Before The Dawn

Prolog

People believed that people who died unnaturally and their bodies were not burned would become vampires. That's not true though. Vampires are descendants of the strigoi, a group of humans who undergo satanic rituals to live long and live eternally. They drink blood as a condition of worship and their offspring will inherit an eternal curse.

Once upon a time to the west of the black sea, there was a prosperous kingdom called Slavinda led by King Dragos. Unfortunately, Luiza, the queen of that kingdom is famous as a devil worshipper. He believed that the prosperity his country had was solely due to the will of the demon lord. Luiza encouraged her husband, ministers, and bodyguards to perform the ritual of immortality to maintain prosperity and glory in the country. But it was not as expected. Because of this ritual, the entire kingdom was cursed. Slowly, the kingdom was destroyed.

The ritual has turned everyone into a Monster. They cannot die, be injured, or grow old. But as a consequence, they have to drink blood all the time. Since then the king and queen issued a controversial decree requiring the people of the country to offer as much blood as they wanted. At first, the kingdom was quite satisfied with the star blood that was offered. But after the livestock dwindled, they began to order the hunting of wild animals. But the longer the situation in the kingdom is getting out of control. And the hungry royal guards ended up killing their fellow humans and drinking their blood. Terror in the kingdom is out of control causing chaos. The people of the land were filled with fear. Some of them were captured alive and brought to the kingdom without any wrongdoing. Then never come back again.

The remaining people chose to flee the capital. As a result, the situation in the country is increasingly empty. The ministers from various camps felt misled by the queen, they staged a coup and removed the king and queen from their thrones. Unkilled, the king and queen were then exiled to an unknown place. Meanwhile, their son who also inherited the curse became a debate between the two camps. The first camp supported the crown prince to ascend the throne and restore the kingdom. They thought the crown prince had more control over their desire to drink blood because it wasn't completely cured. However, the second camp flatly rejected the idea. They thought the crown prince was not strong enough and would be the same as his parents. Because of this the second camp wanted the throne for themselves and exiled the crown prince.

A great war involving two cursed human camps took place for years, causing even greater destruction. But from that war they later discover the fact that they are not truly immortal. They can kill each other with their own hands. And if they don't drink blood for more than a day, then their bodies will turn into even more terrifying monsters. And they will live to the fullest like animals.

So that the two would not destroy each other, the two factions then decided to strike a deal. The second faction promised not to kill the royal family on the condition that the first faction had to leave the capital. After all, there was nothing to defend against the collapsing empire and the second camp promised not to make their leader king. Meanwhile, the first faction that lost a lot of members and was under pressure, had no choice but to abide by the agreement. There is nothing more to defend from the kingdom. Their only loyalty is to the crown prince.

the first faction left the capital as agreed. With the remaining members, they went to the much colder western region. The cold air can help them resist the craving for blood. So that they will not be tempted to drink human blood.

Two hundred years have passed, many changes have occurred in human civilization. The kingdom has turned into a modern government. But even though technology developed in that era, it did not necessarily eliminate ancient civilizations completely. Out of reach of humans, they try to blend in and put on masks. The Strigoi of the second camp or the rebels led by Aron Lord de King had managed to make use of their immortality in such a way.

From time to time, they managed to accumulate a large amount of wealth. Wealth that allowed them to build their own empire. They controlled not only some territories but also governments in several countries. They are immune to local laws and are able to control humans like puppets.

While the other factions that had left the region centuries ago never reappeared. They become ordinary citizens of a place and live in torment because of their immortality. Neither of the two camps realized that among them lived another killer who was threatening themselves and their group. The name of the group is the hunters. And among the hunters are the descendants of the sorceress Apulus, the sorceress who helped the people of the Slavinda kingdom escape. He is also believed to be able to kill and burn the soul of immortality.