The First Devouring

The battlefield became quiet for a moment, the unbelievable image blazing into every soul.

The Titan King groaned, grasping his wound. The guards could only stare.

And Urzmu staggered back, clutching the wound in disbelief, his roar tearing the night apart. The tide of battle had shifted.

The camp was chaos, shields shaking under the pounding of tusks, children wailing, and guards on the verge of breaking.

“Maren!” she snapped.

The sword wrenched itself out of Urzmu’s chest and hovered, its blade oozing black ichor. Then it twirled, shining like a shard of moonlight, racing around the orc king in a flurry. Each slash it carved was too fast to follow, sparks and blood trailing in arcs of silver fire.

Don’t kill him yet… Anna commanded without saying a word, her eyes narrowing, Divert his attention for now.

“W-Why?! You sure?”

Of course I am… Leave it to me...

“Dance! Maren!” She then said out loud.

And the sword obeyed, thrusting and slashing from every direction possible with its magic, striking tusks, wrists, knees, and eyes. The mighty Urzmu roared, swinging wildly, but the slim weapon twisted past his cleaver each time, nicking him repeatedly.

But Anna was not watching Urzmu. Her gaze swept the battlefield, calculating.

Seems like I came at a bad time, huh…?

“Well, of course you did!! This big orc is supposed to end the head of the knight with honor. But we interrupted!” Maren said through telepathy while still making Urzmu annoyed.

The orcs were circling tighter, pressing at weak points in the human line. The guards were all panicking, fighting as individuals, not as a unit. It would collapse. She saw it in an instant.

Damn it… All this knight is as bad as Ramu and his friend…

She gritted her teeth.

If this continues, those orcs can easily break through… Looks like we have around 60 guards? This should be easy…

“Shields, together! Lock formation! Form a tortoise! A big one! Make every survivor in the middle. Do not move forward by yourself!” she barked.

The men froze, startled. No one moved for a moment, possibly considering.

Her glare snapped at them. “If you don’t do as I say, you’re going to be their prey. No time to debate.”

Hearing that, instinct overrode reluctance. The guards rushed into action, shields smashing edge-to-edge, front rank squatting, and second rank bracing above them. The makeshift testudo tightened, a shell of steel. Orc clubs smashed down—and glanced off harmlessly.

“Who’s the spearman here?!” Anna’s voice cut again. “Aim low! Legs, knees! Break their advance! All the ones who can do strengthening magic, please use that spell now! It doesn’t matter if you’re not a knight; do as I say if you don’t want to die!”

Some girl in the survivor group looked around and suddenly nodded, using a supporting spell for the guards. Anna smiles seeing them. “Well then, 3, 2, 1! Attack!”

The front line thrust in unison. Orcs stumbled, crashing over each other, their momentum broken.

Because Anna is outside the formation, an orc is trying to attack her, but Maren quickly flies towards Anna and decapitates the orc’s head. “You better thank me later!” She said before going back to annoy Urzmu.

She just smiled. She looked in the middle of the group of survivors, many knights with winged boots and holding arrows. She knows what to do.

This is so fun…

“Archers! The orcs are imbued with darkness. Fly! Use Fire Arrow to burn their head! Point at the fallen orc in the front row!” She commanded again.

The archers lit up; they looked at each other and flew above the other. Pointing at the orcs below.

Just as another batch of orcs got stabbed in the knee and struggled to get up, her voice cut through, “FIRE!” She commanded, and when they shot the fallen orcs, the panic of the burned orc made the other orcs angry at each other, making more chaos.

“The shielder! Don’t falter! Strengthen! Use all your might!”

Amidst the clash, Jarce uses his winged boots to fly to her side, his hand brushing her shoulder. “Anna—are you okay?”

Her head turned slowly, her stare colder than the grave.

“I already said,” her voice was soft, sharp, and lethal, “don’t touch me. Just do as the other guards do. I don’t make exceptions for a lazy knight.”

Jarce flinched back as if burned, “Y-Yes!” He then flies back to protect the survivors.

“Anyone that can use fire elements! Use them! Keep repeating! 20 orcs is nothing against us!”

“YES!” they scream.

Anna then walked forward through the chaos until she stood before Destrian.

The Titan King was on one knee, his left arm bracing his body, his right arm a mangled stump. His breath was ragged. He stared up at her, sweat trickling into his eyes.

"Do you want to be saved…" Anna questioned calmly and mercilessly, "Or do you want to be sacrificed?"

The words froze him. He saw it now—the pale skin, the burning eyes, the unnatural strength. A vampire.

“I… I have failed as a knight,” Destrian rasped. “Losing an arm… Losing the armor… Losing my swords… It means the end for me. But still—I want to live. Can you… help us?”

