Kagarino Kirie lifted the hem of her gown and darted through the streets of Paris under cover of night.
To escape pursuit from the Fawkes family, she had just decisively sacrificed a random passerby she didn't even know. A small pang of guilt pricked her conscience—but it didn't last long. She had more pressing concerns.
She could have shapeshifted into a faster form to flee, but chose not to. To conserve magical energy, she didn't use transformation spells in the city.
After all, even the strongest vampire in this age couldn't afford to waste mana maintaining transformation while fleeing executioners of the Fawkes family.
So, in the winding urban maze of Paris, she chose to remain in human form.
Kagarino Kirie—that was the full name of the silver-haired, twin-tailed girl. She once had a happy family. Her parents, originally from Japan, had moved to Paris and were even granted noble status in France. Kirie grew up surrounded by their love, living a carefree life as a noble's daughter.
But good fortune rarely lasts forever.
As Kirie matured, her beauty began to draw attention. She grew into a girl so stunning, she seemed like the most delicate porcelain doll, and was soon eyed by many powerful men. Fortunately, her family's noble status shielded her from being seized and turned into someone's plaything.
However, not everything in this world abides by the rules set by humans.
Her beauty also caught the eye of Red, the young master of the Fawkes family, one of the most powerful vampire clans. To make her his, Red murdered her parents and turned her into a vampire, planning to marry her on her sixteenth birthday.
Since then, Kirie had borne a burning hatred for both Red and the Fawkes family. There was no way she would become Red's bride. So, she secretly honed her strength, taking advantage of the potent bloodline Red had given her and the vast resources of the Fawkes family.
She became the most powerful vampire of her generation in the Fawkes clan.
And today—on her sixteenth birthday—the heavens gave her a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
The legendary King of Vampires, the one who once dared to battle both God and Satan and emerged victorious, Lord Dracula, was about to awaken from his sealed slumber.
Somehow, word of this reached the Fawkes patriarch, Scar—whom Kirie privately referred to as an idiot, and who also happened to be Red's father. Scar confidently announced that Dracula, upon resurrection, would be at his weakest. He saw this as a golden opportunity for the Fawkes family to seize dominance over the world.
Scar set off for Castlevania, accompanied by the family's strongest elders, brimming with ambition to defeat the King of Blood.
He never returned.
Control of the family passed to Red. Not long after, Red obtained a Necronomicon, a book of the dead rumored to be capable of summoning a demon king from hell. For days, he had been obsessively organizing rituals and constructing altars with the family's elite, giving Kirie a rare opening.
After killing the two maidservants who watched over her, she escaped.
But she was still young. And the Fawkes family hadn't earned its reputation as the strongest vampire clan for nothing. Her escape was quickly discovered. Red sent out the clan's most elite enforcers to hunt her down.
These executioners were specifically trained to kill other vampires. Kirie stood no chance. She fled, panicked and breathless.
Just as she was nearing her limit, she ran into a strange young man on the street.
He was handsome—at least in Kirie's eyes, even more so than the pretty-faced Red. But what stood out was his lazy, lethargic air. Though he appeared to be in his twenties, he gave off the aura of an old man. And he was casually walking alone through the slums of Paris at night.
Desperate, Kirie used him as a decoy.
She originally intended to push him into the path of the executioners using her vampire strength to buy herself time. But to her surprise, she couldn't move him at all.
That's when Kirie realized—this man was not ordinary. Thinking quickly, she changed tactics. She acted like they were close, even going so far as to kiss this total stranger. Her ruse worked—the enforcers now believed the young man was intimately connected to Kirie.
And since Red had ordered them not just to capture her, but to ensure she became his bride, they couldn't let any potential romantic rival escape—especially one better-looking than Red.
In this way, Kirie successfully slipped away. But she didn't dare stop running.
"That uncle seemed strong anyway. If I couldn't even move him with my high-level vampire strength, he'll be fine. Worst case, I'll apologize when I see him again and repay the favor."
So she thought.
She fled all the way to the outskirts of Paris and transformed into a bat, taking to the skies.
Hovering over the city one last time, she glanced back at the glowing lights of Paris. Then, without regret, she turned and flew toward the desolate mountains beyond the city.
---
Meanwhile, back on the street, Dracula still stood where she had left him. Around him lay the unconscious or dead bodies of the Fawkes family's finest enforcers.
"Vampires these days… they really are getting worse with every generation," Dracula sighed as he picked up one of the nearest executioners by the collar.
[Not surprising. You killed all the good ones, remember?] his system chimed in dryly.
Dracula ignored it. Staring at the vampire in his grasp, he said:
"Alright, I'll give you a chance to live. Take me to a restaurant that serves meat."
Blood trickled from the executioner's lips as he weakly clutched Dracula's arm, croaking:
"Y-you… when… Lord Red… summons… the King of Death… the Fawkes family… won't… let you… get away with this!"
"A zealot, huh? Those are my least favorite."
Dracula sighed, then smashed the vampire's head into the pavement. The stone shattered beneath the force. He lifted the bloodied man again.
"Last chance. Take me to a restaurant that sells meat."
The executioner only laughed hoarsely.
"No choice then." Dracula exhaled, and with a surge of power, absorbed the bodies and souls of all the fallen enforcers.
He closed his eyes, standing silently for a moment. Then, without hesitation, he began walking in a particular direction.
"To think… you're still alive, old friend."
"No matter. First thing's first—I need to eat."
Dracula ambled off toward the noble district of Paris.
---
Back in the mountains, Kirie collapsed after exhausting her magic. She stumbled a few steps before falling forward and losing consciousness.
Unbeknownst to her, at the moment she hit the ground, her body slipped into another dimension.
She found herself lying before a massive door, and beyond it stood a towering castle—gloomy and majestic.