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⛓ CHAINED SUB-MISSION DETECTED ⛓
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Trigger Condition:
▸ Emotional distrust caused by mishandled authority
▸ Protective response toward a dependent entity
▸ Loss of perceived safety under Conquest supervision
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🧩 CHAINED SUB-MISSION
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Objective:
▸ Demand compensation from Elfrez Eniyon
Restrictions: Null.
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🎁 REWARD 🎁
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▸ Relationship Status +15 (Elfrez Eniyon)
▸ Quest Function: Unlocked
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⚠ PENALTY ⚠
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▸ Hidden Threat Applied: Exploitation Under Extreme Pressure
System Note:
▸ High-value assets displaying emotional leverage
▸ Are subject to future constraint scenarios
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'This chained sub-mission…was the real reason behind my prolonged negotiations.
Unlocking the Quest Function alone made everything worth it.
The Quest Function—another privilege granted by the System.
A mechanism that simplified missions by breaking them down into structured objectives, complete with explicit conditions and clearly defined rewards.
It manifested as Quests—mostly minor ones.
Nothing particularly troublesome.
The rewards were usually limited to stat points or small bonuses.
But that wasn't where its true value lay.
I could designate certain events myself as Quests.
Getting rewarded for something I was already going to do anyway?
If I was being honest with myself…
that was nothing short of a layered reward system.
Fragments of knowledge—knowledge He had never learned—flowed into him naturally, effortlessly. The sensation was unsettling enough to visibly shake him.
But it was what it was.
He had no leverage over it.
So he pushed the thoughts to the back of his mind.
'Rewards aside...'
His gaze lingered on the system interface for a moment longer before returning to Elfrez.
'It's simply amazing.'
Is this the work of an artifact?
'Like mine?'
'No… it didn't function like the Visual Deception artifact I am wearing.'
This is far more dominant.
If not..
Then how did his entire demeanor shifted so completely?
The man standing before me now felt nothing like the one from mere seconds ago.
As though they are entirely different people.
…How fascinating.
"So… did this little stunt of mine earn any trust from you?"
A playful smirk slipped from Elfrez, snapping Marfin out of his rigid stance.
"I suppose everyone has their secrets… Is this your way of… establishing trust? Or equality? By sharing the mutual secrets? If so, it won't work… what I—"
"Of course not!" Elfrez cut him off immediately, lifting the face mask with steady precision. "I only use this when I'm conducting major trades with the Human Realm… otherwise, it's nothing more than a decorative piece."
He shrugged and tossed the mask toward Marfin, who caught it effortlessly in midair.
"Artifact No. 1015 — Faceless."
"An Epic-tier artifact," Elfrez explained, "as you've already seen, it allows the bearer to alter their face into any form they can conceive.
It doesn't merely change appearance. It reshapes the very aura surrounding the user—the presence, the air, the impression—aligning everything perfectly with the chosen visage.
The result: distinguishing the bearer from their assumed identity becomes nearly impossible… unless someone examines them with deliberate, intense scrutiny."
"That explains why I sensed two distinct airs around you…"
Marfin examined the mask with intense curiosity, rubbing it, tilting it side to side, until he finally pressed it against his face.
Gradually, his eyes vanished, along with his mouth and nose, leaving a smooth, featureless surface.
"Hehe… how does it feel in that state?" Elfrez asked. "Oh right… you can't talk without a mouth," he mused.
-Nod. Nod.
"It's a strange feeling no matter how many times I wear it. Either way… just imagine a face. A nose… eyes… ears… anything you want to become."
'Imagine…'
Marfin repeated the word in his mind, letting it seed a vision: a pair of piercing eyes… a slightly sharp nose… black, messy hair… a pair of lone wolf ears… an arrogant yet dominant smirk.
-Whooooshh.
Messy black hair tumbled around his face, strands falling carelessly as if no taming was ever required.
From it rose a pair of lone wolf ears, dark, alert, carrying the quiet pride of a predator that answered to no pack.
His obsidian eyes were cold, deep, reflecting nothing,yet missing nothing.
A sharp nose added a subtle edge, refined, dangerous.
And his lips bore an arrogant, dominant smirk—not loud, not cruel,
but the kind worn by someone who knew the world would eventually bend… and had the patience to wait for it.
-Budam. Budam.
His heart raced unnaturally.
'What is this feeling?'
'Liberation.'
'Confidence.'
'Arrogance.'
He named the emotions one by one as they surged through his veins.
'This much confidence—this much arrogance… is it even humanly possible?'
The very notion unsettled him.
It was as if he had become an entirely different person.
Someone who could dust off his old self without blinking an eye.
Unlike many, he knew himself well. He had always kept track of what he was becoming—what each day of struggle had slowly shaped him into.
He had always been busy surviving.Running away. Doubting everything.
Doubting his own abilities… his own decisions—even as he fooled himself into believing he was confident.
That was why he knew this much with certainty:
This person who is the very epitome of arrogance...could not be him.
It contradicted his very nature… the nature of a survivor.
After all, a survivor could not afford arrogance.That notion was reserved for those who were confident—dominant.
And yet, right now…
He was feeling like an Absolute Conqueror.
The sensation was intoxicating.
Addictive.
He bit his lip hard, drawing a thin line of blood...
A reminder of his sanity.
Slowly, he focused his vision on the two men standing before him.
Elfrez Eniyon.
Ryden Byron.
And froze.
Both of them were staring at him with wide, unblinking eyes.
Saliva trailed from the corners of their mouths as they gazed at him in absolute awe.
A chill crept down his spine.
He moved at once—grabbing their shoulders, shaking them, lightly slapping their cheeks in an attempt to snap them out of it.
Nothing.
They didn't move.
Their expressions didn't even flicker.
'What's happening?'
The question echoed in his mind as a cold shiver ran down his back.
"This is unbelievable…"
Muttering under his breath, he dug his fingers beneath the skin mask and tore it free, reverting instantly to normal.
They still didn't react.
'They're not out of it?'
He shook them again—one after the other.
Finally, both of them jolted awake.
Staring at him with blank, unfocused eyes.
—Cough. Cough.
Elfrez faked a cough, then lifted his gaze to Marfin.
"Apologies for the dilemma…"
His eyes drifted toward the face mask clenched in Marfin's hand.
"…Why hadn't you used it yet