Night fell, and Lu Qiu stood on the balcony, gaze sweeping a city drowned in darkness. Streetlights flickered like dying embers, interrupted by distant ghastly roars—the hunger cries of zombies. His Despair Points hovered at 56,000… best saved for after dealing with his "guests." Permanent upgrades required concentration, and screams made poor background noise.
A muffled struggle echoed from the bedroom.
"Stop squirming, bitch!" Wang Hu slung Xia Ying over his shoulder, her tiny fists pounding uselessly on his back. Tears streaked her face, voice choked: "Sun Qi… help me!"
In the corner, the boy curled into a ball, eyes squeezed shut. Earlier vows of protection dissolved in terror—guns killed, and he was no hero. "Not my fault…" he whispered, rocking, "Not my fault…"
Lu Qiu observed impassively. Human weakness—lust, fear, cowardice—played out as predictably as the rising body count.
The bedroom door stayed open, Wang Hu's grunts mixing with Xia Ying's sobs. Fabric tore; her (despair) thickened the air—perfect.
"Hehehe…" Lu Qiu's smile twisted, (lenses) hiding the predatory glint in his eyes.
"NO!" Xia Ying's scream peaked as her shirt gave way, reality shattering: classmates ripping each other apart, parents turning into monsters, now this—betrayal by the only safety she'd clung to.
Then she saw him: Lu Qiu, standing at the foot of the bed, expression too calm.
"Get the hell out!" Wang Hu snarled, reaching for him—only to choke as a vice-like grip closed around his throat. Lu Qiu hoisted the burly man like a ragdoll, smile razor-thin: "I don't share my food, Wang."
A flick of the wrist slammed Wang Hu into the wall, his roar cut short by the crack of skull on plaster. Dazed, he charged again, fists swinging— (too slow). Lu Qiu sidestepped, letting the man crash headfirst into the floor, then pressed the rifle's muzzle between his teeth.
Smoke stung Wang Hu's nose, eyes bulging at the cold steel.
"Five lives, you said?" Lu Qiu removed his glasses, scarlet irises burning, "I've got 50,000. This city? My masterpiece."
The man's bladder emptied, urine pooling at his knees.
"Now you join them."
The trigger clicked.
Brains and blood splattered the wall, Wang Hu's headless corpse collapsing like a puppet. Xia Ying gagged, staring at the monster before her—not the gentle savior, but the architect of her nightmare.
"Your turn," Lu Qiu purred, fangs glinting, rifle clattering to the floor as he advanced.
She scrambled back, words failing. This wasn't real. The boy who'd smiled at her, who'd seemed safe—now wore the face of every horror she'd witnessed.
"Why fear me?" he asked, kneeling beside her, voice soft as a lover's, "Answer me: why?"
"Because you're all monsters!" she shrieked, breaking, "Everyone! Parents, classmates, even you—monsters!"
His grin widened, fangs grazing her neck: "Yes. Monsters. And monsters… hunger."
He struck, teeth piercing skin, her blood sweet—divine, like sunlight in a dead world. She tensed, then sagged, a mix of pain and strange, shameful relief as life drained away. Lu Qiu drank deeply, tongue lapping the wound, lost in the rush of youth and terror.
So this was virgin blood—addictive, a drug no vampire could resist. Taboos be damned; he'd starve before giving this up.
When he pulled away, Xia Ying lay motionless, eyes blank, last spark of hope extinguished.
"Pity," he muttered, wiping her blood from his lips, "but all things end."
He stood, gazing at the carnage. The System pinged: Despair Points +500.
Downstairs, a zombie howled, drawn by the gunshot. Lu Qiu smiled, slipping the Disguise Glasses back on—humanity's mask, flawless as ever.
Let the army come. Let them hunt the monster in the shadows.
Tonight, he'd tasted paradise, and no taboo would ever chain him again.
The world had ended for Xia Ying, but for Lu Qiu, it had just begun—a world where monsters feasted, and humans…
…were simply the menu.