The Preying City

"You have a very fitting name, Mr. Secret." The gold robed Mr. Collector adjusted his sitting position and continued, "As my name implies, my hobby is collecting rare things. Would you be interested in selling your mask to me? I am quite generous with the prices I offer."

Vincent was going to reject the man when Miss Mystique b.u.t.t in, "That's not fair Mr. Collector. I have already expressed my d.e.s.i.r.e to buy the mask. If anyone's getting their hands on it, it's going to be me."

Mr. Collector chuckled and replied, "Trust me Miss Mystique you do not want that mask."

"No. I am pretty sure I do. Lately, I've been feeling like I need to work my way up to my name. There's nothing mystical about me so far but all of that will change if I get such an artifact for myself. Imagine how mystical I would look with a firmament adorned with a hidden moon for my face." The retort from the young woman was quite enthusiastic and Vincent never got to express his opinion.

"No, no. Miss Mystique, you misunderstood my intentions. I am not trying to dissuade you from buying it because I want it for myself. It is too dangerous for you. Even I wouldn't wear that mask if I had it. I just want to add it to my collection. As for you wanting to be more mystical, I can show you some of my collection tonight. You can buy them if you want. Money isn't a big issue for you after all."

"How is it dangerous?" The girl clearly hadn't been convinced and continued with her questioning.

"Can you can tell me what color Mr. Secret's coat is after looking away?"

"Of course I can. Such a simple matter...." Her words were cut short by surprise. She really couldn't recall what the color of the mask wearing man's coat was. A surge of fear and excitement hit her. She wanted to possess the mask even more now.

"Similar things will happen to you if you wear that mask. Your very own existence will turn into a secret for you and you will slowly forget about yourself the more you use it. Think about how scary it would be to wake up one morning and not being able to recall your name or who you are?" Mr. Collector spoke gently this time. Her strong d.e.s.i.r.e to possess the mask was immediately doused by the scary words.

Vincent was flabbergasted. The man in gold robe could tell about the mask's abilities and price of usage was at a single glance. Such an ability was not to be underestimated.

'Mr. Collector is probably grade 4 supernatural in the least. His ability allows him to appraise people and artifacts. But, why did he go out of his way to reveal so much? Is he trying to position himself in a dominant position and warn me at the same time? If so, he probably can't tell what my grade and abilities are because the mask is hiding it. I guess he feels threatened because he ran into a supernatural who he can't see through. I should strike back and not show any weakness. Or else, he might think I am easy prey in the future.'

"I am sorry Mr. Collector and Miss Mystique. But, I have no intention of selling the mask. The two of you are probably reluctant to use it as well.

A word of advice for you, Mr. collector, you have to control your urge to see through others. I can understand that it's a side effect of your supernatural ability but you have to be careful not to provoke someone you shouldn't. Life is fragile after all, you never know what could happen."

Vincent spoke in a nonchalant manner but his words shocked everyone in the room. He had clearly threatened Mr. Collector saying that he wasn't someone who the host could afford to provoke. Either he had a powerful person behind him or he himself was strong enough to take care of Mr. Collector and his henchmen.

The smell of gunpowder filled the room and everyone grew nervous. Mr. Collector was a strong supernatural, the strongest in the room. It was a fact accepted by everyone in the room except for the two newcomers. But even they wouldn't want to get on the bad side of a high grade supernatural. This was exactly why Vincent's words were so impactful. He had clearly expressed his intention to retaliate to any forms of attack or threats.

He was either strong or crazy. And no one wanted to mess with any of the two kind. Miss Mystique was the only one in the room who was excited seeing the course of events. Everyone in the gathering had told her that Mr. Collector was very strong and now a man who wasn't afraid of clashing with such a strong supernatural appeared. She wanted to see the two battle it out personally. The conflict taking place in front of her made her blood boil and she couldn't control her excitement. After all, it was for such stimulations that she attended the gathering full of supernaturals and sought such power.

Unfortunately for her, the matter didn't escalate any further. Mr. Collector laughed and said, "You are right. Please do forgive me. My instinct compels me to dig and prod anything that I cannot see through. I hope you can let bygones be bygones."

