Chapter 10: ARROGANCE AND THE CONSEQUENCE

Aaron spread his senses to their furthest reach, probing for others with malicious intent, but detected only the single presence within his villa, radiating a searing wave of bloodlust and dark energy that prickled his vampire instincts. "An amateur or someone I can’t beat," Aaron muttered, his mind sifting through the possibilities. Either the intruder was a novice with clumsy stealth, or they were so formidable they didn’t care to conceal their presence, a prospect that sent a thrill of caution through him. Steeling himself with a measured breath, Aaron opened the door and stepped into the villa, his senses honed to a razor’s edge, ready to confront whatever awaited. "An amateur, huh?" Aaron said, a wry, confident smirk curling across his lips, his crimson eyes glinting in the dim light. "You’re home. I was beginning to wonder when you’d arrive, Aaron," Instructor Daniel said, lounging on the couch, his posture deceptively relaxed, but his eyes burning with predatory menace. His guard was down, his face composed and brimming with confidence as he gazed at Aaron like a lamb primed for slaughter, oblivious to the true predator in the room. "Instructor. To what do I owe this unannounced intrusion?" Aaron asked, feigning surprise with a performance so seamless it could’ve earned accolades, probing for the purpose behind Daniel’s brazen visit. "You think you can humiliate me and walk away unscathed?" Daniel replied, his smile cold and laced with venom, his voice carrying the weight of wounded pride. "You didn’t break into my home just for that, Instructor," Aaron pressed, his act flawless, his tone dripping with calculated innocence as he baited Daniel to reveal more. "Hmph! Not only did you embarrass our clan princess, but you also dared to threaten the principal. I’m here to see if you have more than one life to spare," Daniel sneered, his voice thick with contempt, his fingers twitching as if itching for violence. "He’s a loose-lipped fool. Perfect," Aaron thought, his mind racing with strategic calculations, already plotting how to turn Daniel’s recklessness to his advantage. "So, the principal sent you. To think you’d stoop to being his puppet. How shameful, Instructor. What’s the plan? Take my life on his orders?" Aaron taunted, his voice steady and provocative, each word a deliberate jab to unravel Daniel’s composure. "Bingo! The principal can’t risk you blabbing about withdrawing the support funds. Arrogance has a price, Aaron, and your life is the cost. And for the record, I’m no one’s puppet!" Daniel snapped, his expression frosty with indignation, his pride clearly stung by the accusation. "Hah! It seems I was too tame with that principal. Perhaps I’ll start with you, the fool who dared invade my sanctuary uninvited!" Aaron declared, advancing toward Daniel with slow, predatory steps, his presence radiating an almost tangible aura of menace. Daniel’s face twisted in confusion. The scared Aaron he’d been taunting was gone, replaced by a confident figure whose unshakable resolve seemed to fill the room with an oppressive weight. "An act of bravado to scare me? You have much to learn, bra—" Daniel began, his voice dripping with mockery. "Urgh!" Daniel’s words were cut off as Aaron’s hand clamped around his neck, lifting him effortlessly off the couch like a ragdoll. "How?!" Daniel screamed in his mind, gasping for air. He hadn’t seen Aaron move. One moment, Aaron was approaching; the next, he was choking the life out of him, his grip an unyielding vice forged by his Vampire Primogenitor bloodline. "Allow me to throw your words back at you, Instructor. Arrogance has a price, and yours is your life," Aaron said, his voice a low, menacing growl, tightening his grasp until Daniel’s face flushed purple. Daniel clawed desperately at Aaron’s hand, his nails scraping futilely against skin that refused to yield. His vision blurred, his strength fading as he gasped in vain, his body trembling under the crushing weight of his impending doom. "Not worth it," Aaron muttered, abruptly tossing Daniel to the floor with a dismissive flick of his wrist. "Not yet," he sighed, his mind a whirlwind of calculated restraint. Killing Daniel now would invite scrutiny, drawing the prying eyes of guilds or the government to his carefully concealed power. The thrill of crushing an enemy was intoxicating—eliminating them, their family, their entire lineage in a glorious, vengeful rampage. But that was a reckless fantasy, not the path of a strategist who played the long game. True success came from biding one’s time, taking a single, mad risk for a decisive breakthrough. Aaron planned to hide his strength until he could dominate all opposition in one fell swoop. New enemies would rise, but he’d repeat the process—or, when the time was right, unleash his full might without restraint, a force none could withstand. "Hah! Hah! Hah!" Daniel, now free, clutched his neck, sucking in deep breaths, his mind reeling in a storm of fear and confusion, his body trembling from the brush with death. "How? How are you that strong? I’m a B-rank hunter! How could you overpower me so easily?" Daniel blurted, his words tumbling out in a frantic, disjointed rush, struggling to process his humiliating defeat. "It’s because he caught me off guard. Yes, that’s the only explanation!" Daniel muttered, clinging desperately to denial to salvage his shattered pride, refusing to accept he’d been bested by a mere boy. He staggered to his feet, assuming a battle stance, pulling out two daggers gleaming with faint, arcane runes, expertly concealed until now. "I don’t have time for your nonsense. I’m not in the mood for your theatrics," Aaron said slowly, his eyes locking onto Daniel’s, glowing a vivid, blood-red crimson that seemed to pierce the soul. Daniel froze, paralyzed by the sight. Staring into Aaron’s eyes shredded his confidence, flooding him with primal, undiluted fear. Those eyes, like a predator sizing up an insignificant ant, made him feel utterly powerless, a speck before an unstoppable force. "Huh?" Daniel muttered in disbelief, his legs trembling as a warm, shameful wetness spread down his pants, pooling on the floor. He had pissed himself, overwhelmed by terror so visceral it stripped him of all dignity. "Escape or die!" The words thundered in his mind, his instincts screaming to flee or face a fool’s death. But his body betrayed him, rooted to the spot, unable to break free from Aaron’s hypnotic gaze. "You will take your own life," Aaron intoned, his voice laced with the chilling, unbreakable power of his Vampire Primogenitor bloodline. "Leave this house as you came, meet no one, cut both wrists, and write on a wall: ’They protect him, Principal.’ Make it bold and clear. Then slit your throat and pay for your arrogance." His command wove into Daniel’s mind, an absolute decree that left no room for resistance. Daniel’s heart shattered under the weight of Aaron’s words. His body moved against his will, obeying the hypnotic command. Regret consumed him, a bitter tide washing over his thoughts, drowning out all else as he walked out of the house, his steps mechanical, driven by an unyielding compulsion to fulfill Aaron’s death sentence.