Vincent was awake in the darkness. However, his eyes were closed. Moreover, he saw himself from the outside, as if his soul had floated away from his body. That would justify the bird’s-eye view, although he didn’t believe in anything like a soul in the first place. It did make sense.

  Gradually, he opened his eyes. His soul returned to its place as he truly awoke. He was still in bed. It was very dark, but he had no doubt that his surroundings belonged to the room in his home, not Runehaven Academy.

  Something is wrong, he thought. Something is very wrong.

  “I’m here.”

  A whisper. A cold voice. And knocks on the window.

  “Open up for me.”

  Vincent didn’t ask who it was. He was sure he recognized the owner of the voice. Anyway, he got out of bed and, still half-asleep, approached the window and opened it. Beyond, the darkness of a starless night, a suffocating silence, where no wind murmured nor birds sang. There was something wrong out there.

  Out there.

  The darkness was not impenetrable. Vincent shivered. Eyes like pools of fresh blood widened, drew closer. Moonlight fell on those pools, highlighting them. Vincent was sinking into those pools of blood. Only they weren't pools, of course, and there wasn't a drop of blood. They were eyes, eyes too big, too absorbing.

  He didn't feel like himself. It was as if he were hypnotized. Only that was impossible. No.

  Claws emerged from the darkness, scratching the window. Something entered the house through the window, leaving marks on the wood. What? He couldn't say. His vision was being consumed by those crimson eyes. Then a hand touched his face. The claws traced thick lines on his cheek. There was no pain, but there was warmth. Literally, the warmth of spilled blood. And something harder to define.

  In any case, he had been right. The something in front of him was, without a doubt…

  “Your scent is delicious.”

  Then Ayame sank her fangs into his neck and began to drink. Of course, Vincent tried to resist. It was the natural instinct of any animal caught in a trap. But it was too late. The vampiress hugged him tightly to prevent him from moving, while she drained him dry. There was no pain, but warmth. The warmth of his life escaping.

  ***

  Vincent woke up with a start. His heart was practically leaping out of his throat. Part of him, an important part, still didn’t understand that what he had seen was only a dream. He was still half-trapped in there, in the depths of the darkness.

  “Is something wrong?”

  His friends came to his aid immediately. They gave the impression they had been awake for a while. Vincent looked Tara in the eyes, then Ayame.

  “Just a stupid nightmare,” he said. “Sorry to worry you. Sorry I worried you.”

  Vincent wondered what could have made him dream such nonsense. Dreams are dreams, he thought. Maybe he was looking for meaning in something that had none. Not everyone is like that, after all. Whatever the dream was.

  “It seems like it really affected you,” Ayame said.

  “Yes,” Tara said. “You know you can count on us whenever you need to, right?”

  “It was just a nightmare,” Vincent said. “A stupid nightmare. Not even worth talking about.”

  Which was true. It made no sense at all. It was already fading from his memories. But he wouldn't forget the most important thing: Ayame slowly draining him dry. There was no logical reason to have such a nightmare. He trusted his partner completely. If it was some symbolic bullshit, well… then, anyway, he didn't even know where to start.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  “I’m glad if that’s true,” Ayame said. “We’re glad. Now we should hurry.”

  Vincent looked at the clock. He nodded. There was nothing more to say. He couldn’t.

  New classes. Everything was going smoothly, and he had even lifted the greatest weight from his shoulders. Of course, Ayame wasn’t the only one who could find him out. But for now, thanks to her acceptance, the fear had vanished. He felt like everything was going to be okay. That he was capable of anything.

  ***

  Runehaven Academy, despite being the most prestigious in the kingdom, wasn’t so different from the others as far as he knew. Everyone woke up at nine o’clock to attend eight hours of classes, divided by a recess period. That took up their morning, but then they had all the time in the world to do whatever they wanted.

