A hellhound’s horns could be considered their pride. No hellhound had similar horns unless they were related, so each one was unique. Those with no horns might not be able to understand why a hellhound’s horns was very important, and they might not even notice any differences. So, when Ifrit realized that someone shot off one of his horns and damaged his ear lobe at the same time, he felt his pride was challenged. Ifrit knew that a hellhound losing their horn was more a dishonor than a battle scar, and someone was trying to hurt his pride. Someone was challenging him. After Albert told him that the shooter could’ve shot him dead, but deliberately missed and shot one of his horns, Ifrit knew whoever his adversary was, he wasn’t a pushover if he could shot off a curved down horn like Ifrit’s.

He was, however, one of the lucky ones. He managed to retrieve the horn just before Lilac pulled him away. He could reattach the horn and disguise the break with jewelries, but personally, he knew the damage was already done. There was no way to bring back the pristine horn he had before.

The hellhound ambush and the realization that they weren’t even Lycans to begin with started a wave of worry and unrest in the small town of Brenik. Unlike Tragoria, news spread quickly, and response was quick, resulting in the once quaint suburban town to be filled with military and police keeping the situation under control. While the Lycans were no longer under suspicion, the hellhounds, specifically those who clearly had horns and long whip-like tail out, became prime suspects and detained. Many of them, as Ifrit later heard, were the remains of the rebels that found Ifrit and attempted to kill him. They did not even try to disguise their horns and tails.

Others were subtler but decided to go in hiding. The hellhound who claimed to be an ally chose to get out of town at night to report to Anarim Winsel from Stelikan, and to tell the old hellhound that his grandson was doing alright. Albert wanted to tell the hellhound to send a message, but then decided not to, owing to the fact that he couldn’t trust any hellhound without some sort of proof. He advised Eshdar to do the same.

Then the day passed without any major incidents. With the possible problem with the police and the public, Ifrit and Eshdar decided to stay in their hotel rooms with Sammael. Lilac, assured by Ifrit that he was alright, decided to go out to town and buy some medical supplies for the first aid kit while Albert went to buy some food. He was hoping if someone had replied to his wire, so after he returned to the hotel with the food, he went out again to get to the post office and walked to the front desk, hoping for some good news.

“Hi there,” said Albert to the front desk clerk. “Do you have a message for Albert Schafner?”

The clerk checked the ‘new message’ pile on her right and found the one she wanted to. It was written on a piece of green paper labeled ‘telegram paper’ with a typewriter. The message said, “Package ready. On the way to Brenik. Arrive tonight. MS.”

Arrive tonight? That was fast, thought Albert. It wasn’t really unusual, however, given the circumstances of the receiver. Thanking the clerk, he decided that there was nothing else he could do but wait for his package to arrive. He hoped nothing else happened for the day, though he soon remembered something that had been bugging him ever since the ambush the previous day: who was the deadly sniper? As he walked to the area of the park where the hellhound ambushers were shot down, he started checking the blood splatter from within the park, yet to be cleaned by the police. He had done detective works before, but not to solve a homicide. Rather, it was something more supernatural, and most of the times it involved the blood being used as a catalyst for a demon summoning. Still, the skills he got from investigating a possible demonic summoning could be used along with his expertise as a sniper.

The blood splatter’s angle gave him a suggestion as to where the sniper could possibly be. The roofs of the buildings west of the park were the most probable area, especially since the roofs were flat and high enough for a sniper’s nest. Most of the brick multi-storied buildings of the town had flat roofs, but the western group of buildings was the most probable place for the sniper.

With that conclusion, Albert proceeded to walk towards the buildings. Upon closer inspection, the buildings were mixed use properties where the ground floor were either a garage or a store, while the second and third floors were apartment units or offices. The floor plan for the buildings, as Albert noticed, was a single corridor in the middle of two buildings with stairs that led to the second and third floor with a roof access. The roof was always open for public access, perfect for a vagrant to set up camp or a sniper. But, as Albert climbed the stairs, he noticed several things that would be dangerous traps for the sniper if they wanted to escape unnoticed.

