“I feel floaty—that’s it, this feeling is similar to when I’ve had a bit too much to drink and start getting tipsy. It’s floaty and pleasant.
It hurt when I was bitten. But the pain quickly faded to this state. Now, there’s no pain at all—just this pleasant, floaty feeling. Yet, my mind isn’t fully awake. What was just done to me?
I can’t put any strength into my arms or legs. I feel like I’m barely standing. But someone is holding me up. Who is holding me up—?
I felt something lodged in my neck detach. As expected, there was absolutely no pain. Then, I watched the person step back a few paces, away from me, and suddenly, I felt my head rapidly clear.
“Jinno-sa—what on earth did you do?!”
Jinno Kiriko’s mouth was stained with red. She ran her tongue over her lips, licking the stain away. Jinno’s eyes, which I know were black just moments ago, were now glowing red.
“I’m sorry. But I had no choice.”
Saying that, Jinno Kiriko vanished. One moment she was right in front of me, and the next, she was gone.
“M-my body feels strange! What is this?! What are these weird images!”
Images and sounds surged into my mind, separate from the scenery I saw with my eyes. My brain was perceiving something else.
“W-who are you?”
At first, there was someone there. I couldn’t tell if it was male or female, only that their eyes were red and their face was incredibly beautiful. That person bit someone’s neck. Twenty-four hours later, the person who was bitten had the same eye color. The one with the beautiful face then bit two other people. Those two also developed the same eye color. However, after biting the three people, the beautiful-faced one gradually transformed back into a human.
Another individual with red eyes attacked the three red-eyed ones and eliminated all three monsters. And this one also gradually returned to being human.
It takes thirty days to return to a human state. You can either turn three humans into the same state or eliminate three monsters.
Ah… why are these images streaming through my head?
I suddenly snapped back to the present. The images in my head had vanished. No one was in front of me. The collar of my T-shirt felt damp. It was probably my blood. But there was no one around.
Confused, I staggered and began walking.
I’m a first-year college student, and I started a part-time job a little way from home a few months ago. We all went out to eat after our shift.
Jinno Kiriko, a high school sophomore who had been working there a bit longer than me, was a cute girl. There was an alluring quality about her that drew the eyes of all the guys. I quickly became one of them. On the way home from dinner, we were heading in the same direction, and our stations were only one stop apart, so I got off at the station before hers and walked her home. I definitely had a bit of an ulterior motive.
But then, Jinno stopped in a secluded spot and hugged me. I hugged her back, but the next thing I felt was a sharp pain in my neck. The pain quickly vanished, and then—
I walked unsteadily toward my house, desperately trying to organize my thoughts.
“I thought she liked me—but biting me was her goal? Why?”
The images that had just flashed through my mind also made no sense.
When I entered the house, I heard my mother’s voice from the back.
“Atsushi, you’re back?”
“Yeah. I’m tired, so I’m going to bed.”
I went up to my room on the second floor, lay on the bed, and fell asleep.
When I woke up the next morning, it was still summer, but I felt a little cold. I remembered what happened yesterday and looked in the mirror. My eyes were still black. The whites were slightly bloodshot, but the black part hadn’t changed. I took a shower and immediately headed to the university.
On the train, the car was somehow filled with a pleasant scent. Usually, I don’t smell anything much, or I feel annoyed by people with strong odors, but this morning, I thought it smelled good. For some reason, it made me hungry.
When the train entered a tunnel, I was standing by the door, looking outside, and suddenly noticed the color of my eyes reflected in the glass. My eyes were red. They were black just a moment ago, but now they were red.
I skipped university and got off at the next station. I rushed to the restroom, looking down so no one would see my eyes. The restroom at the small station was empty. I looked into the mirror. The moment I looked, my red eyes immediately turned black again.
I took out my phone and sent a DM to Jinno’s contact information, which I had saved before.
‘You did something to me yesterday, didn’t you? My eyes are red. What am I supposed to do about this?’
Slightly confused, I just typed and sent what I wanted to say. Surprisingly, the reply came almost immediately.
‘The red eyes appear when you want to bite someone. They won’t turn red if you don’t breathe through your nose, so don’t smell the scent.’
‘So, it really was your fault. What did you do to my body?’
The message was instantly marked as read. But a reply to the second DM never came, and I was immediately blocked.
“Damn it! That girl! What’s happening to my body?”
