Parting on Bad Terms

The classic "good cop, bad cop" tactic, whether pre-arranged or not, might work quite well with most people. But for Henry, it's simply a matter of how much he has to play along.

Although Gitano Dragonetti's attitude remained unchanged, still as elegant as a nobleman, Henry could still sense the change in his emotions, from his initial enthusiasm to his current indifference.

If it were him a few years ago, Henry might have chosen to say something conciliatory, hoping the other party wouldn't target him, and then run far away. After all, he had no ties, so why would the other party chase him to the ends of the earth?

But that's no longer possible today. So, faced with this veiled threat, Henry feigned mystery and said, "I understand. Who hasn't encountered people like that? They can be quite a headache, can't they?"

Who are "them"? This was the first question in the old Vampires's mind. Yet the shadow of a certain group appeared like ghostly apparitions.

Before Gitano Dragonetti could ask for details, the reckless fellow, who had almost fully recovered, stood up. As if on purpose, he wiped the blood from his mouth and cheeks everywhere.

He said smugly, "Look, the weak humans are so badly injured that they can probably be sent straight to the morgue. Only we, with our stronger vitality, can survive. This is proof that we are superior life forms."

"Mutants, won't you choose to submit now? Your ignorance will only lead to your enslavement in the future. I hope your unreliable, hard body will at least save your life until then."

Henry didn't seem to care. Instead, he said thoughtfully, "What you said sounds familiar. Ah, right, isn't that what our the Leader, Magneto, often says?"

"Mutants are beings more evolved than humans, therefore Mutants are the future protagonists and should rightfully rule the Earth, and so on. Why don't you go and discuss with Magneto who should be the leader?"

"But my Magneto has already been driven by the U.S. military to a small island north of Madagascar, where he's mingling with the black people on the East Coast of Africa. How far have you progressed in your world domination?"

"You mean you have a complete and long-standing power structure, so this ambition isn't something you just developed today? Then why couldn't you do this before, but now you think you can?"

The Vampires, his face covered in blood, was clearly embarrassed after being rebuked by Henry. Faced with the question, he hesitated for a long time before finally managing to utter, "We have guns now."

Henry chuckled, barely managing to suppress his laughter. But his shoulders continued to tremble, making him look quite uncomfortable trying to hold it in.

"Okay, you have guns. That's like saying humans don't. I just want to ask, how many nuclear bombs do you possess? The kind you can launch at any time."

"We don't need nuclear weapons!" the young Vampires said viciously.

Henry exclaimed in surprise, "No need? Did I hear that right? You want to challenge nuclear-armed nations, but you don't have the corresponding weapons. Could it be that your resilience can withstand even a nuclear bomb?"

Wolverine by cleverly hiding in a well; this is a proven fact. Could Vampires do the same?

What If...? Vampires could do that, Henry would have to raise his assessment of the power levels of Marvel Vampires.

However, the young Vampires only retorted angrily, "We're hidden among the crowd! What kind of madman would use a nuclear weapon to attack us!"

"Oh, so this is what you're relying on. You're so kind, pinning your lives on the idea that those politicians have any humanity. Are you serious?"

Henry's rhetorical question left the young Vampires utterly humiliated.

Who would have thought that being Vampires could be praised as kind?

Such humiliation is more painful than death.

The young Vampires pulled something that looked like a remote control from his pocket and said angrily, "I'll kill you." He then reached for the button!

Gitano Dragonetti certainly wasn't going to sit idly by and watch someone he was trying to win over get their head blown off. Regardless of whether this young man was truly connected to Magneto.

This time, however, the old Vampires didn't take action himself; instead, he gave his subordinate a wink.

With a "bang!" gunshot, the young Vampires who had threatened to blow someone's head off only managed to make a hole in the controller, thus saving his own head.

Henry noticed that the gunman's shot was very clever, severing the tendons in his hand. This left his hand powerless, hanging limply, and of course, unable to press the control switch.

The gunman picked up the controller that had fallen to the ground and handed it to Gitano Dragonetti.

Henry watched as the middle-aged man fumbled with something in his hands, not looking like he was about to blow his head up.

Noticing the young man's gaze, Gitano Dragonetti raised the controller in his hand and said, "There doesn't seem to be a release switch on this."

The young Vampires, clutching his hands and kneeling on the ground, forced a laugh despite the pain. "That collar can't be removed unless it's blown up."

Henry chuckled dismissively and said, "Do you even believe that yourself? I don't need any complicated methods for this. Just go to the South District, find any teenage black kid, give him a wire and five cents, and he can unravel it for you in no time."

As he spoke, Henry stood up, grabbed a hair clip from the girl's head, and started fiddling with the choker around her neck. With a "click," the choker, which was supposedly "only to be blown up, not to be untied," came loose and fell off.

Henry grabbed the loosened Mutant Suppression Collar, examining it with feigned interest, and said, "Looks like I saved five coins. Which technician told you this thing couldn't be untied? Let's bite him to death first."

In fact, Henry didn't even bother to comment on how poorly made this thing was. The detonator and battery were exposed; you could remove whichever one you liked and disable its function. The latch was even less noteworthy.

Henry had intended to throw the collar at the young Vampires clutching his injured hand, but in the end, he placed it next to the wine bottle on the small table, maintaining his composure.

"How did you manage to remove the collar?" the young Vampires asked, looking surprised.

Henry bent down and leaned closer to the poor fellow sitting on the ground, saying, "You don't think I'm good for nothing except for my special abilities, do you, sir?"

"As a human being, my greatest weapon has always been wisdom, not this bulletproof body. But I doubt someone like you, who doesn't use their brain, understands the importance of this."

Henry, preparing to leave, said to his host, "Mr. Dragonetti, I have other matters to attend to and cannot stay any longer. Thank you for your invitation today, but I must take my leave now."

With that, Henry turned to leave.

Gitano Dragonetti neither rose to see him off nor to detain him. He simply poured himself another glass of wine and said, feigning nonchalance, "What If...? Mr. Brown were to leave like this, things might turn out differently."

The threat in those words couldn't be clearer.

Henry, however, had no intention of backing down. Instead, he pointed to the stunned Vampires on the ground and said, "With a companion like this, I don't think our cooperation will change my situation much. Don't you agree?"