The Pact: Bruno and the Crimson Veil

Happiness — that was the purest feeling I felt: I won. But there was no time to wait. I grabbed the daggers and headed out to help Ignis and Astrel.

When I arrived, I found the tapir dead, and they were roaring arrogantly, like true winners. I was happy for them, but I warned them to leave quickly. I picked up the vines I had left on Astrel's mane and tied the tapir — which weighed over 300 kg — to him. Meanwhile, I threw the puma, which must have weighed around 150 kg, onto my back. Ignis provided cover while we carried our "harvest."

This fight could be considered a loss: even with two prey, they didn't compare to the buffalo, and they caused me a lot of damage. My arm was crushed, and the flesh, which had seemed recovered, was brutally destroyed. The pain was infernal. I would have to make an improvised splint.

After about 20 minutes of walking, we returned to the cave. This time, I was completely shattered. I sucked the blood from the puma and the tapir and felt satisfied — less so with the buffalo's blood. However, the taste of the puma's blood wasn't so bad.

What was sad, though, was that I had lost the spear, the vine with the daggers, and the improvised knife.

Under Ignis and Astrel's hunger, I divided the puma and put it to roast. Curiously, a black stone jumped out of it. It seemed like a crystal, containing a huge amount of vitae. I wrapped it in a small piece of leather and set it aside to analyze later.

What I needed to do urgently was make an improvised splint — it would be rudimentary, but it would do. I grabbed the other buffalo horn and broke off the pointed part. I asked Ignis to melt the edge of the horn until I could make a cut that would fit my arm.

After finishing and fitting my arm, I grabbed a vine inside the cave and wrapped it around the splint, which covered my forearm. I wrapped it until the improvised splint was no longer visible. Over this vine, I tied two smaller vines, one at each end, tightly, to seal it.

Besides the splint, I needed more disposable spears. I intended to take advantage of the day to fell a tree. Ignis accompanied me enthusiastically — he loves to help and explore — while Astrel waited for the meat to roast.

I didn't go far: I chose a young tree, in front of the cave, similar to the one I had felled before, but a bit thicker. What caught my attention were the fruits — they looked like oranges, but they were extremely red and all untouched.

I remembered a pattern from the human world: untouched fruits usually mean animals don't eat them, so they were probably poisonous.

Eating these fruits would be foolish, but if they were really poisonous, they could be ideal for fighting enemies — although they wouldn't be suitable for hunting. What remained was to test them.

Without much difficulty, I felled the tree and asked Ignis to help me pick the fruits. When he heard me, he roared hostilely at them.

A voice sounded in my mind:

— Danger.

Confused, I asked if he knew something, but he just shook his head, denying it.

Mentally, I said:

— Pick up the fruits, we'll use them to kill enemies.

Finally, he accepted.

I started breaking the branches and carrying them inside the cave to burn, except for one, which was thicker and I had something in mind. We collected the fruits and separated their uses.

When we finished, I imagined I could make about three disposable spears with that tree.

Then came the tedious process: polishing and sharpening.

With the stone knives from the cave, I started breaking and separating the wood, and peeling it. After an hour, unexpectedly, I managed to make four disposable spears. Without the protection of the melted metal, they would hardly withstand three or four blows, but it was enough for now.

The spear with the wolf's vertebra still shouldn't be used — it was the only one capable of withstanding a real fight, and I should save it for the right moment.

Another thing I needed was a weapon that I could use without discarding so quickly. A sword wouldn't be efficient; an axe would be perfect. Easy to use and with more utilities — like cutting wood or using it as a weapon. After all, it's heavy and, if well sharpened, can even break bones. Besides, I could use it to shape wood.

It was also much easier to make than a sword. I decided to grab a wedge-shaped stone, resistant, and start polishing and sharpening it. With the strength of a vampire, this was easy — the hard part was doing it with only one arm, but I persisted.

When the stone was sharp, I needed to make a hole to fit the thick branch. That would be the challenge.

Then an idea came: I looked at the little wyvern and asked Ignis to unleash a torrent of fire on the marked part of the stone. He couldn't melt it, but he could weaken it.

He blasted flames while I hammered another stone with all my strength, at regular intervals. The hole reached about 60% of the stone. I shoved the thick branch in while the stone was still hot. Since the branch was thicker, I had to shape it.

With the branch fixed, the rustic axe was ready. I just had to wrap vines to make it firmer.

As for the poisonous fruits, I wanted them to start rotting to create fungi and enhance their toxic action, so I gathered them in a piece of leather and set them aside.

Doing an inventory, I had enough food for Ignis and Astrel for a day and a half, four disposable spears, one spear for combat, and an easy-to-carry axe.

The next actions would be hunting and recovering to prepare for escape. I wanted to weave vines again, but I had used them all, and my right arm was in a splint.

So I decided to sleep to rest and save energy.

Under exhaustion and pain, I quickly fell asleep. Unnoticed, my vitae turned slightly more purple, and more black spots appeared — it had strengthened, even if only a little.

