“We have three days until the Blood Moon event happens,” Vlad told Flint. “During these three days, we need to, at least, find a place to take shelter in, or join some kind of group, since the two of us won’t last long against a horde of monsters.”

After Vlad and Flint agreed to work together, the pair started picking up various items in the lab while also discussing their next move, seeing what they needed to prioritize first to survive. Flint was currently picking up whatever supplies he could find in the lab that he could carry like med packs and medical supplies on a couple of desks. They were planning on doing a bigger sweep of the hospital to gather more supplies before they left.

Scanning the fridge, it completely caved in after Vlad crashed into it when the Lizardman threw him into it. Glass shards were scattered all over the floor along with various liquids, some of it being blood, dripped and spilled on the white tiles as well. Seeing the current state of the machine, Vlad had doubts that he could salvage any blood vials inside. However, as luck would have it, he did manage to obtain some.

Located in the very back and bottom of the fridge was around ten blood vials safely packed together under all the chaos. Vlad moved some of the broken racks and vials out of the way before lifting the ten intact vials from the fridge. Holding them, he carefully placed them on an intact lab desk so he could figure out where he could store them in a minute.

“Are you sure that it’s a good idea to join a group,” Flint questioned, still crouched down collecting the lizardman’s scales. “What if they found that you’re…you know?”

Vlad paused for a moment, immediately realizing what Flint was hinting as a groan escaped his lips. Out of annoyance, he pinched the bridge of his nose. “Yeah…that is a bit of an issue.”

Although he knew it was a problem, he didn’t realize just how serious and dangerous his situation was at the moment. As a vampire, Vlad was pretty much a monster, just like everything else on this planet that invaded their world and was currently trying to destroy humanity. This meant that if other humans found out about his vampirism, he was bound to get hunted and killed just for that reason alone.

Flint was one thing since he technically didn’t have much of a choice but to team up with Vlad. However, that didn’t mean that everyone else would be so open about Vlad’s condition. If anything, they’d only see him as a threat and do whatever it took to kill him, before he attempted to slaughter and feed on them.

Which brought him back to his original goal; finding his family. Aside from Flint, Vlad could trust his friends and sister and knew that they wouldn’t shun him just because he was a vampire. Though, he wasn’t sure if he could find them all in time before the Blood Moon arrived. So, he needed a backup plan just in case.

“If it comes down to it…we’ll keep it a secret.”

Upon hearing this declaration, Flint whipped his head around to face Vlad, his expression filled with shock and concern. “A-are you sure that’s a good idea? I-if someone finds out on their own, t-then…”

“I know, I know. However, between telling people about me with the possible scenario of them trying to kill me and not telling them about us having to keep it a secret, I’m more inclined to choose the latter rather than the former. Don’t you agree?”

Telling other people about Vlad’s vampirism was a sure way for them to get killed; at least Vlad. Their best chance at joining a group was keeping it a secret for now. And if someone did find out, they’d either run away or try to silence that person. If push came to shove, Vlad was willing to do whatever it took to survive. Even if it meant killing other players to keep it that way.

Flint attempted to provide a rebuttal; however, his mouth was left open as no words left it until he finally decided to just close it and not say anything, showing that he didn’t have a better idea either. His attention then shifted back to the blood vials neatly placed on the counter. All ten were stacked in rows of five as a way of keeping them nice and organized. He stared at the vials for a few moments, temptation growing in the back of his mind.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Ever since he first tasted human blood, his hunger for more started to gnaw at his psyche. He tapped his finger repeatedly and rhythmically on the counter, his eyes not leaving the vials before him. His mouth and throat felt parched as if he hadn’t drunk anything in a while, and the feeling only got stronger as he continued to gaze at the blood. He couldn’t look away, though. It was as if an overwhelming force took hold of him, forcing the vampire to keep his eyes trained on the crimson liquid.

For a brief moment, and out of desperation, he glanced at his status window, curious as to what his BP count was.

