Aldric stared at the duplicate.
Then—
his gaze shifted toward the cat.
"That thing can use magic?"
He frowned.
"Then why didn't it ever do that before?"
Draven glanced at the cat.
"So..."
"You imitated me after seeing me use it?"
The cat immediately confirmed it.
*"Yes."*
*"I did it just like Papa."*
Draven stared at it.
"Yeah..."
He narrowed his eyes.
"And you also used shadow magic."
"You entered my shadow."
"Where did you learn that from?"
The cat tilted its head.
It remained silent for several moments.
*"Hmm..."*
*"I don't remember."*
*"I just did it when Papa told me to hide."*
Draven stared at the cat.
"Did you see anything inside my shadow?"
The cat shook its head.
*"No."*
*"There wasn't anything there."*
Draven remained silent.
"...Is that so?"
He paused.
"Okay."
Draven's body slowly rose into the air.
He floated upward before gently descending back to the ground.
"Let's see."
"I want you to imitate me."
"Alright?"
The cat stared at him.
*"Yes, Papa."*
"Okay."
Draven walked forward.
He stepped onto the side of the vehicle.
His foot remained firmly against the vertical surface.
Then—
he continued walking.
Around the side of the vehicle.
As if he were walking across solid ground.
The cat watched from above.
Draven looked up.
"Come on."
The cat nodded.
*"Okay."*
It immediately followed.
Its tiny paws touched the side of the vehicle.
Then—
it began walking across the vertical surface just like Draven.
Draven nodded.
"Alright."
"You should be able to do this one too."
He raised his hand.
"This is the first time I'm trying it with my own mana."
Draven's body suddenly blurred.
"Shadow Step."
**FWOOSH!**
His body disappeared.
A moment later—
he appeared several dozen meters away.
Draven turned around.
"Come."
His voice never left his mouth.
Instead—
the command entered the cat's mind.
The cat's eyes brightened.
*"Okay."*
It leaped forward.
Its body disappeared into shadow.
The next instant—
it appeared directly before Draven.
Draven nodded.
"Alright."
He took another step.
**FWOOSH!**
His body vanished again.
This time—
he appeared directly on top of the vehicle.
The cat immediately followed.
**FWOOSH!**
It appeared beside him.
Draven looked at it.
"Now..."
"You'll cast each magic I cast."
Aldric remained in the air.
His eyes narrowed as he watched the creature.
*This creature...*
Draven raised his hand.
A magic circle slowly appeared.
Complex lines of crimson mana intertwined across the circle.
"This is a spell."
"This is how it works."
He directed the magic circle toward the cat.
The cat stared at the rotating formation.
Aldric watched silently.
The magic circle continued to glow.
Draven's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Now..."
"Try to copy it."
Draven continued.
One dark magic after another—
he demonstrated them.
A dark sphere.
A blade of shadow.
A wave of darkness.
A thin tendril of black mana.
Aldric watched as the cat copied every single spell.
The cat reproduced each spell almost perfectly.
Aldric's expression slowly changed.
"When the hell did you learn all that?"
Draven glanced toward him.
"Memories."
He tapped the side of his head.
"I told you."
"I've gained the memories of the people whose blood I've drunk."
Aldric stared at him.
Then—
his expression shifted.
"Oh yeah."
"I forgot about that."
He crossed his arms.
"So the blood comes from the head..."
"And through those memories, you've learned how to use magic?"
Draven nodded.
"Yeah."
"You could say that."
Aldric frowned.
"Huh?"
"What does that mean?"
Draven looked at him.
"What?"
Aldric's expression twitched.
"What the hell?"
"You sound like I wasn't right."
Draven stared at him for a moment.
Then—
he shrugged.
"Yeah."
"Not fully."
Aldric raised an eyebrow.
Draven continued.
"It's more like..."
"I always knew how to use it."
"Then I learned it again through the memories."
Aldric fell silent.
He stared at Draven.
For several moments—
he didn't say anything.
*What the hell kind of ability is that?*
Draven ignored his expression.
He turned toward Aldric.
"Now..."
"I want you to teach me how to use blood magic."
Aldric's eyes narrowed.
"And your other abilities."
Draven paused.
"But if you don't want to..."
He looked at Aldric.
"I can just drink your blood."
Aldric's expression instantly darkened.
"Screw you."
Draven stared at him.
Aldric stared at Draven for several seconds.
Then—
he sighed.
"Fine."
"I'll teach you."
Draven's eyes shifted toward him.
Aldric raised one finger.
"But listen carefully."
"The first thing I'll teach you is telepathy."
He pointed toward Draven.
"Since it seems you're already doing it in some way."
His gaze shifted toward the black cat.
"You're already talking to that thing through your mind."
Draven glanced at the cat.
The cat blinked back at him.
Aldric continued.
"That's not quite the same as proper telepathy."
"It's more like you've established a mental connection with it."
"True telepathy allows you to communicate with another person's mind directly."
"You can send thoughts."
"Receive thoughts."
"And, with enough control, you can even project your presence into another person's mind."
Draven nodded slowly.
"So basically..."
"I can talk to someone without opening my mouth, just like the cat."
"Exactly."
Aldric nodded.
"But there's more to it than that."
He raised his hand.
"Watch."
Draven suddenly heard Aldric's voice inside his head.
*"Can you hear me?"*
Draven looked directly at Aldric.
"Yeah."
Aldric's lips hadn't moved.
"Good."
The voice continued inside Draven's mind.
*"Now answer me without speaking."*
Draven paused.
He focused.
Then—
*Can you hear this?*
Aldric's eyebrows lifted.
He heard the thought clearly.
"...Guess you know a bit."
Draven smirked.
"Seems easy."
Aldric's expression immediately became annoyed.
"Don't get cocky."
"That's only the beginning."
He pointed toward Draven's head.
"Telepathy isn't just about sending words."
"You can communicate images."
"Sounds."
"Emotions."
"And, depending on your strength..."
"Even memories."
Draven's expression became more serious.
"So you can transmit anything that's inside your mind?"
"Not anything."
Aldric shook his head.
"The stronger and more complex the information, the more difficult it becomes."
"Trying to force too much information into another person's mind can overwhelm them."
Draven nodded.
Aldric folded his arms.
"And there's another important thing."
"You need to learn how to control who can hear you."
"Otherwise, every thought you project could become a conversation with everyone nearby."
Draven's expression changed.
"So I'd be broadcasting my thoughts."
"Exactly."
Aldric nodded.
"Which is why you need control."