While Roy was caught up in an overtime battle with Elizabeth and Eluresa, the earlier attack on the Shadow Hunters' base by the Elder Council had blown up in the public eye.
There was no stopping it. The incident dragged on for too long—from around 9 p.m. to 9 a.m. the next day, a full 12 hours.
Even if Los Angeles residents were asleep at night, they had to go to work during the day, right?
And the celestial changes were impossible to ignore. At 6 a.m., the sky was pitch black with a blood moon hanging ominously.
Even a fool would know something was off.
Despite the federal government issuing strict orders to all media to suppress the story and flooding the news with distractions, the internet exploded with chatter.
The government's official explanation? A gang fight that just happened to coincide with a rare celestial event.
It was the kind of lie that wouldn't even fool a kid, let alone Americans who already distrusted the government.
Some early-rising Los Angeles residents captured the bizarre 6 a.m. sky and uploaded photos and videos online. Then, those evacuated by the FEA started sharing their stories. The internet was a chaotic mess, filled with every kind of rumor.
Some even claimed North Korea had invaded American soil, which was honestly kind of hilarious.
(A nod to Homefront. Anyone played that game?)
The government's lax control over the internet allowed certain narratives to spread like wildfire. Fortunately, the mix of absurd, fabricated stories made things so outlandish that many Americans started dismissing them.
On the upside, the chaos completely overshadowed the Serpent's Tail initiation incident, so Roy didn't have to worry about going on ABC to face Marianne's interview.
Poor Marianne, though—she was the only one left hurting in this mess.
---
Roy snapped his eyes open, groggily reaching for the phone on the nightstand. He realized it had long since died and shut off.
Elizabeth was gone, but Eluresa was still there, clinging to his arm, sleeping peacefully.
What day was it?
Roy pulled a spare phone from his inventory and checked the time. It was 2 a.m. on Wednesday. Two whole days had passed since the Elder Council's attack on the Shadow Hunters' base.
Niddy had been lured into the dark web's escape room game on Sunday night, and the Elder Council attack ended at 9 a.m. Monday. Afterward, Roy took Iris to find Elizabeth, keeping busy until Tuesday morning. Then Elizabeth, in a burst of enthusiasm, dragged him into an extended "battle."
This marathon war was unlike anything Roy had experienced. Though he ultimately outmaneuvered both Elizabeth and Eluresa, it came at a steep cost.
"Absolutely insane," Roy muttered.
Thanks to absorbing a ton of dark energy earlier, he wasn't too hungry. He got up, steadying himself against the wall, and went downstairs to check on Iris.
But after searching the entire villa, Iris was nowhere to be found.
With no other options, Roy plugged in his phone to charge and turned it on. That's when he saw Iris's text message.
It was just six dots. No words.
Though it lacked content, Roy could guess how Iris was feeling.
They'd started as pure comrades-in-arms, built on mutual respect and trust. But after that day, their relationship was no longer so simple. They now knew each other intimately—every inch, every depth, every length.
Iris, like Isabella before her, was struggling to face him. She'd likely avoid him for a while until she could sort out her feelings.
Roy sighed and checked his other messages.
Having been AWOL for nearly two days, he had missed calls from plenty of people—Saltana, Niddy, Jennifer, Claire, even Gerald.
When they couldn't reach him, they'd sent texts.
Roy planned to call them back but realized it was 2 a.m.—everyone was probably asleep. So he replied to their texts instead.
To his surprise, Gerald called back almost immediately.
"Mr. Black, have you sorted things out on your end?"
"Yeah," Roy replied.
"And Lady Iris?"
Hadn't Iris returned to the FEA?
Roy paused, guessing her current state wasn't exactly suitable for public appearances. After being "worked over" by Roy for nearly a day, even her holy light powers could only heal so much. Certain changes would be too obvious.
So Roy covered for her. "Lady Iris isn't doing great. She might need some time to recover. If she's ready, I'm sure she'll reach out to the FEA herself."
Gerald let out a relieved breath. The FEA couldn't function without Iris.
"Good to hear. Mr. Black, do you know anything about what happened Sunday night?"
"It involves some sensitive details, so I can't tell you everything. I'll give you the gist."
Roy explained that the Elder Council's goal was the Holy Grail but left out Claire's connection to it and how he defeated Cain. He only mentioned that thirteen third-generation vampires summoned Cain, and he and Iris took him down together.
Gerald sighed deeply, clearly frustrated by how things had unfolded. "Mr. Black, if you have time, swing by the Dolphin Hotel. I'd like to talk in person."
"Sure, I'll make time to stop by."
Roy also had something to discuss with Gerald—about the dark web. He was pissed they hadn't caught its mastermind, so he wanted to leverage official resources to go after them.
After Gerald hung up, Roy stretched and returned to Eluresa's side.
Over the past couple of weeks, he'd collected eight treasure chests, some of high quality. Tonight seemed like a good time to open them.
As per tradition, he needed to pet a kitty and wash his hands for luck. But today, the only "cat" around was Eluresa's hairless one.
[Opening Keller Evans' Conquest Chest…]
[Gained 1 Memory Attribute Point!]
[Gained 1 Will Attribute Point!]
