Chapter 451: Beneath the Shadow Throne

Across the multiverse, there were Vampire Hunters. Not adventurers looking for coin. Not mercenaries chasing bounties. These were zealots whose entire purpose in life revolved around one mission: destroy every vampire in existence. Most were tied to the churches of various gods, carrying divine mandates like badges of honor.

“Vampires are one of the most hated races in the entire multiverse. Because of the Vampiric Hunger, they can’t coexist in human societies. People have tried, and it has always ended in disaster. Picture a city with fifty thousand inhabitants, half human and half vampire. You can probably imagine how quickly that goes wrong. The moment a single vampire loses control? Chaos. And no human wants to be the only mortal on a street full of neighbors who could snap at any moment. If one of those vampires feels their rationality slipping or fears the Hunger will kill them, that human becomes dinner.”

The letter went on, mercilessly blunt.

“That endless appetite is the curse that destroyed any chance of peaceful coexistence. Millennia of wars and catastrophes. Eventually, Vampire Hunters emerged, whose entire mission is to wipe the race out. And these people are unhinged. Fanatics with divine backing. And well, gods exist, as you know. Imagine gods giving a mission like that to zealots. A perfect recipe for madness. Now imagine those same religious fanatics receiving a divine mandate and being able to level up in the system? That’s why Vampire Hunters are the arch-enemies of vampires across the entire multiverse.”

It was a lot to take in. First, Charlie would have to worry about the other four vampire lineages, ancient clans locked in eternal war who would kill her on sight if they discovered her bloodline. And on top of that, there were the Hunters.

But Samael’s warning continued, and the next part was even worse.

“Once Charlie’s secret spreads, she will attract all the wrong kinds of attention. Hostility, fear, and immediately, attempts on her life. Vampire Hunter organizations have full authorization from the World Government, as well as every earthly government, to kill vampires, regardless of identity or circumstance.”

Luke had been confused at first. Why had every institution in his universe instantly agreed on such an extreme measure? Why wasn’t there some hypocritical diplomatic speech, something like: Join our faction, and we’ll protect you? No. It was always: Kill the vampire.

The explanation came right after.

“The noble vampire families caused their own persecution. Millions of years ago, they infiltrated human societies by turning influential leaders into vampires. If a king becomes a vampire, the family that turned him gains control of an entire kingdom. Turn the right officials, the right nobles, the right generals, and a whole nation bends to your will. Newly turned vampires tend to be loyal to their bloodline, terrified of being hunted, desperate to protect their new family. That loyalty helped spark coups, puppet governments, and cascading disasters. Your universe is fresh, newly integrated into the multiverse, still crawling on shaky legs. It’s the perfect target for a vampire family to infiltrate and seize power. That’s why the order is absolute: if they discover Charlie is a vampire, she will be killed. Unless, of course… you become powerful enough to destroy anyone who comes for you.”

In short, it didn’t matter the faction or ideology. Vampires were considered untrustworthy by default, a ticking time bomb. Let one vampire settle and build a family, and you could find yourself harboring a future conqueror in your backyard.

Zero tolerance wasn’t just policy. It was survival.

***

Luke and Charlie were standing in line for the bus. A few people gave them odd looks, probably because of their clothes. Wearing medieval style outfits from the New World in the middle of Maine wasn’t exactly subtle.

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“When we get into town, I’ll buy us normal clothes,” he reassured her.

But Charlie seemed far more cautious than the situation required.

“Master Luke,” she whispered directly into his ear. “Are you sure it’s safe to go inside that thing? It won’t… digest us?”

She genuinely thought a bus was some kind of large transport animal.

“Don’t worry, Charlie. It’s safe. A bus is like a carriage that moves without horses.”

Fortunately, she already had some basic conceptual framework from their talks. They had spent hours going through her memories, trying to piece together what happened before he found her inside that coffin. Charlie said she didn’t remember much. One day, she simply regained consciousness and realized she was trapped there.

They boarded the bus and took a seat. He placed her by the window so she could look outside.

“Charlie…” he began. He’d been avoiding this question for a while.

She turned to him, attentive as always.

“Why… did you accept becoming my servant?” he finally asked.

Back then, he hadn’t known servitude required consent.