16 A lesson in Biology

Coming back inside my room, I closed the door behind me and sat cross legged on my bed.

-I have all the answers you seek.....

That's what he said. But how would he know what I sought? He claimed to not have read my mind. But I wasn't foolish enough to believe that old lunatic. He definitely read my mind, and even admitted to controlling it in a sense.

I glanced at the book in my grasp. Biology of vampires? The first thing I noticed was the font on the cover page. It was quite an antique format. The letters were mostly in cursive. I wasn't quite used to this, as usually the books were copied or written through spells. Hence, the font was quite standardized.

This book however, it was definitely handwritten. The slight inconsistencies in thickness of the letters proved it instantly. Secondly....I flipped the book over. But as I had thought. No author.

Absolutely no mention of whoever had written this book, it was completely anonymous. My first instinct was that the Count himself had written it. Definitely a possibility, he was quite an ancient being, possibly hundreds of years old. It wouldn't be strange if he had written a few books. But the topic was peculiar to say the least.

Biology of vampires suggested, that someone studied these creatures or demi-humans closely. At this point, it wouldn't be easy. Vampires weren't even tolerant of other creatures, let alone wizards. This left only one outcome, it was written by a vampire. Hence, supporting the theory, that the Count had written it.

Emerging from these thoughts, I decided to skim through the book at least once. I could see many chapters, written in that same cursive handwriting. Mostly, indicating the history of Vampires and the differences in species of the Vampires, and their weaknesses. The most distinctive, being pureblood against half-breeds.

Even amongst purebloods, there were slight variations. As I flipped through the pages, I could see many examples. A pureblood through birth, was incomparable to a pureblood through a blood ritual. Or at least that's what the book mentioned.

Hinting, that a pureblood existing through a blood ritual was a notch below the real thing. In contrast, half-breeds were quite identical. Descending from a Vampire parent, and a wizard, rarely even a muggle. These half-breeds would be quite the same in the eyes of vampire society. They weren't particularly isolated, and were treated quite normally.

The book continued on to mention many other variants of a vampire, even those due to breeding with other magical beings. But I honestly wasn't quite interested in the other species. So skipping through the pages, I finally landed on the section for Dhampirs. The book mentioned in detail about their weaknesses. They weren't particularly frail towards the sun, and could very well function as normal humans. As their bloodlines diluted, they might even lose their fangs or their blood red eyes. However, their strength and proficiency in vampire magic would remain.

The text didn't include what it meant by vampire magic, hence I could only ignore this, and continue skimming. I then read about the extensive biology of a Dhampir. A small section, where it mentioned that usually Dhampir's resulted from the mating of a male vampire or dhampir, and a female of the other species.

Citing, that female vampires or dhampir's found it particularly hard to conceive a child. Often times, they would only conceive a child once a decade. This was due to their own shortcomings as vampire blood did not usually support the birth of a child well.

This is....yeah. This does explain why Sophie doesn't have a child. She did mention she had been married for five years now. An unfortunate predicament due to the nature of her own body. Being unable to conceive was a sorrow only some could relate to.

I am sure she wanted a child. When she found me, she must have been truly happy. I couldn't relate to her pain, but I was sympathetic.

Although, some questions did remain despite me reading the book. Why was Sophie 1/6th a vampire. Her grandfather was Nosferat. It was needless to mention if he was a pureblood. Just by being in his presence, I knew there couldn't possibly be anything above him in terms of purity. But I did recall, Sophie was from a lineage of Dhampirs. Perhaps.... Nosferat was her ancestor. A great grandfather of sorts.

That would probably settle the age confusion. Sophie couldn't possible be above her 30s. But that Old man was definitely in his 100s. I couldn't even tell at this point.

When I finished skimming through the book, I noticed that about two hours had passed. I wanted to read more about vampire magic, and also the blood ritual mentioned here. But this whole book only contained the biology and differences between species.

It was quite an exotic and extensive dissection of vampire nature. If Nosferat had really written it, he was practically a freak who must have spent lifetimes finding all this out. Not to mention... how he had gathered this information.

Of course, all of this couldn't be accomplished without testing and verifying his claims. Nosferat was truly of a monstrous mindset. I could only assume he just slaughtered a legion of vampires and half breeds..... just to satisfy his curiosities.

After feeling the mans bloodlust. Well I won't be shocked if that rumor ever surfaces in the future. Seeing, that there was nothing else to do.

It was time to practice the old routine. I had made insane progress in my control. At this instance, I could manage a few Lumos lights rotating around. It wasn't anything impressive, but conjuring multiple wisps and controlling them simultaneously was a taxing process. It managed to keep me entertained but, also helped me improve my endurance and control at the same time. At this point, I could maintain it for around twenty minutes without feeling exhausted.

A new personal best ever since I had started. I spent the next 40 minutes just submerged in my own practice. Soon enough, the clock hand struck nine.

