An Immoral System Chose Me

Chapter 8: Exploiting the Inventory for Office Laziness

The world didn't end with a big bang, but rather with the deafening sound of a Windows reboot echoing inside Satya’s eardrums.

The moment he slammed that black book onto the floor of the "Draft Space," reality seemed to fold like a crumpled piece of paper, only to be roughly ironed back out. The purple and black light faded, replaced by the rhythmic flickering of white fluorescent lamps and the smell of old carpet that hadn't been vacuumed in three months.

Satya blinked. He was no longer on a wet sidewalk or in a dimension of discarded ideas. He was sitting in his ergonomic chair—which actually caused back pain—on the 15th floor of his office building. In front of him, the computer monitor displayed an Excel spreadsheet filled with dizzying logistics figures.

"Satya! Are you listening to me?!"

Pak Bambang’s voice. Again. This déjà vu was starting to feel like a cursed infinite loop.

Satya turned his head. Pak Bambang stood there, holding a stack of files as thick as a pillow. However, something was different. Around Pak Bambang’s body, there were faint, vibrating purple lines, as if his boss's image was experiencing cable TV signal interference.

"I hear you, Pak. Quarterly targets, efficiency, blah blah blah," Satya answered in a tone far more bored than usual.

"It’s good that you realize it! Here, finish this distribution report. I want it on my desk by tomorrow morning!" Pak Bambang slammed the stack of files onto Satya’s desk with a sickening THUD, then sauntered away.

Satya stared at the pile of paper. He then glanced at the desk across from him. Rina was there. She also looked dazed, holding her pen with a slightly trembling hand. When their eyes met, Rina gave a small nod—a hidden confirmation that the events at Cafe Serenity and the escape to the Draft Space were not just a collective hallucination. They both remembered. They were both "anomalies" now.

[System: Resynchronizing... Patching narrative leaks... Success. Good morning, User 001. Welcome back to the routine you so dearly adore.]

Alpha’s voice sounded incredibly weary, as if it had just run a marathon across the central servers.

"What happened, Alpha? Why are we back here? Weren't we about to be deleted by the Moderator?" Satya asked internally while twirling his pen.

[System: You detonated your 'Glitch Integration,' Satya. You forcibly corrupted the Moderator's 'Delete Scene' script. The Author cannot delete you now because you have permanently attached yourself to this world's data structure. The result? The Author was forced to perform a 'Soft Reset' to the last stable save point: Monday morning at the office.]

"So, the Moderator gave up?"

[System: No. He is simply looking for another way to kill you without breaking this entire novel. For now, we are 'safe' within this boring daily storyline. But look around you. This world is becoming unstable.]

Satya observed his surroundings. Alpha was right. Aside from the purple lines around Pak Bambang, he saw a fly hovering over Andi’s desk freeze in mid-air for three seconds before suddenly darting in the opposite direction. The office wall clock ticked backward for five seconds once every hour. Reality was struggling hard to stay intact.

"Okay, then. If I have to be stuck here again, I’m not doing it the old way." Satya stared at the stack of files from Pak Bambang.

Normally, finishing this report would take six hours of hard work, three cups of coffee, and one massive migraine. But now, Satya had a new toy.

"Alpha, open Inventory."

A transparent golden window appeared. Inside, besides the useless 'Charisma Perfume' and the now-spoiled 'Rank E Nasi Uduk,' there were infinite empty slots.

"Alpha, what are the limits of this Inventory? Is it only for system reward items?"

[System: Technically, the Inventory is a sub-dimensional space tied to the User's existence. You can store any object that does not possess a 'Soul' or 'Consciousness' inside it, as long as the object comes within your physical touch.]

Satya smirked. A very lazy and brilliant plan began to form in his head.

He touched the thick stack of files from Pak Bambang with his fingertip. Click.

In an instant, the pile of paper vanished from his desk, leaving only a clean, empty wooden surface.

[Item Entered Inventory: Stack of Boring Logistics Files (Rank: Trash)]

"Whoa," Satya muttered. "This is better than any desk drawer."

[System: User... what are you doing? The Inventory is meant for storing healing potions, legendary weapons, or ancient artifacts! Not for hiding office work!]

"Legendary weapons are useless here, Alpha. But a clean desk? That is true happiness." Satya reached out and touched another stack of folders that had been piling up for a week. Click. Click. Click.

