The goblin chieftain was an enormous, obese thing sitting in a stone chair as though it were his throne. Fat and muscle in equal portions adorned his massive frame. But despite his slothful appearance, and his near-feral features, I could see that his eyes gleamed with wicked intelligence. Baleful, even. The brute could think.

While observing him, it was difficult not to notice the blood and bits of gristle that covered his mouth and flabby chest.

He was also a messy eater.

Around him chattered the remnants of his tribe. They hissed and spat in my direction, although I noticed they didn’t move too far from the protective presence of their leader. So pitiful.

Although the goblins had seemed so dangerous when I first awoke, I realized now that most of these creatures were opportunistic weaklings. Cowards who only showed strength in numbers. Their lives were miserable, dirty, and short. Aside from their use in providing experience points, what was the purpose of such a bleak existence?

Where was the honor in trampling over such wretched lives?

“Are you my latest toy?” the chieftain asked in a deeply bored voice as he rested his head on his fist. “The last of my unfortunate challengers to appear for the evening? Have you come to amuse me with your dying screams before nourishing me with your flesh?”

“Unlikely,” I replied, unsurprised by his ability to speak perfect English. Why wouldn’t he? The laws which governed this world were clearly insane. Why be startled by anything?

“So many have come here to challenge me,” he said. “All of their bones lie before you. Broken things that once brought me pleasure. I enjoyed this game once, but now all it brings me is tedium.”

“You’ve never known defeat?” I asked him

“Never,” he said proudly. “Nor have I have ever battled to my fullest measure. My glory has been squandered on weaklings like you. Your species has produced naught but unremarkable trash.”

“Talent can be alienating,” I said in agreement. “When one fully develops their skills, it’s only natural to expect that others will do the same. But the inclination of the masses to settle for mediocrity instead of striving for perfection, means you’ll rarely face a true test of your abilities.”

“Then you understand my pain?” he asked. He began to laugh. “A little human claims to know my suffering?”

“I do,” I nodded. “But I don’t empathize with it. If anything, I think you deserve it.”

That stopped his laughter cold. “What makes you say that?” he asked in an ugly, sullen tone of voice.

I pointed to the wall where the girl sat in her daze. “What did you do to her?”

“I defended myself,” he said.

“Did you really? I wonder about that,” I said doubtfully.

“She came to my lair to kill me alongside her friends,” he said angrily. “They laughed while slaughtering my children and made cruel jokes about my appearance when they first beheld me. Her remarks were especially hurtful. So, after I defeated them, I tortured her companions in front of her and then I devoured them as I made her watch. That silenced her japes quite nicely. I was about to begin playing with her in a more intimate manner before your unexpected arrival. It was my right as the victor.”

“Why wasn’t it enough to simply kill her?” I asked him. “Why single her out for additional torment? Your behavior seems unreasonable.”

“Human women are attractive,” he admitted with a revolting leer. “I like listening to them beg for my mercy. Her pleas for the lives of her friends were especially sweet.”

“So, you would have done this even if she had been kind and virtuous,” I said with unfiltered distaste. “Which means nothing she said or did would have mattered in the slightest. You only pretended to take offense to justify your actions.”

“What’s your point?” he asked as a disdainful sneer curled his lip. “Are you offended on her behalf? What for? She’s already dead inside. You may as well let me keep her. Nothing will bloom behind those lovely, empty eyes ever again.”

I graciously decided to ignore his ugly provocation. Despite my growing dislike of goblins, I was willing to overlook their many, many flaws as mere cultural differences. For today, anyway. The problem was their innate hostility. They refused to listen to anything I said even when I was attempting to spare their lives. Perhaps the issue lay with their leader? What if the matter was as simple as humbling him?

I wasn’t trying to make these beasts my servants or anything. If I required anyone to see to my needs, I could just create some lesser kin. But that approach had its own significant issues. Newly raised vampires required constant feeding during the first century of their existence, and until they matured, those feedings were usually fatal. I didn’t know nearly enough about this world to reliably hide such acts from detection by the authorities. It would have been too risky.

