As the phantom veil completely cloaked the museum and its inhabitants, one girl scrolled through TikTok on her phone—until a notification popped up.
> No network.
"Fucking hell, where did the reception go?" she muttered, frustrated.
Behind her, Charles silently walked past, unnoticed at first. But then, he felt a light tug on his shirt. Turning, he saw a young woman holding onto him.
"May I help you?" Charles asked politely.
"Oh—sorry. I just wondered if you're getting reception?" she asked awkwardly.
Charles gave a gentle smile. "Sorry to disappoint, but I don't have a phone on me right now."
What kind of person goes out without a phone? And… why do he and his companions look so pale? she wondered silently.
"Young lady," Charles said again, snapping her out of her thoughts.
"Yes?" she replied.
"Your nose is bleeding."
She gasped and touched her face. Blood streamed from both nostrils. "Oh—thank you," she said, pulling out a napkin.
"My pleasure," Charles said softly, then continued walking toward the museum exhibit.
Meanwhile, outside the museum steps, Kane cracked open a soda, watching the crowd.
"Hey Kane?" a squad member called out.
"What?" Kane grumbled.
"Shouldn't we be with the others?"
Tony's question made Kane scoff. "Just because we're teammates doesn't mean I need to follow them like a damn puppy."
"Relax bro, it's not that deep," Tony replied.
"You wanna go at it then?!" Kane snapped, standing up.
"Not at all!" Tony chuckled. "James, calm him down."
"Don't drag me into this," James muttered. Then, his expression turned serious. "But hold up… something feels wrong."
"What do you mean?" Tony asked, raising an eyebrow.
"The mana in the air… it's dense. Concentrated," Kane muttered, now alert.
"You're right… someone activated a Phantom World," James added.
"Maybe it's the other group?" Tony suggested.
"I doubt that," James said.
"There's dark mana lingering," Kane confirmed. "And that's rare. Whoever did this has a dark mana core."
"Couldn't it be Akira? Doesn't he have one?" Tony asked.
"No. Even if Mikage's teaching him, Phantom World takes years to master. Only a few of us—me, Mikage, Edward, Yukiko—can pull it off. And this one is warped… civilians are inside instead of separated. That's not how it's meant to be."
Kane's face darkened. "Try to reach the others. Now."
James activated his walkie-talkie. "Come in Mikage… Yukiko… Edward… anyone?"
Silence.
"I'm getting nothing," James said.
"Same here," Tony added.
Kane checked his own. No signal. "Tch… This Phantom World was modified to block communication."
He stood up, his eyes hard. "Let's find the barrier edge. If this is your doing, Akira… I'll kill you myself."
Inside the museum…
The crowd gathered around the main attraction: a massive coffin sealed in unbreakable glass and lit from all sides.
Charles stood before it, eyes glowing with intent.
It's right in front of me… finally, he thought.
A woman's voice echoed through a mic: "If anyone has a theory about this mysterious coffin, step forward and share. But only after you pay the fee."
People took turns giving outrageous theories.
"I think it held the last survivor of a cursed family," one man said.
"No, it's a virgin sacrifice to end the old London plague," said another.
Charles barely listened. Humanity used to believe such nonsense, he mused.
"Anyone else?" the guide asked.
Charles raised his hand. "Me."
"Great. Have you—"
He walked right past her, ignoring her demand for payment, and placed his hand on the glass.
"Please remove your hand from the exhibit," she said sternly.
Charles didn't move.
"In an age when magic ruled the world," Charles began, his voice smooth and cold, "Dracula roamed with the Horns at his side. He searched endlessly for something—tearing down cities, leveling villages—until the magical families banded together with three Sorcerer Supremes to stop him."
The crowd quieted, sensing something was off.
"Though ambushed and outnumbered, he nearly won. But weakened, he was attacked by Val Hellsing. Using this very coffin, Hellsing sealed him—draining his life force and mana. Even the Horns abandoned him. Perhaps betrayed. But one thing's certain…"
Charles smiled darkly.
