CRIMSON NOCTURNE

CHAPTER 30: The Assassin

The powerful Yi Fei carried Van Helsing onto the castle rooftop without being detected by any of the guards below. By night, the castle built of "fisara" stone showed none of the metallic gleam it possessed under sunlight. In the eyes of Yi Fei and Van Helsing, its dark blue roofs made the ancient fortress look every bit as sinister as its blood-soaked reputation suggested. As they passed a particular floor on their ascent, Yi Fei caught a thick, nauseating stench of blood rising from somewhere within—a smell so potent it made his stomach turn. Whatever was happening inside, it was not pleasant.

"Hey, we're on top. Now what?" Yi Fei whispered, his voice barely audible over the night breeze. He set Van Helsing down carefully on the sloped tiles.

"What else? Find a safe way in, of course." Van Helsing tapped Yi Fei's furry skull affectionately and dropped lightly from his back, landing silently on the rooftop. "Be careful. Don't let them spot us. Seems like there are quite a few of them inside, and we don't want to announce our arrival."

Sure enough, Yi Fei could hear the murmur of voices and occasional bursts of harsh laughter drifting up from within the castle. He nodded to show he understood. Van Helsing gestured for him to follow, and the unlikely pair—man and wolf—began carefully exploring the rooftop, checking every vent, every skylight, every possible point of entry.

"Hey, Van Helsing. Over here." Yi Fei kept his voice low, pointing with a clawed finger. "There's a ventilation shaft here. Looks like there's an empty room below it." Despite the gravity of their mission, he had to admit that this sneaking-around business was actually kind of exciting.

Van Helsing crawled over and peered down through the grille. Apart from a large, ornate chair positioned directly below the vent, there was nothing else visible in the room—no guards, no furniture, just empty space. He gave his professional verdict after a moment of study. "Should be fine down there. Looks clear. Let's go." Without waiting for a response, he pried open the grille and dropped through, landing with practiced silence. Yi Fei followed close behind, his greater weight landing with a slightly heavier thud.

The moment they landed, both of them sensed immediately that something was terribly wrong. Why was this room so enormous? And directly ahead of them, that enormous chair wasn't just any piece of furniture—it was facing what appeared to be a main hall, packed with dozens of figures. Every single one of them was now staring directly at the two uninvited guests who had just dropped from the ceiling.

"Damn it. That's not just a chair—it's the throne in the main hall." Cursing under his breath, Van Helsing's mind raced. He quickly composed himself and flashed the most harmless, disarming smile he could muster at the sea of hostile faces below. "So sorry to interrupt your evening, everyone. We're looking for Karl. Just a small matter we'd like to discuss with him. Nothing important, really." Yi Fei nearly fainted on the spot. Who in their right mind would believe that a werewolf and a swordsman dropping through the ceiling at midnight had come only for a "small discussion"?

To their utter astonishment, a large, muscular man stepped forward from the crowd. He had the bearing of someone accustomed to command. "I am Karl. What business do you two have with me?" Yi Fei genuinely considered fainting right then and there. Van Helsing's excuse was ridiculous enough, but this Karl seemed either astonishingly naive or dangerously overconfident. Werewolves seeking out vampires in their own stronghold—they weren't going to shake hands and exchange pleasantries. But what Karl said next truly stunned them both into silence.

The burly man addressed Van Helsing with complete seriousness. "Though we have never met before, I can see from the wolf pet at your side that you must have been sent by Master Larsen. Only he would dispatch a special envoy with such an exotic companion."

"Wolf pet?" Yi Fei and Van Helsing exchanged quick glances, both reading the same shock and confusion in each other's eyes. "Since when would proud, independent werewolves stoop to being vampire pets? What kind of twisted world have we stumbled into?"

Van Helsing, far more experienced at maintaining his composure under pressure, recovered his wits quickly. "Impressive, Master Karl. To deduce my identity simply from my wolf companion—I must say I am pleasantly surprised by your perception." He straightened his posture, adopting the dignified air of a genuine special envoy. "Would you be so kind as to find us a quiet, private room? Master Larsen has entrusted me with some sensitive information that I am to deliver to you personally."

