The rubble strangely burned under the effects of the curse but the Lizardmen child was safe. Rather, the curse energy in the surroundings gushed into his body, transforming into medicine to heal his wounds and treat the curses plaguing him.
"Ugh..." The Lizardmen child woke up with a start, staring at his legs that were no longer mashed into a pulp, shocked for a moment before he stared at the Birdmen boy that wore a strange beak-shaped mask.
"Who...are you?"
"A Novice Doctor," The Birdmen boy replied, sighing in worry, "I never thought the war would come to this point. There are no longer enough people to fight."
"I'm the last from my village," The Lizardmen boy said, expressing his sadness as he controlled his urge to cry, "Everyone marched with pompadour at the start. But one after another, everyone died, either to the Humans, or the Birdmen, or the Giants."
"My city was razed down by a group of Human Mages." The Birdmen boy said, only feeling the urge to cry upon staring at the charred corpse of a human boy beside him, "Whether friend or foe, all are dead now."
He extended his hand towards the Lizardmen child, helping him up. There was no room for hatred between the two, for they were the sole survivors of the battlefield.
The duo made their way through the battlefield, enduring the stream of curses, billowing fire, thunderous bolts, crippling space, etc. that resulted from the terrifying clash between the peak powers of the four sides.
And anyone they came across, whether friend or foe, the Birdmen boy saved them. There wasn't much he could do apart from this, but every time he saved someone, the Birdmen boy felt his lifeforce chipping away while the curses plaguing his body continued to worsen. Eventually, they hit the limit...
Thud!
"Are you alright?" The Lizardmen boy shouted in horror as the crowd of people converged upon him in worry. They were currently in the Xetuka Kingdom's Capital City--Forkuna.
There were around forty thousand people in total, emerging from all four Kingdoms, pretty much all that had survived in the region.
Horan stared at the Birdmen boy, feeling that something was amiss, brought about by his experience as he shouted, "Quick! Get back! Something's wrong with the child!"
"What?" The crowd barely reacted when suddenly, they noticed a human old man standing in the centre, holding the Birdmen boy in an embrace.
Staring at the old man, a word spilled out of Horan's mouth, flabbergasted, "S-Slayer."
Indeed, the old man was Slayer, one currently expressing boundless joy. Ignoring everyone else, Slayer stared at the boy to say, "Child, why did you summon me?"
"I...summoned you?" The Birdmen Boy was confused, feeling feverish as the curses plaguing his body continued to worsen. And strangely, he was unable to see or hear the shouts from the others nearby, including the lightning bolts unleashed by Horan.
They were all blocked by a transparent barrier that Slayer had erected between them.
"Yes," Slayer nodded as he looked around, "It seems your wish to save everyone here summoned me to this place. So, what do you say?"
"Please save them, I beg you." The Birdmen boy wasn't even able to see Slayer's face now, only able to state his earnest request, "We've lost everything to this war. Please allow the pitiful survivors to live in peace."
"Then, everything that's part of you, give it to me. That's the price..." Slayer didn't even finish his statement when the Birdmen boy extended his weak hand and touched Slayer in the chest.
"Are you...the guardian of this world?" The boy asked weakly, with hope, "If yes, please, no more wars."
"Take my everything."
"You have my word, child." Slayer said solemnly, asking upon seeing that the child didn't have long to live, "What's your name?"
"Bfor," The Birdmen child said, breathing his last.
The moment he expressed readiness to give his everything to Slayer, the exclusive power of Slayer was activated--being bestowed anything.
Through that, a mystical power that even the Birdmen child was unaware of flowed out of his body and entered Slayer, becoming part of him now.
Profession--Plague Doctor!
The first of his kind, one before the potential was realised, the Plague Doctor Profession was taken control by Slayer.
But unlike usual, Slayer's expression was sad as he muttered with a dejected tone, "This will be the last time I take the life of someone from my world."
"No more," Saying so, he vanished from the place.
"Kid!" Horan shouted as he burst through the barrier surrounding the Birdmen boy, lifting him up to see in horror as the child's body melted into a puddle, the last displayed was a smile of contentment on his face, of one assured his sacrifice would mean the betterment of the world.
It seemed that though unaware of the power born in him, through the Plague Doctor Profession that was birthed in his body, the boy seemed to have grasped Slayer's existence, thereby realising that Slayer would indeed change their world.
Plague Doctor--Novice!
Plague Doctor--Expert!
Plague Doctor--Master!
The moment Slayer arrived at his exclusive dimension, the power of the Plague Doctor Profession grew rapidly. As he already had a Core Skill with the same effects, once he applied it to the profession, his growth was rapid.
In a matter of minutes, Slayer became the Saint of the Plague Doctor Profession, continuing to develop it rapidly before soon, he became its Apostle. And as his growth had long since surpassed the Profession's growth, Slayer had gained control over the entire profession, just as how the Saint of Calamity had gained control over the Conjurer Profession.
"I'm ready." Taking in a deep breath, Slayer stared at the Witch Apostle, stating solemnly, "As promised, I've created the Plague Doctor Profession."
"Don't worry, I won't renege on my word." The Witch Apostle smiled as she broke free of her reins and arrived before Slayer, placing her palm on him to utter, "All my power, including the power of the Witch Apostle and the Doctor Apostle, I give them to you."
Boom!
A vortex of mana gushed out of her body and swerved into Slayer as both professions were now his. And unlike before, the moment they entered his body, the Wills of the two Professions were overwritten by Slayer.
After all, it wasn't just the Plague Doctor Profession that was under Slayer's control, but three more Professions that he had created in this world and controlled. With him controlling four Professions, his Will was strong enough to erase the sentience developed by the two new Professions.
And since he gained status as Apostle of said professions already, the other party couldn't resist him as eventually, control over the Witch Profession and the Doctor Profession completely fell under Slayer's hands.
Following that, Slayer stared at the five peak System Slayers under him, saying, "It's your turn now."
