When Eno opened his eyes, the first thing he heard was the sound of some machine spinning.
Click.
Click.
Click.
The strange sound echoed in the vast, dark space.
Hanging high up ahead was a massive, pale screen with images playing on it.
Cool white light and shadows intertwined in the darkness.
Playing on the silver screen was none other than the battle on the outskirts of Black Gallows.
The white-haired girl opened her seemingly fragile Oil-paper Umbrella, and a torrential downpour of blood arrows fell from the sky, pitter-pattering against its surface.
The white-haired girl spun the handle, and his proud Blood Burst was inexplicably drawn toward it, doing nothing more than slightly singeing a small corner of her clothes.
Then, the white-haired girl on the screen raised her head and stared quietly at him.
Immediately after, the scene cut.
The image in the projector changed to him opening his palm, looking at the newly condensed blood-red mark, and smilingly declaring victory.
There was no sound here.
Only that strange machine was making a clicking sound behind him.
Eno looked around; the place was packed with people.
No.
To be precise, they weren't all human.
In his line of sight, there were unknown monsters clad in tattered spacesuits with shattered helmet visors; cultivation grandmasters steaming all over like roasted suckling pigs; interstellar generals in crisp military dress uniforms with chests full of medals but half their heads flattened by something; soldiers of all kinds; and rows upon rows of dimensional demons, Swarm creatures, and contingency sterilization protocol robots...
Eno had never seen these creatures before.
Beside the armrest of every seat was a paper number tag.
Eno looked down at his own hands.
Without him realizing it, he too was holding a rough piece of paper.
On it, written in a script he had never seen before but could instantly understand, was:
【Reincarnation Queue: 931,742,887,164】
Over nine hundred billion.
Eno stared at the dizzyingly long string of numbers and fell silent for a moment.
Then, he slowly stood up, reaching out to tidy his slightly disheveled long black coat and lapels.
Even though he was certain he had met his death, and even though everything around him was absurd and bizarre to the point of unpleasantness, he still maintained the flawless etiquette befitting a high-tier vampire and a Steward of Black Gallows.
“Pardon me,” Eno said softly with a slight bow. “May I ask who is in charge here?”
No one paid him any attention.
In the front row, a translucent monster that looked as if it had been forcefully kneaded together from starlight and squirming flesh was holding a bucket of popcorn, staring intently at the silver screen.
In the seat to his right, a knight with only a head left was sobbing quietly.
A few seats to his left, a four-armed creature wearing something resembling a high-civilization research suit glanced at its number tag, let out an unintelligible sigh, and lowered it in despair.
On the screen, Eno was laughing.
A silent laugh.
He could read his own lip movements from that moment, seeing that he was thinking, “Eno wins.”
Seeing himself looking so conceited, Eno's brow furrowed imperceptibly.
Just then, a wet-sounding voice came from the adjacent seat.
“Sit down.”
Eno turned his head.
Only then did he notice that sitting in the seat to his left was a starfish.
To be precise, it was a starfish stuffed inside a transparent tin can.
The can had already been opened, its edges curled into sharp metal cuts, with several soft tentacles draped outside through the gaps, slowly feeling its own number tag.
Eno glanced at it.
Then he glanced at the faded label pasted on it.
【Residual individual of a certain spiral arm intelligent starfish species, Canning Batch: 7,800th Batch】
Eno was silent for a moment.
Although the other party's form was beyond his common sense, he still maintained impeccable politeness.
“Excuse me, where is this?”
The starfish did not turn to look at him, merely resting a tentacle on the armrest and staring at the screen.
“A movie theater. The place where the multiverse reincarnates.”
“Reincarnation?” Eno asked.
“Yeah,” the starfish gurgled. “But the numbers are called very slowly. There are over nine hundred billion ahead of you, so take your time and wait.”
Eno looked down, glancing at his number tag once more.
So this place was a movie theater?
Why did he end up here?
He raised his eyes, finally realizing a more direct and realistic question.
On the screen, the white-haired girl was standing before him.
The blood-red mark he thought he had successfully stolen had completely taken shape in his palm.
Then, he had used his new ability on Sophie without hesitation.
But the ability could not target her, directly switching the target to Nega beside her.
