The room fell silent.
Only one sound filled my ears.
A heartbeat.
Slow.
Elegant.
Unnaturally calm.
It came from beyond the front gate.
Not from a normal person.
No ordinary human could stand in the dead of night with such controlled breathing and such a perfectly measured pulse.
My body reacted before my mind did.
Every muscle tightened.
Every sense sharpened.
The assassin inside me awakened instantly.
I took one step toward the door.
Then another.
Behind me, Riya's voice trembled.
"Aarav…?"
I paused.
For a moment, I looked back at them.
Mother's worried eyes.
Father's calm but observant gaze.
My three sisters are staring at me in confusion.
A strange protective instinct rose inside me.
Whoever was outside—
I couldn't let them step inside this house.
"I'll check," I said quietly.
Before anyone could stop me, I opened the door and stepped out.
The cold night air wrapped around me.
The street was empty.
Silent.
Moonlight spilt across the pavement.
For a brief moment, I saw nothing.
Then—
She stepped out from the shadows near the gate.
My breath stopped.
A girl.
No.
A woman.
Tall.
Elegant.
Long black hair cascaded down her back like flowing silk.
Her crimson eyes glowed faintly beneath the moonlight.
A fitted black dress hugged her figure, and the silver pendant resting near her collarbone shimmered with a blood-red glow.
The moment I saw her face, the memories from the ritual struck me again.
She had been there.
One of the ten girls.
The one standing directly opposite me in the circle.
The one whose eyes had lingered in my mind like a curse.
Her lips curved into a faint smile.
"Good."
Her voice was smooth.
Cold.
Yet strangely alluring.
"You truly awakened."
I narrowed my eyes.
"Who are you?"
She took a step forward.
The scent of roses and iron—blood drifted towards me.
"My name is Seraphina Noir."
The name echoed inside my mind.
Fragments of memory stirred.
A whisper during the ritual.
A crimson mark.
A cold hand touching my neck.
Then darkness.
Seraphina lowered her head slightly.
Almost like a noble greeting.
Then she lifted her crimson eyes and looked directly at me.
"My king."
The words sent a chill down my spine.
I stared at her.
"Don't call me that."
Her smile deepened.
"Whether you accept it or not, it is the truth."
She raised her hand.
On her wrist glowed a dark crescent-shaped sigil.
The same symbol I had seen in the mirror earlier on my own neck.
My eyes sharpened.
The mark.
The ritual.
The blood circle.
She noticed my gaze.
"The first blood bond is incomplete."
I clenched my fists.
"What happened last night?"
For the first time, her expression turned serious.
"The ten great vampire families gathered."
Her voice was calm, but every word carried weight.
"You carry the bloodline of the First Vampire King."
The night seemed to grow colder.
I let out a short laugh.
"Vampires?"
If this had been my previous life, I would have dismissed it as madness.
But after waking up inside another body in a blood ritual circle—
Nothing felt impossible anymore.
Seraphina stepped closer.
"You died."
Her words struck like a blade.
"The weak human boy named Aarav Malhotra should have died last night."
I said nothing.
Because she was right.
She continued.
"But the ritual awakened your dormant bloodline and called another soul."
Her crimson eyes locked onto mine.
"A king's soul."
For a moment, silence stretched between us.
Then I asked the one question that mattered.
"Why me?"
Her gaze flickered.
At first, it was calculation.
Cold ambition.
The look of someone who had once planned to use me.
But beneath it, I saw something else.
Confusion.
Interest.
Perhaps even respect.
"Because your bloodline was the only one capable of carrying the throne."
She glanced at the dark street.
"Forces are moving already."
Her voice lowered.
"Outer clans."
"Hunters."
"Rogue vampires."
"They all know the king has awakened."
A faint smile touched my lips.
"Then let them come."
For the first time, Seraphina's cold composure cracked.
Her crimson eyes widened slightly.
Then she laughed softly.
A genuine laugh.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The original boy had probably been timid and weak.
But I was not him.
I stepped closer until only a breath separated us.
Her eyes narrowed.
"You thought you awakened a puppet."
My voice dropped.
Cold.
Sharp.
The voice of the assassin king.
"But it seems you chose the wrong man."
For a second, the night itself seemed to freeze.
Then—
Seraphina's lips curved into a dangerous smile.
"No."
She whispered.
"I think we chose the right king."
A sudden movement.
Her hand reached toward my collar.
Before instinct could stop it, her fingers gently brushed the side of my neck.
The crescent mark was burnt.
Pain shot through my veins.
Dark red light burst from the sigil.
My vision blurred.
Then I saw it.
A vision.
Ten women are standing in a circle.
Blood flowing into ancient runes.
Fangs.
Bites.
A throne of crimson stone.
And in the centre—
me.
Sitting upon it.
The true vampire king.
The vision shattered.
I staggered back.
Seraphina immediately steadied me.
Her touch was surprisingly warm.
"The bond is reacting."
Her voice was softer now.
"The first ritual must be completed soon."
My breathing slowed.
"What happens if it isn't?"
Her expression darkened.
"You die."
The words hung heavily in the air.
Then she added:
"And if the ritual remains incomplete… the other nine families may claim you first."
I stared at her.
This world had become far more dangerous than I had imagined.
And yet—
Something inside me stirred.
Excitement.
The thrill of danger.
The familiar pull of standing at the edge of death.
I smiled.
It had been a long time since I felt this alive.