When Callum returned to their room, he saw the two siblings on the inn’s bed. They were cuddled together, their breaths coming slowly, sleeping soundlessly as he silently sat in the room’s only chair. Nicholas held her sister in his arms, protecting her from the cold the night brought by wrapping her up in his warmth. As for his sister, Sabrina hugged a small doll reminiscent of herself, carefully woven together in a mesmerizing pattern of cloth and yarn.

Seeing this made Callum feel a bit envious. He had always dreamed of having a sister, even joking with his father about finding someone new to start a family with. However, he couldn't truly envy the siblings. Their mother had made the doll Sabrina hugged, and it was the only keepsake they had left to remember her by. Despite their loss, they remained strong, and Callum was determined to support them on their journey.

After all, they had been the first people that brought color into his life.

Though they don’t know it yet, Callum felt he owed them a favor for helping him. If it hadn’t been for them giving him proper knowledge, he would have been a clueless brute exploring an unknown world. His identity might even be out in the open if it weren’t for his lucky encounter with Morrick.

Speaking of Morrick, the man had been a great friend to Nicholas. He showed him the ins and outs of the Adventurer's Guild in Lynn, even going so far as giving Nicholas a referral to make his advancement quicker. And from there, they had been hanging out almost every day.

Morrick even gave Callum a quick rundown of how the guild works. From what he heard, it wasn’t that different from the games and shows he knew of back on Earth. It has structure, a hierarchy to distinguish between the weak and strong, and quests posted every day to help with monster culling and herb retrieval.

Essentially, the guild has ranks ranging from Iron, Copper, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Orichalcum, Mithril, and Adamantium. Each rank is divided into tiers: the first two have five tiers, the next two have ten, the two ranks after that have fifteen, and the final two have twenty. Thus, there are eight ranks with a hundred tiers overall.

Additionally, there was a rumored rank hidden by the guild that only a handful of people had attained, including this Hero of Man, and that was Arcanum, the last threshold. Though, it’s just a rumor, it's something that itched Callum’s ever-curious brain, his intrigue roused to uncover its secrets if ever he did get a chance to register as an adventurer.

However, when Morrick told him the procedure for registering with the guild, the last step made him hesitant to proceed.

A drop of blood was needed to fully assimilate himself into the guild.

A drop of blood that would surely kill his prospects of ever exploring this new world he was thrown into.

Although Callum gathered that there were different colors of blood, courtesy of the variety of races inhabiting this world, his black blood reminiscent of the abyss could only be found running through the veins of the undead. This meant that his blood would be the biggest evidence of what he truly was, and those who saw it would know his identity.

He could already imagine the worst-case scenario. A building filled with battle-ready men and women looking at him with disdain while they brandished their weapons to eliminate him. He could even see the siblings cowering in fear after they learned of his true nature, and seeing how scared they were would surely break his heart.

Images of fearsome pictures swirled in Callum’s mind. His years of training his imagination had become a double-edged sword, as he vividly envisioned what might happen if he were discovered as an undead.

Then, a groan sounded beside him, stopping his ever-spiraling thoughts about what may be.

Turning his head, he saw Nicholas stirring in his sleep. His face was scrunched up in pain as tears started to form at the edges of his eyes. He could hear him murmur names and pleas, a nightmare so painful that Callum could only guess what it could be.

***

“HELP ME!”

“IT HURTS! IT HURTS!”

“AAAAAAARRGGHHHH!”

Screams of pain surrounded me while I stood in a world lit on fire. Hell was the only way to describe it, the sky filled with dark smoke while the sounds of metal hitting metal reached my ears.

I don’t remember how I got here, but I knew that if I didn’t move, I’d lose everything. So I ran. I ran through the fire, amidst a sea of people with blades and bows, arrows flying past my head as I continued my mad dash to wherever my legs took me.

“Mom! Dad! Sabrina!” he shouted.

My desperate cries for my family were met with screams of agony beyond the veil of flames and smoke, and amongst them was my sister.

My legs ached, my lungs burning as I continued my sprint. I felt the heat of flame creeping up behind me, my arms charred in places after running through a curtain of fire. Yet, I didn’t slow down.

I followed the screams, heart pounding as I yelled with a scream of my own.

“SARBINA!”

My voice echoed, drowned out by the fighting and screaming as I waited for a reply. Then, after what felt like hours, I heard her.

“BROTHER!” yelled the voice.

It’s not far. I thought.

I could make it. I thought.

The flames tried to slow me down, and dark, inky smoke covered my eyes. Yet I knew where they were.

With the last bit of strength in my legs, I ran to where I knew my family was amidst this chaos…

“Sabrina! I’m here!” I yelled, trying to reassure my sister.

Yet, what I found instead sent my heart into the pit of my stomach. The back of my throat filled with bile, my back slick with cold sweat as I laid my eyes on what remained of them. To what remained of my family.

