The extinction of a vampire clan occurred on a quiet, ordinary night. In Laredo, few were shocked or mourned, as everything happened silently, with no one knowing that the residents of the collapsed mansion could have turned into a delectable treat overnight.
The police cordoned off the area, a large-scale event like this was rare in Laredo. A family was missing, a mansion crumbled, and yet no alarm had been raised the previous night. It was truly unfathomable.
Jason was unfazed by the collapse of the vampire clan. To him, it was all preordained. The existence of such creatures was bound to result in imperfect endings. Even if he didn't harm them, they would inevitably encounter hunters like Lamia or the Hill Stevens siblings.
On his return from Laredo, he pondered how Lamia could conceal its trail, presenting a challenge for himself. His flying sword, which had never failed before, had missed its target on Lamia thrice. Although each miss drew blood, none achieved the final result.
Perhaps only a face-to-face confrontation could corner it.
Early the next morning, the cashier at the supermarket called Jason to inform him that the tea had arrived, sourced specially from a Chinese community. She asked if he could come now to the supermarket to pick it up.
Upon hearing that, Jason immediately got up, drove to the supermarket, and found the plump cashier waiting for him with the premium-grade West Lake Dragon Well tea. Few things thrilled him as much. Such a rare type of tea was indeed hard to come by.
"Thank you very much," Jason said as he handed over several banknotes after asking the price. "This is for you," he added, placing the money in the cashier's hand.
The half-pound of tea cost five hundred and thirty-seven dollars. Jason handed her six hundred.
"Thank you so much, Mr. Jason!" the cashier beamed. "If you want more, I can try to get it. But it's quite hard to come by."
"I understand. Just find it. I'll give you a good price." Jason said, clutching the bag of tea leaves and preparing to leave. To be honest, the price wasn't too far off. He knew the cost of premium-grade Dragon Well tea was high.
Though there was a slight markup, it was within an acceptable range. The cashier couldn't be expected to work for free. Besides, it was clear she made a little extra on the side, behind the supermarket's back.
Watching the cashier depart cheerfully, Jason smiled. As he turned to find his car, he noticed a police car parked nearby. Patton and Santos were peering out from the window.
"If I didn't know you, I'd suspect you of drug dealing. What's so expensive? I saw that wad of cash, eight hundred dollars? Or more?" Patton joked, completely unconvinced of Jason's involvement in drug trafficking.
"Tea! Very precious tea!" Jason waved the bag of tea leaves, then said, "I need to go. My car's over there," pointing ahead.
"Hey, Mr. Jason, what I wanted to say is, you should forgive Chief Louise," Patton said as he started his car.
"I think... you're the one who needs my forgiveness, Officer Patton. You're blocking my way!" After getting in his car, Jason pointed at Patton's car in front of his. "I need to leave. I have guests coming today!"
Patton waved sheepishly and honked his car horn before quickly driving off. Jason chuckled. Once Patton had changed his impression of Jason, he became quite affable. It seemed that recently fewer people were gossiping about him. Probably Louise and Patton had been singing his praises around town.
Back home, he brewed a cup of West Lake Dragon Well tea. For him, it was a luxury. Sitting on the balcony, overlooking the woods, accompanied by the birds' songs, was a unique pleasure.
But indeed, he was expecting guests that day.
The Stevens siblings arrived as expected. As Jason refilled his cup, an old Chevrolet Caprice slowly pulled into the yard. Seeing Jason on the balcony sipping his tea, the siblings stepped out of their car. With a slightly awkward cough, Hill Steven followed his sister, Lily. "We wanted to say thank you," Lily said to Jason.
"I heard you, anything else to say?" Jason's response seemed somewhat aloof.
"We also... we hope to see Elizabeth. I think... Hill really wants to apologize to Elizabeth in person," Lily Steven pursed her lips. Jason's distant manner was expected, so although she felt a bit awkward, she didn't feel the need to leave immediately.
"That's your business," Jason nodded, "Perhaps this is the right thing for you to do."
"Yes, we will!" Lily Steven nodded, turned around and followed by Hill, who stepped forward and said to Jason, "I owe you an apology, Mr. Jason. I was wrong. I was presumptuous. I used to think that our family was the best demon hunting family. And that my sister and I were the best demon hunting duo."
"Why don't you wait and say what you need to say to Elizabeth?" Jason shook his head, "If you came here just to say this, then... you can leave now."
"No, there's one more thing. Can we work together... I mean, hunt demons together..."
Upon uttering those words and seeing Jason's impassive face, Hill Steven felt as if he had said something wrong. He laughed nervously and said, "I'm just suggesting, that's all. Now, I need to ask for Elizabeth's forgiveness. Goodbye, Mr. Jason." He then turned and followed his sister, seeming a bit anxious to leave.
The siblings drove to Elizabeth's house. The villa was being repaired, restored to its original state. But the work had been paused due to Elizabeth's injury. Mr. Kote had no mood for the renovation. All he wished for was Elizabeth's speedy recovery.
Today was the day Elizabeth's bandages were to be removed.
Mr. Jason had given instructions, so Sanna and Lisa handled the task. Mr. Kote sat in the living room, anxiously glancing upstairs, hoping to see Elizabeth come down on her own. Despite his faith in Jason, he felt nervous.
Just then, a car drove from outside. Instinctively, Mr. Kote's eyes landed on the double-barrel shotgun on the wall. But as he glanced at it, the car stopped some distance away, perhaps noticing something different about the place.
A man and a woman stepped out of the car. The man looked older, the woman younger. They cautiously approached the house, their careful strides indicating their wariness. Spotting Mr. Kote, they halted about twenty meters away and called out.
"Mr. Kote?"
The woman spoke, "I'm Lily Steven, and this is my brother, Hill Steven."
As soon as the introduction was over, Mr. Kote darted to the wall, took down the shotgun, swiftly loaded two bullets, then pointed it at them. The whole process was swift and smooth.
"No, no, Mr. Kote… we're not here to cause trouble." The siblings instantly raised their hands, Lily Steven spoke, "We just came to apologize. We're sorry… Hill has caused you grief, we mean no harm…"
"You're demon hunters, aren't you?" Mr. Kote still had the gun trained on them, gritting his teeth as he spoke, "I have nothing but disdain for demon hunters. They only know blind slaughter. They're arrogant, thinking they're the saviors of this world. But they forget... this world belongs not only to humans but all species that exist in it!"