MTLNOVEL Chapter 189: How to Make Kalpas Lose His Cool
"Well, let's try it~"
Lee found a glass in her room, then held her wrist over it, the tip of her Seven Thunders against her skin.
She took a deep breath, then sliced into her wrist.
A shallow cut would heal too quickly, so she had to dig the blade in, occasionally wiggling it to prevent the wound from closing.
"If it worked on Su, it should work on others, right?"
Lee watched the glass fill with blood, her brow slightly furrowed.
"Ugh, this hurts… I wish I could just turn off the pain. I hate this…"
Of course, she could, thanks to the system's pain control, a true MVP in this world!
But that was an out-of-character ability, so it didn't exist~
"This should be enough."
Lee pulled the katana out, then swirled the blood in the glass. "Time for a test run. Hope this works."
She sheathed her sword and walked towards the basement, the glass in her hand.
Is Aponia still down there? Should I tell her it's my blood, or keep it a secret?
Better keep it a secret. Surprises are more effective—
"What are you doing?"
Lee turned in surprise. "Kalpas? Don't usually see you out here. Done with the warehouse?"
Kalpas, in his Ultraman mask, didn't answer. He just stared at Lee, as if searching for something.
"Are you hurt?"
It was a question, but he sounded certain.
"Who did this?"
"No one. No one in Twilight Street can hurt me. I just… cut myself accidentally—"
Before Lee could finish, Kalpas grabbed her arm, yanking it from behind her back.
Despite her rapid healing, the deep cut, meant to keep the blood flowing, was still bleeding profusely.
"…What's in your other hand?"
"Okay, okay, I'll show you! Don't pull! I just filled this; don't make me spill it…"
Kalpas's serious tone and threatening gesture made Lee surrender, revealing the glass.
"I… collected some blood…" Lee mumbled, looking down. "I heard… watering plants with blood makes them grow better… so I was going to try it—do you believe that?"
"Plants? Ha!" Even without seeing his face, Lee could hear the barely contained rage in his voice. "Sure. If you say so, I'll just burn down the whole courtyard!"
"Don't do that! I'll tell you… but don't get mad."
"Don't try that bargaining trick you learned from the kitten. It won't work on me."
I figured. Pardo avoids you like the plague…
Lee kept her expression neutral. "You… sigh… fine."
"I'm trying to… cure the Honkai-infected…"
[Energy +18,000]
Silence.
Lee's words seemed to flip a switch in Kalpas. He didn't speak, but the air grew heavy, the birds and insects falling silent.
Finally, Kalpas spoke, his voice strangely strained.
"You… believe that nonsense about eating the flesh of the strong to resist the Honkai?"
Okay, so that's why they sacrificed him. They thought eating him would give them his power.
Lee's bloodletting, though different from being sacrificed, clearly triggered something in Kalpas.
Unexpected bonus! Energy from Kalpas, too!
But Lee kept her expression carefully neutral.
"There are rumors, but no proof. It's just an urban legend." Lee shook her head. "I don't believe that."
"Then why are you doing this?"
Kalpas's voice was heavy. If Lee didn't give him a good explanation, she'd have to fight him.
Fight Kalpas? I'm not sure I can win…
"Because I'm… different." Lee smiled faintly. "My kouhai got infected during a Honkai eruption. When I found him, he was almost… a monster… but he was still alive, holding a gun to his head."
"I wanted to save him, but I didn't have any antibodies. Then I remembered a rumor… that injecting blood from someone with high Honkai resistance could temporarily boost another person's resistance… I had no other choice."
"There was no time, no equipment, so I just… fed him my blood. I don't know if it worked, or if he just… pulled through, but he survived."
"…So you're going to feed your blood to other people?" Kalpas's voice was still angry, but he hadn't attacked. Lee was relieved; her story had worked.
"You don't even know if it works!"
Lee looked down at the glass of blood. "I know, but… even if there's a small chance, I have to try."
"Because she's right. Everyone wants to live. No one deserves to die…"