《The Adventure of a Wounded Soul (Dropped, sorry.)》


 Bouquet of Purple Nyacinths

    Rayne was walking to school. It was morning, the sun just barely rising as it painted the sky blood red.


    How fitting¡­ A blood red sky right after this happened¡­ Rayne looked down at his body, mostly covered in reddened bandages. Why was he walking to school when he was injured? Because he had to.


    Being poor had no up-side. Getting injured most likely means no food, especially if the injury is something like this. He remembered it perfectly. His best friend.


    How did it even come to it? He said something about his brother robbed him of the money he stole last week, so he had to get it back. I apparently had enough. I wouldn¡¯t give it to him, though. I needed it. She needed it.


    Working for the good of two people and school for one of them was tiring, but Rayne would have it no other way. After all, nothing made his day more than seeing his little sister¡¯s smiling face welcoming him home, even if he was still slowly bleeding out. Not that she could see him back.


    She had been born blind, and Rayne was, until now, saving up more money to get her an operation with a 50% chance of restoring her sight. After he had wrapped himself up the best he could, trying not to let his pain show in his voice as he conversed with his sister, she hugged him. And then she froze.


    ¡°Rayne, why do you smell like blood?¡± She asked.


    Rayne winced as he hugged her back, responding, ¡°I may have gotten robbed. It seems like we may be tight for paying the rent this month¡­¡±


    She looked up, tilting her head ever so slightly with tears in her eyes, ¡°But why did you get hurt?! Please, don¡¯t leave me¡­¡± Her voice trailed off, pressing her forehead to Rayne¡¯s chest. He could only sigh, keeping the slightest of smiles on his face.


    Those words were said by her at least 4 times a day, making Rayne feel like he needed to teach her how to live by herself once again.


    ¡°You know I won¡¯t be here forever, right? I¡¯ve avoided death as long as possible, but down here in the slums, it takes us all.¡± He said softly, resting his hands on her shoulders.


    ¡°So we just have to do what we can, while we can¡­ You¡¯ve said this before, brother. It doesn¡¯t make me feel any better.¡± She said bitterly, not letting go of him.


    Rayne was currently walking his sister to his school, careful not to open up any of his wounds that had barely begun healing. The blood red sunrise stared him in the face as he wondered once again how he ended up here.


    Eve had come up to him this morning and asked for him to walk her to school, giving some excuse about wanting to know his friends. Seeing her face, he couldn¡¯t deny her, so he gripped her hand and began walking.


    The grin on her face only grew wider as they approached the school, the sounds of conversation ringing out through the silence between them. Rayne watched on, a grin spreading over his own face as she began skipping in joy. She began to pull him faster, towards the sound of the voices.


    Rayne smiled as he let himself be tugged along by his little sister. Some of the people he recognized, most of them he didn¡¯t.


    After all, he never spoke a word since admitting to this school. Never answering questions, never making small talk, never showing any emotion. So it¡¯s quite obvious that seeing him be tugged into the school grounds, grinning and talking freely to this little girl was shocking to most people.


    Rayne wasn¡¯t exactly the most handsome person out there, but some girls like the mystery of him. So they instantly wanted to get to know this girl, find out her secrets for how she made him show so much. Of course, they would never get the chance.


    After all, they were both about to die.


    Rayne smiled, ignoring the looks he got. He wasn¡¯t exactly sure why they gave him such looks, as he never really paid attention to how much attention he got, but that was unimportant.


    What was important was the small group of people blocking their way. Rayne pulled back on his sister¡¯s hand, making sure not to use too much strength. She slowed to a stop, allowing the blockade to spread out. Rayne pulled once again, bringing her close to him.


    ¡°Rayne, what¡¯s going on? Is something wrong?¡± She asked, staring up at him.


    Rayne couldn¡¯t bring himself to tell her the truth. So instead he said, ¡°No, but I have a surprise for you. Do you think you could close your ears and count to 100? You do remember how to count, right?¡± Rayne teased, grinning wider as she puffed out her cheeks, covering her ears with her hands and slowly counting upwards.


    The 5 men looked at each other and grinned, ¡° I think we¡¯ve found ourselves a real gem here boys¡±.


    ¡°Oh yeah, I bet she¡¯ll sell for a pretty penny.¡± the men turned to Rayne.


    ¡°Now why don¡¯t you just give us the girl, so we don¡¯t have to kill you.¡± One of the men said as he pulled a butterfly knife from his pocket.


    ¡°Oh, yay, human trafficking. I think I¡¯d rather not.¡± Rayne took two swift steps forwards and gripped the flat of the knife, grinning a devilish smile. These people wouldn¡¯t be getting within 5 feet of his sister.


    From then on, it wasn¡¯t a fight. It was a one-sided massacre. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    Rayne twisted the knife blade, wrenching it out of the man¡¯s grasp before throwing it as far upwards as he could. The knife twirled its way out of sight, some eyes following it upwards.


    Three steps forward, his fist flying out with pinpoint accuracy.


    In the slums, you picked up any skills you could to get money. That includes skills like martial arts and knife skills.


    Three men hit the ground before any eyes even began to descend. Only two left. Rayne¡¯s elbow shot behind him, slamming into the one who spoke earlier. He crumpled to the ground, no longer conscious from the overload of pain. The last one, a small scrawny man with twig-like arms, held out a knife with shaky hands.


    Rayne lessened the painful grin on his face as he took out the last one with a well-place kick between the legs.


    With a small swipe of his hand into his pockets, he took out something that he had bought with the small amount of money he managed to keep from the previous robbery. It fit nicely into his hand, making a small clinking sound, pleasing to the ears.


    ¡°96¡­ 97¡­ 98¡­ 99¡­ 100!¡± Rayne¡¯s sister finished counting, uncovering her ears. ¡°Now, what¡¯s this present you are talking about?!¡± There was no mistaking the excitement in her voice.


    Two hands reached around her neck, a metal chain tickling the sides. A second passed, and the hands retracted. An unfamiliar feeling on her chest became apparent, and she reached a hand up to feel it. It was cold and smooth¡­


    Glass? A handblown glass necklace¡­ How much would this have cost? When did he even buy this?


    ¡°This. I bought it earlier yesterday, with all the money I had left. Figured I had to get something for your birthday, right? It¡¯s already April 10th, you know.¡±


    Rayne¡¯s sister leaped at him, wrapping her arms around his neck as she cried tears of joy into his shoulder. Their surroundings were forgotten as Rayne wrapped his arms around her, taking a deep breath to still his remaining anger. She had a slight smell of vanilla, even though Rayne was certain he never bought anything vanilla scented.


    He was happy with her in his arms, even if a wound or two had opened back up from the fight a second ago. No doubt she could smell it, but she didn¡¯t comment out of naivety or out of kindness. Neither really mattered at that moment.


    If only this moment could last forever¡­


    {Author¡¯s Note box: Do you know of jinxing?}


    A gust of wind battered the ground, blowing up a cloud of dust. A small girl stood. Silver hair, tied in a loose braid, flowed behind her like a chain. Her golden eyes stared right through Rayne, filled with sadness.


    Her six red wings flapped once more, clearing the dust before they became transparent and disappeared. She gripped the air, and a scythe extended from her hand. Rayne couldn¡¯t move. He couldn¡¯t even push his sister away from him.


    He couldn¡¯t protect her¡­


    A fire ignited in him, and he regained control of his body, glaring at the girl. He didn¡¯t know why, but she wanted to kill him. Killing intent rolled off of her in waves, Rayne¡¯s own being drowned. The crowd began to tremble, wanting to get away, but not being capable of it. The scythe began to twirl, cutting the air itself as it revolved. Rayne, for the first time in forever, felt fear strike his heart like a hammer on an anvil. On instinct, he shoved his sister from his arms, leaping backward at the same time. He hit the ground on his back, suddenly very aware of his left arm.


    Or, technically, the lack of his left arm. But he didn¡¯t scream. He couldn¡¯t scare his sister. So, he stood up, not making a sound. He couldn¡¯t open his mouth, or he would be unable to hold himself back, the scream already begging to be released. He looked to the girl. Her eyes were fixed on the arm. She seemed disgusted, or maybe scared.


    Rayne swiftly switched his gaze to his sister. She was also looking at the arm, fear so obvious in her milky white eyes. She had probably smelled the blood.


    ¡°Rayne, what¡¯s going on?¡± She asked, her voice shivering like it had frostbite.


    ¡°...¡± Rayne couldn¡¯t respond. If he did, she would tell something was off.


    ¡°Rayne¡­ Where are you? Please, brother, don¡¯t leave me again¡­¡± She was crying now, but Rayne couldn¡¯t comfort her. He had to simply protect her, from any and everything.


    A gleaming object fell from the sky, landing near her. The butterfly knife from earlier, point first in the ground. She reached out, feeling the handle until she got to the blade. Just a slight touch was enough to pierce the skin, and she winced.


    Rayne twitched, incapable of standing still after that. He began to walk closer.


    She whirled to the sound.


    ¡°Who¡¯s there?! Don''t¡­ Don¡¯t come any closer! I have a weapon!¡± Her hands were shaking, the blade in her hands mimicking it. Rayne felt slightly disconnected.


    What is this feeling¡­ This, this distance? When did it get there? Why can¡¯t I reach her? Oh¡­ That¡¯s right, I just lost my left arm¡­ Of course, I can¡¯t reach her with something that doesn¡¯t exist¡­ I¡¯m so stupid¡­


    His thoughts were slow, too slow for comfort. But he couldn¡¯t stop the blood loss, nor his growing despair.


    The crowd began to move. One girl rushed out into the empty space.


    ¡°Why?! Why are you trying to kill Ray-¡± She was cut off, literally. Rayne could only watch as the two pieces of the girl fell to the ground, a red liquid pooling on the over-saturated ground. He didn''t even know her that well, but she died because of him anyway.


    He came to a realization.


    I¡¯m the cause of this. The only one she¡¯s after is me¡­ It¡¯s not like I can fight her anyway¡­


    He sighed as his thoughts continued to drag their way into a bottomless abyss of depression and guilt. He turned to face the girl, kicking his own disembodied arm away from her gaze.


    She looked back at him, staring him dead in the eyes. No, she wasn¡¯t looking at him. She was looking through him. He came to a solution. And so he acted, calling out the last words his sister would hear from him.


    ¡°Eve, I¡¯m so sorry. But it seems your brother has a debt to pay. And he¡¯s all out of money.¡± Rayne smiled at his own morbid joke, the smile not reaching his eyes.


    ¡°Rayne¡­ No¡­ Please! Sell my necklace, sell the house! Please! Don¡¯t die!¡± Eve called out, tears soaking the ground beneath her as she got to her feet, beginning to run towards him.


    The scythe began to spin, gathering momentum for the second swing. Rayne looked at the small girl, the tears forming on her face. And he whispered his last words, his sister being too far away to hear.


    ¡°Next time I see you, you better be smiling.¡± He pointed a finger at her as if accusing her and her wet eyes. He grinned as the scythe sliced downwards, piercing his heart.


    Eve reached him, but only in time to be splattered in his blood. She caught his body, falling with it to the ground. Tears mixed with the blood on her face as she finally realized she was truly alone.


    ¡°Why¡­ Why did you take him from me¡­¡± She whispered, accidentally swallowing some blood. Rage filled her as she looked towards the general direction of Death.


    ¡°Why did you take him from me?! How can you cry over the same body you stole the life from?!¡± Eve shouted, hearing her small sobs so cleverly concealed behind her scythe.


    Death recovered from Rayne¡¯s words and remembered her orders. The scythe reflected the passing light with one last slash before she collected the three souls and flew away.


    On her way up, she stared intently at Rayne¡¯s soul. His words had shaken her to the very core.


    Next time I see you, you better be smiling.


    Those words simply made no sense to her.


    After all, nobody saw Death twice.

 A Family for Once? Arc 0

    A friendly meeting with God (From the perspective of another power.)


    Pure white. Pure black. Both of these things surrounded Rayne as he opened his eyes. There wasn¡¯t a simple boundary between the two colors, but Rayne felt like there was. Looking around at all the extreme colors was giving him a headache, so he closed his eyes, sitting down on whatever he was on.


    ¡°Hmm? You seem to have died¡­ I do wonder how you managed to wander your way in here. Oh well.¡±


    Rayne¡¯s entire being shook from the power of his words, making him feel as if he was being torn asunder from listening. He had no choice but to scream out in agony.


    ¡°Oh, now this is odd¡­ You shouldn¡¯t have survived that. Even if my omnipotence is sealed, you still should have been vaporized.¡±


    Rayne could barely take it anymore. So he tried to think of something to ease the pain. Too little, too late. He couldn¡¯t think clearly anymore, his mind clouded over from the agony. Suddenly it disappeared, allowing Rayne temporary relief. His eyes seemed to be glued closed, so he stopped trying to open them as he turned to the last place he heard the voice come from.


    ¡°You¡¯re quite interesting. I think you might be able to help me. Care to help a god get back his powers? I¡¯ll reward you well..¡± The voice echoed in this infinite space.


    Rayne thought for a second, his voice no longer granting him pain. He tried once more to open his eyes, a futile attempt.


    ¡°I will help you, but I want to be able to see you. I¡¯d rather not help a god who tried to destroy everything, so I¡¯d like to know what you are going to do with the powers I find as well. And then I just want a small piece of information.¡± Rayne grinned, no happiness in it.


    A hearty laugh echoed. It lasted for half a minute, before gradually dying down. ¡°You¡¯re funny as well! This will be interesting¡­ The first two, I can easily grant. But before I do and seal the deal, as they say, what is the piece of information you want?¡±


    He sounded genuine. Seemed like he could be trusted. ¡°Well, it¡¯s both a piece of information and a request. I want to know where my sister is. Then, if you do know where she is, I would like you to try and bring her to me. Of course, the second part is not part of the deal, it is simply a request from the one who is trying to recover your powers.¡±


    ¡°You would put a request on a god?!¡± Another laugh. ¡°I like you! Alright, I shall seal the deal. I will grant you your vision, my wishes for my power, and information about your sister in return for you trying to get my powers with all your power!¡±


    The shout echoed upwards, spiraling into the unknown. Rayne¡¯s eyes flicked open, and he studied the god in front of him, trying his best not to focus on the background. A small man chained to the¡­ ground? There wasn¡¯t anything for the rings to connect to, but they were certainly stuck in that position. Two large horns sprouted from his head, curving backward over his silver hair. He didn¡¯t have red skin or anything, so Rayne assumed that he wasn¡¯t the god of demons or anything, but it never hurts to be sure.


    ¡°When I gain my powers back, I plan to build my own world. My own utopia, I suppose. I simply want to live my eternal life in peace and silence.¡± He gestured around him the best he could while encased in chains. Mostly flicks of the head and slight arm twitches.


    Rayne knew he was sincere, but he didn¡¯t like the way he worded it.


    ¡°You¡¯re certainly good at finding loopholes.¡± The god looked shocked. ¡°You said you wanted to live your eternal life in peace and silence. Now, theoretically, if there were humans anywhere, it wouldn¡¯t be silent, would it? So I can only assume that you plan to build this ¡®Utopia¡¯ of yours on a mound of human bodies. Isn¡¯t that right?¡± Rayne theorized, asking the last question with venom in his voice.


    ¡°Ah, you saw right through me! Just as I would expect from my chosen one! But not quite. I would clear the bodies away first. Rotting flesh isn¡¯t a pleasant smell, even to somebody like me.¡±


    A silence filled the air. Rayne simply stared down upon the chained god, expressing more with his eyes than he could with words. The god looked down.


    A flash of golden light spread throughout the empty space. The ground seemed to open up before Rayne realized it was actually an eye opening.


    ¡°Quick, boy! Come to me! You¡¯ll be vaporized by the energy beam otherwise!¡± The chained god screamed at him. Rayne couldn¡¯t trust him, but he didn¡¯t really feel like dying by vaporization. Rushing towards him, the eye began to glow brighter. Sliding like a baseball player, Rayne ducked under the god¡¯s left arm. The eye exploded, and Rayne felt a pinch on his neck.


    He screamed as something foreign was shoved into his jugular vein, shooting towards his heart. Once they connected, pain exploded throughout his entire body, causing him to spasm as he became smaller, becoming younger.


    ¡°Ha! This is what you get for reading too much into things! Your sister will meet you in 1 year! Now go find me my powers!¡±


    Rayne felt something ripped from him as if a portion of him was taken away. He reached upwards as if to grab it, but he was already too young to move his muscles. A burning sensation on the left side of his chest. Then darkness put its hands over his eyes.


    Rebirth, or Death again? (From the Pov of Rayne)


    I awoke with a start, shivering from fear. My memories flowed into me before some more memories came.They weren¡¯t mine. They were the memories regarding the world around me, I suppose. Not much was there, but I thought up names and statistics like I had known them all my life.


    The world is named Avalon. 213,772.5 miles in diameter, Avalon is 27 times larger than Earth. Then there are gods. Three tiers are in effect, decided by the people who worship them. The Cosmic tier was for the 6 gods that handled the main elements, and never showed their faces on Avalon. God of Darkness, Zaleth. Goddess of Light, Adalina. God of the Flame, Fornar. God of Earth, Mercurum. Goddess of Air, Imali. Last but not least, Goddess of Water, Lezarath. Equal numbers of both goddesses and gods, probably so that the people wouldn¡¯t believe one gender is better than the other.


    Then there is the Deity tier. These gods and goddesses were created as a mixture of two or more Cosmic tier powers. Some of them were created as a group effort to make a new element. Goddess of Ice, Hana. God of the Sea, Navemarin. God of Health and Healing, Medicalon. Twin Gods of Disaster, Merunes, and Arkio. They control War and Pestilence, respectively. The Goddess of Forgiveness, Helia. God of Betrayal, Judah. God of Magic, X¡¯ablin. There are many, many more in the Deity tier, but these are the only ones in my memories.


    After that, there is the Race tier. Each of these were created between multiple Cosmic tier and Deity tier powers, making them the lowest in the three tiers. They each held the power to create a singular race. The God of Humanity, Larkus. Goddess of the Elves, Levatia (Le-va-sha). God of the Dwarves, Girmu. Goddess of the Demons, Athena. God of the Beastkin, Waulnog. Goddess of the Fairies, Eleanna. Last but not least, Goddess of the Dead, Lilia.


    Each of the races has a very specific gender ratio. (Male: Female) Humanity has a 1:1 ratio. The Elves have a 1:2 ratio. The Dwarves have a 7:1 ratio. Demons have a 1:1 ratio. The Beastkin have a 3:4 ratio. Fairies have a 1:12 ratio. The Dead are just that, dead. So they don¡¯t have a gender ratio.


    That¡¯s all that my new memories contained, so I would have to find out anything else I wanted to know on my own.


    A light flicked on as I began to try and move. The bright light hurt my eyes. Luckily for me, a shadow covered the light a second later. I looked upwards, staring into the eyes of a beautiful young lady. Jade green eyes, long brown hair, and a maid outfit. Alright, the last one was the main thing that caught my attention, but that¡¯s unimportant. She shifted to the left slightly, but I kept my eyes on her, wondering what she was doing. She gasped, pointing at me like she just found me sleeping with her husband.


    Umm¡­ What did I do? I was just looking at you¡­


    Then I realized that I was not as old as I remembered being.


    Shit¡­ I might have just done something really horrible¡­


    An elderly man walked in soon after the maid began screaming. I looked at him on instinct. He showed a look of surprise, but nothing like the maid. I almost breathed out a sigh of relief, but I stopped myself from acting too suspicious.


    After all, I¡¯m a baby now. I can¡¯t be doing things like sighing in relief when an elder doesn¡¯t start screeching in surprise when he sees me looking at him. The elder shouted something at what I could only assume was the general position of the door. A minute passed.


    The maid was calm now, simply looking at me with curiosity in her eyes. The elder had gone away from my field of vision, but I heard the creaking of a wooden chair and a sigh off to my left. I spent the entire time looking at the maid¡¯s beautiful green eyes. Every second that passed, I seemed to sink another layer deeper into the bottomlessness of her eyes. The door slammed. I wasn¡¯t sure whether it was closing or opening until two new faces appeared before me, crying like nothing I¡¯ve ever seen before. This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.


    A man and a woman, both with stunning ice blue eyes. The man had short, choppy brown hair and a plain white shirt. The woman had shoulder length blond hair, and a brown shirt. Both of the pairs of clothing looked very uncomfortable as if they were made from sacks.


    The woman reached down and picked me up, cuddling me against her bosom as if I had just come back from the dead. I chuckled at my own joke, not noticing the woman stiffen. She brought me up to eye height, looking at me like I had done something wrong. She tapped me on my left chest, and I looked down at it.


    A mark. I never had any birthmarks before. But now, a mark is upon my left chest as if I was branded. It seems my parents think it¡¯s a birthmark, but I know better. This is the brand that will force me into getting that shitty god¡¯s powers back.


    Damn, how did it end up like this? All I wanted in life was to keep Eve safe until we both died. Well, we both died of natural causes. I don¡¯t believe that being scythed to death is a natural cause. Well, I meet her in a year. Just 1 year. I can wait that long to see her again. 365 days. I¡¯ll start the countdown now.


    Earlier, with Death (From Another Power¡¯s POV)


    The large man sat on his diamond throne, staring at the three souls in front of him. Then he laughed. He had come up with a great plan for two of these souls, and the fact that he did not see the third one coming was hilarious to him. He waved his hand, and large streams of silvery liquid poured from the ceiling onto two of the souls, casting a body for them. He took Eve, holding her by the neck, as he threw Rayne towards the wall at speeds the human eye couldn¡¯t follow. Instead of hitting the wall and splattering blood everywhere, however, a portal opened milliseconds beforehand and Rayne disappeared. The figure looked to Death.


    ¡°You are dismissed from servitude.¡±


    Death was shocked. She was just released from a contract that was supposed to last until she died, which, as a goddess, was forever.


    ¡°I thank you for your service. Goodbye, Lilia.¡±


    Lilia was thrown to the same wall Rayne was. After she was gone, the towering figure looked upwards, tossing the last body in the same way. He hated to put them there, but even he could not deny those orders.


    ¡°Now then, I¡¯ve done what you asked me. Please protect them. I wouldn¡¯t want any harm falling upon my son and daughter¡­¡±


    Laughter echoed throughout the room, not the man''s, as lightning shot down, vaporizing the leftover soul and the towering figure. When the light faded, all that remained was his diamond throne.


    Back to Present (Rayne¡¯s POV) [365 days until Eve]


    Of course. Even in rebirth, I¡¯m still poor.


    I¡¯ve been taken to a house. Or, more of a shack. My muscles don¡¯t work yet, so I can¡¯t fix up even one of the many holes in the roof. Water drips from one of the broken boards. I¡¯m not even sure how long it¡¯s been since the last rainfall, but I can¡¯t imagine it was short enough for water to still drip.


    The floorboards are torn up in multiple places. One of the walls has a human-sized hole. The only table in the house has a leg missing. The kitchen doesn¡¯t have a sink. There is no bathroom. There¡¯s a large moss-covered stone in the living room.


    Wait¡­ Why the hell is there a boulder in the middle of the damn living room?!


    I seemed to have stared at it long enough to catch the woman(who¡¯s holding me)¡¯s attention.


    ¡°What is it? Oh, that boulder? That¡¯s our mana recovery boulder. It helps when we are meditating.¡± She almost sounded thankful to the boulder.


    My eyes must have lit up when she said mana, as she began to laugh like a little kid.


    ¡°I¡¯ll teach you it sometime. It¡¯s a family tradition anyway. You¡¯ll begin learning in about a week.¡± She paused for a second. ¡°Mmh. About 28 days, so a bit under a week.¡±


    Wait. What? 28 days is over a week. It¡¯s four weeks¡­ Does that mean that they classify time in different times here?! Then what¡¯s a year¡­


    I dreaded the answer. My face definitely visibly paled. I began to fall into the pits of depression, tears coming to my eyes. One almost fell to the ground.


    A finger brushed it away. ¡°Hey, don¡¯t mess up the ground. Meditating isn¡¯t that difficult. Neither is it painful. No need to dread it that much.¡±


    I shook my head fiercely, trying to get my point across. I actually wanted to start now. I feel a twitching in my body. Blood begins to drip from a few points on my legs and arms. Inside of my elbows, a ring around my kneecap, between the tendons of my thumb and pointer finger, beneath my ankles. Strangely, I feel no pain. The woman holding me sprints outside as far as she can, trying not to soil the spot where we were.


    ¡°Wait! Come back! Avalina, bring him back!¡± The man shouted after us, his words falling on deaf ears. I pressed my hands to my chest. That¡¯s when I realized.


    I had full control of my body. My legs bent when I told them to, give or take a fraction of a second. I could practically feel the muscles in my body reforging themselves to fit my needs. Within a minute, the crawling feeling stopped, leaving me feeling exuberant and powerful. I spun my way out of Avalina¡¯s grasp, landing on my feet. My vocal cords had not progressed any, so I limited to noises at the moment, but that didn¡¯t stop my shout of victory. In a day, I would be so far progressed I would be able to speak in full sentences. It seemed children grew faster in this world, anyway. I ran back to where the man stood, Avalina chasing me to no avail. The blood stopped flowing, leaving only a stain on my small white shirt.


    That reminds me, when did I get these clothes? They almost seem like something you would put on a corpse before burying it¡­


    As I reached the house, the man put his hand up to close his mouth. I almost laughed at the stupid action. I managed to hold myself back, though and instead stared at the rock. It seemed to be spinning. I blinked a few times, thinking I must be hallucinating. But no, the haze stayed there even after all that. I walked closer. The man showed a sudden sign of panic, reaching out to grab my shoulder. I dodged on instinct. But then I felt a tug, not from him, but from the rock.


    I was yanked from where I stood, as if in a whirlwind. Twirled around the rock, I lost my sense of direction. Then I lost my sense of hearing, unable to hear anything over the whipping of wind. I felt something grab me, and I looked towards it as best I could without opening my eyes to the wind. A hand. Feminine in appearance, bleeding slightly from the third knuckle. Something shifted inside of me, causing me to scream out. A burning sensation erupted on the left side of my chest as if a hot iron was being pressed to it. Opening my eyes as much as I could bear, I saw a light shine through my shirt. Then everything went black.


    A Demon (Avalina¡¯s perspective)


    I am the mother to a demon. But I love him all the same. Even as he sucks the blood in my body from me.


    My name is Avalina. I was going to be a mother. I was so excited, I barely felt the pain from having the baby. Then the maid took the small bundle in her arms, looked to me, and began to cry. I couldn¡¯t have even imagined that something could have gone wrong. But here I am, crying over my stillborn child¡¯s body. I had so many things planned out. I had a name for him, I had his first birthday party planned, I knew when and where to start teaching him magic. But all of these things shattered in front of my eyes when I saw the maid that held my child begin to cry.


    That was, until the elder that owned the maid began shouting in his native language. It surprised me enough that I stopped meditating as soon as I finished my circle. I got dressed and began to run to where his cries came from. Once I got there, I rushed to the bed I had laid my child on, ready to burn at a moment''s notice. He stared up at me with golden eyes, round and filled with something indescribable. My husband was the same, and we both broke down into tears. My stillborn child, however illogical, was staring back up to me, full of life.


    I learned on the way back to the house, while he was sleeping, that the maid had come in for one last prayer to Lilia before the burning. But when she had gotten there, he was staring up at her with those golden eyes, seeming in pain. When he saw her, he stared into her eyes. No other part of her body. Just her eyes. She shared her experience with the feeling of it. It was quite¡­ entertaining to see her shiver in her seat. She seemed to have fallen in love with those eyes, to the point in which she asked me if one day she could come here to see him again. She was ecstatic when I told her yes. My husband and I burst out laughing, continuing for a good time.


    Once we had gotten to the house, he had woken up. He had gone back to looking into the maid¡¯s eyes for the short time before they had come to a stop, much to her pleasure. Once they had left and we were all out of the cart, he looked to the house. His face clearly showed his disappointment. I nearly dropped him trying to stifle my laughter. I walked around the house, carefully judging his reactions to everything. His eyes lingered a bit long on something, so I looked over at it. It was the mana recharge boulder. But his look of utter confusion was so funny, I nearly burst out laughing. Having a child was so much fun! After I explained what it was, he showed a look of excitement. Such a different expression was too much, and I began giggling like a kid again. I reassured him that I would teach him.


    Something was wrong, though. When I mentioned that 28 days was a bit under a week, he looked confused, as if he already thought he knew how long a week was, and it was not just over 28 days. I never told him anything, so I could only wonder how that worked. Then I noticed the tears. I swept them away, concerned for both him and the area. I assumed he was dreading learning magic, completely opposite of what Ihad originally thought. But when I thought of something to help him, he shook his head as if trying to deny the existence of magic itself.


    He began his growth spurt. Blood poured out through the skin without perforations. It causes most children extreme pain, but the fact that he didn¡¯t show any gave me enough pause to let some blood soak into the floors. I cursed at myself under my breath, before grabbing him and running. If the child had even half the amount of mana in his blood that I did, he would cause a whirlwind that could easily destroy the entire building. Thirty seconds went by, and I was still running. However, my child would no longer tolerate it. He twisted in unimaginable ways, wrenching himself out of my grip. He hit the ground running the other direction. Terrified out of my mind, not even hearing his victory scream, I sprinted after him as fast as possible.


    No way, he¡¯s still ahead of me?! Stop! Stop going back there! Were the only thoughts going through my head at the time.


    Silly of me, I know. I should have said something. But I didn¡¯t and I chased him all the way into the house. My husband attempted to grab him, a fake look of concern on his face. I could tell he was fully prepared to bleed the child out to super-charge the boulder in the center of the room. But, amazing even me, he dodged the hand. But he leaped his way right into the whirlwind stirring the center of the room. Taking my time to slam my fist into my husband¡¯s face, I leaped in at the precise moment to catch him. He turned to look at my hand, which was slightly bleeding. I scratched my hand on his jawbone a little harder than I intended too¡­


    He saw the blood, and began screaming, even over the roar of the whirlwind. He clutched his chest with both handsas if something was trying to crawl out. A glow pierced his shirt, In the same shape of his birthmark. It was then that I finally remembered the mark. They weren¡¯t even published in books anymore. After all, the evil God of Vampires, Dradacil, was imprisoned nearly 18,000 years ago. But here was his mark, burning its way into my son¡¯s chest. His hair turned a shining silver, and when he opened his eyes against the wind, his left one was red. He lunged at my wound, sucking the remaining blood off it. Then he removed himself from my handand planted himself on my neck.


    How wonderful.My own stillborn son is going to be the death of me.


    ¡°No¡­ I won¡¯t¡­ I WILL NOT LET THEM DIE AGAIN!!!¡± A shout echoed throughout the room before the vampire attached to my neck went limp. Even the whirlwind broke apart. I dropped to the ground, exhausted from my little trip around the room and loss of blood. I checked my fist, where I was bleeding earlier and was amazed to see it completely healed. Then I followed my son into the depths of unconsciousness.

 When There is Mana... Arc 0

    Being Consumed (Rayne¡¯s Pov)


    Darkness. Not quite the type of darkness that you see when you look into a hole, but the darkness you see when you close your eyes in a dark room. That was all that surrounded me. Honestly quite bothersome. At least give me a painting to look at, or that maid¡¯s eyes. I really liked her eyes. But no, all I had was darkness. How long had I even been in here? It felt like forever.


    A ripple extended through the darkness, washing over me. I looked towards the source, and saw Avalina on the ground. I got up from my cross legged position and walked over, careful not to get too close. I didn¡¯t want to black out again if I saw her blood. To my relief, I saw nothing, so I walked closer.


    As I knelt over her, she shot upwards. Our heads slammed together, sounding a resounding crack. I cried out, in surprise more than in pain, but pain was definitely there too. Avalina was the same. Rolling around on the ground, tears in her eyes, Avalina was actually cute. Not that I would ever call my mother cute to her face¡­


    ¡°Huh? Where am I? Why is it so dark?¡± She asked after she finished rolling. Both her hands were still over her forehead, ruining her serious question.


    ¡°Hmm. I¡¯m not entirely sure. I didn¡¯t expect you to come with me when I came here, though.¡± I answered, scratching my head as I looked around.


    ¡°Huh? You can speak?¡± Her words made her sound confused, but I could clearly see the fear in her body. The arm over her body, the princess sitting position, leaving both her shins facing me in case she needs to kick me away from her. Her slightly tilted body, leaving less of a target for attack. The upraised shoulders, protecting her neck for some reason.


    ¡°Indeed. My real body can¡¯t, but it seems I can here. Also, stop being so afraid of me. What did I do?¡± I asked, actually confused. I don¡¯t remember anything except having that burning pain in my chest. Did I burst an eardrum when I screamed? That would be embarrassing.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. You seem to be a different person. Your¡­ body, as you call it, is a vampire. You assaulted me for my neck.¡± She explained what happened after I passed out. My face slowly continues on its way to a face filled with horror as the story continues.


    I bow down, touching my forehead to the ground. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry! I didn¡¯t have control over my body. Is there any way I can compensate you for it?!¡± I sincerely meant it.


    Silence. I wondered slightly if I had done something offensive to her. Then I heard laughter. It started as a little chuckle, before turning into a giggle, before uncontrollable laughter as I kept my head down.


    ¡°Oh man, Elliot would be so pissed if you bowed down to her like that¡­¡± Avalina mentioned a name I hadn¡¯t heard before. But at the moment, I had no right to speak.


    ¡°Raise your head. My own son should not be bowing to me in forgiveness. I am not a cruel mother. I am Avalina, the mother of a demon. And you, you already have your name, don¡¯t you? Almost makes me feel like the hours I spent thinking of one went to waste.¡± She chuckled nervously.


    I smiled at her. ¡°Let me hear it. With luck, they¡¯re the same name. Wouldn¡¯t that be a coincidence?¡± A nervous chuckle from me as well, to make her feel more at ease.


    ¡°Rayne. I had thought of naming you Rayne.¡±


    I was dumbfounded. I hadn¡¯t actually expected it to be my name. Avalina must have seen my face, because she once again burst out laughing. I nervously grinned.


    ¡°With luck?! With luck, you say?! I bet you didn¡¯t expect that!¡± More laughter. Soon both of us were rolling around on the ground with laughter.


    After the laughter faded, all that remained was another silence. I broke it by asking some of the questions I had been wanting to ask for a while now.


    ¡°So, two, no wait¡­ three things. First, about learning magic. I would appreciate it if we could start as soon as possible. Second, about learning writing. Again, I would like to learn that after the basics of magic. Third, please teach me anything you know about how time works, the social structure, average lifespan, anything I should know about this world and how it works.¡±


    Avalina looked at me strangely for a few seconds, before starting to explain.


    Time is separated into years, months, weeks, ten-days, and days. Except for the fact that every week is 30 days, each month is 12 weeks, and each year is 12 months. Each month is 360 days, almost a year back on Earth. The average lifespan differed for each race. For humans, it was about 100 years old. For the Elves, it was 135 years old. Dwarves were about 90, but that was brought down because of how often tunnels collapsed. Demonkind lived until about 1000 years old, but most of them were beasts. Beastkin had an average lifespan of about 92 years, oddly specific. Fairies weren¡¯t seen much, but they lived until nearly 500 years old most of the times.


    As for the social structure, it seemed it went in this order: Humanity > Elves > Dwarves > Demons > Beastkin > Fairies. When asked why, it seemed that it was the case of the winner of a battle chooses the loser¡¯s punishment. A great war was waged on some 60,000 years ago, with the Humans, the Elves, and the Dwarves on one side, with the Demons, the Beastkin, and the Fairies on the other. Nobody''s quite sure what they were fighting over, as all the records of the war are seal in something called ¡®The Great Vault,¡¯ something guarded 24/30 (Yes, they have to say 24/30 if they want to say 24 hours a day all week.) by humankind. Seems a bit suspicious to me, but I won¡¯t question it. I¡¯m not going to be the one to unravel 60,000 years of hate. At least, I won¡¯t try to. It sounds like a lot more effort than I am willing to put in. I¡¯ll just do what I do.


    Next is magic training, which sounds like lots of fun. It seems it¡¯s normal meditation for now, until I find my mana. It¡¯s different for every person, so until I find it, I have nothing to go on. Well, I suppose my motto doesn¡¯t work out here. If at first you fail, pester somebody else to do it for you. How bothersome. I asked how I could find it, but Avalina only shrugged. Even more bothersome. I¡¯m doing something I don¡¯t know how to do properly, to find something that may or may not be there. I don¡¯t even know what I¡¯m looking for.


    Magic is complicated.


    To Control the Demon (Rayne¡¯s POV) [4319/364 days until Eve]


    Ugh¡­ Is this mana? Nope, that¡¯s just blood. This? Blood. Why does my blood even have this mana? Is it really just to distract me? It¡¯s working.


    Another day of stupid meditation. I spent the rest of yesterday by this stupid boulder, trying to ¡®find my mana.¡¯ Near this boulder, I seem to be able to imagine my ¡®inner workings,¡¯ as I call it. I can visualize any part of my body, but the view is really, really small. But when I do this, I can sense my own mana. In that tiny part of my body. Even worse, sometimes I can¡¯t even see anything. It¡¯s not based on my emotions or my thoughts either. I just sometimes can¡¯t see it.


    A sigh escapes my lips as I think about something else I could do to relieve some stress. I see Avalina out of the corner of my eye. I turn to her, wondering what she wants.


    ¡°So, you haven¡¯t had another¡­ Incident, since then, have you?¡± She asks, more curious than fearful.


    I shake my head, still unable to speak. I do wonder why I can¡¯t speak with this body, but I can speak in that other dimension. Not that it matters. I should be able to speak eventually.


    ¡°But, what if it does happen again? Will you be able to control yourself again? We should look into some way to fix that. Like, you might be able to control it better if you go back and forth between the two forms more often? I should be able to force you into your vampire form with some magic¡­¡±


    I thought long and hard on this. Just kidding. It took me less than two seconds to realize how bad it would be if I had gone vampire while around Eve. I nodded my head with vigor, wanting to get started right away. I stood up, stretching my limbs. I put one arm behind my back, grabbing the other before pushing both arms forward, cracking my back, before looking to Avalina. She grinned in such a way that it, for some reason, made me fear for my life.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, this won¡¯t hurt a bit¡­¡± She took out a knife. I began fearing for my life. But then she placed the knife on her wrist. Before I could even ask her to stop, she had drawn it across the skin, painting the blade red.


    My breathing grew ragged as I resisted the pain in my chest. My hair fell across my eyes, shifting between silver and blond. My vision faded in and out. A minute passed, and I heard a thump. Looking around, I saw Avalina on the ground, bleeding out from the wound on her wrist. She seemed to have sliced a vein.


    I leaped forward on instinct, leaving it to my Vampire side to save her. The taste of blood filled my mouth as I greedily sucked on her wrist, lapping up the leftover blood like a dog. The wound closed, Avalina¡¯s breathing stabilizing. I mentally pulled myself back, not wanting to bite into her neck or anything. But either way, it seems like my vampiric self has had it¡¯s fill of blood. For now. It easily followed my wishes. I could even speak. The silver hair was kinda bothersome, but everything else seemed to have a plus.


    My eyesight sharpened. I could easily see the grass sway in the wind through the person sized hole in the wall to my right. My hearing also sharpened, as I could hear the carriage coming to bring us home for breakfast. It was still 30 minutes until they were supposed to arrive. I felt like I could lift the entire boulder with one finger. My skin felt like leather. Moving was fluid, as if I had been doing it all my life. Even greater, I could speak.


    ¡°Well, I can only hope that everything is fixed with her. There isn¡¯t much I can do to help her if she¡¯s unconscious¡­ Hmmm¡­ I suppose using large words like that, even in vampire form, isn¡¯t exactly a smart idea in a child¡¯s body. I¡¯ll try to stop myself next time.¡± I chuckled, looking back to the boulder. I only had 30 minutes to find my mana before probably having to wait until tomorrow.


    So, with those thoughts filling my mind, I ignored my vampiric transformation and instead sat down to meditate.


    But this time, something was a little different. Everything that I could see was shining slightly with silver. It took me an entire 4 minutes of my precious 30 to realize that I had just found my mana. After all, every cell of my body was brimming with it.


    I only learned much later that, from an outside perspective when I was meditating, I was shrouded in fiery mana, rising with such force it displaced air. I can only assume that the mana in my body was literally ejecting itself out of my body because I had no room for it.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    But for now I simply marveled at the amount of mana I could sense within me. Believe me, though, I would have been simply astonished if I realized that excess mana was being pushed out of me as well. I didn¡¯t even try to move any of the mana. I just simply watched as it slowly became less and less visible as my transformation wore off.


    Even when I was completely normal again, I could still barely see it. That¡¯s when I realized that to see it, I needed a large amount of mana. In order to expand how much mana you can take/hold, I learned this earlier today, you have to age. That¡¯s it. The only way to expand your mana pool is to get older.


    Did my mother set me up?


    I think she set me up! What an ass! Oh, wait, I¡¯m a child. Can¡¯t be thinking those words. But, really!? She gave me a task that¡¯s impossible for a long, long time! Luckily, I¡¯m a vampire. I can just kinda¡­ Absorb the mana in her blood.


    That makes me feel really bad¡­ But her blood, surprisingly, isn¡¯t salty. It¡¯s something between the sweetness of honey and vanilla cake. But her blood is thick. Like soup thick. Makes it difficult to drink.


    Anyway¡­ getting a bit off track here¡­ The carriage arrived shortly after Avalina woke up. I had a short conversation with her, hinting not-so-subtly about giving people impossible tasks, while she inspected the healing on her arm. Blushing from embarrassment while staring at where you slit your own wrist so that your son could suck your blood is quite the odd sight. In fact, just thinking about it is odd.


    Once we were all on the carriage, heading to the nearest city for breakfast, I thought of something. I was actually quite surprised I hadn¡¯t thought of it before. So, fulling doubting it would work, I thought one word.


    Status.


    And, to my twisted sense of humor, it worked.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Defining Status¡­ Please wait...


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Rayne


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: 1


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience needed: 150 (0%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [100/100]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [15/15]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [17/17]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: Vampire


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [0.1/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [0.001/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [0.03/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Blood [100%]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength


    6


    </td>


    <td>


    Endurance


    6


    </td>


    <td>


    Luck


    8


    </td>


    <td>


    Perception


    12


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Dexterity


    12


    </td>


    <td>


    Agility


    6


    </td>


    <td>


    Intelligence


    16


    </td>


    <td>


    Wisdom


    15


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Leadership


    0


    </td>


    <td>


    Vitality


    10


    </td>


    <td>


    Faith


    4


    </td>


    <td>


    Willpower


    60


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    Skills:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Blood Drain (Max)


    Gain stats based off of amount and quality of blood drained.


    </td>


    <td>


    Persuasion (8/10)


    40% chance to persuade people to your side. Lessens if they know about the situation.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Sense (2/100)


    Sense mana. Higher levels allow more detail and range.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Meditation (6/100)


    Recover mana quicker, regain stamina at astonishing rates.


    </td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="4">


    Effects:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Sunlight Weakness


    5% less Strength in sunlight.


    </td>


    <td>


    Disease Immunity


    Immunity to any disease debuffs.


    </td>


    <td>


    Blood Drinker


    Grants Max level skill [Blood Drain]


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Body


    All Spells deal 20% more damage.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Vampiric Body


    Sets Hp/sec to 1, if over 1, 120% increase.


    </td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Status System has been unlocked from this point on. Have a nice day.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I wasn¡¯t even able to read any of it before laughing like a maniac. I couldn¡¯t help it. Never would I have imagined that this was going to become a game for me. A vampire, and now a game character? It was just too ironic. After all, I was much too poor to have even hoped to buy a game before.


    My mother stared at me like I had just licked her cat. Wait, do cats even exist here? There are beastkin¡­ That being said, how were they made? Was it Adam and Eve thing? Two people came, then, you know, they reproduce enough to create infinite generations. Wait, does that mean that technically, everybody practices incest?


    I twisted my eyes back to the window in front of me, having enough with that train of thought. As I stared into the window, reading it, I nodded multiple times as the stats began to make sense to me. As a vampire, I half expected to have a strength buff, but it seems this wanted to let me be disappointed.


    However, it seems that even if I had the [Blood Drain] skill, my stats were still quite pitiful. I wonder if it wasn¡¯t technically activating when I sucked my mother¡¯s blood those two times. Oh well. I¡¯ll try to keep enough sanity to use it on the next person I suck the life out of. Or animal.


    Wait, was I seriously just thinking about killing somebody by sucking their blood? What the hell is wrong with me? Am I being taken over by this vampire form?


    I began to grow worried. Biting the tip of my thumb out of habit, I didn¡¯t notice my mother talking to the driver of the carriage. I also completely forgot about something I knew I could abuse when it came to games like this. Even if I was too poor to try them, I could easily listen to people around me talking about their little ways of cheating without breaking rules. Not that this would feel very good.


    I bit into my thumb, blood seeping through my teeth. A small wince didn¡¯t escape Avalina¡¯s notice.


    ¡°Rayne?! What are you doing?!¡± Avalina ripped my thumb out of my mouth, a small amount of blood splattering on her shirt. Luckily, I felt no urges this time.


    But I still couldn¡¯t speak. It seems out of my vampiric state, my vocal cords are undeveloped. So, of course I did something I was trying for the first time.


    I forced it to take over me.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Vampiric urges take over your body


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I felt the sudden surge of magic rock the carriage slightly.


    ¡°I was trying to get a pain resistance skill. I thought it might help out a little bit.¡± Avalina looked at me strangely.


    ¡°You demon child¡­¡± She chuckled, putting her hand to her head.


    I tilted my head, wondering what she was saying.


    ¡°You are, what, a day and a half old?¡± She waited for my confirmation before continuing, ¡°Most children aren¡¯t able to walk until 10 days old. They aren¡¯t able to talk until nearly a week and a half old. Also, I can tell you managed to find your mana.¡± At this, the driver even looked back in surprise.


    I was confused. I mean, I knew that she gave me an impossible task, but that doesn¡¯t help me understand why exactly she was so surprised.


    Seeing my look, she responded. ¡°I found my mana when I was 4 years old, and I was considered a prodigy. You have exceeded every expectation of mine. I guess tomorrow we should start teaching you spells?¡± A deep sigh. ¡°You demon child¡­¡±


    I could only grin in response.


    Spellcrafting (Avalina¡¯s POV)


    I waved to my husband, who was standing at the gates of Grandar, ¡®one of the grandest cities out there!¡¯


    I hate that slogan. So stupid. Anyway, back to me waving to Eugene. He waved back, the scoundrel. Couldn¡¯t he tell that I was being sarcastic. Rayne was¡­ Challenging the city to a staring contest.


    He seemed excited, to say the least, and I was pretty sure I knew why. He hadn¡¯t been here before, even if I described what was going to happen beforehand. I almost smirked when I remembered that Elliot, the maid, should be on her shopping trip right about now. Oh how much fun it would be if we so happened to come across her.


    Nah, I couldn¡¯t hold back my smirk this time as I tried to remember all the different stores that she went to on her trip. If we happened to go through her trail backwards, we would definitely meet her.


    Once we got in the city, I grabbed Rayne¡¯s hand, much to his obvious surprise. Seriously, if you¡¯re trying to complete the mysterious boy act with your silences, don¡¯t be so obvious with your face. He then looked depressed and looked up to me with puppy eyes as he realized what I was doing. I quickly looked away.


    I won¡¯t fall for your tricks, demon child!


    I heard a door close, along with the sound of a bell. I looked to the source and guess who I saw racing toward Rayne like a missile locked on target?


    Elliot.


    Rayne was tackled to the ground with the sudden impact of a squealing maid sprinting like a football player. His hand was ripped from mine, but he couldn¡¯t go anywhere with Elliot on top of him. I saw some onlookers looking at me, but most of the gathering crowd was focused on Elliot. I highly doubt they ever saw the composed maid squeal until now.


    ¡°Ahhh! I would never have thought I¡¯d see you again so soon! Lady luck must be on my side!¡±


    I swear I could almost see him glaring towards the sky. I laughed until I felt sick. Elliot had pressed Rayne to the ground and stared into his eyes for the entire time.


    It took nearly 4 minutes after that to get up off him. She looked very¡­ How to say it¡­ Full. Her breathing was slightly more of a pant, her pupils almost looking like hearts. She kept hugging her sides, swaying slightly from side to side. If I looked closely, she also had small silvery strings of saliva between her lips. If I didn¡¯t know any better, I would have called her a succubus in a maid outfit.


    After a minute to recover, which really didn¡¯t do much other than steady her shaky legs, she bowed to me and Rayne before leaving without another word.


    I have nothing to say about that. Definitely not. Nothing. But I do have something to say in general.


    ¡°Rayne, what are you humming for?¡±


    Rayne looked to me, an odd glint in his eyes. Then he put a finger to his mouth, motioning for me to shush. I stared for a second longer at him before shrugging. Not like I could take words from somebody who can¡¯t speak.


    ¡°Wait, Rayne, why can¡¯t you speak anymore?¡± I asked, confused. He was talking in the carriage, right?


    Rayne stopped just long enough for some mana to pour out of his body. It solidified, making odd shapes. Then he turned to me and floated the mana to me. They were making letters.


    They read ¡®Transformation¡¯ Then shifted. ¡®Can¡¯t speak. Without. Transforming¡¯


    Once again, I was amazed. He managed to gain control of solid mana before two days old.


    ¡°Demon child¡­¡± I muttered, sighing before chuckling. ¡°Most people don¡¯t gain control over solid mana until they are nearly a year old.


    His eyes widened. The letters shifted, drawing my attention. They turned into liquid. They still kept the shape, but they were smoother, or something. Then they rearranged.


    ¡®Why can people use. Solid mana. Before finding. Their own mana?¡¯


    ¡°Because finding your own mana is being able to control every last particle of mana in your body. Utilizing solid mana is possible without using everything in your body per se. But it comes pretty close. But you¡¯re over here less than two days old and using both solid mana and your own mana. Beating all of my records like nothing else in this world did.¡± I sighed, putting my head in my hands in depression.


