Eleuthernemis System

Chapter Seven

The hospital room smelled like antiseptic and drugs. I’d been awake for about an hour.

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[QUEST COMPLETED: Stop the Robbery]

[REWARD: Calculating…]

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Oh right, I forgot about this. The system gave me a mission. I sighed. I couldn't be bothered with this right now.

I stared at the ceiling, letting my mind wander off when the door opened.

Park Junho came in first, looking like he hadn't slept in days. His eyes were bloodshot. His hair sticking out in odd directions.

Woo rim followed, clutching a convenience store bag looking exhausted.

“You're awake.” Park Junho's voice cracked. “You're actually awake.”

“Yeah” my voice came out rough and my throat felt dry. “How long was I out?”

“Two days.” Woo rim set the bag on the small table by my bed and poured water in a glass for me. I gladly accepted it with a faint smile.

“Seonbae, you scared us half to death.”

I blinked my eyes. “Since when do you call me that?”

Woo rim's ears turned red. “Um … since you saved our lives. You're also technically older than me so …”

“I didn't save …”

“You grabbed the gun.” Park Junho interrupted, sinking into the chair beside my bed.

“You tackled a guy with a gun, didn't get shot and ensured no one else did. Don't downplay it.”

“I still got stabbed.” I tried to sit up and immediately regretted it. Pain shot through my side. Sharp and insistent.

“Don't move!” Both of them said in unison.

“The doctor said you were lucky.” Park Junho said, looking down. “The knife missed any vital points but you lost a lot of blood. If the ambulance arrived even a few minutes late …”

“The robber?”

“Police custody.” Park Junho's gaze darkened. “Turns out he's a runaway. He was thrown into jail before for robbing a bank and multiple convenience stores.”

“He’s also killed four people.” Woo rim said.

“The student?”

“He’s fine. Thanks to you. Actually, you're not gonna believe this.”

Woo rim pulled out his phone and turned it towards me.

On the screen was a video, it was blurry and shot from a bad angle but it was the convenience store.

I could see myself tackling Dong hyun and fighting for the gun.

The view count was 2.3 million.

“What the hell?”

“Someone in the store was filming.” Park Junho explained. “The video’s everywhere.

I was surprised and impressed. I mean, who in their right mind would film this while knowing their lives were on the line.

I scrolled through the comments.

@mepw…tweets: This guy didn't even hesitate.

@night owl_kim: Woah. He’s pretty brave. I can't imagine myself tackling an armed man.

@lonerdos: I guess he learnt a thing or two during his service in the military.

@/§oma: Kyaaaa😆😆 He's so cool🙈

@dramaluva: This could become a great scene in a kdrama.

@moviekims: The guy upstairs is so right😆

@milktay: He looks kinda hot tackling him though 🫦

“There's more.” Park Junho said. You're the topic of the trending list.”

I searched up the trending list and was stunned.

#Brave young man stops a robbery#

#Young man tackles armed robber#

#Convenience Store Hero#

I kept scrolling. This went on for a while.

“There's more.” Woo rim said. “News outlets have been calling the store trying to get more information about you.

Who would have thought stopping a robbery could make you famous?

Just then the system message popped up in my field of vision.

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[REWARDS: Status window unlocked]

Open Status Window

Yes/No

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“...bae. Seonbae”

Woo rim's voice made me look up. Both of them were looking at me with concern in their eyes.

“Are you alright?” Park Junho asked, worry etched across his face.

I gave him a faint smile. “I'm fine. Just need to rest.”

“Alright.” Park Junho said, standing up. “We’ll leave you to rest. Let's go Woo rim.”

“Make sure you get enough rest Seonbae. There's fruit in the bag. Make sure you eat a lot.” Woo rim said, waving me goodbye.

Silence.

I looked at the floating text which was still in front of me.

Yes.

