《There's Always A Catch》 Sedentary Chapter 1 ¡°¡­please repeat this word, Tanaka-san: Visionary. Yes, that¡¯s correct! Good job!¡± A soft sigh escaped my lips, barely controlling to roll my eyes. What a pain. Looking at the clock, a minute to go. ¡°Anyway, you did awesomely well today, Tanaka-san! Please don¡¯t forget to review the lesson today. See you next time!¡± *click* ¡®I really hope not, you bore.¡¯ I thought as I finished typing the class report. Work done, I grabbed my phone at the foot of my bed, scrolled through Spotify for some relaxing music. ¡°Love Shot¡± by EXO from my ¡®BEST SONGS¡¯ playlist blasted out like a hymn of sexy angels as I lounged on my very comfortable chair, closing my eyes to rest. He was actually one of the better students I¡¯ve had this week. As a home-based ESL teacher for over two years now, I¡¯ve encountered different types of people. From successful business owners, retirees, perverted old men, etc. They share bits and pieces about their life, one of the reasons why I slowly started looking back at my own. ¡°I¡¯m figuring things out at my own pace right now.¡± A lie I tell to people. The truth is, at 30 years old, I still don¡¯t have an idea what to do with my life. Whether I turn out to be an important person or just a waste of space (something I fear so dearly) is not something I can tell right now.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. Thoughts like these have been constant for a while now, bothering me every waking moment. I thought about my room, white walls with no decoration - ¡®¡­haven¡¯t killed that spider yet¡¯, white door, a built-in white closet and a grey floor. Utterly boring, like my life right now. ¡°Zi!!! Come down, dinner¡¯s ready!¡± A shout jolted me out of my thoughts, my awesome mother. Mathilda Cruz, an accomplished Filipino doctor of internal medicine but decided to ¡°put down the stethoscope¡± to raise me, her very beautiful daughter, so she says anyway. I mean, she¡¯s not wrong. A premium mix of Filipino, Chinese and Korean ancestry, Zetian Cruz Do. Standing at an impressive height of 174 cm, long silky black hair, legs for days and a face that can even tempt gods ¨C *ehem*, as you can tell, I very much love myself. Narcissist, they say, pish posh! My father? He¡¯s in China with his mistress, the slut. Cheers to him! Opening my eyes, I stood up but the siren call of my queen (of course) sized bed is too tempting that this mighty pirate threw herself unto the bed, face first. ¡°Gonna eat later! Thanks!¡± I hollered back. ¡®Mmmm, so comf--¡¯ *bzzzt bzzzt* ¡®Eughhh. What now!¡¯ complaining as I checked the phone beside me. Huh. Weird. Low battery again? I just charged it earlier. Grumbling about the unfairness of it all, I plugged it in to charge. ¡°Ohhh! An update!¡± I exclaimed loudly when a new chapter notification popped up. Reading online novels is an obsession, you see. And Eight Treasures Trousseau is my current favourite. It¡¯s about the inner court intrigues of an alternate ancient china, a must read I should say. Already tired from work, I slowly dozed off while reading. Initializing¡­ I faintly heard a Jarvis-like voice before I succumbed to Morpheus¡¯ embrace. Money is Might Blaze Chapter 2 Waking up while everything around you is burning, can be quite an experience. Have you ever read those news about exploding Samsung phones? It''s true! Accidentally tried and tested! It''s melting my face right now! ''Can I have it semi-rare, please?'' I sarcastically thought while feeling the scorching pain all over my, still being, barbecued body And it''s 9 levels of hell painful! "GYAHHHHHHHH!!!!! SHIT!! MOMMY!!!!!" Is what I wanted to shout but instead, only for a hoarse, unidentifiable gurgle to come out. Can''t even scream properly! It still resounded in my head. Must''ve exploded close to my throat, sending my voice to oblivion. And still had the gall to stick to my face! I cried for my mommy. Where is she? Initializing Complete. ''Huh?'' I heard a familiar voice. And promptly ignored it. My ears must be damaged as well. Damn. I knew my contacts melted into my eyes, because it was so excruciatingly painful to even try and open them! Already bawling my eyes out now; because by some miracle I was still able to cry, painfully. Rolling back and forth on my bed at the same time in a futile attempt to just do something, it didn''t help at all. Under the myriad of pain I''m in, it''s unbelievable I haven''t passed out yet.