119-121

Chapter 119: Online Friend 

After spending the whole afternoon playing around, Roy finally took Heather and Penny to UCLA as evening approached. 

Alan Berg and Mary Hill were still the ones who greeted Roy. They were both very surprised when they saw Heather and Penny. 

"Mr. Black, who are these ladies?" 

"My friends." 

Alan and Mary were both a bit speechless. Judging by Heather and Penny's attitude, it was clear their relationship with Roy was more than just ordinary. 

This made Mary have a deeper understanding of Roy's flirtatious nature. 

"Alright, Mr. Black, I have no intention of prying into your personal life, but for boxers, protecting the core muscles is very important." 

Although Alan's words were quite tactful, all three girls present understood what he meant. 

"You can rest assured about that. My core muscles are in great shape." 

Roy spread his hands out, leaving Alan feeling very helpless. As an experienced coach, it was difficult for him to accept an unruly boxer like Roy. 

"Okay, then let's talk about the Santa Monica Cup. This tournament is mainly held in the evening. During the qualifying rounds, five rings will be set up by the pier, and a bunch of amateur boxers will gather there. As long as you win three matches in front of any referee, you'll qualify for the preliminary rounds." 

Roy found this kind of competition format quite novel. 

"So, when does the competition start?" 

"Eight o'clock. There's still some time. Let me first check your physical condition." 

After a professional equipment check, Alan confirmed that Roy's physical condition was indeed perfect. This was the result even after Roy had held back some of his strength. He was actually a bit worried that if he performed too abnormally, he might scare Alan to death. 

After the check-up, Alan took Roy and the girls to the pier area of Santa Monica Beach. 

The Santa Monica Cup competition attracted a large number of tourists, turning the pier area into something like a night market. 

Roy figured that the organizers of the Santa Monica Cup could probably cover their expenses just from the stall rental fees. 

However, the amateur boxers who came to participate were indeed quite amateur. Roy saw several pot-bellied middle-aged men signing up. 

"Are these my opponents?" 

Alan answered Roy's question. 

"Right now it's the qualifying rounds, so there will be a lot of people just joining in for fun. Once we get to the preliminary rounds, those kinds of people will basically be gone. When it comes to the elimination rounds, you'll be facing amateur boxers from universities." 

According to the rules, once a boxer enters the professional boxing world, they are no longer allowed to compete in amateur boxing matches. 

This has led to amateur boxers in America mainly being university students, and even the Olympics features university student boxers. 

And the $100,000 prize money for the Santa Monica Cup champion is still quite attractive to university students. By then, all the good university boxers from around California will show up. 

Including that black boxer Roy fought before, nicknamed "The Anvil" Bruce Eck, he will also participate in this tournament. 

"There are still a few minutes left, Mr. Black. Why don't you warm up first? The qualifying rounds don't have that many procedures. Basically, after weighing in, you can go up to the ring." 

At eight o'clock in the evening, the pier on Santa Monica Beach was brightly lit, and more and more tourists gathered. 

Boxing is a very popular sport in America, so there were quite a few people who came to watch the matches. 

After completing the weigh-in, Roy stepped onto the heavyweight boxer's ring for his first qualifying match. 

His opponent was a middle-aged man who clearly just came for fun. His body fat percentage was severely above average, and his guard was very loose. It was estimated that he hadn't even received any boxing training and was just a pure amateur boxing enthusiast. 

However, the referee was quite professional. Amidst the cheering crowd, he explained the rules and prohibitions before announcing the start of the match. 

Since his opponent was just an amateur enthusiast, Roy didn't plan to hit too hard. With a V-shaped feint and a single punch, he knocked him down. 

This instantly caused the audience to cheer. The most attractive thing about boxing matches is always the knockout. 

Compared to the clumsy fights on the other rings, Roy's match was simply too beautiful. 

Heather and Penny proudly introduced Roy to the people around them. 

"He's the Grim Reaper Roy Black from Oak High School in Waterfall Town!" 

After the referee announced Roy's knockout victory, he asked if Roy wanted to continue fighting. Upon receiving confirmation, he quickly arranged the second opponent. 

This was also an amateur enthusiast, but since he dared to step into the ring, he was a bit more professional than the first opponent. 

At least his physique was well-maintained, and his boxing stance looked quite decent. 

The referee announced the start of the match again, and then Roy's opponent retreated in a defensive posture, seemingly wanting to play a hit-and-run game with Roy. 

This guy's strategy wasn't wrong, but unfortunately, he chose the wrong opponent. 

Roy directly landed a heavy blow that broke through his opponent's guard, immediately followed by a punch to the chin, sending him into a nice sleep. 

The referee announced Roy's knockout victory once again. 

With two consecutive quick knockouts, Roy's ring successfully attracted the attention of most of the audience. 

At the same time, Roy's nickname, the Grim Reaper, began to spread on a small scale. 

"Mr. Black, are you sure you want to continue with the third qualifying match?" 

