Robert Vlaho

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 30 - A Step Into Infinity

After his rather short bout, Freddy left a cheering, rowdy audience behind and stepped back into the caves.

The punch had sent a notable healing pulse throughout his body, but not a noticeable one. It was only 1% Lifesteal, after all, and the sheer amount of healing needed to help him recover from the numerous layers of scars and permanent injuries won’t be covered with a single punch.

Still, though, Freddy had forgotten just how good using his talent felt. So, with a p...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 29 - The One in Power

Once Freddy realized what had been bothering him, it didn’t take long to come to terms with it. Frankly, he wouldn’t have expected to leave this place alive, even without a concrete reason to believe so.

If anything, finally having some confirmation that he was right was like a burden off his shoulders, and it wasn’t long until he abandoned that day's problems, leaving them to the Freddy of tomorrow.

After sleeping for nearly thirteen hours straight, he felt pretty good. He ...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 28 - Inescapable

As soon as the large crowd of captives and the guards guiding them entered the cave, it was as if they had stepped into an entirely different world.

The air was different; the floor beneath their feet was colder, softer, and covered in wild growth.

The cave mouth was large, leading into a gigantic open cavern, with fungal and bushy growth all over the walls and the floor, and massive vines hung from above. Everything looked shiny and slimy, and the sounds of footsteps echoed endle...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 27 - Alive

Freddy sat in his dark cell with a small globule of water floating around his body in an unstable orbit, losing a few drops every few seconds. As the last of the water left the grasp of his essence control, he used Create Water. His arms were trapped in a profoundly filthy straitjacket, and the burst of water from his right hand flowed into the dirty clothing.

With all the focus he could muster, he extracted a few drops of the conjured water before they could disappear, while the rest v...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 26 - Immeasurable Spite

Freddy woke up in a place that appeared to be, as he had feared the most, exactly where he had expected to arrive—a sterile, white ceiling, shackles all over his body, which was lying on a cold block of stone, and an assortment of sharp, terrifying objects at his side, ranging from knives, saws, pliers—

‘Yup…’ he confirmed it mentally, ‘this is a torture chamber.’ While his thoughts seemed calm, he was anything but. Still, he forced himself to settle and ...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 25 - Afterparty

Freddy had lived his life believing that, for men, looks were completely irrelevant. If you were poor, you were unattractive, and if you were rich, you would never struggle with women.

Be you an ugly bastard or a manifestation of handsomeness and masculinity, in the end, the number in your bank account, as well as your status and the property you owned, mattered the most.

However, his interaction with the girls at this party forced him to update his worldview slightly. Freddy wasn...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 24 - Party

Freddy crawled out of bed, feeling perfectly rested. He washed himself up, had breakfast, and proceeded to a particular drawer.

Given how little shopping he did, there was little garbage to deal with. But, when a bit of trash did show up, all he had to do was throw it down a small hatch in his kitchen. Thus, without any ceremony, he threw a wrapped plastic bag into the hatch and turned around without care—as if he didn’t just throw away the most valuable thing he possessed.

Fo...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 23 - Sneaky

“Madam—ack! Please,” Freddy begged as the sharp, claw-like nails drew blood.

Madam pulled him over the table and threw him at the wall.

He was seriously starting to hate being thrown at damn walls.

Whether it was through her life affinity or her mysterious talent that she never publicly disclosed, it was clear that she could read either his mind or his subtle physical reactions. How much information she could extract from such signs, Freddy didn’t know, but he felt t...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 22 - Annoying Enemy

As Freddy walked into the gym, Mark greeted him, “Hey, Freddy, what’s up?” Then, he asked the dreaded question, “So… did that guy come after you?”

“Nah,” Freddy lied. “He must have pussied out.”

“I see… I personally think you should apologize.”

Freddy remained quiet.

Mark continued, “I know you didn’t do anything wrong, but it’s much better to take a small hit to your pride than deal with trouble that isn’t worth it.”

Freddy lo...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 21 - Shame

The walls were painted a deep, crimson red. Tattooed men and women wearing robes the color of blood strode around the hallways, interacting close to none with their peers and acquaintances.

A large stone door shifted up, slowly screeching as the people passing by did their best not to turn to look at it. And from within that opened door, Janhalar strode out. The entrance abruptly slammed shut behind him, creating a violently loud noise, but he continued without a flinch.