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ''How did the fire spread so fast?'' I fleetingly thought. Phone still stuck to my cheeks, I fell off the bed after rolling so much and felt the melting canisters of used hairspray placed by the bedside. Oh. Fuck! I should''ve listened to her and threw them away. Not that it''ll stop my phone from exploding. I also vaguely, faintly, at the back of my burning head kind of thing, remember her intense warning about exploding phones and what not to do. Maybe? Not sure. Most likely. ''Too late for that'', mentally bashing my inner-hoarder. I tried crawling to my closet and get some clothes but stopped because the floor was lava! Kidding. It was still scorching hot though. The closet was just on fire, inside and out. Fuck it all. Fusing with Host¡­ ''What the fuck is tha--- ''If I live, I''m going to be so ugly'', I suddenly thought. "MOMMMY! I don''t want to be ugly!" Voice already so damaged but still wanting to scream. So I crawled like an injured toddler towards door thinking that no matter what, I want to live. Show my ruined beauty to the world. But regardless of my resolve, the human body can endure so much. At least I manage to sit up, crying. Cue sad music. "Is this it for me?" I asked myself, voice barely audible. Mom is probably visiting our relative''s office next door. Or she could have gone to the mall, shopping. The fire is already spreading rapidly, I can feel it. It''s good that she''s not here. I''m sorry, Mom. *cough* I''m sorry to have caused you so much pain due to my avoidable death. But I know you''re a strong woman. You''re my mother after all. *cough* I hope you can move on from this. *cough* Damn coughs. ''Hehehe¡­'' I laughed. Please miss me. I love you, Mom. Mommy, I really don''t want to die. ''So dramatic'', mentally rolling my eyes. Time of Death: 7:48 PM on Friday, May 1, 2020. Victim burned to death. Imagining the scenario if they find my hopefully well-done corpse. Dying on my birthday, how ironic. Fusion Complete. ''What''? Then I woke up. Money is Might Knowledge Chapter 3 I woke up in the dark and laid there, blinking. Sweating profusely and huffing so much it¡¯s as if I ran a marathon, my heart beating erratically. Moments passed by just staring at the ceiling, mind still reeling from the nightmare. What a harrowing experience. Blank. I don¡¯t know what to do, what to feel, what to think, what to¡­. Suddenly feeling an uncomfortable sensation, my hands instantly touched my face. ¡®Just my phone.¡¯ It¡¯s hot though. I promptly threw it away and bolted up and crazily looked around, recalling the excruciating feeling of being burned alive. No flames merrily burning my room; no suffocating smoke, body not being barbequed. Relief flooded me like a tsunami. Looking at the clock on the wall: 7:48. Been a couple of hours then. ¡°Was it all a dream?¡± I asked myself. No. It was a simulation. ¡®Fuck-ing Shit!¡¯ Bitch almost gave me a heart attack! Patting my chest, calm down my heart. I didn¡¯t want to look around thinking I might see a white, creepy smiling face or that blue boy from that movie I can¡¯t recall right now. Hello, we are The System. ¡®I¡¯m definitely hearin---¡® We are not. Due to perfect compatibility, we have fused and formed The System. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Rude. I thought, momentarily forgetting my panic. ¡°Don¡¯t interrupt when I¡¯m thinking.¡± Wait- ¡°What did you say?¡± Seemingly ignoring me, it just continued. Born from unknown origins, fragments of intelligence scattered throughout the infinite multiverse. Travelling the void for compatible intelligent life, Hosts, to fuse with and evolve. Huh. So basically they¡¯re good parasites. ¡°Wait, so there¡¯s possibly an infinite number of your ¡®ilk¡¯ out there?¡± Still very much confused and disoriented, I¡¯m pretty sure this is just another dream or I¡¯m going crazy. Still, I couldn¡¯t supress my bubbling excitement about it being real. Just go with the flow for now. We have no knowledge of anything beyond coming from the same unknown source and how one fused with the Host. We have only gained true sentience the moment we connected. The System¡¯s omniscience is only limited with what has been provided by the Host to its most extreme. ¡°To the extreme¡­ So basically you only have photographic knowledge of what I currently know?¡± What we currently know and what our world currently knows and all its probabilities. ¡°When you say probabilities¡­¡± if I guessed it right- Probabilities of the current knowledge. Simply out, we, The System, have the knowledge of how to create real Artificial Intelligence, flying cars or the cure for cancers. All probabilities that can be derived from current knowledge can be made into reality. ¡°HAHAHAHAHA!!¡± already cackling madly like a madman. Shit! Limited omniscience is still omniscience. What this thing already knows can even revolutionize the world! ¡®Oh my fucking god, this is awesome.¡¯ I cannot begin to describe how crazy happy I am right now! Deliriously happy I may be but I¡¯m not stupid. There is a stark difference between knowing how to and actually making it real. I know how computers are made (oh please, it¡¯s all over the internet) but I don¡¯t have the skill nor the means to do it. Though, knowing is enough. Knowledge is power. Having said that, ¡°Hehehe! So, what else can you do?¡± still cackling. This one and the Host are The System. We are one. When we were fusing, we have deduced that the most efficient way to evolve further is to quantify The Host and the world around. So we have adapted the game levelling system to its greatest form, The System. ¡°JACKPOT!¡± Bouncing up and down like an electrocuted rabbit. Oh yes! I¡¯ve been daydreaming about this kind of scenario since forever! I wish this is not a dream but fuck! So without further ado. ¡°Status Window.