The Vampire Count Returned to the Apocalypse Game

Paranoid Dan pulled hard on the rusted chain, making the metal screech like a clamorous scream.

The door opened just enough to let one person through, like an invitation suspended on the threshold of madness. Gabriel remained still for a second, evaluating.

He knew no mission in this game was a dead end; everything depended on the player’s skill, patience, and sometimes luck.

He took a deep breath and stepped inside, all his senses on maximum alert. He would not be fooled twice.

The interior was worse than he had imagined. A truly chaotic disaster.

Unstable piles of ancient books with yellowed pages, glass jars filled with dark liquids, hand-drawn maps pinned to the walls with rusted knives, and runes carved into wood that seemed to shift shape beneath the trembling light of a single candle.

In one corner, leaning against the wall, rested a musket with a bayonet: apparently the weapon that had nearly pierced his skull minutes earlier. The barrel still gleamed with a threatening reflection.

Dan sat on a broken stool in the darkest corner, gently rocking a wooden cup between his dirty hands. His bloodshot eyes shone with disturbing intelligence.

The moment Gabriel closed the door behind him, the man began bombarding him with questions.

"Can I know who you really are, jester? A name? How the hell did you run into that lunatic? And why, out of all the idiots in this village, did he decide to send you specifically to me?"

Gabriel answered with patience and calculated honesty. He explained that his name was Gabriel and that the strange man with deep eyes had approached him while he was selling materials at the market, commenting on his smell.

He did not hide important details, but he did not reveal more than necessary either. His answers were clear, efficient, and direct.

Dan listened in silence, rocking slowly. Every now and then he took a sip from his cup and grimaced. When Gabriel finished, the paranoid man let out a short, dry laugh.

"Why do you smell strange?" he suddenly asked, wrinkling his nose.

"And why the hell should I care if you don’t bathe regularly, idiot? People smell. But we don’t know what they smell like."

Gabriel silently pondered his words. The mask hid his expression, but his posture tensed.

He tried to answer eloquently, explaining that perhaps the "smell" was not a simple bad odor. However, he failed several times.

Every time he tried to elaborate, Dan interrupted him with erratic comments or questions that seemed completely unrelated.

His paranoia was growing stronger with every passing second; he talked about "them" listening, about shadows stealing energy, and about how all the villagers were despicable idiots.

The conversation was exhausting. Gabriel felt as if he were walking across broken glass.

He decided to change strategies. His gaze landed on an ancient map spread across an old table, held down with stones. Different runes were drawn across its surface, representing certain places with strange shapes.

"What is that map? It looks... important," he asked casually.

Dan’s expression changed instantly. His eyes lit up with an almost reverent gleam.

He grabbed the map with trembling hands as though it were a sacred treasure.

"This, boy... is a relic. A map passed from hand to hand until it finally ended up with me."

"Before that happened. Before men forgot. It shows the lines... the lines."

Suddenly, his face hardened. The paranoid expression vanished, replaced by cutting coldness. He dropped the map as if it burned him.

"Worm... why are you asking so many questions? Tell me the truth. Who really sent you? Do you work for them?"

Gabriel slowly raised his hands, trying to calm him down.

"He told me to come, Dan. He said you would know what to do."

For a moment, it seemed to work. Dan ran his hands through his greasy hair and began speaking, almost in a trance. His voice dropped into a conspiratorial whisper.

"That church... he must be referring to that church... it’s not just an empty building. Something happened there. A long time ago. They played with what they shouldn’t have, with what was forbidden. Their chants tore the veil apart."

"Ever since then, everyone says I’m crazy. And the church has remained completely sealed. They say they’re waiting... waiting for the higher order."

Gabriel listened carefully, absorbing every word. This was clearly part of a much larger quest. However, Dan’s behavior quickly began to deteriorate.

His eyes darted from side to side, and his body trembled. He started repeating the same phrases over and over again.

"The church... the abandoned church... they’re still there... singing... always singing... the gods... it is evil... enter... the gods..."

His voice became erratic and shrill. Suddenly, he jumped to his feet, knocking over the stool.

His trembling hands grabbed the musket with the bayonet.

"You’re one of them! You came to finish the ritual! To open the door!"

Gabriel, already on alert, reacted immediately. The moment Dan raised the weapon, he was already moving. He rolled to the side just as the gunshot thundered through the tiny shack.

The bullet slammed into the wall, spraying splinters and dust everywhere. The sound was deafening.

"You crazy bastard!" Gabriel shouted as he sprinted toward the door.

He burst outside without looking back.

Dan kept screaming from inside, a mixture of insults and warnings about the church. Gabriel paid no attention. He ran between the abandoned houses until he reached a safe distance.

Panting heavily, he checked his interface. The mission had updated:

---

[Chain Quest Progress: Whispers of Darkness!]

Current Objective: Investigate the Abandoned Church.

Warning: High difficulty. Possible permanent consequences.

---

It was a chain quest. Gabriel let out a relieved sigh beneath the mask despite the stress.

This went far beyond a simple random mission. He had sensed it from the beginning.

The night had grown very late. He decided it was time to log out.

He had made significant progress. Gaining levels, obtaining rewards, and achieving complete victory inside the dungeon.

The beginning of a much darker and more promising questline was unexpected.

The synchronization disconnected.

Gabriel opened his eyes inside his small apartment. The neural helmet felt heavy in his hands.

He smiled at the contrast. From a vibrant world filled with possibilities to cold concrete, cracked walls, and the real smell of dampness.

He got out of bed and walked outside. The city glowed beneath artificial lights that burned day and night.

Then he remembered the forums. There had been a mysterious thread about the Abandoned Church. He had seen it briefly before, but never paid much attention to it.

People were always inventing exaggerated rumors around mysterious locations.

"Tomorrow," he murmured to himself while eating slowly.

"Tomorrow will be the day."

He lay down once more, his body exhausted but his mind awake.

His thoughts swirled with possibilities. A chain that could lead him far beyond what he had imagined.

And for the first time in a very long time, Gabriel felt that the hunger inside him had found a new, clear objective.

The abandoned church was waiting for him.