Nameless King

Chapter 4 The Damned

'The Flames of the Dead...' Wain thought. This was exactly what he needed to unlock the Nameless King's Forms skill.

Moreover, the general conditions were the same. To get out of the Isle of the Damned, Wain also needed to possess the living and dead energy.

"Why hasn't anyone taken this flame you speak of yet? You don't look like a dead man." Wain asked.

Marakt smiled strangely and, with a slight bitterness in his voice, said, "You're right, I'm not dead, but I'm not alive either."

Wain looked at him, puzzled. He didn't understand how he could be in such a situation.

The old man sighed and said, "You can see perfectly well that I am not human, though once upon a time I was. At that time, we fought for kingdoms and our hearts. But, hundreds of years have passed since then. I am neither alive nor dead. I am cursed like everyone else here. So are you. We can't leave this island even if we get the Flame of the Dead. There's no way we can get the energy of the living. We are destined to wander this lifeless land forever."

'A cruel fate.' Thought Wain.

"Marakt, where is the Flame of the Dead? How can I get to it? I still want to try." Wain believed Marakt's words, but unlike the old man, he was alive.

"Eh, I once met a rookie like you, and he even managed to get to the Flame of the Dead. But his body couldn't take it. You must understand that we are cursed and here for some reason. Perhaps this is our punishment for past sins." Marakt spoke with regret.

"Better to die than lead such a miserable existence, show me." Coldly said Wain, and the Destruction Sword began to gradually lower.

The old man sighed and said, "To the north of the island, you will see the ruins. As far as I know, the Flame of the Dead is located there."

Wain nodded and headed silently in the direction indicated. He could not delay. He had to get off this island as soon as possible and join the inhabitants of this world.

When Wain had already moved more distance, Marakt muttered quietly, "None of us want to live like this, but no matter how much we try, we can't die."

The old man stood up, and under his cloak, you could see that there was a wide hole in his chest. It was a wound incompatible with life.

...

After about a couple of kilometers, Wain encountered another Ash Lizard. This lizard was sleeping quietly, not even aware that the dark sword was hovering over its head.

Wain swung his hand, and the lizard was killed. The white soul immediately flew out of her body and hovered in the air.

"Eh, why do these souls always have to go after them on their own," Wain muttered grudgingly. But, suddenly, the white soul flew toward him on its own and entered his body.

[Soul of the Ash Lizard(Whole)

Chronicle: Primary

Rating: Common]

'What? The soul flew itself to me? But I've never heard of such a thing. What's more, this Whole Soul, great.'

The chances of getting a Whole Soul were rather slim. As with the last soul, Wain wouldn't put this soul into his Soul Altar. He would use it and try to get a skill or item.

[You have acquired the Soul Essence of Ash Lizard level 2. Agility+4, Stamina+2]

[You have leveled up to level 2. You get 3 status points to distribute freely]

This time Wain got twice as many status points, although this lizard was no different from the previous one. But, the integrity of its soul was different, which is why there was such a difference. But, Wain was lucky to get something else besides stats.

In Wain's hands was a book made from the hide of some lizard. He knew what it was.

"So this is my first Skill Book," Wain muttered and put his palm on the book.

[Lizard's Dash (Primary Chronicle Active Skill, Common Rating)

Lizards are fast and nimble creatures, and you get a piece of their power. You can make a quick dash in one direction and cross the five meter mark almost instantly. After applying Agility + 5 for 30 seconds]

This was the first skill Wain had ever received, but he could also understand that this skill was pretty good for its Rating. In the past world, he had gathered a lot of information about souls and skills, hoping that he would find a way to awaken his soul.

'An active skill with a passive effect, not bad at all. Five Agility is quite a lot. I could kill a few people in those thirty seconds.' Thought Wain.

The next moment the Skill Book turned into a complex rune and moved into Wain's inventory. If Wain wanted to use this skill, he had to move it to his Soul Altar.

At this point, Wain could only have three active skills. There were no restrictions on passive skills, but they didn't have the same vivid effect as active skills. These restrictions existed because of Wain's lack of power.

