When Jisoo returned to his office, still somewhat depressed after his chat with Chan, he found Seungcheol already waiting for him in front of the door. His eyes were narrowed, expression tense, much tenser than in the morning, his pale lips forming a thin line. A twinge of fear ran through the monk.

Was his partner angry because they had taken their sweet time? But he had told him to talk to Chan; he couldn’t blame him for that, could he?

"What's the matter?" he asked as soon as he was within earshot, hand already clutched around his prayer beads. It took effort to not hunch his shoulders.

Instead of answering, Seungcheol nodded towards the door and entered, not waiting for Jisoo to follow. While the monk hurried to keep up, the Being strode through the room and grabbed a grey folder from his desk. S438 was written on it in bold, black letters.

"A new assignment. It's urgent."

Jisoo's stomach immediately plummeted at Seungcheol's words. He had known that it would happen again but he had still hoped to have at least some time to process the last assignment and its outcome. And it being urgent didn't help to make him feel any less anxious. Didn't that mean that human lives were at stake? A slight tremor ran through his fingers when he reached for the file but his partner seemed hesitant to give it to him, the folder still tightly clasped by his hands.

"I'll be very honest with you," Seungcheol said after a short pause, his voice reverberating in the silence of the room. The monk raised a sceptical eyebrow: That was a first. "I don't want you involved in this. But if I go alone, I’ll face suspension and that's not an option. Therefore, I'll leave you in the van while I handle the problem." His scowl deepened as soon as the monk frowned, ready to protest. Blood red seeped into his dark brown irises. "Don't test my patience right now, Hong Jisoo."

His tone was biting, nothing left of the calm leader from yesterday, and all of a sudden, Jisoo felt very small in front of him. The ferocious look in his red eyes made Seungcheol look positively mental and the monk had absolutely no desire to find out what he could do in this state. He didn't understand why the Being was so worked up about this particular assignment but he was pretty sure that his partner wouldn't provide him with an answer even if he had the gall to ask.

"Can I at least read the file?" he requested meekly.

After taking a deep breath, Seungcheol nodded and handed him the folder. The fear in Jisoo's stomach got joined by a bubble of curiosity when he opened it. The text written on the first page was very short:

Assignment S438

Category: Undead
Species: Vampire (Class 1)
Last seen: -
Confirmed no. of victims: 11
Assumed no. of victims: 16
First victim found: April 5th
Location: Mapo-gu, Seoul
Additional Information:
Seven dead bodies found. Human, blood drained, bite marks on necks and arms, no defensive wounds. Five Humans still missing.
Four Class 3 Vampires sighted. Newly created, rabid. Unit N is dispatched.
Goal: Elimination of Class 1 Vampire.

A map of Mapo district dotted with red marks followed but Jisoo only spared it a glance. The marks seemed to accumulate in certain places; residential areas, as far as the monk could tell. He flipped to the next page. Several pictures of the victims greeted him, their skin deathly pale in the flash of the camera. Wide, empty eyes, frozen faces, small splotches of blood on their necks and bare arms. Men, women, children.

Dizziness washed over Jisoo and he closed the file at once. It took him several deep breaths to somewhat regain his composure. Suddenly, he was grateful that Seungcheol had spared him the sight of the skinwalkers' victims.

"Do you understand why I don't want you involved?"

Seungcheol's voice seemed to come from far away and the monk had to force himself to focus back on his partner. "Was that- was that really only a single vampire? Sixteen people in three days?" he asked weakly.

The Being examined his pale face for a long moment. "We don't know if it's only one but based on the state of the victims, it seems likely," he replied, his expression unreadable. "Also, they haven't included the Humans killed by the class three vampires. But those are not our problem; Unit N is more than able to handle them."

"All four?" Four freshly turned vampires sounded like an absolute nightmare. Jisoo had heard enough about the species to know that the remaining blood in their bodies made them especially deadly. "Isn't it dangerous for only one unit?"

"Unit N is Aegis' biggest unit and Taeyong is a capable leader. Worry about yourself instead," Seungcheol reprimanded. He still looked tense but the angry lines on his face had softened a little. "And you didn't answer my question: Do you understand why I don't want you, a Human, involved in a fight against a vampire?"

Jisoo’s brows had once again furrowed at his words. It wasn't like the monk wanted to face a vampire - of course not, he knew that he'd stand no chance - but he hated feeling useless. And just sitting around, doing nothing, while his partner was risking his life was a bit... "Can't we set up a trap? I could lure the vampire out and then you-"

A muscle on Seungcheol’s jaw twitched. He didn't give Jisoo the chance to finish his sentence before cutting him off. "Absolutely not. You're going to stay in the van and if I see you anywhere but in the van, you're going to be in trouble. Are we clear?"

"But-"

"You would turn into another victim."

"I survived the skinwalkers and a horde of zombies," Jisoo pointed out, a dissatisfied frown marring his features. His partner made it sound as if he was a helpless newborn. "If I get some good equipment, I could-"

"The power of these species is limited. A class one vampire has extraordinary speed, incredible hearing, enough strength to lift a truck with one arm - do you really think you're standing even the slightest chance?"

"But you do?!"

Seungcheol only shot him a long look, his crimson eyes sparkling in the ceiling lights, before he turned towards the door. "Get ready. We're leaving in forty-five minutes."

Brightly lit apartment buildings towered over a side street where an inconspicuous grey van was parked. Inside, the atmosphere was frigid.

"This is for self-defence. Pray that you won't need it."

Jisoo clenched his teeth, his hands still balled into stubborn fists, but Seungcheol didn't seem to notice his constipated expression. They had argued all the way to Mapo - or Jisoo had, while his partner had skillfully ignored him -, to no avail. The leader of Unit S remained firm in his decision to not get the only Human involved in the vampire assignment - and Jisoo had no choice but to obey. That was what Seungcheol had helpfully reminded him of after the third round of complaints from the monk, shutting him right up.

"At least tell me what to do with that stuff," he huffed, gesturing at the backpack Seungcheol had placed in front of him. "I don't know how to use those things."

The Being raised an eyebrow, a calculating expression on his face, before he nodded and picked up one of several identical glass bottles. "This is wormwood essence. Most Undead don't like the smell; you can use it to repel some of the weaker species." A corner of Seungcheol’s mouth twitched, barely visible. "It's completely useless against class one vampires though — don't get your hopes up."

Jisoo's face fell. Apparently, his partner was a mind reader.

Seungcheol held up a sharp-looking silver dagger next. "If you fight a vampire head-on, use this and aim for the heart. Vampires regenerate but silver slows the ability down. A silver stake or dagger in the heart makes it almost impossible for them to recover quickly. That's the moment where you should use another weapon to cut-off or destroy the head. Or use fire to burn them."

The gory image his mind had conjured caused Jisoo to pale. Seungcheol, however, seemed completely unaffected. Just how many Beings had he fought to get such a thick skin in the face of death and gore? With clammy hands, Jisoo accepted the dagger.