In truth, Lex was not that worried. The system had always been reliable when it came to blocking passive attacks, so neither the sight nor the sound of the baby would cause any insanity. Though Lex could not account for anyone's loss of appetite.
The 'baby' who was fast asleep was a little over 25 feet (7.6 meters) in height. Its humanoid form did nothing to make it more amenable to the eyes, for the scaly tentacles that came out of its face took more than a bit of effort to ignore. The wings that spread out from behind its back might have given it a semblance of cuteness had they not been tipped with points hard and sharp enough to tear through metal.
As if all of that was not enough, then came the smell. Anita, as a new aspiring mother, did not lack for research in raising kids, and while she did her research, she learned of the common practice on earth to powder babies to help prevent rashes. As such, the dichotomy of the horror inducing sight, alongside the welcoming and pleasant smell of baby powder, was enough to confuse and horrify anyone.
Lex shook his head and turned his attention elsewhere. Since this was a festival, there were obviously many who brought their kids along. For those who wanted to keep their children on their own, there was an entire Inn filled with attractions to partake in. Yet Lex did not forget those who only wanted to drop off their kids, or wanted to roam separately from them.
One would think that to cater to such a situation, Lex would have just brought the festivities to the daycare area, yet that was not so. It was too obvious, and too boring. No, Lex had turned the entire spaceship into the new daycare!
The first thing to do was adjust its appearance just a bit. Truth be told, its size was so massive that it was hard for anyone to get a good look at its entire body from so close. Still, that did not mean Lex would ignore that aspect of it.
He did not disgrace the ship by making it colorful or plastering cartoons over it. No, he first cleaned up the ship for signs of wear and use were evident to anyone who paid attention. Once he restored the proper sheen of the silver vessel, in close collaboration with the planning department who cross checked against thousands of other spaceships, he added various weapons, though of course they did not work and existed only for appearances, esthetic curves and overall made it much more appealing to look at.
There was also an upper and lower deck found on top and at the bottom of the ship made of a transparent material like glass, but much more resilient, which Lex improved and made comfortable for anyone who would want to sit and enjoy the view. Of course, there were restaurants and cafes found in every corner as well.
The real changes that Lex made for the kids, however, were inside the ship. The automated, accelerated transport system for the crew of the ship was all too easy to modify using the system and turn into infinite slides and roller coasters of sorts.
The self maintenance and cleaning feature was extremely useful and worked everywhere, so Lex did not hesitate to turn the various portions of the ship into mazes and playgrounds. The antigravity and space combat practice chambers were retrofitted by Lex and turned into an extreme tag zone!
The self-sufficient farms of the ship were kept mostly intact, but Lex made areas where kids could play in the dirt, or try their hand at farming if they wished. There were swimming pools that seemed to never end, all with convenient, underwater breathing equipment readily available, so Lex did not forget to add underwater rides and playgrounds either.
Of course, not all kids were hyperactive and wanted to play all the time, and for them there were cozy areas with toys, food, sofas, beds and more.
The rabbits were in charge of running this new daycare yet again, much to their dismay. Lex, however, thought the idea would work out quite well. And it did.
The reaction to the newly upgraded spaceship/playground was so overwhelming that a multitude of adults wanted to join in as well. Well, so long as they didn't bother the kids, Lex saw no reason to stop them.
It had to be mentioned that the ship's own internal security system was extraordinarily impressive. That, alongside the extra hired security, ensured that the kids would stay the safest in the entire Inn.
Of course, using more of the ship's features increased Lex's expenses. After all, he did not have an appropriate energy source for the ship, and so powered it with MP. Still, since the use was barely 1%, if even, of the ships' capabilities, so the expense was bearable.
The popularity of the spaceship playground that Lex had built was only matched by the popularity of all the festival's activities, if only just. All-in-all the festival seemed to be going incredibly well. As if that was not enough, hardly anyone was causing any problems, so it almost seemed as if security wasn't needed.
Lex just thought his luck was turning up, but it had more to do with the hearth burning the souls of his enemies right at the entrance of the Inn than Lex realized. It was both a warning to any troublemakers, as well as reassurance to guests with security concerns that the Inn was not a place that just anyone could cause problems at.
A few hours passed by and all seemed to be going well when Lex got the news that Larry had decided to challenge Suzuki in the Murder Grounds.