If he tried to move in his Soul Altar, the fourth active skill, his body would be torn apart. He had to get stronger to get more abilities.

Wain didn't hesitate and mentally moved the skill rune into his Soul Altar. Wain felt a rush of strength, and the necessary knowledge filled his mind.

"Alright, it's time to put this to the test."

There was a dried tree not far from Wain, and it was the one he had chosen as his target.

Whoooosh.

Soul Essence headed toward Wain's feet, and he was a blur the next moment. In less than a second, he reached the tree. It wasn't teleportation. It was a rapid dash to one side. As evidenced by the smooth trail on the ashy sand.

'Agility has improved. I feel like I'm getting a little faster.' Thought Wain and moved on.

His first skill was nothing unique or unusual. But, Wain was still extremely pleased.

...

"The old man said the ruins are to the north, but I've been walking for quite some time, but I haven't found anything," Wain muttered.

He looked around and saw a man in a long cloak walking toward him. This man walked past Wain. He was just wandering among this ashy desert like a hermit.

"Wait, where is the Flame of the Dead?" Wain asked.

"Another one." A hoarse voice was heard, "The ruins are over that hill." He answered briefly, pointing in the direction.

Wain nodded and headed toward the hill. He didn't notice it, but the man in the cloak had his head hanging apart from his neck.

...

"There they are," Wain said contentedly, looking at the ruins buried beneath the ash.

The entrance was in front of a hill and looked like a circular staircase going deep down. There were no monsters around, so Wain made his way there without fear.

Wain wasn't afraid of scary monsters or dangerous opponents, and it wasn't because of his boundless self-confidence.

He had only encountered two very weak lizards in all that time. Wain was sure he could kill them even without using the skill. In his opinion, Ash Lizards were just too big lizards.

Dim, green torches lighted the descent into the ruins. Various drawings and carvings on the walls gave the place an ancient aura.

"Hmm, what's that?" Wain muttered, looking at the stone tablet. Strange symbols were written on it, but Wain could read them to his surprise.

"When the ash burns again, the savior of the damned will go to the frosty shore to his guide."

Wain paid no attention to this phrase and moved on. He decided it was some ancient prophecy.

After a couple of turns, Wain found himself in a spacious room. There he saw the bodies of the dead lying against the walls.

'Their skin is gray, just like that old man's, but they don't have horns, and they look dead. It's all weird.' Thought Wain and one of the corpses began to rise slowly the next moment.

It opened its green eyes and stared intimidatingly at Wain.

Wain used the Lizard's Dash and instantly got in front of the reanimated dead man and smashed his head into the wall.

[Soul of Hollow(Destroyed)

Chronicle: Primary

Rating: Common]

'These creatures are called Hollow, curious.' Wain thought and crushed the white soul.

[You have acquired the Soul Essence of Hollow level 1.]

Since it was Destroyed Soul, he only acquired Soul Essence. He couldn't get a stat boost, much less an item.

"I wonder how much Soul Essence I would need to use to improve a skill or additional soul?" Wain wondered.

But, he didn't have time to think. About ten Hollows rose and slowly headed in his direction. They reminded him of zombies, they were just as dumb and slow.

Whoooosh.

Wain waved his hand, and a dark sword appeared in the air. Then Wain twirled his finger in a circle, and the sword began to spin at great speed. It was like a sharp disc.

'I'm getting more and more used to this skill.' Thought Wain and sent the dark sword slicing heads with a wave of his hand.

A few seconds later, Wain emerged from a room full of corpses. Blue blood flowed from the severed heads and quickly covered the entire floor.

Wain walked through corridors that were lit by dim torches. In several passages, he encountered no Hallow, but he saw many ruined statues and ancient frescoes.

'Marakt said that the Flame of the Dead is here. But when I find it, what will I have to do?' Pondered Wain.

"?? What is it?" Wain muttered as he walked into the great hall.

In the center of the room was an anvil, embraced by a massive pillar of green flame. Around the anvil flew several spirits resembling blacksmiths. They struck the anvil every second with spirit hammers, and the flames flared even brighter.

The enchanting ringing of the spirit hammers reached Wain's ears, and then the guardian of that tomb began to awaken.