S.H.I.E.L.D.
Headquarters
Coulson was reporting the situation to Fury.
“Humanoid creatures with characteristics identical to humans…”
After hearing Coulson’s report, Fury fell into deep thought.
“No wonder neither we nor the police and FBI could find the slightest clue.
Our entire investigative direction was wrong from the very beginning.”
“On the way back, I contacted the archives department.
Every single murder occurred at night, which matches what Leon said about Ghosts being afraid of sunlight.”
Fury’s gaze sharpened.
“That’s still not enough to determine whether Leon’s information is accurate.
Pull surveillance footage from the time of each incident and the areas surrounding the crime scenes.
Identify anyone suspicious, then investigate further.”
“I’ve already instructed the archives department to start looking into it.”
Coulson hesitated for a moment before continuing.
“If Leon’s information is correct, how are we supposed to deal with these Ghosts?”
Dealing with super soldiers would be relatively simple.
With all of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s various advanced technologies and weapons, as long as the opponent wasn’t exceptionally powerful, they could deal with them.
But according to Leon, Ghosts possessed physical abilities far beyond humans, immortal lifespans, and various other strange abilities.
Under those circumstances, fighting them head-on would be extremely difficult.
Fury also fell into contemplation.
After a moment, he said,
“Let’s find a Ghost first.
Once we do, I’ll arrange for a specialist experienced in dealing with them to assist you.”
He paused.
“Also, if Ghosts are afraid of sunlight, try making a high-powered ultraviolet searchlight.
See if that has any effect.”
“Understood.”
After accepting the order, Coulson left the director’s office.
Fury, meanwhile, fell into thought once again.
If Leon’s information was accurate, how had he learned about creatures like Ghosts?
And why did he possess weapons capable of dealing with them?
Furthermore, when Leon mentioned Fury embezzling funds, was that merely an attempt to probe someone in a position of power, or did he genuinely know something?
If he really knew something…
What information did he possess that could threaten S.H.I.E.L.D.’s very existence?
What had originally been nothing more than an ordinary supernatural incident had suddenly become infinitely more important.
“These matters must be investigated thoroughly!”
Fury’s gaze hardened as he picked up the phone and dialed a number.
…
“Lord Leon!”
The young man bowing respectfully before Leon had an average build, gray hair, a thin, elongated face, and a gentle demeanor.
He was Otto Suwen, the puppet Leon had just summoned.
“Otto, from now on, stay by my side as my assistant.
Handle everything related to the convenience store on a daily basis.
I’ll give you any other assignments separately.”
“Understood, my lord.
I’ll do my best to perform my duties.”
Otto answered sincerely.
Leon nodded slightly, very satisfied.
Otto wasn’t suited for going out and causing trouble, so Leon had decided to keep him by his side as an assistant.
As for himself…
He would simply be the hands-off boss.
After all, Muzan and the Twelve Kizuki were currently helping him obtain Wish Points.
He wasn’t exactly lacking Otto’s contribution.
“Then I’ll leave this place to you.
I’m going out for a walk.”
“Please leave it to me.”
Otto confidently took over the task.
…
Manhattan, Greenwich Village.
This was one of New York’s wealthy areas—a peaceful town far removed from the noise of the city, yet only a twenty-minute drive from the bustling urban districts.
Green hills and clear waters.
Lush greenery everywhere.
Being surrounded by such scenery naturally made people feel peaceful.
But today, an uninvited guest had arrived.
He was a Black man.
He was around thirty years old, had a short buzz cut, and wore sunglasses.
His body was extremely muscular.
He wore military camouflage pants and a tactical vest, carried two long swords on his back, and had a large-caliber handgun strapped to his thigh.
He was the son of a curse, an abandoned child who had lived solely for revenge.
He had no name.
But the outside world knew him by another title—
Blade.
“This is the place.”
Blade arrived in front of a villa, his gaze fixed on the entrance.
He didn’t possess X-ray vision and couldn’t see what was happening inside.
But his sense of smell was extraordinarily sharp, especially when it came to blood.
And right now, he could smell an overwhelming stench of blood.
It was coming from inside this very villa.
It smelled like a slaughterhouse.
A human slaughterhouse.
“Another blood feast?”
A cold glint flashed beneath Blade’s sunglasses.
He had been born carrying a mission.
His mother had been bitten by a vampire while giving birth to him and eventually “died.”
Yet he had been born as a half-human, half-vampire.
Hatred had been engraved into him from birth.
So had the mission to eradicate vampires.
Eventually, he became a vampire hunter.
He had killed countless vampires and understood their habits and characteristics extremely well.
They possessed an extreme craving for blood and took pleasure in hunting humans.
However, because humanity had become the dominant species in the world, vampires had gradually restrained their behavior and begun operating in secret.
But there were always those who remained reckless.
They frequently used various lies to gather large numbers of humans together before holding blood feasts.
Every time, countless people died.
“I’ll kill every last vampire!”
Blade muttered in a low voice.
Then he suddenly kicked open the front door.
But what appeared before his eyes wasn’t the blood-soaked hellscape he had expected.
Instead, the entire hall was covered in spiderwebs.
It looked like a giant spider’s nest.
What the hell was this!?
Blade’s eyes widened slightly.
Based on his experience, this place should have been drenched in blood and looked like hell itself.
So why was it covered in spiderwebs?
Could it not be vampires?
Vampires weren’t quite as fantastical as the creatures described in fantasy novels.
Although they possessed ageless, immortal bodies and physical strength beyond that of ordinary humans, that was basically the extent of their abilities.
They didn’t possess all kinds of ridiculously powerful blood magic.
Covering an entire villa spanning more than three hundred square meters in spiderwebs was something vampires simply couldn’t do.
No.
Even if they could, they wouldn’t.
The two simply weren’t the same kind of creature.
“Who are you?”
A voice suddenly came from upstairs.
Blade looked up.
Behind the railing on the second floor stood a child.
But Blade didn’t relax in the slightest simply because his opponent was a child.
Quite the opposite.
Every hair on his body stood on end, and his entire body instantly tensed.
Judging by his appearance, the child seemed to be around ten years old.
He had white hair, white clothes, and red spots covering his face.
If that were all, there wouldn’t have been anything particularly strange about him.
He was even somewhat cute.
But his eyes were extremely bizarre.
His pupils consisted of two layers.
The outer layer was white, while the inner layer was blue, with two pitch-black dots inside.
And the whites of his eyes were completely blood-red, resembling freshly skinned flesh.
It was horrifying.
Yet his appearance wasn’t the only thing that frightened Blade.
With Blade’s exceptionally sharp senses, he could feel a terrifying aura radiating from the child.
An overwhelming pressure unlike anything he had ever experienced before.
“I’m asking you a question!”
The child’s voice rang out again.
There was a hint of impatience in his tone.
“You barged into someone else’s home without permission.
If you can’t give me a satisfactory reason…”
“Then stay here as food!”
“Just as I thought.
A monster!”
Blade took a deep breath.
Then he suddenly drew both pistols, raised his arms, and opened fire.