Lucille held up the dull, enchantingly ominous pendant. The ruby locket didn’t respond to any of her prodding, both mana and spiritual energy unable to penetrate it. If it held mana, it was impossibly solid and held in place by a will magnitudes more powerful than hers.

Her attempts to use the Shard of Totality didn’t do much either, because there was nothing much to reveal. It was exactly as Rouge Ellsinore had said – that it was a means of communication between Hargrave and the first True Vampire.

And his locket also happened to be a cursed item that would forcefully enslave the wielder using the mana within and turn them into a living thrall. The item was a master and slave pair, with the one intended for Hargrave being a slave locket.

Hargrave being the Blood Patriarch and ruler over all blood and blood mana, it wasn’t a possibility for him to be enslaved, so all that remained was the ability of the ‘master’ to communicate with the thrall. She supposed an item like that could be seen as a trinket or souvenir of some kind by others who saw him, as it would be obvious to see that Hargrave wasn’t a thrall. This class of magical brainwashing and enslavement was easily spotted, as the victim’s eyes turned red, their mana became chaotic and unstable, and as their bodies were disconnected from their minds, they acted little more as semi-sapient zombies.

Thralls, the lowest class of vampire, were created with the blood of a stronger vampire and the brainwashing wore off unless regular blood infusions were done. If Hargrave walked around with the locket that was clearly the slave locket, but it didn’t affect him, it would be seen as broken or the mana had been consumed. As a slave locket it prevented any vampires from wanting to take it from him too. Lucy knew only fifty slave lockets and three master lockets were ever crafted, but one master locket and half the slave lockets had been destroyed.

The master-slave lockets were famous items with the ability to make and control a thrall from a long distance – very valuable for the current members of Vampyreus. What noble would dislike making another noble their pawn? Especially when the lockets could cause someone to spill their secrets.

Still, thrall enslavement was imperfect, just as any other enslavement magic was imperfect. The only kind of enslavement Lucy knew to be almost perfect was soul slaves, a terrible ability used by the Heavenly Realm.

For all that I dislike the System Contract, it is nowhere near as invasive as the sensation of your own soul being defiled.

“I heard you wanted to speak with me, Lucille?” Hargrave asked, looking around the doorframe.

“Yes. Come in, I have something to give you.” When the scarlet and blue-haired man sat opposite her she put the locket on the table. “I’ll begin with telling you this: an undead vampire passed this to me, requesting I give it to you.”

Hargrave stared at the item, then at her. “Why... why me?”

“Because you’re the Blood Patriarch.”

His eyes widened. “The vampires discovered that? How? Didn’t you say it would be dangerous for them to know about me-”

“Hargrave.” She held up a hand to pause him. “Firstly, I never spoke to them or anyone about your Blood Patriarch status, so this was done on their own. Secondly, the undead vampires of Tartarus are a very different political force than that of the Evernight March of Vampyreus.” Lucille shook her head. “The last name Vampyreus has never once applied to the undead vampires who requested I pass this on because they gained the Marquess fief millennia after they became undead. Vampyreus isn’t directly descended from any of them. And thirdly, they know this because they’re part of an information organisation more capable than Ravimoux.”

Lucy crossed her arms and leaned back. “As for why they met with me, I’ve been working with their organisation exactly because I know their capabilities. This request came as a shock to me too.”

Hargrave considered it. “I... believe I understand now. That must’ve been why you were meeting with a phantom several times. He must’ve reported my presence to them.”

Lucille narrowed her eyes and looked out of the window behind her. “It seems I’ll have to report to someone about his lacking stealth skills.” She sighed and turned back. “But yes, we have a collaborative relationship. It’s not up to me to make the decision of whether you should use the item or not, but what I do know is that it’ll allow the leader of the undead vampires to talk to you. Theoretically, that should be the only thing it does.”

Lucy hesitated. “However, the abilities of someone that old are still difficult for me to estimate, so he might be able to do something more. But as the Blood Patriarch, you still hold authority over blood mana, so he shouldn’t be able to do much.” She pointed at the locket. “Do what you want with this. I don’t have the power nor the desire to withhold it from you.”