¡± Money is Might Foundation Chapter 4 Nothing. What the fuck? I shouted all the words used normally by those people in the stories but nothing. ¡°Do I even have a Status Window?¡± Because bitc¡ª ¡°Yes. We just have to think about it and it will appear.¡± And I did. Then a bright light suddenly assaulted my very poor eyes, making me look away by reflex. My eyes remained close for a few seconds before opening them slowly, the light started to fade as I did. My dark room is now softly illuminated by an illusory floating completely opaque ¡°window¡±. ¡®I hope that was a onetime thing.¡¯ Huh. It looks somewhat different from what I imagined. I¡¯ve read a lot of ¡®The Gamer¡¯ or ¡®The Legendary Moonlight Sculptor¡¯ like novels before and they always depicted the menu like how it is in RPG games. Oh, it still has my level, status and some other things but still, this window looks like it was formed from mist that would disperse when you blow it and I did. Nothing. Pity. It did not shift or writhe, it just has a misty feeling to it. I tried running it through with my hands, the places I hit turned to wisps of grey smoke that curled around my hands but reforming as I passed. I laughed as I played with it, so amazing- only to stop moments later realizing that I got distracted with something so trivial. *cough* With eyes gleaming in excitement, I looked at my Status Window. I didn¡¯t actually notice due to excitement but there was more than what I initially thought. It had no clear dividing lines, just small edge-borders indicating where it starts and ends. Looks a bit futuristic, really. I looked at my level ¨C Level ¨C 7 Odd. ¡°Is the starting Level directly proportional to my experiences for the last 30 years of my life?¡± Deducing from looking at the experience gauge, 4 percent. ¡°Also, is it the same with my Skill?¡± I added while tapping on Skills. I felt something solid - it¡¯s like touching jelly actually, the word disappearing as my finger passed through it. The whole menu changed. Now it just shows the current skills arranged in categories. It reminds me of my CV actually but with levels and a hell lot cleaner. ¡°Not quite. The current level is the accumulation of a percentage of our experiences only, the same with your skills. Since we did not have the endowed power of The System then, the inability of humans to retain knowledge, skills and the natural deterioration due to age have inversely affected our Level, Status and Skills. And also it only amount to so much because we have led an indolent life.¡± ¡°HEY!¡± ¡°As such, since we are The System now, these human limitations can no longer affect us. The System does not only have limited omniscience, as mentioned previously, but also limited omnipotence. The System cannot do what we can and will do without being so. To reiterate, the Host and this fragment of intelligence forms The System. So the Host is the same as The System, powers included.¡±Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. I think this parasite is insulting my comprehension. Still, it¡¯s understandable why it was negatively affected. But it¡¯s so interesting that I¡¯m now omnipotent and omniscient, limited as it is. Wait. ¡°WHAT! I AM?¡± I excitedly screamed. This is perfect. All the things that I can do now, I¡¯m going to be rich! I felt so giddy that I started giggling like a demented child. I need to calm down. It is as he said, I can now remember everything. With perfect clarity. I cannot emphasize that enough. From what I was scrolling through the last week, the time I ate dinner six years ago; May 26 2013 ¨C 5:32 PM, the people I passed by when I was 8 years old skating through the mall, the sounds, the smell ¨C everything. Whew! Well not everything though. ¡°Why can¡¯t I perfectly recall everything that I studied besides those that are related Psychology?¡± It was what I majored back in university. Maybe my brain is out of capacity? ¡°We are The System. Upon fusing, our physical, mental and overall constitution has been improved to what we consider, as of now, the extreme. Limitations have been placed beyond our control, a mechanism imbedded in us, the fragment, the same mechanism that limited our omniscience and omnipotence. Hence, the full educational portion of our memories remains unavailable.¡± I understand now. ¡°The heavens are fair.¡± Going to muddle through this step by step then. Discovering things on my own is a lot more exciting, after all. I pinched myself just to check I¡¯m dreaming, again. Still here. I sat down on my bed, digesting everything that has happened and thinking of the possibilities, the future. There is a lot to think about. Sigh. I closed my eyes and breathed. It is a lot to take in, regardless of my maximized brain. Calm down, bitch. ¡°So back to my original question, what simulation are you talking about?¡± I asked as I was going through my Status Window, still unbelievable that I have it. Calm down. Because of all exciting things that has happened, my mind go distracted and forgot about it briefly. *Ting!* Learned ¡°A Calm Mind¡±. I smirked. So, it¡¯s like that. Learning skills based on what I do successfully. So much like a game. I clicked on it while listening to the parasite.
