Arlo's eyes flicked toward the glowing HUD message that had suddenly intruded across his vision.
---
[Quest Generated: The Gift of Knowledge]
Objective: Assist Mankind in this Universe to achieve the first step of evolution to a Wider World by allowing Lucy to pass on her knowledge to mankind.
Difficulty: (C+) -Rank
Reward: 6,000 Credits, 7,000 EXP, ?????
Failure: Trapped in this Universe
---
The SYSTEM's cold font stared back at him, listing out the details of a quest. He read it twice, then a third time, his brows tightening. The rewards were absurd, almost too generous. More than that, the SYSTEM wasn't supposed to generate quests outside the Quest Hall. That was the rule. Or at least… what he thought was the rule.He leaned back in his seat, glass still in hand, ignoring the bass rattling through the club. So the SYSTEM can drop missions on me anywhere, anytime… That's new. Did it do this when I first got pulled into that mess? Or is it just screwing with me because I'm hopping universes now? The thought sat heavy.
"Hey," Caroline's voice cut through, light but edged with concern. "You spaced out again. You sure you're okay?" Her eyes lingered on him, scanning like she wasn't fully convinced.
Arlo smirked, sliding the HUD notification out of his immediate view. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just… thinking about something. Nothing major." He tipped back the rest of his whiskey, letting the burn do its work. "C'mon, we're in a club. No point in sitting here like an NPC."
That seemed to reassure her. She gave him a playful shove toward the dance floor. "Then prove it. Let's see if you can actually dance, or if you're just good at standing around looking mysterious."
The DJ's set roared to life as Arlo stepped into the crowd. Lights sliced through the smoke, the bassline dropping like an earthquake. He moved with the rhythm, not flashy but fluid, just enough to blend in without looking stiff. Caroline, Rachel, Richard, and even Lucy joined in, champagne glasses flashing in their hands as they shouted along with the music.
Arlo let himself sink into it for a while—dancing, laughing, knocking back drinks with the group. Blending in 101. Rule number one: never look like you're watching the story. Always look like you're living it. He kept that in mind as he leaned closer to Lucy. "You having fun?" he asked over the noise, voice smooth but casual.
Lucy glanced at him, her blonde hair catching the strobe lights. "Yeah. Needed this, honestly. School's been killing me." She smiled faintly, and for a moment she looked less like Scarlett Johansson and more like a normal college kid cutting loose.
"Too much work'll do that," Arlo said, shrugging. Then, as if tossing out small talk, he added, "Ever read about how humans supposedly use only ten percent of their brain? Crazy theory, right? Some even say there's a drug called CPH4 that could boost it. Makes you wonder what would happen if someone actually pushed that limit."
Lucy blinked at him, surprised by the sudden shift in topic. "That's… oddly specific."
Arlo just smiled, letting the thought hang. Inside, though, his mind was sharp. Plant the seed. Leave her curious. She'll remember me later. "Anyway," he continued smoothly, "we're here to party, not talk neuroscience. Dance?"
Lucy hesitated only a second before nodding. Together they slipped deeper into the moving crowd. Arlo kept his moves measured, making sure not to overplay it, just enough for her to notice him, remember him. His plan was simple—get close enough to matter when the plot truly began.
The hours blurred. Richard eventually dragged Lucy out first, already half-drunk and stumbling. Arlo noticed, filing the detail away. Rachel and Caroline, meanwhile, were gone—hammered beyond reason. When the club finally started thinning out, Arlo sighed. If I were any other guy, this would've turned into a cheap opportunity. But no. Not my style.He slipped an arm under Rachel, then Caroline, steadying them both as they slurred nonsense about how the floor wouldn't stop moving. Their addresses? Not exactly written on their foreheads. Arlo muttered under his breath, summoning his divination. The Seeking Road flared briefly, pointing him toward the right paths through Taipei's maze of streets.
As he led them out into the night, neon lights painting the pavement, Arlo thought grimly, SYSTEM quests, movies are real, and me babysitting drunk strangers. Hell of a vacation.
***
[Regent Hotel: Taipei - MORNING]
Arlo woke with a dry mouth, the dull ache of last night's thoughts still pressing on his skull. His eyes scanned the dim hotel room. Link, his Rockruff, was curled against the wall, twitching in his sleep. Kage, his Froakie, sat awake at the foot of the bed, staring out the window like a night watchman.
