Loud music, dazzling lights, sweltering heat, and crowds of men and women dancing wildly.
When Rai, Zoe, and Madison arrived at the party, this was the lively scene before their eyes.
Unlike rookie Rai and good-girl Zoe, Madison fit right in as if it were her natural habitat. She boldly asked the people around her: "At a place like this, how does a girl get a drink?"
"Come with me!" A girl who clearly recognised Madison's identity grabbed her hand warmly and led her inside.
Frat members who also noticed a pretty movie star had come to the party were instantly excited.
"Now this is what a party's supposed to be! Madison Montgomery, what a gorgeous babe!"
"Who wants to try and score with her? I've never had a Hollywood star before."
"Dalton, you're not in the same league as her."
"If you don't throw out bait, you'll never catch a big fish."
Dalton touched the packet of powder in his pocket, prepared just for this party, and moved forward full of confidence.
…
At the party, with veteran Madison leading the way, rookies Rai and Zoe quickly blended in.
With the atmosphere carrying her along, Zoe loosened up, resting her hands on Rai's shoulders, dancing with a mix of passion and shy charm.
Not far away, Kyle, the leader of this frat party, had noticed Zoe from the very beginning. Watching her for a long time, he now felt a pang of dejection.
"Where's Madison?"
Holding Zoe's slender waist, enjoying her youthful allure, Rai asked.
As a Hollywood actress, even if past her prime, Madison in New Orleans, far from the entertainment hub, especially at a college party, was naturally the centre of attention. With her beautiful face and enticing figure, plenty of people had come to chat her up along the way.
Rai had been keeping an eye on Madison at first.
But in the blink of an eye, she had disappeared into the crowd.
"Madison? I don't see her." Zoe looked around and shook her head.
"What? Is there a problem?" she asked, noticing her boyfriend frowning in puzzlement.
Of course, there was a problem.
Rai explained, "A single woman, and a celebrity at that, is bound to run into all kinds of trouble."
At heart, still kind, Zoe immediately said, "Then let's go find her."
Rai nodded, taking Zoe's hand and heading straight upstairs.
…
Elsewhere, Madison, smoking in the hallway, couldn't care less about Dalton's attempts at small talk. She simply treated him like a waiter and had him fetch her a drink.
And thus, a proud Salem witch was brought down by a packet of powder.
…
Upstairs.
As Rai and Zoe arrived, the first thing they smelled was a strange mix of tobacco and sweat.
Knowing full well plenty of people here were smoking something, Rai sighed at the rot of youth. Ignoring the chorus of male and female noises from rooms along the hallway, he strode quickly forward.
Soon, he saw a group of frat boys in matching T-shirts, excitedly dragging a dazed Madison toward the farthest room.
"Hey! What are you doing?"
Rai rushed forward to stop them.
One of the lust-drunk frat boys blocked him, snapping: "Get lost! Mind your own business!"
Rai said coldly: "What you're doing is a crime, you know that?"
"Bullshit! If you don't want a beating, then scram! Asian monkey, go back to your books and stop trying to play hero!"
The frat boy who blocked Rai was on the basketball team, standing a full 1.9 meters tall. Looking down at Rai, his huge hand grabbed Rai's collar, ready to crush him.
Seeing this, Zoe was about to rush over to help.
But in the next moment, the previously arrogant frat boy broke out in a cold sweat.
"Your mouth stinks!"
Having mastered the American essence his very first day here, Rai pulled the Glock from his waistband, pressed it to the frat boy's chest, and sneered:
"Repeat what you just said."
"Oh God~~!"
Instantly sobered with fear, the frat boy raised both hands, no longer arrogant in the slightest.
Forget him, even if he is twice his size, he'd have no choice but to give in.
Who would've thought someone came to a frat party packing heat?
Unfortunately for them, Rai had predicted exactly this and came fully prepared.
"Say the alphabet backwards."
"What?"
He almost forgot that those thugs probably don't even know the alphabet.
"Then kneel."
This time, the frat boy understood and obediently did so.
At that moment, the other frat members, sensing something was wrong, turned their heads only to find another gun muzzle pointed their way.
"No!"
"Hey, man, calm down!"
"We can talk this out!"
"Don't shoot!"
Under the barrel of a gun, all defiance vanished.
Drunk or lust-driven, in that instant, everyone sobered up.
"Zoe, go get Madison," Rai ordered.
Zoe hurried to take the dazed Madison into her arms.
Watching their prey being taken away, Dalton, whether out of stupidity or intoxication, said unwillingly, "Dude, if you want, you can join us. We'll let you go first."
This time, before Rai could say anything, the furious Zoe had already driven a vicious kick squarely between Dalton's legs.
The sound of something shattering rang out.
Dalton collapsed to his knees, clutching himself in agony.
Every man present winced in shared pain.
At that moment, Kyle, who had been watching Zoe for a long time, rushed over.
"Guys, what's going on… Whoa! Easy, man, easy! I don't mean any harm."
Before Kyle could see clearly what had happened, the sight of Rai's Glock had him instinctively raising both hands.
Rai had no intention of actually shooting. He explained, "Obviously, your buddies drugged my friend and were planning to take turns with her. Tell me, is the frat only admitting scumbags now?"
Kyle's face darkened, especially when he saw Madison's dazed face as Zoe supported her. He could only believe.
"Frats are nothing but a bunch of arrogant trash!" Zoe added coldly.
Kyle no longer had the heart to argue.
