《Reborn as the Fated Villain》


 Chapter 1: Transmigration

    Damien was unsurprised to see him on the news again.


    "Sir Windsor, Sir Windsor! Due to extensive inbreeding, many prominent members of parliament and concerned citizens have compared the Silverkin family to the modern-day Habsburgs. Could you respond to these claims and shed some light on the situation?" A middle-aged woman wearing a navy-blue cashmere suit held up a branded microphone toward the back of a tall man.


    The man paused his hurried steps and turned toward the reporter¡ªhis elongated jaw, sunken eyes, looming stature, and crooked nose gave him a frightening appearance, yet the reporter, determined for a response, pressed on. "Rumors are circulating that the heir to the Silverkin conglomerate is actually suffering from severe birth defects as he has been supposedly ''recovering'' from an illness since he was born. That was over eighteen years ago! The public demands an official response!"


    Damien moved his head with great effort across the pillow and focused his attention on the television at the foot of his bed. His father, Lord Silverkin, paused momentarily, formulating the perfect response as always.


    He didn¡¯t hold his breath in anticipation as he already knew how his father would respond. His family preferred to pretend he didn''t exist, a stain on their already questionable record. To hold onto power and wealth, the family engaged in some questionable practices that resulted in the situation the reporter had outlined. They treasured the Sliverkin bloodline over all else, and Damien¡¯s blood was muddied. He was a bastard, born between Lord Silverkin and a woman he had never met. Whoever his mother had been, any evidence of her had been wiped clean.


    Damien was the last remanent of his father¡¯s little affair. A bastard he was sure the man on the television wished was dead and forgotten.


    His father tapped on his smartwatch, avoiding eye contact with the eager reporter. "As I''ve said before, I have no such son. My firstborn, Kieran Silverkin, shall be inheriting the conglomerate¡ª"


    "Television off." The screen turned black, and silence filled the room. He stared at his bedridden self in the mirror of the television for a moment before sighing. Another day in this hospital, he mused. Looking around the hospital room to distract himself and eyed his VR headset on a nearby wooden table. While his family refused to confirm his existence publicly, they didn''t mistreat him in a vain attempt to keep him happy and distracted from talking to the media.


    Though it hadn¡¯t always been like this. Despite what the reporter had claimed, he had actually been born quite healthy. It was only a decade ago that his body suddenly started falling apart. The doctors his family hired claimed that he had an uncountable number of genetic mutations and terminal illnesses. A claim he didn¡¯t fully buy, but it was hard to argue with the facts.


    Damien looked at his bandaged body with pale skin, stick-figure limbs, and rotting black splotches.


    I used to hope that one day, I would get better and be able to once again explore the world beyond this hospital room. His head tilted to the side, his neck cracking as he did. Sunlight streaked through the large window, making him squint. Outside, he could see the tops of lush trees, and in the vast blue sky, clouds lazily moved by without a care in the world.


    Luckily, with advancements in technology, there was a way for him to experience a world. Gathering some oxygen in his lungs, he wheezed, "Hastings." His voice croaked due to his thin windpipe.


    The heavy wooden door to the private hospital room quickly opened, and a middle-aged man with slick black hair strode in with measured steps.


    "Young master? You called?"


    "Hi, Hastings." Damien weakly smiled at the man. Hastings was the only attendant who had remained by his side until this day. Once he had been deemed a lost cause by the Silverkin family, the many attendants he used to rely on left. Hastings was also an avid player of Throne of Awakening, the best VR game he had ever played, and they often discussed strategies for clearing the game.


    Hastings returned a sad smile and gestured toward the aluminum and glass helmet resting on the nightstand. "More Throne of Awakening today, Young Master?"


    "Yeah, can you please hook me up?"


    "As you wish," Hastings moved around his bed toward the table, "Are you still trying to clear the game with villain characters?"


    Damien hummed in agreement rather than nodding, as any movement was far too painful for him.


    "How''s it been going? I haven''t tried the new DLC myself yet."


    "Quite bad," Damien admitted, "It''s not shown in the player''s status menu, but people on the forums have confirmed that all villain characters have a hidden trait called ''A Villain¡¯s Fate.'' It practically guarantees the storyline to find a way to kill the player one way or another. The death flags feel endless."


    "That sounds quite intense. Which villain have you been using?"


    "Damien Nightshade." He replied with a frown, "I picked him because we share the same name, but I think I might have to switch out for another. He''s too difficult to clear the game with."


    "You should have seen what people were saying online about him." Hastings chuckled as he held the daft punk-looking helmet over his head but paused. "Young Master, today is not a good day for you."


    The joyful atmosphere in the room was crushed in an instant by the weight of reality. "The test results came back?" he asked in a cautious tone. "Are they good or bad?"


    Hastings gave an oddly cold look, ¡°They certainly aren''t looking good.¡±


    Damien felt crestfallen for a moment. He knew this news was on the horizon. "How long do I have?"


    Hastings answered with a silence.


    "I see," Damien looked up at the helmet, "Maybe I can survive doing one last run."


    "The doctors advised against it," Hastings said, "But honestly, at this point..."


    Damien and Hastings exchanged a smirk, "When have I ever listened to them? Hook me up."


    Hastings nodded and lowered the helmet. There was a hum as the machine turned on, followed by a shooting pain that ran throughout his body. He let out a confused gasp.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry about this Young Master,¡± Hasting¡¯s said, and Damien could see a cruel smile on the man¡¯s face through the helmet¡¯s visor as the game had yet to finish starting. The pain in his stomach increased tenfold. Glancing down, Damien saw Hastings had plunged a kitchen knife into his stomach.


    ¡°As it¡¯s your eighteenth birthday tomorrow, which is a problem. You would have become the legal heir to the family.¡± The man shook his head as he withdrew the bloodstained knife, ¡°Kieran send¡¯s his regards.¡±


    Damien tried to call out, but his vision ceased and all-consuming darkness devoured him.


    <hr>


    No man can step in the same river twice, for it is not the same river and he is not the same man.


    <hr>


    Damien was shocked awake as air filled his lungs. Taking a deep breath, he blinked away the stars and the words that had accompanied him in the void. A wave of nausea followed, accompanied by the monster of all headaches that assaulted him. His throat felt parched as if he was a lost man in an endless desert. He struggled to string coherent lines of thought as his mind seemed chaotic; memories crashed and merged. Some he recognized, but others were foreign.


    Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    Vivid images of endless caves filled with pale-faced humanoids committing the most heinous acts consumed his mind and furthered his relentless nausea. It was as if two souls were competing for the same body, but instead of one winning, they were merging into one.


    Damien managed to get his breathing under control and squinted while observing his surroundings.


    This isn¡¯t the hospital¡­


    For one, his bed was massive, easily three persons wide. The cushions were rather stiff, and the hefty duvet weighed down his body. Four posts held up a grand canopy overhead, giving him a sense of majesty.


    Streaks of sunlight slipped through half-drawn curtains and dimly illuminated the room''s pale green walls. The room gave Damien a noble vibe from the Middle Ages. It was different from the bright white and clean hospital room in every way possible.


    Though despite its grand appearance, the bedroom was surprisingly empty. In the far corner near the window, there was only a mahogany writing desk with a stack of crudely made paper and a golden pocket watch on its surface.


    Damien froze as panic finally set in.


    I died. Hastings killed me¡ªthe one person I thought I could trust in the world, my one and only friend killed me. He had a knife and twisted it in my stomach. I died. Is this the afterlife? Where am I?


    His senses and mind accelerated as he frantically looked around. He recognized this room and the pocket watch.


    A terrible thought crossed his mind as he looked at his arms.


    Muscular, nothing like his own twig-like arms. Briefly removing the white gloves, he observed his hands, which ended with long black nails that shone in the sunlight, showing their dangerously sharp edges. He''d seen these hands before, but never in such detail.


    "All of this belongs to Damien Nightshade, the villain character I had been playing before I died," he muttered under his breath as he inspected his new body. His face¡­he needed to see his face to confirm his suspicions. His gaze landed on the gold-plated pocket watch, silently resting on the writing desk.


    Due to the habit of being bedbound, the idea of standing up and walking over to the desk eluded him, and he instead squinted intensely at the pocket watch as if trying to gleam any insights from it.


    A warm feeling ran through his body toward his mind, and then it moved.


    The pocket watch wobbled slightly from side to side.


    Damien felt a connection with the pocket watch as if he wielded an invisible hand and could pick it up. His headache worsened, and his dry throat caused him to swallow his saliva, but he ignored his body''s protests. Guided by the muscle memory his new body seemed to possess, he pressed forward.


    It wobbled across the table until it reached the edge. With a final push, it tumbled off the side. Damien gritted his teeth as he didn¡¯t allow the pocket watch to fall and instead suspended it in the air with his mind. Something impossible on Earth, further confirming Damien''s suspicions.


    The pocket watch slowly floated through the air. Damien felt awful, sweat accumulating on his forehead, but his objective was complete.


    Damien Nightshade''s signature pocket watch lay in his foreign hand¡ªthe cold, smooth surface of the metal and sensory information were too realistic to replicate in VR. Not to mention the lack of an interface such as health bars, inventory slots, or even the map that usually sat in the top right of his vision.


    Did I die and the game became my reality?


    Snapping open the pocket watch with a click, he looked at the small mirror nestled inside the lid.


    A devilishly handsome face stared back, with short white hair lightly falling over his fierce red eyes. He looked like a noble vampire with his defined jawline, elongated ears like an elf and pale white skin. Far too realistic for VR graphics, he could even easily control every joint in his face, something impossible with current VR technology.


    While pulling various faces, he inspected every detail with intense scrutiny and raised a brow as golden words suddenly appeared on the mirror''s surface.


    [Damien Nightshade]


    [Noble Vampire]


    Schools Of Magic:


    [Psychic Magic (D)]


    Psychokinesis [D]


    Pyrokinesis [E]


    [Blood Magic (F)]


    =Null Spells=


    Mana Control [F]


    Traits:


    [Germaphobe] Unable to learn melee skills / 100% Increased control over ranged spells.


    [Control Freak] Increased affinity to control skills by 10%


    [Lazy] Increased mana regeneration while resting by 20% / Increased exp to learn new spells by 10%


    [Concentration] Increased affinity with mental spells by 5%


    [Noble Aura] Intimidation increased.


    Damien read the text quickly, his heart rate threatening to go out of control from a mixture of anxiety and excitement. It was unbelievable, but he had somehow transmigrated into his favorite game, which he knew much about.


    Okay, calm down and think. The VR game has become real somehow, and it doesn''t look like I can log out. Other than the words floating in this pocket watch and my earlier use of magic, it would be impossible to tell this was different from Earth.


    His mood quickly dampened as the implications of his situation set in. He was no longer on Earth but instead in a world set in the Middle Ages where monsters and magic ruled supreme, and everyone else was mere food.


    Damien Nightshade was a notoriously difficult character to complete the storyline with due to his pitifully weak start and death flags hiding around every corner. Not to mention the hidden status effect ''A Villain''s Fate'' that practically guaranteed his death.


    Looking back at the majestically crafted pocket watch, Damien observed the lower half that displayed the date and time in an analog fashion.


    9:10 am January 1st, 1520


    From what I remember, the game''s official storyline begins in 1521, a year from now.


    The bedroom door creaked open, and a fully naked woman with raven black hair and ocean-blue eyes wandered in as if she owned the place. Damien looked up from the pocket watch, and when their gazes met, her eyes widened in surprise like a cat caught stealing food. "M-master, you have been sleeping for days!"


    Master? Damien''s eyes widened. Hold on, is that Fay? He knew this character from the game.


    Fay hastily walked over under his analyzing gaze, leaving a trail of water droplets on the stone floor. Laying down beside Damien, curled her raven black hair behind her ear, exposing her slender, pale neck. "You must be thirsty¡­ Please, drink."


    While Damien was incredibly thirsty, he had far too many questions to ask. However, as he opened his mouth to talk, the thirst transitioned into a primal hunger that overwhelmed every sense. His stomach became ravenous, and his mind clouded. Weirdest of all, he could somehow smell the blood pumping below the surface of her delicate skin.


    An urge like no other to devour the weak surged through his mind as his inhuman fangs descended and cut his bottom lip. The woman''s eyes trembled slightly but stayed put, with her neck exposed.


    Without being able to resist, Damien''s jaw unhinged like a snake, and his body lunged forward. His fangs skillfully pierced her vein as if he had done this every day of his life, and blood began pumping through his teeth and into his mouth. Like a dehydrated fool who discovered an oasis of spring water in the middle of the Sahara desert, Damien gulped down the delicious nectar of life. He kept going until the woman fell limp in his embrace.


    The sudden weight pressing against him broke his trance.


    What the hell am I doing?! He had never even felt the touch of another woman''s neck, let alone bitten into it! Oh god, I''m so sorry.


    Damien quickly unlatched his fangs from the woman and felt them retract into his gums. He then carefully lowered the woman beside him.


    Two small holes were left on her neck which oozed blood, dyeing the white sheets below. Damien subconsciously swallowed his saliva. A foreign sense of utter disgust overcame him as if he had just bitten into a pig and drunk its shit. He could feel the foreign blood traveling through his body like slime, and it made him want to vomit.


    But he managed to ignore all that and focus on checking if the poor woman was still alive.


    Please be fine. I don''t want to have killed someone minutes into my new life.


    She was deathly pale and breathing shallowly but seemed alive, just passed out.


    Okay, good. She''s still alive. Thank the gods¡­ assuming they exist. Who else could trap me in this hellish world otherwise?


    Despite the evidence that the woman had just showered, he still felt disgusted from touching her, so he subconsciously pulled out a white handkerchief and gracefully dusted off his shoulder where she had been leaning moments earlier. His hand paused, and he looked at the handkerchief in bafflement.


    Why am I doing this?


    Recalling the information displayed on the pocket watch, the answer became clear.


    It''s that darn [Germaphobe] trait. Isn''t it? He let out a sigh. While it seemed he had somehow won the battle with Damien Nightshade''s soul to take primary control over the body, the hardcoded traits of the game character still remained.


    I''m going to have to get used to this. I refuse to let the freak whose body this was control me. Despite how doomed my situation seems, this is still a second chance at life.


    With the thirst, hunger, and headache gone, a sense of fatigue overtook his body. Was his body actually tired, or was his [Lazy] trait acting up? Damien laid back down and cursed in his mind.


    In a game where the player can enjoy the storyline of any character, from the Emperor of Oshal to a street rat of Kassinki, I just had to transmigrate into the body of pitiful third-rate villain fated to die.


    Yet he couldn''t help but grin.


    After all, if this world followed the game Throne and Awakening as he hoped, it meant he knew what the future had in store. Who to befriend, where rare items spawned, and, most importantly, how to turn this shitty character into one that could not only survive, but perhaps even thrive.

 Chapter 2: The Psychopath Fay

    Damien awoke feeling nauseous from the smell beside him. Despite his overwhelming urge to sleep, he pushed his tired body out of bed and stood up with great effort. His gaze landed on his bare feet.


    I¡¯m standing¡­


    He could feel the pressure on his feet, the stone-cold floor below, and the slight breeze from a half-opened window against his bare skin. Having been bedridden, he hadn¡¯t stood up in many years. Damien almost cried tears of joy, no matter how doomed his situation was. Just being given a chance to walk again was already a miracle.


    ¡°So, I have access to all five senses now. In the game, I could only look around and move my character with a controller.¡±


    Curious, Damien ran his sharpened fingers across his bare skin. He accidentally left a light cut, but it instantly healed, just like in the game. As a Noble Vampire, he was immune to the sun unlike lesser vampires and could use blood to quickly heal minor wounds. He was also tall, exceedingly so. He could reach the high ceiling with his arm if he wished to.


    He also had defined abs, but he would say he was on the leaner side rather than a weightlifter body type. The cold morning breeze caressed his body in places he really wished it wouldn¡¯t. He was naked, after all.


    "Now, where to find clothes¡­" Damien looked around the room, but there was no sign of the much-needed wardrobe apart from the bed and table.


    I wonder if she knows. He glanced at the shivering woman on his bed. A few hours should have passed from the sun''s position sneaking through the window.


    He scowled.


    After a quick nap, he felt his mind was clearer. He had transmigrated into someone else''s body, that of a fated villain. While he could now walk, use magic, and heal wounds instantly, he had also inherited this body''s long list of problems, such as death flag number one: The human slave Fay.


    He had attempted five playthroughs as Damien Nightshade and had never seen the end of the game''s storyline. He''d always died one way or another. Fay was a particularly brutal death flag that all players encountered on their first playthrough. The beautiful human companion had long broken free of the villain''s F-grade blood magic. Without fail, Fay would stab Damien Nightshade thirty-eight times with a silver-coated knife. Ending any runs on day two.