Setting the issue of servants aside, I genuinely had no interest in killing everyone in this dungeon. The goblin chieftain had to die of course, because his life was tied to the exit. But was it truly necessary to kill the others? This was the first day of my new life. I was eager to leave this place and learn more about my new world. For that, I was perfectly willing to grant mercy to any who would receive it.

They just had to be willing to submit.

“I suppose you’re intelligent enough, despite being a perverse oaf,” I said after giving some thought to the chieftain’s fate. “Your trespasses are unforgivable, so of course I’ll have to punish you for them. But perhaps the remnants of your tribe can be rehabilitated afterwards. There must be something worthy about your strange species. Nothing exists merely for its own sake.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” he asked with growing belligerence.

“I’m trying to spare your tribe,” I said to him. “As a human being, I’ve been struck by a sudden desire to show benevolence to those in need of it. Surrender yourself willingly to my spear and your family will survive. Isn’t that kind of me?”

“Are you insane?” he asked after staring at me for a bit.

“Sir? That was uncalled for,” I said as a frown took hold of my brow. “I’m making you a generous offer. Submit to me. It’s their only means of survival. It’s not like there’s any point in resisting. Hunters will keep coming here until you’re all defeated.”

“We will never be defeated!” he yelled.

“That’s an impossible promise to keep,” I said. “Impractical, too. Everyone loses eventually. What truly distinguishes us is how we allow those moments of defeat to affect us. Think rationally. Would I be speaking this frankly if I wasn’t certain I could easily kill you?”

“This is just another stupid human trick,” he said with a fool’s certainty. “A new one to be sure, but not one I’ll fall for. Give it up, boy. I won’t play your game.”

“Are you certain?”

“I am!”

“Well, I can see there’s no convincing you,” I said with disappointment as my hopes for a relatively peaceful resolution fell apart in the face of his stubbornness. “I won’t bother trying any longer. Instead, I’ll just punish you for offending my sensibilities. You’re a pitiful thing who allowed yourself to plunge into depravity. As such, I declare you unworthy of continued existence and now sentence you to die.”

“Depravity?” he laughed. “And when was I ever well behaved to begin with? What manner of being do you believe a goblin to be? And what’s this nonsense about my death? Who are you, eh? Just another little human morsal I’ll soon be picking out of my teeth.”

“Well, someone has to take responsibility for you,” I said. “Since you’ve already ceded your moral authority to the void, I don’t believe you have any right to complain if I usurp the rest of it.”

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It was a shame that the goblin chieftain had refused my offer; it was the first time what felt like ages that I’d made such an offer. Oh, well. I had taken a chance on altruism and things hadn’t gone as I’d wished. Fate remained as unpredictable as ever. There was no point in dwelling on a failed gamble.

How unfortunate for this goblin that he didn’t understand the scope of my magnanimity. By willfully rejecting me, by refusing to even concede a single point I’d made, he left me no choice but to kill him in as cruel a manner as possible.

I really had no choice. He’d forced my hand; I lived my life under the guiding principles of vampiric hierarchy, which needs no explanation because it’s easy to grasp on an instinctive level. I’d informed him what his options were and why he must obey. Instead of accepting his fate, he chose to disagree with me.

So, now he was going to suffer. I’m sure you can understand why.

What would become of the world if the rabble began dictating terms to their betters?

“You arrogant human filth,” he growled.

“Also, the last human being you’ll ever speak with,” I informed him. “Choose your final words carefully."

“My final words?” he said with growing anger. “MY final words! What a stupid, presumptuous thing you are! I am the lord of this realm! In this hall I am the one who decides life and death! You dare speak of bringing judgement to me? I’ll rip you open with my teeth and slurp out your innards—ARRGH!”

The goblin chieftain screamed when I caught him in the neck with a quick jab from my spear, which I then pulled free before he could snatch it away. He gurgled and slapped a hand to his spurting throat, from which pale, foul-smelling blood began dripping through his fingers.

He squealed as he stood up, desperate to staunch the bleeding. Around him, the other goblins clustered, speaking their guttural language and trying their best to assist him.

