At the heart of the grand ballroom, a group of a dozen or so boys and girls slowly stepped forward, all dressed in immaculate white formalwear. Their features were delicate, their movements graceful, and they were surrounded by a throng of admirers, as though they were stars at the center of the heavens.
The crystal chandelier overhead dimmed without warning. Around the hall’s corners, flickering candlelight bloomed into life, casting a warm, golden glow. Even the music shifted—slowing, softening, its melody turning languid and dreamlike. The entire atmosphere changed in an instant.
The boys and girls lifted their chins slightly, exposing slender, pale necks. In the dim candlelight, the faint pattern of blue-black veins curled like ivy across porcelain skin, carrying with them a decadent, sweet scent of blood.
As more people gathered around them, burning, naked stares locked onto the group. One of the girls, unable to help herself, took an instinctive step back, biting her lip as her eyes flickered with growing fear.
“Chu Lian, what are you doing?” Another girl standing nearby frowned, displeasure flashing in her beautiful gaze. “This is a chance to change your fate. If you don’t want it—I sure do.” Without hesitation, she stepped forward, smoothly taking the spot Chu Lian had abandoned—a position that made her even more visible, more tempting.
Chu Lian had already retreated to the very back. Hearing those words, she faltered for a moment, hesitation flashing across her face. But in the end, the fear churning in her heart won out. She spun on her heel, her face pale, and fled the ballroom in a panic—as if something terrible was chasing after her.
No one stopped her. The elegantly dressed, flawlessly made-up vampires simply stepped aside, parting to open a path for her. They watched her retreating figure, polite smiles still fixed on their faces. It seemed this minor disruption was hardly enough to dampen their spirits.
Watching her companion flee, the remaining girl rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath, “What a coward. Who comes to a vampire’s banquet and then acts like this? What was she thinking…”
“Such a beautiful young lady…” A tall, handsome man with striking features walked toward her, stopping in front of her with a graceful bow. His amber eyes locked onto hers, his voice gentle and sincere. “Would you honor me with a dance?”
The girl’s face instantly flushed pink. It felt like being struck by fortune itself—stunned and elated, like something out of a dream. She stood there frozen for a long moment, before finally placing her soft hand into the man’s palm. Her lashes fluttered, and in a shy, delicate voice, she replied, “It… it would be my pleasure.”
……
Ruan Zhao glanced curiously in that direction a few times, not quite understanding what was going on. The system quickly explained.
[Those people in white—they’re humans invited to the banquet.]
[Their goal is simple—to offer their blood and cozy up to powerful, influential vampires in exchange for money… or other things.]
The rest of the young men and women were soon invited one by one. They moved together, embracing as they twirled lightly across the dance floor. The longer they danced, the closer they drew to one another, and the atmosphere gradually shifted—turning hazy, heated, and heavy with suggestion.
Ruan Zhao’s gaze flicked toward a corner of the room. Several couples had already begun kissing as though no one else existed.
The kisses trailed downward, falling onto the slender necks of the girls. In the dim light, a flash of crimson gleamed in the eyes of the male vampires. Their sharp fangs extended, sinking into tender, pale flesh…
A soft sound escaped the girls’ lips—somewhere between a moan of pain and pleasure. Delicate arms wrapped around the men’s shoulders, as if to push them away… but more like clinging to the wave of pleasure rising from having their blood drained, craving the bite to go even deeper.
……
Ruan Zhao felt a wave of nausea. But there was nothing in his stomach to throw up, no matter how much he wanted to. Quickly, he averted his eyes, unwilling to keep watching.
He couldn’t shake the feeling that these utterly shameless, depraved vampires were bound to do something even more revolting before the night was through.
Before things spiraled beyond recovery, Ruan Zhao hurriedly made his way toward the grand doors, desperate to get out of there as fast as possible. But just then—something unexpected happened.
The soft candlelight that had lit the entire hall suddenly flickered and vanished. In the blink of an eye, the room was plunged into total darkness—so dark you couldn’t even see your hand in front of your face. A few sharp screams rang out, followed by hushed whispers.
“What’s going on? Why would the lights suddenly go out?”
“…Is it the Supervisory Division? Did they come?”
“Impossible!”
