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"I'm home!"
After school, Dan didn't head home—instead, he went back to the base. Ever since his teacher left, that house didn't feel like home anymore. The base, though—it made him feel safe. Kurim and Eric were there. Training was tough, but it gave him purpose.
He pushed the door open. It was quiet—only the lab had any lights flickering now and then.
"Mr. Belt."
He stepped into the lab and saw Kurim tinkering with IXA on his little cart.
"Oh, Dan, you're back! How was it? New school, new classmates—did you make any friends?"
Kurim's screen displayed a smiley face. He was fully in favor of Dan returning to school—even though he didn't have hands to raise in approval.
Both he and Eric agreed—Dan was still young. He shouldn't be stuck with a vampire and a sentient machine all day. He needed to be with people his age.
Dan scratched his head, thinking back on the day.
"It was alright, I guess. Made a new friend. And, well… I think the whole class knows who I am now."
Yeah—beating the crap out of that arrogant jerk, Flash, pretty much guaranteed that.
"That's great to hear."
Kurim smiled, clearly satisfied.
"Where's Eric? I haven't seen him around."
"Oh, him? He went back out on patrol. Still can't sit still."
Kurim didn't stop working as he spoke.
Dan frowned.
"Patrolling? But IXA's not even fixed yet. What if he runs into a Fangire?"
Kurim waved a robotic arm dismissively.
"Relax. With the way he fights now, unless it's a special Fangire, most of them are the ones running from him. Besides, he took my upgraded Cross Gunblade. He'll be fine."
"But what if he loses control again?"
"Don't worry. Eric knows what he's doing. He also brought enough tranquilizers to knock out an elephant—just in case. He'll be alright."
Hearing that, Dan didn't press the issue. After a bit more small talk, he waved his hand.
"Alright, I'm gonna go check on her."
"Go ahead—but her mental state is still unstable, so you'd better not go in."
"Got it."
Dan stepped out of the lab and stopped outside the observation room.
Inside, the test subject he'd rescued was curled up on the bed, her eyes still blank and lifeless.
Ever since the day Dan got bitten, Erik and Kurim had strictly forbidden him from entering the observation room. So now, all he could do was stand outside the glass every day and quietly watch her. And every time he saw the helpless look in her eyes, he couldn't help but feel pity—and his determination to wipe out all vampires only grew stronger.
If people had a real choice, who the hell would willingly become a lab rat for vampires?
Dan raised his right hand and gently pressed it against the observation window, whispering softly:
"Don't worry… One day, I'll wipe out every last vampire and end this nightmare for you."
Inside the room, she suddenly lifted her head—as if she'd heard him, or maybe just sensed something deep down. Her sapphire-blue eyes looked toward the window.
In the palm of her hand, a faint mark appeared, glowing briefly and syncing with the ghostly image on Dan's hand. Then, just as silently, it faded away—like nothing had happened.
"Beep beep~!"
Suddenly, his phone rang. It was a call from Stark. Dan answered, and the projection from his wristband showed Stark's image.
"What's up, Tony? Calling me out of the blue—did you find something?"
Seeing Dan standing outside the observation room, Stark smirked and crossed his legs.
"Whoa, Dan… don't tell me you're actually falling for that little lab-rat girl? No, seriously, if she wasn't part of that experiment, I'd totally ship you two. I mean, she's seriously pretty."
Dan rolled his eyes hard and snapped coldly:
"That's what you called me for? You think I'm you or something? The kind of guy who wants to 'clap for love' every time he sees a pretty girl? Let's be real—animals do that stuff to reproduce. You? You're just in it for the pleasure, huh?"
Stark pulled a face and dropped the joking tone. He knew if they kept this up, he wouldn't win a war of words against Dan. Best to retreat before getting roasted.
"Alright, alright, enough jokes. I dug up something—about that real estate company trying to buy up your orphanage."
Dan's eyes narrowed.
"What about it? Something shady?"
"Well… that company's already been infiltrated by vampires. And get this—the CEO of their parent company? He was one of the big capitalists who took part in the Ascension Ritual."
Dan's face darkened instantly.
"So they found something out and are trying to target me now?"
Stark shook his head.
"Not necessarily. At least not yet. As far as I know, only Erik and I know you're part of Drive. Honestly, I think them going after the orphanage might just be a coincidence."
"A coincidence, huh…"
Dan was in a foul mood. At first, he thought the orphanage stuff was just a regular issue. But now that vampires were involved, it could get a whole lot messier real fast.
Valentine Orphanage was a special place to Dan. The last thing he wanted was for something to happen there—especially not because of him.
"Got it. I'll keep an eye on it."
Stark watched Dan's serious expression and sighed, rubbing his temples. The look in Dan's eyes was deadly—he wasn't even trying to hide it.
Since he'd met Dan, Stark had rarely seen him look this pissed. Clearly, some creepy crawlies had really stepped over the line this time.
"Dan, I'm just saying—try not to lose your cool this time, alright? No matter what, the head of the Alanka Foundation is still a public figure in M-country. We should get the full picture before making a move. I'll keep an eye on things at the orphanage. You don't have to worry about that."
Young and hotheaded as he was, Stark was worried Dan might just grab a sword and storm Alanka HQ, putting a blade to that old man's throat demanding answers. That would definitely blow up the internet.
Dan rubbed his face to relax the stiff expression.
"Don't worry. I'm not stupid. That's it for now. I need some air."
With that, he hung up on Stark.
Stark stared at the dark screen and scratched his head in frustration.
"Ugh… what a pain."
"....."