"…This coffin never opened because he's still alive. And today—his power becomes mine."
Cracks formed on the glass as Charles pressed harder. The guide rushed him, trying to pull him back—only for a single bump to send her flying across the room.
Security charged in, firing tasers—but Charles didn't even flinch. He tore the wires from their guns, yanking the guards toward him. One had his neck snapped. The other—Charles bit deep into his neck, draining him until he dropped like a puppet with cut strings.
Blood covered Charles's mouth as he turned to the panicking crowd. They screamed and tried to flee—but the museum's iron doors slammed shut.
"Where do you think you're going?" Charles asked with a wicked grin. "We can't let the sacrifices escape, can we?"
Outside, the screams echoed.
Kane stopped in his tracks. "Shit… it was a trap."
He broke into a sprint toward the museum. James and Tony were right behind him.
Charles turned to the two vampires behind him.
"Begin the ritual," he commanded.
"As you wish," they replied in unison.
"Begin the slaughter!" they roared.
Vampires emerged from the dark corners of the museum, descending upon the unsuspecting civilians. But they didn't feed—they butchered. Blood splattered the walls, not for sustenance, but as an offering.
Charles watched the massacre unfold, his face a mask of indifference. The screams dulled in his ears like background noise—until—
BANG.
The iron doors were ripped clean off their hinges.
The sound snapped Charles from his daze.
"Akira's damn lucky he didn't cause this Phantom World," Kane said coldly, absorbing the shredded iron into his skin. "As for you vampires… you're about to become victims."
"Shall I take care of them?" one vampire asked, stepping forward.
"No," Charles said without even glancing. "You won't be able to handle all three. Stick to the plan. I'll warm up with them… before he returns."
Kane narrowed his eyes.
Strange… I can sense every vampire's mana—except his.
James struck the floor with a clenched fist. Sharp, jagged rocks erupted and shot toward Charles at deadly speed. At the same time, Tony lashed out with a water whip.
But in a blink, Charles was gone.
"Watch out!" Kane shouted.
Before James or Tony could react, Charles appeared between them. He seized them both by the face—kicked Kane clear out of the museum—and hurled the others after him.
"I'm impressed," Charles said calmly. "You saw it coming… and even blocked, partially."
Kane stood up, his chest heaving, iron coating his arms.
"Shit… my hands won't stop shaking," he muttered.
Charles began sinking into the ground. But just as he reached halfway, James solidified the earth, trapping him. Tony's arm was coated in water, slashing rapidly at Charles—but it did nothing. The vampire remained unscathed.
James followed up, launching rocks into Charles's body.
Charles broke free. With one arm, he caught Tony's whip—blood leaked from his hand, then merged with the water, turning it into a pulsing rope of crimson. It dragged Tony toward him as the blood began to harden.
Kane, now completely armored in iron, dashed in. He struck the blood-tether, shattering it and pulling Tony free.
"Be careful!" Kane shouted. "I can't fight at full power and babysit at the same time!"
"Look out!!" James yelled.
Kane turned just in time—a stream of blood flew at his face. He raised his arm, blocking it, but it sliced through his iron skin, scraping his eye.
"Shit… his blood cut through iron?"
James hardened his arms with stone and punched at Charles. But Charles caught it effortlessly. Just as he was about to counter, James slammed the ground—sending both of them falling.
"Stone Coffin!" he roared.
Boulders and rubble followed them down, compacting into a crushing prison around Charles's body.
Inside the museum, silence had taken over. All signs of life were gone—only blood and dismembered corpses remained. The two vampires stood atop a pile of bodies, encircling an ancient coffin. A glowing magic circle flared beneath them.
They began to chant:
> "Blood of the fallen, death unfulfilled,
Rise from ruin, by moonlight willed.
Let wrath be reborn, vengeance unsealed—
Lord of Crimson, awaken and kill."
The light of the crimson moon pierced the ceiling, bathing the circle. Blood lifted from the corpses, merging mid-air into a blade. The blood-sword hovered, then stabbed into the coffin—melting into it like venom.
