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"Who's there?!" Yuster shouted toward the source of the UV bomb.
"Someone who came to kill you."
Erik stepped out of the shadows, cross-shaped blade in hand.
"Blade!"
Yuster recognized him immediately—the vampire hunter whose name struck fear into the hearts of their kind. But his company had gone to great lengths to stay hidden—how had Blade found them?
"AAARGH!"
The newer, low-level vampires didn't even flinch. They were too fresh, too inexperienced to even know who Blade was.
Ignorance is bliss—and death. They rushed him.
Erik snorted and slashed through them like a lawnmower through grass. One swing, one kill. He moved through the crowd like they weren't even there.
But Frank and Nathan weren't so lucky—their weapons might as well have been squirt guns.
"Sir! I'm outta bullets!"
Nathan's handgun clicked empty. Small mag. Not many spares.
"Catch!"
Frank gritted his teeth and tossed his rifle—along with the last mags—over to Nathan.
Now unarmed, Frank had no choice but to fight the vampires hand-to-hand.
Erik noticed and pulled a customized handgun from his belt—an old one he hadn't used in a while.
"Here!"
He tossed it through a gap in the crowd. Frank snatched it out of the air.
A vampire lunged at him from behind.
Frank spun midair, racked the slide, and fired in one smooth motion.
BANG!
The bullet pierced the vampire's skull, reducing it to ash.
Now that he had the right weapon, Frank was back in full beast mode—each shot dropped a vampire. None could dodge his aim.
"Enough!"
Yuster had seen enough of his minions get wiped out. He roared and transformed into a pureblood vampire, charging at Frank.
"Motherf—what is that thing?!"
Frank fired two perfect shots—dead center—but they didn't do sh*t. The bullets that tore through regular vamps didn't even scratch this guy.
"I got him."
Erik stepped in, blade in hand. He sliced through the vamps in his path and brought the blade down on the pureblood.
SLASH!
The hit connected, knocking Yuster back.
Frank blinked at the sheer power of that strike, then turned to help Nathan again.
"No! This can't be! I'm supposed to be the ultimate species! How can you hurt me?!"
Erik sneered.
"Ultimate species? You? Don't make me laugh."
SLASH! Another blow—this time cutting through Yuster's scaly armor.
"And you call yourself a pureblood? I specialize in killing freaks like you."
SLASH! This one drove into Yuster's chest.
Yuster was panicking. This wasn't how it was supposed to go. Evolution was supposed to make him invincible. How could someone with a sword hurt him?!
"This ends now."
A glowing sigil lit up on Eric's right hand—the symbol of the chariot from the Four Guardians of chess.
"Die."
SLASH!
One final swing—cleaving Yuster from head to toe.
"NOOOO—!"
His scream echoed before his body shattered like stained glass, vanishing into the air.
With Yuster dead, the rest of the vampires were quickly wiped out. Just then, sirens blared in the distance—New York police were finally responding.
Frank looked at Erik in his long coat.
"I bet you've got a lotta questions for me. But this ain't the place to talk."
Frank nodded and followed Eric, ready to leave the building.
"Sir!"
Nathan called out.
"Kid, don't follow us. The cops'll take care of you now."
"But sir..."
Frank didn't reply—he just disappeared into the shadows with Eric.
Nathan was disappointed but understood. Those two weren't people an ordinary guy like him could hang around with. Surviving this mess was already more than he could've asked for.
Later, on the rooftop of a nearby building, Erik and Frank stood in the wind, staring at the Yuster Building in the distance. The cops had sealed off the scene, but even if they turned the place upside down, they'd never figure out the truth. And as for Nathan, no one was going to believe his story. Hell, he'd probably convince himself it was just a nightmare.
Frank lit a cigar and took a long drag.
"Sh*t... Today was straight-up insane. You want one, man?"
He offered one to Eric, who took it while watching the sunrise.
The two of them just stood there, smoking and staring at the sky. They both had plenty of questions for each other—but neither was the type to talk when they could fight instead. Two battle-hardened warriors, side by side.
Halfway through the cigar, Frank couldn't hold back his curiosity anymore.
"Are those bulletproof freaks really vampires?"
Erik nodded.
"That's right."
Frank ran a hand through his messy hair after hearing Eric's answer.
"So all those rumors were true? You're really that vampire hunter from the urban legends—Blade?"
Erik nodded again.
"I've heard about you too, Frank the Punisher. Got fed up with the corruption in the system and decided to take justice into your own hands. 'If you're guilty, you die'—that's your motto, right? A bit extreme, but I get where you're coming from."
"Heh, to be recognized by a legend like you... guess I'm honored."
Frank took a deep drag from his cigar. If it weren't for all the blood and chaos he'd already lived through, he might not have been able to take this all in so easily.
"So... what's the deal with that guy who didn't even flinch from silver bullets?"
"A Bloodfang. An evolved form of vampire."
"Tch, vampires can evolve now? The hell is this world coming to..."
The two of them fell silent again. Frank had already accepted the fact that vampires were real, and all the questions he wanted to ask had basically answered themselves.
"Frank, what are you planning to do next? Still gonna go out there and serve your brand of justice?"
Erik suddenly broke the silence.
Frank took a deep breath and blew out a ring of smoke.
"What the hell has this world turned into?"
Erik shook his head. That was one question he couldn't answer.
Frank asked again, "How many of the guilty ones have turned into vampires?"
"Depends on who you consider guilty."
"A lot. Way too many," Frank muttered, cigar hanging from his mouth.
Erik glanced over at Frank. He'd heard about the man's past and understood his methods—even if they were a bit extreme.
But tough guys like them—real ones—could always recognize each other. That instant mutual trust? It came from seeing something familiar in one another.
"Give me a way to contact you. I'll dig up all the vampire-related files I can get my hands on. Maybe your so-called criminals are on the list."
Frank nodded.
"Appreciate it."
But when he turned around...
Erik was already gone.
"Heh... figures. Vampire hunter and all."
He turned toward the rising sun and blew out another smoke ring.
"Man... sunrise in New York sure is beautiful."
"....."