I did as she said and avoided breathing through my nose before getting on the train again. The pleasant scent from earlier wasn’t there anymore. I didn’t feel hungry either.
I definitely felt the urge to suck blood just now. I was driven by a powerful impulse to bite someone—a vampire—it was like I was turning into a vampire!
But, considering the situation step by step, it all made sense. There are various legends about vampires—Dracula losing his fiancée in the Crusades and cursing God, and all that—but I remember the eyes were always red in movies and stories. And they crave human blood. And the people they bite become vampires too—that’s me now.
I went to the university anyway. Today’s classes started from the third period, but I skipped the third and went to the fourth. As long as I didn’t breathe through my nose, I was fine. None of my friends noticed anything strange about me.
When the fifth-period class ended, I went straight to my part-time job. Jinno Kiriko was supposed to be on the shift today.
“Oh? Were you scheduled today?”
“Ah, no, I just forgot something.”
The manager was in the staff locker room when I entered. I opened my locker to deceive him.
“By the way, did you walk Jinno home yesterday?”
“Ah, yes—about Jinno-san—”
“Oh, did you hear?”
I flinched for a moment. I thought the manager might know something.
“She suddenly quit. Said she’s moving and changing schools. Being a high schooler is tough.”
“What?!”
“What, you didn’t hear? I can’t say much, but it seems there’s some trouble with her family.”
“W-when? When is she moving?”
Crap! I just breathed through my nose—the manager’s blood, the flow of blood in his neck veins—so vivid—
I immediately turned my face toward the locker. I didn’t want the manager to see the color of my eyes.
“She said it was right away. So maybe this coming weekend?”
“Ah, I see—”
Then I need to go right now. There are still things I need to ask her.
“By the way, did you find what you forgot?”
“Ah, yes, I found it. Well, I’m off now.”
“See ya.”
I left the store. I looked down as much as possible since I didn’t know the color of my eyes. As I walked, my reflection in a building’s glass showed my eyes had returned to black.
I went to an eyewear store and bought a pair of dark sunglasses. If my eyes turned red again, I could put these on. Jinno never had red eyes when I saw her, so I was determined to control mine.
I had roughly figured out where Jinno lived when I walked her home yesterday, so getting there wasn’t a problem.
When I arrived at Jinno’s house, her nameplate was clearly there. But the house was completely dark, with no sign of people. I rang the intercom, but no one answered.
I entered the premises. All the first-floor windows and doors were locked tightly.
“Damn it! I wish I had the physical abilities of a real vampire, like being able to fly!”
I unintentionally said that out loud and flinched. I didn’t know what was possible. It was worth a try.
There was absolutely no sign of people outside. I knew there were people inside the other houses, but not outside—wait, how did I know that? That’s already unusual.
With a mix of anxiety and expectation, I first tried jumping with all my might.
“Whoa!”
I leaped easily higher than the two-story house. It felt like I could reach the fourth floor. But I couldn’t stop in mid-air and immediately began falling. Yet, I landed without making a sound.
Unbelievable! I’m amazing! I felt a slight thrill. It was like I had gained the power of a superhero, something I had only dreamed of as a child.
Next, I jumped toward the second-floor balcony. I landed easily on the balcony.
“What the heck is this! This is amazing—I like this feeling!”
I was slightly excited. It felt like I had gained the power of a superhero, something I had only dreamed of.
The sliding glass door on the second-floor balcony was locked.
“Maybe I can open the lock from the outside too? Okay, I’ll concentrate on the lock.”
I focused my mind on the lock, visualizing the key turning. At that moment, the lock on the window slid open perfectly.
“I could easily be a burglar with this.”
I said that, still slightly buzzing with excitement, and stepped inside the house. No one was inside, and it was completely empty, with no furniture.
“Where did she move to—”
Hoping for a clue, I searched every corner of the house. The bottom part of the built-in shoe rack near the entrance was open. It was probably a space for placing shoes, but a piece of paper, like a memo, had fallen there. Written on the paper was an address. It wasn’t Jinno’s handwriting, which I had seen at the part-time job. Her family must have written it and dropped it while moving.
I decided to head straight for that address. I’d have to take the Shinkansen, but I should arrive tonight.
I rode the Shinkansen toward the address where Jinno supposedly moved. Even after getting off the Shinkansen, I still had to change to another train.
It’s not my imagination—someone, the same person, is following me.
Even after changing trains from the Shinkansen, I felt the same presence following me. The presence was still there after I got off at the station closest to the address found in Jinno’s house.
