My Alter Ego's Path to Greatness

< Doctor (1) >

-Individual Name: Heinz II

-Race: Vampire (Divine Blood)

-Common Traits: 「Mind Herb」, 「Persona」, 「Clear Mind」, 「Superhuman Strength」, 「Xenoglossy」

-Individual Traits: 「Blood Sovereign」, 「Hybrid Evolution」, 「Blood Mystery」, 「Refined Blood Crystal」, 「Non-Existence」, 「Primordial Regression」, 「Rapid Acceleration」, 「Insight」, 「Charm」

-Special Notes: Having collected various vampiric essences, the individual has become closer to the origin of the vampire race. However, the origin is not yet fully integrated, resulting in an incomplete state. Grants additional buffs to all blood-related skills. Exerts strong influence over all vampires.

Heinz II looked down at his hands, slowly clenching and unclenching his fists.

'Amazing.'

A heavy energy surged from deep within him, emanating a powerful force. And something in his mind clicked, as if he had finally opened his eyes after a long slumber. A new, unfamiliar sensation washed over him.

As if a new sensory organ had sprouted.

'…It'll take some time to get used to this.'

It was a kind of spiritual sense that transcended even his perception of Qi. He was only able to maintain his composure because he was accustomed to various sensations, having handled diverse races from undead to dragons. Otherwise, he wouldn't even be able to move properly.

'And…'

He frowned slightly, sensing the strain on 「Mind Herb」 and 「Soul Firewall」. The cause was his 「Persona」, which had grown enormously with his increasing power.

'And this is still an incomplete state?'

He needed to reinforce his mental defenses with 『Other Skill Enhancement』, just in case. It was better to be prepared than to risk his ego being corrupted.

He received the target's location from Harris's elemental, Pascal, just as he finished checking his condition.

'I'll check the rest later.'

Heinz immediately prepared to move. While the target seemed to still be observing the situation, he didn't know when he might leave Romania. He didn't know when he'd get another chance like this.

'The distance is…'

He was currently in the nature reserve between Bucharest and its northern satellite city, about 15 kilometers from his target in the south of the city. And to him now, 15 kilometers was—

'Close.'

—a negligible distance.

Swish—

The moment Heinz, using 「Non-Existence」, vanished from the forest…

…the already weakened barrier shattered.

And a few seconds later, he was standing in a completely different location. The exact coordinates provided by the wind elemental.

'Just to be sure.'

Fwoosh—

A pale blood mist erupted from him, enveloping the surroundings. 「Blood Mystery」 activated. The area was instantly isolated.

"Now, let's see that smug face of yours."

Since this was Doctor's hideout, he expected some formidable traps, but he wasn't concerned. Heinz vanished again…

Boom—!

…and the security barrier surrounding the mansion instantly shattered.

When Phantom, the vampire, vanished from the holographic projection of the forest, Doctor merely tilted his head. But when the barrier was also destroyed, one of his eyebrows shot up. He was confident in the barrier he had personally prepared. There was no way the target could escape from it undetected. If he forced his way out, it would simply break.

'Like just now.'

And if the target had escaped, his next destination was obvious.

Beep— Beep— Beep—

Just as he reached that conclusion, the emergency alarm in his hideout blared.

"Huh, what's this?"

The alarm system, separate from the surveillance barrier covering Bucharest, was set up around his hideout. Its meaning was clear.

"He came straight here without triggering the city barrier."

Doctor's eyebrows twitched. It hadn't even been ten seconds since the target vanished from the forest. Arriving here so quickly… was impossible unless he knew something beforehand.

"Hmm hmm, and those helpers appeared at a very convenient time, didn't they? There's no way they could have done that unless they knew about the trap beforehand… This isn't something I can ignore!"

He had been so captivated by their unique characteristics that he hadn't thought about it, but there was no way such powerful individuals could have just appeared out of nowhere. One of them was an elf from another world!

'There's an unknown organization backing Phantom. One with the intelligence to learn about the traps here and the power to send such strong reinforcements!'

The traps here were personally set by him, so it would have been difficult for spies to uncover them. Perhaps they had someone with precognitive or clairvoyant abilities. They must have learned about his plan and prepared accordingly…

Boom—!

His train of thought was interrupted by a sudden explosion and tremor.

And as the owner of this place, he immediately knew.

There was an intruder. The monster, empowered by consuming the Duke, the strongest in Europe, was right outside.

Coming to tear him apart!

"A Level 10 vampire…"

Doctor shuddered at the thought of being in the same space as the unprecedented being he'd only seen in videos. But his expression wasn't one of fear.

"This is exciting! I wonder what that unique being will show me…!"

His face was flushed with excitement, like a fan meeting his idol, or a person meeting their ideal type. Even in this life-or-death situation, his curiosity took precedence.

He had something to rely on, after all.

Rumble— Rumble!

Loud explosions and tremors continued. It was absurd, considering his hideout was just a large mansion, but in this world where all sorts of mysteries existed, it wasn't that strange.

-1st floor breached.

-2nd floor breached.

-3rd floor breached.

-4th floor in progress.

He was now comfortably focused on his research, his safety secured, but he hadn't always lived like this. To survive in a dangerous other world, he had to develop his abilities.

