Chapter 3: About Us

It was that hot summer morning when she encountered her very first extraordinary experience. Like any other summer, she and her mother would often visit her grandparents on a province.

A place far from what was seen in cities: clear and bluer skies, more green trees, golden yellow fields with animals like horses, cows, carabaos, and goats. It's more peaceful in this place.

But what excites this little girl the most is the part where her grandfather would teach her to how make nice and colorful kites.

"Look Yana! I made this for you. Belated happy birthday!" Her grandfather handed her a kite in a shape of butterfly with its glimmering colorful wings.

"Woah! Thank you so much, grandpa!" She giggled in glee and started running outside to test the beautiful kite.

She ran on the fields where the winds strongly blow.

"Heave-ho~" she tossed the kite and let it fly with the wind.

She held the thread tightly on her little hands as she played with the kite like she's maneuvering a vehicle. It was one of her happiest moments, running in the wide golden fields with her kite.

But as she keeps on running, the wind blew stronger and stronger that cut off the thread that binds her to the kite.

"Oh no!" She chased the kite.

She doesn't want to lose it. It's her grandfather's gift, it's precious to her. Upon realizing that it's impossible for her to reach the flying kite, her eyes started to water just by thinking the thought of losing it.

Suddenly, she saw a shadow that jumped towards her kite. And in a blink of an eye, her kite disappeared! She stopped running and looked around. Then, she saw a boy in front of her, holding her kite.

"Is this... yours?" His face is all but blurry. But all she could remember is that boy's gentle smile when he returned the kite into her arms.

She shot her eyes open soon as she heard her alarm ringing.

That was all a dream. A memory from her past. She turned the alarm off and went to wash her face.

'The incident happened yesterday must be the reason why I suddenly remembered my childhood.' She thought and looked herself on the mirror.

She saw her reflection upon her brown eyes and then her gazes dropped on her cinnamon brown hair as she noticed something.

"My bangs are getting longer. I should cut it next time." She mumbled and started doing her morning routines.

"See you later, mom. Love you." She bid her goodbye soon as she's done eating breakfast.

And what lies ahead surprises her.

"Good morning, Yana." Rae greeted her with a bright smile.

And that made her remember what her mother told her to do: to accompany this lad every single day of her life as a student. If she spits out the truth, aside from the fact that she might get killed for breaking her promise, her mother might not believe her that this handsome guy is actually a vampire. A very special one indeed, he can walk under the sun without any worries and who doesn't like drinking blood. What could be weirder than that, right?

"But I won't kill you, I swear." He suddenly blurted out.

"Huh? What?"

"You're worried that I might kill you, right? But I won't do that. I have no plan on doing so."

"H-how did you know?"

"Well, vampires can read minds." He smirked.

'Now that's dangerous.' Yana thought nervously.

"Yeah, I know."

"Stop reading my mind!"

Rae chuckled, "Sorry, I can't help it."

Soon as they are near the school gate, Yana walked several steps forward, going ahead of Rae before anyone else would see them and think of anything else seeing them together.

Rae noticed it, but chose not to say a word.

Several hours have passed and lunch time has arrived. Usually, Yana eats with Ella but right now, it won't happen. Aside from her club activities, she's been busy chatting with her online friend which made her a bit jealous. So she went upstairs to the school's rooftop as she brought her lunch.

'It's kinda lonely eating alone.' She said to herself as she started eating.

"Then let's eat together." She was surprised at the familiar voice behind her and when she looked back, she saw Rae clinging on the screen.

"W-what are you doing there!? Get in here before anyone else sees you!" She scolded. And the lad climbed up and landed on the roof top's floor.

"I came to find you. Let's eat together."

"Why me? I'm sure tons of girls would like to eat with you." She scoffed.

"That's true. But I can't stay true to them. Since you're the only one who knows my secret, I am comfortable with you." He chuckled and smiled once again. That left a bliss inside her heart.

'D-does that mean... he enjoys my company? T-that's absurd!'

