[DING!]

Another notification popped up before I could even celebrate.

[Host, you have acquired another repeatable mission.]

[Killing an Executive Member of the Mythical Guild will grant points.]

[Killing an Executive Member of Dark Rock will grant points.]

I let out a short laugh. "Wow."

At this rate, the system wasn't even pretending anymore—it was basically pointing me straight toward a bloodbath. A massacre, neatly labeled as progress.

Honestly… it was starting to feel like the system had a personal grudge against anything tied to Darkness.

And I had a bad feeling I was standing right in the middle of it.

Well, not like I could complain. More missions meant more points to spend.

Right now, the system barely gave me any missions, so I needed every advantage to grow stronger.

"System, show me the store."

Instead of the typical window popping up, my vision went black. When it cleared, I was standing inside a futuristic store, walls glowing with sleek panels and shelves stacked with items.

I glanced out the "window." Beyond it stretched a cosmic scene—darkness pierced by stars of every color, drifting slowly as if the whole store were floating through space.

Every detail gleamed, every item calling for attention, but my eyes kept drifting to the stars. The world I knew had vanished, replaced by this silent, infinite expanse.

"Is this another simulation? Why does it feel like I've stepped into some futuristic boutique?"

The system didn't answer.

I wandered through the store, scanning the shelves. In the corner, a display case caught my eye, filled with cards.

When I focused on one, a window popped up, displaying its price.

> Acting Up Card: 2 points.

> Accelerator Card: 10 points.

> Avatar Card: 100 points.

And then I saw one that cost 1,000 points—higher rank, rarer than anything I'd ever seen.

With how expensive it was, it had to be something absurd—super, godlike, ultra, mega rare.

The kind of item that could turn me into an overpowered MC, someone who could level a city if I so much as sneezed the wrong way.

There were also Acting Up Cards, but their prices were far more reasonable, ranging from 20 to 300 points.

All this time, the system had been practically handing me cards at a discount. But now that I was strong enough to grind on my own, I could no longer rely on giveaways.

With my current strength, I could farm a ridiculous amount of points in a single run. Raiding one of Darkness's bases wouldn't even be that hard and dangerous if I use my clone.

The real problem wasn't can I.

It was should I.

Was I really willing to start killing people just for points, and turn myself into some kind of sick psycho?

I didn't have an issue with killing when it was deserved. I could even live with deaths caused by collateral damage. That was war. That was reality.

But going full commando—storming a base just to grind points?

That was different.

And the fact that I was even considering it…

That bothered me more than it should have.

When I was done with the display case, I moved down another aisle.

This section had the same items, but they were sealed in plastic cases, each tagged with a price—and colored differently: bronze, silver, gold, green, and black.

Each pack promised the thrill of pulling a rare and shine one—like the kind of collectible battles kids obsessed over, chasing for bragging rights.

And years down the line, someone would slap an inflated price on them, pretending they were worth millions, because why not?

"How many points do I even have right now?" I muttered.

In the lower right corner of my vision, a small text blinked back at me: Points: 2

So he was only two stars. No wonder he became useless the moment his ability got countered.

Still, making him my standard wasn't fair. I was just too damn strong for any competition .With enough prep, he could probably take out an average S-Rank.

With so few points to my name, I decided to save them for now.

My vision snapped back to normal. When I checked my watch, only five seconds had passed.

Either time had slowed down in the real world… or my brain had kicked into some kind of hyper mode, stretching the moment and diluting time inside the simulation.

"Let's see." I trailed off and turned my attention to the items he left behind , wallet, phones, ID's and so on .

I crouched down and reached for them.

The name on the ID matched what Master Tang had told me. No surprises there.

What was interesting was the rest of it—multiple fake identities, layered on top of each other.

As for the phone, I slipped it into my pocket to deal with later.

Modern phones has a lot of failsafe. Security had gotten so tight that fingerprints and retinal scans weren't enough anymore.

The tech could tell the difference between a living body and a dead one. No pulse, no micro-responses, no access.

With nothing else worth salvaging, I headed back to my office.

I summoned my clone, and took control.

Now for the next part of my plan.

I left the area, keeping the phone on me, letting it act as bait. A breadcrumb trail. If anyone tried to ping it through GPS, I wanted them to chase first.

Night settled in by the time I reached my destination.

'I'm sure this is the place.'

The alley was narrow. At its far end, a man leaned against the wall, jacket zipped, hood low.

A few steps away, I stopped, and he pretended not to notice.

"Man, I want to drink a cold beer. " I uttered the secret code.

He lifted his head, and locked onto me. "Where's the item?"

"Here." Slowly, I lifted the phone and held it out.

He grab it without a word, powered it down, then slid it into a small black box.

The thing looked unassuming, but I bet good money it was packed with signal-dampening tech—nothing in, nothing out.

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