Anna’s lips curved, almost tender. “Of course I can.”

“Then—” he swallowed hard, bowing his head, “—I beg you. Help us.”

Her smile sharpened into something dangerous. “Very well then. But I demand a prize.”

“I am Destrian,” he said hoarsely, “Head of the Knights of Minilon. I swear on my honor, the Kingdom of Minilon will fulfill your every wish.”

Anna’s eyes gleamed.

Maren, I think I got a jackpot right here…

“KYAA!!! ANNA! STOP JOKING AROUND! I’M TRYING MY BEST NOT TO GET EATEN BY THIS ORC!”

Her voice dropped back. Yeah, yeah… Can you kill him?

The sword’s voice rang back, smug and eager. “Of course I can! Just give me the order! I can’t do anything if my users don’t give us any order.”

Anna’s smile bloomed. “Do it, Maren. Kill that orc!” she said loudly.

It spun once—twice—then struck.

Urzmu froze mid-roar. His eyes bulged, his cleaver slipping from his grip. The sword’s silver edge tore clean through his neck.

A geyser of black blood sprayed the earth as his head toppled, tusks digging into the dirt. His massive body staggered, then collapsed with a crash that shook the camp.

The forest fell silent.

The remaining orcs stared in shock, then howled in rage—but one by one, their fury faltered. Their king was gone. The tide broke. They turned and fled, vanishing back into the trees.

The camp was intact. Not a single survivor lost their life.

Anna stood in the firelight, blood flecking her cheek, Maren hovering at her side like a faithful hound.

Behind her, Destrian slumped to the ground unconscious. Jarce and the other knights rushed forward, lifting their fallen captain with trembling hands.

But all eyes, even in their fear, slid to Anna.

The vampire had saved them.

“Mnaaa, Anna! You want to do something with the corpse?” Maren asked innocently.

Anna looked at the floating UI and then at her hand. Yeah, I do have a skill, but I don’t know how to use it… Maren, do you know?

Maren floats to see what skill Anna is talking about. “Devour… Oh…! I think you just touch their body and say, "Devour!" It’s really handy for a vampire, you know!”

Really? She still looks hesitant.

“Don’t worry, Anna! Trust me! I’ve seen many vampires do it like that!”

Ok then…

“Devour,” she whispered, and the body of Urzmu shriveled instantly, collapsing into dust as if it had never been flesh at all. A floating notification of numbers flickered in her vision.

Mana gained: 1,200,000

Maximum Mana capacity: +1,200,000

Her orange eyes widened. “1.2 million…?”

Maren was also shocked. “1.2 million?! Kyaaa!!! Anna!! You have 24 million mana now!”

Anna smiled warmly before turning to the fallen orcs that Destrian had killed. “Sorry, boys, but Mama’s hungry.” One by one, their corpses dissolved into the same writhing black fluid, absorbed greedily into her hand.

Anna flexed her hand like she’d just finished filing her nails, then nodded in satisfaction. “That should do nicely.”

I feel so much lighter and better now! She brushed the dust off her skirt and skipped back toward the carriage.

“Anna, it’s a good thing that you’re smiling now… I thought you were mad and sad because Orivaneia left you…”

I am still annoyed that Orivaneia left me, but now I’m kinda… I don't know, more excited than mad… Maybe it’s not that bad having you beside me.

She closed the carriage door, and the façade broke. She cracked like a glass vase under pressure.

“But that was so scary…!! Did you realize that I almost died?! I almost fainted when that orc came in my way… Thank you so much!” She said,

The sword twitched in her lap. “…You… You almost fainted?! I thought you looked cool! You barely move; I thought you trusted me enough to let your guard down.”

LET MY GUARD DOWN?! Maren! I think you’re mistaken! I can’t fight! I don’t have a guard!!

The sword vibrates slightly, “KYAA!!! I KNEW IT! But Anna…! Don’t worry about it! I can fight for you. I am strong! You don’t have to fight if you don’t want to!”

Thank you, Maren…

“But Anna! You just devour that orc, right? Vampire devouring also has a chance to take the power too! You should check it!”

Anna’s eyes glowed faintly. “Really…? Let’s see…” She pulled out the UI again, but no info showed up. “Looks like I didn’t get anything yet… Shame.”

“Mnnaaa! That’s fine! We can still, uh… farm! Yeah, we can farm some mana and skills, don’t worry, Anna! You’re still my master!”

Anna just chuckles, sitting down nicely again in the carriage. “I suppose you’re right. I can’t wait. Let’s kill many monsters after this and get that 50 million for you!”