Denir came closer to the house. He stood still for a second, because he wasn’t sure whether he was hallucinating or not. The vampire that went out of the building didn’t let the second one in. The first one looked identical to a human. He had long, deep brown hair, a light red robe, indicating that he was married, leather sandals, and a golden ring. The aggressor wore a grey tunic stained by blood, chain mail, brown leather boots, and a battle axe. Moodeen supported his body against a wall and listened to the conversation.

  “Huh? What the hell are you doing, Jude?”

  “You won’t pass, Byron.”

  “Are you rejecting your heritage for a mere country, or perhaps your pathetic family?”

  The intruder came closer, reaching for his axe.

  “What happened to your pride?”

  “I am a Carolan vampire. I don’t see the siege as justified by any means. Take one more step, and I won’t hold back.”

  The armed Mirage Wing swung his weapon. His foe dodged it effortlessly. Thuck! The blade went into the piece of wood. Byron threw a powerful cross to his late friend. He blocked the punch with his right shoulder. Jude threw a quick combo of jab, jab, and a hook. Yet, only the first move landed on his opponent. The intrigued butcher observed the fight. Punches were flying in front of his face like crazy. Their speed was inhuman. The air blows made the confectioner’s hair fly as if he were on top of a mountain. It was the first time that he saw a clash between two vampires.

  ‘A boxing match. That’s… That’s strange. I’m going to reappear away from their sight. If anything happens, I can finish one or the other,’ thought Denir, slowly distancing himself.

  The fist fight lasted for at least ten minutes. Both creatures were bruised, but neither had any major injuries. The besieger focused all his remaining strength on the last hit. He threw a right hook. The defender tried dodging, but his body malfunctioned. He couldn’t move a bit. All of a sudden, blood burst out of Byron’s neck. Jude didn’t believe his own eyes. The body fluid stained the door and the surroundings. The aggressor rapidly collapsed, but the bleeding didn’t stop. Denir bent over the body and finished the job. He slashed his arteries on his neck, forearms, and pierced his shins. His muscles twitched for less than fifteen seconds. He died because of the blood loss.

  “Who the hell are you—” muttered Jude, taking the axe out of the doorframe.

  “Shush! I’m the one who’s asking questions. Firstly, what was your relationship with that vampire?” interrupted Moodeen, pulling his blade out of the corpse.

  “A late ally.”

  “How late?”

  “Last time we spoke was around twenty years ago.”

  “Secondly, why did you stop him?”

  “He wanted to hurt my family.”

  The butcher sat down and supported his chin on his left fist. A loud silence filled the area. Starry sky, bright moon, and light wind. It was quite a nice scenery. Besides, of course, the stench of blood and the dead creature. The undead wondered what he should do, but after a while, Denir spoke out.

  “Is your wife human?”

  “Yes?”

  “Tell her to come out.”

  “You aren’t going to hurt her, right?” he replied, hesitating.

  “No. Unless she’s going to attack me.”

  “Yeah, I’ll get her.”

  Less than a minute later, a woman came out. She had a light blue robe, long brown hair, and a golden hairclip. The scent of lavender accompanied her.

  “My name is Zaria Greenwood. I’m pleased to meet you,” the woman introduced herself, bowing slightly.

  “Likwise. Now I’ve got a question, are you a virgin?”

  She glanced at her husband, and he returned the act. Then, both of them looked at Moodeen. He had to rethink his words for a second to understand his mistake.

  “Excuse my previous wording. What I meant is that if you have any children with Jude.”

  “Oh, yes. I have two children. One daughter and one son.”

  “I see. You’re fine with him, yes?”

  “Indeed.”

  The butcher squinted his eyes at them, as if he wanted to pierce them with his sight.

  “Okay. I’ll leave, but I have to do one last thing.”

  He came closer to the undead and gently brushed his hair away. Shivers went through the vampire’s body. Vampire Butcher nodded silently and walked away. The couple didn’t comprehend what had happened, but they were rather glad. After all, they and their children were safe.

  “Why did he do the last thing?” the wife wondered, entering the house.

  “He checked my ears. He wasn’t completely sure if I was really a vampire,” replied Jude, closing the door.

  In the northern part of the city, Udania and Gladius had been cleaning streets for at least an hour. The aggressors were executed just as the previous ones. The woman was shaking subtly. The paladin sensed something.

  “You’ve told us that these vampires would be quite strong. They’re actually rather weak,” she stated, watching the sky.

  “Yeah… That’s odd,” the knight replied.

