Bob was crumbled onto the cough. He was a broken man. A strong, independent woman can do that to a person. He gazed blankly across from him. He gazed without seeing. His mind was foggy. He was on his couch in his living room. There should have been a television there. Some high-res, OLED 65-inch flat-screen. Instead he saw something green, something blotchy with lumps.
He rubbed his eyes. Ah yes, he remembered, he knew that shape, it was a cactus. What on earth he'd been smoking when he decided to make an amorphous, green succulent the centerpiece of his living room, he pondered stoically to himself. It didn't exactly provide the same entertainment value as a plasma screen.
The system sold televisions, of course. System cable too. 10 million channels of intersystem content. It would take you a lifetime just to scroll through them all. But Bob had resisted. Televisions eat up time for breakfast. Bob knew once he found a show he liked, the next six hours would snap-vanish and he'd be in a daze, half-sunk into the sofa, coming off such a dopamine high that he could barely manage to brush his teeth and crumble into bed. That experience sounded great, but Bob had so many time-sensitive, life-threatening problems that he just couldn't afford the luxury. Hence the cactus.
Time-sensitive, life-threatening problems, Bob. Bob pulled himself together. That's right. He had a whole bunch of unread system notifications. Bad, earth-shattering news incoming or I'll eat my socks. Truly the only unchanging thing in all the world is suffering. Best to fetch a little something to hold him over. A spot of black tea and a few biscuits would go a long way, a mighty long way.
Bob got up, groaning unnecessarily at the effort, and walked into the kitchen. It was set just behind the living room. A modern style, grey imitation marble (Bob wasn't crazy), an oven, fridge, dishwasher, three burners, washer-dryer, you know the works.
Bob turned on the tap. Water came out. Thank god for civilization. Bob splashed the water over his face. Clean water. What a pleasant, cool sensation. The system could provide water through the pylon just like it did electricity, but the costs were magnitudes of order higher. Bob wasn't entirely sure why, but the market sets the prices. He wanted a long-term home and he didn't want to feel guilty about taking baths. Baths were the spice of life. Instead Bob had gone with a rain catcher system and just purchased enough water to fill the thing up. It was easy. The system had done all the work. Bob just pushed a button and threw money at the problem.
Bob filled up the electric kettle. While the water boiled, he readied himself a mug, tea bag and arranged several biscuits appealingly on a white plate. Yes, he had done some grocery shopping. An empty home is not a home at all.
He poured in the steaming liquid and brought it all back to the living room. He sat down on the cough, dipped his tea bag up and down, and then sipped on the brown liquid. He sighed with pleasure. It had been all together too long. Now to slowly crush himself into a state of catatonic despair.
> Sponsorship Evolution Bonus: Rare Item
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> Item Upgraded:
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> Panzerkäfer Horn Fragment (uncommon) -> Lesser Excaliborn (rare)
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> Lesser Excaliborn (Rare)
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> Forged from love, sacrifice, prejudice and slime. Mana Signed.
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>
> Abilities:
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> * Slimy: excretes a minor biodegrading acid on contact.
Bob pulled out the white dagger from his inner pocket. "Dammit!" He dropped it immediately and now his hand stung and looked redder than it ought to be. That would be the acid. Next time, think a little Bob. At least now we know it works.
Bob picked it up with his cloak and gave it proper look-at. It was a fine piece of craftsmanship. The horn fragment had been beautifully carved into a white dagger. It retained its mean pointy shape, but now boasted a single-sided blade and an ornate handle. A purely decorative handle obviously, since any biological compound couldn't lay hands on the things.
Thankfully Harry didn't worry about things like handles. Bob gave a few practices jabs with his cloak. The knife whistled nicely through the air. It was mana-signed now, so Bob didn't have to worry about coating the blade-point in mud. Very nice. Bob slotted the blade into his old, non-leather dagger sheath and patted it affectionally. What's next?
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> Quest: Better than You - 2 (Personal)
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> Betray someone. Or be betrayed by someone
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> Time Limit: before reaching Rank C
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> Reward: System Sponsorship Rank Promotion
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> Penalty: System Sponsorship Rank Demotion
Bob glanced around the room suspiciously, like he was worried someone was looking over his shoulder. System notifications were visible only to their recipient, but it never hurts to be too careful, especially when he was looking at a quest that could infect any budding relationship.
