Talking Price

Making money by selling her own photos?

Gwen hesitated. She had never considered it before, but on second thought, superheroes counted as public figures. Public figures were supposed to make money by showing their faces, weren't they? There didn't seem to be anything wrong with it...

For a moment, Gwen was genuinely tempted. When she had first arrived in this world, all she could think about was how to get home. But now, she was slowly beginning to accept her situation. She had to consider the possibility that she might never be able to return, and surviving in this new world had become her most urgent priority.

First of all, she desperately needed money.

Jessica's suggestion was undeniably quite tempting. It was just that Gwen felt using her identity as a superhero to make a profit was perhaps a little too shameless... (Spider-Man: ???)

After thinking it over and over, Gwen finally shook her head. "No, that isn't why I started doing this. To me, it isn't just an identity—it's a symbol with extraordinary meaning. I don't want to tie it to money, so..."

Just as she got that far, a chill from deep within suddenly shot up her spine—not Spider-Sense. This premonition had not reached the level of "danger," but it still made her feel extremely uneasy.

Gwen turned her head and stiffly saw that the restaurant owner had somehow appeared behind her, wearing an expression that was... well, definitely nowhere close to "friendly."

Gwen suddenly realized she was still on the clock, yet she had been sitting at the dining table with her legs crossed, chatting with Jessica for who knew how long. She also remembered that she had been late twice and skipped work once because of things like stopping robberies and catching thieves. The owner had chewed her out and said that if it happened again, he would fire her on the spot.

If the owner had flown into a rage and cursed her out like the previous two times, that would have been one thing. Worse still, this time he merely wore a standard deadpan expression and said calmly, "You're fired."

Gwen: "..."

A few seconds later, Gwen, whose source of income had just been cut off, turned to Jessica. "Um, about those photos... can we talk price?"

Jessica: "..."

What? Symbols and meaning? Were those more important than making money to fill her stomach?

Integrity? What even was that? How much did it cost per pound?

After work, Richard went to Aunt Lin's house as planned and brought a bag of gifts as a token of concern.

Although Richard had heard that vampires existed in Marvel, he had never seen one in person. He was somewhat curious about vampires too, and wanted to see what someone who had been bitten by one would become.

When Aunt Lin saw him, she was so excited that she nearly burst into tears and hurriedly invited him inside.

"She hasn't eaten or drunk anything these past two days. I'm practically going crazy." Aunt Lin's face was full of exhaustion. "The hospital said she's perfectly healthy and there's nothing wrong with her. We told the police, but they just laughed it off... Everyone treats what Chloe says as a joke. No one is willing to believe us. It's as though the moment you mention the word 'vampire,' everyone assumes it's a prank..."

"Cathy believes her, and I'm willing to believe her too," Richard said.

Aunt Lin smiled gratefully. "Thank you. You're a good young man—I knew it the first time I saw you. You own a newspaper, and you have influence. Maybe you could write something about it in the paper. Perhaps someone will pay attention."

"I will," Richard said.

Aunt Lin walked to her daughter's bedroom and knocked on the door. "Chloe, are you there? Mr. Lee from the Daily Planet is here. I told you about him, remember? Didn't you keep saying you wanted to meet him?"

The room was completely silent. There was no response.

"Chloe?"

Aunt Lin knocked twice more, then gently pushed the door open a crack.

Then she was startled by what she saw.

What lay before them was a scene that could not accurately be described even by the word "messy." They saw an open wardrobe, pulled-out drawers, torn books, and ripped clothes strewn all over the floor. The bed was even worse. The sheets had been violently torn apart, and cotton stuffing had scattered throughout the room. Even if ten pickpockets had searched the room one after another, they probably could not have made it any messier.

"I'm here, Mom."

Chloe Lee stepped out from the shadows behind the door. Her face was deathly pale, her dry lips looked ready to crack, and her unkempt hair made Richard instinctively think of Jessica's appearance at home.

Chloe had probably once been a beauty who could score above eighty, after all, mixed Eastern and Western features could earn plenty of points. But now, there was nothing beautiful about her appearance. Instead, she gave off a chilling air like some ghost or specter.

She looked very wrong. For some reason, the instant Richard saw her, he instinctively felt repulsed, as though light naturally rejected darkness.

"Chloe?" Aunt Lin froze. "You... what happened to you?"

Chloe's gaze settled on Richard.

"Mr. Lee, I'm very sorry... but I'm just too hungry."

The girl moved, as fast as an afterimage vanishing from sight. Her right hand shot out, its spread fingers clawing straight at Richard's face, while a whirlwind sent paper and cotton stuffing flying through the room.

Aunt Lin was clearly standing between them, yet she did not see what had happened at all. She only felt that a figure flickered before her eyes. When she came back to herself the next second, Chloe had already been sent flying like a kite with its string cut, smashing the wardrobe behind her into two halves.

Logically, a fall that hard should have seriously injured an ordinary person. Yet the girl immediately sprang back up as though nothing had happened, let out a low roar, and revealed two sharp, horrifying vampire fangs.

No matter how slow-witted Aunt Lin was, she realized her daughter was seriously abnormal. She stood there in shock, too frightened to speak. Richard slowly stepped forward and said calmly, "You'd better step back a little now."

The vampire girl roared and lunged at him again. Her eyes were bloodshot and filled with a thirst for blood. Richard sidestepped the pounce and raised his hand, drawing Evolution Trust. White radiance flickered around the rod-shaped transformation device as it slashed fiercely toward the girl's neck like a sharp blade.

The moment the sheathed Evolution Trust struck the girl's neck, surging light energy flooded into her body like a torrent. The darkness dwelling within her seemed to encounter its natural enemy, screaming as it was driven away. Chloe's body shuddered violently. She let out a shrill, strange cry, then collapsed crookedly onto the floor, motionless as a puppet whose strings had been cut.