Passing b...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 20 - Naivety

Freddy couldn’t help but ogle the interior decor of the opulent building. Matt strode before them, leading down the colorful, slick hallways. Everything was plasticized; pink, beige, and turquoise were the dominant colors, and the flowers growing in the space swayed on their own, even though the air was perfectly still.

They had been escorted into Madam’s headquarters—a large, gaudy building dominated by headache-inducing colors. And now, the assistant was taking them to Madam’s...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 19 - Expired

Freddy was back in the woods, holding two ether scrolls.

The first one held the Abyssal Depths Tempering Technique, and the second one contained the Hundred Wet Hells Tempering Technique. He didn’t hide that he was buying them this time since he was confident that Madam would find out anyway.

While it was true that producing an ability by oneself was most optimal, this wasn’t quite as true for body tempering techniques. Not only were the more complex ones too difficul...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 18 - Above the Mortal Peak

It was the morning after. The two young men sat in Freddy’s kitchen with the doctor’s heart on the table between them, still beating. Mark looked forlorn and underslept, and Freddy looked worse than back when he barely survived the passage break.

Neither of the two had it easy explaining what had happened. Fear of the other’s reaction, the unwillingness to remember the events themselves, and the feeling of loss and despair hindered their communication.

It was already nearly ...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 17 - Immortal Freak

Unsurprisingly, someone was trying to get information on a person connected to Madam Morleppe. Even then, Mark's gaze was among the coldest he had ever given anyone. “With all due respect, sir,” Mark said, “I have no interest in sharing personal information regarding my clients. Have a good day.” And with that, he turned around.

“Are you sure about that? I’m not asking for much!” The man tried, but Mark summarily ignored him as he turned around and started walking away. Bu...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 16 - Flowing Down the Leg of Life

The skeleton soon entered the room, clattering to the ground. Although Mark had reflexively adopted a combat pose, it didn’t take him long to turn around and sprint back to his body.

Freddy watched the man vanish, panicking for a different set of reasons. “Why are you here, Bloodshed!?”

The remnant paused at that and cocked its skull at him. “I…” It dropped its head. “I seem to have made a mistake. I will go back immediately.”

“No, you can’t return now! A...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 15 - Being a Beginner

Freddy watched Mark enter the changing room. The young man was clearly surprised that he had found Freddy already there. “Bit early today, huh?” Mark asked him teasingly.

“I was late for one day, and the man already has an opinion of my character, tsk, tsk,” Freddy said, clicking his tongue.

“Hahahaha, well, that suits me—” Mark started, but as he approached Freddy, he raised an eyebrow. He stepped a bit closer, shifting his body around to get a look at Freddy from a...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 14 - Touching Some Grass

It took him a few moments to catch up with where he was and to realize what was about to happen, but when he did, he felt strangely at peace with it.

There were far worse things he could have traded for an opportunity like this, and if he was placed into the right hands, this could even benefit him.

The clinic had a typical sterile vibe, with nurses wearing white coats carrying stacks of papers around. Freddy had no fond memories of hospitals, as the last time he was forced to go ...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 13 - A Formal Introduction

Janhalar pulled his smoking fist out of the pile of scrap wood that used to be his desk, and his assistant, a frightened young woman, whimpered as she took a few steps back.

“You are free to leave,” he said, and she quickly bowed before practically running out of the room.

Absolutely unbelievable.

Not even the city lord could pull something like this, which could only mean one thing—Janhalar was simply that goddamn unlucky.

Even after scouring the area around the...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 12 - Less-Than-Humble Beginnings

Although he had never been in a small community like this before, Freddy decided that he hated all of them with a burning passion.

“Hey, I’ve never seen you around. Where are you from? Just visiting or?”

“Are you…? No, wait, I don’t think I’ve seen you before!”

“Did you just move in?”

One person after another greeted him and tried to make small talk—realizing that he was an outsider without fail.

There were only maybe around a few thousand p...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 11 - It’s All Real

‘So… to sum it up. I am not allowed to say anything about what I’ve witnessed on the day of the break to anyone without madam’s permission, even mental health professionals, I have to ‘roid up for the next six months to look good for the interview, and finally, I get no money.’

Sacrificing his mind and body to get ahead was more or less Freddy’s modus operandi, so that wasn’t the worst thing in the world. No money, though? To sign the contract, he would have to ...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 10 - Madam

The moment Freddy opened the door and saw who was standing in front of it, he slammed it closed and leaned against it.

