Back in New Eridu…
"Elder Bai was so furious he suffered a cerebral hemorrhage. Looks like you've caused quite a catastrophe, Madam."
Kovei quietly ended the call, his gaze settling on the elegant, mature woman before him. A soft chuckle escaped him as he calmly slipped on a pair of white gloves.
Mrs. Meilin curled her lips slightly and ignored him, simply lifting a hand and gesturing behind her.
The mixed-blood vampire soldiers received the order at once and lowered their heads as they withdrew.
Before long, the dense crowd broke apart into squads. Each squad leader held a digital tablet, scanning every collapsed wall and pile of rubble they came across.
If there was no response, they would shake their heads in disappointment and move on.
If the screen flashed green, the mixed-blood vampires would cheer, then rush forward with tools in hand, prying open the shattered walls with enthusiasm.
"Life detectors…" Kovei scoffed. "So you really do treat human lives as lives. Looks like the clan was right to start this war. You lot truly forgot the glory of the vampire clan."
Meilin did not respond. Kovei wasn't annoyed either; he simply raised his eyes to look.
But the moment he caught sight of the electronic devices in the mixed-blood vampires' hands, he withdrew his gaze with open disdain. His expression was so odd that Mrs. Meilin felt even a can of fermented herring placed in front of him wouldn't have earned such a look.
She understood his reaction, but still shook her head.
"There are only a little over ten thousand pureblood vampires, and fewer than a hundred are responsible for education. But mixed-blood vampires number in the millions."
"The clan simply cannot afford to educate them all. You can't blame children raised in human society for thinking differently from you…"
"And what about you?"
Kovei folded his arms and cut in sharply. "You were raised entirely by the clan. Every one of these mixed-blood vampires passed through your hands before entering human society."
"Look at them. They were willing to mutiny for you. And yet you never taught them the civilization of the vampire clan. You let them grow up wild under the corrosive influence of human society."
"That is neither corrosion nor wild growth. Watch your words, Kovei!"
Mrs. Meilin suddenly lost all composure. She roared, dropping the oil-paper umbrella in her hand. The tip revealed a dark muzzle, aimed straight at Kovei's forehead.
Kovei froze for a moment—then laughed.
"Getting up at five in the morning before the sun even rises—doesn't that count as torment?"
"Hm?" Mrs. Meilin stiffened.
"Less than twenty minutes to eat. Afternoon drills after school. To keep up with their studies, they spend two hundred dennies on bread that's barely half the size of what you'd get elsewhere for the same price. Stomachs growling, yet they still have to sit through evening study sessions."
"Then they drag their half-dead bodies back to the dorms, bite off a sleeping pill and swallow it. Once they finally fall asleep, they're not hungry anymore."
"I've investigated all of this, my dear Madam. And you still say that isn't torment?"
Kovei toyed with his fingers, sweeping a contemptuous glance over the mixed-blood vampires around him before fixing his eyes back on Meilin.
She fell silent for a long time.
Only after a while did she seem to remember why she was here. Abandoning further thought, she raised her hand and fired.
Bang!
White smoke drifted from the umbrella's tip. Through the haze, Meilin saw Kovei lift his right hand. Pale blue lightning flickered around his pristine white glove. A bullet was clamped tightly between his index and middle fingers, the flames on its surface slowly snuffed out by the electric current.
Her heart sank.
"I expected this," Kovei said coldly. "But seeing you actually do it still chills me, Madam."
Clack.
The bullet fell to the ground, tapping against stone.
Staring at Mrs. Meilin, Kovei enunciated each word. "Clan law forbids killing one's own kind."
"I'm sorry, Kovei," Mrs. Meilin said, bowing slightly. "But today, I must save Hoshimi Miyabi."
Determination flared in her eyes. She lowered the umbrella again, and spirals of brilliant sparks erupted, corkscrewing toward Kovei.
Kovei didn't even try to dodge. He walked straight into the flames, raising an arm only when the scorching heat was about to reach him.
Violent lightning burst forth, forming a shield around him. The raw force scattered every flame that dared draw close.
"I've said it before," Kovei replied flatly. "You're better suited to be an educator, Madam."
