[Elise's Perspective]
When I awoke, I awoke in the arms of the [Goddess of Death], Morrigan. The one who did me a favour during the confrontation against Orphelia, who allowed me to save Olivia's life back then.
And her reaction was...
-HYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!
Yes. A goddess screamed in fear when she saw me rise out of nowhere, with a huge scar running from my shoulder to my abdomen.
Uh. No. That wasn't why.
-You died for Dagda! How could you possibly stand up again! What the hell did I do to you when I made you reincarnate?!
I'm sure he's thinking it was because of her, but I can't really explain what was going on so easily since I didn't even know where to begin.
Ugh, Saeko's communication difficulties are affecting me now too... not that it bothers me or anything.
Before I could even utter a word, a flashing beam of light streaked across the darkened sky, spreading out like a huge trunk from which branches were sprouting and spreading across the sky.
It's so... beautiful...
But Morrigan realised something immediately...
-You have to go, Elise! Liselotte is at the source of that tree, this is not a magic she can perform!
Coming back to my senses, I wordlessly got up from the ground. I started to run in the direction of the source of the tree.
It's near a high mountain, so it's hard to get lost.
That cut makes my tits visible... it went through my clothes to where they cut me.
And since I have to take care of all the things that go wrong anyway, it's a pity for Uldricth since he tried too hard to decipher the runes of the curse.
But I have no choice. In order to face Enigma, I must become a monster just like her...
- - -
[You have equipped the "Armor of Sacrifice" set. From now on, 0.01% of your HP will be drained every second by wearing the armour].
- - -
The deployable helmet, breastplate, boots and gloves of a black metal that resisted consecutive hits from a titanic golem were equipped.
All this without stopping my pace. As I ran, notifications from the system kept coming in.
- - -
[We have penalised you for your death. All your skills have been removed except for the ones you started with. We have also removed 50% of your previous base stats. We have left your general skills the same. And your experience counter has been reset].
[Currently, your "Status" is as follows:
General:
Elise Redhart II (Nishimiya Saika) - Higher Vampire Lvl. 1.
Skills:
Vampirism Lvl. Max
Night Vision Lvl. Max
Immortality Lvl. Max
Longevity Lvl. Max
Titles:
Heiress of Calamity.
Base stats:
Vitality: 277,901
Intelligence: 332,199
Stamina: 308,718
Attack: 572,420
Defense: 403,000
Speed: 319,455
Blessing: 0
Impurity: 75
General Abilities:
Critical Hit Chance: 24.6%
Magic Estimate: 44.98%
Aim Estimate: 93.1%
Defence Breakage: 51.0%
Thought Process: 0.99ms
Magical Nullification: 23.2%
Death Chance: -0.5%]
- - -
Alright, that was a fucking bullshit nerf, fix your fucking game, you fucking gods!
¡¡¡¡You didn't tell me about this, Frill!!!!
Fine! I'll figure out what to do on the fly!
Anyway, I'm here...!
Without hesitating about what was going on, I charged past Liselotte, who seemed to be absorbed in watching the emergence of the tree.
Whoever is summoning this magic is a sorcerer... although, it gives off a strange smell that I have never smelled on a human before.
Anyway, thanks to the enormous momentum I had gained, and the fact that I caught my target off guard, I was able to take his head off with a single uppercut.
A perfectly executed blow, so much so that I couldn't help but scream:
-Jackpot!
Just like Saeko would have said if she were in my place. It was amazing how I decapitated a guy with a single blow.
I don't know what this magic is, but it's definitely... dangerous stuff.
I'm just getting up from dying, right now I'm walking around as if I just got a hit in a platform game.
Ahh, I don't want to know when this time of grace is going to be over, I still need to recover mentally...
-Elise, be careful!
Liselotte warns me, so I react immediately, backing away from the area where I just decapitated the man. Where a multitude of leaves falling from the tree piled up.
I don't quite understand how this magic works... it's difficult to decipher...
-It's all made up of the five runes up there! And that guy over there is a vampire, he's not going to die just because you behead him! Leave the magic to me and you take care of him!
Liselotte, who for some reason had knelt down, got back to her feet. It seems that the daze of a moment ago has worn off.
I give a confident smile, watching her out of the corner of my eye, and give her a thumbs-up to let her know I understand.
Well, this is going to be an interesting fight...
[Third Person Perspective]
The moment Maxwell's head regenerated, the first thing that managed to differ from his vision was that Liselotte was nowhere to be seen, and had now been replaced by the golden-haired girl.
Maxwell's eyes widened like saucers as he recognised the face in front of him, and he could only mutter...
-... Redhart...
Elise, who was a living copy of Redhart's appearance from a thousand years ago, stands in a boxing stance.
That Elise now appeared in front of Maxwell was a great surprise. For the prediction she made a millennium ago came true.
