Hearing these words come out of Fex mouth caused nearly every blood vessel in Quinn's body to freeze. He couldn't help but utter, "What did you say?"
"I guess you really didn't know huh?" Fex replied, scratching his head, knowing that this was going to be a tough one to explain, "Think about it right, sometimes when we drink blood, there's this rush that comes over our bodies, there have been studies where it was observed that it increases a vampires strength by about ten percent. That's why I always carry a flask around, not just for healing.
"The problem is, blood is like a double-edged sword for us; the more often we consume it, the more we crave it. From an early age, Vampires who had close ties to the head of families were taught to resist blood. At first, maybe we can't go on for more than two days without blood, but eventually, we can build up a resistance to it."
"The vampires who have been alive for hundreds of years have gone through this process strictly, and now some of them don't even require blood anymore. However, there are occasions where when they go into battle, they will consume some, and make a note that not all vampires chose to go down this path. If one does drink blood after resisting it for a long time, it will only cause a small setback before they are back to normal again."
"Still, the same can also happen the opposite way if you keep drinking blood like this for pleasure. Eventually, you will become an addict, craving blood, and not even be able to quench your thirst. To put it in simple terms for you to understand, you would become a conscious Bloodsucker."
The explanation had Quinn slightly worried. He had been drinking blood quite regularly to increase his strength. In fact, if there was an opportunity to consume blood, he would take it because it allowed him to grow stronger.
When Quinn first got his vampire powers, he decided to only consume Layla's blood as and when needed even though he enjoyed the taste. He was afraid of this very thing from happening.
However, once he had obtained the system AI, his original fears started to lessen. Whenever he had a question about vampire matters or when something might do him harm, the system would step in to stop and explain things to him.
Undoubtedly, the system AI knew what would happen to Quinn if he was to continue? So then why didn't it try to stop him?
The only thing he could do was ask.
'Did you know about this, is what he's saying true?' Quinn asked.
The system had a long pause, and Fex wasn't saying much either. Fex thought that Quinn might have been consuming even more blood whenever they weren't together. Such as during training sessions and in the classroom. Perhaps he was having a hard time taking in this possibility.
Enjoying the taste of blood was fine, but no one wanted to be a living conscious bloodsucker. While thinking about this, Fex started to touch his beautiful gel-backed black hair on the top of his head.
'I never want to transform again. Maybe one day, my hair will completely disappear and not grow back if I do that again.' Fex thought.
The system had taken such a long time to reply that Quinn had thought it had gone silent and chosen not to answer him.
"What Fex says is true, and I'm afraid, even with the system, you will be affected by this."
"What!?" Quinn shouted in his head but was also cautious about making sure Fex was unable to hear him. Although he was able to keep his thoughts in his head, his body slightly jolted with anger, which didn't go unnoticed.
"Why.. didn't you say anything, just when I keep thinking I could trust you, you pull some crap like this!"
"First of all, the word you used, trust, I find it strange. In the first place, I am nothing but a system who chose to help you. Not once have I ever told you a lie. I may have hidden some things from you, but without me, you would be more or less in the same situation anyway." The system replied, now with alteration in his voice, showing that he was annoyed at Quinn's words.
Hearing the system speak like this made it feel even more human..or at least not a robot.
"To be honest, without me, you would be far worse than you are right now. I never told you or suggested that you go out and consume the blood of your classmates; that was all on you. You wished to grow stronger, and I chose not to get in the way of that."
The system was right; he had never told Quinn to do this. Due to his desire to get stronger, he had resorted to this without bothering to determine if there were any consequences. He had been relying on the system too much when he should have stuck to his research.
"Hey, don't worry about it too much. It is not too late, and that's why I chose to warn you," Fex said, trying to break the weird atmosphere. "All you need to do is stop drinking blood until you feel that thirst again. Then stretch that limit until you can't give in. Do this repeatedly, and each time you should be able to resist a little longer. Simple, right?"
Fex did make it sound simple, and although the process of restoring blood was simple for any vampire, hardly any were able to last longer than a week without feeding, while Fex could last two weeks at such a young age.
Most vampires weren't able to extend their times between feeding because of the excruciating pain and willpower needed for it. To put it into human perspectives, it would be similar to starving someone of food who was as addictive as a drug. It would be hard for him to concentrate.
As the time between recovers grew longer, so did the pain. There was a point which certain top-tier vampires would pass where the pain no longer bothered them, which was why they no longer needed blood.
If Quinn was to do this, though, he thought perhaps he would have an advantage. The system would inform him when he was hungry enough and allow him to be careful not just to pass the point where he would turn into a bloodsucker. Things that others had to perfectly time and feel, Quinn would be able to cheat it.
"Don't drink blood for a couple of days and see what happens. That way, you'll know how far you have gone. I can help you if you like." Fex offered.
But Quinn was perplexed with what to do. He didn't have a couple of days. Soon the Inter Base event would start, and they would be away from the base for a week. Could Peter last that long?
If he was to do as Fex asked and waited a couple of days, then this meant he wouldn't continue to grow.
"I'll think about it," Quinn said as he walked off, not wanting to think about the situation anymore. It was giving him a huge headache.
"That wasn't the answer I wanted to hear," Fex whispered, looking at his back.
If he answered like this, then most likely, it meant Quinn had decided to continue on the path he had chosen.
The next day had arrived, and everything went on as usual. There were now only two more days until the inter tournament. More so than before, Quinn wanted to get his charm stats even higher and later test it on a soldier.
If he could get to the point where his influence skill could work on an adult, then maybe he would be able to infiltrate the dungeon unseen and free Peter from captivity. Where to or what to do next, he hadn't quite figured out this part yet.
As usual, he did his regular routine; only this time, he was pickier about who to select as his target. Carefully searching for an O blood type so he could increase his charm. Eventually, after a long time searching the school grounds, he found one who met his conditions.
The two of them headed into the woods and were in the usual spot. Fex had also decided to follow once again.
'Quinn, did you not listen to my warning. If you get addicted and need blood more often, I can only help you this much if you reveal yourself to the outside world. When they come, even I will have to go into hiding.' Fex thought, looking at the scene.
Just as Quinn was about to cut the student to absorb some blood, a message appeared.
[Your hunger starts to grow]
[You must consume blood within 24 hours]
[Every hour 1 HP will be lost until blood is consumed]
It had only been a little over the 24hour mark, and he received a message. Something that would have usually taken two days in the past.
****
For MVS artwork, follow on Instagram: jksmanga