Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Chapter 5. Gentlemen of the Night

The next night, at the Brooklyn docks.

Do-jun walked with his hands shoved into his pockets, his entire body wrapped in black clothing.

The blade-like night wind made his body shrink in on itself.

Amid the salty, oily air brushing past his nose, there was a strange scent of blood.

-The abandoned factory district on the outskirts of Brooklyn. Disappearances have been happening there frequently lately. Our investigation confirmed it's a vampire nest.

-Who's the client?

-Probably gangsters whose territory overlaps with theirs. From what I heard, dozens of them tried charging in with silver bullets and stakes and got themselves killed.

-The reward?

-Twenty thousand dollars per head if you bring back their heads. There's a bonus if you dig up useful information.

-Good.

‘Vampires.’

A strange excitement lingered around Do-jun's lips.

He'd been through just about everything possible as a shaman in Korea, but this would be his first time facing Western vampires.

Normally, Korean anomalies could broadly be divided into two categories.

First, the ‘Incorporeal Realm.’

Ghosts existing only as resentment and energy, without physical bodies.

Physical attacks barely worked on them, and they could only be subdued with talismans or techniques infused with divine power.

And creatures like vampires were...

‘The Corporeal Realm.’

Anomalies that exerted physical force through a body, like jiangshi or zombies.

Sometimes evil spirits from the Incorporeal Realm possessed human bodies and mutated into Corporeal anomalies... But that was another matter.

‘Vampires will probably be different from the Corporeal anomalies I've fought before.’

High intelligence and organization.

A kind of colony creature forming groups beneath a powerful master at the top.

Since he'd never faced anything like them in Korea, he was already looking forward to seeing how novel—and satisfying—they would be to beat down.

“So where are they?”

Do-jun stared at the vast abandoned factory district stretching before him.

True to American scale, each factory was enormous, and dozens of such buildings stood in rows.

The night was far too short to search them one by one on foot.

“Come out. Time to work.”

He tore a talisman, and pale energy gathered together before a small puppy-shaped spirit popped out.

‘White Hound Night Procession.’

The white hound rubbed affectionately against Do-jun's leg, and once he fed it a bit of divine power as a snack, it began sniffing around in every direction.

Before long, it wagged its tail furiously and led Do-jun to one abandoned factory.

“Move it.”

“Yes, boss!”

A foul demonic aura and hushed voices seeped through the gaps in the rusted steel door.

‘This must be it.’

Do-jun kicked off the ground with a shortening-distance technique.

His body floated upward as lightly as though defying gravity, landing atop the factory roof.

He looked down through a broken section of the ceiling.

More than a dozen vampires were busily moving around inside the factory.

They had kidnapped people hanging upside down, draining their blood and mixing it with some unknown blue liquid to manufacture drugs.

At a glance, it definitely didn't look like a legal business.

‘Let's make it flashy.’

Do-jun formed a hand seal and lightly blew.

“Veil.”

In an instant, the inside of the factory filled with thick white smoke.

It wasn't ordinary smoke.

It was a mystical haze that disrupted spiritual energy and blocked vision.

“W-What the fuck! Where'd this fog come from?!”

“Who is it! What bastard did this?!”

“Fuck! Open the door!”

The startled vampires stumbled around, their crimson eyes glowing.

Within that smoke, Do-jun landed without a sound.

In his hand were peachwood needles he'd prepared in advance.

‘Let's begin. Let's see how satisfying these things are to kill.’

Thud-thud-thud!

Do-jun darted through the smoke and drove a wooden needle into the heart of the nearest one.

The vampire's body collapsed into ash without even managing a scream.

Three, four of them vanished in an instant.

Do-jun's movements never hesitated.

“You fucking bastard!”

Then one mountain-sized vampire stomped hard on the floor.

Boom-!

A powerful shockwave swept through the factory and forcibly scattered the thick smoke.

At the center of the clearing haze stood Do-jun in black clothes, expression indifferent.

The vampires' murderous gazes all locked onto him at once.

“You bastard... what organization sent you? Some attack dog?”

“We're all going to die anyway, so why bother exchanging names?”

Do-jun answered and launched himself forward at the same time.

Crack-!

Wooden needles sliced through the air and pierced the vampires' vital points.

He kept his sorcery to an absolute minimum, ending lives efficiently with the smallest movements possible.

But the more he fought, the deeper his frown became.

‘...This is boring.’

He'd expected something different because they were Western anomalies.

Yet they relied entirely on strength and speed, and their average level was far below the evil spirits he'd fought in Korea.

Was it because K-culture was popular?

Maybe even the average level of evil spirits was higher in Korea.

After all... hadn't K-Pop Demon Hunters swept the world?

‘Mm, that joke wasn't funny either.’

Feeling relieved he hadn't said that joke out loud, Do-jun continued killing the vampires.

“Grrrrgh!”

One large vampire, watching nearly half his comrades turn to dust, hurriedly injected himself with the drug they were producing.

“You fucking bastard... I'll tear you apart myself!”

