"Is this Evangeline-san's home?"
Ayaka murmured as she looked up at the rustic log house. After the welcome party, Chizuru had let the cat out of the bag regarding my "sparring match," and the end result was both Chizuru and Ayaka insisting on coming along.
Natsumi had dashed off to drama club practice the moment the party ended, so we didn't have to worry about her for the time being. We'd made a quick stop at the dorms to drop off our bags and change clothes before heading back to the outskirts of campus.
I made sure to bring the wand and the tome Evangeline had given me. Leaving items of that nature lying around a triple-occupancy dorm room was a recipe for disaster. My beacon, however, remained tucked away in Ayaka's desk. Since it was already malfunctioning, I wanted to avoid any unnecessary impact or vibration.
"Welcome, everyone," Chachamaru greeted us at the door. "The Master is expecting you. Please, come in."
"Pardon the intrusion," Ayaka said, leading the way.
We stepped into the living room. The area I'd scorched yesterday with my botched fire spell was already pristine, as if the fire had never happened. I gave the room a brief, impressed look before turning to the small figure on the sofa.
"I'm here. Where are we doing this?"
"The basement," Evangeline replied, setting her teacup down with a click. "Follow me."
She didn't wait for a response, heading straight for a door at the back of the house. We followed her down into what appeared to be a storage cellar, though one object in the center of the room immediately caught my eye. It was a glass sphere, about the size of a basketball, resting on a pedestal. Inside the sphere sat a miniature, highly detailed castle.
"Oh, I know what these are," Chizuru said, tilting her head. "A ship in a bottle, right? Or… a castle in a bottle?"
Evangeline smirked, a flash of pride crossing her features. "Hardly. This is a Diorama Magic Sphere. We can discuss the details once we're on the other side. Touch the glass."
The other side? I thought. I placed my hand on the sphere along with Ayaka and Chizuru. A split second later, the cellar vanished.
"What—?! Direct teleportation?"
"Oho. You recognized it," Evangeline said, her voice floating from above.
The world had shifted. We were standing on the rooftop of a high stone tower. The air was crisp, and the sky had a strange, ethereal quality to it. Evangeline wasn't standing on the stone with us; she was hovering a few feet in the air.
Across from our tower sat a massive, imposing castle, connected to us by a long stone bridge. The bridge was barely wide enough for two people and lacked even a hint of a railing.
Wait. That castle… it looks familiar.
"I see," I muttered, looking out at the miniature landscape.
"So, you've realized," Evangeline said, looking impressed.
"Realized what?" Ayaka asked. She was taking the sudden change in location remarkably well, standing near the edge of the tower without a hint of vertigo.
"My, what a lovely view," Chizuru added, calmly surveying the horizon.
"We're inside the sphere," I explained. "This is the castle we saw through the glass."
"Oh! Now that you mention it, that building does look exactly like the miniature," Ayaka noted.
"Standing around won't get us anywhere," Eva said, gesturing for us to follow. "The castle is our destination."
She began to drift across the bridge, Chachamaru walking behind her with the steady, fearless gait of an android.
"I suppose we should head across as well," Chizuru said. "Axel-kun… would you mind holding our hands?"
"Sure."
I took Ayaka's right hand and Chizuru's left. The bridge was a sheer drop on both sides, and while I wasn't bothered, I moved slowly for their sake. It took us about ten minutes of careful treading to reach the other side.
"Evangeline-san," Ayaka said, catching her breath as we reached the castle gates. "You really should consider installing some handrails."
"Hmph. There is no need for such things. Most people who enter this space don't bother with the indignity of walking on the ground."
"Well, we can't fly," Ayaka countered.
"Handrails would offend my aesthetic sensibilities," Eva said dismissively. "If it bothers you that much… get used to it."
She reached into the air and pulled out a fist-sized crystal ball, handing it to Ayaka.
"What's this for?"
"The crystal is enchanted. Look."
We peered into the depths of the glass. It showed a wide, open courtyard—likely somewhere on the castle grounds.
"This is where Axel and I will settle our score. If you 'normals' stay nearby, you'll just get caught in the crossfire. Chachamaru will take you inside the castle; you can watch the fight through that crystal in safety. Chachamaru?"
"Understood," the android replied. "Yukihiro-san, Naba-san, please follow me."
"Wait, but Axel-kun…" Ayaka looked at me, her eyes clouded with worry.
"I'll be fine," I assured her. "Eva's right. If things get serious, the shockwaves alone could hurt you. I'd feel better knowing you're watching from a distance."
"...Very well," Ayaka said softly. "Good luck, Axel-kun."
"Please be careful not to get hurt," Chizuru added.
They followed Chachamaru into the main keep, leaving me alone with the vampire.
"Kuku. You've only known them for a few days, yet they're already quite fond of you."
"They don't see me as a peer," I replied dryly. "They've got it into their heads that they're my guardians. Given my current height, it's a hard argument to win."
Eva gave me a long, inquisitive look. "I've been meaning to ask… how old are you, really? You clearly aren't the child you appear to be."
"I'm in my mid-twenties. Mentally, at least."
"...Tch. Is that all? My intuition must be getting rusty." She let out a bored sigh.
"How old did you think I was?"
"I sensed the weight of at least two centuries on your soul."