  “Wait! On our way here, did you see any group of vampires that was larger than three or four?” he continued, grabbing her by the arm.

  “No? I don’t remember anything like that.”

  “Dammit! The real siege hasn’t even started yet!”

  “What?” the Water sorceress responded, losing strength in her legs.

  “Those bastards were civilians with weapons! The real battle hasn’t started! Look, they were unable to hurt us. Yes, a few houses were burned, and some people were killed. These feasts can be accomplished by a drunk. Do you recall any use of magic by them?”

  “...”

  This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  “Exactly. Sanguisius probably didn’t allow a bigger army to Sloth, so he sent prisoners and such. Quick, we need to go to the highest building and look for Sloth. As soon as we kill him, the battle will be over,” the captain said, going to the nearby hotel.

  They rushed to the top of the building through the staircase, fitted with an old carpet. All the doors to the hotel rooms were barricaded and locked. As they were running, they heard the desperate sound of pushing these pieces of wood. People were doing anything just to survive. Udania was growing sadder with every step, yet she didn’t slow down. After seven floors, the Crusaders reached the roof. The wind blew against them, waving the woman’s blue dress. Gladius’ hair was getting messier with every second, but he didn’t even notice it. He was too focused on searching for new portals. He was right. Four new, dark green portals opened in the city centre. The real vampire army stepped out of them. They were significantly better armoured and armed. Each of them had a full armour set and a chosen weapon (a sword, a battle axe, a battle scythe, or a morning star). They walked out of the summonings in a battle order. They organised themselves into four groups. Each of them consisted of ten rows and seven columns. There were two hundred eighty soldiers. In front of them, two undead stood up. Just by looking at him, you could tell that the first one was Sloth. On the other hand, the second one was unknown to both of the observers.

  “That’s Sloth?” asked Udania, looking at the army.

  “Yes. However, I’m not familiar with the second vampire. He can be a general or something like that. Lie down, we can’t let them see us,” replied Gladius, lying down.

  The woman joined him. Yet, she was unhappy because her dress got dirty.

  “Greetings, soldiers!” shouted Sloth.

  His voice spread all across the city, as if he had amplified it with sorcery.

  “Greetings, Upper Hand, Sloth!” they responded in a synchronised voice.

  “Tonight, we have one goal only. That goal is to conquer Zachira and take over Carola. Many will die, but that’s a sacrifice you’re aware of. Now, you’ve been divided into four units. The first one will go to the North. The second one will go to the East. The Third one will go to the West. The last one will accompany me to the presidential palace. We need to destroy their spirits by destroying their source of governance. You’ll take orders from me and your second general, Hadar. Do you understand, soldiers?”

  “Yes, Upper Hand, Sloth!”

  “Good. Hadar will lead the second troop; follow him. That’s all my orders. Hail Sanguisius!

  “Hail Sanguisius!”

  As they were splitting up, Sloth noticed something odd. An object reflected the moonlight from the top of the hotel. Squinting his eyes, he saw the lying Crusaders.

  “Halt, soldiers! First unit, go to the roof of that hotel! There are two Crusaders up there. Whoever hands me their heads will be promoted in ranks!”

  “Yes, sir!”

  The seventy vampires ran to the building to the demise of Udania and Gladius. Not only were they endangered, but the civilians, too.

  “Dammit! They’ve noticed us,” muttered Gladius.

  “What should we do?” wondered concerned Udania.

  “We can escape, but then they would kill off people in the hotel. Damn! Wait, I’ve got a plan. Blessing of Vitality,” the knight answered, blessing her.

  “Blessing of Strength,” the paladin continued, blessing himself.

  “Freeze the door to the roof. Then, when they enter the hotel, make a platform behind the last window, but make it so it can’t be seen from the inside.”

  “A—All right.”

  Heart of Ice froze the entrance, focusing on the handle and the steel hinges. She observed the surroundings. The first troop entered the place, and the knight confirmed their entrance.

  “Ice Platform invocare.”

  The platform appeared about one and a half metres below them, behind a window. To nullify the slippage, the Water and Ice sorceress textured the summonings with small dots. The Crusaders slowly got down and listened to the footsteps. They were growing louder and louder. Suddenly, they stopped, and the banging on the door started. It was the right time.

  “Don’t use magic, unless I’d have been dead without it. Use it when necessary, and for blocking their attacks. Do not engage in battle,” the paladin stated, touching her hand.

  “But I can help—”

  “Heal me after I kill these bastards,” the man replied with a smirk.

