Entry 08: I (regretted) joined the team of the coldest agent in the organization

The first thing I see when I open my eyes is the white, plain ceiling of the infirmary. I slowly turned my head around, and I could hear the beeping of the monitor and the drop of the IV that was attached to my arm.

And I don't remember what happened to me after I was caught in that attack. Great.

I tried to move my body, but I hissed in pain every time I attempted to rise. After multiple attempts, I gave up and lay on my bed, staring at the ceiling, with no one to talk to the whole day if it weren't for the nurse coming in to check on me and inform the doctors that I had awakened.

*

"How do you feel, Anna?" Patrick asked me when he and Lena visited me after being informed that I was awake. I was able to rise a bit, but I had my back supported by a pillow behind me to avoid back pain.

"Still in pain," I groaned. "I can't rise fully, and I have to call the nurse to assist me in the bathroom."

"Sucks to be you, I guess," he chuckled. I glared at him in response.

"By the way," I changed the topic. "What happened when I was unconscious?"

And by that, they told me everything that happened during the two days that I passed out. To summarize, the gala is a disaster; the vampire got away with a companion of hers in tow, too many dead innocents and agents, both SECTA and ESEH alike, and according to old man Kouga, I have gained powers like Vampire Arts.

Eh?

Vampire Arts?

"I was so shocked too," Lena said after Patrick explained everything. "At first, we didn't believe in General Igarashi, but when some of our agents witnessed the scene and gave their testimonies, well, we don't know what to believe anymore."

"We all knew that none of your parents have vampire relatives, nor do your ancestors," Patrick said in a serious tone. "We guessed that you had been transformed into a vampire at first, but when the doctors ran a blood test on you and the result came out normal, we ruled that out. Can you recall when you gained that power? "

I pondered, trying to recall where on earth I received that power, but after thinking about it hard for several minutes, I sighed in defeat.

"Sorry, Pat," I dejected. "I can't remember anything."

"But look at the bright side!" Lena beamed with a smile. I took the water from the coffee table beside the table and drank it. "You've been discovered and scouted by Ivan himself."

"WHAT!" I spat my water in shock. Ivan Robinson is one of SECTA's S-rank agents. From what I know, that guy is a terror, and most of the agents who worked with him before wanted to reassign them to other S-rank agents because they couldn't get along with him, except for his teammates, who are getting used to his cold demeanor.

There is no way I want to work with this guy. "Nuh-uh! I'm not working with that guy!" I objected while gesturing the 'X' sign.

"Tell that to Chief." Patrick sighed. "By the way, there is a possibility that if you accept Ivan's offer, someone with the same rank as us will be replacing you for guarding Lord Lilitus."

"I refuse that offer; thank you very much!"

For those who don't know, there is a system in our organization that if you are a lower-ranking agent who is currently on a mission and one of the higher-ranking agents notices you and makes an offer to join their team, there is a possibility that the Chief will be assigning another lower-ranking agent to continue your current missions per the request of the higher-ranking agents. But it depends on the two parties if the lower rank accepts the higher rank's offer to join its team or not.

"But you said to us before that you want to rank up, right?" Lena coaxed me with puppy eyes.

"No," I said. "And don't give me that look."

"Really? And I thought I could nab a unique agent in my team." We were startled when someone spoke, and when we looked around, our eyes landed on the imposing figure of Ivan himself, with a black-haired woman in pigtails wearing big, rounded glasses standing beside him. Patrick and Lena regained their composure and greeted him with a salute. 

I was jolted and shivered in fear when he looked at me with his cold, blue eyes. Scary.

"Anna Harriette Brown, I presume?" he asked me with a stoic face as I nodded nervously. Sheesh, if looks could kill, I'm already dead from his imposing aura alone. "S-rank agent Ivan Robinson. You have already heard from your colleagues about this, but I'll cut to the chase: I have been inviting you to join my team."

I tried to fight off the nervousness inside me. "Wait a minute," I said. "You can't invite me without any reason for it!"

"Well, if you want," he motioned for his companion to hand over the files that were with her to him and throw them on my lap. "Here's my reason. Any questions?"

I took the files and was shocked as I read the contents. So, it is true. I have gained a power like Vampire Arts.

But how on earth did I get those?

"So, will you accept my invitation?"

I looked at the files and then at Ivan. "If I accept your invitation, what about my current mission?"

"Your current mission will be handed to B-rank agent Tristan Ernest if you accept Ivan's offer." The woman spoke while adjusting her glasses. "Sorry if I hadn't introduced myself sooner. A-rank agent Skylar Annete. I've been with Sir Ivan's team for two years."

"As you will be on an S-rank team, you will be receiving missions that will increase your points faster," he explained. "But these missions would be more dangerous than the ones you have currently taken." He paused for a moment. "So, with these perks considered, will you take the offer?"

*

-Weeks Later-

I wish I hadn't accepted that offer.

