"Sorry, lady. I ain't interested in that kind of work." Vynx's voice had a tone of finality that cut the conversation short. He raised his eyes to the ceiling as he knocked back the rest of his drink. The beer that night tasted especially bitter.

The middle-aged woman behind him crumpled into sobs. A few sympathetic patrons next to him attempted to help her up while shooting the hunter looks of disdain. 

"Some hunter he is." 

"I thought he was some big shot from the capital. Guess all the rumours were just nothing but talk." 

Vynx ignored the blatant comments directed at him and set his mug back down on the bar counter. Rifling through his coat, he pulled out a spare copper coin and left it on the counter before spinning around in his seat to face the crowd of villagers. "Listen. There are plenty of other mercenaries out there; I'm sure one of 'em will be happy to help you folks. Now if you don't mind, I've got a warm bed waiting for me upstairs." He offered a two-finger salute and cut through the group of villagers to the stairs. He made a mental note to check out first thing in the morning and to avoid the north road heading out. 

To the seasoned hunter, bandit kidnappings were nothing out of the usual. There was always a bounty hanging in every town to deal with the bandit problem. Whether they were harassing merchants or abducting women and children to sell off, unsavoury highwaymen were found in every kingdom and country. Dealing with them never interested him; humans weren't a threat to the hunter, and his real targets were the beasts looking for blood in the dead of night.

The door to his room flung open as Vynx let himself in with an uncharacteristic grumpy frown. He could still hear the wails of the hysteric mother through the floorboards. Shutting the door behind him, Vynx went straight for bed after tossing off his jacket. Kicking his boots to the side, he threw his frame onto the cheap mattress and laced his hands behind his head. "We're leaving tomorrow, Soph. Better return all your books; I prefer traveling light," he called. 

Sophia looked unimpressed. "It's not like you to deny a job." The vampiress was standing by the window overlooking the darkened streets below. "Is there a reason you aren't helping that poor woman?" she asked. 

"I figure you heard everything," Vynx groaned. "I'm a vampire hunter. Emphasis on the vampire part," he added, bouncing his foot up and down as he crossed it over his knee. "Sure, werewolves, demons, and other monsters are covered under that, but you should know how I operate by now. If it doesn't involve some supernatural nasties stirring up trouble, then it's none of my business."

"So you're simply going to leave the kidnapped girl to her fate?" Sophia's voice was cold. She approached the bed and stared him down. There was a hint of anger in her ruby eyes that betrayed the vampiress' ordinarily pristine face. 

Vynx immediately regretted his choice of words and clicked his tongue. "Sophia—sorry. I didn't mean to sound like I don't care," he corrected himself. He should have realized sooner that Sophia would empathize with a young village girl being abducted. After all, she had once been the chosen victim of a Vampire Lord, and their first meeting was when he arrived to save the lord's latest sacrifice from becoming another bride. The hunter sat himself up to look at her properly, choosing his words carefully to avoid offending the vampiress further. "I have orders from the Commission, and they're cut and dry: Don't meddle in human affairs if you can help it. That also means not getting too involved in every village's bandit troubles, especially when it's something they can handle without my help." He knew he didn't sound convincing, but he was telling the truth. His "father" had instilled the words into him since his training days, and he wasn't about to have a moral debate with the madman who created him to be a monster-hunting weapon. 

"It'll be too late by the time another mercenary comes by," Sophia muttered. He knew she was right; they were in a remote village that was made up of barely more than a dozen houses and buildings. The town guard was practically nonexistent, and the only defense the village had were the aging village men and their farm tools. 

"Oh well. You can't solve every problem out there, Soph. You'll only run yourself into the ground trying." Vynx closed his eyes to avoid Sophia's scathing look. "Now if you don't mind, I'm gonna get some shut-eye. It'll be a long walk to the next village." He let out an exaggerated yawn and rolled onto his side to face the wall. Sophia's heels clicked across the floor, and he could hear the vampiress sit herself back down at the desk on the other side of the room and crack open another one of her novels. As the noises of chairs scraping and muddled voices below finally faded out, Vynx allowed himself to fall into a light slumber, knowing it would be a while until he could enjoy a proper bed and roof over his head again.

