Amelia felt anxious.

They stood in front of the castle gates, yet there wasn’t a single vampire in sight. They had crossed the distance in a few hours without interruption, though her nerves were shot. She had been prepared for an ambush at any point and her vigilance had been for naught. Nothing had contested their trek through the swamp.

It made her believe that a nasty surprise waited for them inside the castle. Every dungeon had a boss that protected it that would respawn after time and rebuild after it was conquered. Every dungeon had a dungeon core that could be shattered, though that was taboo almost everywhere.

Only invasive dungeons that corrupted the area around them were targeted for destruction, but this dungeon didn’t seem like one of those. However, Amelia considered destroying the crystal after they cleared the dungeon. Vampires were nasty creatures. She was surprised that they hadn’t spread to the surrounding area yet and wanted to prevent the inevitable from happening.

The dungeon had been left alone for quite some time to change so drastically, so she hoped that, if they did destroy the core, it wouldn’t be too terribly missed. Not only that, she hoped that she would be thanked if it were to be found out. She wouldn’t go about spreading the knowledge that she’d done it though.

“Chadwick, what do you know of dungeons?” she asked as she stood there, thinking about the options they had available to them.

“They contain monsters. That’s about all I know. Some of them have decent resources that people often flock to, but besides that, I don’t know anything else.” He palmed the hilt of his sword as he nervously looked back and forth.

“I want to destroy this dungeon after we kill the boss monster. More than likely, it’s a vampire lord, but only time will tell.”

“Isn’t that illegal?” he asked with furrowed brows. “Like, hunt you down and hang you illegal?”

“Only in valuable dungeons, but this one has little to no resources and hasn’t been visited in some time. I think we’ll be fine if we destroy it. If we don’t, the vampires could spread to the villages nearby.”

He stared at her dumbly, “That can happen?”

“It has and will happen if we allow this dungeon to stay. It’s a danger and many lives would be lost if we leave it. Someone will eventually find it and put a stop to them, but we can stop it from happening now.”

“I-I don’t know about this.”

“Trust me, we’ll be fine,” she said calmly. “Nobody likes vampires.”

“Okay, then let’s do this. I’m going crazy here waiting for them to jump out at us.” He drew his sword and stepped through the open gate.

“I was thinking the same thing,” she responded as she prompted Obsidian forward. Luckily enough, Obsidian wasn’t too large and fit through the oversized doors easily.

They walked down the halls and checked the rooms. There was little filling the rooms, and Amelia realized that the dungeon had to have made the castle. She praised it for its design while wondering who died to give it the knowledge to do so.

“Where are they?” Chadwick asked through clenched teeth. “This isn’t how I imagined things going.”

“More than likely, they’re gathered with the dungeon’s boss and are waiting for us. We’ve already shown we can handle ourselves against the weakened vampires. It’s what I’d do,” Amelia said as they returned to the massive central hallway that led to the East and West wings. “Back where we started. This is going to get messy fast.”

She stared at the largest door she’d ever seen framed in an intricate arch. Chadwick walked forward and kicked the door inward, though it proved futile as it barely budged.

“Obsidian, please take care of this.”

Obsidian’s tails pierced through the door in rapid succession before he charged forward and barreled his way through the door, nearly ripping them off the hinges.

What they found inside surprised Amelia. At the same time, it really didn’t. Vampires had a strange knack for theatrics.

Several human statues littered the large gathering chamber. Some were whole and some lay tattered in pieces. Amelia sighed before speaking aloud, “I think I figured out why nobody has heard anything about the changes in the dungeon.”

On either side of the great chamber, vampires stood and watched them. A large, ornate throne had been placed at the end of the great chamber, and in the seat was a well-dressed vampire with long, silver hair that flowed freely.

It sat with one leg crossed over the other while its chin rested against its interlocked hands. Its face was androgynous and it wore an expression of absolute boredom. Its voice resonated with an enchanting timber as it spoke, “My guests, welcome. I’ve awaited your arrival since you first appeared. I apologize for the hostile welcoming party, but many of my swarm aren’t familiar with the meaning of hospitality.”

He glared at each and every one of the vampires that stood to either side. “How I see it, you’re trespassing on my territory, but that may not matter to you. You don’t even know who, or what, I am. Well, let me inform you so that you may shed some light on the darkness that is your understanding.”

He slowly stood and held his hands out to either side, “I am Amadeus, Son of Kyriall. I am a Vampire Overlord, though it may be simpler if I just say I’m a demigod. I wonder, do you even know of Kyriall on this world?”

He waited for them to answer, but Amelia couldn’t say that she had. She shook her head, and he sighed in disappointment. “I figured as much, though I can’t blame you for your ignorance. If I recall correctly, this is Kharmina’s domain.”

“That is correct,” Amelia confirmed, though she felt uncertain as to whether she should even try to talk to the vampire before her. She’d heard of vampire lords but had never heard any mention of an overlord. She warily pet Obsidian’s head, though she couldn’t tell who she was trying to comfort.