When Ye Chui and Debbie returned to Clown Town with those children, Neil, and the villagers they encountered on the road, the sky had already turned completely dark.
Word had already spread in the village about the children being rescued, and the parents of those twenty-three children rushed out of the village one after another, embracing their own children. The children they had thought were already dead now appeared alive and well before their eyes, a scene that was deeply moving for a moment. Some also learned that it was Neil, the foolish clown, who had saved the village’s children, and thinking back on their past harsh attitudes towards Neil, each person’s face carried a trace of guilt.
Old Bart even walked up to Neil and said, “I’m sorry. I watched you grow up as a child, and later when you had your accident, I threw stones at you just like the other townsfolk and mocked you. Sigh, I really deserve to die. Clown Town owes you a favour.”
“Uncle Bart, I’m a person of Clown Town too. You don’t need to worry about those things,” Neil replied with a smile upon hearing Old Bart’s words.
But Old Bart suddenly froze, staring blankly as he said, “You, you’ve recovered from being foolish?”
“Thanks to Mr Ye Chui and Miss Debbie, they cured me. I’ve regained my clarity,” Neil said with a smile, but then his tone became very low. He turned his head to glance in the direction of Clown Town, “And I’ve also figured out some other things…”
Meanwhile, the news of Ye Chui and Debbie’s return also filled Lessa, Green, Jacob, Gunny, Denny, and the Ninth Prince with ecstatic joy. The two had suddenly disappeared after leaving the room that morning, and they had been very worried but didn’t know how to search for them. Now that they had returned safely and rescued the town’s children, it naturally relieved everyone. They gathered around the two, inquiring about what had happened.
Debbie gave a brief explanation, but then her expression suddenly froze, as if she had seen something astonishing, and she looked towards Denny and Jacob with her eyes widening greatly: “Oh oh, you two, did something happen between you?”
Denny and Jacob were standing together, with Denny affectionately hugging one of Jacob’s arms, even resting her head on his shoulder. The veil on Denny’s face had also been removed, revealing her beautiful features, she considered herself now to be a flower with an owner, so she no longer needed to worry about her peerless beauty being seen by other men…
And Jacob’s face was flushed red, looking as if he was about to cry, but his eyes also held a joy that he could barely suppress, the unmistakable expression of pain mixed with pleasure.
Ye Chui had long known about what happened after they left, and seeing the two like this now, he immediately smiled without saying a word.
Denny hugged Jacob’s arm tightly and said to Debbie with some displeasure, “How do you talk? Calling us two guys! On behalf of the Anduin family, we are now allied in marriage with the Whatever Name Magic Guild. Our family will choose to support Ye Chui ascending to the throne!”
“Marriage, alliance?” Debbie’s face didn’t know what expression to make, she looked at Ye Chui beside her, then turned her head to Lessa and Green nearby, “What on earth is this?”
Lessa: “Things happened too fast at the time.”
Gunny: “I was just stunned for a moment.”
Green: “I just went to wash a bowl… and then Jacob got engaged to Miss Denny.” Hey hey, what’s with the envy, jealousy, and hate in your tone?
Denny was slightly tilting her head with a smug expression, but upon hearing Green’s words, she suddenly froze: “Jacob, who is Jacob?”
Because they were worried about whether Ye Chui and Debbie had other intentions in having Jacob and Lessa pretend to be them, they had never revealed their identities. Now that they saw the two return, Green accidentally let the truth slip in the moment. Debbie still had a bewildered expression, Ye Chui leaned close to her ear and explained what had happened, so Debbie stared blankly at Denny, then burst out laughing with a “pfft”: “Oh my, that’s hilarious. How could the Anduin family have such a silly descendant…”
The others who knew her all looked at Debbie: Girl, silliness seems to be a tradition in your family!!!
“What’s going on here!?” Denny shouted somewhat angrily, hands on her hips, her beautiful big eyes glaring at Ye Chui and Debbie.
At this moment, the Ninth Prince’s mind sparked with insight, he showed a look of sudden realisation and said to Denny, “No wonder I thought this Mr Ye Chui and Miss Debbie seemed a bit different from the rumours. Miss Denny, it seems we’ve mistaken the people.” He pointed at Ye Chui and Debbie, “They are the real Mr Ye Chui and Miss Debbie.”
Debbie proudly puffed out her chest and said to Denny, “Actually, I am your grandmother.”
Ye Chui and Debbie had originally hidden their identities to draw out what connection Denny had with the Clown Girl, but now they had confirmed that Denny was just an outsider who had accidentally gotten involved, with no relation at all to Clown Town’s matters, so there was no need to continue hiding their identities.
