A Photograph of Vengeance
It was raining.
Five boys were ganging up on another kid—beating him mercilessly. The victim, barely 12, looked... off. Ugly, even. His face was swollen, and his eyes screamed fear.
"You ugly bastard! Didn't I tell you to call me master?!" one of them yelled, slamming a baseball bat into his side.
They didn't care about his cries.
"P-Please… f-forgive me. I f-forgot," he sobbed.
"Too late, you pathetic freak," they shouted in sync. Then one added, laughing, "Maybe I should do the same thing to your mom."
The boy being brutalized—his name was James. Society didn't just ignore him. They hated him. Called him hideous. From the moment he started kindergarten, the abuse never stopped. No teacher, no adult, no authority ever cared. His mother worked as a servant, and whenever she complained, people just smiled and nodded... and did absolutely nothing.
James learned to live with the bullying. He didn't fight back.
But when he reached middle school, he met Charles—the son of the family his mother served. Charles was rich. Ridiculously rich. But a trash human. So much so that no private school wanted him. He ended up in James' public school.
And James became his personal punching bag.
Charles took bullying to a whole new level. Beatings with metal rods. Broken bones. Even James' mom got caught in the crossfire. When she tried to help her son, Charles had her punished.
But the real breaking point came when James turned 17.
Charles killed his mother. Over a dropped plate.
James went to the cops. They laughed in his face. Laughed.
His heart shattered. Then it burned. That night, James swore he'd get revenge.
He trained in martial arts—every day, every hour—until his body gave up. He didn't care. He learned to fight like a warrior because he knew Charles would have guards. He didn't care if he died trying.
But the day he went to confront Charles, everything flipped.
A group of girls stood outside his house. Before he could speak, they pushed him inside.
Charles arrived minutes later—with the police.
"Kidnapper!" the girls screamed. Set up. All of it.
James was arrested, framed, crippled by cops on Charles' orders, and sentenced to 12 years.
In prison, he was broken—literally. No teeth. Shattered bones. Burn scars. His soul, however, remained burning with hatred.
When he was finally released, wheelchair-bound and broken, Charles stood outside… with a gun.
James knew.
As the gun raised, his final thought wasn't fear—it was pure, venomous regret.
He cursed humanity. Wished it would burn.
Those were his last thoughts.
James never believed in reincarnation. He thought it was some cosmic joke.
But then he heard it.
"Congratulations, it's a baby boy!"
A beautiful woman held him in her arms. Red eyes. Pink hair. Loving smile. She looked... unreal.
Wrapped in luxury, he was handed to another woman. He took one look—and screamed.
"She's a vampire! W-Wait... am I one too?!"
The woman's smile was kind. It felt... warm. James had never known kindness. Not once.
"He looks just like me," the woman said gently. "But I still don't know what to name him."
She walked outside. Dozens gathered, cheering.
"A boy! A true heir to the Nightshade family!" they cried.
"What's his name?" a tall man asked. Two meters tall. Handsome. Regal.
"I haven't decided. Why don't you name him?" she replied.
James (now a newborn) was praying silently: Please not James. Anything but James.
The man thought for a second. Then smiled.
"Lucius. His name shall be Lucius Nightshade."
"It suits him perfectly!" the woman—Elara—beamed.
The nurse led her to rest. Lucius was laid gently into a cradle.
James—no, Lucius—thought: I guess she's my mother. Feels weird calling her that…
From now on, he would be Lucius Nightshade.
James was dead.
Lucius' New Beginning
The man Alaric kissed Elara and picked up Lucius. His demeanor shifted from noble to warm. Fatherly.
Something James never experienced.
"Looks like he's inherited your looks," Alaric joked.
"Hah! No way your ugly genes got through," Elara teased back.
"Ugly?! Do you know how many women begged to talk to me?"
"Don't you dare talk to them again, Alaric…" Elara said in a playful yet threatening tone.
"Y-Yes ma'am."
Lucius watched, stunned. So this is what a happy family looks like?
Elara disappeared. Literally. She used magic? Lucius was amazed.
Then he whispered to himself: "Don't people usually get a system in these kinds of stories?"
As if on cue—darkness.
A screen appeared, showing horrible visions: Humans torturing other races, destroying lives, enslaving people, abusing power.
Lucius felt... nothing.
Maybe it's because I'm a vampire now? he thought.
Then the system spoke:
"Detecting host… Lucius Nightshade. System bonded."
Lucius grinned.
"Welcome, Lucius. I am Scientific Experiment 0401, 12th Gen Model, from the Alphexa Civilization."
What the hell is Alphexa? he wondered.
"Information unavailable."
The system continued, explaining the world of Lorien—a land of many races, ruled by power, dominated by humans.
Humans were once the weakest. Then they found Starlight Quartz, a mineral glowing with celestial energy. It boosted their strength so fast, the other races couldn't keep up.
But a treaty kept them in check. For now.
The treaty? It expires in 200 years.
"Your purpose," said the system, "is to either balance or annihilate humanity."
Lucius didn't hesitate.
"Annihilate. No way I'm doing some goody-two-shoes balancing act."
"Understood. Your first reward will be given after your first human kill."
Lucius blinked. "No newbie reward?"
"No."
"…Rude."
He called out, embarrassed: "Status window."
[Status Window]
Name: Lucius NightshadeAge: 1 DayRace: VampireTitle: Successor of the Nightshades
AttributesStrength: 1Agility: 1Vitality: 1Constitution: 1Endurance: 1Intelligence: 3Rizz: 0Mind: LockedComprehension: Locked
Race Skills: LockedInherent Skills:
Domain Creation [Ancient+]: Permanently converts a skill into a domain (10 uses)
Magic Resistance [Mythical]: Choose one element to resist significantly
"Wait....Rizz?!? Why do I have zero Rizz?? That's cold."
He chose his resistance—Blood. Fitting for a vampire.
"Blood resistance confirmed."
Now, only one thing remained: choosing his path.
A massive screen opened.
Lucius' eyes lit up.The next chapter of his life… was about to begin.