Surely not...right?.... But as I had suspected...I heard an immediate knock on my door.

Talk about punctuality, Ephyl was on the dot. Damn, I couldn't imagine having to deal with this shit every day.

"The master wishes for your presence in the dining hall. Please make your way" Ephyl mumbled through the door.

Hearing that, I once again decided to comply. It's not like I could just decline anyway. This time, as I went down to the dining hall, Sophie already sat beside the count.

Though I dare say, his complexion was a bit rosy. A very acute observation, because otherwise his face was ivory pale. Hearing his voice I could also deduce, this man was very drunk.

I didn't even know vampires could get drunk. But I was sure as hell seeing it right now.

He was stumbling on his words with an unsettling smile on his face the whole time. Seeing me enter the room, both of them called out a greeting, and I replied in turn.

"My boy, you're late for dinner. This won't do, we must teach you etiquette" He howled as he drank some more wine.

I smiled in response and just sat down across near them both, preparing to satiate my unending hunger. I couldn't quite eat well in the afternoon, my body was too busy recovering from shock.

Ephyl wasted no time in setting the table, a few dishes made our way. As I saw these, I was quite curious on what vampires eat. I knew lycanthropes preferred raw meat. But nothing really about lamia's. Which astonishingly, was the one of the Latin words often used to describe vampires.

Unfortunately, it was actually quite similar to the local food you would expect, though a lot fancier. Dinner went on without a hitch, and then I managed to ask him how old he was.

Certainly amused at my question, he really looked like he had forgotten his own age. Fidgeting with a glass in his hand, as he tried his best to recall it.

"Hmm, I must say around 800 or perhaps 757" He responded.

What the fu-... 800 ? 757? This guy was old.... Drastically older than I had first thought. Either estimate was so large, I was genuinely flabbergasted at how he was still alive.

He was practically a walking zombie. Born in the 12th century? This man had seen the rise and fall of many empires and societies. Yet right now he sat before me, indulging in wine.

Noticing, that he was particularly flushed with spirits. I decided to try my luck with other questions.

"What is vampire magic?"

He paid me no mind, as he quickly summarized what he considered it to be.

"Magic, is different for all living... beings. It interacts with you, and helps you serve your purpose. Vampire magic is particularly involved with blood, illusions and many other minor factors." He responded. His words stopped as he had indulged far too much.

Honestly, he was dramatically easygoing, rather softer than I had expected. But I was certain, it was because of Sophie. With her, his caring side was always on display. Otherwise, I had barely scratched the surface with his personality.

"What about the blood ritual then?" I was only asking about the things in the book he had given. But this time.... He sobered up immediately.

Following that, Sophie shot him a questioning glance, and then looked towards me. Perhaps.... I wasn't meant to know about this just yet, or at least that's what I judged from their reactions.

He harrumphed in annoyance.

"Finished your reading have you? Well that's fine, you were bound to know anyway." He remarked.

His words, alarming Sophie to a degree, as I could see her trying to make sense of the situation. She interjected immediately.

"Although, you can know about it, you must not try it at all. It is not a plaything, and do not get swept up by grandfathers words. It is definitely dangerous." She cautioned.

"Oh dear, you must not pamper the brat this way, it would dull his senses. Besides, it won't be long before he performs it anyway." His eyes holding a confident smile.

I still wasn't quite aware of what this ritual was. It involved blood, but what was the result? The count went on to explain.

"The blood ritual is sacred magic, for us vampires. In our society, lineage works.... a bit differently. As long as one possesses the blood of the other in their veins, he is family. The blood ritual, involves accepting the blood from the family you wish to join. It holds many regulations, and often contains many conditions. But as you might have deduced, it bestows upon you vampirism. Providing you with similar gifts as the blood donor. Depending on the purity, and your own compatibility you could possibly even become a pureblood. Though, that is rare." He concluded.

His words leaving me in awe..... I could become a vampire. This was... unexpected. I wasn't foolish to believe all his words. Nosferat never mentioned any negative effects, partly because he never considered them a hindrance to begin with. But if I accept the blood, I could possibly have to live in the same conditions as them. Frail to the sun, weak to blood and so on.

In hindsight, it was a great opportunity, but the risks involved were also severe. Similar to lycanthropy I might add. Though, he did mention, that you have to "accept" the blood. Unlike lycanthropy, which was a disease.

He framed this ritual more like a gift. That both parties had to accept.

This put me at ease, because the old codger couldn't just force me into this pact. It was tempting, but right now I wanted to advance my magic. I still was only 7, so there was no way I wanted to deviate from my original path.

After a thorough contemplation, I just nodded at his words, and both of them, understood that I wasn't quite serious about such a drastic change yet.

Wrapping up dinner, I excused myself from the table, and continued back to my room. Laying in deep slumber and waiting for tomorrow.