From the abyss inside, a voice roared:
"HOW DARE YOU—YOU TOOK MY ONLY CHANCE FROM ME! I SWEAR I'LL MAKE YOU ALL SUFFER!"
Crimson mana exploded from the coffin. The structure shattered—shockwaves tore through the Phantom World. Kane, Tony, and James stood frozen as their bodies trembled uncontrollably.
"W-w-what the hell… is that power?" Kane whispered.
Within the ruins, Dracula's body began to reform—slowly, agonizingly—his eyes snapping open like twin eclipses.
Outside the Phantom World…
Akira leapt across rooftops, shadow-stepping with precision. Sigvard followed closely behind. But suddenly, Akira froze mid-step—his breath caught in his throat.
"Sir?" Sigvard asked.
Akira didn't answer immediately. He just stood still… trembling.
"…Something's wrong," Akira said at last.
"What do you mean?"
Akira's eyes narrowed. "Something… evil has awakened."
He yanked out his walkie-talkie. "Everyone, get to the museum. Now."
"What's going on?" Trixie's voice buzzed in.
"JUST GET THERE—NOW!!" he barked, before vanishing into the night.
As the team gathered on the rooftop overlooking the museum, Akira suddenly tensed.
"What's wrong?" Mikage asked.
"Something evil is he—" Akira was cut off as the ground rumbled violently beneath them. Tremors shook all of London before quickly subsiding.
"Phew... is everyone okay?" Trixie asked, dusting herself off.
"Yeah, I think so," Yukiko replied, steadying herself.
"Those tremors were strong... how did the civilians stay so calm?" Trixie wondered, looking around.
Mikage stepped to the edge and peered down. His eyes narrowed.
"...Shit."
"What is it?" Akira asked, walking over.
"The reason they didn't panic... is because there's no one at the museum," Mikage muttered before leaping off the rooftop.
"What do you mean no one—?" Akira followed, the rest of the group close behind. When they reached the ground, they saw it: the museum was fully lit, but eerily silent. Not a single person inside. No guards. No staff.
"What the hell...?" Akira murmured.
"It must be a phantom world," Edward commented grimly. He jumped down toward the front, and the others followed.
As they approached the entrance, Akira suddenly stopped, his eyes wide. He felt it — a familiar, suffocating presence.
"STOP!" he shouted.
"Why?" Mikage asked, turning sharply.
"There's something... there. I can feel it," Akira said, his voice tense. He pointed at the museum, arm trembling slightly.
"I can't sense anything. Edward?" Mikage asked.
"Nothing on my end," Edward said, shrugging.
"You two?" Mikage turned to Trixie and Yukiko.
"Not at all," they said in unison.
"Maybe you're just paranoid, Akira. Sit down for a bit," Mikage said in a calm tone.
"I'm not tired," Akira grumbled, stepping forward. He reached toward the building—and slammed into an invisible barrier, falling flat on his back.
The group burst into stifled laughter.
"That's not how you enter a phantom, you idiot," Mikage said, still chuckling.
"Educate me, then—Sherlock," Akira snapped back, rubbing his forehead as Trixie helped him up.
"You have to cloak your entire body in mana," Mikage said smugly. "From your fingertips down to your clothes. Everything must be covered."
"Uh-huh. Then why can't you get in?" Akira challenged.
Mikage's smile faded slightly. "This one's... custom-made. It's designed to block sorcerers from entering. Usually, phantom worlds are built to trap things inside—but this one's different. Let me call Mr. Oliver."
As Mikage pulled out his phone, Akira looked around at the others.
"Why aren't you guys bothered by this?" he asked.
"It's probably just a robbery," Yukiko said casually. "Someone trying to keep it under wraps."
"That shouldn't be normal, though!" Akira snapped.
"Oh, it is," she replied cheerfully. "Happens at least five times a month in London alone."
"...That doesn't make it better," Akira muttered.