    Nobody ever managed to beat my records, even going as far to say that I was relying on demons and whatnot, earning me the title ¡®Witch¡¯. Quite bothersome, actually.


    Rayne wasn¡¯t even really paying attention to me anymore. He¡¯s looking around the city with wide open eyes, like a kid who found his way into candyland.


    Alright, something odd just happened. Rayne suddenly disappeared. I was definitely holding him just now. Hmm? I feel something oddly round in my hand. Is this¡­ a solid mana ball? It¡¯s reforming as well? What type of freakish control over his mana¡­


    It turned into words, giving me a few seconds to read. ¡®She needs help¡¯


    Then it turned into a liquid. And poof, I was left alone in the middle of a city.


    Fucking demon child.

 ...You Use It! Arc 0

    To Reach Down and Pick Something Up (Rayne¡¯s POV)


    I rushed. There really wasn¡¯t a need to rush this much, since I was already much, much too late, but I felt the need to. What am I rushing for, you ask?


    There¡¯s a lot of blood in this alley. As a vampire, I realized I could somewhat sense the mana in blood much, much better than mana in anything else. Even from this distance.


    I arrived. The alleyway was filled with 4 people, not including myself. 3 boys were ganging up on a single girl. This brought a memory to my mind which I would have rather been kept down. After all, now I was angry.


    Mana was pushed out of me, forming letters. ¡®Get away from her.¡¯ a single sentence that took up 14 points of my mana.


    ¡°Why should I? So you can have her to yourself? Get lost, pretty boy. She¡¯s ours.¡± The man on the left growled. My vision was slightly tinted red by now.


    ¡®Just go.¡¯ I put two points of mana in each one, to make sure my pressure got by. Almost like bolding it.


    They sneered at me. This time, it was the one on the right that spoke. ¡°Think you¡¯re the shit, huh? Seems like before I have my fun, I¡¯ll have to teach you a lesson.¡±


    Makeshift weapons were brandished. A sharp metal blade, a stick, and a slingshot.


    Such primitive weapons cannot even graze me. But I¡¯ll let you suffer before I kill you.


    They sprinted forwards. My letters turned into small balls, compressed even further from solid mana. They were a millimeter in diameter, spinning at abnormal speeds. I sat down, focusing as much as possible. A blast of mana exploded throughout the alleyway, setting a slight pause in the footsteps approaching me. Not that they were going to get much further anyway. Having focused, I opened my eyes and began the fight.


    The Slaughter (Another power¡¯s POV)


    Rayne looked to the three figures coming at him with a slight disinterest. The rest was pure hatred. The 15 mana balls circling him stopped, rotating to all be in front of him in a ring. The two weapons whirled at him, much faster than they should have been able to. Not that it mattered much to the super compressed balls of mana. One went to each weapon, one burrowing itselves into a small knot in the wood of the stick. The other simply hit the core of the blade, halting it. Sharpening them forced them much further into each makeshift weapon. After less than a second, they were burrowed far enough into the weapons for them to be no longer visible. With that singular action, the armaments were thrown against the walls of the alleyways, creating a large clattering sound. The mana balls extracted themselves from the sword and stick. A stone shot down with much force unto Rayne.


    It was shot down with twice as much force. Rayne slowly stood up, looking at the three boys with only fists to defend themselves. Then he grinned, giving them hope that he would let them go.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, please spare me! I won¡¯t d- AHH!¡±


    Ten minutes later, all three boys were on the ground, quivering in pain and fear. For ten minutes, Rayne had assigned 5 mana orbs to each one of them and had been torturing them all individually. Hitting kneecaps, elbows, collarbones, shoulders, ribs, and their foreheads until each and every bony part of their bodies were bleeding profusely. Even then, Rayne continued. He still had the same small smile on his face that didn¡¯t reach his eyes.


    But Rayne finally decided it was enough. Any longer, and he might lose the girl. So he knelt down to each boy, all of which were having trouble standing. Three mana. A measly price to pay for making each of these rapists pay. Grabbing one of the boy¡¯s arms, and a mana ball, he placed it on his wrist. It sharpened, before burrowing into his arm, eliciting a large scream of pain. He calmly let the boy drop to the ground, gripping his wrist in agony.


    Rayne stood, slowly walking to the next boy in line. The sequence repeated twice.


    The mana orbs were transmitters. They would tell Rayne if the boy¡¯s got too lustful, or too many shockwaves (Like if they were hitting something) occurred while stopping the boy with unbearable pain.


    Rayne turned to the girl with intentions to help. But he wasn¡¯t sure if he could anymore.


    The Discovery (Rose¡¯s POV)


    My name is Rose. And I think I¡¯ve entranced a demon.


    Let me explain from the beginning. I was born into a loving family. The main difference was my dual colored eyes, the left one being a meadow grass green and the right being void purple, deep and mysterious. That didn¡¯t matter to them, and they gave me all the love they would have otherwise. I was perfectly happy with my situation.


    Until my father was wounded by a stray demonic beast. I asked for help from the city¡¯s doctors, but the hate for my race, beastkin, ran deep and strong. They refused to take my father, calling it a miracle that something else killed him before they did.


    I cried long and hard at their words. I wasn¡¯t really used to such treatment, my parents doing a fabulous job at hiding those types of things from me. But if I didn¡¯t do anything, my father would die. I worked hard on studying as much as I could about healing magic.


    But it was too little, too late. 3 days later, I had learned nothing about healing magic and my father died. I wasn¡¯t even able to see him in his final moments.


    Knowing this, I had lost all purpose in my life. I didn¡¯t come home the next day. I wandered throughout the city, looking for something. Something to tell me it was alright. I accidentally wandered into an alley, and I was taken from behind. I was only a ten-day-old, so I couldn¡¯t stand up to them at all.


    When I woke up, the three people who took me were in front of me, boasting and argueing over who was going to ¡®have¡¯ me first. I barely noticed. I had already given up on everything. They began to walk towards me, apparently having come to the conclusion that they would all have me at the same time. No light shone in my eyes as they reached for their belts.


    But then a clatter was heard from behind them, making them curse as they fastened their belts again. Even I tilted my head a bit to see who was there. A boy, my age probably. I felt the last shred of hope I didn¡¯t even know I had left fade away. A minute passed without him moving. But the three still seemed to understand him and respond. For a bit I wondered why. But then the horror began.


    They charged him with weapons brandished. I tried to call out for him to run, but I was too late once again. I tried to stand, but looking at my legs, crooked and unaligned, it seemed that was simply a fantasy. The boy was going to die, and I couldn¡¯t even help him.


    Those thoughts filling my mind, I passed out.


    When I came to, the three were on the ground and the boy was in front of me. I focused my gaze on him, and he gasped. He was looking at my eyes. I was looking back at his. His golden eyes were filled with so much emotion, it made me feel insignificant. I shrank away from him slightly, but he grabbed my hand. His hand was cold against my burning skin. It felt soothing, like cold water on a burn. Calming, like a small brook.


    I looked back to his intense eyes, losing myself in them. I don¡¯t know how long I stayed like that. He brushed a bit of my white hair out of my face. I¡¯m not sure why, but it felt sticky as he pulled it. That thought was shoved out of my mind, as if by force. I didn¡¯t think twice about it. His golden eyes took all of my focus. Those gentle eyes, they robbed my will of anything but looking at them. I wanted to dive into them, find their bottomless secrets.


    They turned red. One moment they were gold, the next they were deep red, like blood. These eyes were filled with ferocity. A deep regret. Rage. All these emotions swirled deep in these red eyes.


    ¡°Beautiful¡­¡± Him and I both said at the same time. Forgetting about how in sync we were, I turned away at the compliment. I caught a glimpse of red walls before a small pressure on my cheek brought me back to his eyes, but this time I was focusing on his face in general, memorizing every detail. I would find him eventually, no matter how long it took.


    His lips met mine. A foreign object entered my mouth as his hair turned from blonde to silver. One of his hands caressed my earlobe, the other caressing my side, slowly moving upwards. I couldn¡¯t resist if I wanted to. His hands had changed their positions. His right hand on my cheek. His left hand on my neck, massaging the flesh. His eyes, so close to mine, showed a gentleness unseen before.


    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry¡­¡± He whispered into my ear, making me shiver slightly, barely hearing the words.


    Then he moved his head downward¡­ and bit into my neck. The scene behind him, of the three boys, was finally seen by me. Blood poured from all their wounds, pooling beneath them. The blood had splattered onto the walls, drenching them red. A silver ball was embedded in each of their wrists. Truly a horror movie scene.


    The boy on my neck began to suck my blood. I didn¡¯t know what a vampire was at that time, but the feeling of him inside of me rocked my body. I couldn¡¯t hold back my voice as I pulled him closer, reveling in the ecstasy.


    Nearly five minutes passed before he stopped. Both of us were panting heavily, for our own reasons, I¡¯m sure. My eyes, no doubt, had a slightly crazed look to them. But if you had felt what I had felt, I¡¯m sure nobody would want it to end. The only thing in my mind at that point in time was him. I could feel him on my skin. I could feel his ragged breaths on my face and neck. I could still feel the sensation of his lips on mine. I could still feel him, even after I had gotten home and was attempting to fall asleep.


    My previously broken legs being healed didn¡¯t come into my mind for quite a few days. But then I realized that he had helped me, and vowed to find him. The golden eyed vampire that stole myblood and myheart.


    The Aftershock. (Rayne¡¯s POV)


    I managed to heal her. Following my vampiric instincts while showing them what I wanted to accomplish, I knew the only way for her to survive was to put enough of my saliva into her body. Of course, my vampiric body wanted her blood in return, but that was a small price to pay for healing her. I almost lost myself when I saw her condition. Two broken legs, a large gasp on her forehead, her right arm missing, blunt force trauma, concussion, and so many cuts she was pretty much just a dead man walking. Well, not walking with two broken legs, but you get my meaning.


    I left shortly afterward, the memory of her eyes never leaving my mind. Looking for the sun, I realized that I had spent much, much too long with her. It was already almost noon. Which was really surprising, considering Avalina and I came into the city at nearly ten in the morning.


    Did it take me two hours just to help somebody? I¡¯m losing my touch¡­ Well, nevermind. I spent most of that finding her, then some torturing the three troublemakers. I need to upgrade my mana sense. I¡¯ll work on that as a new goal, for now.


    I¡¯m still tempted to go back and do some more to them. After what they did to her, and they were planning to rape her? They deserved so much more. Think of it as my mercy for not torturing them more. They barely deserved to live.


    A growl escaped my lips, attracting the attention of Avalina, who was sitting across from me. We had just entered a small little restaurant, and were waiting to get served. Avalina had spent the entire time looking for me, so she didn¡¯t get to eat her breakfast. She didn¡¯t ask what happened when I found her. She just asked if the girl was safe. Realizing that she recieved my message, I told her that the girl was safe. That much, at least, was true.


    Our food came, two delicious yellow omelettes and some toast. A plate was set in front of both Avalina and I. We glanced at each other, wild grins on our faces, before digging in. With this childish body, I could only finish half of mine in the thirty minutes it took for me to eat, but Avalina just shrugged it off, saying it was fine. She waved to one of the waitresses for the bill, or tab, or whatever it is. I don¡¯t know. Some weird fantasy method of saying you need to pay.


    Avalina dug into her pockets, pulling out a few coins. Copper, silver, and gold. Real fantasy money. I was quite excited, enough to steal one before the waitress could grab it, and examine it with all my strength. Avalina could be heard sighing, and the clinking of more coins. Another copper was placed on the table as a glare was directed towards me.


    What? At least I didn¡¯t steal a gold one¡­


    I thought, glaring back. The coin in my hand became a coin in my pocket. Then I thought of something else.


    Inventory


    And¡­ Nothing happened. Supreme disappointment rang true as the coin returned to my pocket. A sigh escaped my lips as I thought of other ways to make an inventory.


    A devious grin split my face as I thought of something. Mainly, I saw something on my status when I was playing around with some of my mana. Specifically 8 mana orbs.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Rayne


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: 1


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience needed: 150 (0%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [110/110]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [9/16]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [19/19]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: Vampire


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [0.1/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [0.008/sec]Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [0.1/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Blood [98%]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength


    6


    </td>


    <td>


    Endurance


    8


    </td>


    <td>


    Luck


    8


    </td>


    <td>


    Perception


    13


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Dexterity


    14


    </td>


    <td>


    Agility


    9


    </td>


    <td>


    Intelligence


    17


    </td>


    <td>


    Wisdom


    16


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Leadership


    0


    </td>


    <td>


    Vitality


    11


    </td>


    <td>


    Faith


    4


    </td>


    <td>


    Willpower


    63


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    Skills:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Blood Drain (Max)


    Gain stats based off of amount and quality of blood drained.


    </td>


    <td>


    Persuasion (8/10)


    40% chance to persuade people to your side. Lessens if they know about the situation.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Sense (2/100)


    Sense mana. Higher levels allow more detail and range.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Meditation (6/100)


    Recover mana quicker, regain stamina at astonishing rates.


    </td>


    <td>


    Bewitching Gaze (2/10)


    Stare into people¡¯s eyes and activate their libido. Every Vampire needs a harem.


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="4">


    Effects:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Sunlight Weakness


    5% less Strength in sunlight.


    </td>


    <td>


    Disease Immunity


    Immunity to any disease debuffs.


    </td>


    <td>


    Blood Drinker


    Grants Max level skill [Blood Drain]


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Body


    All Spells deal 20% more damage.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Vampiric Body


    Sets Hp/sec to 1, if over 1, 120% increase.


    </td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Blood Drain Update


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="2">


    100% chance to increase stats based on quality and amount of blood drained.


    Strength +0


    Endurance +2


    Luck +0


    Perception +1


    Dexterity +2


    Agility +3


    Intelligence +1


    Wisdom +1


    Leadership +0


    Vitality +1


    Faith +0


    Willpower +3


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I grinned as I realized that my mana regenerated while I had the balls out. Finished with my meal, I crossed my legs on the chair as I dived into meditation. But I kept as little of my consciousness out as possible, needing to make sure the small mana orbs didn¡¯t dissolve. Two of them were gone before I could stop them, so I focused my mind on meditating. My mana began to vibrate, slowly beginning to shift on its way through my bloodstream. As it moved, it slowly pulled more and more mana from my cells, the cells immediately producing more to satisfy themselves.


    Once I had felt the slight twitch of my entire body, signifying that my mana was full, I expelled all of it, focusing it into more orbs. A bit more effort than I had originally assumed it would be, I somehow managed.


    I opened my eyes to check on my progress, and was amazed. A total of 42 different sized orbs circled slowly around me, fluctuating in size. When I focused on one, it stopped fluctuating, keeping its size. I threw out a wave of a tenth of a mana point. The wave wrapped around each and every orb, to tell me when they had gotten to a certain point.


    I heard three slight dings, and I swiveled my focus to them instantaneously. They stopped fluctuating at their largest point, holding nearly 1.5x the amount of mana they started with. My feelings on the matter clearly showed on my face in the form of a devilish grin.


    Nearly 20 minutes later, I had overcharged my maximum mana. I had just over 80 mana to spend. While meditating, it seems that any update windows don¡¯t appear, so I was spammed with them as soon as I stopped.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Status update(s)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Due to special actions, you have discovered the skill, [Mana wave] (2/50)


    INT +1


    Due to special actions, you have discovered the skill, [Mana Condensation] (1/5)


    PER +3


    Due to special actions, you have discovered the Effect, [Overcharged]


    WIS +2


    [Meditation] has leveled up! (7/100)


    [Meditation] has leveled up! (8/100)


    [Meditation] has leveled up! (9/100)


    [Meditation] has leveled up! (10/100)


    [Meditation] has reached level 10, evolving to [Advanced Meditation]!


    [Meditation] has leveled up! (11/100)


    [Mana sense] has leveled up! (3/100)


    [Mana sense] has leveled up! (4/100)


    [Mana sense] has leveled up! (5/100)


    Calculating experience gained¡­


    Experience gained: 457


    Congratulations! You¡¯ve leveled up! (2)


    Congratulations! You¡¯ve leveled up! (3)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I grinned, forgetting my surroundings as I picked through all my rewards and what they could mean. I tried to find some way to get more information on my three new skills, and it seems all I need to do is want some, and it¡¯ll give me it.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana wave (2/50)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Sense anything within your mana as it spreads outwards.


    Higher levels allow more precision.


    Current diameter: 10 feet


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana condensation (1/5)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Condense mana from the air into your mana orbs, making them fluctuate in density.


    Higher levels allow higher maximum densities


    Current maximum density: 1.5x


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Overcharged


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Overcharge your mana capacity, increasing it permanently by 1/100 of the overcharged portion.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Grinning wildly, happier than I should be, I practically skipped all the way back to the carriage. My body was shivering in excitement to get back to meditating by the boulder. I wonder what the multiplier on the boulder is? I should try to figure that out. Isn''t it that charactersin this situation have some skill for it? Like inspection?


    I stared at the floor for a second, inspecting every detail I could about it. I put some mana into it, to see the inside of it. My mana went through the wood, soaking into it like water. It expanded, filling every pore of each piece of the carriage. I closed my eyes, ¡®seeing¡¯ with my mana. [Mana Wave] was unconsciously used, as was [Advanced Meditation]. The entire structure I was in poured into my mind.


    It was made of some sort of springy wood for the seats and framework, while the important parts like the wheels and axles were made of a wood that was nearly half as sturdy as stone, with less than an eighth of the weight. Leather covered the top of the cart, mostly to keep out water. The horses walked at a slow gait, pulling the cart forward.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Status update


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Due to special actions, you have discovered the skill, [Inspect]


    PER +4


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Inspect (1/9999)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    This honestly doesn¡¯t need a description.


    Higher PER stat increases the efficiency of the skill.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Another grin split my face even wider than the last one. Now that I had [Inspect], I immediately used it on everything I possibly could.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Avalina Gold


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: ??


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience needed: ?? (??%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [1,500]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [40,000]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [600/725]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: Human


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [5/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [1-10/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [5.4/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Satiety: 100%


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength


    1,564


    </td>


    <td>


    Endurance


    6,348


    </td>


    <td>


    Luck


    104


    </td>


    <td>


    Perception


    9,096


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Dexterity


    7,305


    </td>


    <td>


    Agility


    24


    </td>


    <td>


    Intelligence


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    Wisdom


    ?


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Leadership


    286


    </td>


    <td>


    Vitality


    150


    </td>


    <td>


    Faith


    609


    </td>


    <td>


    Willpower


    67


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    Skills:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="4">


    Effects:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Carriage


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Just an ordinary carriage. Drawn by 2 horses.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Angel


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: 4


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience needed: 48/1200 (4%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [2,030/2,035]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [10/10]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [900/1450]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: Horse


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [0.06/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [1/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [10/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Satiety: 85%


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Slick


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: 3


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience needed: 552/600 (92%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [1,804/1,960]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [12/12]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [1,1056/1450]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: Horse


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [0.05/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [1.1/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [10/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Satiety: 72%


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Mana orb


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Made by: Rayne


    </td>


    <td>


    Amount of mana: .8270322/1.5


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Status update


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    [Inspect] has leveled up! (2/9999)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    A grin spread across my face. Not from the status update, although that was also great, but from the mana orb details. If it tells me who made the orb as well as the amount of mana in it, I could cheat so much in telling things. Then again, I don¡¯t precisely know if it tells me I made it because I know I did, but at the moment I have no way of knowing.


    I asked Avalina to make one really quick, and she held up her hand.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Mana orb


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Made by: Avalina Gold


    </td>


    <td>


    Amount of mana: 3/3


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I asked her how many more of those she could make with my mana letters, but she only laughed. Even as I was about to ask her why I got yet another pop-up.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Status update


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Due to repetitive use of an action, a skill has been created.


    Please name this skill.


    [____]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    A keyboard popped up and everything. Unsure of what it was talking about, I looked for a way to determine it. A small window appeared to the side of the status update, showing my letters. Then it showed it in battle. The letters turned into missiles, shooting forward with amazing speeds. They hit a target and exploded, silvery mana splattering on the target like the missile was made of glue. So many uses of this popped into my head. Tapping a few times on the keyboard, I came up with a name for it.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Confirmation for the skill name [Mana Construction]


    Are you sure you want this name?


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Yes


    </td>


    <td>


    No


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    It¡¯s actually confirming it. Yes.


    I tapped on the ¡®yes¡¯ button. The window disappeared, only for a different one to replace it a second later.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana Construction (1/~)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    A skill with many, many uses. Shape your mana into anything. Upon breaking, the mana that made up the shape will last on the object for up to a day before evaporating into the atmosphere.


    This skill has no definite maximum level.


    This skill can evolve and branch off.


    Evolutions found so far:


    None


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I nodded, understanding. After all, just seeing the little demonstration of the skill allowed me to come up with three different uses of it, or branches of it as the description says. I would have to test them out once I got to the shack.


    As I thought that, I realized that I was already there. I mentally cursed at myself, bothered how lost in thought I was. Since my eyes were closed most of time, Avalina probably assumed I was sleeping and didn¡¯t want to wake me. I got up and out of the carriage. I walked over to the boulder in the middle of the living room.


    Inspect


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Boulder


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    A very, very old boulder. Old enough to slow down time around it, allowing for all stats to regenerate faster.


    Effects: 2x regen. Mana regen is 4x.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I had no words. This boulder was really damn OP.


    Nerf, please.


    Mana regen x4?! That would mean if you had 1 mana/sec, near this boulder you would have 4/sec! Health regen and stamina regen are both multiplied by 2 as well!


    This boulder is my new best friend. I¡¯ll never leave you, boulder.


    I sat down to meditate, working on increasing my mana capacity until dinner. After lunch, I could work on my new [Mana Construct] until tomorrow. tomorrow, I could ask Avalina to teach me new spells. She did say that she would do that eventually. So all I should have to do is ask.


    My aim, for now, is to be able to see my mother¡¯s stats. Then I will get as much mana as she has. Then I can see what else I can learn about this world.


    It wasn¡¯t until much, much later that I remembered my deal with the chained God of Vampires.

 A Little Bit of a Breakthrough. Arc 0

    Witchery (360/4315 days until Eve) (Rayne¡¯s POV)


    Avalina was staring at me, watching my progress. I¡¯ve spent 4 days on this single spell, and I¡¯ve had no progress at all. It¡¯s a simple spell, just supposed to create a candle flame. But I have absolutely no idea how to turn mana into fire. I wasn¡¯t really the type to pay attention in school, so I barely have an idea on how fire works.


    I¡¯m supposed to call upon Fornar, the God of the Flame, but I don¡¯t exactly know how to. I¡¯ve been trying every waking second to call upon his power to create a simple flame, but nothing ever happens. I was actually beginning to doubt the fact that it was possible until I saw Avalina do it without even focusing. Her flame was huge, nearly a foot high.


    Needless to say, I was astonished. So I tried harder. 4 days later, I¡¯ve accomplished nothing.


    ¡°So you aren¡¯t as much as a demon child as I assumed! That makes me feel a little bit better about myself¡­¡± Avalina joked from the sidelines, a small glint of truth in her words.


    I sighed, disappointed in my lack of progress. I wonder if it had anything to do with my Faith stat.


    Status


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Rayne


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: 3


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience needed: 593/600 (1.17%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [110/110]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [106/56] (0.50)


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [19/19]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: Vampire


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [0.1/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [0.008/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [0.1/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Blood [82%]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength


    7


    </td>


    <td>


    Endurance


    12


    </td>


    <td>


    Luck


    7


    </td>


    <td>


    Perception


    30


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Dexterity


    18


    </td>


    <td>


    Agility


    9


    </td>


    <td>


    Intelligence


    26


    </td>


    <td>


    Wisdom


    22


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Leadership


    8


    </td>


    <td>


    Vitality


    11


    </td>


    <td>


    Faith


    2


    </td>


    <td>


    Willpower


    75


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    Skills:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Blood Drain (Max)


    Gain stats based off of amount and quality of blood drained.


    </td>


    <td>


    Persuasion (8/10)


    40% chance to persuade people to your side. Lessens if they know about the situation.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Sense (5/100)


    Sense mana. Higher levels allow more detail and range.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Advanced Meditation (18/100)


    Recover mana 1000% quicker, regain stamina 8000% quicker.


    </td>


    <td>


    Bewitching Gaze (2/10)


    Stare into people¡¯s eyes and activate their libido. Every Vampire needs a harem.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Wave (2/50)


    Sense anything within your mana as it spreads outwards. Higher levels allow more precision.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana Condensation (1/5)


    Condense mana from the air into your mana orbs, making them fluctuate in density.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Construction (3/~)


    Shape your mana into anything.


    This skill can evolve.


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="4">


    Effects:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Sunlight Weakness


    5% less Strength in sunlight.


    </td>


    <td>


    Disease Immunity


    Immunity to any disease debuffs.


    </td>


    <td>


    Blood Drinker


    Grants Max level skill [Blood Drain]


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Body


    All Spells deal 20% more damage.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Vampiric Body


    Sets Hp/sec to 1, if over 1, 120% increase.


    </td>


    <td>


    Overcharge (Max)


    Overcharge your mana capacity, increasing it permanently by 1 every 100 extra.


    </td>


    <td>


    Boulder


    2x Hp and Sp regen.


    4x Mana regen


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    A few things I realized over the past 4 days. Overcharge is really painful. I stopped so many times it wasn¡¯t funny.


    Another thing about overcharged is that the extra mana dissipates into the atmosphere at an incredible rate. So I¡¯m actually quite lucky to be left with 100 mana after a minute of letting it go. But what I¡¯m more worried about now, is the fact that my spells aren¡¯t working.


    My faith stat had actually decreased. I wonder if that¡¯s because I¡¯m doubting the gods¡­ My luck stat also went down one, but I have no idea why that would ever go down even the slightest amount.


    I¡¯ve been doing my best to work out my muscles when I have free time, but I don¡¯t have much of that. The best I¡¯ve done is stand while I meditate, which increases my endurance by leaps and bounds. Another thing I found out is that mana is heavy. Really heavy. Three mana is 5 pounds.


    So, of course, I made some armor out of it. Mana construction now has quite a few different branches.


    Mana Construction details.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana Construction (3/~)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    A skill with many, many uses. Shape your mana into anything. Upon breaking, the mana that made up the shape will last on the object for up to a day before evaporating into the atmosphere.


    This skill has no definite maximum level.


    This skill can evolve and branch off.


    Evolutions found so far:


    Mana Armor


    Mana Weaving


    Mana Constriction


    Mana Forging (Max)


    Mana Armory


    Mana Bolas


    Mana Enhancer


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Let me explain them:


    Mana Armor Is exactly as it sounds. It creates armor with solid mana, which is one of the densest materials known. The only problem is that I have to be constantly meditating to use it. So it pretty much gives me the ultimate defense, in exchange for my movement and the slightest twitch of my concentration could kill me. Lovely.


    Mana Weaving turns my mana into a thread, which I can weave to make a sort of cloth. The problem with this is nearly the same as the Mana Armor. I don¡¯t have to meditate to keep it around, but it only has an hour lifespan otherwise. I''m not entirely sure why that works as it does, but mana threads seem to be able to hold their own shape using the mana from the threads around them. I can already see how I would be able to improve this.


    Mana Constriction is another self-explanatory one. I am able to mana to constrict around different things, effectively immobilizing them. The problem is that I need physical contact with the thing to make sure there are no side effects. I also have to meditate before placing it, or else it only has a 30-minute lifespan. With meditation, it extends to nearly 6 hours.


    Mana Forging is a deviation from Mana Armor, and it¡¯s how I create ¡®new¡¯ things with mana as if it was metal. It pretty much allows me to become a mana blacksmith. This is something I need to be meditating for, as it requires extreme, emphasis on extreme, concentration.


    Mana Armory stores all the plans for Mana Forging, allowing me to create something again with much less effort. I can even create something without meditating if I have created it more than 5 times. But I still have to be still and completely focused on the task.


    Mana Bolas is the first thing I wanted to do when I saw the demonstration, but it was much harder than I had originally thought. I shot out a projectile of mana, but I kept full control of the mana. When it exploded and the mana was left behind, I would use something along the lines of Mana Constriction to immobilize my enemy. The only drawback is that I can¡¯t keep a hold on my mana 100% of the time. More like 35%.


    Mana Enhancer is a mystery. I only managed to complete it once, while I was unfocused and just fiddling around with some mana to level up my control. It temporarily leveled my perception by 5 points. Ever since then, I¡¯ve been trying to replicate it, to no avail.


    The strange part is that they seem to have levels, but I can¡¯t see them. Mana Forging can¡¯t get any better, as shown by the (Max) beside it, but I¡¯ve been trying to figure out how to max out the other ones, to no avail. Obviously, I just have to remove the restrictions in each of them. I keep training them, trying to use them without meditating.


    The mana in front of my finger flickers with the slightest bit of flame before going out. I curse myself for getting distracted before going back to trying to create the flame. Not that I expect it to work.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Forgotten by the Gods


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    By having your FTH stat go below 0, you have gained the Effect: [Divine Betrayal]


    Effect: Spells will not work.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°SON OF A BITCH!¡±


    Alright. I¡¯ve calmed down. I¡¯m out of my vampire state now. I may or may not have gotten a scolding from Avalina for cursing, but that¡¯s unimportant. I can¡¯t use spells. Have you ever tried to do something for 4 days straight, only to then be told that you can¡¯t? It¡¯s quite the feeling. A horrible feeling, but quite a feeling nonetheless.


    I told my mother about it, and she could only stare at me in wonder. Not the good type of wonder, mind you, but wonder. Probably confused as to how I even managed to get my faith stat to 0.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    But now I can devote all my focus to upgrading my Mana skills. There is nothing that could stop me from using my mana directly to beat things up!


    I used my Mana Armory to forge myself a sword. It took me about a minute of standing still. Then I tried something I hadn¡¯t done yet. I was going to focus on the other side of my stats, so I needed something to bring up my strength. Mana condensed on my arms and legs. I tried to move, but the mana became unstable and exploded outwards in a wave. Before it could evaporate, I drew it back to me. Mana Armor was like this in the beginning too.


    I did it again.


    And again.


    And again.


    And again.


    Eventually, I was doing it as a habit, making me capable of walking around at a slow pace. As my foot hit the ground, I would use some mana in a [Mana Wave], allowing me to collect the unstable mana and place it back where it should be. The entire process recycled the same 50 mana points. 36 mana was used on my arms and legs, 9 on each, and the extra 14 was used to stabilize the mana. I was actually gaining mana, since when I used [Mana Wave], I had 4 less mana than my maximum.


    Another step. Another step. Another step. Focus. Another step. Focus. Two steps. Focus. One step. Focus.


    I fell into a rhythm, slowly walking away from the broken down shack with unfocused eyes. I didn¡¯t exactly care where I was going. I just knew to walk in one direction.


    Two hours. I did that slow walk for two hours. Then I decided to look to the sun and find out what time it was. But when I focused on my surroundings, pulling the mana back into me, I realized that I was right next to the city.


    Was I really walking only 4 times slower than the carriage? How intriguing. I thought the carriage was going much faster than that¡­ I wonder if the carriage is going slow on purpose? Maybe Avalina asked for that speed. Oh well, I suppose I can ask her later.


    I looked behind me and there she was. Avalina, my new mother, was staring me in the eyes, seeming curious like a small child who had found a new toy. It was actually quite concerning that she came all the way with me. It was a two-hour walk, right?


    ¡°What were you doing? You just suddenly started walking¡­¡± She asked, moving a bit closer. I moved a bit further back.


    ¡®Walking. What did it look like?¡¯ I made my mana letters. Now I could make up to 106 of them at a time, a mana per letter.


    ¡°You seemed to be doing something with your mana as well. I wanted to know what it was.¡± She crossed her arms, looking to me for an answer.


    ¡®I was¡­ I don¡¯t actually know what I was doing.¡¯ ¡®I was just walking while making mana weights.¡¯ Two sentences, both the truth and yet they both contradicted each other.


    I fully came out of my odd meditative state, making windows pop up.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Status updates


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Due to special actions, you have gained a sub-skill of [Advanced Meditation], [Walking Meditation]


    Due to special actions, you have gained the title, [Wanderer]


    Title System has been unlocked.


    Due to special actions, you have gained a branch skill of [Mana Construction], [Mana Weights]


    STR +8


    END +13


    AGL +9


    WPR +5


    WIS +2


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    A title system? How does that work?


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    The Title System gives you titles that are gained through extreme measures. You can choose to display them. Each gives you a particular effect of the same name when equipped.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Oh. Wanderer was gotten from walking so far, then? I suppose that makes sense since I wasn¡¯t really aiming to go anywhere. I was just trying to level up my physical stats. I guess that counts as ¡®wandering¡¯.


    I equipped it, just because why not.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Wanderer


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Increase stamina by 50 points.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    The title, Wanderer, has been equipped.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I felt quite overjoyed at my rewards from this excursion. I doubt anything could bring my spirits down. Until, of course, I felt a large impact from behind me.


    ¡°It¡¯s you! I¡¯ve been waiting forever!¡± I heard a female voice from behind me. Or, more accurately, on top of my back. Two things pressed against my back. As I realized what they were, I could feel my face heat up a bit.


    I was flipped over, so I got a good look at my assailant. It was the maid from last time. She seemed to also have the same plans from last time, as she began to stare at my eyes. I returned it, not too bothered, as her eyes were the second most beautiful I had seen. The green was like crystal, reflecting the light and seeming endless.


    My mana began to circulate on its own, begging to be released as I continued to fall deeper into a trance. That deep jade green surrounded me, embracing me in a warm earthy hug of strength. My stamina fully regenerated, not that I would know until I got out of the trance.


    A ding sounded, but I my consciousness had left that world and wasinstead exploring the depths of the maid¡¯s eyes. My mana was leaking out by now, a silvery color expanding in the green world. A meadow of emerald, reflecting the light of the jade sun shone into my vision. Peaceful, with small birds chirping. Following some instinct of mine, I made a mana orb and began to use [Mana Construction] branch skill, [Mana Forge] to create a bracelet.


    Twenty minutes, probably more passed before I was done. The bracelet was perfect, with a clasp and everything. But the oddest thing was that the silvery mana that I used to create it was green. The bracelet didn¡¯t reflect light, but it seemed to produce some and it gave me the feeling of the earthen embrace I had gotten a bit earlier. I looked over it one last time, before awakening with a yell.


    I managed to see something blocking my vision and throw up my hands to push it to the side. It seemed I was still holding on to it, though, as I was pulled with the same force I used to land on top of whatever I pushing. I twisted once more, flicking my body off of the soft surface. I had felt that feeling before, it was flesh.


    My mana exploded from me, forming letters. ¡®Are you alright?¡¯


    But there was no response from the maid next to me.


    Oh god, did I kill her?


    But then my eyes picked up on something green. Something abnormally green. Something that shouldn¡¯t be in this world.


    The same bracelet I had made in the world of her eyes.


    Rules? Ha! (Avalina¡¯s POV)


    Oh look, it¡¯s Elliot. Aaaand, there goes Rayne. Another round of this? Last time was five minutes, let¡¯s check out how long this one will take.


    I sat down, starting to time them. 5 minutes passed and they showed no signs of stopping. Well, Rayne didn¡¯t. Elliot was already panting hard, seeming a bit¡­ Erotic, to say the least. Rayne was still calmly looking upwards. In fact, wasn¡¯t he a bit too calm?


    I walked a bit closer, almost losing count. 357¡­ 358¡­ I reached Rayne, so I bent down to look at his expression. It was gentle, like the face a person would make if they had just found the softest animal and was trying to coax it into coming near them.


    I was actually quite disturbed. Rayne never really liked it this much, did he? I mean, the first time he did it for most of the time when I wasn¡¯t there and some after, but I don¡¯t really think he had any idea of what was going on, so he couldn¡¯t have any aversion to it.


    Wait, wasn¡¯t he already nearly as smart as I was when he was born? He had that look in his eyes¡­ One that a newborn should not have. He seemed like he had been through hell and back, learning everything about it on the way. He even understood my words before he was able to speak¡­ or did he? When was he able to speak? He also seemed to have memories... I wonder why?


    Too much thought. Too little memorization. I want to be able to recreate this perfectly so I can tease him about it later.


    After about a minute I had memorized his face, but the scene had still not stopped. Elliot seemed to be reaching her limits. If he didn¡¯t stop soon, Elliot may just do some inappropriate things in public. I tried moving my hand in front of his face, but he showed no response. Even worse, neither did Elliot.


    Another two minutes. Elliot couldn¡¯t hold back her voice much more and began moaning softly. Rayne had shown no change, except the small smile that spread across his face like he was having a good dream.


    2 minutes and Rayne still showed no signs of stopping. Elliot was looking faint, her arms beginning to shake from the strain of holding her body up. Her moans had grown in volume, actually starting to attract attention. Rayne had started letting out slight amounts of mana. More than that, the ana began to change color. Slowly turning green.


    Wait, what?! Mana is silver! That¡¯s, like, a rule of mana! Right? Is it? Every time I¡¯ve seen it, it¡¯s been silver¡­ I swear to the gods I will eventually stop being surprised at the things my child does¡­


    But for now, I think I¡¯ll have to deal with it. I dipped my finger into a small amount of the swirling liquid mana and came up with some interesting results. For a second, I saw a meadow. Everything was green, in varying colors, but it was so peaceful. I heard a hammer ring out every once and awhile and I felt a large sense of strength and vitality. Overflowing strength.


    I managed to pull my finger back, barely. I wasn¡¯t sure I would be able to pull my way out of it if I had stayed any later. The feeling was overwhelming. It seemed to be pulling at my very being, wishing me to stay with it.


    The meadow, even with all the sounds that rang out like the birds and hammer blows, seemed very lonely. I shivered unconsciously, feeling both sorry and disgusted about that place.


    But then I realized something. Rayne was producing the mana. Does that mean that he is inside of that world? Is he stuck in there? If only I could help him¡­ I wish I knew how.


    Ten minutes have passed. Elliot is holding onto her consciousness by a thread. Her moans have become a single, continuous one that rises and falls in volume. If she wasn¡¯t using both of her hands to hold herself up, I¡¯m 100% positive they would be in other places over her body. Just what is my son doing to the elder¡¯s maid?


    Rayne¡¯s smile faded in an instant. He shot upwards, pushing Elliot to the side. But his other hand was clamped over her wrist, forcing him with her in the movement. A second passed before Rayne flipped off of Elliot. His mana, silver once more, burst out from him, forming his letters. Doing a quick read, I understood his concern.


    He hadn¡¯t looked at her face yet, it seemed. If he had seen that face full of ecstasy and lust, he would not be asking if she was alright. Or maybe he would, just in a different way.


    I focused once more on the scene in front of me, shaking my head to clear my thoughts. Rayne lifted Elliot¡¯s hand slowly, gazing at something attached to it with great interest. Or was that astonishment? I shifted my gaze to where his was.


    A small green bracelet adorned her wrist. At first, I was confused as to why Rayne was so entranced with it, but then I realized on a closer look. It was made of mana. The same mana the Rayne had just produced. I attempted to take control of it, to take even a little bit back home with me. But I was mistaken if I thought I could do it with my skills.


    The mana itself resisted my grip, barely wavering before fitting itself back on Elliot¡¯s wrist. Lusty maid gets all the fun toys¡­


    I want some special mana!


    Surprise Development! (Another Power¡¯s POV)


    Rayne was restless on the walk back home. He had decided to level up with [Walking Meditation] subskill, but he couldn¡¯t even get into the state with his uneasy mind. The reason for his restlessness lies in the windows that showed up after he had made the bracelet, and the bracelet itself.


    Rayne¡¯s Status


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Rayne


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: 3


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience needed: 426/600 (29%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [110/110]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [102/59] (0.43)


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [89/89]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: Vampire


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [0.1/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [0.026/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [0.1/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Blood [80%]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength


    15


    </td>


    <td>


    Endurance


    25


    </td>


    <td>


    Luck


    10


    </td>


    <td>


    Perception


    40


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Dexterity


    18


    </td>


    <td>


    Agility


    18


    </td>


    <td>


    Intelligence


    26


    </td>


    <td>


    Wisdom


    28


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Leadership


    8


    </td>


    <td>


    Vitality


    11


    </td>


    <td>


    Faith


    -10


    </td>


    <td>


    Willpower


    80


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    Skills:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Blood Drain (Max)


    Gain stats based off of amount and quality of blood drained.


    </td>


    <td>


    Persuasion (8/10)


    40% chance to persuade people to your side. Lessens if they know about the situation.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Sense (5/100)


    Sense mana. Higher levels allow more detail and range.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Advanced Meditation (18/100)


    Recover mana 1000% quicker, regain stamina 8000% quicker.


    </td>


    <td>


    Bewitching Gaze (4/10)


    Stare into people¡¯s eyes and activate their libido. Every Vampire needs a harem.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Wave (2/50)


    Sense anything within your mana as it spreads outwards. Higher levels allow more precision.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana Condensation (1/5)


    Condense mana from the air into your mana orbs, making them fluctuate in density.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Construction (10/~)


    Shape your mana into anything.


    This skill can evolve.


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="4">


    Effects:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Sunlight Weakness


    5% less Strength in sunlight.


    </td>


    <td>


    Disease Immunity


    Immunity to any disease debuffs.


    </td>


    <td>


    Blood Drinker


    Grants Max level skill [Blood Drain]


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Body


    All Spells deal 20% more damage.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Vampiric Body


    Sets Hp/sec to 1, if over 1, 120% increase.


    </td>


    <td>


    Overcharge (Max)


    Overcharge your mana capacity, increasing it permanently by 1 every 100 extra.


    </td>


    <td>


    Boulder


    2x Hp and Sp regen.


    4x Mana regen


    </td>


    <td>


    Wanderer


    Increase Stamina by 50 points


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Titles


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Wanderer ¡ï


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    All in all, he received +3 luck, +10 perception, +4 wisdom, -8 faith, 2 levels to [Bewitching Gaze], and 7 levels to [Mana Construction]. Give me a second to recreate the window he got from [Inspect]ing the bracelet.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    Mana Bracelet (Elliot)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Owner: Elliot Mandrive


    Creator: Rayne


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana: 4/4


    Duration: N/A


    </td>


    <td>


    Effects: +10 Strength, +2 Vitality


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    There. Pretty accurate, If I do say so myself. Anyway, he was very concerned with both the ¡®owner¡¯ and the ¡®effects¡¯. The effects were amazing, giving free stats for no reason, but the owner part was a bit more questionable. He didn¡¯t quite know exactly what that entailed.


    He shrugged, before realizing that his mother was watching him with a strong intensity. He shrank back a bit, not sure why he deserved that look. Avalina stood up in the shaking carriage, not exactly the smartest of ideas. She stumbled, but Rayne caught her before she could fully trip, throwing her on the seat next to him.


    A sigh of relief. ¡°Thanks, Rayne.¡±


    A small nod before she continued. ¡°But I have a question. I¡¯m not sure if you¡¯ll be able to answer me, but are you human?¡± She asked.


    Rayne stiffened, stopping his walk. He relaxed his body, a large torrent of mana exploding out from him as he activated his vampire form.


    ¡°You have seen me in some of my¡­ less human times. But I can assure you. When I am not like this,¡± He gestured to his red eyes and silver hair, ¡°I am human. When I am, however, I am not a human. I am¡­ something a bit less and yet a bit more.¡± He thought carefully on his words, making sure he didn¡¯t directly state what he was.


    Then again, Avalina already knew all this. She had been a victim of his vampiric state before. The first one, in fact. Rayne happened to be unconscious while this happened, but that¡¯s unimportant. Avalina simply wanted to know what he thought about himself. If he wasn''t human, even in his own mind, she would have tried her best to fix that.


    ¡°Next question. What was that mana? It was green.¡± She asked, stupefied. After all, she had never seen mana in any other color than silver.


    ¡°I¡¯m not quite sure¡­ I can probably reproduce it, but I would need concentration I can¡¯t find in meditation¡­¡± Rayne sighed, holding up a hand. It began to emit mana, slowly, like steam was wafting off of it. The mana increased in density, making it more of a smoke. Then it was a liquid, but it was still rising. A solid that acted like a gas.


    ¡°What did you just do to the mana? Solid mana doesn¡¯t float¡­¡± As if to prove her point, she created some. Letting go of it, it dropped to the ground with a thump.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not sure how much mana this takes, but try doing it exactly like I did. Start with a gas, then slowly increase the density.¡± He reverted it back to its original form instantaneously, causing a small steam explosion. He managed to absorb most of it before it actually exploded, but some escaped.


    Avalina attempted it, but it ran through her mana reserves just after she got to liquid. Panting heavily, she changed the subject.


    ¡°So¡­ Why does¡­ Elliot like your eyes¡­ so much?¡± Rayne looked embarrassed, looking away with a small blush on his face.


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ probably because of my skill, [Bewitching Eyes].¡± After seeing his mother¡¯s look of confusion, he went on to explain, ¡°When people look in my eyes, it activates their libido¡­¡±


    Avalina had a reaction. She laughed loud enough for the driver to comment on it. A familiar voice echoed back to the carriage, ¡°What¡¯s so funny back there? I want in!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing, Elliot!¡± A few seconds passed, the laughter dying down. ¡°Wait, what?! Elliot, what are you doing here?!¡±


    ¡°Hmm? Oh, I talked to the Elder and I managed to transfer my ownership to you! I may be inexperienced, but please treat me well!¡± Elliot leaned over to the side, far enough for Avalina to see her through the window as she waved.


    Nobody spoke for the remainder of the trip home.

 Not-so-filler Filler! Chapter 4.5

    Dollars


    1 Copper coin = $5.064


    1 Silver coin = $506.4


    1 Gold coin = $50,640


    Pounds


    1 Copper coin =4.12


    1 Silver coin = 412.45


    1 Gold coin = 412445.04


    Euros


    1 Copper coin = 4.84


    1 Silver coin = 484.48


    1 Gold coin = 484477.41


    Yen


    1 Copper coin = 593.36


    1 Silver coin = 59383.00


    1 Gold coin = 59382996.00


    Week of Ice - January


    Week of Wind - February


    Week of Sprout - March


    Week of Crops - April


    Week of Bloom - May


    Week of Heat - June


    Week of Work - July


    Week of Cool - August


    Week of Color - September


    Week of Fall - October


    Week of Festivities - November


    Week of Frost - December


    Children start school at the age of 5 months old, and will continue until they are 5 years old. At this point in time, they are sent off to practice their dream occupation. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.


    Avalon: 213,772.5 miles in diameter, 27 times larger than Earth.


    Cosmic Tier:


    Darkness (Zaleth / God)


    Light (Adalina / Goddess)


    Flame (Fornar / God)


    Earth (Mercurum / God)


    Air (Imali / Goddess)


    Water (Lezarath / Goddess)


    Diety Tier:


    Ice (Hana / Goddess)


    Sea (Navmarin / God)


    Health (Medicalon / God)


    Magic (X¡¯ablin / God)


    Disaster [War (Merun¨¨s / God)] [Poison/ Pestilence (Arkio / God)]


    Judah (God of Betrayal)


    Helia (Goddess of Forgiving)


    Race Tier:


    Humanity (Larkus / God)


    Elven (Legaro / Goddess)


    Dwarven (G¨ªrmu / God)


    Demon (Athena / Goddess)


    Beastkin (Waulnog / God)


    Fairy (Eleanna / Goddess)


    Death (Lilia/Goddess)


    Race --- Male:Female


    Humanity 1:1


    Elven 1:2


    Dwarven 7:1


    Demon 1:1


    Beastkin 3:4


    Fairy 1:12


    Average lifespan:


    Humans: 100 years


    Elves: 135 years


    Dwarves: 90 years


    Demonkind: 1000 years


    Beastkin: 92 years


    Fairies: 500 years


    Social Structure: Humanity > Elves > Dwarves > Demons > Beastkin > Fairies.


    Second- 1 second. Minute- 60 seconds. Hour- 60 minutes, 3600 seconds. Day- 24 hours, 1,440 minutes, 86,400 seconds. Ten day- 10 days, 240 hours, 14,400 minutes, 864,000 seconds. Week- 3 ten days, 30 days, 720 hours, 43,200 minutes, 2,592,000 seconds. Month- 12 Weeks, 36 ten days, 720 days, 8640 hours, 518,400 minutes, 31,104,000 seconds. Year- 12 months, 144 weeks, 432 ten days, 8640 days, 518,400 hours, 31,104,000 minutes, 373,248,000 seconds.


    Alright, I believe a little explanation about aging and that process is suitable for people who live, on average, 12 times the age of a human being. Here, have a list of milestones. Anything in between is just aging 12 times slower.


    Born- day 0


    Walking- average day 5


    Talking- average day 10


    Speaking full sentences- depends on teaching, average week 1 (30 days)


    Puberty- NEVER! HAHAHAHAHA!!! FANTASY WORLD LOGIC!


    School- 5 weeks -> 5 months. The king pays for your child to go to school once he/she is 5 months old, but they are eligible for school at 5 weeks old.


    Teenager-esque body- ~2 years, depends on natural growth rates. If you still don¡¯t have a teenager body by the age of 5 years old, you are medically considered a midget. They don¡¯t even have a technical term.


    End of school- 5 years


    Legally considered ¡®elderly¡¯- 80% of average age. Humans=80 Elves=108 ect¡­


    Death- Whenever.

 A Little Bit of an Adventure... Arc 0

    Set Free (Rayne¡¯s POV)


    After we had gotten home, we all started talking. I could stay in my vampiric state for as long as I wanted since nobody here would consider it a problem. Elliot was under my mother¡¯s reign, so she couldn¡¯t pass out information without her permission anyway.


    After about 10 minutes of talking, I got bored and began to sit down next to the boulder, picking through any ideas that I had for my skills.