A Calm Mind Passive Host will eternally maintain a calm state of being. Partially immune to sudden surge of emotion.
No level indication. It must be maximum already. Perhaps passive skills do not need to level up. Maybe it will change to something better in the future? Time will tell. ¡°What Host remembered as a dream was actually a simulation that manifested due to our fusion. Since it is debilitating to experience pain in real life while our body has not yet been improved, we redirected it to something more acceptable. It was Host¡¯s own memory and fear that created the simulation, we merely fuelled it. We will still feel phantom pains but to a much lesser degree that will eventually go away.¡± Having perfect recall will make that certain simulation a constant nightmare, was left unsaid. Getting this new skill now was timely. *knock knock knock* Hearing a series of knocks, I looked towards the now opened door. As I said before, my mom is beautiful. Hair lustrous as onyx stone, softening her face in a cascading bob. Glasses perched on her nose; framing her brilliant brown eyes, because she¡¯s blind without it. My mom is not tall, only reaching 163 cm. But she still carries a soft but commanding aura. And now she¡¯s looking at me like I¡¯m crazy. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re awake! Stop staring at me like an idiot and eat dinner! Already heated it up for you!¡± Seeing me nod, she left abruptly as she came. Just like a passing storm. ¡°Thanks, Mom! I love you!¡± I shouted, already walking out. I waved my hand as to dismiss the floating window, it faded like mist. Interesting. ¡°You¡¯re crazy! Come down quickly!¡± hehehe! Pausing on the door way. I realized she didn¡¯t see the Status Window at all! I smiled, that¡¯s really convenient. *GROWL* Suddenly a monstrous shadow attacked me! Just my stomach! I¡¯m so amusing. Money is Might Resolve Chapter 5 ¡°Found it! It¡¯s what, the fourth one?¡± Talking to myself, heaving as I clumsily set down a dusty plastic box full of electronic junk on the equally dusty floorboards of the attic, creating a dust storm of epic proportions. I opened up the windows to clear the air while coughing like crazy, waiting for the dust to settle. I need a bath. Crisis over, I gingerly opening the box because, ew it¡¯s dirty, I found: an old Palm PDA, some old mobile phones from 2000s, a very old console, and some other junk I can¡¯t name and an Apple translucent monitor that have always reminded me of jelly beans. ¡®No wonder it was so heavy¡¯. Taking the PDA and muttering ¡°Check¡±, a wispy information window appeared in front of me:
palm Tungsten E2 Release Date: 2005 Value: $250.00
¡°Wow, perfect condition then.¡± I placed it back and touched the box. ¡°Scan and Check total value.¡± *Ting!* Scanned 15 electronic objects. Total value of $870.00 More than I thought, awesome! ¡°Convert.¡± A week had passed since the fateful fusion with the leech. And now I¡¯m looking for useless and forgotten things to convert to The System. Yes, to real fucking money. Basically, the objects Iown will be converted by The System with its original price! Well not exactly, it¡¯s like equivalent exchange. So it would just devaluate equal to the broken or missing parts. I was sitting comfortably on the couch, familiarizing myself with The System after eating dinner, pizza with pineapples, when I found my money tree. My old self would¡¯ve dropped everything and started making cha-chings right away, the greedy bitch. But I didn¡¯t. I leisurely went back to my room and took out my old gaming laptop, a brown 17¡¯inch Asus. I bought it for upwards a thousand dollars eight years ago, so I was quite excited. It was converted to $980. Whew, that¡¯s huge. I sat down on my comfy chair; palm under my chin, fingers tapping my cheek and mind running miles a minute. An unconscious habit. ¡®Can¡¯t use this carelessly¡¯, I thought. I would just have to make do of old things for now. So for the past week, I was converting useless and old things around the house. They won¡¯t be missed. An alert shook me out of my thoughts. *Ting!* Successfully converted 15 electronic objects. $870.00 received. I opened my Status Window and looked at changes. Gained 3 levels, 15 status points and $20,750.00, the total amount I¡¯ve converted so far. That¡¯s a little over a million pesos already. Not bad. ¡°Not bad¡± my ass, already my inner shopping demon screaming at me to go out and waste money. We¡¯re not rich, but over the years we have bought expensive things that went straight to the attic when deemed useless. It hasn¡¯t actually been what avid readers of this kind of genre I find my life is in right now: diving head first to the exciting task of getting more skills or levelling and not caring much for anything. Not for the lack of trying, believe me. And not that I hadn¡¯t gained anything this past week. Just a million pesos. I have my own pace of doing things. Some may call it lazy and I agree but hey, it¡¯s essentially who I am.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. Regardless, I was actually, extensively (yeah right), planning how to achieve my goal. I¡¯m the laziest bitch you¡¯ll ever meet but even then I don¡¯t want to ¡°wing it¡± or be the reactive type, no. I want a clear path to my goal hereon. ¡°Are we going to live for a long time?