He wasn’t sure what happened during the time of the ambush, but as he climbed the stairs, he noticed that the two adjacent buildings only had third floor apartment units. The second floor had services such as a drug store/candy store and a barber shop. Albert assumed that, like the day of the ambush, the two stores were full of customers. Any of them would see the sniper climbing down the stairs in a hurry, especially since the doors were large enough for people to peer out effortlessly.

Albert thought that the roof might have a fire ladder where the sniper could climb down without attracting too much attention. When he reached the roof, however, he found that the fire ladder was in fact installed at the front of the building, meaning that if the sniper was to climb down from the fire ladder, it would be too conspicuous. He even noticed that not only was the place too conspicuous for a sniper, but the building was also blocked by trees full of summer leaves. Even so, Albert noticed several clues that indicated the presence of a sniper. The most obvious, yet subtle for untrained eyes, were the holes on the bricks used for roof guard. The distance between the holes indicated a bipod was attached to the bricks with a nail hammered into the bricks themselves.

But even with all the setup, the main obstacles for a clear shot were the trees. The trees covered the area where the ambush happened, giving a blind spot. Even with a perfect eyesight, no one could see through the thick foliage. Even a trained sniper like Albert could only guess who was behind the trees. He wondered if the sniper pointed the position of the targets through the shadows, but even then it was hard to pinpoint the target, let alone the head. In fact, it couldn’t explain how the sniper could expertly shot Ifrit’s horn and ear with such precision.

On the other hand, the flying demon could be easily targeted, simply because it was flying high enough to clear the trees, becoming an open target. Albert soon started thinking about the bullet casing. He searched around, but he did not find any, concluding that the sniper was good enough not to leave anything that could incriminate them. So, he started thinking on how the sniper could escape in broad daylight without drawing any attention.

He found his answer when he felt the cold tip of a gun press over his head.

“Impressive. I never thought someone actually think of coming up here,” said the person holding the gun. The voice was deep and manly.

“Not a good place to set up a nest, don’t you think?” said Albert as he slowly raised his hands. “Unless there is some sort of trickery involved.”

“You can say so,” said the sniper. “And don’t try anything stupid unless you’re the betting type. I can tell that you are going to surprise me and take my revolver, but I bet you’ll be dead with bullets in your skull long before that.”

“I don’t want to die like a fool. Even so, I know you can just shoot me without announcing your presence. I know I won’t expect you to stay up here. Who are you?”

“Who am I?” the sniper chuckled. “Even if I tell you the answer, you won’t even know who I am.”

“But at least I have a name, in case we meet again.”

“You really think so?”

“I travel with Ifrit, your target. I can tell you want to give him a message by shooting off his horn. Given that you know the significance of horns to a hellhound, I can assume that you’re a hellhound.”

“Heh. You got brains, human. I like that. But, you’re wrong.”

“How so?”

“Because you do not have all the facts, and one of which is standing right behind you. I won’t give you the satisfaction to know that.”

“Including the demon cleansing bullets you used? Oh, I know one when I see it.”

“You know about it? You a Demon Hunter?”

“So, what if I am?”

“Never thought traditionalists like you even consider using such ‘crude’ method.”

“I did ask the committee to consider it as part of modernizing the order. I thought they already did it when I saw it in action.”

“You asked? Well, you’re full of surprises, blondie.”

“I am not finished asking questions. What do you want with Ifrit? Why did you shoot off his horn? Was it a challenge?”

“It’s between him and me, human. If you really want to know, keep traveling with him. We’ll meet again when the time comes. Also, I think I’ve wasted enough time.”

Albert was sure that he would get shot, but instead, nothing happened. He quickly turned around fast enough to see the sniper jumping down from the roof on the other side of the building, which had no fire ladder. Albert rushed towards where the sniper jumped off and looked down, but no one was there.

