"Madison, Maria, Zoe, and Carrie, I know what you're thinking. After this little outing, you're headed back to that boring witch school, so you want to stretch the fun out a bit longer. But Jennifer and I have serious business to handle, and we can't keep messing around with you guys."
Hearing this, the four young witches of the Apocalypse Coven looked a bit down. Roy had hit the nail on the head—they were indeed dreading the return to their routine.
After all, at their age, the Apocalypse Coven witches weren't exactly deep thinkers. Most of their thoughts revolved around Roy anyway.
It had been months since the Silent Hill incident, and not seeing Roy in all that time had nearly driven the four of them up the wall.
Seeing their teary-eyed expressions, Roy let out a sigh.
"Alright, here's the deal. Once this mission's over, I'll hang out with you all for a few days. And from now on, I'll try to visit you in Boston a few days every month."
The moment he made those promises, Madison and Maria's faces lit up. They high-fived each other, looking like they'd just pulled off some grand scheme.
"Awesome!" they cheered in unison.
Zoe and Carrie, on the other hand, were stunned. The two more innocent girls had genuinely been upset, tears still clinging to their cheeks.
Now, seeing Madison and Maria's antics, they didn't know whether to cry or laugh.
Roy gave a helpless smile. He'd already clocked that Madison and Maria were putting on a bit of a show. Madison, a former child star, wasn't exactly an Oscar-worthy actress—her skills were decent, with flashes of brilliance in certain moments.
Maria, though? She was just dragging the performance down, her acting way too obvious.
Still, Roy did feel like he owed the Apocalypse Coven girls. After Silent Hill, it had been nearly three months—until late August—without seeing them.
That was kind of a jerk move on his part.
(Just kind of?)
"Alright, enough messing around. Get some rest. We've got an early start tomorrow for Ravensfall!"
At that, Madison rushed over and threw her arms around Roy.
"Then gimme a goodnight kiss first! Mwah!"
"Me too! Me too!"
Maria was right behind her, planting a kiss on Roy's lips, even slipping in a little tongue.
Zoe didn't say anything, but she blushed and stepped forward to give Roy a quick peck.
Carrie, though, hesitated, looking like she wanted a goodnight kiss too but was too shy to make a move.
No choice then—Roy took the initiative, stepping forward to give Carrie a sweet kiss that left her breathless.
"Alright, off to bed, you guys!"
"Mm!"
Carrie stumbled toward the bedroom, dazed, like she'd downed a shot of bad liquor.
Now, the living room was left with just Roy and Jennifer.
Jennifer was still smiling, completely unbothered by Roy's interactions with the Apocalypse Coven girls.
Roy stepped closer, gently touching her face.
"Jennifer, you're not mad?"
She shook her head with a smile.
"I get how they feel. Back in March, I was in the same boat."
In March, Roy had gone to Los Angeles for over a month, leaving Jennifer behind. She'd spent every day missing him, so she could relate to the Apocalypse Coven girls' mindset.
"Got it. Let's get some rest too, then."
Roy led Jennifer to the bedroom. Madison had booked a massive bed—big enough for six people without feeling cramped.
But the moment Roy stepped inside, Madison started stirring up trouble again. It wasn't until Carrie put her foot down that the bedroom finally settled into quiet.
As the suite fell silent, with only soft snores coming from the bedroom, a wooden puppet—Billy—left casually in the living room twitched.
Billy's eyes glowed faintly as it stiffly climbed off the sofa, stepping onto the plush carpet.
Like something possessed, the puppet moved toward the bedroom, the soft carpet muffling its steps completely.
Silently pushing open the bedroom door, Billy gazed at the six figures lying side by side on the bed. The decadent scene made the puppet's mouth open and close soundlessly, as if it wanted to say something.
But Billy stayed quiet. Instead, an old woman with white hair emerged from its mouth.
The old woman approached the bed, looming over the sleeping group, and reached her wicked hand toward Carrie, who was closest to the edge.
But just as her hand neared Carrie's face, another hand shot out, grabbing her wrist.
The old woman looked up—and met a pair of golden eyes.
"Well, isn't this interesting? I was planning to come find you, but you just waltzed right in!"
No mistake—the only one who could possess Billy was its creator, Mary Shaw.
Roy hadn't expected her to show up and hand herself over like this.
Mary Shaw tried to wrench her arm free, but an old woman's strength was no match for Roy's.
Desperate to escape, Mary Shaw's jaw dropped unnaturally wide, letting out a deafening scream.
"Aaah—"
The scream was so loud it echoed beyond the bedroom, likely waking the entire hotel.
It wasn't just any scream—it was a powerful spell.
Roy, taking the brunt of it, felt like his soul was being ripped from his body. It did shift slightly, but with his willpower stat at 80, his soul snapped back into place in an instant.
Carrie wasn't so lucky. Her willpower was lower, and being so close to Mary Shaw, her soul was torn out immediately.
Then, Carrie's eyes snapped open, glowing a menacing red. But Roy, focused on Mary Shaw, didn't notice.
"How?! My banshee wail didn't work on you?!"
Mary Shaw was horrified. If she'd known Roy was this strong, she never would've come looking for trouble. But it was too late.
"Mary Shaw, I don't mean you any harm!"
Roy needed her to craft a puppet body for Lilith, so he didn't go for the kill. He even let go of her wrist to show his sincerity.