The first "Better than You" quest had been bad enough: massacre your fellow sentients. But pure physical violence. Stranger versus stranger. There's no drama in that. There's no exquisite immorality to it. But the system was creatively evil. It didn't rest on its laurels. It searched after high evil, after the art of evil.
Betrayal, yes, that greatest of sins, that one-way ticket to the deepest circle of hell. A friend, a lover, a child or parent, brother against brother, sister against sister, that was high evil. And only heightened by the choice. The delicious choice. Betray or Be Betrayed. You see, that makes it all your fault. The good man is betrayed and the evil man betrays. The system didn't make you do it. You chose to do it. Cunning and heartless, just the system we like to see.
Bob would keep his head down and do his best not to get attached to people. He had a comfortable house now, securely hidden. He could live as he wanted to.
> Quest Completed - D Grade Evolution
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> World Rank E - > D
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> Additional rewards allocated for expedited completion
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> Reward (personal):
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> * Noble Rank Promotion
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> Reward (world):
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> * Rank C System Integration Services unlocked
> * System Map
> * System Travel Agency
> * System Leaderboard (simple)
> * Bonus System Event - The Tower of Circles (T-20 days)
"The system runs its own travel agency does it? That's grand. That's just what I need. A long, expensive holiday. Somewhere nice and warm. Beaches, sand and the sound of lapping waves. A country where napping is considered a noble and admirable way to spend an afternoon and not the mark of a degenerate. A utopia. Get me out of this hellhole. "
> Title Upgraded: Viscount - > Earl
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> Title: Earl
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> A noble title. Above viscount, below marquess.
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> Effects:
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> * a significant bonus to base stats
> * a significant bonus to will
> * settlement tab unlocked
> * ability - oath
> * ability - retinue (three knights, one marshal)
It was a solid all round upgrade. The stats bonuses were bumped and his retinue expanded. Alas for Arthur. That beetle ought to have been Bob's second knight. And hell, Earl was also just an a cool title. Earl Robert. Or Earl Brown. Or Earl of Brown. Or Earl Robert of Brown. Or Brown Earl Robert. Or Robert Brown Earl. Bob wasn't quite the Earl of Sandwich, but he was getting there.
Bob glimpsed at the next notification title and started cursing early. "World Quest: C Grade Evolution." There it was. Bob should have known. He kinda had known. There was no do this and you're free. Slavery is a lifetime package. The system was here to stay. How many ranks were there beyond C? C, then B... then A... then S... We might as well be dead.
But wait, brilliant idea Bob on the scene, system travel agency anyone? The rich have a way of surviving catastrophes. Bob could wing it out of this doomed ship. He'd round up as many friends and family as he could and abandon this blue time bomb. They'd set up somewhere tropical with a view of the ocean. Feeling newly comforted, Bob read the full message.
> Quest: C Grade Evolution (World)
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> Reach level 50 and evolve to C grade
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> Timeline - 30 days
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> Current highest leveled sentient: 10
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> Remaining Time: 44:59:54:10
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> Reward: None
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> Penalty:
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> * World Recycling
> * Death of World Avatar
Catch it? Bob did. There, at the bottom. The last line. A little fuck-you direct from the system. "Death of World Avatar". Who was the world avatar? Nobody moved.
Bob you have to raise your hand.
I'm not going to.
Bob, whether or not you raise your hand doesn't change the fact you are the world avatar.
Fine. Bob raised his hand.
There would be no long holidays for Bobman. Bobman was on duty. Bobman would have to level. 45 days and counting to reach level 100.
Bob didn't know how many more of these notifications he could take. System mail was a universally unpleasant experience. He let himself a few breathes to steady himself. The breath work came easy. Full and deep. It cleared his head and smoothed out his mood. He leaned back. He took another sip of tea. He started nipping on a second biscuit. Chocolate-coated digestives have a profound influence on the human psyche. And anyway there was only one more notification to go. What could go wrong?
> Travel Access Request:
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> Sentient: Xenophon Aristoteles (lvl 1)
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> Pylon of Origin: The Academy, Sophos
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> Destination Pylon: Earth Settlement 1, Earth
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> Reason: System Studies Research
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>
> Do you grant access? [y/n]