Alice looked at the man before her and asked, "Who are you? What happened to him?" The man smiled slightly and replied, "I got rid of him for you and now, I ask for a favor in return." Alice remembered that this devil only ever asked for blood bottles in return for his help, and fearfully took a step back until her back touched the wall.
"Don't look at me like that; I'm no pervert. All I ask is that you teach someone who can't yet speak the language of this kingdom, and guide them. The person I want you to teach will arrive in the capital in about a year. He looks a lot like me and has a spell that allows him to change his eye color. I'm sure you'll recognize him."
---
Not long after Alice stopped crying, someone knocked on her door. When she opened it, she saw her friend, who had brought the skill book she requested. Alice thanked her and saw her off. As her friend was leaving, she noticed Raphiel asleep on the living room couch but didn't say anything about it.
Alice happily approached Raphiel and woke him up, interrupting whatever he was doing in the void, since his consciousness could only fully reside there while his body slept.
"I got a little gift for you," Alice said, handing him the skill book. When Raphiel took the book, a prompt appeared before him:
[Would you like to use the Basic Language Proficiency Skill Book?] [Yes/No]
Raphiel looked at the vampire, and Alice nodded encouragingly. So, Raphiel confirmed to use the skill book, which entered his chest with a spectacular special effect. Raphiel could feel that learning a new language would now be much easier.
Alice then asked, "Could you teach me the spell you use to change your eye color?" Raphiel understood that she was asking him to do something but didn't fully grasp what she was requesting.
Alice wasn't entirely disappointed because she knew it would take more than just a skill to master a language—it required practice and knowledge accumulation. It would likely take the half-vampire at least a month to learn a new language.
She began talking to Raphiel about various topics. Though she knew he didn't understand her, Alice knew that for the skill to work, he needed to hear the language he was trying to learn.
Alice spoke about anything that came to mind without hesitation, and Raphiel listened closely. At a certain point, he started to understand her but kept it to himself because he found the subject quite interesting.
"Before I became a vampire, my life was much better. I used to attend various noble balls, and the servants always treated me with respect. I belong to a noble family, though my ancestors were not. My great-great-grandfather was awarded the title of baron for his exceptional prowess in wars by the king.
One day, I caught a runaway slave in our barony. According to the kingdom's official law, that slave was now my property. A week later, the slave's former owner came to take him back, offering me a large sum of money, but I refused because the slave had told me that his master was a Satanist. I hope that slave is doing well; I don't know what became of him after I left the barony."
Alice continued talking for hours. At some point, Raphiel fully understood her but didn't show it. Later, Alice went to her room and returned with a book.
She taught Raphiel the alphabet, then returned to her room to sleep. Raphiel began reading the book, which was a children's book that, interestingly, told a very familiar tale. The story's title was The Girl with the Black Hat.
---
Girl: "Grandma, why is your skin so pale?"
Grandmother: "I've been exhausting myself to make better food for you."
Girl: "Why are your eyes glowing?"
Grandmother: "Are my eyes red?"
Girl: "Yes."
Grandmother: "I'm very old, my dear. Could you do me a favor? This might be my last request from you."
Girl: "Grandma, you're still young at heart. Don't belittle yourself like that."
Grandmother: "On the table, there's a wooden stake. Please drive it into my heart."
---
The story resembled a horror tale but had illustrations that marked it as a children's book. Raphiel couldn't help but think it was similar to Little Red Riding Hood, with the difference that this story involved vampires.
He placed the book on the table and then tried out his newly developed skill card. The room's moisture began gathering in one spot, forming a mist that, while imperfect, took the shape of a sphere. This mist could change shapes according to Raphiel's wishes.
The mist first took the form of a snake, then transformed into a four-legged animal. Being white, it didn't change color regardless of the shape it assumed. Initially, this mist was designed to act as a pet and would hunt for Raphiel when he wasn't in the void, allowing him to gain VP (VIP Points) passively.
Although the mist was weak initially, Raphiel found a way to solve this issue. All he had to do was infuse a piece of the void into it and create a vortex within for mana production, allowing the mist to gain skill cards.
Two obstacles prevented the mist from being useful. First, it needed to be self-sufficient and act independently of Raphiel's commands. Second, once that was achieved, he needed to ensure the mist would remain completely loyal to him.
Raphiel had ideas on how to resolve these issues, but before he could try, Alice pulled him out of the void. Determined to finish his task, Raphiel planned to return to the void.
---
In the void, Raphiel's body, floating aimlessly, opened its eyes. The white rope and sun previously present had vanished, replaced by a black hole the size of a soccer ball.
Small orbs orbited the black hole, occasionally colliding and generating mana. Part of this mana was absorbed by the black hole, while the rest was emitted as two energy beams—one upward, one downward.
The upward beam would supply energy for Raphiel's skill cards, while the downward beam would enhance the dungeons, slowly and steadily drilling deeper into the subconscious like a mining machine.
Raphiel smiled at the masterpiece he had created; it was simple but effective. He had also adjusted the system's status panel, removing some unnecessary features and adding new ones. The updated panel appeared as follows:
/-----------------------------------\
5.VIP Name: Raphiel
[VIP Points: 202]
-Skill Cards:
• [Active (Hot_Hand, Cold_Hand, Deformation_Hand)]
• [Passive (Hot_Body)]
[Inventory] [Quests] [Community] [Shop] [Pets] [Craft] [Events]
\-----------------------------------/
The current VIP system had five different levels:
1. VIP: Grants a white rope that allows entry into dungeons.
2. VIP: Grants a checkpoint for faster entry to the void, represented by a sun. 3. VIP: Grants a vortex that converts VP to Mana.
4. VIP: The white rope and sun merge into a neutron star, allowing easier dungeon access.
5. VIP: The neutron star and vortex merge to create a black hole, enabling skill cards to be used in the real world, and unlocking deeper dungeon levels. You can use VIP Points to enhance the black hole.
He had also defined the functions of the menu, which were largely complete. Perfecting these functions would take about a week. Since most didn't affect the real world, it wasn't too difficult to set up. Here's a brief overview of each function:
[Inventory]: Allows you to store items, usable only in the void.
[Quests]: Consists of main quests (e.g., leveling up VIP) and instant quests (e.g., defeating a specific dungeon creature). Main quests have no time limit, while instant quests may have time restrictions.
[Community]: Enables you to make friends, communicate, invite them to your void, and trade if they are nearby.
[Shop]: Lets you buy pet food and materials for creating skill cards.
[Pets]: Provides detailed information on your pets and allows you to summon them in the real world. If a pet dies in the dungeon, it weakens temporarily; if it dies in the real world, the death is permanent.
[Craft]: Used for creating skill cards.
[Events]: Displays any active events.