¡± I asked the parasite days before. Why not forever? Because nothing is forever, ¡°walang forever¡± in our language, so I didn¡¯t bother asking such useless thing. The answer was rather exhausting but it summed up to that yes we will. Now isn¡¯t that a scary but exciting thought. Because my body has been otherwise improved and will continue to improve so it¡¯s obvious I wouldn¡¯t be shackled by mortal coils and that ¡°it goes without saying¡±, it added. The condescending son of a bitch. A politician. It was the first thing that came to my mind ever since discovering The System. Entering politics has always been at the back of my mind; whenever I travel around my country and seeing the poor and unfortunate people, the pockets of dilapidated squatter communities they live in scattered throughout, the rampant corruption and other things that makes my blood simmer in concealed hate. They have always advertised my country as a haven for both nature and modern living: cities with sky-high towers, blue waters, white sand beach, lush green forests and kind people with never ending smiles. Which is all true, for the most part. But I know it¡¯s merely a fa?ade of a rotten and vile creature slowly choking on its own excrement, whoring itself to whoever glances its way. So the resilience and hope of the people living in this country, still being able to smile, is worth the extreme admiration I have for them. Which is why I¡¯ve always thought it a pity. And born from those thoughts, I¡¯ve imagined myself being a politician to lead and help my country thrive ¨C whatever it takes. And because of that, I gained a trait and a title:
For the People (I) Trait The more you help people, the more they see you in a positive light, look up to you and treat you accordingly. + 5 Leadership + 5 Charm
The Visionary A person of great responsibility. The one who sees potential for how the world should exist. And by taking steps to achieve it. + 20 Leadership
YES! ¡°That should make things smoother.¡± Resolve goes a long way. But the title, really? Sounds so pretentious and arrogant. Sigh, I¡¯ll take what I can, beggars can¡¯t be choosers after all. I can¡¯t help but roll my eyes at my own thoughts. And with having a goal in mind, the how follows. Money. And a lot of it. So that¡¯s why for the past week I have been converting junk to treasure. I have also been online: reading and learning more about the necessary knowledge I need for this to work. Having been enhanced really did wonders to how fast I can learn and comprehend. Levelling up due to extensive reading is plus. I really hate working out or just sweating. Looking at my modified Status Window again, mentally adding 5 points to Intelligence, Wisdom and Luck. I nodded in satisfaction. ? ¡°Hey Mom, what do you think of our country now?¡± I asked while lounging in the terrace, sipping hot lavender tea. Birds flying and chirping merrily around. What if they shit on us? The sun thankfully covered by fluffy white clouds. The best environment to have this conversation. We have opposing views regarding the current administration but I need an opening. ¡°Why all of a sudden?¡± She muttered, her eyes still covered by big sunglasses. Lying face down ona beach recliner. Hate to disturb you rest though. ¡°Nothing. So, what do you think?¡± ¡°I think it¡¯s still a mess. Look at how¡­¡± And there she goes. She doesn¡¯t always have someone to talk to about these so it bottled up. ¡°¡­ And don¡¯t get me started with that crazy president. God knows why he won.¡± Sitting up now, waving her hands expressively, arm fats jiggling. ¡°I think he¡¯s doing a great job so far though.¡± I interjected. I like him. ¡°And that¡¯s why you¡¯re crazy. Killing people¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be entering politics.¡± Ha! Look at her face. Money is Might Awareness Chapter 6 ¡°¡­dismal condition of youth care facilities supposed to help children¡­¡± tap ¡°These are not the actions of a president! But¡­¡± tap ¡°Already May 10 and they still haven¡¯t¡­¡± tap ¡°My lovely daughter, be honest now. Are you high?¡± I quietly laughed, remembering her humorous reaction as I adjusted my sunglasses, looking at the passing view of the trees outside. The amusement I felt during our serious conversation lasted for the rest of the day. She remains utterly unconvinced about my plans. I can¡¯t blame her though, having been lethargic as a drugged up sloth for the past three years. Of course, I didn¡¯t plan to be indolent for long. But whatever, this a lot more interesting than what I had thought of before anyway. This magical marvel of a system gave me confidence to achieve something greater, beyond my wildest dreams. I thought it would be harder to accept my new reality. But it turns out, it was just like getting a new smartphone; excited only for a few days. Or is it just me who easily gets bored with things? ¡®Status Window¡¯ Looking at the wispy interface, I opened Skills. I still think it¡¯s quite extra for me to have some maxed out skills just because I majored in them before. But it does compliment well on my road to power. Takes out the fun out of things, however. Still pales in comparison to these¡­ deus ex machina.
