Somewhere on a world called Earth, tucked deep inside a prestigious medical school, a lab buzzed with energy. The white hum of fluorescent lights and low murmurs of researchers filled the air. Papers rustled. Machines beeped. But amidst all the intellectual chaos, one figure stood out like a shard of night cutting through daylight.
In the center of the lab, Alex Mercer worked in silence.
His raven-black hair shimmered under the artificial lights, contrasting sharply with his pale skin and crimson eyes. A blade of focused intensity, he barely acknowledged the swarm of students and assistants surrounding him. Brilliant and brooding, Alex was a paradox in a lab coat: top of his class, charming yet cynical, sarcastic yet surgical. People called him genius. Some whispered madman. He answered to neither.
He muttered to himself as he peered into the microscope, scribbling notes about the unique properties of the blood cells under observation.
"Years of refinement, layers of DNA folding into patterns beyond nature's intention," Alex murmured. "They're not just cells. They're blueprints for transcendence. Each strand... each mutation... it's a key. A secret begging to be unlocked."
A hush fell around him. Others in the lab paused to watch.
"It's amazing... what he's doing," one of the researchers whispered, eyes fixed on Alex.
"He's not just studying blood," another said, awe in their voice. "He's rewriting it. Building something new. Something... eternal."
"He could be changing medicine forever," said a third student, clutching their clipboard.
Suddenly, a young research assistant ran over, practically vibrating with excitement.
"Alex! I—I mean, Mr. Mercer, sir! I've been watching you work and... I just want to say, you're incredible! I want to learn everything about your blood cell research! I—I'm your number one fan!"
Snorts echoed from nearby.
"Give me a break," sneered a tall student near the spectrometer. "You? Understand his research? That's hilarious."
"Seriously," chimed in a girl near the centrifuge. "You can't even spell hemoglobin correctly."
"It's adorable, really," another mocked. "Our little fanboy thinks he can sit with the gods."
"I mean it!" the assistant insisted. "I want to understand! I'll study night and day! I believe in his work more than anyone!"
Alex didn't look up. But he heard every word.
His crimson eyes slowly lifted from the microscope, piercing through the clamor.
"You can't understand my work," he said, his voice sharp and clear. "Because I've been doing this for years. And you—you are an idiot."
Laughter exploded through the lab.
"Damn!" someone shouted.
"Brutal!" another laughed.
"He really said it!"
"Man, just give up and go home!"
The assistant's face twisted in red embarrassment. He stood frozen for a second, then stumbled back to his desk, tears burning his eyes.
"Idiot!" Alex suddenly shouted, his voice like thunder. "Leave. You will never understand."
More laughter. Louder. Crueler.
"Did you hear that?"
"Mercer just shut him down!"
"Hard!"
"He's gonna cry. Watch."
Humiliated, the assistant dropped into his chair, breathing heavily.
"I'm his number one fan... I am..." he muttered. "He shouldn't talk to me like that. They shouldn't laugh. Nobody laughs at me..."
His gaze locked on a pair of scissors glinting under the lab light. His hands trembled.
"Nobody calls me an idiot. Nobody looks down at me. Nobody."
He grabbed the scissors. His eyes were wild. Unhinged.
Across the lab, Alex stood near the testing table, holding a vial with reverence.
"Immortality... by decoding the very nature of life itself..." he whispered.
Then—a sudden noise. Running footsteps.
A voice, furious and shrill.
"DIE, ALEX MERCER!!"
Alex turned.
Time slowed.
The research assistant was sprinting toward him, scissors raised. Madness twisted across his face.
"No..." Alex murmured.
Too late.
The blade plunged into his chest.
"AAARRRGHHHH!!" Alex screamed.
Pain erupted like fire through his body. He staggered back, clutching the wound. Blood flooded his fingers.
"Nghhh... What... what is this... My chest... burning... can't... breathe..."
He fell to his knees. The vial dropped. Shattered.
Students screamed.
"Alex!!"
"Get help!"
"Oh my god!"
A group lunged at the attacker.
"You psycho!!"
"Tackle him! NOW!"
