2023-02-20 17:12:47“What would you do if the world ends tomorrow?”
Seth looked up from his phone and stared at the professor in front of the class. “Die,” he said before going back to his phone.
He was just scrolling down the feed. Where was the rolling cat again? He needed it for his mental health.
The fact that his professor marched on with heavy steps and curled journals in his fist completely unfazed him. Victor could fuck himself, for all he care. He had no need for a self-development question when he had a bigger priority in mind.
That’s the cat he was looking for.
“Seth Holden–“
“Yes, Professor Louise,” he readily cut in, mocking, as he watched a black furball try to catch a butterfly with its little paws. The gasps and muffled chuckles from the rest of the class became a background buzz in his ears.
“I ask you again. If your life ends tomorrow, or three days later, or one month later, what on Earth will you do?” Victor repeatedly asked this. “What are you doing now? If it’s so important, you’re free to leave the class.”
“No, can do, sir,” Seth said, now looking up at the professor again. “My ex is behind the door. I don’t want an early death just because I got bored here.”
Victor fumbled for words, his face reddened. Of course, being the youngest professor in this university didn’t always equal classroom domination. The others seemed to agree with Seth, as more chuckles left his classmates.
“Yet you said you’d die if the world ended tomorrow. Quite the contrary.” It seemed that his professor wasn’t content to be the last one being laughed at.
Sighing, Seth put his phone on the desk, crossing his arm challengingly. “If the world ends tomorrow, I’d do nothing. Sir.” Then, he explained, “Because it’d be meaningless anyway. One single day is not going to make a difference for all the years I have been through. It wouldn’t mean anything. I’d still be dead. Like the rest of you. Are you satisfied with my carefully thought out answer now, Professor?”
The moment the last word left his mouth, the entire class was silent. Only the tick-tocking clock and Victor’s disappointed scoff that was heard.
“And that, class, ” the youngest professor on campus concluded, “That is the answer of a pessimistic person who has nothing in his life.”
Seth clicked his tongue, but decided that it’d be useless to give Victor the satisfaction of disagreeing with him. As much as that annoyed him, what his professor said was the truth. He had nothing in his life. No fast car to street race in, nor a cute cat he could cuddle – ahem, embrace in his arms. Just an ex who was after his ass because he dumped her with a text.
That being said, all Seth could do for now was watch another cat wiggling its furry butt, preparing to launch an attack on a mouse plushie.
But, the screen on his phone suddenly blacked out.
It wasn’t out of battery, he still got 69%. Seth was also pretty sure it wasn’t a virus, he got the best VPN and premium antivirus in case he watched porn. Could it be because God doesn’t want him to watch too many cat videos online?
Thankfully, the screen flashed once before it rebooted, displaying the familiar icon of a bitten apple. He exhaled in relief when the familiar wallpaper of a majestic wild cat greeted him. But, upon sliding the screen, his thumb hovered before going to I***a and resumed his cat-seeing activity.
There, right under his farm game, he saw a brand new icon. It was a white donut with ‘User Interface’ written under. Nothing he should be interested in, usually. But he was curious. After all, it could be a virus and he had spent 15 bucks to firewall his phone.
So, with blissful ignorance, Seth touched the icon.
Such a simple thing. If only he knew what a single touch to a foreign app icon in his phone would do … because after this, everything will not be the same.
Dong!
[Congratulations!]
[You are among one hundred lucky people to have receive a System!]
Seth blinked stupidly. Almost in disappointment, really. It was just a freaking ads, he thought as he squinted to read the many ways smaller text at the bottom of the otherwise minimalistic user interface.
[Free only for seven days.]
Then, the screen flashed again and the monochromatic interface soon morphed into a futuristic display, dominated by shades of blue this time.
[It may take a long time to extract assets for the first time.]
[After it, the start-up speed will increase 200%.]
‘The hell? Now, it’s a game?’ Seth wondered to himself as the unauthorised game installed itself on his phone. ‘So much for that 15 bucks.’