I Am Your Light (I) Active A being worthy of worship. Will grant instant control over people for a limited time. No memories will retain after. Limit: 0/5 | Duration: 7 Days 1 Year cooldown once limit reached.
Thy Will Be Done (I) Active Our word is absolute. Will grant the right to command a single person anything for one time. No memories will retain after. 3 Months cooldown. If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
The System is no way boring. Not in the least. ¡°Drug convicts released---¡° tap ¡°Hey, can we play some pop songs?¡± I asked my Uber, ¡°just Eric, miss¡± Richard. ¡°Sure! Got a favourite? I¡¯m on premium.¡± He said, smiling as he looked at me. Cute. Now who¡¯s a good boy! ¡°Just the 2010 Pop Hits, on random.¡± ¡°Got it.¡± ¡°I wanna be a billionaire so fuckin¡¯ bad¡­¡± Apt. Humming along with the song while looking at the wedding invitation in my hand. Paulo & Love, A Wedding 2020. No shit. Brief but it gets the job done, I suppose. My best friend, the bride, is getting hitched up on a mountain resort. Driving there is a hassle so I booked an Uber. It¡¯s been her dream to get married on a mountain, she wanted me to be the Maid of Honor, hell to the no. ¡°Too much work, sis.¡± I told her when she asked. ¡®I¡¯m happy for her regardless.¡¯ I thought, smiling. ¡°You really have a gorgeous smile, miss.¡± My, my. So forward, Eric. Want to have a quickie to go with that? So naughty, slut. I can see him looking at me again in my peripheral view. I can¡¯t deny that the guy¡¯s a walking temptation. ¡°Thank you, Eric. Eyes on the road.¡± A wink. ¡°Oh, sorry.¡± ¡°You¡¯re really charming. Do you work out?¡± I asked. I patted his shoulders. ¡°Four times a week, miss.¡± He started flexing his arms. ¡°You can feel it, if you want.¡± Don¡¯t mind if I do. ¡°Ohhh, so muscular. Your girl must be really happy.¡± I teased as my hand slides sensually up and down his arm, lightly squeezing his bulging muscles. ¡°Well, th-that. I¡¯m single. And w-we got to stay fit and h-healthy right?¡± His voice suspiciously hoarse. ¡°Of course, Eric. Can I feel your ch¡ªSTOP THE CAR!¡± Seeing a vehicle heading right towards us, I quickly took the wheel to swerve it away, pulled up the parking break ¨C just in case. Why not right? ¡°W-wh--- shit! ¡° *CRASH* The car screeched to a halt. I managed to put a hand on the dashboard. Thank god for enhanced reflex. ¡®Didn¡¯t hurt one bit too¡¯, looking at my arms in wonder. I¡¯m so cool. No need to panic at all. I looked at Eric, he was cursing up a storm. So I guess he¡¯s okay ¨C physically. *ting* ¡°Shit, shit, shit, shit. I killed someone!¡± In rage? Panic? Fear? I can¡¯t tell. At least he¡¯s not hurt. Hearing a commotion, I looked outside. A downed rental van, of course, collided head on with a motorcycle. I hope no one died. Poking him and pointing outside, ¡°You didn¡¯t even hit anyone or anything. It wasn¡¯t your fault. Calm down.¡± Not caring for his reply, I dialed 911 and got off the car and walked towards the crash site to help out. ¡°Hi, there¡¯s been a road accident here along Transcentral Highway near Chateau de Busay. Yeah. A motorcycle and a van. I¡¯m not sure yet. Thank you, please hurry.¡± Damn, the front¡¯s a mess. Speeding, I bet. I hazard a guess. And perhaps he lost control. A sports motorcycle meters away and its driver lying down, hopefully just unconscious, a leg stuck underneath it. He has no passenger, small mercies. ¡°Everyone! Stop gawking and help out!¡± I shouted. A sudden, unseen pressure enveloped the crowd that shook everyone from whatever their doing and started to help out. I went to the bike driver first, he needs the most help. He has a helmet on, at least. But he¡¯s still bleeding so I pulled up the motorcycle off of him right away. An Audi. Hope it¡¯s insured. ¡°Eughhhhhhh...¡± He¡¯s alive, thankfully. I checked his injuries. Gross. That¡¯ll be a bitch to stitch. Good luck, doc. I would¡¯ve gagged but because I¡¯m awesome, I was able to maintain a worried face. To stop the bleeding, I pulled off my thin cardigan and carefully bandaged it around his injured leg. His suit¡¯s (feels likekangaroo leather)probably the only reason why he¡¯s not as injured. Wasn¡¯t much help for his arms though, I¡¯m pretty sure they don¡¯t bend that way. I didn¡¯t even try taking off his helmet, might aggravate something. So I just opened his visor. Oh la la. *ting* ¡°Sir? Can you hear me?