Chapter 1: The Princess Nobody Wanted - Eclipse of the Twilight Moon

The iron hissed as it glided across the collar of a crisp, white shirt.

Hiss. Clack. Hiss.

It was a rhythmic, almost therapeutic sound. In a world teetering on the edge of the abyss, where humanity had lost two-thirds of its territory to the creatures of the night, there was something profound about a perfectly pressed uniform.

"A messy room breeds a messy mind, Lucian. And a messy mind on the battlefield belongs to a corpse. Now, chop those onions evenly, or we're sparring until you vomit."

I smiled faintly, setting the iron down. The memory of my Master, Seraphina, was still as sharp as the silver blades she used to wield. She was a Demon Hunter—an apex predator among humans.

For two years, she had taken an orphaned boy with absolutely zero magical aptitude, no superhuman bloodline, and no innate talents, and molded him.

She didn't teach me how to shoot fireballs or summon lightning. Instead, she taught me how to cook a perfect medium-rare steak. She taught me how to stitch a wound with sewing thread, how to clean blood out of a carpet, and most importantly—how to kill a monster by perfectly dismantling its anatomy.

"I'm raising the perfect househusband," she used to joke, puffing on her thin pipe. "When I retire, you're going to cook for me every day."

She never got to retire.

My hands stopped moving. The warmth of the iron faded, replaced by the phantom chill of that night two years ago. My younger sister, afflicted with the incurable Black Blood plague, had been taken by a passing Pureblood Vampire Princess. The plague, it turned out, was an indicator of supreme Vampire Aptitude.

When my sister returned two years later, she wasn't a sick little girl anymore. She was a corrupted, mindless weapon of the Pureblood. And under the Pureblood's manipulation, she tore Seraphina's heart out right in front of me.

I folded the white shirt, my expression utterly blank. I didn't cry. I didn't scream. Seraphina had conditioned me better than that. Anger was just fuel; it required a cold engine to burn efficiently.

I slipped on the shirt, adjusting the dark crimson tie of the Nightfall Academy.

It was time to go to school.

Infiltrating the enemy territory wasn't difficult if you were willing to throw away your humanity.

The Dominion—the vast empire ruled by the otherworlders and dark species—actively recruited humans from the surviving territories. They needed labor, they needed soldiers, and most of all, they needed blood. Millions of humans willingly crossed the borders every year, begging to be converted to escape the squalor of the human refugee zones.

I had carefully weighed my options before registering.

The Lycanthrope War-Camps were out of the question. Their "academies" were nothing more than brutal wilderness survival tests. You were bitten, thrown into a canyon, and if you didn't succumb to the beast within and explode into a pile of gore, you graduated. It was too chaotic. Too little control.

The Witch Covens were equally unappealing, albeit for entirely different reasons. Their magic was deeply intertwined with the Mother Goddess's mana weave, a strictly matriarchal energy. As a result, any male who enrolled was subjected to the 'Flesh-Weave Ritual' upon entry, a permanent biological conversion that transformed them into females just so their bodies wouldn't reject the mana. While I respected their dedication to the arcane arts, I preferred keeping my original anatomy, thank you very much.

That left the vampires.

The Vampiric Aristocracy was divided into the Thirteen Great Families, each ruling their own prestigious Academy. To become a vampire, a human had to enroll as an 'Initiate,' serve a noble, and eventually receive the 'Embrace.'

I didn't care about immortality. I only cared about the crest I had seen on the carriage that took my sister: a silver rose wrapped in thorny chains. The crest of the House of Vesper.

So, here I was, standing in the grand vestibule of the Vesper Academy alongside three hundred other human Initiates.

"Look at this architecture," a boy beside me whispered in awe. He was shaking with excitement. "If I can just get chosen by a low-ranking baron, my family back in the slums will eat for a year."

I didn't reply. I simply observed. The vestibule was a massive gothic cathedral with obsidian pillars and blood-red chandeliers. On the grand balcony above us stood the Vampire Peers—the purebloods and high-nobles who would be selecting their thralls today. They looked down at us like we were cattle.

Which, objectively, we were.

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. I had no mana. I had no aura. If one of those vampires decided to rip my head off right now, human martial arts wouldn't be enough to stop them.

But I wasn't just a human anymore.

'Activate.'

A faint blue light flickered across my retinas, visible only to me.

