Roy decided to take a gamble.
Nidi wore a worried expression at his decision.
"Roy, I don't know how concentrated the liquid nitrogen in this cryogenic pod is—it could be incredibly dangerous!"
The extreme temperature of liquid nitrogen freezing was -196°C, a level no human body could withstand.
"It's fine. I think if the exposure is short enough, I can handle it," Roy replied.
His confidence stemmed from his strength. If things went south, he could always smash the pod to escape.
"Alright, I'll try to lower the pod's power to the minimum!" Nidi said.
After spending a few minutes studying the cryogenic pod, Nidi didn't dare mess with the controls and could only let Roy enter the pod as it was.
"Roy, don't push yourself too hard!" she urged.
"Don't worry, I'm not letting you guys become widows," Roy quipped.
The pod sealed shut, and the rapid vaporization of liquid nitrogen sucked away the heat. Roy instantly felt like his blood was about to freeze.
As expected, resisting the freezing effect with a human body was a stretch. A few more seconds, and he'd likely lose consciousness.
At that moment, the metal cylindrical pod began descending. Through the glass, Roy could still see Nidi's worried gaze.
He couldn't hold out any longer!
With no other choice, Roy transformed into his demon form, his body instantly swelling several times larger.
Thankfully, the pod had enough space—likely designed with Jason's massive frame in mind—so Roy's demon form just barely fit.
But it still wasn't enough. The continuous influx of vaporized liquid nitrogen kept dropping the temperature lower and lower.
So, Roy coated his body in a layer of hellfire to shield himself from the cold, finally feeling some relief.
A minute later, the metal pod passed through a tunnel and stopped in what looked like a laboratory.
Roy smashed the pod's glass with a headbutt—not because he preferred using his head, but because his arms were too stiff to move properly.
The lab was empty. Reverting to his human form, Roy strode to the door and kicked it open, only to hear screams echoing down the corridor.
It seemed Jason had already started his slaughter.
Roy needed to move fast. He had to find someone high-ranking enough to interrogate for intel before Jason killed everyone.
As he was thinking this, a group emerged from around a corner in the corridor. Leading them was a stunning, blonde woman, followed by several heavily armed mercenaries.
Their eyes met, and both sides froze for a moment.
Erica sized Roy up warily. "Who are you?"
Roy flashed a charming smile. "Guess!"
Erica wasn't in the mood for games. Though the boy in front of her looked sunny and handsome, survival was her priority.
"Take him out!" she ordered.
The mercenaries behind her didn't hesitate, raising their guns and Jimmy at Roy.
Roy slipped into bullet-time mode, moving with supernatural speed. In a flash, he pulled two revolvers—Smith & Wesson M625 and M629—from his inventory.
Bang!
The gunfire was a continuous roar, and in an instant, every mercenary behind Erica dropped with headshots.
Erica blinked, and suddenly, no one around her was left standing. The sudden change left her stunned.
"Lady, you'd better not move, or I can't guarantee your safety," Roy said with a grin.
Erica didn't dare budge, watching as Roy approached with that same sunny smile—a smile that now looked downright demonic in her eyes.
Just then, footsteps echoed from the other end of the corridor. More mercenaries were closing in. Roy's revolvers were out of ammo, and reloading would take too long.
Hope flickered in Erica's eyes, thinking she might be saved. But then Roy tossed two daggers behind him.
The daggers struck the two fastest mercenaries, dropping them instantly. The remaining mercenaries prepared to fire, but then two women in white dresses appeared out of nowhere.
Where did these women come from?
The mercenaries froze, then instinctively opened fire. Bullets passed right through the women, embedding in the opposite wall.
Yeah, Roy had already grabbed Erica and bolted while the mercenaries were shooting.
The two women in white stood unscathed after taking hundreds of bullets, sending the mercenaries into a panic.
Some of the mercenaries, the savvy ones, recognized what they were up against. "They're ghosts! Use the energy weapons!"
A few pulled out strange-looking devices, but Sadako and Kayako weren't idiots. They weren't about to let the mercenaries get shots off.
The two ghost girls dove into the nearest mercenaries, possessing their bodies and turning them against their comrades.
Once those two were down, Sadako and Kayako hopped to new hosts. After a few rounds of this, the entire group of mercenaries was wiped out.
Then, Sadako and Kayako returned to Roy's side with their cursed daggers, looking pleased, like pets eager for praise.
"Finished off those mercenaries? Nice work!" Roy said, infusing his hands with spiritual energy to gently pat their heads, much like petting a cat.
Sadako and Kayako basked in the attention, practically purring—if they could make a sound, it'd probably be like the roar of an imperial engine.
"Alright, you two can roam this base and hunt to your heart's content. If you spot an ugly freak, come find me," Roy said, giving their heads another pat before sending them off.
This base was full of villains who'd caused countless deaths, directly or indirectly. They were prime targets for the ghosts, and taking them out would only make Sadako and Kayako stronger.
As for Roy, he had a blonde beauty to interrogate.
Erica looked calm on the surface, but her flickering eyes and uneven breathing betrayed her inner turmoil.
Roy pegged her as a workplace elite—sharp, but not impossible to crack.
"What's your name?" he asked.
Erica didn't even glance at him, acting like she was deaf, clearly refusing to cooperate.