Again, the screen displayed another wallpaper still in blue theme.
[I have read and agree to the Privacy Policy and Tracking Policy. Our Terms & Conditions apply.]
The only choice was to back away by forcefully shutting down the game, or he could check the innocent little box on the side and see what kind of game could install itself on his phone.
Flicking his eyes at the clock above Victor’s boring head, Seth decided that … why not?
[Allow the System to access this device’s owner?]
‘You’re giving me a choice now?’ Seth quickly touched the ‘Don’t allow’ option.
[Confirmed.]
[The System will integrate with this device only.]
[Loading.]
[Please wait a minute . . .]
[Success.]
Then the screen went back to display the same futuristic theme in blue.
[Welcome to the System!]
[Please create your nickname.]
[The first change is free, so don’t worry if you haven’t decided yet.]
Seth entered the first thing that came to his mind. ‘Jet Lynx,’ he typed.
[Start your survival journey with a special bonus!]
[Free 3.000 cells!]
As he collected the free bonus, someone cleared their throat in front of his desk.
Seth looked up and saw Sarah Dickson, the ex-girlfriend who shouldn’t be in his class. Well, on second thought, he was just aware that the class had ended and was only leaving a bunch of girls ready to scavenge for hot gossip.
“What?”
Sarah blanched, “You dare to ‘what’ me?”
“Okay, I’ll take it back,” with a flat face, he rephrased, “Why?”
His ex might lack in the intelligence department, but she surely has a pair of nice, long legs. “You broke up with me? With a text?”
She couldn’t even figure it out herself, see? Must he always explain it to her?
“Fine. You want me to say it to your face, then listen closely. Unlike you, I don’t share my dick with someone else. So, yes, we’re breaking up. You may share as much dicks as you want with whoever the fucks, I don’t care. We’re done here.”
The slap, Seth already expected it. But dodging would only lead to another series of quick attacks on her part. So he let her. It wasn’t like he’d die from a high five to his face anyway. But, the punch that followed?
“Gah!” Seth clutched his nose, trying to lessen the pain and not getting blood on his only clean t-shirt. Damn, he really should move his ass to the laundromat later today. “The heck, woman?!”
On the other hand, Sarah was shaking her hand as she grimaced. Red-faced, she said with gritted teeth, “I don’t want to see you again!”
Yet, she was the one who waited for him outside the class, then approached him inside. Two years of dating, and Seth didn’t feel a slight pang of hurt when she left.
Was he a bastard? Oh, definitely.
But was he wrong for breaking up with her? That was a big no. She brought it upon herself by having a threesome with another couple.
Giggles came from the other side of the room. Seth rolled his eyes as the bunch of girls probably already posted his heart-breaking, fresh drama online. He could care less about them. However, as he picked up his phone …
[A bonus mission received.]
[Bonus Mission 1: Give Sarah Dickson a payback slap.]
[Rewards: 10 exp + 10 cells.]
[Time Left: 7 days 0 hour.]
Seth’s eyes widened, wondering if the game was actually an Augmented Reality, where the virtual world mixed with the real one. Because if that was the truth, he just got a hella crazy game that downloaded itself in his phone. For free, he might add.
Although, he wasn’t that crazy as to catch up to his ex and give her a slap in return. No. Instead, Seth closed the pop up window to fiddle with the game itself. The lit up screen provided him with a display of ‘Missions’ instead. And one of them definitely caught his attention.
[Main Mission 1: Survive the first wave invasion.]
[Mission Detail: At 00.00 tonight, the first wave invasion will hit Earth. Survive until the second wave invasion in 100 days 0 hour.]
[Rewards: Second wave invasion’s survival kit + multiple level ups.]
[Time Left: 99 days 11 hours.]
“Is this fucking thing even real?”
No one answered. But his mother called.
Strange.