[ SYSTEM INITIALIZED: SERVANT SYSTEM ]

Name: Lucian

Race: Human (Aptitude: Null)

Level: 1 (EXP: 0/500)

[ Attributes ]

Strength: 12 (Human Peak: 15)

Agility: 14 (Human Peak: 15)

Vitality: 11

Perception: 18

Charisma: 15 (Bonus applied from 'Domestic Perfection' trait)

[ Passive Skills ]

Absolute Composure (Max)

[Demon Hunter Martial Arts (Lv. 3)]

[ Unique Ability: Servant Contract ]

It was a paradoxical cheat. To gain power, I had to submit. To conquer, I had to kneel. If I contracted with a vampire, I would temporarily gain a 'Vampire Form' and abilities tailored to her specific bloodline. It was the ultimate parasitic camouflage.

"System," I muttered under my breath. "Activate Scanner."

[ Ding! Aura Scanner Activated. ]

The opulent hall instantly transformed in my vision. The world turned a dull, monochromatic gray, save for the floating, luminous text hovering above the heads of the vampires on the balcony.

[Name: Lord Valerius | Potential: B-Class]

[Name: Lady Carmilla | Potential: C-Class]

[Name: Baron Silas | Potential: A-Class]

A-Class was rare. It meant they had the potential to become a Vampire Lord in a few centuries.

Most of the humans here would kill each other just to lick Baron Silas's boots.

I kept scanning. I needed someone specific. Someone whose bloodline was potent enough to grant me the strength to kill a Princess, but someone who was currently weak or marginalized enough that she wouldn't try to instantly dominate my mind.

My eyes swept to the far corner of the balcony.

There, sitting alone on a velvet chair away from the mingling nobles, was a girl who looked no older than eighteen. She had silver-white hair that cascaded down her back like liquid moonlight, and her eyes were a piercing, apathetic crimson. She was sipping from a crystal goblet, completely ignoring the assessment.

The system in my eyes suddenly pulsed. A violent, blinding gold light erupted from her silhouette, forcing me to squint.

[ TARGET ACQUIRED ]

[Race: Vampire (Progenitor Anomaly)]

[Vampire Potential: S-CLASS]

[Current Status: Mana-Deficient / Outcast]

S-Class.

My breath hitched slightly. The system had found a diamond in the mud. An S-Class potential meant she possessed the latent genes of the First Progenitors. Yet, her status read Mana-Deficient. She was an outcast. A princess of the Vesper family who had been discarded because her powers hadn't awakened.

She was perfect.

I adjusted my crimson tie and prepared to make my way to the staircase.

Before I could take a single step, the stained-glass ceiling of the vestibule shattered.

CRASH!

A rain of multicolored glass shards and twisted iron fell upon the crowd of humans. Screams erupted instantly. I sidestepped cleanly, my Master's footwork kicking in on pure reflex, letting a massive chunk of falling masonry crash into the marble floor just inches from my shoulder.

From the gaping hole in the ceiling, figures descended.

They hit the ground with the sickening crunch of bone and stone. They were vampires, but not the elegant nobles on the balcony. These were Fallen—rogue vampires who had succumbed to bloodlust, their bodies mutated into hulking, bat-like monstrosities with elongated limbs and razor-sharp maws.

And leading them was a Rogue Vampire wearing a tattered trench coat, his eyes glowing with manic green energy.

"Kill the livestock!" the Rogue roared, pointing a decaying finger at the crowd of screaming human Initiates. "Cut off the Vesper Family's future! Leave none alive!"

The Fallen screeched and dove into the crowd.

It was an absolute slaughter. Humans were torn limb from limb in seconds. Blood painted the pristine white marble. The Vampire Peers on the balcony shouted in outrage, drawing their rapiers and leaping down to protect their 'property,' but the chaos was too thick. The Rogue had planned this perfectly; the sheer number of Fallen was overwhelming the lower-ranking nobles.

"Help me!" a human boy screamed, reaching his hand toward me as a Fallen clamped its jaws around his leg.

I didn't blink. I didn't reach back.

[ Passive Skill: Absolute Composure (Max) is active. ]

I simply stepped backward, pivoting on my heel as the Fallen tore the boy away. A second monster lunged at my throat from the blind spot on my left.

Step. Pivot. Shift.

I moved with zero wasted energy, a domestic grace honed by thousands of hours of sweeping floors and dodging Seraphina's surprise knife throws. The Fallen sailed past me, its claws missing my face by a millimeter. I smoothly extended my foot, catching its ankle mid-leap, sending it crashing headfirst into a stone pillar with a sickening crack.