Denny’s pretty face showed a shocked expression, she looked at Ye Chui and Debbie, then at her fiancé beside her (she had always used this term in her heart to refer to Jacob before), and after a long while like this, her glitching brain seemed to finally regain some clarity. Denny let out a “wah” from her mouth, turned her head, and ran off to the side with “ying ying ying” cries.
Jacob was startled and immediately wanted to chase after her, but then thought of his own identity and hesitated for a moment.
Debbie walked over and kicked his leg: “What are you standing there for? Go chase her!”
“But I, I’m just a useless cook…” Jacob said somewhat awkwardly. Having impersonated Ye Chui for half the day today, he felt even more the gap between himself and a true great figure.
“Then you’re still our Magic Guild’s cook. Debbie and I have your back. Even an empire princess marrying you would be more than enough, let alone a junior from my family. Hurry up and go!” Debbie kicked him several more times.
Jacob then hurriedly chased in the direction Denny had run off.
Debbie watched Jacob’s fleeing figure, sighed, and shook her head. Ye Chui guessed she was imitating the steady demeanour of family elders… At this moment, Ye Chui’s body suddenly trembled, he looked around left and right, his expression changing slightly. He hurriedly grabbed Old Bart who was passing by: “Where did Neil go?”
Ye Chui had been paying attention to Neil’s movements all along, but just now he was distracted by Jacob and Denny’s matter, and in that moment of negligence, Neil had quietly left.
“He was just here…” Old Bart also froze, thought for a moment, then said, “He must have gone to find his daughter. Sigh, we all owe him. Back then because of the Demon Clown incident, we were all very harsh to him. I never thought he would save the village’s children now…”
“Demon Clown?” Ye Chui was stunned, “What relation does he have to the Demon Clown?”
Old Bart explained, “The Demon Clown from thirty years ago was actually Neil’s father. I was friends with his father, we grew up together since childhood…”
The Demon Clown from thirty years ago was Neil’s father!
Neil had not mentioned this at all when he was recounting earlier; he had even said the Demon Clown from thirty years ago came from outside Clown Town. He had perhaps deliberately hidden the Demon Clown’s identity because he was ashamed to mention that the Demon Clown was his father. And before, Ye Chui had gotten similar information from that ugly woman Liya’s mouth; Liya had also said the Demon Clown from thirty years ago was not a resident of Clown Town.
Liya had also deceived Ye Chui, but her deception was somewhat different from Neil’s, more like deliberately concealing something…
So in that case,
“Neil’s daughter, is she Liya?” Ye Chui asked Old Bart.
Old Bart nodded: “Yes, did Neil tell you? After Neil went mad, his wife died of illness, and Liya was raised by all of us together. Such a pitiful girl.”
Ye Chui looked at Debbie, and they almost simultaneously said, “That Liya is the Clown Girl!”
…
The first appearance of the Demon Clown in Clown Town was thirty years ago; that was the first generation Demon Clown.
Liya’s grandfather, Neil’s father.
He had perhaps similarly discovered an heirloom of the ancestor Sako Anduin and gained evil power, thus endangering the safety of the entire Clown Town. Later, the first generation Demon Clown was exterminated by a joint force composed of Ganglu City’s city guards, mercenary groups, and the Magic Guild.
Neil was only a teenager at the time. After that, about ten more years passed, the adult Neil married, gave birth to Liya, and he unintentionally discovered the ancestor’s heirloom again. Neil said he found it in a cave; as the first generation Demon Clown was his father, he was very likely to have found the place where his father had hidden things because of that.
Because he lacked the ability of a summoner, his mental strength insufficient to control the power of the ancestor’s heirloom, Neil thus became a fool.
Then another nearly twenty years passed, Neil’s daughter Liya grew up, she too discovered the ancestor’s heirloom. Unlike her father, she possessed the talent of a summoner, harnessed that powerful force, and thus became the Clown Girl, the second generation Demon Clown, bringing fear to Clown Town in the name of Sako Anduin.
After regaining clarity, Neil quickly guessed the Clown Girl’s identity, but his memory article could not be unlocked, because just as Ye Chui and Debbie had guessed, the secret that “his own daughter is the Clown Girl” was something he was unwilling to tell Ye Chui and Debbie even if it meant dying!
Ye Chui had used [Browser] to probe Liya’s memory site, but Liya seemed to have some method to hide her true identity.
…
Night had already fallen, and Clown Town’s nights were extremely terrifying.
Ye Chui had Lessa, Gunny, and the others take those children to where they were staying for protection, and immediately after, he set off with Debbie. Under Old Bart’s lead, they quickly headed to Liya’s residence. If he hadn’t guessed wrong, after Neil quietly left their side, he would definitely come to find his daughter.
