Laudis went to his room. After a short search, he found the knife. Firstly, he cut off the second sleeve to make the shirt even. Then the boy sliced the material so it would resemble an eye patch. It wasn't as well done as the original one, but at least it matched in some way. The kid left the room and headed to learn.
'I have to read again. I need to understand the vampires better. I only know the basics; I have to know more. After that, I will leave the castle. I won't create any more problems, especially for the staff. One last visit to the library. One lastbook...' Laudis thought, walking to the library.
"Excuse my ignorance," he said after bumping into someone.
"No worries," replied Elisabeth.
"You are going out of the library?"
"Yeah, the king sent me a letter, which I recently acquired. He asked me to come to the guild because of fairly priced books."
"Can I get the key to the library? I will close it up as soon as I leave it."
"I don't know if I'm allowed to share it..." she murmured.
"King acknowledged that I can use the library, so I can obtain it. If he had any problem with that, I would take the responsibility," he stated, gently holding her hands.
"Oh. Okay, just give it to the Brin after you are all done."
"Who is that?"
"The captain of the guards. Haven't you met him?"
"Yeah... I met him."
"Great, so you know him," replied Elisabeth with a very subtle smile, handing the key.
"Thanks."
I sold my dignity for the knowledge. I am doomed... Besides, I will meet with the clown mask again. Only one more night. Only one. In the morning, I will leave this place. I always opt for non-violent solutions. Sadly, mankind is wicked and driven by emotions like kids. I act out my fake feelings; people act out their fake stoicism. We are not the same, not even in a bit...' thought Laudis, continuing the walk to the library.
The kid inserted the key and rotated it in the lock. The door was pretty beat up, yet its mechanism was still in good condition. He opened the library and entered it. Now the books were placed correctly, so you could actually walk there with ease. The windows allowed light to illuminate the shelves filled with various texts. Despite the huge amount of them, Laudis didn't feel overwhelmed by them even a bit. The boy wasn't a fan of reading, but he knew that the writings were more objective than people's words.
'There is only one certain thing in life. Even if people are incorrect, they will lie just not to admit their fallacy. Humans are born as liars; only a few choose not to lie every time they open their mouths. I am no hero, I am a liar like the others. Unlike them, I at least acknowledge my wickedness,' thought Laudis, looking for the book.
The books mostly covered the normal animals rather than the magical ones. Even in the magic aisle, there wasn't any book talking about vampires. He took the key with the skull keychain and opened the room with the banned books. There were only two books on that topic - "The Immortal Delivs" by Jolie Daniau and "The Winged Night Creatures" by Longinus Li Fonti. After a closer inspection, the boy decided to read the second book because it was more recent - twelve years old instead of seventy-three years old.
"The Basics:
The origin of the vampires is unknown to us. It is impossible to know something for sure. Theories say that they are a divine hybrid or a cursed lineage, but that is not important. Now I will go straight to the most valuable notion, that is their weaknesses. Vampires transformed into many subspecies. Ghouls evolved in the dark swamps. They lost their wings completely, but gained greater physical strength and stamina. They also became smaller and lighter, yet they are probably the strongest subspecies. Sea Drowners evolved near the sea. They transformed their wings into some kind of fin. Their ability to fly was greatly reduced to shorter distances, but they are the most dangerous in water or during the rain. Mirage Wings evolved in the desert. They became taller and faster at the cost of weaker element usage. Of course, there are many more subspecies, but I do not have enough time to write about every one of them.
The Most Important Aspect:
Despite various changes, all of them still have the same weakness - the sun. A prophecy says that the Vampire, who conquers the sun, will wield the power to free or kill mankind."
'Sun Conqueror? That's an interesting title,' thought Laudis with intrigue.
"Even half-vampires cannot withstand the sun for more than five minutes. Every vampire's subspecies is weak to one element only, but they can resist one or more elements better. Full Blood (normal ones) are weak to the Fire element and resist the Shadow element (curses are less effective on them). Ghouls are weak to the Light element and resist both Plant and Earth elements. Sea Drowners are weak to the Earth element and resist the Water element. Mirage Wings are weak to the Water element and resist both Fire and Light elements (blessings are more effective on them). I am focused on the most common ones only.
The Vampire Rank Structure:
There is a vampire hierarchy, which goes like this (from the most to the least important): Vampire King, Vampire Prince/-s, Upper Hands, Vampire Officers, Vampire Aristocracy, Vampires, and Half-Vampires. Currently, human slaves can be placed between the normal and Half-Vampires (the current king despises the impure vampires to that extent that even humans are more valuable to him). Most are probably understandable by name alone; perhaps only the Upper Hands are an odd one. They are chosen by the king alone, and they serve as the regional rulers under the supreme authority. There are seven Upper Hands members enlisted below:
The seventh strongest: Sloth. He is known for his ability to curse people by making their moves slower over time. He prefers exhausting his foe rather than engaging in direct combat. He uses the Ice semi-element and the Whip of Sands.
