The chamber trembled with the echoes of combat. Dust swirled, ancient runes flickered dimly on the stone walls, and blood pooled beneath shattered tiles. The scent of burned magic and scorched flesh permeated the air. Dray stood tall, shoulders heaving with each breath, his frame soaked in sweat and crimson. Across from him, Ragyash—the Thirster—was bruised, battered, and scorched, his robes in tatters and his face contorted in disbelief and fury.
Dray's eyes glowed faintly with crimson, the signature hue of his awakened vampire lineage. His chest rose and fell as he caught his breath, the system's residual power still crackling beneath his skin.
The clash had been brutal. Each strike from Ragyash had carried centuries of dark mastery, but Dray had stood his ground, his system-boosted body responding with impossible speed and strength. Now, Ragyash stumbled backward, his fingers twitching with panic.
Behind him loomed the altar—the same ancient structure through which he'd planned his escape.
"No... I won't be defeated like this..." Ragyash growled.
His fingers darted across the glowing array carved into the altar's surface, channeling desperate energy into its core. A swirl of ethereal blue began forming, the beginnings of teleportation magic.
DING!
"Alert: Thirster Ragyash attempting teleportation escape through altar array."
"Countermeasures engaged. Spatial lockdown activated. Escape attempt: DENIED."
Ragyash's body shimmered faintly, but instead of disappearing, the magic surrounding him dissipated like smoke in the wind.
He tried again, frantically pressing his blood against the stone, murmuring a forbidden incantation.
Nothing.
The air around him had solidified, reality itself locked down.
"W-What did you do Nightwalker!?" Ragyash roared, turning toward Dray. "You dare tamper with my escape!?"
Dray slowly walked toward him, his boots tapping steadily on the stone floor. The corner of his mouth curled into a mocking smirk.
"Your dead end has arrived, Thirster," Dray said. "No more running."
Ragyash's eyes widened with rage and fear. "You—You don't understand what you've done! I am Thirster Ragyash! Member of the Shadow Council!"
"I don't care what council you crawl back to. You preyed on the weak... You schemed in shadows. It ends here."
With one swift move, Dray dashed forward, and a burst of vampiric energy surged through his arm. He slammed his palm into Ragyash's chest. The ancient thirster howled in pain as tendrils of crimson light wrapped around him like ethereal chains.
He collapsed to the ground, bound by the system's suppression force. His limbs trembled, unable to move. The ritual altar sparked violently before going cold.
Instantly, Dray's enhanced aura faded. The boost granted by the system vanished completely.
His knees wobbled. The strength drained from his limbs like a receding tide. He fell backward, landing on the stone floor beside the immobilized Ragyash. His breath came in shallow rasps.
"Damn... that took everything," he muttered.
From his inventory, he summoned a healing potion—its vial cold and glowing faintly blue. He popped the cork and downed half of it, grimacing at the bitter taste. Warmth surged into his veins, dulling the pain and mending his torn muscles.
He glanced across the chamber.
Kessa stood over the woman who had aided Ragyash. Her eyes burned with fury. Her claws were extended, ready to finish her.
"Kessa... don't kill her," Dray said between coughs.
Kessa turned, confused. "But she schemed against you! She nearly got you killed!"
"I know," Dray nodded slowly. "Capture her. Bind her. I'll make her regret ever playing games with me. Death would be mercy."
Kessa growled in frustration but obeyed. With swift precision, she bound the woman using dark silk-like threads spun from her own evolved bloodline.
Dray turned to Tyro, who had just finished his own fight.
The monstrous Draugr moved like a beast, eyes wild and movements feral. Blood soaked his arms and chest. Several limbs and chunks of flesh from his opponent lay nearby—he had consumed them mid-battle, his instincts overriding restraint.
"Barbaric... but effective," Dray muttered.
Screams still echoed throughout the hall from the last skirmishes, but within moments, silence reclaimed the temple.
Then came a soft chime.
DING!
"Host Level Up: +1"
"All stats have increased."
"+1 free item granted from System Shop."
"Your creations have reached Stage 2 evolution."
Dray's heart lifted. He blinked and opened his interface.
System Interface
Name: Dray Ballack
Bloodline: Vampiric
Race: Nightwalker
Level: 13
Class: Vampire
Strength: 32
Agility: 36
Endurance: 29
Vitality: 31
Skills:
• Night Adaptation (Passive - 60%)
• Blood Sense (Passive – 40%)
• Blood Echo (Tier I - 35%)
• Phantom Reaper (Intermediate Assassination Skill – 32%) Fully Owned
• Crimson Eyes (Rank I - New)
Inventory:
• Rusted Circuit Knife
• Obsidian Data Chip
• Unknown Crystal (Bound)
• Healing Potion
• Hair Potion
• Dark Cloak of Concealment
System Shop: [Access Granted, +1 free skill]
Next Level: 700 EXP
Status: Recovering
Creations:
• Name: Kessa Holt
• Race: Noctilux Seductress
• Bloodline: Vampiric
• Evolution: Stage 2 (7%)
• Name: Tyro Venn
• Race: Draugr (Undead-Class)
• Bloodline: Vampiric
• Evolution: Stage 2 (5%)
Title: Nightwalker Creator
Main Quest: 55% Completed
He exhaled a long breath, wiping sweat from his brow.
"Progress..." he whispered. "We're getting closer."
Kessa and Tyro approached with the two prisoners—Ragyash still bound, twitching in fury, and the pale-skinned woman shivering in defeat.
Kessa dropped the woman at Dray's feet. "They're ready."
Dray pushed himself up slowly. He glanced at the bound enemies. Ragyash's eyes glared at him with hate, but behind it, fear lingered.
"What now?" Kessa asked.
Dray's expression darkened.
"I will make them suffer the worst agony imaginable. Their schemes won't be forgotten."
DING!
"Notice: Host's vampiric blood possesses a punishment feature. By inflicting a direct transfusion under suppression, victims may be subjected to a curse tailored to their sins. The effects are permanent and will act as a deterrent to future offenders."
Dray's lips curled into a wicked smile.
"Perfect..."
He extended a finger, slicing it with the edge of his claw. A single drop of his blood glowed unnaturally, pulsing with arcane light. The chamber dimmed slightly, the walls whispering as if responding to the dark power.
Ragyash screamed before the blood even touched him.
"No—NO! What are you doing!? Don't don't! This is forbidden!"
Dray knelt beside him.
"You should've thought of that before becoming a monster."
He pressed the drop onto Ragyash's chest. The vampire howled, the blood sinking into his skin like molten iron. His veins pulsed, turning black. The woman beside him shrieked as Dray drop a blood in her mouth.
Their bodies convulsed, the system etching punishment deeper into their souls.
"Curses successfully implanted. Subjects are now marked by the Host's blood. Effects include debilitating pain during betrayal, inability to act against the Host, and permanent memory of their failure. Attempted retaliation will result in death."
Dray stood slowly, towering over them.
"Let this be a warning," he said coldly. "Crossing me has consequences. You don't just lose... you become a lesson."
As silence returned, Dray turned toward the exit of the ancient sanctuary.
With his companions flanking him, and the captives dragged behind like broken trophies, the path ahead was clearer than ever.
He was no longer prey.
He was the predator.
The Nightwalker who would change the fate of bloodlines forever.