Liya’s home was a somewhat dilapidated building, the courtyard gate was already open. Ye Chui and Debbie had Old Bart stay outside, and they carefully pushed open the door and walked in.
It was silent inside, but Ye Chui accurately caught a faint scent of blood. Ever since comprehending [Blood Battle Intent] [Life Drain] and other vampire-derived magics, Ye Chui seemed to have become increasingly sensitive to blood.
He quickened his pace, summoning his magic book while entering the room facing the courtyard door with Debbie.
The room was very dim, but sufficient for Ye Chui to make out a person lying on the ground, blood spreading beneath him. From the figure, that person was Neil. Another figure stood beside him, a somewhat hunched and stooped ugly woman with a face full of pockmarks and scars, Liya.
“You killed your father!?” Ye Chui looked at Neil on the ground and said coldly to Liya.
“He doesn’t deserve to be my father at all. I knew long ago he was always taking care of those children. Letting him live for half a year was already my mercy, but he nearly ruined my big plan!” Liya’s voice no longer held the timidity and inferiority from when she met Ye Chui and Debbie on the street earlier; it was filled with a cold, confident aura. She held a bloodied dagger in her hand, looking at Ye Chui and Debbie with a cold gleam in her eyes. With a clatter, she threw the dagger to the ground.
“I didn’t expect you to figure out the matters here so quickly. You are indeed different from the other magic guilds and mercenary groups,” Liya continued. “Before you, more than a dozen mercenary groups came here, but none of them survived the first night.”
“Compared to what we encountered, the things here are just child’s play,” Ye Chui said, feigning composure, his voice carrying a hint of mockery.
Debbie nodded in agreement with a hum, she had already summoned Gilga.
Liya let out a cold laugh.
At this moment, Neil on the ground let out a groan; he had not completely died yet.
“No matter what, he is still your father in the end,” Debbie said, seemingly thinking of the old man in her own family. She waved her hand at Gilga, signalling Gilga to attack Liya.
However, from the corner of this room, two terrifying black snakes suddenly crawled out, mouths full of sharp fangs, constantly flicking their forked tongues, their snake eyes coldly staring at Ye Chui, Debbie, and Gilga. This was a horrifying summoned heroic spirit; Gilga could sense their terror and didn’t dare act rashly for the moment, she wasn’t sure if these frightening illusory creatures would harm Debbie if she attacked rashly.
“Father? Does he have the right to be a father? From childhood, I was treated as the daughter of a fool, an idiot, a moron, mocked by people. The scars on my face were also left by him accidentally, I felt ashamed to be his daughter. Fortunately, I inherited the Anduin bloodline from him, I am nobler than him and much stronger!”
Liya’s voice gradually became fanatical, she waved her hand, and a magic book with an orange cover floated beside her. Then her appearance began to change, the pockmarks and scars on her face faded, her skin became incredibly smooth, her features shifted, becoming petite and straight. Soon, she transformed into Denny’s beautiful appearance, and the tattered clothes on her body turned into the luxurious red robe like Liya’s.
“As a young child, I awakened the talent of a summoner. Debbie, you are hailed as a genius girl? My talent is stronger than yours. I figured it out entirely on my own and became a powerful summoner! Later, I sneaked to Ganglu City, and on my sixteenth naming day, I secretly entered the Tower of Magic Books and awakened a magic book with an orange cover. I have more talent than anyone, I went to the imperial capital, wanting to return to the Anduin family in the capital and make contributions to the family. But do you know what I encountered there?”
Liya’s emotions became extremely agitated.
“The Anduin family has long lost its former glory. The Anduin family crest is mocked by people, just like what I experienced as a child. I also saw Denny, that idiot! But heaven gave her a good appearance. From the moment I saw her, I decided to live on with her face and identity. The Anduin family will rely on me to return to its peak!”
Looking at Liya who seemed mad, Debbie said angrily, “You’ve gone mad. The Anduin family has me, it doesn’t need you meddling!”
“That’s not for you to decide!” Liya sneered, then she looked at Ye Chui, “I originally had some interest in you, Ye Chui. Your power is very strong, more suitable to be my husband than the prince. But unfortunately, you chose to oppose me, so today, neither of you can leave here…”
She let out a bone-chilling cold laugh.
“Did you think that when I returned to Clown Town, I was just using the ancestor’s power to control the residents here and turn it into a horror town? No, you have no idea what kind of power I have obtained.”
She pulled out a tattered clown mask from her bosom and put it on her face.
“I command the power of fear, summoned heroic spirit, Hundred Ghosts Night Parade!”
