The smell hit him first—like old blood and wet dirt.
Then came the pain. Sharp, deep, and radiating from his chest.
Lucas groaned, eyes fluttering open to a sky choked with black smoke. He lay sprawled on a cold stone floor, surrounded by shattered weapons, broken banners, and the twisted corpses of things that once lived—and some that shouldn't have.
"What the hell… did I die?" he muttered. "Again?"
He sat up, slowly. Everything felt off. His body was too light, too fast. Every nerve buzzed. He could hear the wind rustling grass a mile away. He could smell blood. Lots of it.
And it smelled delicious.
"Oh no," he whispered, touching his face. His fingers brushed over sharp fangs. "Please don't tell me I'm a vampire."
A deep voice echoed in his skull—more memory than thought.
"You are Lucas… heir of the Crimson Bloodline. Our last hope."
Lucas blinked. "Great. I went from office worker to anime protagonist real fast."
He tried to stand, but a stabbing pain in his ribs sent him back to the ground. Gritting his teeth, he rolled onto his side and saw the remains of a battlefield—a castle courtyard broken by fire and claw.
And then... footsteps. Light and fast. Not human.
He froze.
Shadows flickered at the edges of his vision—figures moving between crumbled walls and splintered pillars. Glowing eyes blinked through the darkness.
They were watching him.
Lucas tensed, trying to pull a dagger from a nearby corpse—but his hand was shaking. Blood loss? Or something else?
A voice, sharp and wary, called out from the fog.
"Identify yourself."
Lucas didn't answer right away. He didn't even know who he was now.
"I could ask you the same," he said, forcing strength into his voice.
The figure stepped closer—a pale woman in dark armor, her silver hair streaked with dried blood. A long blade rested at her hip.
She narrowed her eyes. "You're… alive?"
Lucas gave a lopsided smile. "That's debatable."
She looked him over, eyes widening slightly. Her voice dropped to a whisper. "Your aura… it's ancient."
A second voice, older and gravelly, came from behind her. "He's Crimson Blood. Look at the seal."
They both dropped to one knee.
Lucas stared, stunned.
"What the hell kind of mess did I just wake up in?"