"Umm…" Maria swallowed hard, her throat dry as dust. Her lips trembled slightly as her gaze slowly trailed upward locking onto Razeal's face.

Her mind blanked and body stilled.

She just… stared.

There were no words, no thoughts, no rational explanation forming inside her head just a dazed silence as her dazed eyes scanned his face. Her expression was completely blank, like her brain had short-circuited.

Her heart fluttered weirdly not from fear, not from the pain of the gaping hole still bleeding in her abdomen, but something… confusing.

Whose… this hot dude again? she thought blankly, her mind failing to piece together any other coherent thought.

It was Razeal. His voice, his words all told her it was him. But everything else.. everything she could see screamed that it definitely wasn't.

Even his aura felt alien.

Beside her, Neptunia was no less entranced. She had gone completely still, her eyes wide, her pupils dilated, unblinking. She stared at Razeal's side profile like someone seeing divinity for the first time.

The water shimmered faintly around him, reflecting the faint red glint in his eyes and the ghostly shine of his silver hair.

Neither of the women spoke nor blinked.

They just stared, utterly dumbfounded god-smacked by what stood before them.

Razeal… had changed.

His once white hair pure as snow white now shimmered in the dim red light as a deep, metallic silver, flowing down to his shoulders like liquid moonlight. It framed his face perfectly, every strand catching the faint glow around him. His eyes.. gods, his eyes were no longer the same. Deep crimson, seductive, glowing faintly like the last light of dying embers in a dark world. They looked dangerous, magnetic, impossible to look away from like the gaze of a predator who could make death feel like a kiss.

And his skin pale, flawless, almost ethereal, carrying a faint, unnatural luminescence.

His face was no longer just handsome it was perfection sculpted beyond mortal or whatever reach. Every angle, every line impossibly sharp and yet smooth looked like it had been carved by a god who had fallen in love with his own creation.

The air around him even felt different. Heavy. Royal. Sinfully alluring.

"He… looks… majestic.. Like romantically majestic," Neptunia murmured softly under her breath before she even realized she had spoken.

Her own words startled her her eyes blinking, and she quickly bit her lower lip, turning her head sharply away. Her expression snapped into something cold, blank, pretending nothing had slipped out.

Maria heard her, though and to her own disbelief, she nodded.

Then she froze, realizing what she just did. "Oh no, no, what am I..?" she muttered faintly, shaking her head.

She turned back toward Razeal, trying to focus, trying to remind herself she was literally lying on the ground with a hole in her stomach half-dead and bleeding out. But her eyes, traitorous as they were, refused to behave.

Her gaze kept flicking back at him, tracing the curve of his face, the line of his jaw, the faint movement of his crimson eyes.

"What… happened to you?" she asked, voice trembling slightly part confusion, part awe. Then, realizing how it sounded, she tried again, awkwardly. "I mean, why do you… look like.."

Her words stumbled and died halfway.

Because she had looked further down.

His upper body was bare completely exposed. The tattered remains of his shirt clung loosely around his shoulders, but his torso… was perfect.

The scars she remembered the deep lines, the jagged burns and even that big carving on his chest was gone.. Like literally it was carved with foreverine metal.. It doesn't make sense how could that be as only saints could do that.. But again all the scars.. They were all gone. His skin was smooth, flawless.

And the body underneath…

Every muscle looked sculpted with precision, firm and powerful but not overbearing. His build wasn't bulky it was balanced, perfectly toned, the kind of body that carried both grace and danger. The faint veins across his arms glowed faintly like dark crimson under his skin, pulsing with something unnatural.

Her face heated without her permission.

And if that wasn't enough, he was taller now too. At least a head taller than before.

Wait, what? Maria blinked rapidly. Wasn't he like… 5'7 before? How the hell did he suddenly become 6'2?!

Her brain was officially shutting down.

Even Neptunia, who had tried to turn away, found her gaze sliding back.. unable to resist sneaking another glance. She bit her lip harder this time, trying not to show it, but her eyes just say different story.

And the two of them one bleeding and half-dead on the ground, the other pretending composure just stood there, unable to take their eyes off him.

It was ridiculous.

Like watching two starving people trying not to stare at the world's most tempting meal.

Meanwhile, Razeal… was far from calm himself.

