CHAPTER 3

  “Bones meet bones”

  No dreams and no nightmares visited Eugene at night. The short arrow of the pocket clock pointed exactly at half past eight. Accompanied by wooden squeaking, he straightened his back. No morning light was present. From inside the space, nothing seemed to have changed with the sunset. Yet, the darkness seemed to be alive.

  The pale palm, now ungloved, reached for the floor. Its index finger was entirely mechanical, like a bronze clockwork puppet. It touched the barely visible planks, and the shadows in the corners shook. They surged into the hunter’s hand and formed a pale diamond.

  “The trap wasn’t triggered nor defused…” He mumbled. Then, a faint pulse of Darkness distraught him. It was coming from the room to his left.

  “Romeo set a trap, too?”

  The green vest produced metallic clanking as Eugene put it on. He carefully observed the behavior of the Darkness in the mansion’s floor and walls. When he was ready, the door to the room of the youngest hunter was already open. The trap behind it remained armed.

  After several slamming sounds, most of the hunters found themselves in the corridor.

  “Mornin’!” The aged voice rang as usual. “Slept well, carrot-head?”

  Eugene began to regret leaving his hat on the bed.

  “I doubt many people slept at all.” Julius was standing closer to the lookout. His suit was somehow perfectly ironed.

  The last unopened door squeaked. Clumsily, the purple-haired witch walked out. Her puffy trousers were crumpled just like the rest of her attire. She leaned on her elbows before standing up straight.

  “Looks like someone did get a good sleep.” The ginger hunter met her with a smile.

  “I mean, you were close enough… You’d save me if anything, right?”

  Eugene simply sighed.

  When Meteoreine approached from the lookout's table, every pair of eyes darted side to side. The conclusion was surprisingly relieving.

  “Everyone alive and well?” Xavier, the muscular ex-commander, was standing next to his wife. They were the only two sharing a space during the night. An auspicious realization of peace was also unsettling for them.

  Romeo let out a nervous laugh, “Haha… So it’s all the same?”

  “Did you want us to die!?” Julius suddenly adopted a scolding tone.

  “No, of course not! But, maybe, I expected an agent to come and tell us all that this was an experiment of some sort?...” The voice of the youth was far below his attire in terms of confidence.

  After an awkward pause, Eugene cleared his throat.

  “So. If there really is a vampire among us, they either couldn’t act or did not want to. With no need to sleep, it is too convenient for them to at least set something up during the night.” He glanced at Lapis, the witch whose brown eyes exuded slight fatigue. “May I ask you to show them our little trap?”

  A smile graced her bright face.

  “Naturally. But please, nobody move. Met, I need the notes you took.”

  “As you wish, young lady!” He pulled a paper from his turquoise vest.

  The blonde woman raised her arm; a pendulum with a crescent moon hung between her fingers. Swinging it from side to side, she forced the ethereal accessory to glow.

  “Star Trail.”

  An iridescent glow appeared in the morning-lit corridor. Like thousands of tiny candles, several paths of blue lights formed on the floor. They threaded along the doorways, and some of them were smeared and more dim than the rest. Tobias, the exorcist, almost jumped after noticing a flicker close to his feet. On the contrary, Violet nodded in approval of the witchcraft.

  “This was Eugene’s small setup.” Lapis explained, “It’s nothing more than a powder that witches can reveal with a basic curse, but now we can see whether the note of the lookout is accurate.”

  She turned the note to face the group.

  “According to Met, the night was calm. The only thing happening was Eugene and then Romeo visiting the water closets. Look.” She pointed at Eugene’s door, “All of us just walked out, but the trails near his and Romeo’s doors are twice as smeared. So… it looks like Met didn’t lie.”

  “Wait, but it means you set this up at night.” Sabrine, the graceful lady with the demonic arm, spoke up. “I couldn’t hear anything at all.”

  Lapis seemed to be happy to receive the inquiry. She reached into her belt and grabbed a piece of a dried branch. With it, she carefully touched Eugene’s shoulder, as he was standing the closest.

