I was walking through the college corridor when I ran into my friends, Jeevan and Dev.
"Hey, Aditya," Jeevan asked, "Where did you disappear to after class without telling anyone?"
"Don't mention it, Jeevan. I took a mission from the Mission Hall to investigate a beast sighting in the city," I replied. "I'll tell you the details later. Where are you two headed?"
"We're going to the canteen to eat. Come with us," Jeevan invited.
I accepted the invitation, and the three of us headed toward the canteen. Upon arriving, we sat down at a table to begin our meal.
We ordered our food. Dev ordered a standard meal, and Jeevan ordered Chicken Tandoori. I, however, ordered enough food to feed thirty people.
"Aditya, can you actually eat all that?" Dev asked, eyes wide.
"Was it really necessary to order this much? All the students are staring at us with shock," Jeevan noted, looking around.
"I'm starving today. I can finish all of this in fifteen minutes," I said with confidence.
Around us, I could hear the whispers of other students.
"I'm so jealous. The food that guy ordered must cost around 100 Credit Points," one student muttered.
"Can he even afford to pay that much? I don't think so," another student replied skeptically.
Smack!
Suddenly, a third student slapped the skeptical one on the back of the head. "Can't you see the level on his smartwatch? That guy is Level 5.2, and the one next to him is Level 5 too. Use your brain! If they hear you, you're dead meat."
Hearing this, the skeptical student shut his mouth instantly, thinking, I hope they didn't hear that, or I'm done for.
I ignored the gossip and focused on the mountain of food in front of me.
Chomp. Chew. Swallow.
Fifteen minutes later, I had polished off every single plate.
"Ahh..." I sighed in satisfaction. My stomach had been burning, and while the food satisfied my hunger, it didn't recover my HP. I would need to drink blood for that.
I looked at Dev and Jeevan. "Why aren't you guys eating? Your food is going to get cold."
"We aren't hungry anymore," Jeevan said. "Watching you eat like that made us lose our appetites. We'll take our food to the room and eat there."
"Alright. Let's pay the bill and head back," I said.
I walked up to the billing counter. The boy sitting there looked at me in shock—he had seen me eat—but in this world, strange things were somewhat normal.
"Sir, the total bill for the three of you is 110 Credit Points," the boy said.
I nodded and pressed a button on my smartwatch. A series of messages popped up.
[ Transferring 110 Credit Points ]
[ Accept or Reject? ]
I clicked [Accept].
[ 110 Credit Points deducted from your balance ]
[ Current Balance: 40 Credit Points ]
Jeevan stepped forward. "Aditya, since you paid our bill, it's my turn. Pack 50 Credit Points' worth of the best food for the three of us."
The boy accepted Jeevan's order, and a few minutes later, handed him a bag stuffed with high-quality food.
The three of us began walking back to our dorm room.
Many students watched us with eyes full of envy. Level 1 students only received 10 Credit Points. They usually spent 5 on daily expenses, and the remaining 5 were often forcibly taken by bullies or senior students in the building. Level 2 students fared slightly better with 20 Credit Points a day, but they faced similar issues.
Level 3 and 4 students weren't necessarily jealous, but they couldn't afford such extravagance either. In fact, most of the bullies came from levels 3 and 4.
As for Level 5 students, they were extremely rare. There were barely ten of us, including myself, Jeevan, and Gayatri. I didn't know about the other seven.
We finally entered Room 32.
As soon as we were inside, Jeevan asked, "Aditya, what happened to you today? Why did you eat so much?" Dev looked like he wanted to ask the same thing.
I told them about the incident in the gutter. Hearing the story, both Jeevan and Dev were surprised. Dev knew little about beasts, but since Jeevan came from an Origin User family, he knew much more than Dev or I did.
"Aditya, don't take that beast's tail out right now," Jeevan joked. "Based on what you said, the heat from it will burn our beds. Where would we sleep then?"
"Jeevan, can weapons be made from it?" I asked.
"Since you asked, I'll tell you," Jeevan replied. "You can make sharp weapons from the spikes on the tail, shields from the skin, and other durable gear. But don't worry about it now. Later, we can go to a weapon shop and get something made."
"Alright," I said. "By the way, Jeevan, which class did you choose?"
"Oh, me? I'm going to the Elemental Class with Dev," Jeevan said. "I'm going to learn about Dev's magma ability there. Actually, I've already learned about almost every ability."
"How did you do that?" I asked. "As far as I know, that should be impossible for you right now."
"There's a VR game. I learned it from there. I'll take you guys there tomorrow," Jeevan explained.
Dev looked worried. "Aditya, Jeevan... how am I going to explain my magma ability to the teachers? The records clearly state that I took the Earth Ability Book. If they see I'm using magma, it'll be a problem."
"You can just say that when you awakened your ability, you fainted," I suggested. "And when you woke up, you realized you could use magma. Keep it simple."
"But everyone can see that's a lie," Dev argued.
"I know it is," I replied. "But if no one calls it out, how can it be a lie? When the teachers find out you've awakened a unique ability, they won't care about the details. They'll just accept it easily and report it to their seniors to get a reward or credit for finding a talent."
"Does it really work like that?" Dev asked, stunned.
"I'm going to choose the Weapon Class," I added. "As you know, I'm a vampire. I can't learn the skill books that humans use, so the Weapon Class is my best option."
They agreed with my logic. We continued chatting, and before we knew it, night had fallen.
Dev and Jeevan changed into their pajamas and started eating the packed food.
I went to the kitchen area.
Squeak.
I turned on the tap, and water began to flow. I placed my Holy Cup underneath the stream.
Splash, splash.
The cup absorbed all the water until I had collected about 10 liters.
I lifted the Holy Cup. The water inside had completely transmuted into pure blood, emitting a rich aroma.
I brought the cup to my lips.
Gulp. Gulp.
I drank greedily, the blood rushing into my system. Continuous system messages flashed before my eyes.
[ 5,500 / 7,800 ]
[ 6,000 / 7,800 ]
[ 7,000 / 7,800 ]
[ 7,800 / 7,800 ]
I finished the entire 10 liters. My HP was fully restored, and I felt completely refreshed and energized.
To be continued...