Crimson and Furs

Forty Eight: Running into Hunters

That night Daniel was sprinting across the street in total freedom, moving along with the wind. He avoided places he was likely to bump into the cops or Special Cops and moved through places he would pass undetected. He didn't care if his mother would discover that he had been leaving the house every night. What was more important was becoming more powerful so that he could protect those he loved.

As Daniel ran he suddenly remembered what had been happening between Felicia and Orpheus throughout that week. Those two had gotten so close to each other that Felicia  even began treating him as if he was non-existent. He was greatly shocked about the outcome of everything as he saw both of them become even closer. Was that how Orpheus was getting back at him?—by snatching his girlfriend? For God's sake they had not even visited each other for once and a total stranger had just appeared out of the blues and snatched her away! It was totally unbelievable!

"Felicia has been having a major crush on this guy for a long time now and I thought it was just a trivial matter," Daniel told himself. "I never knew it would graduate into something like this."

Thinking about the whole matter made him sad. He had loved Felicia dearly and this was how she was repaying him. Even though he was of a lower class and had not done anything remarkable for her, at least she was supposed to show gratitude for the numerous assignments he did for her. The alarming thing was that Orpheus was as intelligent as him (if not more intelligent). The way they challenged each other in classes and tests shocked everyone including Daniel. Nobody had been able to match to his intelligence in the entirety of Grade 10. Because of Orpheus he had lost Felicia's love and even some of the teachers' love. Everybody was now very crazy about the noble child.

He was still running when he stopped in his tracks and slowly stood up, sniffing the air. Someone was following him 100 meters away. No, they weren't one and their footsteps had stopped 150 meters away.

Daniel's ears remained still to detect the slightest sound waves coming from the people who were following him. Everything was silent. Seeing this Daniel's eyes narrowed as he thought, How can they suddenly become so silent? They are just so still...

He was about to turn around and run in another direction when he discovered that he was in a dead end. There was a very high wall made of steel in front of him while tall skyscrapers were erected on his sides. Now he was standing in an alley filled with garbages and all.

"When did I run down here?" Daniel was so shocked. He looked around and saw that he was entirely in an unknown environment. Those people who had been following had done something to his senses!

"It's late to be running around alone," a voice sounded from behind him. He didn't need to turn to know that someone was standing on the wall made of steel. But he ultimately turned to know how the person looked and what weapons he carried.

A smile lit up on the person's face, his blue eyes narrowing. He was dressed in a white shirt, black vest and black trousers with a revolver tucked away in the holster at his left side. There was a sheath at his back bearing a sword with silver handle.

"Who the hell are you?" Daniel asked unafraid of the man who he knew bore evil intentions.

"Who the hell am I? Hahahaha!" the man clenched his fists. "I'm the hunter and you're the prey."

"Huh?" Daniel was at loss. What did that mean? Wasn't he as a Wolfman supposed to be the hunter? What did the man mean?

"I guess your Alpha hasn't warned you about the Lycanthrope Guild," the man said as he stopped laughing, his expression becoming extremely serious.

"But you were laughing just right now," Daniel still had a clear mind to mutter nonsense. "Don't do that in the public."

"And now I'll have more points to exchange for a mystical item," the man said.