"Spoon, give so missions, damn it."
Never, not even once in this new life, had he imagined himself asking for sothing like that.
It was ti to actually move, to stop circling around thoughts and start putting everything into motion. What he needed first was money. That was it. Everything else could co after.
Right after all three of his visitors stepped out, Blake turned his full attention back to the blueprints. He studied them carefully, eyes narrowing as he traced over every corridor, every section, every labeled block.
If he wanted to move without raising suspicion, especially from Myles, he had to be precise, careful and efficient.
He needed a place that served two purposes at once: sothing useful for his plans, and sothing that wouldn’t imdiately scream suspicious activity.
Eventually, he reached a conclusion.
It worked. It fit both requirents.
Unfortunately for him, it was also probably the most dangerous option he could’ve picked.
The AFE.
He didn’t know exactly what that acronym stood for, but after practically pressing his face into the hologram, seriously, at a ridiculous 1mm distance, he was able to make out enough details to guess.
It looked like a prison.
The rooms were labeled in the most straightforward way possible... "Cell 1", "Cell 2", "Cell 3", and so on. No ambiguity there.
’Yeah... that’s definitely a prison.’
’I an, it’s probably where they keep the criminals they catch. And considering the kind of tech floating around here... those guys are probably not normal criminals either.’
That would be his first destination.
And, truthfully, it wasn’t even just about the place itself. It tied directly into his second objective.
If he could sohow get access to the prisoners’ profiles, their records, their backgrounds... then maybe, just maybe, he’d find a pattern, sothing finally connecting them.
Because right now, there were only two things he was certain about.
’They can all do insane stuff with science... and they all target AL-TECH or anything related to it.’
That couldn’t just be a coincidence.
Right?
Sure, the whole situation was technically under the care of his so-called hero’s ntor, but that didn’t an he had to blindly ignore every weird detail thrown his way.
’The building Myles destroyed... that was owned by AL-TECH.’
’I tried digging into it, but there was nothing. Literally nothing.’
That was another thing bothering him. Everything tied to AL-TECH felt... off.
Not exactly hidden, but definitely glossed over.
Like soone had gone out of their way to make it look normal while quietly burying anything aningful.
That alone was enough to keep him digging.
His second target was what the blueprint bluntly labeled as the research center. No fancy na. No attempt to disguise it.
Just that.
And Blake was pretty sure it had sothing to do with the whole alien situation.
Alfred had been helping that genius, Asher, with research related to alien DNA.
The entire premise of everything happening lately revolved around that alien aspect. So yeah, whether he liked it or not, it was sothing he needed to understand for sale of the entire world.
Even if that wasn’t the place’s primary purpose, it would still lead him sowhere. Information always stacked. One piece connected to another.
Either way, it was worth the risk.
"Spoon, open the store for a sec."
[ Yes, Dear Host. ]
Blake leaned back slightly, eyes scanning through the available options as the interface unfolded before him. Masks, gadgets, tools, most of them were priced so high it almost felt insulting.
Still, he wasn’t looking for anything flashy.
He needed sothing practical and versatile.
"Uh... filter it, while you’re at it. Show only masks that can take on more than one form..."
The list shrank, but not by much. And, as expected, most of the remaining options were still disgustingly expensive.
Still, one item imdiately caught his attention, not because it looked impressive or powerful.
But because it was cheap.
The Blank Mask.
He pulled up its description, reading through it carefully.
It allowed the user to copy soone else’s appearance instantly, on the condition that they made eye contact while wearing it.
It was quite simple, direct and effective.
But of course, there was a downside.
If the original person touched the mask, the disguise would break imdiately, reverting him back to his real appearance.
Blake stared at the description for a mont, then leaned back with a quiet sigh.
’Yeah... that’s pretty bad. Unless I can knock them out first, like last ti...’
And that thought alone brought him back to sothing else.