"I'm sure." 

Roy's performance made some amateur participants feel scared. Although they were originally just there for fun, they didn't want to get beaten up for no reason. 

That would be a really bad gaming experience. 

So, Roy stood in the ring for five minutes before his third opponent appeared. 

This opponent looked like a college boxer, with a very standard physique. 

At this time, the audience who had come to see him had already surrounded Roy's ring, wanting to watch his next performance. 

Some people even started shouting Roy's nickname. 

The referee announced the start of the match for the third time, and Roy began his real performance. 

Roy simply dropped his guard, leaving his center wide open, signaling his opponent to attack him. 

This act of contempt immediately enraged his opponent, who then began to frantically attack Roy. 

Then, a scene that the audience in Austin had once seen was repeated on Santa Monica Beach in Los Angeles. 

His opponent threw punches wildly but didn't land a single one, while Roy casually dodged every attack. 

This scene was extremely entertaining, and the audience at the venue went wild. 

But for Roy's opponent, this was the most hopeless situation. 

Towards the end, this person had clearly lost the will to fight. 

Roy ended the match just as the first round was about to end. 

At this moment, the entire audience began to call out Roy's nickname. He had become a superstar on Santa Monica Beach. 

"Well done, Mr. Black! You've got your ticket to the preliminary rounds. You have a week to rest!" 

Alan was very satisfied with Roy's performance. 

"Rest? Those three matches just now weren't even a warm-up for me!" 

With that, Roy put his arms around Heather and Penny's shoulders, one on each side, and strode away. 

And Mary's gaze towards Roy also changed slightly. 

There was still a week before the preliminary rounds of the Santa Monica Cup, and Roy naturally wouldn't just sit around and wait. 

However, after spending a few days shopping around Los Angeles with Heather and Penny, Roy started to get a bit tired of it. 

Could someone please tell Roy why women have such good stamina when it comes to shopping? 

They usually feel tired after walking just a few steps, but when they're shopping, Heather and Penny seemed to have two full stamina bars, leaving Roy, with his 45 points in constitution, completely speechless. 

So, in the following days, Roy stayed in the hotel and didn't go out. Playing with his laptop in the suite was also quite nice. 

Roy got Mary and Sultana's MSN numbers and chatted with them on MSN. 

This feeling was quite good, reminding Roy of the time in his previous life when he had online romances using QQ. 

During the midnight movie incident, Sultana saw Roy with Heather and Penny and seemed a bit unhappy. 

After that, she didn't pay much attention to Roy and even refused to answer his calls. 

Fortunately, she was still willing to reply to his MSN messages. So, Roy relied on internet slang and memes from his later life to successfully cheer Sultana up, and she finally agreed to answer his calls again. 

"Hello, what's up now?" 

"Nothing much, just wanted to chat with you." 

"Hmmph, it's rare to have no bad news today." 

Next, Roy started operating on two fronts, flirting with Sultana on the phone while also chatting flirtatiously with Mary on MSN. 

However, Mary went offline after a while, probably because she had class. 

Not having mobile communication software was quite inconvenient. After all, you couldn't carry a computer around with you, but you could carry a phone. 

Luckily, Sultana didn't hang up the phone. 

"You said you'd be participating in an amateur boxing match in Los Angeles? Is it the Santa Monica Cup?" 

"Yeah, do you know about this competition? Because of it, I'll be staying in Los Angeles for a few more days." 

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone. Sultana seemed to be thinking. 

Roy looked at the MSN interface with nothing to do. Suddenly, a friend request caught his attention. 

Normally, Roy would definitely ignore such friend requests from strangers, but the other person's profile picture was a bit special. It was a photo of a body with the lower part of the breasts exposed, seemingly a selfie. 

This photo clearly showed the curves of the body, allowing one to see the perfect waistline and abdominal muscles. The slightly exposed lower part of the breasts added even more allure. 

Roy couldn't help but click on the other person's information. The gender was listed as female. 

In this era, there probably weren't those kinds of hairy men pretending to be girls online with female avatars to scam people, right? 

Roy, on a whim, accepted the friend request from this user whose online name was "Succubus" (魅魔). 

At this moment, Sultana on the phone spoke again, and Roy's attention immediately returned to the call. 

"Roy, when is your next match?" 

"Next Saturday and Sunday, I have two preliminary matches. Do you want to come and watch?" 

"We'll see then. I can't say for sure." 

Although Sultana said that, Roy was certain she would come to watch the match. 

This older sister's personality was just like that. To describe it in one word, she was a bit tsundere, liking to say one thing and mean another. 

"Okay, with Sister Sultana cheering me on, I'm sure I'll perform even better!" 

"Hmph, I'm afraid I won't be the only one cheering you on then!" 

Roy smiled. This wasn't a question he could easily answer. 

Just at this moment, the suite door was pushed open. It turned out that Heather and Penny had finished shopping and returned with large and small bags. 

"Sister Sultana, I really hope to see you on the day of the competition! But I have to hang up now." 

