The course of several civilians' lives has been altered in a mere few seconds. Before them is a man with a gun, and two dead bodies. The public is prohibited from having a firearm. It's a felony of one of the highest charges, being caught with one is an instant life sentence. Only police are authorized to carry guns on duty, and even then it's only the high-ranking officers who are allowed to.
Police sirens quickly surround the building, the situation doesn't look good for the armed man.
"Hey, I'll knock away that man's weapon. I won't hurt him, and that toy isn't going to hurt me," Ariel whispers to Chifuyu.
She begins inching towards the man. None of them are carrying their blades. Unlike most Hunters, they've usually been carrying it on them. But it's just their luck to run into trouble when they're not.
"Oi, little girl. Not another step."
Ignoring his words, she gets ready to lunge at him.
"I TOLD YOU DON'T TAKE ANOTHER STEP!"
A gunshot goes off, the bullet hitting Ariel's arm. She is instantly shocked that her skin was penetrated. 200 years ago during her first attack, she was met with countless bullets, but none were able to harm her. Chifuyu, Kagura, and Diego are surprised as well. Beatrice is keeping her cool, but this situation has caught her off guard. Only a small percentage of Hunters and police know about this, but bullets that can pierce even vampire skin have begun circulating in the black market. The fact that this man is armed with them means he's in deep with dangerous people.
Ariel falls on her knee, gripping her arm where she was shot. Chifuyu yells her name and runs over to hold her. She can't heal herself right now, it'll reveal her true identity. She knows she messed up, she planned to pretend the bullet hurt her and then rush in. Ariel has learned more than anyone over the past year that she can't underestimate anything.
"Ahhhhhhhh!!" The civilians shout out in reaction to someone getting shot.
The man fires another warning shot near Ariel's feet to silence them. "I'm with the Hidden District, if you value your lives you'll do as I say!"
"The Hidden District?!"
"They're real?"
"Oh no…"
"Wah… Mommy!!"
"Please don't harm us!"
"All of you shut the hell up. Woman with brown hair, come here now."
"No, please! My daughter's right here with me, we have a family."
"We all got a family, now get your ass over here."
"Oh God…" Weeping, the woman quivers over to the man with her head down and hands up.
"MOMMY!" The kid is crying her eyes out, she's powerless to do anything.
Ariel clenches her fist hard enough for her nails to stab through her palms, blood begins to spill. 'I told myself I was never going to be helpless again. I could save everyone here, but I'd be revealing that I'm a vampire..'
She believes her identity will be exposed sooner or later, but Ariel fears revealing it right now when she hasn't built trust among the Hunters or the public will turn them against her. She hates that she even has to think about this when there are lives at stake.
The police have all gotten out of their vehicles and blocked off the area. Three of them are armed aiming their pistols toward the building. The Captain speaks out of a megaphone, "We know your names, the Hernandez Brothers and David Kalstat. Surrender and come out with your hands in the air."
The man responds in a loud enraged voice looking out through the opening caused by the crash, "I have hostages! I'll kill every last one of them if you get any closer!"
Kagura notices a few civilians that are hiding away from the front, they haven't been noticed yet. But if they try anything, it won't end nicely. She signals for them to duck down and not make any noise. Kagura has no idea what to do in this situation. One wrong move could cause someone to lose their life. Diego appears to be the most shaken out of the 5 from Odd Jobs present. It's because he's aware of how dangerous the Hidden District is.
The armed man gives a warning to the woman he's holding at gunpoint, "Try anything and I'll end your daughter's life."
The woman sobs, "I won't."
The only thing everyone can do is keep their hands up and pray for the best. 10 minutes pass as the man continues pacing around frustrated with the woman glued to him.
"Chifuyu…" Ariel whispers.
The police are speaking out of the megaphone again so Ariel uses this chance to say something.
"Yeah?"
"I smell blood on him, a decent amount. I suspect he's injured."
"Is he? If so, who knows how long he can keep this up."
"Hey, what the hell are you two whispering about?!"
He heard them, grabbing at the woman even harder he moves to Chifuyu and Ariel.
"It was nothing, we're sorry!" Chifuyu apologizes, they can't the let the situation escalate further.
