“Move on! We need as much information as possible! The longer we take, the more people die!”

There were numerous hasty steps echoing across the halls as people ran up and down in a hurry.

As Xavier had no idea where the exit was, he followed behind the man in the white uniform to avoid wasting any time.

Having already been tested by them, he understood why they did it, but it still left a negative impression on him. At least the way the man treated him.

‘White uniforms everywhere… What kind of uniforms are these? As far as I know, they don’t belong to either the police or military.’

Xavier saw every person inside the halls wearing the white uniform, indicating they were affiliated with the place.

It was very interesting to see this base of operations. It was unlike anything Xavier has ever seen before.

Besides being heavily guarded, there were countless reinforced doors leading to every kind of specialized room.

Xavier found a group of scientists conducting tests on an individual who had manifested a powerful ability in one of the rooms. Apparently, they were helping the individual manage his powers.

In another they were manufacturing high-tech weapons.

The man Xavier walked with had clearly been granted great power as whenever he passed anyone who wasn’t in a hurry, they’d stop to salute and pay their respects to him.

“Where are you taking me…? “It feels almost like I’m getting a tour of the place…” Xavier asked as he followed behind the man.

*Growl*

The growl in Xavier’s stomach caused him to wince once again. As the hunger grew, he found it increasingly difficult to stay focused.

‘God damn it… I’m starving…’

“You’ll know once we’re there.” The man replied.

Xavier narrowed his eyes and stopped in his tracks.

“Hey… You remember what I said earlier right? I won’t get involved with your organisation, all I want is revenge. Just leave me outside and I’ll be on my way…”

Likewise, the man stopped walking.

“I can just leave you outside, but are you sure that’s what you want?”

“If I do, you might miss out on some important information about your family. Your father, mother and younger sister wouldn’t want that, would they?”

Xavier’s eyes widened, his dark eyes flashed a momentary crimson glow, and the mark on his neck glowed brightly.

“You… What did you just say?” Xavier asked as his face suddenly became expressionless.

He became drenched in bloodlust as the veins on his neck and arms bulged out.

The tall, dark-haired man sighed and kept walking.

A smile spread across his face as he muttered, “Just follow me.”.

A dark expression covered Xavier’s face as he followed after him without saying anything.

–

–

–

*Pssssssssssss*

The sound of running tap water echoed inside of the bathroom. Xavier looked around the toilet to check for cameras but it seemed to have been empty.

‘He gave me a toilet break but where the hell is he taking me…?’

‘What he said about my family… How does he know about them…? Did he conduct a background check on me?’

‘He obviously noticed the mark on my neck but didn’t question it either… Just how much does he… Do they know?’

*Gulp* *Gulp*

After drinking some of the tap water, he quenched some of his thirst, but his hunger still remained.

Seeing his reflection in the mirror, he was barely able to recognize himself.

The silver edges of his hair extended further up to the middle making it almost half black, and half silver. He opened his mouth and looked at his canines, which now looked like moderately long fangs. He could retract them at his leisure.

Last but not least, he opened his eyes wide while looking into a mirror. His eyes were deep crimson red, and his round pupils had become more slit-like, reptilian in shape.

It fluctuated between red and black with a round pupil, depending on his emotional state. So far he couldn’t control it.

‘My hair became even more silver than before…’

‘My senses all feel incredibly heightened, it’s hard to keep focus when you start to notice so many things around you… Especially my sight…”

‘How is everything so clear…? How can I see the tiniest of veins on a person’s neck by only focusing?’

‘I’m a Half… So why the hell am I so hungry? Isn’t it meant to be less or something?’

[Skill: Gluttony is active.]

[Effects of the skill are chained with the User’s Vampiric thirst, leading to an even greater hunger the before.]

[The User must consume, otherwise, the User will become a ghoul.]

‘What a troublesome skill… if I don’t eat something soon, I’ll become a ghoul… What’s the point of having it if it just makes you hungrier?’

[Depending on many factors and the proportion, the stats of what the User consumes can be devoured and absorbed.]

‘Say what now?’

[In order to grow stronger at a fast rate, vampires need to feed and consume blood. The more they feed and consume blood, the stronger they become.]

[However, for the User, with this skill, the user can become stronger through feeding at a much faster rate than a regular vampire.]

[This is a skill based on growth, which allows for limitless potential.]

As Xavier stared at himself in the mirror, his eyes widen, a grin had developed on his lips without him realizing it.

‘So on top of level ups and quests… I can get stronger by feeding too?’

‘To be smiling at something like this… I’m fucked up.’

Xavier splashed the water on his face before staring back at his reflection.

[New Bloodline Quest Received.]

A system screen suddenly popped up before his eyes as he stared at his reflection.

[Bloodline Quest: Consume Blood.]

[Blood consumed: 0/1]

‘If there’s a chance that my family really is alive then…”

‘…No, don’t start getting hopeful…’

“Otherwise, it’s just going to hurt even more…” He muttered before heading for the exit.

–

–

–

*Beep* *Beep*

Two beeps echoed ahead of the two reinforced doors before they opened. When it opened, Xavier was already chewing on some grilled meat that the dark haired man alongside him had swiftly gotten for him.

With just the right amount of flavor, it was hot and soft. It was perfect. Xavier was on his fourth leg, and only two more remained.

