Book 9: Chapter 27: Baskerville

“You don’t get to choose who kills you!” Qin Lun was kicked into the air by Alucard, yet his assault didn’t cease. His hands moved, and the BURIAL OF LIGHT AND DARKNESS fired a bullet each simultaneously.

The instant the black and white bullets left the barrels, they were drawn to each other like magnets. Almost touching, they began spinning around their shared flight path.

Intense friction with the air ignited small electrical sparks across their surfaces. Finally, a chain of electricity linked the two bullets together, forming a larger, spiraling lightning projectile. This was the signature skill of the Legendary firearm – BURIAL OF LIGHT AND DARKNESS!

The bullet streaked through the air, tracing a dazzling trail like a corkscrew drill, heading straight for Alucard. The Vampire managed only a slight twist before the projectile smashed into his right shoulder.

Boom! Instantly, a volleyball-sized chunk of Alucard’s right shoulder vanished. Blood splattered wildly like a smashed watermelon, and his entire right arm dropped severed from the shoulder.

Yet, the grievously wounded Vampire showed no reaction on his face. He didn’t even glance at the injury. To him, this was likely less significant than the previous wound left by the Forbidden Scissors on his left shoulder.

“Ah, miscalculation!” Qin Lun muttered to himself mid-air, unable to resist smacking his own forehead lightly.

With lives numbering over a thousand, Alucard feared powerful attacks like this the least. Whether it consumed one life via the energy-intensive BURIAL OF LIGHT AND DARKNESS or a simple shot to the heart, the result was identical: one life spent.

Still, Qin Lun couldn’t be entirely blamed. This was his first encounter with such an enemy. Alucard’s physical attributes weren’t strong; his speed and agility were weaknesses. Preferring to trade wound for wound, he always came out ahead, exchanging a hundred of his lives for one of his opponent’s.

This was the advantage of the High Rank Vampire lineage, and also its flaw. Indeed, when Qin Lun wounded Alucard with the Forbidden Scissors, he glimpsed the Vampire’s true nature. And with that insight, he understood the likely outcome of this fight.

He was losing, broadly speaking. But not to Alucard himself. He was losing to tonight’s battlefield conditions.

Alucard’s physical stats were below his, his marksmanship far inferior, and he didn’t seem to possess significantly more attack methods. Yet tonight, it was Alucard’s territory.

How many Britons died in London tonight under the missile assault led by The Zeppelin? Thousands? Tens of thousands? Or hundreds of thousands? Alucard would have an endless supply of replenishment until the Souls within him were spent.

The missile barrage could muddy the Avengers Alliance and Green Hunters’ judgement for a short while, but not long. By any rational measure, Qin Lun should retreat now. Chasing down Integra, the head of HELLSING, was no longer possible.

Thinking this, the crimson in Qin Lun’s eyes deepened. He bared his teeth in a grin, holstering the BURIAL OF LIGHT AND DARKNESS. Extending his left arm stiffly, he seemed to strain pulling a black, square casket – neither metal nor wood – from the void. It looked like a simple toolbox.

Qin Lun gave the square casket a light shake. Click! Both ends snapped open. The thick box body dissolved into a heap of thin metal plates. They flared outwards like an eagle’s wings, forming a giant longbow that resembled a phoenix soaring into the sky.

“Oh…” Alucard’s eyes across from him brightened, gazing curiously at the bow-shaped weapon.

“Hm? Not this one!” Qin Lun frowned slightly. He wasn’t yet entirely familiar with the Ayala Weapon Casket. He hadn’t meant to use the bow.

Another flick of his wrist. The black phoenix’s wings folded forward. The feather-shaped metal plates interlocked tightly, merging into a sword blade. The hilt was formed by two twisting Dryads’ horns, with a sparkling, brilliant purplish-red gem held in an open, wide mouth. It was the transformed Frostwind Chaser.

“That’s the one!” Qin Lun gave a nod of satisfaction, his right hand simultaneously grasping the Forbidden Scissors.

“Those strange scissors again!” Alucard couldn’t help glancing at the Forbidden Scissors in Qin Lun’s hand, a ferocious smile twisting his face.

Hsssh! A massive plume of black mist erupted from Alucard’s severed shoulder. It floated beside him like tentacles or wings. Countless eyes abruptly opened within the murk. Their terrifying pupils swiveled grossly within the fog, repulsive and spine-tingling.

Swiftly, the clump of eye-covered mist writhed and twisted, taking the shape of a giant canine monstrosity.

The hound quickly detached from Alucard’s shoulder. Its enormous body moved with unexpectedly light steps as it stalked towards Qin Lun. Blood-red dog eyes fixed unblinkingly on Qin Lun. A deep growl rumbled from its fang-filled, gaping maw.

Sizzle! Wisps of smoke rose where the hound trod, some spots even leaving scorched paw prints. As this beast awoke, the countless other eyes covering its body seemed to tire, slowly closing one by one.

“Hellhound – Baskerville? Ha, now that’s a big surprise!” Qin Lun grinned, showing neat, white teeth, chuckling genuinely. “How about I find you a playmate? Then it won’t disturb our graduation dance!”