  The difference was that there was an additional responsibility in the afternoon. The system of earning money for the room, food, sheets, even privileges like air conditioning. Apart from the quality of the teaching staff, that was the only important difference he was aware of. And it was. It was very important. It took up most of the afternoon for any team, so they didn’t have much time to rest either. And three very intense years awaited them.

  But his group had taken the lead. As long as they could stay ahead in payments, they could go at a much calmer pace. He liked that privilege. Adding Tara to the team hadn’t meant a significant increase in expenses, so there shouldn’t be any problem.

  After classes, Ayame wanted to go to Viewpoint again. They had repeated it three or four times since they were ambushed. Still, Vincent didn't feel comfortable in that city deep down. He was tempted anyway, but in the end… he rejected it. Ideas were percolating in his head, slowly taking shape. He had been looking for an opportunity to do more blacksmith-like work. He could seize the moment while they had fun. He surely wouldn't have such a good opportunity for a long time.

  Vincent left the building. He headed for the dungeon they had discovered. Well, that Tara had discovered. Part of him wouldn’t feel calm, not even blacksmithing in the privacy of his room. By entering the dungeon, he was leaving the academy grounds. Technically, he doubted they had the place under surveillance. He also doubted they monitored his room. But it was a matter of mentality, the feeling of security. Illusory or not, it mattered.

  He got to work. He had ideas, many ideas. He wasn’t a real knight and that came with certain limitations. He wasn’t foolish enough to deny it. However, that didn’t mean he couldn’t work on supplementing them. Therefore, he planned to make himself a new shield with a special property that should complement his fighting style. The inspiration had been sudden. He had had everything he needed for days, except time and space. Now the time had come.

  He got to work. The dungeon filled with the sound of metal striking metal. Sparks flew. He missed it, he thought. Deep down, he missed working on this. He was a blacksmith, after all. He had great ideas, good potential. And it was simply a pleasure. He didn't want to say something like "he was born for this." But it was a pleasure.

  Vincent smiled.

  ***

  When the girls returned, they had questions, of course. They couldn’t know the special property of the new shield, but the fact that it was new was obvious. The shield and sword, by the way, were crossed on the floor, next to his bed.

  “A new shield?” Tara asked. “What have you been doing while we were gone?”

  Ayame knew his secret. Finally, he didn’t need to lie to her. But to Tara… he would like to trust her too. But it was too risky. Fortunately, Ayame had agreed to keep her mouth shut. He hoped he would tell her. Though she had told him it would be best to just tell her. Rip off the band-aid and see how she responded. And see how she responded. Obviously, Vincent had no intention of doing that.

  “I went to visit a friend. The blacksmith, of course. He does good work and good discounts.”

  “Oh, okay,” Tara said. “Do you know the NPC well? Do you think he’d make me a new bow? I could really use one.”

  “He only works for other NPCs,” Vincent replied hesitantly. “I’m an exception that proves the rule. We’ve known each other for quite a while.”

  A lifetime, he thought.

  Tara let herself fall onto her bed.

  “Well, that’s a shame.” She turned her head to look at his weapons. “You can tell he does good work.”

  “Aha,” Vincent said. “Well, I’ll mention it to him next time I see him. And we’ll see what happens.”

  “Thanks. Wait. The day we were robbed, you said you’d never been to Viewpoint. Apart from… passing through for the initiation test, of course."

  “Yes, I said that. And that’s how it is. My friend moved away a long time ago. I hadn’t seen him for years, but I’ve always known where he was.”

  “Oh, well, okay. I’m glad you could see him again. Someday you have to introduce us to him.”

  Vincent nodded.

  “Is that all? Did you want a better shield? Or is there something special about it?” Ayame asked, as if she had read his mind.

  “What?”

  “Yeah, come on, spit it out,” Tara said.

  Vincent smiled.

  “All in due time,” he said.

  He was in a hurry to show off, because he felt particularly proud of his new work. But, at the same time, it was okay, because, as a surprise, it might turn out sweeter.

  “Spoilsport,” Ayame muttered.

  Vincent just laughed.