"Who are you…?" Harley asked, staring at the man in front of her with clear surprise. Her eyes flickered with curiosity, but there was also something unstable buried deep beneath the surface.
"So I'm not the only one," Kyle muttered, his voice laced with excitement and confusion as he studied her. "Could it be… you were transformed by the Blood God himself?"
"Blood God?" Harley's eyes snapped wide open at the phrase, and her entire expression shifted in an instant. She leaned forward eagerly, her voice almost trembling. "Where is Lord Blood God?"
"…Yeah, definitely insane." Kyle's interest dropped immediately, his earlier excitement fading into mild disappointment. He had assumed she might be someone like him—someone chosen, someone special—but now she just looked like another unhinged survivor who had licked up leftover blood like a lunatic.
Still, in Gotham, that kind of behavior barely even registered as unusual.
Caw! Caw!
Dozens of crows burst from the jungle at once, their wings beating violently as they scattered into the air. The sudden disturbance snapped both of them into alertness, their bodies instinctively tensing as their gazes locked onto the forest ahead.
Almost at the same moment, they felt it—a presence.
A terrifying, overwhelming aura surged toward them like a tidal wave, pressing down on their minds and bodies. It wasn't just strength. It was something deeper, something embedded in instinct itself, like prey recognizing a predator or a servant standing before a king.
No—stronger than that.
It felt as if their very blood was demanding submission, as though bowing was not a choice but a fundamental law written into their existence.
A blood-red robe fluttered in the wind as a tall figure stepped forward, his boots pressing softly against the forest floor layered with leaves and broken branches. The faint rustling sound echoed with every step as Locke emerged slowly from the dense shadows of the woods.
His gaze swept across the two of them, pausing briefly on Harley. Her face was filled with fanatical devotion, her eyes shining with a disturbing, almost worshipful madness. Then his attention shifted to the man dressed in white, whose expression carried a similar intensity—but with a different intent behind it.
"Welcome, my lord!" Kyle suddenly dropped to his knees, his voice bursting out in a fervent shout. His body moved almost on its own, compelled by the overwhelming force inside him that demanded submission.
"?"
Locke blinked slightly, caught off guard by the sudden display. He hadn't expected this kind of reaction and instinctively categorized the man as someone overly eager to attach himself to any powerful figure.
Before he could process it further, a figure rushed toward him at full speed.
His eyes sharpened instantly, muscles tightening as his body prepared to react. However, the next moment, the slim figure leaped straight into his arms without hesitation.
Locke remained completely still, his body unmoving like a mountain as he allowed her to collide into him.
Harley clung to him tightly, her arms wrapped around his torso as her body trembled with uncontrollable excitement. Obsession and madness burned in her eyes as she pressed herself against him, her head rubbing repeatedly against his chest beneath her long blonde hair.
With a casual motion, Locke pushed her aside.
"Mm—!" Staggering back a few steps, Harley looked at him with a hint of grievance, her expression almost pitiful despite the lingering madness in her eyes.
"I am the Blood God," Locke said, his voice low and heavy as it carried through the forest. "Those who consume my true blood and become my descendants should understand the honor of rebirth."
His scarlet pupils fixed on her, watching as she lowered her head slightly, her expression shifting into something that looked almost… wronged.
Inside, Locke couldn't help but curse.
Damn it. What am I, some kind of clown?
"…."
Kyle, who had been effectively ignored up to this point, clenched his jaw slightly as he glanced at Harley with growing annoyance. In his mind, her behavior had already crossed the line from strange into outright irritating.
So this is how you play it, huh? Acting like a fanatic right in front of him… I underestimated you.
In an instant, he mentally labeled her as competition.
From everything he had observed, it was obvious that she hadn't known the Blood God beforehand. To someone like Locke, she was nothing more than an accident—a lucky survivor at best.
That meant he still had a chance.
