The Price.

*Song suggestion to play while reading- Cold Shivers by Myuu*

Christoph lay on the bed inside the padded isolation room with red stains around his lips and a glowing pattern on his chest. He did not know the changes around and inside him.

Gradually, his body turned red. Blood was pouring out of his pores. The change continued, and his flesh started squirming slowly. The movement was akin to that of a worm crawling under his skin. However, his face remained unchanged.

…

Christoph found himself standing in a dark place, unable to see anything. He looked around but could not make up anything of this situation. Suddenly, a voice echoed in the darkness. It sounded like a drop of water falling on the floor.

He listened carefully before moving in that direction. However, just when he took a step, he froze. Even if he could not see anything, he could sense the movement of his legs. He mumbled, 'Did that lady fix me?'

Following his words, a chuckle rang through the dark place. Christoph exclaimed, "Who's there?"

His voice was loud, and he sensed his heart tighten. It was as if he was being stared at by someone extremely dangerous. This feeling was similar to when he was before Five and Six, who killed his parents but amplified by a hundred times.

Christoph asked again, "Who's there?"

An aloof voice sounded, "Oh, you still have the guts to ask me. You seem like a brave one. I am impressed."

The words and the tone of the person did not match at all. Christoph sensed disgust lingering in the voice, but he did not ask who the person was. Instead, he decided to move forward toward the dripping water.

The voice did not sound again. Christoph did not say anything and just kept following the sound. Suddenly, the voice sounded again, "Why don't you rest?"

Christoph did not reply and kept on walking in the dark. The dripping sound was getting louder. The voice asked, "What do you think you will find at the end of this darkness?"

The question piqued Christoph's interest, and he began thinking while moving forward. The steps were slow, but they were steady. After a long time, the young man did not arrive at any conclusion. How would he know what awaited him at the end of this darkness?

Given his state of mind, he was not hoping to find a light, but he was looking for strength. This strength was not to go and fight the world but to not feel scared or let himself watch things from a sideline.

As he walked closer to where the dripping sound was coming from, the voice echoed again, "You are a boring one, are you not? How can you not talk?"

Christoph did not bother to reply and kept on walking. He could tell something was different about this voice, it was very familiar, but he could not put his finger on it. The closer he got to the dripping sound, the more uneasy he became.

His mind was flooded with negative thoughts, as if every step had taken him closer to the edge of life and Death. The young man tried to calm his heart, but nothing worked. At this moment, the voice sounded again, "Why do you struggle so much to keep your heart and mind free of fear? Why not just try and acknowledge it? What can be worse than living like a corpse? Death is inevitable. You can never escape it, so why run so hard?"

Christoph stopped and, after a brief thought. He said, 'Death is inevitable, I know, but this does not help you know. Humans all fear Death and always will because they do not know what lies beyond Death. Humans fear things they do not know.'

The aloof voice replied, "Then why not give up the so-called humanity? How can you fight someone who has no humanity in them?"

Christoph froze in his steps. These words were true. As if sensing the complex emotions in Christoph's mind, the voice said, "Let alone those who killed your parents, even the ones who left you to die, had no humanity in their hearts. This is the reality, the true face of those who call themselves humans."

These words triggered a loop in Christoph's memory. He stood at the bridge, watching his parents being killed by the two people. He wanted to move, but he stood there paralyzed. He watched everything from the start to the end.

In this scene, there was one moment he could not get out of his mind. The man called himself Six and told him that everything they did was to feed themselves. Christoph asked, "Did they kill my parents for money?"

The voice snapped at him, "Fool! Think of their motive."

Christoph did not mind the disgust the voice showed and watched the entire loop again. He discovered that the people were using specialized equipment to extract the blood from his parents.

He mumbled, "Why did they extract the blood? Did we run into some organ traffickers?"

A peal of laughter echoed in the darkness, followed by a remark, "You are such a naive person. Hahahaha, if they wanted to smuggle the organs, they would have taken the corpses, not just a container filled with blood. Seriously, have you never read any fantasy storybook?"

Christoph did not answer this time. He kept on thinking about the reasoning behind all this. After a few moments, when frustrated, he asked, "Since you know their motive, tell me."

"Oh, come on, what's the fun in that? Now, try one more time. Also, I have dropped a hint already.", replied the voice.

Christoph snapped, "Since it is all fun for you, play alone and leave me be. Piece of shit."

His heart was an embodiment of negative emotions at this moment. He was aggrieved, angry, and frustrated. He did not have the patience to play such games. He wanted the answers to the doubts in his heart. This confusion and uncertainty made him lose his temper.

The voice sighed, "You need to keep calm. Blatant anger and hysteria will do you no good. You are a college valedictorian, someone with an exceptional mind. How can you be so weak at connecting the dots?

You claim that you want to avenge your parents and yourself. How will you do that when your mind is filled with aimless hatred? Focus your thoughts, and you will see things."

Christoph forced himself to calm down. The loop started again. This time, the young man could see everything. He observed how the two people were working on his parents. Suddenly, he was shocked, the moment. Six had jumped as high as six-feet and landed on his feet with a flip.

During this entire time, Six was carrying a canister filled with blood. This was not in line with the performance of an average human. Even above average might not be able to jump six feet. Observing the scene, Christoph could tell that these actions did not stress Six out.

He mumbled, "How did he jump to that height? Where did those people come from? That person with the sword was so quick, yet Six reacted even quicker. How?"

The voice sounded again, "Yes, finally, you see the bizarreness of the situation. Those people were not humans, Christoph."

Christoph was shocked and asked, "If they were not humans, then what were they?"

"Do not ask me what they were, think. All the answers lay in front of you. All you need to do is look." Replied the voice.

The doubts in his mind had provoked his thoughts like nothing before. He recalled everything that he had been thinking till now. Suddenly, he raised his head and mumbled, "You said these people were not humans. You asked me if I have ever read fantasy books. So, if these people are fantasy creatures and feed on blood, doesn't that mean they are vampires?"

Christoph did not stop and said, "How can this be? Vampires exist in the imagination. They are not real creatures. You've got to be kidding me, right."

The voice burst into laughter, and after a few seconds, the laughter calmed down, and the voice asked, "Just because you have not encountered something like this does not mean that they do not exist. Vampires are as real as you. However, not everyone on that bridge was not a vampire."

Christoph asked, "What do you mean? You mean to say, those hunters who came to fight Five and Six were not vampires, then how were they so strong?"

The voice replied, "Everything will become evident when the time is right. For now, all you must focus on is your life's most important question. Do not think that I am exaggerating. The decision you make will change your life completely."

The young man stood in the darkness, and he could sense his heart beating fast. It was like a horse sprinting across a field. He asked, "What is the question?"

The voice whispered lowly, "If you have to give up your humanity to avenge your parents, will you do it? Live like a condemned soul for all eternity?"

Christoph was surprised, but then he nodded and said, "I will. What is the use of this humanity that makes me weak and helpless when the people I cherished the most were taken from me? That, too, right before my gaze? I will give up my humanity for my cause."

The voice chuckled and said, "Then step forward."

Christoph stepped forward, and a light beam fell before him, illuminating a pedestal. A golden chalice was resting over the pedestal, and looking at the other side, Christoph was shocked and asked, "Who are you?"