Three students slammed into the assistant, dragging him to the ground. He thrashed wildly, laughing with a manic grin.
"Nobody disrespects me NOW! Nobody calls me an IDIOT!!"
Alex lay on the floor, blood spreading in thick pools around him. His eyes were wide but fading.
"So much blood... heh... looks just like... my research..."
The world around him blurred. Sounds distorted. Faces twisted into vague shapes.
"I... just wanted to live forever... to master death..."
His limbs felt like stone. Heavy. Distant.
"Is this it...?" he thought. "Immortality... slipping through my fingers..."
His chest heaved one last time.
His vision went black.
Silence.
A hum.
Warmth.
Alex opened his eyes.
He was floating.
In an endless ocean of crimson liquid.
The surface pulsed like a living heartbeat, thick and luminous. It shimmered in shades of blood and wine, gently supporting him.
"What... where... am I...?" he murmured, lifting his hand.
Blood. Not his blood. Something... richer. More alive.
He looked up.
The sky was a tapestry of stars and planets, swirling in hues of dark red, silver, and velvet black. Galaxies moved like veins. Celestial bodies pulsed in rhythm with the ocean below.
He blinked. It was beautiful.
Terrifyingly beautiful.
"Am I dead...?" he whispered. "No... this place... it's too real. Too... alive."
Slowly, he rose from the liquid. Instead of sinking, his body stood atop the surface like it was solid.
He turned, eyes scanning the infinite horizon.
No wind. No sound. Just silence.
"This place... it's like being inside a heartbeat that never stops," he thought. "Silent. Isolated. Like time doesn't exist here."
His voice echoed as he called out.
"HELLO?! Anybody here?!"
Nothing.
"Is anyone out there?!"
His cry rippled through the crimson waves.
A pause.
Then, a voice. Soft. Melodic.
"Hello."
He froze.
"Who... who's there?!"
He looked around.
No one.
Then he glanced down.
The crimson ocean began to bubble, ripples growing violent. The liquid convulsed as if something deep below stirred.
"What the hell is that...?" he whispered, stepping back.
The bubbling intensified. Then it rose—like a geyser of blood. A pillar.
From it, a form began to emerge.
Human-shaped. Elegant. Glowing.
Slowly, impossibly, she took shape.
A woman. No... something far more.
Her body was statuesque, 6'6" of graceful menace. Her pale ivory skin gleamed, lined with glowing crimson veins that pulsed gently beneath the surface. Her hair flowed like a river of blood, alive and moving with an unseen rhythm. Her irises shimmered in concentric rings of scarlet, hypnotic and divine. Her lips were dark and soft, as if painted by the final breath of dying gods.
She wore a gown of black and crimson silk that moved like ink in water. It never touched the ground. It floated around her, as though she walked upon reality itself. A fractured crown of blood crystals hovered behind her head. Veins of ruby light danced around her. Sigils whispered in lost tongues.
The air changed.
It grew colder.
The scent of iron and roses filled his lungs.
His heart raced.
Her voice wrapped around him like velvet.
"Hello... my Crimson Star."
He stared, awestruck.
"What... what are you...?"
She smiled.
"I am Velmora. Goddess of Blood. Crimson Matron of Veins and Vows."
His breath hitched.
"A... a goddess? Of blood...?"
His world, already broken, shattered again.
Alex Mercer stood in stunned silence, the weight of Velmora's words hanging over him like thunderclouds. His crimson eyes darted between her unearthly form and the endless sea of blood beneath his feet.
"A goddess of blood... what the hell is this?" he thought, heart hammering against his chest. "Why am I speaking to some divine blood goddess? Out of all places... why here?"
She giggled softly, like a wineglass singing at the edge of madness. "No, this is real, my Crimson Star."
Alex's eyes widened. She had answered his thoughts. Word for word.
His stomach twisted. A mixture of awe and dread coiled within him. "Why am I here?" he asked aloud. "Are you really... a goddess of blood?"
Velmora's smile curved into something both wicked and graceful.
