I waited.
The window slid open fully now, but I didn’t hear anyone walking in.
In the end, I opened my eyes to look for the intruder.
"You’re awake?"
The voice belonged to a young woman.
Despite seeing me awake, she wasn’t worried.
I was only a one-year-old child, after all.
"Was the sleep gas dosage too light? Or did you just not sleep yet? It was only supposed to work on people who were already asleep."
’So, she used sleep gas.’
’That would explain why Seris hadn’t woken up, even when I lifted her with telekinesis.’
I stared at her, careful not to make noise, or she could attack me.
She wore a skin-tight black suit, a jacket loosely hanging over it. Her hair was tied back. Red eyes glinted in the moonlight spilling through the window.
Liana Ferndale.
The girlfriend my ’uncle’ had brought to the party today.
She was from a family that had ties with Dracula Clan.
"Now, shhh. Stay like that, okay?"
Her eyes shimmered unnaturally.
A foreign force tried to enter my mind.
[Charm]
The effect washed over me, but it didn’t control me completely as it was supposed to.
My Spirit stat was too high for that.
Still, my body had become immobile, leaving only my mind free.
’What is she trying to do?’
I decided to wait to see what her intentions were. Though, I could guess they were not good intentions.
She began to chant a Spell under her breath and brought her palm to her mouth, biting her finger with her sharp fangs.
Blood welled up.
She raised her hand, and a crimson magic circle began to form in the air.
A blood-based spell.
I recognized it instantly.
[Crimson Hollow Vow] —a type of Blood Poison Curse.
It was a nasty stuff.
The Spell required a drop of blood from a Dhampir or Vampire.
Once cast, it would burrow into the target’s body, and become nearly undetectable.
The caster would be able to slowly weaken the victim over time... or instantly kill them at will.
I stayed still.
She stepped closer. Her expression remained relaxed.
Just a few more seconds...
As her hand reached for my face, I moved.
I chanted two spells back-to-back in my mind without hesitation. Two magic circles shimmered into existence.
"What—!?"
Her eyes widened, but it was too late.
One portal opened in front of me. The second was behind her head.
I fired a [Magic Bullet] into the first portal.
It emerged from the second and struck her in the back of the skull. The Magic Bullet came out from the front.
Blood spurted from the exit wound.
Her body jerked forward. I thought it was over.
But then her hand lashed out and slammed into my stomach.
I flew across the room and crashed into the wall. My back cracked against the wooden frame, and I coughed blood immediately.
"Who are you!?" she screamed, stepping back in shock. "A disguised guard?"
I didn’t answer. My lungs burned, and my ribs ached, but I kept my focus.
No one else would come to rescue me despite the noise we made.
She’d said it herself—the gas only worked on those who were already asleep. Since people would sleep at night. Everyone must be out cold.
She wiped the blood from her face and glared at me.
’She is a Dhampir. A headshot isn’t enough to kill her.’
I instantly recognized as her a lower ranked species of Vampires.
Dhampirs had two hearts. You needed to destroy both to kill them.
"Hiss..."
She bared her fangs. Her nails elongated.
She didn’t rush me this time.
Instead, she watched cautiously.
This must be her first time seeing Spatial Magic. It made her wary.
But she quickly decided to make a move.
She dashed forward, closing the distance in a blink.
I fired another [Magic Bullet] into a portal.
The portal opened near her temple, but she reacted faster this time and dodged it with ease.
However, I wasn’t done.
Another portal opened in the path of the missed shot, redirecting it.
She predicted I would target her head again, and was late to react when the magic bullet pierced through her calf.
She winced, staggered, but didn’t stop running.
Her hand came down, aiming to skewer me.
I raised a portal in front of my chest. Her arm plunged into it.
She froze, realizing her mistake.
I twisted the portal’s exit behind her, and the second her arm shot through, I fired another [Magic Bullet].
It ripped through her back and pierced one of her hearts.
She screamed in pain and jumped away, cradling her chest. Her breathing became ragged.
Still, she didn’t fall.
Both of us were injured and drained, but neither wanted to back down.
She moved again.
"You are dead now!"
She started to chant a Spell.
I fired another Magic Bullet. She dodged it easily, and expected me to use another portal.
But this time, instead of creating another portal, I used [Telekinesis].
The flying bullet I had fired curved mid-air.
Her eyes widened.
The sudden move caught her by surprise. She was a moment late to react, and in a battle a single moment was enough to decide a victor and a loser.
The bullet pierced through her second heart.
The light left her eyes.
Her body dropped to the floor with a dull thud, riddled with holes. Blood kept leaking from the wounds, forming a wide pool that soaked into the carpet.
Just to be sure, I raised a shaking hand and fired five more [Magic Bullets].
Each one hit with a sharp thud, piercing deeper into what was already dead.
Silence returned.
I stayed on the floor, unable to move for a moment.
Pain throbbed in every inch of my body.
My ribs felt crushed, and every breath stung like a knife to the side.
Blood coated my lips, but I was still breathing. I had survived.
She hadn’t.
With a low groan, I pushed myself up and sat against the wall. Cold sweat clung to my skin.
You have resisted: Charm. +2 Spirit.
Magic Bullet: 0-Star → 1-Star
Telekinesis: 0-Star → 1-Star
’As expected,’ I thought, wiping blood off my chin. ’Fighting is the fastest way to grow.’
Moreover, my Endurance would increase once I healed. It was a good way to increase my lowest stat.
I looked at the corpse sprawled across the room.
Liana Ferndale. A Dhampir.
She had been here to curse me with Crimson Hollow Vow, a blood poison curse only castable by Vampires or Dhampirs.
A long-term spell that weakened the body, and let the caster end the target’s life at any time.
The Spell was undetectable by most means once it was in place.
Why had she used it on me?
My thoughts immediately went to Frank.
’He must’ve sent her.’
I didn’t know why a person from supernatural side of the world was helping him, but that was not my concern right now.
I focused on the fact that he tried to use a blood poison curse on me, instead of killing me outright.
Honestly, I could’ve let her curse me.
But I didn’t for a reason.
I had an inkling what he might do with the curse.