Chapter 11: Chapter 6.2

"So this system is basically letting someone else grind for me."

The realization hit me as I watched Emily clench her fists with determination and disappear. A moment later, I started seeing “+1” pop up in the experience bar at the bottom of my vision—without me lifting a finger.

What is this, passive income?

If I can earn experience points and gold just by lounging around while someone else works, then why should I bother doing anything myself? Right now, Emily is my only worker, but as I level up and can assign tasks to more Favor Targets, my profits will multiply. Why work when the “ants” can collect experience and gold for me?

This game might actually let me live the lazy life if I play it right. Feeling like a boss with a team of underlings, I crossed my legs and tapped my foot smugly.

Of course, the system had its limits. It seemed to enforce a schedule, pausing Emily’s work every 50 minutes for a 10-minute break. The “+1” notifications appeared at regular intervals, so precise it felt like someone measured them with a ruler. At this rate, I worried Emily might collapse from overwork.

While I was appalled by the system’s ruthlessness and concerned about Emily’s fatigue, I couldn’t help but wonder—if “working steadily with breaks” is this efficient, just how insane would “work to the bone” be? If I had three Favor Targets all grinding at maximum effort, how much gold and experience could I rack up?

With all that gold, I could buy pillows for my workers, which would occasionally trigger critical hits. Then, with even more money, I could upgrade to a mythical pillow set… It’d be a perfect cycle of wealth begetting wealth. No wonder they say poverty breeds poverty, and wealth breeds wealth.

Could this Favor System eventually let me control Adrian? If that became possible, I’d assign him to “pull weeds to the bone.” Or something even more menial, if it existed. And if he worked himself to death? Well, wouldn’t that be better than watching dozens of game characters die?

No, actually, torturing him just shy of death for an extended period might be more satisfying. For Adrian, “work hard without breaks” would be the perfect punishment. After all, if a game character scared its player, it deserved some payback.

As I pulled weeds, my mind raced with fantasies of running a grinding empire. Each “+1” from the weeds was immediately followed by another “+1” from Emily, who was still cleaning windows somewhere.

By lunchtime, the combined efforts of Emily and me had significantly filled my experience bar. It was oddly fulfilling—like leveling up a character alongside a friend in a cooperative game.

Initially, I thought I might slack off since Emily was working for me. But in this game, wasting time was a luxury I couldn’t afford. So, I got back to work, briefly considering checking out the charity clinic. Unfortunately, the system blocked me.

"You cannot enter the clinic."

Apparently, like the village, I’d need to raise someone’s favor to unlock access. This game really didn’t make anything easy.

Still, relaxing in a game like this would be a one-way ticket to failure. That’s exactly what this shady system wanted—complacency. The faster I leveled up and unlocked skills, the better my chances of survival.

"You’ve earned 1 experience point for removing weeds."

"You’ve earned 1 experience point for removing weeds."

"You’ve earned 1 experience point for removing weeds."

The system had me completely conditioned. The moment I considered how to gain experience, my body automatically moved toward the garden. The way it trained and molded me was unnerving, but I chose to ignore it and kept pulling weeds with a deadened soul.

The steady stream of “+1” notifications eventually slowed. When I stopped to check my experience bar, it seemed Emily had finished her work and returned to her quarters.

Good. I was starting to worry she might try to clean every window in the mansion on her own. If she earned me a lot of gold today, I’d seriously consider buying her a pillow as a reward.

“Hilda! Where have you been?”

Leticia, pacing in front of the door, spotted me and rushed over. Whenever she urgently looked for me, it was never for a good reason.

“I was tidying the garden. Do you need something?”

“The young master has been looking for you since this afternoon. Go see him immediately.”

“Well, it’s already quite late. Wouldn’t it be better to visit him tomorrow?”

“He expected you to say that. He specifically said you must come tonight, no matter how late. If you don’t, he’ll come to your quarters himself.”

“What a… determined man. Alright, I’ll go now.”

“Good. Do so quickly.”

Leticia’s gaze lingered on me with a hint of suspicion. To her, this might’ve seemed like the beginning of a forbidden romance novel between a servant and her master. But the reality couldn’t be further from her imagination. For me, this game was pure survival horror—a brutal experiment testing how long I could endure poverty, fear, and hardship. Romance? In this hellhole? No chance.

“Young master, it’s Hilda. I heard you called for me.”

By now, I could navigate to Adrian’s room as if by teleportation. I knocked on his door, waiting nervously as the detection alarm began to glow red and thrum with a heartbeat-like sound. A warning to stay away.

I briefly considered running, but since Adrian had summoned me directly, delaying would only make things worse.

“Come in.”

I pushed open the door, silently praying this wasn’t about the items I’d taken. If it was, well… let’s hope the game glitched in my favor.

“Sorry to call you so late, Hilda.”

Adrian’s silhouette emerged in the dim candlelight as I stepped into the room. He was sitting by the window, his figure barely visible in the shadows. If not for his voice, I might not have noticed him at all. Did he have to wait in such an ominous spot, curled up like a lurking beast? The man truly monopolized all the world’s gloom.

“Y-yes, my lord. What is it?”

I couldn’t help but tense up. Adrian only apologized when he was about to make my life hell.

“Some items went missing from my room today. They may look insignificant, but they’re important to me.”

My teeth began to chatter involuntarily. This demon seemed capable of lowering the room’s temperature by five degrees just by existing.

“Is that so? What items, specifically…?”

“I’m not asking, Hilda. I know it was you who took them.”

“…”

“I’d prefer not to lay a hand on you, so return everything.”

“…”

“While I’m still patient, Hilda.”

His piercing eyes glowed brightly in the darkness, exuding a presence that could break anyone's composure. Yet, oddly enough, I wasn’t scared of him at all.

