“Jin… I’m here to warn you.”

Professor Cain’s face turned ashen and grim as if his own child had been harmed by nefarious means. Staring straight at my face, the aged man gave me a firm warning.

“Warn me? What for?”

“Jin, your actions that day… They have brought unwanted attention.”

“…”

Tell me something I didn’t know. I’ve been to meeting after meeting with Vampire leaders and Elders; not just that, I have talked to multiple S-ranked Hunters and several elites from the other races. The amount of attention I’ve been getting has already become too much for me to bear. However, I doubt Professor Cain was here to inform me about those pesky assholes.

“I may be old, but I still have some connections hidden away, and they told me… The Holy Church is moving.”

“The Holy Church? What do they want with me?”

Although I had mingled with many people throughout my three days, no one from the Holy Church congregation came up to me. Neither the exorcists nor the priests looked in my direction, so much so that I’d forgotten they existed. So, what would they want to do with me?

“Jin… Tell me the truth… Are you the reincarnation of the Vampire Progenitor?”

“Huh? What nonsense are you spouting, Professor? You know that can’t be true!”

Reincarnation.

A lofty goal of all magicians aiming for eternal life. No one truly knows where the soul goes after they pass away. While members of the Holy Church believed that they would ascend to the High Heavens and sing symphonies with Cherubs forever more, no one truly had proof of an afterlife. Even the Vampires, renowned for being immortal and retaining their eternal youth, couldn’t escape the cycle of death.

Should their souls pass on, there was no coming back.

As for the Vampire Progenitor, he wasn’t exempt from that fateful rule.

“Professor… Don’t tell me the Holy Church thinks I’m the Progenitor’s reincarnation?”

“That’s what my sources tell me,” the wizened old man nodded his head with a frown. “They couldn’t explain how a young man such as yourself was able to gain such explosive power. And even if you weren’t the Progenitor, the power to defeat a Demon Lord is too much for the Holy Church to accept.”

“Who cares about whether they accept it or not? I did them a service by defeating Eyghon!”

“I think so too. But, humans aren’t rational, you see.”

Perhaps it was because of his age and experience; the Professor showed a face of empathy toward the decision of the Holy Church.

“Jin, have you ever wondered why Outer Demons have the word ‘Outer’ in front of their names?”

“Isn’t it because they came from another world?”

“That’s just half the story,” Professor Cain sighed as he cuffed his hands behind his back. “The real reason those monsters are called Outer Demons is to differentiate them from the original ones that plagued the world. The Demons that the Holy Church had begun multiple wars called the Crusades to exterminate.”

“Vampires…”

“Precisely.”

Once again, I was reminded of how frail the Vampires’ existence was on our planet. While we were the apex predators and we were the beings closest to magic, the Vampire race was still persecuted throughout human society. Rather than accepting our existence, the world had chosen to tolerate it.

And while one Vampire was equivalent to a dozen regular men, we were still vastly outnumbered by the human race, which easily had seven billion people. Even if we did go to war, the Vampire race would lose out in the long run.

“While they may have signed a peace treaty, the Holy Church has never accepted the Vampire or Werewolf races into their fold. And while they must show a united front, hidden between the lines were centuries of covert assassinations and killings between each side.”

“That I know of…”

I wasn’t naive to believe that the Vampire race had all saints. Plenty of vampires loved to prey on innocent virgins for a goblet of their blood. And at the same time, numerous exorcists would kill any Vampire they saw, without a care in the world if they were friendly or not.

“And right now, you have become a threat that the Holy Church cannot ignore.”

“…”

I was starting to see the man’s point.

Killing Eyghon was a blessing and a curse. I had gotten recognition from the upper echelons of the Vampire race, with many wishing to become my sponsors and to help me in any shape or form. On the other hand, I had single-handedly made myself public enemy number one in the eyes of those agnostic to the Vampire race.

Ignoring the Werewolf Tribes and the Elves who just had bad blood with the Vampires, the Holy Church’s mission in life was the extermination of all those who weren’t human. While their blades of mercy were now targeted at the Outer Demons and the existential harm they could cause to our planet, there was no telling when their rosary crosses would turn into silver bullets that would aim at my heart.

