Chapter 110: Wednesday - Open Up, Your New Exclusive DLC Has Arrived!
Dinner at the Addams family home was less a meal and more a spectacular assault on conventional human senses.
The long dining table was draped with a black velvet tablecloth, and the candelabras were fashioned from human vertebrae, their flickering candlelight stretching everyone's shadows like wraiths.
The main course was a perfectly roasted giant octopus, its tentacles curled as if still writhing in death throes, garnished with mushrooms that glowed with faint bioluminescence.
Beside it sat a platter of "Banshee's Hair" salad—actually a type of deep-sea kelp, slimy and slippery in texture.
There was also a bubbling purple soup with unknown creatures' eyeballs floating within.
The butler, Lurch, with his lurching gait, served each person a deep crimson liquid in skull-shaped goblets.
"Try this, Edward," Gomez enthusiastically raised his goblet. "This is our 'Bloody Mary'—aged three hundred years in our cellar. An authentic Bloody Mary."
Edward looked at the viscous liquid in the cup, then at Gomez's undeniably sincere face. He smiled, raised his own goblet, and drained it.
A peculiar liquid with notes of iron and spices slid down his throat, and the flavor was surprisingly pleasant.
"Excellent vintage," Edward praised genuinely.
This gesture immediately won the favor of all the Addams family members.
Morticia flashed a bewitching smile, and she personally used a silver fork to serve Edward a piece of octopus tentacle. "Please, this sea monster was caught by us last week in the Bermuda Triangle. Its meat is exceptionally fresh."
"Brother, that's the spot! That's where I disappeared!" Uncle Fester—now he should properly be called just Fester—excitedly slapped the table. "The sea monsters there taste the best! Next time, we'll go together!"
Pugsley, meanwhile, was diligently trying to crack open a massive, stone-shelled "petrified crab" with a small hatchet, the shell clanging against the blade.
Throughout the dinner, Edward appeared completely comfortable.
He sampled every dish and offered appropriate commentary on their "qualities."
He even discussed with Fester the energy conversion efficiency of reanimating corpses with electricity and chatted with Gomez about the lethal techniques of medieval swordsmanship.
Only Wednesday spoke little from beginning to end.
She just observed Edward silently with her dark eyes.
This man was full of mysteries; his strength, his composure, his peculiar aura that was both alien to the Addams family yet perfectly harmonious with them—all of it made her intensely curious.
The dinner ended in a bizarre yet harmonious atmosphere.
Gomez insisted on giving Edward a dagger, allegedly "used to assassinate Caesar," as a thank-you gift, but Edward politely declined.
He stated that friendship was more valuable than any material possession.
It was late, and a cold mist hung over the estate.
Edward was standing in the courtyard, looking at the iron gates Gomez had demolished, considering how to leave gracefully.
A cold voice spoke behind him.
"Who are you really?"
Edward turned around and saw Wednesday standing not far behind him, arms crossed, like a tiny specter.
"Edward Connor," Edward replied.
"That's not the answer I want," Wednesday's expression remained unchanged. "You're not normal. The strength to snap handcuffs, the ability to fly through a window, and that 'light' you used to wake my father. None of these are things a regular person can do."
Edward looked at her; this little girl's perception far exceeded that of ordinary people. He smiled and countered, "Then what do you think I am?"
"Some kind of supernatural entity," Wednesday answered without hesitation. "Perhaps a mutant, or the inheritor of some bloodline. I'm very interested in your abilities."
Her bluntness amused Edward. "Interest is the first step in exploring the unknown. However, some secrets, once learned, there's no going back."
"I never go back," Wednesday's tone was resolute.
Edward studied her for a few seconds, then nodded. "Alright, since you're so determined to know, then follow me. I'll take you somewhere that might have the answers you're looking for."
He walked to a door and silently thought, "Devil May Cry."
"My office," Edward pushed open the door and gestured for her to enter. "A place for handling 'special' problems."
Wednesday didn't hesitate and stepped inside. The scene instantly transformed. The gloomy Gothic mansion vanished, replaced by a spacious, slightly cluttered office. A massive desk, comfortable couches, various strange weapons and trophies mounted on the walls, and a jukebox in the corner playing classic rock.
A boy wearing glasses, who looked about her age, was sprawled on the carpet, intently assembling a complex mechanical contraption. Hearing the door open, he looked up.
"Edward, you're back!" Victor, seeing Edward, happily stood up.
Immediately, his gaze fell on Wednesday. Two equally precocious young geniuses, both with unconventional worldviews, locked eyes.
"Hello, I'm Victor Frankenstein," Victor politely extended his hand.
"Wednesday Addams," Wednesday shook his hand, her touch cold. Her attention was immediately drawn to the device at Victor's feet. "Is this... a rapid-fire repeating crossbow based on a spring and gear linkage system?"
Victor's eyes lit up. "You noticed? I improved the feeding mechanism. Theoretically, it can achieve continuous fire, as long as there are enough bolts in the magazine."
"Magazine capacity is a weakness," Wednesday immediately identified the flaw. "And this mechanical structure will experience severe wear under high-frequency use. Jam probability will exceed 37.5 percent."
"I've accounted for that!" Victor excitedly picked up a component. "So I designed a dual-track feed system, and I used memory alloy for the critical gear components to minimize metal fatigue!"
The two children thus crouched down, completely absorbed, and began enthusiastically discussing mechanical engineering and lethality optimization, the air filling with technical jargon. They seemed to have found kindred spirits, talking from repeating crossbow design to the current voltage threshold for electroshock reanimation, and then from biological dissection to lethal dosages of various toxins.
Edward watched this scene with a smile. He knew these two children would definitely become close friends.
"Edward!" Victor then remembered the important part. He picked up the fully assembled repeating crossbow and presented it to Edward like treasure. "This is the modified repeating crossbow I built. It can fire fifty bolts consecutively, and I've also etched runes on each bolt and soaked them in holy water. I'm not sure if it'll work, though."
Edward took the sleek and deadly repeating crossbow. It felt substantial, full of mechanical beauty. He could sense the faint holy power infused within it. "Whether it works or not, I'll find out when I test it later. But Victor, you really are a genius."
Victor, praised, scratched his head a bit bashfully. "I'm just glad I can help you out."
Edward patted his head with satisfaction, and Victor immediately turned back, excitedly pulling Wednesday over to see his other "little inventions."
Edward walked over to Wednesday, watching her intently studying a frog in a jar, half-dead from electrocution.
"You can come here anytime you want," Edward said.
Wednesday looked up at him.
"Remember this name—'Devil May Cry,'" Edward said slowly. "No matter where you are, just find a door, call out this name in your mind, and wish to enter. If I agree, the door will open for you."
He had granted access to this secret space to this gothic girl he'd only recently met.
Wednesday looked at him, and something on her perpetually icy face seemed to soften slightly. She didn't say thank you, just nodded once.
"Victor," she suddenly said to the boy beside her, "what you mentioned earlier about using different voltages to stimulate the hippocampus to erase or implant specific memories—I think it's highly feasible. Perhaps we should start experimenting with a cat."
Victor excitedly replied, "Great idea! My neighbor's Persian cat, 'Mr. Whiskers,' has been super annoying lately, yowling at three in the morning. Maybe we can help him 'forget' about that habit!"
Author's Note
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