[System Notification: System Upgrade in Progress... 2 minutes remaining.]
[Current Status - Not Updated]
Increased Bone Density. Laser Eyes. Bat Larynx & Modified Cochlea (Echolocation).
Silver Astraenium Retractable Claws + Pyrophoric Metals. Body Size (+86 meters). Kagune. Exoskeletal Armor (Steel+Tungsten).
Ian's red eyes flickered as he processed the sudden surge of information from the system.
'System upgrade...? What the hell does that mean?' His thoughts churned as he dodged a particularly annoying shot from a machine crossbow, the bolt bouncing off his exoskeletal armor like a splinter of wood. The pain barely registered. It was a mere itch.
'The system is upgrading now, but why? I didn't even do anything specific to trigger it.' He mused, eyes narrowing as he scanned the battlefield.
Then his gaze flickered to the line that sent a ripple through his thoughts—Age: 99.
A slow grin stretched across his lips. 'So this body is actually 99 years old already? One more year... Just one more fucking year, and I evolve from a Lesser Vampire into a True Vampire.' The realization sent a wave of anticipation through him. The thought of leaving behind the limitations of his current form made something primal stir within him.
Yet, there was an underlying irritation. 'Fuck, my biomass had all been used up? What a joke... If I had enough biomass, I could've experimented with more customizations. I should've saved more. I should've prepared for this.'
His rational mind told him he was already a walking calamity—his size, his strength, his armor, his claws—everything was already monstrous. But deep down, there was a lingering, irrational frustration. 'No... it's not enough. If I had biomass, I could have strengthened my skin further. Maybe my bones too. What if these bastards actually found a way to kill me?'
Ian clicked his tongue. 'Doesn't matter. I still have the advantage. I should focus on this fight first. The upgrade will complete in two minutes... If these knights survive that long, I'll have more fun with them.'
The air twisted unnaturally as the cursed swords cleaved through it, leaving streaks of red and violet energy. The knights were relentless, their movements fast and precise, aiming for the few weak spots Ian possessed.
Sanguine Requiem struck first, bypassing Ian's impenetrable flesh and latching onto the flow of his blood itself. A sharp, unnatural sensation coursed through his veins, like his own life force was being pulled, manipulated, cut—not his skin, not his muscle, but the very flow of blood inside him.
'Shit... That's troublesome,' Ian thought, feeling the unnatural tug inside his leg. 'This blade doesn't cut flesh. It cuts the bloodstream.' He clenched his fists. 'If I let them land too many hits, I might actually lose a dangerous amount of blood.'
The second strike came immediately.
Tenebrous Fang slashed upward. Unlike the first sword, this one phased through his armor like mist through fingers. Ian gritted his teeth as a deep gash appeared on his shin, a cold energy sinking into his flesh. The pain wasn't unbearable, but the fact that his armor was useless against it? That pissed him off.
'These fuckers actually found a way to damage me,' he thought, shifting his weight slightly to assess the cut. The wound was shallow, but the fact that it had landed at all was infuriating.
The two knights, eyes burning with resolve, launched themselves into the air, aiming straight for Ian's neck and head.
The ground beneath him shattered as he moved.
The very moment the knights left the ground, Ian swung his arm. Not a weapon. Not claws. Just his fist.
The wind howled as his punch sliced through the air, a devastating force of nature in motion. The knights barely had time to react before CRACK—!
One of them was sent flying. His body crashed through a nearby building, completely leveling it into a pile of debris. The sheer force of the impact caused a shockwave, breaking the windows of structures a hundred meters away. Dust and rubble filled the air.
The other knight, despite his supernatural reflexes, barely dodged. Landing atop a crumbling rooftop, his chest heaved as he processed what had just happened.
'That's right,' Ian thought, flexing his fingers, watching the knight he had punched struggle to rise from the ruins of what used to be a two-story house. 'Even though I'm a Lesser Vampire, my body is customized to a ridiculous degree.'
He cracked his neck, causing the sound to echo like a boulder grinding against stone.
'I can fight like a Higher Vampire already.'
A grin spread across his face.
'This is getting fun.'
The knights weren't backing down. The one he had punched into the wreckage had already climbed out, blood dripping from his mouth but eyes still burning with battle lust.