"Of course. Please, follow me." Karl bowed with deep respect and turned to lead them out of the hall. Van Helsing and Yi Fei exchanged another glance, wiped the cold sweat from their brows, and followed him through the maze of corridors. As they passed through the main hall's entrance, Van Helsing even had the audacity to turn back and wave at the assembled vampires, signaling for them to continue their revelries. "That acting is absolutely top-notch," Yi Fei thought as he padded along in his wolf form, doing his best to look like a well-trained pet.

Karl led them through a twisting labyrinth of stone corridors to a small, secluded room deep within the castle. The stench of blood here was so thick and cloying that Yi Fei felt his gorge rise. Once they were all inside, Karl carefully closed the heavy wooden door. "Sir, the soundproofing in this room is excellent. You need not worry about anyone overhearing our conversation. Now... what message does Master Larsen have for me?"

"Yes, yes, of course." Van Helsing pretended to be inspecting the room's furnishings, but his hand crept slowly, almost imperceptibly, toward the hilt of the blade concealed at his waist. His fingers closed around the grip. "Master Larsen instructed me to inform you that..." He turned to face Karl, his eyes hardening with deadly intent. "...YOU CAN GO TO HELL!" With a thunderous battle cry, Van Helsing's blade flashed like silver lightning, arcing toward Karl's unprotected neck. At the exact same moment, Yi Fei circled around behind Karl and drove his razor-sharp claws into the vampire's chest with every ounce of strength he possessed.

Before Karl could even draw breath to gasp, his head was severed cleanly by Van Helsing's blade. It hit the floor with a dull thud and rolled to a stop. An instant later, Yi Fei's claws crushed the vampire's heart into pulp. The body crumpled to the ground, twitched once, and lay still. "That should be dead enough for anyone's standards," Van Helsing muttered, wiping his blade clean. But something about the ease of the kill nagged at him. It had been too simple, too straightforward for a fifth-generation vampire. He pushed the thought aside for the moment.

He produced a clean handkerchief from his coat, knelt, and carefully dabbed up some of Karl's blood. He folded the cloth with precision and tucked it safely away. This stained evidence was crucial to proving that the contract had been completed.

"Hey." Yi Fei wiped his own bloodstained claws on a rag he found in the corner. "How are we planning to get out of here without fighting the entire castle?"

"Simple. Special envoys leave with dignity and style." Van Helsing flicked his hair back theatrically and strode toward the door with exaggerated confidence. Yi Fei followed, making sure to close the door gently behind them. They made their way through the corridors toward the main gate, walking with the unhurried swagger of people who belonged there.

News, it seemed, traveled faster than they had anticipated. Though they had only been inside for a short time, every vampire in the castle seemed to have heard about the special envoy and his wolf pet. Guards stepped aside respectfully. No one dared to challenge them.

But fate, as always, had a twisted sense of humor. Just as they stepped onto the final corridor and the massive main gate came into view—freedom tantalizingly close—their cover was blown.

Karl's lover, curious about the urgent matter that required a personal visit from a special envoy with such an unusual companion, had gone to find Karl shortly after their departure. When she pushed open the door to the private room, she found Karl's headless body lying in a pool of spreading blood. Though startled, the vampire woman recovered her wits quickly. A series of piercing, panicked screams echoed through the stone halls, and within moments the entire castle knew of the assassination. The portcullis slammed down. The drawbridge rose with a groaning of chains. Vampires poured into the corridor from both ends, blocking all escape routes.

Vampires swarmed from both directions, cutting off every possible exit. Yi Fei looked at the sea of hostile faces surrounding them, then turned helplessly to Van Helsing. "If we had just run a little faster instead of swaggering around pretending to be envoys, we might have made it out. Now what do we do?"

Van Helsing didn't answer with words. Instead, he drew his long blade in a smooth, fluid motion, the steel singing as it cleared the scabbard. He turned to face the approaching horde, a fierce grin spreading across his weathered face. His eyes glinted with savage, battle-hungry determination. "What else can we do?" He raised his blade high, the torchlight glinting off its edge. "We fight our way out together."

[END OF CHAPTER 30]