirea said, looking at the scanners. "It's sabotage of the city's lifeblood."
The Central Blood Pipeline , an underground structure that kept Edenfall alive, was now contaminated with a black liquid that didn't show up in any chemical analysis. Every artificial cell in the system responded with panic. The flow became erratic. And the outermost wards suffered symptoms of collapse: mass fainting, memory loss, and aggression.
II. Infiltration into the Circulatory Core
Akihiko, Naeya, and two new mafia allies— Giosh , an expert in internal atmospheric pressure, and Maedra , a woman who can turn her blood into moving blades—descended into the Blood Pipeline.
Upon arrival, the structure seemed alive. The tunnels pulsed to the rhythm of an unknown heart. The walls breathed.
"This isn't sabotage," Akihiko said. "It's possession."
The creatures protecting the core were biomechanical hybrids: skinless bodies, saturated with black veins, that didn't bleed when wounded. Maedra tried to attack, but every drop of her blood was absorbed into the environment, nourishing the guardians.
III. The Throne Symphony
From the depths of the Bloodduct emerged a figure: Zarok the Bloodsucker , Senior Lieutenant of the legendary mafia and emissary of the Throne. His power was to read the memories contained in blood , allowing him to know every weakness, every trauma, every mistake of his enemies.
"There is no battle without a wound. And there is no wound without confession."
Zarok began summoning a phenomenon known as Hemophonic Echoes : echoes of past battles imprinted in spilled blood. The heroes of Edenfall were forced to battle visions of their former enemies, recreated with painful accuracy.
Naeya had to face a possessed, spectral version of his sister. Giosh was attacked by his fallen mafia father. Maedra had to destroy the child she had been, back when she was still human.
IV. The Vacuum Technique: Hemodynamic Cutting
Akihiko, cornered, unleashed a new level of his technique. Using the Void as an internal vector , he concentrated energy into his own blood, turning his body into a frictionless blade, a pulsating entity.
"The flow cannot be interrupted if there is no flow."
Thus was born the Hemodynamic Sever : a cut so fine it doesn't cut flesh or bone, but rather the very intention of circulation. Akihiko literally stopped the Hematoduct's will to continue beating. And with that, Zarok was momentarily stopped.
Zarok, however, wasn't dead. He dissolved into a reddish cloud and left a warning: the Throne of Eternal Flesh was about to activate. And when it did, every heartbeat would be the villain's property.
V. The Rebirth of Bodily Anger
Upon exiting the Blood Conduit, Akihiko collapsed. He had held back his lifeblood for too long. The Edenfall doctors applied a restoration technique based on emotional discharges: reading old combat letters, listening to screams, reliving betrayals.
That's how Akihiko discovered something new: every ancient wound held a secret form of power. Edenfall couldn't just endure... she could learn to respond .
"We will never bleed in silence again," he whispered.
And as he looked up, the sky over Edenfall seemed to be tinged with deep red, as if the entire city was preparing its next strike.
END OF CHAPTER 196