VRMMORPG: Rise Of The Blood Paragon

[Ding: Congratulations on your first kill!]

"Wait… what? She's dead?"

"No way!" he exclaimed, staring at his blood-stained fingers.

As his gaze remained fixed, a sudden pressure rose in his throat—a sickening urge to vomit what he had just consumed.

He quickly dropped from the bed, his frantic eyes scanning the room for something—anything—he could use. Then he spotted the cups he'd noticed the first time he was brought here.

Stumbling to the edge of the room, he snatched one up, but immediately recoiled.

"Gross…" he spat, letting the cup fall from his hands.

It had once held blood, the same blood the maids had presented to him during the full blood moon ritual. He'd flung it away in disgust back then, and now, traces of it lingered, giving off a sickly, metallic odor.

He gagged, clutching his stomach. The stench only worsened the nauseating sensation swirling within him.

"But… is she really dead?" he muttered, forcing himself to glance at the lifeless body on the floor.

He couldn't look for long.

"My first meal… my first kill…" he whispered, his voice trembling as he inched toward the maid's body. His foot nudged her motionless arm, but he didn't dare look down.

"I need to check… the system might be wrong. She might not be dead," he told himself, clinging to the hope that the grim reality before him was a mistake.

Being human—at least, once—a thing like killing was unimaginable. The fact that he might have drained someone dry, not with a weapon but his own mouth, was repulsive and alien to him.

The more he thought about it, the more he felt the urge to retch. But no matter how hard he tried, nothing came out.

It was as though the blood he'd consumed had already been digested, leaving no trace behind. The thought unsettled him further.

"Maybe… someone else did this? Came in, drained her, and left?" he wondered, clinging to any plausible explanation.

But deep down, he knew the truth.

After a long moment, he forced himself to keep his eyes on her. Her fingers had already turned pale blue. He crouched beside her, placing a hand on his throat to stifle the nausea.

"God…" he whispered. "I did this… I fucking did this… so I have to face it."

Berating himself, he removed his hand from his throat and reached out to touch her. The chilling coldness of her corpse made his skin crawl.

"Fuck…" he muttered again, recoiling from the touch. Without checking for breathing, he knew she was long gone.

"Yes… I guess this is what I'll be doing regularly to survive in this world," he muttered. Then, as if questioning fate itself, he asked, "But as a vampire, do I have to? Regularly? Just to eat? What about animals?"

A knock on the door interrupted his spiraling thoughts.

"What the fuck was that?" he panicked, his eyes darting between the door and the corpse on the floor.

He stood up, biting his nails in distress, only to grimace as he remembered where his fingers had just been. But there wasn't enough time to dwell on that. The knock came again, stronger this time.

"I—I…" he stuttered, unsure of what to say.

Desperately, Lionel grabbed the maid's legs, attempting to drag her somewhere—anywhere—but the room offered no hiding place. The bed was too low to the ground, and there was no bathroom in sight.

"Damn it…" he cursed under his breath, sweat beading on his forehead.

"Your Highness… are you alright? I'm coming in now," a voice called from the other side of the door.

"No… no… no… he can't see this…" Lionel muttered, panic clawing at his chest. His mind raced with the implications.

If Karvin saw this, the truth of his regained Vampiric abilities would reach the king. His secret would be exposed, and he'd be crippled again.

"Oh, Lord…" he whispered, his breath shaky. He was out of options.

The door creaked open.

"Your Highness?" Karvin's voice was calm but edged with concern.

"Yes," Lionel replied sharply, his back turned, every nerve in his body on guard. If it came to it, he would strike first.

Karvin's footsteps echoed in the room, slow and deliberate. Lionel's muscles coiled like a spring, his thoughts darting between attack and escape. Then, a hand tapped his shoulder. Instinct took over.

Lionel whirled, swinging his fist with all his strength.

Karvin dodged effortlessly, the strike grazing harmlessly past him. With a swift motion, he drew his sword, its blade igniting with a faint, ominous blue light as it absorbed blood essence.

"Whoa…whoa…what the hell are you doing?" Lionel snapped, retreating a step, his eyes darting to the glowing blade.

Karvin's grip on his sword tightened as he studied the figure before him. His gaze flicked to the lifeless maid on the floor, then back to Lionel.

"Your Highness… is that you?" Karvin asked, his tone wary.

Karvin had been summoned by the head knight but returned to his post when he noticed the distinct, unsettling smell of blood near the prince's chambers. Alarmed, he had drawn his sword and entered the room, expecting to confront an intruder. What he found was far more shocking.

The pale, drained corpse of one of the king's maids lay in the center of the room. Beside it stood a figure in the dim light, silhouetted and unfamiliar. For a moment, Karvin wondered if the prince had been harmed or worse.

But the situation present was different and he was far more curious.

"What? Who did you think I was?" Lionel barked, trying—and failing—to sound unbothered.

Karvin hesitated, sheathing his sword but not entirely relaxing. "Apologies, Your Highness. I thought you were in danger. But… this…"

His eyes shifted to the corpse. "What happened here?"

Lionel's stomach dropped. The moment he'd feared was unfolding, and there was no escape.

'This is bad. I'll have to leave the palace tonight. If Karvin reports this, I'm finished,' Lionel thought, his mind scrambling for a solution.

Karvin's voice cut through his thoughts like a blade. "Your Highness… did you do this?"

Lionel froze, his lips parting as panic and defiance warred within him. The truth would come out one way or another. Perhaps honesty was his only option.

"Yes, I…"

Before Lionel could finish, Karvin's expression darkened with realization.

"You bit her… with fangs?" Karvin's voice dropped, his astonishment palpable. "How is that possible?"

Lionel inhaled deeply, steadying himself. "I guess I'm cured of my crippled state. That's not the only thing that's changed. I don't know what this means yet, but now that you know…"

He leveled his gaze at Karvin. "You'll have to keep it to yourself."

Karvin's brows furrowed. "Your Highness—"

"Promise me," Lionel interrupted. "Swear you won't tell the king or anyone else. If you do, I'll be stripped of my strength again. Do you understand?"

Karvin's hesitation was brief but noticeable.

Then, he sheathed his sword fully and straightened. "Your Highness, my loyalty is to you. Not the king, not the palace. You."

"What are you saying?" Lionel's expression wavered, he had thought to use this to hear what Karvin would say but he was rather astonished by his response.

Karvin met his gaze, unflinching. "I serve you. Only you."

For a moment, Lionel stared, uncertain whether to trust the words or question their sincerity. But one thing was clear: Karvin was offering him something he desperately needed—an ally.