I thought about taking a taxi from the nearest station, but considering I’d be using the Shinkansen for the return trip, the expense was painful.
Maybe I can run fast? I can tell where people are nearby, jump high, and do things I couldn’t before. I haven’t eaten anything all day—and I haven’t had anything to drink, even though it’s summer. What’s more, the heat I was feeling yesterday until that moment is completely gone.
The person with that distinctive presence kept following me, even when I changed trains. If I could run fast, maybe I could shake them off.
I avoided people’s sight and turned a corner of a building. The path ahead was a dead end. I immediately leaped high after turning the corner and landed on the roof of the building. Then, I jumped down onto the street on the opposite side. Of course, I paid attention not to be seen by anyone.
I ran quickly where people wouldn’t see me and walked at a normal pace where they were present, passing through the town. I entered a rural road with fields, rice paddies, and only a few buildings that may or may not be in use. I ran through the area at a considerable speed.
They’re still following me—meaning, this person isn’t human—maybe they’re the same as me?!
I suddenly remembered the images that flashed in my mind last night. Either suck the blood of a human or eliminate one of your own kind—that’s how you return to a human state.
As I passed an abandoned factory about three stories high, someone suddenly kicked me from the side. I was sent flying into a forest-like area overgrown with trees on the opposite side of the building.
My body slammed into a large tree. It cracked and broke. It made a pretty loud noise, but there were no houses nearby. I felt a presence for a moment, but I didn’t have the time to worry about it.
To avoid being crushed by the falling tree, I stood up and dodged it. Standing right in front of me was a man about my height, but he looked about ten years older. His eyes were not black. Even in the darkness, his eyes were glowing red.
The man quickly pulled out a long-bladed knife from somewhere. One side of the blade was jagged, like something for survival. Is that even legal?! But more than that, the glowing red eyes terrified me.
The man lunged at me with the knife. Without thinking, I instinctively dodged it. My reflexes were good, but this was an incredible reaction speed.
No matter how many times I dodged, the man attacked me, trying to stab or swing the knife at me.
“Stop it! I didn’t do anything to you!”
“Shut up! I’m going back to being human. And for that, I have to kill you!”
The knife whizzed past my cheek. Blood started to flow from my cheek.
“I knew it. You just became a vampire. You don’t know how to fight. Just let me kill you!”
“No way!”
A sudden surge of anger erupted, and I kicked the man hard in the abdomen. The man flew backward, dropping the knife. I immediately grabbed the knife as it flew through the air.
“Dammit! Why? I’ve already killed one person!”
“I don’t know! Maybe it’s because I used to practice karate?”
I had practiced karate for three years in elementary school, but I didn’t really like it and quit. I never thought it would come in handy here.
The man, holding his abdomen while lying on his back, smirked and stood up.
“But you still can’t kill me, can you?”
I remained vigilant, watching the man’s movements. I wished, in a corner of my heart, that he would just run away. But the man came toward me.
He instantly circled behind me. Just as he was about to punch me in the head, I ducked to avoid it. But the man kicked me upwards. I gripped the knife tightly, determined not to let it go.
“What’s wrong? At this rate, I’ll cut your neck!”
I heard a voice above me, and then I was slammed violently into the ground. The man had clasped his hands together and forcefully brought them down on me.
The impact of the slam made me drop the knife. The man, of course, picked it up and immediately brought it down toward my neck as I lay there, unable to get up. I dodged it at the last possible second.
“Ugh, damn… a-are you not going to stop until you cut my neck?”
I quickly got up and put distance between us. The man slowly closed the distance.
“Of course not! I don’t have much time left. In a few days, my eyes won’t go back to black. I won’t be able to eat normal food, and I’ll only crave human blood. You don’t know this, do you? Vampires who reach that state start giving off a distinct aura. And there are people who hunt them.”
“Hunt? And we get killed?”
“It’s not that easy. They make you a test subject! Since you’re going to die here anyway, I’ll tell you. Vampire blood, flesh, and everything in their body is useful for medicine and weapons. It’s even used in the medicine you normally take! Should I tell you more? Thanks to vampires, animal testing is mostly gone. There are animal rights groups, but there’s no vampire rights group, and no one even knows about us.”
“But our physical abilities aren’t normal! We shouldn’t be caught by humans, should we?”
