Chapter 66: Fang Hunter

“Wait, that woman… Can she handle those monsters alone?”

“She’s a professional. It’s better than two useless ordinary people like us going there just to be killed!”

They were very lucky along the way. The two of them didn’t even encounter any pursuing “beasts” and escaped safely.

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After escaping to safety, Fang Jing began to sort out his emotions to make sense of what had just happened.

He was now sitting on the steps outside a 24-hour convenience store.

The electronic screen nearby showed that it was almost midnight. Occasionally, vehicles passed by on the street.

The bustling city center was not far from here.

“…Here you go.”

Karasawa Meisuke walked out of the convenience store and casually threw over a coffee he bought from a vending machine.

“Thanks.”

Fang Jing caught it and saw it was a canned coffee.

It was still hot, warming his hand.

He let out a frustrated sigh, silently recalling the earlier scene. He glanced at the utterly ordinary surroundings and shook his head helplessly.

“Drink it while it’s hot!”

He finally recognized the person who had tossed him the canned coffee.

“You are Karasawa-senpai.”

He remembered. He did have some impression of this person. It was “Karasawa Meisuke,” whom he had met earlier on the rooftop.

From Nishizuka’s memories, Karasawa had a bad reputation at school and was always considered a delinquent.

He really hadn’t expected Karasawa to help him this time.

Karasawa had his back to him, elbows resting on the iron railing, holding a can of coffee himself. He pulled the tab open with a pop.

(It seems he didn’t see my fight with the ‘Horde of Beasts’. When he rushed out earlier, he said something like ‘There are too many, the two of us alone are no match’…)

Thinking quickly, Fang Jing figured out how to proceed.

“…Karasawa-senpai, I am Nishizuka Tsukasa. You probably know me, right?”

“Of course I know you. The second-year ‘scholar’. I often see your name on the midterm and final exam rankings. You might not know it yourself, but you’re somewhat famous.”

Karasawa turned around, his tone laced with annoyance. “I know what you want to ask, but all I can say is—the more you know, the worse it is for you. It’s better off knowing nothing.”

The meaning was simple… He was telling him not to ask any more questions.

The problem was, Fang Jing wouldn’t give up so easily.

“Fujiwara was the one who called me there. Oh, right… Later, he turned into a half-human, half-monster creature.”

“Fujiwara? You saw Fujiwara?!”

A slightly surprised expression appeared on Karasawa’s face. He had also been investigating this matter and looking into information related to Fujiwara, but he never expected Fang Jing to have encountered Fujiwara directly.

“Didn’t you see him, Senpai?”

“Nonsense! I didn’t have time for that. I was practically thrown into that place, busy throwing that molotov cocktail, plus it was pitch black… I only saw the ground covered with Corpse Hound bodies and was wondering what had happened?”

“Corpse Hound?”

He noted Karasawa’s words.

“……”

Karasawa realized he had said too much. He sighed heavily.

“Forget it. It’s fine to tell you this much. Those monsters are called ‘Corpse Hounds’. They have existed in the world for many years. The ancient legends of vampires, werewolves, and other man-eating monsters were mostly created based on Corpse Hounds… Except, they aren’t afraid of silver bullets, crosses, or garlic.”

“Senpai, you’re not joking, are you? Are you saying those monsters feed on humans?”

Fang Jing pretended to be slightly shocked.

“But then… don’t the government and the police deal with this?”

“How could public institutions admit that there are abnormal monsters in this world that they can’t control? Furthermore, there are other forces that have been concealing their existence…”

Karasawa Meisuke sneered and threw his emptied can towards a trash bin not far away.

With a ‘thud’, the aluminum can drew a beautiful arc and landed inside the bin.

“I don’t know much about the government’s situation, but there are specialists who deal with those Corpse Hounds… namely, the ‘Fang Hunters’.”

“Fang Hunter”… that must be the girl who appeared earlier. Fang Jing finally remembered where he had seen her. That woman was clearly the transfer student—Amasue Suetora.

…The transfer student trope really never gets old. Anyway, the Fang Hunters are a rather secretive organization. The organization itself is not part of the government, but it might have close ties with certain government departments.

The history of the Fang Hunters seemed very long, at least several hundred years. The main purpose of this organization was to hunt and kill Corpse Hounds.

“Corpse Hounds are aberrant creatures that evolved from ancient Nocturnal beings. Most have mimicry and camouflage abilities. The stronger individuals among them can even perfectly imitate normal humans and hide among crowds. Whether it’s blood tests, DNA tests, or X-rays, they are no different from normal people.”

Ordinary people cannot distinguish between a Corpse Hound and a normal human. Unless a Corpse Hound actively reveals its true nature, ordinary people remain unaware.

“Corpse Hounds are accustomed to blending into crowds, posing as ordinary people. Most are very cautious. They carefully select their hunting targets. Many of the people they prey upon are assumed by others to have simply gone missing.”

After entering modern society, Corpse Hounds also learned more concealed hunting methods. They would process the crime scene, erase any traces they left, avoid cameras and surveillance. Their victims would be eaten, leaving not even a bone behind. Alternatively, they could pulverize the bodies and bones and dispose of them somewhere.

Karasawa smiled bitterly and said, “Also, those ‘Elder Class’ ones that have lived abnormally long mostly possess some abnormal abilities and near-immortal bodies. Ordinary human strength cannot kill them… Those inferior half-finished products are a different matter. They are experimental subjects and didn’t inherit such powerful strength.”

A small number of Corpse Hounds inhabited this city. No, there might be a whole ‘pack’, or perhaps a nest existed here.

The hunters of the Fang Hunter Agency had caught a certain scent and were specifically stationed in this city to carry out hunts.

Amasue Suetora was one of them.

Karasawa Meisuke was clearly someone in the know. However, this informed person didn’t intend to reveal too much information to him. He emphasized that the more one knew, the more disadvantageous it was for an “ordinary person” like him.

“An organization like the ‘Fang Hunters’, a secret society, doesn’t want outsiders to know about their existence. If you and I aren’t careful, we might end up having our memories erased by something like ‘Men in Black’.”

“Alright… But… those monsters, and that guy with the Brown Glasses… Can Amasue Suetora handle them all by herself…”

“It’s fine, Nishizuka. Think about it carefully. Would a normal, ordinary girl have the ability to wield a sword and kill those monsters alone?… Normal people simply cannot deal with monsters.”

Karasawa gave a dark chuckle. “Fang Hunters are different from normal people like us. They themselves are not much different from monsters.”