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79. Table Turned
The raid was a bust.The lieutenant didn't even wait until they were in the privacy of his office before chewing him like useless gum. He demanded, "What is this, Monroe?"Mark bit back the urge to say, 'What did I tell you about raiding it yesterday, Sir?' He waited quietly and avoided any eye contact from the many people in bulletproof vests with bold 'PPD' on their back, strapping their gun back into safety and rounding up their failed attempt. "Why did I spend three hours of driving to the middle of nowhere with a full squad to take down a drug lab and slavery den while there's nothing here?"Again, instead of pointing out that the raid should have been done as quickly as he had suggested, Mark waited."Tell me, Monroe, why are you even screwing up this bad after the rookie slip up with that fake journalist in the warehouse?"'This is not my fault,' he thought. "We are too late, Sir," he said."Too late? Are you saying I'm too slow to act?" Madsen retorted angrily. "Do you even k
78. Make a Move
"You're so annoying, do I have to remind you every hour?" Rhea grumbled from the passenger seat, watching the dark-haired man behind the steering wheel as the car drove itself to the hill house. "Old news," Lucian commented and then glared at her. "But I already said not to let him into this again."Of course. "Mikhal's right. You do sounds like a jealous secret boyfriend.""Ha. Ha." There was no humor behind that. "First, I am not your boyfriend, I'm your fiance. Second, you're the one keeping this a secret, not me."Rhea grinned, "You didn't deny the first one? Are you jealous?""So what?" She frowned but didn't say anything else. She still couldn't figure out why he was jealous of that tall coworker of hers. No matter how many times she asked him, Lucian wouldn't tell.'Or you just never believe his answer,' a small voice at the back of her head supplied helpfully. She brushed it off because it was total drivel. There was no way Lucian actually felt jealous just because he liked
77. Running for Life
She was not as reckless as Lucian sometimes said to her. But she was still new in this espionage thing, and Mikhal suddenly pushed her down to the ground. Her heart raced, pounding noisily along with the blood in her ears. Mikhal's tall figure was equally low by her side. Confidence may fool many people, but she had none of it right now. Especially not after a burly man in a tank top suddenly pointed his long firearm in her direction, right before she took another shot of the drug lab with her phone. Breathing quietly, they waited in suspenseful silence until the man turned his weapon away from their direction. Another man came out of the drug lab's door, probably exchanging words before both of them went inside again. Rhea exhaled in relief, shoulders slumping down as both Mikhal and her shared a look. They moved closer, trying to get more proof from the small window at the side of the building now known as the drug lab. Not only from the chemical glasses with some colored liquid
76. Into Hidden View
After four days of work, Rhea finally got her day off again. Mikhal texted her, 'Meet you at East Station in twenty.' Smiling to herself, Rhea texted back an affirmation. "So…" Liz glanced at her from behind the steering wheel, "If I may ask, where are you going, Miss Rhea?""Out," she merely said."Any specific place in mind?"Rhea locked her phone, "Not really."The bespectacled girl looked uncomfortable for a second before she asked again. "Do you have any companions?""Yes.""Oh. Who is that?"Rhea narrowed her eyes, not liking where the bespectacled girl was going with this. "Is this an interrogation?""No, of course, not." Liz hastily said, topping it with an awkward laugh that she tried to make it sound natural. "I'm sorry if it came out like that, Miss Rhea. I didn't mean to."She sighed, turning to the sturdy houses that came into view as they finally reached the town's area. "It's fine. Lucian ordered you to do that, right?" Liz stayed silent, so she'd take that as a yes.
