Inside the colossal ancient tree, dim light seeped through the cracks in the bark, casting faint glimmers over the suffocating silence.
The scent of sap mixed with the chill of magic — the air felt frozen, stagnant.
Anate stood within a natural chamber carved from the heartwood, her gaze lifted upward —
to the girl standing inverted on the ceiling, bare feet resting lightly against the timber, silver hair cascading like threads of moonlight.
Those crimson eyes stared down at her — silent, endless, as if a living abyss.
No words, no movement — just an unsettling stillness.
Anate could feel it — the presence radiating from the girl wasn't like any being she had ever encountered.
It wasn't killing intent, nor pure mana — but something deeper, heavier, like the breath of an ancient curse made flesh.
A bead of sweat rolled down her cheek.
In that instant, she knew — if she didn't strike first, there would be no second chance.
"Crystal Tremor!"
The air rippled.
Dozens of translucent cubes materialized, orbiting her in intricate motion, each reflecting shards of violet light.
With a single motion, Anate launched them forward — they screamed through the air like thunderbolts.
A blinding flash — then boom.
The explosion tore through the chamber. Splinters of wood flew, shockwaves rippled, smoke billowed thick and hot.
Anate shielded her face from the debris, cloak whipping violently in the wind.
When the smoke cleared — her heart froze.
The girl still stood there.
Untouched. Unmoving.
Not a single scratch. The faint breeze stirred her hair, but her gaze never wavered.
"No… impossible…" Anate whispered, disbelief cracking her voice.
She bit down hard, then clasped her hands together, summoning another spell.
"Undying Radiance!"
The air split open —
a sphere of pure light began to form between her palms, flecks of brilliance swirling like fireflies.
The pressure in the room thickened; the floor cracked, walls groaned.
The light compressed, denser, brighter — and then shattered.
A beam of searing brilliance roared forward, ripping through the air toward the vampire girl.
The girl simply raised her hand.
A delicate, snow-white hand met the attack.
The instant the light touched her palm, its trajectory twisted — bent unnaturally, like reality itself rejected it.
The beam dimmed, faded, then vanished — swallowed by the darkness in her hand.
Silence.
Only Anate's heartbeat filled the room — wild, uneven, terrified.
The girl's lips curved slightly, a smile blooming like a rose dripping blood.
"You're weak, human mage. Your magic… tastes of this era."
Her crimson eyes gleamed brighter, and a cold mist spread outward.
The leaves outside the chamber withered instantly, turning to dust.
Anate stepped back, trembling slightly, but her gaze hardened.
She raised her hands again, magic swirling around her body.
"Fourfold Crystal Blades!"
Light erupted around her.
Four crystalline swords took form — two at her right, two at her left — each gleaming with sharp, refracted brilliance.
Their blades hummed with power, vibrating with killing intent.
Anate spread her arms wide.
"End this!"
The four swords launched forward — blurs of white light cutting through the air, aimed straight for the vampire.
There was no explosion this time.
Just stillness.
The girl lifted her hand. Her nails elongated — black, sharp as obsidian.
She caught all four swords. Effortlessly.
No shattering sound.
The weapons that had pierced steel and magic before were now held gently in her grasp —
like fragile paper toys.
Anate froze in horror.
"That's… impossible…"
Tứ Kiếm Pha Lê, the spell that had killed armored generals and shattered reinforced barriers —
now useless, cradled in a child's hand.
The vampire tilted her head, red eyes gleaming with faint amusement.
"This has slain many? Hm… weak. Very weak."
She released them. The blades dissolved into air.
Anate tensed, eyes darting — but the girl had already disappeared.
"W–Where—"
Her voice broke as she realized —
the vampire was standing right in front of her.
No sound, no trace of movement — she simply was there.
A faint light gathered beside the girl, swirling like a white spark.
It condensed rapidly into a glowing spear, pure and cold, its tip singing with a high-pitched hum.
It fired.
"Barrier Phase Three — Light Prism Sh—!"
Before the incantation finished, the spear pierced through her crystal barrier as if it were silk.
The blade struck her shoulder — and pain exploded.
"—AAH!!"
Anate fell backward, gasping as blood soaked her robe. The spell shattered — shards of blue light scattering and fading away.
Her hand trembled, breath ragged, eyes wide with pain.
The vampire walked toward her, each step light as falling feathers.
Her red eyes burned softly in the gloom.
"You really are fragile, human."
Her voice was calm, melodic — and merciless.
"But I like your light. It reminds me of the old days… when the sun was still strong enough to make me hide."
She crouched down, brushing her fingers across the wound.
Smoke hissed from the contact — her blood evaporating instantly.
Anate tried to move, but her body no longer obeyed. Mana within her turned chaotic, unresponsive.
In those trembling violet eyes, the vampire's reflection flickered — beautiful, terrifying, divine.
The embodiment of catastrophe.
---
Moments earlier…
The forest below the colossal tree was unnervingly silent.
A dim silver haze seeped through the branches, washing the roots in pale, ghostly light.
"Shadow" — the cloaked man known only by that name — moved soundlessly among the mist.