“Magic tricks, huh?” said Albert. “Interesting.”

He chose to check the roof area for anything that could tell him the identity of the sniper, but aside from the nail holes, there were none other. With a heavy sigh, he could only hope they would meet again.

Though part of him did not want them to meet as enemies.

***

Albert really hoped that he wouldn’t be thinking about how the sniper shot the hellhounds from a blind spot with a deadly precision, but the mystery made him curious and intrigued. He did not get a good look at the sniper, who was wearing a cloak. He could only assume that he was a hellhound given what he did. Albert must also assume that this hellhound was special enough to shoot through a blind spot. Special and deadly. It was a very dangerous combination, one that Albert would try his best to avoid.

But, unlike the hellhounds who ambushed Ifrit, this one had a very questionable allegiance. He claimed he had Ifrit as a target, yet he shot down the hellhounds trying to kill Ifrit. Like he said, Albert could not find a conclusion without all the necessary facts, one of which was the mystery of the sniper’s extraordinary skills.

Fortunately, the day went on fast as he talked with his traveling companions. Ifrit had recovered from the damage on his ear, with Lilac on his side comforting him. Eshdar was talking with Sammael. Albert wasn’t sure what since they spoke in Hordo, but he could guess. They did not seem to be distressed after the ambush, even Lilac. That showed Albert how much she grew since she escaped Sidve.

Before they knew it, the day ended. The town was still restless, so Ifrit and the others decided to stay in the hotel. Albert, however, had a business to attend to. The message told him that the package would arrive that night, and it did, somewhere near the town. Albert was sure the package would attract quite an attention, but no one wanted to go out that night after what happened in the town park.

While car was already a common sight in Dusdolf and Adaline, with limited use in the other regions, Dusdolfian cars were built different. The ‘package’ Albert ordered, however, wasn’t just any Dusdolfian car. It was a prototype car with internal combustion engine that could run on three different fuels: kerosene, gasoline, and ethanol. The engine produced a power of 40 horses, which was considered impressive for a 1911 car, even though the car design was made several years before that. While it looked and performed like most cars, it had a unique safety design his friend MS devised, most notably the brake pedals and an electro-mechanical starter system that was the innovative aspect of the car. That way, the car’s engine could be started simply by inserting a car key and twist it to start the engine. Most contemporary cars needed a hand crank to manually start the engine and it could take a while before it could even start.

Albert owed much of his love for engines to his friend MS, Marlene Schrader. She was part of the engineering team responsible for the development of the car. Albert happened to be the test driver, so he knew the capabilities of the car compared to the cars already on the road. And to top the surprise, the driver of the magnificent car was none other than Marlene herself.

Marlene stepped off the car once she saw Albert from the distance. She was a human woman with blonde hair that she tied into a bun under a flat cap. Unlike most ladies, she wore a pair of brown pants and a blouse.

As Albert waved at her, she slowly walked towards him and stopped near the hood of the car, hands on her hips. She smiled as Albert came for a hug, which she accepted.

“Albert,” she said. “You look well.”

“And you too, my dear,” said Albert, in Dusdolfian. “How long have it been? 2 years?”

“Ever since you chose to take the Tragorian assessment, so yeah, 2 years, give or take. They have been working on all metal body frame that is fireproof since then. You should see the prototype.”

“Yeah.”

There was a silence between them as Marlene did not say anything after Albert. Marlene’s expression soon changed, which was followed by her saying, “God, I can’t keep it in me any longer. Where the hell have you been?! You told me the assignment is only for one year. One! Not to mention that region is the least deserving of your service!”

“At least I’m not standing on a box ranting about an imminent demonic invasion without acting on it. Yes, Tragorians don’t have demon problems like we do, but someone must be there to keep an eye on them.”

“And?”

“And they’re awful! Their mentality is like they’re stuck in the 18th century! Lycans are the devil’s advocate? Now, that’s like asking for sympathy to the wrong people, isn’t it?”

“They said that?”

