On a deserted path outside the city, two creatures that barely resembled ordinary humans faced each other.
One had a body fundamentally different from a normal person.
The other looked so horribly disfigured that his appearance alone could scare people away.
Noah Vale studied the woman standing across from him.
She had no heartbeat.
And the scent of fresh blood drifted constantly from her mouth.
Combined with what he had recently heard from The Punisher, the answer was obvious.
So this is a vampire.
Noah lowered his stance slightly.
His left hand lifted defensively while his right rested near his lower back.
His eyes stayed locked on the woman.
Ready to fight.
Or run.
Across from him, the woman examined Noah with visible disgust.
"You're human, right?" she said coldly.
Her gaze lingered on Noah's scarred face.
"I've never seen anyone this ugly before."
Her expression twisted.
"No wonder you're walking down back roads at night. You'd scare people if they saw you."
Behind her, a woman's body lay in the grass—completely drained of blood.
Since her meal had already been witnessed, there was no reason to leave Noah alive.
Besides…
She had absolutely no interest in feeding on someone that ugly.
Her fingers curled into claw-like shapes as she lunged forward.
The speed was monstrous—far beyond human limits.
In less than a blink, she could have torn Noah's throat open.
But before she reached him—
Noah's right hand snapped forward.
A Glock pistol appeared in his grip.
The muzzle pointed directly at her neck.
He pulled the trigger without hesitation.
Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang.
Gunshots shattered the silence of the empty road, sending flocks of birds scattering into the night sky.
Five bullets slammed into the vampire's throat in rapid succession.
The shots landed with surgical precision.
Noah's technique?
Classic American martial arts.
Gunfighting.
The entire exchange lasted less than a second.
The vampire hadn't even reached him yet.
As for where Noah got the gun?
After dismantling multiple gangs over the past week, picking up a weapon along the way had been easy.
Bullets traveled at over two hundred meters per second.
No matter how strong Noah was, he couldn't move that fast.
When he dodged gunfire before, it was because he reacted before the trigger was pulled.
But when he was the one shooting?
That advantage disappeared.
Against opponents with superhuman physical ability, the speed of a firearm was still terrifying.
The vampire clutched her shattered throat, staring at Noah's pistol with disbelief.
It was as if she were accusing him of cheating.
At that moment, Noah's system finished analyzing her.
Her physical capabilities were impressive—stronger than an ordinary human.
But something else stood out.
Her durability rating was extremely high.
Yet the bullets had pierced her flesh easily.
Noah quickly understood.
That stat must represent regeneration.
He watched closely.
Sure enough, within seconds, the wound began closing.
Muscle fibers knit together.
Bone shifted.
The embedded bullets popped out and dropped to the dirt.
The vampire straightened slowly, her throat completely healed.
Noah raised an eyebrow.
"Mind if I ask something?" he said casually.
She glared at him.
"What?"
"Do vampires like you never die?"
He tilted his head slightly.
"And do you really have unlimited stamina? Never get tired?"
The woman laughed proudly.
"Of course."
"You pathetic humans could never understand the superiority of our kind. As long as we have enough blood—"
She stopped mid-sentence.
Something about Noah's expression had changed.
The look in his eyes was… unsettling.
Like a businessman spotting an unbelievably productive worker.
Noah's voice suddenly brightened.
"Fantastic."
He stepped forward.
"That's exactly what I needed."
Before she could react—
He vanished from where he stood.
The next instant, his voice echoed beside her ear.
"You're perfect."
Her pupils shrank.
A hand like forged steel clamped around her forehead.
So fast—
The thought never finished.
Noah slammed her backward.
BOOM.
Her skull smashed against the trunk of a massive tree.
The impact deformed her head instantly, blood spraying from her nose, mouth, and ears.
The tree shook violently as leaves rained down around them.
Pain exploded through her mind.
Before she could recover—
Noah's right hand slid down to her stomach.
Then pushed.
Slowly.
CRUNCH.
His fingers drove into her abdomen like a blade.
She screamed.
The sound echoed through the empty forest.
Her eyes snapped downward.
Noah's hand had pierced straight into her body.
His fingers buried inside her abdomen like a nail pinning her to the tree.
Blood poured from the wound.
Noah spoke calmly.
"You already killed someone tonight."
"So I'm not going to bother with moral lectures."
He caught her incoming punch with his left hand.
Then squeezed lightly.
CRACK.
Her wrist shattered instantly.
"You have two options," Noah continued.
"Option one: you become my dog."
"You follow orders and avoid unnecessary suffering."
"Option two: I torture you first…"
He pushed his hand deeper into her abdomen.
"…and then you become my dog anyway."
Her body trembled violently.
Meanwhile, the damage Noah had inflicted was already healing.
Her skull slowly reformed.
Her abdominal wound began tightening around Noah's arm as the flesh regenerated.
Noah watched with fascination.
Incredible regeneration.
"Never!" the vampire spat.
She opened her mouth wide, fangs snapping toward his throat.
Noah punched her in the face.
Teeth shattered instantly.
Fragments flew down her throat.
"Relax," Noah said calmly.
"You'll agree eventually."
He glanced up at the empty night sky.
No people.
No witnesses.
Just quiet woods stretching for miles.
A perfect interrogation location.
"Don't overestimate your willpower," Noah said quietly.
"And definitely don't underestimate mine."
His smile widened slightly.
"I'm not a good person."
"For the next few hours…"
He twisted his hand inside her abdomen.
"…I'm going to apply the same training methods I use on myself."
"Only about ten times worse."