Sure, his sudden, blunt statement startled me, but I already knew his true nature—he was a demon and just a character in a game. Seeing him in vivid 4D made it feel real, and I had no idea what would happen if he actually killed me, but somehow… I really wasn’t scared.

After all, he’s just a game character. I’m not scared. I’m not…

“…Hilda. Hilda, snap out of it.”

“Huh? What?”

“You had your eyes closed just now.”

“I… I did?”

“You suddenly shut your eyes and stood there for a while, like you’d passed out on your feet.”

My vision blurred, and my mind felt foggy, as though I’d just woken up from a nap. I guess my subconscious must have given in to fear and shut down for a moment. That demon’s presence was so overwhelming, it could overpower even unconscious instincts.

“I’m sorry. It’s nothing serious, really. I have a bit of narcolepsy… Sometimes I fall asleep standing up like this. Oh! Not because what you’re saying is boring, my lord!”

“Hmm. Narcolepsy, you say? How unfortunate.”

His expression was anything but sympathetic. His gaze was as sharp as a blade, and even as he voiced his faux concern, it felt more like a veiled threat than genuine pity.

“Anyway, Hilda, could you return the items to me? They’re things I cherish, gifts from someone dear to me.”

Lies. Complete and utter nonsense. Were they soaked in malice because they were gifts from someone special? No, they were tools for killing. But since this murderous demon demanded it, I had to play along. When he barked, I had to woof.

“Oh, I see. You must’ve been quite upset to lose items so precious to you. But, um… do you have any proof I took them?”

“What did you just say, Hilda?”

Proof? I asked if you have proof! I wanted to shout it out loud but restrained myself. As a mere servant, I kept my rebellion as polite as possible.

Adrian’s expression didn’t change, remaining sickeningly sweet and calm, but his eyes grew darker, filled with a sharp hostility that sent chills down my spine. It felt as though I were being roasted over the fires of hell.

Should I just faint again? That thought crossed my mind, but my mouth had other plans.

“Proof that I stole them. While it’s true I delivered your medicine this morning, I left the room almost immediately after Doctor Hubert and I exited. Even if I had stayed to tidy up, it was only for a moment. If I had intended to steal something, would I have been so obvious about it? I’m one of the few people allowed into your room. If I were accused of theft, my life would be over. Why would I do something so foolish?”

“Perhaps you had a reason compelling enough to take that risk.”

“If you’re serious about recovering your items, you should investigate who else entered your room after I left. That would be…”

“You don’t think I need evidence to hold you accountable, do you?”

“…”

“If evidence is what you require, Hilda, I can create it. But I’d rather not. I simply want my items back and this matter resolved quietly.”

Adrian’s words left me dumbfounded. They weren’t entirely irrational, which made them all the more frustrating. In the real world, under the presumption of innocence, such claims wouldn’t hold water. But here, in this mansion, Adrian’s word was law.

More than that, I was shaken by how wrong I’d been. I had expected the game to glitch or break if I acted outside its predefined scenarios. But instead, Adrian was behaving as if he were truly alive—making threats, negotiating, and demanding what he wanted.

It made me question if I was really inside a game at all.

…Okay. Stay calm. I forced my increasingly twisted expression back into something resembling composure. There was no way out now. I was in too deep.

“Please wait just a moment, my lord.”@@novelbin@@

“Hilda, what are you…”

“Just a moment, really.”

I smiled serenely as I tapped the invisible menu only I could see. To Adrian, it must’ve looked like I was poking at thin air, but it didn’t matter. He’d forget everything soon enough. When the menu appeared, two options greeted me: ‘New Game’ and ‘Exit’, though the latter was grayed out and non-functional.

I’d encountered situations where resetting seemed like the best option, but I’d never actually pressed ‘New Game’. This game was already a grind, and starting over from scratch would mean reliving every painful moment. But I had no choice now.

Fine. Let’s reset. Even if I go back to Level 1, I’ve learned a lot—about the skills, the favor system, and how to grind early-game experience efficiently. This time, I’d progress faster. I’d focus on raising Adrian’s favor early, unlock the village as soon as possible, buy better items, and use malicious objects strategically instead of stealing them. It would all go smoother.

Just as I was about to press ‘New Game’, I glanced at Adrian one last time. Should I punch him in the face? He wouldn’t remember anyway, right? If he tried to kill me in a rage, I’d just reset then and there.

I imagined his dumbfounded expression if I clocked him and couldn’t help but smile.

"Make evidence, huh? You’ve got a pitch-black soul, full of malice. Even if you’re a demon, you shouldn’t live your life this way!”

The thought alone was satisfying. Adrian, noticing my eerie grin, gave me a bewildered look as if wondering what I was up to. I decided I couldn’t leave without saying something.

Hovering my finger over ‘New Game,’ I smiled genuinely for the first time.

“Goodbye, you wretched demon. Make your evidence, search my room, do whatever you want. I hope you live a long and miserable life.”

「Adrian’s favor increased by 10.」

「Current favor: Adrian lv.1 (44/400)」

Of all times for his favor to go up, why now? It didn’t matter. I was about to reset, so his favor score was irrelevant. I was throwing it all away to start fresh.

Feeling like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders, I pressed ‘New Game.’

I glanced at Adrian one last time. He was still staring at me with a perplexed expression. Knowing this would be the last time I saw Adrian at 44 favor points, I felt an odd pang of nostalgia. Perhaps I’d grown attached in my fear and hatred of him.

Goodbye for now, demon. See you again soon. I even gave him a heartfelt farewell in my mind.

I waited for the radiant light to envelop me, signaling the start of a new game. But instead of the familiar reset, new text appeared before my eyes:

「You cannot start a new game after reaching a certain point in the story.」