“One of the more reclusive towns do. Good thing they don’t mind a tall, blonde man like me. I doubt they like trust Dusdolfians that much. In their eyes, we are as much the devil’s advocate for accepting Lycans, selling our souls for the sake of progress. You know Demon Hunters are Dusdolfians, right?”

“That doesn’t mean it’ll take two years to finish!” Marlene sighed. “Okay. I’m sorry, but we missed you, Albert. I know your work for the order is important, but we miss our best driver.”

“Johann’s not good enough?”

“He’s more an engineer than a driver. He takes risks and bets as a designer, but he’s not someone who has seen death in the eyes as much as you. Sure, he is a good driver, but he is not willing to break his own creation.”

Albert chuckled as he remembered how Johann berated him for pushing one of the earlier prototypes to the point of breaking it down. He was sure the prototype Marlene drove to Brenik was the same one that Johann decided to drive for himself. Albert also fondly remembered him as a quirky engineer, specifically in mannerism, race, and appearance. He was a turned werewolf, meaning that he was a human turned into a Lycan by a pureblood. He was near-sighted, so he wore a pince-nez since regular glasses would not work on his lupine face.

But Albert did not want to reminisce about Johann too much. He returned to the car with Marlene. He then asked, “What did Johann call the car again?”

“Elizabeth. Liz for short,” said Marlene. “Officially, it’s prototype Mark 5.”

“Five? That’s a lot of revisions.”

“It’s the closest we have with the consumer-friendly one. Mark 6 is the one we decide to mass-produce. That one, however, has revised controls for those who prefer a simpler car like our competitors. Liz here still has the same control scheme that you’re familiar with, along with several modifications to make it road worthy. As you instructed, Johann fitted the car with metal plates while I put in all the equipment you need. It’s all in the back trunk.”

“Marl, I can’t thank you enough,” said Albert upon hearing what Marlene did. “I half-expected you to simply ask me to…”

“Really? Albert Schafner, I am your oldest friend, and you doubted me? Damn, that hurts.”

“Wait, Marl! I don’t mean it like that.”

Marlene smiled. “Heh. I know you don’t mean it. I…also gave you the bullets, as you asked. I know your Demon Hunter friends don’t like them that much, especially after that incident with the freelancer.”

“Freelancer?”

“You haven’t heard about it? There was a freelance Demon Hunter using your idea and started shooting down demons and hellhounds. I thought you gone rogue, but I know you’re still in Tragoria when it happened.”

“Wait, hold up. A sniper using cleansing bullets? Did someone…”

“Apparently not. You know Maxwell, right? I asked him if this is you, but he knows you are still doing Tragoria.”

“Yeah. I told him my status whenever I got to a post office.”

“And he is also aware that you proposed the ‘radical’ idea of using bullets to cleanse demonic corruption, which the council rejected. Also, while he knows you’re a good sniper, even you can’t shoot someone in the head through a wall, right? Either that freelancer can see through wall or he’s just that lucky.”

Upon hearing that, he remembered what he found that day and the facts. Albert then asked, “Is that true? He shot through a wall?”

“The trajectory and the angle suggest so, but it’s just too extraordinary for it to be true.”

“He shot through a blind spot, just like yesterday,” murmured Albert. “Is he the same person?”

Marlene looked at Albert and said, “I can tell you have something in your mind. Seriously, you are a man of many talents. A driver, a sniper, and now a sleuth. That’s something people could envy.”

“Is there anything else, Marlene? Anything peculiar in Dusdolf that always happen when the freelance struck?”

“Like the ‘Vampire’?”

“What?” asked Albert, dumbfounded.

“It’s also in the news. This one is more sensational than factual, but the facts are there. Apparently, the same town or city the freelance worked in also had weird occurrences of people being bitten and their blood sucked out, usually vagrants or strays. The Demon Hunter dismissed this as the work of a demon that the freelance dealt with, so I suppose this freelancer only works against this one particular demon. They even made a story serial about it. Quite an amusing read.”

