"Let's move!" Sheriff Williams barked, his voice echoing down the quiet street as the group set off.

"After you, Sergeant Kane," the Wiry Samurai gestured with a sardonic smile.

It was clear that this was a carefully orchestrated trap. The sheriff had his justifications, and they had assessed their strength meticulously. A dozen officers armed with pistols, twenty soldiers with M16s – useless against powerful vamps, but more than enough to control us.

"I'm curious to see how this plays out," Butcher Garcia muttered, his face grim as he joined me.

The Wiry Samurai’s expression soured, but he didn't stop Garcia. "As you wish," he said with a forced smile. "I'm merely following orders."

The tension was palpable as we marched in silence onto the street, drawing curious glances from passersby.

Five police vans lined the curb. We were separated, each of us loaded into a different vehicle. The Wiry Samurai joined me, and Butcher Garcia, after a brief hesitation from the officers, followed suit.

We left Pinewood County behind, heading towards the small village of Stom, thirty miles away.

The vans screeched to a halt outside the village. We disembarked, Sheriff Williams leading the way with a grim determination. He occasionally glanced back at me, his eyes filled with a chilling malice.

"Is this about eliminating vamps, or eliminating us?" Babar Khan whispered, his voice trembling.

He struggled against his captors, but was met with the cold steel of rifle barrels and a sharp blow to the back.

"Wait, where are we going?" The Wright brothers' voices rose in alarm as they watched the convoy bypass Stom and continue down a desolate dirt road.

"There's nothing but wasteland ahead. Aren't you afraid of the monsters?"

The Wiry Samurai's smile widened, a cruel twist to his lips. He raised a hand, signaling the convoy to halt.

Almost in unison, the convoy screeched to a halt. The officers and soldiers parted, then roughly kicked the backs of our knees, forcing us to kneel. The cold press of blades against our necks served as a chilling reminder of our vulnerability.

A fellow officer, his face etched with a mix of pity and resignation, averted his gaze.

In the distance, illuminated by the pale moonlight, a dilapidated shack stood on the edge of the road.

A tall, lanky figure, clad in a tunic and trousers that seemed comically small for its frame, stood beside a rickety table. Black hair peeked out beneath the cuffs of its sleeves and trousers as it intently poured wine into a bowl made from a small skull.

Seated at the table, its back to us, was a slender figure in a straw raincoat and a wide-brimmed hat. It seemed engrossed in a late-night snack.

The incongruity of the scene created an unsettling atmosphere.

"These guys look tough." Butcher Garcia muttered, a rare note of apprehension in his voice.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

He finally understood why the Wiry Samurai hadn't objected to his presence. Before them stood not one, but two First Realm vampires.

The one sitting there has a slightly agitated aura, clearly having recently broken through, but the rich essence is unmistakably that of the First Realm grandmaster.

The standing figure, though slightly weaker, was on par with Garcia himself, their physiques eerily similar. Added to that the Wiry Samurai and the armed soldiers...

Butcher Garcia, a veteran of countless battles, made a swift decision.

Run! Better to retreat and regroup than face certain annihilation.

"I brought the people you requested," Sheriff Williams stepped forward, his voice a mix of bravado and desperation. "I had no part in the deaths of your family," he declared, his voice trembling slightly. "I even suppressed the news of your child abductions... I know you wanted to lure him out... Master Simian, I'm in my fifties, with only one son left. Please, return him to me..."

"Silence," the tall ape in plain tunic commanded, its voice a chilling growl. It set down the wine bottle and cast a cold glance at the sheriff.

"Yes, yes, of course," Sheriff Williams stammered, his face contorted in a nervous grin. He waved a trembling hand at the soldiers behind him.

Rifles snapped into position, their barrels trained on me and my companions. A dozen pistols joined the chorus of steel, forming an impenetrable barrier around us.

The old ape in the straw raincoat belched contentedly, pushing aside the meticulously gnawed bone. It stood, wiping its mouth with its hand. In the pale moonlight, thirteen small skulls, gleamed on the table, their empty eye sockets casting an eerie glow.

"Thank you," the old ape rasped, its voice a chilling whisper.

Sheriff Williams, momentarily relieved, beamed at the compliment. But as his eyes fell upon the table, his smile froze. He counted the skulls, his heart sinking with each one.

The realization hit him like a physical blow. His face drained of color, his legs gave way, and he collapsed to the ground, his body wracked with sobs.

"Nooooooo!" he wailed, unable to form coherent words.

The sight of the skulls sent a shiver down Butcher Garcia's spine. He whipped around, eyes burning with fury. "Yamamoto, have you lost your mind?"

The Wiry Samurai raised an eyebrow, a smirk playing on his lips. "What have I done? I simply followed the county executive’s orders, accompanying Sheriff Williams on tonight's investigation. Perhaps you should ask Sergeant Kane how he handled the supernaturals?”

The Wiry Samurai smiled and cast his eyes on me.

"Bullshit,” Garcia spat on the ground in disgust. “four people protecting an entire county of two hundred thousand? And with their superiors aiding the enemy? If I were H.A.R.M., those bastards’ heads would be rolling!”

Butcher Garcia's next curse died in his throat as he noticed a figure missing from their midst. He looked up to see me walking away, ignoring the M16s and pistols trained on my back.

I reached Wade's side and bent down to retrieve his dagger.

"Run, now! We'll have other chances!" Wade's words were cut short by a slap from a nearby officer.

The officer who struck him stared at me, his face a mask of indecision.

I continued on, unfazed, until I stood beneath the pergola.

The two apevamps watched me with cold eyes. One sneered, "Kneel like him, and we may leave your body intact."

"Kill them, you fool! Didn't you want to be the hero? Now I'm ordering you – kill them!"

Sheriff Williams, eyes wild, grabbed my sleeve and howled like a lunatic.

The howling only lasted for a moment, and quickly turned into the sound of gurgling blood.

As the light of the dagger passed by, the head with white hair and beard fell to the ground.

I locked eyes with the two apevamps, wiping the dagger on my blue uniform as Sheriff Williams' body crumpled to the ground.

In the distance, sweat beaded on the officers' brows.

The soldiers gulped, their M16s now trained on me.

"You dare!"

The Wiry Samurai, momentarily stunned, erupted in fury and charged forward.

His orders tonight were not to lead the ambush, but to protect Sheriff Williams.

Who could have predicted this madman would stand before the vamps and execute the sheriff? Worse yet, the two apevamps simply watched!

It looked as if Sheriff Williams had been the intended target all along.

Yamamoto’s rage blinded him, and he didn't see the thick arm that appeared out of nowhere, slamming into his chest with brutal force.

The Wiry Samurai took a few steps back, finally regained his balance, and growled, "You stupid dog, didn't you see him killing the sheriff?"

Butcher Garcia's expression was ferocious, he drew out his butcher's knife and struck at Yamamoto: "Fuck you!"

Simultaneously, a ripple of surprise finally disturbed the indifferent eyes of the two ape vampires.