"...See you then!" 

Sultana finally gave her promise. 

Roy hung up the phone and closed his laptop screen. He didn't notice that the MSN friend he had just added had sent him a message. 

"Heather, Penny, you're back? What did you guys buy today?" 

"Roy, we bought you some new clothes!" 

Then, Heather and Penny enthusiastically started trying out new clothes on Roy. 

In terms of clothing, since he was from the future, Roy's fashion sense was quite trendy. However, he had always lived in Waterfall Town and only occasionally went to Austin, so he didn't have much access to fashionable brands. 

Although Austin was the capital of Texas, its economy was actually not as strong as Dallas or Houston. 

But Roy's physique was naturally a clothes hanger. No matter how Heather and Penny dressed him up, he looked so handsome that they couldn't help but be smitten. 

There were bound to be some physical contact while changing clothes. 

Feeling bored, Roy first turned on the TV and watched the late-night talk show "Night Owls" that he had seen when he first arrived at the Dolphin Hotel. 

Roy quite liked this show. The host, Jack, had a lot of tricks up his sleeve. 

Roy also opened his laptop to see if Mary had replied to his messages. 

However, there was no response from Mary, but there was a message from the new online friend he had added in the afternoon, Succubus. 

Succubus: Are you there? 

Succubus: My name is Adela, nice to meet you! 

This netizen actually gave her name directly. 

However, this seemed to be quite common in the early days of internet social networking. At this time, netizens were still relatively innocent. It wouldn't be until a few years later, when more and more scammers appeared, that people's vigilance would increase. 

Diablo (Roy's online name): Hello, nice to meet you too! 

This online name was taken from the name of the final boss in Diablo. Roy liked this game a lot, and Diablo's title was the Lord of Terror, which was exactly his goal. 

As soon as Roy sent the message, the other side replied immediately, as if this Adela had been waiting in front of the computer for his reply. 

It was a bit like the feeling Roy had when he first started using QQ in his previous life, being particularly happy when a stranger replied to his message. 

Succubus: You finally replied to my message, I'm so happy! 

Huh, she really seemed like someone who had just started surfing the internet. This piqued Roy's interest. 

Chatting with such newbies was the most interesting. 

Diablo: Are you a girl? 

Succubus: Yes! The profile picture is my photo! 

It was actually a selfie! 

Diablo: But I don't quite believe it. Do you have any better proof? 

Succubus paused for a while, and then sent a new picture through MSN. 

It was another very alluring selfie. A woman was lifting her top, and on the faintly visible lower part of her breast, the six letters "Diablo" were written in lipstick. 

This was exactly the English spelling of Diablo. 

It was real again? 

Were netizens in this era so honest? 

However, Roy liked this kind of honest netizen. People should be more sincere with each other. 

Especially in front of a gentleman like himself! 

Succubus: What about you? Can you let me see what you look like? 

Chapter 120: The Jester 

So, Roy followed suit, lifting his shirt and using a marker to write "Succubus" on his abs – that's the English spelling for succubus. 

After taking a picture, he uploaded it to his laptop and sent it to Succubus. 

Succubus: Oh my god, you have an amazing body! 

Diablo: You too. 

Succubus: I really want to meet you! 

Diablo: I think there will be a chance. 

Roy was just chatting with online friends when he was bored and didn't really intend to meet any of his female online friends in person. 

However, this online friend called Succubus seemed to be serious. 

Succubus: I'm really looking forward to that day! 

It's a shame that video chat technology wasn't very mature in this era, otherwise Roy would have liked to video chat with this online friend. 

Roy didn't continue chatting with Succubus because he saw that Needy was online on MSN. 

This person was a serious internet addict, especially fond of surfing the web late at night, which resulted in her often yawning and being listless in the morning. 

Needy shared some recent interesting happenings at Oak High School with Roy, such as Wade starting to fawn over Carly Jones again, which led to quite a few jokes. 

Also, the school's auditorium had already started reconstruction, and if everything went smoothly, Roy and his classmates' graduation ceremony could be held in the new auditorium. 

After chatting affectionately with Needy for a while, Roy turned off his laptop and picked up his phone to send text messages. 

It was time to test his time management skills again. Roy sent text messages to Saltana and Elena respectively, and then sent messages to Jennifer and Elizabeth, aiming for equal attention for everyone. 

After finishing his time management, Roy remembered that he seemed to have two unopened fate chests, so he decided to open them now. 

Whether it was Willie the Weasel or the Pig Head Mask Killer, their strength was pretty average. The Pig Head Mask Killer's special evil spirit space ability was somewhat interesting, but that seemed to be an ability only evil spirits could use. 

So, Roy didn't really care what he would get from these two fate chests. He didn't even do the necessary cat-stroking ritual before opening them directly. 

[Opening Willie's Fate Chest...] 

[Gained 1 point of Strength!] 

[Gained 1 point of Agility!] 

