Underworld - Vampire Gate: A LitRPG Series

by Apollos Thorne

  “I don’t feel any different.” I didn’t even feel any bloating.

  “And you won’t until you learn to draw from and refill it. That is where Vampire’s Might’s usefulness ends, and Succubi’s Caress takes over. If you haven’t already guessed, these skills are inherent to the monster races because they naturally possess orbs. Normally, you would use the vampire version of Succubi’s Caress since you’re using Vampire’s Might to absorb orbs, or the succubus version of both, but using them as you are will make little practical difference. The important thing is to know that these abilities spawn from the orbs themselves.

  “For now, let’s move on to the next dungeon. The exercises I’ll give you can be practiced as we travel. Congratulations. As you unlock the mysteries of your new core, a whole new world of possibilities will open up to you.”

  Sending a wave of mana throughout my body, I pinpointed my core, which felt foreign, but also familiar. “Will I be able to give the others cores as well?”

  “In time, but before you can help others, you must first help yourself. Now return to your Incubus Form and let us depart.”

  With that, he left me and headed toward my Werewolf friend who hadn’t stopped practicing his spear wall since I’d left him alone.

  Chapter 17 – Wolfy Grin

  Sometime over the past week, Travis had learned to further control his Werewolf Form. It wasn’t perfect, but when he had his fits, he didn’t lash out but became still and quiet. It might take minutes, but he’d soon return to us under control.

  “You know, when you smile at me it looks like you want to eat me,” I said. As Shamash had advised, I was in my Crimson Incubus Form which made Travis more uncomfortable. My friend just gave me another wolfish grin. The fact that his sense of humor was beginning to show through even when transformed was a great sign.

  The lich led us to the next dungeon. He agreed it wasn’t as pressing of a matter to find Light Magic materials because of the promise of being able to create the siphon I’d imagined for Sanctuary’s crops with Light Orbs alone.

  I continued to create orbs as we traveled while trying to keep my mana signature down. Shamash warned that soon I’d have no choice but to travel at full power as we got further away from civilization. He’d charted seven different dungeons for us to stop at before we reached our next destination. Most of them possessed Dark Magic Veins, which would give us practice against creatures of the same School of Magic that the majority of the vampires would use. On our trek back, we’d then stop at different dungeons that would allow Travis to test out his new school of magic.

  Creating orbs wasn’t the only exercise the lich had given me. The orb inside of me had a natural cycle. Depending on its surroundings, it was always pulling in mana from the world. It wasn’t able to convert different forms of mana to Light Mana, with one exception. It could draw in neutral mana which existed everywhere to a certain extent. But if it did have access to Light Magic, the process would be even faster because of my orb’s Light Magic nature.

  An orb’s reason for drawing mana was to fill itself with refined mana. I hadn’t truly understood what that meant until Shamash had explained. An orb drew in mana to condense it in its spiral to fill its storage capacity with refined, or liquid, mana. It was the same density of mana that I’d seen Lord Darius and Mistress Nava possess throughout their entire bodies. Instead of the cloud of mana that existed inside of me and my friends, once condensed and refined, our mana would exist in the same liquid state as theirs did. Ultimately, a drop of refined mana was worth at least 10 times a cloudy drop of unrefined. My mana grew nearer to this state when using Master Mind Buff to push my Wisdom past 10,000, but the more I learned about it, the more I understood my mana really hadn’t reached the same density as true Refined Mana. It seemed that without a core, it was impossible.

  The exercises I was given were simple in concept but tricky in execution. I was to gather my Light Mana around the core inside me and rotate it in the same direction as the core’s spiral while gently pressing mana into it. At the same time, it was necessary to use Succubi’s Caress to draw mana from my core’s upper and lower storage layers where the refined mana was deposited. Any one of the exercises would be easy enough on their own, but the challenge was learning to rotate my mana and put the right pressure on my core while not absorbing too much or too little mana from the core with Succubi’s Caress. If I rotated my mana too quickly, put too much or too little pressure on the core, or drew too much or too little mana, the process would suffer and even spin out of control. I could even damage my core by overdrawing from it. It was imperative that I learned to limit the amount of mana I drew to what was in my core’s storage layers and no more.

