The moon outside the window was still a blood-red hue, its dim light spilling into the room.
Yu Deng was utterly exhausted. After saying that last sentence to Wen Luo, he fell asleep, showing no reaction even as Wen Luo lightly kissed and gently nipped at his collarbone.
"Sleeping so deeply." Wen Luo lowered his gaze, softly brushing against those lips, delicate as cherry blossoms. "So sensitive and afraid of pain, yet you don't even notice when I kiss you."
If he were awake, even the gentlest kiss would have Yu Deng's eyes misty as he complained that it was too rough.
The black-haired man leaned over Yu Deng, like a jealous hound dissatisfied with the scent of another dog on its master, meticulously erasing the traces left by another male on Yu Deng's body.
Acting on his own selfish desires, Wen Luo kissed the soft skin behind Yu Deng's ear, leaving faint teeth marks there as well.
Just then, Yu Deng stirred, trying to roll over. As he moved, he bumped into Wen Luo beside him.
"...Tsk."
Yu Deng let out a small gasp and mumbled a few incoherent words in his sleep, reaching out to push away the obstacle preventing him from turning over.
Wen Luo remained perfectly still, allowing Yu Deng to push against him.
But halfway through, Yu Deng lost interest in moving, settling into a more comfortable position and falling back into a deep slumber.
That soft hand rested limply on the man's neck as Yu Deng's head nudged in Wen Luo's direction, carrying a rich, sweet scent.
It was as if he were silently asking for a hug.
This intimate little gesture deeply satisfied the longing hidden in Wen Luo's heart. Keeping him in this position, Wen Luo pulled Yu Deng into his embrace, planting soft kisses on him.
The black-haired man lowered his gaze and sighed. "Young Master, you shouldn't trust me so completely."
Beneath his gentle demeanor lay an obsessive and morbid infatuation, fully revealed under the moonlight.
"..."
A faint noise came from the doorway—the room's door had been nudged open by a three-headed dog.
The enormous, menacing hellhound snuck in stealthily, peeking inside only to see its favorite little vampire being cuddled and kissed by someone!
The three heads were just about to bark furiously but stopped themselves at the thought of how soundly the little vampire was sleeping. Struggling mightily, the hound refrained from making any noise.
The little bat and the crow reacted much the same. Seeing the butler taking advantage of the young master's sleep once again, they flew about in a rage.
Wen Luo glanced at the growing crowd of small creatures in the room, then back at Yu Deng nestled in his arms.
"Young Master, your charm is truly overwhelming."
Unwilling to let go of the beautiful young vampire in his embrace, Wen Luo cast a warning look at the gathered creatures, silently commanding them not to make a scene.
The black-haired butler lay beside the young master, quietly watching over him throughout the night. Only as dawn approached did he gently release the slumbering vampire.
Outside the castle, the blood moon was obscured by dark clouds, allowing faint strands of light to filter through. The black forest rustled in the wind, shrouding the castle in an eerie atmosphere.
At the castle gates, Wen Luo spotted a witch and gave her a polite nod. "Miss Edith, I suggest you return to your room to rest before sunrise."
The witch shook her head nonchalantly and said, "I can sense that he is about to awaken." After speaking, she added with precision, "Two years earlier than expected."
Wen Luo responded with a faint "hmm," but he couldn't help being a bit distracted.
He's awakening earlier than planned, Was this early awakening caused by the castle—or by the young master?
…
The next morning, after sleeping deeply, Yu Deng finally opened his eyes. Still groggy, he stared blankly ahead, trying to collect his thoughts.
He had no idea what the butler had done the previous night. He'd slept so soundly, though it seemed like some annoying presence had been hugging him, occasionally nibbling on him. He couldn't tell if it was a dream or reality.
Looking down at himself and seeing no marks, Yu Deng reassured himself: It must have been a dream.
System 01: [.]
"Good morning, Young Master," the butler's gentle voice greeted him from nearby.