[Opening the Pig Man's Fate Chest...] 

[Gained 1 point of Strength!] 

[Gained 1 point of Constitution!] 

Well, as expected, he got some physical attribute points. Better than nothing, I guess. 

Now, the rewards from the fate chests of typical horror movie villains were getting fewer and fewer, but thankfully there was still a guaranteed minimum. 

Fate chests could at least open two items, and most of the time they were attribute points, which could add up over time. 

After opening the chests, Roy turned his attention back to the TV. 

The host, Jack, was chatting with Max, the guest dressed as a priest from last time, about recent popular urban legends in Los Angeles. 

"Pastor Max, I wonder if you've ever heard of a legend called Slender Man?" 

Max laughed heartily. 

"I know that one, you can't fool me! It's a fictional legend that originated online. In reality, there's no such monster as Slender Man!" 

Jack slapped his leg. 

"I didn't expect you to be such an internet surfer, Pastor Max!" 

Max shrugged. 

"Although I have a big beard and look old, I'm actually a young man under thirty." 

The audience in the studio burst into laughter. 

"Okay, you still saw through me! But just a heads-up, I'm not old either, I'm the same age as you." 

The audience in the studio booed. 

"Hey, you guys are really not giving me any face!" 

The audience in the studio laughed again. 

"Alright, young Pastor Max, so do you have any urban legends to tell us?" 

"Oh yes, I do know some terrifying horror legends, like, for example, when taking the last subway train, you must never fall asleep, otherwise the subway will take you to a non-existent station." 

Max's words caused a slight murmur in the studio audience. 

"I think I've heard this urban legend before, but I can't remember where I heard it. It's really interesting! I think the audience here today must have heard of it too, right?" 

Let alone the audience, even Roy knew this urban legend. It seemed like there were similar urban legends all over the world, and America was no exception. 

A relatively famous one is Japan's Kisaragi Station, and there are quite a few movies and games based on the story of Kisaragi Station. 

"Okay, since Pastor Max has thrown out a teaser, I'll also tell a real urban legend. If you wander the streets late at night on Halloween, you might see a clown in a yellow suit and a top hat..." 

The host, Jack, was undoubtedly a master storyteller. As soon as he started telling the urban legend, everyone's attention was hooked. 

"...This clown will pull people aside to perform magic tricks. Pay attention! When the clown finishes the magic trick and bows in thanks, you must praise him!" 

"What happens if you don't praise him?" 

Pastor Max temporarily played the role of the straight man, asking the question everyone was interested in. 

"Hehe, if you don't praise him, he will continue to perform magic tricks until you do! However, the magic tricks he performs will become increasingly dangerous, even turning into true 'devil's art'!" 

Jack's urban legend successfully stirred up the emotions of all the viewers, and the studio was silent for a moment. 

However, Jack's ability to control the atmosphere was quite good, and he brought the mood back with a single sentence. 

"But as long as you don't wander around late at night on Halloween, you won't encounter him. Besides, it's always a good habit to encourage other people's performances." 

Max clapped his hands. 

"Yes, Jack is absolutely right." 

Next, Max told another urban legend about the world in the mirror, but Roy was a little hungry at this point, so he didn't continue watching TV. 

He glanced at the bedroom. Heather and Penny were cuddling together and fast asleep, showing no signs of waking up. Roy decided to go out for a late-night snack by himself. 

The Dolphin Hotel didn't have a 24-hour restaurant, but luckily it was near Santa Monica Beach, so KFC and McDonald's were readily available. 

These kinds of American fast-food restaurants are usually open 24 hours. 

Roy asked the hotel staff for directions to the nearest American fast-food restaurant and left the Dolphin Hotel. 

Santa Monica Beach in March was still a bit chilly at midnight, so there were hardly any night swimmers. He only saw a few people camping and barbecuing on the beach. 

It would be different in the summer. Santa Monica Beach in July and August is as lively at night as it is during the day. 

After having a late-night snack at McDonald's, Roy also brought some food back, just in case Heather and Penny got hungry in the middle of the night. 

The way back seemed particularly quiet. Suddenly, Roy saw a strange figure blocking the road ahead. 

Black top hat, white clown mask, yellow suit, and a hooked cane in hand, leaning against a streetlight in a completely detached manner. 

What a coincidence? 

Roy had just heard the host Jack from "Night Owl" talk about such an urban legend, and now he encountered it? 

And it wasn't even Halloween today! 

Just as Roy was feeling surprised, a woman walked past him. 

This woman seemed to have just finished her night shift. Her tired posture as she walked away was evident. She didn't pay attention to the somewhat strange clown ahead and continued forward. 

The yellow-suited clown gestured to stop the woman, indicating that he wanted to perform a magic trick for her. 

The woman was a bit helpless. This kind of street performance was actually quite common in America. Many artists relied on these performances to make a living. 

Although it was rare to see street performers doing their thing in the middle of the night. 

Unfortunately, the woman had just finished her night shift and was very tired. She had no interest in watching a street performance. 