He advanced without hesitation, his right hand reaching forward again and again. No matter how Mrs. Meilin struggled, she could not evade it.
In a flash, Kovei stepped in. She failed to dodge and was seized by the throat.
"Ugh…"
Her breathing became labored, the sound caught in her throat.
"You broke the rules," Kovei said coldly. "But I still won't lay a hand on you. The farce of clan division is over. Our side has the better odds. Your contingency plans might as well not exist."
His grip tightened. "What do you think, Madam?"
"You're throwing away the lives of millions of future mixed-blood vampires!" Mrs. Meilin glared at him, forcing the words out through clenched teeth.
Kovei waved it off. "Whatever. Are there really that many? Do children born from mixed-blood vampires and humans count too?"
"Forget it. I don't acknowledge distant offshoots like that. They're not Phaga. Worst case, we ignore them and let them fend for them—"
He stopped mid-sentence.
A chill ran down his spine. Kovei snapped his head around.
The instant he turned, a rocket streaked straight toward him. The red tip expanded rapidly in his pupils.
"Tch."
Boom!
"Direct hit!"
A mixed-blood vampire soldier raised his rocket launcher and shouted in excitement, then turned on his stunned comrades. "What are you standing around for? Kill Kovei and save Madam!"
"O-Okay!"
The mixed-blood vampires snapped out of it and surged forward, rushing toward the billowing smoke, each desperate to be the one who rescued her.
But as the first soldier approached, a massive hand formed entirely of lightning shot out and grabbed him.
Crackling electricity spread in an instant, tearing the smoke apart.
Kovei stood at the center, thunder dancing around him, completely uninjured.
"I've gone easy on you all this time. Did that make you forget how hard you can be beaten?"
"Been so long since you got thrashed that you forgot who was toughest back in the day? Don't worry—I'll help you remember."
Lightning flashed in his eyes. A spear of thunder condensed in his hand, then shot skyward.
In the next instant, it split into countless spears, raining down like a storm.
Many mixed-blood vampires couldn't dodge in time. The thunder struck home, violent electricity flooding their bodies. A numbing shock coursed through their blood, and those hit stiffened, eyes wide, before collapsing unconscious.
"Tch. Still useless after all these years," Kovei muttered. "No wonder—no clan education turns you into spineless trash."
He scanned the scene. The ones who had dared attack were either unconscious or fleeing.
Even those still standing no longer dared take a single step forward, let alone raise a rocket launcher at him.
Turning back to Meilin, Kovei lowered his voice. "Come back with me, Madam. Hoshimi Miyabi can't be saved."
"I admit Void Hunters are powerful," he continued calmly. "But what if she has to protect civilians while being worn down by hundreds of Sacrifice, wave after wave?"
Mrs. Meilin clenched her teeth. Even knowing he was right, she forced the words out. "The Void Hunter is too valuable. The city won't abandon her."
Kovei smiled. "And the vampire clan is worthless, then? Bern is personally leading the blockade. Aside from Yanagi, who's gone missing, every military unit's movements are under our surveillance. None of them can reach Hoshimi Miyabi in time."
"Unless…" He paused. "Sorry. I need to take this."
The more he spoke, the more flushed Mrs. Meilin's face became.
Satisfied, Kovei pulled out his phone. "Hello?"
[It's me. Bern. Listen carefully, Kovei. An unidentified unit has entered the Shiyu Tower's surveillance range. From their direction, they appear to be Outer Ring forces.]
[And one of them is moving incredibly fast—so fast that even the Shiyu Tower can't pinpoint his position clearly.]
[Run, Kovei. His location overlaps with yours!]
"What?!"
Kovei shouted, his mind lagging behind the warning.
By the time he realized what was happening, a searing heat was already upon him.
He twisted his gaze at the last second, only to see a flaming fist slam into his chest. Fire swallowed his vision.
Bang!
His chest collapsed inward as he was hurled backward.
He smashed through five walls in succession before losing consciousness, his fate unknown.
Phaga stepped out of the flames, looked down at the dignified woman collapsed on the ground, and extended a hand.
"Hello. Nice to meet you, Mrs. Meilin."