"Damn." Ralf slammed his hand down on the roof, cracking the slate roof tiles in anger. His eyes emanated a cold, blood red light.

"An entire night wasted, and nothing of it." He sighed, running his hands through his hair.

He and his men and staked out the house the whole night, waiting for the Titan to show up. They'd gotten zero results, and instead left him exhausted. Ralf rubbed at his eyes, feeling the fatigue behind them.

"Randall, Borranger." He called out two names quietly, waving his hand forward.

Immediately, two of his trusted subordinates in the guard appeared. One of them was human, while the other was a vampire.

While this planet was under the control of the Aurelius Family, the vast majority of its inhabitants, and most worlds controlled by the Family, were not vampires.

Vampires were a powerful race, with strength that could grow to high levels without even training in magic. It was a law in this universe that the stronger or more powerful the bloodline of a being was, the harder it was to have offspring.

Therefore, while the hand of the Aurelius may stretch far, the number of vampires in the Family was not at all that large when compared to humans or the Aeth, or other populous races.

"Maintain the stakeout just in case, but make contact with the general guard to switch over and let the men rest." Since the Titan hadn't appeared immediately, he'd need to do this one by the books. Annoyance and worry filled him, alongside regret. If he knew this would've been so much trouble, he never would've framed the Titan.

"Yes sir."

"Yes sir!"

The pair responded with sharp nods, and set to work informing the rest of the guard. Ralf sighed again, and then vanished from the rooftop, slinking off down the side as dawn began to break, headed home. He lived only a short distance away from here. Flying in the city was strictly off limits, and it would be a bit too much to call for a carriage, so he decided to walk.

..

"Finally." Dorian's eyes gleamed as he watched the vampire Wizard break off from the rooftop after hours of observation. His patience had been stretched thin by this point.

'Ausra, how much time do I have till this form finishes adapting?' He queried, checking. Humans only had two Growth Stages, and he would maximize their growth immediately, transforming into an adult. He didn't exactly have the clothes for it, and with daylight unfolding, he could be left in an unpleasant situation.

'9 minutes and 12 seconds.' Ausra responded coolly.

Dorian nodded. He could work with that. He'd probably want to maintain his human form till he got out of the city, all things considered, since the guards were looking for a Titan, and his other forms weren't really applicable.

He kept to the shadows as he trailed after the vampire Wizard, keeping his distance. The vampire seemed supremely unconcerned with anyone following him, most likely for good reason. Ausra had him labelled as a Grandmaster Class Wizard. The innate barrier of a Grandmaster Class Wizard could nullify the impact from a thousand pound blow with ease, let alone any thieves or attacks. That, combined with his own physical strength and durability as a vampire, gave considerable cause for confidence.

According to Ausra, studying magic could accelerate the growth to maturity of any creature with a bloodline that had potential to grow, through the laws of this world. It worked differently for different races.

The moment your Soul Spell Matrix broke through to, say, the Grandmaster Class, your body would immediately start to grow and adapt to that level of power.

He shook the stray thoughts from his mind as he stalked the vampire through the barest gleaming of dawn.

Around him, the city was slowly coming to life. He could make out several figures starting to walk the streets. Hunters, heading out of the city to hunt beasts on the World Bridge, or to cross over to other islands. Miners crossing to any mines with resources in the vicinity, traders readying their trade or preparing to leave on expeditions.

He also saw a few beggars, lying on the side of streets or alleyways resting. It seemed poverty was a curse in this world, just as it was back on Earth.

The world around was starting to come to life.

No one paid attention to a poorly dressed street urchin, moving off to the side.

After about five minutes of walking, the vampire Wizard turned into a different residential area, one that was entirely fenced in. A gate blocked off any normal entrance to this exclusive section of the city. Several raised black walls blocked off passage around the area, leaving the only way in over the wall or through the gate.

The gate itself seemed to be made of some type of golden metal and gave off a faint, yellow light.

Past the gate, Dorian could see several luxurious mansions, at least ten of them, many of them veritable palaces due to their sheer size, spread a hundred meters out from each other. Trees, a small river, and a few gardens stood between each home, giving the area a natural, comfortable look. Not at all as if it was in the middle of a populated city. It was the most luxurious sight he'd seen in the city yet.

The vampire Dorian was watching cast some sort of spell, and the gate shivered and then opened up, allowing him to pass through. Moments later it closed off, sealing the place.

Dorian frowned as he saw this. His eyes trailed up, looking at the walls and above them.

Just faintly, he could make out an odd distortion in the air.

He guessed that if he flew over it, it might set off some sort of alarm. The gate appeared to be some type of magic object, locking out the way. He didn't see anyone else moving to or from the gate, it seemed like an exclusive community that people would rarely enter or exit. At least, not in the early hours of dawn.

There were few people moving anywhere near this street. The homes off to his left or right were still closed up, and the street itself nearly empty. There were no shops or anything of that kind in this residential sector of the city.