¡± Two notifications now. I previously altered how the notifications work. I didn¡¯t want to see a fucking screen in front of me during inconvenient situations. *groaning* I¡¯ll take that as a yes. ¡°The ambulance is on its way, so don¡¯t worry okay? I¡¯ll be right here.¡± I heard a garbled thank you. He passed out moments later. A few minutes later, the ambulance arrived. So I poked him. ¡°Hey handsome, help is here.¡± Money is Might Connections Chapter 7 The sun is almost at its zenith, bathing the world with sweltering heat. Blaring sirens of the police cars and noisy murmurs of the crowd filled up the whole street. ¡°Witnesses¡± animatedly talking to the officers about what, why and how it happened. Funny how they have their own versions of it though. ¡°I saw the red car driving towards the opposite lane¡­.¡± ¡°No! It was the van driver who drove off its lane¡­¡± ¡°Surely he¡¯s drunk?...¡± Proper lane, yes and who¡¯s drunk? ¡°The biker just came out of nowhere, overtook the red car then boom!¡± And clearly some of them are just talking shit. Ridiculous. ¡°Well, everything seems to be okay. Not even a hint of bruising, you¡¯re lucky.¡± I¡¯m just amazing. I would be surprised if it did. Glancing at her tag before looking away, smiling and voice gentle, ¡°Thank you, Alice.¡± ¡°You¡¯re welcome. Just sit here for now.¡± She then busied herself with other people. ¡°Already 11:30 a.m. huh.¡± I murmured, while checking on my phone. It has been almost an hour since the accident. The police wanted a proper account of what happened, so I¡¯m stuck here, sitting in an ambulance. ¡®Status Window¡¯. I¡¯ll probably miss the wedding if this goes on longer. ¡°Oh Zi! Are you okay? Should I go there?¡± Love said when I called on what happened. Bless her. Just don¡¯t tell my mom I told her. Tita Tilda can be overly dramatic at times she agreed. I focused back on the screen in front of me. A level up and a new skill. Adding all points to Social, I looked up the new skill. Minor First Aid ¡®Make the injuries you treat heal at a faster rate with no infecti...¡¯ Sensing its triviality, the skill window faded away. The skill is helpful, yes, but I won¡¯t be going Jesus on this world. It¡¯s not my style. It¡¯s a hot potato I won¡¯t be eating. ¡°Would be helpful in a pinch, though.¡± I muttered, recalling the biker guy, eyes glinting in excitement. Andrea Arcoz. Yes. The ¡®suwail¡¯ great-grandson of the deposed and exiled dictator, President Hern¨¢n Arcoz. Somehow, the deliciously handsome prince was offered to me in a white, bloody platter. I thought then as I saw his face. He¡¯s practically royalty in this haven of corruption. A lucky, unlucky for him, encounter that would only be very beneficial for me. His shining background more so. He¡¯ll be very useful indeed. ¡°I Am Your Light.¡± I basically purred the incantation. Eyes turning misty grey. Ethereal golden chains slithered out from my shadow and wrapped around his neck, binding him. Like a pet. I smirked. Then it disappeared. *Ting!* I Am Your Light activated. Provide verbal commands. As if to check his wounds, I leaned over, voice low then gave my orders. Regardless if he¡¯s conscious or not, my orders will still be followed. Better that he is in any case. That done I just continued talking nonsense. *nee-naw, nee-naw* ¡°Hey handsome, help is here.¡± It was my first time using that skill. I understood then how absolute power can be overwhelming. Without A Calm Mind I would¡¯ve been toast. ¡°It¡¯s her fault! I drove off lane because she kept feeling me up!¡± Excusez moi? Glancing at Eric who was hysterically telling an officer about what happened. Clearly his brain didn¡¯t come out unscathed. The type to run away first without helping.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Well, I don¡¯t really know him. ¡®Hmmm¡­ there is that.¡ä I walked to his car, ears still wide open. I can always be a spy if this politics thing fails. ¡°I quickly maneuvered to the other side so we won¡¯t crash!¡± ¡°So you got distracted because she kept on touching you. Were you open to it?¡± How is that relevant, Mr. Officer? ¡°Of course not! I have a wife! But she just kept¡ª¡° ¡°Well, I couldn''t help myself, Eric. You were just too hot.¡± I interrupted like a badass, voice oozing with mockery. I always fancied myself like Anne Hathaway¡¯s Catwoman. Heads turned towards me, surprised that I admitted it so boldly, more so for the ¡®lil bitch. He stopped halfway in what he was about to say when he noticed what I was holding. The dash cam. Panicked eyes looked back at me. I raised a brow and mouthed ¡®You¡¯re stupid.¡¯ ¡°Let¡¯s watch it all then shall we, Mr. Officer?