"Esteemed Blood God, my name is Kyle," he said quickly, lowering his head with urgency. "I am a biogenetics doctor, specializing in biological research. Previously, I was ordered by the League of Assassins to study your blood."
"Oh?" Locke's voice drifted out from beneath his cloak, slow and deliberate.
Encouraged by the reaction, Kyle crawled forward on his knees, his face lighting up with undisguised excitement.
"I have always longed to meet you," he continued eagerly. "Your blood is the greatest miracle in the world. I wish to serve you as my master. I only ask that you allow me to continue exploring all the mysteries it contains."
Seeing the intensity in his eyes, Locke felt a flicker of understanding.
So those black-clad bastards were from the League of Assassins. No wonder they were so skilled. Even the guy over in Star City couldn't handle them, so they decided to come after me instead?
A trace of irritation surfaced in his mind.
It made sense. There weren't many organizations capable of targeting him, collecting his blood, and conducting research on it. The League of Assassins was the most logical answer. As for Harley, she was clearly just an accidental byproduct of the whole situation.
With his current strength—especially in his Blood God form—Locke wasn't afraid of the League directly. However, their methods were unpredictable, their assassinations subtle and relentless. That was the real danger.
He might not care for himself, but the same couldn't be said for the people around him.
Still, now that he had a clear target, things became much simpler.
His gaze returned to the two in front of him, and a new thought surfaced in his mind.
"You've only absorbed my blood temporarily," he said calmly. "You can't sustain it. Now, I'll give you a choice—a chance at true immortality."
He paused slightly, letting the words sink in.
"I will turn you into vampires."
"Immortality?" Kyle's eyes lit up instantly, his breathing growing heavier. The word alone was enough to drown out everything else. The mention of vampires barely even registered in his mind.
Nothing mattered more than that promise.
"I'm willing," Harley said without hesitation, her voice firm despite the madness in her eyes. "As long as I can stay by your side, I'll do anything."
The stubborn intensity in her expression made Locke's heart twitch slightly.
Was this because of his blood… or was she already like this?
He let out a silent sigh, recalling how her emotions seemed to amplify drastically whenever she saw him. It was as if his blood had taken whatever was already inside her and pushed it to the extreme.
This girl reacts way too fast.
"Lord Blood God, I'm willing as well!" Kyle added quickly, afraid of being overlooked.
Locke stepped forward without another word, moving toward Harley.
Under her burning gaze, he lowered his head and sank his teeth into her neck.
Seeing this, Kyle's heart skipped a beat, panic flashing across his face before he quickly forced himself to calm down. From everything he knew, the Blood God stood on the side of justice, far above the League of Assassins. That belief, combined with his own ambition, kept him rooted in place.
A soft sound escaped Harley's lips as her body trembled slightly, her pupils widening as a crimson glow flickered within them.
After a moment, Locke pulled back, releasing her.
He turned his gaze toward Kyle.
Noticing that Harley showed no signs of distress, Kyle's nervousness faded. Instead, anticipation surged through him as he eagerly loosened his collar, exposing his neck without hesitation.
"…."
Locke's gaze flickered briefly to the patch of chest hair revealed beneath the collar, and the muscles beneath his mask twitched slightly.
Wait… can I just convert him directly without biting?
A thought sparked in his mind, and his eyes lit up.
Before Kyle could react, Locke's figure blurred.
A sharp streak cut through the air as he appeared beside him in an instant, his clawed hand slicing forward.
"Ah—!"
Kyle clutched his arm and collapsed to the ground, pain flashing across his face as he stared at Locke in shock. The afterimage of that movement still lingered in his vision as Locke reappeared where he had been standing.
Just as confusion overtook him, a wave of warmth began spreading from his arm throughout his entire body.
An indescribable sense of comfort followed, flooding his senses.
This… this is what it feels like to be a vampire?
His eyes squeezed shut before slowly opening again, revealing pupils that had turned a deep, blood-red color.
....
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