As he was considering what to do, an idea popped up in his head.

He knew he was able to absorb energy from magic objects, and add that to his own store of growth energy. He hadn't fully tested his ability yet. Now, however, seemed like a prime opportunity. He wasn't jailed away trying to escape or in any danger. If something went wrong, he'd be able to deal with it safely.

Dorian smiled, and then shuffled up to the front of the gate.

He took one last surreptitious look around the street. The grey and white paved stone road was empty for the most part, the nearest pedestrians at least a hundred meters off to his right.

Slowly, he put his right hand on the gate. He felt a slight tingling feeling as he touched it, and then nothing.

'Ausra, got any tips on absorbing energy from magic objects?' A question he felt he should've asked far sooner.

'It is a natural talent unique to your Soul Spell Matrix, and like other skills or Abilities, you simply need to will it to happen.' Ausra replied punctually.

Dorian nodded and then turned his focus to the gate before him.

He stared at it, and then slowly concentrated, willing any energy in the gate to flow into him.

Gradually, he felt a warm feeling settle in on his right hand. This feeling began to become warmer and warmer. He felt almost as if a connection was starting to form.

Mentally, in his head, he felt a great big glowing light appear. A huge, massive orb, floating above him. Almost within reach.

Dorian stared at the orb, and then willed it to come to him.

And it did.

All of a sudden, his entire body was suffused in a massive golden light, for the briefest instant. His entire body felt as if it was about to implode, a huge store of energy blasting into him. This feeling lasted briefly before disappearing without a trace.

A split second later… the golden gate in front of him fell apart, collapsing into dust. The shimmering, almost invisible shield that covered the walls and the air above them shivered, and then vanished.

Just after this, Dorian instinctively pulled up his growth status.

–

-Human – Growth Stage: (1/2) Human Child –

Growth Progress – 59,794/300 –

–

Dorian's eyes opened wide in shock as he checked the values, and then checked them again in astonishment.

"I absorbed… around 55,000 units of energy?!"

..

Ralf checked his appearance in his entryway mirror, making sure his collar wasn't set too high. Even though he was home, it wouldn't do to look poorly dressed. Maintaining one's appearance was important, especially when you thought no one was looking.

He had finally made it home after such a grueling evening, and was ready to go to sleep. He moved past the entrance of his large mansion, looking at the ornate staircase, white stone statues that adorned his walls, and antique white teak wooden floor. His humble abode was his place of refuge.

"Master Tornstrew!" Before he could even make it to the grand staircase, one of his subordinates came rushing in. A vampire warrior dressed in black leather armor, one of his guards. Favian was his name.

"Yes, Favian?" He asked, struggling to keep the irritation out of his voice. The men that guarded his mansion were trained well enough to only disturb him if it was urgent.

"It's, uh, it's Molf sir." Apparently the man's name was Molf.

"And, uh, sir! The Protection Spell Field of the 12 Palaces has collapsed!" The vampire continued, his eyes wide.

Ralf stared at the man, incredulously,

"It collapsed?"

"Yessir, it collapsed!" The guard replied, nodding his head.

Ralf kneaded his forehead, feeling a headache trying to force its way in,

"Favian-"

"It's Molf, sir,"

"Molf," He began, glaring at the guard for interrupting him,

"The Protection Spell Field cannot just 'collapse.' It was put into place by a commissioned Lord Class Wizard, using 12 Earthen Energy Cores. A meteor lobbed by a Lord Class Fire Wizard couldn't put a dent in the Spell Field, let alone cause it to collapse."

Molf squirmed, looking uncomfortable as he responded,

"Well, uh, sir I know."

"But," he continued, gesturing towards the front door,

"It, uh, well, it did."

Ralf turned towards the front entrance of his house. He blinked and then walked forward, stalking outside, his anger building to a crescendo as he raised his hands up.

"What in the name of the heaven's do you…" His voice trailed off.

Ralf's eyes were trained, able to see and detect faint traces of magic.

And the sky above him was on fire, random magical waves exploding back and forth overhead erratically.

The perfect image of a collapsed Spell Field.

His jaw dropped, and his hands raised in anger slowly fell as he stared at the dying sky above,

"…"

"…what?"

..

"Ulp!" Dorian burped, a satisfied feeling in his stomach. Absorbing the energy from that gate had given him a nice and warm full feeling. He smiled as he waltzed into the walled off area, glancing around at the mansions, zeroing in on the one the vampire Wizard had walked into.

It was a large, three-story tall white mansion made out of some type of special brick. It had several ledges and great long windows. A small moat decorated the outside of it, and a large garden of trees peppered its yard.

There were only a few minutes till he could switch forms again.

Dorian gazed at the house, his mouth thin. He then darted off into one of the luscious trees near the entrance, his eyes staying on the house, and began to prepare.

.

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