    I was so mad. I remember throwing my VR headset across the hospital room and cursing her name for the rest of the day. Damien mused.


    While it had been a mere annoyance back on Earth, this was now his reality. He had slept peacefully next to someone plotting his murder.


    I can¡¯t trust anyone. Hastings had been like a brother to me and this woman is no different.


    ¡°Fay, wake up,¡± he said in a calm voice. The woman slightly stirred in her sleep but refused to move from below his bedsheets. As she turned over, he saw drool leaking from her mouth that formed a bridge of saliva between her red lips and his pillow.


    Damien subconsciously felt his black nails elongate and his rationality slip away. A concoction of this body''s traits combined with the knowledge that a human would dare to kill a vampire overcame him. However, before he murdered the person who knew the location of his clothes, he shouted out again.


    ¡°Fay, WAKE up.¡± The woman¡¯s eyes shot open like a scared cat, she took in Damien¡¯s full figure, and she suddenly started shaking like a leaf after seeing his nails at the length of daggers and his glowing red eyes filled with murderous intent.


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    She quickly scrambled off the bed, almost tripping to the floor. "Master, p-please forgive me for oversleeping," she begged.


    If it were the original Damien, a clueless Noble Vampire, he would maybe fall for her scheme. But having played the storyline, he already knew she¡¯d broken away from his control and was planning his murder.


    She would have responded to my command the first time, no matter her condition, if she were still under my blood magic¡¯s mind control. But instead, she only woke up once I shouted at her, Damien frowned and commanded, "Run me a bath, fetch my clothes, and then wash all my sheets thoroughly."


    Damien emphasized ¡®thoroughly¡¯ while pointing to the drool-soaked pillow and scarlet bedsheets. Although the blood was technically his fault, Damien had no sympathy for this woman. She was just food to him, nothing more and nothing less.


    He then had a disturbing thought. Wait, how can I think of a human as food? Is this body having more of an effect on my mind than I was aware of?


    "Certainly, Master! Please follow me," Fay quickly responded and turned to leave.


    The blood slave acted all happy to accept his command, but Damien noticed the slight defiance and hatred behind those smiling eyes. He shuddered slightly from the scene of her crazy eyes as she stabbed him repeatedly in a past playthrough as damage numbers flew across the screen. Fay the Psychopath as the forums called her.


    Despite still being naked, Damien followed Fay out of the room and down the corridor.


    Apart from Fay and me, I know this mansion is empty, so there''s nothing to worry about. Damien Nightshade killed everyone who was staying here already. If I remember correctly from the wiki, this was originally owned by a small-time baroness from a neighboring country. She was a widow who escaped from her homeland after her husband died, and she lost all her influence. So, using the last of her savings, she bought this house and brought a few loyal servants along.


    The house had one master bedroom, a guest room, and a large bathroom on the top floor. The bottom floor had a dining room, kitchen, meeting room, and servant quarters for up to five servants.


    Damien had come to this house to kill the mini-boss Damien Nightshade while playing as other characters in the game many times. He had also explored this house a little while playing as Damien. He knew where most of the rooms were, but the location of his clothes completely eluded him.


    What was the darn lore again? Didn''t Damien Nightshade come to this city, break into this house, murder everyone inside, and then have a delectable feast on their blood? Oh yeah, it was all done in front of the baroness'' only daughter, Fay. Damien looked at Fay''s back. This stupid villain was lucky that the baroness had so few funds remaining and hadn''t hired any guards. Otherwise, Damien Nightshade would have likely lost even with his vampire body.


    The old Damien found Fay¡¯s blood very delectable and decided to enslave her with Blood magic. Unfortunately, he only had control over her for a few weeks before she broke from his spell.


    From Damien''s calculations, that should have been a few days ago.


    Is that why her blood became so disgusting to me? Also, why hasn¡¯t she run away?


    The answer was obvious on second thought. How could she ram a silver-coated dagger through Damien''s ribs and get her revenge if she ran away? Also, she had become an orphaned child with no backing anymore, so who would help her?


    The duo reached the end of the corridor and entered a room on the right. Inside was a large wooden bath coated in a watertight resin. Damien reckoned he could lie comfortably in the bath despite his large frame.


    Nobles really knew how to indulge themselves. Such a big bath is fit for a king.


    Fay walked over and gracefully pressed her hand onto a stone mounted on the side of the bathtub. The stone glowed a pale blue, and crystal-clear water gushed out.


    The bathtub seemed enchanted as it glowed slightly and heated the water to a comfortable temperature. Once the tub was full, Fay left the room to fetch Damien''s clothes.


    Damien cautiously tested the water''s temperature with his toe. Finding it perfect, he slowly lowered his body into the warm water. The image of the water washing away the filth from his perfect body soothed him.


    While I always enjoyed baths, this stupid [Germaphobe] trait makes them simply divine.


    He lay back and let out an audible sigh as he collected his mind. He was now living in a game as a mass-murdering, germaphobe freak vampire who was insane enough to keep the daughter of his murdered victims as a slave.


    Yet that''s not even the worst part. On Monday, he had to attend a magical university as a lecturer''s teaching assistant, a position he bought his way into. The original Damien had poor magic talent and no teaching credentials. A fact that everyone knew.


    "It''s only a matter of time before they uncover that I''m a Noble Vampire teaching at a human school," Damien looked to the ceiling, "If Fay doesn''t murder me first, then the students at the university will."


    The death flags truly were endless.

 Chapter 3: Don’t Sneak Up on Me

    Damien lay naked in the warm water, allowing it to clean his every nook and cranny. He really couldn¡¯t believe this was now his body. His previous body was sickly and thin, almost like a twig. Nothing compared to this body that seemed to be crafted by the gods themselves.


    He pondered if he was dissatisfied with his situation. He had spent the last five years in this world via a VR headset, and he would often dream of exploring these lands for real instead of through an avatar. He didn¡¯t have a good relationship with his family, and he certainly didn¡¯t miss the hospital or Hastings who had turned from friend into a killer.


    Though he would have an easier time if he transmigrated into any other character. This villain¡¯s backstory was way too dangerous, after all. As a Vampire, his body wasn¡¯t going to fail him. It was the very world itself that wanted him dead.


    Such is the fate of a mid-game villain put into the game as a stepping stone for the good guys to defeat.


    He let out a tired sigh while playing with the pocket watch in his gloved hand. He decided he would never take the gloves off, even in the bath.


    Right, let¡¯s go over the few positives. I am in a game world with magic and other wonders that never existed back on Earth, and if I survive these few years, I will get to experience it all. Vampires are immortal, after all¡­


    Also, Damien¡¯s talent for Psychic magic is the highest in the game. The NPCs inside the game have no idea about [Traits] as they are hard-coded into their DNA by the developers to create their personalities. In the game, traits are designed to force characters to pursue specific paths in life. For example, Damien¡¯s destined to be a pitiful villain. However, all hope isn¡¯t lost. This character has traits that help him wield Psychic magic¡ªtraits that the native Damien never knew. The other vampires just assumed he was a useless waste of space since he refused to increase his Blood magic affinity. A school of magic he is not well suited for. Thankfully, I played the game and read the wiki. Damien isn¡¯t talentless, he just applied himself to the wrong things.


    Snapping open the pocket watch, Damien glanced at his status page again.


    [Damien Nightshade]


    [Noble Vampire]


    Schools Of Magic:


    [Psychic Magic (D)]


    Psychokinesis [D]


    Pyrokinesis [E]


    [Blood Magic (F)]


    =Null Spells=


    Mana Control [F]


    Traits:


    [Germaphobe] Unable to learn melee skills / 100% Increased control over ranged spells.


    [Control Freak] Increased affinity to control skills by 10%


    [Lazy] Increased mana regeneration while resting by 20% / Increased exp to learn new spells by 10%


    [Concentration] Increased affinity with mental spells by 5%


    [Noble Aura] Intimidation increased.


    His [Lazy] trait made learning new spells take a long time, and his Mana Control being F-rank caused everyone to assume Damien was a useless mage.


    Another point of interest for him was the fact that the [Traits] actually affected him more than he expected. When this was a simple game, and he played a character through a VR headset, the programming in the game wasn¡¯t that advanced. So, for example, there was no way to simulate germaphobia through a VR headset.


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    But now? Damien could feel that dirt and germs were constantly crawling across his skin and trying to slip into his pores. It was a truly disturbing experience.


    He also noticed his other trait [Lazy] was causing him problems. Right now, he felt fine relaxing in a bath, but the idea of getting out of the bath seemed to go against his very soul.


    Maybe these traits are going to be harder to overcome than I first thought.


    Looking back at his status, he notices the all-too-familiar E-rank Pyrokinesis.


    Call him childish, but the idea of willing fire into existence was something many aspiring pyromaniacs could only dream of.


    Making sure his palm was just above the water¡¯s surface, Damien willed his mana to create a small flame. After a bit of concentration as his Mana Control was F-rank, a small orange flame appeared, less intense than a simple candle. Extreme pain shot down Damien¡¯s arm and almost made him scream in agony.


    Damien quickly plunged his hand into the warm water and canceled out the spell.


    In between labored breaths, he muttered, ¡°Out of all the offensive spells, you choose to learn fire? As a vampire? Are you stupid? You may be resistant to the sun but fire?!¡± Damien cursed while gnashing his teeth.


    In the game, Damien could not use his Pyrokinesis except as a last resort since his own magic harmed him. But it is different experiencing the pain in real life, rather than just losing a few HP points when this was a simple game.


    ¡°So pyrokinesis is off the table. That only leaves psychokinesis and Blood magic,¡± Damien said rubbing his burned hand.


    Unlike minor cuts that healed instantly, the damage inflicted by fire took far longer for a vampire to heal. Sealing a wound was simple, but completely regrowing the burned flesh required more vitality to be wasted.


    Blood magic is far stronger than any other school of magic. The only problem is its fuel source is the caster¡¯s vitality rather than mana. As a result, I can literally die from blood loss incurred through my own spell usage, Damien mused while watching his flesh regrow.


    After using Blood magic to heal his right hand, he felt hungry for blood again. So, blood is the fuel source for my magic. That¡¯s good to know. He also noticed that his white glove had a hole that exposed his freshly healed palm.


    Seeing that the fire ruined his glove, he removed both gloves with psychokinesis and floated them across onto the table in the room.


    I could get used to this, it¡¯s so convenient and easy to do.


    Due to inheriting Damien¡¯s memories and the vampire¡¯s natural ability to use magic, he found magic easier to use than he thought. Like riding a bike for the first time in a while.


    ¡°Wait, can psychokinesis be used in combat? Can I throw a rock at someone and kill them?¡± Damien pondered.


    In the game, psychokinesis was listed as a simple lifestyle spell and therefore couldn¡¯t be used to inflict damage. Instead, players mainly used it to move items around and pick up loot in dungeons. Maybe the game designers thought psychokinesis would be too overpowered as an attack spell? It is rather versatile as a null element spell.


    ¡°Master?¡± A distant voice called, but he ignored it.


    Certain schools of magic were perfect counters to others. For example, if you studied the school of Water, you would lose to a student of similar strength from the school of Earth.


    ¡°But Psychic magic should be equally good against all schools,¡± Damien said while stroking his chin.


    ¡°Master, I have your clothes.¡±


    The school of Psychic is often laughed at, as Psychic spells are very mana intensive and not flashy at all. In addition, Psychic magic requires immense concentration, which is the school¡¯s biggest downside.


    ¡°Master, are you ignoring me again? Hello?¡±


    Try to maintain a calm mind while a giant ogre is running at you; it¡¯s not reasonable for most people. Perhaps my [Concentration] trait will help in this aspect? This requires some investigation.


    ¡°M A S T E R.¡± Fay shouted each letter directly into Damien¡¯s right ear.


    Damien snapped out of his weird trance and spun around. He went to grab Fay by the neck with a single swift motion before falling short and managed to pause.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± he growled at the frightened girl.


    ¡°I got your clothes,¡± she said, pointing in a direction with her arm. Damien looked to the side and saw an exquisite wine-colored suit and black shoes laid carefully on a chair to the side of the room.


    Damien lowered his hand that had been an inch from her neck and frowned.


    ¡°Do not sneak up on me again, or I will snap your neck.¡±


    He was serious. Fay was too dangerous to be keeping around while he was still getting ahold of his situation. It was a fact that she would kill him one day.


    Fay nodded, ¡°Understood Master.¡±


    Damien realized he had almost touched her with his ungloved hand and almost gagged on the spot.


    God, this [Germaphobe] trait is merciless on my mind.


    ¡°Run me a new bath. You got my hand dirty again,¡± he said with blatant disgust as he stepped out of the bath and waited for the warm water to be changed.


    ¡°But I didn¡¯t sneak up on you¡­ I called out many times¡­¡± she muttered under her breath.


    Damien just scowled at her with repulsion.


    For all I know, you could have been about to stab me in the neck with a silver knife.


    Seeing his reaction, Fay nodded with fear and proceeded with Damien¡¯s orders.


    ¡°Sigh, these darn traits will be the death of me,¡± Damien mumbled. Fay looked puzzled but quickly returned to her work.

 Chapter 4: Death Flags

    Damien lay down in the bath while deep in thought.


    What is wrong with me?


    He casually glanced at the pale-faced woman on the cold bathroom floor. Scarlet blood streamed down her exposed neck from two small holes, forming a small pool on the white-tiled floor. Her chest rose and fell as she took small and shallow breaths. Her face was so pale that Damien was genuinely surprised she was still alive.


    After healing my hand, I felt hungry again, and when she leaned over to replace the bathwater, this happened. The primal urges of this vampire body and the traits hard-coded into this body¡¯s DNA are no joke. I wanted to be kind to her despite the threat of murder, yet this body refused to listen.


    Damien ran his finger down his inch-long fangs that were still trickling blood while pondering his new body¡¯s desires.


    I have the old Damien¡¯s memories, traits, impulses, and fears. Instead of taking over this body, it¡¯s almost like my memories were transplanted and merged with the old Damien¡¯s. I¡¯m a vampire and always have been, yet I know my mind is not from this world. This body feels even more comfortable than my previous one.


    Right, let¡¯s put that aside for now and go over the death flags. Damien sighed while enjoying the feeling of the fresh bathwater caressing his skin.


    He raised his hand from the water and counted off his fingers. In my first playthrough, I died on the second day in my sleep, murdered with a silver-coated weapon by this woman over here¡­so I should just kill her, right?


    Oh boy, I was wrong with that idea. In the second playthrough, I killed Fay the moment the game started. I made it to day three before my body became incredibly frail, and I could barely move.


    Since it was just a game, I couldn¡¯t feel my character¡¯s hunger. But from the multiple debuffs like [Hungry], [Fatigued], and [Blood Deficiency], I could tell I needed to feed on blood.


    But where to obtain blood when my blood slave, Fay, was brutally exterminated a few nights ago? Unfortunately, Damien has almost no money at this point in the game, so buying a high-quality human slave is impossible.


    I tried buying a cheap beastkin slave in a third playthrough, but she barely decreased Damien¡¯s endless hunger. As it was just a game, I assumed beastkin blood lacked mana or something, but now that I inhabit this body, drinking blood from those filthy animals makes me want to gag.


    A female human¡¯s blood can have various exotic flavors such as roasted meat or pudding, yet a beastkin¡¯s blood tastes like rotten milk and eggs mixed into a cursed soup. I know since the old Damien had drunk the blood of a random beastman while travelling to this city to sate his endless hunger. Just the memory makes me shudder.


    Damien rolled over in the bath to find a more comfortable position and continued his trail of thoughts.


    Damien didn¡¯t like the taste of beastkin blood in the third playthrough, so I decided to kidnap a random woman from the street for blood as female human slaves are way too darn expensive.


    Everything was fine for another week until the city guard became alert after many human females went missing. Of course, people go missing all the time in the medieval era. Yet, unsurprisingly, when a specific group goes missing every day for a week straight, that raises some alarm amongst the populace. People spread rumors that the city¡¯s nobles captured female commoners to have fun with.


    After another week, the commoners rallied together and forced the city guard to commence a search of the nobles¡¯ estates. When the guards entered a house supposedly owned by a baroness, they found me. A vampire with many women tied up in the basement, blood dripping from their delicate necks, and many headless corpses scattered around. Let¡¯s say it was not the best look.


    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    The Greentail family rules over the country of Kassinki. The current king, Edward Greentail, is known across the land as a big advocate of anti-discrimination and has a human and elf wife.