There was a bad feeling building in his gut. Sophia rarely left their inn room whenever they were staying in a town; after all, it was painfully obvious to any who laid eyes on the silver-haired maiden that she was a vampire. They had managed to dodge notice so long as she stayed in her bat form and hid in his coat while they were in public. He had done his best to supply Sophia with fresh animal blood from local butchers or his own hunts, but he feared the worst when she went into the night on her own. 

Rushing out of the inn, Vynx found himself in an empty street. Aside from the faint glow of candles coming from a few houses on the opposite lane, there was nothing but the light of the waxing moon above him to illuminate the quiet village. He immediately went north in the direction of the forest right outside the village, keeping a brisk walk while keeping his eye on anything out of the ordinary. Then, as if on cue, he heard it: human screams. 

The hunter broke into a sprint to the source, charging down the dirt road until he was in the thick of the woods. His golden eyes narrowed on a faint glow in the distance, a campfire through the trees. He could already detect the scent of blood in the air and ran until he tore through the foliage to reach the bandits' camp. Vynx unsheathed his sword, clutching its grip in his right hand while his left reached to draw his gun. 

Bodies littered the ground, slumped in unnatural positions. All were males ranging from their early 20s to late 40s, with about nine of them in total. Upon a brief glance, Vynx could tell that most had their necks snapped before they could even arm themselves. A few had slits across their throats, and puddles of scarlet were slowly spreading across the dirt under them. At the center of the camp, two silhouettes stood against the crackling fire illuminating the grisly scene.

Sophia loomed over a shivering young woman, whose eyes were wide with fear as she gazed up at the pale vampiress. The vampiress' hands were dyed with blood that matched the colour of her deep red wine dress. Her crimson eyes glowed against the light of the fire, locked on the maiden who was frozen in place at her feet. 

"Sophia." Vynx cocked his gun and kept it pointed at her back. He stepped slowly towards the two, keeping his weapons at the ready. After all their time traveling together, he knew exactly what Sophia was capable of. The lightning-fast reflexes and the ruthless way she could tear through flesh like paper—they were all assets to him when he needed a partner to watch his back on a hunt. He decided to trust Sophia after seeing her control her impulses, never laying a hand on a human wherever they went. But now, the scent of death hung heavy on the vampiress, and one wrong move meant Vynx would have to put her down. 

She opened her mouth, revealing unmistakable sharp fangs as she spoke to the young woman. "Go. Your mother is waiting for you." Sophia turned slowly back towards Vynx, taking her attention off the kidnapped damsel and meeting the hunter's eyes impassively. 

The girl finally took notice of Vynx and cautiously scrambled to her feet. She backed away from Sophia before running to his side. Her dress appeared torn and smudged with dirt, while the skin around her wrists was raw from rope burns. There was no mistaking her resemblance to the woman back at the inn, sharing the same dark chestnut hair and a similar milkmaid uniform.

Vynx barely acknowledged the woman, his eyes still fixed on Sophia's in a silent deadlock. He moved only to make sure the maid was properly behind him before gesturing with his head for her to run. "Listen to the nice vampire lady and head back to town, yeah? Don't worry, she won't be following." 

Swallowing her fears, the woman nodded and finally turned to flee. 

Vynx could only hope her sense of direction was good enough to get her back to the main road without getting lost. As the frantic footsteps faded into the distance, Vynx relaxed his shoulders and lowered his pistol. "You sure spooked the lass. I think she'll be having more nightmares about you than the scumbags that kidnapped her in the first place," Vynx sighed and rubbed the back of his head. The mess of bodies wouldn't be missed, but that didn't mean he enjoyed the sight of it. 

"I had no choice," Sophia replied dispassionately. She wiped her hands on her skirt and crossed her arms. "Would you have stopped me?" she questioned him. 

