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nInside a dark room, a pillar of light illuminated the center. The source was a series of small runes that were attached to the ceiling. The room was circular in size with two sitting platforms on each side.

nOn one side, Kieth sat with his uncle and the elders of his family, and the other side was occupied by two vampires. The younger-looking one was the early stage baron with whom Keith was matched up against.

nKeith observed him silently and found nothing suspicious. He was an early stage baron and his blood-qi was way less in comparison to him. Keith wondered if he could defeat him with two hands tied behind his back.

n'I will try something like that. He doesn't have any powerful artifacts on him either. At least I didn't sense any.'

n Just because we can't sense an artifact doesn't mean it isn't there. Some artifacts are made with such precision that they can be hidden from high-level vampires. But a vampire-like him can't get his hands on one, unless…

nKeith shifted his gaze to the old man sitting beside the young vampire and he appeared to be blind. His eyes were white and so was his hair. But his skin was not wrinkled, only appeared to be stretched slightly. If Keith had to guess based on his look, he would say the old man was around 50 years old.

nKeith knew better than anyone that the appearances of vampires can be deceptive. His grandpa was the prime example of this. He was centuries old but because he could change his appearance it didn't matter. Most of the time, he looked like a 70-year-old geezer. But sometimes he would show his youthful appearance that made him look 40 years younger.

nKeith didn't take the old man lightly. Usually, the old and powerful vampires didn't bother to pay attention to their appearance. So they didn't change their appearance to impress others. The old man was wearing a lavish black suit embroidered in gold. He was holding an expensive-looking cane that exuded a strange aura.

n'An artifact!' Keith looked at the cane trying to analyze its properties.

n A count-level artifact well hidden by runes covering its outer body. If we didn't notice the cane, we would've missed it.

n'Do you think he can influence the fight with that cane?' Keith asked the system.

n If it stays idle nobody will notice, but he activates the artifact there is bound to be a blood-qi fluctuation. Everyone will know right away. The system said.

n'But what if it can be used without activation, like a secret skill or technique that doesn't show its footprint. Then what do we do?'

n If this is an artifact that can be activated without any blood-qi fluctuation, then it won't make any difference in the game. Remember that blood-qi is everything and helps power all your blood-qi techniques, without it, the early stage baron can't match your strength.

n If the old vampire intends to interfere by activating a secret blood-qi technique and it isn't a strength or speed boosting technique, it's useless.

nKeith didn't reply and only observed the old man. From his blood core alone the old man was at the early stage of count similar to his grandpa. In addition to the cane, there were several accessories that emitted blood-qi fluctuations but they weren't as significant as the cane.

nThe old man noticed Keith's gaze and smiled at him. Keith didn't show any emotion on his face but the lack of hostility toward him was surprising. In a fight like this where a lot of money was at stake, the two sides rarely looked at each other, let alone smile.

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"Rufus, I see you've brought your nephew, the upcoming leader of your family.

" The old man looked at Rufus.

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"Yes, he will fight against your successor and prove his worth,

" Rufus replied with a low tone.

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"Do you know him, uncle?

" Keith asked, seeing that there was something going on between them.

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"Yes, he's Jerr Krent. He is the one who offered me so much money in exchange for this fight. He wants to assess our next leader's strength and compare it to his own grandson.

" Rufus looked at the young man sitting beside Jerr.

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"Oh! Which family is this? I've never heard of the Krent family.

" Keith asked with a dumbfounded face.

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"What? Are you really from the Ennes family?

" The young vampire asked.

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"Relax Draco. He clearly never went outside his room let alone his castle. Isn't that right, Keith?

" The old man asked Keith with a smile.

nHe knew all about Keith from Rufus. The illness and his declining health, lack of any blood-qi, and a broken physique. Despite all this, Keith persevered and in the end, was blessed with lady luck.

nWhat Keith didn't know yet was that this family was the one who helped Rufus and Marvin grow. They wanted to control the Ennes family from the inside out.

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"Those days of me being weak are long gone. I advise you to update your information. You are behind the most recent advancements.

" Keith glared at the old man and smirked.

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"And what would that be? You became a baron and defeated Marvin, isn't that an achievement?

" The old man laughed.

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"There is no point arguing, I will show you instead,

" Keith replied nonchalantly.

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"Good good! Now that everyone is present, let's start the fight.

"

nThe old man used his cane to activate the runes inside the arena and two pathways were connected to the opposite platforms. The path led to the center where the fight was supposed to take place.

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"Come, prove your worth.

" The old man gestured to Keith.

nThe young vampire named Draco entered the arena with a jump and cracked his neck. Keith didn't go there immediately, rather he strolled all the way to the arena with a carefree expression.

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"So are we going to fight or is there a signal or something?

" Keith looked around the arena and finally towards the old man.

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"You can start anytime now. There are no specific rules but you can't kill the other opponent. I added rune formations to prevent anyone from killing the opponent, however, you can use any means necessary to win. Outsiders aren't allowed inside the arena and it's only you two.

" The old man explained.

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"So when does the match end? When the other party admits defeat?

" Keith asked.

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"Yes, if the opponent admits his defeat the runes will stop guarding the outsiders and you can't get close to each other. But if you lose consciousness during the fight, the runes won't stop you until the opponent is on the verge of death.

" The old man grinned as he activated the rune formation.

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"Thanks for the explanation, I will take good care of your grandson.

" A huge smile appeared on Keith's face.

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