Vlad made his way through the graveyard of cars that was once known as a Parking Lot, while also observing his surroundings to watch out for any enemies that could ambush him. Instead of sprinting toward the hospital, he gingerly walked across the lot like it was normal. He passed by the occasional destroyed car while keeping his senses focused on weird sounds near him like muffled voices, grunts, etc. So far though, all the vampire heard was the blazing fire from some of the cars and the distant cawing of crows and other birds.
Vlad wanted to use his [Stealth] skill to conceal his presence and avoid getting into a battle, but sadly, that would use up his Blood Points, so he simply had to stealth through the parking lot the old-fashioned way. His spear was still on his back, but he was prepared to pull it out to defend himself. His footsteps crunched on broken glass scattered all over the lot along with blood and scrap metal from the vehicles around him. And unfortunately, there was the occasional corpse that Vlad passed by. Some were in their cars, lying back in their seats covered in blood and shards of glass, while there were others on the ground with either missing limbs, their intestines spilled out, or even their bodies mutilated beyond recognition.
There were even some crows snacking on one of the corpses, pecking their beaks on an eyeball, plucking it out from their sockets before flying away in a hurry. Vlad simply looked at the scene from a distance, staying neutral regarding the whole thing. It wasn’t that he was heartless, but the fact that he couldn’t afford to show sympathy. He had his own problems, and to him, they were his priority over other people’s misfortune. He may be blunt, but he wasn’t callous.
After a little while of traversing through the parking lot, Vlad finally made it to the front entrance of the Hospital, specifically the Emergency Room section of the building. Near the entrance, there was glass and blood scattered all over the place, the same as the parking lot, though it was a bit more tamed. There were no corpses anywhere to be seen outside, but Vlad knew that the situation would be different once he entered the hospital. There was a glass sliding door that led into the building. The glass was broken along with the automatic sliding function. Thankfully, all Vlad had to do was walk through the door to get inside.
Once he was in, the vampire took in the horrific scene before him. Unlike the convenience store that looked abandoned and part of some post-apocalypse scene from a movie, the ER section looked more like something from a zombie movie. The ceiling light dimly lit the area, barely illuminating the scattered chairs and papers on the floor along with the countless, variety of corpses from middle-aged men and women to young children no older than maybe ten years old. There was another set of bodies that Vlad identified among the rest, and they weren’t human. They were monsters.
There were the goblins, which Vlad identified almost immediately thanks to his recent encounters with them along with a couple of other creatures. He saw a big orange monster that resembled a goblin, but it appeared a bit more mutated. It was bulkier than its green counterpart and even bore a head of hair as well. Maybe it was a different goblin species? Vlad couldn’t identify it like he could with the other monsters, which probably meant that he couldn’t appraise dead creatures. So, since he didn’t have a proper name for it, the vampire was just going to dub it “Orange Goblin”
Aside from the two goblin types, there was another species that Vlad encountered while making his way through the ER section. The thing was huge, had scales all over its body, and had a very reptilian appearance like a lizard. On its body was some light leather armor, much like what Vlad was wearing right now, but a bit more primitive, and attached around its neck and wrists were tribal bracelets with decorative beads and feathers.
Despite looking dead, its body didn’t look that injured. The scales on its corpse looked pristine and barely damaged at all. There were a couple that were chipped or busted, but nothing that looked lethal enough to end its life. If anything, it should still be alive.
For a brief moment, Vlad’s instincts warned him of a threat as goosebumps spread all over his body. Only was only until he continued to stare at the lizard corpse for a few more moments to realized what that threat was…
[Lizardman – Level 5]
His eyes widened as he hastily tried to pull out his spear, just in time as the “dead” lizardman shot up and swung its sword right in his direction. With his weapon, he deflected the attack while instinctively leaping back to put a bit of distance between them. The lizardman slowly stood up, fully displaying its tall and muscular stature. Despite the scales, Vlad could still see its muscles as they flexed along with its throbbing veins.
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The lizard creature let out a hiss, its tongue sticking out its mouth and wiggling around disgustingly with saliva dripping off it. A chill ran down Vlad’s spine as he watched this, not sure if he should vomit or cringe at the sight. Or just do both. The lizardman brought up its sword and pointed it at Vlad, making another raspy hissing sound. Its yellow reptilian eyes glared right at him, keeping a firm eye on his every movement.