  The good news was that even if I did nothing but leave my core alone, because it was surrounded by nothing but Light Mana, it would fill rather quickly. A Light Magic Orb could take months to fill in the Underworld because of how little Light Mana there was. Inside of me, it would only take days. If I could master the refinement process, it might only take hours. As Succubi’s Caress leveled, it would take even less time than that.

  This was only the first step though. Until Succubi’s Caress ranked up, I was only able to draw on my core like a battery. I wasn’t able to replace my own mana with the refined mana inside of it. That was the true endgame. My current exercises sped the refinement process, but I was drawing so little mana that I was hardly making up for the cost of casting Succubi’s Caress. Mastering the basics came first, then I could speed up the process.

  When we reached the first Dark Magic Dungeon, the lich’s other purpose for bringing us here was revealed. With Master Mind Buff active, I was able to clear the dungeon quickly. Travis only got a small workout in, but he didn’t mind. The faster we cleared it, the quicker we leveled and the sooner we could hit up the next dungeon. Power leveling lich style.

  The first one was filled with mostly Dark Magic aligned insects. All of them we had faced before in the Belly and Sanctuary. Their levels were rather inflated, though, so I earned 54 additional levels thanks mainly to doing most of the killing. There also seemed to be many more creatures here than in the Fire Dungeon. They had little defense against overwhelming amounts of Light Magic.

  As soon as it was clear, Shamash told me to draw back my Mind Buff to Novice and insisted we stop at the Dark Magic Vein. There was no temple built up around this one, but claw-like columns of obsidian reached up toward the sky all around it. Instead of a stack of five levels, this dungeon was a deep valley with the vein at its center.

  Travis and I approached the vein together, while Degima chose to stay back with Shamash and the golems. It was similar to the Fire Vein in almost every way. The only obvious difference was that bolts of darkness struck periodically from the pillar at random Dark Magic droplets that orbited around it. The whole area would have been black as night except for the purple glow that radiated from the Dark Vein’s Aether.

  We were both silent as we stood there and observed. I suspected this exercise was more for my benefit than Travis’s. Soon, I’d have to decide which element I would unlock first. Dark Magic would be the most difficult and I’d never have the proficiency I could have with other Schools of Magic, but there were many benefits. I regretted not focusing more on my Necromancy, but in comparison to Mel’s, mine was a cheap imitation.

  Dark Magic’s most promising possibility was learning to defend against my primary weakness. Having the ability to manipulate the reaction between Light and Dark Magics was also tempting. There didn’t seem to be any true direct defense against it.

  Even after Travis had left, I stood there for a bit longer meditating. What I needed was a trump card. Something that even the Head Mistress would have no easy counter to. She’d know, of course, what it was that I decided, but there had to be something out there.

  “What keeps you?” I heard the lich say.

  I turned my head in his direction and nodded a greeting without removing my eyes from the vein. “No
school of magic seems like the perfect fit,” I replied.

  “Does there have to be a perfect fit?”

  “I don’t know, but if there is I must find it. What are the rarest schools of magic?”

  “The rarest are the most specialized schools. Metal is among the rarest and so is Blue Magic, which you already possess.”

  “But what of schools that few people possess. Their veins may be rare, but there are still numerous people that have unlocked them.”

  Shamash floated up to hover at my side. He didn’t respond until I looked at him. He’d uncloaked his multi-faceted eyes and was staring at me. “The rarest schools cannot be learned with the help of mana veins, for such veins do not exist. They’re hellishly difficult to unlock and are often unknown except by the few who have unlocked them by mistake or unbelievable amounts of willpower. Not even people with the rarest talents are talented in such schools. You have said that you are in a hurry to finish this quest. If your heart is set on unlocking veinless magic, know that it could greatly delay your return.”