Eno watched this scene and spoke slowly, “I... was killed by that white-haired girl?”
The starfish finally twisted a tentacle, glancing at him with an eye behind the can't glass that couldn't even be located.
“Who here wasn't?”
Eno: “...”
Seeing Eno's speechless expression, the starfish seemed to comfort the newcomer and kindly added:
“At least you're considered lucky. You were only erased, not killed by Quasar Starfall.”
Eno didn't understand.
However, just as those words fell, the image on the movie screen suddenly switched.
It was no longer the mist and mud of the outskirts of Black Gallows.
In the boundless deep space and sea of stars, a beam of light descended from the heavens.
The surface of the planet peeled away layer by layer like fragile paper set ablaze. Massive continental plates, boiling oceans, a torn atmosphere, floating orbital cities, and doomsday shelters buried deep underground—along with the billions of lives praying, fleeing, arguing, and recording their last testaments—were all submerged beneath this blinding light.
A dead silence fell over the movie theater.
After a moment, someone in a quiet corner of the back row broke the silence:
“I was there for that one.”
“Me too.”
“Don't even get me started. I've been waiting in line until now and still haven't got my turn.”
“I was just a tiny bit away from finishing my download of 'study materials' when I died.”
“Hiso has done every bad deed imaginable.”
“Hiso has done every bad deed imaginable.”
“But it's actually not bad. That planet's megacorp had a lifetime employment system where you had to keep working even after you died. Now I can just watch movies, though the reincarnation wait is a bit long.”
“If you weren't so dead-set on becoming a demon king in an adult anime world, you would've been called a long time ago.”
“Since we're reincarnating anyway, shouldn't we enjoy ourselves a bit?”
Eno looked at the speakers; they were a group of people who had lost their physical bodies, leaving only light.
The starfish retracted its tentacles into the can and said calmly, “So, you leaving a whole corpse behind is already considered extremely good treatment.”
That white light.
Eno slowly sat back down.
His gaze fell upon the silver screen once more.
The image returned to the post road near Black Gallows.
He saw himself stealing Sophie's ability.
He saw himself believing victory was already in his grasp, his face full of a high-tier predator's composure and pleasure.
And he saw that white-haired girl showing that strange, barely-holding-it-together expression.
The deceased in the movie theater watched along.
There was no cheering.
There was no mockery.
Only the slight sound of number tags occasionally flipping.
This was an audience of those long accustomed to their ends, patiently keeping a newcomer company to rewatch a meaningless movie of the final seconds before their own deaths, devoid of any suspense.
Eno stared at his smug self on the screen and whispered:
“When death comes, it turns out everyone is alone.”
The starfish can squirmed inside its tin, thinking for a moment.
“Whatever works.”
Eno turned his head to look at it.
The starfish said, “All the newcomers say that, but they're all more eager than the last when filling out their reincarnation preferences.”
“Sigh, those who accept automatic assignment get called instantly, while those of us who don't have to wait forever,” the starfish said, speaking of things Eno didn't understand.
Eno caught a glimpse of the number tag in the starfish's hand. On the back, it read: 《The Rod in the World of Redo of Healer》.
“Please tell me,” Eno leaned back in his seat and said softly, “this is just my delusion before dying, right?”
The starfish did not answer the question, only asking back, “How did she feel, that Sophie?”
Eno leaned against the back of his chair.
He was silent for a long time, savoring that brief clash, before slowly speaking, “She was really... incredibly strong.”
On the screen, the white-haired girl was just standing there.
Holding her umbrella in one hand, her other hand didn't even bother to take a proper combat stance.
Eno continued, “And she didn't even use her full strength.”
The starfish can slightly tilted its tentacles.
Eno stared at the screen and whispered, “Even if I hadn't stolen the wrong ability, I probably wouldn't have won.”
“The body I trained so hard, my accumulated techniques, my quick wits in the moment, and my explosive power—I brought out everything.”
“I wanted to convey all of this to her.”
“To convey it to Sophie.”
The loneliness that arises from being absolutely strong.
The one who will teach you about love is...
Thinking of this, Eno couldn't help but chuckle.
“But still,” he closed his eyes and murmured, “I'm quite satisfied.”