Aiming his gun at Ariel, he gets closer and kicks Chifuyu across his jaw. This infuriates his partner, but she now has malicious intent against the man. If she harms him, her vow will end her life.
Chifuyu gets frustrated with himself, 'If only I reacted as soon as the vehicle crashed, this would've been over.' However, there was nothing anybody could've done. It all happened in mere seconds and it appeared as some freak accident, not as if they were being attacked.
30 minutes pass.
"Hey!! If ya'll don't clear the way in less than 10 minutes, there's gonna be dead bodies in here!"
The cops outside get into a frenzy, unsure of whether or not they listen to the man associated with the Hidden District. To put it in plain terms, this is the catch of a lifetime. The Hidden District is called so because it has stayed hidden. Run by mafia and criminals that nobody has been able to reach. If the Hidden District has liabilities, they swiftly exterminate them. Having been exposed, even if this man gets away, he'll be silenced.
Outside, a bald man with a bit of a belly appears wearing a 1st Rank Hunter uniform.
"Hey, this isn't your jurisdiction. I need you to leave immediately."
"Haven't you heard? It's been confirmed that vampires have connections with the Hidden District. This is no longer just a police matter."
"Tch."
"If we can take these men into custody, I have my share of questions I'll be getting out of them."
Back inside the building, the man starts panicking. "Shit! Why did this happen to me?"
Diego raises an eyebrow to this. It's risky, but he's going to try to talk with him.
"Hey man, you mind if I ask you your name?"
He swiftly points the gun at Diego, "Now why would I do that?"
"Well, I already know what it is. David, right? The cop said it on the megaphone."
"Shut the fuck up. You tryna distract me or something?"
"No, I just couldn't help but notice what you just said. 'Why did this happen to me?' Did you by chance get involved with the Hidden District unwillingly?"
The armed man is slightly caught off guard, but he tries to act unfazed.
"Yeah, that's right. I was dragged into this business and couldn't pull out. What's it to you?"
"My older brother also got into some dirty business without wanting to. I know firsthand how terrifying the Hidden District is."
Chifuyu is in shock, he had no idea Diego was hiding such a thing. He has no idea how he can even be connected to something he barely knows about.
"Yeah? So what're you trying to say?"
"You should know. Whether you make it out of here or not, you're a dead man."
The man bites his lip, hearing the harsh truth out loud.
"Well, what was I supposed to do?! Those bastards… they were about to send me on a suicide mission. All because of my brother who got me involved with them tried to sell information to the cops! Our parents died to vampires and everything went downhill from there. Those two scumbags with me have killed and killed and killed in front of my eyes. I have no doubt they were sent with me on my mission to kill me if I tried to run away!"
"David, have you killed innocent people?"
".... I haven't. But I've had blood on my hands for too long now."
"Listen to me, me and these 4 others are Hunters. We can take you into protection."
"Hunters? You serious?"
"Yeah. We—"
Diego is cut short by a disturbance in the back. The few civilians that were hiding tried to sneak around so they could run outside, but failed.
"HEY! THERE'S STILL PEOPLE BACK THERE?!"
David grows even more agitated, he's long past his breaking point.
"WHOEVER'S HIDING, GET TO THE FRONT NOW!"
He goes toward the opening dragging the woman by her hair, "COPS! YOU HAVE 5 MINUTES TO CLEAR THE WAY AND LEAVE ME A CAR BEFORE I TAKE THIS WOMAN'S LIFE."
"Grr."
"Captain, what do we do?"
"Let 'em escape," the Hunter states.
"Huh?"
" have my guys around a one-mile perimeter of here. He won't get far."
"The Hidden District could be watching as we speak. What if they take him out before your guys can catch him?"
"You got a better idea? I'm all ears."
Stomping about around the front of the store, David is seconds away from making a bad decision.
"Hey!" Chifuyu yells.
"What the hell do you want??!"
"Are you thinking about my friend's offer? We can settle this peacefully if you come with us."
"You'll protect me? Fat chance. I'm going straight to prison if I don't get the hell outta here."
Scratching harshly at his head, he tosses the woman to the ground, "Gah! What's wrong with this world?! Vampires ruined my life and now it's the Hidden District. Why did I have to be one of the unlucky ones and get dragged into this hell?"
"I understand you."
