A Core Ship From The Start
Chapter 1471 - 994 Moving

Chapter 1471: Chapter 994 Moving

In the following period, Duanmu Huai was primarily occupied with handling the Naruse family’s affairs—for now, only Naruse Mio and Naruse Banriya remained in the family, and they were both just children. Legally, they were considered minors without the capacity for independent decision-making, which made many things difficult to manage.

In fact, after the "accidental deaths" of the Naruse couple, a lawyer had approached Naruse Mio, claiming to be in charge of the Naruse couple’s inheritance matters. With sweet words, he deceived Naruse Mio, telling her that her father had left behind an enormous debt. If Naruse Mio wanted to inherit the estate, she would have to repay the debt. He even played the part of a caring advisor and suggested she sign a waiver to renounce her inheritance rights.

Fortunately, Duanmu Huai was prepared. When the lawyer showed up, Duanmu detained him and learned the whole story from the Shadows. What followed was a thorough beating for the lawyer, during which Duanmu warned him, "You lost a life, but I lost a fortune... calculate your odds carefully."

Faced with Duanmu Huai’s overwhelming intimidation, the lawyer caved and obediently returned the inheritance to Naruse Mio.

What came next involved holding the funeral, handling all sorts of formalities, and eventually...

"So, what do you think? Not a bad house, right?"

Standing triumphantly at the entrance, Duanmu Huai grinned smugly at Naruse Mio and Banriya.

"Uncle, you found this house? So quickly?"

Staring at the Western-style house in front of her, Naruse Mio was equally shocked. She hadn’t expected Duanmu Huai to find a house in less than a week!

"Of course! What do you think? Pretty nice, huh?"

Looking around with satisfaction, Duanmu Huai surveyed the property he purchased. It was a standalone villa on a hillside. A short descent from the hill led to Ryuo Academy, with a shopping street nearby. Surrounding the villa were pockets of forest—perfect for, well, discrete criminal activities.

"This must have cost a fortune..."

Naruse Mio gulped as she stared at the towering three-story villa in front of her. It was a classic European-style building with a spacious gate, halls, gardens, and even a fountain—it resembled the kind of structure one would see only in movies.

"Hehehe..."

In response to Naruse Mio’s query, Duanmu Huai laughed and proudly raised his thumb.

"Ten million!"

"What?"

"Are you kidding?!"

Hearing Duanmu Huai’s response, both Naruse Mio and Banriya were floored. Based on their assumptions, a villa this luxurious, complete with a sprawling yard, would likely cost a fortune—possibly even over a billion. But ten million? Wasn’t that like buying a Rolls-Royce for five hundred bucks?

"Is that even possible?!"

"Wait, why is it so cheap, though?"

"Because this house has seen a lot of deaths."

"...What?!"

Hearing this, Naruse Mio’s face turned pale.

"S-so, this is a haunted house?!"

"Isn’t that obvious?"

Seeing Naruse Mio’s reaction, Duanmu Huai rolled his eyes.

"If it weren’t haunted, could I have bought it this cheaply? I specifically scouted through agencies until I found this so-called ’super haunted house’—it’s witnessed the deaths of three owners and over dozens of others. If it weren’t so infamous, no one would think of selling it for such a low price."

"Why would we live in a place like this...!"

Naruse Mio was on the verge of tears at this point.

"Can’t we find somewhere else to live...?"

"Houses where people haven’t died cost more, and I can’t afford that. Anyway, blame this city for not having Conan around."

Duanmu Huai spread his hands helplessly. His funds were slim—mostly the system’s baseline allowance.

"I-I can chip in—I’ve got plenty of money..."

"As an adult, I refuse to covet a little girl’s inheritance. That would just be disgraceful."

Duanmu Huai curled his lip.

"And don’t forget, you’re no ordinary high school girl. You’re a noble lady of the Demon Clan... don’t tell me you haven’t realized this yet."

"Ah!"

Duanmu Banriya’s eyes sparkled as a thought struck her, and she clapped enthusiastically.

"Is the culprit here a dissident demon?"

"The what?"

Confused at the term, Naruse Mio looked at Banriya expectantly. Banriya quickly explained.

"In general, demons have a strict hierarchy. Lower-ranked demons must obey their superiors. However, some demons refuse to submit to their masters. They often immerse themselves in acts of murder and cannibalism to fulfill their own desires, becoming wanderers known as dissident demons. Of course, there are also demons that kill their own masters..."

Once Banriya explained, she turned toward Duanmu Huai.

"So, does this house have a dissident demon?"

"Most likely. When I came here before, I sensed demonic energy."

Duanmu Huai chuckled grimly, clenching his fists.