"I am. And I've been watching you, Alex. Watching your work. Your research... it impresses even me. Blood and immortality. You seek truths others are too frightened to name."
Alex's eyes narrowed. "I did it because..."
"Because you want to reverse the DNA of blood to achieve immortality," she finished, grinning.
He froze, the words catching in his throat. "How did you know that? Am I in trouble? Is this some kind of punishment?"
"No," she said softly, almost kindly. "I've watched you for a long time. You who refused to give up. Who chased the dream of eternal life not for fame, but for understanding. For control. You didn't want to die like the rest of them."
Alex looked down at his reflection in the ocean of crimson.
"I don't want to die," he thought. "I don't want to age, to become weak. I don't want to fade like everyone else. I want to live... truly live."
Velmora stepped forward. Her voice melted into the silence. "It's alright. Everything will be fine."
His eyes shot up to her. "How can it be alright? I'm dead. I'm not even alive anymore. I can't go back. I can't finish my work."
She leaned forward slightly, glowing veins pulsing with divine light. "Then let me give you something more. A second life. A new power. The power of a Blood Mage."
His thoughts reeled. "A second chance... power... blood magic?"
Velmora tilted her head, eyes glowing. "Looks like I have your full attention now, my Crimson Star."
Alex took a breath. "What... exactly is this second life? What is the power of a Blood Mage?"
She approached him, the air trembling with each step. She was taller than he expected. Elegant. Terrifying. Beautiful.
Alex stepped back instinctively, nerves prickling.
She reached out.
He flinched, but didn't retreat.
Her cool finger gently touched beneath his chin, lifting it.
He opened his eyes—and hers were right there, piercing, eternal.
"You will be reborn in another world," she said. "You will have the gift of Blood Magic—an ancient, forbidden art. Feared. Outlawed. Cursed. And powerful beyond belief."
Alex trembled. "Reincarnated... in a new world? Starting over... with forbidden magic?"
"Yes," she whispered. "I gift you this power not because you deserve it, but because you fascinate me. You'll be more than a man. You'll be legend."
"Blood Magic..." Alex thought. "What exactly is it? What will I become?"
"A Blood Mage," she said, answering him again without a word spoken. "One who shapes reality through sacrifice. Through pain. Through essence."
Alex's thoughts thundered. "A Blood Mage... that's what I'll be..."
She smiled—not sweetly, but like a fire catching on sacred parchment.
"So... what do you think?" she asked, voice like velvet soaked in wine. "Will you take the power of the Blood Mage? Will you enjoy being alive in another world, where you bleed not for science... but for purpose?"
Alex stood before her—bare-chested, his wound from the scissors still open, raw.
He didn't speak.
He thought.
Not of revenge. Not of glory.
But of unfinished research. Of the dream he had died chasing.
Then he looked up—eyes clear, fierce.
"Yes," he said. "I want to do it."
Velmora's smile became something eternal.
"Then drink."
She lifted a single finger. From its tip, a droplet of glowing crimson blood formed—thick, slow, impossibly bright.
Alex did not flinch.
He opened his mouth.
The blood fell.
It touched his tongue.
It tasted like life. Like fire. Like every heartbeat that ever fought to survive.
And the world shattered.
Pain came first.
His back arched violently, body convulsing.
His veins burned with molten fire. His muscles seized as if being rewritten. Crimson light surged from within him.
BOOM-BOOM.
His heart pounded. A war drum from the gods.
BOOM-BOOM.
Crimson tendrils of liquid blood rose from the floor, reverent and slow.
They circled him. Spiraled. Worshipped him.
They began to merge with his body.
His skin split with glowing glyphs. Veins lit like constellations. Bones thickened with arcane steel.
Magic circuits ignited.
He became something new.
A mask formed. Blood and spirit shaped into a demonic kabuki visage. Wide slanted eyes, red and black. A too-wide grin of sharpened teeth.
It hovered over his left shoulder.
Watching.
Grinning.
Alex dropped to one knee, trembling.
Steam hissed off his skin. Blood evaporated like morning mist.
"What is this power...?" he thought. "It's alive... it's mine... it's everything."
