Chapter 52: 52: Bloodlines and Silver

As a raven, Nolan circled Hogwarts twice before spotting his target near the Forbidden Forest. He dove sharply, transforming into a wolf three meters above the ground. Landing with agility, the wolf bolted across the grass at high speed. Eve was being carried by two men—one burly and the other rotund. They wore wide-brimmed hats and high-collared coats that obscured their faces, their appearance shrouded in suspicion. As he neared, Nolan reverted to his human form. His brows furrowed, his eyes half-lidded, and he looked at the two shadowy figures with calm disdain. The night wind rustled his long robes, the silver chains embedded in them clinking softly. After a moment of tense silence, Nolan spoke, his tone low and unwavering: "Put Eve down." The rotund man let out a strange, mocking laugh. "Well, well... didn't expect to catch a big fish! You're the Von Draugr boy, aren't you? Imagine that—a vampire attending a wizarding school. How amusing! Tell me, do you fly around on broomsticks like the rest of them?" The burly man, less expressive, added, "I don't know about broomsticks, but this little Von Draugr seems to have embraced wizarding life—he's even got himself a little witch for a girlfriend." Nolan glanced at them briefly before shifting his gaze to Eve, unconscious and slung over the burly man's shoulder. A realization dawned on him. "You're here for me? Werewolves? Vampire hunters? Or... fellow vampires?" "Ah, Nolan Von Draugr..." The rotund man chuckled darkly, speaking as though savoring the name. "Purest of the pure. A vampire among vampires. Mother: Lilith Von Draugr, last-generation progenitor of the clan. Father: Lilith's own brother. The offspring of two pure-blood Von Draugrs. No wonder they say your lineage is unparalleled. In time, your power might even surpass that of Duchess Felicia. After all, she's only a half-blood. Back then, it seems even Lilith didn't fully grasp the superiority of pure blood—she let some pretty Muggle man crawl into her coffin." Nolan's voice was grave, quiet. "Do you have a grudge against my mother? If so, I wouldn't know. I have many relatives, but both my mother and father perished in mutual destruction long ago. Their ashes still rest in coffins in the Randall Gorge. If this is about vengeance, you've chosen the wrong target. You'll only make trouble for yourselves." "Trouble? Oh, yes. Big trouble," the rotund man sneered. "But I just want to see what makes the purest of pure—Nolan Von Draugr—so special. Big guy, it's your turn now." The burly man stepped forward, rolling up his sleeves to reveal thick, powerful arms. "Are we fighting, then?" Nolan crouched slightly, his body shifting into combat mode. "You'll regret this." Nolan charged forward, and at the same time, the burly man lunged to meet him. While Nolan had devoted the past year to learning magic, he had not neglected his physical training. Every Friday, he honed his skills under Felicia, learning the Von Draugr family's combat techniques. Their fighting style was always elegant yet brutal—a violent aesthetic blending beauty and destruction. Nolan's hands were like a wolf's claws, sharp and unyielding as steel. They seemed to tear through the darkness itself, leaving five streaks of residual light with every swipe. His claws slashed across the burly man's body, shredding his sleeve instantly. When Nolan's claws struck the man's arm, they produced a buzzing sound, as though scraping against granite. "Localized skin hardening. You're a vampire, too." Nolan stated the fact calmly, quickening his movements. At some point, his hands were armed with a dagger and a short sword, their blades whistling through the air like twin shooting stars orbiting him in a deadly dance. The burly man wielded no weapons, but his thick palms struck the backs of Nolan's blades with startling precision. "Faster... I need to be faster." Nolan's eyes flicked toward Eve, his concern growing as he urged himself onward. His movements with the dagger and sword shifted rapidly, transitioning to reverse grips. In a swift, fluid motion, he raised both weapons slightly before bringing them down in unison. With a sharp slash, the blades pierced the burly vampire's hardened skin. "Silver..." the man muttered under his breath. "Silver, the material that can kill our kind... how ironic. It seems our greatest enemies are always our own," Nolan murmured softly. "That's why I always carry silver blades with me. Oh, and by the way, bullets too." "A gun!" The burly vampire froze in surprise, and in that split second, the short sword in Nolan's left hand transformed into a revolver. Without time to aim, he raised his hand and fired! The gunpowder ignited, and the silver bullet, heated by the high velocity, began to melt mid-air. Still, it managed to strike the burly man's shoulder with a dull thud, forcing him back half a step. "First the weapon of vampire hunters, and now the tool of Muggles—such methods are unheard of for a pureblood." Nolan blinked, offering a faint smile. "Winning at all costs... that's always been my creed. Whether it's a vampire hunter's weapon, a Muggle's, or a wizard's, I'll use whatever serves my purpose. Perhaps you don't realize that the nobility of the Von Draugr lineage has never been about the means of battle but about the convictions behind them." Even as he spoke, Nolan kept the revolver in his left hand. With his right, he retrieved his wand from his pocket. A unicorn wand. Forged from a unicorn's horn and the heart of a pureblood elf, it was the most sinister wand in existence, and it belonged solely to Nolan. "Damn it..." the rotund vampire muttered under his breath. At that moment, Nolan and the burly vampire both stepped forward simultaneously, and the real vampire fight began. They moved at incredible speeds, their legs blurring into afterimages as though they were flying just above the ground. The two clashed in rapid succession, their arms colliding with explosive cracks that echoed in the night. The sounds were accompanied by the sharp whizz of silver bullets and bursts of magic. Nolan fired his revolver swiftly, but he cast spells even faster. Sparks and flashes erupted from the space between their exchanges, scattering wildly. The rotund vampire ducked for cover, rolling on the ground, only to have a devastating spell narrowly miss him and snap a beech tree as thick as a grown man's torso in half. The burly vampire, undeterred, swung his arm wide. From beneath his cloak, a swarm of bats erupted, their piercing cries filling the air as they charged toward Nolan. "Obstancia Cresco!" A well-timed barrier spell intercepted the bats, followed swiftly by, "Frangere Pulveris!" With a deafening bang, the entire swarm exploded into a crimson mist, the metallic tang of blood hanging heavy in the air as fragments of flesh rained down. Seeing his bats neutralized, the burly vampire shifted tactics. In an instant, his form morphed into that of a sleek and powerful leopard. Bang! Bang! Bang! Nolan's revolver fired multiple shots in rapid succession, silver streaks lighting up the night as they buried themselves in the grass. The leopard, running at incredible speed, dodged every bullet with grace before leaping directly at Nolan!