Dai sat on the bed for a while, watching the Status Window. The strange name worried her. She had lost her parents when she was a child, she didn't quite know the details of what had happened, but they worked at the dump located behind Shelter. Rumor had it that beasts had appeared there and killed and devoured the entire cleanup crew, which included her parents. Filn was in the same situation. His parents were in the same group as Dai's parents. You could say they'd known each other since they were in diapers. Dai was a little older than him, so she kind of became his older sister and took care of the two of them. Dai recalled some of the memories she had seen in her Sea of Cultivation. She really didn't remember some of them. She remembered what she saw, but she didn't really recall it. And that was also quite disturbing. Was she reviving Filn? She doesn't even know about escaping from the beasts. Could something have happened to make her lose some memories? Trauma?

She felt something scratching at the back of her mind, but she couldn't figure out what.

She sighed. She couldn't think about it anymore. What was she supposed to do about it? She didn't understand too many things and she wasn't exactly someone who dealt with what-ifs. Things will probably work themselves out in time. And even if they didn't, she didn't care. She did not need to investigate the mystery of her name. If she has a Keepers family somewhere, please ignore her. She's already got one weird relationship to deal with. No more, please.

Right now she needed to take care of Filn, Teru, and the mutant woman.

Dai pushed all those distracting thoughts aside and looked at her status window again.

"So can you explain this... this... my status?" System asked.

System: "Boss, have you really never played any games? Or even read about them?" System asked.

Dai thought for a moment. "I used to jump rope when I was a kid. And played hide and seek. We also played matchbox and treasure hunt in the garbage." She listed the games she used to play.

System: "..... Not that kind of games, boss. Video games?"

Dai immediately shook her head. "I've heard something about them. People played it on the computer, right? I read it made their spines curve. It didn't sound very healthy, so I didn't care much more about it. But computer parts sell well!" If the Old World players heard her, they'd think she was really innocent.

The system was silent, before speaking in an almost tired tone.

System: "The status window reveals your current level. In it, you can see a rough indication of your strength, speed, and the like. It also gives you an overview of your abilities and skills. Compared to a normal person of your time, you have slightly above-average intelligence and very good speed. And even compared to a normal human, who in perfect condition can only reach a maximum of 9 points in all aspects, and only in cases where you have some above average talent, 10 points. So before you broke into cultivation, your intelligence was at 10 points and so was your speed. Once you surpassed the limits of an ordinary human body, all of your attributes advanced to 10 points, and the above-average ones advanced even higher depending on talent. Your talent for speed advanced twice, probably due to your body being the most suited to it, and it was also the ability you used the most. You can easily outrun most cultivators at your level, speed is your strength." Who knew all that running, crawling, rolling, squatting and duck-walking would have such an impact?

Dai thought about the explanation. "But even if my speed is better, it's nothing against that mutant woman, right?"

System: "You bet, boss."

Dai sighed, well she knew that, but she had to try asking.

"What about the abilities? My appraisal? What's with the arrow and the letters? And I assume the Management System is you?"

System: "Yes, that's right. As for the markings on the abilities, it's a simplified system for rating the strength of abilities. F-E-D-C-B-A-S-SS-SSS. From lowest to highest. Each level still has an intermediate level, which is marked with a + sign. Most innate abilities start at level F, as your appraisal, which must be upgraded to a higher level through training. Then some abilities can be learned, and these may already start at a different level. Your appraisal started at F. You've managed to train it to an E+ and you're just a short step away from upgrading it to an amazing level D. You're so skillful, boss."

Dai glanced at the Management System level and a corner of her lips twitched. Was it mocking her again?

System: "The level of the Management System, it's just an A+ right now, but it's actually an SSS ability. Unfortunately, due to the lack of power, the level has dropped pathetic like this." It sighed.

Yeah. It mocked her.

"Hmm... I understand. But I kind of don't understand the levels. While F to A makes sense, why S? Isn't it at the end of the alphabet? It's not even the last one."

System: "No need to go into detail. It's a grading system that has survived from the Old World and is still used today. It is also the easiest method of rating for human beings to understand. The rating was based on the Chinese alphabet, where A is the initial letter and S is the last letter."

Dai nodded slowly.

System: "Boss, you really just need to know that S is superior to A." The system seems to have given up trying to explain things to her.

Dai had to admit that he was right. She was just interested, but she didn't really need to understand. No one used foreign languages anymore, only some scholars were interested in it.

Dai took another look at her abilities. So her appraisal should improve soon? That's great! She wondered how it would work? Would it finally remove the question marks?

Dai rather cruelly lost interest in all the laborious explanations the System had done for her, and got excited at the thought of her poor, lowly ability finally leveling up!

Dai, however, soon stopped caring about that too. Unfortunately, it didn't help her with her current situation. She had hoped that learning more would give her an idea of how to make the plan even more secure, but this wasn't helpful.

System: "......."

Dai slapped her thighs before standing up and stretching. She felt a painful tension in her muscles, but overall she felt pretty good now.