His muscles swelled abnormally, while his skin burned dark red.

His body doubled in size, twisting into something savage.

Probably...

‘The effect of that drug.’

Vrooooom!

At the same time, rough engine noises came from outside the factory as dozens of glowing eyes burst through the doors.

They were probably vampires who had rushed over after receiving word.

“Who the hell are you, bastard?!”

“You charged in here alone?”

In front of him stood one monster swollen huge from the drug.

Around him, nearly a hundred vampires had gathered.

Even for Do-jun, one peachwood needle wasn't going to be enough for this.

‘How should I handle this?’

Several plans surfaced in his mind.

Methods that could wipe them out as cleanly as possible without leaving traces.

That was when it happened.

Do-jun's tobangguri suddenly began trembling violently...

《...What a filthy stench these things give off.》

The spirit's cold, heavy voice rang out, filled with anger.

***

Corel, manager of this abandoned factory and field commander of the vampire organization ‘Gentlemen of the Night.’

His now-massive body stood in the middle of his subordinates as he glared at the guest across from him.

‘Fuck, what the hell is that guy?’

A mysterious figure wrapped head to toe in black.

More than a dozen of Corel's men had already been reduced to cold ash by the stranger who appeared out of nowhere.

Over the past half year, countless hitmen and diocesan exorcists had passed through this Brooklyn lair.

But not one of them had ever reached Corel's feet.

Especially after he became a vampire by injecting the V-Rise serum secretly produced in this factory, ordinary cops, gangsters, and even exorcists had become nothing but insects to him.

‘How the hell is he fighting like that with one stupid piece of wood?’

But the man in black was different.

He wasn't using impressive tools, showing impossible movements, or wielding sacred power.

He simply identified the vampires' weak points with ruler-like precision and killed them with the minimum movement needed.

And even now... despite nearly a hundred vampires surrounding him.

“...Possession? Why all of a sudden?”

“I told you, I'll feed you.”

The man in black muttered to himself as though they weren't even worth his attention.

A strange chill crawled down Corel's back at the unpredictable behavior.

‘Doesn't matter. I'm Tier 2 now.’

Corel spat blood-tinged phlegm onto the ground.

After taking an enhanced V-Rise serum, his muscles had swollen grotesquely, while his dark-red skin had become as tough as an armored vehicle.

It would put a burden on his body, but this wasn't the time to worry about such things.

Besides, nearly a hundred reinforcements had rushed over after hearing about the intrusion.

With this kind of force... Corel was confident they could kill even a fairly high-ranking exorcist.

“I don't know who the hell you are, but stop struggling and surrender. Then at least we'll kill you without making it painful.”

But Do-jun continued ignoring him.

He was still talking to empty air, saying things like, “No, giving you my entire body is a bit much. Let's keep it reasonable.”

Corel's patience finally snapped.

“Grrrrgh! Kill that bastard!”

“Let's goooo!”

“Yes, boss!”

Around a hundred vampires attacked from all directions at once.

‘Crush his momentum!’

Corel pressed from the front with his massive muscular body, restricting Do-jun's movements, while the others extended sharp claws and attacked from his blind spots.

“Screeeech!”

“Watch that wooden thing! Watch the wood!”

Their opponent swung the needle and turned several of them to ash, but it seemed insufficient against the sheer violence of numbers.

The man in black was gradually driven into a corner... Claws grazed his clothes, exposing skin beneath them.

Victory seemed completely tilted toward the vampires.

‘I'll finish this.’

Corel saw his chance.

Without letting it escape, he drew out his own blood, compressed it, and formed it into a spear.

Blood Thirst.

A lethal technique using his own blood as a catalyst.

It was also the technique he was most proud of, the one that had raised him to the position of field commander.

“Dieee!”

Whoooosh!

The blood spear flew in a crimson streak and struck Do-jun directly in the head.

Boom!

Smoke billowed thickly from the impact.

‘I killed him!’

But what emerged through the smoke wasn't a corpse.

The impact had only knocked off the mask covering his face.

The revealed face belonged to an Asian man with sharp, striking features.

“Ow... I'm in the middle of a conversation. Why do you keep interrupting?”

There wasn't the slightest trace of crisis or tension in his relaxed expression.

While everyone blinked in confusion.

“You guys saw my face?”

The Asian man.

Kang Do-jun, once called the strongest shaman in South Korea... pulled a talisman covered in blood-red letters from his clothes and flicked it lightly.

The moment the talisman ignited in midair, a wall of blue flames enveloped the entire factory.

A barrier completely sealing it off from the outside.

“W-What is this?”

“This wall... it's insanely tough!”

As the vampires panicked, Do-jun smiled.

“I was thinking about capturing a few of you alive depending on how things went. But now that you've seen my face, every last one of you has to die.”

He couldn't afford to leave evidence behind.

Corel let out an incredulous laugh.

“You sealed off your own escape route and think you can handle this many of us? Lunatic... You're arrogance itself.”

Then Kang Do-jun's tobangguri began trembling violently as though struck by an earthquake.

