"Alone?" Jax asked.
He had been moments away from summoning a host of shadows to overwhelm the vampires instantly.
But then he looked at their levels.
Level 50.
Level 41.
Level 35.
Level 24.
Level 19.
Nothing impressive.
Nothing remotely threatening.
Jax slowly glanced around the clearing again.
Then shrugged.
"Yep," he said casually. "I'm alone."
One of the vampires lunged from behind him.
Fast.
Silent.
A curved blade aimed directly for Jax's neck.
Jax stepped slightly to the side.
That was all.
The attack missed him completely—
—and buried itself into the shoulder of another vampire.
Blood sprayed across the clearing.
The wounded vampire screamed.
Jax kept walking.
Another charged from the left with twin daggers.
Jax leaned backward just enough for the blades to miss his chest by centimeters.
The attacking vampire overextended.
His blades plunged directly into the stomach of one of his companions rushing from the opposite direction.
The victim stared downward in shock.
Jax blinked.
"Oof," he muttered. "Friendly fire."
Chaos erupted.
The vampires attacked in waves now, hissing and snarling as they tried to overwhelm him through sheer numbers.
But Jax never truly fought back.
Not yet.
He moved.
Ducked.
Shifted.
Turned.
Every motion efficient.
Every dodge minimal.
The vampires became their own worst enemy.
An axe wielder roared and swung downward hard enough to split a carriage in half.
Jax vanished.
Not teleportation.
Pure speed.
Even vampire eyes struggled to track him.
The axe crashed into another vampire's chest instead.
Bone cracked.
The victim folded around the weapon with a wet crunch.
Another sword strike missed Jax entirely and stabbed through the neck of a partner behind him.
One vampire attempted a lunging bite only to collide face-first into another's elbow strike.
A dagger slipped between ribs.
An axe buried into flesh.
A sword slashed across a friendly throat.
Jax moved through them like flowing water.
Calm.
Untouchable.
The scarred leader finally screamed in frustration.
"What ARE YOU?!"
Jax ducked beneath another wild strike.
The attack shredded the face of the vampire behind him instead.
Blood and teeth scattered across the road.
Jax straightened casually.
"I'm Jax Darquebane."
He sidestepped an axe swing.
"Merchant."
A sword stabbed through another vampire's shoulder.
"Adventurer."
Jax leaned away from a claw swipe.
"Husband."
Two vampires collided trying to reach him.
"King."
Jax finally paused long enough to survey the damage.
Only six remained standing.
And aside from the leader, every single one of them had wounds inflicted by their own allies.
Jax reached into his inventory.
Peacemaker emerged.
The giant double-bladed sword radiated power the instant it appeared.
The atmosphere changed immediately.
Fear spread across the vampires.
Two of them broke first.
They turned and ran.
Jax didn't even look at them.
Requiem appeared in his left hand.
BOOM.
BOOM.
Two shots echoed through the forest.
Both vampires lost their heads instantly.
The bodies collapsed mid-sprint.
Now only four remained.
The giant axe wielder visibly trembled.
Even the scarred leader struggled to hide his fear.
But desperation pushed him forward.
"Kill him!" he screamed.
The remaining vampires attacked together.
Jax moved at last.
Not just dodging now.
Fighting.
Peacemaker swung once.
A vampire lost both legs at the knees.
A second slash removed an arm.
A third strike severed another vampire's torso diagonally.
Jax advanced through them mercilessly.
Not one strike missed.
The giant axe wielder tried to retreat.
Peacemaker cut both his arms off before he made it three steps.
The last standing vampire dropped his weapon entirely and attempted to crawl away.
Jax casually kicked him back into the pile of broken bodies.
Within moments, the clearing fell silent.
Or mostly silent.
Several vampires still lived.
Technically.
Jax walked among the ruined bodies.
Missing limbs.
Broken torsos.
Bleeding stumps.
The leader remained alive despite lacking both arms and legs.
Magic pulsed from their bodies as their regeneration desperately tried to restore them.
But it failed.
Holy wounds.
Too severe.
Too fast.
Jax crouched beside one of them curiously.
Not one begged for mercy.
Not one pleaded.
Not one cried.
Instead they hissed.
Growled.
Snarled.
Like wild animals.
Feral.
Jax frowned slightly.
Interesting.
The scarred leader screamed at him in panic.
"What are you doing to us?!"
Jax ignored him.
The vampire continued thrashing helplessly.
"I thought you were the good guy!"
His glowing eyes widened in terror.
"Good guys have no power!"
Jax paused.
That line triggered a memory.
One of his favorite movies from Earth.
He slowly turned toward the vampire.
"Good?"
He tilted his head.
"Bad?"
A faint grin appeared on his face.
"I'm the guy with the gun."
Requiem fired.
The magical bullet exploded into holy flame.
Jax had already splashed the pile with holy water moments earlier.
The effect was immediate.
WHOOMPH.
White flames erupted across the pile of vampire bodies.
The forest filled with horrific screams.
The vampires burned alive.
Their cries echoed for miles.
Far behind him, the carriage carrying the Vixens came to a stop.
The driver looked pale.
Terrified.
He hurried to the dimensional carriage entrance and knocked frantically.
The door opened.
Inside, the Vixens were preparing drinks.
Pixie Mead.
Wine.
Relaxation.
Bunny blinked at the frightened man.
"What happened?"
The driver swallowed hard.
"I… I don't know if we should continue."
His voice trembled.
"I just heard the loudest death screams I've ever heard in my life."
Nyxian took a sip of her drink.
"Someone hasn't heard Pixelle attempt karaoke."
Pixelle gasped dramatically.
"It's about the passion, not the tone!"
The driver looked near tears.
"No, you don't understand! It sounded horrible!"
Llandra stepped forward calmly.
"You heard death screams?"
"Yes, ma'am."
She nodded once.
"That was just Jax."
The driver froze.
"...Just Jax?"
"Yes."
"But—"
"He was probably killing the vampires."
The man stared at her in disbelief.
"You say that very casually."
Bunny smiled proudly.
"He's very good at it."
The driver looked horrified.
"You think one man killed an entire vampire pack?"
The Vixens all returned to their drinks.
Nyxian waved dismissively.
"Probably."
Pixelle nodded.
"If the screaming lasted longer than thirty seconds, he was probably being dramatic."
The driver stood there completely baffled.
These women genuinely did not seem worried.
At all.
Either they were delusional—
—or they knew something he didn't.
Llandra gave him a reassuring smile.
"It's safe to continue now."
The man hesitated.
Then slowly nodded.
Though he absolutely did not feel reassured.
Not even a little.
Meanwhile—
Jax walked calmly into town.
The road widened into dark stone streets lined with crooked buildings and glowing crimson lanterns.
Vampires noticed him immediately.
Some stared openly.
Others quickly looked away.
Fear spread faster than whispers.
The man in the black trench coat walked casually through town as if he belonged there.
Jax smiled politely at everyone.
Nodded respectfully.
Trying very hard not to appear threatening.
Eventually he found a tavern.
Warm light spilled through the doorway.
Music played faintly inside.
Jax stepped through the entrance.
Every single person inside stopped moving.
The room fell silent.
Then—
Dozens of glowing red eyes slowly turned toward him.