"Morning... Wen Luo, I'm still so sleepy." With the butler's assistance, Yu Deng sluggishly got up, yawning repeatedly.
He felt like he wasn't much of a vampire at all.
As a high-ranking vampire, he was picky, overly clean, had little combat ability, and even had small wings. On top of that, he couldn't handle staying up late.
"You've only just become a vampire, and you stayed up too late last night," Wen Luo reassured him. "Please have something to eat first, Young Master. If you don't have any plans afterward, you can return to rest."
Rubbing away the tears caused by yawning, Yu Deng said, "I'll think about it later."
As he spoke, he glanced at Wen Luo, puzzled.
Is it just my imagination, or does it feel like the butler's attitude has become a bit more assertive since I woke up?
After washing up, Yu Deng, accompanied by Wen Luo, went to the main hall. Inside, there were already quite a few people. The atmosphere was subtle and difficult to describe, filled with a mix of anxiety and tension.
The moment Yu Deng stepped into the banquet hall, the players who had spent a night on edge simultaneously heard a mechanical voice.
[Ding. Current number of surviving players: 7.]
No players had died the previous night.
Several gazes landed on Yu Deng, scrutinizing him. They all came to the same conclusion:
—Yu Deng was the only NPC in this dungeon who could be confirmed as friendly.
The gaze of one chubby player was much simpler—his eyes were full of gratitude. He had encountered Yu Deng last night and believed he had narrowly escaped death because the young vampire had spared him.
Oh, Qin Jun's gaze was probing too, but for a different reason. He was wondering why the little vampire hadn't come looking for him the previous night.
The electronic voice deliberately waited for the players to relax before continuing the broadcast.
[Ding. As of today, it has been two days since the last sacrifice was discovered. All NPCs in the instance have entered an indiscriminate attack state. Players, please be cautious.]
[The indiscriminate attack state will be lifted once the next sacrifice is found.]
The players' expressions grew sharp, their vigilance immediately heightened.
Although they had known this instance might force conflict among players, the lack of clear threats in the first few days had maintained a delicate balance.
Now, things were different.
"Baby."
As Yu Deng was pondering this attack state, a werewolf's voice suddenly came from behind him.
Yu Deng turned to see last night's prey, the werewolf Anders, standing behind him.
Anders, who had endured an entire night of frustration, finally saw the little vampire. Just as he was about to speak further, he suddenly noticed a few new marks on the side of Yu Deng's neck, and the mark he had left on the collarbone had shifted from its original spot.
Hickeys didn't just walk away on their own, which meant only one thing: these marks weren't left by him.
Someone had even maliciously erased his mark!
Did this little vampire have other prey last night?!
"Baby, didn't you go straight back to rest after last night?" Anders ignored the blood clan butler beside Yu Deng and stepped forward, closing the distance to less than ten centimeters.
Yu Deng tilted his head. "What?"
After leaving the werewolf last night, the time he spent continuing his hunt was negligible, and that chubby player wasn't even his prey.
Yu Deng came to a conclusion. "After hunting you, I went straight back. Wen Luo came to pick me up, didn't you, Wen Luo?"
The black-haired butler smiled and stepped to the side, blocking the werewolf who dared leave fur on his young master. "Indeed. The night is prone to some troublesome nuisances, so it's only natural for me to ensure the young master's safety."
Anders: "…" It really was this infuriating blood clan butler, dripping with sarcastic undertones.
The werewolf's expression darkened, his aura suddenly turning agitated.
Yu Deng looked at the werewolf in confusion. "Is something wrong?"
"No," Anders replied through gritted teeth. He forcibly pushed past Wen Luo and pressed a hand to the side of Yu Deng's neck, seething, "Baby, you've been bitten by a bug here."
Wen Luo's smile faded: "…" Who are you calling a bug?
As the werewolf's hand pressed on him, the skin on Yu Deng's neck indeed began to sting faintly.
Huh? It felt kind of itchy, but Anders hadn't kissed him there yesterday, right?