An immense divinity, like a sleeping volcano erupting, began to resonate.

《Child, did I not tell you to lend me your body? If I hunted those things personally... this would be simple!》

The spirit kept speaking.

For a while now, it had been whining that it was hungry, demanding permission to possess him so it could personally hunt and kill the foul-smelling vampires.

But Do-jun had no intention of agreeing.

‘No. Just lend me a little power.’

Even if shamans and spirits were supposed to support one another.

He knew all too well how dangerous it was to surrender his body entirely to such a powerful being.

No matter what happened, Do-jun had to keep both hands on the wheel.

Just as he had when serving the White Tiger Spirit.

《You complicate things. Then what sort of power do you need?》

‘Anything's fine. Just give me an appropriate amount. In return, I'll make sure you get your fill.’

Originally, Do-jun had wielded the power of the White Tiger Spirit.

He could simply borrow raw divine power, but to use a spirit's strength most effectively, it was better to borrow its original nature directly.

《Very well... I will lend you an energy you seem suited to use.》

Within the tobangguri, the spirit's form changed, then spread throughout Do-jun's entire body with an electrifying sensation.

“Ghhhhhh!”

Do-jun's body suddenly swelled as thick fur sprouted over him, while his pupils turned even redder than blood, becoming those of a savage beast.

Before them stood the form of an overwhelmingly superior predator, far more terrifying than even Corel after taking the Tier 2 serum.

‘This is...’

Do-jun grinned in excitement.

“Don't be scared! Just tear him apart!”

Corel shouted, desperately suppressing his fear.

At that moment.

BOOM!

Only a faint afterimage and vibration remained where Do-jun had stood.

Crunch-!

“Huh?”

There wasn't even time to scream.

Do-jun shot into the air in an instant and bit down on the crown of Corel's head, bursting it apart.

Blood sprayed everywhere, and horror flooded the vampires' faces.

“H-Hiiiii! Commander Corel!”

As Do-jun landed on the floor, a majestic rumble like the trembling of the earth rolled from his throat.

《Not enough! More, give me more prey!》

“Yes, hold on. I'm going to devour every last one of them now.”

From that point on, it wasn't a battle, but a one-sided massacre.

Transformed into something resembling a four-legged white tiger, Do-jun tore across the abandoned factory at the speed of light.

Crunch! Craaack!”

“Aaaaagh!”

“S-Save meeee!”

He seized vampires by the nape and gouged out their hearts with razor-sharp claws.

The screams were brief, and the factory was quickly covered in vampire remains and ash.

“The serum! Use the serum!”

“Aaaaaagh!”

Some vampires tried injecting the serum to strengthen their bodies, but it made little difference.

The nearly one hundred reinforcements were exterminated in less than ten minutes.

The final vampire was backed into a corner, trembling like a leaf as he begged for his life.

“D-Do you even know who we are?! Those we serve possess the Blood of Origin!”

“Shut up.”

Just as Do-jun was about to crush his skull.

Stab! Squelch!

The vampire jammed a syringe into him.

V-Rise serum.

A substance created from the blood of noble beings who possessed the Blood of Origin.

It strengthened vampires, but when ordinary humans were injected with it... they became vampires.

“Ahahahaha! You too! You're a vampire now too! You'll live under the domination of the Blood of Origin as well—”

Crunch!

At that moment, the vampire's neck exploded.

The crimson tint in Do-jun's vision faded, and the storm-like divinity settled down.

Spitting a mouthful of black blood from his mouth, he said.

“What nonsense. You think something like this works on me?”

It must have been the bastard's final trick, but there was no chance it would work.

Even in Korea, countless vengeful spirits had tried to seize his body, but he had never once surrendered control of it.

‘Still, what a strange spirit I've got.’

Do-jun placed a hand over his tobangguri and sensed the energy within.

He could feel the terrifying fluctuations of the spirit frantically devouring the vampires' souls.

He had definitely felt it.

What had possessed Do-jun moments earlier had only been a tiny fragment of the power this spirit possessed.

Even Do-jun hadn't expected that tiny fragment to let him rampage to this extent.

More shocking still was the fact that something this absurdly powerful didn't even know its own name or identity.

Well, good things were good. It didn't really matter.

“Hmmm. That got noisier than expected.”

He steadied his rough breathing and surveyed the ruined factory.

Leaving it like this would cause problems in all sorts of ways, so cleanup was essential.

Leaving the scattered ash and acrid smoke behind, Do-jun checked the bodycam attached to him.

It had vividly recorded Do-jun massacring the vampires.

Some scenes would need editing, but this should be more than enough evidence to prove the slaughter.

‘First, let's clean up. Then get paid properly and go shopping.’

Because I've got a whole lot of things to buy this time.

The Catastrophe-Class Exorcist Is Too Strong in America

Author

: Gisigami

Production Date

: September 15, 2026

Publisher

: ACES Media Co., Ltd.

Editor

: ACES Media Editorial Team

Address

: 12F, Urban Bench Building, 325 Teheran-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul

Email

: acesmedia9@gmail.com

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