Bang! Bang! Bang!
Blade unleashed a storm of bullets from his twin pistols, a crossfire of death aimed squarely at the child.
The kid hadn't expected such a decisive attack—Blade had opened fire without a single word.
But even caught off guard, the child was fast—inhumanly fast.
Thin threads of spider silk shot from his fingertips, crisscrossing through the air, weaving together into a cocoon-like web. It wrapped tightly around him just as the bullets reached.
Sparks flew as the rounds struck the silk, but not a single bullet broke through.
Instead, the stray rounds punched fist-sized holes into the walls and furniture all around.
Could ordinary pistols cause this much destruction?
Of course not. But Blade wasn't ordinary.
He was a hybrid—half human, half vampire.
He'd inherited all of a vampire's strengths: immortality, superhuman physique, rapid regeneration. But none of their weaknesses—no thirst for blood, no fear of sunlight, silver, or wooden stakes.
His weapons had been customized to match his enhanced body—oversized, high-caliber handguns with massive recoil.
So powerful that even elite soldiers would shatter their wrists from a single shot.
They were more hand cannons than pistols—closer in force to anti-materiel rifles.
And yet… even with all that firepower, they couldn't break through the child's cocoon of webs.
Blade hadn't expected to win outright with the ambush—but this outcome was still a surprise.
Click, click…
The magazine emptied.
Blade holstered his guns and sprinted forward into the house.
In three long strides, he leapt onto the coffee table, then kicked off with force, launching himself upward. Mid-air, he drew the swords from his back—twin blades flashing as he reached the second floor and struck down.
Clang!
The swords clashed against the cocoon, sending a shower of sparks into the air.
The impact knocked Blade backward, his feet skidding across the floor.
Shff!
The web cocoon unraveled, vanishing in an instant.
Now the child held a web between his hands like a cat's cradle. He flicked his fingers and the web shot out, rapidly expanding mid-flight.
Blade twisted midair, using the rebound to launch himself even farther back. Just before hitting the railing, he flipped backward off the balcony and dropped to the first floor.
The very next second, the web lashed out overhead.
Crash!
The railing shattered into splinters.
Blade exhaled sharply, cold sweat on his brow.
If he'd been even a second slower… he'd have been the one shredded.
Even with his healing, there would've been no surviving that.
"You're decisive, I'll give you that," the child said, standing calmly at the balcony's edge. "But your strength is lacking."
Blade stared back in silence.
"You're not an ordinary human…" the child continued. "At first, I thought you were just some thief breaking in. But you attacked me the second you saw me. So, you're not here for money. Then what is it?"
"Hiding among humans… preying on them… stripping them of life and dignity…"
Blade finally spoke, his voice low and cold. "You may not be a vampire—but you're the same kind of monster. You all need to be wiped out."
"Ah… so you're doing this to protect humanity?"
"No. For revenge."
Blade reached to his lower back and whipped out two spiral throwing knives, hurling them toward the child.
He followed a beat later, rushing in behind the blades.
"Revenge…"
The child's eerie eyes flickered with interest.
He flicked more threads, catching the spinning blades and slinging them back at Blade.
"And who are you avenging?"
Blade didn't answer.
He leapt again, deflecting the returning knives with his swords—then landed on the second floor, blades raised, slashing downward without hesitation.
"For your family, right?"
The child's voice trembled slightly—with excitement.
He leaned to the side, slipping effortlessly between the descending blades.
Blade's heart sank. He tried to switch forms mid-strike—but the child was faster.
A palm struck him square in the chest—unbelievably strong for such a small body.
Blade staggered back.
Before he could recover, a powerful kick slammed into him.
Boom!
Blade was launched through the air like a missile, crashing through a wall and into the next room.
"Only those who've lost true family can be that angry…"
The child followed casually through the hole in the wall.
He found Blade sprawled in the rubble, blood covering his face and arms, chest caved in.
But as the dust cleared, Blade rose again—fully healed.
His eyes were grim. Focused. Unshaken.
The child's smile deepened.
"The stronger the bond, the greater the rage when it's broken. And that rage… that's what makes you stronger. Strong enough to wipe out your enemies. Just how deep was your family bond?"
The words came breathy, excited, unhinged.
Blade's instincts screamed in warning.
He'd fought monsters before—but the more deranged they were, the more unpredictable. One wrong move could spell defeat.
"My name is Rui. Do you… want to become my family?"
"???"
Blade froze mid-stance.
Literal question marks seemed to hover over his head.
"I've always wanted a real family," Rui muttered, as if talking to himself. "But no matter how hard I search, I can't find one. But you… you're different. You'd kill to avenge your lost family. That kind of bond is real. You… you could be my true family."
Blade exhaled slowly.
Then looked at Rui—not with fear, but with pity.
"I don't know what you've been through," he said calmly. "But I can promise you this—I'll never be your family."
"…That's fine. I'm good at forging bonds."
Rui's voice was gentle again.
"If you won't agree… I'll just hang you up, cut off your fingers one by one, then your toes…"
Shing!
Blade cut him off—with steel.
His swords flashed like twin arcs of white light, slashing down at Rui.
Caught off guard—or perhaps just careless—Rui didn't dodge.
Both blades slammed into his neck.
Clang!!
The sound of metal on stone.
The blades bit into his skin… and stopped cold.
They couldn't cut through.
"No way—!?"
Blade's eyes went wide.
Rui tilted his head, glancing at him with something like amusement.
"I had a feeling, but I didn't want to believe it," he said. "From the moment you got close, you've been acting like you thought getting in melee range would let you kill me…"