In the final moments of his life, Marcus’s consciousness became unusually clear.
He recalled his whole life, those painful days spent in his brother’s laboratory, those forced "modifications" and "enhancements".
Oliver never treated him as a brother, merely viewing him as a disposable experiment.
Each "extraction" would steal a part of his soul, making him less and less human.
At first, those experiments were basic tests, the pain barely tolerable.
But as Oliver’s ambition swelled, the nature of the experiments grew increasingly cruel.
He remembered that long night, when Oliver first pierced tendrils into his brain.
He felt parts of his memory and knowledge being forcibly drawn out, pain beyond the physical realm, a tearing of the soul.
From that day on, he knew he could never return.
His consciousness gradually shattered, his personality disintegrated, leaving only fragmented memories and emotions.
Oliver’s "improvements" on him became more frequent, transforming him into various grotesque forms, as if seeking some perfect formula.
Marcus thought he had long been accustomed to such a fate, until that day, when he saw Ron Ralph’s figure in his brother’s peering crystal.
That fellow who initially clashed with him over a servant, though truth be told, his initial conflict with Ron was also at Oliver’s behest...
His brother’s interest in Ron grew daily, with a certain morbid jealousy underlying it.
Marcus even once overheard his brother muttering: "Imagine, if I could obtain his special talent in Magic Potion Making..."
He knew that if given the chance, Oliver would certainly target Ron, just like all the other "materials" he coveted.
And this realization, for some reason, planted a completely illogical thought in Marcus’s mind: Ron indirectly caused his tragic situation.
If it weren’t for Ron, perhaps Oliver wouldn’t have descended into madness so swiftly, perhaps he himself wouldn’t have become a twisted experiment.
This illogical but in his deranged mind perfectly reasonable hatred became Marcus’s last spiritual pillar.
In some way, it might be the only emotion keeping a sliver of his self intact.
"Ron..."
In the flames, he saw a blurry figure.
It was the blond youth Andre, clad in scale armor, holding a sword, with Dragon Breath flame pouring from his mouth like a stream, forming a magnificent and deadly pillar of fire.
In Marcus’s distorted vision, the blond figure overlapped with Ron.
He remembered Ron often appearing with this blond aristocrat, the two inseparable, supporting each other.
"It’s you..." Marcus felt a surge of anger rising within him: "It’s all you..."
In the blazing inferno, his bones suddenly emitted a series of horrifying cracking sounds, then recombined into a form more suited for a sprint.
The black veins under his skin began to writhe frantically, providing the dying body with its last energy.
The burning body suddenly burst forth with astonishing strength, charging through the sea of fire at an unimaginable speed, heading straight for Andre.
Andre evidently didn’t expect this half-charred monster could still move, barely sidestepping in haste, but Marcus’s teeth still sunk deeply into his arm.
"Damn it!" Andre cried out in pain, then thrust his longsword fiercely into Marcus’s head.
The sword blade pierced through the brain, the sharp tip emerging from the back of the head, blood splattering everywhere.
But even with his brain pierced, Marcus’s teeth still clamped down tightly, biting even deeper.
"Help me get this thing off!"
Andre shouted to surrounding Law Enforcement Officers, trying to break free, but Marcus’s jaw was like a vise, unyielding.
Several Law Enforcement Officers rushed forward, some firing beams with their magic wands, others attempting to wrap Marcus’s body with magic ropes.
"You must decapitate it, its central nervous system has mutated!"
An Advanced Apprentice commanded:
"Ordinary damage won’t work, it must be completely severed!"
Enduring the intense pain, Andre forcefully pulled out his sword, then swung it vigorously at Marcus’s neck.
Simultaneously, another Law Enforcement Officer also struck the same spot with a sharp energy blade.
Under the combined forces, Marcus’s head was finally severed, but his teeth still gripped Andre’s arm stubbornly, refusing to let go.
Blood flowed down Andre’s arm, staining his cuff and boots.
The bitten spot oozed black liquid, mixing with the blood to form a disturbing dark red.
"What about the rest of the body?"
Andre asked through gritted teeth, his face pale from pain.
"It’s completely burned, showing no signs of activity."
One Law Enforcement Officer replied, keeping a vigilant eye on the still slightly twitching head.
"Help me take it off." Andre pointed to the head biting his arm:
"I need to treat the wound."
Several Law Enforcement Officers worked together, using every ounce of strength, finally removing Marcus’s head from Andre’s arm.
The bitten spot revealed a ghastly wound, the muscle tissue nearly torn away, exposing the gleaming white bone beneath.
