Chapter 11
He placed his hands on both doors. They weren't locked. With just a little push they opened.
And both opened simultaneously.
Asmodeus peeked into the left door. It had huge racks containing books. Way too many books.
It looked as if every kind of book could be found there.
“Hopefully history isn't one of them.”
“Anyway, what's in the other one?”
Peeking through the right door, Asmodeus found a large empty room with padded floors and a few cupboards along the walls.
“Is it some kind of training ground or something?”
“But I don't see any equipment or anything.”
“Maybe they're in the cupboards.”
Asmodeus stood in front of both the doors.
“Are you asking me to choose between knowledge and power?”
“If that is the case, I already know my answer.”
Asmodeus walked through the left door, searched through the racks and found a book labelled,
[This is what you are desperate to know.]
“Oh? How would you know what I want to know? Let's start with you then.”
He picked it up, walked out the library and entered the training ground.
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He sat on one side of the training ground leaning against a wall.
“This isn't comfortable at all. I need a beanbag.”
He then glanced down at the ring.
“Hey, ring, can I smuggle a beanbag here?”
There was complete silence. All Asmodeus could hear was his own breathing and heartbeat.
“Wait… how is there oxygen here?”
“Maybe the book will explain.”
“Live up to your name, book.”
Asmodeus opened the book. The first lines read,
[Greetings to whoever you are.
My name is Christopher White.
If I were being honest, it's Christopher Whittington Rosenvein.]
“The what??”
“What do you mean by White? You my family? Then why say Whittington Rosenvein?”
“Wait… it's like shortening Whittington to White, but… why?”
“And why even shorten it?”
“What else has this guy written?”
[If you can even read this, then that means you are already a vampire.]
“What the—”
“Nice. My brain is doing overtime with this dream. I shouldn't have read so many vampire bls.”
[I am your ancestor. And I've written this book to help you walk through your new life.]
“...”
“...Okay, I'll consider it for now.”
“Don't disappoint me, old man.”
[This might seem strange but I'd like to assure you that you aren't insane.]
“When did I say I was?”
[This is a long story.]
“Can't you summarise it?”
[So I'll summarise it for you.]
“Oh, thank you, Chri… Chro… um… Crow.”
[As I said, I'm Christopher Whittington Rosenvein.
I was once a vampire.
I've been a duke in Velacia.
Velacia… now that name has become a nostalgia.
It once contained my home, my family and my people.]
“Then why the hell did the ring travel to Terris?”
[But my people didn't share my interests.]
“Why did you want the entire place to share the same brain cell?”
[They wanted war while I wanted peace.]
“Sounds like a civilization.”
[They were reckless, stubborn, and had no regard to their own lives. ]
"Why am I catching strays?”
[They were obsessed with power. All vampires strived for the top.]
“Humans do the same. What's the difference, the fangs?”
[I couldn't bear to see the weak get crushed. So I vowed to become the strongest.
If I were at the top, then the position from where weak would be attacked from, would be occupied.
This will ensure their safety. ]
“...”
“I don't know if this ex-vampy guy is acting stupid or is genuinely stupid.”
[I tried my best.
I stayed disciplined.
My blood and sweat brought me to the top.
And I became the first Tire 10 vampire in history of Velacia.]
“...”
[But it was a dangerous thing to reveal. Hence, I desperately had to act as a Tire 8.]
“Bro, you are giving me every reason to defenestrate you.”
[While I wanted to celebrate my achievement, I had to hide them, for that was the only way to save the weak.]
“If I were there during your ruling, I'd personally start a rebellion.”
“Wait, did nobody ever rebel against you? Or were you too stupid to recognise one?”
[But then I learned about humans in a folklore. I became interested in them.
Then I wanted to meet one myself.]
“So that's where my fantasy obsession comes from.”
[So I left the dukedom and tried to create a spell to take me to them.]
“Okay, I'm not that obsessed.”
The ring on his finger told a different story.
[I took on huge calculations based only on the folklore.]
“Stop sounding like me.”
[Being a Tire 10 helped me in my journey.]
[It was perhaps the pity of the universe that I succeeded in my quest of finding humans.]
“...”
[When I teleported to this place called Terris, the bright daylight filled me with warmth.]
“Are you sure it wasn't you, a vampy, burning in sunlight?”
[Thus I decided to become a human myself.]
“How??”