“Don’t bother,” I explained to him before he tried anything pointless. “You’ve been afflicted with a curse. No wound delivered by this spear will ever heal unless the one who dealt it perishes.”

Pretty nasty, eh? Apparently, that was a feature the spear possessed even before it came into my possession.

“That means,” I continued. “If you want to live, then I need to die. I’d say you have a time limit of around three minutes before you lose too much blood to remain conscious. Better get at it, yes?”

“Bastard,” he hissed wetly as he grabbed the mace resting at the side of his throne. It was a testament to his strength that he could wield it with one hand while clenching his throat with the other. He began swinging it wildly, smashing into the stone walls of the lair with each desperate attack while his followers cheered him on.

He wasn’t very good. In fact, if I had to assess his talent with a letter grading, I’d give him a D minus at most. He had strength and endurance to spare but he was impatient and inaccurate with his strikes. I doubt he’d be much better even if he wasn’t dealing with a mortal injury. His claim of being bored due to never meeting his match was now a dubious one, in my opinion. Since this dungeon existed on a lower tier then it must have only attracted weaker hunters who couldn’t participate in higher tier fractures, which were more rewarding but far more dangerous.

That meant that this goblin’s victims had all been either neophytes seeking experience or desperate low rankers trying to make some quick money. He’d never once in his life fought on even terms with a true warrior.

This was a clear example of ignorance leading to ruin. The world was a far bigger place than the little hole he’d cozied up in, but he was too stupid to realize it. Even worse, his undue arrogance had led him into becoming a disgusting sadist who had led his tribe into ruin. Such foolishness begged for a permanent correction, which I would now gladly deliver.

Even with his size and strength advantage, he was a poor match for me. I evaded every swing he threw at me and kept striking with my spear, thrusting its tip into his legs and retreating before he could retaliate, poking hole after hole into him. Soon blood was streaming down his thighs in copious amounts, making the ground beneath his feet slippery with it.

The goblin chieftain was gasping at this point, mad with rage and pain but unable to will his body to move faster. All he could do was continue to tire himself until he eventually collapsed. From his back he glared at me as I stood just beyond his reach and patiently waited for him to lose consciousness. The other remaining goblins wailed in sorrow before running off, leaving the two of us behind.

It was a sensible decision on their part.

“You didn’t fight fairly,” the chieftain said accusingly, as if that meant anything to me.

“You’re right, I didn’t,” I said in agreement. “That’s probably why I won so easily.”

“Coward,” he said hatefully. “You’re a bloody coward.”

“I’d prefer it if you said I was a pragmatist,” I replied. “Besides, plenty of people have fought you fairly. That sort of misguided honor has clearly spoiled you. Just look at the results.”

“Why didn’t my other children come to my aid? Why was I left alone to face you?” he murmured as weariness began to overtake him.

“You already know the answer to that,” I said to him with unfeigned indifference. “It seems your victims disposed of them quite nicely before coming across you.”

“All of them?” he asked before suddenly breaking into tears.

“Well, I took care of the rest. But it was mostly them,” I said.

“You didn’t spare a single one?” he wept.

“Mercy was offered more than once. Sadly, your progeny was as prideful as their father. It was ultimately to my benefit, however. Once you finish expiring, I believe that’ll raise me to level three.”

“Always your kind comes for us,” he wept. “Stealing and killing, not because you need to, but because you use our lives to empower yourselves. You dare ask why I torment my prey? Because you’re parasites! All of you! You feed on us, treat us like chattel, turning our lives into a game of slaughter! You call us monsters, but you’re all the real fiends! All of you! Nothing but BLOODSUCKERS!”

What did he just call me?

“Fairly stated,” I said coldly. “And in this case, far truer than you’ll ever realize. Goodbye, goblin.”

“Your eyes,” he whispered as I raised my spear. “Why are they doing that?”

Before he could ask again, I ended his life. The process of doing so was unkind so I’ll spare you the details. Just know that he paid dearly for his foul insult.

Bloodsucker. I despise that term. I DESPISE IT! I don’t suck blood, okay? I drink it! That’s a very distinct difference! I’m not a leech, damn it! I have a mouth and teeth, not a gaping wet maw with a slimy proboscis! Do my jaws look like they unhinge? DO THEY?