    I wonder what happens when a skill hits its maximum level¡­ That would be something interesting¡­


    I meditated, beginning to overcharge my mana. All 102 of my mana was turned into orbs as I activated [Mana Condensation]. Fluctuations of the mana circled around me, becoming a ring of spinning mana. A [Mana Wave] with all the mana I had regenerated constantly pulsed out from me like a heartbeat, wrapping around the orbs. A minute later four of them had gotten to the maximum 1.5 mana. I slowed the moving mana enough for those four to be absorbed into me. With the extra 6 mana, my waves had become a single entity, constantly watching over my mana orbs. They hit 1.5 one by one, my mana overseer wave, as I liked to call it, becoming closer to God¡¯s eye, able to predict them before it even happened. I could freeze every mana orb accurately within .0001 mana of the limit.


    My 102 mana had become 153 within 10 minutes, 6 mana from upgrading my maximum capacity. 4 orbs were produced in my wave, it sending the information about these directly to my brain. Only 20 seconds passed before all 4 of them were absorbed back into me, increasing my mana by 1. 100 mana exploded from me, rocking the room slightly. I heard a slight creaking, knocking me out of my meditative state. I looked to the source of the noise and found it to be a board in the ceiling. Just a small thing to note, the boards in the ceiling are both sharp and heavy. Each board was over twenty pounds, even more after soaking up some water. They were also rotting and splintering at the same time, meaning it was even heavier and sharp. If it fell it would hit very hard, before then shattering into thousands of pieces. It would hurt if not severely injure somebody.


    It was knocked out of place from the blast, only one rusted nail holding it in place now. I understood immediately the dangers and was up and moving before I could fully process what I was trying to do. Avalina looked towards me as I barrelled towards her, both of us unsure of what the other was doing. The board fell silently, the rust on the nail weakening the metal too much for it to hold it anymore. Every single piece of the mana in my body exploded from me as my body and brain worked in tandem without my permission.


    Not that it needed it. Unconsciously coming up with a plan to save her, my body charged forward at greater speeds than I could make it go on the broken ground. Nimbly placing my feet at places of least resistance, my mana softened the blow to the ground while simultaneously pushing my foot upwards for the next step, leaving small mana infused footprints behind me. Was the house always this much effort to cross? I certainly don¡¯t remember it being this big either¡­


    Mana loss. My body collapsed at the feeling, becoming weak and unresponsive. My mother was thrown to the ground with the force of a charging rhino, sliding back a few feet. I would have to apologize later, but I couldn¡¯t move my body at the moment. The board clattered to the ground, exploding into splinters. I felt two of them hit me in my back, another three spread between my feet. One in my right arm, pushing it forward even while my body locked up. I landed on the ground. At least, parts of me did.


    I was on top of my mother, her being sprawled on the ground, arms away from her core. Legs bent naturally, slowing her slide. My right arm was thrust to the ground next to her head. My left leg was bent and pressed against the hardwood floor, allowing me to keep enough balance to stop myself from crashing atop her, albeit rather painfully. Our faces were close. Too close. I could feel her breath swaying over my cheek, nice and steady. My breath came in ragged pants, having overexerted myself in more ways than one.


    Our eyes connected, and my skill activated. A mental curse was all I could manage before I found myself entranced. There is no more vivid color than the eyes and the blood. How intriguing that this body of mine has a way of controlling people through both of them.


    Her icy blue eyes. Deep and magnificent. They didn¡¯t reflect light like a gem, all fractured and prismatic. No, her eyes reflected the light like a glass ball, smoothly expanding the light throughout. The blues that made up her eyes were smooth but sharp. Enveloping and welcoming, but sharp and painful. A warm hug of ice. The small icicles that were sharp enough to cut you.


    The sharpness faded somewhat as time went by, and I was dragged deep into the same trance that I had gone through with Elliot.


    A cave. Icy blue extended throughout, extending a few feet past the semi-opaque walls. Stalactites and stalagmites of ice were spread throughout, icicles hanging from the ceiling precariously. I was pulled towards a shivering bundle in one of the many crevices in the cave. As I came closer, it ran away, leaving an image of a large white furry creature in my mind. Small blue trails, darker than anything else, trailed behind it. I instinctively knew that I had two options. I could use my [Mana Forge] here, or I could race after that creature.


    It took me a second to decide. But I was inside of somebody, inside of the world in their eyes. That creature seemed afraid. I had to chase after it, find out what was wrong. I sprinted after the quickly dissipating trail, burning dark blue on the icy background.


    A minute passed, but the trail seemed to have no end¡­ It even split off at times, making me unsure of which one was a false trail. This small creature was deathly afraid, and very, very good at hiding itself. While following it, I had a lot of time to think and hypothesize. This creature obviously represented my mother¡¯s fears, or maybe her insecurity. The fact that it could hide so well probably alluded to the fact that my mother was also good at hiding it.


    I checked my blood levels in my status.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Rayne


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: 3


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience needed: 302/600 (49.67%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [110/110]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [???/60] (???)


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [89/89]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: Vampire


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [0.1/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [0.026/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [0.2/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Blood [-%]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength


    15


    </td>


    <td>


    Endurance


    25


    </td>


    <td>


    Luck


    10


    </td>


    <td>


    Perception


    40


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Dexterity


    18


    </td>


    <td>


    Agility


    18


    </td>


    <td>


    Intelligence


    26


    </td>


    <td>


    Wisdom


    28


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Leadership


    8


    </td>


    <td>


    Vitality


    11


    </td>


    <td>


    Faith


    -10


    </td>


    <td>


    Willpower


    80


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Something interesting, it seems that I don¡¯t have any of my skills in here, which helps me figure out why it took so long to forge that bracelet in the last world. I also had no mana or blood levels. It seems I could easily track this creature with the perception boost from my vampire body.


    I felt a surge of mana consume me, rising like I was on fire, as I let my vampiric side take over my body. Running full sprint at the dark blue path, I let my instincts tell me of the creature¡¯s location. But once I had gotten within 100 feet of it, I forcibly removed my vampiric transformation. I walked over to its shivering form once more, making sure to not make any sound.


    Creeping ever closer, I locked eyes with the fluffy animal in front of me. It wasn¡¯t shivering anymore, so I could only smile. Whether from fear or from the cold, the animal had been shivering even through its fur the entire time. It looked at me with a sort of fearful look in its deep blue eyes. I sat down about 10 feet away from it, holding out a hand as I did my best to ignore the freezing cold that was seeping through my pants. Something was telling me that I could not touch this animal. It would have to come to me of its own will for anything to happen.


    I began to speak. I didn¡¯t know what I was saying, I just felt like speaking would help. It seemed to, as the animal took a few steps towards me. My mana began to race within my body, slamming against my skin. I held it in as best I could. A small amount of mana leaked out and the animal took two steps back in surprise, destroying more than half of my effort. I tripled my efforts on keeping it inside.


    A step a minute. Every minute the animal, a fox, took a step towards me. I was three steps away at the moment, but if I let out any mana it takes multiple steps back. And the closer it gets, the harder it is to stop the mana from bursting out of my body. My arm is still extended towards it, as an offer of friendship, but it¡¯s shaking from the strain.


    Finally, the animal pressed its head against my head. I slowly let my hand down, allowing the animal to feel my ¡®weight¡¯. I doubt it¡¯s ever felt the warmth of a human, as it¡¯s pressing its head against my hand with all of its strength like it¡¯s trying to fuse with it. I let out a slight chuckle, shocking the animal. On a closer inspection, it really was a fox. A tiny fox, it¡¯s fur giving it the image of being much larger. I pressed my hand to its cheek, watching its reaction closely.


    A small purr, the vibration going up my hand and arm, all the way to touch my sealed-off heart. The chains that I had put there so long ago, as a self-defense mechanism, melted along with the rest of my heart. I slowly pressed my other hand under its chin, scratching it softly. The ice fox let out a small yip, leaping into my outstretched arms. I laughed as he pushed me to the ground, his four little paws attempting to find purchase on my oddly shaped body. I wrapped my arms around the tiny animal, hugging it close to my chest. My heart gave off a feeling I had never felt before. It was cold, but warm at the same time.


    It rocked my entire view of the world. It seemed to shift under my gaze, before coming back into focus. It looked the exact same but felt completely different. A grin on my face that I couldn¡¯t hope to erase spread across my face as I hugged the small fox. It let out a small yip of surprise but soon snuggled closer to my body. Its body was cold, but not uncomfortable. Like the chill of the morning air in fall, it was calming and invigorating. Either way, the warmth in my heart blew away any uncomfortable chills, filling me with a feeling I couldn¡¯t quite describe.


    I played with the fox for a few minutes. We played hide and seek and tag. Childish games, but I wasn¡¯t one to care anymore. This fox brought out a feeling I had never felt before, it deserved a reward. The fox tackled me to the ground, barking happily. I was laughing as well. The fox stopped but didn¡¯t get off. It stared at me, the mood growing solemn. It made a series of barks and yips. Somehow, I could understand what it was trying to say. Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    It wanted a collar. It wanted me to make it a collar. I was astonished, understandably, but I nodded, letting out only a small amount of mana so I didn¡¯t scare the fox away. This time it didn¡¯t even flinch, but it got closer to me, sitting beside me. I could feel the pressure building. This little tiny fox had such heavy expectations.


    But that was fine. I love a good challenge. But do you know what I love even more than a challenge? Doing better than what the challenge specified, so I leave the audience speechless. I grinned widely as I came up with a plan to put into action.


    I meditated, falling into such concentration there was nothing but the ¡®collar¡¯ and the mana that made it. There was no ice cave, there was no boulder, there was no city, there was no lusty maid, there was no Avalina, there were only the collar and its owner, the fox.


    It took me 45 minutes of nothing but that feeling, meticulous effort, and concentration unavailable anywhere else, but the result was nothing less than stunning.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Please name your creation:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    [|_______]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    A minute passed as I thought of the name for the creation in front of me. I had to make it memorable. After all, this little fox actually managed to break down my self-defense mechanism all on its own, without trying. I typed in the name.


    Inspect


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    Zinnia of Unbroken Bonds


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Owner: _______


    Co-owner: Avalina Gold


    Creator: Rayne


    </td>


    <td>


    Description: A ¡®collar¡¯ requested by an animal who finally found the strength to stop running in fear.


    </td>


    <td>


    Effects: WPR +20, INT +4, WIS +3, All mind-affecting effects have a 50% chance to be nullified.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I smiled as I looked at the necklace I held in my hands. Made of pure mana, it almost seemed to pulse as I watched. The mana was silver at first glance, but with a closer look, you could see the icy blue mana deep inside the chains and necklace as a whole. The chains, made with painstaking effort, linked with each other perfectly, no welding marks on any of them. The clasp was a working mechanism, where you would push a chain into a very small carabiner-type hook. The main ornament, directly opposite of the clasp, was a zinnia flower. This had no silver, just the icy blue mixed with medium amounts of darker blue. Each petal was gradiented with a soft medium, making them seem soft and smooth. It was meticulously crafted to set lightly just below the collarbone. On each side, there was a ring. These were each made from all three types of mana, gradiented together with precision unavailable with human tools. Each type of mana flowed beautifully, into both each other and into the shape I had molded them into.


    I turned to where the fox was last sitting, to find a sight that shocked me into awareness, out of the world inside my mother¡¯s eyes.


    The fox was gone.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Status update:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    PER +12


    WIS +6


    INT +4


    END +19


    STR +13


    WIL +6


    VIT +2


    FTH -7


    Due to special actions, you have discovered the branch skill of [Advanced Meditation], {Cryo Meditation}


    Due to special actions, you have discovered the branch skill of [Mana Construction], {Mana Familiar}


    [Advanced Meditation] has leveled up! (21/100)


    [Advanced Meditation] has leveled up! (22/100)


    [Advanced Meditation] has leveled up! (23/100)


    [Mana Construction] has leveled up! (11)


    [Mana Construction] has leveled up! (12)


    [Mana Construction] has leveled up! (13)


    [Mana Construction] has leveled up! (14)


    [Mana Construction] has leveled up! (15)


    [Mana Construction] has leveled up! (16)


    [Mana Condensation] has leveled up! (2/5)


    [Bewitching Gaze] has leveled up! (5/10)


    [Mana Sense] has leveled up! (6/100)


    [Mana Wave] has leveled up! (3/50)


    [Mana Wave] has leveled up! (4/50)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Barely reading the update, I swiped it away. However, I had to use the same arm that I had been using to hold myself up to do that.


    My body hit the floor, the strain of holding myself up in the same position hitting me all at once, stopping me from moving. I barely felt the floor, the shock from the sight in front of me overruling the shock from the impact. A small animal was cowering in the middle of the room, the previously white fur shining a light blue. I would have laughed if not for the fact that the maid was approaching it, a mischievous glint in her eyes. She was definitely going to bother the animal. I tried to move, if not only to stop her, but I didn¡¯t quite manage. I summoned a mana ball instead and propelled it towards Elliot. It hit her right on the forehead, making her fall backward. It was very over exaggerated, but I wasn¡¯t one to complain if it stopped her from touching my little fox.


    Speaking of which, the fox was curiously examining the small ball of mana, before wildly looking around. Chuckling slightly to myself, I floated the mana up in front of the small fox¡¯s face, making sure it noticed it, before floating it slowly back to me. The fox obediently followed it to my still body. Casting [Mana Wave] with some of my mana, I closed my eyes as if unconscious or dead.


    ¡®Seeing¡¯ everything through my mana, I watched as the fox found me. It leaped upon me, yipping and barking in worry. It was¡­ endearing. Having enough, I opened my eyes slowly, as if I had just woken up from a nap. Sitting up, the fox had crouch down to gain enough balance to stay on my chest. The necklace in my hands wrapped it¡¯s way around its neck, giving it quite the shock. The fox was probably confused as to how I managed to bring it out of that dimension. I glanced down into its mana filled eyes, deep blue in color and shifting rapidly.


    My eyes were glued to the fox¡¯s as its eyes slowly changed color, becoming warmer in color. Yellows were poured in like water, dying its eyes green. More came, making it a yellower color, barely any green floating around. Then it seemed to darken as if light browns were being poured in. More yellow, more orange, more brown. It poured warm colors into its eyes until it huffed, satisfied. Its eyes were a light golden, shimmering in the light.


    I bet this was as close as I was going to get to looking in a mirror. As a vampire, I¡¯ve noticed I don¡¯t have a reflection. Quite disturbing, and quite possibly the easiest way for me to get discovered. I smiled down at it, amused at its antics. Then I realized that I still didn¡¯t know its gender. I decided to ask.


    But I couldn¡¯t, not without turning into a vampire. The only person I¡¯m comfortable with asking if I can suck their blood would be my mother, and she happens to be unconscious at the moment. But I need to know my fox¡¯s gender! Such a predicament calls for extreme measures!


    I floated my mana over to Elliot. ¡®May I suck your blood?¡¯ She looked to me, then back at the letters a few times. I thought quicky. The letters changed. ¡®I¡¯ll reward you with whatever you want.¡¯ She nodded vigorously, beginning to take off her maid outfit. My letters changed, trying to stop her. Alas, I was too late. Her outfit was already over her head, coming off quickly.


    ¡°Please give me 30 minutes alone with you later!¡± She asked selfishly with an energetic tone, showing me her neck for ease of access.


    I shrugged before coming up to her, barely managing to stand. I set my vampire state to the smallest possible terms, trying to still be able to control it. It didn¡¯t really work. My bloodthirst exploded from me full force, my 65% full blood meter appearing at the side of my vision like a health bar.


    My body lunged forwards, mouth open, fangs out. I caught the look in Elliot¡¯s eyes. Not one of disgust or fear, but one of pure¡­ seductiveness? Why in the seven hells is this woman attempting to be seductive to a vampire drinking her blood?


    I sank my teeth into her neck, listening to her breathing as I filled the storage. I would need to be more careful about it from now on¡­ She moaned softly into my ear, melting into my embrace. The meter on my left was nearing its filling point, so I stopped drinking so much. Elliot placed her hands on the back of my head, pulling it closer to her.


    I¡¯m not really sure if I want a harem of older women, though¡­ I¡¯d rather have some more my age¡­ Oh well.


    God, damn these vampiric thoughts out of my head. Oh well is not the correct response to that thought train! At least show some aversion, you perverted vampire!


    My thoughts were ignored as I continued sucking, even though my bar was full. From a third perspective, my eyes were probably filled with a lust that rivaled even Elliot¡¯s. For some reason, that gives me the chills¡­


    Eventually, my Vampiric state wore off, the lustful vampire retreating into my body. I pulled my teeth out of Elliot, licking the wound to heal it, causing another handful of moans. With that, I came to a realization that even I was surprised it took me so long to find out.


    Is a vampire actually the most erotic race?


    ¡­


    I shook my head, clearing it of all the happenstance situations with my erotic powers. I tried to remember my original purpose in doing this. I know for certain that it wasn¡¯t just to fill my blood. I took a step back, leaving Elliot on the floor. I saw the fox, and my memory rushed back to me.


    I knelt down to it and looked it in the eyes. I spoke my mind.


    ¡°What gender are you? Tap the ground once for male, twice for female.¡±


    She tapped on the ground twice.


    ¡°Alright. Do you have a name? Tap once for yes, twice for no.¡± I waited for her tap. ¡°Would you like me to give you a new one?¡±


    She hesitated. She seemed conflicted. I chuckled, attracting her attention.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. I just couldn¡¯t think of a way to learn your name, so I offered. Sorry.¡±


    She seemed worried, even more so than she just was. I began to laugh, finding her expression funny. She began yipping and barking at me as she realized that I was making fun of her, but that only made me laugh harder.


    I sat in a broken house, laughing my heart out next to my unconscious mother and half naked maid.


    Something is wrong with this picture¡­


    A small hint¡­ (Rose¡¯s POV)


    The door opened up. I wasn¡¯t sure who it was at first, but then I realized it was my mother. Stowing away the kitchen knife, I ran to jump into her arms. Her hood fell off when I hit her, revealing her pure white fox ears, twitching rapidly to the fresh air. As a beastkin in a city of humans, you always had to keep your identity hidden. I kicked the door closed, making sure no passersby could see either of us as I cuddled into her chest.


    ¡°Welcome home!¡± I said, the words muffled a bit.


    I could hear a chuckle from somewhere above me.


    ¡°I¡¯m home.¡± A comforting voice, like a warm drink in the middle of winter.


    I smiled, her voice running like water through my ears. I always loved my mother¡¯s voice. But today she sounded a bit¡­ worried? I should ask.


    ¡°Mother, what happened? You sound¡­ different than you usually do.¡±


    Another chuckle. ¡°I saw something unbelievable today! I know how hard you have been practicing your magic, so I¡¯ve been on the lookout for a suitable teacher! I¡¯m not all that great at it, I know, but on a carriage towards that old abandoned house, I saw a huge mana wave come from it! I think that whoever on that carriage should be able to teach you magic. I¡¯ll ask around with my coworkers and the guards. With luck, I¡¯ll be able to get you a teacher just for working some!¡±


    I was both glad and depressed at my mother¡¯s choice of words. I would love to learn magic, but I hate having to make my mother work for my failures. I have no talent with magic, so I need a teacher. I¡¯m a beastkin, so my mom needs to work to get me a teacher. Most people treat us beastkin no better than slaves, if not worse.


    As I think this, I remember that one vampire. After that incident, I spent quite a few hours at the library, trying to find out what he was. If it could give me even the slightest hint at finding that vampire¡­


    The memory hit me like a brick. Three boys. My wounds. Two broken legs and only one arm total. They boy¡¯s silhouette. His golden eyes. The explosion of mana when his eyes turned red. The¡­ explosion of mana¡­


    ¡°Wait. Mom, did you say you saw a huge wave of mana?¡± She looked confused but nodded.


    ¡°Did anything else¡­ unusual happen lately?¡± She nodded once more, her face going into ¡®rant¡¯ mode.


    ¡°Yes, in fact. There was this maid pinning a boy to the ground! I think she was even moaning, right outside the city! You could have heard her from the road! I wonder what she saw in that golden eyed boy? It must have¡­¡±


    I wasn¡¯t listening anymore. My mind was stuck on how she had described the boy.


    Golden eyes¡­ It¡¯s him! It¡¯s definitely him! I can see him again!


    ¡°I want¡­ No, I need that person as my teacher! Please bring me to that shack!¡± My body was shaking, in excitement and fear in equal amounts.


    I could see him again. I studied all about vampires and anything I saw, trying to find any last piece of information that would bring me to him. But now I had hope. This time, I would not be letting my prey go free.


    A little hint, rev. (Freil¡¯s POV)


    I arrived home today like normal, right on time. I heard the sound of Rose putting away the knife as I took off my shoes by the door. I turned to catch my flying child, my hood falling off during the impact. I shivered slightly as my ears adjusted to the fresh air. I had kept them cramped up in that cloak for too long. I cuddled my child and said my greetings.


    She must have heard the edge in my voice. I was still a bit distracted from seeing that carriage going that way. Nobody went to the ¡®witch¡¯s house¡¯ anymore, thinking it to be cursed somehow. Even worse, the carriage that went that way nearly dropped off the road from a blast of mana. The mana had come from inside the vehicle. Remembering Rose was looking for somebody to teach her magic, not having much luck on her own, I decided to find out who could have made that mana wave.


    I finished explaining my idea, but Rose looked depressed about it. I didn¡¯t say anything, but it was clear on her face. Then she surprised me by clarifying something I had said just a few seconds ago. She looked excited, to say the least.


    To accurately describe it, she was shaking enough for me to feel it without holding her. Her eyes were shining with so many expectations, and her smile had taken a small edge I wasn¡¯t sure I liked. It seemed almost¡­ possessive. Like a predator to prey. She asked if anything else had happened recently.


    I remembered the sight I saw before the carriage. A maid atop a small golden eyed boy, moaning like a demon in heat. For a second I had assumed they were doing something indecent, but I was incorrect. The maid was just moaning, rising in volume, as she stared at the small boy under her. I was ranting, I could tell.


    I was about to stop when Rose interrupted me, shocking me once more. She seemed even more different today than I did. As if something had taken over her body and willed her towards that house. For a few minutes, I had wondered if she was, in fact, being possessed, but her ecstatic face when I told her about the golden-eyed boy was unmistakably hers.


    Now, what has this child done to my adorable daughter? I remember the other day when she came home with the oddest of faces, like she had just been to hell and back, and thoroughly enjoyed the journey. She had a rivulet of drool dripping down her face, her hair was everywhere, and she was holding on to her right arm like she was glad it was still there. Her steps were shaky, and I asked her if she had been assaulted. Her response was the oddest part.


    ¡°Ah? I did get assaulted, in more ways than one¡­¡± A seductive grin and a small knowing chuckle completed the response, thoroughly making me rethink if I had gone wrong in teaching her to stay away from men.


    I pray to the gods that she is still pure. It¡¯s the only thing left I can do...

 Waiting for Something. Arc 0

    A Visitor, But Not a Stranger (Rayne¡¯s POV)


    I heard a knock come from the door. I furrowed my brow in thought, wondering who in their right mind would come to this old shack? I absorbed all the mana around me, not caring too much about how inefficient it was. I stood up, stretching my muscles as I started spreading my mana towards the knock. [Mana Eye], a subskill of [Mana Wave] was a better form of it, but it couldn¡¯t see a large portion of the area that [Mana Wave] did. It was enough for this instance, however.


    Two hooded figures, the smaller one shaking like they were cold. I assumed that would be the case, so I made my way towards the door, making some mana threads with one of my branch skills from [Mana Construction]. Weaving them into a large portion of cloth, I wrapped it around me like a cloak, covering my shoulders and head. It wouldn¡¯t last the full hour because I rushed it, but it would last long enough for my purposes.


    I swung from the pullup bar I had hung above the door here, as this was the only place stable enough to hold it. Letting go of it launched me out the door, surprising the two. My cloak fell off my head, revealing my features. Upon seeing me, the figure on the left began shaking even more violently, seeming like she was in the middle of an earthquake. The taller one looked to the shorter one.


    ¡°Is this him?¡± She asked, her voice flowing like a small stream. Very calming. I like it.


    I switched my focus to the shorter one, who had stopped shaking and was looking at me with two different colored eyes. Hmm? Where have I seen those eyes before?


    She leaped at me, arms outstretched to grab me. It was so sudden, I couldn¡¯t react to it in time, and was tackled to the floor. I pushed out some mana to protect my body from the impact, something I practiced yesterday. On the ground, those eyes bored into me like I was withholding something from her.


    I did nothing, not sure what to do. I turned away from her eyes, unwilling to activate the skill again without knowing who the other figure was. I turned my eyes to her, staying only a second before flicking them somewhere else. I heard the rustling of cloth and a small chuckle. It was the same voice from the question earlier.


    ¡°Seems like it. Only you can make my daughter act like a wild animal¡­¡± The fox woman sighed, putting a hand to her forehead in exasperation. Her brown hair contrasted with her white fox ears quite well. Her eyes were both purple. For a few seconds I thought of the chances of the genetic defects that would cause her daughter to have a green eye, but gave up quickly when I realized that my mother had ice blue eyes, and both of mine were golden.


    How confusing.


    A few minutes passed, but the scene changed dramatically. I was sucked into another world. Specifically, the world of the girl¡¯s bicolored eyes. Most would believe that green and purple don¡¯t go together, but this world would prove them wrong. It wasn¡¯t a meadow, or a cave, but a mountaintop. The snow blanketed the mountain, showing a reflection through each of its crystals of a purple sky. The sun shone down with a light green light, bright, but not to the point in which it would hurt your eyes to stare at it. The green sun seemed to be on fire, which would have made sense normally, but this was a bit odd. Instead of being a spherical ball of fire in the sky, this seemed to have a spherical core and the flames around it rose to the heavens. Contrasting the dark purple sky, seeming to have endless depth.


    Looking at it objectively, there was a green fireball in the deepest abyss of purple night. The colors shifted, switching between each of them. Sometimes when I blinked, the sky would be green and the fireball would be purple. The purple fireball seemed to have its flames inverted, casting down as if scorching the earth.


    As I watched on, entranced by the dance of colors in the sky, I realized that it had been far too long. I looked around for something out of place, a color that shouldn¡¯t be there. It took me a minute, but I found a small golden patch of grass.


    At the bottom of the entire mountain. Sighing with exasperation, I began to run. My stats stayed the same, so I should have some stamina and all my agility from before. I also have my health bar, so that should work just fine if I perhaps trip and roll the rest of the way down the mountain.


    Ten minutes later, I ended up at the golden patch. The mountain was not all that tall, if you rolled down it like an idiot. It took me most of the time to just recover from all the nausea and dizziness. I need to do that again eventually.


    The golden patch wasn¡¯t really any different, besides the color. Short grass went up to my ankles, tickling slightly as I walked. The patch was quite large, expanding probably a few hundred feet in every direction. I waited for something to happen, but nothing did. I had no instincts to go anywhere, so I just began crafting there. I had access to four colors of mana. Purple, light green, gold, and silver. I felt like I had to use them all, so I made two different things, each with their own two colors of mana. Earrings were what I decided to go with this time, not really worrying if she had pierced ears or not. I could pierce her ears by myself if need be.


    I forged the tiny pieces with the utmost of concentration, but not rivaling that of which I had in the icy cave. The small pieces to make sure that they didn¡¯t fall out were the most difficult pieces, but I managed somehow. The rest of the time I attempted to think of a name. I failed so many times it wasn¡¯t funny. But when the window popped up, I managed to type in a name within a minute.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    (Left) Living Silver (Right) Golden Abyss


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Owner: Rose Liana


    Creator: Rayne


    </td>


    <td>


    Description: A pair of earrings made specifically for the first person the creator saved.


    </td>


    <td>


    Effects: (Left) Vit +5, Str +12, Agl +7 (Right) Int +7, Wis +5 Per +15


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I was quite amazed at the amount of effects that the earrings gave. It upgraded both sides of the stats. 50 extra health is actually quite a lot.


    I didn¡¯t have much more time to think about it, as I was then transported back into the real world. Underneath a moaning girl.


    Is it possible for me to seal away my eyes? I don¡¯t want this erotic power.


    I gave her the earrings, ignoring her ecstatic remarks as much as possible. I really think there should be a skill that comes with that type of meditation. I need to put it into practice more. Maybe it¡¯ll level up my [Advanced Meditation] skill. That would be good. That skill takes so long to level up. It doesn¡¯t help that I suck at meditating.


    I guess I¡¯ll just have to try and use it to the point where it gives me a skill.


    A Summary (Another Power¡¯s POV) [5/3960 days until Eve]


    After that, Rayne went on to do that as another daily thing. He tried it with his mother, Rose, Elliot, and even eventually Freil. For some reason he didn¡¯t really feel that awkward doing it to any of them, including the mother and daughter pair, probably due to influence from his vampiric side. Honestly, he wasn¡¯t sure whether he should thank it for keeping him from dying of embarrassment, or punch it in the face for deciding his sexual interests. This train of thought was mostly followed by sighs.


    Back to the main topic, he leveled up [Bewitching Gaze] very quickly, leaving each of them panting from their libido afterwards each time. Needless to say, all of them soon found themselves looking forward to that time during the day. His daily routine went (Mostly) as such:


    4:00 am --- Wake up, begin morning exercises. Morning exercises: 50 sit ups, 50 push ups, 50 pull ups, 75 laps around the shack (About a mile or so).


    ~7:30 am --- Finish morning exercises, recover by abusing OP boulder. Begin meditation.


    8:00 am --- Gain one mana point by using [Overcharged], attempt to stop the explosion that is caused by it.


    8:30 am --- Fluffy time with little fox, still unnamed.


    8:45 am --- Begin training with the ¡®Eye Meditation¡¯. Early morning erotica.


    10:00 am --- More exercises. 2x morning exercises.


    ~5:00 pm --- Recover, relax. Maybe read a bit.


    7:00 pm --- One more mana point.


    7:45 pm --- Miscellaneous training to level up skills.


    9:00 pm --- Attempt to find more branch/subskills for any skill while playing with fox.


    ~9:25 pm --- Sleep. (With the fox)


    Repeat.


    Doing this for so long leveled him up leaps and bounds. But he didn¡¯t get much experience. A total of 300 Exp was gained throughout the entire time. That was when his [Mana Wave] fully evolved into [Mana Eye], and when his [Bewitching Gaze] reached level 10, evolving into [Enticing Gaze].


    355 days have passed, for a total of 360 since Rayne¡¯s birth. 1 month. While I regret not having taken notes, I shall attempt to recall the main things that happened this past month. The first 6 days I shall skip since you already know of those adventures.


    Day 7 is where this story starts. Rayne had settled down in the small shack, it becoming a daily occurrence to travel there and meditate by the mana recovery boulder, reveling in its slightly over powered effects.


    He worked on his body tirelessly. Or maybe he didn¡¯t. He spent about ten and a half hours a day working his body to its limits, with recovering as best he could near the OP boulder in between the two sessions.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    ALL TIME STATUS UPDATE (Whoops, forgot Caps lock was on...)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    PER +85


    WIS +74


    INT +93


    FTH -47


    LCK +5


    WPR +-0


    END +448


    STR +541


    DEX +634


    AGL +631


    VIT +41


    LDS -4


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Rayne


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: 3


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience needed: 2/600 (99.67%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [3240/3240]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [847/800] (0.47)


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [1360/1360]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: Vampire


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [0.1/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [0.356/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [7.2/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Blood [100%]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength


    569


    </td>


    <td>


    Endurance


    492


    </td>


    <td>


    Luck


    15The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    </td>


    <td>


    Perception


    137


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Dexterity


    652


    </td>


    <td>


    Agility


    649


    </td>


    <td>


    Intelligence


    123


    </td>


    <td>


    Wisdom


    108


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Leadership


    4


    </td>


    <td>


    Vitality


    54


    </td>


    <td>


    Faith


    -64


    </td>


    <td>


    Willpower


    86


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    Skills:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Blood Drain (Max)


    Gain stats based off of amount and quality of blood drained.


    </td>


    <td>


    Persuasion (8/10)


    40% chance to persuade people to your side. Lessens if they know about the situation.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Sense (19/100)


    Sense mana. Max range: 10 miles. Blood range: 100 miles.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Advanced Meditation (46/100)


    Recover mana 1000% quicker, regain stamina 8000% quicker. Regen health.


    </td>


    <td>


    Enticing Gaze (1/10)


    Stare into people¡¯s eyes and activate their libido and filling them with strength. Every Vampire needs a harem.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Eye (20/50)


    Sense anything within your mana as it spreads outwards.


    Goes through walls. A chance to inspect through hiding.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana Condensation (3/5)


    Condense mana from the air. Maximum density: 2x


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Construction (76/~)


    Shape your mana into anything.


    This skill can evolve.


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="4">


    Effects:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Sunlight Weakness


    5% less Strength in sunlight.


    </td>


    <td>


    Disease Immunity


    Immunity to any disease debuffs.


    </td>


    <td>


    Blood Drinker


    Grants Max level skill [Blood Drain]


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Body


    All Spells deal 20% more damage.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Vampiric Body


    Sets Hp/sec to 1, if over 1, 120% increase.


    </td>


    <td>


    Overcharge (Max)


    Overcharge your mana capacity, increasing it permanently by 1 every 100 extra.


    </td>


    <td>


    Boulder


    2x Hp and Sp regen.


    4x Mana regen


    </td>


    <td>


    Wanderer


    Increase Stamina by 50 points


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Repaired Body


    Multiply Hp based on the number of times you have fully broken your body and healed.


    Current: 6x


    </td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Titles


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Wanderer ¡ï


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Erotica Defined


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    By working his body to the point where he literally began draining health and then some, healing gained him the effect: Repaired Body. This multiplied his total health based on the number of times he healed his fully broken body. Just saying, it is not a 1:1 ratio. Try 15:1. Rayne knows his limits now, having broken his body over 90 times.


    He had to fill his blood bar 4 times a day, but not by more than a few percent each time. He didn¡¯t want to fall below 95% at any time. Elliot and Avalina divided the times so they weren¡¯t too weak at any point in time. Rose and Freil were the ones taking the bloodsucking every other day, just so that they could feel it as well. After all, for some reason sucking their blood would spike their libido, making it about as pleasurable as a few other activities I can think of. Putting it in the words of little erotic vampire here, they were delicious.


    Over the month, all of them now produce more blood than an average human would. Without Rayne to help drain them down, they would overflow with their own blood. Or they might not. We don¡¯t exactly have the consent required to experiment. I don¡¯t think they would last that long without the feeling of Rayne doing his vampire-y things to their bodies. They can replace a pint of blood in four days, compared to the 2 weeks it takes otherwise. A pint of blood is about 10% of Rayne¡¯s blood bar for Avalina, about 13% for Elliot, about 14% for Rose, and the best one was Freil, who managed a huge 24% per pint.


    Along with all of the skill levels, [Mana Construction] gained some subskills, as did [Advanced Meditation]. Let me attempt to recreate the windows.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana Construction (76/~)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    A skill with many, many uses. Shape your mana into anything. Upon breaking, the mana that made up the shape will last on the object for up to a day before evaporating into the atmosphere.


    This skill has no definite maximum level.


    This skill can evolve and branch off.


    Evolutions found so far:


    Mana Armor


    Mana Weaving (Max)


    Mana Constriction


    Mana Forging (Max)


    Mana Armory


    Mana Bolas


    Mana Enhancer


    Mana Weights (Max)


    Mana Familiar


    Mana Weapon Mastery


    Living Mana


    Mana Jewelry


    Mana Construct


    Molecular Mana


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Let me explain the ones that are new.


    Mana Weights are as they sound, making heavy weights out of mana. These require no focus to keep, and if you want to increase or decrease the weight you just have to do the math and take away that much mana. It also allows increasing the density of solid mana, practically allowing smaller weights that weigh much, much more. Rayne uses these every other day during his morning training, putting an extra 5 pounds on each limb. This takes a total of 12 mana, 3 for each limb.


    Mana Familiar was a branch skill gained when he brought the fox back from Avalina¡¯s eyes. While he made the necklace, {Zinnia of Unbroken Bonds}, he was also unconsciously filling the fox with mana, perfectly replicating it with mana in the real world. The next skill also came from this.


    Living Mana, the skill that gave the small fox life. The mana that had soaked into the fox had intentions, unbeknownst to Rayne, to bring it back with him when he left. So it began to ask questions. The fox couldn¡¯t understand, so the mana soaked into the fox''s soul itself, absorbing all the knowledge and absorbing it. It gave it to the fox in the real world, afterMolecular Manarecreated its body. It only seems to work with willing souls, and it needs a mana body. Two very difficult requirements.


    Mana Weapon Mastery was a skill that had been created after Rayne was training with a mana sword, mainly just to work his muscles. Eventually he started chopping wood, just to give himself something to hit, and the skill just progressed from there. All it really does is help him whenever he¡¯s trying to do anything with a mana weapon.


    Mana Jewelry is quite obvious, but not as much as you would think. This skill was acquired after Rayne had created his tenth piece of jewelry. But it really mainly helps with forging, a sub skill of a sub skill. Smaller details are simpler to add, making it helpful for both making jewelry and for making sure that a blade is sharp.


    Mana Construct is something that is a bit more complicated. Coming from the name of the general skill, this skill literally creates anything out of mana. The denser the material, the harder it is to create. But the scientific approach behind it is that it forcefully creates bonds between atoms and molecules, building something out of the materials that are in the air. There is no skill called Mana Deconstruct, Rayne tried that already. But he can make things much faster when he uses existing materials. It¡¯s pretty much mana glue, on a molecular scale.


    Molecular Mana is just as it sounds. It was technically used before Mana Construct, but it was used unconsciously so the skill wasn¡¯t made. What this skill does is it races through something, memorizing the molecules and atomic structure of an object, storing the information. When used with Mana Construct, it can perfectly replicate any object, including enchanted ones. Rayne found this skill when he was attempting to inspect something, and decided to fill it completely with mana, just to see what would happen. The amount of information almost overloaded his brain, giving him a two-day migraine.


    Now let¡¯s look at the other skill.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Advanced Meditation (46/100)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    As it sounds, this skill allows for advanced meditation, increasing regeneration speeds by large multiples. With increases in level, come increases in multiples.


    Stamina Multiple: 800x


    Mana Multiple: 100x


    Health Multiple: 40x


    In order for the multiples to work, you must have 100% concentration. Branch skills may be created to help you achieve this in¡­ difficult situations. Or they may even boost it over 100%, allowing you to take the most out of anything.


    Evolutions found so far:


    Walking Meditation


    Hypnosis Meditation


    Cryo Meditation


    Bewitching Meditation


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Let me explain:


    Walking Meditation is a skill Rayne gained while he was walking with his mana weights on all the way to the city. He needed near 100% concentration to keep the weights from bursting out of his control at the time, so he had to fall into a meditative state while he was walking. This skill makes your steps smoother when in a meditative state, allowing you to stay in there longer.


    Hypnosis Meditation is something not even Rayne knows how he got, but he was staring off into space before going to sleep once, and fell into a meditative state. That¡¯s pretty much it. It allows a bonus to the 100%, making all the multiples go up by a few times.


    Cryo Meditation is a meditative state in which you are unable to move, but gain a small boost to the multiples. Like, an extra 10% to the multiples.


    Bewitching Meditation is the greatest one so far, gained through leveling his [Bewitching Gaze] to level 10. It puts him into the same type of worlds he was going to, decided by eye color, where he can meditate at 1000%. It also makes the original skill, [Bewitching Gaze], 10 times as potent. This was a lot of fun to watch when he got it in the middle of Elliot¡¯s turn. He didn¡¯t realize until after it had ended, but by then it was too late to help her.


    I suppose it is time to explain what¡¯s happening in the world right now, isn¡¯t it? Well, now that Rayne is one month old, by his request, he is going to school. His fox will be going with him, to learn all the words and everything like that. He still needs to learn her name. I suppose he was a bit too excited to see Eve again that he forgot about it.


    Obviously, the little fox didn¡¯t like how little attention she had received this past month. Just some pets or play sessions that never lasted more than 30 minutes.


    He was always too busy training. He could at least have asked her if she wanted to run with him. It¡¯s not like he would be going very far from the house. In fact, he¡¯d never be more than 100 feet from an entrance point, if you take into consideration all the holes in every wall. And those were only the human sized ones. Tiny fox-sized ones were pretty much every two feet.


    Alright, I would pass the POV onto Rayne, but it seems we don¡¯t have enough time to get into anything good, so I¡¯ll just pass it onto Eve, and let her do some explaining about what might or might not happen next!


    A new title? Whatever could you be talking about? Now, Rayne, you don¡¯t want to do something you would regret¡­ Hey! That hurts! Ouch! Stop! No! Mhmmmhmhhmhhhhh!


    To Eve:


    A Very, Very Lost Child (Eve¡¯s POV)


    I awoke with a scream. Or a cry, whatever you want to call it. I remembered dying, then I woke up. Something I realized very quickly, that sent me even further into becoming a crybaby, was that I could see.


    ¡°Oh, what beautiful golden eyes! Aren¡¯t you just adorable¡­¡± I could hear a voice, cooing over me from above. I looked over through my tears, glad that I could see, but gladder that I thought I knew who the voice belonged to. My mother.


    I never had a mother. She died during childbirth. My father got up and left as soon as she died. From the stories Rayne had told me, he never wanted children. He was only with mymother because he wanted to use her like a prostitute, except he wanted it for free.


    Seeing my brown eyed mother looking down at my form with such gentle eyes was it for me. Tears flowed out of me like water, not stopping for an hour or two.


    I finally had a family. But something was missing from my heart. My brother, Rayne was dead. He was the only one who stayed with me, no matter what. He protected me from the people in slums. He died for me. I died for him. We belonged together.


    So why wasn¡¯t he here, by my side?


    A few days have passed since then, and I spent most of it reading. I didn¡¯t bond much with my family, as whenever I looked at them my heart began to hurt that Rayne wasn¡¯t there. Books calmed me.


    I could read with my new eyes, but they never had any happiness in them. Golden eyes filled to the brim with emotions. Rage, distrust, the feeling of being betrayed, heartache, sorrow, and so much more. On an emotional rollercoaster, my car had broken down at the end of the drop.


    I wanted him by my side. It¡¯s all I¡¯ve ever wanted from my life. A few weeks, in this world, have passed. I¡¯ve read every book in the city. Now I have nothing to distract me from my thoughts. I¡¯m forced to think about him. His voice. How his face felt. I remember every little detail about him, except for what he looked like. After all, I¡¯ve never seen him.


    Today, my parents were talking during dinner again. They always gossip during dinner, but nothing really seems all that interesting. Stupid things like ¡®The Elder gave away one of his maids to the witch! Do you think he¡¯s gone senile?¡¯ ¡®One of the carriage drivers was relieved from his position the other day! What do you think happened?¡¯ ¡®I heard an explosion when I was on guard duty! It came from the old witch¡¯s house! Don¡¯t you think that it¡¯s cursed?¡¯


    But something they said had caught my attention today. ¡°Yeah! I saw him too! There¡¯s a rumor going around about some golden-eyed boy who seduces women on the streets and rapes them without even touching them! How horrible, for a child to do that to somebody!¡±


    ¡°Golden eyes? Like mine?¡± I spoke on instinct, my brother¡¯s lesson of asking questions becoming a habit.


    After the first few seconds of shock, my parents began speaking to me about him. ¡°Yes! Make sure you stay away from him if you see him! There¡¯s a rumor that he can impregnate women with a glance! I wouldn¡¯t want your purity stolen by some glance, would you?¡±


    I chuckled, a small portion of happiness shining through my blockade of sorrow. Shaking my head, we continued the conversation about that boy. I don¡¯t know why he seems so familiar to me. Have I seen him before, without realizing?


    I shook the thought away. I¡¯ve barely been out of the house, what is the probability that I¡¯d see him?


    ¡°They say he¡¯s going to school here when he comes of age! Some girls are actually moving just to stay away from him! Golden-eye demon, they call him¡­ I don¡¯t think we have enough money to move, though¡­ I¡¯m worried, Eve! Please stay away from that boy!¡± She pleaded with me.


    Carefully weighing my options, I shook my head with a smirk. ¡°I¡¯m afraid that¡¯s not going to happen, mother. I¡¯ve become a bit interested in this Golden-eye demon. I¡¯d like to make sure the rumors are true, before acting rashly and regretting it.¡± Rumors are, most of the times, 98% false. Something Rayne always said to me.


    The smile fell from my face as I thought about him. Oh, how I missed him. But I felt some hope now. I wonder why, but this golden eyed boy makes me feel warm inside.


    Another few weeks, for a total of one month since my birth. I was taller now, 4¡¯6¡±, about the same height as a 7-year-old. School was about to start. But my mother stood in front of the door, not letting me pass.


    ¡°I will not allow you to go to this school when the Golden-eye Demon roams free! I¡¯ve called the guards to take him to the dungeon, so it won¡¯t be long until you can go to school. Don¡¯t worry, they will certainly find that demon guilty of something!¡± My mother was resolute. But I knew better. I had grown to looking forward to meeting this Golden-eye Demon. After all, it¡¯s impossible to impregnate people with a glance. He¡¯s not guilty of anything, so the guards can¡¯t do anything.


    My mother is worrying, but at this point in time, she¡¯s wrong. I¡¯ll get to school somehow, I promise. Whether I just tell my mother the truth, or if I have to escape in the middle of the night, I want to meet him.


    No, I need to meet him.

 Academy of Broken Dreams. Arc 0

    A short piece of the past. (Rose¡¯s POV) [325/4280 days until Eve]


    I panted, Rayne going over to the boulder to think on what he learned. We had just finished our ¡®session¡¯, so I needed some time to recover. My mother was sitting down next to me, closer than she had ever been before when I was in this state.


    She placed a hand on my shoulder as a form of reassurance.


    It didn¡¯t exactly go as she planned. I screamed out in pleasure, every part of my body too sensitive for my own good. My body spasmed against my will, robbing me of my movement. I could barely manage to curl into a ball, trying to hide my face.


    At least I still had my reason and wasn¡¯t trying to do anything I would regret.


    Much later, I walked in on my mother sitting in front of Rayne, sounding angry. It was the first time I had heard her sound angry, so I hid and tried to hear what they were saying. I could only hear a few words here and there. Something about staring and sex.


    A few minutes went by, the angry words getting softer and softer. They stopped all at once, the silence filling the air. I didn¡¯t know what was going on anymore. After a minute, I decided to take the risk of looking at the scene.


    Rayne was doing his ¡®session¡¯ with my mother. My first feeling was jealousy. But I quickly put that aside for my more important thought, why is he doing it with my mother?


    From what I can remember, my mother hated it when he did it to me, saying something about how improper it was for me to show that side of me. I spent another minute wondering how exactly this counted as anything of that sort.


    But then I saw that she was trying to resist it. I think she was attempting to find some way for me to not end up like that every time. I smiled and left her to it, knowing deep in my heart that she would just end up like me in the end. Nobody could resist those eyes for long.


    Two days later and she succumbed to it. She was brought into the schedule with the rest of us. I can¡¯t help but feel a sense of ¡®I told you so¡¯ whenever I look at her. A slight sense of rage is also there since now I have to wait an extra day for my session.


    But it¡¯s fine. We¡¯re all one big happy, slightly erotic, family. Or maybe we aren¡¯t. As long as Rayne is here, I¡¯ll be fine.


    In fact, wouldn¡¯t I get more sessions if the others just¡­ disappeared?


    A small laugh escaped me as I slowly turned down the yandere path, nobody noticing enough to stop me.


    School? No way! (Rayne¡¯s POV) [5/3960 days until Eve]


    I¡¯m one month old. Right about now is when I¡¯m supposed to be going to school. Keyword: Supposed.


    You really think you can put me back into that hellhole?! I¡¯ve had enough of school for two lifetimes! All those people, talking and making remarks about every little thing.


    Who cares about my choice of clothing?! I was poor! I couldn¡¯t afford new clothes! You think I¡¯m going to buy some $800 shoes just for show when that money could feed Eve for a few weeks? Hell no! I can¡¯t stand them!


    I grip the walls as my mother pulls on my right leg, Elliot taking the left.


    ¡°You will be going to school! It¡¯s not an option! If I¡¯m taking the time out of my fun sessions with you, you will be using it on learning about what you want to do in your life!¡±


    ¡°I already know what I¡¯ll be doing! In fact, I literally can¡¯t do anything else! There¡¯s no point for me to go to school! I don¡¯t wanna!¡± The words poured out of my mouth, sounding childish even to me. Not that it stopped me from continuing.


    ¡°I hate people! They¡¯ll ask me questions! And I really don''t like answering them!¡± Emphasis was placed on the ¡®really¡¯.


    Mana exploded through the room, dwarfing my huge stores from my vampiric transformation.


    ¡°YOU WILL BE GOING!¡± My mother boomed, the very air shaking from her voice.


    My fingers lost all control, going numb and cold from fear. I was torn from my spot, dragged into one of the more¡­ whole rooms. Curtains were strewn across some of the holes, to preserve any privacy possible in the poor condition of the house. It didn¡¯t really help that the curtains were also full of holes. Everything in this house was old.


    One day I would have enough mana to fully repair this house. I already spread my mana into every piece of wood, so I know how much I would need for the remaining pieces. In order to fully repair this house, it would take around 509,648 mana. Probably not that specific, but oh well.


    However, repairing this one room was well within my capabilities. I was not going to get changed with 4 women watching me from the holes in the walls. My mana exploded from me, filling the holes in the walls. I activated my knowledge of the correct sub-skill, {Mana Construct} and {Molecular Mana} to turn the mana directly into the wood that the rest of the house was made of. The curtains were also repaired, having no frayed parts or odd stitches.


    I nodded, satisfied with my work. Locking the door, I began to change into the school uniform. At least I don¡¯t have to worry too much about trying to figure out what type of clothes to wear. I¡¯m more concerned with a number of disappointed voices I could hear from multiple ladies as they realized I had fixed the walls.