The clueless little vampire didn't even consider that his butler might have misbehaved while he was asleep.
Yu Deng, still baffled, swatted Anders' hand away and touched his neck himself. He looked up at the two men beside him, growing even more puzzled.
How strange. Both of them were unusually emotional today, to the point that even he could sense it.
It felt like they were about to start fighting any second now. What was going on?
System 01 sighed and re-displayed the NPC state broadcast from earlier, forming a transparent prompt box in front of Yu Deng's eyes.
Yu Deng blinked, suddenly realizing under the system's prompt.
Given that Mr. Butler was confirmed to be an NPC, it stood to reason that the werewolf, who reacted similarly, was also one. In other words, both of his special mission targets—Anders and Wen Luo—were NPCs rather than players.
So, Anders and Wen Luo had entered this attack state… no wonder Wen Luo had seemed a bit more assertive than usual when Yu Deng woke up.
What about Qin Jun? Yu Deng turned his head and spotted Qin Jun amidst the crowd, locking eyes with him for a few seconds.
Qin Jun's handsome face was expressionless, but his dark gaze swept over the men standing beside Yu Deng.
He looked like he, too, was ready to fight a rival, though his demeanor was far more restrained compared to the other two.
Yu Deng thought for a moment before making a hesitant judgment. "Wen Luo and Anders are NPCs. Qin Jun… is he a player? Tongtong, did I guess right?"
System 01 praised him: [Host, you're very clever.]
[Ding. The identity information of the special mission targets has been updated. Player Yu Deng can now view it at any time.]
"Young Master, are you planning to go find him?"
During the few seconds Yu Deng was distracted, the two men beside him had followed his line of sight and noticed Qin Jun in the distance. Their auras grew even more oppressive, poised for a fight with the slightest provocation.
Yu Deng withdrew his gaze. "I'm not going to find him." Looking at the two men, he naturally gave orders, "I'm so thirsty. I want some juice, toasted bread, and also…"
Yu Deng rattled off a list of items, directing the two men to fetch them for him.
Wen Luo and Anders, who had braced themselves to stop Yu Deng from approaching the werewolf, were briefly taken aback by his words. The gloom hanging over them was dispelled instantly. Without hesitation, they sprang into action, not even giving the blood clan servants a chance to step in.
The little vampire needed them—this realization significantly eased their inexplicable agitation. Driven by a competitive instinct, the two raced to serve the little vampire.
[Ah, I get it now. This attack state isn't irreversible. It can be resolved with a little pampering. But our baby's naughty dogs are a bit unique—they're happy as long as they can serve him.]
[I was a bit worried about whether the baby could handle them, but I was overthinking it. I'm in awe…]
[Isn't this exactly why our Deng Deng is the ultimate dog trainer? With just a few words, he can redirect the naughty dogs' attention and have them completely obedient.]
[Please, serving his wife is their honor!! I wish I could rush in and become the baby's blood servant. (insert jealous vampire emoji)]
Yu Deng sat comfortably in his seat, taking a sip of the sweet juice, and thought to himself:
It seems like resolving these agitated states in non-humans isn't that difficult after all.
...
By the afternoon, the state of agitation among the non-humans had become even more pronounced. They were almost obsessively searching for the human players hidden among the crowd. As a result, many NPCs were mistakenly attacked, and in their fury, retaliated, escalating the scene into chaotic brawls.
[Ah, so this is what indiscriminate aggression looks like. "When I get mad, I even fight my comrades" meme.jpg]
[But players can't win against NPCs. Just now, a streamer used three different items just to stay alive.]
[From my years of watching survival live streams, there's a 90% chance this will end in mutual slaughter.]
Of course, a few sharp players managed to figure out ways to calm the aggression.
One player, leveraging their golden tongue from their days as a top-tier salesperson, sweet-talked a furious NPC into a state of delight. Another player used a mood-boosting item to defuse the danger.
However, not everyone could find a solution—or, more accurately, not everyone was willing to face the risks of a partial solution.
