Chapter 15
Hissing, Dracula looked at Levi, who was breathing heavily. He was running out of mana, in pain, and exhausted physically, yet despite that, he still wasn't scared. In fact, he wasn't even serious. Dracula spoke, "I understand my son, I understand the Belmont, and even the Speaker magician — but what are you? A holy sorcerer?" he asked, not attacking just yet. "Me, holy? Please. The only reason we're even fighting is because of those holy fucking idiots," Levi said with a groan and disdain as Dracula seemed intrigued. "To be honest, I don't really want to fight you," Levi said, staring into Dracula's eyes. Dracula looked at him before speaking, "Why? It is not fear — that much I can see," he asked as Levi sighed.
"You are a grieving man. To be honest, you are more merciful than me," Levi admitted, making Dracula laugh. "Me? Merciful?" Dracula asked as Levi continued, "I would have burned down Wallachia as a whole." He paused before continuing, "But you got greedy. You let your revenge consume you. You are blaming the actions of a few individuals on the whole world." Levi's words made Dracula stay silent. "If you wipe out humanity, sure, you will wipe out the selfish, the lazy, the greedy, the vile, the disloyal — the monsters," Levi said, his voice filled with more animosity, taking both Dracula and the recovering Trevor and Sypha by surprise. "But," Levi continued, this time speaking softly, a smile gracing his lips, "you will also wipe out the kindness, the passion of those who want to be happy and make others happy, those who want to progress — the pure souls."
Looking Dracula in the eye, Levi said, "You have met such individuals. You have loved such an individual." Dracula frowned. "And if you cannot see that, then you have failed at the last task given by her." This managed to enrage Dracula, who charged at Levi, but Levi sighed and detonated the bird made of pure holy magic, sending Dracula hurtling in a vast explosion that tore through the walls leading to his library. And if that wasn't enough, Levi spoke again, "Oh magic, create a sphere of pure holy energy that explodes with great force." The magic obeyed, taking nearly all of his mana, making him bleed from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth as he fell to one knee — but the sphere was already flying toward Dracula, who was just getting up.
The moment Dracula looked up, he saw the sphere — but he didn't dodge. Instead, he smiled, waiting for death. The sphere exploded, destroying several more walls and opening up into the world outside the castle. Dracula lay battered and broken, on his last breath, as Sypha and Trevor helped Levi up. Levi refused their help and stood up on his own. "Thanks," he said as Alucard finally appeared, looking at the destruction Levi had caused and where his father lay. Alucard then looked at Levi, who was in a far worse state despite not being hit even once. "I think this is where we part ways," Levi said, looking at the three champions he had grown used to. They seemed surprised by Levi's revelation. "I think I need some time alone," he said, forcing a smile as the trio stood by, watching him walk away in pain.
-1week later-
A week had passed since Levi left Dracula's castle and his fate to his son and the friends he had made. He picked a random direction to walk in, using the time to simply recover from his injuries and calm his mind before he realized something — he was indeed right about his theory of damaged cores allowing for faster tempering. Currently, he was sitting in front of a pond, meditating while his core shifted and changed shape, going from a perfected form to a simple cube. The moment the change occurred, he felt it — his mana pool increased in size, doubling to be exact, and his mana became more stable and firm. Seeing and feeling the change brought peace to Levi's mind as he reopened his eyes, gazing at the calm lake in front of him with a smile.
Behind him stood a well-crafted hunter's lodge, perfectly made from the surrounding wood with his magic. There were also clay pots and pans, one of which was currently boiling. Seeing the hunter's lodge made Levi smile as he got up and stretched. "Well, time to test out what this simple cube core can allow me to do," he said, grinning as he chanted, "Oh magic, grant me superhuman strength." He spoke with a hopeful tone. While he had been at the sphere core stage — whether simple or perfected — he had never been able to gain superhuman abilities with his magic. But now, at the cube stage, he hoped things had changed. The moment he felt his mana being drained, he smiled victoriously. "Finally," he thought, as incredible strength surged through his body.
It felt as if his muscles contained an infinite amount of energy, but it was just a trick played by his mind — a realization that hit him as his mana drained by half. "Fuck, that took half my mana… and this is after my mana capacity doubled," he groaned, but his frustration quickly faded as he got up, nearly flying with his newfound strength. The soft dirt beneath him parted under the immense force. "God, this feels amazing," he thought, picking up a small stone pebble. He put his full strength behind it and hurled it at a tree, which shattered on impact — though the pebble itself wasn't spared, sharing the same fate, if not worse. "That's amazing," he grinned, flexing his muscles.
"I no longer have to rely on dodging alone when facing superhuman creatures," he thought, then glanced at the devastation he'd caused. "Hmm," he pondered for a moment before chanting, "Oh magic, restore that poor tree to its peak condition." A small amount of mana drained, and the tree suddenly pieced itself back together as if time were rewinding, until it stood whole and pristine once again. "There you go," he smiled. He then turned his attention to the lodge, where a simple rocking chair sat in front of the boiling clay kettle, currently brewing herbs into tea. As the tea finished, Levi poured himself a cup — a tea the Belmonts enjoyed, a rare alternative to their usual preference for alcohol.
With a cup of hot tea in hand and his miniature library nearby, he channeled a small amount of mana into it and picked a topic on magic to read — particularly air magic. This served as both training and relaxation, killing two birds with one stone. As he enjoyed his tea, he paused to pour himself another cup before speaking. "You've been watching for days now. Isn't it time you officially introduced yourself?" Levi's voice was calm and nonchalant, just as it had been before. From the shadows, someone stepped forward — a tall, slender woman with a pale complexion. She had long, flowing platinum blonde hair that reached past her shoulders, with sharp bangs framing her face. Her icy blue eyes and thin, arched eyebrows gave her a calculating and confident look. Her lips, painted a deep red, only added to her striking appearance.