Magic in the Upper Plane is largely divided into two categories.
White Magic and Black Magic.
At first glance, it might seem like they are divided based on some clear standard of good and evil, but since magic is ultimately just a specific way of utilizing mana, the two are not that different.
The criterion that separated the two was whether or not the magic was established in ‘The Order’s database’.
White Magic was the magic of The Order, traditionally established within their database over hundreds of years.
And Black Magic referred to unique mana utilization techniques that were passed down through the bloodlines of minority races or secretly transmitted, leaving no record in The Order's data.
The reason Black Magic was called Black Magic was that most of it had been lost or buried in the flow of time.
This was because, due to the nature of Black Magic being passed down through poor records or memory, the line of succession was very often broken during the long War against Demons.
…And Jerry’s Vampire Clan was also a group that had passed down its own unique Black Magic for generations.
“…Do we really have to do this?”
“Yeah.”
“…I’ll say it again, I definitely warned you. I’ve never once succeeded with this Black Magic. In the first place, the reason I’m scraping together money and searching for traces of Black Magic is to preserve the clan—.”
“That’s enough, just bite me. How many times do I have to tell you? I said I’ll handle it.”
“……”
“Seriously, you’re just like a bat-person… so damn cowardly.”
“…Bats and rats are strictly different.”
“Shut up. If you say one more word, partner or not, I’m just going to throw you into a dungeon.”
“……”
After hesitating for a long time at my command to bite my forearm, Jerry only reluctantly supported my arm after I shouted at him.
Of course, I could understand why he was reluctant.
A half-baked Black Magic, operated without a proper Magic Formula, would have twisted the practitioner’s—his—Mana Circuit and inflicted extreme pain.
By this point, he had probably been sick in bed for weeks at a time from biting a few people in the name of practice.
…Judging by his deep dark circles and his reaction, it seemed he had been laid up relatively recently, too.
‘…Still, he needs to get on with it. We don’t have much time left.’
The man, who reluctantly brought my forearm to his mouth, sank the fangs hidden inside his mouth into my right forearm.
Plunge—
Soon, the unique, cold mana of the Vampire Clan seeped into my veins.
Along with it, I heard the urgent sound of a system notification.
Tiring—!
[An unknown magic is encroaching upon your body.]
[Warning! Unrecorded magic is interfering with the Mana Circuit.]
[Warning! The Mana Circuit is changing its structure due to an external influence.]
[Warning……!]
Urgent messages popped up one after another.
But I could afford a relaxed smile.
The reason was simple.
“…Shall we begin?”
This cold mana, the system’s warnings.
And the Black Magic I was about to perform.
…They were all things I had experienced once before.
* * *
Although he was a descendant of the Dracula Family, which formed the cornerstone of the Vampire Clan, Jerry had never been directly taught the family's innate magic by his predecessors.
The reason was simple.
He was a half-blood child, abandoned by the family.
As a half-blood born to his mother, ‘Jamie Dracula’, and a human male, Jerry was cast out of the family before he was even born from his mother’s womb.
Without any proper protection, he and his mother wandered and hid among humans, but their identities were eventually discovered by a Vampire Hunter.
At the tender age of seven, he was left all alone.
Therefore, the only family magic Jerry remembered was what he had seen over his mother’s shoulder as she used it in secret.
『…The special mana of our Vampire Clan forcibly transforms the target’s Mana Circuit. And… in most cases, since the innate Mana Circuit is fixed, they cannot withstand the distortion and their lives come to an end.』
『…That’s why the original Blood Demon Art contains a Magic Formula that can compensate for that distortion… That is the part we must restore.』
『…It should be possible with your body and the information I’ve gathered so far. It’s the first time I’ve seen a human of this type… a body with no limit to its Mana Circuit.』
The partnership Jerry and I formed in my past life had started from that very point.
To restore the Dracula Family’s innate magic, which had been lost with the clan’s extermination, by using the characteristic of my Innate Ability that allowed me to flexibly alter my Mana Circuit.
『…We’ve finally succeeded.』
『Wow. I almost died for real this time.』
…To get straight to the point, we succeeded.
Literally, after overcoming several near-death experiences, Jerry and I were able to restore the Dracula Clan’s Black Magic, <Blood Demon Art>, albeit imperfectly.
『It’s not complete, but… how does it feel for now? Is it still painful?』
『Well, I don’t feel anything special. My whole body is sore, like I have muscle aches. But other than that.』
『…Unexpected. In theory, I thought there would be more intense pain.』
『What, you crazy bastard?』
『…A joke. For now, let’s test the ability.』
.
.
.
Ugh—
Starting from the forearm where his fangs had touched, thick veins bulged.
Along with the painful sensation of every blood vessel in my body expanding to twice its size, my muscles twitched erratically.
I bit down on my molars, swallowing the groan that threatened to escape from the full-body twisting pain.
