Chapter 316 Understanding the world
<1 hour later>
We had a lengthy talk about how my current world works and the kinds of things Alice should be aware of. Most things Alice managed to understand, but there were a couple of concepts that just baffled her.
She found it hard to believe that everyone could use witchcraft, which is how she called her abilities. That led me to explain how we refer to it as magic and that everyone has an innate affinity for it. It also surprised her to learn that there isn't really much of a racial hierarchy anymore and that generally all races are considered equal.
I also noticed her feelings towards other beings were mostly summed up by whether they seem tasty or not. According to what Alice explained about her world, people would give themselves to maintain peace. It was an interesting idea, but that still doesn't make their system right. Even if, say, it was only the elderly who gave themselves up, they were still tearing families apart. At any rate, if I want to convince her that not everyone is food I'll need to help her get close to others so that she could see for herself how they're not so different from her.
"With you mostly caught up, are there any questions?" Opening it up to Alice to ask anything, I expected at least another hour of back and forth before we are done.
"How should I treat people now? If we vampires are no longer the supreme beings, how am I meant to act?" Alice scratched her head. None of her experiences so far prepared her for this day.
"Just act like you are with me. You don't have to treat everyone with respect or care. As long as you don't bother them, they won't bother you. There are a lot of unspoken rules between beings when it comes to communication, but that will take time to learn."
"The main thing I want you to realise is that people are not going to be afraid of you, neither will they accept your authority." It will be a big adjustment to her world view, but as long as she stays with me, I'm sure Alice will learn quickly how to fit in.
"Arghh, why didn't my future self say anything about this?" Alice let herself fall back into the chair and looked up at the ceiling. It was probably an information overload, so maybe it's best we stop for the time being.
"Just think, your future self was able to adjust to this world, so who says you can't?" It felt cheap to use her future self as a way to justify everything, but I wasn't wrong. She managed to live for 2000+ years without causing any major problems, so surely Alice can achieve the same.
"That also means I will eventually get a body like hers…" While it's possible her appearance was altered when we found her sealed, if it was all-natural then Alice indeed has a few growth spurts ahead of her.
"Anyway, feel free to ask questions anytime, but for now we should get some sleep." I looked at the time through the system and it was getting very late.
"You know that, as a vampire, you just need to drink some blood and you can keep going." Alice looked at me confused as to why I was suggesting we sleep.
"Hang on, if that's the case, when was the last time you slept?" I couldn't believe what I was hearing. If just a bit of blood is enough to keep going then…
'NO! I can't be getting horny right now.'
"It's been about a year now since I've last slept. The beds were never comfortable, plus with how big the place was there were plenty of chores to take care of... so I kept busy" Alice shrugged, feeling nothing wrong about staying awake for an entire year.
"That's amazing that you don't need to sleep, but honestly, you are missing out. Tonight you are sleeping in this bed and you will see what you have been missing out on." While on the surface I was parroting the advantages of sleep, another part of my mind was excitedly reviewing all the… other benefits of being able to replenish my stamina on demand.
'I guess the only issue is having a supply of blood. I do have Shaman and Clara, but taking too much blood will cause problems for them.
"O-oh okay, I guess I can try." Alice looked nervous, as there was only one bed and she didn't expect to be sleeping, let alone sharing a bed.
"Trust me, you won't regret it, plus there is nothing to do for like 6 hours unless you want me to stuff your head with more information." Alice seemed to be good at finding things to keep herself busy, but I was tired enough and had no intention to go in search of more work.
"T-true, I guess it would be boring to sit here and do nothing." Alice was unable to refute anything, plus there was no reason to decline.
"Well, I'm going to wash up first and, umm… unwind before we get in bed." Having somehow gotten myself aroused, there was no better way to take care of it than some alone time in the bath.
"Want to hear another benefit? Drinking blood also has detoxifying capabilities." Once again, another great thing about being a vampire, and yet another demonstration that the only thing that interests Alice is blood…
"That's great and all Novella, but I swear, there are more things to enjoy in life than just sucking people's blood. I am going to show you every leisure activity there is, just so you can see how far technology has come." If I was to rehabilitate Alice, I'm gonna have to change her mindset, and her obsession with blood will definitely only make things difficult down the line.
"I'll believe you if this bed is the best thing I've ever slept in." Alice was still highly sceptical of these claims, but I couldn't wait to see her reaction after she realised how right I was.
"We'll see about that." I got up from the bed, making my way to the bathroom to have some alone time. It was also a great chance to message Shaman and update her on my progress.
'I can imagine she is worried about me.' Once I was in the bathroom, I let the bath fill with hot water while I drafted up a message to send. However, when I opened up the chat system, I was bombarded with notifications.
<Shaman>
[ELYSIA, WHY DID YOU SET YOUR PICTURE LIKE THAT!? YOU KNOW SILVER AND ELANOR CAN SEE IT TOO?]
[ALSO IT MAKES IT ALL THE MORE AGONISING, KNOWING THAT I CAN SEE THEM BUT CAN'T TOUCH THEM!!!!!!]
[10+ messages]
<Clara>
[Elysia, for the sake of me and Shaman, please change to a more appropriate profile picture. Silver also wanted me to tell you this: "I don't like seeing my mother's massive cleavage every time I want to message her." So um, please change it. Kindly Clara]
"..."
'I didn't think it was that bad.' Looking at my profile again, maybe it was a little too raunchy.
'I guess I'll take a new photo before I undress.' Deciding to listen to them so they'd stop bombarding me with messages, I went through the process of taking a photo again. This time it was just a photo of my face with my fangs poking out and my typical crazy smile.
'There, surely they can't yell at me now.' With a safer picture now set and bath at the ready, it was time to relax
**
<Teivel POV>
"How did she survive in the dungeon?" Slamming my fist onto the desk, I was infuriated to see that my granddaughter had come out of a dungeon in only a day, completely unscathed. Elysia even suddenly gained the demeanor of a vampire queen.
"I-it was as if she knew the layout of the place already. She successfully avoided Alucard three times and dealt with regular vampires like they were nothing." The cloaked figure in front of me reported what he saw, but I simply couldn't believe it. My granddaughter successfully evaded one of the most powerful dungeon creatures there are.
"Also, after entering Alucard's home, she came out obtaining vampiric powers that seemed to be on par with Alucard's, though she has yet to master them. As for the tiny vampire who came out with her, unfortunately I am unsure of their true origins."
'How!? How is this even fucking possible?! I've tried for so long to find our queen's legacy yet Elysia finds it on her first day!!' Hearing more and more of the report added fuel to my anger.
A message left behind by my father was to pass the trial of the dungeon and obtain the vampire queen's knowledge. However, after years of fighting Alucard, I still hadn't been able to find this knowledge.
'It should have been mine!' There was no doubt in my mind that Elysia's sudden transformation was related to this secret knowledge, but it left the question of how. I tapped my desk, trying to think if there were any external factors that I have failed to predict.
There was the fact that Elysia came back willingly, so did she already know about this legacy or? did the legacy call to her on its own?
'Do I just accept it and make her the queen of the Dahlia family?' I didn't want to give up my position so easily, but right now Elysia has the right to it.
'I need to test her loyalty to the family.' My pride was taking a hit, but there is nothing more disgraceful than denying tradition. If fate has made her the ruler, then all I can do is make sure she becomes the most ruthless one in history.
"What are your next orders, my lord?" The cloaked figure kneeled, awaiting my orders, but I couldn't care less what he does. I had other priorities to focus on, so the dungeon was the least of my concerns at the moment.
"Leave, figure out how she found Queen Alice's legacy and don't return unless you find something concrete."
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