  “Serenity.”

  Both the witch and the acolyte felt a light gust of wind around. Demonstratively, Lapis clapped her hands a few times. Silence ensued.

  “..and that’s how.” Her voice gradually returned within seconds. “We made a deal with Eugene that he would distract the lookout, too.”

  “Tha’s what you did, huh?”

  The old hunter felt vexation towards Eugene, but the latter bowed in a jesting manner.

  “Sorry, Met!”

  “Was that all to your trick?” Sabrine maintained her skepticism, “We gained no new information, but one of your techniques is now not a secret. Also, acolytes possess many contrived ways to move around without opening doors.”

  Eugene immediately asserted his plan. “It’s not only about the outcome, it’s also about the participants and their compliance. A cooperation like this reveals a certain level of trust. We can rule out people, at least with a blurry pen.”

  “Tch. It’s way more complex than that.” Julius butted in. “Though, now you lean into thinking there is a vampire here?”

  Eugene shrugged.

  “Better safe than sorry.”

  Repetitive clanking of silverware dispelled the quiet of the basement. The size of the underground floor was not inferior to the floors above it. Furthermore, the absence of decorations and monuments provided even more room to breathe. The basement was designed specifically for the maids and servants to live in, which is why the kitchen, the scullery, and the mess hall were located next to each other. The gas lamps shone just as bright, but the walls they hung from stood bare and gray. Instead of a lavish banquet, the hunters had long wooden benches and similar-looking tables. Practicality took over them.

  The dark-skinned woman in a golden vest and a velvet skirt took a seat next to the ex-commander. She also brought a plate with a few slices of meat and steamed vegetables.

  “You always cook for him, Carmen?” Sabrine inquired, holding a piece of bread with her demonic arm.

  “No, why?” The gold-vested huntress smiled. “Usually, it’s his responsibility. But today… I wanted to take the lead.” There was a hint of hesitation in her eyes, but Sabrine couldn’t figure out the reason. The “chef” continued to explain.

  “I like cooking from time to time, honestly. What I don’t like is someone refusing to eat my food.” Carmen’s voice became louder on purpose. Her discontent was aimed at the small cabin in the corner of the scullery. Below the gas pipes and valves, the robed exorcist in a bonnet was praying. On his knees, he was whispering something inaudible.

  “Tobias, I hope you’re asking God to allow you to cast the Devilish flame!” Violet, who was sitting next to Eugene, lampooned. She was the only person eating the food with her bare hands.

  “Oh! I wanted to ask...” The young hunter in black and white reached into his pocket. “Violet, your garments don’t fit your name. Why don’t you dress as Lapis does? Is the color of your hair enough?”

  Romeo’s weird question appeared incongruous, but not for Eugene. He felt a piece of paper tapping against his lap.

  “I grew out of violet clothes. If you wanna raise a witch, all the color business is only required for the first few years. After she casts something or her Inherent Curse reveals itself, you can forget about the ritual.”

  “Oh, right…” Romeo’s odd speech gathered even more attention. “Wait, Lapis, what’s your Inherent Curse?”

  “Ah? M-my curse?” The blonde witch almost jumped up.

  “Yeah! I know Violet can’t feel fear, but what about you?”

  “Oh… Well, I… It’s not really similar to Violet’s, it’s…”

  “Don’t say it.” Eugene’s hoarse voice interrupted her. He put the crumpled note into his vest. “If there’s a vampire, we should not reveal our weaknesses.”

  Lapis smiled. A mute gratitude glimmered from her snow-painted eyelids.

  His plate was still half-full when Romeo stood up.

  “Hey, Tobias! We’re done here. Are you reciting the whole Bible or what?”

  He started approaching the maintenance cabin with the praying exorcist. The latter kept concentrating on the words whispered, but the youth entered the space quickly. Two of them were barely visible from the dining tables.

  “Come on! Show us the flame. The Church has done way worse stuff!”

  He suddenly stumbled.