"Morning patrol shift ended an hour ago, buddy," Arlo muttered, sitting up. His stomach growled. He reached for his phone, thumb hovering before he ordered Taiwanese delivery. Pork belly buns, beef noodle soup, scallion pancakes. Comfort food before chaos. As the smell of food filled the room half an hour later, Arlo leaned back in the chair, chopsticks in hand. The broth was good, but his mind was elsewhere. By now Lucy's probably in the hands of an international syndicate. His jaw tightened. Used as a mule. Disposable. If that's true, I've got one day to prep. One day before this turns all over the news.
Link barked softly, crumbs of scallion pancake on his nose. Kage tilted his head, expression unreadable.
"Don't look at me like that," Arlo said. "I didn't make the rules. This is the quest, whether we like it or not."
After clearing the table, he motioned both Pokémon to the couch. "Link. Kage. We've got a job to do."
They tilted their heads in unison, puzzled. Vacation mode had set in deep; the last few days had been downtime, no grinding, no boss fights.
Arlo saw it on their faces. "I know what you're thinking," he continued. "But time's short. We can't slack here."
Silence hung in the room for a beat. Then, without hesitation, Link barked once and Kage chirped back, both signaling agreement. Arlo exhaled in relief. "Thanks," he said quietly. "You two always pull through. Guess this is why we're a party, not just trainer and Pokémon."
For once, a small smile crept across his face. "Alright. Let's show this system we're not side characters."
With his partners on board, Arlo dove into prep. He opened his bank account on the computer to check, his balance was steady, more than enough for his book to another country. IDs checked out. Next, inventory. The Pit Viper pistol, polished and ready. Health and Mana potions stacked neatly. his additional clothes and a stack of tarot card as his secondary weapon. He closed the menu. "It'll do," he muttered.
Sleep didn't come easy that night. When dawn broke, Arlo dressed deliberately. Black overcoat on a white t-shirt, plain black pants, heavy boots. Not flashy, not casual—just ready. He looked at Link and Kage.
"You two ready?" Link barked with energy; Kage chirped, tail flicking. Arlo nodded once. "Then let's move."
They left the hotel room. Arlo's mind was focused. No side quests today. Straight to the main line. The city streets buzzed with the usual traffic, neon ads flickering like background textures in an old JRPG. He pulled his coat tighter, heading for Caroline's place.
...
[Caroline's Apartment: Taipei]
At her apartment door, he knocked twice. Footsteps shuffled. The door opened, and Caroline blinked in surprise. "Arlo? You're here? With a dog and a… cat?" Her tone was caught between shock and amusement."Hey,"
Arlo said flatly. "Can we come in?" She glanced at Link and Kage before smirking. "Sure, but you're cleaning up after them."
Arlo allowed himself the faintest grin. "They're trained. Won't cause trouble."
Inside, her apartment was cozy but cluttered.
Arlo asked casually, "You live alone?"
Caroline shook her head. "No, I've got a roommate. Lucy."
The name hit harder than expected.
"Where is she?" Arlo asked immediately. Caroline shrugged. "Didn't come home last night. Not the first time. She sometimes crashes somewhere else."
Arlo absorbed that. Not unusual for her. But now, with syndicates in the mix, that 'normal' might already be over. He sank into the couch.
Caroline sat nearby, curiosity clear in her eyes. "So… what are you doing here?" she asked.
Arlo looked at her calmly. "To apologize. I left without giving you a way to reach me." His tone was measured, no drama. Just fact.
Caroline smiled faintly. "It's fine. What matters is you're here now." She shifted closer, inch by inch.
Arlo noticed. American girls. Forward as hell. His Clown's bodily control kept him perfectly neutral, not a twitch out of place. Before the tension could spark, the doorbell rang.
Caroline muttered, "Damn it," then glanced back at him. "Wait a sec." She stood, hips swaying exaggeratedly, maybe on purpose. Arlo's danger intuition pinged softly. She's teasing. Ignore. Focus. He sat, posture unbroken, until Caroline returned with someone behind her. Lucy. But not the same Lucy. Her eyes were sharp, her stance controlled. Something about her aura screamed different.