“Cerberus, come out! You’ve got company!” Qin Lun snarled, bending down and slamming his palm against the ground.

Beneath his hand, countless glowing magical runes spider-webbed out across the street, faintly shimmering. They formed a six-pointed magical seal – Qin Lun’s Spirit Channeling Art. Originally a Pentagram Array, it had evolved to six points after Venus the Shadow Gale Panther joined.

The Inferno Hound emerging from the seal seemed caught in a drowsy confusion. It shook both heads like a sleepy brute, looking around with displeasure.

Upon seeing Qin Lun, its four canine eyes showed a mix of recognition and confusion. The person looked like its master, yet the master’s strong life aura was now tinted with the flavor of kin.

Cerberus shook its heads. Thinking wasn’t its thing. As long as the caller was its master, that sufficed. Quickly, its focus snapped onto the fellow beast in the area ahead.

RRAOWWWW!! The instant Cerberus’ eyes landed on the Hellhound Baskerville, roughly its size on the opposite side, its molten-armored fur practically exploded. Snarling viciously, its corrosive saliva fell in thick drops, sizzling little holes into the ground.

“Hell’s Guard Dog? Shouldn’t it have three heads?” Alucard blinked, scanning Cerberus with surprise before looking up at Qin Lun, expression complex. “Just who are you?”

“Now you care who I am?” Qin Lun chuckled softly. Tapping the ground with a toe, he flashed across the gap between them towards Alucard. “But, I don’t like repeating my name!”

“Heh heh!” Alucard let out a creepy laugh. His large red coat billowed dramatically as several more tendrils of eye-covered black mist billowed behind him. They lashed out like whips towards the charging Qin Lun.

Crystalline Pentagram Crystal Mirrors shimmered into existence in the air one after another. Qin Lun flashed in and out between them, skimming dangerously close to Alucard time and again. Yet, Alucard’s defense was tight. The misty tendrils shielded him absolutely, leaving Qin Lun unable to get within a yard.

Despite this, Alucard remained on the defensive. Each time Qin Lun touched a mist tendril with his Frostwind Chaser, the ethereal Soul mist instantly froze solid. Then, the Forbidden Scissors in his right hand severed the frozen section from the main tendril.

With each instance, an impossibly thin, thread-like wound appeared somewhere on Alucard’s body. Though seemingly insignificant, each always made him flinch minutely. After mere minutes of combat, the Vampire was already bathed in blood, countless tiny wounds littering his form.

Alucard possessed great endurance, having experienced his body being torn apart in fights before. Yet this direct damage to his Soul cut to the very core of his being, agony searing his bones. Had Qin Lun inflicted such soul-cutting wounds on someone else, that person would be annihilated or at least collapsed long ago.

Qin Lun’s own state, however, was also dire. Despite constantly consuming recovery items, his Energy Points still neared depletion. The Frostwind Chaser’s freezing ability, the Forbidden Scissors, and maintaining Cerberus’ presence all devoured Energy Points.

Simultaneously, Alucard’s Soul mist inflicted heavy damage. Qin Lun realized early in this second round that this mist was not only strangely mutable, but possessed one direct and two secondary damage abilities.

The eye-filled Soul mist could solidify into blades hard as steel or spine-covered shields, matching the Frostwind Chaser blow for blow. Caught off guard early on, a Soul shield shaped like a spiny lump scraped a chunk of flesh from the back of Qin Lun’s hand; the cut was so deep, pale knuckles were visible.

Additionally, the Soul mist possessed significant pull and taint abilities. Every contact forced Qin Lun to fight for balance, aware one misstep meant oblivion.

The taint effect Qin Lun discovered only later. Perhaps due to his half-demon Constitution, he hadn’t noticed until a “Soul Taint” negative status appeared on his Death Notice. His mind felt heavy, no longer as sharp as at the battle’s start.

Thump! Qin Lun twisted his waist, the Forbidden Scissors slicing in a flash through the tip of a Soul tendril already frozen solid.

Tinkle, crash! Frost-coated shards dropped to the ground, shattering with a crisp, musical sound. The Soul essence within had already been devoured by the Dagger of Sin.

This battle had left the Dagger of Sin well-fed. Qin Lun carefully managed the consumption ratio, and now this Life-Taking Relic held several hundred more Remnant Souls than before the fight began.

Qin Lun reappeared not far behind Alucard. His uniform was drenched, as if pulled from water. Large drops of sweat fell from his forehead. His chest heaved violently – his physical condition clearly teetered at the limit.

Behind him, Alucard looked equally wrecked. The Soul mist forming his red coat was in shreds, barely more than rags. Every rip oozed fresh blood. Only two Soul tendrils remained at his back. He, too, neared his limit; the Souls remaining within his body were scarce.

Despite this exhaustion, both pairs of eyes shone with fierce intensity, their fighting will burning brighter than ever.

KABOOM! Suddenly, a massive explosion echoed not far down the street. A blazing fireball rose, painting the night sky crimson. The two combatants, sensing something immediately, jolted from their focus and turned towards it.