He decided to see if the other safe houses had been compromised too. So he went around the city spying on them.
On the surface, the other four safe houses were still preserved, as the security and surveillance systems he had installed in them didn't notice any intrusion. But nothing could be certain where heroes were involved. He had to see what was going on with his own two eyes.
He didn't approach the buildings where the safe houses were. That would only get him in trouble if they had already been compromised. He only strolled outside of them while watching those who entered and left.
He didn't notice any hero or increase in police surveillance around the area. But he still didn't approach the safe houses.
He got a new safe house first and changed his look. Then he went to look at the compromised safe house.
He noticed the influx of people going in and out by the moment. He saw his things being moved out. He saw a lot of heroes patrolling the area. He also saw the person who broke into his house and a small boy beside them.
He contemplated stealing the identity of a hero and using it to find out what was going on. But he decided to try other methods first before getting anywhere close to the people looking for him.
So he returned to his new safe house to do some research. The first thing he searched for was the identity of the boy and the old man. He wanted to know their identities first so that he would know what kind of enemies he was dealing with.
He had taken some pictures from afar, so he used them to search the villain database for information. This database is a public repository, so it is not exactly trustworthy.
He only intends to use the database to get their identity. Then he will go on the internet to search for them. These two will then be combined with information from data brokers for a more complete view.
The database had a hit on only the old man. There was nothing about the boy there. But the information about the old man was more than useful.
Apparently, his name is Count Dracula. They call him the Count for short. He should be 21 years old, but he looks 51. This indicates that he has gone to the foreign battlefield.
He has an Omega ability called Life Steal. It is a powerful ability that lets him siphon the life force, vitality, and stamina from everyone he touches.
That was his sole ability before he advanced to the professional league and acquired more. Now, he doesn't need to touch anyone to steal their life force. People around him can be targeted by his ability.
The distance of effect of his ability is unclear because he hasn't made any statement about it. But it is known for certain that he can heal himself, restore his stamina, and regrow his organs, as long as there is someone nearby for him to siphon.
This is why he is called Count Dracula. He is a walking, talking vampire that isn't afraid of daylight. But he is stronger than a vampire.
Not only does he heal himself with what he siphons, but he also weakens his enemies by siphoning their life force. What's more, it is suspected that he can enhance his power temporarily the more he siphons.
If that is true, the more people he fights, the stronger he can become. And the stronger the person he fights, the more power and life force he can steal from them.
It is an omega ability that shows its full potential based on the quantity and quality of enemies he faces. It makes him incredibly difficult to kill.
Kelvin groaned as he read this. "This is a souped-up version of Friar Paul. Is this guy even killable?"
He read on to find out. He found out that it was possible to kill him, but one would need to do damage to him critically and swiftly.
According to the data available on him, cutting his head off or destroying it in one blow is the best way to kill him. Stabbing him in the heart won't do it. Shooting him in the head won't do it either.
As he was reading the Count's page, he noticed that the information on the page was updated just five minutes ago. Apparently, someone felt that his information needed to be known just recently.
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He was wondering why, so he followed the link to the source of the data. The link led him to the bounty page of the secret war currently going on.
Someone had put up a bounty for the count. It was a few minutes ago. It wasn't like the normal missions that anyone could post. These bounty missions have been verified by the villain league itself.
It will also be the villain league that will pay the bounty as it concerns the war between heroes and villains, so there is nothing to worry about regarding the authenticity of the information and the bounty.
This was especially important since the bounty for the man's head is 100 energy stones. That is the equivalent of 100 million dollars, but more valuable.
He said to himself as he read the page, "This secret war is bigger than I expected. It is also why I can't participate. At least not openly and not with big fish like this."
He was planning to participate in the past, but now he is not so sure. For one, it is clear that the villain league itself has gotten itself tightly involved in it. There is just no way he won't draw their attention when he kills someone so powerful and comes to claim their bounty.
They will investigate him if only for the fact that he should not be capable of that. That is something he doesn't want. He is trying to solve one investigation, not get into another one.