  I dare to stare into his eyes, feeling the pressure of his gaze. I held it for a long while as I looked for some secret or some hint that might help me decide. In the end, I asked him, “Could the delay be worth it?”

  Suddenly he revealed the rest of his skeletal face. The purple energy that acted as skin turned up at the corners of his mouth, showing me a lifeless smile. “Oh yes.”

  My eyes dropped, but not out of fear. Contemplation overtook me.

  When I didn’t respond right away, the lich spoke again. “There’s no wrong answer, and no reason you must make the decision today. Let’s continue to the next vein. Experiencing more may help you decide.”

  Chapter 18 – Lost Signal

  The time came when we were nearing the extent of Richard’s communication ability and soon we’d lose contact. He was able to tell us that we were within ten miles of losing his “Junction Signal”, or “Signal of Junction”. He couldn’t decide which sounded better. Before we made it to the next dungeon, we stopped and informed everyone that we would lose contact for the next couple of weeks.

  I personally looked for an excuse to stay in contact, but Aeris talked me out of it. We briefly discussed the possibility of unveined schools of magic, and how that too might extend our time apart if I decide to pursue one as my First School. She was already considering her First as well. The Succubi had one of every major vein in their territory and Dark, Earth, and Wind close to the city itself. She would be able to pick and choose without conquering a dungeon. I would never deny her the convenience of progressing so quickly but found self-pity waiting in the dark recesses of my mind that would come into the light if I let it. I did not.

  Technically, the next school of magic we chose wouldn’t be our first school, but it was called that because it was the first one outside of our natural talents that we would learn. Our natural schools were called Foundations. The decision of which school of magic you chose as your First would determine your maximum proficiency with all other schools after that. Eventually, you could learn all of them, or at least the major ones. The Second and Third Schools were also important, but less so. The lich explained multiple strategies for how best to unlock schools and in what order. Some strategies were designed to give you maximum proficiency with closely related schools, and others leaned toward giving you maximum proficiency with two opposite ones.

  “Do you want to head back?” I said. “We have a lot of loot that the guys would find helpful. There are over 20 Minor Light Orbs now, not to mention the Fire Orbs and the other loot we’ve found.”

  “Shut up,” Travis replied, giving me his best wolfish snarl while still in his human form. He could only hold it for a moment before it changed to a smirk.

  “Fine, but since you’re going to unlock Metal, have you considered growing a mullet?”

  “I don’t think metalheads normally rock mullets.”

  “Yeah, that was probably unfair. I just think a mullet would look good on you.”

  “No, you don’t. You just want me to be the mullet-wearing Werewolf superhero in the group.”

  I nodded my head. “Actually, yeah. That sounds pretty awesome.”

  “I’ll consider it,” he said, turning away so I couldn’t tell if he was rolling his eyes or not.

  We soon arrived at our next dungeon. It was small, and its Earth Vein was out in the open where anyone could see. A single type of mob had overrun the place. The Mud Ogres stood nearly twice my height and resembled boulders with elephant limbs. They had no necks, or perhaps it was more accurate to say that the bulge of their shoulders was so immense that their round heads with flat fang-filled mouths seemed to grow straight out of their shoulders. Looking at them in the mana realm revealed they possessed a mix of Earth, Water, and Dark Magic. When I began observing them, I didn’t find a single ogre that was under level 1,500. And there were at least 40 of them.

  “The difficulty has increased sooner than I expected,” Shamash said. “Ogres of any kind are notoriously hard to kill.”

  Looking at their stats, I understood why.

  Mud Ogre

  Level: 1,593

  Health Points: 1,013,000

  Mana Points: 670

  Attributes

  Strength: 3,014

  Dexterity: 200

  Constitution: 5,065

  Intelligence: 67

  Wisdom: 42

  “They each have over one million HP,” I said, giving Travis a look.