Three charred bodies faces screaming in anguish, arms outstretched towards me lay before my feet. One was a child I knew to be my sister, and the other, were my parents.

At that moment, my mind broke. I couldn’t even scream as I stared wide-eyed at the remains of my family. All I could do was crumple to the ground, hands clutching my head as tears began to form in my eyes.

Then, without warning, a charred hand gripped my wrist, its burnt fingers digging deep into my skin. It startled me enough to see who it was, and when I looked, all I saw was an amalgamation of death gripping me tightly while they smiled with a haunting glee.

“You…Failed!”

The monster cackled in coursed laughter, growing in intensity as I too joined the screams sounding in the background.

***

Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

With a jolt, I shot up in a cold sweat, gasping for air. My chest heaved as my mind slowly cleared, the weight of the nightmare still pressing down on me. I wiped a hand across my face, feeling the damp streaks of tears left behind.

I couldn’t remember most of it, but I knew I had failed. That much was certain. The despair clung to me, heavy and suffocating, and the images of my family burning in the flames were seared into my mind—inescapable.

"Good, you're awake," a deep voice murmured beside me.

I turned, eyes bleary and exhausted, to find Callum hovering near the bed. His right hand hung slightly in the air, close to where I’d been grabbed. Putting two and two together, I realized he must have tried to wake me.

It hadn't worked, but I appreciated the effort.

“What time is it?” I rasped.

I glanced toward the only window in the room. The night stretched on outside, a black expanse pierced only by the twin moons.

“A little after midnight. There are still a few hours before sunrise.”

Callum handed me a waterskin. I took it without a word, drinking until the cool liquid soothed the rawness in my throat. It helped—at least a little.

With a quiet sigh, I passed it back to him.

“Rough dream?”

“Yeah.”

Callum’s voice held a trace of concern, though he didn’t press. The rustling of fabric filled the silence as he returned the waterskin to his bag. For a long moment, we stayed there, neither speaking nor glancing at each other, the air growing thick with unspoken words.

Then, finally, he broke it.

“Wanna… talk about it?” he asked, settling onto the only chair in the room.

I hesitated.

How much should I say? How much did I even want to say? I’d only known Callum for a few days. A part of me didn’t fully trust him yet—even if he was our supposed savior. But then again, he had gone out of his way to stay with us, to watch over us. That had to mean something.

With a slow nod, I shifted to the corner of the bed, careful not to disturb Sabrina’s sleeping form. Once settled, I took a deep breath, forcing down the emotions threatening to claw their way up my throat.

"You already know about the Silver Swords, right?" I asked.

“Yeah. They were the ones who destroyed your village.”

"Do you know why?"

Callum frowned, rubbing his chin in thought. A few seconds passed before he shook his head.

“I don’t know.”

I wasn’t surprised. He’d been clueless about them since the moment we met. With a heavy sigh, I spoke the words I hated to say out loud.

"The reason they destroyed the village was because of us."

Callum’s brow furrowed. "What?"

“The Silver Swords despise vampires,” I said, my hands balling into fists. “And my father was one.”

At that, Callum went still. I could see the gears turning in his mind as his gaze flickered from me to Sabrina, realization dawning in his expression.

“So, that makes you and Sabrina…”

“Yeah.” My voice was steady, though my heart pounded in my chest. “We’re half-vampires.”

***

Knowing vampires are real in this world wasn’t surprising to Callum. He’d already heard one of the exploits of the Hero of Man. About how the hero helped cure vampirism during the war. However, it was a surprise that the first people he met were descendants of one.

Then and there, Callum wanted to ask questions. From what food they preferred, the advantages of being a vampire, and if sunlight still had some kind of effect on them even if they were half-vampires. However, those thoughts went away quickly as he continued to listen to Nichola’s story.

“Our village was small, tucked away far in the southern woods. Though beasts were still something to worry about, the men in our village fought them off. Hence why, when my parents moved in with the village folk, they welcomed them with open arms. After all, who wouldn’t want a vampire hunting the nearby beasts of the village?” Nicholas smiled as he told his tale.

“But…”

Then, that same smile disappeared, replaced by a sneer filled with hate, and a hint of self-deprecation.

“They came into our village like they owned the place, making a speech about how we are a disease that should be eradicated. Though that was true hundreds of years ago, the Hero of Man changed that. We’re nothing more than another race in the world. Yet…”

Nicholas tried to choke back tears, fingers digging deep into the back of his hand as he kept his emotions in check. His arms shook as he tried to get the words out, and when he finally did, it was filled with fury.

“Yet those monsters killed everyone in my home!”

The shout earned them a slight groan from Sabrina, her small form turning away to face the wall of their room. Seeing this, Nicholas schooled his rampaging emotions, bringing his boiling anger into an overflowing simmer.