Arlo's gaze locked with hers. He activated [Observe]. In his HUD it laid all of Lucy's Status window.
---
Lucy Miller
Race: High Human
Level: 30
HP: 275/275
MP: 1000/1000
[Stats Info]
Strength: 25
Dexterity: 30
Intelligence: 179
Charisma: 43
Luck: 100
Endurance: 35
Wisdom: 200
Status: Absorbing C.P.H.4 / Continuously Evolving / 20% Brain Capacity
Skill: Psionic Lv: 6/10, Emotional Control Lv: 9/10, Hyperevolved Intelligence Lv: 7/10, Technopathy Lv: 5/10, Shapeshift Lv: 5/10
Description: An ordinary young woman who accidentally absorbs a synthetic drug, CPH4, giving her increasingly powerful mental and physical abilities as her brain capacity grows, she rapidly evolves to unprecedented speed which her body could not keep up.
Threat Level: Extremely Lethal / Death
---
His eyes widened. Impossible. She's unlocked twenty percent of her brain capacity? That's to fast. Her body could not keep up to the explosive evolution of her body. He shut the window quickly, masking his shock. Inside, his thoughts churned. She would soon overpower me. Lucy isn't a normal human anymore—she's on a superhuman level and soon she would become unstoppable.
...
Lucy's voice cut the silence, flat and robotic. "Something like that. Can I use your computer?"
Caroline blinked, taken aback. "Uh… sure."
Lucy moved straight past them, posture stiff, and sat down in front of the desktop in the living room. Fingers poised, she began typing instantly. Caroline leaned against the doorway, towel in hand. "I'm going to take a shower," she said, then turned toward Arlo and winked before slipping away.
Arlo ignored Caroline's theatrics. His eyes locked on Lucy. She was hammering the keyboard at a speed that didn't look human. Her eyes flicked across the screen like a speedrunner tearing through an old NES game with frame-perfect precision. Scientific journals, neurological databases, obscure PDFs—she devoured them one after another. The browser tabs multiplied in real-time. No way. She's not just reading this—she's digesting it. That's a library worth of data going straight into her brain.Arlo stepped closer, trying to get a better look. Equations, chemical diagrams, brain scans—stuff most med students would struggle to process in months, Lucy chewed through in seconds. It reminded Arlo of watching someone play StarCraft at the highest level, fingers a blur, actions per minute beyond comprehension. She's rewriting herself in real-time.
"Hey, Lucy," Arlo said, voice casual but edged with caution. "What exactly are you doing?"
Without pausing her typing, Lucy replied in the same monotone: "Researching the human brain." Her tone was flat, but her words carried weight. Then, abruptly, she pushed back from the chair, stood up, and lunged at him. Arlo's danger intuition screamed. His body reacted before thought—he pivoted aside just in time to avoid her grab. Her fingers sliced through the air, precise and deliberate, like a surgeon aiming for a vein. She pressed again, relentless. Arlo raised his forearm, parried the strike clean, then twisted into a side kick aimed at her ribs.
But Lucy's reflexes were sharper. Her hand snapped down, catching his chin mid-strike, locking it with mechanical precision.
She's too fast. Adrenaline surged. Arlo twisted, muscles snapping like coiled wire, flipping his body mid-air with the grace of a practiced acrobat. He wrenched free, landing light on his feet. The carpet muffled his step, but the tension in the air was deafening.
Lucy's eyes didn't blink. Cold. Unyielding. For a heartbeat they circled, the apartment dissolving around them. In Arlo's head it wasn't Caroline's cozy living room anymore—it was a dojo. A ring. A boss arena. No time to probe. She's already moving like a battle-hardened fighter.
Then she blurred forward. No hesitation, no wasted motion. Arlo blocked her elbow, rolled his shoulder under a strike, countered with a jab that could've broken a normal nose. Lucy tilted her head just enough, dodging by centimeters, before her palm darted at his throat. He slapped it aside, swept low with a leg kick. She jumped it like she had frame data memorized, landing instantly with a knee strike that nearly caved his guard. The impact thudded against his forearms, numbing. She fights like she's downloaded every martial arts the world. Just like in the Matrix.
