Chapter 70: Aftermath and Inventory
Edward had just parked the Fenrir when he saw three small figures walking together from around the corner.
The three girls held hands, looking as innocent and carefree as if they'd just come from a birthday party.
But Edward's eye twitched.
He sensed something unusual radiating from Lily.
Not blood. Not evil residue. But a sense of... complete satisfaction.
Like the contented energy of a cat lazily licking its paws after secretly devouring an entire salmon.
Edward studied them briefly, then ruffled Esther's hair. "Where'd you three go?"
"Just walked around the neighborhood trick-or-treating and had some dessert," Lily replied eagerly with a sweet smile.
Dessert. Edward kept his expression neutral. Yeah, I bet it wasn't candy.
But he didn't press. The kids' clothes were clean with no signs of struggle.
He'd deal with his own business first.
"I'm gonna shower. You three behave and watch some TV," he said, heading directly inside.
In the bathroom, warm water poured from the showerhead, washing away his exhaustion.
Edward closed his eyes, water running down his defined muscles.
Then, on the mirror in front of him, condensation began gathering in an unnatural pattern, outlining a girl's silhouette.
Alan's figure emerged from the mirror, leaning against the inside of the glass like she was watching an interesting show.
"Nice physique," Alan commented without reservation, her voice echoing directly in Edward's mind.
Edward opened his eyes, already used to this. "How's Maria?"
"Don't worry, she's fine," Alan pouted. "She just won't shut up about you. I'm going deaf from it. Look—first thing you do when you get back is ask about her. If she knew, she'd be thrilled."
Meanwhile, in Maria's room...
Maria lay on her bed hugging a pillow, looking a bit dejected.
On the full-length mirror in front of her, Alan's figure appeared.
"See? I told you he cares about you," Alan's voice echoed in the room.
"Really?" Maria's eyes lit up.
"Obviously," Alan said, and the mirror's reflection shifted, clearly showing Edward in the shower.
Steam billowed, and his body was visible through the flowing water.
"See? First thing he did was ask about you."
Maria's face instantly turned bright red.
The moment she saw the image, she let out a short gasp, grabbed her comforter, covered her head, and thrashed around underneath.
"ALAN! How—how could you show me that!" Her muffled, mortified voice came from under the blanket.
Alan watched with a mischievous grin, thoroughly enjoying her successful prank.
Back on Edward's end, after briefly chatting with Alan, he shut off the shower.
He dried off, changed into clean sweats, and returned to his room. He picked up his phone and called Jennifer first.
The call connected quickly, Jennifer's lazy, sultry voice coming through. "Master~ Missing me already?"
"Just confirming you're okay," Edward's voice was flat.
"I'm great, and my power seems to have increased a bit. But Master, I felt like something 'delicious' just vanished near your area," Jennifer's words carried deeper meaning.
"Got it." Edward hung up and called Carrie.
"Edward?" Carrie sounded surprised. "I'm fine! I'm practicing the techniques you taught me!"
"Good. Keep it up and stay safe."
Only after confirming everyone was safe did the doubt in Edward's mind settle.
He put down his phone and headed toward Lily's room.
He didn't knock—just pushed the door open.
Lily sat on her princess bed hugging a faceless ragdoll, a faint sweet scent permeating the room.
Seeing Edward enter, her expression didn't change—she just watched him silently.
Edward walked to the bed and looked down at her.
"Lily. Talk," he said without preamble. "Where'd you go? What's that smell on you?"
Lily looked up, her eyes no longer holding the obedience she showed her parents—only the cold indifference of a demon.
She replied in a flat, matter-of-fact tone: "Derry. Absorbed a clown's accumulated fear."
A clown. A name immediately flashed through Edward's mind—Pennywise.
He looked at Lily's delicate yet unruffled face, momentarily at a loss for words.
If it were anyone else, he might be shocked, angry, or scared.
But this was Lily. This was a demon who treated fear like a snack.
For her, hunting Pennywise was probably no different from a normal kid hitting a candy store.
Moreover, judging by Jennifer's tone, Pennywise seemed to have been... completely consumed.
A monster that had terrorized Derry for over a century, source of countless nightmares, was just dealt with as an after-dinner treat by his three "problem children"?
Edward felt his temples throb.
He wasn't raising kids—he was managing a supernatural disaster response team. The most disobedient kind.
"Was it good?" he finally asked.
Lily thought for a moment, then evaluated seriously: "Very aged. Rich flavor profile. The presentation was crude and underwhelming though."
Edward could already imagine the despair Pennywise must have experienced.
Its proud fear illusions, against these three monsters—Emma, Esther, and Lily—were probably more effective than cotton candy.
He reached out and ruffled Lily's hair, a bit forcefully.
"Next time you go after 'dessert,' give me a heads-up first."
A flicker of pleasure crossed Lily's eyes, and she nodded obediently.
Edward turned and left, gently closing the door.
Since that problem was resolved, he was too lazy to dig into the details.
As long as these little ones didn't cause any major, unmanageable chaos, he could turn a blind eye.
Back in his room, he collapsed onto his bed and let out a long sigh.
Managing this household was more exhausting than dealing with any demon or monster.
He cleared his mind for a moment, then sat up. With a thought, a translucent blue interface—visible only to him—slowly materialized before his eyes.
[SYSTEM INTERFACE]
Name: Edward Connor
Gender: Male
Age: 18
Physique: Pure Yang Body
Main Quest: [LOCKED]
Inventory:
Ebony and Ivory (infinite ammunition)
Pure Silver Cross x2
Gourmet Tablecloth
One-Star Dragon Ball
Fenrir Motorcycle
Freddy's Claw Glove (cursed artifact)
Abilities:
Photographic Memory
Blessing of the Enchantress EX
Holy Light (enhanced purification)
Purification
Ox Talisman (superhuman strength)
Telekinesis EX
Evil Containment Wave
Bound Entities:
Lily (Demon Marquis)
Jennifer (Succubus)
Achievements:
[Reverse Haunting] — Successfully made a ghost flee from you 3+ times
[First Blood] — Congratulations on your first kill
[Monster Collector] — Bound 2+ supernatural entities
[Wrong Victims] — Survived encounter with serial killers
Credits: 50,999
Gacha Options:
Basic Pull: 1,000 (10x: 9,000)
Advanced Pull: 100,000 (10x: 900,000)
Premium Pull: 10,000,000 (10x: 90,000,000)
Legendary Pull: 100,000,000 (10x: 900,000,000)
Edward looked at the interface, scrolling through his recent additions.
Freddy's glove sat in his inventory—a cursed artifact saturated with nightmare energy. Might be useful later.
His credit count had gone up significantly from the haunted house incident. Apparently stopping serial killers paid well.
He considered doing a pull from the gacha but decided against it for now.
Tomorrow, he thought. After I figure out what the hell those three actually did to Pennywise.
He dismissed the interface and lay back on his bed.
Outside his window, Halloween night was winding down. Jack-o'-lanterns were burning out, trick-or-treaters heading home.
And somewhere in the multiverse, an ancient cosmic horror was probably rethinking its life choices after encountering three "children" more terrifying than itself.
Edward smiled slightly at the thought.
Yeah. That sounds about right for this household.
He closed his eyes, letting sleep take him.
Tomorrow would bring new chaos.
It always did.
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