And so the days passed — three days, to be precise.

During these days, Ignis, Astrel, and I hunted some beasts without major problems. However, I realized the Neophyte Period was coming to an end, and my hunger increased greatly.

We hunted increasingly larger prey: zebras, bison, buffalo, and even a bull weighing almost a ton. But my thirst for blood only grew.

By my calculations, the end of the Neophyte Period would occur in two days. Since Ignis and Astrel had enough food, I planned to go out and hunt as much as possible.

Bidding farewell to Ignis and Astrel, I told them I would return in three days. Ignis wanted to come with me, but I firmly refused.

So I went out, under the heavy snow, walking among the trees. The situation was urgent, and I had to melt the fruits to mix them with the blood of a snake I found. This was my last resort; I would only use it in a life-or-death situation because it would infect the beast and I would lose the meal.

Among the trees, I moved silently, like a snake. Any unsuspecting smaller beast I attacked, sucked its blood, and fled quickly. I preferred not to face larger beasts at first to avoid exhausting myself. But because of the insane thirst, I was decimating the smaller prey — meeting me was like facing death.

Unlike the beginning, when I would get bloated, now I felt like a bottomless pit; no matter how much I drank, I was never satisfied. Common beasts, nearly level 1 or level 1, I started exterminating everything I found.

On the second day, not even medium and large beasts were spared. The hunger seemed infinite, and in my frenzy, I didn't even notice my vitae thickening, becoming stronger and better for manipulation. There were moments when I released the nox to hunt and managed to use mutatio on my teeth and claws.

I was out of control, embodying death in the form of hunger and greed. Corpses piled up in the southern region; the peaceful region, in turn, turned into a bloody hell. A hell, without a doubt.

But there was no blood left.

Unaware, driven by frenzy and instinct, my spiritual mist — the nox — acquired a purple color and caused slight burns.

My hunger reached the point where there were no more beasts to hunt. Then, by instinct, I went to the small lake, where there were many prey, including some level 2.

Despite their pressure, I ignored them and continued killing other beasts. My thirst was so great that if one died inside the lake, I might drink all the water mixed with watered-down blood.

In rare moments of sanity, I remembered what Flávia said: that hunger changes us and drives us crazy.

How I missed her.

My little bat.

POV: Sitha

Flávia, Selena, and I were talking about the beasts.

"The beasts seem to be retreating," said Selena, hopeful.

Flávia, beside me, with slightly swollen and tired eyes, smiled faintly.

"I think so too," she replied, "but the next attack will probably be brutal. It's like they are gathering strength for it. Send the guards to keep maximum vigilance."

"Yes, ma'am," I answered.

Then I asked, curious:

"Any news about the reason for this beast invasion? And about the sudden increase in snow?"

Flávia responded seriously:

"That old man from that family broke through Baron Arcane level and expelled the gargoyle. They seem to be doing something daring in the ruins, after all, countless beasts are gathering there, and it seems a prolonged war is happening."

"As for the snow," she continued, "it probably involves someone at Count level or higher. So, don't pay much attention. It's beyond our reach."

Timidly, I asked:

"And Bruno? Any news? He should be coming out of the Neophyte phase, which requires a large amount of blood... Without support, I'm afraid to say..."

Flávia and Selena's faces darkened, their brows furrowed, and a deep sadness that couldn't be consoled showed.

"As soon as we solve the invasion problem, I'll go to the Moon Wolves' territory," Flávia said.

She thought silently, and only she knew the reason:

"Besides, I must pay the consequences for having abandoned him."

She knew Bruno very well; she knew how resentful and narrow-minded he could be. But she would never have imagined, not even in her eyes, that what he was thinking at that very moment was about her.

He had not gotten rid of the resentment — it was impossible, it had always been that way. However, narrow-minded Bruno never managed to move on without forgiving. He thought of her, but that reflected the past. Perhaps, unfortunately, this proud Snow vampire would reject her out of hatred.

Being left alone, on a slope, with a broken arm and a branch stuck in the leg, was something beyond the old human mind of Bruno. His thoughts reflected the past to keep sane in the face of hunger, but it was impossible to say his current state. His hatred burned — a motivation to move forward, live, pay Flávia for the life she gave him, and move on, just that.

Bruno always felt the need to pay what he owed before cutting contact, not out of revenge, but honor. Flávia gave him life and deserved respect for having given love. So he would pay, even if he had to work for her for ten thousand years.

Without harming her, just cutting the thread of Karma that bound them, to move forward — with honor.

Unfortunately, fate had placed them on opposite paths.

Flávia, who knew Bruno, knew this. She felt the silent breaking of that connection.

In her mind, a thought arose:

"If he comes back and calls me 'Little Bat,' there will still be room for conversation."

"But if he calls me 'Flávia,' it will mean he intends to serve me to pay this debt."

The little resentful one.

But, unfortunately, it was her fault — she thought, with a bleeding heart.