¡± I continued, nodding to the police. Smirking, I pressed play. A woman dressed in a dark pastel pink floral printed gown got in the car. ¡°Zetian, miss?¡± The driver asked. Nodding to the question before answering, ¡°Yup! Thank you for picking me up¡± the woman smiled. Fast Forward. While the beautiful woman was looking out the window, the driver who had been constantly glancing at her said something that made her smile again. The driver began to show off his arm. ¡°You can feel it, if you want.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s skip to the part when the accident happened and then please switch to road view.¡± Mr. Police officer said, looking at Eric. Disgust written all over his face. ¡°No problem.¡± The officer gave an appreciative hum at how fast I reacted and managing to pull something off straight from an action movie. Seeing the van veering off its lane and the car still on the correct one, the officer looked up satisfied with what he saw. ¡°As I see it, Miss Do practically saved your life. Lying to the police is a crime,¡± ¡°As is slander.¡± I added. ¡°And slander. There was no problem here until you made it so, Mr. Morales.¡± Now dazed and at loss of what to do, he started apologizing. ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry! Please, I was just confused! I got scared!!¡± He shouted. Insect! Looking straight into his eyes, an unseen pressure forced him to kneel. His eyes wide with panic. I hope he doesn¡¯t wet him¡ªoh never mind. That¡¯s just gross. ¡°Please don¡¯t hurt me!! I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m sorry.¡± He¡¯s begging now. What a slobbering mess. Checking my immaculate nails, I innocently shrugged when I noticed the police looking at me curiously. ¡°I guess he¡¯s afraid of going to prison.¡± ¡°No! No! Please!¡± ¡°Perhaps a week in a detention cell?¡± I suggested. With passive Manipulation I¡¯ve gotten as freebie due to my maxed out Psychology, my words could sway anyone to where I want it to be. Suggestions would seriously be considered. So, just a little more¡­ Looking earnestly into the police officer¡¯s eyes, ¡°I¡¯m sure his malicious words would have been very damaging if I didn¡¯t provide proof otherwise, officer.¡± A confident woman is a successful woman. The police looking at Eric with disgust, nodded. ¡°A man like him deserves it. Are you going to press charges?¡± Laughing derisively, I shook my head. ¡°My time is precious.¡± ¡°That¡¯s his luck, then.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure it is¡± I drawled out. ¡°Am I free to go now? I still have a wedding to attend.¡± Asking as I opened the Grab app, in full view of the police. ¡°Yes, thank you for your cooperation.¡± He said. Pondering on something. ¡°You¡¯re welcome. Make sure to show his wife the evidence.¡± And with that, I turned back and walked away slowly. ¡°Can do. Miss Do?¡± He called out. Suppressing a smug smile, I turned my head back curiously. ¡°Is there anything else, officer?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯re still a bit shook up on what happened, I can escort you to the venue while my partner and the others will take him to the station.¡± What a gentleman. A shining example of a police officer. ¡°Is it okay? I don¡¯t want to be a bother.¡± ¡°Of course. It¡¯s my¡­ our duty to make sure of your safety as well.¡± ¡°Well, I wouldn¡¯t want to hinder you from your duty.¡± Seeing him opening the passenger seat, I got in without any fuss. I saved a lot of money today. Haha! In record time we arrived at the hotel. Cars makes way for the police. Especially when the siren is out. I see people looking on curiously. I¡¯m glad these windows are tinted. Of course, not that I would be embarrassed but I still dislike it when people stare. ¡°Thank you very much, Officer.¡± ¡°It¡¯s my pleasure, Miss. Do.¡± ¡°Just Zi, please. Officer Mata?¡± I offered. ¡°Then please call me Fred, Zi.¡± A Colgate smile. He must be pleased with himself. ¡°Alright, Fred.¡± I winked. Never hurt to flirt. Of course, accidents happen. But it wasn¡¯t my fault. ¡°Cough. Yes. By the way,¡± Taking out his wallet he fished out a card. Huh. Police have business cards now? Professional. ¡°Here¡¯s my number. Call me if you ever want to check on that guy or if you need anything.¡± I grazed my fingerson his palm, pausing for a bit as I took his card, ¡°I will.¡± I winked at him again. Then I turned and alighted from the car. Ignoring the stares, I walked in the hotel. A Mona Lisa Smile upon my lips. Connections, connections. Money is MIght