After Edmund was fully reborn as a vampire, He began to slowly shift his behavior from that of a child to that of an adult.
It was in line with his character- it was one of the big changes he had to go through to justify a bloodthirsty character in the future.
An unfortunate side effect of being an adult is also an added responsibility. He and Cecil started a kind of home schooling between them. In the days, after Cecil had finished his cleaning routine and fed him properly, Edmund taught him the alphabet. Although when Xiao Xun was fantasy-baptized he read an ancient book, the letters were not the official written language of the continent, if he wanted to manage in the future anywhere in the capital alone he would need to know at least that.
When Cecil heard this, he no longer wanted to study, "I don't want to manage alone in the capital! I want Edmund to stay with me!"
"But wouldn't you like to accompany me to the royal academy? You can't do that without knowing how to read." A small change of wording can make a big difference, Cecil's furrowed brows relaxed and he nodded resolutely.
After everything was agreed upon, the days flew by. Xiao Xun's power grew gradually and although Cecil did not become a great scholar, he could remember most of the instructions after a time or two, which made learning much smoother than Xiao Xun had imagined.
Two or three years after Edmund taught Cecil he already had the knowledge level of a middle school student, and as for Edmund, it became possible to remove the dark curtains and meet sunlight at home without concern for his health.
Although Cecil was as submissive as ever, he was very strict in their training regime. It was tolerable when he couldn't leave the house during the day because Cecil hunted alone at night and always refused to let him join, But after his sensitivity to the sun subsided, Cecil changed their routine from jumping in place, squats and soaking in blood baths to hours and hours of running.
Xiao Xun was not ready to accept the new reality that was forced upon him, but Cecil, who was two years older than him, was persistent in this training and did not succumb to physical coercion. Anyone who passed through the forest in those days could see a crying teen being chased by a slightly older teen, The one yelling at him to 'maintain his posture' and 'to not drag his feet', Xiao Xun regretted the moment that he had desperately tried to improve his vocabulary, the misuse made of it is simply not worth it.
The cruel abuse finally paid off after several months: His body felt lighter, and a thin layer of muscle began to cover his body.
He had to admit that the abuse did make him more handsome. Even without his training, as Yao Xun grew older and stronger, his looks did change quite a bit. The veins on his neck and body were less visible, his fangs shortened over the years and he began to grow as tall as a wild weed. Now, at 1.81 (~6f) he was taller than most people of the time and only a few centimeters shorter than Cecil.
Eighteen-year-old Cecil had become tall and muscular in an almost monstrous way for the age.
They ate and exercised the same (except for the nights, when Cecil goes to moon-godess-knows-where), so why was the difference so big?
When he first met Cecil, he wanted his power more than anything, but blood immersions were slow and were not held more than once a month. If he hadn't already became a vampire he would have found an easier field of magic for himself, where the basics could be learned methodically without a core of magic. Unfortunately for him, his transformation into a vampire also made it impossible for him to find any other method.
Vampires and humans have a complicated predator-prey relationship, the appearance of a helpless vampire in a human area will almost certainly lead to some size of angry mob, no sane magic teacher would take him. In the early years it was the thought that kept him from finding another, but now he admitted to himself that he just liked the relaxation of slow progress with Cecil.
He cannot go back from the path he chose.
Apart from an ancient book or two that Cecil pulled out now and then, he didn't know much about the magic system of this world.
While during the day he taught Cecil a fraction of his infinite store of knowledge, and at night Cecil went out after making sure Xiao Xun slept peacefully, evenings were his "magic tutoring". It was very different from what he initially thought. There were no fights or wands. Instead, they have passed the evenings lying on the sofa while Cecil reads a very random magic book to Edmund.
The books contained knowledge ranging from irrelevant to straight-up nonsense. From how long does a dragon's egg take to hatch (461 years) and how long according to legend is the hair of Lumiha, the third runner-up of the number one traveling bard contest winner in 218 AD (44 and a half centimeters).
Although the passing years had been almost entirely useless to him, Xiao Xun loved these peaceful days, yet the plot was approaching him by leaps and bounds. He waited right up a month before the start of the school year, trying to squeeze the little peace he had dry.
Sadly, he couldn't afford to keep waiting. The routine he and Cecile built together must fall apart.
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Cecil wasn't a big fan of the idea of abandoning their warm house to the unknown, and more importantly, extremely crowded capital.
He could be at ease in the last few years mostly because even if he wanted to, Edmund couldn't leave.
Edmund always thought the chains binding him to him were his vampiric appearance. This was not the case.
The unique scent he always had on him made sure that no matter what, as long as he ran away from their isolated home Cecil would quickly find him. That was the only reason he left calmly at night, knowing Edmund would always be with him.
He worked very hard to keep Edmund useless. It was hard to suppress his grandiose ambitions over the years to leisurely couch magic studies, on esoteric and unmattered subjects.
Edmund's talent for self-study that night, nine years ago, horrified him.
The ability to grasp the exact principle from the pile of nonsense he threw into the air and extract the truth from it was alarming.
He planned to turn Edmund into a subordinate familiar, a low-class vampire who would always need his blood in order to survive. Even without knowing this intention, Edmund turned himself into a full-fledged vampire and evaded all the traps he set.
Alarming, very alarming.
He thought he had already rubbed the idea of "going to the capital" out of his mind, But it seems to have been engraved in it.
Edmund wanted to leave.
This will hurt him, it seems that no matter what he gives, he himself wasn't enough for him.
At this moment, Cecil was more relieved than ever that he had kept Edmund away from his potential. He felt guilty about it sometimes when he looked at his old face and wondered if it was right of him to withhold it from someone who so wants to learn.
How glad he was now that he hadn't backed down.
If not for his abilities, would Edmund even bother taking him with him? Will he leave the second he finds someone more useful?
It wasn't normal to think so, he knew.
Yet Edmund's behavior brought it out of him. It seems that no matter how much he is there in their relationship, he always looks at him as a replaceable, expendable shield and live-in maid.
He is more than happy to be useful to him, but what will happen the day he ceases to be? Will he throw the second Edmond learns a cleanup and attack spells?
That's why he hardened his heart, that's why he did all the hard work by hand over the years. As long as Edmund doesn't find out that he isn't a necessity for him, they can stay together.
The capital city was too dangerous, Edmond could discover countless things there that he hid from him and escape without a trace. He couldn't afford that loss.
Before leaving for the night hunt, he stared as usual at Cecil's old face, his thin, transparent eyelashes almost invisible and gave him almost a feeble appearance.
It was... wrong.
Edmund has not shown strong feelings for him over the years; That doesn't mean they don't exist.
Even these little feelings would fade away under duress and imprisonment if he really did imprison Edmund today...
They will never have hope for a mutual relationship.
Cecil placed a light kiss on Edmund's forehead, if anyone had looked closely they would have seen that his lips had never actually touched Edmund's forehead. This kiss, like many other things, was wishful thinking, another unrealized act.
A day will come when he will be able to kiss Edmund openly, a day when Edmund will return the kiss of his own accord. For the sake of this day, he will gladly endure the hardships Edmund burdens him with.
I can't say that I trust him, I can only pray that he won't leave me. I put all the little faith I have accumulated into this move. Edmund, don't let me down.
The night before their planned departure, he went as usual through the window into the night.
Edmund remained sleeping peacefully, unaware of what his vulnerable appearance that he so hated had just helped him avoid.