Kurose Akira stared at the man seated upon the chair, a trace of gravity and contemplation lingering in his gaze.
This man was no ordinary vampire.
He was the offspring of a human and a vampire—yet the blood flowing through his veins was unmistakably noble vampire lineage. Those deep crimson eyes were the clearest proof of it.
The higher a vampire's rank, the deeper and more vivid the color of their pupils—eventually glowing with an eerie radiance.
From the very first vampire Akira had encountered up to now, aside from the woman depicted in that portrait, Count Vras possessed the most exalted bloodline of them all.
Yet what puzzled Akira even more—
Was the emblem on the Count's chest.
An insignia symbolizing the rank of Count of the Star Kingdom.
"You are…!"
The Royal Knight from Shen Siqi's party turned pale the moment he recognized the man.
"Count Vras?! Lord of the Crimson Domain?! Guardian of the Blood Jasmine Flower?! How could you be a vampire?!"
Those words instantly plunged the room into silence.
None of them had imagined that a Count of the Star Kingdom, a territorial lord, and a guardian of the Valkyrie's Flower, would turn out to be a vampire.
A flicker of displeasure crossed Count Vras's face.
"Do you even have the right to speak here?"
As soon as the words fell—
He casually waved a hand.
A burst of blood-red energy erupted instantly, blasting the Royal Knight backward several meters and slamming him into the ground.
"Ghk—!"
The knight spat out a mouthful of blood, writhing in agony.
"So strong…!"
Terror flooded Shen Siqi's face.
The strongest member of her team was this Level 48 Royal Knight, yet before Count Vras, he had been utterly helpless—defeated with nothing more than a flick of the wrist.
Akira's expression hardened.
He immediately realized that this Level 60 Vampire Count was far more dangerous than any Demon Cavern boss they had faced before—possibly even more threatening than the skeletal dragon.
After all, the skeletal bone dragon had been weakened by the Red Dragon Mark, halving its attributes, and it possessed no intelligence.Even if its raw stats were higher and the fight more difficult—
Overall, Count Vras was unquestionably more lethal.
And there was more.
Akira noticed something deeply abnormal about the Count's status.
If Vras was truly the final boss of this Demon Cavern, then what had Lu Bo's team encountered?
Was it possible that every route had its own Level 60 boss?
That was clearly impossible.
The guild intel explicitly stated there was only one boss, with the rest being vampire servants.
Which meant—
Lu Bo's group had encountered this same Count Vras.
"All right," Count Vras clapped his hands lightly, his voice calm as he turned back to Akira."Let us return to our earlier discussion. Your blood is exquisite. If you are willing to surrender, I can forgive your foolish intrusion into my castle. But if you—"
"Loserine!"
Before he could finish, Akira issued the command.
Loserine instantly swung her Vowbound Sword.
Jet-black sword aura howled forth like a raging gale, slashing straight toward Count Vras on the chair.
Yet—
Vras raised a single finger.
And effortlessly blocked it.
"Foolish little insect."
Killing intent flickered in his crimson eyes as he prepared to rise and annihilate them all—
But at that instant!
The sword aura above his head condensed into the phantom of a black-gold dragon.
ROAR!
The dragon let out a deafening bellow, opening its massive jaws and unleashing a world-ending breath directly onto Count Vras.
In an instant—
Black-gold flames swallowed his entire body.
He vanished without a trace.
The strike was so clean and decisive that Red Lotus and the others hadn't even had time to react.
They stared at Akira and Loserine in disbelief.
That single sword strike far exceeded their expectations.
"Where did he go?"
Akira remained vigilant.
A Level 60 Vampire Count wouldn't be eliminated so easily.
"An impressive strike."
Count Vras's voice echoed.
His figure reappeared beside a distant humanoid statue. He brushed the blood from his clothes, irritation flashing in his eyes.
"But interrupting someone while they speak is extremely rude."
"Shut up!"
Red Lotus stepped forward in a single stride, crossing ten meters in an instant. Her flaming greatsword crashed down—
Only to be stopped by a blood-forged magical barrier.
"An elf?" Vras said coldly."I don't like elf blood. Virgin blood always lacks flavor."
With that—
A crimson glow flashed in his palm.
He struck Red Lotus squarely, sending her flying several meters away.
At that very moment—
Azcman's spear thrust toward his heart.
Pshhk!
The spear pierced straight through his chest, opening a gaping hole.
But—
Count Vras didn't even flinch.
"My heart is not my weakness."