"Excuse me, sir! I'm in a hurry to get home. My daughter is waiting for me!" 

However, the woman's words didn't make the yellow-suited clown move out of the way. He took out a deck of cards, insisting on performing a magic trick. 

The woman was very helpless and had no choice but to cooperate with the yellow-suited clown's performance, picking a card from the top of the deck. 

It turned out to be a Joker, and the pattern on the card was exactly the same as the yellow-suited clown in front of her. 

If the yellow-suited clown hadn't deliberately let the woman draw this card, then she was indeed lucky, as the yellow-suited clown had just shuffled the deck. 

Of course, whether encountering the yellow-suited clown was good luck was debatable. 

The yellow-suited clown took back the Joker, then inserted it back into the middle of the deck, handing the entire deck to the woman, indicating for her to shuffle. 

At this point, the woman had roughly guessed what magic trick the yellow-suited clown wanted to perform. This kind of card-changing trick was quite common both on the street and on television. 

Rolling her eyes, the woman still reluctantly cut the cards a few times and handed them back to the yellow-suited clown. 

The yellow-suited clown held the deck in his palm, snapped his fingers, and then blew on the deck, gesturing for the woman to turn over the top card. 

The woman did as he asked. 

Unsurprisingly, this card was the Joker she had drawn earlier. 

The performance ended here. The yellow-suited clown made a stage bow, but the woman wasn't impressed. 

"Can I go now?" 

With that, the woman walked past the yellow-suited clown, but after only a few steps, she found the yellow-suited clown had once again appeared in front of her, blocking her path. 

This situation startled the woman. She looked back in disbelief, repeatedly trying to figure out how this yellow-suited clown had suddenly appeared in front of her. 

At this moment, the woman noticed Roy in the distance, leisurely eating fries. 

The woman began to suspect this was some kind of prank, and her mood couldn't help but worsen. 

"Have you had enough? If you block me again, I'm calling the police!" 

She issued a final warning, but the yellow-suited clown remained deaf to her words and suddenly pulled out a folding knife. 

This action frightened the woman. After all, this was the land of the free, and encountering a robbery on the street was something every American might experience. 

The woman reached into her shoulder bag, taking several steps back. 

"W-what do you want?" 

However, the yellow-suited clown gestured for the woman not to be nervous, then rolled up his sleeve and used the folding knife to cut a gash on his arm. 

This was too scary. The yellow-suited clown was so ruthless to himself, the woman didn't dare to imagine what he would do to others. 

But the yellow-suited clown's wound was very strange. The blood flowed very slowly, and its color was particularly dark. 

The yellow-suited clown picked up the Joker that the woman had just drawn, wiped the blood from his wound onto it, and showed it to her – a bloodstained Joker. 

Immediately after, the yellow-suited clown put the Joker back into the deck and started shuffling. After a few shuffles, he suddenly threw the deck of cards into the air. 

As the cards scattered, the yellow-suited clown snapped his fingers towards the woman's shoulder bag, finally gesturing for the woman to take something out of her bag. 

The woman's expression changed. The pepper spray she had been holding in her hand suddenly disappeared, replaced by a playing card. 

Taking out the card to look, it was indeed the Joker stained with the yellow-suited clown's blood. 

This couldn't even be considered magic anymore; this was simply magic! 

The woman was terrified and retreated repeatedly. 

"This... this isn't funny at all!" 

The woman turned to run towards Roy, but she stumbled and fell to the ground as soon as she took a step. Looking back, she realized her shoelaces had somehow been tied together. 

This was truly terrifying! 

The woman cried out for help to Roy in the distance in horror. 

"Sir, please help me!" 

It was at this moment that Roy clearly saw the woman's face. Wasn't that Jennifer Connelly? 

Because of Jennifer Connelly's performance in Once Upon a Time in America, Roy had a deep impression of her and had watched several of her movies afterwards. 

However, this female star's looks deteriorated somewhat later in her career. Fortunately, this Jennifer Connelly in front of him, although not from her peak beauty period in Once Upon a Time in America, still had the appearance of her early mature years. 

It should be Jennifer Connelly from the American remake of Dark Water, the only horror movie she had ever filmed. 

Roy hadn't planned to stand idly by in the first place. He just wanted to observe what kind of character this yellow-suited clown was. After seeing Jennifer Connelly fall, he definitely couldn't continue to stand by and watch. 

"Hey, buddy! Treating a beautiful lady like that isn't very gentlemanly!" 

Roy's sudden words surprised the yellow-suited clown. The guy tilted his head slightly to look at Roy. 

The yellow-suited clown hadn't said a word from beginning to end, only performing actions. 

It was unclear whether this was to fit the clown persona or if the guy simply couldn't speak. 

"Coincidentally, I'm also a magician. How about we have a little competition?" 

Roy walked forward and helped the fallen woman up. 

[Discovered special character Dahlia O'Connor. You can absorb the Power of Fate to gain rewards!] 

