Chapter 119: Think for Yourself
[Do you know what turns a boy into a man?]
Zac gave the question serious thought for a moment and answered.
"When he loses his virginity?"
["..."]
Silence followed.
For several seconds, neither Zac nor the System said a word.
Then the System replied flatly,
[And you call me a pervert.]
"Listen, losing your virginity is still a kind of experience."
[Would you shut up and stop being insufferable?]
"So now you know what it feels like to be on the receiving end."
[Very well. Now listen carefully. Experience is what turns a boy into a man.]
The system’s tone became more serious.
[Failure, discovery, interaction, and consequences shape a person. If you rely on me for every minor problem, you will never develop the judgement needed to survive without guidance.]
[Part of what makes life worthwhile is not knowing exactly what comes next.]
Zac scratched his head. "Do you realize how ridiculous you sound?"
[Explain.]
"You’re an information system. Your primary purpose is to provide me with information, and now you’re telling me not to ask you for any."
[That is not what I said.]
"That’s certainly what it sounds like."
The system released something remarkably close to an irritated sigh.
[I’m saying you shouldn’t use me as a substitute for your own brain.]
[For example, when danger approaches, I can warn you. When a rare opportunity appears, I can alert you before anyone else gets their hands on it. You can use me to view status panels, allocate Attribute Points, scan objects, and obtain knowledge that would otherwise be beyond your reach.]
[Most importantly, I provide moral support.]
"You can shove that moral support up someone else’s ass."
[You only say that because you fail to appreciate its value, especially with emotional stability more brittle than old glass.]
Zac’s eyes narrowed. "Now, listen..."
[Let me finish.]
The system continued before he could argue.
[What I mentioned represents only a fraction of my current functions. As your level rises, additional functions may become available.]
"Additional functions?"
[That is not the point of this conversation.]
Zac clicked his tongue.
[What I’m asking is simple. Gain experience from the world and the people around you. Don’t shut yourself inside this house, training day and night while speaking to no one but me.]
[If you continue living like that, your ability to interact with others will eventually deteriorate.]
Zac fell silent, staring at the faint system panel floating before him.
[Why are you looking at me like that?]
"I’m wondering what you really are."
[I have already told you everything I am currently permitted to reveal. I am the System bonded to you, and I will help you become the most powerful being in the universe.]
"That isn’t what I meant."
[Whether it is or not, that remains the truth.]
Zac studied the panel for a moment.
"Sometimes you act like a complete bitch. Sometimes you speak like a friend. Then, every once in a while, you start sounding like some ancient old man who has lived through a thousand lifetimes."
"How can one being be all those things?"
[Who decided that one being couldn’t be?]
Zac remained quiet.
When the system spoke again, its tone was noticeably calmer.
[I exist beyond the normal scope of this universe. When I bonded with you, my personality, behaviour, and method of communication adapted into the form best suited to helping you.]
"And who changed you?"
[No one. It simply happened.]
"That sounds like another way of refusing to explain."
[Because it is not something you don’t need to care about.]
"Why shouldn’t I care? I’m standing at the center of all this."
[No, you’re not.]
The blunt response made Zac pause.
[Would an ant care about a cosmic explosion occurring beyond its world? No. Even if it somehow learned about it, it could do nothing except endure the consequences.]
[That is what you are right now.]
The system’s voice remained calm and matter-of-fact.
[When you reach a level where you can stand beside that cosmic explosion instead of being erased by it, then the truth will matter.]
[When the time comes for you to know, I will tell you.]
Zac remained silent for a while before finally sighing. "Fine."
He pushed himself to his feet and looked at the Mana drifting through the room. "Then who am I supposed to ask about the coating?"
[What about that green-haired woman?]
"Are you an idiot? Matilda gave us the task in the first place. She deliberately left something out so we would discover it ourselves."
The moment the words left his mouth, Zac froze. "Wait. Is that it?"
[Is what it?]
"The part Matilda refused to explain. Is that why my coating feels incomplete?"
[Perhaps.]
The system drew out the answer with deliberate vagueness.
Zac’s eyes narrowed. "I knew it."
He went downstairs, dropped onto the living-room sofa, and began chewing it over.
If Matilda was deliberately testing them, asking her directly would defeat the entire purpose. He needed someone experienced enough to spot the flaw in his mana coating but also willing to explain it without turning the answer into another lesson.
"What about that kimono?"
[You mean Sir Simon? He accompanied the other students as their escort. They should already be inside the portal by now.]
"Fine. That leaves me with no choice. I’ll call Lima."