One by one, Satya’s administrative burdens moved to another dimension. In less than two minutes, Satya’s desk—usually a disaster zone—looked like a minimalist setup from an IKEA catalog.

"Mas Satya?"

Andi, the intern, stood beside his desk with a confused face. "Huh? Mas? I just saw Pak Bambang give you a mountain of files, why is it clean now? Is it already finished?"

Satya leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms behind his head. "It’s done, Andi. I used a 'Quantum Data Management' technique. Very fast, but difficult to explain to laypeople."

Andi gaped. "Wow... Mas Satya really is my idol. Oh, also... the printer in HR is broken again, and I need to print a leave form. Do you know how to fix it?"

Satya looked at Andi. Another wicked idea emerged. "Andi, do you know why that printer is broken? Because it’s suffering from emotional overload. Here, take the printer to the quiet archive room. I’ll perform a 'Technical Exorcism' there."

In the archive room, Satya told Andi to wait outside, claiming the "procedure was highly classified." Once the door was closed, Satya looked at the jammed laserjet printer. He touched it.

[Item Entered Inventory: Broken Printer (Status: Paper Jam)]

Then, Satya pulled the printer back out of the Inventory. Something interesting happened. When an object entered the Inventory, its time seemed to stop or reset to the condition it was in upon entry. Satya tried "shaking" the printer inside the Inventory (a digital object manipulation feature) and then brought it out again.

Krrrk... sreeet...

The printer suddenly hummed back to life. The previously jammed paper slid out smoothly.

"Game logic," Satya muttered with satisfaction. "If an item glitches or breaks, just put it in the magic bag and take it out again. The system will try to return the object to its functional state so it doesn't break the environmental assets."

[System: You just used high-level sub-dimensional power to fix an office printer... I feel like my dignity as an AI from an advanced civilization is being trampled upon.]

"Don't be dramatic, Alpha. This is called workplace environment optimization." Satya stepped out of the archive room and handed the printer back to a stunned Andi.

"Mas Satya! You really are an IT wizard!"

"It’s nothing, Andi. Don't forget, it's your turn to buy coffee tomorrow."

Satya returned to his desk. He felt incredibly productive in his laziness. However, he noticed Rina watching him from afar. Rina stood up and walked toward the water dispenser, which required her to pass Satya’s desk.

"Inventory exploitation, huh?" Rina whispered as she passed him.

Satya looked up, a thin smile on his lips. "More efficient than overtime, right?"

"Can I leave my shopping bags with you this afternoon? I want to go to the mall but I'm too lazy to carry heavy bags," Rina winked.

"Sure. One inventory slot rents for the price of one bowl of noodles," Satya replied.

Rina chuckled and continued walking. Satya felt that even though the world was slowly falling apart, having a partner who knew his secret made everything feel lighter.

However, that peace did not last long.

[Ding!]

[Daily Mission: Justice for the Forgotten]

[Description: A hero must not allow injustice to happen before his eyes. Find the 'Missing Item' belonging to your colleague and return it!]

[Target: Mbak Sri’s Wallet (Stall Keeper)]

[Reward: Luck Attribute Points +2, Skill: 'Fast Hands' (Level 1)]

[Penalty: If failed, the User will randomly lose their own valuable items every hour for 24 hours.]

Satya sighed. "Mbak Sri lost her wallet? It must have been picked or left behind. Alpha, why is the mission so trivial? I just fought the Moderator!"

[System: The narrative needs to return to basics before the next escalation. And the penalty is real, Satya. Imagine if your phone or apartment keys vanished into another dimension because you were too lazy to help Mbak Sri.]

Satya stood up lazily. "Fine, fine. I’m going to Mbak Sri’s stall."

At the stall downstairs, Mbak Sri looked incredibly panicked. She was tearing through all the drawers under her coffee counter. "Oh, Sat! Where is my wallet? It has the deposit money and a photo of my late husband. There was a strange guy in a black hoodie who ordered coffee, and when he left, my wallet was gone!"

Satya narrowed his eyes. Black hoodie?

"Alpha, detect the presence of other Users within a 500-meter radius."

[System: Scanning... One User detected in the motorcycle parking area. Identity: Bagas (The Regressor).]

"Bagas? That chunibyo kid?" Satya snorted. "He says he wants to save the world, but he’s pickpocketing a coffee stall keeper? What an incredible moral downfall."