“It's just a pity that I couldn't fully entertain Lady Sophie.”
The starfish can said, “How envious. Is it enough as long as you're satisfied?”
Eno did not refute it, silently accepting this selfishness that belonged to the defeated.
The starfish can tapped the edge of its tin with a tentacle and added:
“If there was a canned starfish like me among the people patting you on the back, maybe you would be satisfied too.”
Eno turned to look at it.
“So what on earth are you...”
“An alien turned into a canned food by Sophie,” the starfish said calmly, as if describing a trivial matter. “Strictly speaking, I got here long before you. A long, long time ago.”
Eno: “...”
The starfish waved a tentacle. “No need to make that face. There are plenty of others like me here.”
Eno looked around at the bizarre creatures of all shapes and sizes, which seemed to have been wholesaled by the planet or galaxy. “Plenty?”
Starfish: “Yeah. She used to be much more ruthless.”
Eno fell silent.
A long silence.
Then, he suddenly lowered his head, a low chuckle vibrating in his chest, growing louder and louder.
“So that's how it is.”
Eno laughed until a tear squeezed from the corner of his eye.
“And here I thought I had finally stepped into the realm of the strong, reaching a destination reserved only for the powerful.”
The starfish can ruthlessly shattered his illusion:
“You didn't.”
It raised a soft tentacle, pointing toward the deep, endless darkness of the movie theater.
“You've only queued up for a seat on the very edge of the Sophie's Victims Cinema.”
Before Eno could process those words, a long, calm female voice echoed from the theater's ceiling—
“Calling number: 931,742,886,173, 《The Rod in the World of Redo of Healer》. Please proceed to Reincarnation Gate Three.”
With a smack, the tentacles of the starfish can slipped out of the opening, and the entire starfish leaped from its seat with a speed completely at odds with its previous lazy demeanor.
“Oh, it's my turn.”
Eno froze. “...It's your turn already?”
“Yeah,” the starfish can said, not looking back as it crawled into the aisle with its tentacles clattering. “The 12,799 batches ahead of me have all reincarnated. Only the tail end of our 7,800th batch is left.”
Eno's temple throbbed.
“...12,799 batches. How many are in each—”
“If we count by galaxies—” the starfish paused. “Never mind, you don't want to know.”
It dragged its can slowly down the aisle. Halfway there, it suddenly reached its tentacle back and slapped it onto Eno's shoulder. The sharp metal cut on the can's edge brushed against his suit collar, leaving a faint scratch.
“Hang in there, kid,” it said. “Don't dwell on the past. Focus more on the promising future.”
Eno: “...”
“By the way,” the starfish added, “make sure you don't select 'automatic assignment' just because the wait is long. The last guy who got automatic assignment was assigned to be a certain demon king's hemorrhoids.”
Eno nodded in silence.
Dragging its can, the starfish slowly vanished into a pillar of light at the end of the corridor.
A second before the pillar of light went out, Eno faintly heard it grumble:
“In the next life... let's hope I never run into her again...”
The images on the silver screen gradually faded.
The very last frame was:
The last words Sophie said to his crumbling self.
Her voice was nonchalant, carrying an indifference that held no lingering attachment.
“With such a ridiculous way to die, I'll probably forget you in the next second.”
Eno: “???”
This was pure humiliation.
Just then—
Clap.
Clap, clap.
Clap clap clap clap clap clap—
Sparse applause suddenly rang out in the theater, spreading at a bizarre speed.
Eno snapped his eyes open.
These aliens stood up one after another, clapping for him.
“Congratulations.”
“Congratulations.”
“Congratulations.”
“Congratulations, congrats.”
“Omedetou.”
“Congratulations.”
“Congrats.”
“Kudos.”
“Kudos—”
Eno was baffled by this display.
“...Congratulations on what?”
A Swarm creature clapped and said, “At least she remembered you for a second, even though she probably didn't even know your name in the end.”
“We're competing over who can be remembered by her the longest. The prize pool has been accumulating, and you're the one breaking the record right now.”
The expression on Eno's face shifted several times.
Finally, he smiled. “I'll carry you guys.”
...
