A Heart For The Heartless

Mikhail only stared at him in response.

Most of the vampires that he had killed before had also begged for their lives prior to their deaths by his hand, as if that would make him feel pity towards them. As though it would work on the off-chance that he would hesitate.

Apparently, they knew nothing about him.

Mikhail, the heartless.

The cruel vampire who did not care about others’ pain.

And it was true. Mikhail felt nothing before Erik’s constant pleas for mercy. It was interesting, the way his prey was squirming helplessly in his grip. In just one movement, Mikhail could tear off Erik’s head and plaster it on his desk like a little trophy.

However, he was not that reckless and arrogant. He did not enjoy killing; rather, he killed because he had to. Either in accordance with his duties or to save someone. He was not sadistic like the rebel vampires that were a part of The Gauntlet. He took no particular pleasure in killing, but he was admittedly very strict with his men and would punish them accordingly if they broke any of the rules.

Basically, he did not have the desire or urge to kill anyone unless he was forced to, based on the circumstances.

In Erik’s case, Mikhail knew that it would be foolish to kill him yet. ‘Yet’ being the keyword here. First, the most rational thing to do was to extract every information he could get from Erik while also making sure that Erik’s superior would not catch wind of Mikhail’s awareness.

“I shall spare you only on the condition that you prove yourself worthy of being spared,” Mikhail said. “If you agree to provide me with the information that I seek, then I shall show you the mercy that you treasure so much.”

Erik’s eyes instantly lit up with what seemed to be hope. “Y-Yes! Sire-” He coughed, both hands still gripping the hand that Mikhail wrapped around his neck. “I-I will do anything you ask! I-I swear!”

Mikhail’s eyes glowed a brighter red, clearly giving a warning. “If you dare try to deceive me, death will not be what you face the next moment.” His lips upturned into a smirk. “In case you’ve forgotten, there are many ways to torture a vampire. Death is simply an easy way out.”

For a moment, Erik seemed to have forgotten how to breathe.

“Y-Yes, sire… I swear! I swear I will tell you everything!” he pleaded.

***

“Dan Keyes?”

“Y-Yes, my lord…”

Mikhail folded his arms across his chest, looking thoughtful for a moment.

Dan Keyes was a former member of the Human Council. He was fired from his position about three years ago due to abuse of power and authority as well as poor performance in regards to his council duties.

Mikhail knew this very well because he was the one who exposed Keyes’ misdeeds at that time. From then on, Keyes held a grudge against him and was always trying to find ways to expose Mikhail’s ‘diabolical plans’ and weaknesses.

Mikhail did not pay much attention to Keyes, simply because the man was usually reckless and gave himself away each time. It felt like batting away a mere insect, something that was not worth Mikhail’s precious time.

“So he’s the one behind your infiltration?” Mikhail asked.

Erik nodded, his gaze glued to the ground. “I was… threatened to carry out the mission. Truthfully, I am a convicted vampire. I have no place in the city. Mr. Keyes was the one who gave me a chance to start anew.”

Mikhail nodded slightly. It made sense since convicted vampires, after finishing their sentence, would usually face ostracism or discrimination from the rest of society, making it difficult for them to integrate back into society.

Also, it was hard for vampires to work and make a living with that kind of record. There were a few businesses that would give them a chance, but it was still not guaranteed.

“What did you do?” Mikhail asked curiously.

“I…” Erik fidgeted. “…accidentally almost killed a human.”

“Go on.”

“I was… hungry. The blood tablets couldn’t sustain me for long,” Erik said quietly. “I was newly… turned at that time. I did not want to feed from humans. It went against my morals. I did not want to hurt anyone.”

“I see.”

Blood tablets were artificially produced to stave off a vampire’s hunger if the vampires refused to drink from humans. They were also allowed to hunt animals in the forest, but with limitations, of course.

However, feeding on blood tablets would only go so far. The vampires would always crave human blood in the end. Unfortunately, at that time, the blood banks weren’t full often due to not enough willing donors.

So, in the end, the vampires were allowed to feed from humans, but only if they gave the vampires their explicit and informed consent.

Also, there were systems of registration and consent in place where humans could voluntarily register to allow vampires to feed on them under certain conditions. In other words, the vampires needed to be careful as to who they fed from. The punishment for illegal feeding was quite severe.

Which was why Erik got punished accordingly. Granted, he did not kill the human in the end, but it was still considered an attempt, which still went against the law.

“That was when Mr. Keyes approached me,” Erik explained. “I don’t know why he came to me personally, but it seemed that he was recruiting convicted vampires for his cause. Also…” He glanced up at Mikhail hesitantly, fear gleaming in his eyes. “…he seemed to particularly hold a grudge against you, my lord.”

Mikhail shook his head. “Unsurprising, to say the least. Keyes has always been quite transparent about his motivations.”

“Y-Yes, so… he gave me a new identity with the help of his connections. I was able to integrate into society again, with his help,” Erik said slowly. “He told me that I needed to pay him back by succeeding in this mission. I was to find out if you’re doing any deplorable acts. I also serve as his spy and give him all the information he needs.”