  He returned a nonchalant shrug.

  “That’s only part of the problem,” Shamash replied. “Ogres are known for their regeneration abilities. I suspect their mix of Earth and Water elements will only improve their ability to take a hit. You don’t have the luxury of holding back this time. What do you suspect are its elemental weaknesses?”

  Just by his word usage, he’d given us a hint. That by itself was concerning since he rarely offered such information even if we asked.

  “As I see it, we have a few options,” I said. “With enough water, we could make them lose form and become—squishy. Freezing them could also limit their movements, and then there’s fire. We could cook them like a bunch of cookies in the oven…”

  “Fair assessment, but the first method won’t work,” the lich insisted. “They’re ogres, not golems. Their flesh is reinforced with Earth and Water Mana, but it is still flesh. Heat and cold might make them easier to deal with though. The question is, how much will you need? They’re large enough that they’ll be able to withstand quite a lot.”

  “Don’t be stingy. Got it.”

  “And Elorion.”

  I looked at the lich when he didn’t continue. He held my gaze for a long moment before saying, “Don’t let one get ahold of you. Even if you don’t have to breathe, you can drown when mud is forced down into your lungs. Besides crushing with their bare hands, they will pull you inside of them and squeeze.”

  It had been a while since I’d stretched out my wings. I nodded that I understood and turned to Travis. “Give me a minute to preheat the oven, then attack when you see an opening.”

  He gave me a thumbs up.

  As I was about to set off, there was a surge of power that made me flinch. Had they somehow found out we were here and launched an attack? Looking toward the energy spike, I found myself looking at Travis in his Werewolf Form. How was that possible? It was still late morning and he wasn’t supposed to transform until tonight…

  He didn’t answer with words, but one of his fang-filled grins and another hairy thumbs up.

  I’d chosen to use heat instead of ice since his armor was resistant, but in his Werewolf Form he could wear his armor, but not his helmet. He’d lowered himself into a relaxed crouch. I decided I’d trust his judgment. Besides, it might become too hot for him to approach at all. I suspected the instincts of his inner wolf would guide him against such danger.

  Pulling out one of my Minor Light Orbs, I held it in my Incubus hand. Succubi’
s Caress would allow a slow drain on the mana inside. Because it was so small, there wasn’t enough surface area for me to drain it quickly. Using Vampire’s Might was different. It would destroy the orb, but it would also provide me with the quick boost that I desired.

  Ramping up my Mind Buff to its Master Rank, I felt its power fill me. My mana soared past 1,500,000. I shot forward and began to climb high into the room. I already had the attention of half the ogres, which seemed more curious than hostile. Flexing the fingers of my Magma Fist, I laughed at myself. Even now when the lich had insisted I go all out, the part of me that desired to preserve my mana was condemning the thought. The orbs gave me a way around that stingy part of me.

  I began to fall before a snap of my wings sped my descent. The ogres might be tough and strong, but I doubted speed was one of their strong points. Even as a few tried to throw rocks, and what I assumed was mud, I was already upon them with my Magma Fist outstretched. Andesitic Magma exploded from me. This time I’d braced against the blast. A wave of molten rock washed over my first victim as my wings shot out and redirected me. Like a dive bomber, I soared over the ground of the arena-like cavern and bathed the forty Mud Ogres in Magma. Vampire’s Might began devouring my orb to replenish me and then some.

  Before I’d even circled the whole room, I heard the concussion of Travis’s attack. With this Werewolf Form doubling his physical stats, he was becoming a disrupting force. A bathtub’s worth of Magma splattered the sky as he retreated from the ogre he’d struck.

  I amped Mana Sight to full power as I climbed higher into the air and watched the injured ogre’s body reform. Travis had managed to sever its shoulder from its body, and blasted a hole in its neck and multiple additional holes in its chest. It had little trouble pulling itself together with the magma knocked off of it.