At the mention of the Supervisory Division, a vampire’s voice rose, his tone visibly agitated. “We’re just holding a private banquet on our own turf! Any dealings with humans are consensual—no one’s forcing them. Why would we provoke those… those cursed reapers?” His voice dropped at the end, as though afraid someone might overhear. The tension and fear were unmistakable.
Panic and unrest rippled through the crowd. The darkness seemed to magnify every fear, making it feel as if unspeakable horrors were lurking in every unseen corner… The mere mention of the Supervisory Division sent a jolt through every vampire present.
The more powerful vampires weren’t worried about those bloodless bureaucrats—what truly made them tremble were the secret forces operating in the shadows behind the Division.
The Blood Hunters.
Silent, unseen, and merciless—several high-ranking vampires had already fallen to them, their deaths swift and quiet.
No one here was clean. Every vampire present carried blood on their hands, some more than others. The thought that one of them could be the next target made the fear all the more suffocating. In that moment, no one cared about keeping up appearances anymore.
The attendants scrambled to restore power, quickly switching to the backup generator. The crystal chandeliers overhead flickered and blazed to life once again. Light poured into every shadowed corner of the hall. It was blinding.
“Aahhh!!” A scream—louder, sharper than before. One of the human girls in a white gown covered her mouth with trembling hands, her whole body shaking as she let out broken, uneven sobs. “S-someone’s… someone’s dead… they killed him…!”
The vampire who had been passionately kissing her just moments ago now lay sprawled on the cold marble floor. A silver fork was embedded squarely in the center of his forehead. His skull, fragile as soft tofu, had been completely pierced by the rounded tips of the fork, leaving only the small handle sticking out. Cold, dark blood oozed steadily from the wound, staining the floor beneath him. It was a grisly sight—his skin had turned a sickly, bluish-white, and the abruptness of death left him wide-eyed, amber irises glazed with a shadowy film, frozen forever in a look of disbelief.
……
Countless eyes fell on the girl, coldly scrutinizing her, silently weighing the possibility that she was the killer. The vampires no longer bothered to maintain their elegant, polished smiles. Their faces tightened, muscles rigid, their cold expressions stripped of any human warmth—like beasts masquerading behind humanoid masks, void of emotion.
The girl felt those strange, accusing stares around her. Panic overtook her, sweat beading on her brow. She bit her lip, desperately insisting, “It wasn’t me! I swear, it wasn’t me… I’m just an ordinary person! His death has nothing to do with me!”
The vampires exchanged glances, suspicion flickering between them. Every human admitted to this gathering had undergone thorough background checks. It was confirmed—they were just regular people, no abilities, no suspicious history, no ties to the Supervisory Division. Their families, their associates—all clean. And yet here they were. A dead vampire.
There was no way a frail, unarmed girl could’ve killed a high-ranking vampire in the blink of an eye. Just as she said—this assassination likely had nothing to do with her. But so what? The vampires’ fury demanded a target.
Hidden within the crowd, a tall man wearing a sharp black suit and a black-and-gold mask gave a subtle nod to the nearby bloodguards. A few burly vampires stepped forward, flexing their hands, cracking their knuckles, their faces cold and expressionless as they moved toward the girl, closing in.
“What are you doing?!” she shouted, stumbling back. “We signed a contract! You can’t touch me!”
At the mention of a contract, the bloodguards sneered. Without hesitation, they grabbed her wrists, ignoring her frantic struggle, dragging her forward.
“Let me go! You can’t do this—you can’t hurt me against my will!”
Desperation rising, she cast a pleading look toward her fellow humans cowering in the corners—but one by one, they all looked away, none willing to meet her gaze, let alone help.
Her voice cracked into a panicked wail. “You’re breaking the contract—the Supervisory Division won’t let this go! I’ll report you! I’ll call them—every vampire here will pay for this!”
The bloodguards forced her to the ground beside the corpse, pressing down on her shoulders, shoving her into a kneeling position. Her frantic, hollow threats didn’t even register in their eyes.
Paralyzed by unknown terror, the girl sobbed uncontrollably, helpless tears streaming down her face. Between choked sobs and broken shouts, she cried out, “You won’t get away with this—the Supervisory Division will come for you!” And the next moment, she was pleading, gasping for breath, “It wasn’t me… it wasn’t me… you’ve got the wrong person… I had nothing to do with that vampire’s death!”
