"Clary, dinner's ready—"
The voice of her mother, Roland, calling from the living room made Clarice hurry to close the space door she was practicing with. She replied, "Coming right now."
After checking herself in the mirror to ensure the colored contacts covering her pupils were in place, she left her room.
When she entered the living room, her father, Fong Mo, was watching the news on TV, and her mother, Roland, had already prepared dinner.
To cater to her husband's taste, Roland had made a fusion dinner of Chinese and Western dishes. Of course, after all these years, she had also grown accustomed to Chinese flavors.
"Stop watching, Edward, come eat," Roland said to her husband, who was still watching the news.
"I'm coming," Fong Mo replied, standing up but not turning off the TV. Instead, he turned up the volume so he could still hear the news while eating. (TL/N: The author uses "Fang Mo" sometimes and "Edward" at other times, clarified before that Edward is his English Name.)
Once the three of them were seated, Roland glanced at the TV and asked her husband, "What's been going on lately? I've heard that a lot of people have gone missing?"
Fong Mo's expression darkened a little. "We can't be sure yet, but some concerned citizens called in, saying they noticed signs of unknown religious groups being active…"
"It's very possible," Fong Mo nodded.
"Well, you should catch them quickly. These people are insane and can do anything," Roland said, her tone worried. She then turned to Clarice, "Clary, don't go out alone lately. I'll pick you up after school."
It wasn't that Roland was overreacting; cultists in this world were truly rampant.
In Raymond's previous life on Earth, cultists existed, but they were nothing compared to the ones here.
After all, this world was one where evil gods and demons from hell were real…
"I understand," Clarice obediently replied.
Though inwardly, she didn't really think cultists could harm her. Her powers were now stable, and she could open space doors more efficiently and frequently than before.
There may be other mutants stronger than her, but there were definitely not many with better survival skills than hers.
A few cultists wouldn't be a problem; if she encountered them, she might even step in and do something heroic.
Beep beep beep! Beep beep beep!
Not long after they started eating, Fong Mo's phone suddenly rang.
He immediately picked it up, "...Hmm, okay, I got it. You go ahead, I'll be there soon!"
After hanging up, he stood up, walking to the hallway to change clothes, and told Roland and Clarice, "I'm stepping out for a bit. You two eat first."
"Is it a case?" Roland, already used to this, asked.
"We received a tip about cultists being spotted near 'Miller Park,'" Fong Mo said, finishing changing and putting on his gear. "If I'm late, don't wait for me. You can sleep first."
"Okay, stay safe," Roland reminded him.
Fong Mo nodded and left through the door.
Soon after, the sound of a car starting echoed from the yard.
"I'm full, feeling a bit sleepy, I'm going to bed now," Clarice said as she stood up, addressing her mother, Roland.
"So early?" Roland was a little surprised.
"I think I had some insomnia last night," Clarice replied.
"Alright, go ahead and rest," Roland said without suspicion.
Clarice helped put their dishes into the dishwasher before heading back to her room.
Once back in her room, she locked the door behind her and showed a hint of excitement: "Miller Park, huh…"
She took out her phone, searched for Miller Park on Google Maps, and quickly found its location.
It wasn't very far, only about ten kilometers away. With her current ability, she could get there with just three transfers.
"Should I go?" she hesitated.
Though she was curious about the situation, she was also worried about being discovered. After some internal struggle, she made up her mind!
Once she decided, she took out a Winnie the Pooh mask from her bag, put it on, and opened a space door with a wave of her hand, stepping through it.
At a mall not far from the company, Raymond and Beth had just walked out of the cinema.
"Thanks for keeping me company today," Beth said with a slight blush, looking a little happy.
"You have no friends in Washington, who else is going to keep you company if not me?" Raymond smiled.
"Pfft, who says I don't have friends, I just…"
Before Beth could finish her sentence, Raymond's phone rang.
"Wait a second, I need to take this call," Raymond glanced at the caller ID and smiled.
Beth saw the name on the caller ID, recognized it as a woman's name, and pouted, "A woman?"
"What are you thinking? It's my sister," Raymond shook his head with a smile and answered the call.
As soon as he picked up, his expression changed slightly. Clarice's voice on the other end was trembling, and she was crying.
Hearing Clarice sobbing and speaking in broken sentences, Raymond's face grew darker.
Beth could feel the tension, as she had never seen Raymond look before. Whether facing Shadow King at the psychiatric hospital or the 'Extremis Virus' soldiers, Raymond had always been calm and unfazed.
But now, he was clearly concerned.
"Don't cry, take care of them, I'm coming back right away," Raymond took a deep breath and said into the phone.
"I've got to go, sorry," Raymond said, looking at Beth.
"What happened?" Beth asked with concern.
"There's been an issue at home. My father's been injured…" Raymond's expression was so dark it seemed like it might start to rain. [TL/N: (¬_¬)]
"Ah, go quickly, I'm fine," Beth said quickly.
"Yeah, I'll contact you later."
Raymond didn't say more. He switched to his alternate personality, Tao Pai Pai, and with a quick step, he vanished.
A few minutes later, Raymond had arrived at the Richmond City Center Hospital.
When he reached the sixth floor, both his mother, Roland, and sister, Clarice, were sitting outside the emergency room, their faces swollen from crying.
Raymond hurried over.
Roland, still in shock, didn't have time to think about how Raymond, who was supposed to be in Washington, could arrive so quickly after receiving the call.
Seeing her son, she wiped the tears from her eyes, trying to calm herself, but still spoke with a sob: "The doctor said it doesn't look good. Even if they manage to save him, there's a high chance he'll be left with permanent disabilities and won't be able to live a normal life…"
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