“…!!!”

Verna and the high lords were filled with only shock and confusion. Their father… their sky had knelt too easily. The one who stood at the peak of the clans with immense power and profound mysteries had submitted. However, Verna and the high lords didn’t dare to express their shock. It was because of what Master Rivoles had said while kneeling on the ground.

Overlord…

Origin…

They knew too well what those words represented—mythical beings who stood above even the clan master. They had heard of such beings but had never seen one. That was why even vampires described them as ‘myths’. Just as their names suggested, Origins were known as the very first vampires. No, rather it wasn’t even clear if it were him, her, or them. All but a very few clan masters even knew of their existence.

However, the Rivoles Clan’s master had confirmed it. The master of one of the oldest clans had let his proud knees touch the ground for the young man, who was showing an overwhelming presence even without evoking his Fear.

“I greet the Origin.”

“Overlord of the Tribe! We greet the Origin!”

From the master to the slaves—all who were part of the clan’s hierarchy showed reverence for one existence. It was truly an unbelievable situation, something that would not even be recognized as a joke if told as a story. However, Eugene, the sole recipient of the worship, remained calm. For him, this was only another test. He had always been curious about who he was as a vampire, apart from his status as a king. The questions that had always remained behind, the curiosity that grew as he removed his tattoos one by one, were finally resolved.

He was an Origin.

It also meant that…

‘There can’t be more than one Origin.’

Eugene was finally convinced. It was something he should have known when he first heard the term ‘Origin’ from Romari.

Origin—the beginning and the cause. It would have been strange for there to be more than one origin, as there would always be only one starting point.

‘I am the beginning of all the vampires in this world.’

The race called vampires could have been born when he first crossed over from the Demon World. Then, what about the Origins who were known to Romari and the very few others? Even if they weren’t fake, they would not be Origins in the truest sense. It was evidenced by the fact that even Romari—a wizard of the Blood Shadow School—didn’t possess much information about Origins, even though they were experts on vampires. To them, Origin was a term to describe the very few special among the vampires. Since there weren’t any other terms suitable to describe those mystical beings, they would have simply used the term Origin. The ones known as ‘Origins’ would have been responsible for creating a ‘race’ of vampires. They would have consumed the blood of others to create more vampires. In other words, the origin of the vampire race would have been through them, and they became known as Origins over the years. However, this was simply Eugene’s hypothesis. After all, there was still a need to confirm the facts.

Eugene turned to Master Rivoles, who was still kneeling in worship.

“Do you have a parent?” he asked.

“Yes,” Master Rivoles responded.

“Who is it?” Eugene asked.

“…”

Master Rivoles held his silence for a moment. This was the biggest secret of the tribe.

Fwoosh!

Fear erupted from above Master Rivoles’ shoulder and completely eroded the space around him. After completely separating himself and Eugene from the rest, Master Rivoles spoke while bowing even deeper.

“Please forgive my impudence. It’s something that my children should not hear.”

“It’s fine. It wasn’t particularly threatening or anything either. Anyway, keep talking,” Eugene said.

Master Rivoles once again felt the chasm that existed between himself and Eugene after hearing the latter’s response to his actions.

“I do not know exactly who took me in as a member of the tribe,” Master Rivoles said.

“What…?”

“And this isn’t just for me. It’s the same for all the clan masters,” Master Rivoles continued.

“Hmm.”

Eugene frowned. It didn’t make any sense. Vampires didn’t just pop into existence. They definitely had a parent responsible for taking them in as members of the tribe. As if realizing Eugene’s curiosity, Rivoles continued. “I’m not saying that I don’t have a parent. Just as I said, it’s just not one specific being.”

“Not one specific being?” Eugene asked.

“Yes. The three beings who stand at the top of our tribe. No, including you now, it would be four. I assume that one of them might be a parent of the clan masters, including myself,” Master Rivoles answered.

“…!”

Now, this was a bit of a surprise. Three? There were three? The three cloudy figures who appeared in his memories with each erasure of his tattoos instantly came to mind.

‘These people refer to those three as Origins. And the three of them…’

A thought came to his mind all too naturally and without any doubt. Eugene then allowed the idea to roll onto his tongue. “My vassals… No, you mean my children.”

“…!!!”

Master Rivoles jerked his head up without realizing it. Even so, Eugene remained calm. He was certain. Even though Rivoles was the master of a vampire clan and a ruler over many, he fell short of Galfredik. He could feel it intuitively.

Although Galfredik had become his vassal, he still judged, acted, and saw through everything as a knight. It was because his master wasn’t living only as a vampire but as the Duke of Batla and the King of Maren as well. As such, even though they had never spoken about the particular topic, the master’s will had still been conveyed to the vassal through the covenant of their souls. However, what if Galfredik didn’t have to care about his position as a knight of the King of Maren? What if he could look, judge, and act as a pure vampire?

Galfredik could definitely kill Master Rivoles. Eugene was completely certain of it.

As such, he spoke with confidence, “Yes. I am the Origin.”

“…!!!” The quivering of Master Rivoles’ eyes intensified even further. He had already known that Eugene was an Origin, as he had said so himself. However, the words that Eugene had spoken just now held a completely different meaning—The Origin—only he was the Origin.

Master Rivoles finally understood…

The existence in front of him was responsible for the birth of the special beings who rarely came out of their secret sanctuary in the imperial castle and could well be the parents of the clan masters. The one in front of him was the true Origin—the beginning of all vampires in the world—including himself.

***

“Hmm. So other clan masters aside from yourself will be coming here as well?” Eugene asked.