The environment around them was in absolute chaos. The entire city gate was cracked and fractured, with deep imprints of Ian's movements scarring the ground. Buildings had collapsed from the shockwaves. Fires had begun to spread. The very street they were fighting on was unrecognizable.
Yet, Ian didn't care.
He clenched his fists and took a stance.
"Come on," he said, his voice a deep, reverberating growl. "Let's see if you two can actually entertain me."
'He's still alive.' Ian clicked his tongue. 'Tough bastard.'
The other knight didn't hesitate. Using the falling debris as platforms, he climbed higher and went for Ian's shoulder. His cursed sword cut into flesh, bypassing armor again.
Ian clenched his teeth. His arm shot forward—faster than the knight expected. A giant fist wrapped around the vampire's entire body like an iron cage.
For a moment, Ian squeezed. Not enough to kill, but enough to hurt.
The knight grunted, blood leaking from his mouth. "You... damn... monster..."
Ian grinned. "You're not the first to call me that."
The two knight guards, now battered and bruised, shared a glance. Their bodies ached, their internal organs screamed in protest, but their grip on their cursed swords remained unshaken.
This was their final gambit.
They sheathed their swords in their own palms, allowing the cursed metal to drink their blood. The blades trembled, dark runes etching themselves deeper into the steel as an overwhelming aura spread outward. The air vibrated, the city itself seeming to hold its breath.
A high-ranking guard, watching from the crumbling walls, gasped in horror. "They're using that!?"
Another stammered. "Curse Sword Technique... One Meteor?"
"It's a forbidden technique—at the cost of their own blood and life force, they channel all their power into one decisive strike!"
The two knights lunged into the air, their cursed blades now glowing—one in a dark crimson haze, the other flickering between reality and illusion, distorting the space around it. Their speed surpassed anything they had displayed before, tearing through the air with the force of meteors descending from the heavens.
Their target? Ian's head.
But Ian... was already prepared.
His pupils constricted, a faint hum building in the back of his throat. The energy surged through his skull, concentrating behind his eyes. The very fabric of the air around him warped, crackling like an unstable furnace. His exoskeletal armor absorbed the kinetic feedback, dispersing excess heat.
A twin beam of crimson light tore through the sky.
A violent, concentrated blast of raw plasma erupted from Ian's eyes, illuminating the battlefield in a blinding glow. The sheer force of the attack didn't just hit—it erased.
The knight wielding Sanguine Requiem felt his entire right side disintegrate, his flesh melting away in an instant as he was sent spiraling midair, colliding with the remains of a broken tower.
The other, wielding Tenebrous Fang, fared little better. His cursed blade, capable of bypassing all defenses, was completely overpowered. The laser incinerated his left arm, cauterizing the wound instantly. His trajectory veered off course, and he crashed into the ground, carving a trench through the ruined street.
The city trembled. The battle... was over.
A suffocating silence followed.
The surviving guards, still standing atop the half-collapsed walls, could do nothing but stare. Their hands shook, their breaths shallow.
"H-he shot... lasers... from his eyes?" One guard croaked in disbelief.
"What in the abyss is that monster!?" another whispered, his grip on his weapon loosening.
One of the artillery operators slumped against the remains of his cannon, his face devoid of color. "We were fighting something like that?"
Even the guards who had once been shouting orders, barking commands, had fallen silent. The cursed sword technique they had once revered—the technique that had slain countless higher werewolves—had been reduced to nothing before Ian's abnormal ability.
The knight with Sanguine Requiem coughed, barely able to move. His body refused to respond, his right side unrecognizable, burned beyond recognition. His sword lay beside him.
The knight with Tenebrous Fang groaned in agony, his severed arm twitching from the searing pain. His once-mighty blade had lost its glow. His breathing was ragged, forced.
Ian exhaled, steam rising from his eyes as his vision adjusted back to normal. The heat was still there, pulsing through his skull, but his body had already adapted. 'Damn... Having laser eyes like Superman is really badass.'
He gazed at the broken warriors beneath him, his voice low, deep—yet resounding across the battlefield like a god descending upon mortals.
"...Was that your strongest move?"
Because, for the first time in their lives, the guards of Blood City knew true, unfiltered fear.