"Just in time for a major cleanup!"

"That’s excellent news!"

Banriya’s face lit up with excitement.

"Houses like this are hard to come by. Once we drive out the dissident demon, we’ll be making a huge profit, Lord Mio!"

"Is that... really so?"

Looking at the two of them, whose eyes sparkled like they’d stumbled upon treasure, Naruse Mio’s feelings were complicated. Just a while ago, she was still an ordinary high school girl. But now, she found herself a Demon Clan noble, expected to face down dissident demons. At that moment, once again, Naruse Mio realized how drastically her life had changed.

Originally, Duanmu Huai had planned to first exterminate the demons in the house before bringing the two girls here. Yet seeing Naruse Mio melancholically staring at her ruined family home every day, he figured this wasn’t doing her mental health any favors. Not that Duanmu Huai fancied himself a romance expert—comforting others wasn’t his forte.

After much deliberation, Duanmu concluded that Naruse Mio’s sorrow stemmed from having too much idle time. If she were busy fighting, she wouldn’t have the chance to brood over her grief.

With that in mind, Duanmu discussed the matter with Banriya, and the two soon reached an agreement, dragging Naruse Mio along for the ride.

From Banriya’s perspective, she also wanted Naruse Mio to recover quickly. After all, the dead were gone, and Mio still needed to contend with the troubles of the Devil World. Cruel as it sounded, now wasn’t the time for indulgent grieving. As Wilbert’s heir, Mio had to swiftly learn to master her powers.

Before arriving, Duanmu Huai had already signed the contract with the agency, obtained the keys, and collected all the necessary paperwork. At this point, he unlocked the doors and stepped inside.

"Hmm... quite intriguing."

Entering the house, the first thing they noticed was the spacious hall. Perhaps because the electricity hadn’t been restored, the mansion was shrouded in darkness. Only the gentle moonlight filtered through the floor-to-ceiling windows, faintly illuminating the dim interior.

"The furniture here looks relatively intact... seems like it only needs a bit of cleaning before becoming livable."

Banriya curiously approached a nearby table, tracing her finger across its surface and smearing a thick layer of dust.

"Though it doesn’t seem like the house has been vacant for too long?"

"The last owner only moved in three years ago."

Duanmu Huai surveyed the surroundings as he casually shared what he’d learned from the agency.

"Apparently, the previous owner didn’t believe the rumors. They renovated the house, furnished it, and moved in with their family."

"And then?"

At this point, Naruse Mio couldn’t help but ask.

"They disappeared—probably devoured by demons, leaving no corpses behind."

Duanmu shrugged.

Hearing this, Naruse Mio’s complexion paled further, and she instinctively stepped back.

"Banriya... are we really okay here?"

"Don’t worry, Lord Mio. Please have more confidence in yourself!"

Banriya quickly reassured her.

"Didn’t I teach you some magic recently? Relax. Ordinary dissident demons are no match for you, Lord Mio. Once you tap into your powers, you’ll make short work of them!"

"You’ve got a lot of nerve to call yourself a Nightmare..."

Rolling his eyes at Banriya’s words, Duanmu Huai sighed. Typically, Nightmares like her excelled in mind control and magic. Banriya, however, defied expectations. Her mental manipulation was decent, but her magic capabilities were shockingly average.

Ironically, this pint-sized, lecherous Nightmare specialized in close combat!

Duanmu couldn’t get used to it—Nightmares were supposed to have either high agility or intelligence in games. Seeing one invest in strength was unheard of.

Just imagine a petite Nightmare spreading her wings, flying at you, throwing punches, and kicking you into the air—it made no sense!

"...Alright, enough idle chatter."

Suddenly, Duanmu Huai’s expression shifted as he sensed something. Interrupting their conversation, he turned to look ahead.

Simultaneously, a voice echoed from the shadows.

"Hehehe... so delicious... Seems like some unlucky prey has stumbled my way..."

Out of the darkness, a hulking creature emerged—its upper body was that of a woman, while its lower half resembled a spider’s. The demon crept upside-down along the ceiling, its crimson eyes glinting with malicious glee as it gazed at the group standing in the hall.

"What a delectable aroma..."

As the creature spoke, its gaze fixated on Naruse Mio. Feeling the raw, predatory hunger in the demon’s eyes, Naruse Mio clenched her fists, her body tense. But after a brief glance at her, the demon turned its attention toward Duanmu Huai.

"Although... there’s also something that smells absolutely foul."

"Heh, guess we’ll see who eats whom!"

At the demon’s words, Duanmu Huai chuckled coldly. He extended his right hand, and the Thunder Warhammer materialized out of thin air, slamming heavily into his palm.

"Die, demon!"