For some, eliminating a fellow player entirely to end the aggression seemed the quickest and safest method.
As the evening drew closer, with just an hour left until the banquet began, a heated argument broke out in the grand hall.
The wizard player who had tested Yu Deng back in the labyrinth was now in a fierce conflict with an irate vampire.
The vampire was relentless, pressing the wizard into a corner. Realizing his human identity was about to be exposed, the wizard clenched his fists, abruptly turned, and pointed at a male vampire in the corner.
"He's human! His bat wings are fake—they don't even move! And I saw him vomit after drinking blood a few days ago!"
The accused male player froze, his face turning deathly pale. He stammered anxiously in his defense, "No, I'm not human! You have no proof—who's to say you're not lying to mislead everyone?"
All eyes in the banquet hall turned toward the confrontation. Yu Deng also focused his gaze on them, frowning deeply.
That wizard… Is he pushing his own danger onto someone else, forcing them to bear the threat of death? How cruel.
Yu Deng took a step forward, intending to intervene, but before he could act, the wizard lunged at the male player. With a twisted expression, he violently tore off the other's bat wings.
Even from dozens of meters away, Yu Deng could see how the bat wings were only weakly attached to the player's back. The forceful tug not only ripped them off but also tore away a large chunk of flesh, leaving blood and gore splattered on the floor.
The male player let out a blood-curdling scream, and his Western-style features twisted and shifted, reverting to the youthful face of a baby-faced young man.
Before anyone could process this shocking turn of events, the vampire had already darted forward, draining the male player dry in an instant.
All of this happened in just a few seconds. It wasn't until the dried corpse fell to the ground that the scent of blood in the air reached Yu Deng.
Yu Deng's pupils contracted, and his stomach churned violently.
[Damn, that scared me.]
[I've been watching Baby's streams so much that I forgot the Infinite Channel's style is like this—bloody and brutal most of the time.]
[Baby is scared now, looks like he's about to cry.]
"See? I told you, he was the human," the wizard player exhaled in relief, muttering to himself.
After all, someone was bound to die sooner or later. That dead player can just be considered a sacrifice for the greater good.
"Oh, that's right." The vampire still had blood on his lips, and his gaze, filled with malice, locked onto the wizard player. "You're absolutely correct—he was the sacrifice."
Even as he said this, the vampire's eyes, along with those of the other non-humans, remained fixed on the wizard player, their expressions hungry and predatory.
[Ding. The indiscriminate attack state of the dungeon NPCs has been lifted.]
A player hiding in the corner stared blankly at the scene and muttered to the audience in their stream chat, "The state's been lifted? But… something feels strange. Why do these NPCs seem even more excited now?"
Meanwhile, Yu Deng's mind was still in a daze. The black-haired butler half-embraced him out of concern, his gaze sweeping over the distant chaos before lowering his eyes in silence.
Yu Deng's small face was ashen, his soft lips drained of color.
Why must it come to killing each other? he thought. There are ways to resolve these problems, aren't there?
It seemed that, in the eyes of many players, the lives of others were merely expendable tools.
Since entering the dungeon, Yu Deng had often been kissed by those bad men but had been otherwise well-protected. This was the first time he had witnessed such a grisly death up close.
It was also the first time he fully realized that players weren't united. At any moment, they might stab their supposed allies in the heart.
Wen Luo, standing beside Yu Deng, noticed the young master's furrowed brows. He raised a hand to shield the shimmering tears welling up in Yu Deng's eyes.
Yu Deng's small wings trembled rapidly. Fear and confusion filled his emotions, and without realizing it, he activated his vampire powers, releasing a silent, invisible signal wave.
...
At the top of the castle.
A man lay in the center of an ornate coffin, surrounded by a glowing, intricate magic circle that rotated slowly, its light flickering on and off.
Suddenly, the sleeping vampire sensed it… his little vampire was releasing a signal of fear.