[Status Window]

Name: Vlad Stoker

Age: 20

Species: Vampire

Class: Blood Hunter

Level: 6

EXP: 1105/2100

SP: 10

BP: 107/380

Attributes:

Strength: 14

Endurance: 14

Agility: 19

Senses: 17

Magic: 25

Soul: 15

Skills:

[Blood Strike] (E), [Blood Sense] (F), [Stealth] (F), [Blood Dash] (F), [Hemophagia] (F)

Although his BP was low, he surprisingly still had plenty to spare without worrying about starving himself. Still, even he believed that he was cutting it close, seeing how his BP was nearly below a hundred. He was actually surprised that he still had some left after his [Blood Strike] barrage he did on the lizardman. He was certain that by the time he was finished, his BP count would be near zero once more.

Vlad was also curious as to how his skill [Hemophagia] worked. It is explained in the description that by consuming blood, Vlad could obtain more Blood Points. How much he was going to receive when he did this, he had no clue. There was only one way to test it; by taking some blood.

The blood hunter slowly reached over to one of the vials, his hand trembling as this happened. He quickly grabbed one before pulling it closer to it. His eyes gazed at the crimson liquid inside while he pulled the cap off that sealed it. The moment he did, his nose caught a whiff of the sweet iron smell and he felt more compelled to drink it. His primal instincts urged him to consume the substance.

Vlad hesitated for a moment, concerned regarding how desperate his hunger for human blood was becoming. It was one thing if he was dying from hunger when his BP was near zero like before, but he still had plenty to avert that situation at least for a little while. Yet, for some dreadful reason, the sight of this blood was driving his vampiric instincts to its breaking point. Every second he wasted not drinking the liquid, was every second his stomach would churn and writhe around inside, practically begging Vlad to just do it.

It was because of this feeling that Vlad felt that he should put the vial away and only use it for emergencies, afraid that his desire for human blood would slowly warp his personality and sense of self, turning him into something monstrous…and gluttonous. However, he was also aware that he needed to experiment with [Hemophagia] and see just how his skill operated.

So, he took a deep breath while keeping his instincts and desires in control as he downed the entire vial. The sweet taste coated Vlad’s mouth, filling him with a strong euphoric sensation than before. At the same time, the intense writhing in his stomach slowly subsided, easing the pain he had endured previously. He soon saw a message panel regarding his blood consumption.

[Contents of blood are from Non-Player/Human Origins! 70 Blood Points has been collected!]

[Skill [Hemophagia] has activated! 15 Extra Blood Points has been obtained!]

Vlad’s scowl deepened while glaring at the messages. “Only an extra 15 Blood points? I was honestly hoping for a bit more. Still, it’s been than nothing, I guess. Even without [Hemophagia], it’s obvious that consuming human blood provided me with plenty of BP on its own.”

However, that also posed a question for Vlad. Why was it that human blood gave him so many Blood Points compared to Monster blood? Was it the contents, the species, or what? Vlad was filled with so many questions regarding this, yet he had no answers for any of them.

Then a sudden thought struck him. If he got so many Blood Points from just regular human blood…then what would happen if he consumed the blood of Players? At this sudden, morbid, thought, Vlad turned to face Flint, who was still in his own little world collecting things for the trip. Then he felt a pang of hunger swell up in his stomach again. It wasn’t like before when his guts were churning around like crazy.

Vlad clutched his stomach while still glancing at the mage. Flint soon noticed his gaze and turned to face the vampire.

“Is something wrong?” He asked, tilting his head with a curious expression.

“…No, it’s nothing.” Vlad lied while turning away.

Yeah, he shouldn’t be thinking about stuff like that. He had bigger issues to focus on at the moment. Like continuing his search for his family.

He then brought up another panel that showed his friends and sister’s location adjacent to him. He quickly noticed how close he was to them, only a couple of miles or so. All he needed to do now…was to keep moving.

“Flint, you almost done scavenging?” He questioned.

“Y-yeah…”

“Then let’s get moving. We need to find better shelter before the sun goes down.”

While declaring this, he grabbed the remaining blood vials he had and placed them inside his Hunter’s Pouch. Once they were safely stored inside, Vlad marched over to the Lab exit, prepared to finish their scavenging before they left the hospital to continue their journey.