The unimportant bullshit of the system was a good way to relax too.

System: "............."

Dai went downstairs to the shop, where only a few things had changed. Leonid was sunning himself on the doorstep and Filn was gone.

She looked around. "Where's Filn?" She asked.

Leonid looked back at her. "He went to panic." He replied, pointing a finger.

Dai stood next to him and watched a small figure in the distance run away. When it disappeared from her sight, she turned and watched as the figure reappeared from another direction and approached. She already knew the workings of this dimension. She'd done a lot of running around here, too.

"I didn't let him go out and I didn't let him come to you. So he started running around full of nervous energy. I hope you have a plan because I'm done calming him down." Leonid explained.

Dai nodded. "I have a plan. But it's a bit risky. And I'll need you to keep an eye on Filn so he doesn't try to get in my way."

Leonid groaned. "My children are long grown. Did I get young again just to babysit brats?"

Dai looked at him out of the corner of her eye. "You have kids?"

Leonid shrugged. "Oh, yeah. They'll be somewhere."

Dai resisted the urge to ask, it was none of her business, and she could tell by his tone that she shouldn't press the matter.

She couldn't have anyway. Filn ran over to them. "Dai!" He shouted, rushing towards her.

"Hey, Filn. Look... I'm sorry about what happened. This isn't something I want to drag you and Teru into." Dai apologized. She really didn't know what she had done then, but the System suggested that it had happened because of her decision. What it was she didn't know either. Maybe she would find out? If the mutant woman doesn't blow her head off.

She unconsciously rubbed her throat and swallowed a little. She always got a similar feeling when she was too close to the beast's lair. Danger.

Filn looked at Dai as if considering whether or not to be angry. In the end, though, he shook his head.

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

"It's not your fault. I shouldn't have been sneaking around your house."

"You were sneaking around?"

"Hm. You haven't shown up in a while, so I wanted to see if you were okay." Filn explained.

Dai let out a long sigh, so it was actually still her fault. She hadn't let him know about her like she usually did.

"Well, it doesn't matter. Now we just need to settle the matter and get your wife to safety." She put her hand on his shoulder and squeezed affectionately.

A look of relief crossed Filn's face. "Sure. What should I do?" he asked.

"You? Nothing. You wait with Leonid." Dai answered immediately.

Filn tensed and frowned. "She's my wife, I can't stay away!"

Dai waved her hand. "But you will stay. I have a plan, but things would only get more complicated with you."

Filn slumped his shoulders. "Dai, you can't keep pushing me to the side like this just so I don't get hurt."

Dai could understand that he didn't feel good about it, but this just wasn't something he could get involved in. He couldn't take care of three people at once. Two lives are too many already.

"Filn. You stay here. I only have one chance, if this plan goes wrong, there won't be a second. Okay?" She spoke to him in a soft voice.

Filn sighed in resignation. "Okay." He nodded.

----------------------------------------

Dai discussed the plan with them and finally made them wait in the old perfume shop. Because she realized one thing. If the shop was disconnected, how would the two of them get out? What if something happened to her? Would they stay there forever? Or would they disappear with the space? We'd better not take any chances.

Dai eventually ended up alone in her Dimensional space. She stood at the door, hesitating. To say she was afraid would be an understatement. She didn't want to do it at all, but she was responsible and had to make up for her mistakes. Or at least try to.

She ate a Midnight Spider Cracker and just sucked on a lollipop to increase her luck and watched the changes in her Status Window.

Name: Keeper4

Alias: Dai

Profession: Shop Owner

Cultivation: Low Realm

Life Providence: None

Power: 10/ -1

Vitality: 10/ -1

Intelligence: 12

Speed: 14/ -1

Endurance: 10/ -1

Luck: 3 +5%

Temporary bonus:

Resistance 1x against fatal attack - Activated at night.

Abilities:

Appraisal: E->E+

System Management: A+

There really wasn't much change, but everything that played in her favor was good.

Well, she couldn't delay it any longer. She moved the window to the Connections folder and disconnected the door from Shelter 22. The door in front of her disappeared as if it had never existed.

Then she straightened her back and tried to look as dignified as possible before returning to her house. It was still the last place she had teleported from the real world back to the shop, so naturally, she would reappear there.

The mist soon cleared from her eyes and she looked around her broken home. It was quite a shock. Her house! Why did she have to destroy it like this? Even though she had officially moved out, this place still held emotional value to her.

Dai was the first to see Tera, who was cowering in the corner, and she was relieved that she was okay except for the bruises. No torn limbs or gouged eyes. From the way she had hurt Filn, she was worried that Teru might end up even worse.

Teru stared at her with shock in her eyes and also anger. Dai couldn't blame her, the situation wasn't good.