David glares at Chifuyu. "What'd you just say?" He makes agitated strides over to him and sticks the gun right at his forehead. "You understand me? And how the hell is that, little Hunter?"
"I was also dragged into the world of vampires and Hidden District after living peacefully all my life. I know our circumstances are completely different, but I'm glad I was dragged into this 'hell'. Because I can promise you I'll end it."
"End what?"
"The battle against vampires, and the Hidden District. You're right. You will be facing jail time, but you will still be protected. I'll make sure of it. And by the time you're out, you'll be able to live in this world free of worry."
Chifuyu extends his arm and clenches his fist, "This hell… I'll tear it apart."
"And I'm supposed to believe you. We're just human, we can't do anything."
"I'm not human."
"…What?"
"Chifuyu!" Ariel shouts out.
He did it. Chifuyu revealed his vampire form.
The civilians all gasp and David's eyes widen.
"You… You're a vampire?!"
"I'm a half-vampire, I used to be human. Like I said, I was dragged into this battle. No, that's actually not true. I could've chosen to die last year. I was at death's door, and a vampire who's become the most important person to me saved me. I subconsciously knew what being saved meant for me. But I still chose this path. I may not have realized it immediately, but I chose to join this battle."
Chifuyu activates his curse. A black flame sprouts from his chest. David backs away while entranced by the fire. Chifuyu then grasps it, making it flow around him.
"This is my soul. My resolve. David, will you believe in me?"
Ariel, Kagura, Diego, and Beatrice are all astonished. Beatrice seemingly more so than the others.
Ariel clenches her fist while looking at Chifuyu. She's disappointed in herself. She joined the side of humans to not just end this war, but save them. Yet she still didn't have the resolve to save the human who needed it right before her. Chifuyu had Ariel's respect. He did the moment he chose to go on living the night they met. But now, he's become someone for her to look up to.
David drops his gun and falls to his knees.
"One of the girls shouted your name. Chifuyu right, what's your last name?"
"Kyotani."
"Chifuyu Kyotani."
David bows to him.
"I want to trust in you. Please, end this battle."
Before Chifuyu can get his next words out, the civilians all begin talking at the same time.
"Chifuyu, you saved us!"
"Thank you!"
"I have no words."
"You saved our lives."
"I'll take what happened here to the grave."
"Yeah, I won't tell anybody."
"Your secret's safe with us, right?"
"Yeah!"
"Thank you, Chifuyu!"
"You can do it!"
"End this battle against the vampires!"
"Don't forget the Hidden District."
"You have my respect for as long as I live!"
"Chifuyu, you're a savior!"
David gets up, leaving his gun on the floor. He extends his arm.
"I won't forget this."
Chifuyu smiles as he returns to his human form, "Along with being a Hunter, I work at a cafe. It's called Odd Jobs. Whenever you get out, make sure to stop by."
"A cafe, huh? Haven't been to one since I was a kid."
Chifuyu starts escorting David out, but he stops to say something.
"Nobody here has to forgive me, I'd prefer it if you didn't. But I'll make amends for what I did. Lady, I'm truly sorry."
***
After being escorted out, the cops rushed to detain David. Even while getting shoved into the backseat of a police car, he had a faint smile on his face, not looking away from Chifuyu. He made sure to tell them he's under the protection of the Hunters from now on. Paramedics go into the building to recover the dead bodies as police help everyone else come out. As Diego walks out, he recognizes the Hunter that's on the scene. They make eye contact for less than a second before Chifuyu gets in front of him.
"You've got some explaining to do."
"Soon."
"Eh…?"
Diego pats him on the back.
"That was amazing, Chifuyu."
"Kagura, thanks."
"I mean it. It's been a while since I froze up like that, I had no idea what to do. I want to be someone you guys can rely on. So next time something comes up, know I'll take care of it."
"Same goes for me. You'll never see hesitation from me again," Ariel states in a serious manner.
"That's what I like to hear." Chifuyu meets their determination head-on.
"Chifuyu."
"Hey, Beatrice. I, uh…"
"You're a great man, worth my respect and admiration."
This statement catches everyone off guard. But they all smile because it's a sentiment they agree on.
'I want to see with my own eyes, the kind of soul Chifuyu Kyotani has.'