Arlo threw a feint—right hook, deliberately sloppy. Lucy bit, intercepting. That was his window. He spun, heel kick cutting through the air, aiming for her jaw. But again, she was already there, ducking under with unnatural speed.Before he could reset, her legs snapped up, wrapping around his neck in a flying headscissors. The world spun as she yanked him down, gravity doing the rest. His back slammed against the floor, rattling his spine.
Arlo's vision blurred for a moment, but thanks to his Clown's Bodily Control he can be very flexible. Pressure clamped down on his windpipe, Lucy's thighs crushing around his neck with vice-like power. Arlo's eyes widened. Did she just hit me with Black Widow's signature move? Great—every gooners dreams of this. Except the part where you actually suffocate and die.
Pressure closed around his throat. Lucy's voice cut in, still robotic. "Who are you? Or… what are you?"
Arlo gritted his teeth, barely able to get words out. "What the hell do you mean?" Her gaze sharpened. "I've looked into who you are, Arlo Leeroy. You have traveled around the world, but you appeared from nothing. And you mentioned CPH4. Few know that name. They way you move and fight me is not what a normal human being can do. Perhaps I can know who you are by looking into your mind." Her hand pressed against his head.
Arlo's HUD exploded with a notifications.
---
[ALERT! : Pioneer BrainLink Compromised — Unauthorized Entity Detected]
[Defense Protocol: ENGAGED]
---
Lucy's body drop immediately and she convulsed violently, her body twitching under the system's counterstrike. Arlo gasped for air as her grip slackened. "Stop! SYSTEM, stop god dammit!" he shouted hoarsely. The defense subsided. Lucy collapsed, twitching, then stopped. Lucy lay face-down on the carpet, one arm bent at an awkward angle beneath her, completely, terrifyingly still. Don't be dead. I swear to god if you're dead I don't even know what chapter this becomes. Arlo pressed two fingers to the side of her neck and found her pulse — fast, irregular, but present. He let out a breath he'd been holding so long it physically hurt.
For a moment, the room was silent except for Arlo's ragged breathing. He pulled himself upright, staring at her sprawled form. He stared at Lucy's motionless form and tried very hard not to think about the fact that the SYSTEM had just dropped a grown woman like it was nothing. Like she was a process that needed terminating.
When she stirred, It happened slowly — a twitch of fingers, a shift of her shoulder, and then she was blinking, face still pressed sideways against the carpet, eyes completely unfocused. The sharp, laser-precise intelligence that lived behind those eyes was temporarily offline. She looked, for just a moment, like a regular person who'd had the worst possible Tuesday. Her lips moved before her voice caught up. "What…"A pause. A blink. "What happened?"
Arlo steadied his breath. "You triggered a defense protocol." He kept his voice even, withholding the truth. No way she can know what SYSTEM really is.
"Defense—" Lucy stopped. She was processing. He could almost see it happening in real time, her brain rebooting like a laptop after a forced shutdown. She pressed one palm flat against the floor and pushed herself upright, and even now — even doing that — she moved with more deliberate control than someone who'd just been dropped by a neurological counterstrike had any right to. Arlo didn't help her yet. Something told him she would not appreciate it.
From the shower, Caroline's voice echoed. "What's going on? I heard something!"
Arlo called back immediately. "It's nothing! Lucy just stubbed her foot!"
"…Okay!" Caroline replied, water still running.
Arlo exhaled slowly, tension bleeding off. He helped Lucy sit up. "What is happening to you?" he asked, tone careful.
Lucy's eyes darted, her voice calmer but still clipped. "My cells… are reproducing at a phenomenal speed. Several million per minute. I'm still calculating, but I doubt I'll survive more than twenty-four hours."
Arlo studied her, gears turning. Wait... WHAT THE FUCK! What did SYSTEM actually DO to her. Because she was two seconds away from turning my brain into a Google Street View and now she's sitting here telling me she's dying like she's reading a weather forecast. Did it reset her? Recalibrate something? Is this— is this a side effect of the counterstrike or was she already— He shut the spiral down. Later. Process later. Aloud, he said, "I think I might be able to help." Her eyes fixed on him, sharper than before. "How?"
Arlo let a faint smile curve across his face. "That's the part I'll have to tell you."
Inside, though, his mind was racing. SYSTEM did something to Lucy that made her amicable to me before she was going to fucking mind rape, now the quest will become much easier now. Thank you SYSTEM for the Help.