[Opening Ashley Park's Conquest Chest…]
[Gained 1 Agility Attribute Point!]
[Gained 1 Constitution Attribute Point!]
No surprises—Keller and Ashley's chests didn't yield anything special. Roy had hoped Ashley's might contain something like the super-drug from Lucy, but his luck seemed off today.
Oh well, time to keep padding the odds.
[Opening Mary Hill's Conquest Chest…]
[Gained 1 Strength Attribute Point!]
[Gained 1 Constitution Attribute Point!]
[Opening Demon Doctor's Fate Chest…]
[Gained 2 Spirit Attribute Points!]
[Gained 2 Will Attribute Points!]
Alright, the Demon Doctor's chest was a dud too. Was his luck really this bad today?
Maybe he hadn't petted enough cats. Should he find a few more?
After some thought, Roy decided to keep opening chests. His luck couldn't be that bad—maybe he'd just set up the odds with the earlier ones.
[Opening Alcina Dimitrescu's Conquest Chest…]
[Gained 2 Strength Attribute Points!]
[Gained 2 Constitution Attribute Points!]
[Gained Special Ability: Bat Form!]
[Bat Form: You can now transform into various bat forms—giant, small, or a swarm. Transformation requires vampire energy, and if your body fears sunlight, your bat form will too.]
A new ability!
But it felt a bit underwhelming for Roy. Bat Form was typically used by vampires for escape or stealth, but with his current strength, he didn't need it to flee. And for stealth, his Deception Space was far better.
His power had grown so fast that many abilities couldn't keep up.
If only he could transfer them to others—they might be useful then.
"System, can I transfer these abilities to someone else?"
[Special abilities cannot be transferred.]
"Then what's the point if I can't use them?!"
The system went silent for a bit.
[The host can teach certain mastered special abilities to those capable of learning them.]
Teach, huh?
Roy checked his ability list. Some had prerequisites—like Ashen Herald, which required angel, demon, vampire, and werewolf bloodlines, so it couldn't be taught. Fear Incarnate and Desire Incarnate needed fear and desire powers, also unteachable.
But others, like Trap Master, Assassin's Heart, Blood Fury, and Bat Form, could be taught if the recipient met the physical or bloodline requirements.
Perfect for boosting his allies.
Back to the chests—the heavy hitters were up next!
[Opening Cain's Fate Chest…]
[Gained 5 Agility Attribute Points!]
[Gained 5 Constitution Attribute Points!]
[Gained 5 Spirit Attribute Points!]
[Gained Special Ability: Blood Moon Descent!]
[Blood Moon Descent: Alters the celestial environment, boosting dark creatures' attributes, enhancing negative energy, and weakening positive energy.]
A straightforward, brutal ability. This was likely one reason Iris was overpowered by Cain. For Roy, though, it wasn't a game-changer—his buff skills were already plentiful, and this one didn't break any caps.
Still, Cain's chest pushed Roy's Spirit attribute past 100, making it his third to hit that mark. Not bad.
[Opening Iris's Conquest Chest…]
[Gained 1 Spirit Attribute Point!]
[Gained 2 Will Attribute Points!]
[Gained Iris's Blindfold!]
Whoa! It actually dropped something good!
Roy hadn't expected Iris's chest to deliver, especially since Isabella's hadn't. The blindfold seemed like a functional item, like Niddy's black-rimmed glasses.
[Iris's Blindfold: Worn by Iris since childhood, it grants special visual effects when equipped.]
Roy took it from his inventory and put it on. His vision went black, as if he'd lost all sight.
But Eluresa's faint breathing appeared as clear ripples in his mind's eye.
Interesting—Iris's blindfold converted sound into vision.
Roy took it off, deciding it could be useful in specific situations. He'd keep it for now.
One last chest!
[Opening Uriel's Conquest Chest…]
[Gained 10 Memory Attribute Points!]
[Gained 10 Spirit Attribute Points!]
[Gained 10 Will Attribute Points!]
[Gained Genesis!]
Another item!
Roy had hoped for Uriel's God's Eye, which could foresee the future and glimpse the past. Instead, he got the book she always carried.
[Genesis: Written by God after creating the world, it holds the mysteries of creation. Only those with great wisdom can unlock its secrets.]
Roy pulled out Genesis. It was identical to Uriel's—a black-covered book.
But when he opened it, the pages were blank.
Roy: ???
What the hell? Why was it empty?
He tried activating his True Sight and Judgment Eye, but still saw nothing.
"System, this isn't a fake, is it?"
[System products are guaranteed authentic!]
"Then why can't I see anything?"
[The item cannot be used. You may not meet the usage requirements.]
Roy's face darkened. "System, are you saying I lack great wisdom?"
The system didn't respond. Instead, Eluresa stirred, woken by Roy's loud voice.
"Daddy, who are you talking to?" she mumbled, rubbing her eyes and sitting up, unbothered by her exposed figure.
Roy quickly pulled her back down. "Nothing, nothing! Just talking to myself. Go back to sleep, Eluresa."
"Mmm, but I wanna cuddle with Daddy!"
"Alright, fine."
Still fuming at the system, Roy had no choice but to snuggle with Eluresa and go back to sleep.
Damn system, you just wait!
(A still from Malèna.)