The Demon in the Bottle? Why Should Your Next Collectible Have to Be a Collectible!

The green energy vortex emitted a low hum as it mercilessly swallowed At's twisted body.

His limbs were stretched like noodles, and his painted smile became a ridiculous smear of pigment. He shrank smaller and smaller at the center of the spiral before being sucked wholesale into the tiny mouth of the glass bottle.

"Hum—"

When the last black-and-white afterimage was drawn into the bottle, the green energy vortex abruptly vanished as if it had never existed. The warehouse instantly returned to its original deathly silence, leaving only the heavy, suppressed breathing of the two girls by the door.

Edward did not hesitate in the slightest. He knew sealing it away was only the first step.

Telekinesis activated. A palm-sized piece of metal was forcibly torn from the dented side of a nearby shipping container and floated in midair.

Under his will, the metal rapidly twisted and folded, becoming a perfectly fitted bottle cap. With a click, it locked tightly over the soda bottle's mouth.

That still was not enough.

To ensure there were no mistakes, Edward raised his index finger. A faint Purifying Light glowed at his fingertip, and using the cap as paper and the air as ink, he swiftly drew a complex rune shimmering with golden light.

The moment the rune took shape, it automatically imprinted itself onto the metal cap. Then it flashed and disappeared.

Only after finishing all that did Edward bend down and pick up the glass bottle.

The bottle was icy cold in his hand, as though it contained not a clown, but a chunk of ice from the polar regions.

He gave the bottle a shake and saw a palm-sized, chibi version of Soul-Severing Clown At inside.

This miniature At retained every detail, but the signature smile on his face had vanished, replaced by silent fury.

He frantically pounded the transparent glass walls with his disproportionately tiny fists, but every strike was like hitting cotton—soundless and incapable of moving the bottle in the slightest.

He seemed to realize physical attacks were useless. With a pop, his body turned into a mass of black-and-white gas that spun and rammed wildly around the tiny space inside the bottle, trying to find even the slightest crack. However, when the gas struck the cap, an invisible layer of golden runes instantly lit up and violently bounced it back.

The gas condensed back into the miniature clown's form. He fell onto the bottom of the bottle and blankly raised his head to look at the force on the cap that filled him with extreme disgust and fear.

Then he raised his head again and stared fixedly through the glass at Edward with those hollow eyes.

Edward held the bottle before his eyes and met miniature At's gaze, a teasing smile curling across his lips.

"Reflect properly in there, little thing."

He flicked the bottle with his finger, producing a crisp clang.

The miniature At staggered from the impact, and an even more humanlike expression of rage appeared on his face.

After confirming that the seal was secure, Edward willed it, and the glass bottle in his hand vanished into thin air, stored away in the system's inventory space.

Having dealt with the biggest problem, Edward finally turned to look toward the warehouse entrance.

Tara and Dewen, having narrowly escaped death, were looking at him as though he were a god.

Their bodies were still trembling nonstop from fear, but their eyes were full of indescribable gratitude and reverence.

When they saw Edward walking over, Tara struggled to get up from the ground. Pulling Dewen along, she stumbled and crawled her way to Edward, so excited that she could barely speak coherently.

"Thank you! Really, thank you for saving us! I... we don't know how to thank you!" Tara's voice was choked with tears. She had never experienced anything so terrifying in her life, nor had she ever imagined she would be saved like this.

Some versions of Safari on iPhones may freeze. This site has already been optimized for that issue. If it still happens, please try another browser, such as Google Chrome, or switch back to the default font. Yes, the font can cause it. Please contact us as well, and we will try to improve it!

Dewen tightly gripped Tara's arm as well, nodding frantically at Edward while tears streamed endlessly down her face.

She had been only one step away from death. The despair of hanging upside down and watching the bone saw slowly approach would become a nightmare that haunted her for the rest of her life.

Edward looked at them and waved a hand, his tone as casual as if he were mentioning something insignificant. "No need to thank me. I told you, I was just interested in that clown."

His gaze inadvertently swept over Dewen.

Because she had been hanging upside down earlier, she had already lost her clothes. Now she was curled up behind Tara, barely covering her private parts. Under the warehouse's dim lighting, she looked especially miserable and pitiful.

Edward turned to Tara and said in a strange tone, "Also, you should find some clothes for your friend. Running around naked is indecent."

"Huh?" Tara froze for a moment, then blushed as she finally noticed her friend's predicament.

She hurriedly took off her own jacket and draped it over Dewen, then thanked Edward again somewhat embarrassedly.

Edward merely shrugged noncommittally. He had saved them partly because it was convenient, and partly because At's unusual nature had caught his interest.

He was not some selfless saint, nor was he interested in comforting two terrified girls.

"The police will be here soon. Explain things to them." After saying that, Edward ignored them and walked straight out of the warehouse.

"Wait!" Tara hurriedly called out. "We still don't know your name!"

Edward did not stop. He merely waved without looking back, and a calm voice drifted over.

"Red Scarf."

Stepping out of the blood-soaked warehouse, Edward found the night breeze especially refreshing.

Amid the silence, Edward snapped his fingers.

"Hum—"

Accompanied by a faint spatial fluctuation, a vicious-looking heavy motorcycle, entirely black and brimming with futuristic technology, appeared out of thin air in the open space before him.

Its sleek yet muscular lines, along with the cold metallic gleam radiating from its body, made Tara and Dewen—who had just followed him out of the warehouse—widen their eyes again, their mouths open wide enough to fit an egg.

What was this now? Magic?

Edward swung his long leg over and sat steadily in the driver's seat of the Fenrir Heavy Motorcycle. He put on his helmet, gripped the handlebars with both hands, and gently twisted the throttle.

Vrooom—!!

The engine let out a deep roar perfectly suited to its appearance, like a beast awakening. The sound echoed through the empty abandoned industrial district.

Edward did not spare the two girls another glance. He shifted into gear and released the clutch.

The Fenrir Heavy Motorcycle shot out like an arrow loosed from a bow, its rear wheel leaving a faint tire mark on the ground.

Before the two girls' stunned eyes, that black lightning tore through the night. Its taillight drew a brilliant red streak through the darkness before it, along with the savage roar of the engine, quickly vanished into the far end of the night.

Only after a long while did Tara manage to swallow. Looking in the direction Edward had disappeared, she murmured, "Did we... just meet a superhero?"

Dewen pulled the jacket tighter around herself. Looking at the devastated warehouse, then at the empty night, deep fear still lingered in her eyes, but even more than that was an indescribable sense of unreality, as though she were trapped in a dream.

If you enjoy this book, please remember to add it to your bookshelf so you can find it next time.