"The principle of equal exchange."
Han flickered his eyes on the familiar-sounding words.
I heard this term before in alchemy shows. Plus that fool used to say it a lot.
"So, System, how do I use it?"
[It is not hard. In principle, you just give the cosmos things it finds valuable, and it will give you things with equal value.]
Han snickered after hearing that. And then he looked at the system window with a questioning gaze.
"And how do I know what the cosmos finds valuable?"
The floating blue window continued describing the function of the shop with its robotic voice.
[All you need is to state what you want and what you are willing to sacrifice for the cosmos to get it. The cosmos will then evaluate your request and give you something fitting for your needs. Note that the cosmos will not help you with things that are not regarding your mission.]
Han looked at the system window with a buffered expression.
"The fuck now? You want me to sacrifice shit to the cosmos now? I thought this system was supposed to help me, not enter me into a cult."
"Mother, please come save your child from this ungrateful system. After all I've done, it's trying to make me worship the cosmos."
[The cosmos does not need your worship.]
Despite the system saying that the cosmos is not a cult, Han continued with his idiotic theatrics, acting as if he was in the climax of a soap opera.
"If this arm gets in the way, I'll just cut it off."
Suddenly the system stopped his idiotic display of random anime quotes.
[The user has chosen to sacrifice his arm to the cosmos.]
Han's face turned blue, then he started shouting at the system with a panicked voice.
"What? No no! System, I was kidding! Cancel the order immediately!"
Despite what Han said, the system didn't seem to give a fuck.
[3…2…1….]
Han was in complete panic. He was running on the ground to prepare for the being that was going to suck his entire body, but he didn't feel anything.
[JK]
After hearing the system, he calmed down for a second, then he stood up, rubbed the dirt off his clothes, and went back to sit on the chair like nothing had happened.
"So, System, let's stop joking around. What are the things that I could sacrifice?"
[You could sacrifice anything from money to items to information. The better your sacrifice is, the better of a reward you will get from the cosmos.]
Han leaned back on the chair and asked the system, "Information? Is there anything the cosmos doesn't already know? And if I sacrifice information, will I lose it?"
[The cosmos is an all-knowing entity. It has everything and knows everything. But it also can't give you anything without respecting the law of equal exchange. And you don't need to worry about the information—the cosmos would only take a copy of your memories.]
"In that case, I want to make a deal. I will give you all the money that I have (1,000 ow) and a copy of all my memories from my last life. In exchange, I want something that will do this paperwork for me perfectly."
[Are you sure you want to confirm the deal?]
[Yes/No]
Han felt a little nervous. He didn't have exactly much to offer to the cosmos. In addition, if this didn't work, he would have to do all the paperwork himself—which was completely unacceptable. After praying for Truck-kun to help him get a good deal, he pressed yes.
[Waiting for the answer of the cosmos.]
Han felt his heart beating faster and faster. He felt like he was back in his old world playing one of those gacha games. Although he never played one, he could imagine that this would be the feeling they feel when they open the loot packages.
After a few seconds of waiting, the music played and the system changed.
[You have received an answer from the cosmos.]
Han took a deep breath.
[Your request has been accepted.]
Han jumped up from excitement, throwing his hands in the air.
"Thanks, Truck-kun! My lazy life won't be stopped by paperwork!"
Han realized it might be a trap and stopped celebrating early. He looked at the system with a cautious gaze and asked,
"System, what did I receive?"
[You have received a subsystem. You may think of it as an expansion to the system.]
Han looked at the new window with an arrogant look.
"Well, of course I will get the subsystem. In the end, I gave him a copy of my memories. Even the cosmos should feel flattered. Those are very valuable, you see."
The system cut his arrogant pointless excitement.
[Your memories were worthless, but the cosmos gave you a good reward anyway since you accepted to be his messenger to fix the problem of this world. That was the reason the deal worked.]
Han ignored the hurtful things that it said.
"Sure sure, whatever you say. Quit stalling and tell me what my subsystem is all about, System-chan."
[You never call me that again!]
Han didn't respond to System-chan's warning—instead he kept quiet, looking at the system window.
[You have gained the visual novel subsystem.]
Han was a little confused by the name. He played a lot of visual novels in his past life, but he couldn't think of how it would help him finish his paperwork.
So he just kept silent, looking at the system, waiting for it to explain everything.
[This subsystem will allow you to become a visual novel protagonist. It will activate on all repeatable tasks like learning or paperwork, and do them all for you perfectly by putting your body in autopilot for a period of time.]
[Once you are on autopilot, your consciousness will have options to choose from based on your task.]
After the system finished describing the abilities, Han was in shock.
"This is actually so fucking cool!!!! This system won't just solve my paperwork problem—it will also allow me to learn new abilities by studying in autopilot mode."
Han looked at the dozens of documents in front of him and said,
"Autopilot, I choose you!"
Then he activated the ability.
(To be continued…)