"Nah. I just came to make sure I wasn't going to have to deal with some reanimated vampire thralls," Vynx admitted. "But no bite marks! I'm impressed, Soph." He sheathed his sword and gave her a slow clap. 

"Please, you should know me better than that." The vampiress shot him another annoyed look. 

"Don't you get thirsty, though?" Vynx asked bluntly. "I mean… I ain't a vampire or anything, but all my notes say that nothing compares to human blood when it comes to your tastes. All these bodies… and you don't want a little sip?" He wondered, tilting his head as he regarded her with genuine curiosity. 

Sophia strutted past him, bumping her shoulder against the hunter's as she walked towards one of the corpses. She then went down to one knee and took hold of the bandit's head, tilting it back to reveal the gash across his neck. "I spent many nights back at the castle watching as my 'husband' feasted on the humans sacrificed to him. The smell of blood is indeed intoxicating… but I could never be rid of my disgust for it." Sophia ran her hand over the fresh wound and brought her fingers towards her lips. For a moment, Vynx could see her hand tremble as she breathed in the scent of iron. Then calmly, she closed her hand into a fist, shut her eyes, and set the body back down on the grass. 

"You've got self-restraint, I'll give you that." Vynx offered his hand to help Sophia back to her feet. "I'll admit… I was worried. I know this kinda thing must be hard for you." He squeezed her hand, not minding that his glove would be stained as well. "I guess I owe you an apology too. For making you come out and do all the dirty work yourself." 

"I don't understand. You could have easily handled this… yet you chose not to," Sophia accused. "Human or no, these men were monsters." She practically hissed the word, gripping Vynx's hand tightly as she glared at him for an answer.

Vynx took a deep breath, knowing he owed Sophia the truth. "You're right. They are. Scum like this deserve what's coming to them; I won't argue with you there," he conceded. "I know there are plenty of humans just as despicable as your ex. And you've shown me there are vampires… people like you, who still retain their humanity. But look around you, Sophia. Look at what you—and I—are capable of," Vynx said sternly. 

Her eyes lowered as she recalled the frightened girl. Sophia bit her lip as the weight of her actions seemed to finally set on her. "... You think I might become like other vampires then? That I hold no regard for human life?" 

"I'd like to believe otherwise," Vynx returned. "I just don't think we have the right to play 'God.'" His smile was dry; the very sigil etched on his body was a reminder of the power he was given and the line that separated him from other humans. "Listen, I'm no saint or philosopher, so I ain't gonna preach at you about how killing humans is bad. I just don't want you to lose yourself." He placed his other hand atop the back of hers. "Just promise me you won't run off again alone. You can drag me by the ear if you really want to." Vynx smiled. It would be a pain in the ass, but if it meant keeping Sophia from going on a blood-drunk massacre, then it would technically be a part of his job. 

"Ah. So I'm allowed to take any bounty I wish, and due to my supernatural involvement, now you're also obligated to keep an eye on me and see it through." Sophia looked up, eyes gleaming softly as her features relaxed. 

"That's the gist of it. Non-lethal force is preferred if we have to deal with a bunch of stooges. But trust me, it's more of a hassle trying to hold back against humans than it is to go all out on a nest of vampires." Vynx patted her shoulder and began steering Sophia into the shade as he noticed the night sky brightening into a dusky violet. "Beating up idiots just isn't satisfying, you know? I prefer a challenge, and if that makes me a narcissist, then so be it." 

Sophia shook her head, hiding a faint smile. "No, I'm beginning to understand your reasons now. While I don't necessarily agree that they're right… I can see why you stick to what you do." 

"That's good enough for me." Vynx felt exhausted (despite having done very little work aside from showing up late to the scene of the crime). But their quarry was saved, the bandits were eviscerated, and he narrowly managed to avoid getting on Sophia's bad side. His only regret was that he wasn't able to grab breakfast before leaving, and they would both be traveling on empty stomachs until the next town.