    Are vampires included in this? Not really. If someone knew I was a vampire, they wouldn¡¯t kill me on sight, but everyone would avoid me like the plague. It¡¯s best I pretend I¡¯m an elf rather than a vampire.


    Let¡¯s say no amount of anti-discrimination was going to save me when I was literally caught red-handed¡­ Blood was dripping from my fangs. I was immediately arrested, dragged to the city square, and publicly executed with a silver-coated sword by Edward Greentail himself.


    Damien groaned in frustration.


    So, if I don¡¯t kill the girl, I get murdered in my sleep. If I do kill the girl, I have no way to satisfy my vampire urges, and I either starve to death or get killed by the city guard. Fight back against the guard? Not a chance. I tried before with other characters, but just like the guards in Skyrim, they are stupidly over-levelled for no reason. Despite this being a relatively small country on the continent¡¯s edge and considered a starting zone, the guards all have at least one skill like Swordsmanship at C grade or higher.


    I would run from here to another country, but Damien already sold all the items left in the mansion to bribe the university¡¯s dean to get him a job. Why? To answer that question, we have to talk about the fourth playthrough.


    This time, I locked Fay in a cage and only fed her and let her out under my supervision, as suggested by a user on the forums. This way, I had food and never got hunted down by the city guards. Perfect! I survived a full two months into the game. But Damien has one massive death flag always looming over his head.


    Nightshade wasn¡¯t any common family name. He was a [Noble Vampire] for a reason. Damien Nightshade was the third in line to the throne of vampires, and let¡¯s say his brother, who was first in line for the throne, saw his existence as an eyesore.


    Why allow his little brother to gather influence when he could simply kill him now when nobody cared? Damien was seen as a worthless prince by the vampires. He would have already died if he hadn¡¯t escaped to the human realm.


    Therefore, in the fourth playthrough, I was assassinated by the first prince¡¯s assassins in this very room. In the fight, I used my pyrokinesis and managed to kill one of the five assassins, but since I only managed to upgrade it to D rank, I could only do this much. At the cost of my entire right arm, too! I tried to use pyrokinesis with my other arm, but my aim was horrible, and I only managed to burn part of the wall. With both arms dangling at my sides as charred messes, I was defenseless and quickly beheaded with silver-coated daggers.


    Damien knew of this threat and decided the only place with enough security to keep him safe from the inevitable assassins was the Mage Tower in Kassinki. If he could get the position of head professor, he would obtain his bedroom and office within the tower. The tower¡¯s security was almost perfect, as it contained many state secrets and important figures to national security.


    But due to Damien¡¯s poor credentials and teaching ability, he was never promoted and had to stay off-campus, ultimately leading to his death.


    While deep in thought, Damien had been manipulating the pocket watch in midair with psychokinesis when he felt a sudden change wash over him. His control over the pocket watch improved, and he thought it was far easier to command it.


    ¡°What happened?¡± he exclaimed in surprise.


    Damien beckoned the watch to fly closer, and he inspected it all over. ¡°It¡¯s the same¡­ How can it feel lighter all of a sudden?¡±


    He snapped it open and looked in the mirror.


    Psychic Magic [D] ¡ú [C]


    Psychokinesis [D] ¡ú [C]


    ¡°I ranked up so fast?! C grade is considered mid-level in the game, so I expected it to take a while. How is such progress even possible? In the game, it took far longer than that.¡± Damien said in disbelief. He snapped the pocket watch shut, and with newfound motivation, he quickly rose from the bath and lightly kicked the woman on the floor.


    ¡°Cease your slumbering Fay. If I¡¯m to survive the coming months we have items to obtain, people to kill and I need to get a darn promotion! Also, I have no idea how to wear these fancy clothes! Dress me already!¡±


    ¡°W-what?¡± the barely conscious woman stuttered while trying to stand with shaky legs. Why was her master so aggressive with everything today? Usually, he just slept the days away and occasionally woke up to feed.


    Damien smiled. His situation might be a bit fucked up, but that made it even more interesting, right? Or was his mind slowly going insane due to this vampire¡¯s influence?


    Only time would tell.

 Chapter 5: There is a Good Reason Vampires are Feared

    ¡°It¡¯s not a game anymore after all,¡± Damien muttered while staring at the gold-plated pocket watch in his hand.


    ¡°What¡¯s not a game, Master?¡± Fay asked as she shakily attempted to dress Damien. She had to perch on a stool to reach Damien¡¯s shoulders, and due to blood loss, she was struggling to stand. She was tempted to use Damien¡¯s shoulder as support but quickly suppressed the idea as she didn¡¯t want to die yet. She knew her master despised any type of physical contact.


    ¡°Don¡¯t talk to me,¡± Damien responded coldly. ¡°From today, you will always stay in my sight. If you leave my sight for even a moment, I will be left with no choice other than to lock you in a cage. Understand?¡±


    Fay¡¯s hand, adjusting Damien¡¯s tie, froze in place. Does he know I¡¯ve escaped his mind control? she thought, her mind racing with scenarios, trying to justify how she was found out.


    Damien just gave a toothy grin, revealing his sharp fangs as if he could read Fay¡¯s thoughts. Fay was terrified but quickly nodded in acknowledgment. She then continued dressing Damien, but with haste in her actions, wishing to run away from the monster in front of her as soon as possible.


    As Fay went to tie his shoes, Damien snapped open the pocket watch and looked at the little mirror inside the lid.


    Psychokinesis [C] - Also known as telekinesis, the ability to influence a physical system without physical interaction, typically manifesting as being able to exert force, control objects, and move matter with one¡¯s mind.


    Psychokinesis is an essential skill from the psychic school of magic.


    (New) Telepathy [F] - The ability to transmit or receive thoughts and memories supernaturally.


    Telepathy, nice. I believe with it at F grade, I can only read surface thoughts of one person at a time within a meter range. However, thoughts and memories can also be transmitted to one person within five meters. What a useful skill.


    Thankfully, it looks like leveling up functions the same as the game. Whenever the player leveled a skill from a school of magic above the D-grade, they would receive a new skill. Since I upgraded my Psychic magic and psychokinesis skill to C-grade, I received the skill telepathy as a reward, but it starts at the F-grade.


    However, it seems the way to level an ability has changed. In the game, to level an ability, the only way was through combat with monsters or practice in a training field to gain exp. What does exp stand for? Experience. In a game world, the developers will give players certain ways to gain experience, but since this is no longer a game world, why would I have to go to a practice field to gain exp? Why couldn¡¯t I practice in the bath?


    But even then¡­why did I level up so fast? Did the world decide my usage of psychokinesis was equal to C-grade and decided to promote me? Did I do anything special?


    Damien thought long and hard if he had done anything special compared to the first time he used psychokinesis when he woke up in his bed.


    When I moved the pocket watch from the desk to my bed, I was concentrating incredibly hard on the pocket watch and manipulating it in the air¡­but when I was in the bath, I was focused on my death flags and controlling the pocket watch subconsciously?


    Was the requirement to advance to C-rank to be able to control something subconsciously with psychokinesis? This is annoying. In the game I simply had to use the ability in exp giving activities but now it has changed. Mhm, then how can I advance to B-rank? Maybe I should use psychokinesis as much as possible to try and advance asap.


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.


    ¡°Master? Are you spaced out in thought again?¡±


    Damien realized a lot of time had passed while he was deep in thought; Fay had finished dressing him. The girl seemed exhausted.


    ¡°It looks like you want to say something,¡± Damien said, ¡°Spit it out.¡±


    ¡°Master, I¡¯m sorry to trouble you, but I have not eaten all day and since you drank so much blood, I¡¯m feeling frail now.¡±


    Damien did feel a little bad about that, so he nodded. ¡°That¡¯s understandable. Go and make food. You¡¯re dismissed.¡±


    ¡°But Master, you said I cannot leave your sight.¡±


    Damien smacked himself mentally. Maybe locking her in a cage was the right move? He turned to tell Fay to get in a cage, but the words refused to come out.


    A voice seemed to whisper from his soul, ¡°A noble never goes back on their word, at least to the person¡¯s face.¡±


    Ah, of course, my traits have to make everything difficult for me. This must be a toxic combination of [Noble Aura], and my race [Noble Vampire working together to force me to act like a noble. Whatever that means.


    ¡°Fine, I will come with you. Lead the way,¡± Damien said while gesturing with his hand toward the bathroom door.


    ¡°I apologize Master, but we don¡¯t have any food left. I need to go and buy some more,¡± Fay said with a shaking voice.


    Damien¡¯s nails slightly elongated without his thinking, ready to stab this annoying woman in the neck. How could a human speak back to a noble vampire? It was inconceivable. He blinked and managed to regain control over his body with great effort and calmed down. There was a good reason vampire were feared.


    I¡¯m stuck in the body of a blood-sucking, crazy psychopath. Damn it.


    ¡°I needed to visit the university library anyway before school starts on Monday. You can get lunch from a food stall on campus,¡± he said with a cold tone, trying to mask his lack of control.


    ¡°Understood, Master.¡± Fay nodded as her eyes lingered on his nails before leaving the room.


    As Damien was about to follow her out the room, he noticed his gloves laid neatly on the table and had a genius idea. This body hated touching things, and he needed to practice psychokinesis. So why not kill two birds with one stone?


    Damien put his hands in the pockets of his wine-colored chinos that were perfectly tailored. He then called out with his mind and magic to take control of the two white gloves. It took a bit more concentration to manipulate two objects simultaneously, but he quickly got used to it as they orbited him.


    Yeah, this could work. I¡¯ll command these gloves to interact with the world, the way I can avoid triggering my [Germaphobe] as I don¡¯t have to touch anything.


    Fay seemed surprised at the sight of him walking out of the room after her with two white gloves floating before him. Her reaction was understandable. Psychokinesis was one of the most challenging schools of magic, so seeing this level of manipulation was somewhat surprising even to him.


    Damien spent the next few minutes practicing. He managed to make the gloves open and close in a fist, though he couldn¡¯t entirely manipulate each individual finger yet, but he felt that he would get the hang of it with some more practice.


    ¡°Lead me to the study,¡± he commanded.


    Fay nodded and walked down the room¡¯s corridor. Since Damien moved in, he had converted the guest room into a study. But, since he was so lazy, he preferred to look over the documents from the magic academy he had to review while lying in the guest bed. Honestly, he was impressed by the vampire¡¯s laziness. Damien had placed a desk across the bed¡¯s width, so he could sit up with the assistance of a pillow mountain and study documents.


    Damien stood at the doorway to this supposed ¡®study¡¯ and didn¡¯t enter the room entirely. Instead, he sent his two glove hands into the room with psychokinesis. He used his right one to open a small drawer next to the desk, and the left grabbed a handful of coins from within.


    Damien knew this was the money Fay used to purchase the silver-coated dagger in the game. The old Damien had foolishly left this money in an unlocked drawer as he was far too arrogant.


    Never in the previous Damien¡¯s wildest dreams would he suspect his blood slave had broken the control of his Blood magic and stolen this money to purchase a silver-coated dagger to murder him.


    Damien watched Fay¡¯s reaction to him retrieving these coins. To his surprise, she showed no response to him taking away the money. He had expected to see despair, but she seemed calm.


    Making sure to stand close to her, he used telepathy but couldn¡¯t read any alarming surface thoughts. She was utterly indifferent to the funds, the only thing on her mind was food.


    Does she have money hidden somewhere else and therefore doesn¡¯t care that I use this money? Or is my telepathy level too low, and she¡¯s too good at acting? Something to be investigated.


    With the money now secured to pay for lunch and some other necessities while they were in town, it was time to leave.


    ¡°All right, follow me closely, Fay. Keep your head down, and if you try anything funny, I won¡¯t hesitate to kill you.¡±

 Chapter 6: The Hidden Potential of Psychokinesis

    Damien stood ten meters from a wooden structure with annoyance plastered on his perfectly crafted face. After all, the mid-game villain ¡®Damien Nightshade¡¯ had been designed after a typical vampire merged with a fantasy elf to give it a more noble vibe. Such a perfect appearance would be unrealistic in real life but not in a game.


    ¡°Fay?¡± Damien said, trying to keep his anger restrained.


    ¡°Y-yes?¡± She replied hesitantly.


    Damien gestured to the scene before him. ¡°Why are the horses lying on the floor, covered in frost and not breathing?¡±


    ¡°Well, you killed the stable master a few weeks ago¡­¡± Fay said, watching his expression carefully, ¡°Do you remember? You snapped his neck in half.¡±


    Damien pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a sigh, ¡°Of course I remember. But what does that man''s death have to do with the horse¡¯s current situation? Surely Damien¡ªI mean, didn¡¯t I order you to look after the horses?¡±


    ¡°I tried, but I have no idea how to look after horses!¡± Fay said while looking at the ground, ¡°I changed their food and water every few days, so I have no idea how they ended up dead.¡±


    Damien picked up a rock from the ground with his psychokinetic glove and floated it over a crude metal trough at the stable¡¯s entrance. It didn¡¯t take a genius to figure out what had happened. It was January, one of the coldest months in Kassinki, with a thin layer of frost dusting the ground, indicating the low temperatures temperatures.


    He released the rock, and ice cracking sounded through the air.


    Damien turned to Fay and pointed toward the stables surrounded by dead horses. ¡°You are supposed to move the horses inside and regularly replace the water during cold months. If you leave both out here, the water freezes over due to the cold wind, and the horses then die from dehydration.¡±


    Fay seemed surprised by his explanation, or perhaps because the bloodthirsty vampire seemed to know more than she had expected. Either way, Damien didn¡¯t care for her reaction. The more pressing matter was to figure out how he would reach the city now that the horses were dead.


    There was a carriage in front of the wooden stable. Though calling it a ¡®carriage¡¯ was generous. It was nothing more than a tiny wooden box with a door-size hole, likely built from a farmer¡¯s wagon.


    The carriage had leather reins attached to the front, allowing a single horse to pull it. Unfortunately, the coach was so small that there was no room for a coachman to sit. Instead, the coachman would ride on the horse¡¯s back and guide it manually. A small window would have allowed the baroness to instruct the coachman on her destination and see where she was going.


    Damien observed the carriage and then the mud road that led out of this mansion¡¯s grounds. In most cities back on Earth and the game, nobles preferred to live as close to the city¡¯s center as possible, as that was where the ruling family lived. But here in Kassinki, nobles preferred living away from the loud and foul-smelling city and placed their estates around the city outskirts.


    Other than escaping the foul city, nobles also enjoyed the freedom and space afforded by living out here for recreational activities such as horse riding and magic practice. Of course, some nobles still preferred to live in the city center, but the vast majority chose to live out here.


    Damien could see the walls of Kassinki¡¯s capital in the distance.


    About a thirty-minute walk, give or take. Damien mused. The cold weather doesn¡¯t bother me like it does for Fay, but the journey is down dirt roads, which means mud.


    Damien dismissed the idea of walking immediately as the idea of dirtying his shoes was far too horrifying.


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    I believe Damien would have visited the city a few times since he arrived here. He likely took the carriage each time and would have had Fay ride on the horse. As a noble, she would be well-versed in horse riding.


    But with the horses dead, was there any other way?


    Damien rubbed his chin while formulating a plan. What about psychokinesis? He walked toward the carriage and easily climbed inside. The interior was empty apart from a simple wooden bench facing the window, allowing him to see the frost-covered dirt road leading to the city gates in the distance. Sitting on the bench, he frowned. There¡¯s no padding; it¡¯s just a simple wooden bench. The baroness really was quite poor to be willing to ride in this.


    He released control of his gloves and closed his eyes to concentrate. He felt his mind manifest a large spectral hand, which he positioned behind the wall he was leaning on. He gave it a push, and the whole carriage creaked from the force. Yet, the carriage didn¡¯t move. Finding his efforts futile, Damien sighed. I thought pushing it like a toy car would work, but it¡¯s too heavy for my current skill level. Maybe I should envelop the entire carriage instead?


    He released his control over the spectral hand and loosely spread his power over the whole of the small carriage like a fog and tried to move it forward. ¡°Woah,¡± he exclaimed as the carriage floated a few centimeters off the ground and moved forward slightly before crashing back to Earth.


    ¡°That¡¯s not what I wanted to do at all,¡± He grumbled while clutching his throbbing head. Picking it up just now used way too much concentration and mana.


    Controlling his breathing while massaging his head, he took a moment to relax and allow his [Lazy] trait to kick in and restore his mana.


    ¡°Master, are you trying to move the carriage with magic?¡± Fay asked from the side.


    ¡°Yes, but it uses too much mana and concentration,¡± Damien replied, rather sluggish while still clutching his head, trying to massage the headache away.


    ¡°Did you try to move the wheels?¡± Fay asked.