“It’s many against one. Besides, they have devices that can stop a vampire’s movement. On top of that, you’re fine for the first month after being bitten, but after that, you crave human blood in a way that’s incomparable to now. Those who don’t frequently suck human blood get slow just by smelling a human. That’s how we get caught, no matter what.”
“No way…”
“So, being killed by me here is actually something you should be grateful for. If you were a pretty young woman or a very handsome man, you might be able to lure out three people and drink their blood, but you can’t do that.”
“W-why do you know so much?”
“I was one of the people conducting the experiments.”
“What?!”
Did this guy really do such terrible things? Even though vampires—were once humans!
“And then that woman went and sucked my blood—well, she was the first vampire I killed, though. Hahahaha.”
This guy is insane!
“Why did you choose to kill other vampires instead of turning other humans?”
“Ah, that’s because for the bite to turn someone into a vampire, if the person being bitten shows a rejection response to the one biting them, the vampire’s venom won’t circulate properly. It’s pointless.”
What should I do? This guy is determined to cut my neck—there’s no escape. If he wants to return to being human, he won’t make a scene where there are people, but we’re far from any people.
“Did you get all that? You and the person who’s been secretly watching us!”
I was startled. Yes, there was one more person here. But I was so focused on fighting this man that I couldn’t even pay attention.
“Come out! You’re clearly interested, aren’t you? Are you interested in vampires?”
A middle-aged woman appeared from behind a nearby tree.
“I-I just want revenge. I don’t care what happens after that. As long as I can get revenge on those people.”
“In that case, should I turn you into a vampire? Tell me your story.”
“M-my only son was killed at that abandoned factory over there. He was only in the ninth grade—and the perpetrators were the sons of a prefectural assemblyman, so the case was covered up. It was called a simple accident. I’ve been coming here sometimes, secretly, looking for evidence. I desperately want revenge on the three boys who caused my son’s death and their parents. After that, I don’t care what happens to me.”
“Wait, what about your other children or your husband?”
I shouted, surprised by her statement.
“I divorced my husband a long time ago. And I told you I have only one son! I don’t have any siblings, and my parents died a few years ago, so it’s fine.”
I couldn’t say anything more.
“In that case, our interests align. After I eliminate this guy, I’ll turn you into a vampire. As you’ve seen, you’ll gain physical abilities far superior to humans. After you get your revenge, I’ll kill you—but I’m warning you, either way, I will definitely come for you in a week.”
This guy definitely won’t let her run away—not after she’s witnessed all this—then, I have to take this guy out—otherwise, he’ll kill me too.
“Alright, let’s just finish this quickly!”
Here he comes again! He thinks I’m an easy target. He thinks I can’t possibly kill him! He thinks I can only resist!
I moved, dodging the man’s attacks. I frantically looked around for anything that could be used as a weapon.
Ah, that’s it!
I deliberately dodged the man’s attacks, acting scared.
“Come on, come on! If you just run, you’ll be killed!”
The man, perhaps inherently cruel, seemed to enjoy the fact that I could only dodge.
“Whoa!”
I tripped over a tree root and fell backward. The man showed no mercy, swinging the knife down at me. I grabbed a thick branch lying nearby. It was a broken piece that had snapped and fallen when I hit the tree earlier.
“What?!”
The man shouted. Something came from behind me? Sand-like particles were thrown and hit the man’s eyes. I immediately seized the opportunity and thrust the wooden branch with all my might into the man’s abdomen.
“Agh!”
I stood up and quickly moved to the side of the man. The man stumbled a few steps, blinded and in pain from the wound. I then delivered a powerful roundhouse kick to his back, aiming downward. Beyond him was the thick trunk of the broken tree, with several sharp, jagged points sticking out.
With a sickening crunch, the man’s body was impaled on the tree trunk. But it wasn’t over yet. Vampires, as I saw in the images, only die when their heads are severed.
I snatched the knife from the man’s hand and swung it hard at his neck. I averted my eyes slightly as the knife reached his neck. I didn’t want to see a person’s head being cut off.
The man’s head rolled away. The woman was nearby. It was her, after all, who threw the sand into the man’s eyes. I turned to face her.
“Why did you help me?”
The woman was trembling slightly, looking frightened.
“Your presence reminded me a little of my son—that’s why.”
“I see—and what now? If you promise to forget what happened here, I won’t have anything to do with you from now on.”
“Wait, please. Turn me into a vampire!”