Each step left no trace. His body seemed to melt into darkness itself.
"The air reeks of old blood," he murmured under his breath.
Then he stopped.
Two figures emerged from the fog.
Pale skin, crimson eyes, sharp fangs glinting beneath the moonlight.
Vampires.
Shadow's gaze sharpened behind his mask. "So they really do guard this place…"
One of them smirked. Her voice was smooth, cold, dripping with superiority.
"Vermin dare to crawl into the domain of gods?"
The moment her words ended, both vanished.
Shadow twisted aside — claws ripped through where he had stood, shredding the air.
He slid backward, etching sigils in the air with one hand.
"…Fast," he muttered calmly.
The first vampire lunged, claws glowing red with mana.
Shadow didn't retreat. He lifted his hand instead.
"Singularity Zone — Abyssal Grasp."
The ground beneath him opened like a void.
From within, a massive black arm surged upward — scales glinting, eyes blinking along its length —
and smashed straight into the vampire's chest.
A thunderous crack.
Blood splattered. The vampire was seized, crushed in the hand of the void.
The other one screamed, eyes burning violet. She launched from a nearby tree, arms coated in writhing threads of blood that hardened into crimson armor.
"Die, lower being!"
Her claws pierced through Shadow's chest.
But there was no blood.
Only smoke.
Blue flames erupted from the wounds, crawling up her arms.
She shrieked in agony as her body ignited — burning from the inside out until only bone remained.
The smell of scorched flesh filled the air.
The trapped vampire thrashed wildly in terror, bones cracking under the tightening grip of the void.
Shadow approached slowly.
"You'll join your kin soon."
He opened his cloak.
From the darkness beneath, tendrils burst out — covered in teeth and blinking eyes.
They seized the vampire, dragging her in.
Crack. Rip. Silence.
When he closed his cloak, only a faint trace of black blood remained — and that too dissolved into smoke.
Shadow exhaled softly, eyes dim.
"Gods, huh… If they truly exist here, I'd like to see whether they're worth the name."
Far above, a light flared through the mist —
Anate's battle had begun.
Shadow looked up. His red eyes narrowed.
Then he moved.
Dark wings of smoke unfurled from his back, and he shot upward into the treetop like a shadow tearing the night apart.
---
When he arrived, the world had already fallen apart.
Anate lay on the shattered floor, blood pouring from her shoulder.
Across from her stood the vampire girl — pale, divine, monstrous.
"Oh… how rare," she said softly, her tone faintly amused.
"An Elder Lich, is it?"
The name struck him like lightning.
It had been centuries since anyone had spoken that word — the title buried in myth.
And yet she said it so casually, like whispering a child's name.
The air around her rippled with dense miasma.
Shadow recognized that pressure —
the same terror he had felt long ago, when a vampire beast had annihilated his entire dominion.
His fists clenched.
He lifted Anate, activating a long-range teleportation circle. But before it triggered, Anate's hand rose weakly.
"Omniworld!" she chanted.
A colossal crystalline dome erupted outward, consuming everything in sight.
All energy was pulled into its center, compressing into a single sphere of light — pure destruction.
The vampire girl simply watched.
Then she clenched her fist — and struck.
The dome shattered instantly.
The explosion tore the chamber apart.
Shadow and Anate were thrown backward as the teleportation activated —
and vanished into the ether.
When the dust settled, the vampire girl stood alone among ruins and drifting shards of crystal.
Her expression was unreadable.
She closed her eyes, breathing deeply.
Her subordinates below — gone. Dead.
No anger. No grief.
Only silence.
She turned her palm upward. Blood trickled from where she had clenched her hand.
Before she could pursue the teleportation trail, a voice echoed through the shadows —
light, childlike, and hauntingly calm.
"Velvra… still as deranged as ever, I see."
She froze. Her tone dropped cold.
"Here to witness my failure, Invidia?"
A soft chuckle answered her.
From the air, a boy no older than ten stepped out, tiny horns glowing faintly on his forehead.
His eyes were dark and ancient — far older than his body.
"Not quite. I'm just here to deliver a message."
Velvra tilted her head slightly. "What kind of message?"
"The Lord Noctivus has issued a summons — to all seats of the Black Covenant."
His voice echoed, every word heavy with shadowed intent.
"The council will convene in three months. You are expected to attend."
Velvra smirked, voice smooth and razor-sharp.
"And for what? What foolish game is he planning now?"
Invidia's smile flickered. "I don't know. His words were vague…"
He paused, eyes gleaming.
"But I have a feeling… it will be fun."
Velvra stared at him for a moment, then turned away, brushing aside the last shards of crystal.
"Well then," she murmured, her lips curling into a grin.
"Tell Noctivus… I'll be there."
Dark mist enveloped her body.
In an instant, she vanished — leaving nothing but a ripple in space.
Invidia stood alone beneath the ancient tree, the air still humming with her lingering power.
He chuckled quietly.
"Interesting," he whispered.
"This meeting might be bloodier than I thought."
Above them, the sunlight died out completely.
The forest plunged into a darkness so deep, even the gods might have feared to look upon it.