The signal was faint and trembling, as though it were quivering and stumbling through the castle, desperately seeking comfort.
The silver-haired vampire opened his eyes.
Boom—
A deep rumble resonated through the ground as the entire castle trembled.
An overwhelming pressure burst forth from the top floor, quickly spreading through the castle and smothering the chaotic noise within.
Everyone froze, instinctively raising their heads and halting whatever they were doing.
While non-vampire species didn't feel overly affected, the vampires were instantly silenced.
Yu Deng, however, seemed entirely unfazed by the suffocating oppression. He remained calm and composed, even looking a bit puzzled.
He raised his head in confusion. "What's going on?"
Click.
Outside the banquet hall, a figure emerged, stepping into everyone's line of sight.
It was a tall, strikingly handsome man with a pale complexion, as if he hadn't seen sunlight in years. His crimson eyes revealed no emotion, and his meticulously groomed silver hair gleamed under the dim light. He wore a black formal suit that enhanced his cold and aloof demeanor.
A vampire's voice trembled as they stammered, "…Your Highness, the Prince."
Wen Luo silently clicked his tongue, releasing the half-embrace he had around Yu Deng. Even the werewolf leader seemed somewhat apprehensive of the vampire prince, barely restraining his impulse to fight.
Only then did Yu Deng realize—this must be the vampire prince, someone who apparently had a close connection to him.
"Good evening, everyone."
The vampire prince greeted the crowd in the banquet hall with a faintly detached tone before walking directly to Yu Deng.
He gazed at the first—and only—human he had ever turned.
A newly awakened, stunningly beautiful fledgling vampire, still adjusting to life after transformation.
Though the vampire prince had never spent any real time with Yu Deng, the fragment of consciousness that had awoken prematurely within him gave rise to a peculiar affection. Beyond the indulgent tolerance of an elder, there was an indescribable fondness that lingered.
The prince lowered his eyes, studying Yu Deng for a moment, then raised a hand to wipe away the tear trailing from the corner of Yu Deng's eye. He turned to the vampire who had been feeding earlier and said,
"Sheathe your fangs. Do not let my fledgling witness such an unsightly display."
The vampire, who had lost all the arrogance they displayed moments ago, hurriedly complied.
The prince, long accustomed to bloodshed and gruesome scenes, couldn't fathom why his fledgling would tear up over something so trivial.
Seeing Yu Deng's reddened eyes, the prince sighed internally. Without a word, he scooped Yu Deng into his arms, unfolded his bat-like wings, and, in the blink of an eye, left the banquet hall, taking him to a quiet room.
Yu Deng trembled slightly, his reaction delayed as he processed the unfamiliar surroundings.
The prince let out a helpless sigh. "So timid... What will you do when faced with something truly terrifying in the future?"
Yu Deng, still light-headed and disoriented, blinked up at the strikingly handsome prince. "Are you talking about me?"
"Of course."
The silver-haired vampire embodied a perfect blend of the gentle indulgence of an elder and the commanding presence of a ruler.
The vampire prince gently brushed away Yu Deng's tears and rested his hand on the fledgling's fluffy hair.
"Of course, I'm talking about you. You're the only one I have ever granted my power to."
The one before him—the delicate little fledgling—was not merely a subordinate or prey created through a casual embrace. Yu Deng was a true high-ranking vampire, sharing an unbreakable bond with the prince himself.
Yu Deng sniffled, forcing down the terrifying images that kept replaying in his mind. He looked at the prince before him, a trace of grievance in his expression.
Pouting slightly, the little fledgling let his temper flare at the prince he was meeting for the first time. "But what just happened was really scary! How can you say that about me? Even if—even if—I am cowardly, so what?"
As he spoke, the unspoken feelings of closeness and reliance that had been simmering over the past few days finally found an outlet.
Yu Deng turned his head slightly and rubbed against the prince's palm, muttering with dissatisfaction, "You're the prince, aren't you? That means you're really powerful, so you should be the one protecting me!"