Uzi ran as fast as she could, away from the fighting. With every step, she was overcome with disgust and guilt. She hadn't expected this to happen, not even imagined it would. "What was I thinking?" she thought. "Why... why didn't I think through the risks?"
Uzi stopped running to catch her breath. Her ragged breathing and coughing drowned out her thoughts, but one idea kept repeating itself: "I... I did it again... I was scared again... How pathetic of me."
Two minutes later, Uzi stopped coughing and began looking around to figure out where she was. She had been running aimlessly for a while, not thinking about which way to go. All she could think about was getting away from that hideous, terrifying monster. But all she could see was a fog so thick, she couldn't make out anything in front of her. "Am... am I still in the swamp?" she wondered.
After catching her breath, she collapsed to her knees and cried out, pounding her hands on the ground, "Damn... damn... damn! I was such a fool and a pathetic excuse for a human being back there. If it weren't for N, that thing would have killed me in a heartbeat!" She stopped pounding the ground as her fists began to bleed, and clutched her hair, running her hands through it in a frantic thrashing. "No wonder... no wonder people avoid me and see me as a nuisance. I'm such a fool, always getting myself into trouble, and because of my stupidity, N got hurt trying to save me."
After saying N's name, a realization dawned on her, making her eyes widen and her feet spring to her feet. "Yes, N," she said. "He's still out there facing that thing because of me. I have to... I have to do something... but what? What can I do?" Then she remembered the monster's face, which still sent shivers down her spine, and continued, "What can I possibly do in the face of that thing?" She lowered her bag, took out her weapon, and continued, "Well... this is the only useful thing I brought, but all I have is one bullet. I should have fixed that problem and taken more precautions before coming here."
While focusing on her weapon, she noticed a light beginning to emanate from her pocket. Without thinking, she reached into her pocket, saying, "Could it be?" Uzi took out her mother's necklace, which she had previously placed in her pocket, and was puzzled. The light emanating from the necklace was almost reddish.
It was then that Uzi understood what this meant. She began pointing the necklace in all directions: north, west, south, and east. In the northwest direction, the light intensified, becoming even redder.
Uzi wanted to go in that direction, but her thoughts of N held her back. "If I go now," she thought, "I'll leave N completely alone to face that thing. But if I don't go, I might not find a better opportunity to find the key. This place looks like a maze with all this fog." She sighed and continued, "I'll just be an obstacle." She grabbed her bag and weapon and headed in the direction the necklace was glowing.
Meanwhile, N was trying with all his might to lure the monster as far away from Uzi as possible. The problem was that his energy was running low. He needed to feed immediately, or he would starve to death, or in the worst-case scenario, the monster would kill him and then turn on Uzi. To avoid wasting more of his energy, N spread his wings and hid among the trees, using the same tactic the monster had employed when it first tried to attack them.
N hid behind a tree, watching the monster use its nose to search for him. "I know this will be useless," N thought to himself. "Dogs, after all, have a strong sense of smell, and he'll find me no matter what. But I must delay him as long as possible until Uzi escapes."
As N watched the monster, he noticed it turn its head back and seem to be focusing on something. After a minute, the monster turned towards N and said, "Hey, vampire, you know that trying to hide from me will be pointless, so why don't you come out so we can talk for a bit?"
N was shocked by what he heard and thought to himself, "Can it talk?! This... this is unbelievable!" N was so shocked that he exclaimed, "You can talk?!" Then he put his hand over his mouth, trying to regain control.
"Yes, I can talk," the monster said. "Why? Did you think I was stupid or just a mindless beast? But that doesn't matter now. As I said, I just want to talk to you about something I think will interest you." Then he pointed to the same spot where N had been hiding and continued, "So why don't you come out from behind that tree so we can talk? I promise I'll never attack you."
N might be naive at times due to his kind nature, but he's never foolish. He understood the seriousness of the situation, but he had no other option. His energy was nearly depleted, and there was nothing he could eat. Even if he found something to eat, it would only be a small animal, which would give him very little strength. Consuming animal blood is very different from consuming human blood because:
First: The chemical composition of hemoglobin differs between humans and most animals.
Second: There are differences in hemoglobin levels ( the size of red blood cells), white blood cell count, and platelet composition.