"Someday there will come a person who will inherit what we destroyed.
These are some of the words Maxwell said to Liselotte before the latter lost consciousness from her transformation into Lich.
That vague memory was only able to be revived by having Elise in front of him.
And there is no choice but to start a fight now.
Elise took the first step, raising her left fist towards Maxwell's face, the wizard could hardly react to block the blow.
What he didn't notice because of his slow reaction time was that Elise parried the blow before Maxwell could grab his hand, and brought her knee up to impact the warlock's abdomen.
-Ghg...!
Maxwell wanted to pull back, as the blow caused him to lose his breath. However, Elise clasped her hands behind Maxwell's neck and pulled him towards her.
As she pulled him, Elise deployed the helmet of her armour and Maxwell received a powerful headbutt that caused him to bleed from his nostrils.
She didn't stop at that, and clapped her hands with all her might in Maxwell's ears, destroying his eardrums with the impact alone.
Maxwell didn't understand how she, being considerably weaker than a [Vampire Lord] was able to hurt him with so little effort.
And the more Maxwell thought, the more Elise failed to stop her attacks, as she drove her hands into Maxwell's throat and abdomen in order to lift him up.
The vampire's blood dripped from both wounds equally, falling on Elise, who again removed her helmet and began to drink Maxwell's blood as if it were rainwater.
- - -
[Fatal warning! We have blocked the remaining 40% of your stats from being stolen by "Vampirism Lvl. Max" coming from "Elise Redhart."]
- - -
That's the message that came into Maxwell's head after being drained like an uncovered pig.
All the years of consuming human blood and flesh had been taken away by the hunger of a vampire inferior to him.
Elise, whose strength had increased explosively in a very short time, pulled her right hand out of Maxwell's abdomen along with the warlock's intestines, and allowed herself to hit the ground with Maxwell's body.
-Thank you very much for the stats. Beating Enigma would have been impossible with the few stats he had.
Maxwell, whose throat was being brutally pierced by the claws of Elise's gauntlet, could not speak.
Elise's tone of voice had changed. And Maxwell could feel this vampire's growing desire to kill.
The difference between the Elise of the past and the current Elise is resentment.
Saika, who controls the body permanently now, was totally resentful of all vampires. She wants to kill each and every one of them with all her might.
Despite not knowing Maxwell, he is still a vampire in the end.
Elise wants to rip his heart out, but only stops herself because Liselotte most certainly needs the living asshole to stop her spell.
She snatches the Prana-charged orb from Maxwell's hand, which was the anchor to make this sorcery possible.
-There's... nothing left...
Maxwell forces his words through his shattered throat, to which Elise looks back at the sorcerer.
-So? Your spell must have stopped. Without the catalyst, there's no way this can continue.
Elise loosens her grip on Maxwell slightly, making it a little easier for Maxwell to speak.
Maxwell, relieved of the relentless pain of not being able to regenerate his tissues, and being outmatched by the golden-haired girl, just gives up.
-I never meant to harm anyone... that is the purpose of creating this magic... but I knew Liselotte would not understand the complexity of this spell.
-Explain yourself, wizard. And hold nothing back.
-I used every last bit of my being for this spell... I'm going to die anyway. Let this tree... the Yggsdrasil, spread across the heavens, it's just a way of asking for forgiveness.
Elise could notice that little by little, Maxwell's body was turning to dust. It is cracking, like a sand castle being carried away by the tide.
With a simple inspection using the advantages of the system, he could tell that Maxwell's magic threads were incinerated.
For a monster it is important that its magic threads transmit mana through the body, if that becomes impossible, the death of the individual is a given.
Maxwell then continues.
-Every sorcerer in human history had wanted to reach [The Rift]... they all failed, thanks to Liselotte. She did it as a way of protecting them... she was right...
-Reaching [The Rift] means that your sorcery transcends into [True Magic]... something capable of creating a miracle, right?
-Right... I also wanted to be able to achieve [True Magic]... that's why I became a vampire, in order to dedicate my immortality to the study of magic.
Elise gives him a small look of pity now...
The study of magic is something you dedicate your whole life to. If you fail at it, you will achieve nothing... certainly wizards are people who deserve recognition for their efforts.
She runs out of options for things to say. But Elise gives her best smile and says encouragingly to Maxwell:
-You may rest, wizard! Your [True Magic] is beautiful. As long as it is not dangerous, I promise I will convince Liselotte not to destroy the fruit of your life.
Maxwell was surprised by Elise's words. Seeing a smile on that face... it reminded him of the Redhart of that time.
He knew Redhart a little, but he had never seen that she could put on a cheerful expression like this.
He didn't know that Redhart could smile as well...
That someone would recognise all the efforts he put in for centuries to achieve magic... it could only comfort Maxwell's old, blackened heart.
