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A soft click broke the eerie silence in the cave tunnel. A thin bolt flickered across the dark cave, crimson runic veins pulsating softly across the shaft.

There, in the center of the spacious cove — a pristine bed and other opulent furnishings were arranged loosely in a circle.

‘They’ve got it all wrong... this is the fifth vampire, and he isn’t sleeping in a coffin either.’

Distracting himself with some nonsense, Leonardo watched from afar as the bolt got closer and closer to the dormant vampire.

Were he not an atheist, he’d undoubtedly pray with clasped hands at the moment. Alas, while denying the gods, he couldn’t deny fate.

Just as the bolt reached the vampire’s bedside, he sprung from his bed instinctively. Alerted by danger, he didn’t even open his eyes yet — but a cloud of inky black fog exploded all around him, filling the cave and shrouding it in another layer of darkness.

It was already dark before, but that didn’t bother Leonardo much since he had spells. Now, however, he was truly blinded.

It felt as if the cave was pulled in a separate dimension entirely. Sound was muffled in the cloud, footsteps inaudible and the wind rendered still. His eyes became entirely useless, as tendrils of noxious smoke tried to drill their way into his body and sap him of all vitality.

‘Thankfully, I didn’t come unprepared.’

Even as he reassured himself, Leonardo tossed the cumbersome crossbow away and drew his shield, his eyes closed shut.

A moment later, the bolt finally made contact with the vampire, as if magnetically drawn to him. The luck spell was effective and the shot landed with accuracy.

A crimson light flickered across the bolt’s surface, untainted by the stygian darkness. A moment later it overloaded, and the light broke free in a massive spiraling blaze, covering the vampire in flame.

Fire, much like sunlight, was one of the most effective weapons against the undead.

A muffled shriek echoed across the cave, the sheer rage and pain expressed by it reaching Leo even through the shroud of silent darkness.

Not knowing how effective his flame bolt would be on this particular vampire, Leonardo cautiously raised his shield. Blaze runes were etched across its surface, ready to recoil with flame should the vampire strike it.

He then backed against a corner, his dagger clutched tight in his right hand as he chanted a mantra softly under his breath.

The darkness was suffocating, and he couldn’t hear his own enunciation — but it helped him stay focused and calm.

Sensing something, he ducked his head and raised his shield just as a violent force tore a chunk of his shield and smashed into the wall behind him, the recoil still sufficient to crack a hole in the rock.

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“… volare!” finishing his spell, Leonardo saw the object that nearly tore through his skull just as he opened his eyes.

It was a misshapen bolt, cracked runic lines still imprinted on it.

‘He… caught it?’

( Gulp! )

His dry throat heaving involuntarily, he finally realized he could hear himself again. The shroud of darkness was dispelled by the explosion, but he had no time to celebrate.

Alarmed, he quickly turned his attention back to the center.

There, the vampire stared at him with crimson eyes. They held nothing but murderous intent, and in truth were no longer capable of anything else. The creature had gone berserk, giving reign to the instinctual beast within.

The opulent room was now in disarray, the bed sheets burned to ash along with the vampire’s clothing. His skin was cracked and clearly suffering from burns still, with the right hand absent entirely. A charcoal black limb allowed Leonardo to quickly surmise what happened.

“Heh. Never played hot potato before?”

The creature snarled in response, then lunged forward.

‘Fool.’ Leonardo shrugged, then aimed a superficial cut at the cave above.

The previously primed spell exploded silently. From his blade, a subtle vibration traveled through the hard rock at an angle, all the way to the surface. There, a few spots were weakened and soundlessly ground to dust, leaving a narrow chasm open.

Vibrant golden blades of sunlight shone inside the cove a moment later, obstructing the vampire’s path and forming an impassable barrier between them.

The beast recoiled, but was unable to stop in time. Its stretched limbs prone for an attack were the first to suffer.

As soon as the sun shone on him, they burst ablaze like gasoline. It made Leonardo’s explosive bolt pale in comparison, thanks to the sunlight attacking the cursed blood directly.

Frenzied shrieks accompanied Leonardo like music as he lifted the crossbow and loaded a new bolt, firing it through the sunlight wall.

The vampire tried to save his limbs, but flame spread across his chest as well. It ignored Leonardo entirely and rolled helplessly across the cave to douse the flames, to no avail.

The usually damp and cold cave floor served no relief at all, and bolts soon pelted the vampire one after another.

It had neither a place to take cover nor a means to escape, with the only exit blocked by its worst bane.

‘That was risky… but easier than I thought.”

After firing his fifth explosive bolt, Leonardo noticed the vampire was on his last leg. Literally.

Its arms had long since crumbled to ash, with one of its legs suffering from a direct impact and thus exploding as well.

The vampire’s instincts were too strong, and despite it being distracted, he only managed to hit it twice. The beast was too fast, and even when compensating with magic, if it weren’t for the ambush — he’d have no chance at a fair fight.

‘Anytime now…’

Intently observing the vampire, he watched the flames spread gradually and lick his neck. Soon, the flesh burned like dry bark and the bones crumbled just as easily. A certain threshold was crossed and the vampire died, because not longer after — the entire body crumbled to ash.

“Got it!”

Pulling his hand from a small portal, Leonardo stoved away a vial of viscous dark blood, quickly hiding it under several layers of opaque coverings. Any exposure to the sun would dispel the curse and render the prize null.

Then, he dropped to the ground and gasped for breath, his teeth still clattering from his nervous strain.

‘Never again. That was way too fucking close for comfort.’

Despite the fight seeming simple, one had to take into account that it was an ambush in daytime. Even so, he exhausted most of his chi reserves to fire explosive bolts and set the trap. Had the vampire retained rationality, it could throw rocks through the sun wall, and it would do nothing to prevent his death.

Giving the cave another look-over, he spotted the remnants of a metallic chest in a corner.

‘Oh? What’s this then? Treasure?’

Despite trying to hype himself up, he wasn’t all that optimistic about the vampire’s wealth. The guy lived in a cave, after all.

Picking the lock apart with ease, he peered inside and saw a stack of leather parchments.

‘A map? Hm… I’ll take a look later, I guess.’

Tossing the chest to the back of his mind, he first dealt with the thralls’ bodies, then gave the cave a thorough clean up and left.