"You idiot brat! What are you standing around for? Help the imps reinforce the outer walls! We don’t have ti to sleep on our duties!" A roar shook to my core. I turned, and a giant, devil-like creature jabbed its finger in my direction, barking orders. I recognized him. Drexar. Commander of the seventeenth legion. The weakest of the commanders, destined to fall in today’s battle.
If I rembered correctly, the heroine was supposed to kill him in Chapter Two. Her first major battle. And that was also where Beatrice perished, well, not quite, she died in Chapter One. Her death wasn’t even morable, just a brief ntion. Only much later was her identity revealed, uncovered through ancient scrolls hidden deep within the villainess’s castle.
She ca from a powerful, ancient royal bloodline, yet the villainess’s curse had marked her; her family was slaughtered, leaving her with only one fate: to live out her days as a slave.
"Are you deaf?!" Commander Drexar bellowed again, his voice bursting against my ears, forcing to clutch my head in pain as I stumbled aside. Ahead of , small, winged creatures—dark-skinned, with twisted horns jutting from their heads—were swarming the walls in droves, piling on whatever scraps they could find to reinforce the gates.
"Y-yes, Commander," I stamred. My voice sounded strange, awkward, deeper than expected. This girl was only eighteen when she died, and yet her body already carried the form of a grown woman... vampires were terrifying in their own way. I forced myself to blend in, mimicking the frantic movents of the imps. It was likely the only reason I had been ordered here in the first place. Beatrice had done nothing in the story. She had simply sat down in fear, waiting for her death.
KABOOM!
The walls quaked, the ground trembling beneath my feet. Dust exploded into the air as a section of the fortifications collapsed under a devastating strike. My vision spun, and one thought seized my mind.
Flee.
I darted away, spotting a large wooden door to my left. If I rembered correctly, the book had briefly ntioned that it led to the underground chambers where the treasure was kept. Later, the heroine would co here. But right now, I had no other choice... how was I supposed to fight!?
The mont I slipped behind the door and hurried down the stairs, the strangest thing happened.
The sa crimson letters I had seen before flickered back into existence, swirling in the air until they ford words:
[Would you like to read the beginner’s manual on combat and the usage of system abilities?]
"What?!" The exclamation escaped my lips before I could stop it, but fortunately, the chaos of battle outside drowned my voice.
The sll of blood grew stronger the deeper I went, thick and suffocating, making my stomach twist and growl as though hunger itself had been awakened within .
Why is my nose so sensitive? I wondered, covering it with my hand, though it did nothing to block the sll. After stumbling into a quiet, shadowed corner, I sank down and held my breath, the weight of impending doom pressing down on .
The crimson text still hovered before my eyes, refusing to fade, urging to accept.
No... it would be better to stay hidden here, right? I weighed my options carefully. But what if I’m forced to fight? Could I even win? Could I escape from the heroine? She’s the main character. There’s no way in hell... I let out a hollow laugh, mocking myself.
For a mont, I prayed this wasn’t real. I prayed I was still on death’s door in my own world... but reality struck cold. I would have to survive here. Maybe I could reason with the heroine? Plead for rcy? No... foolish thought. She despises all demons. Her parents were killed by one. She would kill even if I knelt before her.
That only ant one thing. I lifted my gaze once more to the glowing text before .
"Please... show how to use my abilities. Teach how to fight in this world of magic," I said, my voice steady as I gathered myself. I had not worked as a surgeon for nothing. On the operating table, I had always been able to stay calm in the most dangerous situations. And this battle... I had to imagine it the sa way. Only this ti, the life I needed to save was my own.
The letters, as if answering my command, began to swirl in the air. A small crimson book materialized from nothing, shimring like magic, before falling into my arms.
I opened the first page. The letters glowed with a crimson light that seed tethered to , and as my eyes traced the first words, knowledge surged into my mind, embedding itself without effort.
My vision flared crimson, casting its glow across the dark walls. In that mont, I grasped the truth of mana cores, sothing I already knew from the story, but now it was more than knowledge on a page. The book showed how to channel mana from within, how to wield it through my body as a vampire. The instructions sank in naturally, as if I had already fought a hundred battles.
Then, before , a system window appeared:
[Na – {Beatrice Verlion}]
[Race – {Vampire}]
[Combat Level (LVL) – {3}]
[Age – {18}]
[Strength – {LVL 10}]
[Magic – {LVL 8}]
[Mana – {LVL 12}]
[Mana Regeneration – {LVL 5}]
There was much more, but I didn’t have the ti to study it all. I focused on one skill: {Surgeon’s Scalpel}. A blade I could summon from my own blood, crimson and sharp, familiar in my hands as if I had carried it all my life. Eerie, yet strangely reassuring.
An hour passed in what felt like a blur, enough ti to practice, to steady myself. I felt prepared, or at least as prepared as I could be.
And even if I wasn’t...
CREEK...
The heavy groan of the door opening cut through the silence. Outside, the battle had gone eerily still. Footsteps echoed down the stone stairs, careful and deliberate.
I exhaled slowly, forcing myself into the sa focused trance I had mastered so many tis in the operating room.
Co, Heroine... it’s either you or . But I will not be dying today.
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