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[NAME: Seo Ireum

[AGE: 20

[RELATIONSHIP STATUS: Simgle

[OCCUPATION: Convenience Store Worker

[STATS: Courage: 15/100

Charisma: 8/1//

Intelligence: 20/100

Physical Strength: 6/100

[SKILLS: Observation (Lvl 1)]

[COINS: 60

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Woah. It really was like a video game.

Before I could think further, there was a soft knock on the door.

“Come in,” I said, assuming it was the nurse coming to check on me.

But it wasn't.

A kid, the student from the store, stepped in hesitantly.

A woman in her forties followed. She wore an elegant navy blue blazer and had th kind of presence that demanded attention. Even in a hospital room.

“I hope we're not disturbing you,” the woman said, her voice warm but professional. “The nurse said you were awake.”

“I'm fine.” I said, dismissing the status window with a thought. “Please come in.”

The student approached first, his face flushed with guilt. He looked like he might cry.

“I'm so sorry,” he blurted out. “If I hadn't run, you wouldn't have gotten hurt. I was so scared. I just … I didn't think.”

“Hey it's okay,” I said quickly. “That was something anyone would do in a situation like that if they found an opportunity to escape.”

“But you got stabbed because of me.”

“I got stabbed because a guy with a gun was robbing the store. Besides I planned to tackle him before, it just happened … earlier.” I corrected gently. “It's not your fault.”

The woman stepped forward, placing a hand on the student's shoulder.

“This is my son, Do yoon. And I'm Kang Sujin. I wanted to thank you personally for saving my son's life.”

She bowed deeply, a full ninety degree bow, that made me uncomfortable.

“Please you don't have to.”

“You risked your life for my son,” she said, straightening up. Her eyes were glistening.

“There’s no adequate way to thank you for that, but please, let me try.”

She reached into her bag and pulled out a business card, holding it out to me.

I took it, reading it in one go.

Kang Sujin

Talent Recruiter

Star🌟lit Entertainment Industry

My breath caught.

Star🌟lit Industry, one of the biggest entertainment industries in Korea. They managed some of the most famous actors, singers and models in the industry.

“I work as a talent recruiter for Star🌟lit,” Kang Sujin explained.

“We're holding auditions next week for a new training program. We only take a handful of people each year. I'd like to invite you for the audition.”

“I … I don't think… I don't have that sort of talent.”

“Neither did some of our biggest stars when they started.” Kang Sujin interrupted gently. “What matters is potential and you have it.”

She pulled out another card, this one with a date, time and address printed on it.

“No pressure,” she said, setting it on the bedside table. “But of you're interested, come to this address in two weeks, on Saturday. We’ll love to see what you can do.”

Do yoon bowed again, deeper this time. “Thank you, really. I’ll never forget what you did.”

“Take care of yourself,” Kang Sujin added. “And think about the audition. I have a feeling you’ll surprise yourself.”

They left, shutting the door behind them with a soft click.

I picked up the audition card. It was beautiful. The card was black with golden designs. The letters were also gold and in the space of a name was mine.

This all felt like a dream, from the moment I met the system to now.

New text materialized in front of me, making me jump.

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[NEW MISSION AVAILABLE]

[MISSION: Pass the audition]

[OBJECTIVE: Show up to the audition and leave a good impression]

[TIME LIMIT: Fourteen days]

[REWARDS: +6 Coins

+4 Charisma

+2 Courage

Skill: Body coordination

(Lv 1)

[FAILURE: Loss of the Observation Skill]

[ACCEPT MISSION: Yes/No

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I stared at the new text. I could forfeit this mission but at a grave cost. The system obviously knew what it was doing. I never had a choice to begin with.

Yes

[MISSION ACCEPTED: Good luck]

I dismissed the system and was left alone in the quiet room.

I looked down at the audition card again, then at the business card with Kang Sujin’s name.

Fourteen days.

I had two weeks to prepare for this audition. I needed to get better fast.

I leaned back against the pillows, wincing as the movement pulled at my stitches and closed my eyes.

What had I gotten myself into?