    ¡°No?¡± Damien paused as he processed her suggestion, ¡°Wait, the wheels¡­ yeah, that could work.¡±


    I have only been using psychokinesis to move entire objects so far; in the game, players could only grab complete objects with psychokinesis. Yet, I was thinking of how to manipulate the individual fingers of my gloves earlier! Psychokinesis is way more versatile now that the game has become real life.


    Damien took another five minutes to control his headache before daring to attempt the new idea.


    He reached out with his mind and located the wheels. He knew that he didn¡¯t need to move all four wheels at once; two-wheel-drive cars existed back on Earth, after all. He just needed to put force into two wheels, and the other two would follow along.


    Which two should I put my power into, though?


    Only the front two wheels of the carriage could shift to change direction¡ªmeanwhile, the back two wheels were fixed in place. Therefore, Damien chose to put power into the front two wheels and simultaneously also used them to steer the carriage.


    For the first attempt, Damien exerted force onto the entire wheel¡ªhis control was still lacking, so the wheels just tried to escape from their brackets instead of rotating.


    After a few failed attempts to turn the entire wheel, Damien realized, he needed to exert physical force onto the top of the wheel to make it rotate forward, rather than trying to grip the whole wheel with his psychokinesis.


    After another twenty minutes, he sat in the carriage with sweat dripping from his forehead and freezing onto his skin. He was breathing heavily but had a happy and triumphant smile.


    His psychokinesis hadn¡¯t upgraded to B-grade, but he could feel he was close. His level of skill with his powers was increasing. Using magic was challenging but very rewarding, and he enjoyed the experience.


    Wiping his brow, he turned toward the shivering Fay. She stood there quietly while watching Damien trying to move the carriage. Although the space inside the carriage was small, it technically could fit two people.


    Damien felt being trapped inside a small space with that woman would be repulsive and against all his noble traits. His human mind tried to reason with his body to take the woman inside, but his vampiric body refused the notion of sharing a carriage with livestock.


    She is dirty, his [Germaphobe] trait whispered.


    His [Noble Vampire] soul argued that a noble vampire would never sit on the same bench as a lowly blood slave.


    Damien just sighed deeply. He felt terrible, but she did want to stab him, to be fair.


    He compromised. ¡°I will use the carriage to get to the university. You can stand in the doorway and direct me, but you cannot sit down on the bench next to me.¡±


    Damien almost made her walk the rest of the distance, but that would greatly slow him down, and he was already feeling the cold more than he cared to admit.


    Fay nodded and used a rock as a stool to climb up into the carriage with great effort. Finally, she sat down in the door-shaped hole and dangled her legs off the edge.


    Turning his gaze from her back, Damien looked forward. Then, keeping his eyes open, he exerted physical force on the top of the wheels, and they turned. Of course, the speed was slower than a horse, but the world¡¯s first Psychic-powered car was on the road!

 Chapter 7: A Flashback

    A man strolled into a basic-looking study with purpose and looked around.


    ¡°They really were poor bastards; why did they make things so difficult for me, then?¡±


    Two women flanked the slightly fat man''s sides and spoke seductively.


    ¡°Husband, why do you chase this woman? Are we not good enough for you?¡±


    ¡°Yes, what Victoria said is right. Do we not pleasure you every night? Where would a third woman even sleep!¡±


    The man ignored the two women with a slightly annoyed expression and walked over to a large desk at the end of the study.


    ¡°Steven, hand me the key,¡± the man said in a commanding tone toward a butler. The butler bowed and handed the man a small silver key.


    ¡°My lord, we recovered this key from Baron Karles¡¯ pocket upon his death.¡±


    The man ignored the comment and moved his heavy body to sit in the chair, putting the key into a keyhole and turning left¡ªhe pulled the drawer open with a slight click.


    Inside was a single notebook. It was brown and seemed heavily used.


    ¡°Leave me be,¡± the man commanded, and his two wives and butler reluctantly vacated the room.


    ¡°You thought you could escape me, Fay Karles? Since that day, I have had my eyes set on only you. So where did you run off to?¡± With grin, he opened the notebook.


    Inside the notebook, there were random entries without titles or dates; it seemed that the baron used this notebook as a way to vent his frustrations.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see what secrets you hold,¡± the man mused as he began to read.


    ***


    The long war has finally ended; upon my return, his majesty saw in his infinite kindness to award me a border territory to rule. Unfortunately, I suspect he sees me as a threat and wants to keep me at arm¡¯s length, buried in paperwork managing this backwater fief.


    ***


    I have been living here for the last five years, and in my old age, my servants and people have become worried that I do not have an heir. Apparently, I am the nicest lord they have ever had and wish for my family line to continue ruling over them.


    ***


    This beautiful woman called Angelica arrived in my town recently with her family and has been chasing me for the last few months. She seems rather ambitious, which can be dangerous, but I have no other options; I¡¯m getting old, after all. So, even though she is a merchant¡¯s daughter, I might marry her.


    ***


    We got married! I enjoyed the whole process; it was pleasant to invite all my old war buddies over and see them again.


    ***


    Angelica is pregnant. I hope it¡¯s a male, so I will finally have an heir to pass my knowledge on. Angelica seems convinced it will be a boy and is already planning how he will take over my noble title and fief.


    ***


    ¡°It¡¯s a baby girl!¡± the midwife proclaimed but quickly shut up, seeing our faces. I was disappointed, and Angelica looked ready to kill the poor little thing.


    ***


    We decided to name her Fay; although not a boy, we have found a use for her. A duke of our kingdom recently had a baby boy and is looking for arranged marriages. I suggested that the boy meet Fay via a letter to the duke.


    ***


    Since the age of three, Angelica rigorously trained Fay to be the perfect wife. She is a ruthless teacher and shows no sympathy. Fay often comes to me crying. I read and tell her stories. She especially loved ones involving a prince charming coming to save a damsel in distress; maybe she¡¯s hoping for her own prince charming to save her from her mother?


    At the age of ten, she asked, ¡°Daddy, can I learn magic, too?¡± She seemed to love the stories about magic and adventures and used them as an escape from her daily routine.


    ¡°No,¡± I replied. She cried.


    ***


    Fay is twelve years old and will be meeting the duke¡¯s son Dylan Henson today.


    The man, Dylan Henson, who was reading the notebook, sat up slightly at the mention of his name. This was a memorable day for him, after all. Fay¡¯s cuteness and temperament had completely encapsulated him. The other girls his father had introduced him to as a child were all meek and submissive, but this girl was feisty. She fought back against him and made it far more interesting.


    Looking back at the notebook, he continued reading with renewed interest.


    ***


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    The meeting did not go well. Fay ran away from Dylan despite all our training, proclaiming that he was ugly. Although I agree with her, it¡¯s still rude to scream it in his face.


    The large man clicked his tongue at the mention of that.


    To my surprise, Dylan proclaimed that Fay would become his wife and then left.


    ***


    Fay continues to refuse the idea of marriage; Angelica beats her daily and hurls insults. My wife has become crazier ever since the duke¡¯s heir became interested in Fay. I knew she was an ambitious woman, but this is extreme. She seems set on being the mother of a duke heir¡¯s wife.


    ***


    Due to Fay¡¯s continued refusal to marry Dylan, the duke is taking the matter into his own hands. I have been sent a notice by Duke Henson to participate in a scouting mission into the vampire¡¯s stronghold in the mountains, which is basically a suicide mission. I assume he wants to kill me off to force Fay to marry Dylan to stay a noble. My title can sadly only be passed onto a male heir.


    Seeing how ruthless the duke is, I have second thoughts about the marriage. However, if I am going to die and have no heir to my title, I see no point in giving Fay a lifetime of suffering.


    In a possibly stupid move, I quickly sold off my assets and ordered Angelica to move to the neighboring country of Kassinki. She is not happy and put up a resistance. I threaten to divorce her before I leave, meaning she will no longer be considered a baroness and demoted to a commoner.


    She screamed at me and cursed me to die but left with Fay and a few servants.


    ***


    Today I leave for the suicide mission. If you ever read this, Fay, I hope you find happiness. I am sorry I failed as a father.


    Goodbye.


    Dylan Henson grinned. ¡°What a foolish man. Why write down your daughter¡¯s location for me? Now I finally have a clue to chase her.¡±


    ***


    Fay¡¯s door opened, and a tired-looking maid walked in.


    ¡°Morning, Jessica,¡± Fay said to the woman, and she returned a tired nod.


    ¡°Morning, mi¡¯lady. How shall I style your hair today?¡±


    Fay rolled out of bed and sat at the dresser; a nineteen-year-old girl with long, black hair and ocean-blue eyes stared back in the mirror. She was relatively short at only one hundred sixty centimeters, but she had well-defined features.


    ¡°Straight, but two small strands of braids to go over my ears.¡±


    The maid grunted in reply and began the hour-long process of styling Fay¡¯s hair, doing her makeup, and choosing her outfit.


    Finally ready, Fay twirled in a white dress and admired her hair. ¡°Yep, it¡¯s perfect.¡±


    At the table downstairs, Fay was served eggs and bread for breakfast. Eggs were a local speciality of Kassinki. Right as she dug into the food, she froze when she heard the loud clink of heels on the stone floor.


    Mother was coming.


    ¡°Fay, you ungrateful bitch, this is all because of you!¡±


    Fay replied calmly, ¡°Mother, I want to decide who to marry; although Dylan is the heir to a duke family, he already has two other wives and is also ugly. If you force me to marry him, I will kill myself first.¡±


    Threatening suicide was the only tactic Fay had found to make her mother back off. Her mother¡¯s chances of ever climbing the noble hierarchy would vanish if she were to die. Moreover, since her father had been sent on a suicide mission and was unlikely to return, her mother had no way to produce more children without a husband.


    After finishing breakfast under the hateful glare of her mother, Fay left the house and took the carriage into the city. Unfortunately, she had almost no money, meaning that despite being a noble, she couldn¡¯t eat in restaurants. As a compromise, she spent the day at the university library.


    Without hesitation, she beelined straight to the magic section and continued trying to read Basic Principles of Mana Manipulation.


    Fay was not allowed in the library, but the guards assumed she attended the university and let her inside without question due to her noble clothes and temperament. Getting access to this many books would otherwise be impossible. My mother forbids me from learning magic, and I have no money to pay a tutor or enroll in this university, so my only option is self-study.


    Reading a magic book was like understanding advanced mathematics written in an ancient language. It was impossible for the uneducated. After two weeks of coming here every day, Fay had only mastered a fundamental skill, Mana Manipulation, at the F-grade.


    In the library was a stone; when she placed her hand on it and injected some mana, the stone glowed slightly, and some information appeared on its surface:


    [Fay Karles]


    Skills:


    Mana Manipulation [F]


    Fay read the contents of the stone with a sour expression. The stone displays a person¡¯s skills on its surface. I heard that an expert mage should have five to ten different skills. But I only have one. Maybe Father refused to let me learn magic because he already knew I was hopeless at it?


    Feeling dejected, Fay decided to return home. It was early December, so the carriage¡¯s inside was freezing; Fay could see her breath.


    Once she finally arrived home, the door seemed smashed in, as there was a fist-size hole where the doorknob used to be.


    Did a monster break inside?


    Barry, the carriage driver, bravely stepped in front of his mistress and cautiously approached the door. The smell of fresh blood filled the area, and they looked at each other with pale faces.


    He went in first through the door with cautious steps, trying to avoid bits of broken furniture on the hallway floor and avoid making a sound. A woman¡¯s sobbing came from the room on their right. It sounds like mothers crying since we left our Oshal, Fay thought as they carefully approached.


    Barry also seemed to recognize the crying and quickly entered the room. Not that Fay could blame him for his haste. If her mother were to die, he would be executed for abandoning a noble.


    Right as he entered the room, Barry¡¯s head went flying. It impacted the doorframe with a sickening crunch before shattering. His now-headless corpse stood still for a moment before falling back onto Fay.


    She was so shocked by the scene that she was frozen in place. Everything happened in slow motion. Barry¡¯s headless corpses fell onto her and she instinctively reached out to catch him, only to be crushed under the heavy man¡¯s weight.


    While falling, Fay saw her mother tied to a chair and a piece of cloth filling her mouth. Snot and tears covered her face. Despite the situation, Fay felt slightly happy to see her in such a miserable state. So many times, she brought her to tears but never cared. Fay could also see the corpses of the other four servants on the floor, including her maid, Jessica.


    While she was distracted and lying on the floor, a tall man emerged from the shadows of the room and appeared next to Fay¡¯s mother. His predatory red eyes were filled with murderous intent.


    ¡°Since a prized lamb has appeared, I have no use for a used wretch like you,¡± he said deeply.


    His black nails elongated to the size of small daggers, and he rammed them straight through her mother¡¯s skull. She squealed like a pig before her head fell forward with dead eyes.


    Fay felt conflicted. Disgusted by the scene, but she felt immense happiness seeing her mother so brutally executed.


    She was my tormentor for my entire life. She has never been kind to me, only wanting to sell me to the highest bidder for her gain. However, her thoughts were interrupted as the monster who had killed her mother strode toward her.


    ¡°I wonder how you will taste.¡±


    He moved toward her with phantom-like speed and sunk his fangs deep into her neck. The world started spinning.


    ¡°Delicious,¡± the monster proclaimed. Foreign magic invaded her body, and from then on, she was a slave to the vampire.

 Chapter 8: Eyes of a Predator

    After ten minutes of traveling, Damien felt mentally drained and almost ill from mana exhaustion.


    In the game, Damien played as characters from various countries. However, in his opinion, no capital city captured the medieval walled city aesthetic quite like the capital city of Kassinki.


    The city had one hundred fifty thousand residents, making it the third-largest city on the continent. To the north lay the Kazimir Mountain Range, named after the first vampire who established the Nightshade stronghold there.


    The vampires were powerful but few in number and had well-documented weaknesses. Official records suggested that over a thousand vampires lived in the mountains, but Damien knew the actual number was closer to five hundred.


    To the east lay the Oshal Empire, the country from which Fay fled. Its capital city was larger than Kassinki, boasting a population of two hundred thousand, all of whom were humans. Oshal was a deeply religious nation that preached the inferiority of all demi-humans and other races.


    Technically, they were correct from a gamer¡¯s perspective. In the game, humans were a blank slate; they had no unique qualities, but they also lacked apparent weaknesses. Vampires were nearly immortal against any metal except silver and could swiftly heal surface wounds, except those inflicted by Light or Fire magic.


    Oshal had a somewhat aggressive stance against Kassinki because it was a diverse city that harbored many different races. It was a proper fantasy city.


    Despite his headache, Damien marveled at the tall gray stone walls. He had seen this sight many times through a VR headset, but viewing it in person was a completely different experience.


    ¡°Master, drive the carriage over to the noble gate,¡± Fay calmly said while pointing to the left.


    Damien already knew about the noble gate, but Fay thought his moment of taking in the scenery was because he was lost. ¡°Tsk.¡±


    With his last bit of willpower, Damien directed the carriage to the left. A long line of people waited to enter the city, and they all stared in wonder at the horseless carriage, which seemed to move by itself. To the left, a fancier-looking gate sat at the end of a small, cobbled road.


    Beside the entrance stood a man in plated armor, who shouted at the horseless carriage. ¡°This is the noble entrance! Please return to the line with the others!¡±


    The others waiting for the main gate seemed to agree with the man. ¡°How could a noble ride in such a shabby carriage? Even a farmer could afford a carriage like that to carry his wheat!¡±


    The carriage stopped, and a man stepped out with grace and a commanding presence. He walked casually up to the armored guard. Everyone quieted down and felt a strange wave of inferiority wash over them, as if they were gazing upon a superior existence.


    It wouldn¡¯t be wrong to say he possessed a magical presence with a certain gravity.


    [Noble Aura] (Intimidation increased)


    One of Damien¡¯s traits had activated automatically. When others attempted to look down on a king, they would feel his wrath and learn to bow their heads.


    But unlike the ordinary citizens who trembled from his aura, the guard¡¯s face drained of color. He was the guard of the noble gate; a mere aura like that would never affect him.


    No.


    It was those eyes. The eyes of a predator sizing up its prey. Damien¡¯s expression was neutral, but his eyes smiled.


    Fay swiftly moved in front of Damien before reaching for the guard¡¯s throat and presenting a noble crest.


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    ¡°I am Fay Karles, the first daughter of Baron Karles, and this is my¡­um¡­distant brother who is visiting us.¡±


    The guard inspected the crest under Damien''s watchful gaze and nodded. He would typically conduct a more thorough background check and call his supervisor, but every fiber of his being screamed that this man belonged to pass through this gate. This is going to be my last day on the job. I¡¯m not paid enough for this shit; that brother is terrifying! the guard screamed in his mind He bowed slightly.