Vlad pondered over the monster’s previous actions. It was lying on the ground, acting like a corpse before he noticed it was still alive. Just that act alone told him that this monster was a lot more intelligent than the goblins. This one…was a hunter.
A slight smile crept up Vlad’s face as he readied his spear. “A level five monster, huh? Looks like I’ll be testing the waters earlier than I expected.”
Despite nearly dying, Vlad felt more excited than anything. If his heart was still beating, it would’ve been pounding like crazy. And it seemed the hunter noticed his excitement since it tilted its head, almost looking confused by his reaction before getting back into a battle stance.
The two hunters were at a standoff, neither side making a move. It was not until Vlad acted first and charged at the monster. Closing the distance in an instant, Vlad shot his spear forward, attempting to pierce the lizardman’s chest before it could act. Sadly, it managed to shift to the side, making the vampire miss its entire torso. He did however make contact with the monster’s arm, but due to its scales, the spearhead practically bounced off it.
The lizard swung its sword at Vlad, aiming right at his head. Instead of blocking it, he immediately ducked, letting the blade glide over his head, not cutting a single hair. And with a single swipe, Vlad activated [Blood Strike], sending a blade of blood at the monster’s torso. Surprisingly, the monster was quick on its feet and leaped in the air, narrowly avoiding the attack while gracefully landing on the floor.
It then spun around making its tail collide with Vlad and send him flying backward. He rolled across the floor for a little bit before repositioning himself back on his feet. Just in time too as the lizard was charging at him with malicious intent. Panic filled Vlad as the lizard slashed its sword at him. However, he managed to react in time to block the attack with his spear while feeling the full force of its attack. Just when the lizard tried to pull its weapon back, Vlad launched a [Blood Strike] at the floor, sending dust and debris in the air and blinding both of them.
Little did the lizard know, it was the only one that was blinded right now. With [Blood Sense] activated, Vlad saw a red silhouette of the lizardman behind all the dust filling the air. Getting his spear into position, the vampire rushed through the dust and propelled its weapon forward, immediately hitting the monster. The spearhead pierced the monster’s neck as a quarter of it was lodged in it. If it wasn’t for the scales, his neck would’ve been completely pierced through with the spear poking out the back. However, that wasn’t enough to stop it as it raised its arms and reached for Vlad’s spear.
It firmly gripped the handle before attempting to pull it out of its neck. Seeing no other option, Vlad quickly pulled his spear out of the lizard and then shot another [Blood Strike] at the monster, severing its hands from its wrists. The hands fell to the floor while the monster howled in pain and stumbled backward. Even if it couldn’t use its hands, the creature was still dangerous, prompting Vlad to finish it off once and for all. He then used all of his strength and pierced his weapon through the lizardman’s chest. Thanks to the extra strength he had after putting some points in it, he got the job done as the spear was completely through its sternum.
The monster stood there for a moment, shocked at this turn of events. It tried to grab his spear but instantly remembered that it lost its hands moments before. Unable to do anything, the lizardman fell to its knees, prepared to accept its death. That was when Vlad grabbed the monster by the neck and pulled it closer to him, their eyes locked into one another.
“Don’t think you’re just going to die like that,” Vlad snarled. “You made me waste thirty blood points, so you’re going to pay me back in full!”
Before the lizardman could even try to resist, Vlad plunged his fangs into its neck. Despite its durable scales, the vampire’s canines were more than enough to pierce through its defenses. An explosion of flavor coated his mouth as the euphoric sensation slowly overwhelmed Vlad. He eagerly gulped the lizardman’s blood, not wasting a single drop of its delicious blood. It tasted even better than goblin blood.
Then Vlad received a kill notification.
[Lizardman has been defeated! 225 XP has been received!]
[Blood has been consumed! 25 Blood points has been obtained!]
Seeing the notifications, he instantly released the lizardman without even watching it flop to the floor. His attention was more focused on the amount of blood points he got. His eyes narrowed as a sour expression was plastered on his face.
“Only twenty-five points? Goddammit.”
He only managed to get back twenty-five of the thirty blood points he wasted. Although that didn’t seem like a big deal, it was for Vlad. Every point counted to keep him alive and provide him with plenty of power to use. He needed to maintain a certain amount of BP to be able to do this.
Feeling unsatisfied after his fight, Vlad clicked his tongue before leaving the ER section. Although he was caught off guard by that lizardman, that didn’t mean he forgot his original goal here. He needed to find any supplies that he could use while searching for his friends.
It was time to do some scavenging.