【Log: [Vampire Steward A] activated [Life Theft]. You have permanently lost the skill [Blood Servant].】
【Blood Servant (Reversed) Lv.Max: You can designate a human and turn them into your Blood Master. You must address them as Master and satisfy all of their demands. Limit: 1 person.】
【Log: [Vampire Steward A] activated [Blood Servant].】
【Log: Since you are not human, the target automatically switched to [Adventurer A].】
【Log: [Vampire Steward A] has turned [Adventurer A] into their Blood Master.】
【Log: [Vampire Steward A] has entered the [Blood Servant] state.】
【Log: [Vampire Steward A]'s hostile intent, attack intentions, escape intentions, and concealment intentions have all been judged as violating the demands of the Blood Master. Simultaneously, the Blood Master's wish is—Eno must die.】
【Log: [Vampire Steward A] has died.】
【Log: You have unlocked the achievement [Stealing My Skill, For Real?], gaining 2 Free Attribute Points.】
【Log: You have unlocked the achievement [Returned to the Rightful Owner], gaining 2 Free Attribute Points.】
【Log: You have unlocked the achievement [Who Exactly is the Master Here?], gaining 2 Free Attribute Points.】
【Log: You have unlocked the milestone [Silent Assassin Who Only Wears Skirts], gaining the special skill [Life Theft].】
“With such a ridiculous way to die, I'll probably forget you in the next second.”
Sophie watched Eno, who had been forcefully erased by his Blood Master, and lamented with a strained expression.
!? Just that!?
Didn't they say he would steal the skill the opponent deemed the strongest?
How did he end up stealing the one Sophie found the weakest?
Could the Heart of Reversal have felt that it was about to be stolen and secretly meddled with things?
Who says there is no perfect crime?
Other reversed skills were at least somewhat useful.
This reversed Blood Servant was purely a sex toy.
Sophie was actually looking forward to him stealing her Heart of Yin.
But on second thought, that was impossible. The Heart of Yin was essentially a soulbound item; even after transmigrating, it stubbornly clung to her. How could it possibly be stolen by a talent magic?
“Why did you kill him?” Sophie complained. “I still had questions for him.”
“Eh, me?” Nega pointed at himself blankly. “I didn't...”
“Sigh, whatever. I wanted to ask that vampire some questions,” Sophie sighed, looking at Nega. “Are there any other vampires in this town?”
“Other vampires?” Nega shook his head blankly.
At least in his memory...
“L-Lady?” Nega's eyes suddenly widened as he felt an incredibly powerful aura.
“Yeah, I feel it too.” Sophie raised her head.
The sky at this moment was covered by a thick layer of clouds and mist.
Without mourning Eno's death for even a single moment, arriving on the battlefield immediately was...
The Vampire Duke.
Claire.
The clouds above the wilderness sank in an instant, dark heavy clouds pressing down onto the tips of the withered trees, and even the surrounding wind died down. The entire canopy of heaven turned from gray to black, from black to red, finally condensing into an upside-down ocean of blood that covered a ten-mile radius of the wasteland.
The sea of blood surged silently, its surface flowing slowly along the ridges of the hills without a single drop falling.
The wild grass flattened, frost formed on the scattered stones, and crows perched on withered branches in the distance fell silently to the ground.
A man stepped slowly out from the inverted sea of blood.
【Log: Warning! Extremely lethal danger has arrived!!!】
【Log: You have been affected by [Duke's Majesty] from the [Eighth Generation Vampire Duke]!】
【Log: Your Perception check failed. [Pure Lust] has triggered, and you are immune to the mental submission effect.】
【Log: Due to the massive generation gap, your [Undying Essence] skill has been stripped.】
【Log: Due to a life level that seems to transcend dimensions, you have entered the [Blood Essence Extraction (Reversed)] state: Your life force recovery speed is increased by 1000%, Blood Essence recovery speed +1000%, your physical stamina drain is slowed, and your movement speed is increased by 1000%.】
【Log: Strong enemy warning! You cannot deal damage to an enemy of this level. Please explore the path ahead later.】
Bright red system warning pop-ups almost completely filled Sophie's field of vision.
Sophie tilted her head.
Wow.
Still fully buffed.
“Who was it?” Claire spoke coldly.