More worrisome, black lines were appearing around the wound, like some kind of contamination or curse spreading.
"You need to find the Masters immediately for treatment."
The Law Enforcement team’s medical apprentice merely took out potion and bandages:
"This kind of wound might carry deep contamination, I can only help you with some simple treatment."
Andre looked at his wound, then at those expensive healing potions, and could only nod:
"Thanks, I’m a Bloodline Knight, such wounds can heal quickly."
"But the contamination might... you’d better go find your Master..."
The medical apprentice wanted to continue persuading but stopped halfway.
Seeing Andre’s worried expression, he understood the situation he was in.
"Then let me just perform some basic treatment here..."
"What about Marcus’s head? Do we need to perform a dissection analysis?" someone asked.
"No, just burn it."
The Law Enforcement Captain decisively commanded:
"This type of case is too dangerous, not suitable for ordinary apprentices to get involved. The valuable information will be extracted by the Masters; you all should not meddle."
Everyone nodded and then threw Marcus’s head back into the flames.
The head emitted a chilling hissing noise in the fire, as if making a final protest, but was quickly devoured by the flames.
Andre stood aside, witnessing it all with a complex expression.
His arm throbbed with pain, but he forced himself to stay composed.
As a royal lineage member, he was taught from a young age to maintain his demeanor in all situations.
Moreover, this kind of injury was indeed nothing to a Bloodline Knight.
After a few days of rest, the bloodline power would automatically repair damaged tissues.
But what he hadn’t noticed was that the black contaminated markings were not stopping spreading due to the simple bandaging.
Instead, they were gradually but resolutely spreading upwards, like an invisible poisonous snake, quietly infiltrating his bloodstream.
"Report the situation."
The Law Enforcement Captain stepped up to Andre: "What did you find before you arrived?"
"Upon receiving the notification, I quickly went to the scene. Marcus was already out of the tower and wandering in the central area. His condition was very unstable, extremely aggressive, and had already caused slight injuries to several Elementary Apprentices."
Andre briefly recounted the incident:
"I tried to use Dragon Breath to corner him but didn’t expect his resistance to be stronger than imagined, and eventually had to resort to physical attacks."
"You did well." The Law Enforcement Captain nodded:
"And Oliver? Any leads?"
"Unrelated personnel, stay away!"
Suddenly, a dignified voice came from the back of the crowd. The people quickly parted, revealing a path.
A tall figure in a deep purple robe quickly approached, it was Vice-President Hayek.
Everyone immediately stood solemnly, including the Law Enforcement Captain showing a respectful expression.
"Vice-President!" The Law Enforcement Captain stepped forward, respectfully saluting.
"How’s the situation?" Hayek directly asked without any pleasantries.
"Oliver West has defected, releasing the test subject Marcus causing chaos, and then took the opportunity to escape into the Edge Forest. The pursuit squad has followed him into the depths, but..."
The Law Enforcement Captain paused, hesitated to continue:
"We lost contact."
"Lost contact?" Hayek’s brow furrowed even more: "How many people?"
"Three Middle Apprentices, one Advanced Apprentice." The Law Enforcement Captain’s voice slightly lowered:
"The last message indicated they discovered Oliver’s trace in the northeastern region of the Edge Forest, preparing to encircle him..."
"Then what?"
"Then there was no further response."
The Law Enforcement Captain lowered his head:
"We tried to contact them through the spiritual link, but one by one the connections severed. The last member reported that Oliver had begun an awakening, displaying extreme aggression and some... special ability."
Hayek’s face darkened even more:
"Take me to where Marcus was found, I want to examine it personally."
"Yes, Sir."
As Hayek and the Law Enforcement Captain left, the atmosphere eased slightly.
Andre also prepared to leave, but a Law Enforcement Officer stopped him.
"Andre, please wait. The Vice-President has instructed that all personnel involved in tonight’s operation must undergo detailed recording and examination, just in case."
Andre nodded, although his arm was in great pain, he knew it was a necessary procedure.
He cannot perform field tasks for the time being, and his income is meager, coupled with the soaring appetite after becoming a Bloodline Knight has left him financially strained, so...
He looked down at his bandaged wound, with some blood seeping through the outside of the bandages, but the bleeding had slowed.
The self-healing ability of a Bloodline Knight was at work, the wound should heal soon.
"I’ll go find Ron to have a look tomorrow, he always has many solutions..."
He refrains from seeking an Official Wizard’s help due to not affording the Magic Stone Fragment and his instinctive trust in his genius alchemist friend.