Velmora stepped forward, her silk trailing like stardust.
She knelt, placed a hand on his chest. A crimson glyph pulsed beneath it.
"There," she whispered. "The blood has chosen. You are no longer just a man. You are a weapon. A vessel. A star made from crimson will."
Their eyes met.
His doubt was gone.
Alex grinned.
"I'll finish what I started," he thought. "I'll become a blood immortal."
Behind him, the mask grinned wider.
Velmora stood. "Are you ready for the new world?"
Alex looked up, steady and calm. "Yes. I'm ready to see what this new world has to offer. I'm ready to master my blood magic."
He hesitated for a moment, then asked, "What about the magic system in that world? How does it work? How will I survive with just blood magic?"
Velmora's expression grew thoughtful, her tone reverent. "Magic in that world is vast and layered. It flows through ley-lines, through spirits, through nature itself. Most rely on elemental channels—fire, water, wind, earth. Others manipulate energy through chants, runes, divine contracts, or magical beasts. But Blood Magic... it's older. It's primal. It works through offering, through bond, through will."
She stepped closer, her voice lowering. "You will be feared. Blood Mages are rare... hunted. Because your power comes not from outside, but from within. You don't borrow magic. You become it."
Alex nodded slowly, absorbing every word.
"And... where exactly am I going? What world?" he asked.
Velmora's eyes gleamed. "You are going to a world called Arkanthis. A fractured realm ruled by magic, chaos, kingdoms, and creatures born from nightmare and miracle. A world that will either kill you... or crown you."
A crimson glow flared at her fingertips.
"Prepare yourself."
A glowing magic circle formed beneath Alex's feet.
"Make the world yours," Velmora whispered, "and devour it... my Crimson Star."
The light enveloped him.
And then, he vanished.
Moments passed.
Then, in a faraway forest bathed in twilight, another magic circle sparked to life.
Crimson light surged, humming with divine rhythm.
Alex appeared within the circle.
The light faded.
He took a breath.
Around him, towering trees shimmered with iridescent leaves. Strange flowers glowed softly. Vines pulsed with soft red light. Somewhere in the distance, a stream whispered through stones.
The air smelled like wet iron and lavender.
A bird—with wings of bone and fire—flew overhead.
Alex looked around slowly.
"So this is Arkanthis..." he whispered.
He clenched his fist.
The glyph on his chest glowed.
The mask behind his shoulder grinned.
He stepped forward.
"Let's begin my new adventure."
And with that, he walked into the crimson wild.
Chapter 3: Crimson Awakening
Leaves crunched beneath his boots as Alex Mercer walked deeper into the blood-lit forest. Strange flora pulsed with a rhythm that almost felt... alive. He passed a tree that bled sap the color of garnets, and paused to look up at the ghostly light trickling down from the canopy.
The forest was silent, but not dead. It watched.
"Okay... so this is Arkanthis," Alex murmured. "New world. New rules. Magic. Monsters. Blood."
His thoughts buzzed.
"If this really is like those isekai manga I used to read as a kid... then maybe..."
He narrowed his eyes, took a breath.
"Open status," he mumbled.
A flicker.
Suddenly, a crimson screen burst into existence before him, dripping like blood suspended in glass. It shimmered, stabilized, and displayed glowing text across its eerie surface.
