Part 3From 99 to Zero

I had come to the club to learn the art of seduction.

Now, my intentions had changed.

Wiping the tears from my face, I summoned the System for the first time in ages.

“System, I want to go home. Help me forfeit the mission.”

That single, overheard conversation had made one thing brutally clear: I would never, ever succeed with Asher.

He was dangling a carrot in front of a donkey, and I was the donkey, mindlessly chasing it.

Better to go back and spend my last two months with my parents than stay here and be his plaything.

But my decision was met with a screech of digital protest.

【Forfeit? Are you insane?! You’re ranked number one out of this entire batch of Hosts!】

I was stunned. “Number one?”

【That’s right! I was counting on your success bonus to fund my retirement! If you quit now, what am I supposed to do?】

“Wait, I don’t understand.” I pulled up my mission panel, checking the numbers again. “Asher’s affection is at sixty percent. How can that possibly be number one?”

The System scoffed. 【Who said the rankings are based on the final affection level? That’s an outdated, unscientific metric from the old systems.】

【Every mission has a different difficulty. Some targets start at ninety percent, others start in the negatives. Using a flat one-hundred percent as the goal for everyone is obviously unfair.】

【So, the new-generation Systems evolved. We now use affection volatility as the primary standard. The greater the fluctuation, the greater the emotional impact you’re having on the target.】

【And you, my dear Host, your affection level has been a rollercoaster. Constantly up and down. It proves that he is obsessed with you, fixated, unable to make up his mind.】

【That is true success!】

“…”

It took me a moment to process the System’s corporate-speak.

But I understood.

It was precisely because Asher could manipulate my score at will that my data was so erratic. So volatile.

He thought he was training a dog.

But he had accidentally played right into the System’s new rules, rocketing me to the top of the leaderboard.

A bitter, beautiful irony. A lifeline in the wreckage.

Sensing my change of heart, the System pressed its advantage.

【Host, every one-percent change in affection, up or down, adds one point to your score. The rules state that two thousand points is a successful mission. Five thousand points gets you a ten-million-dollar cash bonus! We split it, fifty-fifty!】

【Right now, you’re only six hundred and sixty-six points away from that five thousand! Are you really going to throw away that kind of money?】

I asked carefully, “Are you saying I already succeeded? That I could have gone home, healthy, and you didn’t tell me?”

The System had the decency to sound sheepish.

【Well, I wanted the bonus, too. And you’re so talented! You shot to the top of the charts in record time. Any system would be tempted!】

【I’m begging you, Host. Just a little more effort. Six hundred and sixty-six points is nothing for you!】

A fire ignited in my chest. Amid the surging emotions, I found a new, cold clarity.

“Seventy-thirty. I get seven million, you get three. Agree, and I’ll keep going.”

【You… you…】

“Think carefully before you answer. If you hadn’t hidden the truth, I would have been home long ago. Why would I stay here and take another second of this abuse for your sake?”

The System sputtered, stammered, and finally let out a long, theatrical wail.

【Fine! You drive a hard bargain! I’m being robbed blind by a ruthless capitalist!】