    ¡°Welcome, Mr. and Mrs. Karles, to our city.¡±


    Despite the guard¡¯s average height, Damien easily towered over the man and looked down upon his head. ¡°I will leave the carriage in your care. Careful with it; despite its cheap look, it¡¯s worth more to me than your head.¡±


    Did he just threaten my life for a cheap carriage like that? Of course, the guard was utterly terrified at this point. Wait, wasn¡¯t he driving this carriage with magic? How am I supposed to move it without a horse? Yep, I¡¯m resigning tomorrow after this psychopath leaves; screw this job.


    ***


    After parking the carriage and leaving it with the friendly guard, Damien proceeded toward the university grounds. Although it was a ten-minute walk from the gate, the campus occupied a significant portion of the eastern wing of the city.


    Since all races were allowed in Kassinki, its university was the most popular learning institution for the demi-humans across the continent. Many rich demi-humans would send their sons and daughters on a month-long trip to have the chance to study here.


    Due to its popularity, they had to implement an entrance exam that became more rigorous every year. At this point, it rivaled the difficulties of the Oshal Empire¡¯s Royal Academy. However, if you mentioned that to an Oshal student, they would likely react violently. The very idea of being considered on the same educational level as a demi-human irked them to no end.


    Damien walked through the streets with Fay closely behind; she tried to match his pace without jogging, opting for a slightly unusual form of speed walking.


    ¡°Brother, huh?¡± Damien asked Fay, and she seemed to freeze for a moment before answering.


    ¡°Well, I needed to provide a believable excuse since I come from the Oshal Empire, which rarely shares information about its nobles with Kassinki. So, I knew they couldn¡¯t fully confirm or deny the validity of my statement.¡±


    ¡°Hmmm.¡± Damien tried to use telepathy to read Fay¡¯s surface thoughts but just got a confused mess.


    Does she not hate me? She could have told the guard I was a vampire that killed a baroness, and they would have tried to detain me, or at least they could have saved her and chased me away. What is she plotting? Maybe she¡¯s suffering from Stockholm Syndrome? At best, Fay was a side character, so I never bothered to read her wiki page on her backstory. I just assumed she was a crazy person or had a deep hatred for Damien after what he did to her mother.


    While deep in thought, Damien arrived at the university¡¯s front gate; the guard waved them in after noticing their clothes. The guards were primarily there to prevent drunk individuals or suspicious people from entering, so anyone walking in with a purpose was simply let in.


    Once inside the gates, Damien was greeted by a plaza adorned with patches of grass and trees, where students of various races chatted happily under the limited shade. Not that the shade provided much, considering it was January and the trees were bare of leaves.


    Some wooden benches were dotted around, with young couples sitting on them, holding hands while eating meat sticks. To Damien, however, it just looked like a zoo filled with livestock wandering about.


    Fay noticed the hungry look in Damien¡¯s eyes and tried to direct his attention toward a food stall, as she was starving.


    A beastman who appeared to be half bear and half human was selling something that looked like a hamburger from Earth. Fay asked if she could have one, and Damien obliged. The smell of burnt meat and the beastman¡¯s body odor caused Damien considerable distress, so he threw a coin at the beastman, which he caught with surprising reflexes, and then Damien retrieved the hamburger from range with psychokinesis.


    The beastman paid no attention to his actions since a line of students waited. They shot Damien hateful glares for cutting in line, but they all averted their gazes when his [Noble Aura] subconsciously activated again.


    This [Noble Aura] trait sure can be useful sometimes. Far better than a negative one like [Germaphobe].


    The duo then proceeded through the plaza toward the public library. The magnificent Mage Tower loomed in the distant skyline. The public library contained books on every topic, including mathematics, economics, literature, and even some basic ones for magic.


    The public library seemed almost older than the city itself, resembling a grand museum made all the more mesmerizing by the three entrances, each featuring a set of marble stairs. The dark wooden doors stood wide open, inviting students to freely enter and exit.


    Just as Damien climbed the staircase and was about to enter the middle door, he heard a snide voice from behind, ¡°Damien, you bastard. Is that you?¡±


    He turned to see a middle-aged man in spectacles and a suit who resembled a seasoned scholar. Damien instantly recognized him. He was the head professor, his boss, and, most importantly, he held the position that Damien was striving for to survive the upcoming assassinations.


    Damien put on a fake smile.


    ¡°Greetings, Head Professor. To what do I owe the pleasure?¡±

 Chapter 9: First Prince of Kassinki

    The Head Professor¡¯s expression twisted at Damien¡¯s cheerful greeting.


    ¡°Are you well?¡± Damien asked, noticing that the Head Professor looked rather pale, tired, and had dark bags under his eyes.


    Of course, Damien already knew the answer. The Head Professor was far from well; in fact, he was dying.


    Damien is already the Head Professor in the game¡¯s storyline that starts a year from now. I always wondered how he got the position, so I looked up the lore on the Wiki. It turns out the previous Head Professor passed away, and Damien assumed the role by default as he was his teaching assistant.


    The Head Professor clicked his tongue. ¡°Damien, I heard you are my new teaching assistant?¡±


    Oh? That¡¯s news to me. If I¡¯ve already been put as his assistant, that gives me a clear path to power within the academy.


    Damien didn¡¯t know how to handle this confrontation, so he didn¡¯t fight his traits and let them take over. He acted as his body desired, causing him to look down at the man with disdain. ¡°Yes, that is correct.¡±


    ¡°Such arrogance for a mediocre mage.¡± The Head Professor became enraged, ¡°Did you pay off the dean? There are no records of you taking a test to display your capabilities! What school of magic or teaching qualifications do you even have to dare stand beside me?¡± the professor insisted loudly, drawing attention. He was trying to put on a show.


    To Damien, the man appeared to be a raving dog. Casually checking his watch, he noted the date.


    This man will die in two weeks from a heart attack. It¡¯s a surreal experience to realize you are talking to a dead man; if I were the old Damien, I would be trying to curry favor with him, but since I know his end is near, I couldn¡¯t care less.


    Damien walked down the marble stairs and stood just a step away from the man with the grand library to his back. His large frame and broad shoulders completely dwarfed the sickly-looking Head Professor. Yet despite the man¡¯s ashen complexion, he still had darker skin than Damien. The difference was that Damien¡¯s pale skin appeared healthy rather than being a result of illness. He was a vampire, after all.


    He knew the Head Professor was a prideful man who hated corruption and especially despised the nobility. At least, that¡¯s what the Wiki article¡¯s flavor text suggested.


    If I remember correctly, the Head Professor used to be powerful, but his mana circuit is damaged due to illness, which means he is incredibly weakened. However, only the Head Professor and I know this fact.


    All the students surrounding them still believed the Head Professor was a man with a B-grade in geokinesis. Of course, B-grade wasn¡¯t enough to make him famous, but it was respectable. His knowledge of magic and his A-grade in Mana Control is what made him the Head Professor.


    But it should have been demoted to C-grade due to his illness. Such a downgrade would put him at the strength of a court mage at best.


    ¡°Head Professor.¡± Damien¡¯s voice was cold and lacked any respect he should have toward his superior within the university. He even surprised himself with how assured he sounded. ¡°My special circumstances mean being tested would be inconvenient, but I am more than capable, I assure you.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care about your special circumstances.¡± The Head Professor hissed through his teeth, ¡°Some of us worked very hard for our current position, and it¡¯s noble bastards like you that ruin it for the rest of us!¡±


    The corner of Damien¡¯s mouth curved up into a smile. The Head Professor was reacting exactly as he had intended. This was a rare opportunity to skyrocket his reputation not only in the academy but also in Kassinki. The Head Professor was a man who commanded great respect and prestige, and nobody else would dare stand up to him like this in such a way, but Damien knew the Head Professor was a dead man walking.


    He would get away with this, and he knew there was nothing the Head Professor could do about it.


    The surrounding students murmured in agreement with the Head Professor¡¯s accusations, while some better-dressed students frowned at the man¡¯s words. They felt personally attacked.


    A person in the crowd shouted, ¡°The Head Professor is right! Nobles always cheat their way through life! I suggest a duel to show Assistant Professor Damien¡¯s apparent capabilities!¡±


    Damien glared at the commoner boy in the crowd with scorn, his [Noble Aura] taking over. The kid reeled back, the words dying in his throat.


    All is going according to plan so far¡­ Now, will the Head Professor take the bait? Damien thought, amused by how well the situation worked in his favor. I bet in the minds of everyone here that they think I will apologize and turn down the duel. An assistant professor could never best the Head Professor in a duel. But I know the truth¡ªthe Head Professor wouldn¡¯t stand a chance against me if I had the actual capabilities of an assistant professor.


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    Not that I do have those capabilities, but will the Head Professor take that risk?


    Damien was taking a gamble, yet he could only smile, ¡°A duel? What an interesting idea, but I¡¯m sure the Head Professor is far too busy to entertain such an idea.¡± He leaned in slightly, ¡°Right, Head Professor?¡±


    What are you going to do now, Head Professor? You look rather panicked. Is that sweat on your forehead? Perhaps you should take better care of yourself instead of walking around and accusing people.


    The Head Professor retreated a step down the staircase, his expression venomous, but his actions betrayed his weakness.


    ¡°What the assistant professor says is correct,¡± he fixed his tie, ¡°I¡¯m sure there will be an opportunity for you to prove yourself soon enough.¡±


    ¡°Good choice, Head Professor. I¡¯m sure we will see one another soon.¡± Damien put his hands in his pockets and turned to leave.


    ¡°Hold on.¡±


    Damien froze. It was a voice he recognized from the game. Clicking his tongue, he turned to see a human man with dazzling blond hair, wearing a white-and-gold suit of similar quality to Damien¡¯s, walking forward. The crowd seemed to part for him like the Red Sea. Damien mentally sighed. Here comes another death flag. I somehow attracted a Prince¡¯s attention so soon.


    ¡°August Greentail greets the Head Professor and Teaching Assistant Damien.¡±


    The Head Professor appeared startled momentarily and quickly bowed to the prince. ¡°Greetings to the first prince.¡±


    August turned to look at Damien and frowned when Damien didn¡¯t bow or pay respect.


    It wasn¡¯t Damien¡¯s choice. His [Noble Aura] forced his back to remain straight in the face of a lesser demanding his respect.


    How troublesome.


    The first prince then grinned, which was never a good sign.


    ¡°I was going to defuse the situation, but if Assistant Professor Damien seems quite full of himself! Therefore, as the first prince, I propose a duel, with some stakes involved, of course.¡±


    Silence befell the staircase.


    Damien glanced at the Head Professor, who looked understandably shaken. A duel decreed by royalty was likely far more than he had been expecting from this confrontation.


    Prince August gestured toward Damien. ¡°If Assistant Professor Damien loses the bet, I suggest he resign and publicly apologize to both the Head Professor and admit to misusing his material assets to gain entrance into the institution.¡±


    Ah, I see why he is butting in now. It¡¯s a perfect opportunity for the prince to show off his authority before the nobles present. Everyone can guess I bought my way to this position, so for him to openly oppose my actions shows he won¡¯t turn a blind eye to corruption. How smart.


    The Head Professor hesitantly nodded in agreement. It''s not like he had a choice to decline a duel decreed by royalty.


    ¡°And? What if I win?¡± Damien asked in a neutral tone as if unfazed by the event unraveling before him.


    ¡°Hmm.¡± The prince scratched his chin. ¡°How about I request the dean to promote you to Head Librarian of the Mage Towers library?¡±


    An unexpected boon? Damien mused. This has turned out quite well. As the Head Librarian, I will get protection from the mage tower¡¯s defensive arrays, and I won¡¯t even have to do any teaching. A position that meets my needs without the downsides of becoming the Head Professor.


    Before Damien could agree, the Head Professor interjected, ¡°First Prince, I will be without an assistant then, and if Damien can defeat me, it would be a shame to lose such a talented assistant. I suggest he can have the promotion but must also remain as my assistant on the side.¡±


    Damien said without a hint of hesitation. ¡°I agree.¡±


    The man dies in two weeks anyway. I will only be his assistant for a week at most before I get the position of Head Professor. If I can become the Head Professor and Head Librarian of the Mage Towers library, I will hold considerable influence within the university. And if the position of Head Professor becomes too troublesome, I can pass it to someone else while still maintaining a useful role.


    The prince appeared somewhat suspicious of Damien¡¯s swift reply; after all, who would willingly choose to be someone¡¯s assistant? Especially a noble, which the prince assumed Damien was due to his demeanor.


    ¡°It¡¯s my duty to the academy.¡± Damien effortlessly lied. ¡°It would be improper for me to abandon the Head Professor¡¯s side should I prove my right to stand among you fine mages.¡±


    ¡°Well said,¡± the prince nodded, ¡°As the First Prince of Kassinki, I hereby declare a duel between Head Professor Victor and Teaching Assistant Damien...¡±


    The First Prince glanced at Damien, who in turn looked at Fay. She seemed to understand and nodded.


    ¡°My surname is Karles, Damien Karles,¡± Damien replied, understanding the prince¡¯s hint of wishing to officiate the duel with noble titles. A title that Damien should have and technically did. However, he would refrain from admitting he was Vampire royalty here. That would be a quick way to being cut down where he stood.


    I might as well continue the lie from earlier at the gate and use Fay¡¯s name.


    ¡°Very well.¡± The prince said, ¡°Damien Karles and Head Professor Victor shall duel in a week in the university¡¯s arena. I shall be the judge.¡±


    Shit, only a week to prepare? He¡¯s weakened but the Head Professor is still an old Arcmage with a B-grade skill. Damien thought but kept his expression unfazed. I only know how to float a pair of gloves right now, but this should be doable. This body learns quickly, and my unique set of traits, while deeply frustrating at times, makes me adept at magic.


    The crowd started clapping and cheering in excitement, unaware of his turbulent thoughts.


    ¡°You will regret this, Damien.¡± The Head Professor hissed under his breath.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t be so sure, Head Professor.¡± Damien said as he left, ¡°Oh, and one more thing,¡± he glared over his shoulder, ¡°I only do duels to the death.¡±


    The Head Professor was stunned into silence.


    Damien left the sickly man to stand there and delved into the public library.


    As the thrill of the confrontation faded and he regained control of himself, he frowned. With Prince August¡¯s involvement, things just got dangerous.


    While August posed as human royalty, the prince was no hero.


    He¡¯s the storyline¡¯s greatest villain. Damien clenched his teeth. An A-grade necromancer who will kill his family and bring destruction to this kingdom. We are both cursed with a Villain¡¯s Fate. The question is which one of us will fall first.

 Chapter 10: A Twisted Royal and a Vial of Green

    Seeing that the drama had concluded, the students dispersed with excited chatter. However, Prince August remained in place on the staircase, his expression unreadable as he watched Damien enter the library through a large doorway with the black-haired girl who seemed to be a family member in tow.


    Karles is not a noble surname name I recognize from Kassinki. Perhaps they are from Oshal? Mhm, what an interesting fellow. August thought as he coldly analyzed Damien¡¯s departing figure. Those red eyes, perfect face and curved ears¡­ was he a blood elf? I¡¯d almost think he was a vampire, but he carried himself far too well to be one of those deranged fiends.


    ¡°I have matters to attend to so I will take my leave,¡± The Head Professor said in a hurry, turning to leave.


    ¡°Hold it, Victor,¡± August said coldly, stopping the Head Professor in his tracks.


    The Head Professor turned to look at him, his eyes shaking.


    August Greentail, First Prince and heir to the throne of Kassinki. To everyone, he was a friendly and kind person who always had a dazzling smile on his handsome face. With his blond hair and smile, Damien would have labeled him a ¡®typical hero protagonist.¡¯


    The two remained in silence as the last of the students went on their way. Once the staircase was cleared, the pleasant smile disappeared from August¡¯s face and twisted into something more sinister.


    Head Professor Victor taught Prince August magic as a private tutor as a child. When Victor heard people call Prince August a kind and respectable man, he would almost choke and scream in his mind: He¡¯s the most vicious bastard I have ever met! When August was a child, he showed his cruel side more often but learned to hide his true nature as he grew older.


    The Head Professor had once been inside one of Prince August¡¯s ¡®summer houses,¡¯ log cabins built in the wilderness. Inside, he witnessed demi-human corpses; the male ones were hanging from metal hooks and chains, covered in deep gashes and wounds. Some still leaked blood that slowly dripped onto the stained wooden floor below.