    With my school uniform on, I looked over it one last time. A mainly white suit, gold trimmings at the ends of each standalone piece of cloth. Things like the two pieces of cloth that folded away from the V-shaped neckpiece, or the collar of it. It was honestly a white tuxedo with gold trim. The pockets, at least, were actual pockets. But they weren¡¯t much larger than ? of my hand to fit into. They might be good for holding an ID or something, if I get one.


    I miss having a jacket with large pockets. Those were the best. I wore them all year long, even when it was too hot to wear them.


    The pants of the outfit weren¡¯t much better. This time, there were outright no pockets in general. At least the pants were a shade of light brown instead of white. I would have been seriously doubting any form of keeping the outfit on if they were made out of materials that would get dirty on the walk to school.


    ¡°Hmm? Or is an academy? I think it¡¯s an academy¡­¡± I couldn¡¯t help myself and began muttering as I thought over the differences between the two. I¡¯ll refer to it as an academy from now on.


    Exiting the room earned me some gasps. I straightened out my sleeves and puffed out my chest, making the pose of somebody who had found some new land. I stayed like that for a few seconds, enduring the laughs as best I could. Eventually I broke out of character and joined them. I scanned the room, looking at the four women. The fox wasn¡¯t there, but I knew she would turn up eventually. I felt a feeling of euphoria as well as a little bit of an unknown feeling. Over the past few days, they had come to terms that their ¡®sessions¡¯ would no longer happen.


    But I was happy they still helped me. I bowed deeply, speaking with both my mana and my voice.


    ¡°Thank you all for being with me this past month. I¡¯ll be going now.¡±


    ¡­


    Yeah, I know. I¡¯m not all that great at expressing things through words, alright?! Luckily for my pride, they teared up, at least faking their emotional discord. I gave an awkward smile, not sure what else to say. Scratching the back of my head for another few seconds, I caught the sight of something running at me full speed.


    I caught the little fox as it leaped at me, wondering why it was so distraught. It barked and yipped at me impatiently, tiny little tears in its tinier eyes. After spending nearly a month with it, I developed some sort of translation to this tiny animal.


    ¡°You want to go with me?!¡± I turned to the others, as if asking if that was a thing. They shrugged. ¡°Well¡­ Not to disappoint you or anything, but I don¡¯t know if they allow animals in the academy¡­¡±


    Another few yips. ¡°The- They are? Oh, alright then, let¡¯s go!¡± I was actually glad to have her come along. I thought of something. ¡°But you should pay attention to the teacher, so that you can find a way to tell me your name!¡± I pointed a finger at the fox, close to her nose. She playfully bit it, barking an affirmation.


    I waved backward, towards the four who were silently watching, as I left. I was walking to the city, as another little bit of training, I could do every day. A 2-hour walk, you say? That was a month ago. It takes me 15 minutes, walking, and 3 minutes running to get to the city. It gives me a nice view of the sunrise and sunset each day.


    I suppose I should explain how school works. It is mostly just a portion of your day in which you are ¡®suggested¡¯ to interact with others and study your dream job. It lasts from 20 minutes after sunrise to 2 hours before sunset. It allows people to wake up from the morning sun and still get ready, and then give them time to play without worries of the sun being down. I mean, school in this world doesn¡¯t really ¡®teach¡¯ you per se, rather, it gives you a little push on studying on your own.


    Honestly, this sounds like the best teaching system a school could have. Without teachers and peers constantly teaching you material in a classroom, where you feel like an idiot if you ask a question, you study at your own pace here. Which means you can request help at any point in time, without feeling like you are less than adequate in terms of academic capabilities.


    See how I used big words there? It impresses people if you do that, so they are less likely to pick on you and ask questions. A big mistake is that, by using those words aloud, you seem like a reliable person that people will ask for help from. So, you don¡¯t use too large words. Just enough to make you seem a bit smarter.


    You also don¡¯t show any of your powers. I¡¯ve already limited myself to only using 20 mana. I¡¯ve even turned it into a bracelet that I can use to make my letters. Having leveled [Mana Construction] so much, each letter, made from solid mana, is only ? a point of mana. So I can make up to 60 letters at a time, using liquid mana. I¡¯ve already come up with some excuses about the solid mana bracelet, since children can''t utilize it until 1 year old. I¡¯ve forgone some of my meditation time these past few days making this and my backstory.


    I am the son of ¡®the witch¡¯, who made me this bracelet to talk with, as a form of helping me control mana. It¡¯s something that only I can use, but it contains enough mana for me to create words with. I¡¯ll also take some more time when summoning my words, sometimes even closing my eyes for effect. Honestly, just the part about me being the son of the witch, as my mother is called, should be enough for my story to be believable. After all, she¡¯s the greatest prodigy in mana control since the birth of the king.


    I sat down, near enough to the gates for them to see me, but far enough away that I had a perfect view of the sunrise. My little fox sat down next to me, mimicking my actions as she stared off into the sunrise as well. I rested my hand on her fur, feeling its softness. I still had another 5 minutes to waste until I had to get up, so I decided to watch the sunrise with her.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.


    ¡°I¡¯m really far away from home, aren¡¯t I?¡± I whispered, looking up at the still dark sky. If I looked closely, I could barely see one of the two moons still in the sky.


    The small fox at my side whimpered, hearing the amount of thought in my voice. I petted her for a few seconds, giving it my full attention, before my thoughts turned back to my old world. Even if everything there was multiple times worse than it was here, I still missed it. Or, more accurately, I missed my simple life with Eve. Sure, it was hard work and painful, but it was simple. No worry about making sure my mana didn¡¯t kill somebody, stealing a god¡¯s power from other gods. No worries except for getting money. That was easily solved by getting a simple job, so it doesn¡¯t even really count. Another year and everything would be fixed. Eve would get the operation, she would see again, we could live our life in peace and harmony.


    I looked to the sun. I had spent too much time here.


    ¡°Come here, I¡¯ll need to run.¡± I extended my arms to the fox, who was all too happy to leap into them. Grasping her tightly so she wouldn¡¯t fall, I began to run towards the center of the city, where the academy was located.


    A high-class building, it towered over the rest of them. Honestly, it would be better to call it a tower, as it extended nearly 400 stories tall. It was just huge. Pointlessly huge. Half of the stories hadn¡¯t been touched in years. But this year, they say, all of the stories will have at least 10 students in them. Having 4000 students is quite the feat, I must say.


    Each story required you to climb a flight of steps to get to. So whoever is on the 400th floor, will be needing to climb 400 flights of steps. It¡¯s actually an endurance test to get to class. I¡¯m somewhat surprised.


    I reached the bottom of the building but was held up by a huge line of students. At least 200 of them had arrived, making me look to the sky. It seemed I was actually a few minutes early. Instead of putting down the fox in my arms, I began to pet it as I sat down, not expecting the line to move for a very long time.


    I was half right. The line didn¡¯t move for a long time, but it moved all at once. The first 100 or so people rushed forwards, leaving me rushing to follow the people who were filling in the gap created. I hurriedly stood, nearly throwing the fox to the side as I sprinted the short distance. She barked at me, offended I nearly tossed her aside. After some apologies, she calmed down and settled back into my arms for some more petting. I caved in and followed her wishes. The scene had gained me some attention, but I didn¡¯t bother looking around.


    Nearing the front of the line, a man was standing at the gate just before the building with a clipboard. He looked me over once, freezing for a second once he saw my eyes. Are golden eyes all the special?


    ¡°Name and age?¡± He asked, shifting the writing utensil in hand.


    I put out my right wrist, which had the bracelet on it, and used the mana to tell him both of those things.


    ¡°Normally now would be where I ask you to spell it, but it seems you did that already¡­¡± He said with a dry tone as he finished writing it all down.


    ¡°Rayne, you have the 400th floor. Wait, what? We haven¡¯t even filled up the first floor¡­¡± He commented, but it seems he had hisorders. I looked to the top of the tower, grinned, and began walking. Or climbing. Whatever you want. Lots of stairs were involved.


    Nearly 30 minutes later, I reached the top floor. 400 flights of steps is a lot of effort, especially taking them all without breaks. My legs were burning from the strain, and I got two points in endurance. But, because of how much stamina I have, I wasn¡¯t even out of breath. About a third of the way up, the fox who had been climbing with me up until then begged me to pick her up and carry her the rest of the way. I chuckled a little bit before complying. After all, I aim to please.


    Walking into the classroom, I was a bit surprised to see nobody in the room. I wasn¡¯t surprised to see no students, but even the teacher wasn¡¯t there. The tower wasn¡¯t actually circular, but it had 20 sides. A icosahedron, or something? One of the sides had a door, the others all had windows. At least, every other side that I could see. Two large stone walls blocked off - I quickly counted the number of sides I could see - 12 sides, so 60% of the floor. A door adorned (Ha, get it? A door a-door-ned. No? Ok¡­) one of the walls, probably leading into the other portion of the floor.


    But I was not yet done examining this room. 5 two-person desks were aligned with the same number of windows, covering all on that side of the door. A bookshelf was aligned with the other stone wall, next to the window next to the door.


    *Be careful, there are very complicated details that are completely unnecessary in here, as well as some details missing that should be there for accurate map making.*


    Alright, that was complicated. Let me just describe a map for you. A regular icosagon, a twenty-sided figure. Starting from the very top, the right side, that wall is labeled ¡®1¡¯. Continuing clockwise, each wall is assigned the next number in the line. ¡®3¡¯ is the door, it opens outwards, onto a 4 foot wide pathway that follows the wall, becoming a flight of steps just before ¡®4¡¯. Walls ¡®2¡¯ through ¡®9¡¯ are the outside walls of the room I¡¯m in, with the dividing walls continuing towards the middle between ¡®9¡¯ and ¡®10¡¯, as well as between ¡®1¡¯ and ¡®2¡¯. About 1 foot from wall 4, there is a desk that extends towards the middle, it¡¯s measurements being 2 feet wide, 8 feet long. Copy and paste that shape, still extending towards the middle, for walls 5, 6, 7, and 8. Wall 9 does not have a window, same for wall 2. Label the two dividing walls ¡®A¡¯ and ¡®B¡¯, ¡®A¡¯ being the one between 9 and 10, ¡®B¡¯ being the one between 1 and 2. ¡®B¡¯, on its right side, inside the room I¡¯m in at the moment, there is a bookshelf spanning approximately half the wall, centered perfectly. It is about a foot in width, I¡¯d say about 6 feet in height.


    In the next room, using the door on wall ¡®A¡¯, the hinges connecting to walls 9 and 10. It swings both inwards and outwards. Inside this room, there are bookshelves. Each of them has the same measurements as the one in the other room, except instead of spanning half the wall, they cover each wall completely. At the corner, where walls ¡®A¡¯ and ¡®B¡¯ meet, there is a table. It would be a circle, but there¡¯s two walls in its way. (¡®A¡¯ and ¡®B¡¯) As it stands, the table stands about 3 feet off the ground, and fills in 4 feet to the wall, making a 60% circular shape, with walls ¡®A¡¯ and ¡®B¡¯ cutting into it. Wall 10 has no bookshelf, but walls 11-1 do. Climbing atop one of them, there is no triangular space, meaning the bookshelves are actually trapezoidal prisms in shape.


    *Alright, all the stupid details and measurements are through*


    I returned to the main¡­ actually, it¡¯s only 40% of the floor. Doesn¡¯t that make it the lesser room? I¡¯ll differentiate between them by calling this one the ¡®Classroom¡¯ and the other part the ¡®Studyroom¡¯.


    I returned to the Classroom, and sat down at the farthest desk back, staring out the window. I was high enough above the stairs I couldn¡¯t see the people unless they were freakishly tall. The sun had fully risen by now, casting a nice yellow glow on the city below me. Nobody was coming to the classroom yet, it seemed. I cracked my knuckles, creating a satisfying popping noise, before crossing my arms on my desk and lying on them.


    No need to worry, I wasn¡¯t going to fall asleep or anything, just rest my eyes¡­


    I awoke to a large amount of yipping. Or, more accurately, I was jolted awake like I had been struck by lightning as a yip louder than thunder sounded in my ears. I put my hands over my head and pulled back, afraid of the karate chop that was coming.


    Nothing came for three seconds, so I unclasped my hands and looked around. I wiped my mouth with my sleeve, making sure I was slightly more presentable before taking in my surroundings. My little fox had awoken me, I was sure of that, but where was she now? I saw a girl near my desk begin to run across the room, a series of muffled barks echoing behind her. Still half-asleep, it took me a second to realize that she had kidnapped my fox.


    Once again, I was still half asleep. My coordination wasn¡¯t all that great, my senses were dulled, and my reason was a bit laggy. So I am not to blame for the amount of damage that I wrecked. I pushed my chair back, not hearing the clatter as I lunged forward at the girl. Stop! Foxnapper!


    Alas, my 500+ strength stat is not something that should be used when half asleep. My lunge carried me forward at a speed unimaginable for such a small body. The girl was tackled to the floor, my fox barely escaping the same fate. Well, ¡®tackled to the floor¡¯ doesn¡¯t quite give it the same effect. She was hit by a speeding bullet of white, the momentum carrying her halfway across the room as the football-player-tackle knocked the breath out of her lungs. The fox was ripped from her arms like a bolt of lightning. One moment it was there, the next it wasn¡¯t.


    The sound came afterward. The chair hit the ground, clattering with a large amount of racket. Then the burst of wind tore through the room, blowing papers into the air and flipping pages on open books. Then the girl¡¯s scream from the pain. That one was cut short, though, as she lost consciousness.


    Holding the fox in one arm, I used the other one to rub my eyes. I yawned, covering my mouth with my hand. I looked back to the girl, wondering if she was alright. Noticing that she was unconscious, I set the fox on my head, making sure it was stable before picking the girl up, princess style. Again, 500+ strength makes something like this near nothing in terms of difficulty.


    She was light, though. I probably could have lifted her even with my measly strength that I was born with. What was it again? 6 strength? Something like that.


    Skinny, not much muscle on her body. Short brown hair that didn¡¯t go below her shoulders, but long enough to send the impression of femininity. Her eyes were closed, so I wasn¡¯t sure what color they were. However, I also wasn¡¯t sure whether or not to be happy that they were closed. Her face was delicate, almost fragile. Like porcelain from a doll.


    I tossed her into the seat in front of mine, too tired to care about the details. It was the only seat open,besides the one next to mine.


    My mana made my thoughts come to life. ¡®I¡¯m tired. Wake me up if something important happens.¡¯


    I lay down in my previous position, the fox still on my head. From a third perspective, it was quite serene.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Hello? You should wake up for class¡­¡± I could hear a voice gently stirring me from my slumber. Judging by how I felt, it seemed only a few minutes had passed.


    Without moving, my mana gave voice to my words. ¡®No.¡¯


    A few seconds of silence. ¡°Could you at least introduce yourself?¡±


    A few seconds passed without a movement from me. I was contemplating whether or not it was worth the effort to follow her orders. Then, as I had spent enough time awake, my brain kicked in. I stood, disturbing the fox on my head. It yipped in annoyance for being awoken in such a crude way.


    The mana on my wrist began to pulse as I remembered to use it for once.


    ¡®My name is Rayne. Nice to meet you.¡¯ Sweet, simple and to the point. I looked to the person who asked me to introduce myself, and it was a nervous woman, looking to and fro with worried eyes.


    ¡°I¡­ I suppose that¡¯s good enough for now¡­ I want you to make some friends this month! No exceptions!¡± She stopped stammering at the end, making a cute little yell that sounded more like a squeak. But it was what she had said that gave me a little bit of worry.


    ¡®Ma¡¯am, we are supposed to have 10 people in this class, correct?¡¯ After her nod, ¡®Then why are there only 9 people here?¡¯ ¡®Nobody seems to have sat next to me.¡¯


    She seemed to have just come to that realization, as she began to show the same worry filled eyes and stuttering like a record on repeat. ¡°Ah! A- ahh, u-umm, umaaa¡­¡± I was surprised. She actually perfectly fused together the first two noises she had made into a third.


    She was obviously thinking as quickly as she could. Running back and forth while doing so, however, wasn¡¯t the smartest of ideas. She kicked the leg of a table, falling flat on her face.


    I couldn¡¯t hold myself back anymore. Even as an invasion of privacy, I [Inspect]ed her.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Effret Loli


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: ??


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience needed: (%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [???]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [??]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [800/1437]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: H??u????m?????a?n?????


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [?/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [??/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [10/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Satiety: 72%


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength


    102


    </td>


    <td>


    Endurance


    304


    </td>


    <td>


    Luck


    74


    </td>


    <td>


    Perception


    ????


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Dexterity


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    Agility


    68


    </td>


    <td>


    Intelligence


    ???


    </td>


    <td>


    Wisdom


    ??


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Leadership


    109


    </td>


    <td>


    Vitality


    ??


    </td>


    <td>


    Faith


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    Willpower


    ?


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    Skills:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    ???


    </td>


    <td>


    ??


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    ??


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ???


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ??


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="4">


    Effects:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Clumsy


    More prone to accidents involving the body.


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ???


    </td>


    <td>


    ????????


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Titles


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    <td>


    ?


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    ??


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I couldn¡¯t hold back my laughter. I couldn¡¯t see many of her stats, but the ones I could see were hilarious. Her last name was ¡®Loli¡¯ and the only effect I could see was legitimately ¡®Clumsy¡¯. Her agility, endurance, and strength were all much lower than mine as well.


    This was going to be an interesting teacher.

 With Anger, There is Regret... Arc 0

    Friend, you say? (Rayne¡¯s POV) [5 days until Eve]


    I was being scolded by the teacher. Not much else to say about the current situation. The foxnapper was still unconscious, the other students were either looking down upon me or reading their own books. Seems like I have a class half full of bullies and half full of stuck up rich kids who like to read. How disappointing.


    Apparently, I was mistaken as a rude student who laughed when their teacher fell, even though that¡¯s only half right. I am a rude student, but I was laughing because of her last name. Well, I suppose I should actually describe my teacher in detail, to make the joke have meaning.


    She has a very childish face and an even more childish figure. She¡¯s almost my height, her hair somehow going down to her waist. She looks like she could be no more than 11 years old, talking earth terms, a perfect example of a loli-baba. Pretty much an older woman who has the appearance of a younger one. Although, I refuse to ask her age. Her uniform, if you care to call it that, is quite the scene. Like, a disaster scene. A light blue¡­ dress? It seemed like my suit until it got to the waist, where it split into four parts. It was like an upside-down four-petaled flower. She also seemed to be wearing pants underneath it, but I didn¡¯t have the time to study them.


    ¡°And you! Stop laughing at me! Looking down on your teacher, how terrible!¡± She was pouting, her cheeks puffing up cutely. Another chuckle escaped my lips, more at my own thoughts than her actions.


    ¡®I¡¯m sorry, but I think you are mistaken.¡¯ ¡®I was not looking down on you.¡¯ ¡®I was laughing at something else.¡¯


    The same stupid grin was on my face the entire time, even as her eyes went wide. It was then that I realized my mistake.


    The mana I had used to create those words were solid. That grin broke apart like shattered glass, as a look of horror washed over it. The mana went back to being liquid, in a futile attempt to hide my powers.


    ¡°Was that¡­ so- Mhhm!¡± My teacher attempted to spoil my secrets. I stopped her with a hand.


    ¡®Of course not, you¡¯re imagining things.¡¯


    At least I made sure that it was liquid mana this time. I felt so stupid for revealing my powers so thoughtlessly. But for now, I could hope that the other children didn¡¯t see it. Taking a quick look around, it seems that my hope could just end up being the truth.


    I removed my hand slowly, the teacher staying silent this time. She had a look I couldn¡¯t quite understand or describe. My own was filled with confusion. It had been a long time since I had found somebody that I couldn¡¯t understand.


    I shrugged. I could save that for a later time.


    Class, so far, is really uneventful. Most of today was just self-introductions, which I happened to have slept through. The rest of it was pretty much some simple self-study time since the teacher had ¡®some things to think about¡¯.


    I was bored, to say the least, as I didn¡¯t have anything to do. The other students ignored me, including the foxnapper. I had already read all the books here over the past month, visiting the library occasionally when I had the chance.


    At least my little fox was happy with any amount of petting, so I graciously granted her requests. It was pretty much all I did for the twelve or so hours I was there, earning me more than a few glares from the foxnapper. I''m actually almost positive that she just wanted to pet it, but I couldn''t really apologize now that I assaulted her, now could I?


    Much later I walked out of the classroom, ready to descend the steps, without learning a single name or having a full sentence spoken to anybody but the teacher. Honestly, I don¡¯t even think I saw the other students. My mind just blotted out everything that happened in that class. At least I didn¡¯t have an actual class because I would have certainly forgotten everything from it.


    The walk down the stairs was certainly boring, so I decided to ¡®spice it up¡¯ a bit.


    The wind buffeted me as I plummeted to the ground. Stupid, you say? Well, I have just the response to that.


    Did you expect anything different from me?


    After leaping from the 397th floor, I let out a yell of pure adrenaline as it filled my system like a drug. Quite the simile, I must say.


    The winds whipped at me like steel wires and hammers, blasting my skin back as it tore through my body. My clothes were blowing behind me, leaving a trail like a comet.


    Once I was nearing the ground, the journey there not nearly as long as I desired, I reached my hand out to the side. Bracing myself for the impact, I screamed out as I felt my shoulder dislocate.


    However, I have gained an effect for breaking my body so many times, so my fingers stayed clamped shut throughout the pain. But even so, it surprised me. The fall was not only much faster than it should have been, I fell with a lot of force. Before grabbing onto the ledge, I had put all of my mana into my arm, making a sort of gauntlet to absorb the shock. But it still dislocated my arm.


    I was probably no higher than 7 floors up, gripping onto the edge of the walkway with four fingers on my left hand. Judging the distance I would have to fall compared to the distance I would have to walk using the stairs, I began to slightly sway myself back and forth.


    Gathering enough momentum, I flung myself towards the wall and dug the fingers of my right hand into it, slowing my fall enough for me to get off without many injuries.


    I had my dislocated shoulder, which I cradled gingerly, afraid to hurt it more, but that was about it. Kicking the wall with a misplaced step, I cursed myself in my head. Make that a dislocated shoulder and a stubbed toe.


    I waited at the bottom of the steps for my fox, who had taken the smarter path of walking down them. At least she had a shred of common sense.


    I look upwards as I hear a loud, somewhat familiar, bark. The fox is falling, just as I was doing a second ago. Standing quickly, I leaped to catch her. I made it with quite a bit of space left, but that didn¡¯t stop me from thinking what would happen if I was too late.


    I take back my statement. She doesn¡¯t have any common sense.


    But at least on my way home I see the sky that had donned its fiery cloak before night.


    Nothing really changed back at the shack. The girls were all talking, Freil reading a book I didn¡¯t manage to see the title of. Dinner was ready, by the smell that permeated the air around me.


    I managed to conceal most of my eagerness to eat, not wanting that to be the first thing on my mind after school. Did I mention that they don¡¯t serve lunch there? They give you permission to go out into the town, it seems. But you have to get permission from the teacher, so it would have been difficult today anyhow.


    The girls stopped talking as I came in the room, looking away from me. I was instantly suspicious. These women loved my eyes. There should be no reason for them to look away from them.


    ¡°Alright, what¡¯s going on?¡± I asked, my vampiric transformation coming easily. I still had 91% blood, so I should be good in terms of keeping control.


    A clap from behind me startled me, making me turn around. Freil had noisily shut her book, holding the spine and closing her hand. She stood up from the half-repaired chair, creaking loudly.


    ¡°Freil, is something wrong?¡± I asked, staying on guard in case she began throwing fists. Old habits die hard.


    ¡°Nothing, Rayne. Just a bit concerned.¡±


    ¡°About what, exactly?¡±


    ¡°You.¡±


    ¡°Oh. Might as well stop now. I¡¯m hopeless.¡± I responded, voice full of sincerity. People had told me that before. Never really ended well for them. A few therapists were even called. Pro tip, therapists can¡¯t fix a deficiency of common sense.


    ¡°I¡¯m¡­ actually not sure what to say about that¡­¡± My mother spoke up, sitting in the chair Freil had just stood from. A few more seconds of creaking ensued. I was quite annoyed by the noise, so I fixed it. The chair was filled with mana, making me take a few seconds because I didn¡¯t want to fuse it with my mother.


    Repaired, I opened my eyes, snapping out of my meditative state.


    The sight was something that I wished I could take a picture of. With that thought, Mana exploded from me. 2 mana left, I slowly walked forward. A slight wind blew, shaking the fire on each of the candles. No, not shaking. Dancing.


    A simple cake was all it was, but it brought tears to my eyes as I memorized the scene with my mana. Filtering through every molecule, every atom of the scene, my mana learned.


    Two words were said in unison. ¡°Happy Birthday.¡±


    The tears I had been holding spilled out.


    I woke up the next day, tired. I had stayed up, reveling in the joy that my birthday had toted along. My hair was in a disheveled nest on my head, bobbing precariously as I yawned and stretched my neck. Rose was next to me on the bed.


    Lifting the blankets slightly, I sighed in relief. Both of us had our clothes (Mostly) on. Nothing happened last night. Probably.


    Right on time, Rose began to stir and wake up. She was close to the edge of the bed. A devious grin appeared on my face, my scheme being slowly put into play even this early in the morning. A hand snaked around her waist, pulling her closer to me and away from the edge of the bed.


    After all, I didn¡¯t want her to fall¡­ But I was more interested in seeing her embarrassed. After all, she was the one who was always on the offensive. So I, as a side project, wanted to see her reaction to my advances.


    It wasn¡¯t quite what I thought it would be. Instead of questioning my actions or getting embarrassed, she just snuggled closer to me, placing her hand softly on my chest. Aaaand¡­ yup, there¡¯s the embarrassment. This seems to have backfired.


    After a few minutes I realized she had actually fallen asleep, so I lay her back down on the bed and began looking for my fox. I wanted to know if she had somehow figured out some way to give me her name.


    After looking for nearly a minute, she was still nowhere to be found. I was getting slightly worried by now since I had checked the entire house twice. I began to walk around the house, jumping slightly to get over the jagged shards of wood sticking up from the bottom of the hole I left from. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!


    Circling the house twice, she was nowhere to be found.


    I noticed something. The fox may have been gone, but so was everybody else. [Mana Eye] began to expand in size, covering a large area around the house. It was still a bit before sunrise, giving me a solid hour I would usually use on my morning training. This time, however, I was not in the mood to be training my body when my family and Freil is missing.


    I ¡®saw¡¯ something off. Upheaved dirt a bit further away from the house, patted down with small indents that looked familiar. Handprints. Somebody had dug something up here, then patted down the dirt over it.


    My body wasn¡¯t moving. I was shocked stiff. A few bits of information hit me at once.


    Rose, lying next to me in bed. I¡¯ve never allowed anybody to touch my bed before.


    How little she cared when I held her. She almost was expecting me to do it.


    The missing members. Could she have known that they were gone? Would she still be able to sleep in my arms like that?


    The dirt that poked a few inches above its original position. I¡¯ve dug holes before, and there seems to be an interesting phenomenon. There never quite seems to be enough dirt to fill the hole, even if you just lift the dirt and place it back down.


    There was something buried under that dirt. I had a feeling, digging into my stomach like a shard of glass, that I knew what it was. My body, following my orders, began to move. Slowly, much too slowly. I was wasting time and I knew it. If they were still alive, they would be losing oxygen fast, but here I was, walking over there at the speed of a slug with a nail through it.


    A minute had passed, but it felt like an eternity. Tears streamed down my face. I couldn¡¯t move my legs. They were locked in place, unmoving and yet shaking. The mound was two, maybe three steps away. My body felt like it was slowly turning to stone.


    Mmh. I think this is the feeling I should have felt a long time ago. Rage. Despair. Grief. Terror. My heart couldn¡¯t decide. Neither could my brain. Time slowed down, quite perceivably. I felt my movements be restricted once more, only my eyes and brain working at full capacity.


    I looked at the facts. The sight before me. I perceived my emotions. Carefully, like unraveling a large tapestry by pulling a single thread, counting each moment of resistance. Like untying a large bundle of wires, keeping your hands behind your back.


    Pain. What I came to realize was that I hurt. My heartbeat slowed, each beat pounding in my chest like a drum. No, a sledgehammer. My ribs felt like they were shattering, the shards stabbing every part of me.


    It was all fine, though. I could move. I could, at the very least, see them off. I began to dig with my hands, uncaring for the rocks that sliced and tore through my skin. My blood watered the earth. My hands dug a hole as if to plant something.


    But the hole grew deeper. The ground stopped holding the liquid, pooling it into the hole. I had dug a few feet by now. I was close. I didn¡¯t even really need to use my [Mana Eye] to tell that something was just under this dirt.


    Wood splintered as I hit it with my fingers, tearing at it. Eventually, I managed to get through the wood, to be met with a sleeping face. The blood in the hole I made painted it red in an instant.


    ¡°Aww, you found them so fast! As expected from my Rayne, you know me so well!¡± I heard a female voice from behind me. Turning to find Rose, my vision kept fading in and out.


    I turned into my vampiric transformation, not bothering to check my blood levels. My vision stopped shaking, focusing on Rose. I was furious. She buried three people and the fluffiest fox alive. No, even worse. She buried my family, Freil, and my fox.


    She didn¡¯t deserve what she had now.


    I would make sure she never had it again.


    She would not be leaving this property alive.


    But I couldn¡¯t move. I had the resolve. I had the facts. I had my anger.


    I didn¡¯t have the motive. I still had too many memories of this girl.


    She came closer, slowly running her hand across my chest. Two different colored eyes looked back up at me. But they were alien to me. One was stark red, contrasting to the other one, which was a dark blue. Both were filled with feelings I had seen in her often this past month. Lust and euphoria.


    But one was there I hadn¡¯t seen recently. It was pure and utter insanity. A flash of a thought slammed into me. One of her covered in blood, standing over a few other girls. What did they call those again? Yanderes?


    I would have shaken my head as I cleared the thought, but I was still unable to even flex a muscle. My arm began to rise, slowly, against my will, towards Rose. It caressed her cheek, slowly moving down her body. Her neck. Her shoulders. Tracing her collarbone. Finally, to her breast.


    It hovered there for a second, not quite touching it yet. Rose stepped forward into it, placing her hand over mine. Normal men would probably have stopped by now, explaining some of her lack of control.


    Go back and put some emphasis on ¡®normal¡¯, would you?


    My hand lurched backward, snapping as I tore out of Rose¡¯s grasp. I took a large step backward, not wanting to be near her. I took a small amount of mana out of my hand, taking absolute control over it.


    I realized something over this month. When you take mana out of your body, it takes a small amount of extra mana to keep it out. A minuscule amount, with hundreds of zeros after the decimal before the first ¡®number¡¯, but still some. By doing something I like to call ¡®Absolute Control¡¯, you are able to do anything with that small amount of mana. That includes having it stop draining that extra mana. The effect of doing this? It isn¡¯t a ¡®part¡¯ of you anymore, meaning that even if somebody can completely control your actions, they still can¡¯t control that amount of mana. It takes insane concentration for me to do this to even a single point of mana, but in times like this one, it¡¯s worth it.


    Just after I did that, my body froze up again. The mana I took control of would slowly dwindle away, but I left it some orders before making it. It took off in a flash, completely bypassing Rose¡¯s attention. My body began to move against my will, but that just meant that I could focus completely on moving that single point of mana.


    ¡°Ahh, Rayne¡­ I forgot to tell you¡­ I¡¯ve taken control of your body. I can make you do anything I want you to do, anytime I want you to do it. Of course, I¡¯ll ask permission first, but don¡¯t blame me for still doing it if you say no. So, may I take our little ¡®session¡¯ a few steps further?¡± She asked, her hand dangerously close to my crotch. I didn¡¯t respond, knowing that would give her the most pause.


    My mana reached the hole I had dug and began to check through each and every body. They were all alive, so it began hitting my mother in the face lightly, but with enough force to make her wake up with a groan and a sputter, a few drops of my blood dripping down her cheek.


    Rose stopped, probably hearing her. I had to take her attention away, so I began talking.


    ¡°Rose¡­ What have you been studying these¡­ this past month?¡± I spaced my words out more than I usually did, as well as speaking louder than usual. I had to let Avalina know that it was dangerous, as well as stall for time.


    ¡°Me? Oh, you never realized, did you? Always too busy to pay attention to the one¡¯s who love you¡­ I was studying on how to get a god¡¯s attention. Specifically, Teagls. You know, the god of Lust and Revenge. I figured it out! All I had to do was kill the other ones who were after you! His blessing was what allowed me to do this.¡±


    I was confused. I had no information on this god. I wondered if he was one of the minor deity gods.


    Once again, I couldn¡¯t shake my head to clear my thoughts. I settled for just blinking viciously for a second.


    ¡°I¡¯ve set runes in your body, written in my own juices. I hope you like them¡­¡±


    This succubus.


    ¡°I¡¯m not so sure¡­ I would much rather they be written in your blood.¡± I spoke, lying like second nature.


    ¡°Ahh! How could I forget! You¡¯re a vampire, of course, blood would have been the better choice!¡± She yelled, gripping her hair and glaring at the sky.


    I don¡¯t remember her being this much of an airhead, to think that a vampire wouldn¡¯t like blood. I can feel him getting excited inside me just from the thought.


    But this is the end for this thorny Rose. (Ha! Puns!)


    A blast of mana ripped through the area in front of me, space itself seeming to ripple. I felt the bonds on me shatter, leaving large wet patches of something I¡¯m pretty sure I don¡¯t want to touch.


    As soon as I felt this, the large surge of anger the runes had been holding back burst out from me, knocking away the mana. Nothing was left of where Rose had stood, making me feel both relieved and angrier. I wanted to kill her myself. But I didn''t want to hurt her. Looking down, I felt disgusted at the liquid dripping down my body.At least I wasn¡¯t in my school uniform. School should be starting soon, anyway.


    I looked at the sun, just as a little bit of confirmation. It was long past sunrise, nearly an hour. But I had work to do before going to school. So I reached down, picking up my tiny mana point, before reabsorbing it. A very tired looking Avalina held one of her knees as she crouched down, attempting to catch her breath.


    I helped the others out of the earthy coffin, making sure not to injure them further. I asked Avalina, with a heavy heart, to tell Freil about her daughter when she wakes up. I got changed, not worrying about spying. The mood was a bit too solemn for that. Hungry, I would have to find something to eat on the way to school. It¡¯s been awhile since I had meat, I might have to try and find an animal to catch soon.


    A little hint about our financial status. We haven¡¯t been into town the past three days because we don¡¯t even have the money to pay the 2 copper toll. My father, if you can call him that, works as one of the guards, but he does nothing about our finances. I looked into it. Guards get paid every day, but he says that he only gets paid once a week. The money he gets ¡®paid¡¯ is just a few copper, but Avalina can¡¯t do anything to him. As a guard, he is technically part of the empire, making an assault upon him pretty much a declaration of war. In case you haven¡¯t noticed, having 2 mages, a maid, and an accountant for a carriage company does not count as a full army.


    I sighed as I finished buttoning the shirt, straightening the cuffs of my sleeves. If I let my arms hang, they completely covered my hands, but I liked them. I could make rude hand gestures without people noticing like that.


    Since the sun had already risen, I ran as soon as the fox woke up. Reaching the school only took four minutes, with an extra two for climbing the steps. If I run up them, I can go nearly 4 at a time. I burst into the room, panting softly from over exertion. My mana bracelet was fully formed, and it made my thoughts form.


    ¡®Sorry, I¡¯m late.¡¯


    It was probably quite the sight. I was sweating slightly from the run, my hair ruffled and sticking up in various places. The fox on my shoulder was giddy, probably high on adrenaline, wide-eyed and yipping at random intervals. My breath was loud in the silence I had interrupted so rudely.


    But nothing could compare to what I saw, standing in the middle of the room. A little girl, in my school uniform, staring at me with bright golden eyes. My breath, already ragged, was stolen from me by her beauty. Now, I wasn¡¯t really one to judge by looks only, but this tiny girl was beautiful. Stunningly so. My eyes were glued onto her.


    She smiled at me, and I thought for a second it felt familiar. Tears leaked out of her eyes, swimming their way down her cheeks. She fell to her knees, facing me. One word is all she spoke before I recognized her and rushed forward to hold her.


    My name, ¡°Rayne¡­¡± between sobs. I was shocked. No, dumbfounded. No, flabbergasted. No. I was heartbroken but felt it heal.


    Nothing could have mattered at that moment. A meteor could have struck the school, I could have been stabbed through the heart, I could have spoken my first words in this life, but it wouldn¡¯t have mattered. It wouldn¡¯t have mattered at all if my first words in this life were:


    ¡°Eve¡­¡± In a voice deep and gravelly, choked down by sobs of my own.


    A Tearful Reunion. (Effret¡¯s POV)


    A teacher. A demon. A failure. A runaway.


    So many titles. So many faces. So many people. All of them are me.


    Let me explain. Four days ago, a student in my class, no more than a month old, used solid mana. For a second I wondered about his talent, but then I dismissed it. Using solid mana before at least 4 months old was impossible. I have a child in my class that wasn¡¯t human.


    I was scared of him. If he inspected me, he could find out my species. At the very least, he would know I¡¯m not human.


    I left immediately. I knew I couldn¡¯t avoid him forever, but I could try my best.


    He didn¡¯t come to school after that. I was dying inside, worry that he had already found out and was telling someone eating me up.


    But he did come back, eventually. A girl, with the same golden eyes as him, walked into my classroom, asking me if she knew somebody else with the same color eyes as her.


    I was shocked speechless. Of course, I couldn¡¯t quite answer. I thought she might be asking around for the teacher of the boy. Maybe he didn¡¯t see my name or something.


    Alright, I¡¯ll admit it. I wasn¡¯t quite thinking straight. The girl was the same age as him, so what could she do to me? But I was still scared. Scared of the person she wanted to see. I opened my mouth to reply, but it was dry. Swallowing audibly, I tried to calm myself. The girl was patient, not asking again.


    I heard a loud thumping sound, coming from behind me. Or, maybe I didn¡¯t. But there was somebody climbing the stairs at an astonishing rate. The door slammed open, hitting the wall with enough force to dent it.


    Mana, liquid this time, formed into words. Such a familiar scene. ¡®Sorry, I¡¯m late¡¯. How many times have I said that one, even when I wasn¡¯t? I looked back to the girl as if to show her it was him, but she was already walking towards him. I stepped away, watching silently. I could feel something was about to happen. What, I did not know, but I knew that I must not interrupt them.


    Tears. A reminder of my own past. Falling to the ground like rain. Sobs, deep and heavy. This girl was truly heartbroken. I, at the very least, should know. Through her sobs, she called him. The entire class was stunned. A girl, asking for a missing student, only to break down in tears when she finds him.


    Swiveling my head quickly, as if to not miss anything important, I saw him crumble. His exterior, always hard and heavy like a shield, melted away. Tears flowed from his face, adding to the rain that had already fallen.


    A word. A single word was all that he spoke. But it carried so much weight. Mountains crumbled beneath that word. The seas rushed in, a great current slamming the tower. The wind howled, slicing into the earth and spreading the waves. A great inferno raged, razing villages and forests alike. All in a single second, as if the world itself was bending down to that word.


    Her name. An embrace. Tears rushing like rivers. An overwhelming pressure, a sense of worthlessness. All of this was laid before me, and I shattered.


    What a worthless fairy queen I am...

 ...With Regret, Comes Doubt... Arc 0

    Higher Cliffside... (Eve¡¯s POV)


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to go home¡­¡± I whispered into Rayne¡¯s ear. Sitting on his lap as the solution of an argument between him and the teacher, I had the ease of access. The setting sun bathed us in its golden red light, alone in the room.


    ¡°Then stay with me. Don¡¯t leave me again¡­¡± He whispered back, the intensity of his words only matched by his grip on my waist. A smile spread across my face. I had missed these words, this grip, this feeling.


    I missed him. But just those words couldn¡¯t match up to the feeling in my chest. This was the person who had cared for me all my life, bearing the weight of even death to protect me a second longer. The person who spoiled me with anything I wanted, even if it meant sacrificing his own money. My family. My brother. My everything.


    I relaxed my body further, releasing my hold on every muscle, every tendon, every ligament. I didn¡¯t need them in his arms. He was waiting for my response, his heartbeat racing against my back.


    ¡°Of course. Promise.¡± My voice was even quieter this time, but still the loudest thing in the room. The sun was nearing the horizon in the distance, time rushing away like a flowing river. But the river was long, giving me seemingly infinite amounts of freedom.


    The silence between my response and his next words was long and taut, stretching to the point of breaking.


    ¡°Would you follow me there? To hell and back? Even¡­ Even if I was no longer human?¡± He seemed distracted. Distant, even. His heartbeat had gotten even faster, awaiting my answer like a piece of iron awaits the blacksmith¡¯s hammer. My words would decide our fate here.


    ¡°Rayne. What do you believe is the strongest being in this universe?¡± I asked, awaiting his answer. It was short and quick in coming.


    ¡°The gods.¡±


    ¡°Then, Rayne. I ask of you, would you abandon me if the gods themselves were attempting to kill me?¡± His heartbeat was slowing down, a good sign.


    ¡°Of course not.¡± The response was instant, shooting down my doubts as if they never existed.


    ¡°Then I shall follow you. The full powers of hell and heaven may try to split us apart, but I will still follow you. Being human isn¡¯t a problem in this discriminatory trash pile,¡± I spat out my words with venom, disgusted at this world. ¡°But, even if you were below everything else in the social structure, I would reach down a hand and pull you back up. If that was not possible, then I would drag myself down just to be with you.¡± My words conveyed much more than they should have, dragging out even my most hidden feelings.


    There was silence for a while, this time my own heartbeat being the one I felt speed up. I felt a hand remove itself from my waist, tracing a line up my side to my neck.


    ¡°What do you know about vampires?¡± Rayne asked me, a slight bit of humor tickling his words. I chuckled softly as I realized what he was talking about. I leaned into his hand, tilting my head the other way to reveal all of it to him.


    ¡°Go ahead¡­¡± My voice wasn¡¯t quiet this time, trying to show my resolution to be with him through volume.


    I felt something other than a finger trace a small line on my neck, going back and forth a few times. A blush formed on my face as I realized he was licking my neck, his breath chilling the skin slightly. My body tensed a slight amount before his other hand began to hold mine. I relaxed once more, awaiting the moment when his teeth pierced me.


    It was much more than I had expected. All the references from vampirism showed their victims screaming in pain, but that was not what was happening here.


    As he bit into me, my skin showing little resistance, it felt like somebody had injected me with adrenaline. My blood raced through my veins, my skin tingling like electricity was coursing through me. My breathing came in ragged gasps, each one creating a small puff of white vapor in the air. Everything around me seemed to have cooled down quite a few degrees, while I heated up. My face flushed, drool running out of my mouth from the overproduction of saliva. My hand clamped shut like a bear trap, every muscle in my body tightening far more than I should have been able to manage.


    All in all, it was quite erotic, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Not much was taken from me, but I held him there for a minute or so after he was done, forcing him to give me more of the feeling. My body spasmed lightly every few seconds, just a small tremor rocking through me. Dopamine and Oxytocin were produced in tandem, quickly sending pleasure waves through my body.


    I breathed out heavily, leaning forward slightly. His tongue licked the bite marks, causing another spasm. I tried to recover quickly, but it seemed that my body wasn¡¯t up for that. Neither was my brain, to be honest. It had pretty much gone blank at the time.


    A blue window appeared in front of me, my eyes seeing but not reading. As I just said, my mind was a bit¡­ addled. After maybe five minutes or so, I had recovered enough to read the window. Although, another one seemed to have popped up while I was recovering.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    New Title: Deserter of Humanity


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    By deserting Humanity of your own free will, you have gained the title: Deserter of Humanity.


    When equipped, all humans will have an instinctual feeling of disgust towards you. All other races will welcome you. Also, gain +6 vitality.


    Since no other titles are equipped, this title has been.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    New Title: Fulfilled


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    By having no more wishes left, you have gained the title: Fulfilled.


    When equipped, all stats increase by 10% per wish you have. Up to 10,000%


    A title is already equipped. To change your title, visit the nearest shrine.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Status


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Eve


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: 4


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience needed: 1050/1200 (12.5%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [580/580]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [122/122]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [1018/1018]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: Human


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [0.7/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [.054.sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [5.41/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Satiety: 83%


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength


    386


    </td>


    <td>


    Endurance


    350


    </td>


    <td>


    Luck


    24


    </td>


    <td>


    Perception


    214


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Dexterity


    573


    </td>


    <td>


    Agility


    487


    </td>


    <td>


    Intelligence


    102


    </td>


    <td>


    Wisdom


    142


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Leadership


    12


    </td>


    <td>


    Vitality


    58


    </td>


    <td>


    Faith


    28


    </td>


    <td>


    Willpower


    78


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    Skills:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana Transfer (3/50)


    Transfer mana between any two compatible storages.


    </td>


    <td>


    Clairvoyance (1/100)


    Chance to predict the future correctly.


    </td>


    <td>


    Spellbook (Max)


    Permanently memorize any spell that your body uses.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Transmute (1/~)


    Use mana to change one thing about something.


    </td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="4">


    Effects:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Deserter of Humanity


    +6 Vit. Fear from Humans. Welcoming from all other races.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Body


    All Spells deal 20% more damage.


    </td>


    <td>


    Otherworldly Vision


    Immune to ¡®Blinded¡¯. Reading is 3x as fast. Semi photographic memory to sights.


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Titles


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Deserter of Humanity ¡ï


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Fulfilled


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Let me explain some things here. Three of the skills, minus [Mana Transfer], are original skills. I made them by experimenting with my mana and/or powers.


    [Clairvoyance] allows me to ¡®see¡¯ slightly into the future, in the form of visions. This was something I got for thinking I would meet Rayne at school. How that works, I have no idea, but I got the skill for it so I was good.


    [Spellbook] came from me memorizing each and every spell that I had used, somehow ending up with a skill that did it for me. Each spell now appears as a sub-skill for it, allowing for me to be able to just say its name and it will cast. Really saves time, if I have my hands behind my back or something.


    [Transmute] is the complicated one. There was this one flower in the windowsill at home, but it was dying. It was really pretty when it was blooming, so I fed it some mana on impulse. A few days later, one of the petals had grown to full health. I fed it enough mana for the petals to turn silver, and the skill was gained. That flower now blooms all month long and feeds on ambient mana in the air. At least, that¡¯s what I gained from watching it.


    The effect: Otherworldly Vision, refers to my eyes. As soon as I was old enough to use mana (about 3 days old), I enhanced my eyes. It was probably just me getting a bit drunk on the ability to see things, but it worked out pretty well. It takes 1 mana from my maximum, but that¡¯s fine with me. I can easily take the mana out at any time, but I can see so much more now. I can zoom, see mana with a little bit of concentration, read books at insane speeds, memorize nearly everything that I see, inspect people, see through clothing, etc. Alright, scratch that last one. I can¡¯t see through clothing. Although, I would like to see how developed my brother is¡­


    I swiped the windows and the delu- thoughts away. A small scowl showed on my face. I was picking up my brother¡¯s habits. Looking back to the person in question, he seemed to be looking at something in front of him. Waving my hand in front of his face, he blinked twice.


    ¡°Brother? What¡¯s wrong?¡± I asked, honestly confused. He didn¡¯t have his normal thinking face.


    ¡°Ah? Oh, I was looking at the stats I gained from that, as well as the title. Pretty cool stuff.¡± He seemed to be evading saying anything about them with some skill. I narrowed my eyes at him, knowing that he must be concealing something important if he didn¡¯t share it with me.


    ¡°And those are?¡± I questioned, trying to sound as innocent as possible. It worked, temporarily.


    ¡°The stats I gained were 6 endurance, 3 strength, 5 dexterity, 2 leadership, 1 vitality, 12 perception, 4 intelligence, 10 wisdom, and 2 faith.¡± He responded, reading it off in monotone.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t catch the title¡¯s name, could you repeat it for me?¡± I asked sweetly, knowing full well he didn¡¯t say it.


    ¡°The title¡­ The title¡¯s name is¡­ Its name¡­ Arahh! I can¡¯t say it! It¡¯s too embarrassing!¡± He yelled to the ceiling.


    I was quite surprised. He never showed himself embarrassed in front of me. Actually, nevermind. His voice is the exact same pitch. I would have never been able to guess that he was embarrassed without seeing him.


    I turned, straddling his lap. Staring into his eyes. My arms wrapped around his neck, loosely draped over his shoulders. His golden eyes, a perfect reflection of mine, shone with a strange light. A thought popped into my head, one strange enough to give me pause.


    ¡°We¡­ aren¡¯t blood-related in this world, are we?¡±


    Rayne flinched, before looking almost as surprised as I felt. ¡°You¡­ You¡¯re right¡­ So that wouldn¡¯t make it incest¡­¡± He finished with a whisper even I barely heard. Trying to understand what he meant by that, I could feel my face heat up. I moved closer to his face, staring into his eyes. That shocked him back into focus, which may not have been the best of ideas.


    He flicked his eyes to mine, and something strange happened.


    The pleasure I had felt before, from his fangs, came back to me. A single look into his eyes was all I had to do. It slammed into me like a tsunami, rocking my body forward. My chest pressed against Rayne¡¯s, my eyes still not leaving his. Slight, shallow breaths were all I could take. His breath beat down on my willpower as it rushed over and into my mouth. My back arched, pressing me even further into his embrace.


    His golden eyes became my world. All I could see with my newfound eyes. All I could imagine. All I could think about. Deep and mysterious, with the small little light of happiness shining through.


    His hands ran through my hair as my eyes got blurry, tears filling them as I was overwhelmed. I felt revitalized, energy coursing through my veins. His head tilted to the side a small amount, a smile hitting his eyes. I could see so much in them that I know he would never be able to get across with words. His joy. His hesitation. His guilt. His doubt. Everything was there.