"Madam, what's your name?" 

"D-Dahlia O'Connor." 

"Alright, Ms. O'Connor, could you please hold my bag for a moment? I'm going to have a little magic showdown with this gentleman here." 

Dahlia grabbed Roy in fear. 

"Sir, there's something wrong with this guy!" 

Roy certainly knew there was something wrong with this yellow-suited clown. Although he was far away just now, with his current eyesight, he could clearly see the entire process of the yellow-suited clown's magic trick. 

"Don't worry, Ms. O'Connor. I'll definitely make sure you get home safely to see your daughter tonight." 

Roy reassured Dahlia, then faced the yellow-suited clown directly. 

"So, buddy? Want to have a little contest?" 

The yellow-suited clown made a thinking gesture, then nodded and tipped his hat to Roy, indicating that he should start performing first. 

"And now, the moment you've all been waiting for!" 

[Picture of a scene] 

Chapter 121: The Moment to Witness a Miracle 

Can Roy do magic? Of course not! 

But Roy has an inventory! 

Picking up the bloodstained ace of spades that Dahlia had dropped on the ground, Roy rolled his sleeves up to his elbows and began his performance. 

"Now, it's time to witness a miracle!" 

With a flick of his wrist, the bloodstained ace of spades vanished. 

This performance stunned Dahlia, and the Yellow-Clothed Clown watched Roy in silence. 

Magic shows can actually be called sleight of hand. The most important thing in such a performance is to divert the audience's attention. 

During the performance, all the magician's words and visible actions are solely for this purpose. 

But Roy's action just now was very simple, just a light shake, and his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, leaving no place to hide anything. 

The Yellow-Clothed Clown scratched his head and then pointed to the pocket on Roy's shirt chest. 

"No, it's not here. You can feel for yourself." 

The Yellow-Clothed Clown actually reached out and felt Roy's chest pocket. There was nothing there. 

So, the Yellow-Clothed Clown couldn't help but applaud. 

"Now it's your turn." 

The Yellow-Clothed Clown held out his hands, showing off his somewhat dirty white gloves, and then suddenly clapped his hands together. When he separated them, he pulled out a piece of hemp rope about the thickness of a finger. 

The performance wasn't over yet. The Yellow-Clothed Clown gestured for Roy to hold the rope, then took out the folding knife from before and cut the rope in front of Roy. 

Finally, the Yellow-Clothed Clown took the rope back, rubbed it in his palm, and it became the complete rope from before. 

After the performance, the Yellow-Clothed Clown even took a bow. 

To be honest, if this performance were in a theater, Dahlia would definitely applaud and cheer, but now she only felt fear. 

If Roy wasn't standing beside her, Dahlia wouldn't have been able to hold on. 

Roy calmly watched the Yellow-Clothed Clown's performance and gave his assessment. 

"Is that all?" 

The Yellow-Clothed Clown paused. Although he didn't say anything, Dahlia could tell that he was very angry. 

This made Dahlia couldn't help but tug on the corner of Roy's shirt, wanting to stop him from courting death. 

Roy turned his head and signaled Dahlia not to worry, that he had everything under control. 

The Yellow-Clothed Clown gestured again for Roy to perform, it seemed that this guy's competitive spirit had also been aroused. 

"Next up is another moment to witness a miracle!" 

Roy took a Big Mac out of the bag, waved it in front of the Yellow-Clothed Clown, and then with a flick of his wrist, the Big Mac disappeared. 

This scene was much more impressive than just making a playing card disappear. After all, a playing card is just a thin piece of paper, while the Big Mac was about the size of Roy's fist. 

Immediately afterward, Roy reached behind the Yellow-Clothed Clown's head. When he brought his hand back, the Big Mac reappeared in his hand. 

This time, not only Dahlia was stunned, but even the Yellow-Clothed Clown was dumbfounded. 

"How about that?" 

The Yellow-Clothed Clown realized that if he didn't get serious, he was going to lose. So, he first took off his top hat and bowed to Roy, then began his next performance. 

He took out that folding knife again. This time, the Yellow-Clothed Clown pointed the folding knife at his own neck and forcefully cut down. 

Blood spurted out on the spot! 

Fortunately, after Roy noticed that the Yellow-Clothed Clown's movements were a bit off, he immediately pulled Dahlia back several steps, which prevented them from being splashed by the gushing blood. 

The Yellow-Clothed Clown was also a ruthless character, actually sawing off his own head with the knife. 

Holding his head in his hands, the Yellow-Clothed Clown made a gesture of thanks. 

This gruesome act was indeed impressive, and Dahlia almost fainted. 

This time, Roy really had nothing to say. He couldn't pull off such a brutal trick either, but it confirmed to him that the Yellow-Clothed Clown was not human. 

If he wasn't a corporeal evil spirit, then he was a demon. 

"Not bad, not bad! That was indeed beautiful!" 