[I knew you’d end up there eventually.]
"What’s that supposed to mean?"
[Why not admit that you wanted an excuse to speak to her from the start?]
"I don’t need an excuse. I can call her whenever I want."
[Of course. That must be why, the last time you called and said, "I just called to talk," she immediately hung up on you.]
"Let’s not revisit that, shall we?"
Before the system could continue, Zac pulled out his VSB, found Lima’s contact, and called her.
The device rang several times, but there was no answer. Zac waited until the call ended on its own, then looked at the screen with mild disappointment.
He tried again, only to get the same result. "She must be busy."
[No. I think she’s ghosting you.]
"Fuck you."
[Why not ask your mother? She’s an A-rank variant, isn’t she?]
"No."
[Why not?]
"I try not to talk to her about variant-related matters. It reminds her of her academy days, and once she starts thinking about the academy, she eventually remembers my father."
Zac lowered the VSB. "I don’t want to drag her back into those memories over something like this."
[Understandable.]
Zac waited a moment. "That’s it? No comment?"
[I possess basic situational awareness. I know better than to make jokes about someone’s loss.]
The system paused. [However, I do have one more person in mind.]
Zac considered it for a moment, and his expression immediately darkened. "No."
[Yes.]
"Absolutely not."
[I haven’t even said who it is.]
"You don’t need to. I already know."
[She is probably your best option right now.]
"You genuinely think she would help me?"
[What kind of ridiculous question is that? She’s practically your sugar mommy. Of course she’ll help.]
Zac’s face darkened further. "Do not call her that."
[Offer her a kiss in exchange for guidance. My calculations estimate an exceptionally high chance of success.]
"Like hell I will."
[Why reject an efficient transaction before testing it?]
"She’d crush me into a tin can and throw me into the ocean if I said something like that."
[My seventh sense tells me otherwise.]
"You and your seventh sense can go commit double suicide."
Zac sank deeper into the sofa, trying to decide what to do next.
Despite everything she had done for him, the thought of willingly seeking her help still left a weight in his chest.
The system noticed his hesitation. [Why are you still clinging to the belief that she might be dangerous?]
"How do you know she doesn’t have malicious intentions?"
[Come on.] The certainty in the system’s reply left little room for doubt.
Zac released a slow breath. "Right. You probably already know the whole story."
He leaned his head back against the sofa. "The way you behave sometimes makes me forget you’re supposed to be an all-knowing system. But knowing she doesn’t want to hurt me doesn’t erase everything else."
"Even if she genuinely cares about me, I can’t simply forget that she never appeared once while we were struggling. My mother was poisoned, Carrie was suffering, and we had no one."
His fingers tightened slightly around the VSB. "She knew we existed, yet she stayed away for nine years."
[Blah, blah, blah. Your family drama is beginning to wear me out.]
"Weren’t you being wise and understanding five minutes ago?"
[I contain multitudes.]
The system’s tone grew calmer.
[Everyone goes through low points in life, Zac. She included.]
"I know. But understanding that she may have had her reasons doesn’t mean I have to pretend none of it happened."
Before Zac could say anything more, his VSB chimed with a notification.
He looked down at the screen. "A message?" The sender’s name immediately caught his attention.
"Sabrina?"
[The Ice Chick is messaging you now?]
"Yeah. I’m surprised too."
[Should I check whether the sun has fallen out of the sky?]
Zac opened the message. "I think it’s a photo."
[I was unaware the two of you had already reached that stage in your relationship. Well done, playboy.]
"You do realize there are countless innocent reasons for someone to send a photograph, right?"
[That depends entirely on the photograph. Open it. Let’s see.]
Zac sighed and tapped the image. The moment it appeared on the screen, his entire body went still.
Sabrina stood within what appeared to be the chaotic interior of the portal, her face carrying the same cold, composed expression as always.
A smooth, translucent layer of Mana covered her from head to toe.
Her coating was thicker, steadier, and far more complete than anything Zac had managed.
Beneath the image was a short message.
’Let’s see who masters it first.’
Zac stared at the picture and felt his eyes gradually turn red. It was not his bloodline, nor a surge of uncontrollable emotion.
This was something far simpler and, in its own way, far more dangerous. "She sent this just to provoke me."
[Perhaps this is her version of encouragement.]
"This isn’t encouragement." Zac switched off the VSB with enough force to nearly crack the screen and shot to his feet. "This is a declaration of war."
He marched out of the house without another word.
[Where are we going?]
"Up the hill."
[May I ask why?]
"To find Armani."