There was a brief moment of absolute horror and despair on Henry’s face. It was his blunder to be remiss of taking into account a vampire’s ability to dampen their pain sensory, allowing them to perform feats that would be otherwise too excruciating.

The vampire boy did just that. He cast away his limb, forcibly tearing its own arm off for a last-ditch effort. Henry expected the vampire to be desperate but he didn’t expect the vampire’s desperation would be enough to suppress his pain receptors, if vampires even had pain receptors in the first place.

The vampire aimed for his weak spot, Alani. Amongst his women, she could be said to be the weakest of them all. He didn’t want to bring her along but this was her world. She belonged to this place long before she was anything to him. It wouldn’t be right to deny her the chance to return to her homeland. Therefore, he brought her alone.

At this very moment, there was a tinge of regret in his heart. The pale unmoving face of Alani flashed across his mind. His blood froze but the cold was melted by fiery rage that flared fiercely in his heart. He dashed after the vampire, hoping to stop him in time—

—but it was unnecessary. What he had envisioned wouldn’t have become true even if he did nothing. Alani was not the damsel he imagined him to be, as hypocritical as he was to think that way.

Alani brandished her swords, clad in silver, and sliced off the vampire’s remaining arm before sending him flying off with a roundhouse kick to the face.

Henry was, at first, stunned by Alani’s impeccable reaction time. But when he thought about it, it was only a matter of course. Alani was a monster hunter. It was only natural that she was capable of this much. Perhaps in comparison with the threats of Ulrum, her prowess is dwarfed. But outside of Ulrum, her skills could actually be considered slightly above average.

The vampire sprang at Alani again once he regained his footing. Despite missing both of its arms, the vampire did not throw in the towel just yet. It was hellbent on leaving at least a significant wound on his enemy. However, it was easier said than done.

Alani skillfully dodged the vampire’s desperate assault and countered with a slash that took one of his eyes. She then kicked the vampire to the ground while it was wincing at the loss of his eye. Before the vampire could get back up, she took a small dagger and pinned his left leg to the ground with it.

Afterwards, she immediately distanced herself away from the vampire with at least a few yards between them.

Henry was absolutely dazed by Alani’s deft movements. Though it was nothing to him, he had to give credit where credit was due. His strength and prowess came to him naturally. He had no need for training or the sort. But Alani’s prowess was evidently the result of her own sheer effort.

He couldn’t help but admire the beauty of it.

“Henry, what now?” Alani asked.

The vampire locked his bloodshot eyes on Alani and began tugging his own leg.

“It’s your prey,” Henry answered. “You decide.”

The veins were showing, snapping off one by one as the vampire struggled to abandon even his leg in hopes of leaving at least a scratch on his enemy.

Alani looked at the vampire pitifully and instantly came to a decision. She strode towards the vampire and stabbed both of her swords into his head. The vampire quivered violently for a moment before ceasing all movement and his muscles slackened completely.

Instead of taking back her swords, Alani stumbled backwards and nearly tripped her own steps if it wasn’t for Henry’s quick movement that saved her from an embarrassing fall.

“Are you alright?” Henry asked.

Alani nodded. “I’m fine. It’s just… it had been a long time since I last fought an enemy that required so much concentration.”

“That was some fine movements, Alani. I have to apologise.”

“Huh? Apologise? What for?”

“For underestimating you and for being a hypocrite. I didn’t want you to be a helpless damsel but unconsciously, I already took you for one.”

“It’s alright, Henry,” Alani said, stroking her lover’s face with one hand, clutching his hand with the other. “In Ulrum, I suppose I would be a damsel. The monsters there are unlike anything that I have faced in these lands. Before Ulrum… before meeting you… I was naive to think that I was close to the peak. How foolish I was to think that way. Ulrum showed me that the peak is still far beyond my sight.”

“You’re mistaken, Alani. The peak is closer than you think.”

She tittered. “Perhaps. But the question is, do I deserve to sit on it when I didn’t climb up to it with my own efforts?”

“In due time. You’re amongst the best now, the strongest. I’m sure it won’t be long before you will be able to make the climb yourself.”

“Oi, you two love birds there!” Rayne called out. “The vampire ain’t dead yet.”

“What!?” Alani exclaimed and spun her gaze towards the vampire boy.

Sure enough, he was still moving despite having two swords impaled into his head, though his movements were slow and jittery. His eyes were now more than just bloodshot. Blood was now leaking out from his eyes in a literal sense.

“Huh… Is silver only effective against lesser—”

Before Henry could finish his musing, the vampire boy suddenly let out a screech before his whole body promptly ceased any forms of movement. This time, his body also began to wither like a plant devoid of water for weeks, but rapidly.

In seconds, the vampire had reduced into dust and whatever remained was carried off by the passing breeze.

False alarm, Henry muttered silently.

“Persistent till the end,” Rayne scoffed.

“Well, at least we now know silver is effective against them. No decapitation is required. Also, it would seem that the vampires are not at the level of Ulrum’s ferocity.”

