One Blade per Kid

The center of Blood Thorn was a massive dance floor—ear-splitting music, dazzling rotating colored lights, and a crowd wildly flailing their limbs in abandon.

Private rooms and bar counters surrounded it.

"A martini, with a sweet olive."

Mike ordered his drink with practiced ease.

"Certainly."

The bartender gave him a professional smile.

Martinis had countless variations. Their main ingredients were gin and bitter vermouth, served with either an olive or a lemon twist. Mike liked their ever-changing flavors, just as he enjoyed getting intimately acquainted with different women.

Before he had even finished his drink, a brown-haired beauty in a deep V-neck dress sauntered over. At first glance, she had something of Taylor Swift's allure.

"Hey, handsome, how about buying me a drink?"

"Of course."

Mike gave a somewhat bashful smile and gestured for the bartender to serve her one.

"Flaming Red Lips."

The beauty told the bartender what she wanted.

"Mike," Mike introduced himself.

"Sansa."

Sansa naturally leaned close to Mike. Her ample breasts brushed against his arm, seemingly by accident, as her fingernail lightly traced across his thigh. Lowering her voice, she whispered in his ear, "I'll show you something fun."

"How fun?" Mike asked teasingly.

Sansa downed her Flaming Red Lips in one gulp, then licked her lips with the tip of her tongue. "I guarantee you'll never forget it for the rest of your life."

With that, she pulled Mike toward the VIP passageway.

Under normal circumstances, he had probably run into a predatory woman hunting handsome men. He should have prepared for an evenly matched battle in bed.

But in Blood Thorn... perhaps a Vampire had taken a liking to him. Vampires were particular about their food's color, aroma, and flavor too.

Mike was young, handsome, and healthy. In a Vampire's eyes, he was undoubtedly Italian Alba White Truffle grade.

Sansa led Mike toward a private room on the second floor. She was not a Vampire, but a Vampire Cultist.

Vampire Cultists were humans who worshipped Vampires and wanted to become Vampires. They worked for Vampires, including finding delicious food for them.

The two entered a huge private room. Inside were twelve Vampires and two humans, one of whom was Mike—the food.

Mike chuckled inwardly. Not bad luck. I found the Vampire nest in one go.

A white female Vampire named Macy, dressed in white pants and a white shirt with a white mink stole draped over her shoulders, looked Mike up and down with great satisfaction.

The black female Vampire beside her, Marissa, said, "Faith will get jealous if you keep looking at him like that."

Macy said resentfully, "He doesn't have time for that. Besides—who gets jealous over food?"

"Hahahaha..."

The room erupted in laughter.

From beginning to end, Mike stood quietly.

"An idiot who doesn't understand the situation?" Marissa stepped forward, reaching out to pinch Mike's cheek.

"Don't touch me." Mike tilted his head aside to avoid her. Lisa was not among these twelve Vampires, which counted as good news. He pulled out Lisa's photo and asked, "Excuse me, does anyone know where this girl is?"

A Vampire burst out laughing. "Looks like he really is an idiot."

Another Vampire egged her on. "The idiot rejected Marissa!"

More simply watched the show with smiles.

Marissa's face darkened as she exposed two horrifying fangs. Vampires had strict ranks. Macy was Faith's girlfriend, so no matter how angry Marissa was, she could not bite Mike. She only wanted to scare him.

Mike had no idea about all those complications. He took out the Nichirin Sword he had prepared from System Space and thrust it forward.

Pfft!

The long blade pierced Marissa's heart.

The laughter abruptly stopped.

The air suddenly fell silent.

The next moment—

"Aah!!!"

Marissa let out a miserable shriek and instantly turned into black ash.

The remaining Vampires stared fearfully at the Nichirin Sword. In their eyes, it was like a blade-shaped sun, radiating scorching ultraviolet light.

"Aah!"

The Vampires with thinner bloodlines were the first to be unable to endure it, burn marks appearing across their bodies.

"Kill him!"

Someone shouted, and the Vampires snapped out of it, drawing blades and pulling out guns.

Bang, bang, bang...

Gunfire erupted chaotically.

Under the perception of Observation Haki, the bullets' trajectories formed a three-dimensional map in Mike's mind.

Mike moved with ease, dodging bullets while taking down one kid with each slash.

A few seconds later, black ash swirled throughout the room.

Only two living humans and one Vampire remained.

With the Nichirin Sword pointed at her, Macy felt unbearable discomfort, as though countless ants were gnawing at her body.

"Y-you... who exactly are you?" Macy asked in a trembling voice.

"Who I am isn't important."

Mike took out Lisa's photo again. "What's important is where she is. She vanished from a bar two weeks ago. You did it."

This time, Macy studied the photo seriously. At last, she said in a tearful voice, "Really, I really don't remember..."

Macy felt wronged enough to die. Who would remember what they had eaten two weeks ago for no reason?

Mike's gaze turned cold.

Macy hurriedly said, "She might have been sent to the factory."

Vampires had blood banks, farms, or factories in every city. Blood banks stored blood. Farms and factories extracted it.

"Then let me ask another question. Where is the factory?" Mike asked.

"Th-this..."

Macy hesitated, her eyes shifting.

The Nichirin Sword sliced a shallow cut across her neck, and Macy immediately let out a piercing scream.

Macy gave him an address.

Mike turned and asked, "Sansa, was she telling the truth?"

Sansa had already been scared senseless.

In her eyes, Vampires were mysterious, powerful, elegant beings who should have replaced humanity as the ruling species. Watching them get slaughtered like vegetables had almost completely shattered Sansa's faith.

Slap!

Mike struck Sansa across the face without the slightest tenderness. She covered her mouth and burst into loud sobs.

"Sansa, I'll ask you one more time. Was she lying?"

Mike's voice was cold. To him, Vampire Cultists were enemies of humanity just like Vampires.

"She was telling the truth," Sansa replied shakily. "I've been there once."

Mike glanced at Macy. Sensing trouble, she shouted, "You can't kill me! You can't kill me! I'm Faith's girlfriend! If you kill me, he won't let you go!"

"Oh."

Mike gave an utterly insincere response. "Oh, I'm so scared."

One slash ended Macy.

Slap!

After considering it, Mike knocked Sansa unconscious with the sword's sheath.

It was not because he had gone soft.

She had another use.

The private room was so well soundproofed that no one had noticed what had happened inside.

Using Observation Haki, Mike searched the entire building and found the surveillance room.

Stopping before a door, Mike covered his hand in black Armament Haki.

Bang!

The door crashed directly into the room, leaving the two Vampires inside dazed and disoriented before they died beneath the Nichirin Sword.

After destroying the surveillance footage, Mike returned to the bar counter as if nothing had happened.

"You're surprised?" Mike asked the bartender with a smile.

"N-no..." the bartender denied it, though he could not hide the panic in his eyes.

"Oh, right. Why would you have any reason to be surprised? Another martini, with a sweet olive." As he spoke, Mike pointed at the web of the bartender's thumb, then abruptly changed the subject. "Nice tattoo."

"Heh heh." The bartender gave a dry laugh.

Mike picked up the toothpick holding the sweet olive between two fingers. "Let me show you a magic trick... whew!"

Mike blew on the toothpick, and it vanished.

Mike placed a hundred-dollar bill on the bar counter. "Use the change to buy yourself a coffin."

Before the bartender could say anything, a sharp pain suddenly tore through his chest. The dazzling lights became hazy, while the deafening music seemed to drift alternately far away and close by.