“Okay, but…how does that explain anything about the sniper?”

“You asked for anything peculiar, so that’s that. You’re the one who seem to know what you’re doing, so I’ll let you do so. Anyway, there is a manual under the driver’s seat in case you need a little refresher. It’s Dusdolfian, but I bet you don’t need that to teach your traveling companions, right?”

Albert also remembered that he specifically asked for a car big enough to sit four people, implicitly telling Marlene that he was traveling with companions. Marlene may not have the investigative skills Albert had, but she was intuitive. Otherwise, she would make a bad engineer if she couldn’t do troubleshooting for her own work.

“That’s a good guess,” said Albert.

“You’d ask for the two-seater if you’re travelling alone. Basics of consumer demands. If not family, then friends, or companions. Equipment and baggage don’t need the extra seats.”

“Okay, so not a guess.”

“You trust them? Look, I won’t judge if it’s for a job. Not all relationship has to be personal.”

“Yes. But this time, it’s not. Two of them are survivors of the Tragorian problem, one is related to an acquaintance, and one’s a dog. I gave the survivors jobs and a chance to travel. It can get quite lonely pulling a mobile home all around the land hearing negative things said against your Lycan friends.”

“So, you know what you’re doing. Is that what you’re trying to say?”

“And I know you well enough to know that you’ll ask ‘why’ when I say it. I’m just doing us both a favor.”

Marlene smiled. “Damn, I missed you so much,” she said. “Too bad I won’t be seeing you for a while after tonight.”

“My reason or yours?”

“Something in between. I am finalizing a deal to sell our farmer kits and working on Johann’s breakthrough, while you have a job to do. But, when I say, ‘a while’, I don’t mean 2 years out of contact. Try to send a wire to the workshop more often, will you? Even Johann missed you.”

“I thought he doesn’t like me breaking his stuff.”

“But you’re a drinking buddy, nonetheless. One last thing, Al. Take good care of Liz for me and Johann, alright? We don’t mind scratches, but don’t total the car. Remember what I said on Mark 4?”

“The body doesn’t matter, but the engine does,” said Albert with a nod. “Sure. If you have the money.”

“Always the one pointing out flaws. You should’ve followed your father’s path.”

“Nah, I’ll pass. Bending the rules to indict someone isn’t exactly my forte. Besides, we’re both in the Order! It will look like he pulled some strings if I happen to be a lawyer.”

Again, Marlene chuckled upon hearing Albert’s remarks. Albert never even showed this part of him to his current travelling companions. He preferred to be seen as someone who travelled the continent much and know a lot of things. And besides, his hellhound companions might become wary around him when they knew he was a demon hunter. Even worse, one of them might even avoid him altogether.

Sammael was a demon, after all.

“Well, it’s getting late, and I don’t want to miss the train,” said Marlene as she checked her pocket watch. “Last train to Ermen’s half an hour away. I can’t let Johann do the deals by himself. I can sleep on the way there.”

“And I’m exhausted,” said Albert with a yawn. “Oh, right, I almost forgot. Does Liz…?”

“Here.” Marlene pulled out a serrated key from her pocket then threw it to Albert. “Car key. Anyone trying to steal the car will have to push it. That will be impossible with the ‘Anchor’.”

“Huh. Never need a key for cars before.”

“We perfected it on Mark 6. Read the manual, Albert, and good luck. I’ll see you later.”

“Don’t be a stranger, fraulein.”

“Same as you, herr Schafner,” said Marlene as she walked towards the train station. Albert looked at her for a while until she disappeared behind the wall of the train station. Albert should be worried about her safety. It wasn’t really safe for a woman to be left alone in the middle of a night. But, he knew Marlene better than anyone, especially since she clearly did not leave her wrench in the car.

Believing and trusting his best friend’s words, he returned to his hotel, hoping the car would be there the next morning. Marlene did say the Anchor, and he knew what she meant.

It was one of many secrets Liz had.