Third: Human blood contains a higher percentage of triglycerides and cholesterol compared to some animals.
Fourth: Let's not forget that animal blood is often more acidic and contains various metabolic byproducts, while human blood is relatively more neutral and purer in terms of chemical balance.
There are many differences, but the key point here is that human blood has a unique hormonal and chemical composition, making it not only a source of nourishment but also a luxurious and spiritual food for all vampires.
N made his decision and went out to the monster, saying, "Okay, let's talk." This might seem foolish, as there was no guarantee the monster would keep its word, but it was the only way N could buy more time.
The monster said, "First, let's introduce ourselves. My name is Grog. What's yours?"
N introduced himself, saying, "My name is N."
Grog said, "N what?"
N was taken aback by the question and asked, puzzled, "What do you mean by 'what'?"
"Do you think I'm stupid?" Grog said. "You're a vampire, and like all vampires, you must have a vampire family name. Even servants have the name of the family they serve. So, what's yours?"
"I... I don't have a family," N said.
After hearing this answer, Grog stared at N for several seconds, as if studying him with his eyes. "So you're that kind of person, huh? Interesting."
"Kind of what?" N asked, surprised. "What do you mean?"
"Never mind," Grog replied. "That's not what we're talking about. All I want to know is why you're here."
N remembered what Uzi had told him about the key. Even though he didn't know much, he wasn't going to tell Grog everything.
"Why should I tell you?" N said. "You just tried to kill us."
Grog said, "Well... you're right about that. Let me tell you why I'm here. As you can see, I serve someone very high ranking and influential, and he ordered me to come here in search of a key belonging to the Sisterhood Of The Night. So, I suppose you've come for the same reason, haven't you? So why don't we make a deal?"
N considered what Grog had said. "The key, the Sisterhood of the Night , and... a deal?" N tried to quickly understand what was going on and thought to himself, "Well, we came here for the key in the first place, and Uzi hasn't told me the full reason or mentioned the 'Sisterhood Of The Night' . Besides, this deal thing... it seems very suspicious. Why would he want to make a deal with us now after he tried to kill us?" N remembered what Grog had done before he started speaking and thought to himself, "It seems like something happened to Uzi that made him lose her scent. Maybe she's gotten close to the key, so he wants to make a deal to get it, but..." N asked, "Why would you want to make a deal for that key?"
Grog's voice tinged with annoyance. "As I said before, my master wants that key. If you give it to me, I won't kill you and your human friend. I'll let you both go your separate ways. Even better, I'll tell my master about you so he can offer you a tempting reward, N. So, what do you say?"
N asked, "This master of yours, who is he?"
Grog's voice sounded worried. "Don't you dare ask that question," he said, then continued in a different tone. "A revered figure of such high standing shouldn't have his name uttered by the likes of you. But let's just say he's the one who rules the shadows in this doomed world."
N was taken aback by this answer, which was a mixture of reverence and nervousness. Grog even seemed frightened for a moment. N said, "Well... how do I know you won't betray us when we give you the key?"
Grog replied, "Because you impressed me there. You know, not every vampire or werewolf can stand up to me for that long and live to tell this story. You have talents you can use to serve my master, and in return, you'll get money and everything you want. So, what do you say?"
N was surprised by this. No one had ever praised him before. He remembered when he started training with J and V to control their powers; he was the one who took the most beatings. His fighting abilities, according to both V and J, were below par, even pathetic. This offer might seem tempting, but he couldn't accept it because the key belonged to Uzi, not him. So, he would have to waste more time for Uzi's sake.
N tried to find a question to ask Grog to waste more time, but Grog cut him off, saying, "No more questions. Give me your answer now." It seemed Grog had figured out what N was trying to do.
N sighed to himself and said to Grog, "No, the answer is no." With what little strength he had left, he transformed his hands into claws, unfurled his wings, and his eyes turned yellow.
"So that's what you want, huh?" Grog said. He transformed into his other form, the one he'd used when he first attacked N and Uzi. He resembled a Doberman in shape and size, with sharp fangs and claws, and a mad look in his eyes. He walked on all fours and continued, "You've chosen to die."
N thought to himself as he prepared to fight, "Uzi, wherever you are, please hurry. I can't keep him occupied for long."