‘Holy shit! It’s Madam Morleppe! Holy fuck! I slammed the door in Madam Morleppe’s face! Aaah!’ His mind whirled as he rushed to try and come up with some sort of plan.

Madam Morleppe was the biggest late-night talk show host in the entire country, and Freddy spent many a night shift watching her on the BC. So that begged the question—what the h...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 9 - Reasons to Live

Mark realized something peculiar, as small as it may have been. For the first time in roughly seven years, he wasn’t wearing any academy clothing. They had a uniform for every occasion because, of course, if one was an attendee, they had to ensure that everyone in the world knew at all times.

Donning a black hoodie that had gotten a little small after all the muscle he had put on and blue jeans that were so tight he was worried they’d crush his nuts into infertility, he stepped on t...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 8 - All The Blood There Is

Freddy stared at the somewhat ordinary, albeit ridiculously handsome individual. “Yeah, that’s me. Uhm… Is there anything I can help you with?”

“You should probably get out of the apartment,” the man said casually. “There might be something dangerous in there.”

“Uhhh… Who—who are you?” Freddy asked skeptically.

Some random dude came barging in, claiming there was something ‘dangerous’ in Freddy’s apartment? This smelled incredibly fishy, and eve...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 7 - Unwanted Admirer

Freddy appeared back in reality, and the first thing he did was the most rational thing he could think of at the moment. “Holy fucking shit! Jesus Christ! Ew ew ew ew ew ew ew ew!”

So this was what the book meant. Shit like that existed everywhere around him!? And how was he supposed to sleep at night knowing that creepy bullshit like that was hiding behind his garbage can!?

And the whispering under his bed… Oh God, was that some other creepy shit too?

He got ...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 6 - The Netherecho

The vast fields were much quieter during the day than at night. But they were perilous nonetheless.

There was no such threat to this man, however. He donned red robes accented with thick violet string, and his long, messy, white hair partially covered his tattooed face, which was drawn in neat, red lines leading from his eyes and branching down his cheeks.

Standing confidently and eyeing the horizon, he frowned in dissatisfaction. After over a day of scouting, he had gathered enou...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 5 - Turning the Page

‘The cold… The smell… Ugh…’

The word headache wasn’t enough to fully encapsulate the headagony Freddy felt as he woke up. Sparse light peered through his shades the same way it did every morning, and his hand reached for the headgear.

But something was strange. The sound that usually tormented him every morning was missing, and—

'Hold on. There’s no headgear either—'

“Oh fuck!” Freddy yelled as he jumped up into a seated position...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 4 - The Coldest Night

‘Immediate appointment, my fucking ass,’ Freddy thought with a hint of bitterness.

For over two hours already, he had been waiting in line, and now, it was finally down to only two people.

Raising the glass box, he observed the red vestige within, its eyes closed and mouth shut.

‘Hundred part harm ye bring unto thine enemy, one part ye shall recover.’

The cryptic words still echoed in his mind. Honestly, he didn’t fully understand what the p...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 3 - Prime Vestige

“Sweet mother of–!” Freddy kicked the green face off his bed, and it shrieked as it flew behind his garbage can.

His legs burned, and his abs screamed in protest, but he still got up quickly, grabbed the headgear off the floor beside his bed, and got up, accidentally slamming his head into the ceiling.

The thing spoke again, “You fucking bastard child! How dare you do that to me!?”

“What the…?”

As his mind finally caught up with the reality of the situa...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 2 - Invasion

The realization gradually set in as Freddy took several shaky steps back, “Oh fuck me, it’s a passage!”

Shuffle.

“Ggegek!”

“Ggeheg!”

“Ggonggi!”

Cloaked and masked miniature humanoids popped their heads above the grass, one after another. Freddy saw the jagged daggers in their grip, and without any further hesitation, he ran right back to the street, screaming bloody murder.

He ran like mad, swinging the bag with the can of beans a...

[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 1 - The Passage

[NOTES]

This is from my new series, 1% Lifesteal! 

I hope you enjoy :)

[NOTES OVER]

The depths of the moonless night enveloped the vast fields, and away from daylight, chaos spread far and wide, the endless, bestial screams neverending.

Scurrying and whispering, concealed.

The smell of blood everpresent.

“Ggegge kgeegge ggek!” Tiny, cloaked, masked humanoids shifted through the darkness.

Whoosh.

Whoosh.

Nau...