“...if you were in my position, what would you do?” he slowly asked.

Should I take his request for advice as a sign he trusts me a little more?

“If I was in your position, I would use it, no doubt about it,” she stated blandly. “We’re talking about the oldest group of vampires in the Tower today. The information they might have is worth any risk. Additionally, because of the theoretical control over blood mana I’d have, it’s very unlikely they could pose a threat to me, besides their death mana. The Eternal Empire would retaliate when their nobility detected the presence of such powerful undead in the Mystical Realm too, so it’s unlikely any harm could come to me if they decided to visit in person.”

Lucy raised an eyebrow. “Does that satisfy your curiosity?”

He nodded. “It does. Thank you.” Hargrave looked down at the locket and then picked it up to hang around his neck. “I’m not sure when or how the communication will activate, so I’ll wear this until I speak with the vampire.”

“That’s smart.” Lucille picked up a cup of coffee on the table to sip. “I heard you’re planning to visit a Dungeon to level up. With the Barbosas’, Roa and Marellen gone, the Headquarters will feel somewhat empty.”

“I’m sure Annaliese’s return next month will keep you occupied,” he replied.

She rolled her eyes and put the drink down. Lucy stood up and picked up her cane. “Every time I see her again, I have to wonder what went through the minds of the Sages to let her keep coming here. I hope they don’t plan to invite me to the Imperialius branch of the Citadel.” She shuddered.

“Fate... hm.” Hargrave frowned and absentmindedly ran a hand over the locket he was wearing. “I hadn’t considered the effects of Fate for my future revenge. If the General of Blazing Iron has a significant quantity of fate and the backing of a Sage, my plans may fail.”

“I wouldn’t be worried as those with potential and power naturally have high Fate, and only the diviners of the Heavenly Realm take it from you.” She raised a finger. “But when Annaliese next comes, I’m sure you could ask her about your Fate. She’s forbidden from using her Fate essence to enhance anyone’s Fate without the Sages permission, but reading your Fate would be fine. It’s her natural ability to read Fate.”

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“I might do that then.” He glanced at the door and stood up. “I might go top up my supplies in preparation for my trip. I’ll tell you what happens if the vampire contacts me.”

“It’s your private business, not mine.” Lucy shook her head and raised her hands. “I have a good relationship with their organisation, but if it’s not something important for me to know, then it’ll be easier for you to avoid discussing it.”

“...I see.” Hargrave nodded and left her living room. He noticed Trisroa standing outside of the room and acknowledged her with a dip of his head.

“Interesting pendant. It does not quite look to me something that suits him, however,” the snow elf mused as she came in. “I hear that you have come to finish our deal?”

Lucille smiled and held her hands slightly apart, Apophis held in one of them. Black demonic sigils formed a vortex of chaotic red energy between her gloves. “You were curious about what ability I’d gain from the Demon Realm, correct?”

Roa’s eyes widened and she rushed forward, crouching slightly to inspect the demonic spell in the formation. “Fascinating... yet I have heard that it is nigh on impossible to cast true demonic spells without chanting the demon tongue. But you cannot possibly be drawing on a demonic lineage for an ability, as you have no descendency from them.”

The elven mage’s eyes widened as a thought came to her. “Your high spiritual power and ability to cast demonic magic... is it a possibility that one of your classes pertains to witchcraft-”

“Wildly incorrect.” Lucy grinned and collapsed the spell. Apophis’s scarlet glow returned as he used his energy draining ability to recover the lost mana and demonic power. “And believe it or not, a witchcraft class can’t be gained using the System unless you have a very faint demonic lineage. Same goes for warlocks.”

“Intriguing...” Roa murmured. She stood up and politely bowed. “Forgive me for lack of decorum. All magics fascinate me to no end.” She sat down with her staff on her lap and gestured to Lucy. “Will you reveal the tale of how you gained this ability?”

“Hmm...” Lucy pondered it and smiled slightly as she concocted a feasible story that interspersed a few white lies and half-truths, implying that her skill was a reward for conquering a Stronghold instead of from the Demon Emperor himself.

Trisroa enthusiastically absorbed the information and the conversation quickly led onto what Lucy discovered about Ancient Daemon seals in her Stages...