Dai then looked at the mutant woman. Well, she was expecting something a little different. She imagined some kind of monster, but the woman in front of her looked quite human. She just had unusually inky black skin and garish purple hair and eyes. She glanced briefly out the small window. It was still dark outside, but she knew it wouldn't be long before dawn came. Just by cultivating and resting alone, she had wasted most of the night, and if dawn came, the effect of Midnight Spider Cracker would be reduced. And she really wished the mutant hadn't punched a hole in her body!

"You unworthy one, you came." Said the woman coldly.

Dai put one hand on her hip and took a slight step to the side. "Naturally. You kidnapped my friend and broke into my house. Not to mention you destroyed it." Dai tried to speak calmly, pretending she was dealing with an upset customer, but her heart was beating fast in her chest.

"Friend?" the woman repeated, glancing at Teru in the corner.

"I doubt it. But it doesn't matter. You know why I'm here."

Dai moved again when the woman didn't look at her for a moment. "Actually, I don't. I don't. Why are you looking for me?"

The woman growled. "You don't know? You refused my mistress's gift! Empress of Fortune!"

Dai blinked. Hmm.... what?

She remembered the golden ticket, of course, but... don't tell me it's because of that?

"Um... yes. I remember that. And that's why you're here? And what's wrong with that? I'm not the one who asked for it in the first place. Why would I accept gifts from a stranger? Why is she angry? At least she didn't lose anything because of it. Should I have sent a thank you note?" Dai didn't understand why the Empress was upset. Was it because she just rejected it? Isn't she the Empress? How could such a small thing upset her?

"A Thank You Letter... you... She's the Empress of Fortune! You lowly creature! Do you know what her blessing is worth?!"

Dai wished she could rub her eyes. She was beginning to understand the situation she was in. Simply put, it was as if she had met a customer who lacked common sense. She'd had a similar customer once. He bought almost all of his herbs from her, it was a good deal, so she gave him one of the little minerals for free as a thank-you. But her goodwill was not appreciated at all. Instead, the customer demanded that she gave him something more valuable and wanted to choose for himself. This was a similar situation. Only this time she was dealing with someone who could easily slap her to death.

Dai suppressed a sigh. "No. I really have no idea how rare it is. If I offended your mistress, I apologize. I won't make that mistake next time." In a case like this, was best to just accept the mistake made even if she didn't make one. It usually worked when the customer felt like they'd won.

"Ha! Do you really think there will be a next time!"

"No? Oh... okay. That's too bad." Dai replied swiftly, but she couldn't bring herself to look regretful. Rather, she had the expression of someone hoping that she would finally give her a break.

It was probably her only good luck that this mutant woman had no experience in sales practices.

So her lack of regret was completely overlooked. Dai moved slowly towards Teru as she spoke. It was hard to tell if the mutant noticed, but even if she did, she didn't stop her.

"So... it's settled? Can we end this whole thing?" Dai had little hope that it would all end peacefully.

"Absolutely not. Such blasphemy as you have shown must be punished." The woman growled, curling her fingers into claws.

Dai felt helpless in this. On top of the woman's lack of common sense, she was a bigot? Dai wasn't a believer, so why was she bringing blasphemy into this?

Dai knew the conversation would end there and the violence would begin. So she said nothing more and instead rushed over to Teru. She managed to shorten the distance quite a bit. Grabbing her wrist, Teru stared at her open-mouthed before looking after her, eyes bulging with fear.

Dai didn't look back, a cold scared sweat poured down her face, but she couldn't afford to lose a second now. She had to hurry!

Dai placed her free hand on the wall and opened the system's Connection window. With her mind, she clicked on the connection icon next to the name Shelter 22.

At that moment, she flinched as her inner world felt like it was being shaken. There was a bang and a sort of transparent barrier flashed around her before shattering with the sound of breaking glass.

There was a crash behind her. Dai looked back as she waited for the Dragon Door to form.

The mutant woman was half-trapped in the opposite wall. Dai's defenses seemed to repel the woman's attack, which must have been fierce enough that it bounced all the way to the other side of the room. She started digging out of the wall. The mutant woman had changed, looking much more feral. Her teeth stuck out of her mouth, and her nose wrinkled and pushed back into her face, making it look like she had a snout. Her black skin turned into short black fur and bat wings grew between her arms and body.

'Damn, what is she? A mutant or a Werebat?!'

Dai turned away from her and stared at the appearing door. Come on. Come on. Come on!

The Dragon Door finally formed and the system announcement came just in time as she heard wood splintering behind her and the angry growl of the monster.

"Teru, quick!" Dai called, opening the door violently and shoving Teru in.

Teru stumbled in and turned to look at Dai, then behind her, then at Dai again.

Dai hurried after her, but when she saw Teru's look she had a bad feeling about it.

"Teru, what..." She spoke but bit her tongue as Teru suddenly lunged at her pushing her out the door again.

"What!" Dai yelped, stunned and horrified.

"You're just bringing us misery. Filn will be better off without you, and so will I." Teru said hoarsely before slamming the door.

Dai ended up stunned on the floor, staring at the door.

"YOU BITCH!"

A growl sounded nearby.