[HOST INTEGRITY: 10%]
[LOCATION: ST. JUDE'S MORGUE]
[THREAT: REAPER PATROL (LEVEL 5)]
The frost on the cabinet was burning Ren's skin.
Beside him, Jian was trembling so hard his high-vis vest rustled against the floor.
"I can hear you shivering," Ren hissed, clamping a hand over Jian's mouth.
"Mmph!" Jian squeaked, eyes wide with terror.
The two Reapers floated closer. Their lanterns swung in the dark, casting long, skeletal shadows against the stainless steel drawers.
"Come out," the lead Reaper rasped. It drew a long, jagged blade made of black iron—a Soul-Severing Knife. "If we have to open the cabinets, we count it as 'Resisting Arrest.' The fine is your legs."
Ren's mind raced.
He couldn't fight. A Level 5 Reaper would decapitate him before he could lift the Tiger Seal.
He couldn't run. The door was blocked.
He had to talk. But mere words wouldn't stop a Reaper on a hunt. He needed leverage.
Ren looked at Jian.
He looked at the boy's terrified, tear-streaked face.
And then, Ren remembered Chapter 15.
He remembered the Section Chief who had fined him 8,500 coins. Mr. Liu.
He remembered the specific, rot-sweet scent of Mr. Liu's aura—like old lilies and formaldehyde.
And he smelled the exact same scent clinging to Jian.
Of course, Ren realized, a shark-like grin spreading across his face. I'm not hiding with a sidekick. I'm hiding with the Crown Prince of the Sanitation Department.
Ren stood up.
"Jian," Ren whispered. "Stand up. Chest out. Look angry."
"What?" Jian whispered back.
"Do it."
Ren kicked the cabinet door open. CLANG.
The two Reapers spun around, blades raised, hissing like steam pipes.
"Found you!" the lead Reaper shrieked, lunging forward.
Ren didn't flinch. He stepped aside and pointed a finger at Jian.
"HOLD!" Ren bellowed, using his "Minister Voice." "Do you idiots know who you are pointing those knives at?"
The Reapers paused, confused by the sheer audacity. The blade hovered inches from Ren's nose.
"You are thieves," the Reaper growled. "You are stealing company property."
"Thieves?" Ren laughed. It was a cold, mocking sound. "I am the Consultant. He is the Auditor."
Ren grabbed Jian by the shoulders and shoved him forward.
"Look at him. Smell the bloodline. Use your sensory skills, you incompetent floating bedsheets!"
The Reapers hesitated. They lifted their lanterns, shining the pale beam onto Jian's face.
Jian was hyperventilating. He looked like he was about to vomit.
But beneath the fear, the Reaper Bloodline was undeniable. To the Reapers, Jian didn't smell like a human. He smelled like Management.
The lead Reaper's eyes (two green will-o'-the-wisps) widened. It lowered its blade.
"That scent..." the Reaper stammered. "It... it smells like the Section Chief."
"Chief Liu?" the second Reaper whispered, dropping its lantern. It floated backward, terrifyingly submissive. "Wait. Is this... the Son?"
Ren stepped in, seizing the momentum. He pulled out his stolen clipboard and tapped it aggressively.
"Section Chief Liu sent us on a Surprise Inspection of the collection nodes," Ren lied smoothly. "He's been hearing rumors that the Logistics Division is skimming off the top. Missing ounces. Sloppy harvests."
Ren pointed at the jar of Death Dew in his hand.
"And look what we found. Unsecured product. Left out in the open. If we were actual thieves, this would be gone."
Ren glared at them.
"Do you want me to tell Chief Liu that his patrols are threatening his son with knives?"
The Reapers panicked. In the Bureaucracy of Hell, killing a human was fine. Stealing souls was fine. But offending a Section Chief? That was a one-way ticket to the Void.
"No!" the lead Reaper shrieked, bowing so low its head touched the floor. "We didn't know! The Young Master... he wasn't wearing his badge!"
"Undercover," Ren snapped. "Obviously."
Jian stood there, mouth open. He looked at the terrifying monsters bowing to him. He looked at Ren.
"I..." Jian squeaked.
Ren kicked Jian's ankle.
"Ow!" Jian yelped, then channeled his inner frustration at Ren into the role. "I mean... I am very disappointed! Dad—uh, the Chief—will hear about this!"
The Reapers flinched as if struck physically.
"Please! Mercy, Young Master!" the second Reaper begged. "We will double the patrols! We will secure the perimeter!"
Ren checked his imaginary watch.
"We are leaving," Ren announced. "We are taking this sample of Death Dew as evidence for the lab. Do not follow us. Do not speak of this. If I see a report filed, I will assume you are trying to frame the Young Master."
"Understood! Understood!"
The Reapers parted ways, floating into the walls to clear a path.
Ren grabbed Jian's arm and marched him toward the exit.
"Keep walking," Ren whispered. "Don't look back. Walk like you own the building."
They marched out of the cold room, past the bowing monsters, and into the hallway.
They kept walking until they reached the loading dock.
They walked past the security guard.
They walked two blocks down the street.
Only then did Ren stop.
He leaned against a brick wall and exhaled, sliding down to sit on the pavement.
[HOST INTEGRITY: 10%]
His hands were shaking. Not from fear, but from the strain of holding the bluff.
Jian stared at him. "Ren... my Dad is a garbage man. He drives a truck."
Ren looked up, stashing the jar of Death Dew safely into his Inventory.
"Jian," Ren said seriously. "Your dad is a Section Chief in the Underworld Bureaucracy. And you are the most valuable asset I have."
Jian blinked. "My dad is... a Reaper boss?"
"Yes."
"And those things... they were afraid of me?"
"Terrified."
A strange look crossed Jian's face. A mix of horror and... realization.
He looked at his hands.
"Does this mean I have superpowers?"
"No," Ren said, standing up painfully. "It means you have Connections. Which is better."
Ren checked the sky. The sun was setting.
"Come on, 'Young Master'. We have the ingredients. It's time to cook."
[SYSTEM ALERT]
[QUEST UPDATED: PRODUCTION LINE ALPHA]
[OBJECTIVE: CRAFT THE FIRST BATCH OF INCENSE]
[REWARD: 100 KARMA (BODY REFINEMENT PILL)]
Ren looked at the notification.
100 Karma.
That was exactly the price of the Minor Body Refinement Pill.
If he succeeded tonight, he wouldn't die.
"To the factory," Ren