“Even after seeing this situation, you still say that? If you become a vampire, your peaceful life will be over. You might be hunted by someone like me, or become a test subject. Is that really okay?”
“I don’t want to live anymore. But I have to get revenge for my son. You don’t have to feel guilty about turning me into a vampire.”
Guilt—I just killed a person. Or, to be precise, someone who used to be human and tried to kill me—I don’t want to do this anymore—if I bite this person, and bite two others, I can go back to being human.
“Are you absolutely sure? I can’t take responsibility.”
“I understand.”
“Then, I’ll do it.”
I was already covered in blood. I had been splashed when I stabbed the man’s abdomen. I wiped the blood off my face with the back of my hand. I didn’t feel the urge to lick it off like Jinno did.
The blood flow in the woman’s neck pulsed vividly. It was too sweet, too captivating to resist even just by leaning in close. I sank my teeth into her neck. As my teeth pierced her skin, my canines extended and bit into her neck. The woman flinched but quickly lost her strength. I held her up and sucked her blood.
No more!
I don’t know why I thought that, but I felt it strongly and pulled away from the woman’s neck. Blood was around my mouth, and I couldn’t help but lick it up.
The woman was swaying slightly. She was probably in the same state I was in yesterday. I left her there and ran away. From what? From myself, who had tasted human blood? From the feeling of having killed a person? Something was incredibly terrifying.
I kept running and arrived back at Jinno Kiriko’s house. I had checked the map before coming here, but it was almost terrifying how accurately I had arrived.
I stood in front of Jinno’s house, unsure of what to do. There were several other houses around Jinno’s. It was late. The date had already changed.
The second-floor window of Jinno’s house slid open. Jinno Kiriko looked out and saw me. When our eyes met, Jinno jumped out of the window and came over to me.
“I need to get away from the house for a bit. Will you come with me?”
Jinno whispered and immediately started running. She stopped when we reached an area with no houses.
“How did you find my house?”
“I searched your old house, and a memo fell out with your address on it.”
“I see—so, why did you come? Did you come to kill me?”
Jinno’s face looked both frightened and angry.
“No! I mostly understand the situation now. How many more people do you have to turn into vampires?”
“Hamada-san, you’re the last one. So, it worked out. I feel bad about it, but I’m a victim too. I was going to move, so I boldly confessed to the guy I liked, and he turned me into a vampire. But I wanted to be human again. I desperately wanted to be human again.”
“Do you only care about yourself?”
“Don’t say that—besides, you smell like human blood right now. Did you drink blood? Or did you turn someone into a vampire? It’s only been a day since yesterday—you made a decision much faster than I did.”
“No! I was asked to—”
“And I can smell the blood of another vampire—you killed someone, didn’t you?”
“That was—I was suddenly attacked—”
“Even if that’s true, it’s the same, isn’t it! You sacrificed someone else for your own survival. All I wanted was to become human again.”
What is wrong with this girl! Is she just trying to justify herself? I went through this terrible experience—all because of her!
“Why are you still a vampire? Didn’t you turn three people into vampires?”
“The vampire I met told me that even after turning the third person, it takes a full week to return to being human. If it’s been more than a month since you first became a vampire, or if you have only a few days left, it takes that many days to become human again. I had eight days left, so it takes a full week.”
“So, if I kill you here right now, I’d be killing the second vampire, right?”
“Y-yes, but—what are you thinking? Please, let me go. I’m an only child. My parents will be sad.”
“Then, should you take responsibility and let me turn you back into a vampire once you’re human again? And you can just turn someone else into a vampire.”
“If the human rejects it, they won’t become a vampire. So, I can’t do that.”
“Ah, I know—I won’t do anything—I just didn’t want to become like this.”
Why did I come to see this girl? I know almost everything about vampires now—but I don’t know what to do next.
“I’m leaving now. Don’t touch my family! I won’t forgive you if you do!”
Jinno said that and left.
“That leaves a bad taste in my mouth. If I had known she was that selfish and self-centered, I wouldn’t have offered to walk her home—What have I done?”
The sensation of cutting that man’s neck lingered. The vividness of that sensation made me sick to my stomach.
“Even if I go back to being human, can I live a normal life?”
The sensation of drinking human blood was also vivid. That sensual and sweet feeling—I felt the urge to taste it again.
“I turned one person into a vampire and killed one—what’s next?”
I collapsed, dropping to my knees, and remained there, unable to move for a long time.