*Sigh*

‘The hunger isn’t as bad as before… Despite drinking so much water, I can still feel the weak thirst.’ He said to himself as he chugged down a bottle of water.

Xavier threw the bottle in the trash can in the corner of the room after finishing it before scanning the room.

There are so many strangers in the room wearing different clothes.

Many of the people were in suits; some were businessmen, while others were students in education.

Approximately twenty people were present, and each one was unique in their own way.

Based on the school uniform she was wearing, the youngest one appeared to be no older than sixteen years old with short wine red hair and small yellow eyes.

Her gaze drifted from the tablet’s screen on her hand over to Xavier as she slowly inflated a bubble-gum out of her mouth.

Not only her, but everyone else was looking at him and the tall black haired person higher up he was with.

“So you’ve brought him here, I guess that makes everyone?” The man standing at the other end of the room asked.

Standing at 190 cm minimum, the man was tall. His long, straight cement gray hair nearly touched his chin. There was an eye patch on one eye with a scar running down the brow, while the other eye was a simple brown color.

In the corner of the room, alongside the man he had come with, Xavier simply leaned against the wall without saying anything. Based on everyone’s reactions, he understood the situation more or less.

“Well then, let’s start with what’s happening…”

Suddenly, a projector on the ceiling projected images behind the man of the cities in England. London, Bristol, Liverpool, Manchester and so many others were included.

Great Britain, September 9th 2022.

–

The streets were filled with heavy rain. Many workers and late students commuted to work during the early hours of the morning despite the busy streets.

Many are busy minding their own business, stressed by the realities and challenges of life. Today was just like any other day. Most days, however, have involved constant cloudy weathers and never-ending rain.

Still, no matter what the weather or their conditions were, the workers persisted with their work. This was the way of society.

“Mum… What’s that?” A young boy asked as he walked beside his mother while pointing at the sky.

His mother, unsure of what he was talking about, looked up at the sky, only to widen her eyes and gasp at the sight before her.

People began to stop on their tracks, many stepping out of their cars, unsure if their eyes were playing tricks on them.

A giant black spherical portal. It appeared out of nowhere in the sky above the city.

*Thud*

His pupils dilated as a change occurred in his mother before him. As water from the sewers flowed out of the ground and gathered around her, her hair was lit up in a shining blue light.

Something was mutating in her, but it wasn’t just her.

Around him, panic erupted as other people experienced similar symptoms.

While one man sank into the earth, another had wind constantly blowing around him. A person burst into flames, while another had spikes protruding from their bodies.

Those who were driving and others in more vulnerable positions were caught completely off guard, creating chaos.

“WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!?”

“AAAAH!!! WHAT’S HAPPENING TO ME!!!”

*CRASH!!*

The same thing was happening in every corner of the world. No one knew what caused it.

It was precisely this moment that marked the beginning.

The beginning of the end.

*Steps* *Steps* *Steps*

Following this beginning, In the city, countless footsteps resounded as people in strange black uniforms and caps appeared completely unaffected by this process of mutation.

Many of the people wearing these strange uniforms were holding onto chains, chains attached to humans wearing ragged clothing with drool running down their faces.

Despite looking like humans, they behaved completely differently. Long fangs, pale skin, blank pupils, uncontrollable thirst.

To prevent them from going out of control as they followed their animalistic impulses, there were chains attached to them.

*Rattle!* *Rattle!*

As they passed people, the chains clinked tremendously

One blue-haired man led them all. The way he looked would have passed him off as no less than a model, but the energy he carried with him would have scared anyone off.

He glanced at the army behind him with his deep, slit red eyes.

“As agreed by the other Ancestors… it is time to step out of the shadows! Let the ghouls loose! Before the humans grow any more powerful… Let the hunt commence!” He roared, flashing his bared fangs in a wide grin.

The man then turned his head over to the camera and stared at it with a grin, before the footage became static.

–

The people in the room were speechless, the tension was up in the air as they continued to watch. They had all experienced it in their own way and had awakened their own abilities.

“Now, let’s show what’s happening outside as of now.”

The projector were now portraying live camera footages taken from hidden cameras all over great Britain. Fires erupted, buildings collapsed, and human beings were massacred and wiped out in the images.

After that, it showed images and videos of humans being bitten and eaten by ghouls before becoming one of them.

In videos, people were bitten, attacked and bit others. Whether it was friends or family, all the ghouls could think about was their own hunger.

“…”

As they watched, they all stood speechless.

Eventually, the videos stopped before showing a map of England and its countless regions.

Among these regions were circles, zones that were highlighted red. These zones showcased the number and spread of infected ghouls.

It was clearly visible that the number was growing.

“What’s happening can only be described by one word. Chaos. Our organization works with the military, but at the rate the ghouls are spreading, it is clear that the vampires have the advantage.”

“Get to the point, why are you showing us this?” A man in the other corner of the room asked.

His green eyes are covered with purple glasses over short, bright green hair. The man was wearing a bloodied business suit and holding a bloodied bag in his right hand.

A grin spread across the cemented gray haired man’s face as if he’d been waiting for that question.

“You must be Kite… It seems you’re as bright as your background suggests. Truthfully I didn’t bring you all here and have not shown you all of this for no reason.”

“I have an offer to make…”

“Join our organisation.”