    But I focused on the one emotion in his eyes that I couldn¡¯t get enough of. His love.


    Five minutes passed, about the same amount of time that he sucked my blood. His hand, the one that was previously running through my hair, pulled my head into his chest, breaking me out of the erotic trance he had put me in.


    I panted, attempting to relax. It worked much less than I wanted it to, my mind being unable to get off that feeling.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­ It wasn¡¯t my intention to do that.¡± Rayne whispered in my ear, causing me another spasm. It didn¡¯t really surprise me, this time, how much I liked it. What used to be a sibling¡¯s love, is quite quickly changing into something else.


    ¡°It¡¯s¡­ fine¡­¡± I responded between recovery pants. A crazed look in my eyes? Probably not, but close.


    I¡­ wanted something very badly at that moment. It actually broke my heart to settle for just a few-hour-long hug. But I would never tell him that I wanted him. After all, I¡¯m his sister (In another world).


    Over The Abyss¡­ (Rayne¡¯s POV)


    I didn¡¯t go home that night. I stayed at the school, holding Eve with all my being. She wouldn¡¯t let go of me, even when she finally fell asleep, but I didn¡¯t mind. I carried her into the Studyroom and made her a bed from my mana. Knowing I didn¡¯t have the concentration to keep two beds active at a time, I made one slightly larger bed and slept with Eve in it. Quite embarrassing, especially after what just happened. I didn¡¯t mean to use my skill on her, but I couldn¡¯t stop once I had started.


    It was even worse that I thought it was fun to see her reactions. I actually kept using the skill on her for a minute after I could have stopped.


    My mind continued to replay some of the scenes that I remembered, half against my will. Eventually, I went back to the conversations we had before that.


    ¡°The gods. Heaven and Hell. Fate. The empire.¡± I named them, one by one, in a small voice. I had said that I would protect her from anything, but it was just now that I was realizing the meaning of my words. I needed to be stronger.


    Strong enough to beat anything that tried to hurt Eve. It coincided with my curse quite nicely. Doesn¡¯t mean I want the curse, but it doesn¡¯t seem all that bad now. I would have to absorb some stats from those gods.


    I remembered before, back on Earth, when I told her I would protect her. Just what was I protecting her from then? Myself? Others? Herself? I don¡¯t remember. It was all so long ago, and so much has happened since then.


    A sigh escaped my lips, blowing a small bit of hair out of Eve¡¯s face. It was only a few inches from mine at the moment. My little fox was under my right hand as always, but now it had another body near it.


    Why was Rose so¡­ odd? She never showed signs of being a yandere, did she? I didn¡¯t pay much attention to anybody else during this first month. I would have to fix that. I can¡¯t let somebody harm my family again.


    It was bad enough when my mother died during the birth of Eve. After that, Father left. I somewhat blamed Eve for that, but I made sure it never showed.


    Should I take Eve to my home? Make her a part of the family, one way or the other? Or should I go with her to her family? Which one is the better choice? Or, do we go with the third option, run away and live together like last time? I don¡¯t know anymore. I would have to ask her.


    I think I need to take an hour. Just an hour to think. Don¡¯t meditate. Don¡¯t increase mana reserves. Just think. Sort out my brain. I can do that here, in the embrace of the person I love most.


    Eight hours later, I still don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t understand so many things. Seeing the sun begin to rise, I shook Eve awake. Seeing as that didn¡¯t work, I began to whisper in her ears. Nonsense really, I didn¡¯t exactly care what I was saying. My mind was still quite solely focused on sorting itself out.


    She awoke with a start, looking at me with startled eyes. She brought herself closer, cuddling into me like she was scared.


    ¡°Don¡¯t leave¡­ Don¡¯t ever leave me¡­¡± She spoke, the sound muffled by her tears and my chest. I held her, whispering words of reassurance. I¡¯m not sure they reached her, but I knew she was comforted by something. Her tears slowed to a halt. Her breathing steadied but didn¡¯t fall into the depths of sleep. I held her. It was addicting. The warmth radiating off her body heated me to the very core, like drinking hot cocoa after being outside in the snow for a few hours. Sure, I only had it once, but that memory stuck in my mind.


    Eventually, after the sun had risen, I pushed her lightly away. She reluctantly let go of me, letting herself be lightly slid across the mana weave on the ground.


    The fox awoke next, brushing its fur across my arm. Eve pet it lightly, having met it briefly yesterday.


    Another thing I need to do. Make sure I know where this damn fox is at all times. It escapes my notice so many times a day it¡¯s not funny.


    I found a few things during my little thinking session. My short term goal at this moment is to study each and every god until I¡¯ve memorized their information. Another short term goal is to meet the king. Or queen, whichever is in power right now. I don¡¯t really care. I just want to ask for a favor. Or a few.


    I stood, stretching each of my sore muscles as I unwound my mana. After I was done, I quietly and quickly went through each and every book on the shelves. That included the bookshelf in the Classroom. I found a single book on a god. Or goddess. It was the Ice goddess, Hana. I studied the entire book, writing notes and focusing wholeheartedly.


    She would be the first of the Victims. I didn¡¯t want to hurt her without notice, but I had to at least take back that stupid god¡¯s powers from her. I knew the seal, brand, whatever on my chest is supposed to make sure I help him, but I¡¯m not sure how it does that. Does it just begin to burn me? Does it shift my thoughts unconsciously? Does it bring events to me that would cause me to end up with them anyway?


    That last one would be cool, then I wouldn¡¯t have to find them. Although, I probably wouldn¡¯t be prepared for it.


    ¡®The Ice Goddess, Hana. A lover of all things cold created as a mix between the water goddess, Lezarath and the light goddess, Adalina. Friendly with all other deity tier gods, does not like any race but the beastkin. Will attack humans on sight, uses a mix of freezing traps and icicles. The best course of action when getting on her bad side, prostrate yourself in front of the goddess. She has been known to let people go if she is in a good mood. If you run, she uses mostly ranged attacks so she will kill you without hesitation. Praying to her allows you to use¡­¡¯ ~Deity God book, subentry 8, written by Afrah Lakila.


    The door opened. I looked up, expecting the teacher or a student. But it was somebody I could never have expected. I didn¡¯t know them. After all, I hadn¡¯t seen the queen¡¯s personal guard before.


    They saw me and began walking. I pulled Eve closer to me, putting a hand out. My mana bracelet began to vibrate violently. I used it to create words, the guard reaching for his sword as he saw the mana rise. I made sure it was liquid mana this time.


    ¡®Who are you?¡¯ I asked, not risking speaking.


    ¡°Ah, my apologies. You are but a child. The queen has asked for you to visit her. It also seems that you are dangerous, so we were requested to come get you.¡± The guard explained, holding up something that looked eerily similar to handcuffs.


    ¡®May I take her with me?¡¯ I asked, realizing that I was getting to accomplish one of my goals so soon.


    ¡°No, you may not. She has not been requested.¡± The guard had no hesitation in his voice.


    But I didn¡¯t have any in general. ¡®I¡¯m sorry, it seems you are confused. I¡¯m taking her with me.¡¯


    The guard froze. It seems it had been a long time since somebody spoke to him that way. I didn¡¯t exactly care since I was not going to budge on this matter. Eve would be coming with me, whether I had to kill every single person who tried to stop me or not.


    ¡°I shall speak with the queen about this. For now, I shall relent to your decision.¡± How polite of him. I like him already.


    I pulled Eve closer to me, ready to begin walking until I heard a slithery sound of metal on metal. A sword was flashing through the air, aimed at Eve. Blistering speeds could only be matched by something faster. Like, per se, me.


    My hand reached up and caught the blade, the mana bracelet forming into a clamp of sorts to help protect my hand from the blade. The guard pulled on the blade, attempting to get it out of my hand, but I barely felt it. I hadn¡¯t even begun to turn into my vampire form, how was this guard so weak?


    Then I felt Eve¡¯s hand on my elbow, her mana flowing into my muscles. I used a single point of mana to see exactly what was going on with that. After seeing it for a bit, I mimicked it with some more. Devilish talent, one might call it.


    My strength, in that arm at least, skyrocketed. The blade crumpled in my grip, making a large shattering sound.


    ¡®Let me repeat myself.¡¯ ¡®She will be coming with me.¡¯ Two points in each letter, making them pulsate slightly.


    ¡°Alright. I promise on behalf of my comrades as well this time, she will be allowed until the queen or other higher power dictates otherwise.¡± Very wordy as well. A simple nod sufficed as a response.


    Outside, the guards began walking down the steps, cursing lowly. I laughed, making them turn to me. ¡®Weak¡¯ was the last thing they saw before I leaped off the 399th story, Eve screaming as we fell. I laughed. 20 mana wasn¡¯t enough for both of us to get a mana cushion, so I aligned Eve above me before cushioning myself, letting myself cushion Eve. How confusing.


    I coughed as my chest and stomach were slammed upon with 399 floors worth of momentum. Quite a lot, in case you couldn¡¯t tell. Even my endurance barely managed to stop me from breaking a rib. I think I did fracture it. My mana soaked back into my body, the bracelet forming at the same time. Eve and I were left on our feet, standing on solid ground.


    I sighed out heavily, wanting to do it again, while Eve barely managed to keep from passing out. I hugged her for a second, making her shoot to awareness, before looking around. I didn¡¯t actually know the way to the palace. Another sigh, but this one from exasperation. Well, Eve needed some rest as well. I sat down near the gate, my eyes fixed on the flaming horizon. It was indeed quite the beautiful sunrise.


    Ten minutes later, the guards come running down the steps. I hear them before I see them, but I wave once they see me.


    ¡°Strange child, aren¡¯t you. We had assumed we would be collecting a body for the queen by now.¡± The original guard spoke.


    I just grinned and made a motion towards the gate. The guard sighed as I had, before beginning to walk.


    Some thirty minutes later, long past school starting, we arrived at the palace. It was a huge distance away from the school, going through many twisting paths and alleyways. I suppose so that it is more difficult to get an army through? I wouldn¡¯t know.


    The palace was still probably visible from the school, as it was nearly as large. Maybe 380 stories tall, 6 times as wide, and it had a dome shaped roof. Towers jutted out everywhere. The only I could wonder about, enough to ask the guards, was ¡®What do they use all that space for?¡¯


    The guards all chuckled, giving knowing looks to each other.


    ¡°They do everything in that palace. They have balls every ten-day, formal dances, feasts, many royal workspeople have places of their own in there. There¡¯s actually a basement underneath all of that, for even more room.¡± They seemed to enjoy when they had answers. I¡¯ll have to ask some questions that they know, then.

 ...And I ruined the sequence... End of Arc 0

    The queen was an interesting character.


    Emphasis on ¡®interesting¡¯. Lots of emphases. Make it a little bit sarcastic as well.


    She laughed loudly as we came into the room, merrily talking in normal voices. The guards went silent upon walking into the room and I dispelled my mana words, but that couldn¡¯t help us stop our laughs. Jokes in this world are actually pretty good.


    After we all managed to stifle our laughter, the queen continued for a minute.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe it¡­ I arrest a child and he comes in laughing with his captors!¡± She was practically rolling on the ground with mirth.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry?¡± I apologized, thinking I did something wrong. I was still standing while the guards were bowing. I was confused enough to not use my mana to speak.


    After she recovered, her smile didn¡¯t disappear. She leaned back in the throne, seeming very relaxed in front of somebody who had mana floating about them.


    ¡°So, you are the one who can use solid mana. I¡¯ve also heard that you have the nickname of ¡®Demon Child¡¯.¡± She playfully teased.


    ¡°You seem to know a lot about a commoner like me,¡± I mentioned, wondering exactly how she managed.


    ¡°Indeed. You haven¡¯t bought anything from a shop in the city for almost a ten-day. It made it very difficult to track you down. Luckily I have a few good friends down in the city.¡± The entire conversation was very serious, spoken in a joking tone. The very irony of being poor stopping me from getting caught was hilarious.


    ¡°So, what is it you would like from this poor commoner?¡± I made a sarcastic bow.


    ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever seen a sarcastic bow before¡­¡± The queen was actually speechless.


    ¡°I¡¯m glad I was your first. Now, what would you like from me? I do assume you didn¡¯t call me out all the way across the city just to have a nice tea party.¡± Sarcasm seemed to be a trend, following me like a trained dog.


    ¡°I wanted to know what you have learned about Effret. And have some tea.¡± A serious atmosphere attempted to surface. It genuinely failed.


    ¡°Hmm? Most of her stats and skills were hidden. I couldn¡¯t have seen much if I wanted to.¡± I paused, thinking back to everything I knew about her. ¡°Well, there was also that corruption on her race, meaning she isn¡¯t human¡­ Oh! She can read moods!¡± I thumped a closed fist on an open palm as if I had thought of something extremely important, while spouting off stupid things.


    ¡°So you did realize that she wasn¡¯t human¡­¡± The queen seemed amused as she raised her hand as if signaling something. ¡°Her race was hidden behind a magic that needs over 250 perception to read past. With that amount of progress, you can¡¯t be human¡­¡±


    ¡°What? My perception is only, like, 150. There¡¯s no way I could have seen past it.¡± I commented, giving pause to her hand.


    ¡°Then, what is this ¡®corruption¡¯ you speak of?¡±


    ¡°How should I know? Maybe the spell is wearing off, or something.¡± I suggested, shrugging my shoulders while doing my best to keep my eyes away from that hand.


    The hand fell to her chin as if she was in deep thought. I knew the pose quite well. After all, it was probably the only unconscious pose I made.


    ¡°Actually¡­ that¡¯s a plausible explanation. Effret, how long ago was the spell refreshed?¡± The queen asked, looking slightly upwards.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Around a month ago¡­ Yes, a month and 6 days ago. Should it really be wearing off if it¡¯s supposed to take mana from me to keep itself active?¡±


    ¡°It is supposed to take mana from the purest source, so if somebody has a much purer mana, but not enough to keep it active, I suppose his story works out.¡±


    I looked to where she was looking, attempting to find my teacher. I couldn¡¯t find her at all, so I obviously did something stupid.


    Pulling Eve closer to me, I used [Mana Eye]. It took a few seconds, but my mana was spreading through the room now. The mana quickly covering the floor, I should be able to find her if she¡¯s standing. The queen''s hand was in the air, ready to signal something. I heard a buzzing noise from above.


    [Mana Eye] showed me nothing. She wasn¡¯t standing on the floor, so where was she? My mana began to slowly rise, scanning through every molecule of the air. About 30 feet above the ground, nothing but air underneath, there was a pair of feet. I focused my mana over to it, trying to figure out what they were using to float up there.


    Small thin wings, some sort of dust floating off them. They reminded me of a bee¡¯s wings, mixed slightly with butterfly wings. What did I do then, you ask?


    I stole them.


    My mana flowed into the wings, {Molecular Mana} and {Mana Construct} working in unison to help me create the wings just as they are. I drained my 20 mana bracelet within a few seconds, so I tapped into my 800 that I had in my body. It worked splendidly, mana congealing around my back, fusing with me, making nerves first. I had to copy my own nervous system as well, merging the mana together in a large two mana cluster so the information overlayed. Obviously this wasn''t perfect, ending with more pain than it normally would be. Muscles followed the nerves, the fresh air on them making for quite the painful experience. I had to stop a few times, the pain so intense it knocked me out of my meditative state. But I was always quickly back in it, not even seeing anything of the world around me. The buzzing got louder in accordance with my screaming.


    An hour was all it took. The nerves fully fused with mine, the muscles flexing in tune with my heartbeat. The membrane flowed slowly, the bursts of wind coming from the movements proving their power. I didn¡¯t exactly like how they were shaped, so I used the knowledge from molecularly scanning real wings to build my own from scratch.


    I wild grin was on my face as I felt the tingling sensation on my back, meaning the nerves were connecting with my brain. Once it disappeared, I could sense the wings on my back in the same way that you can sense your leg, even though it¡¯s not in your view. The slight breeze in the room, caused by my own massive wingspan, tickled my wings.


    The queen had been watching the entire time, hand up. But now it dropped, as did her mouth. It seemed she had been waiting the entire time for me to finish. I''m not sure why she would wait, unless she saw that I meant no harm. Flashing my trademark smirk at her, I looked to where the person with the wings was. I bowed, sincerely this time.


    ¡°Thank you for letting me steal your wings,¡± I announced, waiting for a reaction.


    I got one from Eve.


    ¡°Brother, did you really just use an entire hour to make wings? Did that not hurt? Don''t even try to tell me it didn''t, because you were screaming quite loudly at the end there. What would you even use wings that large for?¡±


    I looked to the ceiling, a few hundred feet up. The grin came back as I thought of something. I pulled on my left arm, the one that was holding Eve. She stumbled slightly, right into my waiting arms. With her princess carried, I flapped the wings with a large torrent of wind.


    I was launched into the air, towards the ceiling, at an astonishing pace. Eve was screaming again, but I tuned it out. Extending my wings so they were parallel to the ground, our flight slowed to a fall. A very slow fall, more of a glide, but a fall nonetheless. A small twitch of the wings was all it took to stay in the air. I remembered the dust, so I activated my mana again. It seemed there were organs inside the membrane, no larger than a capillary, that produced a form of dust. The dust itself was more of a sort of gunpowder. It ignited with a spark, exploding in a raging fury. But the wings produced it as a placeholder, throwing it down with such force it stopped a downward fall.


    I stayed about 50 feet above the ground, floating there and looking down upon everybody. I certainly felt badass, like a god reigning over his tiny subjects. Chuckling to myself at the thought, I remembered what I wanted to ask of the royalty here.


    After floating to the ground, ¡°So, I have two requests of you.¡± Eve rushed a few steps away from me, but not going too far. It seemed she was afraid of heights.


    ¡°What?¡± The queen was confused.


    ¡°I have two requests of you,¡± I repeated.


    ¡°You¡­ are requesting something from the queen?¡±


    ¡°No, two things.¡±


    ¡°...I¡¯m not sure whether I should deny you or tell you to prove yourself. See, we have a system that the king grants one wish if you manage to do something for him. Some of the requests are pretty hard, like creating a large mana stone, or entertaining him.¡± An explanation, how interesting. Even more interesting that she considered it. I didn''t expect it to be this easy.


    ¡°Alright. So, where is the king? I¡¯ll have to ask him what he wants from me.¡± I started looking around as if I would find him just standing around.


    ¡°He¡¯s in his private quarters, probably studying on that stupid book again. I¡¯ll go call him.¡± The queen stood, completely taken in by my flow.


    After she was gone, I looked back to the Fairy who had not moved all this time. I waved.


    ¡°Hey Effret, how are you? Do we have a substitute for class today?¡± I asked, completely ignoring that she was a fairy. She floated down to me, very slowly. But I am a patient man.


    ¡°I forget you are but a child¡­ you have no hatred towards us. You probably don¡¯t know what we did, do you? You probably don''t even care that I''m the fairy queen."


    ¡°Hmm? Are you talking about the war? Sure, you killed a few million people and carried it on for an extra 1000 years. I know enough about this world.¡±


    ¡°But¡­ You show no hatred towards the fairy queen¡­?¡±


    ¡°If you were put into that time, would you do the same thing?¡±


    ¡°Of course not.¡±


    ¡°Then do tell me how hating you in any way would be justified.¡±


    ¡°But what if I would?¡±


    ¡°Then do tell me how hating you in any way would solve anything.¡±


    ¡°But what if I don¡¯t know?¡±


    ¡°Tell me something.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Do you want to be hated?¡±


    ¡°No¡­¡±


    ¡°Do you believe you deserve it?¡±


    ¡°Somewhat¡­¡±


    ¡°Do you believe you, specifically, deserve it?¡±


    ¡°No¡­¡±


    ¡°Then tell me why I should hate you. I don¡¯t have a reason for it. I don¡¯t have justification. And most of all, I¡¯ve seen you before. You didn¡¯t do anything wrong, Fairy Queen Effret Loli.¡±


    Just as a little sidenote, it was extremely difficult to say that with a serious face. I¡¯m not really used to telling people good things about themselves. It has been previously mentioned, but I¡¯m not all that great with words.


    ¡°Will you tell anyone? About my identity?¡± She was tearing up, the tears not quite falling yet.


    ¡°No? Why would I? I¡¯m just a kid, I only have forty some perception.¡± I feigned ignorance, shrugging my shoulders. Effret giggled, realizing the intention behind my words.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    ¡°Thanks, Rayne.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean, the demon child is here?¡± A voice boomed. Male, by the tone.


    ¡°Exactly as I said. He¡¯s asking for two favors, it seems.¡± A female voice this time, definitely not the queen. This voice was shaky and light, like a cornered animal.


    The doors, held on the right wall, burst open. I continued meditating, not really bothering with the intrusion. I would have pet my fox, but it seemed to have run away again. Actually, I don¡¯t remember bringing her with me.


    I focused my attention on the person I could only assume was the king. Dark purple eyes gave him quite the look of royalty. It was only helped along the way by the clothes and stature. He stood nearly 7 feet tall, his shoulders broad and boxy. His muscles were clearly visible through his clothes. The clothes themselves were stretched taut from the strain, but clearly very expensive. Golden inlays lined the entire set, with lines as thin as hair floating about and connecting to various pieces. They reflected the light inside the huge building, making something that looked almost like an aura of radiance. Black and white were mixed together, eerily reminding me of that one space where I met the god.


    ¡°So, are you the demon child? Son of the witch? What would you like from me?¡± The king asked.


    ¡°Two favors.¡± I refused to give him information.


    ¡°What are you willing to do for those two favors? You are asking something from a king, you realize. Even if I owe your mother.¡± The last part was muttered, but I could hear it.


    ¡°Mmh, I know. I¡¯m not willing to do much, as these favors aren¡¯t all that important, but sure, I¡¯ll do whatever.¡± I took it in stride, nonchalantly looking at my bracelet. It had probably been a long time since somebody had spoken in such a way to the king.


    A book was tossed at me. I caught it without looking.


    ¡°Tell me what spell this book is teaching me. No matter what, I can¡¯t figure it out. It¡¯s impossible for you.¡±


    I looked at the book. It had a black leather cover, with scratches on the inside of it. Looking at it, I put some mana into it. [Mana Eye] was activated just before I was knocked unconscious.


    Pure black. Or maybe it wasn¡¯t. A single color dark enough to seem like an endless abyss. It was all that filled my vision. But from inside that space, I could hear a voice. It wasn¡¯t calming, it was a scratchy voice that grated on my ears. Like the dying words of somebody with a crushed throat. Perhaps that¡¯s exactly what it was. Ignoring my complaining ears, I began to listen.


    ¡°Make sure it is only ? of a point of mana. Then, split it into 100 pieces at the same time. Each must not have the same amount of mana. Then, it¡¯s up to you and your imagination. Pray to the gods before using this spell, as you will need the luck.¡± He was interrupted by a large fit of coughing. ¡°This is all I can leave you, my daughter. I can only hope that you manage to carry out the Grahuda bloodline. Goodbye, Lilia. It was nice having you as a part of the family, even if you took away the others.¡±


    A static noise, like a Tv losing its signal, ended the words. After waiting a minute, nothing happened. I began to attempt what the man was talking about. A single mana point split into 4. Set three to the side. Focus completely on that fourth one. Carefully examine it from every angle, making sure to also think of the mathematics to turn ? into 100 pieces without having a single replica portion.


    Eventually, probably about 5 minutes or so, I felt confident enough with the numbers to go through with it. I had to do it all at once. So, with 100 tugs, each one carefully planned in strength, the mana split into 100 pieces. Then, something even I could not have expected happened.


    A portal opened. Nothing happened to it, but it seemed to be draining my strength in large amounts. I thought quickly, trying to find a way to close the portal. I reached into it, feeling a large amount of warmth. I closed my hand and pulled, feeling some sort of resistance.


    Everything around me was suddenly filled with color, spinning so fast it was impossible to keep your eyes on only one color. They mixed back and forth, like mini oceans with their own waves crashing into eachother.


    It lasted a few seconds. Then it was back to the black. It began to crumble around me, having fulfilled its purpose. And then I was back. The king was still standing in the same place, Eve still beside me, the small girl hiding behind the king still there¡­


    Wait, I don¡¯t remember that last one. I began to think about everything that had just happened in that split second, but I was interrupted by a ding, followed by a window appearing.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    New Skill!


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Due to using the skill book: Last Words, you have gained the skill: Time and Space Control (1/40)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Achievement!


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Having learned a tier 13 pure mana spell before 1 year old, you have achieved a feat of gods!


    +823,332 experience.


    You are now level 38!


    For reaching over 35 levels in less than one second, you have achieved a feat of kings!


    +1 full level, 1 remaining level.


    You are now level 40!


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Rewards!


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    For leveling up 37 times, you have gained attributes!


    Luck has been triggered on (3) levels~!


    +400 STR


    +400 END


    +4 LCK


    +400 PER


    +400 DEX


    +400 AGI


    +400 INT


    +400 WIS


    +40 LDS


    +40 VIT


    -80 FTH


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Update!


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Experience needed has changed to Experience, for complications in understanding percentages. Now, it shows Experience/Experience needed to level.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Next to me, I heard Eve gasp. She seemed to have gotten a window as well. I don¡¯t know what¡¯s on it, but it certainly seems surprising.


    Then she started tearing up, giving me quite the start. Leaping at me, she tackled me to the ground in a hug.


    ¡°You did it! I don¡¯t know what you did, but you did it!¡± She was yelling in my ears, causing me a bit of pain. I reached around her back with the hand that wasn¡¯t holding the book.


    ¡°Calm down a little, I just got a spell. I¡¯m not even sure if I¡¯ll be able to cast it again, ever.¡±


    ¡°Wait, what? You say you learned a spell from that book? You¡¯re lying! That book teaches no spell! My greatest sorcerers have thoroughly inspected it for any hints about a spell, without finding anything!¡± The king yelled at me. Honestly, I was quite offended. He was the one who asked me to find a spell in the book.


    ¡°Well, I found a spell in the book. I believe that counts for what you wanted. The spell it is trying to teach you is not actually a spell. It is the method of getting the spell.¡±


    The king took a half step back as he looked at me. I was smirking at him like I was explaining something to a child.


    ¡°Now, for my favors. What should I do for the other one?¡±


    The king took a full step forward, raising a hand as if to slap me. I just smiled at him, still sitting on the floor with Eve pressed to my chest. I quite certainly felt invincible.


    Then he took a half step back, returning to his original position. He was smirking like he had thought of something extremely clever.


    ¡°I would like you¡­ to fix my daughter¡¯s shyness! Get her at least 4 friends at school! I¡¯ll have her join your class tomorrow. The time limit is 20 days. I wish you luck, for you will need it.¡±


    I sighed, looking around for her. It seems she wasn¡¯t in the room. Although, what a turn of events. In one day I was arrested, met with the queen and king, learned a tier 13 spell, leveled up 37 times, spiked all of my stats by a few hundred, and made the arrangements for a princess to be my classmate.


    ¡°Alright, since I can¡¯t start that until tomorrow, may I ask for my one favor now?¡± I asked, curious. It wouldn¡¯t hurt to ask, right?


    ¡°Hmm? Sure, why not. Choose wisely, it¡¯ll be the only one you get.¡± He smirked again, making me feel quite aggravated.


    ¡°Well then. I would like you, as the king, to¡­¡± I paused for a moment. What did I actually want from him again? ¡°Well, before that, I want to know how much you care about the other races. Say, if I was a fairy, what would you do?¡± I asked, looking for a reaction.


    There was none out of the ordinary. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t do anything. Unless I had the knowledge of you committing a crime, we would be talking just like this. I don¡¯t care for any biased hatred.¡± He dismissed my concerns with a wave of his hand. I smiled at his answer.


    ¡°Well then, that being said, what if I told you I know a vampire? Even better, what if I told you he wanted an audience with you?¡± I smirked, successful in making sure nothing I said pointed to me.


    ¡°I would have an audience with them. I just said, I have no liking to biased hatred.¡±


    My smirk became a grin as I beamed it at him. I pushed Eve slowly off me, standing up and bowing. Even Eve looked confused at my bow.


    ¡°Well then. Let me reintroduce myself.¡±


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Vampiric urges consume you...


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°My name is Rayne, a one-month-old Vampire. I had a not-so-friendly meeting with the god, and he happened to curse me on a whim. I assure you, I do my best to keep my blood levels full. I am quite in control at the moment.¡± I added the last two parts as a reassurance to his fearful face. I waved my arms as I spoke, a show of my control.


    ¡°What I would like from you is full access to all of the workers in this building, including your personal ones. I shall not touch them on purpose, as I only wish to learn their crafts. Maybe read a few books too. I do have some gods to talk to¡­¡± I trailed off into muttering to myself with the same pose the queen did a bit earlier. Pacing, I waited for a response. I received nothing of the sort, the silence was broken only by the tapping of my feet on the stone floor.


    A few hours later I was skipping my way to school, quite happy with the results of some negotiation. I had surprised him so much from turning into my vampiric state that he didn¡¯t hear my request, so I was able to change it into something else. He didn''t even want to know about the spell, he was so distracted. Eve, afterward, told me about her experience. Checking my status, I did indeed have an effect with her name, a ''party effect''. I don''t remember getting it, though...


    Oh well. It''ll all work out.


    ¡°Slow down Rayne! I didn¡¯t level as far as you did! My agility isn¡¯t that great!¡± Eve shouted from behind me. Without slowing down, I yelled back.


    ¡°Then this is a good time to train your skills! I haven¡¯t had much time to train my mental side of the stats in a while because of you, so I¡¯ll be working you until you collapse!¡± I gave out a fake maniacal laughter.


    ¡°So cruel!¡± She might have been telling the truth, but we were both laughing so much I didn¡¯t care. I was still giddy from my new request.


    ¡®Have me and Eve become King¡¯s Guests. That amounts to something, right?¡¯


    I pretty much assured our safe and simple life. People wouldn¡¯t dare attack the king¡¯s guests, nor would they try to give them unfair treatment. Well, they might try and give us more than we should get, but that¡¯s not a problem for me.


    Hitting the gates to the school, I began the long climb. My hand was intertwined with Eve¡¯s, pulling her along mercilessly. She had run all the way to here, while I was lightly jogging. Her stamina seemed quite low compared to mine.


    Sighing when she nearly tripped, I picked her up. I could use her to level my strength, I suppose.


    And¡­ Onto the important stuff (Another Power¡¯s POV)


    Well, nobody wants to read about their miraculously boring slice of life anime life, so let¡¯s skip forward a few million years.


    Obviously, I¡¯m kidding. This skip is only a few days. But that would be a whole few days full of nothing but meditating and talking to different people. There wouldn¡¯t even be any erotism.


    Alright, there might be a little erotism. But you can live without it. Probably.


    A little summary of what happened so far, just for kicks. We don¡¯t exactly have the amount of time we need to get into something really cool, so we¡¯ll save that for next chapter.


    The fourth wall? Oh, I punched it with rage a few chapters ago, offscreen. Kinda made a hole in it. Oh well, it¡¯ll be fine.


    Here we go!


    Rayne awoke once again, a semi normal day. For now. A little bit of backstory to the backstory, a flashback in the prologue. Just a bit confusing when you put it that way, but oh well. He was robbed the day before, or earlier that day, I don¡¯t remember. Some cutting of flesh followed. Actually, where the hell did he get his bandages from?


    This story is filled with plotholes¡­ What the hell is the author doing?


    Anyway, some little pieces of sibling bonding. Then a stubborn decision that would end up with both of their deaths. Eve wanted to go to school. Really kinda sucks that it¡¯s what killed them. After all, if they stayed at home Lilia couldn¡¯t have killed them, as she was ordered to kill them as a ¡®public execution¡¯. Homes aren¡¯t public.


    But yeah, they went to school and some assholes showed up. Human trafficking. How nice. Oh, a one sided massacre. Even better.


    This is boring. Let¡¯s get to the fun parts, shall we?


    Rayne finds the chained god, blah blah blah¡­ 4617892 ¡®demon child¡¯ references¡­ Mana stuff¡­ Oh, here we go! The first time Rayne realized he had his skill and used it! It was on Elliot, in public. Mmmmh, lovely details¡­


    Ah! Stop hitting me! I¡¯m getting to it! Huh? I¡¯ve wasted too much time? Why the hell didn¡¯t you say that in the first place?


    {I DID!}


    *Loud crashing sounds can be heard from the background. No need to worry, though, just some technical difficulties.*


    {Alright. Author here. Nice to meet you, my dear reader. ¡®Another Power¡¯, as he calls himself, will not be a part of this story anymore. I¡¯ll be taking his job.}


    {Well, anyway, we are indeed running out of time here. Or words, whatever you want to call it. Details were made to be ignored.}


    {Seems like we have a few hundred words to go here, which is quite the conundrum. I can¡¯t get into anything good with that much, but it¡¯s too much for me to cover on my own. So, I¡¯ll be repeating myself here, probably.}


    {I guess I should offer an apology. I do realize exactly how bad this story is, with the many plotholes and over exaggerations where they are not needed. The horrible character build up, the general lack of setting, and the many contradictory points where things are actually explicitly stated. Therefore, I shall be continuing this story with the utmost of my ability, calling out my failures as ¡°It¡¯s my first story¡±. (Just saying, it isn¡¯t really if you want to get technical...)}


    {The next thing I should offer is some information. This is the 10th chapter if you count the first one as a prologue. And it will be the end of the first ¡®arc¡¯. I can only hope I used that one correctly¡­ I may have experience in writing but not on using words to describe it. Somewhat contradictory, but that¡¯s just how I am.}


    {Well then, as somebody once said, ONTO THE ARC!}


    {It was probably Noah, but who cares? I¡¯ll be working much harder on paying attention to detail and characters in this next arc, so it¡¯ll probably lower my speed by a few multiples. I don¡¯t expect it to go below two chapters a week, ever, but it¡¯ll probably drop to something between 4-5 a week instead of 8-9 like I have been doing.}


    {Well then, this next one will be much longer than all the rest, so I give you luck on finding something to occupy yourselves until Monday or Tuesday Thursday (I''m rewriting a few bits). Author out!}

 A1, C1, With time comes betrayal.

    Without the Foreplay (Rayne¡¯s POV)


    How old was I when everything really went downhill? Depends on the measuring system. I would either be 7 years old or 7 months, one week old.


    4¡¯7¡±, only having grown one inch since my last measurement. I remember back then. When everything was still nice and shining. I hadn¡¯t made any friends in class, I still haven¡¯t, but I had Eve and my fox. She was always running and hiding from me. I never quite understood why until she came to me one day and changed her shape.


    A humanoid shape, except for some minor details. Mainly the cat ears and tail, as well as the long fingernails that were more like claws. Hair the same color as her fur beforehand, ears and tail the same, a face that looked no worse than my sister¡¯s, one of the most beautiful people in the world, and very well developed curves, most men would be drooling over her.


    But I was focused on what she told me. Or, more accurately, the fact that she could tell me it. She told me her name, one that echoed throughout the room unnaturally.


    ¡°Vera. My name is Vera.¡±


    ¡°Vera it is, then. I¡¯m not even going to ask how you managed to take human form.¡± Eve turned to me, looking at me, then Vera, then me again. I was focused on Vera¡¯s face, trying to find whatever it was that kept bothering me about it.


    ¡°Rayne, do you seriously not have any comments about this?¡± Eve asked. I looked to her, confused. What did she want me to say?


    She only shook her head and pointed at Vera. I followed her finger, before blushing and kicking away from the sight.


    She didn¡¯t have any clothes. I mean, it made sense, since she didn¡¯t have any before, but still¡­ My chair hit the ground with a large sound, alerting the last person in the room who wasn¡¯t looking, Effret.


    ¡°Rayne! Who the hell is she?! Where are her clothes?!¡±


    ¡°Effret! Vera! She¡¯s a fox! She doesn¡¯t have clothes!¡± I answered back, in the exact same tone she used to ask me.


    ¡°Make her some right this instant!¡±


    ¡°Yes, Ma¡¯am!¡± I felt an odd chill go down my back when she made that threat. Nonetheless, my hand reached out to Vera, mana pulsing and swirling around it in quite a mesmerizing pattern. Vera stared at it for a second, before leaning down and biting the tips of my fingers.


    I was so shocked it took a second for the pain to register.


    ¡°Ow! Vera, what do you think you¡¯re doing?¡± I asked, not exactly thinking about it.


    ¡°Thanks for the treat?¡± She said in a questioning tone.


    I didn¡¯t have a response to that, so I tried again. The scene repeated itself. But the third time I had learned.


    ¡°Don¡¯t eat it this time, I need to make your clothes.¡±


    ¡°Who needs those? I¡¯m a proud fox, I don¡¯t need those hindering pieces of cloth!¡± She exclaimed, puffing her chest out proudly. Her breasts swayed from side to side hypnotically. I must say, it took some effort not to look down.


    I sighed deeply, not sure how to convince her to put some on. I didn''t have any with me, and I couldn''t buy any. Just saying, I wasted a wish. Being King''s Guests does nothing but a small discount on some services and a quicker guard. I don''t even get any money from it. After a few seconds of thinking, ignoring everything around me, I came up with an idea.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll give you a present if you put on some clothes. You¡¯ll like the present, I promise.¡± Vera perked up at this, as well as another part of her body. I once again held out my palm, summoning the required mana for it. It began to slowly twirl itself together, weaving like a miniature loom.


    All was going well until I felt something press against my hand. Something very soft and perfectly fitting in it. Confused as to what it was, I looked up from my meditative state. Of course, it was indeed what you think it is.


    ¡°I read this in a book once¡­ Lovers often do this, right? Why do you think they do it?¡± Vera asked, her face showing only curiosity.


    My face, however, was a different story¡­


    ¡°Rayne, I don¡¯t know what you are thinking of doing, but stop before you regret it,¡± Eve warned me from the sidelines. I couldn¡¯t care less.


    My hand began to move, the mana still being woven as I massaged it. Vera quickly came about to the truth of her question, her eyes widening. Then they went half lidded, her legs growing weak. The set of clothes finished, so I stopped.


    ¡°Fumah?¡± Quite a cute sound, but I just shoved the clothes towards her while manipulating the mana in them to wrap around her. A few seconds was all it took for it to completely engulf her, making an interesting piece of clothing that was silver, and yet it was flexible.


    She was doing some puppy eyes at me, but I had much too high of a resistance towards cute things like that. It was quite embarrassing, so I don''t think it worked out as the punishment I meant for it to be.


    I¡¯ve continued it for a bit too long¡­ Back to the main points, about 6 months had passed. Obviously, many of our stats had grown exponentially. My stats did not level nearly as much as I would have liked, as I was also trying to level some skills. Specifically, [Time and Space Control]. Just as a representation of the difficulty, it leveled a total of 3 times in 6 months.


    But anyway, I¡¯ll give you the changes first, then the status for me. Then Eve¡¯s.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Passing Stat Gains (Rayne)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    STR +1463


    END +1894


    LCK +1


    PER +1023


    DEX +1809


    AGL +947


    INT +673


    WIS +528


    LDS +90


    VIT +93


    FTH -276


    WPR +14


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Rayne


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: 40


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience: 0/995,703 (0%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [13,160/13,160]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [3,884/3,883] (.01)


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [4,341/4,341]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: Vampire


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [723.6/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [1.726/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [22.2/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Blood: [54%]


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength


    2,435


    </td>


    <td>


    Endurance


    2,794


    </td>


    <td>


    Luck


    20


    </td>


    <td>


    Perception


    1,572


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Dexterity


    2,866


    </td>


    <td>


    Agility


    1,996


    </td>


    <td>


    Intelligence


    1,200


    </td>


    <td>


    Wisdom


    1046


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Leadership


    136


    </td>


    <td>


    Vitality


    188


    </td>


    <td>


    Faith


    -418


    </td>


    <td>


    Willpower


    100


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    Skills:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Blood Drain (Max)


    Gain stats based off of amount and quality of blood drained.


    </td>


    <td>


    Persuasion (9/10)


    40% chance to persuade people to your side. Lessens if they know about the situation.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Sense (35/100)


    Sense mana. Max range: 25 miles. Blood range: 250 miles.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Advanced Meditation (60/100)


    Recover mana 1800% quicker, regain stamina 14,400% quicker. Regen health 400% quicker.


    </td>


    <td>


    Enticing Gaze (3/10)


    Stare into people¡¯s eyes and activate their libido and filling them with strength. Every Vampire needs a harem.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Eye (25/50)


    Sense anything within your mana as it spreads outwards.


    Goes through walls. Large chance to inspect through hiding.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana Condensation (4/5)


    Condense mana from the air. Maximum density: 2.5x


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Construction (217/~)


    Shape your mana into anything.


    This skill can evolve.


    </td>


    <td>


    Time and Space Control (4/40)


    Control Time and Space. Very unreliable.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="4">


    Effects:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Sunlight Weakness


    5% less Strength in sunlight.


    </td>


    <td>


    Disease Immunity


    Immunity to any disease debuffs.


    </td>


    <td>


    Blood Drinker


    Grants Max level skill [Blood Drain]


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Body


    All Spells deal 20% more damage.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Vampiric Body


    Sets Hp/sec to 1, if over 1, 120% increase.


    </td>


    <td>


    Overcharge (Max)


    1 max:100 extra.


    Current: 2802


    </td>


    <td>


    Divine Betrayal


    Spells will not work.


    </td>


    <td>


    Chronus


    Time is easier to control.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Repaired Body


    Multiply Hp based on number of times you have fully broken your body and healed. Also increases regen speed.


    Current:7x


    Current:108x


    </td>


    <td>


    Eve


    Party effect, receive half the experience she gets and vice versa.


    </td>


    <td>


    Devilish Teacher


    50% easier to control people through fear or torture. All effects gained from these are tripled.


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Titles


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Wanderer


    </td>


    <td>


    Chronus¡ï


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Erotica Defined


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Demonic Lover


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Passing Stat Gains (Eve)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    STR +698


    END +834


    LCK +8


    PER +2923


    DEX +2367


    AGL +856


    INT +1769


    WIS +2198


    LDS +9


    VIT +104


    FTH +624


    WPR +73


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Eve


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: 32


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience: 0/464,503 (0%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [1970/1970]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [2456/2456]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [3578/3578]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: Human


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [7.67/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [1.092/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [18.81/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Satiety: 92%


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength


    1434


    </td>


    <td>


    Endurance


    1534


    </td>


    <td>


    Luck


    35


    </td>


    <td>


    Perception


    3487


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Dexterity


    3290


    </td>


    <td>


    Agility


    1693


    </td>


    <td>


    Intelligence


    2221


    </td>


    <td>


    Wisdom


    2690


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Leadership


    56


    </td>


    <td>


    Vitality


    197


    </td>


    <td>


    FaithUnauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    1002


    </td>


    <td>


    Willpower


    151


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    Skills:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana Transfer (25/50)


    Transfer mana between any two compatible storages.


    </td>


    <td>


    Clairvoyance (23/100)


    Chance to predict the future correctly.


    </td>


    <td>


    Spellbook (Max)


    Permanently memorize any spell that your body uses.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Transmute (94/~)


    Use mana to change one thing about something.


    </td>


    <td>


    Imperceivable (4/35)


    Increase INT and PER by a multiple for up to five minutes.


    Current:8x


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="4">


    Effects:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Bookworm


    Memory is photographic, reading is 18x faster. 20% boost to meditation while reading.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Body


    All Spells deal 20% more damage.


    </td>


    <td>


    Otherworldly Vision


    Immune to ¡®Blinded¡¯. Reading is 6x as fast. Semi photographic memory to sights.


    </td>


    <td>


    Rayne


    Party effect, receive half the experience he gets and vice versa.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Storyteller


    Easier to think up fictional stories.


    </td>


    <td>


    Advice from a Hero


    50% less susceptible to mind altering effects.


    </td>


    <td>


    Devilish Student


    10% chance to resist all fear inducing effects. Training is 3x as potent.


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Titles


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Deserter of Humanity


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Fulfilled


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Bookworm¡ï


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Well, it¡¯s as you can see here. Something interesting that I learned over this half year is that you can only hold up to 9 skills inside your mind. There are other ways to increase that, but the easiest way is to just get an artifact and enchant the skill onto it. That is something I don¡¯t want to risk, as I¡¯m very good at losing things.


    Another short summary, an actual one this time, of what Eve and I did:


    Eve read every book in the city. There are exactly 84 libraries, each with a few thousand books in them. But Eve went to every single one of them and read everything. That being said, her perception and dexterity raised incrementally. She¡¯s also learned a few spells from some of the books she got a chance to read. I¡¯m not entirely sure that those were spellbooks, or if it just described it, but Eve managed one way or another.


    I should probably also describe the party system. It seems that it had worked before I learned the tier 13 spell, Time and Space control because Eve got 411,666 experience from it. {The math was a pain, don¡¯t even try to argue.} That¡¯s why she was screaming that ¡®I did it¡¯ in the queen¡¯s room.


    I, myself, had to deal with the princess of the country. 4 friends in 20 days. To be completely honest, I had to take all 20 days to get her to bond with 2 other people. Eve and I counted as two friends after a bit, but the other two were difficult. She ended up friends with the foxnapper, whose name was Clair, by the way, and the man next to her. He was a skinny kid, arms like twigs, who practically, the heaviest thing he had to lift was a page in a book.


    We all got along very well, our differences considered.


    {You didn¡¯t describe the princess.}


    Oh, I didn¡¯t.


    Well, the princess, obviously, was a very shy girl. She had blond hair that she kept down, straight and lots of volume. When she¡¯s embarrassed, she tries to hide under her hair. She has a pair of very beautiful hazel eyes, in my own personal opinion. A few inches shorter than me, making it very fun to tease her just by resting my arm on her shoulder. Honestly, she has perfect manners. Too perfect manners. If I didn¡¯t know better, I¡¯d assume that she was a japanese that spoke english. I only ever saw her in the school uniform, so I don¡¯t really need to describe that, do I?


    {I¡¯d say no.}


    Shut it, author. It was a rhetorical question.


    So, it ended up that even after those 20 days were over, the princess requested to stay in school. Although, I¡¯m not sure I mentioned it, but our class only has 10 seats. Which means that the princess didn¡¯t have a seat. Eve decided to give hers up, preferring to sit on my lap. I didn¡¯t really have any qualms with it, as she was a very addicting hug pillow.


    {What a dick thing to say about your sister.}


    SHUT IT, AUTHOR!


    Ahem¡­ Anyway, I had to be a bodyguard of sorts for the princess, as she would hide behind me whenever something startled her. Honestly, she acts like a frightened animal when her shyness gets to her. I learned a few things after that.


    <ul>


    <li style="font-weight: 400">The princess¡¯s hair is very soft</li>


    <li style="font-weight: 400">Petting people is quite an enjoyable experience</li>


    <li style="font-weight: 400">Eve easily gets jealous.</li>


    <li style="font-weight: 400">Eve¡¯s hair is very smooth.</li>


    <li style="font-weight: 400">My fox is curious.</li>


    <li style="font-weight: 400">I only have two hands to please three women.</li>


    </ul>


    And with that, petting became a reward for when any of the three did something well. Like, say, the princess got a new friend. Or when Eve helped me out with something. Or when the fox learned how to speak proper sentences. Or when it learned to be a little bit less curious about anything erotic.


    Anyway, I then spent most of my time researching and experimenting with [Time and Space control]. The skill itself says that it is very unreliable, so I was mainly just doing the same thing over and over in an attempt to have that 0.0000001% chance of it working.


    With that small of a chance, it didn¡¯t work almost every time. The skill allowed me to see ''time'', in my own way. I saw threads. I had a suspicion that other people would see something different. But from my perspective, all I have to do is put mana into the threads of time and pull back. This slows time, at least.


    Sounds easy, right? Not really. Putting the mana into the threads is the easy part, and that takes me a few hours. Pulling back? You have to control your strength with each and every thread, as they are all going different speeds, to lower the speed by the same amount. But just finding the direction of each one is nigh impossible. They twirl, spinning and twisting, knotting, tangling together, untying eachother, etc.


    Space control has eluded me. I don¡¯t even know the theory behind it, so I can¡¯t do much in terms of leveling it that way.


    So, that¡¯s why my stats didn¡¯t level all that much. Eve is actually higher than me in some places, even though she¡¯s a few levels under me.


    {Hurry and get to the present. You¡¯ve already spent ? of the chapter on a summary.}


    I¡¯m tired of your orders. But I¡¯ll comply this time.


    ¡°Alright, test¡­ some large number.¡± I muttered sarcastically, reaching my hand in front of me.


    Mana flowed through me like a raging river, 3884 points making an entrance. It was incomparable to what I had before this time skip.


    Concentrating it into my fingers, I tried to grab at the space between them.


    Alas, another failure.


    The air slips through my fingers, giving birth to a sigh of disappointment. Eve looked at the scene, probably confused as to what I was doing.


    ¡°Rayne, have you ever thought of trying another method? You¡¯ve been trying to grab space, but what would you do with it after you grabbed it?¡±


    Did I mention how much I hate it when people make sense?


    ¡°But what should I try? To make a portal, you need to twist space in such a way that it creates a hole¡­ Or maybe you don¡¯t. How does space work? It isn¡¯t a molecule, I¡¯ve tried that. It isn¡¯t an atom¡­ Which only leaves it as a force.¡± I¡¯ve been down this thought road before. It always ends with the same question.


    ¡°But how do I control a force?¡±


    Eve has been watching with her mana-augmented eyes, trying to ¡®see¡¯ any sort of ripples in space. I¡¯m not even sure if she can see it.


    I twirled some mana over my hand, just playing with it as I thought. Liquid silver¡­


    ¡°How do you create a ripple? You apply a force to a form of matter. So how would space ripple, if it is a force? I¡¯m missing something¡­¡±


    Well, as much as I love scientific talk, let¡¯s skip forward an hour.