[System: User_005 (Bagas) might be gathering 'Starting Resources' to prepare for the next Dungeon raid. In his eyes, Mbak Sri is just an NPC, and taking items from NPCs is standard practice in game logic.]

"But this isn't a game for Mbak Sri," Satya said, his voice suddenly cold. His cynicism vanished, replaced by genuine annoyance. He hated people who felt superior to others just because they had a "system."

Satya walked toward the parking area. There, he saw Bagas sitting on his flashy sportbike, checking the contents of a dark brown leather wallet that clearly belonged to Mbak Sri.

"Nice, isn't it?" Satya’s voice boomed in the quiet parking lot. "A hero of the future, a savior of the timeline, turns out to be just a petty thief."

Bagas flinched, nearly dropping the wallet. He turned and saw Satya standing with his hands in his jacket pockets.

"You... Satya?" Bagas snorted, then resumed his serious facade. "You don't understand. I need this money to buy low-level 'Mana Potions.' The Dungeon in the mall basement yesterday failed because you called the fire department! I need more preparation!"

"Preparation by robbing the little people? You’re absolute trash, Gas," Satya stepped forward.

"Don't come any closer!" Bagas stood up, his hand moving toward his waist as if to draw an invisible sword. "I’m Level 15, Satya! You’re just Level 1 with glitch stats! One swing of mine can erase your existence!"

"Try me," Satya challenged.

Bagas screamed, "FATE-SEVERING LIGHT SWORD!"

A glowing blue sword appeared in Bagas’s hand. He swung it toward Satya with incredible speed. To an ordinary person, this attack would be invisible. But in Satya’s eyes, the movement left a trail of readable code.

Satya didn't dodge. Just as the sword was about to touch his neck, Satya activated his Inventory exactly at the point of contact.

ZING!

The glowing sword didn't cut Satya’s neck. Instead, the sword vanished, swallowed into one of Satya’s Inventory slots.

[Item Entered Inventory: Fate-Severing Light Sword (Grade: Rare/Borrowed)]

Bagas’s eyes widened. His hand was still in a slashing position, but it was empty. "What... where is my sword?! You... you stole my weapon?!"

"I didn't steal it, I just 'secured a hazardous asset,'" Satya smiled cynically. "Thanks for the sword. I’ll keep it right next to Pak Bambang’s stack of logistics files. I’m sure they’ll be great friends."

"Give it back! That’s my primary weapon!" Bagas lunged forward, trying to hit Satya with a raw punch.

Satya dodged easily. He then touched Bagas’s shoulder. Click.

In an instant, Bagas’s multi-zippered black hoodie disappeared into the Inventory. Bagas was now just standing there in a slightly loose white undershirt, looking very unheroic.

"Huh? My jacket?!" Bagas covered his body, his face turning beet red with shame.

"Mbak Sri’s wallet, or I’ll put your pants in the Inventory too and let you walk home in your underwear," Satya threatened.

Bagas trembled. He no longer saw Satya as a weak 'Level 1 User,' but as a monster that could erase anything he touched. Without a word, Bagas threw Mbak Sri’s wallet onto the floor, hopped on his bike, and floored it as fast as possible, leaving behind a cloud of smoke and deep humiliation.

Satya picked up the wallet. He pulled Bagas’s light sword out of the Inventory and stared at it for a moment. The weapon vibrated, trying to return to its owner.

"Alpha, can I destroy items inside the Inventory?"

[System: You can perform a 'Defragmentation.' It will convert the item into pure energy points.]

"Do it to this sword. I don't need a weapon obtained by oppressing others."

[System: Processing Defragmentation... Complete. You have gained 500 System Points and 10 STR Attribute Points (Permanent).]

Satya felt a surge of power flowing into his arms. He felt a bit stronger, a bit faster. But more importantly, he felt satisfied for having ruined a "Protagonist's" day.

He returned to Mbak Sri’s stall and handed over the wallet.

"Here, Mbak. It fell near the parking lot. It seems that guy in the black jacket accidentally dropped it while he was running."

Mbak Sri cried tears of relief. "Oh God, Sat! Thank you so much! I didn't know what I’d do if this was gone. Here, take as much coffee and fried snacks as you want today, for free!"

[Ding!]

[Mission Complete!]

[Reward: Luck Attribute Points +2, Skill: 'Fast Hands' (Level 1) Activated!]