“They ransacked our village, killing everyone that associated with us. Our friends, people we’d known the rest of our lives, tried to fight back. Yet, it wasn’t enough.”

Tears welled in his eyes, his mouth quivering with every word.

“I tried to stay, to fight with my father. But all I could do was run.”

His vision blurred; he tried to wipe it away with the back of his hand, but the dam had already broken.

“So I did. Because that’s what our mother told me to do. She said to keep Sabrina safe, so I did.”

Nicholas’ face twisted in pain, his fists clenched as he fought to stem the tears.

“She said they’d follow us, so I believed. But what did it do? What did believing do?”

Callum could only listen to his pain. A man not even in his twenties, already carrying so much grief, and all Callum could do was watch as he unraveled.

“What did I do?”

With his hands on his face, the oldest sibling continued to sob. His attempt to keep himself intact failed as tears continued to fall from his face. He blamed himself for his powerlessness. He blamed himself for his village’s destruction. Even if there was nothing he could’ve done to change the situation, he still blamed himself for what happened.

Ah, right.

Callum, seeing the man breaking down before him, finally realized who the man in front of him truly was.

He’s still just a kid.

He had been swept away into thinking that people here are treated as adults at the age of thirteen. He’d seen teenagers working tirelessly in the industry, and those at the same age as Nicholas already have families of their own. Being surrounded by the culture for the few days he had been here, Callum forgot that they were still kids. Kids who hadn’t had the amount of experience needed to understand the world and themselves.

Kids who could break into pieces from the trauma they’ve been burdened with.

So Callum did what he could only think of when he saw a child crying in front of him.

He stood up and walked ever so slowly towards the sobbing man sitting at the edge of the bed.

He had done this so many times before, soothing the cries of his friend’s children, and he hoped that it would work with the person in front of him.

Spreading his arms, Callum hugged Nicholas.

He didn’t care if his body was cold because of his nature. He doesn’t even care if he gets found out now. All he cared about was taking care of the person in his arms. To heal them, understand them, and make them feel like the world hasn’t ended yet. He wants Nicholas to know that he will be here, that people will be here to help him in his lowest low.

The embrace startled Nick, his wet eyes widening as he felt Callum’s cold arms wrap around him. At first, he tried to resist, embarrassed at the thought of a man hugging him to stop his tears. But after failing to escape, Nicholas gave up and let the man cuddle him.

“Nobody blames you for running away,” he said softly.

“How would you know that?” Nicholas replied in a mocking tone, a pained chuckle leaving his mouth as he tried to dip his head downwards. As he tried to disappear inside Callum’s cold embrace.

“Because that’s what your parents would say,”

“You don’t even know who they are,”

“You’re right. But I know that their love for you is the real deal. They told you to run so you wouldn’t die. They want you two to live your lives. It’s what a parent would’ve wanted from their kids. They’d want you to live.”

With each word, Nick’s eyes started to form new tears.

“But I could’ve saved them,”

“You could’ve, and you could blame yourself over and over again. Torture yourself with doubt, and pictures of what could have been. But it won’t change anything.”

His grip tightened, and memories of his University days flashed in his head. The despair, the hope, the what-ifs, and the what-could-have-beens flooded back as he remembered the painful loneliness that accompanied him when his father disappeared.

As he remembered, he tried to imagine what he could say to himself to get out of that pit of isolation, what he wished someone would say to give him the hope he needed while he fell into oblivion.

With a voice not louder than a murmur, Callum said what he’d wanted to hear all those years spent in that dark room of his dormitory.

“That’s why we’re here.”

When the words left his mouth, Nicholas tensed. His breath caught in his throat, eyes opening wide as he listened to Callum’s reassuring whispers.

“We’ll always be here. Your sister, Morrick, the people you’ve met in Lynn, and me. We’ll be here to listen to you, care for you, and ensure you’re okay.”

With those words, Nicholas bared his emotions. His tears soaked Callum’s shirt, sobs muffled as he hugged him tightly with trembling arms. In return, Callum gave Nick his silence, a quiet support for him to grasp and climb towards the light of hope.

He’d wanted that when his father disappeared, sometimes quietly begging his friends to say the same thing. But it never came, and the only thing he did to get through that pain was busy himself with work. It might have even been an excuse to forget the pain, the loneliness, the ever-gnawing pit of a void that hasn’t seemed to disappear even through all his years spent in his corpse.

But that doesn’t matter now. All that matters now is to give Nicholas a new path. And for the time being, he would share in his pain, and heal his burdened mind.

They stayed there for minutes, the silence only broken by sniffling and quiet reassurances as the night went on. Even though his body was cold, Callum felt warm, and he hoped that Nicholas would get through this tragedy. Both his sister and him.

However, unbeknownst to them, a small girl with wet eyes listened to them, controlling her breathing to avoid disturbing their silence.