Suddenly, another disturbance rippled through the banquet hall. A woman near the corpse made a discovery—a mark left behind by the killer. A pentagram drawn crudely with a line of blood.
“It’s a pentagram!”
“It’s a Blood Hunter—a Blood Hunter killed Charles! They’re still here—still among us!”
Whatever calm the vampires had been feigning before was completely shattered. Panic spread like wildfire. Several vampires near the exits didn’t hesitate—the moment they heard about the pentagram on the floor, they bolted out the doors in terror.
The pentagram, or perhaps the figure it represented, struck a deep, chilling fear in their hearts. Especially the bloodguards standing closest to the body—their faces went pale as though they’d seen a ghost, their nerves frayed to breaking.
In that instant of distraction, the girl seized her chance. She sprang to her feet and bolted, her legs trembling but never stopping, too terrified to look back.
……
Ruan Zhao happened to be standing by the door. He even thoughtfully pushed it open for her, stepping aside to clear a path. The girl, eyes red and wild, glanced back at him—then, for some reason, grabbed his wrist and yanked him along as she ran.
Ruan Zhao: “…Huh?”
His body was weak to begin with—practically fragile—and under the girl’s desperate tug, he stumbled after her for two steps. “W-wait… wait a second—”
“Wait for what?!” she snapped, breathless. “You want to stick around and be drained dry by those monsters in human skin?”
Ruan Zhao: …Would it kill you to take a closer look? See if I look like one of those ‘monsters in human skin’ first?
Panting, he barely managed to steady himself as she dragged him along.
“Y-you go on ahead, stop pulling me,” Ruan Zhao said, following the system’s instructions and pointing her toward a safer path. “Take this road, just keep running straight. If you run for about half an hour, you should see a Supervisory Station nearby… you’ll be safe after that.”
“What about you?”
“…I’ve got something more important to do.”
Seeing how firm he was, the girl didn’t argue for long. She just shook her head and muttered, “Crazier than me… must have a death wish.”
Ruan Zhao: “…”
[Wait… she thinks I’m… human?]
No matter how he phrased it, it sounded odd in his head. Deep down, Ruan Zhao still saw himself as human. But in this world, he was no longer like them—he was a vampire, something entirely different. The contradiction was making his head spin.
The system glanced at Ruan Zhao’s pale, fitted uniform. Though it was much finer than the girl’s dress—embroidered with gold thread at the hem—in her panic, it wasn’t surprising she didn’t notice the difference.
Besides, Ruan Zhao’s scent was faint. He lacked the overpowering, sickly-sweet, iron-tinged aroma that clung to vampires—no amount of perfume could cover that up.
The system offered an honest observation: [Compared to a vampire, you really do look more like a human.]
Ruan Zhao: […Great.]
[Doesn’t mean much though, if I still can’t even eat a stupid cupcake.]
The pentagram… Lu Xingyao.
He hadn’t lied to the girl. There really was something more important he had to do. He had to head back into that banquet hall—and find out whether Lu Xingyao was still there.
Ruan Zhao turned around and stepped back into the noisy old castle. Just as he pulled the heavy door open, a hand reached out from behind and grabbed his arm.
No way… again? He thought the girl had gotten soft-hearted and run back, trying to drag him along with her again. “Didn’t I tell you? I’ve got something else to do—I can’t leave yet. If you don’t run now, once those vampires catch on, you won’t even—”
His words cut off sharply. Because what was holding his wrist… wasn’t the girl. It was a man’s hand. Long fingers, broad knuckles. A simple, silver-white ring circled the base of his index finger, perfectly fitted—like a piece of art displayed behind glass, elegant and precious.
Ruan Zhao’s gaze followed the arm upward, until his eyes met a face that was almost too flawless. Handsome, sharp-featured. A straight nose bridge, thin, cool lips. He wore a black tactical jacket, a long bone necklace hanging around his neck, and his left ear lined with a row of glittering diamond studs. The man stood there, posture relaxed, an indifferent look in his eyes.
Noticing Ruan Zhao’s stare, his lips curled into a faint, lazy smile, revealing a sharp canine tooth. He raised his hand, casually waving in greeting.
“Hey.”
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