The sixth strongest: Lust. Her key ability allows her to control people's minds. She can be especially dangerous due to the fact that the weak-minded and lustful men are more prone to her influence. She uses the Magma synthesized element and the Spade of Impurity.
The fifth strongest: Gluttony. His special power grants him quick regeneration of stamina and mana whenever he eats any creature; however, humans satisfy him the most. He is very hard to kill because of his quick reflexes. He uses the Obsidian synthesized element and the Morning Star of Hades.
The fourth strongest: Greed. Her signature skill allows her to drain mana whenever she touches the target. She uses the Steel synthesized element and the Falchion of Undead.
The third strongest: Envy. His ability grants him the possibility to cast strong curses on people and to copy opponents' techniques with ease. He uses the Glass synthesized element and the Crossbow of Bloodthirst.
The second strongest: Wrath. No information besides his Mercury synthesized element.
The strongest one: Pride. No clear information about his person is known to anyone.
As you can see, the stronger they are, the less clear the information becomes. It is due to the fact that the only sources I used are direct encounters with them. They can use only the semi-element or synthesized element, because they are anointed and thus cannot use primary ones. After they are marked, their strength becomes significantly greater at the cost of their memories and emotional stability. Now I will list their power in six categories: attack, defence, intelligence, battle intelligence (experience), speed, and magic usage. The scale is from one to ten, where one is the worst possible outcome and ten is the best one. For reference, an average human would get two points out of ten in each category."
'Is it some fantasy book or a board game perhaps? Why the hell does he use this weird scaling system? Couldn't he just write about their best feats?' thought Laudis with a disoriented look.
"Sloth:
Attack - 5,3; Defence - 6,7; IQ - 4,3; BIQ - 6,3; Speed - 4,9; Magic Usage - 7,1
Lust:
Attack - 6,6; Defence - 7,4; IQ - 6,7; BIQ - 5,8; Speed - 5,9; Magic Usage - 7,2
Gluttony:
Attack - 6,9; Defence - 7,6; IQ - 7,2; BIQ - 6,7; Speed - 6,6; Magic Usage - 7,4
Greed:
Attack - 7,4; Defence - 7,1; IQ - 7,8; BIQ - 7,6; Speed - 8,2; Magic Usage - 8,1
Envy:
Attack - 8,6; Defence - 6,8; IQ - 8,4; BIQ - 8,8; Speed - 8,6; Magic Usage - 8,6
Wrath (estimated):
Attack - 9,2; Defence - 9,1; IQ - 8,2; BIQ - 9,4; Speed - 8,8; Magic Usage - 8,9
Pride (even more estimated):
Attack - 9,4; Defence - 9,3; IQ - 9,4; BIQ - 9,6; Speed - 9,2; Magic Usage - 9,3
At last, I kept the strongest foes. Current ruler of the Vampires and his only son.
Vampire Prince: Umbrosus Tenbrenum. The only son of the Vampire Monarch. He destroys whole villages by himself; he is ruthless and does not play by the rules, to his father's anger. The only one who can kill him is the King.
Vampire King: Sanguisius Tenbrenum. The fifth king of the Vampire Empire. He has a strict hierarchy of his people, full of honour and subjective justice. Hermits say that when he activates his signature aura, he is capable of wielding every Element. The king is also known for his signature curse: Curse of the Vampire King. The Strongest Vampire.
Umbrosus Tenbrenum:
Attack - 9,6; Defence - 9,4; IQ - 9,3; BIQ - 9,5; Speed - 9,4; Magic Usage - 9,6
Sanguisius Tenbrenum:
Attack - 9,8; Defence - 9,8; IQ - 9,9; BIQ - 9,8; Speed - 9,9; Magic Usage - 9,9
But don't neglect the vampires, who are lower in hierarchy. The Vampire Officers and Aristocracy can be as strong as Lust, but these groups vary greatly. Some are weak with no fighting capabilities, and there are some, like Moon, one of the most experienced generals. He is very dangerous, even without the anointment; he is still one of the strongest foes, and it is advised to avoid head-to-head combat with him.
The Conclusion:
Vampires are even more wicked than humans, so do not listen to them even a bit. They do not know what morality, empathy, or honour is. Kill them as soon as it is possible."
'They lack human emotions and empathy. To be honest, I resemble a vampire more than a human. Maybe I am really a vampire... Nah, I don't crave blood nor flesh... yet,' thought Laudis, placing the book in its original place.
Laudis closed the room and left the library. The kid walked to the guards with the key. He really did not want to meet the clown mask Brin again, but he had no choice. The boy slowly opened the doors, and everyone started looking at him. The captain sat in the middle with the bandaged leg.