“Defeating Eyghon was too flashy of a stunt, Jin. Now, even the Pope knows your name. And even if you declare to harbour no ill intent to humanity and the Holy Church, those pious bastards would never buy that for one second. They will destroy anything they cannot control, and if you’re the second coming of the Progenitor… I wouldn’t be surprised if they declared a new Holy War.”

“… Would they really go that far?”

I structured that as a question, but I already knew the answer deep down. Humans aren’t rational creatures. The Holy Church might acknowledge that I would be an asset in the war against the Outer Demons for now, but what happens afterwards?

Now that we could defeat a Demon Lord, what would happen if we ultimately pushed back all of the Outer Demons? Will the world revert back to its internal warring states? If that’s the case, could the Holy Church permit a Vampire who could potentially be as powerful as the Progenitor to exist?

The answer was clear…

“Jin, I know that you are well protected by the Vampires now, but since the Holy Church does not operate under regular laws, they can do things you wouldn’t even imagine just to get your head.”

“Are you saying… They’ll kidnap and target those that are close to me?”

“I’m glad you catch on quickly.”

Professor Cain looked out the door, presumably in the direction where my three lovers disappeared into.

“They don’t know your strength, especially after you’ve taken down Eyghon. But, they won’t have any issue finding faults with those closest to you. Those three girls aside, don’t you have two other people you would need to protect?”

“Mom… Dad…”

The faces of my two beloved parents resurfaced. Although I hadn’t met them in a while due to my busy schedule, I have never once forgotten about them. They were the people who raised and treasured me all my life. And while they were capable of protecting themselves, who knows what kind of contingent they may send to kidnap or threaten them?

“Elna and Jael are former A-ranked Hunters, so they can protect themselves for a while. But if the Holy Church is fully determined, it doesn’t matter how powerful they are, they will eventually fall into the Pope’s hands.”

“I see… Thank you for telling me all of this, Professor. It seems that I have been careless.”

I really was negligent. I didn’t even think of the possibility of being targeted for my strength, let alone the threat that I posed to my parents. It seems like I would need to bring them under my wing soon enough. And most importantly of all…

I needed to become stronger! Strong enough that those fools at the Holy Church wouldn’t dare to touch anything I’m associated with.

“Haha, I’m not blaming you! If anything, I’m impressed by how much you’ve grown! I always knew you had the potential, but your growth is staggering!” With his warning sent, the Professor returned to his usual cordial and jubilant mood.

“So, have you been moving towards your goal of creating a unified magic theory?”

“Hmmm? A-Ah!”

A unified magic theory… That was something I hadn’t heard in a long time.

Back in my university days and when I was still crippled, I was determined to make a name out of myself. And I’d thought the best way to do so was to reach Einstein’s level of fame through the study of a unified magic theory.

A theory that could combine everything we know in the physical, spiritual and magical into one thesis. One universal theory. One unbreakable law.

My joint paper with Professor Cain on how subatomic particles affect the flow of magic was just the first step in that process. I’d thought I would spend the remainder of my life creating new experiments and theories in hopes of creating something that would put my name amongst the greats like Newton and Einstein.

But well, I turned into a Vampire, and those life plans had been derailed entirely.

“Oh? Have you forgotten all about it?”

“No, of course not! I was just… Kind of preoccupied.”

“Ah, I see… Yeah, you don’t get that kind of strength overnight.”

Professor Cain smiled back with no hint of displeasure within his eyes. Yet, I knew that the man was disappointed at some deep level.

“Jin, if you don’t mind this old man nagging, you shouldn’t neglect your studies. A brain like yours comes once every thousand years, and it wouldn’t be right for you to waste it on obtaining pure power.”

“Professor, I…”

“Think about it. No one can cast a fireball spell without knowing how fire burns. If you deepen your understanding of magic, your magical horizons will blossom into heights no one could ever hope to compare to.”

“…”

“Theory and application come hand-in-hand, Jin. Going back to your roots sometimes wouldn’t hurt one bit.”

“Professor… No, thank you. You’ve truly opened my eyes.” ????n????????????????????.＆nbsp;????????????

Goodness… Even though I’ve become infinitely stronger than before, I was still being schooled by my Professor. I couldn’t help but smile as I bowed my head down willingly as I walked him out the door.