If anything, he was worse.

His body was trembling slightly. His breath came uneven, and a faint, strange heat coiled deep in his chest not pain, not fatigue, but something primal.

He didn't Even understand it himself at first. He'd felt fine when he'd came out of system space.. very up energized, strong, sharper than ever before. But now… suddenly his body was acting weird.

He felt dizzy. Shaky. His vision blurred slightly, his heartbeat quickening.

And then there was… the smell.

Thick metallic and sweet.

Blood.

His eyes flicked downward to Maria, still lying there, wounded, her blood pooling slowly around her.

And suddenly.. it hit him.

That smell. That sight.

His throat tightened. His fangs ones he didn't even know he had until now ached sharply, pressing down against his lips. His hands trembled and even his chest burning with heat.

He could feel it.

An unbearable thirst. A hunger deeper than pain, sharper than reason.

Every instinct screamed at him.. drink it.

It wasn't even a thought it was a command written into his very blood.

He clenched his fists, his nails digging into his palms as he gritted his teeth, trying to suppress it. "Tch"

The urge only grew stronger. The scent was everywhere rich, intoxicating, impossible to ignore. His body felt like it was vibrating with need.

"What the hell is happening to me…?" he muttered under his breath, pressing a hand against his forehead, his eyes half-lidded from the intensity of the urge.

He swallowed hard, the taste of blood phantom on his tongue.

No… I am not that dissapoinement. Cant give in to body.

He refused. He wouldn't lose control... He

"Villey…" he called silently in his mind, voice strained. "What's happening to me?"

His breath hitched slightly, trying to steady himself.

A calm, mechanical voice echoed in his head almost immediately.. though even it sounded amused.

[Obviously, as you've already guessed, Host these are your vampire urges.]

Razeal frowned a little.

[And yes they'll only get worse the more you try to suppress them.]

For vampires, blood is not a craving it's a necessity. It's as vital as air or water. Deprivation can lead to severe consequences: madness, frenzy, even physical collapse.]

[Also, Host if you haven't realized it yet, your body has undergone massive transformation. Physically, mentally, even emotionally... even to very deepest part of your own being]

[Your emotions will no longer feel balanced. Everything you feel anger, hunger, desire, affection, hatred will now exist in extremes. You'll feel things more deeply than before. More violently.]

[So I highly recommend you learn to control it before you break something… or someone.. Not that you don't do it before.]

[Also, Host…] the system continued, its tone now curious. [Would you like to view your updated status? There have been… vast changes.]

[Also, as a new stat has been added to your status window. Blood Points.]

The system's calm, monotone voice echoed inside Razeal's head, yet even through its mechanical tone, there was something coldly amused about it.

[For every vampiric skill or ability, it'll function using Blood Points. Yes, you won't need dark mana or any other form of energy for these. Only blood points.]

[You can acquire them by consuming blood from any being. The amount and quality depend on the strength, race, and vitality of that being, of course. And yes… fresher is always better.]

The system paused for a moment before continuing:

[Would you like me to show your updated status window? You've also gained additional traits and abilities that might be useful to understand, considering your current… evolution.]

Razeal stood silent, his head slightly tilted forward. He wasn't even sure if he could properly think right now.

His head was spinning.

The smell of blood ..Fuck, it was everywhere.

The air around him, the water itself, the faint traces coming from the monsters that had been torn apart, and most of all, the thick scent of Maria's blood right in front of him... It just smalls different from any other.

He swallowed hard. His throat burned, his body literally trembling.

It was unbearable. The stench wasn't disgusting.. it was intoxicating. The scent hit him like a drug, wrapping around his senses, clawing at his control. His body screamed to give in, to feed.

It was like trying to hold yourself back from breathing after being underwater too long a fight against nature itself.

Still, somehow, he was managing it. Barely.

He dragged a hand across his face, rubbing his temples as if that would somehow clear the hunger away. His voice came out low, heavy, his tone forced and strained, "…Stats window? No, not now."

His crimson eyes flicked toward Maria lying there, blood seeping from the wound on her stomach, her skin pale, her chest rising and falling shallowly. He took a shaky breath through his nose and immediately regretted it. The scent hit harder, sharper, sweeter.