  “Huh? What’s that?”

  The mess hall became silent. The acolytes glanced at the corner, curious and wary.

  Blood started to paint the floor. Saba, the imp master, jumped away from the table. His throat let out a shriek:

  “Romeo was bitten! Just now!”

  “What!?”

  The still-warm food was sent flying from the falling furniture. Xavier, Carmen, Sabrine, and Lapis immediately prepared to engage in the fight. Julius reached into the sleeve of his suit, where a golden light was born. Yet, he stopped when he saw Eugene chewing calmly as though nothing were amiss.

  “Just kidding!” The young hunter jumped out of the corner. His neck was indeed covered with blood, but so were two of his fingers. Sharp black fog receded into his nails.

  “Saba! Your imps can’t tell the difference between a real bite and not!?” The lady with a demonic arm unexpectedly lashed out.

  The pouty man shriveled, “I-I only told them to report when the skin gets damaged…”

  “Damn Hell! Romeo, what were you thinking?” Julius glanced at the bleeding youth, but only before his eyes darted to the table that remained upright. “And you, were you all in?”

  “What’s the issue?” Violet tilted her head, “It’s about trust and compliance, right?”

  The suited hunter exhaled. He was again focused on Saba—the one who planted the imps. The arisen uproar was yet another plan that didn’t reveal anything, but was enough in itself to draw certain conclusions. Eugene stood up from the bench with a smile.

  A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  “Good job, Romeo! Spontaneous actions like this are exactly how you complete such missions.” The bleeding hunter straightened; his pale face showed an almost impolite grin. Eugene’s face sank, and he continued.

  ”But I don’t want to stop with this.”

  “You have more ideas?” Xavier, the muscular hunter, asked while lifting the overturned table.

  “I do. We go and check each room of every fucking hunter right now.”

  The ginger hunter spoke coldly. The rapid change in tone was the complete opposite of Romeo’s hotheaded approach, although it followed the same logic. His eyes were glaring open.

  “Eugene… We were supposed to go talk with the siege. We only have one hour for that, remember?” The words of the ex-commander were chosen cautiously.

  “Which is exactly what a vampire in our rows would expect. Even if Conrad’s nameless hirelings checked your shit, I haven’t.” In Eugene’s eyes, two black vortices surged. Spinning slowly, they engulfed every gaze that met his. Nobody dared to talk. Until repetitive whispers started echoing from the corner.

  Eugene cracked his neck. Striding fast, he passed Romeo as if there was no person in the way to the maintenance cabin.

  “Get up, Tobias. Sudden change of plans.”

  The praying exorcist bent to the floor; his lips quivering but carrying on with the message to God. A metallic click forced him to stop. The barrel of the silver revolver was pointed at the trembling man.

  “You either follow us, or I’m desecrating your faith in the most ungodly of ways.”

  “Hey! Carr…” Met, the former lookout, cleared his throat. “Khm. Eugene, boy. We ain’t even sure the Guild did not make a mistake.”

  “I understand, old man. But I am not taking any risks. Even the slightest chance is a chance I’m not taking.” The gloved palm swung Garlic towards the stairs. “Tobias, get up. Also, I’d reconsider your stance on casting the Devilish flame.”

  With that, Eugene holstered the revolver and went to the exit of the basement. A vexed utterance came from Julius.

  “That’s exactly what I was worried about…”

  As the caped hunter led them to the first floor, the eerie black-haired woman spoke dreamily.

  “Ho~ Why is he so angry? Vampires just drink blood. We kill them, they kill us, it’s how life is~.”

  For a moment, Eugene halted. The words reached him, but he ultimately decided not to react and kept walking.

  “Your name is… Cardia, right? Cardia?” The demon-armed lady was quiet, and that seemed to influence her conversation partner.

  “Yes! Yours is… Sabrine, right? Sabrine?” Cardia’s strangeness was now infused with childish gestures. “Do you know why he hates vampires so much? What did they do to him?”