  Tshh! Gladius kicked the glass window, breaking it into pieces. There were around forty vampires on the narrow staircase. A few of them were knocked off the floor. The undead quickly noticed his presence and rushed at him. Gladius closed his eyes and opened them at once when he was ready.

  “Longus,” the knight whispered.

  Thuck! The Sword of Humility pierced through the hearts of five foes, dropping them dead. The remaining ones attacked him, but he was faster. He dodged their strikes with weapons, jumping backwards.

  “Breve.”

  The blade retracted, letting the blood burst out of their chests. The space, stained red, looked like a scene from a horror book. Everyone present was covered in the substance. Three of them flinched at that moment, surprising Gladius.

  “Longus.”

  Thuck! The steel went through the heads of twelve opponents. The Crusader sensed something odd; thus, he sharpened his sight, dulling his hearing.

  “Breve.”

  Saliva dripped on his armour. The man looked up, just to see four vampires clinging to the ceiling. They jumped down, surrounding him. He swung his sword as fast as he could, but he was too slow. Two soldiers were decapitated, yet the remaining two attacked him from both sides with a battle axe and a sword. He spared the sword strike, but he was unable to defend the axe blow. The Light sorcerer flexed his left biceps, deciding to endure it. Tsh! An ice layer covered the area, yet he was still cut. The man finished both vampires by cutting their arms off. He glanced out of the window, extending his hand.

  “Can you help me?” murmured Gladius, somewhat embarrassed.

  “What was that?” mocked Udania with a smirk.

  “Nothing. I’m going downstairs.”

  “No, I was joking. Here.”

  The sorceress put the Gutta’s Staff between her legs, supporting it on her left arm. A subtle turquoise illuminated from her hands, stopping the bleeding.

  “I don’t have enough mana to heal it completely. I’ve only stopped the blood loss,” the woman stated, fixing her hair.

  “I see. You can also heal without incantation?”

  “Yes, I’m getting used to it. Still, it works on smaller things. I couldn’t create the platform. Should we go and finish the rest of the vampires?”

  “Woah, I'd never thought that you could say such words.”

  “Yeah, yeah. Go in front of me, you’re the melee fighter after all.”

  “Roger that.”

  In the eastern part of Zachira, Denir killed all of the vampires, or so he thought. As he was heading to the presidential palace, he noticed a lone vampire. The undead slashed someone in half with his scythe. The blood rapidly burst out of their body.

  “The Darkest Cloak invocare.”

  The butcher rushed to the vampire. Thuck! Two daggers went through their neck. The Shadow sorcerer retrieved the blades, allowing haemorrhage to occur. The creature was dead in seconds. The confectioner reappeared. He saw a couple, clinging to each other. In front of them, a boy no older than twelve was bleeding out in agony. At that moment, something cracked in Moodeen’s brain. He picked up the youth, listening to his final words.

  “K—Kill me,” a desperate voice came to him.

  Vampire Butcher sighed in melancholy. The man threw an uppercut, dropping him unconscious. Then, he cut his throat, allowing him to die peacefully and quickly. Vampire Butcher put the kid to the side.

  “T—Thank you. I knew you were a good man, Mr. Vampire Butcher,” the husband stated, holding the hands of his wife.

  “Y—Yes, t—thank you,” the woman continued.

  “Was he, perhaps, your son?” asked Denir with a serious look.

  “Yes, why do you ask?” he answered, suspicious.

  The butcher took a deep breath, giving them shivers.

  “An animal, a human, and a vampire. I see them all as equal. If one of them is a threat to another, I execute them. I mostly kill vampires, not because of their form, but because of their behaviour. I’ve stumbled across a mixed family, and they were happy. However, you’re wicked. You’ve used your son to protect yourselves. Go to hell, bastards,” said Moodeen, looking at their frightened faces.

  Tshh! He cut both of their arteries. He chose the specific ones, the ones that bleed out the least.

  “A—Aren’t you a hypocrite?”

  “Maybe, but at least I’m not hurting anyone innocent. Moreover, if there are crimes, there should be a judge. I can take the blame for murders if it means achieving a better place. I was born different, I have to make the right use of it,” the confectioner replied, distancing himself.

  The couple was bleeding out for fifteen minutes before they finally died.

  “Good grief, I’ve used around seventy percent of my total mana. Three hundred sixty-three, that’s how many vampires I’ve murdered. I need to rest for a while longer,” he muttered to himself, sitting in front of their house.

  “Who are you? What’s your identity, human?” asked Hadar, looking in the butcher’s direction.