"I understand. The higher your grade is, the stronger your instincts become. We have all been there. It's nothing much." Vincent breathed a secret sigh of relief and answered in a calm manner. His bluff had worked and the risk he took paid off. The most important advantage the mask gave him wasn't secrecy but the means to bluff after all. No one would want to mess with something they couldn't understand and this gave him an edge in many circ.u.mstances. Furthermore, by saying that he had been in a similar position, he implied that his grade was higher as well. This would give others the impression that he wasn't to be messed with.

The tension wasn't as tangible anymore and Miss Mystique questioned in a puzzled manner, "Instincts?"

"I guess this is a good time to tell you. You will be buying a potion from me soon after all. The potion doesn't only give you supernatural abilities but also changes you from within. A supernatural has his own sharp instincts and you become compelled to do many things because of it. A perfect example would be how a vampire is compelled to feed on human blood. It is not a necessity for them but few are able to control their urges." Mr. Collector answered patiently. It could be understood from his words that Miss Mystique had made a deal to buy a potion from him.

The young woman was fascinated by what she heard and asked excitedly, "Why?"

Mr. Collector was left speechless. It was just something perfectly normal for him and he had never questioned it. He didn't know how to answer her question.

Noticing his dilemma, Vincent began speaking. "When you consume the potion, you stop being a human. Even humans have instincts. It might not seem apparent to you because a human's instinct is well understood by everyone and it has become a normal part of our everyday lives. But this isn't the same for supernaturals. Take a cat for example, their instinct to hunt compels them to do many things we don't understand. They kill rats even when they don't need it for food. It is similar to that. In a way you could say that we supernaturals are like domesticated cats. We live among the humans but we do things that they will never understand."

This was a chance to appear knowledgeable and he didn't want to miss it. Specially since he could answer it easily given his medical background. He had made a big bluff earlier and he needed to make sure his facade wouldn't be seen through. After all, the consequences wouldn't be pretty if his cover was blown.

The girl seemed convinced and bowed to express her thanks. Vincent acted as if it was no big deal and went back to sitting calmly.

"Does anybody have anything potent against vampires?" A lanky man stood up and spoke in a clear manner.

Mr. Collector answered once again. "I have a stake made from Golden Oak. 1500 gold and it's yours."

A figure dressed to cover every inch of their body stood up and presented a blade. It had jagged tips all over it and looked menacing. "A serrated blade made from titanium and blood crystal of three eyed centipede. The wound will not heal even with the supernatural regeneration of a vampire for some time. 250 pounds" Contrary to her outer appearance, the woman had a charming voice.

"Anyone else?" The lanky man asked to see if he could get more options.

Vincent was unsure if he should offer the poison he had made some days earlier. It's effects would be underwhelming if the vampire was grade 3 or above. He lacked the means to gauge out anyone's strength and he felt like he needed to change that. He made up his mind to ask Mr. Collector if he had an artifact with such a function. For now, he decided to probe further before offering his poison.

"What grade vampire is it?"

Doing this would be similar to asking the lanky man to reveal his grade but he chose to ask anyways. Some people weren't really that conscious about others finding out about their grade and others in the gathering might already be aware of it.

The lanky man turned out to be someone who didn't mind and answered, "A grade two vampire."

"I have a poison brewed using werewolf's fangs. It's really effective against your target. 80 pounds for 100 ml."

"I will take it." He took a bottle filled with green liquid from Vincent and handed over the money. Turning to the woman with knife, he continued, "150 pounds. I would pay you 250 pounds if it was Damascus steel."

"220 pounds." The woman tried bargaining.

"180 pounds and no more." The man's voiced strongly. Paying anymore would be beyond his current ability.

"Deal." The two completed their transaction and several other members expressed their d.e.s.i.r.es to buy and sell a variety of things. About half the offers and inquiry turned into successful transactions.

Once everyone were done with their business, Miss Mystique looked towards Mr. Collector and began. "You promised to let me have a look at your collection of artifacts."

The host raised his hand and the subordinate who followed him into the room handed him a mini suitcase. Opening it up, he turned the case towards her and asked, "Which one interests you?"