The heavy, wooden doors of the Eldia castle slammed shut behind Lucius.
He stepped out of the castle, accompanied by some of the heavily armored guards, who did not think twice before shoving him violently down the massive, steep hill.
Before they threw him over the edge, he could have sworn he heard them curse him out from the top of the cliff.
They spat venomous insults, questioning what a vampire could possibly be, and scoffing at how a stupid, lowly traveler could dare to attack their precious princess.
As he stumbled and tumbled rapidly down the treacherous hill, Lucius immediately raised his hands to guard his head. The wind rushed past his ears, and loose rocks tore at his clothes. He understood all too well that twice before, a severe fall had been his absolute demise, and it was always a fatal blow to the head.
He crashed through the thick foliage, landing on the ground violently in a small, murky swamp.
Mud splashed heavily around him, soaking through his already ruined clothes. He laid there for a long while, his chest heaving as he stared up at the morning sun reflecting directly on his pale face from the stagnant water.
’Dammit!’ he cursed out in raw, unfiltered rage.
A lot of chaotic thoughts crossed his mind in that vulnerable moment, but of all things, his mind eventually wandered to the grim reality of how he could possibly survive in such a harsh, new world.
He barely knew a single thing about his surroundings, since unlike the rest of the privileged heroes who were summoned with him, he never got to learn a damn thing while being stuck in that pitch-black room.
Slowly, his joints popping from the impact, Lucius sat upright in the wet mud.
’If there are heroes and demons, as they say, then i should guess things like adventurers should exist right? Jobs per say. Because i’ll need to find a means of earning, if anything.’
Though it was only for a brief moment back in the grand hall, Lucius was certain he had seen people dressed exactly the way adventurers would, complete with traditional mage robes and heavy broadswords.
Still...
’Why is that even the first thing i think of? Would a normal job not suffice for survival?’ he sterned his crimson gaze, looking at the desolate swamp. ’I guess not, considering I would need to be strong to defend myself.’
With his mind directed at a single spot in the empty air right in front of him, the ethereal blue system opened right before him.
[System activated.]
[Level: 1>2]
[Blood point: 10.] (Blood points can be used to purchase limited skill drops and transformation exchanges.)
[Skills.]
[(Unique abilities:) A vampire’s talent, Supreme system.]
[(Core abilities:) Blood conversion, God mark.]
[(Sub skills:)]
Staring at the floating brackets of text, he could easily understand what they meant, even without the system having to meticulously explain it to him.
The reason for that inherent knowledge was because of his vampire god talent ability.
It not only gave him the ancient wisdom of vampires, but also the raw physical strength, and everything else that came with his new existence.
As for the core talents, he intrinsically knew the mindless blood allowed him to turn the dead into his loyal vampires, and the God mark was far more complicated in a strategic way.
’I see. So this should work for the most part.’
Lucius stood up from the muddy ground, brushing the wet dirt from his pants, and looked towards the right. From where he stood, he could see the distant city lights slowly shining as the sun was finally coming down.
Since it was getting dark, the chill of the evening setting in, he figured he needed to find a safe place to spend the night. Then, the next day, he would go ahead and find a way to make some money for now, all while focusing on growing stronger with his newfound abilities.
’Where do i even stay though?’ he thought, looking around the hostile wilderness.
He blinked, the reality of his situation setting in.
’I have to spend the night in a damn forest? sigh.’
For the rest of the hours, he wandered through the dense, shadowy woods, spending his time trying to find the right place he could safely stay.
And for a long while, it seemed rather hopeless, but then, after what seemed like forever, his enhanced red eyes finally caught something.
As he stood on the edge of a rocky cliff, he looked down from the precipice, and noticed he could see a small space, a hollowed-out hole right in the base of a huge tree. Just outside of it sat a cold fire place with primitive buckets of water placed carefully at the side.
’No way...’ A smile flashed on Lucius’s face.
However, just as happy as he was to know there might be someone else out here, his predatory instincts flared, and he could also understand that it could easily mean danger as well.
And he was exactly right.
Before he could even think to launch himself down from the rock, his vampire senses were drastically heightened, sensing lethal danger right immediately. The subtle snap of a twig and the scent of unwashed skin invaded his nose.
"Come out!" Lucius screamed at the top of his lungs, forcing his voice to boom as he rapidly turned around.
His first mindless blood, the undead witch, arose instantly from the ground from his shadow, standing right behind her master as a fleshy, rotting shield.
Immediately, Lucius watched in shock as a crude, heavy blade, that was meant to go right through his back and end his life, went right into the chest of the mindless blood and remained violently lodged there.
Breathing heavily, his heart pounding despite his undead nature, Lucius finally had a good look at the person who had just attempted to kill him.
"Who the hell are youuuu?!" he demanded.
It was a female. She was dressed in what looked like rugged, stitched animal skin, her red dirty hair scattered wildly on her head, and her face completely filled with smeared dirt and mud. Her eyes were wild, feral, and full of pure hostility.
The female did not flinch. She grabbed the hilt, pulled out the heavy blade from the mindless blood’s chest, shoved the rotting witch to the side with her bare foot, and then proceeded to charge directly towards Lucius with a feral scream.
"Wait! Hold on!!!" Lucius yelled, putting his hands up.
Relying on his innate agility, Lucius was somehow able to react quickly to her explosive movement. He dodged sharply to the side just as the weird-looking blade stabbed deeply into the dirt ground exactly where he once was standing.
A deep frown showed on Lucius’s face as he analyzed his attacker.
’Shit. she’s really trying to kill me.’
Looking around the clearing, there were barely any loose rocks or branches around that he could use as a weapon to defend himself, and looking at how vicious and unrelenting she was, there was no doubt in his mind that she would end him if he gave her the chance.
...
[A/N]
All skills that have not been explaiend would be when needed. the three tier skills all share similar needs, but different outcomes. the stronger the tier, the more abiities it has to a single name.