Vampire Nightlife

"What?" Lukas stared at her unsurely.

"These are the two materials used in the creation of this totem." Emerys explained. "You don't have to try them because you'll barely affect it. All you really needed to do was destroy the first totem head anyway to pass the strength test. You're going to be a Hunter and not a Slayer."

"I see…"

Emerys smiled as her gaze twinkled. "Let's proceed with the next couple of tests alright? We need other parameters beyond brute force if you're really interested in going out of Lux City."

Why did Lukas feel like this was more than what he bargained for?

This was a Visual Sim Date, so why did it have too much lore like this?

He could appreciate it to some extent, but it was a bit out of place.

"Gah, I only wanted to earn some Credits." Lukas sighed and rubbed the back.

"There are other much safer jobs than this one you know?" Emerys said as her glasses slowly turned into a pure black pair of shades. "The reason why we pay more Nyx than others is the danger associated with this work."

"Hey, what's with the shades–"

Emerys smiled as she took a step back behind a tree. "Light Survival Test!"

Before Lukas could react, the night sky transformed into a dome of utter brightness–and despite it being a simulation, his entire body suddenly wracked in pain.

"Argh!" Lukas staggered back and then covered his eyes with an arm–then recognized the burning sensation on his arms.

Was he melting?! Gods he was melting–!

"And done," Emerys said as the daytime returned to nighttime and she stepped out from underneath the tree's shade.

"What the heck was that?!" Lukas shouted once he felt the pain diminish from him.

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Emerys took a step closer to him and gently grabbed his arm, she gave it a small squeeze.

"Still pretty solid. Do you workout?"

"Not much–"

"Well, you're still alive." Emerys noted as she looked at her tablet. "So you passed."

"What kind of test is this though?" Lukas tugged his arm away and threw her a glare. "I was melting back there."

"Don't be a baby–some people literally melt their face off during the test."

"What?"

"Oh, wasn't it clear from the start?" Emerys tilted her head. "There's a reason why we get waiver consents, right?"

Lukas stared at her in disbelief.

He wanted to feel pleasure for his little brother, which was why he allowed his senses to be fully used and that was the default setting in VR Capsules, but now he was regretting it.

"My, my, are you chickening out, Lukas?" The receptionist asked as she looked at him with a smile. "There's no harm in giving up if you wish to. You can reapply next time if you wish."

"Reapply?" Lukas stared at her.

"Yes, it's possible. We're always happy for new recruits serving Lux City." Emerys' eyes twinkled as her lips curled into a small smirk. "But can you really head back here a second time when you dropped out from the first test?"

"Ugh." Lukas rubbed his face. "Still, I don't get why we had to do something like this."

"I'm sure that you saw some of our professionals leaving with their long dark cloaks, right?" Emerys pushed her glasses. "Going out of Lux City is dangerous–which is why in the chance that your protective gear is removed, we'd like to see your survival rate underneath the sunlight."

"That's stupid…" Lukas frowned.

'Stupid?"

"The cloak I mean. Something like that can get removed, so why not a full coverage suit with a helmet. A heavy gear–"

"Presence and aura, Lukas," Emerys said. "If an enemy sees a bulky figure barrelling clumsily through the wastelands–those Vampires won't be seen as scary, right?"

"Not scary?"

"We strike fear into our enemies by our presence alone–surely even a city boy like you would understand this basic concept."

There was a look of disappointment on Emerys' face as she looked at him.

As if it was truly fundamental to look good and focusing on anything else was tantamount to not being an actual Vampire.

Lukas cleared his throat and met her gaze.

"So you're willing to sacrifice safety and cautiousness with our kind's personal weakness… and let me reiterate what you said or correct me if I was wrong, alright? But the reason for this line of thinking is because you Hunters want an intimidating presence so you could strike fear into the hearts of the weak?"

"Naturally."

"Okay." Lukas chuckled and covered his face.

He resisted the urge to laugh out, but his shoulders were shaking.

Emerys di Verdant looked at him uncomprehendingly.

She was the one who often laughed at pretty boys like him who tried to become Hunters–so why was he laughing at her as if she was the funniest thing in the world?

Emerys narrowed her eyes as she clutched the tablet in her hand tighter. "What… What are you laughing about?"

"Oh–the ridiculousness of it all." Lukas grinned.

He wanted to give credit to the person who designed the game–but this was simply hilarious.

"You… You think this is ridiculous?!"

"Yeah, I think I'm good." Lukas raised a hand and glanced around their surroundings.

"Good?"

"I'll head on to the exit–I'm done with this test. It's not worth the effort."

—

Emerys di Verdant was too stunned and startled to even make a single protest come out of her lips as she watched the man in front of her begin walking out of the examination room.

"Wait!" Emerys walked after him and then blocked his path. "You can't just leave so suddenly."

"What? Is there anything preventing me from doing what I like?" Lukas cocked an eyebrow, waiting for a second for her to answer, she hesitated too much and soon he was walking past her and heading out to the exit.

The metal doors hummed and opened upon detection of his presence.

Emery finally spat out the words she had been holding back.

"Don't you want to be a hunter–you'll be a valuable asset. You're stronger than average for some reason. Maybe it's luck, maybe it's your bloodline, either way, we'll be compensating you properly if you join. So why not give it another thought?"

"Well, I think you're still risking the life of our people by only utilizing capes and cloaks–and I want no part in that."

Lukas smiled at her then left.

Once he was gone, another smooth metallic door opened from another side of the room and an old man stepped out while accompanied by two maids.

The old man looked weak, he was even holding a cane–but there was a light in his red eyes that reflected a strong warrior from underneath.

"I see that it didn't turn out so well, Emerys."

"I'm so sorry that you had to see it–I…"

"You let your temper get the better of you." The old man shook his head. "There's great potential in him. You will do your best to recruit him, alright?"

"But grandpa–er, Grand Master. He already rejected me once."

"Then let him change his mind. That's not so hard is it?"

"You… you want me to use hypnosis?"

"No. I want you to talk with him and actually get his genuine interest. The city of Lux needs more people to take up our cause."