The urgent, crisis-laden alarm echoed through every corner of St. Antiona Academy. Even in Honghu City, the blaring siren could be heard. Instinctively, everyone turned toward the source of the sound. It had been decades—this was only the second time.
From dozens of dormitory hotels, a flood of students and Professors poured out. Most hadn’t even changed clothes, still dressed in pajamas, faces bewildered, not yet understanding what was happening. The alarm was piercing.
It looked like Vampires had appeared. The Dormitory Managers blocked the exits, shouting, “Students, go back! No one is allowed out of the dorms! This is just a Level Three incident, the alarm was triggered by mistake. Leave it to the Executioners!”
Clouds shrouded the moonlight. Chen Wen stood atop the Academic Affairs Building, watching as a helicopter circled above, its searchlight engulfing him. A large force of Executioners surged in from all directions, securing every entrance.
The Executioners and Acting Professors stood below, coldly watching the trembling figure on the rooftop.
His expression was no longer gloomy—now he looked utterly disheveled, hands shaking as he took out his phone.
He drew a deep breath and dialed a number.
“Master, I’ve been exposed. There’s nothing more I want to say. I regret this…”
There was half a second of silence on the other end. “Is that so? Then, goodbye.”
“Don’t you want to save me? Maybe I know a little secret… something about An Xiaoyi.”
He didn’t give the Vampire on the other end a chance to speak. Ending the call, he gazed down at the crowd below, unflinching in the blinding white light, a sneer on his lips. Everyone who looked up at the man above showed a hint of shock.
That was Professor Chen Wen—one of the Enforcement Bureau’s elite. But now, his eyes gleamed with a vivid red light.
Enforcement Bureau, Safety Control Room. Professor Yifu pushed open the door. Several temporary supervisors stood before the main screen, eyes fixed on the footage: Professor Chen Wen, his mouth bared to reveal fangs.
“Why was the alarm triggered? Turn it off! Otherwise, people will think St. Antiona Academy is under Vampire attack!” she snapped, glaring at the trembling young Executioners.
Only when a Vampire attacks this academy is the highest-level alarm permitted—the siren could be heard across all of Honghu City. In decades, there was only one record of such an invasion. A Vampire assault on St. Antiona was tantamount to a declaration of war on humanity; governments and militaries worldwide would go on alert.
Now, countless calls were flooding in—from the Government of Huaguo, from the Military, and from Enforcement Bureaus of other Nations. In just minutes, this alarm would be trending worldwide.
“I—I pressed the wrong button, I’m sorry! A student said there was a Vampire,” a flustered woman stammered, shutting off the alarm, hands shaking from the barrage of phone calls.
“How could you make such a basic mistake!”
Realizing she’d lost her temper, Yifu took a breath to calm herself and sighed. “Don’t let it happen again. A Vampire assault and a Vampire infiltration are two different things. In these situations, the most important thing is to keep a clear head.”
She turned and saw Farrah sitting in a chair. “Was it you who reported this?”
“I’m the assistant on Night Duty for the management department tonight. I discovered the Vampire while checking the power outage in the Academic Affairs Building.” Farrah explained simply.
A scream drew everyone’s attention. Urgent footsteps echoed down the hallway.
“Ahhh! Vampire attack! Is there a Vampire attack?” A woman burst into the Safety Control Room.
“Headmaster?” Yifu exclaimed in surprise.
Wearing pajamas—clearly just woken from a dream—Headmaster Farrow rushed in, yanking off her nightcap in panic.
“Vampire attack? Damn it! Why does it have to be while I’m having a good dream? What’s the situation? Where are they now?”
Before anyone could explain, Yifu carefully said, “Headmaster, you’re awake.”
“Damn it, is now the time to talk about waking up?” Farrow scanned the room. “Why is it just you talking? Where are the other supervisors? Why aren’t they here for something this serious?”
“It’s Saturday. The Enforcement Bureau’s higher-ups are on break too.”
“What about Li? Damn it! All the senior staff are gone at a time like this—just as I thought, this was meticulously planned by the Vampires, striking when the school’s at its weakest! Call the Director of the Department of Operations, and notify the nearby Air Force Base. Prepare for the worst—blast them all if needed!”
Headmaster Farrow paced back and forth, expression grave. Suddenly, she seemed to remember something and smacked her fist into her palm.
“That’s right! For them to attack means this group of Vampires must be powerful. Maybe Dukes, Marquises, and Counts are all here. Now’s our chance to catch them all in one net! Tell the Military they can consider a nuclear strike. Execute the contingency plan I filed with the Military and the Government. No need for detailed paperwork—they’ll know what to do. Evacuate all Honghu City citizens, deploy Strategic Heavy Weapons, combine with Biological Weapons—turn this place into Ghost City if we have to, bury the Vampires with it!”
Yifu exchanged glances with the others, forcing a bitter smile. “Headmaster, it’s not that serious.”
“Why did the alarm stop?” Farrow finally noticed the silence, broken only by the helicopter outside.
Yifu shot a fierce glare at the temporary female supervisor, who promptly hid behind her male counterpart.
Under pressure, the male supervisor stepped forward to explain. “We only discovered a Vampire infiltrator.”
Farrow looked at the screen, stunned for a long moment.
“You should have said so earlier.” She pressed a hand to her forehead. “What exactly happened?”
“A student found a Vampire sneaking into your underground archive. The alarm was triggered by a recently graduated Intern Enforcement Officer who got too nervous.”
“Which Professor was on Night Duty tonight?”
“I think it was Professor An Xiaoyi.”
“As expected of An Xiaoyi!”
Seeing everyone’s confusion, Farrow praised:
“First night on Night Duty and he already found the Vampire mole hiding in the academy. He’s always been thorough in everything he does—no wonder I have high hopes for him.”
“Headmaster, you’re showing blatant favoritism. He didn’t even check in tonight,” Yifu’s mouth twitched. “He skipped his shift.”
At this, Farrah spoke up calmly.
“Professor Yifu, you’re mistaken. Professor An didn’t skip. He’s just unfamiliar with the campus procedures and didn’t know he needed a fingerprint check-in. He saved me in the basement and delayed the Vampire, which gave me the chance to report it.”
“See? Didn’t I say so?” Farrow looked smug.
She glanced at the man on screen. “Chen Wen? I remember that name. Is he a pure-blood Vampire or a Blood Servant?”
“Most likely a Blood Servant. Pure-blood Vampires can’t get past the Holy Grail’s screening.”
“This is terrible. The Enforcement Bureau having a Vampire mole will shake people’s faith in us.” Farrow sighed. “If not for that alarm, at least we could have kept this under wraps.”
Everyone looked at the Intern Enforcement Officer who’d triggered the alarm. The woman stood trembling at the side, not daring to move, like a child caught misbehaving.
“She’s my student—graduated two years ago,” Yifu said, hoping the Headmaster would go easy on her. “I’ve already reprimanded her.”
“Oh, right—where’s Professor An Xiaoyi? If this guy managed to get out, then where did An Xiaoyi go?” Farrow’s eyes showed concern as she realized what she’d overlooked.
Yifu also looked worried. That man was only an academic Professor, lacking the combat experience of an Executioner. Even if he delayed Chen Wen, it was only a delay. By now, perhaps he was already…
Only Farrah Cambray seemed completely absent-minded, her thoughts a mystery to everyone around her.