I wasn't here to play hero. I couldn't save these people. I was a human with 12 Strength. If one of those Fallen got a solid grip on me, I was dead.

I looked up at the balcony. Amidst the chaos, as nobles scrambled to fight or flee, Lysandra Von Vesper remained seated. Her crimson eyes were fixed on the slaughter below, completely devoid of fear. Or perhaps, devoid of hope.

A massive Fallen, twice the size of the others, scaled the wall and lunged over the balcony railing, roaring directly at her.

She didn't even draw a weapon. She just closed her eyes.

Now.

My legs coiled like springs. I didn't have magic, but I had a flawlessly conditioned human body. I sprinted up the spiraling marble staircase, dodging panicked humans and fighting vampires, my eyes locked onto the balcony.

The Fallen raised its massive, scythe-like claws to cleave Lysandra in half.

I reached the top of the stairs, grabbed a heavy, discarded silver candelabra from a shattered table, and threw it with every ounce of torque in my shoulders.

THUNK.

The heavy silver base smashed directly into the side of the Fallen's head. It wasn't enough to kill it, but the silver burned its skin, throwing its momentum off. It crashed into the wall beside Lysandra, shaking the foundation.

Lysandra's eyes snapped open. She looked at the groaning monster, then turned her gaze to me, her expression finally showing a flicker of surprise.

I didn't waste time with pleasantries. The Fallen was already recovering, its eyes locking onto me with murderous intent. I had roughly four seconds before it ripped my head off.

I walked straight up to Lysandra, who was still sitting in her chair.

"You..." she began, her voice like cracking ice. "A human?"

I didn't answer. Instead, I dropped to one knee right in front of her. I reached out, gently but firmly taking her cold, pale hand in mine.

"What are you doing?!" she hissed, trying to pull away, but my grip was unyielding.

The Fallen roared, lunging at my exposed back.

Three seconds.

I pressed my lips against the back of her gloved hand, feeling the icy thrum of her dormant, S-Class bloodline beneath the fabric. I stared directly into her bewildered crimson eyes and spoke the words etched into my System.

"By the vein that binds and the shadow that claims,"I whispered, my voice echoing with an unnatural resonance that cut through the chaos of the hall. "I swear my breath to your command."

Lysandra gasped. A violent, ethereal red chain suddenly manifested out of thin air, wrapping around my wrist and connecting directly to her chest.

Two seconds. The monster was in the air, its shadow falling over us.

"Make of my flesh your shield, and of my blood your blade."

The System in my retinas went into overdrive, glowing a blinding, furious red.

[ System Alert: S-Class Potential Host Confirmed. ][ Initiating Servant Contract... ]

"I offer my will; grant me your power—" I squeezed her hand, a feral, adrenaline-fueled smile finally breaking across my calm face. "Accept your Servant!"

[ Contract Established! ]

[ Host: Lysandra Von Vesper. ]

[ Servant: Lucian. ]

[ Extracting S-Class Bloodline Traits...]

[Form Shift: Sanguine Thrall Activated.]

BOOM!

A shockwave of crimson energy erupted from my body just as the Fallen's claws reached my neck. The sheer force of the blast sent the hulking monstrosity flying backward, crashing through a stone pillar.

I slowly stood up.

My heart had stopped beating. The warmth in my veins was replaced by freezing, electrifying power. The world slowed down to a crawl. I could hear the heartbeat of every living human in the hall below. I could smell the distinct metallic tang of blood in the air, parsing it like a master chef parsing the ingredients of a fine soup.

I looked down at my hands. My fingernails had elongated into sharp, obsidian talons. Wisps of black and red shadow coiled around my forearms like living smoke.

[ TEMPORARY STATUS UPDATE ]

[Strength: 12 -> 85]

[Agility: 14 -> 90]

Lysandra sat in her chair, staring at me in absolute shock. The connection between us thrummed like a live wire. She could feel it. She could feel the sudden surge of her own dormant power, channeled and purified through me.

"Who... what are you?" she whispered.

I turned my back to her, facing the recovering Fallen as it scrambled to its feet, roaring in fury.

I let out a soft breath, watching the mist escape my lips.

"Just a humble Servant, Lady Lysandra," I said, my voice echoing with a dark, dual timber. I flexed my talons, the shadows eagerly wrapping around my fists. "Now, please sit back. It's time to take out the trash."

Chapter 1 - Chapter 1: The Princess Nobody Wanted