I let out a huff of laughter. Even if I added my previous life to this one, I wouldn't even hit fifty. "You're overestimating me. What about you, Eva? What's the count?"
"Roughly six hundred years."
"Six hundred?!"
I couldn't hide my surprise. If she was telling the truth, this "child" had been alive since the early 1400s. It was hard to reconcile that span of time with her often bratty personality. Perhaps being turned into a vampire at a young age caused her mental development to stagnate alongside her physical one.
"Enough talk. The battlefield is this way."
Eva floated toward the courtyard, and I followed on foot. Watching her drift effortlessly through the air made me wonder—if I used my Telekinesis to lift my own body, could I achieve the same effect? Flight seemed to be a standard feature for mages in this world. I'd have to experiment with that later.
We reached the courtyard—a massive, paved stone plaza. There was no greenery, no cover; just a flat, open expanse.
"This should work," I noted. It wasn't great for a gunfight, but for a match involving Telekinesis, slimes, and Spirit Commands, it was perfect.
"Before we begin," Eva said, turning to me, "I'll need a bit of your blood."
"My blood?"
"Even in this space, my natural mana recovery is pathetic. I need a catalyst to jumpstart my systems. The blood of someone with immense mana is the quickest way to restore my strength."
"If you bite me, am I going to turn into a vampire?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.
"With your level of mana? Your soul would subconsciously reject the infection before it even took root. You have nothing to worry about."
"If you say so. Is my hand okay?"
"Normally, the neck is the traditional choice, but—ugh, fine, fine! Stop screaming!" Eva shouted at the air.
"Who are you talking to?"
"Yukihiro and Naba. They're watching us through the crystal. The moment I mentioned your neck, they started shrieking like banshees."
I had to admit, I appreciated their protectiveness, even if it was a bit much.
"Hurry up. Give me your arm."
I stepped forward and extended my arm.
"I shall partake, then," Eva said, almost like a prayer. She grabbed my forearm and bit down.
"—?!"
She'd barely swallowed a few drops before she recoiled, her eyes wide with shock. She scrambled backward, putting several yards between us.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"You… are you actually human?!"
"Last I checked, yeah. Why?"
"..."
She didn't answer, instead closing her eyes to focus on her own body. I glanced at her status. My jaw nearly dropped. Her stats were skyrocketing—far beyond where they'd been a minute ago. Her SP had already surged past 280.
Takahata had mentioned she was under a powerful seal cast by someone called the "Thousand Master." But looking at these numbers…
"Did the seal break?"
Eva winced at the mention of the seal. "No. Takahamichi told you about that, did he? The seal remains. I can only maintain this state while I'm inside this diorama. It's my 'Resort,' after all."
"I see. Then why the shocked face? You drank my blood to recover mana, didn't you?"
"Yes, but I didn't expect a few drops to do this. Your blood… it contains magic of an absurdly high purity. It's almost toxic."
"Is that why you asked if I was human?"
"Exactly. I've never seen anything like it. Not even a High Daywalker like myself carries blood this concentrated. If you gave a single drop to a dying mage, they'd probably reach full capacity instantly—assuming their heart didn't explode from the pressure. Listen to me, Axel. Keep this a secret from other mages. If they find out what you are, they'll hunt you just to turn you into a living battery."
I hadn't expected my blood to be that potent. Was it because of my high SP stat? Or was it a side-effect of the slime's "Absorption" ability? Either way, I'd take her advice. Being a "living battery" sounded like a miserable way to spend an afternoon.
"Out of curiosity," I asked, "if it's that pure, how did it taste?"
Eva made a face, as if she'd just sucked on a lemon. "Terrible."
"Terrible? I thought high purity was a good thing."
"Think of it this way: what happens if you put a cup of salt into a single bowl of soup? Or a bag of sugar into one cup of tea?"
I immediately thought of the "prototype" dishes Cornelia used to force-feed me back in the Code Geass world. My stomach did a phantom somersault.
"...Got it. Overpowering."
"Precisely. It tastes like a chemical burn. But as they say, 'good medicine tastes bitter.' In terms of utility, your blood is the finest vintage I've ever tasted."
"I'm thrilled to be classified as medicine," I said dryly. "Now that you're topped off, shall we?"
"Let's. I owe you one, Axel Almar. I didn't think I'd ever feel this close to my old self again. I'm at about eighty percent of my true power. A rare treat, indeed."
We backed away from each other, giving ourselves room to breathe. The air in the courtyard began to hum with static tension.
I felt the familiar rush of adrenaline.
Then, we both kicked off the ground at the exact same time.
[Status Window]
Name: Axel Almar
Level: 38
PP: 625
Melee: 262 | Ranged: 282 | Skill: 272 | Defense: 272 | Evasion: 302 | Accuracy: 322
SP: 462
Ace Bonus: SP Boost (Consumes SP to enhance Slime performance)
Growth Type: All-Rounder / Special
Terrain: Air: S | Ground: S | Water: S | Space: S
Spirit Commands: Accel, Effort, Focus, Direct Hit, Awaken, Love
Skills: EXP Up, SP Boost, Telekinesis Lv.10, Attacker, Gunfight Lv.9, Infight Lv.9, Morale Limit Break,
Geass (Greyed), Magic (Fire/Shadow/Summoning)
Total Kills: 376
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