Looking at his frat brothers, his eyes burned with anger as he shouted…
"Are you guys insane? Do you know the consequences of this? Do you want to end up in prison selling yourselves?"
If it had really happened, it absolutely wouldn't have been a small matter, especially since Madison was a celebrity.
What awaited these people would be expulsion, jail time, and a lifetime of scraping by at the bottom. Their bright futures, with prestigious universities and frat backgrounds, would be gone. You could say they had dug their own graves.
As the one in charge of this party, Kyle hadn't personally taken part, but since the ones committing the crime were his frat brothers, when faced with the management's punishment, he wouldn't escape responsibility either, and it would even ruin his future career.
For someone like him, who had grown up in a poor neighbourhood and was determined to change his class in life, this was a top priority for him.
If the gun hadn't been in Rai's hand just now, he might have shot these useless idiots himself.
Hearing Kyle's furious scolding, the frat boys, who had only cared about indulging themselves in the moment, finally realised the seriousness of the situation. Fear spread across their faces.
"Get lost." Rai waved his hand.
Things had gone far enough.
Was he really going to shoot these guys? Of course, he won't die; it would be the greatest reward for scum like those; instead, he will make sure they will be cursed and live a miserable life.
Without another word, the group ran off in disgrace, dragging Dalton still clutching himself in agony.
Kyle looked after them, then glanced back at Rai and the others. After thinking for a moment, he left only a quick "sorry" before turning to chase after Dalton and the rest. Cleaning up this mess would be his job.
Watching Kyle's back, Rai thought, though 'I stole your backup butler role with the witches, at least I didn't let you end up a human jigsaw monster. This is the best outcome.'
He holstered his gun and helped Zoe carry the still-dazed Madison into an empty room.
"I'll go find some wet towels." Rai had Zoe watch Madison while he went searching.
After about half an hour of busying around, Madison's mind finally cleared. She sat up, rubbed her foggy head, and asked in confusion: "What happened to me?"
Rai gave Zoe a look, and Zoe recounted everything in detail.
"Fuck!"
Madison's face flared with anger, and her powers burst out of control.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The room's picture frames, tables, chairs, and chandeliers all shattered into pieces.
"Calm down, Madison!"
Almost struck by flying shards, Rai quickly pressed her shoulders.
Luckily, he had sent those idiots away earlier. Otherwise, with Madison's temper, this place would have turned into a slaughterhouse.
Zoe also tried patiently to calm her.
Only then did Madison rein in her powers.
Her eyes searched the room: "Where are those bastards?"
Having never taken such a big loss before, she wanted payback.
"They've already run off," Zoe said. "Rai taught them a lesson. And the one who drugged you, I kicked him so hard he'll never hurt anyone again."
"Yeah, I heard the sound of that crack loud and clear," Rai nodded.
"And besides, Madison, there are a lot of people here." He hinted meaningfully.
Madison's expression softened. In the end, she listened.
The party was still going strong outside.
But after what had happened, Madison no longer had the mood to stay.
With their spirits gone, the three of them left together.
…
That same night.
In the garden by the witches' residence.
Usually alone there, brewing herbs, Cordelia now had an unexpected visitor.
It was the leader of the witches, the most powerful of them all, the Supreme Witch.
And also Cordelia's mother.
This Supreme, long known as one of the most irresponsible in history, had always ignored the witches' cause, living a life of self-indulgence and decadence across the globe.
Yet tonight, unexpectedly, she appeared here.
As the two exchanged "kindly mother, filial daughter" words, the sound of the front door opening came.
Supreme Witch Fiona turned her head. Even through walls, her gaze seemed to pierce directly at the ones entering.
She gave a faint smile:
"Two young, vibrant witches, and a boy. He's the one Myrtle forced in here, the so-called survivor against witch power, right? Heh, Myrtle always has to make her presence known."
"It's not so-called, it's the truth," Cordelia said coldly. "Myrtle did this for the sake of the coven after all, the Supreme only cares about herself."
"And now I'm starting to care about the young witches, aren't I?"
Brushing Rai aside as nothing but a minor detail, Fiona turned to Cordelia and declared in a tone that brooked no refusal:
"That's settled. Starting tomorrow, I'll join the teaching of the young witches. The Council will agree as well."
For both public and private reasons, Cordelia could not refuse the Supreme taking part in teaching.
And yet…
Watching her mother's departing back, Cordelia's face showed worry.
From what she knew of Fiona, there was no way her mother had suddenly changed into a responsible person.
…
Unaware that the Supreme had already mentioned him, Rai returned to his room after sending Madison and Zoe back to theirs.
Looking back on his first day in New Orleans, he had to admit it had been very eventful.
Meeting a group of witches, buying a handgun, scoring free exorcism supplies like a cross, and finally rescuing Madison like a hero.
Everything was proceeding according to his plan.
He was nearly ready to deal with supernatural entities.
Especially having a strong helper.
After saving Madison from those bastards, inviting her to help would be an easy task.
Yes, the helper Rai had always wanted was Madison.
As for his little girlfriend Zoe, what, was he supposed to have her go assassinate supernatural beings?
Among the others, Nan's combat power was basically zero. Queenie, the human voodoo doll, was decent, but he wasn't close to her; building that relationship would take time. Cordelia and Fiona were out of the question.
All things considered, Madison, though bitchy was the most suitable.
After all, with the power of telekinesis, her combat ability was extraordinary.
It's not like he was competing for Supreme, so he didn't have to worry about Madison turning on him.
And if worst came to worst, well, he could sacrifice a little of his charm.