Chapter 75
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 75
Chapter Title: 8th Floor - Lv. 415 Lavahammer Battalion (2)
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Changing races due to a card feels, in a way, like death itself.
If I had to put it into words, it's like the process of dying once and being reborn.
Where does one's sense of identity come from? Out in the world, we didn't believe in things like souls, but in the Labyrinth, you can't help but believe.
It comes from the soul.
Even so, it leaves a lingering unease. The brain, the heart, the eyes, the nose, the ears.
Not a single one remains the same. Everything transforms into something entirely new.
This feels way more unsettling than I thought. No matter how familiar you get with the race, adapting to a new body takes time.
If even breaking in new shoes requires effort, imagine doing it with your whole body.
And becoming a vampire means truly sucking blood until the day you die.
I just died once.
As I sluggishly opened my eyes, the Girl grabbed my hand and helped me up.
"It's amazing. Your hand really feels cold."
"Having your body temperature drop isn't exactly pleasant."
Blood keeps circulating, but all other organs cease functioning.
Vampires are undead.
I'm a walking corpse now. I thought I'd gotten over my aversion to undead, but this race still feels especially off-putting.
"Hold on a sec. Let me check my Mind Map."
[The God of Nature feels uneasy that a vampire has appeared among their kin.]
You're so picky.
Our goddess even tried to take me in as a lesser deity, but the God of Nature refused.
Instead, they loaned me out.
It wasn't great that my will wasn't consulted, but at least I avoided being subjugated as a lesser deity.
From that point on, the functions a god can exercise become restricted.
The influence on the Mind Map is the same.
The Mind Map is the exile's symbol—and in a way, everything. Even if there's no other world after the 100-year deadline and death, the Mind Map remains.
It's not just proof that you're not some NPC generated with the server—it's also a record of memories spanning long ages.
My newly emerging Mind Map was vastly different from before.
As a vampire now, it was dimmer compared to my human one.
If a human Mind Map shines like a bright cosmos, undead ones generally lose their light and fade into encroaching darkness.
The skill fruits flicker faintly, and the branches connecting them turn into lifeless, blurry lines.
Being a vampire among undead, a dark crimson blood hue seeps into spots across the barren Mind Map.
And the background still swirls with the purple aura signifying Chaos faith.
It spirals even denser now, as if welcoming the change.
The initial section near the center of the Mind Map remains intact.
But the magic-related passives that extended further toward the edges are all gone.
They've been converted back into points.
The Mind Map has these sectional divisions too.
The parts that don't reset on race change correspond to the shared skill lines common to all races.
Further out, in the mid-tier skill areas including various masteries, everything resets with each race change.
Can't be helped— you can't use tail-based skills without a tail, right? That's the issue.
Vampires have entirely different skill emergence tables from humans.
For example, [Mist Form] or [Bat Form] are race skills humans could never acquire.
My level has now hit triple digits at 101. Using the Spirit King diverts some EXP there, so it's a bit regrettable.
That's the downside of summoner classes.
Still, mass slaughter is always right when it comes to EXP.
I pick skills in bulk without fussing over probabilities. Labyrinth faith, networking with gods—it's all important in various ways, but meaningful only in the realized Labyrinth.
Back in game days, faith mattered for its effects on abilities and the Mind Map.
As a human, it meant little. No faiths boost the human race.
Humans lack specialized fields, so bonuses anywhere would be weird.
Chaos has deep ties to the Abyss, offering huge bonuses to humanoid undead in general.
Vampires included.
This ups the odds for race trait skills, and there are even Chaos vampire exclusives.
It's complex, but you memorize it without trying after a while. That's the system.
So, my class as a vampire is...
"Martial Mage is solid. Stats go pure mage, but it's oddly melee fighter-ish."
MP efficiency versus firepower is excellent, but absolute MP cost isn't low.
So passives mostly go magic-side.
The trade-off for massive melee output: negligible melee bonuses, basically nonexistent.
Well, follow the Martial Mage skill tree and you'll see—Intelligence skyrockets.
Skip basic shared magic passives like [Mana Sensitivity] and grab their advanced derivations.
Core skills [Casting Acceleration] and [Instant Mana Burst] require Intelligence 30 branches.
Naturally, Strength and Agility stay weak, so their derived passives don't stack.
It's romantic but treated as trash for a reason.
Hit hard once, then die perfectly.
But as a vampire, with the racial trait [Blood Reservoir], even mage stats can handle melee.
Everything in the world is about combinations. There's always a way to make it work.
In the Labyrinth, it's race, class, and faith combos.
[The God of Nature says it's not a bad choice.]
This guy's a pure fairy player, so probably follows the God of Nature. Still, experienced enough to know this.
[The God of Nature says they've tried being a fairy vampire before.]
Fairy fetishist level. No wonder they liked our Hunter from the start. Must be the resemblance.
While I set up my Mind Map, the Hunter rechecked the Youngest and the gear.
The Flintlock Pistol relies heavily on material mana for power, but it's still old-school tech needing frequent maintenance.
The Youngest polished his shield with anxious eyes. Dents everywhere, durability nearing zero.
Used repeatedly to tank big hits, and it's his main weapon too—its lifespan is ending.
Melee fighters wear gear out fast all around.
Can't just unilaterally crush foes, after all.
The Girl's daggers, meanwhile, were both still in great shape.
Her style—slipping through gaps for one-shot kills over direct clashes—is gear-efficient. Easier said than done.
