Birdman

Ruiwen returned to the balcony of his residence and folded his wings.

He was not a pure-blooded vampire. Though he had a pair of pitch-black bat wings, he lacked the signature silver hair and blood-red pupils of the vampire kind.

He was a half-blood, not even worthy of being called a vampire's servant—merely a flawed product empowered by the blood of vampire retainers.

Ruiwen had once been a minor noble with some family wealth. Bound by the short lifespan of humanity, he had offered up his entire fortune to become a vassal of the vampires.

The power of the vampires was truly formidable—not only had it restored his youth, but it had granted him strength beyond that of any mortal.

Of course, there was a price. He was now beholden to higher-ranking vampires, effectively stripped of all freedom. To put it bluntly, he was no different from a dog kept on a leash.

Still, Ruiwen was satisfied. Had he remained human, he would have been dead long ago, unable to keep enjoying the life he had now.

His standing among the vampires was low. The true pure-bloods, with all their pride, would never acknowledge him. In the eyes of those ancient, lofty beings, he was likely no different from a pebble by the roadside—or perhaps even more of an eyesore.

But it didn't matter. He would never have to meet those grand figures anyway.

Being a rat in the gutter... wasn't so bad. Life in the gutter was fairly comfortable. Work came by occasionally, and every month he received a fresh pouch of blood as a ration.

Besides... rats always ran in packs.

People in Ruiwen's situation were hardly rare. Most were in the same boat as him—after all, fearing death was an instinct shared by all living things.

At the thought, Ruiwen licked the corner of his mouth. They had all been warned: they were forbidden from openly feeding on ordinary humans. Anyone caught doing so would be executed on the spot. In exchange, they received their monthly blood ration to suppress their bloodlust.

This was a problem unique to low-ranking half-bloods like him—the inability to curb their craving for blood.

If someone finished their ration at the start of the month and then, at month's end, succumbed to their bloodlust and went berserk... then that person was no longer a comrade. Dealing with them was also one of Ruiwen's duties.

But this time, the job was to hunt down an ordinary human with no magical power at all... Did they really need to send him for this? It felt almost insulting to his abilities. Ruiwen was a little annoyed by it.

Among his kind, he considered himself quite formidable. Back when he was human, he had, on a whim, learned some combat techniques.

"Time to sleep."

Ruiwen pulled shut the heavy curtains, blocking out the irritating sunlight.

At least the mission target was heading out early in the morning, before the sun was up, and the hunting ground was a dense forest...

The task had been completed with ease, like a leisurely stroll.

Having just finished his job, Ruiwen was in a good mood. He planned to open a bottle of red wine that night and drink alone under the moonlight... This time, he could afford to be extravagant—he'd mix in fifty milliliters of a young maiden's blood.

What an elegant vampire life.

His blood storage was managed with careful planning. Every month, he would force himself to wait until the very last moment before reluctantly drinking, and so he had even managed to save up a good amount.

Today promised to be another pleasant day...

However, Ruiwen had barely lain down, his pillow not yet warmed, when a whistling sound came from the window. A sharp, grating screech tore through the quiet of his bedroom.

"Ruiwen! What's going on?! Why is the target still alive?"

A hideously shaped blood-bat perched on his bedside. It was formed entirely from dark red blood, crude in shape, with indistinct features—all except for its large, endlessly opening and closing mouth, which was eerily clear. It looked like a snarling, monstrous visage.

Not all vampires had the same aesthetic sense as Aina. She crafted her blood-bats to look cute and endearing (though Aina only did so to maintain her charming image in front of Xia Lun). But for such one-time-use blood constructs, most vampires simply followed the principle: if it works, it's good enough.

"Lord Aolei... what do you mean?" Ruiwen froze. "I've already completed the mission. I tore open his chest and saw his heart exposed... How could he possibly be alive?"

"Oh, really? Then who is the one making a scene at the Dawnwings guild right now?" The vampire called Aolei snorted coldly. "He says he was attacked by a monster in the city and has posted a request for a strong adventurer to act as his personal guard!"

"That's impossible!" Ruiwen stared in disbelief. "That was definitely a fatal wound... There's no way he survived..."

"Hmph, that's your problem. If you don't sort this out, don't expect this month's blood ration!"

Aolei's blood-bat dissolved into a pool of foul-smelling blood on Ruiwen's nightstand.

Ruiwen's brow twitched uncontrollably.

"Damn mongrel!"

Though his own bloodline was even more mixed.

Ruiwen muttered a curse under his breath, then grumbled as he cleaned the blood off his nightstand, cursing every female ancestor of Lord Aolei for the past eighteen generations.

After dealing with that, he threw on a thick gray cloak and prepared to head out.

He really didn't want to work under the sun...

But the matter had to be handled cleanly.

What puzzled Ruiwen was: how had that man survived? He was just an ordinary human. Even if someone had happened upon him and carried him away, with wounds that severe, there was no way to save him.

Whatever. He'd go take a look first.

Ruiwen unfurled his bat wings behind his back... then folded them again.

It was daytime. If he flew in the sky and someone saw him, it would cause a commotion. He'd have to go on foot like a proper law-abiding citizen.

They were creatures that lurked in the shadows.

Besides, the sun was strong today. If he flew out like this, his wings would likely be scorched.

Hailing a carriage, Ruiwen soon arrived at the Adventurer's Guild in the eastern district.

Inside the hall, a crowd had gathered.

"I'm telling you the truth! I was attacked in those woods by a monster—a winged bird-man!" La Di announced loudly to the crowd around him.

It really was him, still alive...

Ruiwen looked as if he'd seen a ghost. He was certain he hadn't mistaken the target—that man was definitely La Di.

He'd survived! How? Did he have some life-saving treasure?

But with so many people around, there was no chance to act now... He'd wait until La Di was alone and then poach him again. Ruiwen had already settled his plan amidst the crowd.

This time, he'd cut off the man's head... see if he could survive that.

And also...

He was a noble vampire, not some bird-man!

Suppressing his fury and bloodlust, Ruiwen slipped through the bustling crowd like a gray ghost, silently vanishing into the throng.