"First," he murmured, his jaw tight, "tell me what's going on with her. I can see something's wrong with her."

He pressed a hand to his forehead, turning his head slightly away from the sight of her blood. His entire body was tense, fighting an urge that felt carved into his soul.

[Well, she's undergoing her own racial evolution,] the system replied matter-of-factly, as though explaining something trivial.

[This process will be extremely uncomfortable for her. Right now, the demonic heart you implanted is trying to overwrite her human physiology forcing reconstruction at a cellular level.]

Razeal's brows furrowed as the system continued.

[Her body is resisting it, obviously. It's a battle between her human genes and the demonic ones. The heart is powerful enough to completely dominate her humanity, but her noble bloodline gives her limited resistance.]

[That resistance, though, is weak. There are two possible outcomes.]

[First complete dominance by the demonic heart. If that happens, she'll transform into a pure demon entirely losing her humanity...Well ofcourse in best way.. She won't go crazy Dont worry.]

[Second if her bloodline manages to resist enough, she might stabilize into something in between a hybrid. Half-human, half-demon.]

The system paused for a heartbeat before its tone turned grimmer.

[However… given her current injuries, she's in critical condition. Unless healed within the next ten minutes, she will die.]

Razeal stayed silent, his expression unreadable. His crimson eyes flicked downward again, staring at her face.

Maria's breathing was unsteady, her lips pale, blood staining the corner of her mouth. She looked weaker than he'd ever seen her but still, her eyes burned with life.

He sighed quietly, lowering his gaze. "...I see," he muttered under his breath.

For a moment, his expression was weirdly expressionless.

Then

"So, Mr. Charming," Maria's weak voice suddenly broke through the silence, laced with her usual sarcasm, "are you going to heal me or just stand there looking pretty? Because, as you can see.. I'm dying."

Even half-dead, she still had enough energy to bite back with her tongue.

Razeal's crimson eyes blinked once as he tilted his head, looking down at her. He raised an eyebrow, almost surprised.

"You're… dying, and that's what you decide to say?" His voice carried a note of faint disbelief. "I thought you'd be crying or screaming, not cracking jokes. You don't even sound scared."

He crouched slightly, studying her face. "And… your tone. Your eyes. You're… different. I don't remember you being this sarcastic. Or this calm. Are you even feeling pain?"

"What do you think, genius?" Maria coughed weakly, glaring up at him. "You see the hole in my stomach, right? I'm literally bleeding out, and you're over there analyzing my personality? Heal me, you bastard!"

Her voice broke halfway through the sentence, and she winced, clutching her stomach.

Razeal's lips twitched slightly at her reaction, half in frustration, half in reluctant amusement.

Inwardly, though, his was little concern.

"Villey," he said quietly in his mind, calling to the system. "She isn't possessed, right? Her mind, her soul they're still hers?"

He frowned slightly. "That demonic heart… it's not influencing her too much, is it? She's acting different."

The system replied almost immediately.

[Don't worry, Host. I've scanned her condition.]

[There's no external possession. Her soul and consciousness remain intact. What you're seeing is simply a psychological shift a change in her nature.]

[It's natural. When a being evolves into something beyond their previous race, their emotional and mental structure adjusts accordingly. The demonic heart is reshaping her body and that includes her instincts, her temperament, her emotional balance.]

[She's still Maria, but she's no longer fully human. Think of it as… a new version of her molded differently, but still her at the core.]

[In other words, her behavior has changed, but her soul is fine. She's adapting. It's the same as you.]

Razeal's gaze deepened slightly, Not knowing whats going on in his head. "The same as me… huh."

[Exactly, Host. Just like your personality evolved after turning into a vampire. Your emotions, thoughts, and responses have shifted drastically. Hers will too though in a different way, suited to her demonic nature.]

The system's tone turned slightly teasing at the end.

[It's perfectly normal and irreversible. You can consider both of you… reborn.]

Razeal exhaled slowly, dragging his hand through his silver hair. "...Great," he muttered.. Secretly Happy to have his silky long hair's back.

He looked back down at Maria, who was now glaring at him with narrowed eyes. "What are you whispering to yourself for, huh? Are you talking to your weird invisible voice again.. Or whatever you talk to all day.. everyday? Can you hurry up and heal me already?!"

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