After Roy clapped his hands once, he suddenly raised his leg and kicked the head in the Yellow-Clothed Clown's hands. 

With a strength of 35, the Yellow-Clothed Clown didn't defend at all, allowing Roy to kick a world-class shot, sending his head flying hundreds of meters away. 

Dahlia, standing to the side, stared dumbfounded at Roy's outrageous move, completely stunned. 

The Yellow-Clothed Clown, after a moment of愣住, was also very angry. He picked up his hooked cane and swung it at Roy. 

Roy took out the Cursed Hair from his inventory and used it as a weapon to block the hooked cane. However, the Yellow-Clothed Clown didn't stop attacking. His other hand reached out towards Roy, trying to grab him. 

This guy's abilities were very strange. Roy naturally wouldn't let him touch him. But when he tried to step aside to dodge, his feet were bound by something, preventing him from moving. 

Alright, so that's how we're playing this? 

Roy also used the Cursed Hair to entangle the Yellow-Clothed Clown's outstretched hand, and then wrapped this hand together with the hand holding the hooked cane. 

Then came a fierce headbutt, knocking the Yellow-Clothed Clown backward. 

It could be seen that the Yellow-Clothed Clown's physical fitness was quite good. An ordinary person would definitely have been knocked down directly by Roy's headbutt, but the Yellow-Clothed Clown only took a few steps back. 

Roy quickly retrieved the Cursed Twin Daggers from Heather and Penny and then cut the rope on his feet. 

At this moment, Roy heard some crisp metallic sounds. He looked up and saw the clown's fingers twirling a silver bracelet. In the blink of an eye, the silver bracelet disappeared. 

Immediately following a click, Roy's hands were cuffed with the silver bracelet. 

Encountering this inexplicable situation for the second time made Roy frown slightly. 

The Yellow-Clothed Clown's physical fitness wasn't as good as Roy's, and his fighting skills weren't particularly impressive either, but these weird abilities of his were making things difficult for Roy. 

Roy decided not to rush to break free from the handcuffs. He wanted to see what this Yellow-Clothed Clown really was. 

"Who exactly are you?" 

The Yellow-Clothed Clown still didn't speak, but his head had somehow rolled back. So, this guy bent down, picked up his head, and reattached it to his neck. 

Like twisting a cork, the Yellow-Clothed Clown held his head and twisted it a few times. Then his head was fixed in place. Apart from a faint bloodstain on his neck, you couldn't tell that his head had been detached. 

Then, the Yellow-Clothed Clown took off the somewhat terrifying white clown mask, revealing his true appearance. 

Underneath the mask was a dark void. It turned out that the Yellow-Clothed Clown had no face at all! 

Seeing this scene, Dahlia fell into intense fear. Her body trembled violently, as if she were having a seizure. 

At the same time, Dahlia's eyes rolled back, blood started flowing from one nostril, and white foam was coming out of the corner of her mouth. It seemed she was about to be scared to death by the Yellow-Clothed Clown. 

Roy quickly knocked Dahlia unconscious to prevent her from actually dying of fright. 

Actually, Roy wasn't in great shape either. His head felt like it had been hit hard with a large iron hammer. 

However, his willpower of 39 allowed Roy to withstand it. Then he quickly entered his Son of the Devil state. 

Relying on the invisible fear emanating from his Son of the Devil form, Roy finally broke free from that strange state. 

With a slight exertion of force, the silver bracelet was easily snapped. Roy took out the Chainsaw Sword from his inventory to have a good fight with the Yellow-Clothed Clown. 

But at this moment, the Yellow-Clothed Clown suddenly snapped his fingers, and then he disappeared. 

Roy looked around curiously. The Yellow-Clothed Clown was indeed gone, as if he had never appeared. 

If it weren't for the playing cards scattered on the ground proving that something had happened, Roy would have really thought he was under a hallucination. 

Roy stayed in his Son of the Devil state for a full five minutes, confirming that the Yellow-Clothed Clown was really gone before exiting the form. 

What exactly was that guy? 

What was certain was that the Yellow-Clothed Clown's abilities didn't belong to either Heaven or Hell. 

After thinking for a while without finding an answer, Roy stopped dwelling on it and picked up Dahlia, heading towards the Dolphin Hotel. 

The Chevrolet Camaro was parked in front of the hotel. Roy planned to put Dahlia in the car and then take her home. 

"Ms. O'Connor, wake up!" 

Dahlia suddenly opened her eyes and found herself sitting in an unfamiliar car. She instinctively began to struggle, and then she saw Roy's face. 

"It's you. How did I get here?" 

"Ms. O'Connor, don't you remember anything?" 

Dahlia frowned and tried to recall. 

"That's strange, I can't remember how I fainted at all, but I remember you!" 

Roy raised an eyebrow. Dahlia's memories related to the Yellow-Clothed Clown seemed to have disappeared. Could this also be that guy's ability? 

"Forgive me for speaking frankly, but you might have fainted on the road due to overwork and poor health." 