...

Lucy knocked on the dark wood door. When she waited for a couple of minutes but nothing happened, she knocked again, slightly louder.

The door opened to reveal the face of a 12-year-old boy. He looked her up and down and backed up slightly, peeking around the doorway. “...who are you?”

“Is Lucius in?” she asked calmly.

“Lucius...” His face scrunched up as he tried to puzzle out who she meant.

“Director Farrow,” she informed him.

“Ah!” Realisation dawned and he nodded his head. “I think he’s in his study... but do you know him?”

Lucy smiled. “I’m a friend. Mabel knows me too. You could check with her if you want.”

The boy thought about it and quickly ran off, looking for the other member of the orphanage. When he returned, the girl was trailing behind. She saw Lucille and nodded. “That’s Lucy. I can go back to playing now, right?”

She walked off before either of them could reply. The boy shrugged. “I’ll take you to Director Farrow.”

He did as he had said and left her to knock on the door and push it open. Lucius was sitting on a windowsill while reading the bundle of letters in his hands. Thin-framed reading glasses were perched on the end of his nose.

“Ah, Lucille. Feel free to sit down while I finish these off,” Lucius said with a quick glance.

Lucy took off her trench coat and folded it over her arm as she sat down in an armchair opposite his desk. “I wonder what will happen to the eyesight of the lower races if even the Death Monarch has to wear glasses. I take it that it’s another one of your whims.”

The dark-haired man took off his black glasses and held them up. “Do they suit me? I could never extract a sincere answer from my regent, but I’ve had the habit of wearing them for the last hundred millennia. Just another method I use to tie myself to the ways of the lower races around me.”

Lucy considered it. “They suit you to some degree, but I can’t help but consider it a futile effort when your relatively young appearance is taken into account. I suppose the fact you wear them as reading glasses helps that.”

“Ah, but if I chose to use an appearance that reflected my age, I fear I’d be bonier than the liches under my command,” Lucius refuted. “That look wouldn’t be conducive for my role as a guardian for my children.”

“Well, regardless.” Lucy raised an eyebrow. “That’s a lot of letters. Have you been busy?”

It looked like he was going to say no, but then he paused, looked at her, and his eyebrows shot up. “Now that I think about it... because of this arrangement between you and my little Court, many of the Ninety-Nine have increased their efforts in reaching out to me. They are always capable of talking to me whenever they choose, of course, but they all keep to the master-servant with much more strictness than I find satisfactory.”

Lucy’s expression twitched slightly as she knew what exact ability and trait of his he was referring to when he mentioned communicating anywhere in the realm. It stemmed from a much more terrifying secret than most would expect, relating to the middle name he chose for himself. She looked away. “It would be hard for any member of Tartarus to treat the being that has existed over many epochs and World Tree Renewal Apocalypses.”

“Hmm.” Lucius held his chin and smirked. “Yet you seem capable of it.”

“You can thank my ignorant former self for that.” Lucille shook her head and then took out a large bag from her dimensional pouch. “I brought the liquorice you were interested in.”

“Really?” Lucius grabbed the bag from her and took one out to try it. He tilted his head. “An interesting sweet. I’ll use this as a reward for my children when they’ve behaved.”

“I’m curious.” Lucy leaned her chin on her hand. “Why did you choose to run an orphanage in the first place? The death race are as far removed from mortals as dragons are from non-magical reptiles. This is while discounting the fact that a ruler of the realm of death chose to care for mortal children in a completely different realm.”

Lucius blinked. “Have I not told you this before?”

She fell silent. “...when we met, besides being told of your orphanage, I wasn’t in a position to be able to question you about that sensitive topic.”

As a mortal, I wasn’t feeling very confident asking the Death Monarch about the orphanage he ran that was destroyed by other mortals.

“Ah...” He smiled bitterly. “I doubt I would’ve minded, but I likely appreciated the thought behind it.” He looked out the window, glanced at her, then winked. He put a finger on his lips. “That will be a secret for now.”

“Your scheme to make me continue visiting, I see,” Lucy said with a smirk. “Speaking of which, I came to inform you that I won’t be able to visit until next year.”