    ¡°Nyaa¡­ That feels good¡­¡± The princess spoke, reaching up to capture the hand that was rubbing her head. Her expression was one of bliss, a goofy grin lazily spreading across her face.


    I was petting her, for certain reasons. Mostly because I was angry with my failures, and needed something to calm me. Seeing this face and hearing this voice always seems to do that. Her hair was also very soft and fluffy, tickling me as I ran it through my fingers. It took only a minute for my scowl to turn into a small smile.


    Eve was next, just to be fair. Then Vera. Vera, today, decided to be in her human form, kneeling on the ground with her hair pointed towards me. Just for the effect, I crossed my legs and puffed out my chest, taking the pose of a king on his throne, before reaching out a hand to pet her.


    I did them all for the same amount of time, give or take a minute. I can¡¯t help that I like the princess¡¯s hair the best.


    An explosion rocked the building. It was so out of the ordinary and in the middle of nowhere most of the children fell out of their seats. Vera reverted to fox-form out of shock, the princess ducked, sqeaking while covering her head with her hands. Eve and I were calm, assessing the situation. Effret was actually out today, so she didn¡¯t help anything along.


    I didn¡¯t have any information except for the noise and the shaking. So I began to prepare for the worst, circulating my mana through my body so I could use it easier. A scowl adorned my face again. They had interrupted my petting session, so I was, quite understandably, furious.


    I opened the door to the 400th floor, my classroom, and saw the sky. The tower was falling. I began to shout orders, grabbing Eve with my right hand and the princess with my left. Vera was already on my shoulder. If everything else failed, I would protect them. They were the main people I had, besides my family back at home.


    The tower was nearing the ground. The students had mostly found a way to calm themselves, coming towards me. I had used mana to stick my shoes to the ground, picking up all of the students and carrying them towards the door.


    I sat down, preparing my brain for the large amount of influx I would get.


    ¡°Alright, nobody die.¡± Were my last full words.


    Then I grabbed the tower. Metaphorically. Over the 6 months I¡¯ve been here, I put a few hundred points of mana into the tower a day. Over 2 million mana resided inside this tower, and I took control of all of it at once. Think of it like playing 83 games of chess at the same time, every second you thought about your move you got tasered.


    Needless to say, it hurt like hell. I screamed out in pain, feeling the presence of 3 people rushing towards me. I grit my teeth together as I began to pull. The pain was enormous. I had lived nearly 18 years in the slums, so I had quite the pain tolerance. But this pain was unlike anything I had ever felt before.


    I mean, think about it. I was lifting an entire building, with my brain. The physics behind it? None. But it felt like I was literally lifting it, with my entire body.


    The tower slowed, its fall losing momentum. My entire body felt like it was tearing apart. It hit the ground with a crash, making me wonder if somebody got hurt. I felt Eve hold me up, making sure I wouldn¡¯t fall off the building. I had a feeling that if she let go, I wouldn¡¯t be able to move.


    I was slowly and carefully brought to the ground, none of the people I saw injured. I smiled at the sight. But then I went deep into thought, wondering exactly what caused the school to fall. I recovered enough to stand, but I didn¡¯t just yet.


    ¡°This is the last floor. Where are they?!¡± A voice yelled, snaking around me like a vice.


    ¡°Golden eyes¡­ There are two of them!¡± A different voice, much deeper, announced.


    ¡°They are both vampires, then. Kill them, starting with the girl. Female vampires are much more difficult to kill.¡± The first voice.


    The blood drained from my face as I realized what was about to happen. They were going to kill Eve and me, except they brought down the entire building to do so.


    They were going to kill Eve.


    Eve.


    She was going to die again.


    I couldn¡¯t protect her, again.


    Then what did I become a vampire for? What did I train for? Where did I get this power from?


    Why¡­ What is holding me back from protecting her this time?


    My body began to rise from the ground, my eyes shadowed over by my hair. Eve looked to me, temporarily distracted from trying to survive. She barely managed to dodge the next blast of magic, the attack tearing a crater into the ground.


    Is it my hesitation to kill these people?


    An arrow, made of pure mana, flashed by my cheek, leaving a small cut. It healed in less than a second, but the pain lingered for much longer.


    ¡°Rayne? Rayne! Rayne, please help us!¡± The princess yelled, her words falling on deaf ears.


    Then I will toss that aside. My humanity? I¡¯ll leave that behind.


    These people are stronger than me. I know that for a fact. I am weak. But I can gain strength.


    ¡°Princess. I¡¯m sorry. You¡¯ve been a good friend these 6 months.¡± I muttered, the last vestiges of humanity leaving me as I fully brought my vampiric state to the surface.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Vampiric Blood courses through your veins, giving you power.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I screamed out, my mind going blank as my vision tunneled on my two targets. Black robes fluttered about them, red runes painted on with blood. I could feel their enormous mana stores begging to be released. I could feel it running through their veins.


    My scream died down, the world around me freezing as if I had stopped time. The robes flapping in the wind was the only sound.


    ¡°You wanted a vampire? You wanted to kill a vampire?¡± My words were deeper than the voice I remember.


    ¡°Let me entertain you, then.¡± With those words, the mana I had been keeping in check until now burst out from me.


    Silvery mana rose around me in large streams, bathing me in a glowing light. It rose into the far reaches of the sky, growing darker.


    My red eyes saw through it as if it wasn¡¯t there. I gave my full focus to the two men floating in the air. With a roar, I leaped forward.


    Death. (Princess Thea¡¯s POV) {Some Intense Violence}


    I could only crouch down and hope nothing would happen as Rayne pulled the school from its momentum, screaming the entire time. I could hear the pain in voice as if his body was slowly being stripped of its skin.


    When the two men in black robes began flying towards us, I saw them first. I could have warned somebody, but my voice wouldn¡¯t work.


    They began to talk to eachother, obviously not worried about somebody attacking them. When they started talking about vampires and golden eyes, I immediately looked to Rayne.


    Something was wrong with Rayne. He had a completely expressionless face. Never before had I seen him so scary. Bloodlust rolled off him in waves, nearly visible. I fell to my knees, unable to keep standing.


    I realized that Eve was being shot at by the mages, but they were just toying with her before killing her. I screamed out to Rayne, asking him to help us. Everything around us was paralyzed, meaning that no help would be coming. But I had hope that Rayne, the strongest person I knew, could help us.


    But he just stood there, his eyes covered by his hair as he looked downwards. His mouth moved, but I couldn¡¯t hear the words.


    Then, against all my expectations, he screamed. His bloodlust multiplied, making me unable to speak as sweat ran down my back and neck. I was terrified. We all were. Even the two men stopped mid-attack, staring at him, confused.


    His scream died down, but the bloodlust was still there, getting stronger by the second. I saw Eve drop to a sitting position, looking at Rayne. She mouthed ¡®Stop¡¯, reaching out her hand as if to touch him. But she could not move.


    ¡°You wanted a vampire? You wanted to kill a vampire?¡± His voice was deeper than it ever was, choked down with rage and hatred.


    ¡°Let me entertain you, then.¡± Nothing could be heard after that, as a huge wave of mana, almost the size of the two men¡¯s, washed outwards with a roar. Up to 5 feet away from him, Mana seemed to seep out of the ground and rise around him, bathing him in silvery flames. They towered over the walls that were on the ground beside us, reaching up to scorch the heavens.


    His mana began to change color, becoming darker until it was jet-black. His eyes, blood red, shone through the smog. With an animalistic roar, he leaped forward.


    The men were still paralyzed, not able to block his attack in time. Rayne held them to the ground by their necks, his fingers digging deep into the skin.


    ¡°Who sent you? What do you have against vampires? I haven¡¯t done anything wrong, see?¡± His voice was crazed, asking questions that made no sense. He laughed in their faces, making them scowl through their suffocation.


    ¡°Well, you¡¯re going to die here anyway, one way or another. After all, you were trying to hurt my Eve¡­¡± His voice was filled with mana, making the vibrations deadly as they pierced through skin and ruptured internal organs.


    Unable to cough up the blood filling their lungs, the black mages began to drown, red bubbles frothing out of their mouths.


    ¡°Oh, no¡­ You aren¡¯t supposed to die that quickly! You were toying around with Eve, so I hope you don¡¯t mind me toying around with you.¡± His laugh was on the cusp of insanity. It terrified me, but I knew I had to stop him before he actually did torture them to death. I couldn¡¯t stand seeing him like this. I had to make sure he never did this again. But most of all, I had to stop him now, before he comes to his senses covered in blood.


    Rayne picked them up by their necks, the blood in them coming out in violent bursts. Seeing as they were mixed with black mana, I assume Rayne must have forcibly extracted it. Seeing it and imagining it, I just barely held myself back from throwing up everywhere. The entire scene was sickening.


    A loud cracking sound was heard as Rayne slammed them into the School¡¯s wall, cracking the magically reinforced stone.


    ¡°Do you like that? I just broke 4 of your ribs. But it¡¯s fine, after all, you were attempting to kill Eve, weren¡¯t you? I do wonder what possessed you to get on my bad side¡­¡±


    I was barely able to move now. With each attack, his bloodlust goes down. But I have to be the one to drain him of it completely, or else he¡¯ll become a monster.


    ¡°You¡­ klugh¡­ You demon¡­¡± Rayne stopped for a second, his grip loosening and his bloodlust going down to 0. The mage didn¡¯t lose the chance to try to shoot a bolt of mana at Eve, who was rushing towards Rayne to stop him.


    The mana dissolved. The bloodlust came back threefold. Another cracking sound was heard as Rayne shattered the mages¡¯ arms.


    ¡°You know, I have a nickname in my household. Demon child, they call me. I originally thought it was an insult. But the nickname has grown on me.¡± Rayne tilted his head to the side, the glow from his red eyes intensifying. ¡°I¡¯ll gladly become a demon if it means I can stop her from dying again.¡±


    The second part was quieter, just barely audible from my distance.


    Again? Eve died before?


    I didn¡¯t have any time to think, as I had to stop Rayne.


    ¡°Rayne! Stop!¡± I screamed.


    ¡°Princess¡­?¡± His voice was lighter, halfway back to normal. It was confused like somebody just waking up.


    ¡°Oh¡­ Yeah¡­¡± He seemed to remember something. I almost sighed in relief, but then he was pierced through the chest with a mana spear.


    I screamed out, more in worry than fear. But they were both very strongly in that scream. Eve, who was nearing him, fell once again. But this time, tears were in her eyes. She called for him, her voice cracking.


    But Rayne did not answer. I felt liquid running down my cheeks.


    ¡°Ugh¡­ At least we managed to kill one of them¡­ Now, onto the next one.¡± The first mage spoke.


    ¡°Hey, isn¡¯t that the princess?¡± The second one spoke.


    Neither of them showed any signs of injury as they looked my way. I shied back as much as possible, trying to hide from them in plain sight. But I was unable to stop their laughter.


    ¡°It is! How nice. Two vampires and a princess. This country might as well be ours! We can say that the vampires were trying to kill her when we bring her back to the king! We¡¯ll be heros!¡±


    Sickening. Those ¡®Vampires¡¯ that you speak of were my first friends. They brought me to school. They were so nice to me, and now you say that they were trying to kill me?


    Disgusting, vile creatures. They don¡¯t deserve life.


    My own form of rage rose up from the pits of my stomach, devouring my reason. I forgot that they just walked away perfectly fine from ruptured internal organs, broken ribs, and broken arms.


    ¡°I mean, the king wanted us to kill the vampires, so do you think he knows that his daughter is here with them?¡±


    My rage vanished without a trace, replaced by confusion. My father had hired black mages to kill my friends? The same ones that he made into king¡¯s Guests? The same ones who he laughed and joked with as he gave them access to the library?


    Despair crept up on me like a shadow. It covered me like a blanket as I realized that my father was trying to kill my friends. No, not my father. The king was trying to kill my friends. If he¡¯s doing that, he doesn¡¯t deserve me as a daughter.


    ¡°Oh well, let¡¯s just kill the girl first. We can remove her memories later before we hand her in.¡±


    Dread, despair, disgust, rage, betrayal, so many more feelings welled up inside me.


    ¡°Talkative bastards, aren¡¯t you?¡± A voice I had grown to love sounded from near the school.


    ¡°What? We killed you! How are you still alive?¡± The mages were quite confused.


    ¡°Oh come on, a single spear to the heart and you think you¡¯ve killed me?¡± A laugh sounded out, pain hidden behind it. ¡°You¡¯re fighting a vampire. Think again. Although I can¡¯t turn back for a while now, since you killed me¡­ I guess I¡¯ll just have to kill you this way¡­¡±


    The intentions behind the words frightened me, but just hearing his voice made me feel hope. Rayne placed his hand on the building behind him, before taking a large breath. The school began to shine a silver light, before the mana inside the bricks came swarming out, being absorbed into Rayne¡¯s skin. Once all the mana had disappeared, an explosion shook the earth.


    ¡°Rayne! It¡¯s fine! Please, don¡¯t do this!¡± Eve yelled to him, a look of worry in her eyes.


    Rayne showed no response, instead, he was looking around at all the students lying on the ground, most unconscious from his bloodlust earlier. His gaze lingered on 5 people and a fox. Lily, a girl with silvery hair that I had become friends with last week, Eve, the two mages, me, and Vera.


    He smiled at each of us, in turn. The mages were shocked stiff, not sure what he was doing. They began preparing spells, but Rayne either didn¡¯t care or didn¡¯t notice.


    ¡°Sorry, Lilia, for taking away your job. Sorry, Eve, for giving you doubts about me saving you. Sorry, Princess, for treating you like a nuisance. Sorry, Vera, for not petting you as much as I could have.¡± He took a deep breath like he was trying to hold back tears. He stared into the sky. ¡°Sorry, Avalina, for leaving you without a son. Sorry, Elliot, for being such an ass about your requests. Sorry, Freil, for leaving you without a daughter. Sorry, Rose, for killing you.¡±


    The mages had finished preparing their spells, both holding large orbs of mana. It seemed they were going to obliterate him completely with that.


    ¡°Two million, one hundred and sixty-three thousand, nine hundred and sixty-seven mana. How much distance do you think I can tear open with that amount?¡± Rayne asked, pointing his hand towards the two mages. They visibly paled. Their mana, even combined, would be dwarfed by that amount.


    In Rayne¡¯s outstretched hand, dark gray mana began to form, shaping every second into something different. The mages patiently waited, adding more mana to their spells to make sure they would be able to pierce through however much mana he was putting into that block.


    It truly was just a block of mana. I couldn¡¯t see anything special about it except for the large amounts of mana inside of it. It wasn¡¯t quite jet black, so it wasn¡¯t as bad as it was before, but it was pretty close. Rayne sat down, cross legged, and began meditating.


    The mages would wait no longer. They were beginning to show the strain from holding all that mana in one place for so long. The silver balls had turned a few shades darker, meaning that there was an excessive amount of mana in them.


    A whistling sound echoed off the ground as the mana orbs flew at astonishing speeds. Rayne¡¯s eye could just barely be seen opening before the balls converged on his position, tearing up the ground and wall behind, spreading large amounts of dust and dirt into the air. Eve and I held our breath as we waited for it to clear.


    ¡°Do you want to run away with me?¡± I heard a whisper in my ear, from behind. Whirling around, I saw Rayne staring down at me with a compassion in his eyes I hadn¡¯t seen for a while now. I registered his question, thought about it for less than 5 seconds, before reaching my hand to him, a smile on my face.


    ¡°Please take me with you!¡± I beamed.


    ¡°Eve?¡±


    ¡°Do you need to ask?


    ¡°Vera?¡±


    ¡°Yip!¡±


    ¡°Well then, shall we go?¡±


    We all came to him, before the dust cleared, and saw the flash of a dark object. So dark, it seemed to absorb the light instead of reflecting it or producing it.


    Space warped around us all, and we were sent in an unknown direction, 2,163,967 mana worth away.


    I can only pray that we arrive in friendly lands.


    {New Arc} {Author¡¯s POV}


    Well hello there, my dear reader. I have neither time nor much to explain, so I¡¯ll do what I have quickly.


    Just a little bit of a third perspective, a look at the King¡¯s thoughts.


    He had been having nightmares for 2 weeks now. It was always the same one. Rayne, the kid who managed to pass not one, but two of his tests and gave his daughter courage, killing that very daughter.


    He couldn¡¯t trust him anymore, thinking that the nightmares were a vision of the future granted by his chosen goddess. He was worried, to say the least. He hired two dark mages, thinking only monsters can go against a monster. He thought of it as overkill by sending two of them, but his goddess had sent him a vision of them prevailing against him.


    A wicked grin was on his face today, knowing the demon would be killed. When he gave his orders, he had forgotten Rayne¡¯s name, so he simply said ¡®golden eyes¡¯, but that only means one more casualty. Nobody would miss those two demons anyway, is what he managed to convince himself.


    Alas, he would be sorely disappointed to hear that the entire school was knocked over, killing nearly half of the students, the demon being the only thing that saved the other half. Even worse, the demon managed to take not only his life and his sister¡¯s, but he even stole away his precious daughter of her own free will!


    He must have brainwashed her¡­


    {The only thing going through the King¡¯s mind was that Rayne was a demon, who nobody could possibly miss, and yet managed to take away his daughter. The prevailing reasoning in his mind ended up being a form of brainwashing or changing her opinions through mind control magic. Neither of these are actually able to be used unless somebody worshiped Gharn, the God of the Mind, but the king wasn¡¯t thinking straight.}


    {He ended up killing his wife, the queen and committing suicide before he ever got to see his daughter again. It was quite disappointing that, until the Dark One corrupted him, he was actually a good king. Shortly after his death, the Dark One corrupted the next ruler, causing him to go mad and fully ruin the entire country. Such was the effect of Rayne seeing the king.}


    {Now, how do you think Rayne would take this if he knew? Let¡¯s just find out, shall we?}


    (The author walks away with a mischievous smirk on his face, leaving the room. Shortly after, faint sounds of cursing and guns shooting can be heard. It seems he¡¯s found himself an interesting shooter game.)

 A1, C2; New Lands!

    A Demon (Eve¡¯s POV)


    My eyes shot open, having felt like a few days had passed without sleep. Quickly checking my status, my mana seemed to be very drained. The same with my stamina.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Eve


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: 32


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience: 0/464,503 (0%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [1970/1970]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [132/2456]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [273/3578]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: Human


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [7.67/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [1.092/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [18.81/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Satiety: 92%


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength


    1434


    </td>


    <td>


    Endurance


    1534


    </td>


    <td>


    Luck


    35


    </td>


    <td>


    Perception


    3487


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Dexterity


    3290


    </td>


    <td>


    Agility


    1693


    </td>


    <td>


    Intelligence


    2221


    </td>


    <td>


    Wisdom


    2690


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Leadership


    56


    </td>


    <td>


    Vitality


    197


    </td>


    <td>


    Faith


    1002


    </td>


    <td>


    Willpower


    151


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    Skills:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Spellbook (Max)


    Permanently memorize any spell that your body uses.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Transfer (25/50)


    Transfer mana between any two compatible storages.


    </td>


    <td>


    Clairvoyance (23/100)


    Chance to predict the future correctly.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Transmute (94/~)


    Use mana to change one thing about something.


    </td>


    <td>


    Imperceivable (4/35)


    Increase INT and PER by a multiple for up to five minutes.


    Current:8x


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="4">


    Effects:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Bookworm


    Memory is photographic, reading is 18x faster. 20% boost to meditation while reading.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mana Body


    All Spells deal 20% more damage.


    </td>


    <td>


    Otherworldly Vision


    Immune to ¡®Blinded¡¯. Reading is 6x as fast. Semi photographic memory to sights.


    </td>


    <td>


    Rayne


    Party effect, receive half the experience he gets and vice versa.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Storyteller


    Easier to think up fictional stories.


    </td>


    <td>


    Advice from a Hero


    50% less susceptible to mind altering effects.


    </td>


    <td>


    Devilish Student


    10% chance to resist all fear inducing effects. Training is 3x as potent.


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Titles


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Deserter of Humanity


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Fulfilled


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Bookworm¡ï


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Taking a quick look around, everybody seemed to be out cold. We were surrounded by trees on all sides but one, where a vast plain extended as far as I could see. Between the trees were many forms of plants, giving me a sense of euphoria.


    The colors all swam together, never contrasting too harshly or fitting together too well. Pinks, purples, reds all in a swarm, blues, and greens mixing in just enough to create some eye-catching points. The trees had some red and brown barks, very little white, not enough to create a manageable color to call them as a group.


    Just above them, I could see something piercing the cloud layers. Not understanding what it was, I looked to the right, trying to find the end of it. From as far as I was away from it, I still had to turn a good 45 degrees. Seeing the slanted surface, it took me only a few seconds to figure out it was a mountain, a size large enough that it could probably hold a city inside it.


    I was astonished, to say the least. If I was being realistic, I fell to the ground in shock. My legs grew weak, shaking for a second before giving out completely. A small thump sounded from the ground where I hit.


    A few minutes later I had recovered from the shock, making sure not to look over to it anymore. I instead focused my thoughts on the past hour or two, thinking about everything that happened.


    It came in rushes, large vivid scenes I couldn¡¯t get rid of no matter how much I wanted to. His bloodlust, knocking me to the ground. His rage, making him seem like a demon. His death, a mana spear straight through the heart. His words after, making me feel both cold and warm at the same time. Him being calm, but his intents having no less sincerity. His apologies. His words to me. The mana sword. Then I was suddenly here, waking up with very little mana and stamina.


    He must have brought us here¡­


    But where is here?


    A roar sounded through me, blasting my thoughts out of me. I whirled around, looking for the source of the sound. A demon boar stared down at me, quite literally. He was at least four feet taller than me, as large as a medium sized car in length, and pure black. His fur is sharp looking, slicked back to his tail, which was more like a multi-headed whip.


    His tusks were the size of my arm, a charcoal gray and formed from some sort of metal. Covered in spikes piercing downwards, I would have to guess it would be nigh impossible to rip something off of them. Two piercing yellow eyes stared down at me, filling me with a cold fear.


    It roared again, the sound sending me back a step, the force of his breath blowing my hair behind me in a wave. It slid its left hoof on the ground, kicking up some dust. The tusks lowered, aligning with my chest. I assumed it was going to charge and impale me.


    But it was a thousand years too early to attack the disciple of my brother.


    ¡°TEMPEST!¡± I yelled out, giving the monster pause.


    Winds curled around my arms, slowly making their way to my fingers as I compressed it as much as possible since I didn¡¯t have much mana to use. The longer the cast time, the less mana it takes to cast.


    151 mana compressed completely into a single blade of wind. Having water vapor in it made it a foggy type of crescent. Unleashing it towards the bull, it charged directly into it. I had no intention to give ground, as my brother and friends were behind me, plus that white haired girl.


    The tusks met with the blade, sliding right through it as if it wasn¡¯t there. The blade continued onto the demon, whose ego had already inflated from the lack of apparent damage.


    It met with the fur, where the real damage became apparent. The fur floated away as soon as it touched the mist, ending up with a very scared demon. Not that it had any time to react. The flesh and bone alike were sliced through, cutting the demon into two pieces. It fell to the ground, its legs no longer connected.


    The impact knocked off its two tusks, as they were sliced earlier. Picking them up like they were nothing, I summoned a toothpick sized spear of wind. It pierced the demon¡¯s skull, into its brain. A quick death was all I could give it.


    {System Note: Tempest: Tier 3 spell. Made from a combination of Air/Light power, a prayer to both Adalina and Imali was required. Of course, this amount of skill was due to her 1002 faith stat, as she could just say the names of the goddesses in her head to summon their powers. The spell summons up to twenty blades of wind, spinning them in a circle. The original purpose is to create many shallow cuts, but the combined damage is enough to decimate opponents. If concentration is used, they can be compressed into one that moves much slower, but the piercing power is unrivaled. 10 mana is required for each blade, unless it is cast much slower than it should be.}


    {AN: The demon, just for reference, is called the Bull Demon Variant 1: Barbed Tusk Boar. Experience gains for each of the variants will be explained later.}


    I yawned. A ding, showing me that a window had appeared.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Experience gained: 3,908


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I swiped it away, not really caring. I was tired from the lack of mana, even if my stamina was already half full. I was also pretty mentally exhausted, so many emotions going through my head at one time.


    I found Rayne, sleeping peacefully near the edge of the treeline. Curling up next to him, I followed him into the embrace of sleep.


    God, Kill Yourself. (Rayne¡¯s POV)


    I hate this damnable dimension. It gives me a headache just being here, all those whites and blacks with their convoluted boundaries. Not to mention the annoying god that likes to curse me. Sure, I haven¡¯t seen him in a while, but my hate for him never quite fades.


    The last time I met him was¡­ what, when I was first brought into this world? Sounds about right¡­


    ¡°What was your name again? Dracula, or something?¡± I asked the chained god in front of me.


    ¡°Don¡¯t name me after that upstart! My name is Dradacil!¡± He cursed me, rattling his chains furiously.


    ¡°Whatever you say, Dracula.¡± Of course, I didn¡¯t care. This was a god, who managed to turn me into a vampire and curse me into finding his powers for him while chained, and here I was, pissing him off.


    Looking around slowly, trying to comprehend the colors around me, I spread some of my mana out.


    Only to find I couldn¡¯t. It seems my mana is being either forcibly kept inside my body or it is simply being absorbed by something.


    Where is this place anyway?


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    An Answer


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Suratrat, a prison developed by combining every available Gods¡¯ powers to seal Dradacil, the god of vampires.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I stared at the blue window before me, reading it a few times.


    The system¡­ responded to me?


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Obviously


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    I was created by you, after all. How could I not respond to my master? Oh! Is this about those other times when you had questions? I answered most of them the best I could. But I had to figure out exactly what you wanted from me, so I was quite busy until now with fixing things. But now I¡¯m done, so I can serve you perfectly now, Master!


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    You know, I¡¯m not even surprised anymore. Gods exist, I have been forcibly turned into a vampire against my will, I broke a school in half and held it on my shoulders¡­ I quit being surprised.


    I couldn¡¯t help but think that. Not that the system responded this time. Sighing aloud, I turned back to Dradacil.


    ¡°So, Dracula, what all did you do to get in here?¡± I smirked, seeing his face contort in rage when I misspoke his name.


    ¡°None of your business! And it¡¯s Dradacil, you puny human!¡±


    ¡°Sorry, but I¡¯m not human. You fixed that for me, remember?¡± I tilted my head back, to show him the same place where he bit me. There were no marks, but both of us remembered it perfectly.


    ¡°So, another important question. How exactly did I end here, twice?¡± I asked, the emphasis on the number quite obvious. Dradacil looked away, seemingly embarrassed. Of course, I knew better than that.


    ¡°Well, I have the power to pull you here once every six months, given you are completely out of mana.¡±


    I nodded, the words making sense to me. After all, I used literally every single point of mana to send the group as far as possible.


    I wonder where we ended up?


    ¡­


    I half expected the system to answer me, but it seems my luck had run out when receiving answers.


    ¡°So? What did you pull me here for, exactly?¡± I reverted my gaze to him, closing my eyes. Staring too long at the surroundings easily gave me a headache.


    ¡°I wanted to let you know about your brand. It¡¯s actually a small piece of your soul that I took from you.¡±


    My eyes shot open. He took a piece of my soul?! I didn¡¯t get the chance to respond before he continued.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t take anything important, you are still mostly the same as you were before you ended up here, from wherever you came from. What I did take was your will to resist the quest I¡¯ve issued you.¡±


    A window popped up at that, making me open my eyes once more, having closed them after he started talking.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Quest Update!


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Quest: Recover the Vampire God¡¯s powers.


    Difficulty: ???


    Reward: ---


    Hints: None


    Time Limit: Death


    Description: The Vampire God, Dradacil, has taken a portion of your soul to make you regain his powers. They were ¡®stolen¡¯ from him, ¡®wrongfully¡¯. There are no hints to how to get his powers back.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°There are a few ways to go about getting my powers back. They are held by each of the main gods and goddesses.¡±


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Quest Update!


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Quest: Recover the Vampire God¡¯s powers.


    Hints: The powers are held by the main gods and goddesses.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°First, you can kill them. The powers should be absorbed into your brand shortly afterward. Second, you can suck the powers out of them with your [Blood Drain] skill. Third, you can persuade them, although that is the option will have the least chance of success.¡±


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Quest Update!


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Quest: Recover the Vampire God¡¯s powers.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    Hints: The powers are held by the main gods and goddesses. There are three ways of getting the powers from them; Killing them, [Blood Drain], and Persuasion.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°For the cosmic gods, I should be able to give you enough power to find them after the first three powers, depending on the quality.¡±


    {Author¡¯s Note: Cosmic Gods are the six element deities. Then the Deity Tier. Then the Race Tier.}


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Quest Update!


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Quest: Recover the Vampire God¡¯s powers.


    Hints: The powers are held by the main gods and goddesses. There are three ways of getting the powers from them; Killing them, [Blood Drain], and Persuasion. Cosmic powers can only be obtained after more than three others have been.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°For now, I don¡¯t even have enough power to show you to any of the race tier gods, much less the deity tier. You¡¯ll have to find the first couple gods on your own. I wish you luck. I¡¯ll be monitoring you from down here, so don¡¯t try any funny business.¡±


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Sub-Quest Update!


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Quest: Recover the Vampire God¡¯s powers.


    Sub-Quest: Find the location of Suratrat.


    Hints: The powers are held by the main gods and goddesses. There are three ways of getting the powers from them; Killing them, [Blood Drain], and Persuasion. Cosmic powers can only be obtained after more than three others have been.


    Sub-Hints: Suratrat is ¡®down¡¯.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°Speaking of which, she should be coming soon¡­¡± The god muttered, looking at a very specific part of the ceiling.


    ¡°What? Who?¡± I asked, following his gaze. My eyes had been open for most of his speech, as I had to swipe away the windows.


    A girl was falling from the¡­ sky? Ceiling? Upwards.


    The girl seemed to be getting close to the¡­ whatever I was standing on, by relative distance. I began to run towards her, but I was stopped from behind.


    ¡°Stop. It¡¯s fine.¡± Dradacil¡¯s voice seemed to be strained. A quick look showed that he seemed to be putting all his concentration into something. A small red line shot out from him, hitting the girl with the force of a bullet. It then began to retract, bringing the girl closer with amazing speeds.


    I leaped into her path, not wanting her to get caught up in the god¡¯s teeth. I could feel his disappointment without even turning around.


    Looking down, my breath caught in my throat. It was Eve. And she was unconscious.


    ¡°Eve? Hey! Wake up!¡± I shouted, rubbing my hand on her cheek in a panic.


    ¡°Damn, kid, calm down. She¡¯ll wake up in a second. It¡¯s the same for you when I bring you here.¡± I growled at him lowly, holding Eve closer to me, farther from him.


    She opened her eyes slowly, blinking and looking sleepy.


    ¡°Huh, Rayne?¡± She asked, not sure if it was me. I put on my best smile, looking at her tired face.


    ¡°So, do you want to be a vampire?¡± Dradacil asked from behind me.


    ¡°Huh?¡± I couldn¡¯t help the noise. Eve didn¡¯t make any but she certainly looked confused.


    The god sighed, hanging his head. He looked up at us, a strange look in his eyes.


    ¡°I said, do you want to be a vampire? I can feel how much you want to be like him from all the way over here¡­ tone it down a little bit, would you?¡± Eve heated up in my arms, burying her face in my shirt. Finally noticing I had one, I began to ponder the mysteries of clothing transfer to prisons made by gods.


    That being said, I completely didn¡¯t hear a large part of the conversation. When I finally gave up thinking about it and tuned into the present, Eve was finishing her conversation with the god.


    ¡°-So, for that reason, I would like to be a vampire. Please turn me into one. Please let my dreams come true.¡±


    The god was silent for many seconds, a feeling of dread filling the air. Then he began to laugh.


    ¡°Ah, I¡¯ve missed that. Your resolve is quite something. I approve. However, I don¡¯t have enough power to turn another human into a vampire. Rayne will have to do that for you.¡±


    I stared at him, confused. I hadn¡¯t heard much, except now Eve was turning into a vampire, and I was the one who had to do the honors. I wasn¡¯t quite sure how to do that, even.


    ¡°Ah, Rayne. Come a little closer, would you?¡± I was wary at first but slowly approached Dradacil. He didn¡¯t do anything until he was less than a foot away from me.


    ¡°You have a very nice woman there. She¡¯ll grow up to be a good wife. Make sure you treat her with respect, kay? Now here¡¯s how you turn people. You have to give them blood, mouth to mouth. Your blood. Mix it with mana, and there you go. It shouldn¡¯t take much, but the more you give them, the purer they are. It should take about a pint for them to reach maximum purity.¡±


    He explained some other things about the purity of vampires, telling me things like their powers, their abilities, their resistances, their body structure. Some very interesting things were being said, so I thought up a way to record it. I ended up asking the system to record it, which it followed all too enthusiastically.


    I¡¯m not so sure about this thing calling me ¡®Master,¡¯ but oh well.


    We ended up back on the ground, opening our eyes like nothing had happened. We looked at each other for a second, before I looked away, embarrassed. I couldn¡¯t get my mind off Dradacil¡¯s directions for turning her.


    Her hand pressed on my cheek, pulling my face to look at her. She had a small smile on her face, one that showed such happiness I smiled back on instinct.


    Then she lunged forward, placing her mouth on mine and shutting her eyes. I felt her tongue enter my mouth, waiting patiently for the blood it expected. I followed orders without question, closing my own eyes as I bit my tongue with my fangs. Blood poured forth along with another liquid. The second one wasn¡¯t from my mouth.


    The blood in my mouth was completely ignored, Eve kissing me full force. I was pushed onto the ground, unable to move as she pinned down my arms. I didn¡¯t try to struggle too much, considering it didn¡¯t matter how long she did it.


    Of course, I had only assumed she wanted the blood.


    Incest?! (Princess Thea¡¯s POV)


    I woke up with a start, looking around groggily. What I saw was enough to shock me into being awake.


    Eve was lying atop Rayne, their lips connected and both pairs of their eyes closed. I could see a small rivulet of drool dripping from Rayne¡¯s mouth, reflecting the light. As I watched, it got even more intense, Rayne rolling over Eve this time. She wrapped her arms around his back, seemingly enjoying this much more.


    I wondered at the scene. At first, I was confused, but now I was just embarrassed. Another feeling lingered around my heart, circling it dangerously. I didn¡¯t try to coax it in.


    They fully embraced each other, their movements getting sporadic and slightly erotic. Eve¡¯s back arched, pressing her into him with even more force. They opened their eyes at the same moment, scarily in sync.


    With that, Eve moaned loud enough for me to hear it from across the clearing. Rayne chuckled softly, brushing her hair from her face. If one looked closely enough, they would be able to see the same lust I saw in Eve¡¯s eyes in the eyes of a succubus. Rayne¡¯s didn¡¯t have any lust when I saw them but were certainly intense. Eve disconnected from his lips, leaning over his ear. Her mouth moved, the words too soft for me to hear, but it made Rayne¡¯s entire body shudder. His mouth was the one moving this time, the words loud enough for me to hear sounds, but not understand the words.


    Eve went back to her previous actions, with even more ferocity than before. She kept stopping every few seconds to mutter some words to him, going back to staring into his eyes while kissing him. Moans came from her, muffled by Rayne¡¯s mouth.


    I covered my face with my hands, leaving gaps between my fingers so I could still watch. The innocent part of me found this to be too embarrassing to watch, while the rest of me very much wanted to watch. A small part of my mind immersed itself in delusions of those two and, even worse, me and him.


    ¡°Hey, Rayne, what is going on?¡± Somebody asked from the sidelines. I turned to look. It was Lily, the silver haired girl. I thought for a second, wondering when she learned his name.


    Looking back to Eve and Rayne, who seemed to have heard her, as they were sitting next to each other, not daring to look to their side.


    ¡°Umm¡­ I was giving Eve¡­ something.¡± He came up with a quick excuse. It was not enough to save him.


    ¡°Oh? Your tongue?¡± Lily scoffed, smirking while crossing her arms.


    Rayne did not respond. He did not look anywhere near Eve, and vice-versa.


    I had nothing to do with it, so I just watched from the sidelines, staring at Rayne with as much curiosity as I could muster.


    Eventually, we ended up dropping the subject, not getting a clear answer on what Eve and Rayne were doing. Other than that, we spent thirty minutes doing nothing. The inactivity bothered me, even if the silence didn¡¯t.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Shouldn¡¯t we be finding a way to do something here?¡± I asked, drawing attention towards me. I flinched instinctively.


    ¡°You have a point. However, we do need to figure out what we should do here. From what I¡¯ve seen, this is a completely different continent than the one we were on before. There are even these demons crawling about.¡± Eve spoke, waving her hands for effect.


    ¡°This looks like Fronag if I had to guess. It is one of the smallest continents, covered in both mountains and flora. The dwarves and beastly demons inhabit it, the Dwarves deep underground, while the demons roam the surface.¡± I added, thinking back to my lessons. I caught Rayne looking at me with a look that almost seemed like awe.


    Nobody spoke for a few seconds, all seeming deep in thought except for me. I was still confused. I haven¡¯t had much time to think about these past few hours. But now that I have a few seconds, my mind wandered back to him. What he had done before coming here. His mysterious sword. The amount of mana he listed off.


    I checked mine in an instant, reading all of it that I could reach. A total of just under 1000. Having a few million is completely unnatural, but I had no choice but to believe it. After all, with a single swipe of a sword, he sent us to another continent.


    I was brought back to the present by somebody speaking my name.


    ¡°Eve?¡± It was Rayne.


    ¡°Yes? I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t hear you.¡± I answered, trying to hide under my hair. I was pretty comfortable with these people since I knew them, but I was still shy.


    ¡°I was asking what you think we could do here. I have no ideas. I need to find some gods, but before that, I suppose I need to get stronger. Any places where I could get a bit stronger?¡± He asked again.


    I thought for a second, doing my best to focus on his question and not my beating heart.


    ¡°The best way to get stronger in a specific area would be to get a teacher, which there are little to none of here. But for overall strength, you could just kill the demons around here for the experience. No need to worry about angering the demon race, as the beastkind are more of outcasts in their society. Also, they¡¯re much below us, so they won¡¯t complain.¡± I explained, feeling oddly like a teacher.


    Rayne thought for a second, before muttering something and swiping the air. I was very confused. For a second I assumed that he had gone insane. Then I heard a slight ding sound in my head and a blue window appeared before me.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Hello there. I¡¯m setting up your system unless you wouldn¡¯t like me to. It¡¯s mainly just a way to categorize all of your information. But Rayne made me just after he was born with many uses of me. I¡¯m pretty held up just meeting all of his expectations most of the time.


    I¡¯ve held you up. Would you like full access to the System?


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    YES


    </td>


    <td>


    NO


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Once I read through it, I pressed YES without any hesitation. Another window popped up, telling me that it was configuring my stats and to wait a second. I patiently did so, a smile spreading across my face and a silly hum escaping me.


    ¡°What¡¯s with the hum?¡± Rayne asked me, his right hand twitching slightly. I knew exactly why.


    ¡°I gained access to the system you created! Does that not deserve a reward?¡± I asked, getting excited. He didn¡¯t even think for more than 5 seconds before waving me over. I followed his request with great willingness.


    He rubbed his hand through my hair as I sat on his lap, humming as I waited for the system to finish. Eve would be staring at me with a jealous gaze right about now, but she couldn¡¯t bear to look at Rayne, so she left me alone.


    In my mind, I had Rayne all to myself for now. So I took full opportunity of it, stealing Eve¡¯s spot, the petting hand, and the attention.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Name: Thea Histra


    </td>


    <td>


    Level: 4


    </td>


    <td colspan="2">


    Experience: 432/1200 (36%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [210/210]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [1669/1669]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [1430/1430]


    </td>


    <td>


    Race: Human


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    HP [3.316]


    </td>


    <td>


    MP [.742/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    SP [7.4/sec]


    </td>


    <td>


    Satiety: 79%


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Strength


    477


    </td>


    <td>


    Endurance


    829


    </td>


    <td>


    Luck


    63


    </td>


    <td>


    Perception


    734


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Dexterity


    780


    </td>


    <td>


    Agility


    663


    </td>


    <td>


    Intelligence


    1764


    </td>


    <td>


    Wisdom


    1574


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Leadership


    482


    </td>


    <td>


    Vitality


    21


    </td>


    <td>


    Faith


    5481


    </td>


    <td>


    Willpower


    47


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="3">


    Skills:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Hide Presence


    Become 50% less noticeable.


    </td>


    <td>


    Heal (Spell)


    +60 hp. Cost 120 mana.


    </td>


    <td>


    Mass Heal (Spell)


    +30 hp in a 10 yard diameter area. Cost 400 mana.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Magic Creation


    All spells have a chance to give you a notion for creating a new one.


    </td>


    <td>


    Spell Warping


    Mixing spells randomly has a 1% chance to fix itself with the right portions.


    </td>


    <td>


    Potion Creation


    Create potions a percentage better.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="4">


    Effects:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Princess


    People have a chance to recognize you, and treat you accordingly.


    </td>


    <td>


    Shy


    Makes it more difficult to express oneself.


    </td>


    <td>


    Chemistry


    Potions are 2x as efficient. Created potions are 3x.


    </td>


    <td>


    Godly Knowledge


    Faith increased by 2x


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">


    Titles


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Princess of Mercater


    </td>


    <td>


    Chemist¡ï


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Self Disowned


    </td>


    <td>


    Spell Blender


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Shy


    </td>


    <td></td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    The window appeared before me without warning, startling me. On instinct, I leaped from Rayne¡¯s lap and hid behind him, before taking a good look at the window. He chuckled softly at my actions, making me puff up my cheeks and glare at him.


    He only laughed harder. How rude.


    He began to slowly explain the entire system, myself asking questions from time to time. Sometimes he seemed to not know the answers, before reading something on his own and replying correctly to my question.


    All in all, I knew the system pretty well now. I also knew how weak I was. Out of the group, the two with systems were multitudes of levels above me, their stats mimicking that. One of the only things I had going for me was my faith stat, but I don''t think it helped me that one of them had a negative faith stat.


    You should have seen my face when I learned that Rayne had a few hundred negative faith. I hadn¡¯t read anything about anybody being forsaken by the gods. I revered them, to say the least. They had created my life, created Rayne¡¯s, created Eve¡¯s, and brought us all together.


    I mean, that couldn¡¯t have been a coincidence, right?


    ¡°It must have been fate¡­¡± I muttered, looking dreamily to the sky.


    ¡°What? Fate? Why do you bring her up now?¡± Rayne asked, slowly moving his hand across my waist. He rested his chin on my head, still petting what was left.


    ¡°It must have been fate that brought us together! I mean, what are the chances that we would all be brought together here, in this moment? It must be nigh impossible, but here we are!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t speak that nonsense. You say that as if it is a good thing. Now, I¡¯m sorry to remind you of it, but by that logic, Fate killed off half of the students in the school, if not more. In order for all of us to brought together like this, the school was brought to the ground and we had to be nearly killed. Those two mages could have killed the rest of the students once we were gone.¡± Rayne pointed out, making my face one of horror. I hadn¡¯t thought of it that way, but now that I did¡­


    Fate is pretty damn messed up?


    The Screams (Author¡¯s POV)


    Hello there. Well, a small amount of time has passed since where we cut off last. I¡¯ll give a little breakdown of what everyone is doing.


    Eve is cuddling with Rayne, both of them meditating while Rayne uses his [Mana Condensation] to gain some more mana.


    Lilia is¡­ Exploring, I guess you could say. I¡¯m not quite sure what she is doing, besides walking about 100 feet away from anybody else. She¡¯s staying, quite amazingly, at 100 feet at all times. She¡¯s also looking about a bit every once and awhile, stopping randomly in her tracks. I have no idea.


    Vera seems to be hunting for some food, gathering berries and whatnot. Something interesting is that she seemed to have figured out how to weave mana like her clothes, making a little bag to hold all the things in. She doesn¡¯t seem to be all that proficient in it, though, as she has to stop every thirty minutes to remake the bag, not getting any of the food dirty, of course. She seems about to make the last jog back to camp.


    Princess Thea is¡­ somewhere. Where did she go? Oh, found her. She is some 500 feet away from Rayne, experimenting with creating a new spell. She keeps muttering to herself, jumping away from most of her creations, even when nothing bad happened. It was mostly just a glowing light show.


    With that being said, something seems to be going down here. Let¡¯s go a bit closer, shall we?


    Rayne is meditating, collecting another 100 mana for his next point. Eventually, he might find out that it¡¯s much more efficient to just create a block of mana and fill it with a few thousand mana, before absorbing it back all at once. That way he doesn¡¯t have as many negative gains. And it¡¯s cooler to watch.


    A scream is heard, coming from far away. The mana circling Rayne shoots outwards, becoming foggy. An instant transition from [Mana Condensation] to [Mana Eye]. Seeing nothing near him, he turned to the source of the scream. Running quickly, Eve was by his side in an instant. She had been slightly slower in registering the scream.


    Vera was running with the bag slung over her shoulder, the fruits splattering against her back through the cloth. Juices soaked into the mana, seeping through it in small drops. It left a trail directly to where she was running.


    Lily stayed where she was, before slowly walking towards the noise. She seemed saddened as if she was about to do something she really didn¡¯t want to do.


    ¡°Princess! Princess, where are you?!¡± Rayne shouted, coming across the clearing she was last practicing her spells in. Not seeing her, his mana came out once more to find any signs of her.


    Four patches of grass were pressed to the ground, making a symmetrical pattern that looked oddly similar to hoofprints. Realizing that something was still standing there, Rayne constricted his mana around the creature. {Mana Constriction}, a skill he hadn¡¯t used in a very long time, was used to its fullest at that moment.


    Chains of mana appeared, solidifying and wrapping around the strangely shaped creature, most likely a demon. Using [Mana Eye] on a smaller scale, he focused in on the prints in the ground. He could see a small disturbance in the air above it, so he focused on it to the maximum, calling out directions before doing so.


    ¡°Eve! Enhance your eyes! There are invisible demons here!¡±


    Doing so, she saw the full form of the three demons. One was touching the ground, the other two standing on its back. The one touching the ground was a Drakin Variant 4, Caster Form. These were a type of demon that related closely to wyverns, except their hoofed four legs, and their much larger wingspan made of feathers. Variant 4 was able to cast small spells, only able to affect itself and the ones touching it.


    That being mentioned, the two on its back were Treant Variant 2, Speed Forms. They were trees that had absorbed a large amount of blood and demonic essence, essentially gaining the most important stats from the blood and essence it absorbed. Variant 2 was a form designed off of speed. Although contrary to popular belief, they are still practically immobile. It takes them about 5 seconds to take a step, root, and unroot for another step. What is speed focused is their whip-like arms, the branches making them up able to swing faster than sound.


    That was when one of them threw a body to Rayne. He caught it with some difficulty, having to dissipate the bonds holding the Drakin in place.


    It was Thea.


    Be careful here, because I¡¯ll be explaining the injuries she had.


    Her left arm was completely missing, the blood coming from the wound in small spurts, staining Rayne¡¯s clothes. Her right leg was distorted in three places, broken beyond belief. It was already a purplish green color, slowly getting worse. Her clothes were shredded to pieces, uncovering nearly all of her body. Taking a quick look, it seems the Treants had some ¡®fun¡¯ while torturing her. Cuts were prominent all over the insides of her thighs and her breasts, obscuring what the clothing didn¡¯t with blood. Dozens of lacerations were on her stomach as if tallying a score. A purple ring ran around her torso, the cuts having parts that were distorted in one direction as if they were stretched. A cut ran the length of her right arm, a few twigs and leaves brutally shoved inside. Blood and pus oozed from the wound, dripping to the ground in a disgusting pool. Her face was marred almost to the point where it was difficult to recognize her. A stick lazily hung from her mouth, a feather on the end. Her cheeks were red, with multiple small punctures that showed some of her teeth in some places. Some of those teeth had been pulled out, blood dripping from them and watering the twig there. Her left eye had been popped, blood tracing a trail next to the tears. A piece of her left ear had also been cut off, and she had been halfway scalped.


    Mana rose from Rayne in large bursts, creating cloth all at once, at least a few hundred times his normal speed. The rest circled him, large bubbles lazily swaying in a half assed circle.


    ¡°Eve, don¡¯t look. Close your eyes. Don¡¯t look at me¡­¡± Rayne whispered, tears beginning to wash down his face and drip into her wounds. She twitched at the irritant, making Rayne breath out a shaky sigh of relief. She was still alive.


    But those demons. They had hurt his first friend. They had tortured her. They had raped her. And they probably assumed Eve was next.


    These demons were threatening his reason for living.


    His way of life.


    Him.


    They would not live to regret this day.


    With a ferocious scream that sent the few birds in the forest flying away in fear, Rayne leaped at the demons. Two branches hit him on the back, leaving him angry red gashes as they tore at his skin. Then he heard the cracking sound before hitting the ground with enough force to sink a little bit in the soft dirt.


    He pushed himself up, his anger having died down a bit. Pain is a very good way for him to kill his emotions. But that small amount was nowhere near enough.


    Staying silent this time, he placed one foot backward, bracing his sole against a large flat rock. He pushed forward, parallel to the ground, his body aimed at the Drakin¡¯s left leg. A large ripping sound was heard before the Drakin hit the ground. The Treants fell, leaving them at Rayne¡¯s mercy unless they could free their arms to hit him.


    Which they were unable to manage. Mana hit them directly in their center, sinking into them. It fuelled them, filling them with strength. They got to their feet, ready to defend against any attack.


    But they did not see themselves ripping apart as the mana inside them distilled into balls and ripped their way out of the demons. Instead of sap, the Treants had a black bile dripping from the cut pieces.


    He looked to the Drakin, who was struggling to stand. It was not used to having three legs. It would not need to get used to it. Rayne bent low and dashed forward once more. A stray wing clipped him in the chest, blowing him skyward. The Drakin crashed to the ground, not caring about the leg anymore. Its neck extended towards Rayne, mouth agape.