The Murder Grounds were a new feature his Inn gained after Lex killed the man with the Murder system. Its original ability allowed Lex to target anyone so long as they were on a planet connected to the Inn, and teleport both the target and himself to the Murder Ground. Lex had to be physically touching someone to target them for the Murder Ground. Once there, both of them would be trapped there until one killed the other. There was no recourse. But it had gained an additional feature, which allowed Lex to rent the Murder Ground out so that anyone with a feud had a neutral location to resolve it. The concept was the same, and neither party would be able to leave until the other died. In the case of renting it out, entire armies could be brought in instead of just a one versus one.
Of course, when renting, both parties had to consent to using it.
Lex scanned the Inn, and found Lary confronting Suzuki in public. A few people had stopped to watch the drama, though most seemed to be passing them by.
"Oh come now, Mr. Larry. Is there a need to go so far? I told you, we both have much to gain. I have a lead on your family, and you can help me pursue my own goals if you help me with that. Why are you letting rumors spread by some strangers get in between such a lucrative deal?"
"You don't need to give me a speech, you just need to tell me if you accept. You'll never get a chance such as this to fight me again. Of course, the only premise is, you'll have to fight me yourself instead of relying on that lackey of yours."
𝙡𝙞𝓫𝙧𝙚𝓪𝒅.𝒄𝒐𝓶
Larry, naturally, would not make such drastic decisions if he only had to rely on the information given to him by Anakin. It was just that, once Anakin gave him the information about Suzuki, it was easy for Larry to verify it on his own. After all, Larry himself was more than just adept at using computers, and had access to all sorts of networks and databases.
Suzuki finally stopped smiling, and looked at him with a semblance of irritation. This one stupid bounty that he had accepted had taken up months of his time.
Moreover, he saw no other method to resolve it any time soon either for Larry either kept hiding at the Inn or in King Marlo's house. Both were places where he could not afford to make a move.
"Fine, brat. I accept your challenge."
A small, digital window appeared in front of both of them detailing the rules of the Murder Grounds and asking them if they were sure they agreed. After they both selected yes, they received another prompt, asking if they wanted their match to be streamed live!
WIthout hesitation, both of them selected no!
Suzuki wanted to keep his identity and occupation secret, while Larry had secrets of his own to keep.
After that, both of them were teleported away. Of course, Lex could still view their battle himself, and saw that they had both appeared in a familiar set of ruins. In fact, not only was it familiar, the damage from Lex's battle with the murderer was still there.
The two did not waste time sightseeing and immediately began their battle, and one of them had an immense advantage right from the get go! Lex's eyes widened as he struggled to understand what he was seeing.
It was not the fact that Larry was in the Golden Core realm that surprised Lex, although that in itself was an achievement beyond unbelievable. After all, Lex himself had a cheat-like system and access to multiple worlds and realms and beings of unimaginable power, yet he himself was only now about to enter that realm. Yet Larry, who did not have a system and was trapped on earth, except when he was at the Inn, had somehow surpassed his speed. In fact, not only was his speed in reaching the realm remarkable, based on the fight, Lex could tell that his cultivation was not shallow either. He possessed strength that could not be achieved by someone who had only rushed his way through cultivation using resources.
He was also not surprised at the enhancements Suzuki displayed on his body. Sure, he was not expecting that Suzuki's hand was a prosthetic, and that it quickly and conveniently turned into some kind of energy machinegun fueled by spirit energy. The blue light in his eyes and him jumping dozens of feet in the air also insinuated that there might be more technological advancements hidden in his body, or just that he had strange techniques.
No, what surprised Lex was Larry's fighting style. First of all, he was taking all the attacks without any indication of wanting to dodge at all. That was something Lex should be doing, considering his overwhelming confidence in his defense, yet Larry was behaving the same. The barrage of green energy balls that were slamming onto his body had eviscerated his clothes, but did nothing to a single one of his hairs. As if that was not enough, as Larry rushed towards Suzuki, he pulled an entire sword out of his hand! Literally!
Using his right hand he touched his left, and when he pulled his right hand back, a full length sword started coming right out of the palm of his hand. The sword shone with a silver light, and cut through the air with a sharp 'sheen' sound.
Suzuki dodged effortlessly, and more unexpected and bizarre weapons started coming out of his body.
Lex put a popcorn in his mouth - when did that box of popcorn appear even he didn't recall - and watched with great interest. He also compared this fight to his own that had been fought in the very same place. While every single move Larry and Suzuki took was much more destructive, he felt like there was a lot more going on in his own fight. From strange mind tricks to illusory attacks to the weird luck that the murderer had, there was a lot going on that Lex had to overcome. Comparatively, this fight was more straightforward. Even if each attack packed much more strength.