But she's pulling it off. Got a bit deflated after getting thrashed by the fairy mage lately, but her talent's still insane.
It's been 100 years. In a place where even death holds no fear.
No outside hell matches 100 years in the Labyrinth.
Seems she's starting to grasp that over the last few days.
"Uncle, now that you're a vampire, wanna spar?"
"Sure. I need to loosen up too. Hit anywhere except the heart."
"You won't land a hit anyway."
"Nah, my stats and passives are way different now. Can't pull the same moves."
Feels like she's shifted from curiosity-driven technique theft to having real goals.
She used to charge at me to beat me, sure, but now she seems aimed at something specific.
The old Girl was strong, but gave off a vibe of just going with the flow.
Lacked drive.
Her oddly intense desire for my affection might stem from that.
There's an emptiness somewhere inside her.
"Urachaaa!"
"Ow ow ow, even as undead, a neck slice hurts like hell. 'Cause the brain's close?"
"Really?"
"Nah, just a figure of speech. Vampires do get dulled pain overall."
We stopped after I got too battered.
With a goal, she trained more aggressively.
Questions increased too—not idle curiosity about the Labyrinth, but on body techniques, dagger work, and magic applications.
Stronger drive is always better.
Most "Labyrinth laws" are just to make you fight better and harder.
No comfy laws in this lawless zone.
Only strength is justice.
Her edge feels sharper now. Maybe 'cause as a vampire, I won't die mid-spar.
The affection she shows could naturally loosen my offense.
But I'm a newbie vampire—[Blood Reservoir] isn't plentiful yet.
Sunrise would be disastrous right now.
Same for the little vampire. [Daywalker] is a skill even top clan masters rarely have.
That's why the Barbarian got exiled to the Abyss. Sunlight's curse clings to vampires for life.
Vampires have tons of perks—enough to rival high races.
But the fatal flaws outnumber and outweigh them.
"Speaking of, what's your name?"
Exiles don't share real names—unspoken rule. Near kingdoms, real names unlock more options.
Knowing a name lets someone with bad intent endanger you.
The little vampire's different. She's no exile.
But she says something weird instead.
"Never had a name. Call me your daughter."
"Daughter?"
"Daaaughter?"
Wait, no. This is too off.
The little vampire's eyebrows twitch slightly. She averts her gaze subtly, expectant.
Classic manipulation.
"Hey, straight answer. Keep this up, I'll ask future me. We'll meet other party members from the next floor. Got it?"
Expectation fades from her face; she pouts.
"Wanted to hear you call me daughter. Sorry. Lied. Just been called kid."
"Mm, good girl, my daughter. Honesty's key. Got it?"
"Yes."
Dunno details, but future me tamed her well. She perks up at the title she wanted.
Emotions are faint, expressions minimal, but it shows a bit.
Childlike, but different from the Girl.
The Girl feels more cunning than purely innocent.
"Uncle, Uncle. Call me something too."
"Like what?"
"Baby?"
I boosted with mana burst, charged, and bopped her head.
She dodged full-force, but I [Bind]ed and held her to smack her.
After the ruckus, I gathered the party and made a request.
Vampire food is blood.
More precisely, blood from the original race.
Become a dragonkin vampire? Starve to death.
I'm human vampire, so human blood only.
"I'm ready!"
The Girl wiped her neck eagerly and said.
I sighed and called the Youngest.
Slight arm cut, blood into a magic ice cup.
Got some from the Hunter too.
The Girl squirmed a bit as I approached.
"Even like this, I'm happy."
"You're kinda scary right now."
"You'll take it anyway."
Suspicious. Took her blood too, glancing at the kid.
Her lips curl watching us.
Feeling hits: not full truth, not full lie.
Such a situation will come. We'll know then.
Party geared up, we moved out.
That dawn, some shamans escaping the Burning Fortress flew messenger hawks enchanted by spells.
Shaman hawks make excellent couriers.
When the dire news reached the Stormhowl Brigade remnants retreating to the fortress, Trdongt was serene.
His disciple no longer surprised.
"You knew what would happen?"
"It'll end soon."
"What will?"
Trdongt smiled gently. Time etches kindness even on orc faces.
Less orc shaman, more wise old man who'd lived long.
"If there was a way back to humanity, would you take it?"
The disciple shook her head.
"I'd be lying to say no regrets, but they've cast me out. Returning means blood on my hands."
"What if it was okay?"
"The gods wouldn't allow it. No reason to go back then."
Trdongt chuckled heartily.
"Ever tell you I was born and raised in human lands?"
"Yes. That's why you took me in."
"Hated humans then. Ancient history."
"Not now?"
Trdongt pondered. Time washes much away. Emotions too.
Rage and hate evaporate. Maybe 'cause he's orc.
But even long-lived races, even those holding emotions forever...
Blind hate takes effort. Emotional torrents aren't infinite.
He looked at his disciple. Taking her in intensified it.
In just a year, the fading hatred of this old orc vanished without trace.
Growing tired of hardline stances weakened his brigade standing.
Eventually, it became mere acting. That sustaining emotion hard to drop after a lifetime.
A Greenskin without fight? Gods would scoff.
But individual trumps race.
Trdongt's life is his own.
He spoke.
For a girl much like his past self, despite the race difference.
"I'm tired now."
If that man's words held, his Greenskin life ends soon.
Trdongt met his disciple's eyes.
Suddenly, not the shaman's pupil—but a girl aflame with betrayal.
"Let's talk."