  Over the lady’s lips, a finger was put. She tried to “teach” the inquiring huntress some basic manners. “I don’t know. But I’ve heard that people don’t like it when someone pries into their personal stories. Alright?”

  “Why are you talking like I’m a kid? I am twenty-one years old~.”

  Sabrine’s eyebrows jumped after she heard the response. Just as she tried to apologize, Eugene started talking. Everyone was already nearing the lookout’s table.

  “I suspect you’re not rebelling because you know what I’m doing is necessary. Naturally, exposing your every tiny artifact is redundant. But, if I find any trace of blood, you either explain what ritual you were performing, or you die.”

  “Eugene!” Tobias made a step forward. His wrinkled face was dipped. “I beg you. My room is a… sacred place. I don’t want acolytes trashing it, I will even accept a witch do it instead!”

  “One more word and you will become a martyr.” Dark fog kept spinning in the irises of the ginger man.

  Julius reached into the outer pocket of his jacket. A red square was peeking from it, but what he pulled out was a pair of round, tinted glasses. He demonstratively put them on before approaching Eugene close enough to feel his breath.

  “Listen here, shithead. This time, you’re not in charge of the mission, and there’s a good fuckin’ reason for that. The reward implies we should value our lives in here, not the opposite.”

  The darkness seemed to subside in the other man’s eyes. Yet, he stood immovable. Julius raised his fingers and drew a pentagram in the air, as if crossing Eugene. A pulse of heat surged with tiny blue flames, cleansing the body and clothes of the caped hunter. His attire and face appeared as though he just finished preparing himself for a public ceremony.

  “I use this for appearances — cleans the blood flawlessly. Thus, I can detect and erase any blood that’s out of place. Luckily, there was none on you.”

  Julius stepped past Eugene. Other hunters followed his example, ignoring the man who seemed like a threat just a minute before. Violet glanced at him and threw a mocking sneer.

  The search commenced. Time flew as the rooms were overturned and cleansed, with nothing unexpected uncovered.

  Lapis searched Tobias's quarters, previously proclaimed sacred, and found nothing except for a Bible and a thurible.

  Under the two beds that Xavier and Carmen shoved together, among personal belongings, there was a diary. Eugene noticed a bookmark labeling the day the mission started.

  In the bags of the oldest hunter, pills and ointments for his severed limb lay. Finally, it was the witches' chambers to be swept.

  Leaving Violet's messy room with no peculiarities discovered, the group had poor expectations for the place where Lapis resided. Surprised, they saw a well-arranged interior. Scrolls, glass phials, herbs, crystals, and even a few purely ornamental clothes in azure and yellow. There was a panelled window, and although the light was obstructed by the Stargazing tower, a few vibrant stones rested on the sill. As Eugene’s gaze calmly roamed the artifacts, the vortices in his eyes vanished.

  “Are these stones decorative?” He asked the blonde witch, seeing Julius’s ritual failing to find any blood.

  “No. They accumulate sunlight.” Lapis answered directly, “A few curses need them for the casting ritual.”

  “Not the Curse of Scarlet, I hope?”

  Seeing the ginger hunter examining the window, she let out a tense laugh.

  “Haha… no. If creating vampires were this easy, the Guild would conduct experiments on them every day. Besides, the original Curse of Scarlet wouldn’t help much. The vampires it created would still be running away from sunlight and mirrors.”

  The words of the investigated woman were informative, but to experienced hunters like Eugene, they were rather unnecessary. Frowning, he didn’t interrupt her and simply continued scrutinizing the window.

  “Before the Witch Hunt, the Curse of Scarlet was modified almost every day. Both the curse and the potion had changed completely, as did their names. Now the information about them is gone, but I consider it more of a science, so…”

  Eugene’s pupils constricted. The tone Lapis was prating with guided him towards the edge of the wooden sill. A small thread, thinner than spider silk, was secured by the window frame. It held something that hung far down outside.

  “Alright, I understand.” He turned around. “It seems there’s nothing special in here. Who’s next? Cardia?”