    The stench in there had been utterly foul, and the Head Professor had nearly thrown up at the sight but managed to maintain some dignity. He had to. Victor¡¯s daughter was a maid in the royal palace assigned to Prince August. She had attempted to escape many times but was always dragged back by the guards as August claimed she knew too many ¡®state secrets¡¯ to be allowed to leave.


    The Head Professor¡¯s blood ran cold. He knew of August¡¯s true nature. The prince was a lust-filled psychotic maniac, and that was why Victor despised royalty and nobles with his very being. Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t openly oppose royalty and could only take it out on the nobles loyal to them.


    August cleared his throat. ¡°Victor, did you see how that man spoke to me? The defiance in his eyes?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I did¡­¡± Victor winced while wishing Damien had gone further. Prince August deserved less respect than a disease-ridden rat.


    ¡°Then I assume you know the ramifications of this duel and why I proposed it?¡±


    The Head Professor sighed as he saw August¡¯s face, which had gone from a kind-hearted young man to a sinister beast.


    ¡°I do, my lord. You want me to humiliate him¡ª¡±


    ¡°No, I want that man dead, do you understand? If you lose, your daughter Evelyn may be paying a visit to my humble abode in the woods.¡± The words seemed innocent enough, but Victor almost fainted when he superimposed the image of Evelyn being chained to the bed, her insides completely ravaged and hanging out like that cat-girl beastkin the last time he had visited August¡¯s summer house. Sometimes, he wondered if the royal family of Kassinki were secretly related to the vampires, given how ruthlessly a teenager was able to treat people, even if they were demi-humans.


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    ¡°M-my lord, I have recently been in a weak condition,¡± Victor answered honestly. He didn¡¯t mind if he died for his loss, but the idea of Evelyn dying in that way due to his failure was too horrific. If this duel had occurred a month ago, he could wipe the floor with Damien. But now? He wasn¡¯t so sure.


    August¡¯s threatening smile only elevated as he pulled out a small glass vial filled with green liquid from the deepest pocket of his jacket.


    As Victor was a scholar, he knew what this liquid entailed.


    ¡°I can¡¯t use something like that in my condition.¡± Victor protested while pushing the green vial away from himself. ¡°It will turn me into a monster.¡±


    August just laughed. ¡°It¡¯s either you or me, old friend. Either you become a monster on that battlefield and slaughter that arrogant assistant for me, or I¡¯ll show Evelyn my other side.¡±


    Victor wordlessly retrieved the thumb-size glass vial with the ominous green liquid inside.


    August nodded, ¡°It¡¯s good you understand your place, Head Professor.¡± He then left, putting on his fake and dazzling smile.


    Victor quickly hid the vial in his suit¡¯s inner pocket and headed toward the Mage Tower while muttering curses.


    ***


    Damien set aside his thoughts regarding his villainous rivalry with Prince August and quickly entered the public library. He had been here many times in the game, but it was far more impressive in real life. The heavy smell of wood and books, the dim lighting from glowstones, and the low murmuring of students sitting over open books with deep looks of concentration.


    He quickly navigated the hundreds of rows to find the books he needed. He carefully picked twenty books on various topics and carried them around with psychokinesis. Due to the number of books, his low level meant manipulating each book individually was far too complex, so he used his gloves to carry a stack of books instead.


    Many students looked up from their reading material and gawked at the sight of a floating tower of books that seemed to orbit Damien as he inspected the shelves.


    Just as Damien was heading toward the librarian, Fay appeared and tried sneakily placing a book on his pile. He quickly grabbed the book from her hand and inspected its title.


    Basic Principles of Mana Manipulation.


    So, she¡¯s trying to learn magic¡­


    Damien looked at her and used telepathy to read her surface thoughts.


    Dad¡­no¡­wish I could learn¡­magic looks¡­amazing¡­ Since his skill was still low level, it was only a jumbled mess, but there was nothing about burning him to death, so he was hopefully making progress on fixing their broken relationship.


    She seemed somber, and Damien felt that maybe he could cheer her up by accepting the book.


    Is there really a way I can get in her good books despite murdering her family? Or is that just insane thinking? Damien pondered for a moment but realized that this was an excellent opportunity. Seeing how she learns magic from this book will help me understand how residents of this world usually learn spells. I¡¯ll have to teach at the magic academy once I inherit the Head Professor position from Victors¡¯ corpse.


    Damien just added the book to his pile of twenty-one and wordlessly headed toward the front counter, where a surprised librarian sat staring at the floating tower of books.


    The librarian pushed his glasses up his long nose and nervously looked between Damien and the books. ¡°Excuse me, student, you can only take out three books at a time¡­¡±


    Damien was confused for a second and looked behind him but realized the librarian was addressing him.


    ¡°Oh, I am Head Professor Victor¡¯s teaching assistant. I require research material for his classes, so I need these books.¡±


    The librarian seemed suspicious but saw Damien¡¯s level of control, which should be at C- or even B-grade, and his noble clothes¡­


    In the worst case, he would get an earful from the head librarian about this. The librarian noted the book titles and raised his brow, reading some of the names. In his opinion, the books seemed random and didn¡¯t follow any particular theme. The librarian had no idea how these could help in a lesson.


    After checking out the books, the pair also bought enough food from a stall for a few days. Damien sighed as he stared at the meager pile of bronze coins that remained. He needed to make some money since his paycheck wouldn¡¯t come in until the month¡¯s end.


    Damien retrieved his carriage from the frightened guard and returned home.


    Apart from taking a bath, sleeping, and watching over Fay, Damien had a peaceful few days. He mainly focused on reading through his mountain of books and advancing his knowledge of the world as if his life depended on it.

 Chapter 11: Fay’s Question

    Damien casually floated five books in front of him while sipping on some cheap wine he found left in the servant¡¯s rooms. The red wine had a sharp, sour flavor, similar to vinegar, and it slightly burned his nasal passages as it went down. It was rather unpleasant, but he enjoyed the atmosphere it created. Swirling the wine in the glass made him feel like a true villain, which seemed to appeal to his soul.


    Speaking of soul, he had managed to slowly get control over his body and traits. They were still there but more controllable. He could almost touch things without gloves now, and he could reduce his sleeping to only twelve hours a day. His [Concentration] trait had only increased in potency, which aligned with Psychic magic. It took Fay more brute-force methods to break him out of a trance if he was deep in thought about something. It almost became a joke between them when she had to smash two frying pans next to Damien¡¯s ear.


    Damien took out his pocket watch with psychokinesis and snapped open its lid with his mind. He looked at his deathly pale yet handsome face, and with a slight bit more concentration, his status appeared:


    [Damien Nightshade]


    [Noble Vampire]


    Schools of Magic:


    [Psychic Magic (C+)]


    Psychokinesis [C+]


    Automatic Writing [F]


    Telepathy [E]


    Pyrokinesis [E]


    [Blood Magic (F)]


    -None-


    =Null Spells=


    Mana Control [D]


    Traits:


    [Germaphobe] Unable to learn melee skills / 100% Increased control over ranged spells


    [Control Freak] Increased affinity to control skills by 10%


    [Lazy] Increased mana regeneration while resting by 20% / Increased exp to learn new spells by 10%


    [Concentration] Increased affinity with mental spells by 5%


    [Noble Aura] Intimidation increased


    His status had changed significantly over the last few days, but he was nowhere near the progress he was expecting. His skills were now grouped under the school of magic or affinity he specialized in.


    Damien looked over the list and pondered. Since this became a real world, specific game mechanics haven¡¯t followed. For example, learning new skills is entirely different. In the game, a player just had to pick up a book that contained the spell, open it, and that was it. They would gain the spell in the book at the F tier. Of course, certain spells couldn¡¯t be learned or locked behind restrictions, but usually, a player¡¯s character could learn most spells through this method.


    Damien had opened the books from the library and expected to learn the skills instantly. But that was not the case. Instead, he was greeted with pages of diagrams and runes that showed how the spells worked. He flicked through the pages and felt utterly lost. How am I supposed to understand these diagrams? Chemistry exams made more sense than this shit. Although the diagrams were confusing, he could only laugh at the runes. It was just a simple programming language written in English.


    It seems I am reading, writing, and talking in this world¡¯s native language without knowing it. Only after seeing English as the rune language did I realize I was even speaking a different language. How interesting¡­


    To everyone else, it looked like some ancient and profound language, but to Damien, it just looked something like this:


    Spell fireball (Size, Distance, Mana).


    Spell is the ¡®function¡¯ call. So, anyone planning to use the Fireball spell would first shout out ¡®Spell¡¯ and follow it with the spell name, in this case ¡®Fireball.¡¯ They then would provide the spell with the expected size, the target¡¯s distance, and how much mana. This is all done mentally within the mage¡¯s mind.


    Damien leaned back in his chair and sighed. So most of the spell construction is done mentally. That¡¯s a shame since I understand the language, and it would be easy to beat other mages if they were shouting everything out to me.


    He put the book aside and decided to watch Fay trying to practice and read the runes from her book; it seemed genuinely hard for her to read the runes for some reason. Her pronunciation was entirely off at times, and it seemed to affect her ability to manipulate the mana around her body.


    He was sure he could speak the runic language fluently, which would surprise people. He had tried to see if he could cast spells just by saying them aloud, but it seemed impossible to learn or cast spells that were not of a psychic nature.


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    Surprisingly, pyrokinesis is under the Psychic category. It is simply basic fire manipulation with the mind. An actual fire spell like fireball is impossible for me to cast, as I have no affinity for fire. The only spells I can use or learn are Psychic or Blood spells. Unfortunately, all the books on Blood magic are strictly controlled in the Mage Tower, while the rest are stored in the libraries of Kazimir.


    The only new spell Damien had learned over the last three days was Automatic Writing, a specialized version of psychokinesis. It allowed him to manipulate chalk sticks or any writing utensil and direct it to write for him. He didn¡¯t have to manually move the chalk but just convey words or diagrams, and it would write them out for him. Useful for teaching but not for the upcoming duel.


    The five books floating around Damien covered different topics; one was even about world history instead of magic. He was desperately trying to find out how to raise his psychokinesis to B-grade as it was stuck at C+ no matter what he did.


    He wanted to learn other Psychic spells like:


    Materialization ¨C S-Grade. The creation of objects and materials or the appearance of matter from an unknown source.


    Astral Projection - A-grade. The ability to voluntarily project an astral or mental body.


    Petrification - A-grade. The power to turn a living being to stone by directing mana into their eyes.


    Clairvoyance - B-grade. The ability to see things and events that are happening far away and locate objects, places, and people using a ¡®sixth sense.¡¯


    Levitation - B-grade. The ability to float or fly by mystical means.


    Automatic Writing - C-grade. The ability to draw and write without conscious intent.


    Telepathy - C-grade. The ability to transmit or receive thoughts supernaturally.


    The number of skills available to Psychic mages was very limited but all incredibly powerful. But to Damien¡¯s displeasure, all the useful ones were locked behind S, A, and B-grades.


    Damien was researching how to raise his Psychic affinity grade, but there was little information on it; very few books reached above C-grade. However, he understood why nations wanted to keep the number of powerful Psychic mages to a minimum; just Clairvoyance alone was enough to win a war, for example.


    Materialization wasn¡¯t worth mentioning, as there were no S-rank mages that even walked the planet. The king of the vampires, Kazimir, had been the last recorded S-rank in Blood magic.


    Damien saw Fay sneaking glances at him, but he maintained his focus on his studies.


    His life depended on it.


    ***


    Fay sat comfortably in an armchair while reading a book. Occasionally, she would sneak glances at Damien.


    This darn vampire seems different these days. He¡¯s still a bit insane, but his eyes are different. Before, they were almost as dead as a fish, and he would lie around in bed all day, occasionally waking up to take a bath and feed on my blood. But now, they have a purpose behind them, as if Damien has some big ambition or pressure on his shoulders.


    Fay took a cautious peek at Damien; he sat in a comfortable armchair with a glass of cheap red wine in his hand. A glowstone was embedded in the wall behind him and cast a soft glow upon him and the books surrounding him.


    Five books were floating around him. He was calmly switching his attention between them while frowning from time to time. His level of concentration was insane. Fay knew from her research on magic that psychokinesis would use up a lot of mental power to manipulate five books at once, but he was also reading them?


    Three days had passed since Prince August declared a duel between Damien and the Head Professor. Since then, Fay hadn¡¯t witnessed Damien using magic; she was somewhat surprised to discover that he was a Psychic mage and seemed to never rely on Blood magic.


    Fay had visited the public library many times while Damien was asleep, and she found a book detailing vampires. They were long-lived creatures that survived off the blood of mortals to increase their lifespan. A typical vampire could live up to five hundred years, but noble vampires could live over a thousand years, if not more. There was also speculation that they could be technically immortal, but none had lived in recorded history for more than five thousand years. The oldest vampire was Kazimir Nightshade, who lived for four thousand seventy-three years. He died after being hunted down by a group of A-grade mages after he kidnapped the emperor of Oshal¡¯s wife at the time.


    The records mentioned that vampires were weak against the Fire and Light magic schools. Silver-coated weapons were also highly effective. Fay had noted these weaknesses should she ever need them in the future.


    Fay had also noticed that Damien¡¯s personality had slightly softened over the last few days.


    At least he stopped threatening to kill me for every little thing. But, of course, he is still a germaphobe control freak. But his attitude toward me has changed. Before, he ordered me around like some slave or livestock; although I technically had been one for a few weeks, I don¡¯t remember much of it. It¡¯s all hazy.


    But he seems to have released his mind control on me for some reason. He orders me around but leaves me on a pretty light leash, especially while sleeping. Maybe he also had a rough childhood, as I did. And that¡¯s why he¡¯s such an overbearing person?


    Although Fay noticed Damien¡¯s slight change in personality, he also seemed to be wearier of her, especially when she used a knife to cut food in the kitchen.


    Is he afraid of knives? He never used to watch me cook. He only ever slept.


    Fay stopped looking at Damien and tried to focus on the book in her own hands. She enjoyed this cozy atmosphere of sitting in the study and reading during the evening.


    After trying to read the third page of Basic Principles of Mana Manipulation for the hundredth time and not understanding a word, Fay let out an audible sigh.


    Perhaps I can ask Damien to teach me magic? Will he just say no as Dad did? Maybe he knows how terrible my talent for magic is. Well, worse case, he says no and threatens to kill me, as he does with most things, yet I¡¯m still alive.


    ¡°M-master¡­can I ask something?¡±


    Damien broke concentration from his books with a visible scowl on his face. ¡°What? I¡¯m busy, don¡¯t interrupt me.¡±


    ¡°Sorry¡­¡±


    Damien sighed and shut the book, ¡°Just tell me.¡±


    ¡°Uhm, since you are so good at magic, could you maybe teach me a spell?¡±


    Damien seemed, for the first time, genuinely bewildered. His hand went to his chin, and he looked off to the side, deep in thought.


    Is he considering it? Fay thought with surprise. She expected to be outright ignored.


    After almost a full minute of deep thought, Damien returned his stare at Fay as if trying to read her mind and peer into the deepest parts of her soul. It was a scary experience, to say the least.


    ¡°Sure.¡±


    He finally replied, and it didn¡¯t involve ripping her head off.


    ¡°Really!! I can finally learn magic?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I think it will be quite useful.¡±


    Fay was giddy with excitement, ¡°What spell are you going to teach me?¡± Fay forgot to address him as Master for a second, but he let it slide and answered casually.


    ¡°A cleaning spell.¡±


    Fay almost fell out of her chair.

 Chapter 12: Battles in the Shadows

    ¡°Father!¡± August exclaimed while chewing on a rare blue piece of steak. Animal blood coated his lips with a glossy sheen, and his wide smile threatened to split his face in half.


    A tired old man with a crown sat half-slumped in his chair. He glanced at his ¡®son¡¯ and let out a deep sigh.


    ¡°What, August?¡± he said in a tone one would use when speaking to a thing rather than a person.


    ¡°I met the most fascinating individual today at university.¡±


    ¡°Uh huh, it¡¯s not often you find other people of any interest.¡± King Edward of Kassinki said as he returned his focus to his food.


    ¡°There¡¯s was this new teaching assistant that I think is either a blood elf or possibly even a vampire¡ªhe certainly had the arrogance of one. Damien was his name, and he seemed to borrow a noble surname from a girl he was with.¡±


    ¡°Impersonating a noble is a grave offense,¡± King Edward replied.