"Who are you? Why do you want me?"
His gesture softened Mary Shaw's stance. She stepped back, picking up her beloved Billy, eyeing Roy warily.
"I heard you're the best puppeteer out there. I want you to make the most perfect—"
Before he could finish, a girl beside him—Carrie—suddenly lunged, biting down hard on his chest.
Her teeth couldn't pierce Roy's skin, but they clamped onto a sensitive spot, causing a sharp pain.
Pushing her back, Roy glared at her.
"Carrie, what the hell?!"
But Carrie's eyes were blood-red, her body twisting unnaturally. Bone spikes and wings sprouted—she was turning into a demon.
Why was Carrie losing control?
Didn't Iris give her an amulet to prevent demonic possession?
Scanning the room, Roy spotted a translucent, confused Carrie in the corner. It clicked.
Carrie's unique constitution made her a magnet for evil spirits or demons. After Silent Hill, Iris had seen potential in her and given her a protective amulet.
It worked against possession but couldn't stop her soul from being forced out.
Mary Shaw's banshee wail had done just that, causing Carrie's Sammael bloodline to go haywire without her soul to suppress it.
Worse, the amulet was keeping her soul from returning, leading to this mess.
The other girls on the bed stirred, groggy from the banshee wail, their souls unstable.
Jennifer, having undergone a bloodline fusion ritual, was in the best shape and could still speak.
"Roy, what's happening?"
"Carrie's in trouble!"
Before he could say more, the berserk Carrie bolted for the balcony window, trying to escape.
Roy shifted into his ghost wolf form, using its explosive speed to intercept her. He slammed her into the floor with a heavy strike.
It was a hard hit, but he had no choice.
Carrie, influenced by Sammael, had a terrifyingly strong body—stronger than Jennifer's in her normal state, and even more so now.
Luckily, Roy's stats still outclassed her, letting him handle her in this state.
No numbers here—just effort and sweat.
But then, Mary Shaw, at the other end of the room, bolted for the door, trying to slip away in the chaos.
"Don't go!"
Roy wanted to stop her, but Carrie scrambled up, ducked under him, and crashed through the balcony window, flying off.
Now Roy was stuck—chase Mary Shaw or go after Carrie?
Jennifer made the call.
"Roy, I'll handle Mary Shaw. You deal with Carrie!"
Carrie, with her demon king blood, was the bigger threat, so Roy was the best one to handle her.
Mary Shaw, per the Witch Council's records, wasn't an especially powerful witch in life. Even as a vengeful spirit, she couldn't be harder to deal with than a berserk Carrie.
Jennifer, a witch herself with Lilith's essence inside her, could manage as long as she played it smart.
"Be careful!"
"You too!"
Roy leaped out the balcony window, while Jennifer raced toward the suite's open door. The bedroom was left with the three Apocalypse Coven girls, just coming to their senses.
"What the heck just happened?"
Zoe looked at Madison and Maria, totally lost.
Everything had happened so fast that the three young witches were still piecing it together as Roy, Jennifer, and Carrie vanished.
"I saw Carrie's soul—she must've been forced out of her body by that scream! We need to get her soul out of the hotel. I hear footsteps!"
Maria was the calmest, her quick thinking kicking in as she assessed the situation.
The footsteps were real. Hotel security wasn't deaf—after that commotion, they were definitely coming, and the police might already be on their way.
Madison nodded.
"Let's jump out the window!"
Going through the suite's door risked running into security. The window was the safer bet.
With Madison's growing mastery of telekinesis, she could easily lower all three of them to the ground.
But when they landed, they were greeted by a fleet of armored vehicles outside the hotel.
What the hell? Where'd all these come from?
The three were stunned.
Then Madison spotted the logo on the vehicles—FEAR.
Witches often crossed paths with FEAR, and with Roy being a FEAR agent, they knew the organization well.
The FEAR team seemed ready for them, opening fire the moment the three witches hit the ground.
Madison reacted fast, using her telekinesis to shield them from the hail of bullets.
"Stop! We're with the Witch Council!"
After everything she'd been through, Madison had matured. Otherwise, she'd have already flipped those vehicles and crushed the FEAR agents, like she'd done to gang members in Boston.
"Cease fire! Cease fire now!"
The field commander heard Madison's shout and ordered a halt.
Killing Witch Council members was a liability he couldn't afford. The Council might be weakened, but it still outranked him.
But then, a hand gripped the commander's shoulder from behind. His mind went foggy, and he barked a contradictory order.
"Keep firing! Take them out!"
The FEAR agents, confused by the sudden reversal, followed orders and resumed shooting.
Madison, who'd let her guard down at the ceasefire, wasn't ready when the gunfire started again. She struggled to raise her telekinetic shield in time.
"Watch out!"
Maria shoved Zoe aside but took several bullets herself.
"Maria!"
Furious at her friend's injury, Madison telekinetically hurled a nearby armored vehicle, crushing a dozen FEAR agents in an instant.
No orders needed—other FEAR agents retaliated with a barrage of gunfire.
"Zoe, get Maria inside and heal her!"
Zoe knew some healing magic and could stabilize Maria. Madison kept up her telekinetic field to cover them.
But FEAR was escalating, bringing out heavy weapons.
Maria…
(End of Chapter)