"Dude, relax," Edward said. "To escape, they'd need to shut down the phantom world. When they do, their mana will spike—and that's when we strike."
Akira let out a long sigh. "Whatever... just do your thing."
Meanwhile, Mikage spoke into the phone.
"How do you deactivate a phantom world?" he asked.
"You?" Mr. Oliver laughed on the other end. "I didn't bother learning it—it's a pain. But I can send a Divine Visionary who specializes in it. What's going on? Did you try to teach Akira how to make one and now you're both trapped?"
"I wish that were the case," Mikage muttered. "Seems like a robbery. Nothing serious… probably."
"So should I send backup or not?"
Mikage paused, glancing back at the museum. A twinge of doubt crept into his voice.
"Actually… just to be safe, send someone in the B-tier."
"Understood. And please… try not to break anything expensive this time," Mr. Oliver said before ending the call.
Mikage pocketed the phone, eyes narrowing.
"Where the hell is Kane? I can't sense him… or his squad…"
Inside the phantom world, chaos had erupted.
Kane and his team were already on edge, but now they could barely stand.
Suddenly, James was hurled out of the crater, his body crashing into a nearby wall. A low, echoing laugh followed.
Charles slowly rose from the hole, using hardened platforms of his own blood as steps.
"You feel it, don't you, boy?" he said, his grin wide and eyes wild. "That immense power pressing down on your soul."
Kane's voice trembled. "W-Where is it coming from…?"
Charles threw his arms open like a preacher before a congregation. "That mana you're bathing in... it belongs to Dracula."
Tony gasped. "I-Impossible! He's supposed to be dead!"
"He was," Charles said, eyes gleaming with reverence and dread. "But now… he walks among us again. Every cell in my body is shaking from the sheer weight of it. If we hadn't reinforced this phantom world, that surge alone might've destroyed it—and half the UK."
He laughed again, manic. "Thank the stars I told Rebecca to stay away."
His tone darkened.
"But I'm done playing with you kids."
With that, he removed a ring from his finger. In a heartbeat, his mana exploded outward in a torrent of crimson light, flooding the phantom world. The pressure intensified as his aura continued to rise, crackling and violent.
"Other vampires... they're watching. Greedy, pathetic things. But I'll claim this power for myself."
Inside the museum, deep within the phantom world...
Dracula's body finally reformed.
He descended gently from the air, landing barefoot on the marble floor, naked—his tall frame radiating menace. Long white hair with strands of black fell over his shoulders, and his eyes glowed with deep crimson.
"How many years has it been since my imprisonment?" he muttered, voice low and regal. "My mana… nearly depleted. Reanimating myself consumed far too much."
He paused.
"…And yet… so much bloodlust. So many eyes… watching."
A vampire lunged toward him in desperation—but halted mid-air. The creature's body trembled, inflated grotesquely—and then burst, blood spraying in every direction. The crimson mist was drawn into Dracula's body, absorbed like a sponge to water.
He turned slowly to the crowd of vampires behind him, tilting his head.
"There's greed in all your eyes," he said coldly. "And yet you bring me back… to kill me?"
One vampire screamed and charged. A spike of blood burst from the ground, impaling them through the chest. Their blood too was siphoned into Dracula's recovering frame.
"You dare awaken me… for this?"
Outside the museum, the battle escalated.
Kane charged at Charles, fists glowing, trying to force an opening. Tony flanked him with lashing water whips, while James hurled massive boulders with raw earth magic.
But Charles moved like a phantom—twisting, weaving, dodging through every attack.
He caught Kane mid-punch and drove a brutal fist into his gut, launching him across the field.
Tony barely had time to react before Charles caught him by the throat and stabbed a crimson dagger into his side, twisting it with a smirk.
James roared and enveloped himself in stone, forming a makeshift armor. He rushed in blindly—but a beam of blood magic shot through the air, narrowly grazing his shoulder.
Before he could recover, Charles appeared behind him.
"Too slow."
He drove a dagger into James's gut, tearing the rocks away and ripping into flesh..