    ¡°Don¡¯t ruin my fun Father,¡± August said, ¡°He disrespected my authority, so I suggested he have a duel with the Head Professor. I even offered him a position as head librarian for him to agree. It will be to the death, so don¡¯t worry about that grave punishment. I have it handled. And on the off chance he does win, I hope you will pressure the dean to accept this interesting fellow as the new head librarian¡ª¡±


    Edward gave his son a disgusted glance. ¡°August, I have told you many times that authority is earned, not given. If the man shows disrespect, it means he does not respect you personally or has a higher station in life than you.¡±


    ¡°How can some loser nobody working as a teaching assistant in my university be of higher status than me?¡± August sneered while slamming his cutlery hard on the table. The maids surrounding the table didn¡¯t even bat an eye at the display, except for one timid maid behind August called Evelyn.


    A woman with the same blond hair as August patted him on the shoulder. ¡°You are right to be mad, my little August! How dare someone disrespect my boy?¡±


    Edward raised his voice at the duo. ¡°Elizabeth. Stop allowing and encouraging your son¡¯s behavior. Also, young man, you do not own the university, as much as you try.¡±


    August¡¯s face twisted in many ways before relaxing and being replaced with his usual dazzling smile. ¡°You are right, my dear father. I still don¡¯t own the university, at least not yet.¡±


    Elizabeth noticed that her husband had ignored her son¡¯s heartfelt request to apply political pressure on the dean, so she whispered, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Aug, I will have a personal talk with the dean.¡±


    She said it in a low whisper, but the long, pointed ears of the two women sitting opposite Elizabeth and August twitched as they heard everything.


    August sighed. ¡°Father, you don¡¯t get it. I am simply preparing the university for my precious little sister. If I don¡¯t have total control over all the staff working, how can I make sure nobody bullies her?¡±


    Edward had a visible frown on his weathered and aged face, but it softened when he peeked at his beautiful elf wife, Kaylessa, and their only daughter Emilia. Compared to August, a sinister bastard, Emilia was like the golden light of his life.


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    Despite knowing August was leading him by the nose, the idea of Emilia being bullied in university caused him to turn a blind eye to August¡¯s slow takeover of the university. He only noticed how deep his son¡¯s reach really went recently. It was quite frightening that a twenty-year-old had such capabilities to win over so many people to his side.


    The meal continued in its usual awkward silence until King Edward addressed Emilia. ¡°Emi, dear, how are your studies going? Still having trouble with magic?¡±


    Emilia saw her brother¡¯s mocking gaze. At only twenty years old, he already had A-grade in necromancy and B-grade in aerokinesis. The Necromancy was a secret as it was banned. Emilia knew her brother¡¯s secret but didn¡¯t wish to reveal it to the public just yet.


    ¡°I am still stuck at C-grade with Luna magic,¡± she admitted sadly. Edward¡¯s heart ached to see his precious daughter sad, but there was nothing he could do. The books for Luna magic were still back in the Silvermoon Clan¡¯s base, which had been raided and destroyed by the Oshal Empire twenty years ago. It was also such a rare type of magic.


    King Edward had found a few tutors over the years that helped Emilia raise her magic from F- to C-grade, but they all mysteriously went missing. Edward had a slight suspicion it was the work of his son August but had no evidence, and he seemed to like his sister¡­


    After another ten minutes, the meal was finished, and the royal family of Kassinki bid each other good night and left for their respective palace areas.


    Emilia watched as the seductress with short blond hair left with her disgusting son toward the western wing of the palace, flanked by an army of maids, including Evelyn. She then turned to see her mother¡¯s kind but worried eyes. She had long silver hair that curved around her pointed elven ears. Her towering height also contributed to her significant presence that matched her royal background.


    Although she was now called Kaylessa Greentail, she was once Queen of the Silvermoon Clan that resided near the Kazimir Mountain Range in the north. Also known as the home of the vampires.


    ¡°Dear, don¡¯t worry so much,¡± she said, tracing the back of her silky smooth hand across Emilia¡¯s cheek. ¡°I am still looking for a suitable teacher or any records that survived the war; I have my agents working around the clock. I¡¯m sure something will come up soon!¡±


    ¡°Sure, I appreciate it.¡± Emilia smiled. ¡°Good night.¡±


    The two departed ways, and Emilia entered her own room. She made sure to lock her door before sitting at her desk. Her previous smile had vanished entirely.


    ¡°Imryll,¡± she said in a low voice. The room hummed for a moment and then went silent. Finally, a woman clad in black appeared, kneeling next to her.


    ¡°My brother¡¯s influence has grown too much lately,¡± Emilia stated in a cold tone. ¡°His presence has seeped into every aspect of the academy like a plague.¡±


    ¡°It has, my princess,¡± Imryll answered in a professional and subservient tone.


    ¡°Do you have any news on my brother¡¯s shadows?¡±


    Emilia had been given access to a portion of her mother¡¯s agents as an eighteenth birthday present. As a result, she had control over a hundred highly trained elites that guarded her against the shadows and gathered intel on her enemies.


    ¡°Princess,¡± Imryll answered respectfully, ¡°Prince August¡¯s intel network is large and powerful. Also, Queen Elizabeth has her own intel network. So it¡¯s effectively a two versus one situation, and our resources are spread thin while tracking down those missing Luna teachers and books.¡±


    Imryll seemed to hesitate for a second and continued after seeing Emilia nod. ¡°My queen is also fighting some enemies from Oshal in the dark, further spreading our people thin.¡±


    Emilia sighed deeply. ¡°The sentinels of Oshal are making a move?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Princess, it seems Duke Henson is behind their deployment. They are trying to gather intel on someone inside our borders, but we don¡¯t know the target¡¯s identity yet, except that it¡¯s an escaped baron¡¯s daughter.¡±


    Emilia entered deep thought but couldn¡¯t think of any barons¡¯ daughters inside Kassinki that could cause the duke to move Oshal¡¯s special forces. ¡°Do you have any intel on that assistant professor August mentioned at the dinner table today?¡±


    Imryll shook her head. ¡°August has complete control over the school; twenty percent of the students are estimated to be agents working directly in his intel network. They remove any information on Prince August¡¯s movements.¡±


    ¡°I know our resources are spread thin, Imryll, but can you get some information on this teaching assistant? I feel August had an unusual obsession with him from the glint in his eye.¡±


    ¡°Your wish is my command.¡± The room hummed again, and the woman disappeared as if she was never there. Neither the window nor the door opened or closed to allow the women to leave.

 Chapter 13: Insect Caught in the Spider’s Web

    Imryll clicked her tongue as she exited Emilia¡¯s room.


    These royals love to order us around without having any idea how impossible of a task they are requesting.


    She arrived at an inn near the noble gate of the university and checked in for the night under a fake name. Tomorrow she would try to catch sight of this assistant professor.


    For the next three days, Imryll kept a close watch on the university¡¯s gate, but nobody that she didn¡¯t recognize passed through. She really wished to enter and scout out the place. To the untrained eye, the university seemed normal and peaceful enough, but if one looked a little closer¡­


    The two guards standing at the gate had communication stones in their pockets, and if one looked really close, they had a little tattoo on their wrist showing a small black smiling skull.


    Many students were hanging around entrances to buildings or chatting under trees, the majority were just normal students going about their day, but if one looked closer, they could see some students with the tattoo and a communication stone occasionally looking around.


    They were Prince August¡¯s shadows and would report the presence of an elf like her in a heartbeat.


    Imryll decided to wait one more day before trying to break into the university, regardless of the risk.


    The next day, there was finally something new. A horseless carriage drove up to the university gates, and a young man and woman disembarked. Imryll was sure they were her targets. The young man had a tower of books floating beside him¡ªImryll estimated it was psychokinesis of the C or B-grade, but it was hard to tell since it was so rare.


    Psychic was actually one of the most dangerous and powerful magic schools, but it had so many weaknesses and drawbacks that most avoided it. Since they specialized in support abilities, they were often hired by royals or nobles for their telepathy and clairvoyance skills, but in a fight, they were always targeted first due to their weaker defensive and offensive capabilities.


    I will have to be careful with how I approach this. As a psychic mage, he will be hyper aware of his surroundings and might even possess foresight.


    As the duo approached the guards, they waved them in and looked nonchalant about it, but once the two walked past them, they quickly pressed on their communication stones. Every student they passed with the tattoo also pressed on their communication stones.


    Sure enough, Imryll quickly spotted a small group of people that clearly didn¡¯t belong in a university trailing the duo. From their movements, she estimated they were C-grade like herself in varying skills.


    The young nobleman and women oddly seemed completely ignorant of their surroundings and walked into the public library. An hour later, they walked out with a smaller tower of books. Imryll guessed they were different books from before but couldn¡¯t tell from the distance.


    They picked up a few days¡¯ worth of food from a stall before heading off somewhere in their horseless carriage.


    And so the battle began.


    Unknown to the duo in the carriage, over forty people with varying levels of abilities were following them.


    This was what Imryll meant when she¡¯d said their forces were spread thin. She was all alone, but she could see groups of agents that were sticking and working together to take out targets from other groups.


    None of the groups were exactly trying to kill each other but instead prevented the others from gaining the intel they were after. They would try to distract or hold them back, confuse their senses with illusions. Imryll even saw one unlucky guy get tangled up in thorns that shredded his skin.


    Wow, their client must have very deep pockets. Even a B-grade Druid is here. Imryll sighed in resignation; she was merely a C-grade in Spatial magic. She could pass through walls, which was a very useful ability for her job, but since her grade was too low, it produced a humming noise as she passed through.


    She also didn¡¯t have access to high-grade spells like teleportation, warp gates, and spatial storage. One of the agents in Queen Kaylessa service was a B-grade and could teleport short distances! Imryll was incredibly jealous, but raising to a B-grade was no easy feat and required years of practice and inspiration.


    The journey to the target¡¯s house was only a few minutes, but in that time, the number of agents around the carriage had reduced to only ten. Imryll could feel their presence, but not locate their exact whereabouts nor their client¡¯s affiliation.


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    The targets eventually reached the house, and Imryll climbed up a tree and kept watch. After a few hours, it grew dark, and to Imryll¡¯s surprise, she could no longer detect the other ten agents¡¯ presences.


    Did they complete their assignments?


    Agents were usually paid by the hour, so clients wouldn¡¯t want them to stand around all night to gather intel; that would cost thousands of gold, especially for a group employing mages like that B-grade Druid. They were incredibly useful, after all.


    Imryll was in direct service to Princess Emilia, so she had no hourly pay, much to her displeasure. Sometimes she would work for days at a time, and other times she would have nothing to do. Unfortunately, she could never go on vacation or have a true rest because Emilia could call on her at any time.


    Eventually, the sun dipped near the horizon, and Imryll used the last bit of daylight to scout around and make sure all the other agents had left before she could infiltrate the target¡¯s house and gain more information.


    ***


    After returning from the library, Damien was enjoying some wine poured by Fay while reading some new books.


    My psychokinesis is still stuck at C+ grade, every school of magic has different requirements to advance the thresholds of different grades, and unfortunately, all information on Psychic magic above C-grade is a state secret.


    Only by surrendering myself to become a government servant could I access the books and remove the shackles binding me to the C-grade. In the game, I only managed to advance Damien¡¯s psychokinesis to a C-grade since it wasn¡¯t very useful in the game, but now that this is real life, the potential of Psychic magic has completely changed.


    His thoughts came to an abrupt stop as he heard a strange humming noise.


    ¡°Fay, go make some tea,¡± Damien said suddenly, surprising the girl.


    ¡°Tea?¡± she asked with confusion. Damien already had a glass of red wine in his hand, and Fay didn¡¯t like to drink tea personally.


    ¡°We will have a guest arriving soon.¡±


    ¡°Oh? Okay,¡± she responded with confusion. ¡°But who would be visiting this late at night?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m about to find out,¡± Damien replied calmly as he snapped open his pocket watch.


    Fay shrugged and left for the kitchen, closing the door behind her and leaving him in the empty room.


    But there¡¯s one thing for sure, they haven¡¯t come invited. Perhaps the Head Professor sent an assassin to kill me.


    [Damien Nightshade]


    [Noble Vampire]


    Schools Of Magic:


    [Psychic Magic (C+)]


    Psychokinesis [C+]


    Automatic Writing [F]


    Telepathy [E]


    Pyrokinesis [E]


    [Blood Magic (F])]


    -None-


    =Null Spells=


    Mana Control [D]


    I still have almost zero offensive options, especially against a trained assassin. From the noise earlier, I can tell they know some Spatial magic at the C-tier, but I don¡¯t know their other abilities. Shit what should I do? Fight or flee?


    An indisputable calmness spread through him as his [Noble Aura] trait took over. What kind of Monarch would flee their domain at the first sign of trouble?


    Damien frowned and set his wine down on the table beside him. Fine. I suppose it¡¯s time to bluff for my life.


    ***


    Imryll waited till late evening and finally made her move. She quickly ran under the cover of darkness to the house¡¯s front door. She carefully peered through the door using her senses but couldn¡¯t detect anyone guarding it from the other side.


    She pressed her body against the door and activated her Spatial magic. Her mana quickly drained to only half of her reserves as her body entered an almost phantom-like state for a second.


    The door¡¯s matter shuddered as she passed through, causing a humming noise, similar to an insect when it flew past a person¡¯s ear. Finally appearing on the other side, she quickly canceled her skill to save her mana reserves.


    The hallway was dark and devoid of people. This was rather weird for a noble estate; usually, there would be guards in the corridors and maids walking around, but it was dead quiet. If not for the light escaping from a door on the upper floor, she would have assumed this house was empty.


    Suddenly a door on the upper floor opened, and the noble girl walked out and down the stairs. She calmly walked into the back area of the kitchen where drinks are usually prepared. Imryll waited until the girl was occupied before pressing on. She was not her target, the assistant professor was.


    She inspected each room she walked past. The servant¡¯s quarters were deserted with just a few personal items left inside as if they had all vanished somewhere and never come back. The kitchen was also mostly dark, but there was a knife on the counter and some cut meat and bread left out. Imryll had witnessed the noble girl purchasing this food earlier today. The noble girl was through a doorway in the back of the kitchen, humming a tune while she brewed some tea.


    Imryll ignored her and continued through the hallway lightly on her feet like a shadow.


    The rooms had all been stripped of anything useful. Usually noble houses were full of sculptures, art pieces, and monster materials found from the dungeons. Maybe he is low on money and sold it all? she mused.


    Quietly ascended the stairs, she used a little Spatial magic to decrease her weight, so they wouldn¡¯t creak. She had to be fast. One of them was likely to have either skills or items that could detect her presence, as she was only a C-grade.


    She hastily approached the door and put her ear against it, trying to hear any discussion inside while keeping track of the noble girl¡¯s location.


    Welcome, little spy.


    Imryll¡¯s eyes went wide as a voice sounded in her head. It was a weird sensation but one she had felt before.


    Telepathy. A skill known by skilled Psychic mages.


    Before she could escape, the door swung wide open with force, revealing a man sitting calmly in a brown leather chair, his wine-red suit complementing his blood-red eyes and his white hair that fell over his perfectly sculptured face.


    I got to run! Imryll desperately thought as she activated her spatial ability to go through the floor.


    However, the man said something that made her freeze in place.


    Oh, Imryll, what a pleasant surprise! Does Princess Emilia need something from me?


    Somehow the man knew not only her name, but also who she worked for.

 Chapter 14: Manipulator of Both Words and Magic

    Damien spread out his psychokinesis onto the floorboards and the door. With only a C+ grade, he had to lie back into the chair and try to relax to increase his mana regeneration with his [Lazy] trait.


    If I can inflict a wound onto the assassin, I can corrupt their mana flow with Blood magic for a few minutes¡­ That should bring down their fighting potential, but how can I get the jump on an assassin?


    Worst case, I blast them away with pyrokinesis and pray to the gods that they don¡¯t have any protection against fire attacks¡­ god that¡¯s going to hurt so much.


    Damien¡¯s eyes snapped open as he felt some weight pressing on the floorboards. The person crouched down slightly and pressed their head against the door.


    They reached this room so quickly? From their weight, they seem to be rather small or slim¡­likely to be a woman or maybe a smaller race. I can¡¯t smell any of Fay¡¯s blood so they likely didn¡¯t kill Fay, confirming my worst fear. I¡¯m their target.


    After the assassin didn¡¯t break down the door, Damien came up with a good idea.


    Since they already know I¡¯m here, why don¡¯t I pretend I was expecting them? Not like I can get the jump on an assassin anyway.


    Using his D-grade telepathy, Damien made contact with the assassin.


    Welcome, little spy.


    A second later, he felt the assassin¡¯s mana start to attack the floorboards, but his own mana intercepted and seemed to overcome her spell.


    They tried to escape with Spatial magic through the floor. Maybe they came here for information instead of assassination?


