Hailuot remembered his father's warning: no matter what happened, he must never abandon his human identity. Otherwise, he would end up like his father, unable to return to his own world.
"Marquis, I don't want to undergo the undead transformation right now."
Dorothea leaned back and crossed her legs, once again adopting a haughty, superior air. After sipping the blood wine in her cup, she said to Hailuot, "For the Soul Eater's sake, I can make an exception for you and allow you to join my guard as a human."
Hailuot thought about it. Joining Dorothea's guard didn't seem like a bad thing.
After all, he was only level 1 right now, so there was no way he'd come out at a loss.
"Alright, I'll join your Vampire Guard, Marquis."
"That's more like it!" A faint smile touched Dorothea's lips. She told Hailuot, "I have an important task to give you..."
Hailuot had a bad feeling about this and asked, "What task?"
"There's a Gray Elf necromancer locked up in my dungeon. Your task is to earn his trust."
Hailuot asked, "And then what?"
Dorothea laughed. "Young human, don't be in such a hurry. Finish the first step, and I'll tell you what comes after."
With that, Dorothea snapped her fingers.
The castle's main gate swung open, and the Vampire Guard Captain walked in from outside.
Dorothea pointed at Hailuot and said, "This is Bonecrusher. He's now a trainee guard of the Vampire Guard's Fourth Company. Assign him to watch over the dungeon and take care of Master Laem."
The Vampire Guard Captain bowed to Dorothea. "As you command, my lord."
Dorothea told Hailuot, "This is Monte, the Company Commander of the Vampire Guard's Fourth Company. Follow his instructions."
Hailuot bowed in the same manner and said, "As you command, my lord."
Dorothea waved her hand. "You may go now."
Captain Monte led Hailuot out of the great hall.
At that moment, a bat flew in through the skylight above the hall.
The bat flew in front of Dorothea. Its body dissolved into a shifting, hazy Ghost, which then coalesced into a half-formed image of the Soul Eater.
"Dorothea, it's been a while. You look even more beautiful than before."
Dorothea chuckled softly. "Your strength has grown too. I wonder if I'd still be a match for you now."
"We both serve the Sorrow King, so we could never become opponents. I'm contacting you about my younger brother, Bonecrusher. It seems he caused trouble in Scorched Earth City, and your guard caught him."
Dorothea swirled the blood wine in her cup and said, "Your information is quite thorough. He was indeed caught by me. If you want to save him, answer a question for me first."
"Ask away."
"Since you came to Scorched Earth City, why didn't you come see me!"
Dorothea looked at the Soul Eater, and there was a hint of resentment in her eyes.
The Soul Eater rubbed his nose awkwardly before saying, "You know the Sorrow King trusts me deeply. He has given me so much work that I barely have time to visit my old friends."
"Next time I go to Scorched Earth City, I'll be sure to visit you."
Dorothea didn't press the matter further and replied, "Fine, I'll be waiting."
The Soul Eater asked, "Can my younger brother, Bonecrusher, go free? I'll compensate you for any losses he caused."
Dorothea sipped her blood wine and said in a relaxed tone, "I would never make things difficult for your brother. He has agreed to join my guard as a trainee guard and watch over the dungeon."
"I'll raise him well, just as I raised you."
Does that put your mind at ease?"
"Of course!" the Soul Eater replied. "My time serving Scorched Earth City was the period I grew the fastest. I trust you'll be able to raise Bonecrusher into a powerful necromancer.
He's yours to look after now, City Lord Dorothea."
Dorothea sighed. "Time to say goodbye again, isn't it?"
"Yes, it's time to say goodbye. You know how busy I am."
"Then farewell!"
The Soul Eater's half-formed image dispersed. Dorothea sat alone on the high platform in the empty hall.
She savored her blood wine and murmured, "Laem is right in front of you. Let's see who you're really working for!"
Hailuot followed Vampire Monte down the Spiral Staircase beneath the castle.
The dungeon, built from stone, was not only dark but also extremely damp, with water seeping from the walls and dripping down endlessly.
Everything Hailuot had seen and heard since entering Scorched Earth City made it hard to believe this was a Game World designed for players' entertainment. Without the Game Interface in his field of vision, he could not have distinguished this world from reality.
Hailuot had once asked Misty Rain First Blossom how people had developed the game.
Her answer had sent chills down his spine.
No one knew who developed Heroes World, and no one could affect its operation. The game appeared out of nowhere, swept across the globe, and became a second world people could not live without.
Moreover, the high-level NPCs within the game were all individuals with independent thought.
Miraculous. Mysterious.
Walking through the dungeon, his footsteps splashed through pooled water.
Vampire Monte led Hailuot through the dungeon without saying much. He stopped outside a separate Prison Cell and said, "Human, be grateful for the Marquis's favor. Otherwise, you would be in that cell instead of becoming a honored trainee guard of the Vampire Guard."
Locked up inside is Mage Laem. Your job is to take good care of him."
Hailuot looked into the prison cell.
The isolated cell's walls were reinforced with steel plates. Four chains fixed to the plates shackled the prisoner's hands and feet, leaving him only a limited range of movement.
The prisoner was a Gray Elf with long gray-white hair and a beard. His upper body was bare, and black Runes covered his skin. Two steel spikes were driven into his shoulder hollows. His trousers were torn to shreds, he wore no shoes, and the nails on his hands and feet had grown long.
He had clearly spent a long time in prison.
Hailuot asked, "What crime did he commit?"
"You don't need to know." Vampire Monte tossed Hailuot a Token. "Take this. It lets you come and go from the Dungeon freely and enter this cell as well. Don't do anything outside your duties. I'll be watching you the whole time."
Hailuot tossed the token in his hand. "As you command, Captain Monte."
"This is yours to handle now."
Monte turned and left, leaving Hailuot standing outside the cell.
The Soul Eater's call request began blinking on the game panel.
Hailuot answered, "Father, your name did help me solve one problem, but it seems to have landed me in another."
"Dorothea had me join the Vampire Guard and assigned me to care for a Gray Elf Necromancer named Laem. I also have to earn his trust."
The Soul Eater replied, "Dorothea caught Laem? Don't worry. When you see Laem, tell him the Soul Eater is your Older Brother. He'll cooperate with you."