A few weeks ago, after I accepted Ivan's offer, I was put on his team immediately. Before leaving, I was introduced to my replacement, Tristan Ernest, a twenty-year-old brown-haired guy. I like the guy a lot. He's optimistic and was so excited to work with Patrick and Lena. I also handed the files to him as part of the handover process.

I also talked to Lord Lilitus about the situation, and he was sad to see me go.

"Although our meeting was brief, I have a feeling that we will meet again." That was what he said.

Almost.

"But don't worry about me. Since His Majesty assigned another vampire general to guard me,

"What do you mean?" I was confused.

"Kouga told me about what happened at the Gala. Because of this, His Majesty assigned another vampire general to guard me in case another attack occurs."

"And the old ma—do I mean Kouga?"

"He's still with me; don't worry."

And I thought he would be sent back to the vampire palace. I shouldn't get my hopes up.

Anyway, back to the present. As I said, after I was put on Ivan's team immediately, we were assigned to missions one after another. These missions are all vampire subjugation, and we don't have in-between breaks!

"That's how it is when you are on Ivan's team," Fargus Donal told me when we were sitting down inside the car while waiting for Ivan's signal. He's a man in his mid-thirties, with a rugged look, and has a scar on his left face. He is wearing a white shirt with two upper buttons open to have a clear view of his toned chest, a black blazer, black pants, and brown shoes. Sitting next to him is Irina Morozova, who is in her twenties with white hair tied into ponytails and wearing her uniform in a white fur coat. "If you have a weak heart or a faint stomach, you have time to back out of the team."

"Err, your leader was the one who recruited me."

"If our leader recruited you, that means that you have potential." Fargus slapped my back. I balanced myself so as not to stumble down. "Be proud, girl."

I only laughed awkwardly.

Then suddenly, we heard two gunshots from the big mansion in front of us. "It's the signal from Ivan," Irina said. "We need to move."

We got out of the car and ran in the direction of the signal. As we barged into the mansion, the fight was still ongoing. Two of Ivan's team members, along with Skylar, are handling the vampires in the grand foyer, while three others are fighting on the second floor.

I can't see Ivan anywhere.

"Will somebody back Ivan up?" Skylar shouted while killing the vampire behind her with a giant but personalized yo-yo.

"On it!" I volunteered. Besides, I want to talk to Ivan after this mission is done.

I went upstairs to the second floor, then turned westward while killing some vampires along the way. 'Ivan is located in the study room,' Skylar said via a communicator. 'The leader of this vampire hoard is a forty-year-old woman only in appearance but is already two hundred twenty-three years old. She lures young women under the guise of promising modeling careers, but she lures them and kills them once they bite the bait. Be careful, Agent Brown.'

"Understood."

I checked the rooms one by one until I heard a loud 'bang!' in one of the rooms, five doors apart. I rushed to look, only to see Ivan pointing the barrel of his bayonet at the target vampire.

(The bayonet has a unique appearance. I think all the weapons used by A-rank and S-rank agents are personalized.)

The vampire is described as a forty-year-old woman (in appearance only) wearing a floral dress, and her appearance is worse for wear (she is bruised from head to toe. Also, I could see some bullet holes all over her body, and the blood was oozing all over, ruining her clothes). She is cornered by him, back against the brown desk table.

"Any last words, vampire?" Ivan snared, not noticing my arrival.

The whining vampire, upon seeing me, gives him a wicked smile on her face. "Not a chance!"

She proceeded to charge at me, ignoring Ivan. Ivan looked behind him. "Agent Brown! Watch out!"

But I was prepared, sword ready. As she opened her mouth to bite me, I stabbed the sword inside her mouth and let out a bloodcurdling screech as I dealt the final blow by slashing her.

"Tsk. And I thought I would see you using your power," Ivan said as he went out of the room, lowering his bayonet.

"Excuse me, I don't know how to release it," I said as he walked past me.

He only ignored me. "Let's get out of here before someone calls the police on us."

As all of us went out of the mansion, I noticed that the bushes in the courtyard were full of red roses. I approached one of those and tried to touch one of the roses, but the stench of blood that was stained in the heat of battle overwhelmed the sweet smell of roses.

What a waste.

"Why are you standing there?" Ivan barked at me. I looked at him. "We need to move fast!"

"Coming, coming," I complained in a low tone as I walked away from the bushes to keep up with them.

I sighed. The rumors turned out to be true; his teammates are fine, but he is the only one who is very hard to get along with.

What a pain!

*

As Anna's team is out of sight, an unusual shadow appears beneath the cobblestones of the courtyard. The shadow slowly rises, shaping the form of a person as one of its parts reaches one of the roses that Anna almost touched. The shadow disappeared, and a man's hand took its place to pick up the flower. The rest of the shadow completely disappears, and it takes on the appearance of a man. He placed the rose on his lips and smiled.