Fear. Fear can take many forms and can result in just as many reactions. Broadly speaking, reactions to fear can be categorized into four responses: fight, flight, freeze, and fawn. Very convenient. They all start with the letter F, which is easy to remember the next time you’re afraid.

One such situation could be a five-year-old getting lost in the woods. A small child standing alone in the middle of a forest of giant trees, where the excitement of adventure turns into fear of the unknown.

Is that a clawed hand or just the branches of a tree? Was that the sound of a stalking predator or the wind rustling some leaves? A typical child might freeze in place and start crying. A helpless call for help.

Aelius didn’t have time for that. It wasn’t like he was brave or bold. Quite the opposite he was rather afraid. The fear didn’t come from being lost; this wasn’t the first time he took a wrong turn on an outing. Nope, the fear came from the consequences. From not being on time for Elizabeth’s lessons.

‘Maybe I should pick some flowers as an apology for being late? No, that’s stupid. Something Nicolas related might smooth the situation over.’

Aelius began to sweat, and it wasn’t because of the sun. He shook his head; it was too early to give up. He can still make it on time.

Looking upwards he saw through a gap in the trees a stone structure. In the same direction, the smell was coming from.

‘Oh well, I’ll check it out. I might find directions home.’

A few minutes of walking led to Aelius standing in front of another palace. A different palace.

“Woah. How many palaces are around here?”

The halls and marble structures were grander but more simplistic than the palace he was living in. Then again everything looked bigger to a child. The place felt abandoned. The only sounds were from birds chirping and insects buzzing.

With the emptiness of the palace, Aelius let his imagination roam free.

He was a child in body and sometimes mind. A tragic novel it might be, but that didn’t mean he had to be gloomy all the time. No one was around so why not have a little fun.

“I, Aelius, am a legendary thief with many years (5 years) of experience under my belt, soundless are my steps as I make my presence one with nature.”

This palace was really clean and well maintained. It would be a shame for no one to use it. Thus, Aelius was struck with a genius idea. Maybe he could use this place as his official hideout. A place where he could sneak off and make his grand plans. Not to hide from Elizabeth or anything like that…

There was someone taking care of this place, so all he needed to do was to be on the lookout for the servants’ schedule then the place was his.

Now he can also hide the extra blood vials without Elizabeth finding out.

“Brilliant! This plan is flawless! Nothing could…”

… Go wrong.

He stopped himself in time.

Phew!

Even Aelius wasn’t so foolish as to tempt fate by saying that phrase out loud.

Life before the novel was somewhat difficult. Saying that he had neglectful parents might be an understatement. Think Cinderella’s evil stepmother and Kassim from Aladdin, a funny pairing if it wasn’t real life.

It makes one wonder how they reacted upon hearing of his death. Celebrated with their cat, probably. The whole family was mean. Cats are naturally arrogant, but how can that hairball snub any attempts at pets?

Life wasn’t great anyway. Whether they were sad or not, that was behind him.

Novel-Aelius had it rough when it came to the people as well, but it wasn’t all bad. Living in a palace had its perks, he had his own home and didn’t need to work for food or clothing.

The palace resources combined with the knowledge of a reincarnated person can have interesting results. On Earth, shampoo and conditioner were commonplace and items that people took for granted. In a fantasy world? Aelius was an innovator.

Elizabeth noticed the shine in his hair and the gentle herb aroma was too obvious for a vampire’s enhanced senses. Being immortal didn’t mean that you didn’t want to look good.

Elizabeth ‘borrowed’ some of his products. The attention that the male servants gave Elizabeth naturally attracted the jealousy of the female servants.

One thing led to another and Aelius felt like a drug dealer. The biggest hustler in the palace. Shampoo and conditioner for different types of blood vials or favors.

Something that began as an innovation for self-comfort became a bustling business. Aelius ended up making a few more items from his world. Nothing world-shaking but things that made the lives of the servants more comfortable.

Turns out discrimination against a half-blood only went so far when compared to particular culinary delights. The blood was good. Black pudding made Aelius a celebrity in the palace.

So, Elizabeth took care of his vampire training and other servants taught him how to read, write and behave like a noble.

Grand changes occurred within the palace that no one else knew about. The massacre became a blessing in disguise, deterring visitors. Hopefully, it remains that way until the day he was ready to leave.

“Do you think Nicolas likes long hair or short?”

Elizabeth gushed over her silky-smooth hair. Aelius gave her a flat look, she changed from a harsh taskmaster to a teenage girl too quickly. They were just sparring moments ago, and this comment came out of nowhere. The hair conditioner seemed to have seeped into her brain and is exasperating her weirdness.

Whether he likes it or not Aelius wouldn’t ask or wait around to find out. Hopefully, he’ll be out of here before he reaches the death flag. On his 18th birthday. On the day of his imprisonment.

Forget 18, he won’t even meet that monster for the first time either. Novel-Aelius’ fateful encounter was at the age of 10, a surge of hunger made him lose reason forcing him outside. Current Aelius won’t let that happen. His stock of blood vials will only grow larger, removing any need to venture for food.

He’d like to give Nicolas a good punch to the face for his official ‘worse father’ award, but he wasn’t crazy enough to face the strongest vampire of this era.

