CHAPTER 313: BECOMING A VAMPIRE

...right there was a bite mark dripping with blood...

Her fingers trembled as she pressed down on it.

It burned.

Not like normal pain. It was like someone had poured boiling poison straight into her veins. Her breath hitched. For a moment she couldn’t even hear the others shouting, the clash of metal, or the screeching from the remaining vampires.

All she heard was her own heart.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump—

Her vision blurred.

"Sophie! Are you okay?!" Cassie grabbed her arm, eyes wide. This was the third time Cassie was speaking up, and because her voice was quite loud, Sophie snapped out of her trance-like state.

"I’m... fine," Sophie lied, forcing her voice out. Her throat felt dry, like sand.

She gritted her teeth and shoved aside the dizzy feeling in her head. The vampire that had bitten her was still twitching on the ground, poison still dripping from its fangs, reaching out with clawed hands.

Sophie’s gaze turned cold. Without a word, she lifted her dagger and drove it down straight into its heart.

SPLAT!

The vampire jerked once, then went limp completely.

Around them, the others finally managed to finish off the remaining vampires. Evelyn’s petals shredded another in half, Ragnarok99 cut down one that tried to flee, and the Martial Palace disciples did their best to mop up the rest.

Some time later, silence reigned. The corridor that had been filled with shrieks and footsteps was now dead quiet. The only sound was panting from the fighters, whose numbers had reduced slightly with several players entering the cycle of respawning.

"Damn... that was insane."

"Are we done? Is that all of them?"

"Check the ceilings, the cracks, don’t let your guard down," a Martial Palace disciple barked, still paranoid.

They scanned the area carefully, poking corpses with their weapons, making sure nothing moved. Slowly, the tension eased a little.

Evelyn waved her hand to control her petals back to her as she let out a sign of relief. She then turned around to check on Sophie.

Then she froze.

Sophie was standing still, shoulders slightly hunched. Her hand was still on her wounded shoulder, fingers digging into the flesh as if trying to tear the pain out.

Her breathing had turned shallow.

"Sophie?" Cassie called softly, her voice filled with concern.

No answer came, only laborious breath. The others began to notice.

"Sophie? Hey. You good?"

"Why’s she so quiet all of a sudden?"

Evelyn took a step closer, eyes narrowing. From her position, it was quite hard to see the bite mark.

Sophie slowly raised her head.

Her veil hid her eyes as usual, but her exposed skin... that was where they finally saw it.

Her skin was gradually turning pale.

Not the normal kind of pale from blood loss. This was different. Almost like the color was being drained out of her completely, leaving a faint blue shade beneath the surface.

Veins faintly pulsed along her neck.

Cassie’s throat tightened as she caught a glimpse of the bite mark.

"It can’t be." Her eyes widened more and more.

There was a slight change of expression on Anna, who usually kept a stoic face. With sharp eyes, she had noticed the bite mark even before anyone else could.

Sophie wobbled on her feet. Her grip on the dagger loosened, then tightened again as if she was fighting something inside her.

The others instinctively started to distance themselves from her. They didn’t say it out loud at first, but their bodies moved on their own. Step by step. One backward step. Then another.

They had all seen it before.

They were inside a vampire tower.

If someone bitten couldn’t resist the infection...

"S-She got bitten, right?" one Martial Palace member whispered nervously.

"Wait—don’t jump to conclusions—"

"We just fought vampires that don’t even have intellect! You think their bite is normal?!"

"Shut up!" Evelyn snapped, glaring at them.

But even then, her own fingers tightened around her weapon.

She knew the risk.

Everyone did.

A small wind stirred in the corridor. Sophie’s veil fluttered slightly, lifting just enough for the others to see a glimpse beneath.

Her eyes.

They had always been green—calm, focused, steady—but now— the whites were tainted.

A faint red hue spread out from the pupils, slowly crawling across until the entire eye seemed to be filling with blood.

The red deepened behind the veil, like a pool being dyed.

"Sophie..." Cassie’s voice shook. She didn’t move back. Out of everyone, she was the only one still standing close to her.

"...Cassie," Sophie finally replied. Her voice was low and rough, not as clean and elegant as before.

Cassie forced a weak smile. "Y-Yeah. I’m here. It’s okay. It’s probably just... some kind of debuff, right? Hahaha... we can fix it when we clear this floor, Gabriel will figure something out... he would definitely do."

"Cassie." Sophie cut her off.

Just her saying her name like that was enough to shut Cassie up immediately.

Sophie slowly raised her other hand—the one not holding the dagger—and pushed Cassie lightly on the shoulder.

"Go."

Cassie blinked. "...Eh?"

"Move away from me," Sophie said. "Now."

Her words were simple and calm.

But there was a trembling in them that made Cassie’s heart clench.

"I’m fine, we can—"

"I said go," Sophie repeated. This time her tone was harsher. "I’m... losing control of my body."

Her fingers twitched again. The dagger in her hand rattled.

She lowered her head a bit, and for a moment Cassie thought she was just trying to steady herself.

Then Sophie’s point of view shifted abruptly. She could see it. The pulsing veins on Cassie’s neck.

They stood out so clearly, like illuminated lines, each throb echoing in her ears. Every heartbeat was a drum.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

She could hear it loud and clear.

Not just Cassie’s.

Everyone’s.

Evelyn. Ragnarok99. The Martial Palace disciples. Broken Dawn, all of them; they were warm and alive and full of blood.

Her throat burned. Her teeth ached. It felt like her gums were stretching, pushing something out.

Her teeth slowly lengthened. Tiny pricks turned into sharp points, like fangs being carved from inside her skull.

She clenched her jaw hard, trying to stop it, but that only made the pain worse.

"Sophie!" Cassie grabbed her hand. "It’s okay, we can—"

"Cassie!" Sophie snapped, louder this time.

Cassie flinched.

Sophie squeezed her eyes shut beneath the veil.

’Don’t look at her... don’t look at her...’

The smell of blood from the dead vampires all over the floor was mixing with the scent of living people. The contrast was maddening.

Her breathing got heavier.

"You all... should move back," Evelyn said quietly, finally stepping in. Her expression was complicated. "Now."

A thick tension filled the corridor. The others didn’t need to be told twice.

They stepped back quickly, weapons raised—not pointed at Sophie directly, but hovering in her direction. Just in case.

Only Cassie still hovered close, hesitating.

"Cassie," Evelyn warned.

"But—"

"She’s telling you to leave for a reason," Evelyn said. "Don’t make her regret it."

Cassie bit her lip.

She looked at Sophie’s trembling shoulders, at the way her fingers dug into her own flesh, at the faint red aura building up behind her veil.

Her eyes watered slightly.

"Idiot..." she whispered under her breath. Then she finally forced herself to let go of Sophie’s arm and take a step back.

Sophie felt that small warmth leave her.

It hurt in a different way.

She lowered her head further.

"...Good," she muttered.

For a moment, it seemed like she was stabilizing. Her breathing slowed a bit, her posture straightened just a little.

Everyone held their breath.

Suddenly, a wave of savage hunger crashed over her mind like a storm. The faint rationality she had been desperately clinging onto shattered like glass.

Sophie’s fingers suddenly relaxed.

The dagger slipped, almost falling from her hand.

But before it hit the ground—

She moved.

FWOOOSH!

She disappeared from where she was standing.

"Wha—?!"

"She’s gone?!"

No, not gone... just fast. Too fast for anyone to follow.

"Fuck! Fuck, don’t tell me she’s attacking us?" Ragnarok cried out. "I don’t want to be forced to kill Sir Broken’s future wife!!!"