"Besides... I'm not yet done protecting you. What if someone attacked you again like yesterday?"

Upon remembering the terrific experience, chills start creeping her system again.

"W-why did that thing attack me? I swear I don't have anything against vampires. I just watched horror movies the day before that."

"Level E vampires attack anyone. Especially when it's someone who triggers their blood lust. Do you happen to argue with someone lately?" Rae explained.

The lass shook her head as a response to his question. But then, she remembered something.

"On that same day, I happen to bumped into someone but I didn't get to see the face because I'm in a hurry." She confessed.

"That must be the vampire yesterday. You should be extra careful. Vampires are just lurking around us like normal beings." He warned.

Yana gulped, "Right. Uhm, can I ask you one more thing?"

"Sure, go ahead."

"You've mentioned about Level E vampires. I don't quite get it. What are they?"

He was quite surprised. He never thought her curiosity would go this far. But since she's already involve, she has the right to know.

"Then, let me explain to you in detail..."

"Level E vampires... They were once humans." His expression became serious from the moment he began explaining.

"They turned into vampires after they got bitten by Level A vampires. Since they were once humans, their bodies can't adopt on the changes occurred inside them. That's why they can't control their hunger nor their mental state. Once a human turns into a level E vampire, he'll lost his morality and will not be able to recognize anyone. They also lost their ability to speak, that's why they only groan and roar like beasts."

Yana became sad, "That's... too bad. Is there anyway to save them and bring them back to normal?"

Rae shook his head, "As of now, there's nothing can be done but to kill them. It's for the common good. So you should be careful. It's hard to be a level E vampire." He gloomily said as if he can feel their suffering.

He's a vampire after all, maybe he can understand their groans and roars.

"What will happen if... I got bitten by a Level E vampire?" Yana asked nervously. The more things are being explained to her, the more she craves for answers.

"You'll die for sure. Since all they want is to quench their thirst, they won't stop until they sucked their victims dry."

Yana gulped, "Y-you said there are Level A vampires... Then that means there's level D to B?"

Rae nodded, "We vampires, were classified by our strength and power by those ranks. When a level E vampire learns to control himself, that's when he becomes level D. Level D vampires can speak few words, they can grasp a bit of the situation, but they can never control their hunger. Like level E vampires, they cannot control their transformation, and there's no turning back for them too."

Yana held her chin, "I see. So a level C vampire is when the level D evolves?"

Rae chuckled, "You're catching up. You are correct on that. But this is the most dangerous level of human-vampire transformation."

"How so?"

"They can control their hunger even their transformation, that's why they can mingle like a normal human being. They can stay during daylight but not for long or it will drain their strength."

"Can they... turn humans into vampires too?" Yana asked.

Rae shakes his head, "Only pure vampires can do that. The level A."

"Level B vampires possess powers that lower levels don't."

"Like transforming into normal bats, cats, or crows? Reading minds and hypnotizing?" She confirmed.

"Yes, those are just one of their abilities. But they are the most vulnerable ones. They can't walk under the sun, can't eat with garlic, and can't stand churches." He explained further.

"Does that include the level A vampires?"

"Well, some of them can't stand the sun. But they are stronger than level B vampires, that's for sure. Vampires like these belong to the pure-blooded, whether with a royal birth or adopted by the royals. Just like Cal."

"Cal? Who's that?"

Rae chuckled, "His real name is Calcifer. He's my friend, he took care of me since I was little."

'Sounds like a caretaker to me...'

"Even he looks at himself as a servant, I treat him as my family."

"Now that you mention it, how about you? What level of vampire do you belong?" She tilts her head to the side while holding her chin.

Rae shrugged, "I still don't know. But Cal said I'm special."

"Special? How come?"

He proudly smiled and said, "Because I am the son of the Vampire Queen, an S-rank vampire!"

Upon hearing those words, she almost got choked on what she's eating. Because she knows, of all the people, what could have possibly happen next if she stays closer to this dangerous yet innocent-looking vampire.

May the heavens bless her soul!