157: Chapter 158 Mary's Dilemma

Chapter 157: Maria's Dilemma

Maria was originally an introverted girl; under normal circumstances, she wouldn't be willing to come out to play in such a crowded place.

However, since it was the last few days of the summer break before eleventh grade, and today was Halloween, she couldn't withstand her best friend Lily's persistent pestering. Eventually, she changed into a long black dress, put on a mask, and left the house in her friend's green Porsche 911.

But because the place they were going was not somewhere students should be, Maria had gone behind her parents' backs to come with Lily to this most famous pickup bar in New York, hoping to find a bit of excitement.

Mainly, it was Lily who wanted to find some excitement; she was simply accompanying her friend.

However, once Maria arrived, she realized it was completely different from what she had imagined.

In the booth, besides her and Lily, there was a group of schoolmates, both boys and girls. Most of the boys were members of the school hockey team, several of whom Maria recognized. A handsome boy named Sean was the object of Lily's crush, though the two were not yet dating.

And then there was another boy with a slightly burly build, who was the person she loathed and wanted to see the least—Mark.

"Fu*k, how did this piece of sh*t end up here too?"

When she sat down in the booth and saw Mark, Maria's originally decent mood instantly darkened.

Meanwhile, her best friend Lily was focused entirely on trying to strike up a conversation with Sean, completely ignoring her.

The blond-haired Mark, who had a somewhat square face, sat down directly next to Maria with a wicked grin.

"Hey, Maria, looking at your expression, I guess you didn't know I'd be here too, huh? Hehe."

"Tch, stay away from me."

Maria had no liking for this boy at all. Combined with being bullied by him, intentionally or otherwise, on the school bus and at school in the past, her heart was filled with loathing for him.

And, of course, there was also a sense of fear.

"Ha, we're all classmates, why do you have to give me that attitude?"

Mark poked his large nose, flashed a grin of white teeth, and then reached out his hand toward Maria. "How about this? I'll apologize right now for everything I've ever done to you, okay?"

Maria's brow furrowed slightly as her deep blue eyes stared at Mark's face. With their classmates watching, she reluctantly reached out her hand.

"Fine, if you're sincerely apologizing, then I forgive you."

"Hahahaha!"

Just as her hand was about to touch Mark's, he immediately changed face. With a smile of successful plotting, he slapped her hand away. Not stopping there, Mark leaned in close to Maria's ear and whispered sinisterly, "Bitch, you ugly freak, did you really think I would apologize to you? Just wait until school starts; I'll take my time and have some good 'interactions' with you."

"Hey, Mark, did something unpleasant happen between you and Maria?" Sean, who had been keeping an eye on Maria, cast an inquiring look across the table.

"Nothing at all." Mark put on his signature fake smile and shrugged. "I was just talking with Maria about schoolwork, right, Maria?"

Sean then turned his inquiring gaze toward Maria as well.

Although Maria was very angry, she didn't dare to lash out directly. She nodded immediately and then turned her head away.

She had been strictly controlled by her father since childhood, which had long ago formed this weak personality.

Therefore, facing the boy's bullying now, although she had fire in her heart, she remained silent and didn't dare to resist.

This is a common trait shared by many people who are bullied.

They are naturally quite weak, and combined with the inaction of their parents, such situations are allowed to fester.

After teasing her, Mark proceeded to start drinking with the other boys.

As Maria turned her head and looked around aimlessly, she saw a man at the bar wearing a top hat with a black raven perched on his shoulder, watching her from a distance.

He stood out in the crowd mainly because he wasn't wearing a mask.

But more importantly, Maria felt an approachable aura from him, which was why she locked onto him at a glance.

And this person was none other than Locke Galahad.

"Were you just looking at me?"

"Yes." Facing the question, Locke didn't hide it at all and nodded directly, while also accepting the task given by the system.

He had no choice; the reward the system offered was exactly what he needed most right now.

[Ding—Key character has appeared. The 'The Man in the Mirror' main quest has been triggered. Please choose whether to accept.]

Main Quest: Maria seems to have encountered some trouble. Please help her resolve the trouble and subdue Alan.

Quest Difficulty: Medium. Completion Reward: The potion and ritual process required to advance to Night Demon Sequence 8.

Maria was slightly stunned; she hadn't expected this guy to be so direct.

"You—why were you looking at me?"

"Because even through the mask, I think you are very beautiful." Locke was very skilled at dealing with girls; it was an instinctive skill from deep within his genes.

Thus, when saying such things, his face didn't flush, his heart didn't race, and he could maintain a look of pure innocence.

"Um—*cough, cough, cough*." Maria's action of smoking stopped mid-air, and she even choked a few times because of those blunt words.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Locke reached out and gently patted her shoulder, his tone very gentle. He then turned and asked Feynman for a glass of water.

"Mr. Owl, please get a glass of water for this lady."

Feynman pushed the prepared blue moon in front of Locke, his gaze shifting between him and Maria as he shook his head. "I'm very sorry, sir, but this is a bar. We don't have water, only alcohol. Of course, if you want to drink Flammable Oolong Tea, we have that too."

Locke looked back at him expressionlessly. Since he had previously ordered a cup of tea for Xiao Qi, he was a bit confused by the refusal now.

Facing Locke's questioning gaze, Feynman immediately raised an eyebrow, a faint smile playing on his lips.

The meaning was: 'Brother, I can only help you this much; the rest is up to you.'

Locke had no choice but to tap the table lightly. "Then please give me a cocktail with the lowest alcohol content, something with a smoother taste."

Feynman immediately gave an 'I understand' smile and flashed him an 'OK' gesture.