A few tears spilled from Maxwell's eyes... and he could only say one more thing before he disappeared...
-This [True Magic]... I inherit it from you, Elise Redhart... please right the wrongs of the past... save Ifgraine from the East.
-? Wait, I'm not good with magic! What the hell are you talking about?! You're scaring me!
-Gather the dew from the tree, and heal the wounds healed by Lucifer...
With his ragged, almost dusty fingers, Maxwell touched Elise's wrist.
In that brief instant, she felt a bitter, heavy sensation, as the magical power injected itself inside her, she realised that this "True Magic" was not a miracle... it was a curse.
Maxwell wasn't looking to save anyone. He wanted someone else to experience his same suffering. And in his last moments, he marked the next victim of the curse he created.
- - -
[You have been cursed with the "True Magic" : World Tree, Yggsdrasil]
- - -
And Elise... was completely blocked, not being able to comprehend anything that just happened. Nor having any idea what would happen because of that curse.
[Elise's Perspective]
The guy vanished without saying another word...
What was this shit?!
I just took a couple of hits and he died! I can't believe he was such a wimp in the first place!
Well, his life was already over since it was impossible for mana to flow into his body.... But it's still too stupid!
I didn't do anything, really! A fit vampire would have endured all this!
I'd like to say it's my defeat but... this guy turned to dust, there's no way to say I didn't win this fight!
-Elise! I couldn't undo the spell, it was already rooted enough to [The Rift] to do anything. And it looks like you were able to defeat it....
Liselotte missed the disappointing fight I just had... seriously, I'm embarrassed to say I beat this damn guy.
-Who the hell was this guy? -. I ask, wanting to know the identity of my pitiful victim.
Liselotte adjusts her glasses, and looks down at the dust... only bending down to pick up the ominous staff she had the last time I saw her.
Looks like the guy disarmed her, eh?
-It was the greatest wizard of mankind, my master, Alexander Yggsdrasil Maxwell....
-;(!*×(>+(?~#@÷>!
-Elise?! He cast a spell on you before you killed him?! That guy was the one who designed the magic to kill vampires!
I felt like I was about to have a panic attack.
The greatest wizard... No, no, noooo!
I don't want to admit that I beat someone with such a great nickname and reputation in such a miserable way! I want to die ahhhhhh!
Take me back, Frill, this world is more shameful than I remember!
I don't want to live!
I ended up bent over, hugging my knees, as little tears of misery rolled down my cheeks.
I hate this situation, Sae-chan...
-Uh, I see you're fine... and really, I'm impressed with you, how could you survive "Dagda"?
Now that things were much more relaxed, Liselotte asks me. She sits on top of her master's ashes, she really doesn't seem to care that the guy is dead.
-I...
I was about to tell her just what had happened, but...
I don't expect her to believe me if I tell her that I was reincarnated with my sister. Frill said it herself, it's something that violates the rules of a reincarnated person.
For the same reason, it would be stupid if I told Liselotte everything that happened.
-You can't hide anything from me, Elise... or should I say, Saika?
-Uh...
-I read your "Status" when you appeared, and your name changed from "Saeko" to "Saika"... which means that something really twisted happened during your death, is that so?
...
She never leaves anything out, uh...
But...
-Who's Saika? -. I ask, wanting to play it cool.
Liselotte raises an eyebrow then, and goes back to using "Valuation" on me.
By that time, I had already changed that paragraph in my name... so that it no longer said "Saika" and instead "Saeko" was written all over it.
-Wait, I really read that your name had been changed. That can't be a mistake...
Liselotte looks confused. Of course, for her, the "System" is something that can't be manipulated so lightly. The only point is that "I" am the "System". Changing those values in my favour is childish.
I don't want anyone to know about the change. I need to keep everything low-key if I want to fulfil what I promised Sae-chan at our farewell.
I wiped my face with my renewed determination as I stood up once more... and held out a hand to Liselotte so she could stand up.
Liselotte looks at my hand... and hesitates to take it.
-It's all right, Liselotte. It's all right, Liselotte. They let me come back because they needed me to take care of Enigma.
-... all right.
Liselotte takes my hand, and I pull her towards me so she can stand up.
-But... you're not going to die after you solve this, are you? -. She asks, as if to make sure of something.
-No. I want to live until I'm satisfied with myself.
-I understand. Thanks for coming to help me, Elise.
-Haha, it's nothing to thank me for. But now... How do we know where Enigma is?
-Well... given what she said, there's only one answer to that...
By this point, Morrigan had already quietly joined us. She seems to have some kind of alliance with Liselotte now.
Liselotte herself grabs my shoulder, and seconds later, a magic circle forms under our feet.
Looks like we're going to use teleportation now. If this is necessary, I wonder how far away we are from the place in question.