She blinked when Lucius just stared at her. “Is something wrong, Lucius?”

“No... it will be fine.” He let out a short sigh then faced her directly with a wide smile. “You’ve piqued my curiosity now, however. Miss Goldcroft, could you deign to explain how our fates became so intertwined? I don’t see that occurring in a fashion like most others make friends.”

“It’s not as spectacular as you think.” Lucy stood up and shrugged. “You saved my life. I was still injured, so you let me recuperate in your dimension. There is little more I can say about how our relationship developed.”

He rubbed his chin. “Saved your life... that implies a powerful enemy had injured you and I needed to hide you while you healed. From our prior conversations, I’ll presume it was this ‘Distorter’. If I assigned him such a label, he must surely have been a terrible threat to the realms.” Lucius spun around to face the window and picked up a pen to write a letter. “Tell me of their characteristics, and I’ll send someone to deal with them immediately-”

“You can’t,” Lucy refused.

Lucius turned back. “He’s not just a mortal threat, is he though? I don’t see myself saving you from anyone but someone with large reaching impacts for his actions.”

She shook her head.

He let out a hum and narrowed his eyes. “Can’t or shouldn’t?”

“Shouldn’t.” Lucille hesitated as she considered how to frame her reply. “You’re aware of the Ten Students, right?”

Lucius stared at her again for a long time, then clicked his tongue. “Drat. And here I thought this was finally my chance...”

“Chance of what?” She raised an eyebrow.

“Nothing.” He smiled brightly and then sat down at his desk. “My curiosity has yet to be satisfied, though, so please, let’s continue our conversation so I know what conversations we had in the past.”

“I can say that the first few weren’t as relaxed as these ones,” Lucy said with a slight laugh. “But as you wish. As someone fascinated by the connections between my realm and the others, I liked to ask about the unusually specific qualities of the races and the name of Tartarus...”

...

Lucille glanced at a wall clock. “I’d best be going. I have to meet with Archduke Eterial today.”

Lucius paused for a fraction of a second. “...today?”

“It’s the fifteenth, so I need to go.” Lucy gave him a slight bow. “I enjoyed today. I look forward to our next meeting, as I’m sure I’ll miss them in the coming months.”

He smiled and gave her a wave. “I enjoyed this too. Have a safe trip.”

When she had left his smile disappeared. He turned to what looked like empty air. “Eidolon.”

“Judging by his actions in the last month, he is prepared to reveal his intentions to her today.” The ruling regent of Tartarus appeared in his misty form, kneeling on one knee.

“Her schedule states she will be visiting the Alichanteu County a week later.”

“Yet she’ll feel pressured, causing her to leave earlier. This will grant them a significant advantage when they begin their plan, as they remain unawares of her spiritual abilities,” Lucius murmured. He clicked his tongue and frowned. “What does that demon think he’s doing, passing the responsibility to her.” He sighed and looked up at the roof. “Although I doubt this is his plan. He doesn’t like to rely on others, as much as he wishes to limit his work. It must be the doing of that master of his.”

Lucius stood up from his chair. “Not that I truly know the Demon Emperor that well, considering we only met once.” He walked over to the window and put his hands on the windowsill, watching Lucy leave through the woods. “Perhaps this’ll be a good learning opportunity for her. While I understand her cautiousness, she hasn’t been proactive enough. My words of the consequences of altering the timeline being greater than she expected was advice to strengthen her standing, not mask herself even further.”

“Do you wish us to resolve this for her?”

“We will do no such thing. I’m not that benevolent, even when it comes to repaying debts. I only offered to remove this Distorter as a test for her and because I’m curious about them myself.” Lucius smirked and walked over to his subordinate to pat his shoulder. “The House of Wordless Observers should take care not to offend a girl like that by needlessly interfering either. We won’t be gaining true gratitude from her from that, even if she pretends otherwise.”

“...I feel I must remind you, milord, that Lucille Goldcroft is not a child, physically or mentally.”

Lucius smiled widely. “Everyone is a child until they prove to me that the corruption of the worlds has transformed them. You should know that, Eidolon.”