Oh, I swear I should have hunted that detestable Guillermo Del Toro down like an animal the instant I finished watching Blade 2. That movie was so offensive… sure, Nosferatu was far worse, but that was a product of its time. And it was directed by a German too, so…y’know. Not a people historically famed for their cultural sensitivity. But that Del Toro bastard, he should have known better! What was his excuse?

Wait…wait. Stop. I’m getting carried away again. Sudden changes in mood and temperament. How could I have forgotten such a basic aspect of being a vampire? Being human again had been so overwhelming that it made me slow to remember. To stand guard against my own impulses.

I didn’t really want to kill Guillermo Del Toro. He was a magnificent talent! Pan’s Labyrinth had been one of the greatest viewing experiences of my life. That poor little girl. Was the ending real or just a comforting fantasy as she drifted away into death? The ambiguity of it had haunted me for years.

I needed to focus. I was level three now, just as I said I’d be. But more importantly, the goblin chieftain’s body was still glowing even though I’d already looted him and received a good quality new item. It was called a [tunic of deflection]. Wearing it increased my avoidance stat by three and gave bonuses to something called a defensive roll.

That sounded good, I suppose. And it did allow me to finally cover my torso, so no complaints there. But even though I’d claimed it, there was still a red light emanating from the dungeon lord. What could that mean?

Suddenly, another blue screen appeared before my eyes. [Acquirable skill detected], it read.

[Would you like to activate the Gore Grimoire?]

An acquirable skill? Did that mean what I thought it did? Could this "Gore Grimoire" be the bonus that the Alpha Administrator spoke of earlier?

Eager to find out, I stood before the body and held my hand out before it once more. This time instead of envisioning myself receiving its loot, I focused on receiving whatever abilities it apparently had to give me.

Soon, the chieftain’s body began trembling violently as something within its torso began bulging outward against its ribcage. Slowly at first, and then with greater force as it sought to tear itself free of his flesh. Before much longer, it finally pushed through and flew to my waiting hand.

It was the chieftain’s heart.

I stared at it in confusion, wondering what I was supposed to do next. A hint of some sort would have been nice. After a minute of staring at it, waiting for something to happen, I noticed something. There was an oddly pleasing scent wafting from the dead organ, which I found increasingly difficult to ignore.

It smelled delicious.

“You don’t suppose I’m meant to…eat this, do you?” I asked the spear. But it offered no feedback, still clearly having a snit. What a brat.

It wasn’t as though I’d never torn out someone’s heart and devoured it. Cannibalism and vampirism went virtually hand in hand. But I’d grown out of such wolfish displays centuries ago. It was mostly something you did to frighten your enemies or to impress a pretty girl.

Well, no point in just staring at it.

I opened my mouth and took a big bite.

Delicious. As I swallowed it, I felt something flow within me. Something powerful.

“Evans? Kyler Evans?” said a boy’s voice from behind me.

Hmm? Where had he come from? I turned around, wiping my mouth as I did, and beheld a teenager perhaps the same age as my new body, dressed in a black leather outfit over which he wore a cloak. He was standing there, staring at me with a look of revulsion on his face.

“What the hell are you doing, dude?” he asked me.

I looked around and saw that the room was filling with more teenagers, all of them armed with dangerous weapons and equipped in armor of varied materials. Some of them looked like knights out of the age of gallantry. Others crackled with energy like sorcerers of eld. Not one of them looked the same as the others, but each of them wore the same blue emblem on their right shoulder which bore the words, Vandal Academy.

And they were all staring at me.

“I’m just having a snack,” I said in reply. “It tastes better than it looks.”

No one had anything to say in response, so I tossed the heart over my shoulder and gave a little stretch. “Well, I guess that’s that,” I said to no one in particular.

[The Gore Grimoire has absorbed a new skill.]

[You have acquired the passive trait TITANIC STRENGTH.]

Oh, that was interesting. A boost to my physical capability sounded like it would be useful.

And judging by the looks some of these youths were giving me, it might come in handy very soon.