Last ti... wasn’t exactly a reliable scenario. He managed to knock the guard right up, but it wasn’t exactly sothing to be so sure about, since yes, it had worked, that was true, but it had been pure luck, and luck wasn’t sothing he could depend on forever.
Because the truth was, the mask didn’t give him anything else. No boost, no hidden advantage or safety net.
No strength.
No speed.
Nothing.
It was just a tool.
Which ant he had to be the one to make it work.
And that realization alone was enough to annoy him.
Because his body was, by all ans, quite pathetic.
There was truly no nicer way to put it.
It was weak. Undertrained. Completely unprepared for the kind of situations he was willingly stepping into.
And lying there in that hospital bed before, staring at the ceiling, unable to do anything, he had already made a decision.
He was going to train.
Properly.
Not half-hearted hits or occasional attempts.
He needed actual training to beat them out well, if necessary.
And not just that.
He needed to learn how to use weapons.
Because relying purely on improvisation and luck? That was just asking to get himself killed.
But all of that: training, equipnt, preparation, it all circled back to one thing.
Money, always money in every world.
Blake let out a long breath before sitting up slightly.
"Spoon."
[ Yes, Dear Host. ]
"I need more missions."
There was a pause, a very short one that he should’ve been grateful fo..
And then, the system responded.
But not in the way he expected.
[ Mission: Sit on Myles Cortez’s lap. ]
[ Ti limit: 4 days ]
[ Reward: 50 coins ]
[ Penalty: Money reduction. ]
"...Huh, what? What?!"
Then, he again stared at the screen in complete silence.
Because, objectively speaking, that reward wasn’t bad at all.
Fifty coins was actually pretty decent.
More than decent, even.
But the problem wasn’t the reward.
It was the mission itself and the downright evil penalty.
"...You’ve got to be kidding ."
Out of everything.
Out of all possible tasks the system could’ve generated...
This?
Seriously?
Blake rubbed his face with one hand, already feeling the headache forming.
"Why this specifically...?"
[ Mission paraters generated based on current relational dynamics. ]
"That doesn’t explain anything."
Because now he had to deal with the implications of that sentence.
Blake leaned back again, staring at the ceiling as he tried to process the situation.
’Okay... let’s think about this logically.’
The biggest issue wasn’t even the act itself.
It was how he was supposed to make it happen.
Because it wasn’t like he could just walk up to Myles and say...
"Hey, can I sit on your lap for a bit?"
Yeah. No.
Absolutely not.
There was no version of that conversation that didn’t end in pure awkwardness.
Or worse.
And yet... it wasn’t like they were strangers, they could be defined as close, even.
Close enough that it wasn’t completely impossible.
Just deeply embarrassing.
’This is definitely one of those awkward situations...’
Blake exhaled slowly, dragging a hand through his hair.
’And it’s not like I can just do it in public either...’
That would be insane.
No, if it was going to happen, it had to be in private.
Which opened up a whole new problem.
Where?
His place?
Or Myles’?
Blake frowned slightly.
’Both options aren’t exactly ideal.’
At his place, it would feel weirdly intentional.
At Myles’ place, it would feel even worse sohow.
Like he was stepping into sothing he wasn’t fully prepared for.
And then, there was the final problem.
The one he couldn’t just ignore.
’What happens after that?’
Because the mission didn’t specify anything beyond the act itself.
Just sit on his lap.
That was it.
It just felt too ambiguous. Sitting on him like that would have made things far more intimate, far too quickly.
And knowing Myles, would he let that slide? It did take a while to make him comfortable with physical contact.
Blake pressed his lips together slightly.
’Yeah... there’s no way that’s going to be simple.’
For a mont, he considered ignoring the mission entirely.
Just pretending it didn’t exist.
But then, the penalty was pretty evil.
Besides, he couldn’t skip on the fifty coins.
He clicked his tongue.
"...This system is seriously ssed up."
Still, he didn’t dismiss it.
Because annoying as it was, it was still an opportunity.
He couldn’t afford to waste those.
Even if it ant dealing with sothing this ridiculous.
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