He grasped the spearhead calmly and slowly pulled it out of his chest.
"How is that possible…?"
Azcman staggered backward in shock, her four hooves scrambling.
While vampires didn't die instantly from heart wounds, seeing one remain completely unaffected after being pierced was unprecedented.
Within just two or three seconds—
The wound regenerated perfectly.
Akira's expression turned grim.
Now he understood why Lu Bo had desperately warned them not to enter the hidden door.
This vampire's strength—and especially his regeneration—was far beyond expectations.
Still—
Something didn't add up.
For an Epic-rank vampire, his power was excessive.
And that question mark in his status—
That had to be the key.
As Akira thought—
The battle fully erupted.
Loserine, Red Lotus, and Azcman coordinated flawlessly, exploiting their melee strengths to restrain Vras's movements.
Behind them, Ivsha and the other casters chanted continuously.
Elemental magic, curses, and support spells rained down, tearing massive chunks from Vras's HP bar.
Yet no matter how badly he was shredded—
Even reduced to hundreds of pieces—
He regenerated within seconds, as if nothing had happened.
Akira scanned the surroundings, searching for the cause.
His gaze landed on the humanoid stone statues.
They emitted no mana—but their presence was clearly meaningful.
Without hesitation, Akira activated Partial Dragonization and smashed one with a punch.
BOOM!
The statue shattered—
And fresh crimson blood poured out.
"As I thought."
Akira finally understood.
Vras had stored blood within the statues, forming a massive regenerative magic array.
"Destroy all the statues!"
Akira issued the order immediately.
"Understood!"
The team shifted focus, smashing dozens of statues in rapid succession.
Yet Count Vras merely sneered.
Blood condensed in his palm, forming a sharp blade that shot toward Akira.
"Danger!" Loserine warned.
Akira dodged instantly—
But the blood sword twisted mid-air, homing back toward his heart.
"Tch!"
Using his enhanced dragonized body, Akira barely evaded it.
The blade grazed his arm, leaving a shallow wound.
Pain flared—like ants crawling beneath his skin.
Ivsha's fingers glowed gold as she healed him instantly.
"Such delicious blood…"
Vras inhaled deeply, intoxicated.
His blood-red eyes burned with feral desire.
"Human, I'll ask one last time. Will you surrender? You have no chance inside my castle."
Akira's expression darkened.
Even with the statues destroyed, Vras's strength barely dropped.
Then—
"Got it. I'll tell him now."
Kaelin received instructions from her guild leader and spoke quickly.
"It's not just us. Other teams encountered him too. There are six Count Vras instances in this Demon Cavern."
"Six Vampire Counts…"
Akira narrowed his eyes.
So each battlefield was fueling him?
If so—
This fight was far more dangerous than expected.
"Luciya! Buff me!"
Akira charged forward.
Luciya nodded, bathing him in holy blessings that boosted all attributes.
"You're courting death!"
Vras dissolved into blood mist and reappeared before Akira, blood sword thrusting forward.
Akira dodged and countered—
But Vras was faster.
A kick slammed into Akira's abdomen.
"Ghk—!"
Akira was sent flying, blood spraying from his mouth.
"Die!"
Red Lotus appeared behind Vras, her greatsword cleaving him cleanly in half at the waist.
"Delicious blood!"
Vras regenerated yet again—but suddenly staggered.
Blood spilled from his mouth.
"What… is this?!"
He stared at his trembling hands.
His blood was rebelling.
"Finally kicking in?"
Akira smiled faintly.
His blood—tainted by corrupt lust magic—was toxic.
"Bastard!"
Vras roared as his muscles withered.
"Your blood… is poisoned!"
"Kill him!"
Akira gave the order.
Red Lotus, Loserine, and Azcman struck together.
"You despicable human!"
Overwhelmed and poisoned, Vras collapsed.
Loserine's final strike erased his body entirely.
[You have defeated Count Vras's Avatar (1/6). Contribution +100!][Player Trait Acquired — Bloodthirst!]
[Bloodthirst: After consuming blood, all attributes receive a massive increase. Causes mental instability. Duration: 3 minutes. (Once per day)]
"Massive… how massive?"
Akira scanned the team.
Numbers appeared above their heads.
Shen Siqi: 60%Ivsha: 200%Elf sisters: 150%Roxia: 270%Red Lotus: 120%Azcman: 115%
Then—
Alice: 0%Loserine: 0%
Akira chuckled and turned toward Luciya.
Her number—
699%