"What do you want now?!" a guard shouted.
"I am here only to pass the key to the library. You all can calm down, today is the last day I spend in this castle. Tomorrow I leave it as soon as the sun rises," said Laudis, trying to de-escalate the situation.
"Come to me," said Brin with a stoic face.
The kid went up to him, but he did not let his guard down. He knew that it was better to be secured, so he had already started reaching into his pocket with the knife. The captain laid a hand on his shoulder.
"I apologize for this morning. My emotions got the best of me. I should just talk to you instead of trying to kill you."
"Yeah, not a big deal, I guess. Here, I will go now," he replied, handing the key.
"Wait! Here, I had it in my pocket. I think it belongs to you," the captain passed the eye patch.
"Thanks."
The boy left the room.
"Why did you slide him off so easy captain?!"
"He isn't a threat; he is actually an ally. A valuable ally. He doesn't look strong, but his battle experience is remarkable," he replied, drinking beer.
The sun began to hide behind the horizon. Laudis decided to go to the kitchen one last time and then go to sleep. He walked straight to the room without any problems besides a vase, which he knocked over. The kid caught it mid-air, preventing the unpleasant consequence.
"Hey, are you there, Leon?!"
"Yeah, coming! So what brings ya here?" asked Leon, holding a steel spatula.
"Do you have any leftovers for me?"
"Of course. Here ya go," he passed down a plate with a half loaf of bread, sausages and ham.
"Thank you a lot, I will repay you one day. I promise it to you."
"Nah, ya all good. So what's yar plan for tomorrow?"
"At sunrise, I leave the castle. Some people dislike my presence, and I don't mind it. Also, I probably have to start training for the second and the third one. To be honest, I don't know much about them. King didn't specify anything about them."
"The second trial is physical training. You have to be able to achieve a set goal. The targets vary; some had to dig a specific amount of stone, others had to hunt down animals, or even kill the bear with a knife only," the cook said, looking down.
"How do you know so much about the second trial?" he wondered with disbelief.
"I tried to become a Crusader. I completed my second trial; I had to kill eighteen mammals in twelve hours. Yet I couldn't complete the third trial."
"What is the third trial?"
"I can't tell you."
"Why?"
"I am forbidden to tell anyone by the blessing I received. I am still under its influence for three more years. You can try to become a Crusader once every ten years."
"That's quite a serious protocol if you ask me."
"Yeah, they are really strict on that matter. Now, did it taste good?"
"Yeah, thanks again. I will send the money for them as soon as I make some," he stated, leaving the room.
"Don't worry too much about that. Just pass the exams!"
Laudis went to his room. He finally changed the primitive eye patch for a normal one. The kid again cut off the moonlight source. He took off his custom-made shirt, boots, and trousers and lay on the bed.
'In the morning, I leave this place. I don't care whether I have to go on foot or ride a caret. Now, only one thing is left. What does this page exactly mean? I don't see any resemblance to any living creature. It kinda looks like an oversized gargoyle or a birdman. And that phrase "Vur Ceso Thamino Pi Tesing Remo". Maybe Will knows about it; he is the only one I can share the page with. The only one who can't share the information,' thought Laudis, holding the page.
After a while, he hid the page in the shoe insole and fell asleep. The kid was in a different place. Unlike the first one, it was a grey area with two charis and a massive clock on the ceiling. The room's gravity and air were normal. As soon as he sat down in the chair, the clock started to run, and Will summoned the second one.
"Greetings, mortal."
"Greetings, immortal."
"What brings you here?"
"The page, do you know anything about it?"
"What page?"
"Damn. I don't have it with me," Laudis realized with frustration.
"You can imagine anything here. You can create a replica without any problems. Of course, if you remember it."
"Imagine you say? Okay... Oh, here," he passed down the page.
"Hmm... A creature with abnormally huge wings, holding a sword and a book. The phrase "Vur Ceso Thamino Pi Tesing Remo" is also gibberish. Hard to tell anything clear about it; it is for sure some sort of living creature. The words don't ring a bell to me; it is some sort of coding. Judging by their position, I can tell that only letters were shuffled, but spacing and letter count are still the same. I advise you to try to break the code in your free time, as it can be useful later. Also, I don't think that anyone alive might be able to decode it. If you want, I can do it for you, but you know what I request, right?"
"Yeah, a sacrifice. What should it be for you to solve it?"
"Let me think... I want to take control of your body for a week. I won't kill you or anyone else. Do you accept the deal?"
"Nah, I doubt it will come in handy in the future. Besides, I didn't even kill a Vampire Aristocrat yet, so why bother with perhaps myths?"
"As you wish? Are you content now, Laudis?"
"Yes. I end the meeting."
The clock's hands began to move uncontrollably fast and hit the 12:00. The loud screech echoed in the room, waking Laudis up. It was a sunrise.