    Seeing that the assassin couldn¡¯t escape easily and didn¡¯t seem to be hostile, Damien used psychokinesis to open the door with more force than he had intended.


    Beyond the door was a small woman. She was wearing a black cloak that tried to hide her silver hair and pointed ears, but he saw past that.


    What is an elf doing here?


    A primal urge surged through Damien to bite the woman¡¯s neck. If Fay¡¯s blood smelled like a delectable roast dinner, this woman¡¯s smelled sweet like vanilla. He wanted a taste.


    Damien frowned as he fought off the urge with great difficulty and tried to identify the woman.


    Silver hair and being an elf meant she was part of the Silvermoon Clan. She is also too short to be Princess Emilia or Queen Kaylessa. Maybe she is one of their secret agents.


    Damien thought back to when he did a playthrough as Princess Emilia.


    There was this one mission near the start given by a woman that looks similar called Imryll¡­but that Imryll looked to be about twenty years old. This girl seems a bit younger¡­maybe eighteen.


    Oh, wait, the official storyline still hasn¡¯t started yet! It¡¯s very likely she is a younger Imryll!


    Using telepathy again, Damien hedged his bets on the elven woman.


    Oh, Imryll, what a pleasant surprise! Does Princess Emilia need something from me?


    The elven woman¡¯s face contorted in a weird fashion, and she suddenly moved toward Damien like a phantom.


    W-wha¡ª


    Her hand flashed, and a black blade appeared from within the folds of her cloak.


    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    Before Damien could even react, the assassin had closed the gap and her blade was inches away from his neck.


    Damien was so petrified with fear that he couldn¡¯t move a muscle. All he could do was stare past the dagger at Imyrll. He tried to activate his mana, but he couldn¡¯t picture the spell in his mind eye. The world slowed to a crawl as the dagger inched ever closer.


    So, this is why being a Psychic mage is a terrible idea. Despite all my talent toward it, I can¡¯t concentrate when my life is in danger. It feels like trying to answer trivia questions while having a gun pointed to your head. Kinda muddles up your concentration, believe it or not.


    The black blade slammed into his neck with surprising force, causing Damien¡¯s head to rock to the side, but instead of a decapitated head and a fountain of blood, the black blade shattered like glass, much to the shock of the elven woman.


    Damien, however, wasn¡¯t shocked about the outcome.


    Now, if that blade had been coated in silver, I would be dead right now. Luckily, this is just a standard iron dagger, nothing that can threaten a vampire.


    Damien let out an amused snort as he reached up and brushed the shards of metal off his suit. He continued to maintain a calm demeanor as he took his time to straighten the wrinkles in his suit and reassume his posture.


    His nonchalant attitude seemed to disturb the woman, and she just stood there, confused about how to continue.


    Damien flicked his finger, slamming the door behind her closed.


    Imyrll jolted from the noise, fear in her eyes. She looked between the closed door and him, before saying, ¡°So¡­¡±


    ¡°Please, take a seat, Miss Imryll,¡± Damien said while bringing a chair from the corner of the room with psychokinesis, forcefully placing it under her and making her fall back into it with some force from psychokinesis.


    ¡°How do you know my name?¡± she demanded in a tone she had no right using.


    ¡°Miss Imryll, how about we play a little game?¡± Damien said, ignoring her demans.


    ¡°A game?¡±


    Damien picked up his glass again and took a long sip. ¡°Yes, a game. I will answer one of your questions if you answer one of mine. This will continue until we are both satisfied.¡±


    Imryll didn¡¯t even blink and quickly agreed. She obviously plans to lie.


    Damien leaned back in his chair and swirled around the cheap wine while thinking what to ask first. In truth, this ¡®game¡¯ and all his over the top actions was to buy him some darn time to make sense of the situation.


    I already know who she is, and I can guess why she is here¡­ Why don¡¯t I confuse her instead?


    ¡°Considering you have arrived at my doorstep, then I assume Queen Kaylessa has decided to agree to my plans?¡±


    Imryll made the most confused face Damien had ever seen.


    ¡°What plan?¡± she said cautiously after a moment of thought.


    ¡°Is that your question?¡± Damien asked in a mocking tone, taking another sip of wine.


    ¡°No¡­erm.¡± Imryll became flustered and confused. Not that he could blame her. She was playing a game with a time traveler.


    She works for the princess, not the queen, so she will have no way to verify my words.


    ¡°It would be rather inconvenient to pry any further into our plans. They are top secret and above the pay grade of a little spy like you. Even if you asked the queen, she would feign ignorance.¡±


    Imryll considered Damien¡¯s words for a moment and just slowly nodded with a sad look.


    ¡°To answer your question, I have not come due to the queen¡¯s orders,¡± she replied. ¡°Considering you are in a working relationship with the queen, I won¡¯t participate in this game of questions. I would only be betraying the princess.¡±


    Oh, no. I need to get into the princess¡¯s good books, even if they think I¡¯m working for the queen.


    ¡°Very well, it was only a silly little game. Oh. before you go, Imryll, let me give you something.¡±


    She seemed very hesitant and a little scared but she waited.


    Using psychokinesis, Damien floated over a piece of parchment and an ink-dipped quill. Activating one of his newest skills, Automatic Writing, he quickly wrote down some runes and diagrams, all in front of Imryll¡¯s face.


    He didn¡¯t even glance at it. Even though his mind was straining, his [Noble Aura] refused to let him show that he was putting in any effort.


    Imyrll¡¯s hesitation slowly changed to one of interest and finally one of shock.


    ¡°Are¡­these¡­luna runes?!¡± She carefully held the parchment like it was some kind of national treasure and looked at Damien with wide eyes.


    ¡°Indeed, they are my gift to your princess. Send her my regards,¡± Damien said while trying to wave the woman away.


    ¡°This is a problem¡­¡± she said with worry.


    ¡°How so?¡±


    ¡°There is no way I can make it back to the princess safely while carrying this. All of Prince August¡¯s agents that I passed on my way here will kill me on sight and try to steal it.¡±


    At that moment, the door swung open, and Fay walked in with a tray of tea, almost scaring the poor elven woman to death.


    ¡°I brought the tea, Master. Is this the guest?¡±


    Fay appraised the woman and set the tray of tea on a small table.


    Damien let out a long and tired sigh. ¡°All right, Miss Imryll, please stay here for the time being. I will send Fay to the city tomorrow with a message for the princess to come and retrieve you.¡±


    Imryll gave a deep bow. ¡°I thank the lord for his hospitality. This humble servant of the princess is named Imryll Rosethorn.¡±


    Damien waved his hand for her to sit down and put his wine glass to his lips.


    ¡°Just Sir Damien is fine for me.¡±

 Chapter 15: A Dangerous Deal With A Vampire

    Imryll sat awkwardly in the leather chair. Damien didn¡¯t pay her any more attention and just continued reading his books, as if he hadn¡¯t been almost assassinated five minutes ago.


    Imryll studied his face. He must be incredibly powerful¡­ His skin felt stronger than magicsteel, not to mention he seemed so unfazed by my pathetic assassination attempt. What a mysterious man. He somehow has a deep relationship with the queen and knew luna runes. He¡¯s also a psychic mage that¡¯s also invincible to an assassination? What kind of monster is he?


    Since Imryll worked in intel gathering, she knew how impossible Psychic mages were to deal with. They could foresee your approach with clairvoyance, relay information faster with telepathy, and even fly away with levitation.


    Luckily for her, Psychic mages were terrible in life-or-death situations and had no offensive abilities. The only notable one was petrification, which was restricted to A-grade.


    Psychic mages could also use telepathy to flood their opponent¡¯s mind with useless information or noise to disrupt their spell casting, but to an assassin, that was useless as a dagger to the throat didn¡¯t need spell casting.


    While Imryll took another sip of the watery tea, she noticed one of the books Damien was reading.


    The Secrets of Spatial Magic.


    ¡°Lord Damien.¡±


    Damien looked up with a slightly annoyed face but quickly hid it.


    ¡°Hmh?¡±


    ¡°Do you know Spatial magic?¡± Imryll asked with anticipation. Maybe he could shed some insight on Spatial magic. She wasn¡¯t allowed to attend university, so learning magic had to be done alone at home. As a result, she had been stuck at the C-grade of Spatial magic for the last three years.


    ¡°I know all magic,¡± he answered with unwavering confidence. ¡°Although I cannot use anything other than Psychic magic, I can teach anything else.¡±


    Imryll summoned up some courage and asked, ¡°Could you teach me Spatial magic?¡±


    A dangerous glint passed through Damien¡¯s eyes, and his blood-red eyes seemed to stir as he considered the request.


    ¡°Sure,¡± he snapped the book he was reading closed, ¡°But what¡¯s in it for me?¡±


    Imryll¡¯s initial glee at the acceptance turned into concern. What could she possibly offer this man? He had connections to the queen and soon the princess when she delivered the parchment of runes.


    Imryll considered what she had to offer. She had no money that was of any significant value, and she owned no family heirlooms or magical items. She did have intel about the royal family, but that was all confidential, and he likely knew it all already considering he even knew her name.


    Imryll gulped hard. She had nothing! She glanced at Damien¡¯s amused and handsome face.


    Maybe¡­


    Her pride as a Silvermoon elf almost made her shoot that idea before it could blossom in her heart, but she really wanted to reach a higher grade and not be so useless!


    Was there really nothing else she could offer him?


    She looked over at Fay, who sat in a chair and reading over some notes Damien had provided her. They seemed really easy to understand, and she could almost see the mana moving around her body. Was she at D-grade already?


    Fay looked up from her notes and gave Imryll a smile and said, ¡°It¡¯s not that bad. He¡¯s rather gentle, all things considered.¡±


    What did that mean? How was he gentle?


    Damien had amusement plastered on his face, as if he expected her to give up and let him return to his reading.


    Darn it!


    ¡°I-if you can get me to B-grade¡­I can let you¡­ Ahhh, this is too embarrassing.¡±


    After a deep breath, she said, ¡°You can have my body! Goddamn it, I have nothing else!¡±


    Damien rose from his chair and pulled at his shirt¡¯s cuff links to straighten out his suit.


    ¡°Fay, can you please go run a bath for Miss Imryll? This shouldn¡¯t take long.¡±


    ¡°No, teach me first, then I will pay. I promise and swear on Princess Emilia¡¯s honor!¡± Imryll quickly responded. Thoughts of Damien taking her right here and now were shooting through her head.


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    Damien looked confused and tilted his head. ¡°Relax, Miss Imryll. I was planning to teach you right now. It will only take a few minutes.¡±


    ¡°O-okay?¡± Imryll was very confused and afraid but went with Damien¡¯s statement anyway.


    Fay left the room with a slight smirk on her face, and Damien brought over a piece of paper.


    ¡°Miss Imryll, when you use Spatial magic, how do you visualize going through something in your mind eye?¡±


    Imryll took a second¡ªher mind was a little muddled at the thought of the impending payment¡ªbut she answered quickly. ¡°I imagine myself as breaking up into lots of little pieces, and then I push myself through.¡±


    Damien nodded and brought over a piece of parchment.


    ¡°At your level, Miss Imryll, you are trying to force your way through matter like so.¡±


    He floated the piece of parchment in front of himself and punched a hole through the middle with his fingers. The parchment made a ripping noise as his fingers tore through.


    ¡°This is how you are currently treating Spatial magic: you forcefully punch a hole through reality to go through matter. This is terribly inefficient mana-wise and also creates noise as you do so. This mindset also restricts you to only going through matter rather than around it.¡±


    ¡°How can I go around it?¡± Imryll asked with a lot more interest and concentration now that Damien was explaining such a topic that made sense to her.


    ¡°You are treating the spatial plane as if it¡¯s 2D or flat, but as you can see, even though the parchment is thin, it¡¯s not completely flat. Instead, try to imagine bending the matter and going around it.¡±


    Damien proceeded to bend the parchment at the middle. He then did his punch motion again but hit thin air as the parchment had been moved out of the way. Moving his finger to the side, he circled the paper demonstrating that by bending matter he could move around it without making a sound.


    ¡°Instead of forcing your way through matter, try to bend like this instead. This way you can pass easily and make no noise in the process. Now watch this.¡±


    Damien once again unfolded the parchment.


    ¡°For teleportation, imagine this parchment is the ground.¡±


    Damien then marked two spots on the parchment with ink.


    ¡°If you wanted to travel between these two distances, you can simply fold the parchment and poke a hole through reality and pass through like you have been doing till now. It will make a noise, but do you see how I can shortened the distance between these two marks on the parchment to zero by folding the parchment first?¡±


    Damien folded the parchment and lined up the two ink dots before punching a hole through.


    Imryll just stood there with her jaw gaped open. This wasn¡¯t the knowledge in the textbooks she had read, but it made way more sense!


    Damien then wrote two runic spells along with their translation in this world¡¯s language on a piece of parchment.


    ¡°You can translate runes?¡± she asked as if she was in the presence of a god.


    ¡°Indeed, it¡¯s just a language, after all,¡± Damien answered as if it was easy.


    ¡°No, no, no, nobody can read the runes. We just simply memorize the runes that were left behind by the ancestors. We have no idea what the runes mean!¡±


    Damien just grinned. ¡°This should be enough to justify the payment?¡±


    ¡°Ugh! This is more important than that! This could change the way everyone views magic!¡±


    Damien¡¯s eyes became dangerous. ¡°It¡¯s a bad idea to go back on a deal with me.¡±


    Imryll¡¯s face went pale. Damien was a little scary but seemed kind and gentle enough considering how strong he was¡­but now he was looking at her as if she was just food.


    ¡°Eek, okay, okay! I¡¯m sorry! I will go and prepare!¡±


    Imryll promptly ran out of the room in distress and found Fay waiting in the corridor. ¡°The bath is this way.¡±


    ¡°Lady Fay, is he going to eat me?¡± Imryll asked, half serious and half as a joke. Fay just gave a weird smile and didn¡¯t reply.


    The bath was enormous and fitting for a noble¡¯s house. The ones in Princess Emilia¡¯s part of the palace were larger, but obviously, Imryll had never used them. Instead, she used water provided in a bucket at the inns she stayed in to clean herself.


    She looked down at her feminine figure that lay in the warm water. She was proud of her body that was slightly toned with muscle from her years of training.


    Her mind was scattered. Everything was too confusing. She expected it to take Damien a few days or even weeks to teach her, and that was assuming he could even promote her to B-grade in the first place. She made the deal half assuming it to never be fulfilled.


    But in just half an hour, she felt the familiar feeling of enlightenment she hadn¡¯t felt in years. Her grade had increased to C+, and with a bit more practice, she should be able to reach B-grade in no time.


    Imryll was only eighteen years old, though, and had little experience in this side of being an adult. She had spent her whole life training under Queen Kaylessa and only recently was pushed over to Princess Elizabeth due to her slow progress and lackluster results on missions.


    ¡°Sigh¡­¡± She felt very wrong for trading her body for knowledge, but this world was not kind to the weak, and she had nothing else to offer. Although she had to admit she was slightly curious¡­


    Slumping down into the warm water, Imryll started blowing bubbles into the water to try and distract herself.


    After another few minutes of bathing, she gracefully got out and dried herself with the fluffy and clean towel that was provided.


    ¡°Guess it¡¯s time.¡± She was not happy at the thought of losing her virginity to someone she had just met and had no plan to marry, but she couldn¡¯t regret her slightly rash decision-making earlier. Who could have known he knew how to read runes?


    Her clothes had been removed and replaced with a bathrobe. Probably by Fay while she was occupied with her thoughts.


    Her damp silver hair clung to her neck as she used the bathrobe to cover herself, and she exited the room and walked down the corridor to the master bedroom. She had seen it on the way to the bath, so she knew its location.


    Inside, lying on the bed, was Damien. He was naked and seemed to be enjoying her staring at his abs.


    Eventually, Imryll gathered the courage to walk over to the bed and lay down next to Damien. She was incredibly stiff and felt this whole thing was awkward.


    Before she could even remove her bathrobe or prepare herself, Damien came over. His eyes had become a deep, scarlet red, and his mouth opened, revealing inch-long fangs.


    A vampire?!


    Imryll almost screamed in shock, but Damien grabbed her and pulled her body into a tight hug. He then whispered into her ear.


    ¡°Be careful when making deals with vampires.¡±


    His fangs punctured her delicate skin, and he greedily drank her scarlet elven blood that tasted and smelled like vanilla.


    Imryll let out a yelp and struggled against Damien¡¯s hold, but his strength was insane. She tried to activate her spatial skills, but Blood magic had started circulating in her body and disrupting the flow of her mana.


    Soon, Imryll became disorientated from the lack of blood and fainted in Damien¡¯s embrace.