Chapter 8: WAR
The morning sky was shrouded in a haze of impending chaos. Jayden's mind was a jumble of thoughts, but one thing stood out—his system's progress. It had awoken in him a new power, but it came with a price. No one, not even his closest friends, knew the dark path he was walking. He was still a lesser vampire, crawling in the shadows, but that didn't matter now. He had to save Clara.
Jayden stood before the bathroom mirror, his reflection staring back at him, a strange, unsettling sight. His eyes—those crimson red eyes—glowed faintly as they met his own. He looked... different. No, he was different. The system had already started its cruel work on him, pushing his body to adapt, to survive. His muscles were leaner, his senses sharper, and his entire body felt alive in a way it hadn't before.
He focused on the reflection, his lips curling into a determined smile beneath the mask he had picked up last night—a simple black mask. He needed to keep his identity hidden. His system had become an insufferable presence in his mind, always pushing him to act, to fight, to kill if necessary. But his sister Clara needed him. Nothing else mattered.
"System," Jayden muttered, half to himself, half to the digital interface that hovered in his mind.
[SYSTEM STATUS: Functional]
[Main Quest: Usurp the Blood Throne - Progress: 0%]
[Side Quest: Drain 100 Enemies - Progress: 25%]
[Hidden Quest: Defy the System - Condition Unknown]
[Current Task: Save Clara]
He gritted his teeth. His bloodline was still impure, but it had awakened just enough to make him deadly. If only his system wasn't so rude—every step he took was laced with its cold, cruel commands.
[SYSTEM MESSAGE: "You are weak. You will falter. Prepare to die."]
A sharp laugh escaped his lips. He hated it. He hated how it spoke to him. But he knew one thing—he wasn't going to die.
Jayden hurried to prepare himself for the fight. His crimson eyes flickered in the mirror, the mask settled over his face, and a chill ran down his spine. The hunger for battle was already building.
At Clara's university, chaos erupted like a storm. The air was thick with the scent of smoke and the metallic tang of fear. The campus, normally calm and composed, had become a warzone in a matter of seconds. It was as if the very ground had split open and demons poured from the cracks.
Clara, standing tall amidst the destruction, stood firm beside her boyfriend Allan. Both of them were unshaken, their bond as strong as ever despite the hell unfolding around them. Allan's protective stance never wavered, his eyes scanning the surroundings, while Clara kept her composure, prepared for whatever came next.
"They'll be here soon," Allan said, his voice calm despite the madness around them.
Clara nodded. "We have to hold on."
She wasn't sure how long they could last, but they wouldn't go down without a fight.
Meanwhile, in a lecture hall at the nearby campus, Jayden's heart raced. His professor was speaking, completely unaware of the impending danger. Leo, seated beside him, was talking to him as if everything was normal.
"You okay, Jayden?" Leo asked, looking at him with concern. "You seem... different."
Jayden didn't respond immediately. His eyes flickered to his phone, a sudden notification pinging through his system:
[EMERGENCY ALERT: Campus under attack. Demonic entities identified. Evacuate immediately.]
His heart clenched. Clara. She was in the middle of that madness.
Without thinking, Jayden stood up abruptly, causing his professor to glare at him.
"Jayden? Where do you think you're going?" the professor snapped, his voice laced with annoyance.
"I... I have to go. My sister..." Jayden's voice trailed off, his mind already focused on the mission. There was no time for explanations.
Leo grabbed his arm, a sharp look of disbelief on his face. "Wait, Jayden, calm down. We need to stay put! They're sending—"
"I don't care!" Jayden snapped, pulling away from Leo's grip. "This is about Clara. I'm not sitting here while she's in danger!"
With that, he dashed out of the lecture hall, his heart pounding in his chest as the system hummed in the back of his mind.
At the city's municipal building, the Golden Circle had gathered for an emergency meeting. The air was tense, filled with whispers of disaster as the leaders and tacticians discussed the escalating threat. They had already dispatched their first wave of elite forces, but this was far more serious than anticipated.
"We've never seen this many demons before," said General Kylon, his voice harsh and authoritative. "Our forces are scattered. We need to regroup—strategize."
"Our primary task is containment," replied Commander Seris, her eyes scanning the holographic map that displayed the campus under siege. "We need to neutralize the demon core before it spreads."
At that moment, a new voice cut through the discussion. A hologram of a woman appeared, her cold eyes unwavering.
"The Golden Circle has always handled extraterrestrial matters, but this... this is unlike anything we've faced. We need to consider activating our tier one units."
"Understood," replied Seris. "Tier one units, deploy!"
From the Golden Circle, elite members—each carrying immense power—took to the streets. Their ranks were like an unstoppable force, fighting with precision and style. The air crackled with their powers.
One of the most impressive displays was Captain Thariel's use of Stellar Blades, glowing with the light of a thousand stars. His swords sliced through the air, cutting down demons in seconds. Meanwhile, Valkyrie Commander Arlia summoned Celestial Shields, creating barriers that shimmered and repelled the onslaught.
But even their combined might wasn't enough.
Back at the campus, Jayden had reached the outskirts. His system surged with power, urging him to push forward. He didn't have time for subtlety or strategy. He was going in, headfirst, and anyone who got in his way would pay.
[SYSTEM ALERT: Sanguine Power Unleashed – Initial Activation]
Jayden's eyes flashed with determination. His system's voice, as usual, was cruel and dismissive.
"Pathetic. But if you insist on fighting, so be it."
With his mask covering his face, Jayden stepped into the fray, moving with a speed that even the most elite Golden Circle members couldn't match. The system's power coursed through him like fire, amplifying his strength with every passing second.
He didn't care about the chaos around him. He didn't care about the demons or the Golden Circle troops. All that mattered was reaching Clara.
And when the Golden Circle's forces failed, it was Jayden who took charge, his movements a blur of brutality and efficiency. His claws extended from his fingertips, tearing through demon flesh like paper. He leaped across the battlefield, faster than anyone could follow, leaving a trail of blood in his wake.
He didn't need to speak. He just acted.
"Sanguine Overdrive."
For a fleeting moment, Jayden's body crackled with pure energy, his stats temporarily doubled. His muscles surged with power, his strikes landing with devastating force. His moves were precise, calculated—he was no longer a boy. He was something more, something terrifying.
Even in the chaos, Clara and Allan held their ground. The two of them fought together, a united front against the demonic forces, but the real battle raged just beyond them.
And then, at the moment when it seemed the world might end, Jayden stood over a fallen demon, his chest heaving as his mask remained intact. He had done it. He had saved her.
But this wasn't the end. It was only the beginning. The Golden Circle might've failed. The demons might have advanced. But Jayden? He wasn't stopping. Not until Clara was safe.
WAR had only just begun.