Hunter of the Evernight
Chapter 143: Who are you?

Chapter 143: Who are you?

Faced with the unbridled hostility of the men surrounding her, Claudia couldn’t help but recall an experience, one which had scarred her for life.

It happened a few months after she turned.

She managed to escape from her captors and after finding her way to the surface, she rushed home, hoping that her parents would keep her safe.

Imagine her shock when she got home, expecting hugs only to be struck by a club and sprayed with holy water.

The physical pain was nothing compared to the psychological and emotional pain she went through that day.

She was treated as a monster and if she hadn’t escaped, she would have ended up dead.

Ironic that she ended up back in the den she ran away from.

As one of the men surrounding her raised a club, threatening to bring it down on her head with immense force, Claudia saw her father instead of the man.

His empty and emotionless eyes, his furious expression... it was all the same.

They saw her as nothing more than an animal to be slaughtered.

"No!" She screamed as she crouched down to avoid the blow.

Subconsciously, her will was exerted on the world and a moment later, the man was sent flying by an invisible concussive force.

By the time he fell to the ground, he was already unconscious.

"I knew it!... You vile beast!... You dare try to deceive us!" The man that questioned Claudia bellowed as he saw one of his friends get tossed like a ragdoll.

Claudia quickly raised her head and on seeing the other man’s sorry state, panicked. "N...no, it’s not like that. I didn’t mean to do it, it was an accident."

"Shut up and die!" Another man attacked, this time moving with a wooden stake.

Claudia put her hand forward to stop him and once again, the man was sent flying just like his companion.

"Oh no... please you have to believe me, I didn’t come here to harm anyone," Claudia explained... or at least tried to, none of the men present seemed to be willing to listen to her words.

Snorting in disdain, they gave no room for dialogue and a moment later, attacked all at once.

Claudia crouched once again in fear and just as the stakes were about to pierce through her, a strange wind blew past causing the men to be sent flying.

As she rose to her feet to find the men unconscious on the ground, Claudia was left confused at the sight... for a brief moment of course.

Sensing the thoughts of those around caused Claudia to freeze in her tracks, her body trembling as the words echoed in her head.

Monster.

Demon.

Vile creature.

"No, no." Claudia turned left and right, shaking her as she moved, trying to explain herself but it was pointless.

She knew this well yet...yet she didn’t want to believe that all hope was lost.

Not even when the people pulled out weapons, intending to attack her.

Claudia’s eyes widened in shock before she made a move to avoid unnecessary bloodshed.

This time, she consciously exerted her will on the world and tinkered with the minds of everyone present, erasing what just happened from their mind.

Once she was done, Claudia fell to the ground while breathing heavily.

Completely drained of strength, she knew she couldn’t remain so even as it felt horrible to move, she still got to her feet and without hesitation, ran.

Leaving behind faint blurs, Claudia left the scene and rushed to escape the 11th Extension.

***

"Will that be all sir?" A blond-haired woman with rather heavy makeup and a uniform asked from behind a counter.

Alex nodded from the other end. "Mn, that will be all."

"Alright." The woman replied before adding. "Taking into account the length of the telegram as well as the distance of the delivery location, your bill is set at 150 Kobo."

"That’s fine," Alex said as he pulled out three 50 Kobo notes from his pocket and promptly handed it over to the lady on the other end.

After completing the transaction, Alex bid the lady goodbye before taking his leave.

Stepping out of the building, he surveyed the streets lit up by the Nighteye and the gas-powered street lights, watching as passersby walked about, before making his way down the building stairs and onto the stone-covered streets.

Hardly had he taken another step forward when he sensed something approaching causing him to turn in the direction he felt it from.

At the same time, a faint blur came into view, rushing toward him at breakneck speed.

Alex was shocked for a brief moment before he swiftly activated his spirituality with his eyes glowing a bright yellow just in time to roll out of the way.

As he watched the blur whiz past, he quickly noticed the strange form of their pneuma, allowing him to discern the identity of the blur.

"A vampire..." Alex muttered thoughtfully.

Glancing around to notice that a few people were looking his way, Alex picked himself up and dusted his body before turning to take his leave.

However, it didn’t take long before he noticed that something was following him.

He frowned as he turned to check but apart from the usual pedestrians, there was nothing out of place.

Pursing his lips, he pondered on whether to use aether to check his surroundings but decided against it, lest his pursuer turns tail and runs away.

Alex stretched slightly before he began to jog down the street, suddenly taking a turn into a largely lonely alleyway before he came to a stop.

"You can come out now," Alex remarked. "No need to keep on hiding."

Silence reigned for a moment only to be broken as a female voice was heard.

"... Who are you?"

Alex slowly turned to find himself face-to-face with a female Vampire.

Unlike Victoria who had a more mature look, the vampire before him looked more like a teenager with a rather innocent demeanor.

"I should be asking you that question... who are you and why are you following me?"