His voice was not loud, but the moment it sounded, all noises within a several-mile radius were suppressed, leaving only his cold echo roaring against everyone's eardrums.
“Who was it that erased Eno?”
Claire's indifferent eyes slowly swept across the ground.
He saw the remaining magical ashes belonging to Eno on the ground, with not even a single trace of intact flesh left.
Then, his gaze swept over the few people present.
A young adventurer kneeling on the ground, shivering and not even daring to raise his head, and two carriage drivers who were frozen in place.
A low-tier vampire who had already been completely suppressed by him, emitting a cheap and weak fluctuation of blood energy.
Finally, his gaze landed on the last person.
A black-haired, ordinary-looking girl whose strength could not be discerned.
Chewing, chewing on a piece of cake.
Miaoyue raised her small silver fork, sliced off a small piece of cake covered in cream, elegantly sent it into her mouth, and continued chewing while curiously watching the “powerful vampire” who had suddenly popped up.
Claire's gaze froze.
At this very moment, within his Abyssal Blood Majesty, not just vampires but any living creature should be frozen solid.
Yet this woman... she was actually eating cake?!
Moreover, her movements were so fluid and natural, without being affected in the slightest!
Claire's brain began to spin rapidly.
Although Eno's strength as the Steward of Black Gallows was not worth mentioning in his eyes, he was already at the top among mortals.
To instantly erase Eno to the point of leaving only a pile of ashes, without him even being able to send a distress signal—what kind of terrifying strength would that require?
Looking at the scene before him, there was a group of low-tier ants unable to move.
And this mysterious woman who ignored all of a Duke's Majesty, tasting dessert with calm composure.
There was only one truth.
“So that's how it is.”
A cold sneer curled up at the corner of Claire's mouth, his gaze locking firmly onto Miaoyue.
“What deep cunning, what terrifying disguise!”
Sophie stealthily shuffled her steps to block the path in front of Miaoyue.
Boss, please calm down.
If you have a problem, take it out on me.
You wouldn't want half of Solitude to be vaporized, would you?
Claire didn't even spare Sophie a glance.
He simply waved his hand in disgust, and an invisible wave of air pushed Sophie directly to the side.
“Get lost, you weak and pathetic low-tier vampire,” Claire's voice was filled with condescending disdain. “You are nothing but a shield she is using to cover up her true strength. Suppressed by her overwhelming power, unable to even flee, and forced to humiliatingly act as bait—you have truly brought utter shame to the vampire race.”
Sophie: “?”
No, seriously, buddy?
Don't go looking for death like this.
Claire paid no more attention to Sophie. In his view, this low-tier vampire who was trying to kneel didn't even have the right to be looked at.
He focused all of his attention back on Miaoyue, who was eating cake.
The inverted sea of blood in the sky began to boil violently, and with the fluctuations of his emotions, countless blood-red lightning bolts danced wildly in the clouds.
“Instantly erasing Eno with some unknown method, and even handily suppressing that low-tier vampire as a disguise... Now, facing this Duke's descent, not only do you show no fear, but you can even taste dessert with such composure.”
Claire slowly drew the rapier at his waist, its tip pointing straight at Miaoyue. His terrifying killing intent transformed into a materialized red storm, peeling away the earth layer by layer.
“Is your leisurely attitude your way of mocking this Duke's majesty??”
“Nwo, I'm just eating cake,” Miaoyue replied, her mouth full.
“Very well... The truly powerful one is indeed you!”
Claire laughed out of extreme anger, a horrifying blood-red light bursting from his eyes.
“A life for a life! Since you killed my subordinate, prepare to receive my wrath, you hidden powerhouse! Remember the name of the one who slays you—”
Boom—
The void collapsed.
“Vampire Duke, Claire!!!”
The Vampire Duke transformed into a world-destroying crimson meteor. Completely ignoring Sophie and Nega beside him, and carrying a terrifying power sufficient to level half a city, he dived straight down toward Miaoyue, who was currently eating the little strawberry on top of her cake!
Miaoyue belatedly raised her head and blinked.
The most gluttonous Witch in history vs. the strongest vampire of Black Gallows!
Who will win?
...
Rate on N.U.