Roy had just briefly checked Dahlia's physical condition. She had mild malnutrition and signs of overwork. 

"Maybe so, thank you, sir! May I ask what your name is?" 

"My name is Roy Black. Ms. O'Connor, where do you live? Let me take you home." 

Dahlia quickly refused. 

"No need, I can take the subway home." 

"I'm afraid that won't work. It's already past 12 o'clock, and the last subway should have already left." 

Dahlia took out her phone and glanced at it. Sure enough, she found that the time was approaching 1 o'clock, which made her a little anxious. 

"Alright, Mr. Black, then I'll have to trouble you!" 

Dahlia's home was in an old apartment building in the city center. It was already past 1 o'clock when Roy dropped her off at her door. 

"Thank you, Mr. Black!" 

Dahlia opened the car door, said her thanks, and was about to leave. 

"Wait!" 

Roy took out some food from the McDonald's he had bought earlier and handed it to Dahlia. 

"I can't finish all my late-night snack. I'll share some with you." 

Dahlia was very touched by Roy's kindness, but she was also very proud and didn't want to accept food from strangers casually, even though she was indeed a bit hungry now. 

It wasn't easy for ordinary people to live in a super metropolis like Los Angeles. It was hell for the unskilled poor. 

"Mr. Black, thank you very much, but I can't take this food." 

Roy smiled. 

"Ms. O'Connor, I just heard you say you were in a hurry to go home to see your daughter. Now that you're so late, shouldn't you bring her a little gift?" 

This made Dahlia silent. 

According to the setting of the American version of "Dark Water," although Dahlia had an unfortunate childhood, with her parents abandoning her early on and sending her to an orphanage, she was very good to her own daughter. 

Dahlia didn't mind suffering any hardship herself, even sacrificing her own life, but she wouldn't let anything happen to her daughter. 

So, Dahlia took the food Roy handed her, then gave him a deep bow, everything implied but not spoken. 

"Then I'll see you next time, Ms. O'Connor! If you have any trouble, you can call me." 

Dahlia was stunned for a moment. She was just about to ask how she could contact him without a phone number when Roy had already driven away in his second-hand yellow Chevrolet Camaro. 

Helpless, Dahlia could only turn around and enter the apartment. 

Arriving in front of a room in the apartment, Dahlia knocked on the door. 

After a while, an old woman's voice came from inside the room. 

"Who is it?" 

"It's me, Mrs. Hoffman!" 

The door opened, and a kind-looking old lady poked her head out. 

"Ms. O'Connor, why are you so late today? Your daughter Ceci has been waiting for you to come back, no matter how I tried to persuade her!" 

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Hoffman. Something unexpected happened on my way back, so I was delayed. I'm so sorry!" 

Dahlia apologized repeatedly, her attitude very sincere. 

Mrs. Hoffman sighed. 

"No need to apologize. I know your difficulties, but children might not understand." 

As she spoke, Mrs. Hoffman went inside and brought out a little girl. The little girl's face indeed had a somewhat sulky expression, probably because she was angry at Dahlia. 

"Ceci, I'm sorry, Mommy is late today!" 

Dahlia squatted down and gently apologized to her daughter Ceci, but her angry daughter was clearly not so easy to coax. 

"Hmph! Mommy is a big liar!" 

Feeling a bit helpless, Dahlia knew that explaining to her daughter now wouldn't make her feel better quickly. So, she took out the McDonald's hamburger Roy had given her from her shoulder bag. 

"Ceci, I brought you a gift. Can you forgive me?" 

"Wow, it's McDonald's!" 

Ceci exclaimed in surprise. What child doesn't like this kind of high-calorie food? 

McDonald's is considered very cheap food in America. Even working at McDonald's is a kind of class symbol, and American elections even use it as a talking point. 

But with Dahlia's current financial situation, it was difficult for her to often take her daughter to eat McDonald's, which was why Ceci was so surprised. 

"Can you forgive Mommy now?" 

"Yes! Mommy, you're so good!" 

Dahlia led her daughter and said goodbye to Mrs. Hoffman before returning to her own apartment next door. When she entered, she saw several envelopes on the floor behind the door. 

These were all overdue notices for credit card bills. 

Seeing these letters, Dahlia instantly lost her appetite. 

"Mommy, aren't you going to eat?" 

"Ceci, you eat first, Mommy isn't hungry." 

Dahlia sat down on the sofa, looking tired, and stared blankly at the envelopes on the coffee table. 

At this moment, her daughter seemed to have discovered something. 

"Huh? There's a string of numbers on this wrapper. Is it a phone number?" 

"Let me see." 

This interrupted Dahlia's daze. She took the wrapper from her daughter's hand and indeed saw a string of numbers, the same number of digits as a mobile phone number. 

Dahlia instantly understood that this was the phone number Roy had left for her. 

At the same time, Roy's last words before leaving echoed in her ears again. 

"If you have any trouble, you can call me." 

Still photo 

(End of this chapter)