Morning broke over Unit 47-C, golden light piercing through the mist of dawn. The early rays of the sun shimmered over the barracks and the large open training yard. The recruits were already awake and running their usual drills, their heavy boots thudding against the hardened ground, sharp barks from instructors echoing in the cool air.
Inside the dorm, the atmosphere was calm. No one disturbed Dray Ballack. After the war and everything that followed, there was an unspoken respect around him. Even those who hadn't fought beside him could sense that something had changed.
Dray finally stirred from his bunk, the world outside already bright. He washed his face, adjusted his uniform, and stepped outside, squinting slightly as the full glare of the sun hit him.
DING!
System Notification:
"Sunlight detected. Vampiric trait activated. All stats reduced by 10."
Dray winced as the notification flashed before his eyes.
"What the hell?" he muttered, already feeling the weakness creep into his limbs.
System Response:
"As a Nightwalker-class Vampire, direct exposure to sunlight results in stat penalties. This is a standard racial trait."
Dray gritted his teeth. "Is there any way to prevent this? What if I'm deployed on a mission under the sun? I'll be useless."
System:
"There is an item in the System Shop capable of suppressing sun-related penalties."
"What item?"
Item: Ring of Umbros
Effect: Nullifies sunlight weakness for Nightwalker vampires.
Dray's eyes lit up. "Buy it."
System: "Insufficient system points."
"Damn it."
Dray sighed and pulled up the system interface to check his current status.
System Interface
Name: Dray Ballack
Bloodline: Vampiric
Race: Nightwalker
Level: 11
Class: Vampire
Strength: 9
Agility: 11
Endurance: 6
Vitality: 8
Skills:
Night Adaptation (Passive - 30%)
Blood Sense (Passive – Incomplete)
Blood Echo (Tier I - 20%)
Phantom Reaper (Intermediate Assassination Skill – 15%) Fully Owned
Inventory:
Rusted Circuit Knife
Obsidian Data Chip
Unknown Crystal (Bound)
Healing Potion
Hair Potion
System Shop: [Access Granted]
Next Level: 700 EXP
Status: Weak
Creation:
Name: Kessa Holt
Race: Noctilux Seductress (Vampire Subspecies)
Bloodline: Vampiric
Title: Nightwalker Creator
Main Quest: 50% Completed
"Well, I'm going to train like this," Dray muttered under his breath. "Might as well know how badly the sun affects me."
He stepped into the training yard, joining the recruits for drills. It wasn't long before the sun drained his energy. His breathing grew shallow, his skin glistened with sweat, and his muscles felt as though lead had been poured into them.
"I'm very f**king weak," he cursed, nearly collapsing after just ten minutes of physical training.
Tyro Venn walked over, concern etched on his face. "Bro, are you alright? You look like a ghost."
Dray quickly composed himself. "Didn't sleep well last night," he replied, offering a weak smile.
Tyro eyed him suspiciously, but let it go. "Well, don't push yourself too hard. I'll see you during afternoon drills."
They exchanged a brief fist bump before Tyro jogged off.
As Dray moved to a shaded corner of the field to cool down, his eyes caught sight of a small crowd gathered on the other end. Recruits were surrounding someone.
It was Kessa.
Dressed in her training uniform, her presence was magnetic. Her movements elegant, her posture bold. The male recruits around her seemed mesmerized, drawn in by something invisible yet irresistible.
"This is going to be hard," Dray mumbled, rubbing his temples. "I really hope she doesn't start seducing the whole unit."
Five Days Later...
Dray stood outside the gates of Fort Echelon Depot. His training, though brutal under the sun, had continued without pause. Every day, he trained harder, pushed past his limits, determined to master his weakness.
Despite the drops in stats, he never gave up. He kept track of every movement, every improvement in endurance.
And it finally paid off.
DING!
System Notification:
"You have earned enough system points. Sunlight suppression item available for purchase."
Dray opened the shop.
Item Purchased: Ring of Umbros
Effect: Sunlight Weakness Nullified (Passive While Worn)
The dark, silvery ring appeared in his palm. It shimmered faintly, like the edge of twilight.
He slid it on his finger and immediately felt the change. His strength returned. The weight on his shoulders vanished.
He smiled. "Finally."
System Interface
Name: Dray Ballack
Bloodline: Vampiric
Race: Nightwalker
Level: 12
Class: Vampire
Strength: 24
Agility: 29
Endurance: 20
Vitality: 22
Skills:
Night Adaptation (Passive - 40%)
Blood Sense (Passive – 20)
Blood Echo (Tier I - 30%)
Phantom Reaper (Intermediate Assassination Skill – 25%) Fully Owned
Inventory:
Rusted Circuit Knife
Obsidian Data Chip
Unknown Crystal (Bound)
Healing Potion
Hair Potion
Ring of Umbros
System Shop: [Access Granted]
Next Level: 800 EXP
Status: Stable
Creation:
Name: Kessa Holt
Race: Noctilux Seductress (Vampire Subspecies)
Bloodline: Vampiric
Evolution: Stage 1 (30%)
Title: Nightwalker Creator
Main Quest: 50% Completed
One Month Later...
The time had come.
The massive parade grounds of Fort Echelon were filled with rows of sharp-dressed recruits, now soldiers. Flags flew high. Officers in decorated uniforms watched from the reviewing stands.
Dray stood proudly in formation, his new uniform crisp, bearing the insignia of his new rank: Lance Corporal.
It had been officially declared that all recruits who participated in the battle against the Zanork-5 invasion would receive battlefield promotions.
His friends, including Tyro and Kessa, passed out as Privates, but they shared the same pride in their eyes.
After the ceremony, Dray found Tyro and Kessa. "Where are you both assigned?"
Tyro checked is admission letter. "I'm posted to Sector 5, New Virelia City."
Kessa also checked hers."Same here also posted to Sector 5, New Virelia City."
"Well I think we are all posted to same place." Dray said with a big smile.
Kessa winked seductively at Dray."We will always be together."
Dray stepped back, his eyes narrowing slightly.
A new chapter had begun. No longer just a recruit, he was now a soldier of the Terra Federation. The world outside the base awaited him. With his bloodline awakened and companions at his side, the battlefield would no longer be the only test he faced.
Because now, the vampire within had awakened. And the galaxy would soon learn his name.