“Of course,” Rayne snorted with pride. “These vampires wouldn’t last a few days in Ulrum.”

Now that Henry was in the lands outside of Ulrum, the aberrant nature of Ulrum was becoming more and more vivid to him. For starters, even the weakest creatures in Ulrum, such as the red-eyed lizard, would be too much for the average hunter if Roarke was anything to go by.

“What now?” Alani asked, taking back her swords. There was no blood on the blade as it, too, had withered away along with the body.

“Are you tired?”

Alani shook her head. “Quite the opposite actually.”

Henry smiled. “Then, we keep moving. There’s still quite a long day ahead of us before dusk.”

Alani nodded. “Yes, I gather we can make quite a bit of progress.”

The two further exchange more smiles before pressing on, leaving Rayne trailing behind with a sugar-sickened frown.

****

The three walked for an hour and even then, they still found themselves treading through the ruins. They were not lost by any means. This was merely a testament to the size of the ruins, though the convolution of the paths diminished the more they trod.

There were fewer and fewer paths the deeper they went into the ruins. There were paths but nature had reclaimed what was once theirs. Now, the paths had all been amalgamated into one big giant plain that spread out for miles.

For the entire hour that they walked, not once were they attacked or even approached by any sort of creatures or monsters. Not to say there were none, but because none dared to be in the proximity of Henry. They knew not of Henry’s true identity but their instincts warned them to stay as far away as possible from him.

“You’re quite handy, Master,” Rayne muttered.

“Is that so?” Henry responded off-handedly as he was paying more attention to his surroundings, taking in the scenery.

“Well, quite handy for those who wish to have a safe and peaceful journey. But for those looking for a game, you would be a jinx.”

“We’re not hunting for games.”

“We’re not but it couldn't hurt to look for games as a pastime. And we do need to plan ahead for supper.”

“We can hunt for games when the time for supper comes.”

“That’s very irresponsible.”

“Only if the games are our priority. They are not. Besides, you and I go a night without eating.”

“Yes, but what about her?” Rayne gestured at Alani with a head tilt.

“I have enough rations to last for days,” Alani said.

“You can’t be eating those wheat-powder clumps that you called food. We are fighting a race that is believed to have once been the apex predator of the world. You need more than just those things for sustenance if you hope to have any chance against them.”

Alani turned her gaze awkwardly towards Henry, her eyes signalling for assistance.

Henry smiled wryly and came to her aid. “We can hunt for some meat when the right time comes. For now, we focus on what’s ahead of us. We are still not out of danger yet. For all we know, we could still be followed and were simply none the wiser.”

“I don’t believe there is anything or anyone who can escape your perception.”

“This arrogance of yours is the cause of your downfall. Are you in a hurry to have history repeat itself?”

Rayne clicked her tongue and fell silent—

—but only for a brief while.

“This is so arid,” she grumbled.

“Arid?”

“I expected… conflicts but what I got is peace.”

“Peace is nice,” Alani said.

“Peace dulls my senses. It impairs my prowess and skills. There was never peace like this in Ulrum. No matter how many times we cull those beasts, there will always be those who overestimate their strength. To think I used to insult their bravery. Oh, how foolish of me. Their thoughtless bravery sates my boredom.”

“If you’re looking for conflict, we are about to have some,” Henry said.

Hearing his words, Rayne’s face brightened with anticipation. Her gaze darted around like a meerkat. “Where?” she asked.

Henry pointed to their right. “I sense four individuals. They are still some way off from us but at the pace and direction we’re going, we would soon cross paths.”

“Oh? Intriguing. I only sense them now after you have made me aware of their presence. These ones must be no amateurs. Now I’m excited.”

“Four people…” Alani mused. “Could it be…?”

“You know who they are?”

“I have an idea. There is a party of four hunters who have been making a name for themselves recently. Rumour has it that they had only just become monster hunters two months ago but they already have some impressive feats.”

“What kind?” Rayne asked.

“They subjugated a den of trolls. They defeated an Ogre. They fended off a Wyvern from a village. And many more.”

“Doesn’t sound very impressive.”

“It is impressive to the world here. There were even whispers about them going into Ulrum in the near future.”

“Well, they sure are fortunate.” Rayne grinned. “Ulrum has come to them.”

“Do they have a name?”

Alani shrugged. “Only the name of the party they formed, Braveheart.”

Henry frowned. The name simply reeked of cliches. Just from the name alone, he could roughly guess the kind of people he would be meeting. Not only their personalities, he also dreaded the archetype the four individuals would fit into.

Am I in some sort of fictional world after all? That can’t be, right?

“Should we change course?” Alani asked after seeing Henry’s furrowed expression.

“Unless we turn back, we will cross paths with them eventually. So there’s no point in altering our course. I reckon we will stumble upon the mysterious party by dusk.”

Rayne chuckled. “What are the odds that they would find trouble with us?”

Henry’s frown deepened. “Why would you think that way?”

Rayne shrugged. “Just a hunch,” she said, giggling.