9 Finding out More

After the blood emptied from the glass, the purple tendrils retracted to their original position, leaving Keith with a cool sensation throughout his body. He examined the notifications, realizing he had absorbed about 10 blood essence.

From this experience, he estimated that he could gain one blood essence per 25 milliliters of blood from a vampire at the 5th blood condensing stage. Considering the thicker blood of vampires, the total blood amount was around 3 to 4 liters. Thus, absorbing a 5th-stage vampire completely could yield around 160 blood essence at best.

Each unit of blood essence increased his level by one-thousandth point. To reach his goal, Keith needed to consume blood from 6 to 7 mature vampires, each at the 5th stage of the blood condensing stage or higher. However, he acknowledged the difficulty of this task, as vampires at such levels were usually heirs or held important positions. The older vampires, often stuck at this stage, became his best option, as they typically attracted less attention.

Keith understood the illegality of killing vampires without just cause, and the royal council would hunt down those who violated such laws. However, if there were no fatalities, punishment would be limited to compensation, as vampires could heal nearly any wound with proper rest.

His grandfather had mentioned that the blood pool contained the blood of countless humans over time, but Keith had never heard of using vampire blood to increase blood qi. In fact, vampire blood could often lead to blood-qi poisoning for other vampires, making it forbidden and considered taboo. Despite this, there were always individuals with twisted desires who defied societal norms, risking their health to indulge in drinking vampire blood.

Keith, however, had a unique situation. The blood qi in his body was different from regular vampires, a fusion of Earth's Keith and the vampire Keith. The enigmatic purple tendrils seemed to have an insatiable appetite for blood essence.

The vampires who consumed the blood of their own kind were designated as cannibals, sharing a categorization with any species that consumed members of its own kind.

'So the manager thought I was a cannibal?'

A positive aspect was that the purple tendrils proved effective in purifying blood essence even from vampire blood. Keith deduced that once he absorbed blood essence from the blood, the blood lost its energy. This deduction was confirmed when he tried the blood pool after attaining baron rank; there was no response after re-entering it.

His grandfather had mentioned that the pool was used to break through bottlenecks, with the blood changing every year. Keith inferred that they collected blood from humans on a daily basis and filled the blood pool after a single use. This process required a significant blood reserve, and collecting it all at once would be impractical, necessitating the daily collection of a specific amount for an entire year. With even a hundred healthy humans, the blood pool could be filled. The vampire population was relatively lower than that of humans, given the lower fertility of vampires compared to humans. This scarcity was another reason why killing vampires without proper justification was strictly prohibited and required approval from the local court.

If Keith wanted to absorb vampire blood, he had two options: either purchase it from the blood shop or secretly hunt vampires. However, the latter option came with severe risks. If caught, he would face dire consequences, branded as a cannibal and traitor, likely resulting in execution or becoming a test subject for the royal council.

Examining his slightly increased level, Keith recognized that if he aimed to enhance his power, he needed to either slowly accumulate blood qi and condense it inside his blood core, a process that could take years or even decades to reach the next stage.

'I can't wait that long.' In his human mindset, he struggled to adapt to the time perception of vampires. What might be a small passage of time for vampires felt longer than his entire human lifespan.

After careful consideration, he decided to continue purchasing blood for now. Keith didn't want to risk his position in vampire society until he was strong enough to defend himself against any potential threats. Although this method allowed him to quickly become stronger, it also left him vulnerable to more powerful vampires who might attempt to hunt him down. Even his grandfather might not be able to save him in such a scenario.

His head started to ache from contemplating these thoughts. Keith set the glass down and rang the bell. Shortly after, the waitress entered the room, indicating that she had been waiting outside for his call.

"Bring me some more blood," Keith ordered the waitress.

"Right away, sir." The waitress approached the table, retrieved the empty glass, and exited the room.

While waiting for the next round, Keith checked his status.

[ Keith Ennes ]

[ Blood Core: Baron ]

[ Body detected: Vampire ??? Hybrid ]

[ Level 1.022 ]

[ Path: Blood condense ]

His level had increased slightly, and he could sense the subtle changes. Setting aside his thoughts, he focused on the upcoming order.

After a little over three minutes, the waitress returned with two glasses of blood, placing them on the table.

Keith picked up a glass and sipped the blood slowly.

"How is it, sir? Do you like the flavor?" the waitress inquired with a smile.

"What flavor? It tastes the same as always," Keith responded casually.

"Sir, this is the exclusive blood of beautiful women. We specially raised them, so they are really beautiful and healthy. If you want, you can have these girls. You can do whatever with them," the waitress provocatively suggested.

Keith choked on the blood he was drinking, struggling not to vomit.

"No thank you, you can take them back. I will pay for them, but it would have been better if you hadn't told me that," Keith said awkwardly.

"What happened, sir? Didn't you like the blood?"

"No, it's not that. I'm just not interested in that," Keith replied.

"Sir, if you want, I can serve you," the waitress seductively offered while leaning towards him.

"Enough! I don't want this kind of service," Keith pushed her away, firmly rejecting the offer.

"Oh my... Maybe you swing in the other direction. No matter..."

Before the waitress could finish her words, Keith interrupted her.

"GET OUT!" Keith was annoyed by her constant provocations.

"And don't come back. Notify the manager that I will be leaving, so he can collect the payment," Keith declared in a serious tone.

Keith didn't want to waste time arguing with the shop, so he began slowly consuming the vampire blood.