Lex wanted to lament the difficulty of fighting a system wielder, but he knew that he should not underestimate others either. He recalled the numerous abilities and techniques Alexander put on display back at the Midnight Games when he himself was only in the Foundation realm as well. Lex was not ashamed to admit that even now he probably knew fewer techniques than Alexander.
It couldn't be helped, Lex had only been cultivating for a year while everyone else had a huge head start on him.
Soon the pattern of the fight changed from Larry trying to get close and attacking, to Suzuki maintaining a distance and attacking from range. Larry finally suffered an attack which managed to wound him, though not by much.
Still, it was unusual for Larry wasn't bleeding even if his skin had been torn open. Just as Lex was wondering why that was, Larry did the thing that had truly blown Lex's mind. He took out a commemorative coin that Lex had distributed during the Midnight Games, made of a rare metal that was not too valuable, but would preserve the token for a very long time. Then he threw the coin in his mouth and swallowed it! A few moments later, his wound started healing!
Lex was flabbergasted, and finally realized what Aegis would have felt like back in the Crystal realm when he swallowed that energy crystal.
After a while, Lex had to divert his attention from the fight. It was clear that it would go on for a long time, and Lex had to keep an eye on the Inn as well. Not that anything was going horribly wrong, but Lex would rather not wait before something went wrong to give his attention.
Slowly, the hours rolled by. Lex noticed a few guests from the Crystal realm as well, such as the Sentinels or Poliods. He guessed they had come in from the random golden doors that opened up across the realm. He could see the signature wary behavior of new guests from them.
Speaking of the crystal realm, Aegis had already informed him that Zagan had used the platinum key. If he managed to pass the test, the system designed for him, he would soon become a member of the Inn.
Still, Aegis himself had not decided whether or not he wanted to join the Inn yet, and Lex couldn't be bothered by that. What he had been doing was bringing others to the Midnight Inn one by one. That had obviously included the Noel family.
It should not have been such a big concern for Lex. After all, the Midnight tavern had already attracted an unnecessary amount of attention, so even if the Noel family made the connection between the two it did not matter.
No, the real reason Lex was... slightly perturbed by the presence of the Noel family was that their daughter, Greta Noel, and now the recently unaffiliated 'Pvarti Party' had also come to the Inn.
Greta had joined the poker tournament and was a natural at it, although she insisted on playing strip poker! God only knew how she came up with the idea, for it shouldn't have been something that existed in the Crystal realm. Moreover, while the Inn itself was not enforcing the rules of strip poker, the Inn also couldn't stop guests if they decided to take a few articles of clothing off.
So, the previously extremely intense and very popular poker tournament had become even more popular, though there was a distinct lack of tension. How could anyone be tense when a group of old men in their boxers, accompanied by beasts who would shed a portion of their fur every time they lost. On the other side of the table, Greta, who was unnaturally skilled at the game, was over encumbered by the stacks of clothing she had won since, for some reason, she insisted on wearing all her winnings!
She also had people lining up to win her hand in marriage, pending approval from her father, but to prove themselves they had to complete a list of trials that she set.
Lex remembered that he had been warned about Pvarti's sister back in the crystal realm so he had a lot of guards stationed nearby in case she caused problems, but these were not problems he was equipped to handle! She was also selling the right to name one of her fingers through an informal auction. What did that even mean and why was the highest bid already in the hundreds of thousands of MP?
Well, none of it was against the rules so Lex could only look away. But the problem with looking away was that he would end up looking at the 300,000 people long conga line being led by an inebriated Pvarti! Again, it was not against the rules. It was just that it created a logistical problem which was that the unnecessarily long line was blocking numerous roads, buildings and, most importantly, bathrooms!
How did he even build a line this long? The festival hadn't even been going on for a day!
A part of Lex felt he should consider himself lucky that this was the only problem he was having. In fact, he even calmed down. It really was a good thing.
Then his heart dropped as he saw Brandon Morrison, his wife Audrey, as well as Marlo and his wife getting ready to join.
Lex sighed and closed his eyes. Well, it is a festival after all. He shouldn't blame people for partying. And it wasn't as if one can be expected to party within limits. Just as long as they don't start fighting anyone randomly.
Lex decided to look away and focus on something else. He noticed that the number of Devils at the Inn was at an all time high. Oddly enough, despite the bias that Lex had for them, they had never caused Lex any problems. That was contrary to what one would expect from a race that controlled demons and used entire planets as farms for resources that could only be nurtured through death and destruction.
He hoped that wouldn't change now, and that they would continue to ignore the fact that Lex had personally aided in the loss of some of their planet farms!