Hearing Charles's question, the blind vampire became flustered, stammering and unsure of what to say.

  Charles waved his hand at the other crew members. “No time to waste. Everyone, get on the ship!”

  Akasha watched the tightly closed shipyard door with great interest, a smirk on her face that revealed her sharp fangs. “How interesting. It seems these humans have some strength. Armand, I’d love to taste their blood; it’s been a while since I’ve had blood from the outside.”

  The male vampire duke beside her shook his head. “Dear, that won’t do. We must stick to the agreement.”

  “Just like family, you’re as stingy as your sister,” Akasha scoffed, striding toward the large door.

  The petite vampire, only 1.5 meters tall, extended her pale hands and forcefully pulled at the thick door’s seam.

  The screeching sound of metal grinding filled the air as the half-foot-thick steel door was effortlessly torn open like paper.

  The sight before the two vampire dukes left them momentarily stunned. A small pile of explosives lay on the open ground, with a nearly burnt-out fuse on top.

  Before they could react, a loud bang erupted, and the entire shipyard exploded, engulfing the two dukes in a fiery blaze.

  From the billowing smoke, a charred blackened corpse emerged from the inferno, gazing at the rapidly fleeing Unicorn Whale.

  The charred body quickly began to heal, and soon a naked Akasha appeared in its place.

  “Not bad. Strong food tastes delicious.”

  As her words fell, black hair sprouted from her body, and her pale form rapidly transformed. In no time, a three-meter-tall half-human, half-bat monstrosity stood before them.

  With a rustle, the monstrosity’s body dispersed into small bats, which swarmed toward the Unicorn Whale.

  From the smoke behind, another group of bats followed closely.

  Watching the bats rapidly approach, Charles turned to the deck cannon and shouted, “Lily! Shoot them down!”

  “Boom! Boom! Boom!” The cannon fire echoed continuously, with bat fragments raining down into the water. But there were simply too many bats; the cannon couldn’t keep up.

  They drew nearer, the sound of flapping wings like a death knell, tightening the hearts of everyone on board.

  Before long, the bats reached the ship, coalescing into a half-human, half-bat creature that landed heavily on the deck.

  Its sharp claws swiped viciously at the brown rat on the cannon, sending blood and flesh flying. Lily screamed in terror.

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  Akasha, with her crimson eyes, looked at the fleeing rats, flames igniting in her palm.

  Just as she was about to hurl the flames at the rats, Charles, wearing a mask, appeared beneath her.

  With a swift motion, he slashed his sharp black blade across her arm, severing the one that held the flames.

  “Hello there, beautiful~ Did you lose this hand?”

  “Your smile is really annoying,” Akasha replied, pushing off the ground and quickly engaging in a struggle with Charles.

  At the same time, another half-bat creature charged onto the deck—James, standing at four meters tall with snot running from his nose, led the charge with steel in hand.

  The other crew members stood at a distance, ready to support him with various weapons.

  Charles performed a backflip, dodging the sharp claws, while his right hand slashed at the monstrous appendage.

  As they crossed paths, Charles jumped back, landing firmly on the ship's edge.

  Akasha, however, did not pursue, standing her ground and fixing her crimson gaze on her opponent.

  Seeing the monster’s arm fully restored, Charles cursed inwardly, “This is ridiculous! Is she cheating?”

  “Young man, that thing on your face looks nice. Where did you get it? Too bad it’s with the wrong owner.”

  Charles, feeling playful, quickly responded, “How about I give it to you, and you let us go?”

  Akasha covered her mouth, giggling. “Do you really think that’s possible? I’m not in a hurry; we can chat slowly.”

  “Ah! Ah! It hurts! It hurts so much!” Hearing James's cries from behind, Charles felt a surge of urgency; the situation there was dire. If they kept talking, it would soon be two against one.

  He turned to Odrick, who was huddled in the cockpit. “Hey! Blind man! Do you have any weaknesses for these monsters?!”

  The timid Odrick quickly reminded him, “The duke’s only weakness is her heart. You must completely crush it to prevent her from regenerating.”

  “Hmph!” Anger flashed across Akasha’s terrifying face for the first time. She spread her wings and charged toward the cockpit. A traitorous ally is always hated more than an enemy.

  With a crash, the cockpit’s glass shattered, and Akasha easily grabbed the fleeing Odrick. With her razor-sharp teeth, she bit down, and a heart-wrenching scream filled the air as half of the blind artist’s neck disappeared.

  Just as she was about to swallow the traitor whole, Charles appeared behind her, his gleaming blade piercing through her chest.

  The bat-monster flapped her wings, pushing Charles back, and glanced down at the wound in her chest. Her terrifying face turned cold. “I’ve changed my mind. You humans should just drown in the sea!”

  She reached behind her with her left hand, producing a palm-sized round mirror. As soon as the mirror appeared, the air filled with the sweet, metallic scent of blood, growing stronger by the second.

  “Damn! She has a relic too!” Charles’s eyes widened, and he prepared to rush forward to stop her, but Akasha spread her wings and flew into the air.

  Under the glaring spotlight, her horrific form transformed again, completely morphing into a five-meter-long pig-nosed bat.

  The pig-nosed bat opened its beastly mouth, emitting a piercing shriek that sounded like a soul-harrowing song from hell, echoing in everyone’s ears.

  Everyone instinctively covered their ears, including the other half-bat creature. Within seconds, blood began to seep from everyone’s ears.

  Then Charles saw something that sent a chill down his spine: a crack appeared along the edge of the Unicorn Whale and spread downward.

  That was steel! This sound wave attack was not only effective against flesh but also severely damaging to the ship. If she kept this up, the entire Unicorn Whale would likely disintegrate!

  As chaos reigned around him, Charles quickly jumped onto the injured James’s chest, pointing at the bats above and then at his own hand.

  James stood frozen, and Charles slapped him hard across the face. Finally, the giant moved, grabbing Charles by the legs and tossing him.

  Charles crashed into the bats like a cannonball, and the piercing shriek finally ceased.

  With a knife embedded in the bat creature, Charles shouted with all his might, “Lily! Fire the cannons!”