75. Coping Mechanism
The cafeteria was full of cola and burgers. "Free dinner for everyone!" one of the senior staff called out as they entered it. Rhea grinned – almost jumped in excitement – as her favorite food was served in front of her for free. Emi, on the other hand, chimed in a loud voice, "We don't pay to eat here!"She stuffed her face with the burger. She sat surrounded by a white shirt and blue vest-wearing staff, finally having a nice break out of the craziness of the afternoon shift. "I can't believe I was so excited about it before."Emi smiled broadly, munching on her mouthful bite of burger. She looked funny. "Didn't I tell you that it's crazy?""Yes, but you carefully left out the fact that it is precisely like that oddball group all over again, except, it happens continuously. Marching in a group in the lobby, then shoving each other to get in the elevator. Why do we only have four elevators, anyway?""But it only happens in the afternoon. After that, it's pretty slow, isn't it?"Rhea h
74. Unwritten Law
Lucian had been at the scene of serious diplomacy once, ages ago as he was still ten, where his father was showing him how to negotiate with a foreign mafia boss from another country. Earl would sign an agreement of letting said mafia boss move into Livingard and give him a little territory on the border to set up whatever operation they had planned. Earl would get back his prized butler slash right-hand man safely in one piece in exchange. He was fond of that man, his favorite butler. A middle-aged friendly guy who had a penchant for cutting apples into beautiful figures and dragging Lucian out of bed before dawn for a morning run. So, hearing that his favorite butler would be back after missing – he was captivated by the foreign mafia after accidentally crashing his motorbike to the mafia's daughter on the road – for three days, Lucian was eager when his father wanted him to tag along. It was supposed to be a valuable learning experience for him.One of the foreign mafia subordinat
73. At Least We Try
'Let him be, don't talk to him, whatever, just ignore him.'She didn't even want to see him. But bottling her overflowing emotions? It was a ridiculous idea.Then a notification chimed in, breaking into her bubble of thought, pulling her from the suffocating underwater feeling. 'How's' your girl's day out with Emi?' Mikhal texted her, oblivious to the chaos she made herself. 'She was great.' She texted back.'Cool. No more outings today?' His reply came seconds later, followed by three dots, signifying he was typing now. 'Imma starts the afternoon shift today. Dunno what to expect.''Expect the worst.''Never know u'r such a pessimist.'She wasn't. Fine, maybe she was. Just at the moment, though. Rhea responded with a laughing emoticon. Followed by a string of crying yellow faces.'What was that?' She bit her bottom lip, 'I want to go out.' Her thumb sent it before she even read the line. She considered deleting it. No use, Mikhal already typed again.'I'm free, if you were asking
72. The Walk Down
Sprinting to the beach, Rhea suddenly stopped before her sneakers touched the wet sand. Quickly taking them off, Rhea looked around for a place to put them without getting worried that the wave would sweep on them or someone take them away. Not that she was suspicious of some people enjoying the beach there, or that her shoes were extremely pricey – they were, not that Rhea knew about that, because it was Lucian who paid – but Rhea didn't want to lose her only pair of sneakers.She looked back to Lucian's parked car on the edge of the beach, where the dry ground met with green patches of grass. Squinting her blue eyes, Rhea calculated how much force she needed to get her shoes to the car's side. The light brown-haired girl got into a stance as if she would throw a slider with her sneaker as the ball. Then, Rhea let go of one of her sneakers in a powerful side swing. It flew in a bent trajectory and landed safely on the dry sand, though still a little far away from the car."Ah, I need
71. Wolf in the Flesh
It was the first time Rhea saw a wolf in real life.The wolf looked like how a wolf would in a book or movie. Nothing special, unlike the jet-black wild wolf she saw in a show. Or the majestic white wolf in legends. The animal in front of her looked just like the usual wolf. Short, triangular ears. Broad snout. A long tail. Looking slender yet seems powerful in its built. Its back was grey, so was its upper head. While the rest of its fur was light brown, and the underside was white.Rhea could not believe it."Should we continue?" Jo asked, stepping slowly on the gas pedal.As Jo drove the car past the watchful gaze of the wolf, Rhea felt a shudder run through her body. Either it was a creepy coincidence, or Lucian somehow controlled the wolf to appear there and failed Rhea's escape. Which sounded impossible. Both of them.It was some minutes later that Jo stopped the car. They were near the first building in the outskirt of Stradfield's little town. "Are you sure you want to get off
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