Shen Takao

Shen Takao was the emperor's most loyal samurai. He was the best in his field, a cold-blooded killer who carried out the emperor's every command without question. That's why he sent Shen on a difficult mission: to infiltrate the Tasmanian Forest, which in their kingdom was renowned for its abundant wildlife. It was home to evil spirits—witches, vampires, sirens, and other dangerous creatures. No one had seen them for a long time, but everyone knew that the undead haunted these places. The forest was extremely dangerous, but Shen was undaunted. In the Tasmanian Forest, he was to find a life-giving river whose waters possessed healing properties. According to legend, a sword was buried there at the bottom of the river—the key to power that the emperor sought.

Samurai Shen's journey went according to plan. He made his way into the forest, wandered through it for several days, encountering only silence along the way. A deathly, unnatural silence. Not even the birds sang here. Only occasionally would wolves howl at night, as if reminding him not to be distracted. Everything was fine until Shen realized he was lost. All the paths in the forest seemed tangled, the map didn't match the terrain, and he was completely exhausted trying to find the right one.

"Damn wood-goblins... they've confused all the paths!" Shen growled, trying to examine the map more closely. He couldn't miss anything.

"There have never been any wood goblins in our forest!" a clear female voice and giggles came from somewhere above. Takao drew his blade, pointing it at the stranger. She was hanging upside down from a tree branch, looking at him with an expression of mixed pleasure and mischief. Apparently, she liked her own trick.

"Who are you?" Takao asked, his voice completely unfriendly, not even thinking about lowering the knife. The stranger tilted her head slightly, trying to get a good look at him, and grinned widely—Shen noticed the glint of sharp, snow-white fangs. A vampire... Only now did he realize the girl's eyes were scarlet, like blood, fringed with long eyelashes.