Roy activated his Eye of Judgment and studied her. A faint yellow glow surrounded her, suggesting she'd only done minor wrongs, like petty theft—probably a newbie who hadn't fully crossed into villainy yet.
Since she wasn't cooperating, Roy figured she needed a little push.
He grabbed her by the throat, lifting her with one hand. "I asked you, what's your name? You don't understand English or what?"
His rough move sent fear coursing through Erica. A choked word escaped her throat: "Er…ica…"
Hearing her speak, Roy loosened his grip, letting her breathe.
"My patience is thin, Erica. Don't make me get rough," he said, grabbing her chin and staring into her eyes with his dark golden pupils.
Despite her efforts to stay composed, it was useless. Roy could sense the fear radiating off her.
"You're so young and pretty—it'd be a shame if you died. Why not play nice and cooperate?" he said softly.
His words seemed to hit home. Erica bit her lip, then finally spoke. "If I cooperate, will you let me go?"
Roy nodded. "I'm a softie when it comes to women. Behave, and I might let you walk."
Erica hesitated, still weighing her options.
Roy was losing patience. He gripped her chin, pulling her face close. "Look into my eyes, you piece of trash!"
His Shadow of Fear ability kicked in, plunging Erica into a terrifying hallucination.
Her willpower wasn't strong to begin with, and the fear was so intense she wet herself.
Roy stepped back, avoiding the unidentified liquid on the floor, and started his questioning. "Tell me, what's your organization called?"
"Wood…house…" she stammered.
Woodhouse, again!
This shady organization wasn't new to pulling off messed-up experiments. The midnight movie incident in Los Angeles, the mysterious cargo shipped via civilian plane not long ago, and now this Crystal Lake base—their rap sheet was endless.
And that was just what Roy had stumbled across. Who knew how much other evil Woodhouse had done elsewhere?
Compared to them, even Armacham looked like a conscientious tech company.
Roy made up his mind: this cancerous organization had to be taken down.
"Where's Woodhouse's headquarters?" he pressed.
"I… I don't know…" Erica said, trembling, tears streaming down her face. She didn't seem to be lying. "I just… became Mr. R's secretary… I don't know where the headquarters is!"
She looked to be in her late twenties, young enough that, with a master's or doctorate, she could've just started the job. It made sense.
The key, then, was this Mr. R. Roy kept digging. "Who's Mr. R?"
By now, Erica was getting used to the Shadow of Fear—a flaw of the ability. The more someone's exposed to it, the quicker they grow numb to it.
Still, she'd already spilled some secrets and seemed resigned. "Mr. R is a high-ranking Woodhouse member. He handles a ton of their classified info. I was with him today to inspect the Crystal Lake base."
Roy was about to ask where Mr. R was when Kayako floated over in a panic.
"Kayako, what's going on?" he asked.
Before she could answer, Roy saw it for himself.
Crystal Lake's resident heartthrob and serial killer, Jason, came charging down the corridor.
Something had happened to Jason in this underground base. The guy, whose face was already nightmare fuel, had changed drastically. Now, his face was covered in tentacles, his body had ballooned to a size even bigger than Roy's demon form, and weird red fur sprouted all over him.
He looked like a rabid, red-furred baboon barreling toward Roy.
"Damn it!" Roy cursed.
No way he could keep interrogating Erica now. He instantly shifted into demon form, bracing to meet Jason's charge head-on.
There was no room to dodge—Jason's massive frame filled the corridor. It was a straight-up brawl.
Only the brave win in a narrow path!
Activating his Berserk ability, Roy managed to hold off red-furred Jason's charge. But then Jason grabbed Roy's arms, and the two locked in a test of strength.
Post-mutation, Jason's power was insane, but Roy's demon form, boosted by Berserk, could still match him.
Then, to Roy's horror, a second pair of arms sprouted from Jason's sides.
Caught off guard, Roy took a pounding from fists the size of pressure cookers right to his chest.
Who could withstand that?
"Mother—!" Roy grunted.
He was losing ground. Jason's grip on his arms was like a vice, and he couldn't break free.
His Soul Stand was great against squishy targets, but against a tank like Jason, it barely made a dent, as past fights had shown.
With no other options, Roy unleashed his Touch of Darkness ability. For every 10 points of mental stats, he could summon one tentacle. Five pitch-black tentacles sprang forth.
Two tentacles pinned Jason's extra arms, while the other three stabbed into his body, siphoning his life energy.
But Jason was undead—there wasn't much life energy to drain. It came down to a pure contest of strength.
To Roy's shock, Jason's body mutated again. His torso split open, and a mass of red tentacles shot out, wrapping around Roy's body.
This was getting way too weird!
The slimy tentacles grossed Roy out, and Jason's transformation put him at a disadvantage again.
With no choice, Roy reverted to human form, using the sudden size shift to slip free of Jason's grip, then quickly retreated.
As he backpedaled, Roy transformed into his angel form.
He'd realized close-quarters combat with red-furred Jason was a losing game. The guy's body seemed to mutate on demand—better to keep some distance.
But the underground base's corridors weren't ideal for angel form. The height and width were too restrictive for his angelic mobility.
Still, Roy had no better option. He'd have to make it work.
Pulling a chainsaw sword from his inventory, Roy stood atop two glowing auras—Courage and Guardian—shining like a golden war god.
"Face the holy light!"