Bang bang bang...
Blade unleashed a barrage from both weapons, the gunfire weaving into a deadly storm.
The child hadn't expected Blade to be so decisive—attacking without another word—so his reaction came a beat too slow.
But he was fast. Though he moved late, his defense materialized before the bullets arrived.
Slender spider silk shot from his fingertips, weaving into a web in midair before tightening into a cocoon that protected him completely. Bullets struck it, throwing sparks, but causing no damage whatsoever.
Instead, the ricochets and missed shots left fist-sized craters in the walls and furniture.
Could pistol rounds really have that much power?
Ordinary pistols certainly couldn't achieve this. But Blade was half-human, half-vampire, inheriting all the advantages of vampire physiology—immortality, superhuman strength, accelerated healing—without their fatal weaknesses like vulnerability to wooden stakes.
His weapons reflected this. These were super-caliber pistols modified specifically for his enhanced arm strength. An ordinary person—even the most rigorously trained special forces operator—would shatter their wrist from the recoil of a single shot.
But that massive recoil translated into devastating power. Though technically pistols, they hit like hand cannons or anti-materiel rifles.
Yet even these couldn't scratch the cocoon of spider silk. While Blade hadn't expected this opening salvo to end the fight, the result still shocked him.
Click, click, click...
Both magazines emptied.
Blade holstered his pistols and charged forward.
Three steps, then two—he leaped onto a coffee table, kicked off hard, and launched himself toward the second floor. His hands grabbed the hilts of the swords strapped to his back, drawing them mid-flight as he came down in a devastating overhead slash.
CLANG!
Both blades struck the cocoon, throwing bright sparks. The force of impact sent Blade rebounding backward.
Whoosh...
The spider silk retracted, and the cocoon vanished in an instant.
The child's hands were interwoven with webbing like an intricate cat's cradle. He flicked them lightly, and the web shot forward, expanding continuously as it flew.
Blade used the rebound momentum to accelerate his retreat. When he hit the railing, he executed a perfect backflip and dropped back to the first floor.
The next instant, the web sliced past where he'd been.
The railing was shredded into pieces, fragments scattering everywhere.
Blade couldn't help but take a sharp breath, relief washing over him.
If he'd been even a fraction slower, he would've been the one torn apart.
And even with vampire regeneration, no one could survive that.
"Your fighting style is decisive, but your strength is lacking."
The child stood at the edge of the platform, his expression calm as he gazed down at Blade.
Blade met his eyes silently, offering no response.
"You're not an ordinary person..." the child continued. "At first I thought you'd broken in to rob the place or something. But you attacked the moment you saw me. Clearly this isn't about money. So who are you? What do you want?"
"Creatures that hide in human society, feed on human flesh, and constantly steal human lives and dignity..." Blade spoke, his voice rough but steady. "You might not be a vampire, but you're the same type of monster. You should all be extinct."
"I see. To protect humans?"
"No. For revenge."
Blade's hands moved to his lower back, suddenly producing two spiral throwing knives. He hurled them at the child.
Then, a beat later, he followed close behind.
"Revenge..."
The child's eyes flickered with interest.
Spider silk shot from his fingers, catching the spinning blades and reflecting them back. "Revenge for whom?"
No answer.
Blade leaped again, drawing his twin swords and deflecting the returning knives mid-flight.
Then, landing on the second floor directly before the child, he raised both blades and brought them down without hesitation.
"It's for family!"
Excitement colored the child's voice.
At the same moment, his body shifted, slipping through the gap between the descending swords.
Blade reacted instantly, adjusting his attack.
But the child struck first—a palm to Blade's chest. The strength behind it, completely disproportionate to his small frame, sent Blade sliding backward uncontrollably.
Before he could regain his footing, the child kicked him.
BOOM!
The tremendous force launched Blade airborne like a cannonball. He crashed through the wall and tumbled into the adjacent room.
"Only losing family bonds can make someone this angry..."
The child strolled leisurely through the hole in the wall. He found Blade lying in the rubble—chest caved in, face and arms covered in blood.
But by the time the dust settled, Blade had already healed, restored to perfect condition.
Watching Blade stand again, his eyes serious but his fighting spirit unbroken, the satisfaction in the child's gaze intensified.
"The stronger your family bond, the greater your rage when you lose them. That rage makes you powerful enough to destroy your enemies. How deep was your bond?" The child's voice grew wistful. "I wish I could have a bond that strong... It must have been a formidable enemy who took your family from you."
Blade had encountered plenty of psychopaths in his years of hunting. He'd learned that the more unstable someone's mind, the more unpredictable their behavior became.
Without careful handling, one mistake could mean defeat.
"My name is Rui. Would you... like to become my family?"
"???"
Blade, who'd been preparing his counter-attack, froze. Question marks might as well have appeared over his head.
"I've been searching for my real family for so long, but no matter where I look, I can't find them." Rui spoke as if to himself. "But you're different. You became this angry over your lost family, angry enough to want to destroy your enemies. Your bond is genuine. You could definitely become my real family."
"Hoo..."
Blade exhaled slowly, then looked at Rui with something almost like pity. "I don't know what happened to you, but I can tell you with certainty—I can't be your family."
"That's okay. I'm good at creating bonds."
Rui's mood seemed to level out, his voice turning eerily calm. "If you won't agree willingly, I'll just hang you up first. Cut off your fingers one by one, then your toes one by one, and finally—"
SLASH!
Blade interrupted with action, not words. His twin swords became streaks of silver light as they descended.
Whether Rui hadn't expected the sudden attack or for some other reason, he didn't dodge. The blade struck his neck directly.
But...
Clang, clang, clang!
The sword edge hit his neck and stopped, blocked by skin that might as well have been steel.
"Impossible!?"
Blade's shocked exclamation rang out.
Rui glanced at him, as if realizing something, his voice tinged with disbelief. "I didn't want to think this, but... you've been trying to close the distance this whole time. Don't tell me you actually thought getting close would let you defeat me?"