“That’s what I think,” Master Rivoles answered politely. Verna and the other high lords were still frozen stiff in their spots.

Master Rivoles explained, “All the major clans were provoked by your actions. Of course, not as the ruler of the tribe but as the King of Maren.”

Eugene responded with a smirk, “So they are going to take care of me somehow, just like what you were planning to do?”

“They do not know their place, just as I was unaware. They do not know that the power and the mystery they possess originated from you,” Master Rivoles said. After realizing Eugene’s true identity, Master Rivoles now looked more comfortable than ever. The way he acted was different from the high lords, who respected and worshiped Eugene but were cautious in even how they breathed. Clan masters truly were on a different level from other vampires.

“Helmond, Samit, Todor… And there are many others as well?” Eugene asked.

“Yes. There are a total of nine clans that I am aware of. Four are in the empire, and the rest are scattered about. I’m sure there are more, but they would not be anything for you to be concerned about,” Master Rivoles answered.

“I have been curious for a while now, but by what standards are clans formed?” Eugene asked.

Master Rivoles responded, “If a powerful member of the tribe leaves many offspring through the Ceremony of Blood, then that becomes a clan.”

Ceremony of Blood—it appeared he was talking about what he had gone through with Galfredik to take him as a vassal.

Master Rivoles continued, “However, only lords, high lords, and clan masters can have children. Lords and high lords cannot have more than ten children. That is why prudence is required when choosing who they should take in.”

“And those that are turned become knights, butlers, and slaves?” Eugene asked.

“That is correct. They will be sorted depending on their abilities and characteristics,” Rivoles answered.

It meant that bannerets, knights, and butlers could not have any children of their own. Even if they could gain strength by consuming blood and prolonging their lives, they could not turn any of their targets into vampires.

“What about clan masters like you?” Eugene asked.

“There is no limit, but neither I nor the other clan masters increase our numbers recklessly. And it’s because—”

“A greater number of children won’t particularly be helpful to the survival of the tribe,” Eugene answered.

“That’s completely right…” Rivoles nodded.

Vampires were a race that consumed the blood of others for survival. So what would happen if the number of vampires dramatically increased? An increased supply was required to meet an increased demand. However, life was finite, and competition against a set amount of blood was inevitable. It was clear that the clan masters were well aware of this fact, which was why they were controlling the number of vampires.

“Hmm. It couldn’t have been like that from the beginning… The Holy Empire and the Roman Empire must have interfered,” Eugene commented.

“That’s correct,” Master Rivoles said. He was amazed. He wasn’t sure exactly why, but he realized that Eugene’s memories weren’t fully intact. Even so, he did not ask about it. After all, it would be a sacrilegious act. It was forbidden to seek answers from the sole master of the Tribe of Darkness, the Alpha and Omega.

Even so, while Verna and the other high lords simply took on astonished expressions after hearing his words, the absolute being immediately recognized the truth. It was a further testament to his status.

“The reason why we could incorporate into human society was because of the contract they had signed. If we needed the blood of other races, we would hire blood slaves. Those belonging to the clans would not recklessly kill members of other species, and they would not consume blood without mutual consent,” Rivoles explained.

“A kind of peace agreement,” Eugene commented.

“Yes. Although high lords and those above them aren’t vulnerable to the sun, pure silver, or divine power, it’s not the same for the absolute majority,” Rivoles said. Vampires had agreed to it for the survival of the tribe, while the other races, including humans, had agreed to it to escape the threat of the vampires.

“Anyway, once the other clan masters arrive, take care of them,” Eugene said.

“My apologies, but are you asking me to eliminate them all?” Master Rivoles asked. Verna and the other high lords took on expressions of shock after hearing his words. They could not understand how their master could say such terrifying words so peacefully, nor how the ‘great one’ could smirk in response.

“Eliminate them? Is that even possible?” Eugene asked.

“My apologies,” Master Rivoles responded. Even though Rivoles was a powerful clan, it would be impossible for him to deal with three clan masters at once. However, the orders of the absolute were absolute. He had been prepared to obey without any regard for his own safety if Eugene gave the command to do so.

“This is what I was thinking,” Eugene said. He went on and explained the plans he had laid out before even coming to Petrucca. It was a strategy he had planned to implement if he found that he could rule the clan masters with force. There was no reason to turn to any other plan now, as he had already discovered his true position.

“...!!!”

Master Rivoles was startled. Even though he had been determined not to question Eugene, the plan was simply too stupefying. The same was true for the other vampires. They were surprised and confused. What was the great one thinking to do such a thing?

Eugene revealed a mysterious smile before saying, “What is it? Are you wondering why I’m doing this?”

“If you would enlighten us, then we will take it as an honor of a lifetime.”

“You lot captured me, the King of Maren. A hooligan who dared to violate the laws of the clans,” Eugene said.

“H-how could we dare to…!”

“Let me finish. The masters of four clans have captured a heretic of the tribe and brought him back to the imperial castle. I’m on the same level as the clan masters, so you four couldn’t decide on my disposal. As such, you have to leave the decision to those back in the imperial castle. Isn’t it the perfect justification?” Eugene said.

“Yes. It’s perfect. But I’m wondering if it’s necessary for your great self to go through such trouble…” Master Rivoles muttered.

“It would be more troublesome not to,” Eugene said.

“…?!”

“If we do this, then all of you will escort me to the imperial castle, right? If that is the case, then no one will bother us on our way,” Eugene responded.

“Ah!”

Why would he bother to destroy and kill everything on his way to the imperial castle? He could get there much faster and with less effort by disguising himself as a prisoner. And he would also have four clan masters at his beck and call.