I dug my fingernails into the veiny forearm, drawing blood.
Then I soaked the tip of my index finger in that blood and brought it to my earring.
Simultaneously.
Vwiiing—
[An abnormal reaction is detected from <Artifact: Red Cross Earring (★☆☆☆☆)>.]
The earring, reacting to the vampire’s blood, began to tremble.
“That’s……”
I heard Jerry’s voice, but I didn’t have the leeway to turn my gaze.
[…Warning! An unknown Magic Formula is reacting to your mana.]
At the same time, I activated my Innate Ability and transformed my Mana Circuit, following the earring’s mana pattern.
‘I won’t be able to realize it completely at my current level, but……!’
[<Innate Ability: Absolute Realization> is activated.]
[Mana Circuit activation is detected.]
[Analyzing the Mana Circuit’s pattern…….]
The incomplete Blood Demon Art, forcibly realized.
[Forcibly realizing <Skill: ??? (★☆☆)> according to the synchronization rate.]
[Warning! This is a skill unsuited for the caster’s level.]
[Warning! This is a skill not recorded in the database. The skill’s effects cannot be determined.]
Paaat—
Along with the crimson Magic Circle unique to the Vampire Clan that was drawn above the earring, my already turbulent Mana Circuit began to rage even more fiercely.
Kududuk—
The outcry of the Mana Circuit, formed deep within my body, was so loud it felt like it was leaking out through my bones and skin.
But compared to the weight of the pain felt in that instant, the duration itself wasn’t that long.
The mysterious mana flowing from the red Magic Circle seeped into my blood vessels, creating a calming effect.
The Mana Circuit, which had been thrashing about without direction, began to draw a constant pattern according to the rules.
Pshiii—
Soon, the flushed red veins all over my body began to contract again, and the muscles that had been tensed to their limit relaxed.
“Hoo—.”
As I let out a breath to expel the heat and looked at my reflection in the window.
Bloodshot eyes and slightly paler skin came into view.
…It was a success.
Tiring—!
[A strange, permanent change has occurred in your Mana Circuit.]
[A new Trait blossoms.]
[You have acquired <Trait: Half-Vampire (★☆☆)>.]
+
<Trait List>
■The Chosen One (★☆☆)
[The Chosen One gains Grade 3 access to The Order's database. You can view targets within your line of sight, with restrictions based on the information's importance.]
■Slaughterer (★☆☆)
[When the Slaughterer kills entities consecutively, Slaughterer stacks are accumulated. Stacks up to 5 times, increasing attack speed by 10% per stack.]
■Half-Vampire (★☆☆)
[The Half-Vampire possesses superior regenerative abilities compared to others. This effect increases dramatically when absorbing the blood of a hunted target.]
+
Vampire.
A combat-oriented recovery Trait that had played the most crucial role in defining my fighting style in my past life.
Because it hadn't manifested completely, it had ‘Half-’ attached to the front, but seeing the Trait sitting proudly in the system window, a smile unknowingly spread across my lips.
Grin—
To confirm that the Trait had been properly applied, I raked my fingernails across my forearm, leaving a long gash.
Jjiiik—
The skin on my forearm split with an unpleasant sound, gaping open and gushing blood.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
“…The effect is solid.”
Before five seconds had passed, it began to heal at a rapid pace.
I looked up to check Jerry’s face.
Pfft—
‘…I’m seeing a lot of rare sights today.’
He was making an utterly indescribable expression.
A rare expression, one I would have definitely wanted to capture if I had a camera.
No, in the first place, he was so expressionless that seeing any expression at all was a once-every-few-years event.
He was definitely surprised.
“That……”
His eyes turned to the earring on my ear.
“As you can see… even this wasn’t enough to fully draw out the Magic Formula engraved on this earring.”
“……”
“This should be proof enough, right?”
“…I see.”
Ssk—
To the now-convinced man, I took off my right earring and handed it to him.
“…Are you giving this to me?”
“Yeah.”
“…With nothing in return?”
“…If you really need a reason, we can just call it a symbol of our partnership or a down payment.”
“……”
“Besides, this is an item that needs both pieces to complete the Magic Formula… and I’ve already received something from you.”
“…I’ll gratefully accept.”
He said, ‘with nothing in return’.
But in truth, it was hard to call this a one-sided down payment.
Even if it was only half-baked, the value of the <Vampire> Trait, which had already vanished from the Upper Plane, was not cheap.
However, from the perspective of a man who was pouring tens of thousands of Coins into expedition teams and research labs every year to revive his extinct family's Black Magic, it wasn't strange for him to feel that way.
“Take good care of it. This……”
Well, whatever the case, from the moment I first saw this at the Seventh Door, I had intended to give one of the earrings to him.
This.
“Is a keepsake from your mother.”
…It was an item that was meant to go to him from the very beginning.