It was clear that Feynman had slightly misunderstood his intentions.

Locke simply wanted to help her; he didn't have those kinds of plans, at least not yet.

"Do you—" Maria straightened up after catching her breath, "do you talk to other women like that too?"

"No, no, no."

Locke immediately wagged his finger. "I'm not the type who likes to mess around."

"While you are very nice, sorry, I don't have any plans to date right now."

Although Maria still felt an inexpressible fondness for Locke after getting closer, she still shook her head and gave him a 'nice guy' card.

"Mm-hmm? So, am I being rejected?"

Locke picked up the sky-blue liquid on the table and tilted his head back, downing it all. The blue moon was cool on the palate, very much like the feeling of admiring the moon at night.

Locke internally commented, "Not bad."

However, his praise didn't last long. Immediately, a spiciness far exceeding vodka rushed from his stomach straight to his brain, instantly giving him a sense of vertigo.

Behind the counter, Feynman witnessed Locke's entire performance and was currently stifling a laugh.

"Haha, this new kid really is a newborn calf who doesn't fear the tiger. No one drinks blue moon like that."

Maria, seeing him down the glass of wine, thought he had been hurt by her words. Her expression became flustered, and she quickly waved her hands to explain, "I'm not rejecting you. It's just that I feel we've only just met and don't know much about each other. If you're willing, I think we can start as ordinary friends."

"Sorry, miss, I need to go to the restroom first."

Locke only felt the world spinning. Originally, he hadn't taken Feynman's words seriously; after all, he had never heard of a Transcendent getting drunk on alcohol.

Until now, with double vision appearing, he finally believed the man's words.

Of course, if he hadn't met Maria at the start, he would have wanted to drink his sorrows away. But now that Maria had appeared, the sorrow in his heart had mostly vanished, so there was no longer any need for him to stay drunk.

"Are you—okay?"

Maria watched Locke's swaying figure as he walked toward the restroom with some concern. Locke heard her worried voice and simply waved his hand.

"Miss, how could that gentleman possibly be okay? Do you know what he just drank?

He just drank a glass of our special blue moon."

Seeing Locke go to the restroom, Feynman deliberately provided cover for him, wanting to help him win over the girl tonight.

"blue moon!"

Maria looked shocked, her pupils dilating. "You mean the blue moon where even a drop would make an ordinary person pass out? He just drank a whole glass—"

As the most famous drink at the Moonlight Bar, blue moon's reputation was widespread; even a student like her, visiting for the first time, had heard of it.

"Mm-hmm. Clearly, miss, your little boyfriend seems to be in a bit of a bad mood."

Feynman continued nonchalantly while handling other customers' orders, "Of course, don't worry. That glass just now was actually something I mixed; it wasn't entirely pure blue moon liquid."

"However—I think perhaps you should go and wait for him at the restroom entrance."

Maria fell into silence. Her large blue eyes stared at the glass, which had only a tiny bit of blue liquid clinging to its wall, and her heart suddenly felt heavy.

"Is it really because I just rejected him that he's so heartbroken?"

"Could there really be a boy in this world who would fall in love with a woman like me at first sight?"

"Maria, oh Maria, when will you ever be brave?"

The reason she thought this was mainly because Locke was the first boy to show her kindness, and the first to compliment her like that.

Maria stared at the glass, her emotions fluctuating and her pupils gradually losing focus. Looking at her reflection in the glass, she suddenly felt as if the reflection had smiled at her.

"Maria, don't worry, leave it to me. Let me out, and I can help you solve everything."

This sudden female voice in her ear immediately alerted Maria. Her whole body tensed up, and she turned around to demand, "Who is it!"

"Who?"

The one who answered her wasn't the female voice from before, but the person she loathed most, Mark. Turning her head, she saw Mark, wearing a wicked grin and holding a glass, walking up to her. "Maria, it's only been a few minutes, and you don't recognize me anymore?"

"Do you need me to help you remember?"

Mark's lips curled down slightly, looking like he had everything under control as he stared at Maria.

"I wasn't talking to you. You'd better stay away from me."

When Maria saw him, she reflexively shrank back while scanning the surroundings warily.

She wanted to find the woman who had just spoken in her ear.

When her gaze landed on her reflection in the glass window, that strange voice rang out again.

"Maria, you seem to really hate this man. Let me out. If you let me out, I'll help you deal with him and make him disappear from this world forever."

The voice was cold yet filled with infinite allure, making Maria break out in goosebumps. Forcing herself to stay calm, she panted and questioned the air, "Who are you? Who exactly is it? Come out! Don't play tricks on me!"

"Mm-hmm? Maria, what on earth are you doing?"

Mark was a bit confused. After finishing the drink in his hand, he sat down in Locke's previous seat, leaning forward in a highly aggressive posture.

"It's none of your business."

Maria didn't even look at him, still searching for the owner of the phantom voice that had been lingering in her ear for so long.

"Hahaha, you bitch, don't think you can get away with playing crazy."

Mark didn't care about any of that. His mind was set on teasing or even bullying Maria. Even though she didn't look at him, he leaned in to her ear and threatened, "Or do you think that by hooking up with some guy, you can escape my grasp?"

Maria, who had been focused on the phantom voice, stiffened upon hearing this and glared back at Mark. However, Mark didn't flinch at her gaze, maintaining a smug expression.

Maria stayed composed for a moment, but thinking of those bad memories, her eyes couldn't help but flicker away.

"What—what do you want? How exactly did I offend you? Why do you always target me?"

"I don't want anything. I just want you to behave."