[Skill Description: Allows the User to put objects into the Inventory at a speed of 0.1 seconds without needing full contact, as long as they are within a 5 cm radius.]

Satya returned to the office carrying a cup of free coffee and a plate of fried snacks. He sat at his desk and reopened his Inventory window.

There, among the boring office files and the newly repaired printer, was a new slot that had appeared automatically after he destroyed Bagas’s sword. The slot was pitch black, and above it was a small label: [CORRUPT DATA: BAGAS MEMORY FRAGMENT].

Satya narrowed his eyes. "Memory fragment? Alpha, what is this?"

[System: It seems that when you 'swallowed' Bagas's sword into your Glitch Inventory, you also pulled in a portion of his consciousness data embedded in the weapon. This is a side effect of your increasing 'Glitch Integration.']

Satya tried to access the fragment. Suddenly, a flash of imagery appeared in his head.

He saw Bagas, but not the current Bagas. He saw an older Bagas, standing in the middle of a completely destroyed Jakarta. The sky was blood red, and skyscrapers were collapsing like houses of cards. Above the National Monument, a giant gate opened, and from it emerged a colossal figure holding a giant quill pen that dripped black ink onto the earth.

"All of this... is just a failed draft," the figure’s voice boomed, destroying everything with a single stroke of ink.

Satya gasped, his breath hitching. Cold sweat poured down his temples.

"Alpha... what did I just see?"

[System: That was a memory from a previous timeline. The end of a failed 'Story Version.' Bagas wasn't lying, Satya. This world is indeed heading toward total deletion if the story is no longer considered interesting by the Author.]

Satya clenched his fists. He looked at the pile of office files inside his Inventory. His laziness, which had felt pleasant before, now felt like a luxury that wouldn't last long.

"So, the choice is to become the hero they want, or watch this world be deleted?" Satya asked.

[System: There is a third choice, Satya. The choice you are currently living.]

"What is it?"

[System: Become a counter-author. Corrupt their script until they can no longer delete it without destroying themselves.]

Satya stood up, walked toward the large office window, and stared at the busy Jakarta traffic. In the glass reflection, he saw his own eyes. The purple glow in his pupils was now clearer, pulsing in sync with his heartbeat.

"Andi!" Satya called out suddenly.

"Yes, Mas Satya?" Andi appeared promptly.

"Bring me all the unfinished files from the other departments. Put them on my desk."

Andi gaped. "Huh? Mas Satya wants to work overtime? I thought you said you wanted to go home early?"

Satya smiled, a smile that contained a plan far larger than just avoiding work. "I’m not working overtime, Andi. I’m performing a 'Reality Audit.' And I need a lot of 'trash' to do it."

That afternoon, Satya didn't go home. He sat at his desk, putting thousands of office documents into his Inventory—not to hide them, but to find the patterns behind this world's data. If this world was a story, then every document, every number, and every employee complaint was a line of code.

And Satya had just found a way to delete the lines of code he didn't like.

In the corner of his eye, the [Glitch Integration] bar slowly rose.

[6.2%... 6.5%... 7.0%]

"Alpha," Satya whispered.

[System: Yes, User?]

"Get ready. Tomorrow, we won't just be fixing printers. We’re going to start fixing this storyline in a very... disrespectful way."

In the darkening Jakarta sky, a shooting star streaked across. But it wasn't a star. It was a system notification burning up as it tried to enter the atmosphere of Satya’s increasingly corrupted reality.

[Reader Rating: 4.0/5.0 - "Crazy! The protagonist is starting to play dirty! He’s using the inventory to steal opponent weapons and corrupt data! So cool!"]

Satya only snorted. "Enjoy the show while you can, you lot up there. Because soon, I’m going to turn off the lights."

[USER_001_PAST_DATA.log - Updated]

STATUS: EXPLOITATION DETECTED.

USER HAS FOUND A WAY TO CONVERT NARRATIVE ASSETS INTO ATTRIBUTE POINTS.

GLITCH INTEGRATION: 7.0%

NOTE: THE BALANCE BETWEEN THE 'REAL WORLD' AND THE 'GAME WORLD' IS STARTING TO COLLAPSE. PREPARING EVENT: OFFICE ELEVATOR DUNGEON.

Satya closed his eyes for a moment, feeling the thousands of document data points swirling inside his head through the Inventory. He was no longer just an employee. He was a black hole in the middle of a tidy script. And that black hole was just starting to get hungry.