Somewhere across the city, another set of predators worked under a very different code.
"So, Dream Host, huh?"
The bald man spoke, his long white coat marking him as a doctor, though not the usual kind.
He eyed the tall, well-built man lying in front of him. Under the bright lamp, the man's sun-kissed skin glistened, his short brown hair cut in a trendy style.
"Hm… a jock, not weird that they got into trouble like this."
"Football player, Doctor Sam," Maria confirmed. "His name's Dylan. He's infested with Dream Spores that have developed into a Dream Host."
"Don't call him 'doctor,' Maria. He cheated to get his license, and it'll only make his ego get as big as Mount Everest."
David took a swig from his hip flask. Betty immediately slapped it out of his hands, sending the brown liquid splashing onto his jacket and the floor.
"Ow. Didn't know you had a talent for being rude," David muttered, brushing his jacket with his hand. The liquor smeared rather than came off, but he let it drip anyway.
Betty rolled her eyes. "Rude? You wouldn't survive as my enemy."
Sam sighed. "You see your two teammates over there? Sure you don't want to switch? Your future's still bright." He adjusted his glasses and took a seat on the stool beside Dylan's body.
Maria shrugged. "Ah, I'm still new. Don't think I have much of a choice." She kept her eyes on the patient.
Sam pulled a strange lens device attached to a flexible tube and positioned it above Dylan's chest.
"You're a Pharos, right? You need to learn this," he said, motioning for Maria to come closer.
She nodded gratefully and leaned in to watch.
Pharos was a human who developed supernatural power from birth or was awakened because of trauma revolving around a vampire.
Their existence was valuable to vampire hunters as they were the only ones who could see the weakness of the high-level vampires.
"This is called the Augur Glass. It's made from vampire irises melted into a single lens. With it, we can see abnormalities caused by vampires, like this Dream Host, and destroy them more easily."
From his bag, Sam took out a long silver needle about twenty centimeters long, thin but still solid enough to hold with ease in his wrinkled hand.
"This is made entirely from silver. It's one of only two materials that can harm a vampire."
"And the other one?"
"You've heard of Mutation Blood Style? That's the other. Silver burns a vampire's flesh, halting regeneration in low-level ones. For the stronger ones… it only slows them down a little."
Sam turned his focus back to Dylan. Inside the boy's lungs, clusters of Dream Host spread thick purple spores.
He carefully inserted the needle, piercing the infected tissue without damaging the lung itself. The spores wilted and shriveled instantly.
When he was done, Sam handed the needle to Maria. "The other lung is yours."
Maria grinned, taking it carefully. She mirrored his precise movements until no trace of the Dream Host remained.
When they were done, Sam approached David and Betty, who were waiting, and said, "I'll report this to the boss. You two bring the head of Velstrath here."
"You're sure she's the perpetrator? But why?" David asked, rubbing the back of his head. His face made it clear he wanted nothing to do with Velstrath.
"Oh, you're scared? Even with that brand-new Vitalis Core implanted in you?" Sam smirked, making his friend roll his eyes.
"A B-rank one. Not exactly useful against an S-rank vampire like the head of Velstrath… it doesn't even give me evolved powers like them."
"Huh. Has age made you weak and cowardly, David?" Sam's tone sharpened.
"Just call her. She's not the type to attack random people. Something must have happened. And as the lead, you should sniff it out like the loyal dog you are."
Sam turned away, nodding toward the boy beside him. "Also, this one's got a strong constitution. Everyone else went mad from that dream, but he held it together. He's good. You should recruit him—we're short on hunters."
He dropped into his soft chair again, resting one hand on its headrest as he spun lazily to face them.
"Recruiters these days are pathetic. Probably gone soft from all the tech doing the work for them."
"How many died last week again?" he sighed. "At this rate, I might as well switch sides."
"Watch it, Sam," David warned, finally standing. "I'll be the one hunting you down if you turn into a bloodsucking monster and I don't need another friend giving their life to them."
"Relax. I'm too old for that," Sam shrugged. "If I wanted to be one, I'd have done it twenty years ago when I was still hot. Now scram."
The three of them left with heavy sighs, knowing that tomorrow—and probably the rest of the week—was going to be long and exhausting.
***
Seamus followed the directions on the paper Madeline had given him after Viviane hadn't come home since yesterday. The address led him into the part of town no one wanted to touch, the slums.
The deeper he went, the more the streets revealed their rot: drug dealers lurking in corners, drunkards sprawled on the curb, bodies twitching in drug-induced haze.
He pulled his hoodie lower, hiding his face, and quickened his pace past a prostitute calling out to him, past a pair of addicts brawling while blood sprayed from a fresh wound, the bystanders laughing like it was sport.
The air here was foul: not from pollution, but from the cocktail of cheap weed, cloying perfume, and alcohol thick enough to sting his vampire-sharpened senses.
'Shit… is Viviane really here? Or is Madeline just screwing with me?' he thought, stopping in front of what passed for a "market."
Then his gaze locked on something that didn't belong, a mansion perched on the hill above. It loomed over the shacks below, sleek and menacing.
Unlike the Velstrath estate, this place was all modern angles with stacked rectangles of black walls and glass, massive windows gleaming under the dim sky.
He stared, surprised that a place like that even existed here… not that he'd ever been in this part of town before.
"Huh?"
The sound snapped him from his thoughts. A young woman, about his age, stood a few meters away.
Her short pink hair framed round golden eyes that widened at the sight of him. Her eyes filled with shock, like she'd just seen a monster.
The moment their gazes met, she turned and bolted into a narrow alley.
'She knows me.'
It was as if she acknowledged him the way that savage knew him.
He gave chase, his speed easily outmatching hers. In seconds, he caught her by the hood, yanking her back and slamming her against the wall.
Her breath caught as his grip forced her to meet his eyes.
"Who are you," he growled, his voice edged with threat and urgency, "and what do you know about me?"