    It slammed shut, Rayne no longer visible.


    A fews seconds passed. The Drakin focused on Eve, not noticing Vera, who was behind it. Just before it tried to pick itself up again, it fell limp.


    Hitting the ground with a thud, Rayne appeared above it. A dark sword was in his hand, the size of a small dagger. From where he came, a large cracked zone was in the air, as if it was glass and had taken a bullet. The cracks were pure black, no light shining in or out. It was as if it was nothingness itself.


    That was, in fact, the void. With a ratio of 10,000:1, The void is the simplest way to travel. Traveling around the world, however, still takes up to a minute in that infinite blackness.


    Eve fell to the ground, once again pressured by bloodlust. She heard a twig snap behind her, and turned slowly to look. It was another Bull Demon Variant 1, Barbed Tusk Boar. How it managed to get so close without making a sound, the world may never know. It was most likely luck.


    But Rayne had spotted it, so it knew it was dead. It pressed its head to the ground, asking for a brief death. Rayne granted the wish with a large crushing snare of mana, compressing the entire head into the size of a marble.


    With that, a simple look around was all it took for him to realize there were no more monsters around. His bloodlust faded, and his experience gained popped up.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Experience Gained: 388,019


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    But that didn¡¯t matter. What mattered is that Thea was dying.


    And he didn¡¯t know if he could save her.

 A1 C2.5 Reference page

    Dollars


    1 Copper coin = $5.064


    1 Silver coin = $506.4


    1 Gold coin = $50,640


    Pounds


    1 Copper coin =4.12


    1 Silver coin = 412.45


    1 Gold coin = 412445.04


    Euros


    1 Copper coin = 4.84


    1 Silver coin = 484.48


    1 Gold coin = 484477.41


    Yen


    1 Copper coin = 593.36


    1 Silver coin = 59383.00


    1 Gold coin = 59382996.00


    Week of Ice - January


    Week of Wind - February


    Week of Sprout - March


    Week of Crops - April


    Week of Bloom - May


    Week of Heat - June


    Week of Work - July


    Week of Cool - August


    Week of Color - September


    Week of Fall - October


    Week of Festivities - November


    Week of Frost - December


    Children start school at the age of 5 months old, and will continue until they are 5 years old. At this point in time, they are sent off to practice their dream occupation.


    Avalon: 213,772.5 miles in diameter, 27 times larger than Earth.


    Cosmic Tier:


    Darkness (Zaleth / God)


    Light (Adalina / Goddess)


    Flame (Fornar / God)


    Earth (Mercurum / God)


    Air (Imali / Goddess)


    Water (Lezarath / Goddess)


    Diety Tier:


    Ice (Hana / Goddess)


    Sea (Navmarin / God)


    Health (Medicalon / God)


    Magic (X¡¯ablin / God)


    Disaster [War (Merun¨¨s / God)] [Poison/ Pestilence (Arkio / God)]


    Judah (God of Betrayal)


    Helia (Goddess of Forgiving)


    Race Tier:


    Vampires (Dradacil/God)


    Humanity (Larkus / God)Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    Elven (Legaro / Goddess)


    Dwarven (G¨ªrmu / God)


    Demon (Athena / Goddess)


    Beastkin (Waulnog / God)


    Fairy (Eleanna / Goddess)


    Death (Lilia/Goddess)


    Race --- Male:Female


    Humanity 1:1


    Elven 1:2


    Dwarven 7:1


    Demon 1:1


    Beastkin 3:4


    Fairy 1:12


    Average lifespan:


    Humans: 100 years


    Elves: 135 years


    Dwarves: 90 years


    Demonkind: 1000 years


    Beastkin: 92 years


    Fairies: 500 years


    Social Structure: Humanity > Elves > Dwarves > Demons > Beastkin > Fairies.


    Second- 1 second. Minute- 60 seconds. Hour- 60 minutes, 360 seconds. Day- 24 hours, 1,440 minutes, 86,400 seconds. Ten day- 10 days, 240 hours, 14,400 minutes, 864,000 seconds. Week- 3 ten days, 30 days, 720 hours, 43,200 minutes, 2,592,000 seconds. Month- 12 Weeks, 36 ten days, 720 days, 8640 hours, 518,400 minutes, 31,104,000 seconds. Year- 12 months, 144 weeks, 432 ten days, 8640 days, 518,400 hours, 31,104,000 minutes, 373,248,000 seconds.


    Alright, I believe a little explanation about aging and that process is suitable for people who live, on average, 12 times the age of a human being. Here, have a list of milestones. Anything in between is just aging 12 times slower.


    Born- day 0


    Walking- average day 5


    Talking- average day 10


    Speaking full sentences- depends on teaching, average week 1 (30 days)


    Puberty- NEVER! HAHAHAHAHA!!! FANTASY WORLD LOGIC!


    School- 5 weeks -> 5 months. The king pays for your child to go to school once he/she is 5 months old, but they are eligible for school at 5 weeks old.


    Teenager-esque body- ~2 years, depends on natural growth rates. If you still don¡¯t have a teenager body by the age of 5 years old, you are medically considered a midget. They don¡¯t even have a technical term.


    End of school- 5 years


    Legally considered ¡®elderly¡¯- 80% of average age. Humans=80 Elves=108 ect¡­


    Death- Whenever.


    The world is split into 5 main continents, one for each of the races except the Fairies and the dead. They are named after the cosmic tier gods. Let me list them and their main attributes.


    Zaldon: Mostly a demon populated continent, surrounded by thousands of tiny islands. There is constantly a few guild quests for killing off the demons, so it is the main training continent for young adventurers. As the breeding grounds for non-human demons, the adventures physically must go off or else the demons will overpopulate the continent within a few years, starting to cause problems. Even if they are the practical ¡®Monsters¡¯ in this world, people would rather keep them, if not just as experience. It is the largest of the five, covered mostly by bleak plains devoid of grass. Permanently in a drought, the rivers there are not water, but mixing blood. With the constant killing, the flora have evolved to feed on both demon and other forms of blood, making them give off a sinister aura and even turn some into demons. Quite terrifying, I¡¯d rather not visit there anytime soon.


    Adaros: The main continent housing the Elves, it is very ¡®pure.¡¯ There has not been blood purposefully drawn in a few hundred years. The forests there are the largest of anywhere, even reaching the heights of small mountains in some cases. Just as you would expect, the Elves live above the ground, hanging from the trees. In fact, it¡¯s been so long that they have literally begun to evolve to suit their environment better, having ¡®sharper¡¯ hearing (Snicker) and somewhat bent feet, allowing for gripping even the smoothest of surfaces. With strong enough abdominal muscles, they can climb vertical surfaces. With strong enough feet, they can hang upside down and walk. Now that is something I want to see.


    Fronag: Aka, The creation continent. Inhabited half and half by demons and Dwarves, the demons being aboveground and the Dwarves being far under the mountains, it is nearly impossible to get a good craft from the dwarves. With many mountains, one would expect it to be a bleak continent, albeit a very tall one. But you would be disappointed. The mountains do indeed tower high into the sky, past the clouds by a large margin, but between them are flora that exceeds even the beauty of Adaros. Flowers extend for miles, trees tower high over even small buildings, plains are somewhat common, but it¡¯s a rumor that you can never see one plain from the other. It seems very interesting, I¡¯ll visit it sometime.


    Mercater: The continent I was born in, the human continent. It is the second largest, and most scum filled. Humans in this world are conceited with their high status. You know those stereotypical snobby rich people in anime? Imagine an entire race of them. Congrats, you have just pictured the human race, except with a little bit of sparkle. They torture everything under them with anything they can and are afraid of losing their power. It would be completely populated with humans, except for the fact that many of those have other races as slaves.


    Let me calm down and start over. Mercater is the human continent, the second largest of the five. It¡¯s much like earth, from a nature perspective. Trees are normal height, falling down when they are cut down and whatnot. Seasons like on earth. To be completely honest, Mercater is a complete replica of an Earth without tech and with magic, Scum replacing humans.


    Isami: It is somewhat unpopulated according to the government. For some reason that made me doubt a piece of information I gave out earlier. The part about the fairies not having a continent. Anyway, beastkin live here, but they only occupy 50% of the area, specifically leaving the other 40% alone. They don¡¯t even send scouts into that area for food or anything. Also, I left out 10% for a reason. It¡¯s uninhabitable. 60,000 years ago, that war kinda burned the ground. For 60,000 god damn years, the land has been dry and cracked,


    Lastly, not a continent, but the Lazar oceans. The 60% of the world that is covered in water is the most dangerous of everything. No demons threaten your health, nor does dehydration, as the water is supposedly almost 100% pure. No, what threatens your health is you. The oceans have a way with the mind, making most people go insane or even kill themselves in the few days it takes to travel the waters. The safest way across the oceans are to actually to strap yourself to a wall or the floor, making sure you can¡¯t move, before sailing. Quite horrible, as they even have jobs for people to tie other people to boats if they need to get over the water. Boat captains need to have a mind resistance skill or they physically can¡¯t be one. Not many boats exist, and even less are used regularly.

 A1 C3: A Little Death Goes A Long Way...

    A Dare (Author¡¯s POV)


    A princess was tortured and raped.


    A single scream resounded through the air.


    A sight was burned into an already wounded mind.


    A single thought that sought destruction.


    Carnage was wrought.


    Blood dripped.


    Pus oozed.


    Life thinned.


    Rage grew.


    Despair piled up.


    Tears fell.


    Apologies were exchanged.


    The soul was spirited away by the goddess.


    A fist was slammed into the ground.


    A cry sounded through the forest, echoing outwards from the broken figure.


    Hope died, and so did she.


    All because he couldn¡¯t protect her.


    All because he couldn¡¯t find her in time.


    All because he was too weak.


    All because she came with him.


    All because he took her with him.


    Lilia floated away, slowly and carefully carrying Thea¡¯s soul. She had done well to live this long. It really was a shame that she had to die.


    It hit Rayne hard. Her eyes, so vividly brimming with life before, staring back at him lifelessly. The tears that dripped from his eyes steadied, tracing the line their ancestors had left behind.


    He wasn¡¯t sure what he was feeling. All of his emotions swirled together, mixing and dilating. He was confused, the tears no longer just from grief. Rage and despair sloshed back and forth.


    He felt guilty. He blamed the demons. He blamed Fate. He blamed Dradacil. All of his guilt stayed behind, reminding him of his sins. His conscious still weighed enough to drown him in sorrow.


    Eve was similar. She cried until she could cry no more, outlasting Rayne by a few minutes. But then she was devoid of emotion, sitting as if something vital had been removed from her. Which, in a way, wasn¡¯t a bad way to describe it.


    ¡°The demons. They did this to her¡­ If I can¡¯t save¡­ I¡¯ll avenge¡­¡± Rayne was muttering lowly, broken sentences pulling his dark thoughts to the surface. He was planning to commit a genocide.


    Just to put it into perspective, he was planning to take out every demon, from a continent about the size of all of Earth¡¯s land area. What was the super continent called? Pangea? About the size of that. The entire area is covered by, approximately, a demon every few square feet.


    Just let me do some math here¡­


    If he wants to kill every demon, it would be about 10 million. If you include the reproduction rates¡­


    Rayne is inadvertently suggesting that he will kill something around 50 million demons, in under a few days, or the number would actually be higher. If he only wants to kill the Treants and Drakins, then it would lower to about 10 million again. Those are some of the most common demons.


    Anyway, back to the story.


    Rayne stood, his eyes growing dark red. Mana trickled out of him, converging in a single point. With the orb hovering over Thea¡¯s body, Rayne dropped it. It didn¡¯t hit like it should have, more like it was a liquid. It spread over her body, filling each wound and covering each bruise. The obtrusions, such as the twigs, were dissolved.


    Using a perfect memory, due to his mana, the flesh was reconstructed. It was not healing. It was reconstruction. The missing flesh was burned to the other pieces. If Thea was alive, the pain would be unbearable and would send her into shock.


    But it made her body presentable. That was the true goal. The mana still over her body began to slowly crystallize, faceting and cracking for effect. The immeasurable amount that covered her had turned into a few-inch-thick sheet of diamond.


    Her face was reflected in the moonlight, the diamond completely pure with no scuff marks. The coffin had no lid, nor did it have any holes.


    With this, not even Time may touch her.


    Not quite satisfied with the result, Rayne used another burst of mana to fully fix up her appearance. Her hair straightened, the original fluffy appearance coming to light, and her clothes began to reform. Emerald, interwoven with thin threads of titanium, slowly formed around her body, the interfering diamond creating a small pattern of stars.


    The dress formed slowly, taking almost 15 minutes, but it reflected her beauty perfectly, each complimenting the other. The next thing Rayne did was make sure nobody could touch it. He began to lift it from the ground, forming it from a coffin into a diamond cocoon of sorts, a pillar holding it off the ground. The cocoon was slanted at an angle, to gather the perfect amount of light from the moon. His mana filled the pillar, turning it black. He gave it orders, instructions to keep everybody from touching it.


    And with that, he felt he had respected her enough. Now, it was time to avenge her.


    Vera, who had been silent until now, and Eve, who was too stunned to speak, both rushed forward to catch up with him.


    ¡°Please, wait here. I don¡¯t want you to¡­ I don¡¯t want you to see me like this. I don¡¯t want you to see those demons. So, please wait here.¡± Rayne asked, but the girls weren¡¯t about to give up just yet.


    He sighed, before hugging them both to his chest. A relatively small amount of mana forged into collars, binding around their necks. A thought sent a chain connecting to a small post of mana he made in the distance. An appropriate amount of food was conjured in front of the post, held a few inches off the ground by a piece of cloth. It would grow cold quickly, but he couldn¡¯t let them starve.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I can¡¯t let you come with me.¡±


    ¡°Rayne! Please, no! Let me come! Don¡¯t go again!¡± Eve was heartbroken in more ways than one. Her only friend had just died, and now her brother was leaving her again.


    ¡°No need to worry, I¡¯ll be back soon¡­¡± His words were soft but had a sharp edge to them.


    With that, he set off to commit mass genocide. He had no need to hold back, so he kept his vampire transformation.


    Eve and Vera were stuck sitting in the same place all day. Eve, at first, tried to dissolve the amount of mana holding her in place, but Rayne¡¯s control over it was superb. She could barely budge it.


    Eventually giving up, she began talking with Vera. But, as a fox, she would much rather be left alone, maybe some petting in there. With that in mind, she cut the conversation short and began to pet her.


    Purring was the only sound in the night, no birds or crickets to bother it. The wind was unable to rustle the leaves. The branches held firm. The grass was stiff. All was silent except for the small rumbling creature in Eve¡¯s lap.


    From a third perspective like me, it was adorable. I forgot to pay attention to Rayne for quite a bit, in fact.


    10 million demons were not quite killed. But the number was brought down to about 6.74 million. Woot. 3.26 million demons killed in a single day.


    I mean, I suppose that with the vampiric transformation on the entire 24 hours, his speed would be insane, his control over his mana near the only thing rivaling it. His main tactic, from what I saw, was to simply annihilate the demon.


    He would see it, land near it, taunt it into attacking him, then stop it from existing with a single blast of mana. It would either wrap around the head/core of the demon, crushing it to the size of a marble, or it would just explode outwards in a raging silver fury, devouring anything in its path.


    Now, three days later, he is fighting the king of demons. His usual tactics won¡¯t work on such a high leveled demon, obviously.


    His normal burst of mana, shaped as a bullet, shot forward with tremendous speed. The Variant 10 Drakin, Elder Dragon, evaded it completely. It didn¡¯t even come close to touching it. Rayne stepped to the side as a few dozen black feathers whizzed by his face. He rolled as he hit the ground, pushing himself into the air with his hands. His mana was already rushing in every direction, making a large amount of dark fog. The Elder Dragon backed away from the gas, careful not to touch any. It seems he has some sort of mana perception, so he knows exactly how dangerous that mana is.


    It didn¡¯t really matter how far he went away from it, however, as it continued pouring out of Rayne¡¯s infinite storages. Spears made directly from condensed mana flew out endlessly, making the demon leap back and forth in evasive maneuvers. One of the spears clipped its feathered wing. Unluckily for him, that spear was one of the 50% that was a {Mana Bolas}.


    The branch skill hasn¡¯t been mentioned much, so let me refresh your memory. The Mana Bolas is where Rayne controls the mana after it leaves his hands, making it constrict around whatever it hits. If the demon had looked behind it, it would see many of the trees there had suffered the same fate.


    The wing was taken out of combat, snapping quite uncleanly in half. It buckled, as well as the Elder Dragon¡¯s legs. In response to the pain, it let out a huge roar, shaking the very ground. Mana was hastily shoved into Rayne¡¯s ears, a little sharp. The blood only helped fill in the small openings he had left, though. Due to these circumstances, the roar had little to no effect on Rayne.


    Once the roar had finished, it opened the remaining wing and slammed it into the ground. The feathers all shook loose from it, impaling the ground in a storm. Once all of them had fallen, he twirled, dragging his tail across the ground. It hit the tops of the feathers, flicking them out of the ground like a machine gun. Rayne had to leap back to avoid them, and even then he was still hit by a few. The large mana fog cloud solidified slightly in the amount of time he had, blocking a bit less than a fourth of them.


    Another volley flew just after another roar, the drakin seeming to have slammed its broken wing into the ground much the same as it had with the other one. Rayne was prepared this time, having the fog completely solid around him. The volley had no effect.


    But the next attack was a different story. His mana, more of a dark gray than black, was beaten on top of Rayne as the Elder Dragon leaped on it. He coughed up blood, his vampiric transformation growing stronger at the sight of it.


    With a roar of his own, deafening inside his head, he pushed the half ton dragon away from him. It flipped on its back, flailing its legs in the air futilely. Rayne gave a bloody grin as he inched closer, massaging his injured legs. They repaired quickly, but he still felt the pain. It never quite seemed to go away when he wanted it to.


    The mana fog condensed into a single spear, nearly a meter in length, attached to Rayne¡¯s hand as he shoved it deep into the demon king. Black blood splattered upwards, covering him in it. The flailing legs grew still.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    It seemed he had won.


    But it was not yet over. With a sudden bang, the Drakin¡¯s tail hit the ground, piercing it with all of its remaining strength. Muscles bulging invisibly, the dragon pulled himself up, pointing his entire body to the sun for a split second before tumbling back to the ground. Landing on his feet, he let out a defiant yell. It was weaker than before, but it still had enough strength to knock Rayne a few steps back by proximity. He held his hands over his ears, trying desperately to shield them from the vibrations. He felt something pop in his left one.


    His vision swam after that. He faintly made out a blotted shape coming at him and ducked to avoid it. He was too slow, however, as his head was torn off.


    A large blot of darkness overcame him. He sat down, coming to terms that he had just died. Last time, he had been here a few minutes. I can actually talk to him in there, but I think I¡¯ll leave him alone this time. Last time, I explained some things, like the time ratio between here and the outside world. Which, in case you wanted to know, was 2:1.


    He thought about how to counter the roar. Coming up with no answers other than blocking out the vibrations in the air, he thought about how to do that. I felt my mouth twitch in a smirk as I remembered something, deciding to give him access to his mana in this space.


    Not that I expect him to find out about it anytime soon. I wonder what is happening to his body outside? Oh, it¡¯s just sitting there. How boring. His health should be recovering to full right about now. Right about¡­ now.


    The second part of the fight, Rayne took no chances. Standing up, fully recovered, the Demon lord could only look on in shock. Rayne was the one smirking this time, absorbing the few points of mana that were floating about still. The fog faded, leaving a seven-month-old child against a Drakin Variant 10. Jet black mana formed in Rayne¡¯s hand, replicating the sword he had made before, at the school.


    A crazed look in his eyes, he leaped forward. The sword flashed in front of him, slow enough for a normal person to dodge it. Which made sense, considering the amount it must have weighed. The dragon gave a huff, seeming to be quite sure the attack would do nothing to it. It was, of course, mistaken.


    Space itself bent around the sheer force behind the swing of the sword. It got about halfway to the dragon when it cut. The sword warped, curving to the shape of a crescent moon. The swing sped up, no longer held up by gravity or air resistance. The slash extended, meeting the demon lord from nearly twelve meters away. It gave a roar just before it was cut short. Literally and figuratively.


    But something strange happened. After the sword hit it, finding no resistance other than the amount it was already cleaving through, the demon began to fix itself. The sword was lodged in it still, Rayne having stopped it short of the heart, as the flesh on the other side of it grew tendrils extending to the other side. It shortly stitched itself up, its wing snapping back in place with a disgusting crack.


    The Dragon had an extremely arrogant look, mixed with some fear and anger. Of course, it was definitely mostly anger and arrogance, fear taking up very little of its somewhat expressionless face. I¡¯ll think later about how I can tell so much about emotions when I look at this mostly emotionless creature.


    ¡°Regeneration?¡± Rayne muttered to himself upon seeing all of his damage unwrought.


    ¡°Just how I like it!¡± He grinned, a wild look to his black-stained appearance.


    Another slash, the same thing happening. The feathers grew back as well. Elder Dragon slammed both wings into the ground furiously, its eyes dark red. Feathers poured down like rain, driving into the ground like spikes.


    A pause was taken between the both of them. It lasted a heartbeat before both of them sprung back into motion. The tail whipped the ground in a fury, leaving large gashes as dirt clumps and feathers alike were set into motion. Rayne shortened the sword, taking nearly half of its length away. With a series of swift cuts, portals and fractures appeared in the air, all creating small cracks large enough to cause disarray. The feathers collided with space, distorting and twisting as if they were in a pulverizer.


    Rayne grinned as the dirt clumps were ripped to shreds, splattering dust into the air. It made for quite the view blocker. Even I couldn¡¯t see if he had survived. The demon king certainly didn¡¯t think so.


    A single spear flew out of the dust. A pulse of mana followed it. Both were huge. Space did not warp around them, or else they would be temporarily unable to gain that momentum, but it seems that I was just speaking a bit too early.


    The bolt connected with the back of the sharp cone of a spear and space ripped apart. The spear disappeared in a large crack. The Elder Dragon looked about, confused. Space shattered behind it, sheering off a small shard of whatever it was breaking through. The shard fell along with the spear, impaling the demon king in two places. The brain and heart of the demon were vaporized. The spear began to hum, and a small amount of mana pulsed its way out of the cloud of dust that still lingered.


    With a sound, one that could only be described as a howl, the spear imploded, taking a large chunk of air with it. The sound that came from it was the sound of the vacuum being filled with demon flesh and air all at once.


    The hastily constructed mana shield was torn apart, as well as the dust cloud. All that remained was Rayne, kneeling and clutching his sides. He was covered in scratches, varying in depth and length, but none anywhere too important. Wait, there was one really close to the place between his legs. Poor him. It seems he needs more time to practice warping space.


    And with that, the battle was over. All that remained of the Demon King, Drakin Variant 10, Elder Dragon, was a light drizzle of its black blood.


    What a nice ending.


    Oh? Something interesting seems to be approaching the two girls that are locked down back at base.


    With a Dash of Salt (Eve¡¯s POV)


    Vera is sitting in my lap, just like these past three days. Rayne is out, again, like these past three days. The silence is deafening. But there is something that has not been here these three days, that is staring me in the face.


    Not a demon, as I would have expected. Instead, it was a girl, looking no older than a few months old, who stood in front of me. She inspected us closely, her gaze lingering at our necks. I suspected it was the collars, but for all I knew, she could be a vampire as well.


    ¡°Is this¡­ M&S play?¡± She sounded oddly excited.


    ¡°No¡­¡±


    ¡°Pet?¡±


    ¡°No?¡±


    ¡°Oh! I got it! Slave play!¡±


    ¡°No!¡± I was getting a bit annoyed now.


    ¡°Aww¡­ I wanted to join¡­¡± She hung her head dejectedly. I was pretty much speechless.


    ¡°What¡¯s M&S play?¡± Vera asked from my lap, her head perked up. The girl in front of me raised her head, her expression all smiles. One finger raised, ready to explain before I stopped her.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to know. You don¡¯t need to explain.¡± I pointed to each one in turn.


    She once again went back to the dejected slumping.


    ¡°So, why are you shackled?¡± She asked after a bit.


    ¡°Hmmm¡­ How to explain it¡­ Well, he should be getting back soon anyway.¡± I responded, pointing to the figure who was speeding towards us.


    She followed my finger, seeing the figure, before panicking. Her breathing began growing heavier, so on and so forth. She even began fanning her flushed face with her hands. Honestly, it was a very old, but cute gesture. I liked it.


    ¡°So it was a he¡­ Ooooh, I¡¯m getting turned on¡­¡± She was muttering things. I pretended not to hear.


    Rayne landed with a thud and a dust cloud, his vampiric state wearing off. He gets tired with all the stimuli he gets from his increased senses and perception.


    I waved to him, shooting a concerned glance at the girl. He followed my gaze and showed a look of understanding. I mean, it was hard not to understand that something was wrong with a girl whose breath was showing up in the middle of a fairly warm day. She was also rocking slightly from side to side on her feet, which couldn¡¯t end well.


    ¡°So, who are you?¡±


    ¡°Could you tie me up?!¡±


    ¡°So, who are you?¡± Rayne just repeated himself, not paying attention to the lustful woman''s words.


    ¡°Please?! I want to be tied up, then maybe if you could abuse me¡­ or maybe you could just leave me there¡­ I¡¯m into neglect play as well!¡± She was shouting things children should not hear. I covered Vera¡¯s, wishing I could cover my own. Rayne was very good at keeping a straight face as he responded.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. The chains only last a few hours without me there to refresh them, and I¡¯m an M.¡±


    She ignored him splendidly.


    ¡°Or maybe we could do it inside, I can get my candles¡­ Oh, unless you want me to do it with all of those demons watching! That could be fun in its own way¡­¡±


    Rayne turned away from her and her delusional fantasies.


    ¡°So, Eve, where to next? I¡¯ve¡­ finished.¡± He spoke to me this time, undoing all of the restraints. I sat up, dumping Vera onto the ground. After quickly dusting myself off, I hugged Rayne.


    ¡°Where do you want to go? I think you need a vacation.¡± I whispered into his ear. I could feel his body tense up from my touch and my words.


    ¡°I can¡¯t¡­ I can¡¯t resist this¡­¡± He whispered back in an equally low voice, clutching his chest.


    My heart sped up as I thought he was talking about his heart, but I realized he was actually talking about his brand. In response to his attention, it glowed faintly through his black-stained shirt.


    The girl took no notice of this, being a bit¡­ preoccupied. I¡¯m not sure whether I should be glad that she didn¡¯t see it or just disgusted that she was able to get so caught up in her thoughts.


    ¡°So, where do we go?¡± I asked, tightening my grip on him.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t know where to start. I need some time to think without Thea in my mind.¡± Rayne¡¯s voice was tearful, confused and quivering.


    I resolved my feelings, smiling through the similar emotions I had. I nodded, burying my face in his back. His front was covered in black bile, but the back had no such thing.


    ¡°Rayne, you reek. You need a bath.¡± I commented, taking a deep breath. It wasn¡¯t quite true, but it wasn¡¯t quite a lie.


    He brought an arm to his face. Then he grimaced, nodding his head in agreement.


    ¡°Then why don¡¯t you come to my house?¡± The girl spoke up again. I had forgotten she was there.


    But her offer was an odd one. She was offering to take some random adventurers to her house, for no reason. Was this natural for her? Was this what she did?


    ¡°Are you¡­ a dwarf?¡± Rayne asked, tilting his head slightly.


    ¡°I am.¡±


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go. Come on, Vera.¡± Rayne didn¡¯t even look to the side. Vera appeared there a second later, seeming a bit too happy.


    ¡°Vera, what¡¯s up?¡± I asked.


    ¡°We¡¯re going to a dwarf house! I heard they live deep inside the mountains, mining their way to riches while advancing their crafting skills. I always wanted to go to a dwarven house!¡± Her sentence structure was a bit odd, going from an excited kid to a teacher, then back again.


    ¡°Oh, is that so¡­¡±


    ¡°I was thinking of going and learning how to smith! It might be a good idea to learn anything I can about it, while I can. After all, if we ever get armor or good ores, we might need to forge them into something good.¡±


    ¡°But don¡¯t we all mostly use mana to fight?¡±


    Vera froze in her tracks, Rayne just walking on.


    ¡°You¡­ Have a point¡­¡± She sounded really depressed. I almost felt bad for pointing it out.


    ¡°I mean, sure, I guess we could have ourselves a mana blacksmith, but then it would be a better idea to learn from Rayne, would it not?¡±


    ¡°RAYNE, PLEASE TEACH ME!!!¡± Vera was in front of him, bowing in a perfect dogeza.


    ¡°Hmm? Teach you what?¡±


    ¡°Mana blacksmithing!¡±


    ¡°Sure.¡±


    ¡°Wait, what?¡± The dwarven girl asked from ahead, not sure what to make of the scene.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want two students, so no.¡± Rayne put up a hand.


    ¡°That¡¯s not what I was trying to get at!¡± She complained, not taking her eyes off that hand.


    ¡°Alright, maybe it was, but I want to know what mana blacksmithing is!¡± She continued.


    ¡°Smithing with mana. What do you think it is?¡± Rayne asked, looking at her like she was stupid. I had to agree.


    Anyway, we are at the house now. Or, technically, mountain. It¡¯s one of the smaller ones, just barely any snow on the top. The dwarven girl, who introduced herself as Helila, lead us around the mountain. She placed her palm on a tree some ten feet away from the base of the mountain, which consequently began to rise.


    A hole was formed in the ground, which Helila motioned to before leaping down. The rest of our little group followed a slight bit behind. I was last.


    The inside of the house was more of a mansion. I mean, with such a large space to mine, of course, the house would be large, but this was a bit extreme. Let me describe it.


    The first floor had three rooms. The first, to the right of the doorway, was a living area. I wouldn¡¯t really call it a room because it was the size of a football field. Many branching pathways caved into the walls, which Helila so delightfully described as ¡®the deepest mines on this side of the mountain.¡¯ The next room was somewhat closer to being normal sized, but it wasn¡¯t quite at that level. It was the kitchen, about half the football field, and each of the utensils was normal sized. It could hold multiple feasts and a banquet at the same time. The last room was the smallest of all of them, and it was a multipurpose bathroom. It had a walk-in closet, a full bath with a ten-foot tall shower, three sinks for no reason, and marble floors. Honestly, if I didn¡¯t know better, I would have simply called this utter nonsense.


    But no, the next floor was even worse. It had a bedroom, another bathroom that was the same as the last, a storage room, a sunbathing balcony, and a pool. The sunbathing balcony was obviously the thing that caught my attention, as it was a few hundred yards in the air. It was as if somebody had carved out a large slice of the mountain. Well, large isn¡¯t really accurate when compared to the rest of the house, but it was about thirty feet across, twenty feet wide. Like I said, relatively small, but large by normal standards.


    The pool was just stupid. It went from 1 meter to 10 meters deep, spanning an entire 120 meters (Just a bit longer than an American football field). Since Helila described the dimensions, I can only assume that Avalon uses the metric system. I¡¯m not very good with it, so I¡¯ll have to just keep in mind that a meter is just under 3 feet.


    The bedroom was at least somewhat normal sized. It was a bit larger, 5 by 6 meters, but that was probably the only one of its kind.


    The third floor was the interesting one. It was two flights of steps up, with solid rock covering the odd space between them. With a single question, I got the answer I was looking for.


    ¡°Oh? The space is because this is the work floor, so I needed to mine into the ground in a few places.¡±


    It truly was a work floor. I could feel Rayne getting excited without even looking. A second later, he dashed away, searching the rooms and avoiding the tools on the floor with amazing agility. Sighing to myself, I followed him closely and picked up after his mess, putting tools back where they were taken from.


    He always was a bit too into things like this. The work rooms consisted of a blacksmithing area, complete with a forge, anvil, trough, and smoke outlet. A tailor¡¯s shop, a few looms, a mechanized assembly line, complete with a creation queue. Another kitchen, another pool, a workout room, filled to the brim with exercise equipment, and finally a room filled with crystals. They all shined different colors, filling the large room with a multitude of beams.


    The colors were vibrant, and I was mesmerized. My consciousness faded out at some point, but I was still bathing in the colors, even once my eyes had closed and the world around me blackened.


    Just before I completely lost all reason, I heard a ding, and I could feel a window pop up before me.


    Now, I wonder what that could say?

 A1 C4: Nothing Lasts Forever...

    A Not So Friendly Meeting With God, Rev. (Eve¡¯s POV)


    My eyes opened to an odd ceiling. Or, really, the odd lack of ceiling. I certainly remember passing out underneath a large portion of the mountain.


    The clouds shifted. A beam of light fell down and alighted upon the ground next to me. It slowly shifted towards me, although I was unsure of whether it wanted to. Just before touching me, a shadow passed over the source, stopping it. I turned my head to look.


    An angel. His face was so well-defined he could have been a marble bust. His hair was a bit on the long side, about half the length of mine, so it reached to just under his shoulder blades. His clothes were closer to a vest and pants. Most of his chest was uncovered, the vest made out of a thin cloth blowing behind him. He didn¡¯t seem bothered by the slight chill in the air that I certainly didn¡¯t remember from Fronag.


    All in all, he seemed angelic, even without the four wings. But there certainly were four wings. They extended out from his back, covered in silvery feathers that almost looked as if they were half made out of mana.


    With a short attempt to sit up, or stand, or even roll over, I came to the conclusion that I was unable to move. I wasn¡¯t afraid, however.


    At least, I wasn¡¯t afraid until he pulled out the knife. It was twisted, coiling around itself as if it was trying to tie a knot. But the scariest thing was his eyes. They were completely emotionless. Blank and devoid of everything.


    I tried to move my body. But, just like the last time I tried, I was incapable.


    ¡°Augmentation!¡± I shouted, still able to move my mouth. The magic kicked in, giving the angel pause. But then he hastened the fall of the blade. My muscles burst with power, 500 mana strengthening them.


    6 inches away.


    5 inches.


    4.


    3.


    2.


    ¡­


    My body lurched forward, twisting painfully to dodge my death. I barely managed. A few strands of my hair were cut short, twirling away in the wind. I put a hand to my spine, feeling the strain. The blade was buried into the ground, showing exactly what damage would have been wrought on my body if it had touched. To describe it in words wouldn¡¯t send the same message as seeing it anyway, but I¡¯ll do my best.


    When the blade touched the ground, it began to squirm like it was living. It bent backward, making a U shape in the dirt. Then it twirled around, warping the entire time. Dirt sprayed everywhere, digging out large clumps while slicing the grass up millimeter by millimeter.


    If it had ended up inside me, I would probably be continuously killed as my heart was torn out of my body. Or maybe it wouldn¡¯t even be aimed at my heart, and would just rip large chunks of flesh from me until I died from blood loss.


    All in all, I¡¯d rather not get hit by that.


    The scenery shifted. Instead of the plains, I was just in, now I was deep in a forest, the trees towering so high above me.


    A voice thundered down on me.


    ¡°Why do you wish to live?¡±


    I screamed in pain, clutching my throbbing ears.


    ¡°What is your willpower centered on?¡±


    It hurt, so much so that I couldn¡¯t move. The words reverberated in my head, forcing me to think about them.


    ¡°Is it strong enough to survive through anything?¡±


    I heard the rushing of a liquid. I forced myself to look up, barely able to through the pain. My head felt like it was splitting in two.


    A wave of water, even taller than the trees, was rushing towards me. And it wasn¡¯t doing it slowly. I estimated 20 seconds, tops before the water hit me. A look to either side wasted 2 of those but told me that there was no hope in sidestepping.


    My mana was limited, but I would have to use it all at this moment. 1956 mana solidified in my hands, split perfectly into two balls.


    I began my prayer. I didn¡¯t have the mental capacity to do them both in my head, so I spoke them both out loud.


    ¡°I pray to Hana, Goddess of the Icy domain. Gather your power in my left hand so that I may freeze the earth to the core!¡±


    ¡°I pray to Mercurum, God of the Rocky Earth. Gather your power in my right hand so that I may bend the stone to my will, protecting and destroying with the strongest of materials!¡±


    ¡°Blizzard! Iron Maiden!¡±


    I chanted my spells, doing my best to keep my voice steady. The wall of water was nearly upon me as I yelled out the spell names, the mana in my hands leaving my control to form them.


    I was unable to see what happened, as my vision once again faded to black. My mana hit zero, for the second time. How interesting.


    But then, unexpectedly, I woke up instantly. I was lying in a bed, which, judging by the large canopy over it, was inside Helila¡¯s house. Was she actually one of the richer dwarves?


    I sat up, groggily looking around. My left hand was a bit heavier than the right one, so I looked over to determine the cause.


    Rayne was asleep by the side of the bed, his hand gripped tight around mine. I gripped his back, not sure if I should wake him. I decided against it, choosing instead to run my fingers through his hair. Some parts were plastered together from demon blood, but that didn¡¯t really bother me. It gave an interesting texture to the normally soft hair. It was smooth, running between my fingers like thread on a loom.


    I smiled, not thinking any more about the pain in my head or whatever just happened. I could do that later. I mean, nothing was going to happen anytime soon anyway.


    Rayne really was fast asleep. It didn¡¯t seem like he was going to wake up anytime soon. He also showed no signs of releasing my hand until he woke up.


    So I smiled wider as I pulled him into bed with me, trying to get him comfortable under the sheets. I slid my other hand over to his, gripping it tightly. A sense of satisfaction awoke when he gripped mine back, even while he was still asleep.


    ¡°Eve¡­¡± He was talking in his sleep, letting go of my hands for a second. I was a bit stunned, not moving for the duration I was able to.


    He wrapped his arms around my back, pulling me to his chest. I could feel my face heat up. Somebody could fake affection when they are awake but asleep? I don¡¯t think so.


    ¡°Please¡­ Come back to me¡­¡± He whispered.


    I could feel the pain in his voice. For a long moment, I wondered how long I had been gone. It felt like a few minutes, maximum. But I realized that I should probably think about everything later, when I had access to Rayne¡¯s amazing thinking powers.


    For now, I would simply enjoy this moment. Rayne¡¯s body was cold, but it was a comforting chill. I melted into his embrace, pressing as much of my body to him as I could. My heart was beating so heavily in my chest, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if Rayne¡¯s was being forced into my rhythm.


    I squirmed in his grasp a little bit, just to get a little bit higher. His hands now rested just above my waist, the end of my spine. For a moment, I wanted to go a bit higher, but I held myself back. It just wouldn¡¯t do for me to sleep like that.


    I closed my eyes, filling my mind with memories of nights like these before the silver haired girl came along.


    Finally, Peace (Rayne¡¯s POV)


    I could feel my heartbeat first. Slow and steady, pumping with a predetermined tempo. Calm and measured, like the conductor of a symphony.


    Then it was the feeling of my nerves bringing the sense of touch. My skin tingled and pulsed, ever so slightly, to the beat of my core. But it pulsed faster, too. Different parts at different times, all symphonic. Like the chorus of a song, many pieces overlapping others.


    Smell and hearing hit me at the same time. My nose picked up a single breath of air, swirling calmly like a background instrumental to my systemic symphony. My ears could hear the beating of my chest, along with another few sounds. The tapping of feet a floor down, faint but still there. A soft breathing from in front of me, steady and deep.


    All of these were perfectly in harmony. Somehow, each tap of feet hit right on the beat, each breath like a deep wind instrument, each beat of a heart like a metronome, keeping the others in tune.


    So, why, when the body worked so perfectly together, was the brain so chaotic? Thoughts crashed into each other like mortal enemies. Plans were half formed, fraying at the ends. Counterplans pulled at a single thread, tearing the entire plan apart. Emotions were like drugs, tearing apart your will to resist. The lack of emotions brings you into withdrawal, needing more and wanting something else. Addiction is so easy to fall into, but so difficult to pull away from.


    My eyes opened. Only three seconds had passed since I was awake, but it was enough. I was already depressed. It didn¡¯t help that Eve would probably still be asleep today.


    Eve was atop me, lying facedown. I was confused for a few seconds, before leaving those thoughts to the side. There was no way in hell that this could have happened without one of us waking up, and I most certainly didn¡¯t.


    So, figuring Eve finally woke up, I hugged her tightly, feeling tears come to my eyes. She had been asleep for an entire week. It was already the Week of Work.


    (AN: August, check back on chapter 2.5)


    I could feel her stirring in my arms, waking up once again. I hugged her tighter, curling my body around hers. I was overjoyed. All the clashing thoughts in my head gave an armistice to celebrate this moment. Plans all unwound, leaving me with nothing but my objectives.


    ¡°Eve¡­ I can¡¯t hold it back any longer¡­ I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± I felt her shiver at my words. She seemed to heat up, as well. I lifted her head to face me, pulling it closer to my face.


    I tilted it to the side, so I wouldn¡¯t bump her. She was red-faced, her eyes shut tightly. I shut my eyes as well, before coming closer, slowly. I did my best to hold it in this past month, but now that she was awake, I couldn¡¯t help it.


    I bit into her neck, beginning to suck. The bar appeared in the otherwise dark view of my eyelids. It was near empty, but it was slowly filling. I wasn¡¯t able to get my fill of blood in a long while. I don¡¯t know what would happen if it hit 0, but I wasn¡¯t about to purposefully find out.


    I also didn¡¯t want to kill Eve, so I stopped at about 30%. As a vampire, she could probably take some punishment. I¡¯ll fill it up eventually over a few days. I asked the system about it and she said the health bar, when full, fully replenishes blood. Quite an interesting theory.


    Anyway, after allthe moaning had stopped, Helila walked in. Or, well, she strolled in. She looked very satisfied for some reason, although I wasn¡¯t going to ask why.


    ¡°Oh? What happened in here? Why wasn¡¯t I invited?!¡± She seemed very angry, completely ruining the smugness she was showing just a second ago.


    I looked at the scene. The blankets were everywhere, thrown about by Eve in a pleasure spasm. My hair was messed up, sweat dripping down my neck. My clothes were only half on, probably from some unconscious actions to get rid of the heat.


    But, however embarrassing I was, Eve was a few times worse. Her hair was at least two times more tangled than mine, sticking to various places on her sweat drenched body. Her top was completely off, being a button on shirt, her pants halfway to her knees. Her arms were above her, red marks around the wrists, oddly looking like a handprint.


    I tried to remember if I had done that, but gave up. My memory of the entire thing was hazy, at best.


    Drool ran down her face from the left corner of her mouth. Her eyes were completely glazed over, small giggles coming out of her mouth.


    I calmly fixed up my clothes the best I could, having some difficulties because I was slightly wet. Swinging my legs off the bed, I stood and straightened my sleeves, brushing off my shirt. Even with that attempt to look dignified, I still looked like a crazed sex fiend after the act. I suppose it fits.


    ¡°So? What''s going on? Other than¡­ this.¡± I gestured with a small flick of my head.


    ¡°I came up to say that I finally managed to get that one recipe down, but this seems like more fun, can I join?¡±


    ¡°No.¡± Short, swift, and to the point.


    She pouted, but I ignored it. 24 days with somebody like her would be very difficult without being able to ignore anything she does at will.


    So, of course, I learned.


    Well, once I registered what she had come up there for, I immediately began to rush towards the bathroom. I needed to take a shower before anything else.


    Nothing much was special about the shower, except for the size of it of course.


    The soap smelled nice too, almost like lavender.


    But anyway, Eve met me at the door, looking just as excited as I felt. She rushed in after I left, stripping fast enough that I heard the damp clothes hit the floor before I closed the door. I¡¯m not sure whether I should be glad or disappointed that I didn¡¯t see.


    But I rushed down the stairs, tripping and falling down 8 of the 12. Not quite the best feeling, but hey, I had a perfect reason for my excitement.


    What is it, you ask?


    Doughnuts.


    This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    Well, they aren¡¯t exactly the healthiest thing to eat for breakfast, but hey, see if I care.


    Donuts were not something I was able to get very often. On occasions few and far between, I was able to take a single donut back home with me. I would split it with Eve, and that would be our ¡®treat¡¯.


    I know, they weren¡¯t that expensive in most stores, but the fact of the matter is getting them back to the house. Fighting becomes a few times more difficult when you need to have both of your hands holding the doughnuts, and you can¡¯t move too rapidly. The best situation is when you order a baker¡¯s dozen, and the gang that¡¯s trying to steal them only has twelve members.


    Hide the doughnut and pray they don¡¯t search you since they already have their share.


    But, besides that, we were finally able to enjoy doughnuts again. I held myself back from taking any before Eve came down, which I luckily didn¡¯t have to do for long.


    She rushed into the room, her hair still dripping wet and her shirt only half buttoned up. Even if she technically had been around Helila for about 25 days, she had only been awake for a few hours. She should not be able to show off her erotic side this easily. I guess the donuts were just that important.


    ¡°So, where are the donuts?¡± She asked immediately, looking around with sparkling eyes.


    I held one up to her, smiling widely. She flung herself into the chair next to me, holding onto the donut as she fell. The momentum tore it from my grasp, so I had to pick up another one.


    Not that I minded too much. Seeing her face light up as she took the first bite made my heart beat quickly, for reasons I didn¡¯t know. Taking a bite myself, mostly to distract myself from some lingering thoughts, I couldn¡¯t help but grin.


    They were delicious, evenmorethan Earth¡¯s. They were light and fluffy, the frosting just the perfect sweetness. I would have to teach her about the other types of doughnuts, eventually. I can already imagine how good frosting filled donuts would be.


    ¡°Hehehe, how do you like that?!¡± Helila was smug, but this time I had to agree.


    ¡°You did great, these are the best I¡¯ve ever had.¡±


    ¡°Can I get a reward?¡±


    ¡°No, of course not.¡±


    ¡°Even if it isn¡¯t sexual?¡±


    I hesitated, mid-bite. I thought for a second, chewing slowly. I swallowed and looked at her, putting on a serious front.


    ¡°Let me hear it first.¡±


    ¡°Could you do the thing you did to Eve to me?!¡± She closed her eyes tight and did a full 45-degree bow. At first, I was tempted to straight man it, but then I thought about it. Technically, it wasn¡¯t a sexual request.


    Although, it just barely classified.


    ¡°You know what, sure. But, I have some requirements.¡± I didn¡¯t want her kicking us out, or else I wouldn¡¯t know what to do.


    ¡°First, I want you to try to learn any recipes I give you. These are delicious.¡± I took another to prove my point, ¡°Second, I¡¯ll tell you right now that you won¡¯t receive what you¡¯re expecting to. So, please don¡¯t look at me too different. Third, even if you end up wanting to kick me out, please let Eve stay here.¡±


    I finished my donut, taking my time chewing it, decided carefully if this really is something I should do. I only had 29% of my blood filled, and it should take Eve another few hours before I can drain her again.


    To put it simply, I was about to start raging and sucking the blood out of everything. The vampire inside me had been pretty complacent these past few days, but now that she was offering it was starting to win the large battle of willpower in my mind.


    I ended up coming to the conclusion that it probably couldn¡¯t hurt to do it, so I went ahead with the plan. I stood and walked over to her.


    It would be the first time Eve witnessed me do it to somebody other than her, so it was a learning experience for the both of us. I would learn what a dwarf tasted like, and she would learn how she really looked when she was in the act.


    I came closer, Helila panting from the thought until I dug my fangs into her neck. She moaned, the slight tang of pain hitting her harder than it should have. It seems she was feeling whatever turned her on most.


    ¡­


    I can¡¯t really say what I think about that¡­


    The moaning, as always, was intense. Ironically, Helila¡¯s blood tasted quite similar in sweetness to the very donuts she had made.


    (AN: He had to take another shower, and eventually sew his shirt back up, as Helila had torn a gash in the left side with her fingernails in a large spasm of ecstasy.)


    My memory seemed to be slightly better this time around, as some parts were seen in full clarity. Not exactly the greatest of ideas, however, as the parts that I saw were parts that not even my erotic little vampire wanted to see. For being a masochist, she sure knows how to insult people. I would have guessed she was a sadist if I only had that to go on.


    Well, all in all, I ended up with another 5% on my blood bar, up to 34%. Eve was in her chair, not touching the last three donuts. She wouldn¡¯t look me in the eye.


    Her face was red, so either she was sick, or embarrassed. I¡¯d bet on the second one. After all, she probably just realized exactly how erotic she was whenever we did this. That being said, I¡¯d rather be able to control myself, so I¡¯ll need some practice at this.


    ¡°Eve, when will you have full health again?¡±


    ¡°Ahh¡­ Um¡­ About thirty minutes from now¡­¡±


    ¡°Good, tell me when. I need to do this a few more times today.¡±


    Then I took a second, along with a quick look around.


    ¡°That being said, where the hell is Vera? Always disappearing¡­¡±


    ¡°Umm¡­ You¡¯re talking about the busty fox-girl, right? She said something about the pool.¡± Helila explained.


    (AN: Well, granted, she had a few deep breaths interrupting her, as well as very slurred speech. I did my best to understand what I could. Translated it just for you.)


    ¡°What?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Fox? ¡­Pool.¡± She used fewer words this time.


    ¡°Oh, ok, I¡¯ll head over there. I want to find out why that Fox always runs away.¡± I responded, taking note of the time. There was something I could easily compare to a digital clock on the wall. It used mana, though, with a sensor for daylight in the sun, probably at the top of the mountain. I¡¯ve never checked.


    Vera was swimming peacefully. Or, technically she was floating on her back, but she was in the water. Close enough.


    ¡°Vera?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Rayne?¡± She responded while I was still speaking.


    ¡°What are you doing here?¡±


    ¡°Training.¡±


    ¡­


    ¡°How so?¡± I asked, sincerely wondering what she was training.


    ¡°I¡¯m thinking of some new spells. Floating like this helps me relax. I¡¯m trying to replicate your [Mana Eye], as you call it, for those of us that can¡¯t control pure mana so well.¡±


    I thought for a second.