  The huntress in navy and pink nodded.

  “Yes! Do not worry, I also have no blood~.”

  The ginger hunter entered the corridor. His heavy steps led him forward, and tension settled in. At first, it was not about Cardia’s quarters; it was about Romeo’s. The deadly, devilish trap was still armed and ready to strike any visitor.

  A pair of cold gusts wrapped Eugene’s neck. His hair almost stood up, and a nauseating feeling was born in his stomach. The closer he was to Cardia’s room, the dimmer the walls turned. For a second, an unnatural shame was produced by the inexplicable fear, but other hunters remained silent. Their eyes were muted — their steps muffled. Eugene grabbed the bronze doorknob.

  Teeth. Rows, lines, sequences. First, too far. Then, too close. Later, inside me. Part by part, I am taken away. Deconstructed, mutilated, gurgling in an attempt to implore mercy. The teeth do not stop. Bones meet bones, but they are stronger. Blood is covering her, and us, and me, and Him. He isn’t here, yet I feel his gaze. Cloth fuses with flesh. I witness the wet pieces fall onto the parquet. Teeth bite off my sight.

  Bleeding crevices in my vision, legs salted with my own marrow. It does not stop. Teeth do not stop. No eyes to see with, no ears to capture the chomping it. What did I do to deserve this? Why would I ask Death to take me, only for Her not to come? Sometimes my pain is stronger than the teeth. They still bite in. They crack, and then they swallow themselves. Oh God. Now they are even sharper. My spine wraps around my lungs. I persist not. Held by nothing, I fall apart.

  “Gah!”

  Eugene recoiled. His sweating body leaned against the opposite wall. Inhaling and exhaling repeatedly, he was barely holding on.

  “Cardia, what the fuck is inside!?”

  With all his anger, the ginger hunter crashed the door with his leg.

  A flurry of footsteps arrived at Eugene's position to share a glance into the revealed space. Not only did it have no huntress’s luggage, but it also felt even emptier than before. The edges of the window were smooth, as if rounded by a master. Behind the glass, a desolate horizon lay. Polished round shapes were also etched into the bed, the table, and the closet. It gave the impression that evercreeping shadows had shaped all forms to freely move around. The light from the corridor couldn't reach inside. Instead, dark gray and silver shadows sporadically shimmered across the interior. If one imagined Hell, it would be more welcoming.

  Eugene glanced at the resident of the room. Her empty look mirrored the void he just witnessed. More than that, her door was set on the same side as his. No window had been there before.

  Tobias fell to the floor. Saba, the imp master, grabbed the exorcist's shoulder.

  "What happened!? You- you weren't hurt, right!?"

  Tobias grabbed his heart and began whispering. Tears formed below his eyelids.

  "Y-you... You are worse than any of them!" He proclaimed with unfamiliar wraith.

  Cardia recoiled.

  "Why are you saying this~? I just painted the room to His liking!"

  "Hey, what the fuck is this?"

  The crimson rifle was pointed at the huntress. Xavier held his weapon while a floating golden orb brightened the eerie chamber. A wide puddle of dark blood glimmered on the floor, but Cardia wasn't fazed until threatened.

  "Sorry, I lied! I did have blood, but I wanted to set a trap for the vampire!" She cringed with theatrical regret. "He would never let anyone leave the room if they came for the blood!"

  "Poor vampire," Romeo jested.

  With a blank look, Julius stepped forward and drew a pentagram in the air. Blinding blue flames appeared and erased the puddle in a second. Cardia gasped.

  "Noo~ Why would you do that?"

  "Because wherever you got that blood from, don't use it again." Xavier was still hesitant to hide his rifle. "I repeat, without blood, vampires can barely survive for three days. Time is on our side, just don't do dumb shit to create opportunities for the impostor if there is one!"

  The hunters nodded, making Cardia feel even more awkward. A wrinkled fist patted her shoulder.

  “Don’ take it too close to your heart, young lady! We all make mistakes.”