Status
Name: Alex Mercer
Age: 24
Race: Human (Bloodborne)
Level: 1
Class: Blood Mage
Titles: Reincarnated One, Crimson Star, Veinbound Soul, Marked by the Goddess of Blood
HP: 210/210
MP: 480/480
Strength: 14
Agility: 16
Endurance: 15
Mana: 52
Luck: 27
Charm: 33
Normal Skills
Mana Sense (Basic): Detect nearby magical signatures
Monster Anatomy: Know weak points of biological creatures
Enhanced Pain Tolerance: Takes reduced penalties from injury
Blood Tracker: Sense the presence of bleeding or wounded creatures
Appraisal: Analyze and reveal the stats, name, race, class of others
Fast Learner: +30% experience gain when using or witnessing magic or combat-related actions (Trait gained from reincarnation)
Ability Skills
Crimson Focus: Calm state enhances casting speed and accuracy
Adrenaline Spike (Passive): MP surge and minor speed boost when under 30% HP
Vital Reading: See heart rate and blood pressure of living beings
Ritual Preparation (Passive): Reduced cast time for blood-based incantations
Blood Magic Skills
Blood Needle: Hardened projectiles made from spilled or summoned blood
Blood Bind: Restrict movement of a target using ambient blood
Blood Shield: Defensive spell forming a barrier of swirling blood
Blood Sight: Vision-enhancing spell to detect internal bleeding, heart rate
Blood Manipulation: Directly manipulates any blood (yours, enemy's, environmental) like a telekinetic fluid weapon
Hemocraft Blade: Shape blood into melee weapons
Unique Skills
Crimson Pact: Forms soul-bound blood contracts with creatures or humans
Mask of the Veinwalker (Passive): A blood-shaped Kabuki mask forms during intense battle
Weapons
Bone Dagger (Uncommon): Short, curved blade carved from a monster's rib. Slightly boosts spell damage when used as a casting focus
Rusted Ritual Knife: Old blade infused with violent magical history. Dangerous to wield
Bloodbound Grimoire (Velmora's): Locked tome only Alex can open. Grows as he evolves
Items:None listed currently
Alex stared, jaw slightly open.
"Okay... damn. This is... insane," he muttered. "Blood Manipulation? Crimson Pact? That grimoire has my name on it? And a freaking blood mask during battle...?"
He smirked slightly. "Guess the goddess wasn't kidding. This isn't just power—it's identity."
Flicking the screen away with a thought, Alex looked around again.
The forest stretched onward like a living cathedral, trees swaying in slow, unnatural harmony. Red-tinted mist clung to the roots. In the distance, something howled.
He tightened his grip on the bone dagger sheathed at his hip.
"Let's begin my new adventure."
And with that, he stepped forward, deeper into Arkanthis.
The crimson forest whispered as Alex Mercer continued walking through the eerie, otherworldly terrain. Blood-tinted mist drifted lazily over the forest floor while ancient trees pulsed with faint red veins. Strange insects buzzed in the distance, and somewhere far off, the howl of an unknown beast echoed across the woods.
Alex walked in silence, soaking in the sights and sounds of Arkanthis. The forest almost felt sentient.
"This place is like something out of a dream... or a nightmare," he thought, eyes darting to every flicker of movement. "But I need to keep going. Figure out what lives here, what rules this world."
Hours passed. The sun never truly rose nor fell—only flickering twilight filtered through the blood-stained leaves.
Then—
Rustle.
A sharp noise broke the quiet.
Alex froze.
He turned slowly, eyes narrowing.
More rustling—this time to the left.
His heart began to pound, his instincts kicking in. "Something's coming. I can feel it."
Branches parted.
From the shadows of the forest, a dark shape emerged.
Alex's eyes widened.
A creature stepped into view. Reptilian. Humanoid. Its skin was scaled, mottled green and black. It walked upright, gripping a crude bone axe.
"What... is that thing?" he whispered. "Reptilian... humanoid... wait. No way."
More of them appeared. Two. Then five. Then nine.
By the time the last one emerged, there were fourteen in total, surrounding him in a loose semi-circle.
Alex's pulse quickened. "Appraisal," he said.
A crimson screen blinked into view.
Kobold (Forest Tribe)
Race: Demi-Beast
Level: 3–5
HP: 150–180
Strength: Moderate
Speed: High
Skills: Pack Coordination (Passive), Ambush Tactics, Vicious Slash, Screech Call
Behavior: Territorial and aggressive. Weak to magic-based damage.
"Kobolds… just like in the games and manga," Alex thought. "But these things are real. And they don't look friendly."
Suddenly, four of them snarled and lunged at him.
"Crap—what do I do?! This is my first fight!"
Their claws gleamed in the red light as they leapt through the air.
"Blood Shield!"