    ¡°Isn''t that¡­ really amazing? Where did you learn something like that?¡±


    ¡°Well, I was studying about it a lot, but Thea helped me out with some of the more complicated equations.¡±


    ¡°Equations?¡±


    ¡°Creating a new spell, or modifying one that already exists, is a bit like math. You have to find out each and every point of damage that the spell will do, compare it to cost, the diameter of the spell, cast time, and pretty much every other part of it. A spell is actually just a ratio. Or, a few thousand ratios. To change it, I just have to change one of the ratios.¡±


    She righted herself, standing on the relatively shallow part of the pool. I dipped my legs in as she talked, enjoying the slightly chilling temperature.


    The conversation continued quite a bit past that, but the details were pretty long and boring. It was just a lot of numbers, mixing in with some demonstrations and explanations.


    In the end, I helped her out with a few ideas of using air magic to sense obstructions. She said it would take her a few hours, so I left her to her work.


    My foot hit the ground for the sixth millionth time.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    End +2, Agi +1


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    I continued running after swiping away the notice. I was passing the time by talking to the system about some of its features, which wasn¡¯t too exciting. I learned a few things about how my skills actually work, but not much. I need more perception to learn anything too exciting.


    I stopped running, wiping my forehead of sweat. I sat down against a tree, looking into the clouds. The sun was hidden behind them, so too much would hurt my eyes, but I could do it for a little bit.


    Space around me started warping as I poured all my mana into it. I¡¯m still not quite sure how I managed to figure this out, but it works. I¡¯m attempting to teleport with a little bit more mana conservation. I can tear a hole in space, however that works, then walk through to teleport, but then I have to tear out the other side, using thousands of mana each way.


    So then I thought, ¡®Why not just have space itself let me in? Just swirl it away from itself, making an opening. I¡¯ll just be opening a door.¡¯


    But no, not really. The thought was entertaining, at least it was a good idea. But that was only in theory. Actually putting enough centrifugal forces to open space was a bit much.


    Think of it like tearing a sphere apart. Not just a regular sphere, either. A titanium sphere welded together from thousands of plates. Not demonstrate how you would pull that apart with only an iron nail and a hammer.


    Practically impossible.


    But I¡¯m still trying. Pulling at parts, pushing others, Space weakened and strengthened. [Mana Eye] was overseeing it, attempting to measure each reaction with the mana I used. Just like Vera said, it was all a ratio.


    Then something strange happened as a bit of space tore. A hand reached through, pure black in appearance. It gripped my collar, another three hands holding the edges of the rip.


    With my concentration broken, all of the other mana vanished, making me lose nearly 15,000 mana. Pretty rude.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± The voice seemed to come from everywhere at once.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Rayne?¡± I answered, hesitating to make it seem like it was a fake name.


    ¡°Hmmm¡­ Rayne, it shall be then.¡± The hand set me down. It definitely wasn¡¯t creepy to have four pitch black hands hold open a tear in space, and then continue to tear it. The voice continued.


    ¡°I have been imprisoned for a very long time. Probably a few thousand years¡­ But that is beside the point. I have a proposition for you. Care to listen?¡±


    ¡°Would there be any reason I wouldn¡¯t want to? Like, perhaps, my death if I refuse after hearing it?¡± I asked, making sure to not get any surprises. Those arms were really damn muscular.


    The voice seemed to laugh. ¡°Of course not! If you accept, you end up with a good part of the deal, and if you refuse, I¡¯ll let you think about it more. There should be no reason to refuse this offer, though.¡±


    ¡°You might be surprised¡­ Alright, hit me.¡± I responded, wanting him to tell me the deal.


    Sadly, it seemed this entity was quite literal. One of the arms let go of the tear, the one below it raising to make sure it didn¡¯t collapse. Then, it slammed into my chest.


    Well, you know how I said the thing was muscular? It may have been an understatement.


    I flew back, crashing through the trees with my body, before finally managing to let out some mana. I connecting it to anything, tethering to the trees, the ground, the boulders I flew by, anything to stop my momentum. I was slowed slight amounts each time, finally stopping a few meters away from a river. I must have flown for a few miles, at least.


    A sigh escaped my lips. I held my back, which still hurt even though the damage was healed. It would take a while to run back. I hope the thing is still there.


    ¡°Oh! You¡¯re still alive! I expected you to have died from that¡­¡±


    ¡°Yeah, thanks for the vote of confidence. What¡¯s your offer?¡±


    ¡°Oh, I did say I would give you an offer, didn¡¯t I?¡±


    ¡°You did.¡±


    ¡°I forgot it. Oh well.¡±


    ¡°¡®Oh well.¡¯ My ass! I just walked for thirty-eight minutes to get back here so you could tell me the damn offer and you say you forgot? What the hell was the point of me walking back here, then?!¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°Oh, so now you have nothing to say?! I¡¯m just about ready to close that rift on you!¡±


    ¡°No¡­ Please don¡¯t do that. It¡¯s taking me a lot to keep this open. Here, you know what? Give me a minute to think. I might just remember it!¡±


    Through my anger, I had already surrounded the edges of the rift with my mana, ready to close it at a moment¡¯s notice. I moved it slightly away from the tear, to give whatever it was a bit more room to breathe.


    ¡°Ah! I¡¯ve remembered it!¡± The voice seemed surprised.


    ¡°Now then, what is your offer?¡± I asked, crossing my arms and bringing the mana back to the edges of the rip.


    ¡°If you open this little tear a little bit more, so I can come through, I¡¯ll grant any one wish of yours!¡±


    Of course, that was something interesting to think about. But I didn¡¯t know what exactly to wish for. So I waited for an entire minute, thinking hard about it.


    ¡°Alright. But I want to know what you are going to do before I let you come over.¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ I was planning on killing the gods?¡±


    ¡°Why is that a question? Anyway, don¡¯t kill the gods until I say you can. I have plans for them, myself.¡±


    ¡°But I don¡¯t want to wait another hundred years for some human to die! I want them to feel the pain that I have felt! Feel the full embrace of solitude!¡±


    He sounded like a whining child. But I wasn¡¯t quite sure if I should blame him. The tear in space opened up further, taking much more mana than I would have liked to spend.


    ¡°Well, come on through. But you will be fulfilling the deal.¡±


    The four arms bulged, pulling something large out of the wormhole. The wormhole itself warped, twisting unnaturally.


    ¡°I thank you¡­ Rayne. This demon will grant your wish.¡±


    Four horns. Four arms. Two legs. Black eyes and skin. But even with all that, he felt familiar. His aura was just like¡­


    ¡°Were you¡­ possibly just in Suratrat?¡±


    He took a half step back, almost into the closing rift.


    ¡°How could you tell? That wormhole had no certain destination¡­¡±


    He hesitated, his guard definitely up. Then he began muttering to himself. After twenty seconds, which I waited through patiently, he stared me in the eyes.


    ¡°I will give you my name. You¡¯d do well to remember it. Ilkdis. After all, you¡¯ll need me eventually. Now, I will grant your wish. I¡¯ll let you protect her. I¡¯ll give you the strength.¡±


    He placed a hand on my head.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Time and Space Control Update:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    [Time and Space Control] has leveled up 36 times. It is now Max level.


    4,837,792 experience rewarded.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Mana Eye Update:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    [Mana Eye] has leveled up 22 times. It is now Max level.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    System Update:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Most of the experience has been absorbed by something. Be careful, Master.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Then he pierced me through the chest before I had the time to swipe the windows away.


    No Rest for the Wicked. (Rayne¡¯s POV)


    I woke up and immediately shot to my feet. I had died again. The windows were still there, so I swiped those away before doing anything else.


    I spun on my heel, looking around for any danger. I saw the mountain in the distance, coated in some black liquid.


    Fearing the worst, I ran. That damnable demon better not have touched Helila or Eve.


    I arrived at the scene, finding carnage hell would have trouble beating. Helila was in four pieces, a smile still on her face. I nearly threw up. But Eve was missing, and that was more important.


    I searched through the outside of the mountain. No signs of her. I found the tree that concealed the entrance to the mountain and leaped down it. The house was a wreck.


    The walls were shattered down, making the multiple room house a single large cavern.


    The ceiling above me had multiple large chunks missing, and small indents that looked like fistprints. I refused to let my mind wander to fear. I forced it into the section of me that was filled with rage.


    I rushed through each and every piece of wreckage, dreading the point where I find her, but looking forward to it at the same time.


    I reached the third floor. The work floor. It was there that I found her.


    The demon held each of her limbs, on for each hand, about two feet off the floor. She was facing me, the demon behind her.


    Tears had left small lines of salt on her cheeks. Her eyes were closed. Blood trickled down her chin, coming from the mouth. A large hole was in her chest, slowly healing.


    From then, I lost myself. I¡¯m not sure what happened, but it couldn¡¯t have been good. When I came to, I was chained to the wall with some black liquid, the same that was on the outside of the mountain.


    Eve was still in front of me, chained similarly. Except for the pulsing nails in each of her limbs. If she was awake, I have no doubt that she would be screaming from the pain. For that reason, I hoped she wouldn¡¯t wake up.


    I could hear that demon laughing again.


    ¡°I¡¯ve given you a chance, little vampire. Find your way through my bonds, and I¡¯ll let you live. After all, it¡¯s been quite a long time, longer than I¡¯ve been in Suratrat, since somebody has done this much damage to me. Now then, entertain me with your struggles!¡±


    With a laugh, the voice trailed off into nothingness. Even without it, though, I had no doubts he was still watching.


    It pissed me off.


    The shackles on my legs and arms didn¡¯t look like they were going to come off anytime soon. So, if I couldn¡¯t get the shackles off, I would have to get rid of whatever bound them to me. In simpler words, I¡¯d have to cut off my arms and legs.


    My mana wrapped around my shoulder, a pitiful amount compared to my full storages. I winced as it compressed, tearing through muscle, skin and bone. One down, three to go.


    My health had taken 10,000 or so damage with each limb, so I had to wait nearly 20 seconds before being able to do the next one.


    Just after a minute later, I was free of the bonds. A few seconds after that, I had full use of my body, and a full body to use. I ran the few steps it took to get to Eve.


    I attempted to save her, tear out the spikes, rip off the bonds, anything to help her, but nothing worked. The spikes twisted to evade my grasp, the bonds held fast to the wall, and she wouldn¡¯t even twitch to my attempts to wake her up.


    I didn¡¯t know what to do. I started to panic. My breathing quickened, becoming heavier each second. I paced back and forth in front of her.


    I couldn¡¯t think of anything. I didn¡¯t know anything about what I was attempting to do. I didn¡¯t know what I was attempting to destroy.


    So, with those thoughts in my head, I remembered the levels I had gotten. I reached for space, and found it was like another part of me.


    So I ripped it in half. Eve disappeared, reappearing a second later, on the ground next to me. I used the tear already in space, sharpened it, and cut the black liquid until it no longer existed. At least, not visibly.


    I checked over Eve¡¯s body, looking for any serious wounds other than the five obvious ones. But, in my checking, I realized something.


    Her heart had stopped beating. Eve was dead.


    And I had a feeling she wouldn''t be coming back.

 A1, C5: F5

    Another Death. (Author¡¯s POV)


    Eve was most certainly dead. She had, in fact, died three times. This was the second one in thirty minutes.


    So this time she would stay dead.


    I guess this is where we see Rayne break. Let me stop commenting and just dictate.


    Rayne held her. Tears streamed down his face, his eyes hollow and devoid of any coherent thought. His mana swirled around him in lazy streams, twisting and turning like threads of spider silk in the wind.


    He had long since realized that she was not coming back. It had already been an hour. So he cried silently, cradling her to his chest and rocking slightly back and forth. His brain, always working overtime to try and make a full plan of his life, had stilled.


    All that was left was the empty husk of what used to be Rayne. A small, sad husk.


    The demon who had killed her was nowhere to be seen, not even heard. He was certainly watching over them even now, just observing the carnage he had wrought.


    From here, so many things could happen. When you take away the one last thing a person with power loves, there is little one can do to stop the results.


    Rayne could go on to forgo his curse, seeking out the demon that killed Eve.


    He could just lay down next to her body and spend an eternity there, his body constantly dying and reviving.


    He could entomb her in diamond, as he had done to Thea.


    He could lay waste to the entire planet.


    He could attempt to move on, forever looking for something to fill his heart.


    He could drink his troubles away as best he could.


    He could commit suicide, twice, in a futile attempt to join her in the afterlife.


    He could continue through life as a husk, never opening to anything or anyone.


    He could tear through space, trying to leave as fast as possible.


    He could do so much more, but I¡¯ll relieve you of the suspense and just tell you what he ended up doing.


    Rayne reached to his mana. His knowledge of his skill. He grasped time.


    And he pulled it back.


    A portal opened in front of him. A window appeared, explaining the dangers of ripping a hole in Time, but he swiped it away without even reading it. With a single step, he was swallowed by the hole, teleporting him not to another place, but another time, another universe.


    Motives (Rayne¡¯s POV)


    I knew normal methods wouldn¡¯t work. Flying through the wormhole, I thought over what I was doing. I was going back in time to try and save Eve. I would do things better this time around. Nobody would get hurt. Nobody would die.


    No matter what.


    Restart (Rayne¡¯s POV)


    I awoke with a start. I hadn¡¯t seen this ceiling in a very long time. I smiled to myself, nothing in it but the muscle movements. I knew what was going to happen. I waited for that pair of green eyes as I checked over what I could. I couldn¡¯t move, just like last time, but I could think.


    My situation was much better this time around. I would be able to protect them this time.


    It was the same as before, except this time around I stared at the lamp on the wall instead of Elliot¡¯s eyes. That ended well for me, as the maid no longer took any interest in me.


    When my parents came in, I turned to my mother. She picked me up and twirled me through the air, tears in her eyes. I tried not to remember Eve. I failed.


    Another 365 days of waiting. But this time I would be training at 9 times the intensity. I couldn¡¯t protect her before, so I would have to get stronger. I would fight the entire kingdom at once if I had too.


    So I needed the strength to do so.


    I¡¯ll get it, no matter what I must do.


    Training (Author Here)


    Of course, he did so as soon as he could control his body. The whirlwind happened again, with Rayne¡¯s permission, so that he could explain everything to his mother. Without all the explanations he got the first time, he had a lot of time to attempt to talk her out of thinking him as a monster. He eventually managed, after which he woke up in sync with her.


    Now she avoided him slightly, not sure how to think of her twice reincarnated vampire of a child. I don¡¯t blame her.


    He immediately meditated, leaving the world behind. His mana pulled into a single block, turning it a light gray almost instantly. After another few minutes, it was pure black. But Rayne continued putting mana in it.


    He already had a headache, most of his wandering thoughts focused instead on keeping the volatile mana in one place and in one piece. If he was distracted for even a second, the mana would expand outwards in a rush so large, it would reach all the way to the city.


    His [Mana Construction] leveled up once or twice, his [Mana Condensation] never changing, and his [Advanced Meditation] leveling once.


    And yet he still continued. His consciousness was swimming through molasses. He had to stop sometime soon, or else he would most likely destroy everything in a few hundred mile radius.


    4 hours had passed. The mana brick that was being created was torn apart, space around it warping and shooting a pressurized bolt into the ground.


    This was due to Rayne¡¯s influence. He had surrounded the incoming blast in solidified space, with a single opening that leads to a downwards-facing portal, so the blast was redirected straight down. It burrowed nearly three miles straight down, through bedrock and all.


    At least nobody was hurt this time around¡­


    ¡°Rayne, are you alright?¡± Avalina asked, laying a hand on his shoulder.


    ¡°No.¡± Is what he responded. However, something interesting to note would be that he used his mana letters again. He seemed to be unable to speak.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Avalina wouldn¡¯t be giving up. Even if he had been reincarnated twice, having memories and skills from both times, she could tell he was still mostly human.


    And humans have emotions.


    Rayne showed no hint of answering her question. He either wasn¡¯t sure what he should answer with, or he didn¡¯t know what was wrong. I¡¯d bet on the first one.


    He continued training. Tirelessly. He didn¡¯t eat unless he had to. He didn¡¯t sleep until he passed out from exhaustion. He didn¡¯t speak. Well, technically he couldn¡¯t speak, but you get my point.


    Of course, his training gave him many things:


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Status Update:


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    PER +5782


    WIS +5402


    INT +4326


    FTH +27


    LCK +2


    WPR +92


    END +9297


    STR +7284


    DEX +7922


    AGL +8324


    VIT +253


    LDS +104


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    [Mana Construction] has leveled up! (x177)


    [Mana Sense] has leveled up! (x31)


    [Advanced Meditation] has leveled up! (x14)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    [Mana Eye] has become [Mana Construction] subskill, {Mana Eye}


    [Mana Condensation] has become [Mana Construction] subskill, {Mana Gather}


    [Mana Sense] has become [Mana Construction] subskill, {Mana Sense} as well as [Vampiric Lineage] subskill, {Blood Sense}


    [Persuasion] has become [Vampiric Lineage] subskill, {Vampiric Voice} as well as [Mana Construction] subskill, {Infused Words}


    [Enticing Gaze] has become [Vampiric Lineage] subskill, {Vampiric Eyes}


    [Blood Drain] has become [Vampiric Lineage] subskill, {Blood Drain}


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    The effect (Repaired Body) has increased from (7x, 109x) to (13x, 199x).


    The effect (Overcharged) has increased from (24,323) to (31,893)Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    The effects: (Sunlight Weakness), (Blood Drinker), (Disease Immunity), and (Vampiric Body) have been combined into (Vampiric Constitution)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Skills and Effects are now ordered in columns, instead of rows.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    But before I go too far, I should go back a bit. Back to the day where Rayne saved Rose. This time, with the knowledge of how it ended last time, was a bit different.


    He didn¡¯t rush. He went there before she even arrived and waited. The boys brought her, unconscious, right into his reach. They were instantly KO¡¯ed with a mana ball to the head. Rose fell to the ground, unmoving.


    With a swipe of his hand, her body was reformed. The legs were fixed, the cuts were filled in, and her arm was regrown.


    With empty eyes to the person who, in another time, tried to kill his family, he left a bottle next to her. It was filled with his saliva, enough to make sure each and every one of her injuries was fully healed. But that was it.


    He left without turning back, sure she would find some way back home. This time, he wouldn¡¯t be getting involved with her.


    Back to the ¡®Present¡¯, it¡¯s the first day of school. Rayne already knew that he would be assigned to the 400th floor, and decided to play his hand differently this time. His teacher was the fairy queen. He could make use of that.


    He walked slowly to school. No fox accompanied him this time, Rayne keeping true to his resolution even with that on the line. He made it earlier than anybody else and started playing around with solid mana. That should keep most people away.


    But he would be mistaken with those thoughts. It drew attention to him. The second person to arrive was a girl, very similar in appearance to Rose. It took Rayne a few seconds to recognize her.


    It was Rose. But she looked so¡­ different.


    Every time Rayne had seen her in the past life, she had a smile on her face, always looking forward to time with him. But now she looked like she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders.


    Her eyes were harder than before, a swirling mix of dark emotions. Her posture gave off a sense of uncaring as if she had given up on everything already.


    She¡­ she looked like him.


    It was terrifying and terrible.


    She bent down. She seemed curious about his mana.


    At the moment, it was forming and unforming from a few hundred types of flowers. From a sane perspective, it would be beautiful. But to Rose and Rayne, it would probably just look depressing.


    A flower, so full of life, created and destroyed by the same hand, the same mind.


    ¡®So, what¡¯s going on with you?¡¯ Rayne asked with mana, infusing it with one of his subskills, {Vampiric Tongue}.


    ¡°Have you ever heard of a person captured by the Little Three that ended up living?¡± She asked, her eyes darkening.


    ¡®I haven¡¯t heard of the Little Three. Are they some sort of gang?¡¯


    ¡°Sort of. I was¡­ captured by them about a month ago. It¡¯s haunted me since.¡±


    ¡®But you seem fine¡­¡¯ Rayne had an idea of where this was going.


    ¡°That¡¯s the thing. I remember my wounds. I was awake the whole time while they were¡­ doing it to me.¡± She trailed off.


    ¡®So¡­ what happened¡­?¡¯ Rayne was still now, his mana no longer creating flowers. It swam through the air in a formless blob.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ I don¡¯t know. I woke up, looking mostly whole. There was a bottle next to me, filled with some clear liquid. I drank it, thinking it was there for that reason, but I don¡¯t know what happened.¡±


    ¡®...¡¯ Rayne stopped his mana completely.


    ¡°Why was I taken? Why did my wounds heal? What happened to them? What was that liquid?¡± She was rambling, not paying attention to what she was saying.


    Rayne smiled slightly, realizing how simple she was. For a second, he thought about hinting towards him knowing about it, but he stopped himself. He didn¡¯t really want to get involved too strongly with the yandere.


    So, instead, he commented a few words,


    ¡®You don¡¯t need to dwell on the past. Everything happens for a reason. And it¡¯s all that much better since this little incident ended with you being okay. For all it matters, a mage could have passed by and saved you.¡¯


    Rose stopped. She looked to him, noting his small wry smile. It didn¡¯t stay long, but it was there.


    ¡°Were¡­ Were you-¡±


    A bell sounded, signaling the beginning of school. The guard opened the gates and took his position.


    Rayne stood, dusting himself off, and warped the mana he was playing with to spell out his name for the guard. He walked off before Rose could question him anymore.


    After a few seconds, she realized the bell had rung and rushed off to not be late. There were hundreds of students behind her, after all.


    Rayne walked into his classroom, waiting for the teacher. Last time, he fell asleep once he got into the classroom since the people didn¡¯t come for a very long time.


    But this time, he went straight to the library. He grabbed any random book and flipped it to a page somewhere near the beginning.


    It was a book about the specialties and ranks of mages, and the page began in the middle of a sentence. Not liking that, Rayne flipped back to the very first page and began reading from there. It wasn¡¯t that he was a slow reader, he just had some difficulties staying focused.


    Having a mind that thinks of every choice can be a bad thing sometimes.


    The door opened, a thoroughly exhausted teacher walking in. She waved her hand, a chair forming out of thin air. Not even a fluctuation in magic.


    Rayne was interested, but not quite as much as he was interested in his goal. With a thought out set of movements, the book in his hand slammed shut, clapping loudly in the mostly empty room. The teacher leaped up, squeaking adorably.


    ¡®Fairy Queen, you might want to get your magic reapplied.¡¯ Rayne¡¯s words were sharp and clear.


    ¡°Uwah?! Oh, there¡¯s a student here¡­ Wait, who are you calling Fairy Queen?!¡± She hid her reaction quite well.


    ¡®You, Fairy Queen Efreet Loli. You don¡¯t know me, but I know that. Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t tell anyone. I just thought I¡¯d give you that piece of advice.¡¯ Rayne wrote it in passing as if he didn¡¯t care.


    But this was the important part. If she reacted correctly, everything would end well. But if she reacted in any other way, Rayne would have difficulty saving Eve this time around, too.


    ¡°What do you want from me?¡± Her voice had an edge to it. Rayne opened his book back up, flipping to the page he was on last, before responding.


    ¡®I suppose I could say I want something from you. But I suppose I could also say that I want nothing from you.¡¯


    ¡°Stop speaking in riddles.¡±


    ¡®Well then, Ms. Efreet. What I want from you is one simple thing. Five days from now, there should be a girl with golden eyes that comes in.¡¯ He paused, the mana he was using to speak threading into incoherent symbols.


    ¡®I exist to protect her, no matter the cost. I want you to assist me in this matter.¡¯


    There was a pause. No words were spoken from either side of the room, both simply sitting down in their chairs silently. The only noise was Rayne turning the page to his book occasionally.


    ¡°Hello? Anybody in here?¡± A female voice called out, from the other side of the door. It surprised Rayne so much that he tore a small piece of the page. At least it was still in one piece. He fixed it with mana before tuning back into the scene.


    ¡°Come in¡­¡± Efreet called back, slowly looking up to the door while collapsing the chair she was sitting on. It disappeared into nothingness.


    The door opened. A girl came in. With a few seconds of uncomfortable staring, Rayne recognized her as the foxnapper. He wondered how she would act, now that the fox was gone.


    She sat in the first row, as far from him as possible.


    ¡­


    Isn¡¯t that¡­ a bit rude?


    But anyway, she sat in the front row. Rayne gave off a small single syllable chuckle before going back to his book. He would have to check with her later, as she obviously didn¡¯t want to talk to him now.


    The next student was two minutes later, the silver-haired Lilia. Her gaze lingered on Rayne, seeming to recognize him this time.


    ¡°Yo, Lilia. Sit here, why don¡¯t you?¡± He pointed to the seat in front of him. She froze in her tracks, glaring daggers at him.


    He returned them with a smile. Eventually, she ended up sitting there.


    ¡°You know, I¡¯m pretty sure I said something to you the first time we met¡­ You¡¯re really bad at following instructions, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    Alright, pissing off the goddess of Death cannot be a good idea. But then again, Rayne is chock full of ideas, I suppose most of them would be bad ones.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m not good at following instructions from a person I didn¡¯t think I would see again.¡± She responded, calm for the circumstances. Meeting the person you killed isn¡¯t exactly an everyday occurance, is it?


    I guess I¡¯ll never know.


    An Old Skill Anew (Eve¡¯s POV)


    Today I am one month old. 360 days without Rayne, is actually how I view it, but I can¡¯t help it. I miss him so much.


    Nothing is special about today. Or, well, something should be special today, but I fixed it. School starts today, but I don¡¯t want to go. The only thing that could make me go was if Rayne was there.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    New Skill gained: Clairvoyance!


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Well, that¡¯s a first. What the hell? Clairvoyance¡­ I feel like I¡¯ve heard that word somewhere before...


    But I guess I can just inspect the skill.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Clairvoyance


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    See into the future.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Why is it such a bland description? Most of the ones I¡¯ve seen so far have been really detailed, with lots of statistics and whatnot.


    Is this skill really all that great? I mean, my perception stat is over 150¡­ Should I level it up even more?


    How do I do that?


    It was a long time before I realized that I gained the skill because I had already guessed the future.


    The Gala (Rayne¡¯s POV)


    Today was the day. Exactly one Earth year since my second¡­ third birth. The day I would meet Eve again.


    It had been so long. I wanted to see her, show her how powerful I had become. Show her that nobody could touch her.


    ¡°What, overstimulated with thoughts of your sister?¡±


    ¡®Agh, shut up. You know me well enough by now, Lilia.¡¯ I taunted her with her real name, making sure to watch her flinch.


    ¡°Alright, alright, stop being so obvious¡­ I know how much you miss her, and I¡¯m sorry, for the thousandth time.¡± She had, indeed, said sorry about that particular topic four hundred and eighty-three times.


    ¡®Nope, only 484. I¡¯ve counted.¡¯ I smirked at her, smiling wider today than ever before.


    The door opened, and my neck swiveled. I heard something crack, but that wasn¡¯t important. The girl that had walked into the room was¡­ just the foxnapper, who was named Ralia.


    ¡°Get your eyes off me, you conceited pervert. If you really want to be close to me, get over here and bow down like the dog you are.¡±


    A very pretty name for somebody so sadistic.


    We weren¡¯t exactly friends, but I knew how to deal with her.


    ¡®Yes, yes, I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯ll be there in a second to polish your shoes, princess.¡¯


    Just go with it. She gets embarrassed and eventually tells me to sit down. It¡¯s even better if you smile while doing it, and insist. I actually bowed to her once, and she left me alone for an entire day.


    ¡°Eww, stop looking so happy when you say that, it¡¯s creepy.¡±


    ¡®Thank you.¡¯


    ¡°And stop being so happy when I degrade you!¡±


    ¡®Nope.¡¯


    She sat down, making an effort not to look at me. It took me a second to realize she was done, so I turned back to Lilia.


    ¡®So, how have things been going on your end?¡¯ The words held a secret meaning, one that only Lilia and I knew about.


    ¡°Pretty alright, nothing too bad has happened so far. There aren¡¯t that many deaths around here since you took out the Little Three. Such a stupid name for a gang.¡±


    ¡®True. Thanks again.¡¯


    ¡°No problem. You¡¯ve been¡­ entertaining these past five days.¡±


    ¡®I¡¯ll extend my offer once again, then.¡¯


    There was a pause. I looked Lilia in the eye, making sure she couldn¡¯t run or avert her eyes. My skill no longer kicked in unless I wanted it to, so this was mostly safe.


    ¡°You know, I think I¡¯ll take it this time. When you leave, take me with you. It¡¯ll certainly be more entertaining than living an ordinary life.¡±


    I smiled at her, not a fake one for once. She took a half step back, seeming surprised. She put a hand up to her chest, making me tilt my head in confusion.


    ¡®Is something wrong?¡¯


    She laughed a little. ¡°No, I don¡¯t think so. I¡¯m just a bit more excited to meet this ¡®Eve¡¯ that you talk about so often.¡±


    I nodded and went back to watching the door as Lilia made her way to the seat in front of me.


    She was the last person in the room. Just as nice as I remember. Her first day of school, her blond hair flowing behind her beautifully. I nearly leaped out of my seat to rush towards her and hug her, but I thought it would be more fun to let her find me on her own.


    She stood in the front of the room, scanning over 9 faces. Her eyes lay on the empty seat next to me, before flicking back to me.


    Seeing that she noticed who I was, I stood up. My chair grate against the floor behind me, but that was fine. Eve was finally here.


    She smiled at me, tears leaking out of her eyes. I couldn¡¯t even hope to contain my own. Just like before, I rushed towards her. Just like before, I spoke her name as my first words.


    Unlike before, I fast forwarded Time. I warped it a bit, the knowledge from the Max leveled skill comforting the flow as I gave her the memories from my last reincarnation. I gave her her memories. Including the times she died.


    So I wasn¡¯t surprised when she gripped me tighter, finally realizing exactly how we parted. But there was something she did that surprised me.


    ¡°I love you¡­¡± She whispered into my ear. I had heard the same voice so many times, whispering different things into my ears. In fact, I had probably heard the same three words before.


    But when she said it this time, my heart jumped up to my throat. My stomach felt like it was twisting into a knot. I smiled, happier than I had ever been before.


    After all, I realized there was only one answer I could give her here, to make sure that I wouldn¡¯t lie to her or myself anymore.


    ¡°I love you too¡­¡±

 A2, C1: Royal (Pain)

    Godly Powers. (Author Here)


    Ah, a confession. Normally the climax of the story, a part that simply can¡¯t be ignored.


    But in this story, that bends Time and Space just like that, do you think this confession will have as much impact?


    Well, you¡¯re right. After all, you¡¯re the one who experienced it, not me.


    Now then, let¡¯s unravel this tangled plotline, shall we?


    Nothing happened for a full ten seconds. Nobody had the heart to tell them to sit down.


    Eventually, Rayne realized what he had said. He opened his eyes, covering his face with his sleeves.


    ¡°You know that was too much. There are so many people watching.¡± He whispered fiercely.


    Eve just smiled, a light blush on her face as well, before grabbing a piece of his school uniform, pointing to the seat that he sat in.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think you should sit down? You¡¯re interrupting the class.¡± She sounded so¡­ arrogant. As if she just did something worthy of praise from kings.


    Well. I guess she kinda did.


    The class continued onwards, nobody speaking a word about the encounter. Nor did they say anything about how close the two were the entire time. They were practically cuddling, with how close they were to eachother. They could all feel the pink aura emanating from them snaking its way down their spines.


    It made them shiver. But it was almost¡­ exciting. Like the suspense of a romance movie, when you just wait for somebody to cross over the line of being a couple. Thrilling.


    ¡°Eve, was it? It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you again. I¡¯m Lily.¡± Lilia was the first to speak to her.


    By this time, Rayne¡¯s smile had gradually grown smaller to see, until it was no more than a slight curve of the lips. Of course, this had nothing to do with how happy he was, as his heart still felt so light it was as if it would pop out and start bouncing off the walls.


    Leaning in close, Rayne whispered softly into Eve¡¯s ear.


    ¡°She¡¯s the one who killed us. And apparently brought our souls here. It seems like she had orders, though, and she¡¯s not such a bad person.¡±


    Eve¡¯s back stiffened. After he had finished talking, she brought her hand up to her ear.


    ¡°Don¡¯t whisper like that! My ears are sensitive!¡± She harshly whispered back, her words stinging like a whip.


    After all, Rayne was quite the forgetful child. One can¡¯t help how they were born.


    It took a bit, but Eve turned back to Lilia. She stood up slightly, before bowing politely.


    ¡°Thank you. My name¡¯s Eve. It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you again as well.¡± She sat back down.


    ¡°So, what¡¯s it like to be finally reunited?¡± Lilia asked, no hesitation in her voice. The person next to her, a noble named Famel, heard this and perked up from his book. He turned ever so slightly, trying to hide the fact that he was trying to listen in.


    Eve took a second to register the question. Then her face lit up, a wide grin splitting it.


    ¡°Better than I could have ever imagined!¡± She cuddled up closer to Rayne, grabbing his arm. All he could do was smile.


    ¡°Reunited? They¡¯ve known eachother before? It seemed like they hadn¡¯t seen eachother in a very long time, sure, but¡­ I guess it makes sense.¡± Famel muttered to himself. For some reason, he found it odd that they were ¡®reunited¡¯, but everything seemed to check out, so it passed by his mind.


    The King¡¯s Request (Rayne¡¯s POV)


    I went through my days just awaiting the next one, knowing nearly everything that was going to happen. There wasn¡¯t much to do except train my body and mind until an actual important event happened. It seemed like Eve didn¡¯t have any of her skills from last playthrough, so I told her to focus on her stamina and mental stats, so that she could do what she loves, while still becoming a useful person if it¡¯s needed.


    After all, I couldn¡¯t protect her last time, so I might need her to protect herself a few times this playthrough. It will hopefully all work out.


    Hopefully.


    I read a few books, but other than that I just did my daily training routine until the guards came to take me to the queen. I had things to do this time around!


    Surprisingly, it was only one guard. It seems things keep changing this time around, although I¡¯m not sure if that¡¯s because of me or something else.


    ¡°The Queen-¡±


    ¡°Alright, she¡¯s requested me, let¡¯s go. Eve, time to head out!¡± Eve was in library nextdoor, so I yelled out to call for her. It only took a few seconds before she came running out and to me. She seemed to have calmed down significantly in the first few days, having not been so touchy-feely by the third day. By now she would rarely hold my hand, except on especially serene moments where nobody would bother us.


    I guess she didn¡¯t like the attention.


    Back to the topic, the guard tried to lead us to the palace, to the queen. I say tried because I jumped off the building again, while he walked all the way down the stairs. And since I knew the way from last time, I didn¡¯t wait for the guard and just walked there on my own.


    The queen had her hand raised from the moment I walked in without the guard. But I continued onwards, and got to the place I was before. I bowed, and opened my mouth to speak.


    ¡°Hello, Queen. I believe you sent for me? What is it that you wanted?¡±


    Her hand slowly fell. Once it got back to her side, she sat down in the throne and began to speak.


    ¡°I¡¯m assuming you¡¯re Rayne? Stop bowing, it¡¯s bothersome to not see your face.¡± She waited for me to correct my posture, ¡°I¡¯ve heard quite a lot about you from my friend. She says you can tell the future, and have a need for some help?¡±


    ¡°Well, you seem to already know about me. That makes things easier. I have a desire for two wishes. I wouldn¡¯t say I desperately need them, but it would help. The king has a book he¡¯s working on right now, am I right?¡±


    ¡°I presume you will help with that for a wish?¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡± Eve was the one responding this time, not liking being not included in the conversation.


    After a short jolt of surprise, I turned back to the queen.


    ¡°So, care to get him for me? It might take a while for him to come, so let¡¯s talk in the meantime. Since I can¡¯t think of anything else to talk about, how has your daughter been? The one with blonde hair, and all.¡±


    The queen was the one to have a jolt this time.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Can I trust you?¡±


    I smiled. Just as one would expect from the queen, blunt to a fault.


    ¡°Of course not. But if it¡¯s about Thea, I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anything wrong with telling me. After all, I can see the future anyway. I know of a few things you may not.¡±


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s been decided that she¡¯ll be married off to the neighboring kingdom¡¯s prince, as they¡¯re both around the same age, once she reaches age 10. But for the past few days, she hasn¡¯t smiled. I love her smile, and she suddenly stopped showing it!¡±


    I patiently waited for her to finish before I spoke my mind.


    ¡°Does she know? About the marriage? And if not, then you¡¯re probably wrong, and she heard it somewhere. She¡¯s depressed about the marriage. She probably just doesn¡¯t want to marry this prince, no matter how good of a political outcome it is.¡±


    Of course, I came to this conclusion from how easily she went with me last time, as well as how many other things I noticed about her personality.


    It seemed like she was escaping, but didn¡¯t want to run away. The mages were the last straw for her, though.


    I shook my head to clear my thoughts. If I continued, I would have remembered the things that happened afterwards.


    ¡°-point¡­ Huh? Thea? What are you doing here?!¡± I tuned back in, hearing her name.


    I looked over, but the second my eyes met hers and saw the pain and fear, as well as the hesitation in them, I remembered how she looked all the times I saw her last time, including her corpse.


    I stood, having sat down at some point earlier on, when the guard was sent to go fetch the king. That being said, the king certainly was taking a long time¡­


    Anyway, I stood up, looking at the tormented and confused eyes of Thea. The memories were all still there, and made me smile. I wasn¡¯t able to protect her last time, but this time should be different. This time, I should be able to repent for my sins.


    I was suddenly in front of her, my arms outstretched to her lithe frame. I wrapped them around her, and brought her to me. I thought for a second about giving her memories, but I realized it would be wrong of me to force her to relive her death.


    So I simply used time magic in a way I didn¡¯t really think about.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    I wrapped it around my hand like a glove, and just followed my instinct for how to do what I wanted. I released her from my hold, and placed my hand on head, and pet her. She flinched slightly, before relaxing, closing her eyes slightly in bliss. Somehow or another, I used the time magic to make it feel the same as it did last time I pet her, which was just after she had gotten her status.


    With a mental flick, I sent the system to her, to give her the abilities without her knowledge. These two things were my way of apologizing.


    Thea reached up to touch my hand. Exactly the same as she had done before. It made me smile. I felt so guilty, so hurt from all the things I¡¯d done to her. But seeing her smile like this was good enough for me. She fell down to her knees, probably losing strength, but I just followed her down. My mind was elsewhere, but my body would still react, petting Thea just how she liked it.


    I guess it wouldn¡¯t be a bad idea to occupy my time like this.


    A Father Before A King (Author here) [King]


    Just earlier, the guard had rushed by Thea without paying much attention to her, as he had orders and it was not good of him to delay.


    Seeing the guard in such a hurry from where her mother was, Thea herself ran back to the room, wondering if something was wrong. For all she knew, it could be that rotten prince again, back to harass them with their power.


    So she rushed in to find¡­ a single boy and girl, about her age, talking about her. She must have stood there for a full twenty seconds, staring at the scene, before she was noticed.


    Since you know what happened from there, let¡¯s talk about the king.


    He was in his room, staring intensely at the book in front of him. It was plain, black bound book with no apparent locks or reasons why it couldn¡¯t be opened.


    However, unsurprisingly, it couldn¡¯t be opened. He had only found the book recently, but it was still bothersome that after four days, he was still unable to open it. He had even tried to burn the cover off, thinking that he could just use one of his scribes to copy down every page, but the book wouldn¡¯t even get warm.


    It was truly an enigma.


    ¡°Your majesty! The Queen calls for you in the Grand Hall!¡± A guard, one hired recently, called out. It was apparently that he was a recent one, as he didn¡¯t knock, while it was a personal rule to knock before calling out for the King.


    ¡°What ha-¡± He cut off his sentence as he realized what the guard had said. The last time he was called out in the Grand Hall by her, was when that stupid prince came by and blackmailed his wife into giving away their daughter like some prize.


    He immediately shut up. By some miracle, he grabbed the book on the way out, having some odd thoughts about seeming busy if something went wrong. The book had helped him out greatly these past few days, in terms of getting out of things he didn¡¯t want to do.


    It was his favorite scapegoat. He had already determined to not let anybody know if he ever managed to open the book.


    With long steps, he made large progress to the Grand Hall. He was slightly bothered, and thought about his daughter as he walked, trying to think about some other way he could make her as happy as possible before the prince stole her away.


    He could never come up with anything. He had realized she was listening in on the conversation, but he didn¡¯t stop, because she deserved to know. But it killed her smile, and it hurt him so much to not be able to see it again.


    Just before opening the doors, he put on a regal posture, pushing the fatherly thoughts to the back of his mind. He had no chances to look weak in front of his citizens.


    He was, after all, a king before a father.


    He slammed his hands onto the doors, pushing them open in a manner fit for an entrance from a king.


    But then he saw Thea, and stopped. She was sitting on her legs, smiling blissfully. The reason? A boy with golden shining eyes, seeming so sad, petting her slowly. Watching it gave you an odd conflicted feeling. The boy was so sad, but Thea was looking the happiest the king had ever seen her.


    He flinched, suddenly remembering that he was called out. He looked to his wife, only to see her looking back at him. She turned her head to look at the boy, then back at him. The king sighed, realizing that she wanted him to do something.


    He took a moment to regain his composure. Then he turned to the boy, attempting to keep his composure.


    ¡°So, boy, what is it that you want from me?¡±


    ¡°Hand me that book. I can open it for you.¡±


    The king stood speechless for a second. He spoke in such a way, towards a king. How long has it been since somebody has been so blunt?


    And his voice was¡­ odd. There was something about it, he wasn¡¯t quite sure what. It was like a whisper that echoed, snaking its way throughout the room.


    But he still took a look at the book, and held it out. The boy raised the hand that wasn¡¯t petting Thea, and the book flew to it. It was obviously magic, but he couldn¡¯t recall any spells that did that.


    ¡°You dare use magic in this room?!¡± The king could do nothing but yell.


    ¡°Father! He had no ill intentions!¡± Thea was the one to respond. Even the boy was surprised.


    ¡°...And how would you know?¡± The boy whispered. His hand finally stopped, but didn¡¯t leave her head.


    ¡°When you hugged me, you moved faster than anybody could have stopped you. And yet, you did nothing. If you didn¡¯t do something there, then you can¡¯t be a bad person.¡± Thea made a sound argument. Except for one problem.


    ¡°You hugged Thea?¡± The king asked, astonished and slightly angry.


    ¡°Oh, yeah. I forgot to apologize for that.¡± He stood up, bowed and said, ¡°Sorry.¡±


    And that was it. An incident came and passed just like that.


    Now onto the real problem at hand.


    ¡°Eve, come here and open this book. No worries, you certainly can. You still have pure mana.¡± With that, he left her alone. He wasn¡¯t going to give her any more hints.


    But she already had enough. Within a minute, she started grinning.


    ¡°Did it!¡± She beamed at Rayne, expecting praise.


    ¡°Hmm? But I didn¡¯t get any experience?¡± He questioned, his hand stopping on Thea¡¯s head.


    ¡°That¡¯s because I didn¡¯t learn a spell. I learned a method of increasing my mana storages!¡±


    ¡°How efficient is it?¡±


    ¡°Hmm¡­ It seems like every 10 over my capacity gives me another mana.¡±


    Rayne hung his head low. ¡°10 times more efficient than me¡­¡± He sighed.


    Then he seemed to come to terms with it, and output a large amount of mana. It congealed into many, many orbs in the air, all a predetermined distance from eachother. They were all also the same size, and spinning through the air in random directions. They collided, and swarmed together.


    In just a few seconds, all the mana orbs in the air had joined together into one misshapen blob, made completely out of perfect mana spheres.


    And Rayne tossed it to Eve. It melted when it touched her skin, and absorbed into her.


    ¡°How much mana did you get right there?¡±


    ¡°About 40,000? A bit less¡­ Sorry, I¡¯m getting woozy¡­ do you mind if I lay down?¡±


    Rayne was in disbelief of her abilities, but grabbed her hand and pulled her close to him. He held her as she passed out, before finally making his comment.


    ¡°It even works that way, when mine doesn¡¯t¡­ I¡¯m so jealous¡­¡±


    He sighed again. He lay her down on his lap, brushing a lock of hair out of her face, before looking back to the King.


    ¡°Man, things just never stop happening. Alright, I want two things from you. Pretty simple things, actually.¡±


    Rayne stopped, and waited for permission to continue. When the king gestured, still a bit confused as to how much was happening in the Great Hall, when it was normally silent and refined.


    ¡°I want her to have access to all the libraries in any place you control. Even if you have to make a new position, I just want her to have complete access to all the books. The second one is your daughter-¡±


    Rayne was cut off by a large gust of wind, and a small piece of rock flashing by his head. He didn¡¯t move and because of that, ended up with a small cut on his cheek. This time, Thea didn¡¯t say anything.


    ¡°You think my daughter is worth one measly wish? She¡¯s worth more than 10,000 of you. Just one thing you do doesn¡¯t mea-¡± The queen was furious. She had taken a small piece out of the throne to throw at him.


    ¡°¡®To go to school with me.¡¯ is what I was going to continue with, but you didn¡¯t let me finish. So let me try again. My second wish is your daughter to go to school with me. After all, you¡¯ve been thinking about it for a bit, right?¡±


    The king took a half step back, and both him and the queen looked oddly at Rayne. There was no reason that he should have known such a thing, as they only talked about such things in their bedroom, when nobody else was listening.


    But since Rayne used up a wish for it, they couldn¡¯t exactly refuse, now could they?


    ¡°Alright. Thea, starting from tomorrow, you¡¯ll go to school with this¡­¡±


    Rayne didn¡¯t get the hint for a few seconds, but once he did, he stood up, bowed once more, and called out his name naturally.


    ¡°Rayne, 1 month old vampire. Pleased to make your acquaintance.¡±


    The Great Hall went speechless. It took them a second to register what he said, then it took them even longer to react. Thea and some of the younger people didn¡¯t quite know about vampires, but that was to be expected.


    Vampires were becoming a myth, slowly but surely. And now here comes one once again, showing up in the middle of nowhere and talking calmly with the king and getting his daughter to go to school with him.


    ¡°A vampire? What¡¯s that?¡± Of course, the one asking was Thea.


    Rayne smiled.


    ¡°Care to explain, King?¡± He turned his head, his eyes flashing red.


    ¡°Vampires are a race that supposedly went extinct some 10,000 years ago, but before they went extinct, they were tools of destruction. The most in tune with mana, surpassing even the fairies, they would use pure mana to grab and tear humans limb from limb without a trace. They didn¡¯t discriminate between races, either, as they would kill animals and elves the exact same way. They would ravage villages without remorse or reason.


    Worst of all, they would suck the blood out of the women and, somehow or another, end up with the women wanting to follow them.¡±


    The king, the entire time, seemed disgusted with Rayne. Rayne just calmly stood and listened to the abuse. After all, he could tell none of it was false.


    It was the same thing he knew he would do if he lost control.


    So he could only hope to keep Eve with him.


    Rayne waited until the king was done with his rant. Then he opposed slowly and calmly.


    ¡°Your majesty, that was 10,000 years ago. The vampire race is still extinct. I am the only one in existence at the moment. And I hope to change that only once, because I have somebody who will follow me to the ends of the earth and beyond.¡±


    He took a deep breath, breathing out a sigh.


    ¡°I am a vampire, and I can¡¯t change that. But, I am not the vampires that you speak of. If I was¡­¡± Rayne transformed. His hair went silver and his eyes shone red. His presence went to immeasurable amounts. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t be able to stop me. Nobody could.¡±


    He breathed another deep breath, and his power faded with his exhale.


    A bolt of magic, most likely a wind spell, split the air as it came towards Rayne with an intent to kill.


    A single finger intercepted its path. The razor sharp ball of wind tore through his flesh, but it lost its power. A second later, the finger was whole again, not a single drop of blood spilled.


    Rayne was angry. He sent a glare to where the magic came from, and the guard felt a shiver go down his spine.


    ¡°What do you think you are doing, aiming at Thea with your magic? Who do you think you are?¡± With the last sentence, mana rushed forth in a wave, all of it that Rayne had gathered from the spell and from his natural regen. About 6000.


    And in a split second, it was over. The guard who had sent his spell to the princess was out cold, unable to move and thoroughly bound with mana chains. Rayne was having difficulty controlling his anger, and really wanted to kill the person in front of him. However, he held himself back as much as possible.


    It didn¡¯t really help his overflowing bloodlust. Nearly everyone else in the room was unable to move, simply paralyzed from the fear that encased them.


    I say nearly, because Eve was still able to move, although she still had a very bad headache from all the mana influx, just barely able to keep consciousness, she was slowly getting up and walking over to Rayne.


    She pressed her hands to his back, and practically collapsed on top of them, but it was enough. The aura around Rayne was gone in a second, instantly replaced by concern for Eve.


    ¡°What¡­ just happened?¡± The queen, normally one full of words, was speechless.


    ¡°The guard tried to kill your daughter. And that made me slightly aggravated. I lost control for a second, but I told you before, I have somebody who¡¯s willing to go beyond the end of the world for me.¡± Rayne spoke in a soft voice, full of care.


    The transformations were too much to handle. So many things had happened in just a few hours it wasn¡¯t funny.


    But at least things were calm now.


    ¡°Anyway, I came for the two wishes. Even though I didn¡¯t do anything for one of them, I got what I wanted. The way into that book, by the way, is to put some pure mana into it. Tell me if you ever pass the test in it.¡± He paused, trying to think about what else he wanted to say.


    ¡°Oh, and one more thing. If you don¡¯t try to kill me, I¡¯ll be your best friend. Feel free to tell me anything, about politics or whatever. I¡¯m not allowed in the library, so we can talk whenever Eve¡¯s reading. I¡¯m sure there are some things I can help with. After all, no matter how well you think you¡¯re doing, nothing¡¯s ever perfect. So sometimes it¡¯s better to just settle for however good you can get it.¡±


    And with those words of wisdom, Rayne picked up Eve, gave Thea a four second pet, and left the room.


    Well, there¡¯ll be word from him tomorrow, at school, either way.