  She looked up—and her vision blurred.

  “Thank you, grandpa~. At least, you can understand me…”

  The group paid it no mind. Unwilling to spend more time near the horrifying space, they hurriedly checked every rounded corner and found nothing worthy of attention. Similar results were brought by sweeping Eugene’s and Sabrine’s rooms. At last, it was Romeo’s turn to undergo the investigation.

  Eugene’s initiative lessened along with his attitude. From outside, it was easy to consider his reservation to be the result of being chastened. However, now it served as a desired circumstance: the one to trigger the trap would not be him. When Xavier, the ex-commander, turned around to approach the bronze handle, the purple-haired witch jumped forward.

  “Let me open it! What if it’s as scary as Cardia’s?”

  Eugene interfered, although standing relatively far.

  “You’ll break the doorknob. Do you want Romeo to sleep outside?”

  Violet smiled, “No, the curse on my hands accumulates with time. I’ll be quick enough not to break the bronze.”

  Her palms landed on the cold metal. With a swift twist, the chamber of the youngest hunter was revealed. Eugene’s eyes jumped, seeing the woman proceed inside. He bent forward as though reaching for her.

  “Stop!”

  Romeo grabbed her first.

  “The… The room is trapped! Don’t go in!”

  With the help of the pulling hand, Violet stepped back. With an exasperated expression, she turned around. The youth was biting his lower lip, feeling the gazes on the back of his neck.

  “Eugene, I thought you would stop her!”

  “Me?” The ginger man retracted his hand, “I instigated all of this to see what you were planning! Which is even less clear now.”

  Romeo’s black headband became moist. The expressions before him varied from confused to angry, so his cheeks reddened more with every breath. Compared to his previous stunt, the effect was not as redeeming.

  “I- I wanted to do it, just l-like Cardia…”

  Instead of additional questions, even more condemning looks locked onto him.

  “I-I… was afraid there was someone else in the mansion. The thirteenth mercenary, or… some… such.”

  The hunters glanced at each other. In one moment, their brains went through the entire spectrum of emotions. Puzzled, Julius took off his red-tinted glasses. He nodded at the young hunter.

  “That’s, surprisingly, a decent theory. I’ll be honest and mention that I haven’t made that assumption before.”

  “I agree.” Sabrine presented a rare, genuine smile. “In a sense, people like Romeo and Cardia carry perspectives that differ from ours. That may offer us an advantage in certain scenarios.”

  Hearing these words did not restore the calm of the young man. Conversely, the graceful woman who uttered them was hard to impress, at least in his mind. For that, his eyes began to travel great distances. An extended, gloved hand interrupted the mess.

  Eugene cleared his throat.

  “Khm. I apologize. Maybe I was too rash.”

  “Ha! Look at him, the carrot-head’s embarrassed!”

  Contrary to the old man’s expectation, Eugene remained composed.

  “Indeed. Disrupting our cooperation is not something I can benefit from. Although…” His cold gaze switched to the wrinkled exorcist. “...if I prioritize teamwork, all of you should too. I don’t particularly regret anything.”

  A uniformed man sat at the solitary table in the dimly lit room. A short woman entered. Her thin and crudely tailored twintails were not simply blonde, but lurid yellow. Her crippled voice broke the serenity.

  “Commander, they did not arrive at the gate today.”

  Deep hanging eye bags amplified her grim look when the only other figure stood up.

  “There is no need for formality, Citrine. I understand.”

  A second passed, and the man embraced the reporting officer. He caressed her head and back, but beneath the gentleness lurked revolting, strangling sensations. Citrine softly pushed him away.

  “The mission, Commander. We didn’t develop any protocols besides the one to react with.”

  “It’s fine, sweetheart.” His charming voice made its way to the curtained window. “Based on what we observed, I can tell they haven’t come to the realization yet. No one will come to save them.”

  The light leaked into the room. Bottomless, dark-emerald irises of the commander surveyed the outside world.

  “Soon.”