And his specialty was 'Dungeon Master.'

-4th floor breached.

-5th floor in progress.

He was the one who designed the impregnable dungeon in his original world, known as the 'Demon King's Castle.' He later learned that even after his return, the dungeon remained unconquered, and the Demon King who used it as his base eventually conquered the continent, turning it into a closed world.

-6th floor in progress.

Of course, Doctor, who had received the Demon King's patronage and established his research career thanks to it, didn't care.

"…Uh, but this is a bit… too fast, isn't it?"

Even he couldn't help but be surprised by the rapidly changing situation. Earth was different from his original world, lacking resources, so the number of floors he could create was limited.

He had only prepared nine floors for this dungeon. He was confident in its quality, with various spells synergizing with each other, but…

-7th floor in progress.

How many minutes had passed since the intrusion began? Even for a Level 10 vampire, it shouldn't have been this easy to breach a dungeon designed to hold off other Transcendents for hours.

"Well, it seems this is it! What a shame!"

Doctor, forcing a smile, began to back away. He had a feeling that if he hesitated, he would be bitten in the neck.

"Huh? Spatial isolation?"

He tried to escape, but realized he was trapped within a spatial isolation barrier and was taken aback.

'How did he do that so quickly?'

It was absurd. 'Space,' along with 'time,' was one of the most complex fields of magic. It wasn't something that could be deployed so easily without preparation. It would be possible for a Peak-level Archmage, but Phantom wasn't one, was he?

He, unaware of 「Blood Mystery」, which allowed for the rapid construction of spells with an understanding of mysteries, the time-reducing effect of manipulating causality, and the indirect support from the magic-adept Immortal King Hans and the dragon Horus, couldn't comprehend the situation.

-8th floor in progress.

The reaper was closing in. If he had a little more time, he could break the spatial isolation and escape, but the enemy's progress was too fast. Only one floor remained. Once it was breached, he would face the monster head-on.

The one and only Level 10 vampire in the world, perhaps even in all dimensions!

"…Hmm? That might not be so bad…"

He was briefly tempted, but it was just wishful thinking. He assessed the situation objectively. What could he possibly do against Phantom?

"Well, I can't do anything! I'll be dead before I even realize it! Pahahaha!"

He might be turned into a slave, but knowing Heinz's personality from his research, he wasn't keen on that. He doubted Heinz would allow him to conduct 'free research.'

"Hehehe—!"

It couldn't be helped.

Boom!

Heinz, breaking through the 'Unbreakable Wall,' advanced through the maze in a straight line. He focused solely on moving quickly, dismantling everything that came his way: monsters, golems, magic circles, chimeras, and mechanical devices.

Whir— Click!

"Graaagh!"

Boom—!

He had breached eight increasingly difficult areas and was now on the ninth, but there was still no end in sight. He was impressed by the scale of this space, created on Earth.

'It's like the laws of Earth don't apply here. A different set of rules are in place. It's practically another dimension. How is this possible?'

He knew about Doctor. The source of the Heavenly Wealth Society's technology and a master of almost all forms of magic. But witnessing his abilities firsthand was truly impressive. It would have taken him at least 30 minutes to get this far before. He had only achieved this much thanks to his True Blood status, which allowed him to ignore the dungeon's 'Unbreakable Walls.'

'With this level of skill, he could easily break through my barrier. I need to…'

After a few minutes of rapidly traversing the dungeon, getting used to his new body, he felt like this area was about to end…

[Ah! Can you hear me? Can you hear me? Phantom!]

…when a voice echoed through the space.

[Oh, this is troublesome! Truly unexpected! I didn't expect your allies to be so strong. Pahaha!]

A frivolous voice, devoid of any seriousness. Heinz frowned as he moved, practically folding space.

Did it mean the target was ready to escape?

[And I'm a curious person, you see. I have something I must ask you before you go!]

Heinz didn't reply. He just focused on moving forward, gathering his mental strength.

'Faster!'

As his concentration increased and his thoughts expanded, the previously dormant spiritual sense he had gained began to activate.

And his perception expanded accordingly.

'…This is?'

The floor he was currently on, the floors he had passed, the location of Doctor, and the mansion itself…

…all came into clear focus. Even a single drop of blood that had fallen at Doctor's feet.

His newly awakened senses, previously unusable, had blossomed at the perfect time.

[…So, could you tell me the name? Of the organization you belong to! As a sign of respect—!]

Heinz was now certain.

The target was still trying to break the spatial isolation barrier. He was on the last floor of the dungeon, and it wouldn't last much longer.

It was a bluff.

[My, my, those intelligence agencies didn't even know about such a powerful organization? How useless. They need a complete overhaul! Surgically, of course. Uhyaha!]

He was nearing the end. The barrier around the mansion had been breached due to Doctor's constant attacks, but the opening was too small to escape through.

'Is he trying to buy time?'

A word he'd thought of before suddenly came to mind. Back then, he had considered it a possibility for the future…

Heinz chuckled and took the final step.

Crack— Shatter!

A cracking sound.

He stepped onto the marble floor of the mansion's living room and casually said to the middle-aged man standing before him:

"Masquerade."

A truly meaningless phrase.