With a shout, Alex raised his hand. Blood surged from his palm, not from a wound—but conjured from his very will. It spiraled around him in thick coils before solidifying into a semi-transparent barrier of swirling, protective crimson.
THUD!
All four kobolds slammed into the barrier with snarls and yelps. Their claws scraped against it with a grating screech.
The shield shimmered but held firm.
Alex let out a breath, surprised at how instinctive it felt. "So this is the Blood Shield... it's like living armor, forged from my will and spirit."
The kobolds snarled and began slamming their fists and claws repeatedly into it.
"Keep hitting it, you little monsters," Alex muttered. "Tire yourselves out."
He focused.
Blood within the shield began to churn. He could feel it responding—not as magic, but as an extension of himself.
"Blood Manipulation."
Tendrils of crimson twisted upward from the base of the barrier, swirling like vines. With precision, he shaped them—compressing and sharpening their tips.
Needles. Dozens of them.
He grinned.
"Blood Needle!"
The needles hovered for a split second—then shot outward like arrows of liquid steel.
SHUNK! SHUNK! SHUNK!
The four kobolds howled in pain as the needles tore into them—piercing shoulders, legs, and necks. They stumbled back, blood splattering across the ground, their movements sluggish and erratic.
Alex's eyes glowed as he stepped forward.
"Blood Manipulation."
He raised his hand. The blood now spilling from the kobolds shimmered and lifted off the ground, dancing midair like serpents. The crimson streams coalesced into a dense orb.
The kobolds dropped, twitching once before going still.
"You're done," he whispered.
He waved the orb toward himself. It hovered beside him, vibrating faintly.
The remaining ten kobolds froze.
Their eyes flicked between the floating blood and Alex's calm, grinning expression.
They began to back away, confusion turning to panic.
Alex tilted his head. "Let's have some fun."
"Hemocraft Blade."
The blood orb spun rapidly, elongating, stretching, transforming.
A curved, gleaming blade materialized—formed entirely of blood hardened into something sharper than steel. It pulsed with power as Alex wrapped his fingers around the hilt.
He gave a feral grin. "My turn."
With a burst of speed, Alex dashed forward. His boots kicked up dust and red mist as he blurred between the trees.
The kobolds screamed.
They scattered.
But Alex was faster.
His blade moved in wide arcs, slicing through flesh and bone. The first kobold didn't even have time to raise its weapon. A single slash from shoulder to waist dropped it.
He spun—sidestepping a strike from another and slamming the hemocraft blade across its throat.
Three more tried to flee.
He was already in front of them.
One slash. Two jabs. A downward cleave.
Five kobolds lay twitching or dead before the rest managed to escape.
Five remained.
They split into different directions, trying to outrun him.
Alex stood still for a moment, watching.
Then he smiled.
"Blood Manipulation."
The hemocraft blade melted into red mist once more, swirling above his hand.
"Blood Needle—fivefold."
Five sharpened lances of blood shimmered into existence, hovering like silent predators.
Alex didn't even need to aim.
He simply pointed.
The needles screamed through the air.
THWIP! THWIP! THWIP! THWIP! THWIP!
Each found its target.
One kobold was pinned through the chest, another skewered through the back. The third collapsed with a needle embedded in its spine. The fourth convulsed with blood spurting from its neck. The last one was hit in mid-leap—sent crashing down with a whimper.
The clearing fell silent.
Only the sound of dripping blood remained.
Then—
DING!
A chime echoed in Alex's mind.
A screen shimmered before him.
Level Up!
New Level: 4
Stat Points Increased!
Strength: +2
Agility: +2
Mana: +5
New Skill Gained: Blood Echo (Passive) – Slightly recover MP after defeating bleeding targets.
Alex grinned. His body glowed faintly as the system's power coursed through him.
He looked around at the battlefield, soaked in crimson.
Fourteen kobolds. All down.
The blood still hung in the air.
"This power... it's real. It's mine. And it's just the beginning."
He dismissed the blade and turned from the mess.
"Let's see what else this world has to offer."
And with steady steps, Alex continued into the blood-stained wilds of Arkanthis.
To be continued...