“The prince’s room is messier than usual; I miss when he was a helpless baby.”

“Gods forbid. That little shit was a nightmare, at least he’s more reasonable now.”

Aelius stopped in his tracks as he heard the conversation between the servants.

“We should clean it before he starts making something new. We won’t be able to even enter until he finishes.”

Another servant sighed.

“Wait until tomorrow, the best time is when he’s training with Elizabeth.”

They all shivered before walking away to their various duties.

‘It’s time.’

Aelius rushed back and started gathering the vials hidden all around his room. A total of 10. The first of his hidden stash. It was time to utilize his new hideout.

Aelius dropped to the ground to catch his breath. The new palace wasn’t too far away but he ran as fast as he could so that he can make it back without anyone noticing.

Supernatural speed is great. Endurance is still lacking though. Elizabeth had said that both attributes needed training, but speed came first. He was confused because endurance seemed like the foundation to train before speed.

When he asked, she laughed and said that it might be true for other races but not their own. Vampire battles with the exclusion of bloodlines are mostly fast-paced. A drawn-out battle with a vampire is only wise if you’re confident in your defensive capabilities.

A five-year-old should concern himself with running away and losing their opponent in a short time. When young vampire awakens their bloodline ability then they can focus on endurance.

Seeing that Aelius wasn’t paying attention she decided to teach him the hard way. She gathered multiple servants and asked them to capture Aelius.

Thinking they were going to take turns Aelius took a ready stance. He wasn’t prepared for five adult vampires to pounce on him like some fresh meat. They were so eager that he was momentarily surprised before he did what he had to.

Aelius ran.

The chase lasted a few minutes, but the results were obvious. The servants returned with the five-year-old tied like a cow at a rodeo.

The memory made Aelius chuckle as he hid the vials in a hole under a statue of a Pegasus. Then he ran back.

By the time he arrived in his room and got under the covers he was sweating and heaving from the extended cardio. As quickly as he could he changed his clothing and got into bed half-naked. Footsteps were quickly approaching.

Elizabeth came in shortly after to read him a bedtime story. More like a history lesson but she made them interesting.

“Prince~ are you ready for—”

She squinted at the tired Aelius.

“Hmm, sweating and breathing heavily.”

She put a hand on his forehead.

“A little feverish, but I don’t smell sickness…”

She looked around and spotted his pants on the floor.

”Oh. Ohhh. I seemed to have intruded. I shall… give you some privacy.”

She gave Aelius a knowing glance before leaving. He just looked on in confusion.

“What is she…”

Connecting his symptoms and the half-naked state he was in, Aelius nearly jumped out of bed to correct the misunderstanding. He was 5! Children that young don’t even know about… What is wrong with that woman?!

With the first successful retrieval and relocation mission, Aelius began to move his other vials. It wasn’t like he wasn’t enjoying life as it was. Food, comfort, and luxury all around. To be honest he was quite content.

This is exactly why he needed to prepare for the unexpected. There was no knowing when that psycho is going to show up. The changes that occurred due to Aelius’ meddling might have unforeseen consequences.

A sudden summons or a spy could go tattle about what’s been happening. Aelius had to have a safety net. The blood vials were a vital part of living as a vampire. He was still too young to hunt properly, his little tricks with the servants wouldn’t get him far with a real predator or a malicious vampire.

Preparation was key.

Aelius wondered about the new hideout, still empty of occupants. Maybe this was another massacre zone. He wouldn’t be surprised. The silence was a little unnerving, but he preferred moments where he could just wander around and let his thoughts become nonsensical.

Plotting, training, studying, and innovating are tiresome. His schedule was too full. Moments like this were worth getting told off later. Plus, with his actual mental age, reading and writing were surprisingly easy to learn. Even his teachers looked at him in surprise.

Aelius took a different turn to explore another hidden area when smelled it.

The same delicious smell that drew him to this place in the first place!

He ran.

It didn’t take long before he reached his destination. The source of the smell.

A garden. Filled with yellow flowers with a crimson center.

The scent was of blood of course. What else could be delicious and make a vampire run so far? He just didn’t expect it to be from flowers.

Just as he was wondering why the smell had disappeared before, the flower petals began to move. The smell became fainter and fainter until it disappeared completely with the closing of the flowers.

It was barely past midday. Why did the flowers close?

Aelius moved closer to the flowers. He had to force one open. Who knows, maybe the nectar had some special ability for vampires. This could be his fortuitous encounter; the flower could awaken his bloodline early and push him towards his journey of becoming a true protagonist.

His imagination ran wild as his claws forced open the flower.

As the petals were forced apart, a trail of red liquid poured between his fingertips. The trail had that same wonderful smell.

Aelius looked at his finger and shrugged. What’s the worst that could happen?

Without hesitation, he stuck his finger into his mouth.

Immediately, his eyes rolled to the back of his head and his body swayed.

The taste was—

Otherworldly.

This was incredible. He needed to taste some more. He needed to—

“What...”

A cold voice sounded from behind him

Aelius flinched, eyes widening in horror. He hadn’t heard that voice before.

Fight or Flight.

Fight. Flight. Fight. Flight. Fight. Flight.

“… are you doing in my palace?”

Aelius froze in place.