Another Conversation with Eros

A/N: Yay! we've succeeded in clearing one of the missions! So today, I'll do my part and published 3 chapters for you guys!

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After parting with Yuna in front of the school's gate, I ordered a ride home.

I had wanted to escort her back, but she refused my offer, playfully saying that she didn't have any energy left in case a certain pervert senior got excited again to be alone with a beautiful girl in her room.

I had a feeling that she was just making excuses for me not to visit her home, but I just kept it to myself and didn't insist anymore.

Like Yuna said before, everybody had their share of things that they hid from others, and I, despite having been engaged in an intimate activity with her earlier, felt that I wasn't close enough to her to dig deeper into her business.

Arriving at my room, I took a quick shower and changed into everyday clothes—a plain white t-shirt and sweatpants had always been my favorite way to spend my leisure day.

With my arms as my pillow, I laid lazily on my soft and comfy bed and started reflecting on today's event in earnest.

I once again realized how reckless I'd been this afternoon, despite frequently reminding myself that I should be careful when undertaking my quest. I was so blinded with lust that I failed to consider how many things could've gone wrong for me and become my pitfall. Fortunately, lady luck was on my side today, so I was able to clear my quest smoothly this time.

I must admit that I severely underestimated this 'game' set by Eros. Just a small mistake could trip me down, sending me down into the abyss of no return.

For example, had the short-haired girl that we happened to meet outside the toilet went inside during our intense session and caught us red-handed doing an indecent act in public and reported it, not only my life would be ruined, but also Yuna's.

Imagining the worst result that could have happened to us, my body shook involuntarily.

I might be able to prevent such cases from happening with the items from the store, but I wasn't conceited enough to think that everything would go according to plan. The world had never gone easy on me, and for sure, it wasn't merciful enough not to mess up with me when the time came.

Speaking of Eros, I really wanted to talk to him again to clarify some of my suspicions, but he had mentioned before that he was so busy that he couldn't always keep his eyes on me, so I wondered when I would be able to meet him again.

[Oh my, our Siwoo, congratulations for finally graduating from being a virgin! How's it feel? Is it fun?]

A familiar annoying voice suddenly spoke inside my mind.

"Speaking of the devil, let the devil come." I blurted out my thoughts unknowingly.

[This one is a God, though?]

"Well, whatever." I rolled my eyes at his thoughtless remark. "You sure came at perfect timing, Eros." My eyes squinted at the random space in my room, considering that he didn't come in any visible form but was only a voice in my mind. "Or you've been with me from the beginning?"

[I'm not so free to spy on your daily life, Siwoo. Even though you're just a mortal, as my "player", I'm benevolent enough to respect your privacy. So, stop being hostile to me. You're not an ungrateful dick who always suspects your benefactor's intention, aren't you?]

Hearing an imperceptible disappointment in his voice, I waved my hands, sighing. "Well, fine. Let's forget about that. I have more important questions to ask you."

[That's a good attitude, Siwoo. So, what's in your mind?]

"Today… was that your doing?"

[Um? I don't understand what you're trying to say.]

"Don't keep playing dumb with me, Eros. You know what I'm talking about."

[No, I don't. I repeat once again, Kim Siwoo. I have myriad things to pay attention to and countless worlds to watch for; I don't have the time or feel the necessity to monitor you 24/7. So, just keep straight to the point and don't beat around the bush anymore.]

Sensing that he genuinely had no idea what I was talking about, I tried to elaborate more. It was embarrassing to share what happened today with my own mouth, so I kept stammering in my explanation.

"Today, when I'm… um… doing my quest with Yuna—"

[Having sex.]

Hearing such a direct word, my cheek felt hot, and my face flushed in shame.

Was it okay to talk to God about something like this?

I faltered for a moment before deciding to just keep it simple and comfortable.

"When I had sex with Yuna today, I noticed that strangely, the only people inside were Yuna and me during that time. Two hours weren't exactly short, so why was no one going inside? It was in the middle of the day, so it's hard to believe no one came to use the toilet."

[Oh, that's happened? Well, it might or might not happen because of me, or, to be exact, my authority over the world that's used to create the system.]

"Are you talking about the first capture correction?" I clarified.

Eros voiced his acknowledgement. [That's correct.]

My curiosity overtook me, and I asked, "So, how do that work?"

[It's complicated. You need a decent amount of knowledge about how divine law works to comprehend it, so you won't get it if I explain it to you in detail. So in a simpler term, the first capture correction was similar to "protagonist halo" which boosts your luck for a short time.]

[You must've already noticed that there were many convenience "coincidents" happened to you today. What's the chance that your first target was actually the target of your experiment with Hand of Eros, and she was actually someone you could meet on a frequent basis, and she also happened to have a trait that made it easy for you to exploit, and that she also happened to be open-minded enough to accept your selfishness where other women normally won't? And just like you suspected, the fact that no one intruded when you got into action didn't make any sense at all.]

[That's all because the 'first capture correction' enabled it all. Does it satisfy your curiosity?]

I finally able to see the bigger picture and nodded in understanding, then I asked another question.

"Doesn't it mean that I won't be so lucky next time?"

[That's not necessarily the case.] I can imagine Eros shaking his head in my mind. [Though the correction has been lifted, that doesn't mean that you won't be able to get something similar in the future.]

Listening to Eros' answer, my heart pounded unknowingly.

"What should I do??" My voice was trembling with excitement as I asked him impatiently.

Clicking his tongue, Eros' disdainful voice echoed in my mind.

[You should use your brain more, Siwoo.]

"So petty," I grumbled, ignoring Eros' nagging in my mind as I spun my brain for an answer. Not long after, an obvious answer dawned in my mind like an epiphany.

"Ah!" I let out a short exclamation and slapped my forehead in embarrassment. How could I be so stupid not to realize it before. "The store!" Yes, that's the right answer!

[You're not so stupid.]

Ignoring Eros' remark, I skimmed through the list of items sold in the store and found something close to what I guessed.

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[Lucky Sukebe badge]: allow the user to have a "fortuitous (lewd) encounter" with a girl that has a high degree of probability of being your capture target. Can be used five times. Cost: 20,000 pts.

[Perception Impairment Barrier]: shield the user's and your target's presence before anybody else' eyes for a duration of one hour. One use only. Cost: 7,500 pts.

…

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"Eh? So expensive." I frowned, looking at the price displayed in the status window with disgust.

[Everything comes with a price. You should be content that they are available as long as you have sufficient points. It's all boiled down to the effort you spent for collecting more points.] said Eros in a solemn voice befitting his status as a God.

I nodded in satisfaction. "It's fine, I guess."

[Anything else?]

"Well, I think it should be enough. Thank you for your explanation."

That was the truth; I truly felt grateful for his assistance despite my not-so-friendly attitude toward him so far. I guessed he needed me to a certain degree, enough for him to exercise a god-like level of patience when handling me.

[Well, if that's all, I'll bid you farewell.]

Before his voice went for good, he slipped in some advice for me.

[Make the most of your free stat points, you should've already known the extent of their effect. It'll greatly assist you in your play, or even beyond that.]

Somehow, I felt his gaze on my lower half, making me blush in embarrassment and quickly covering that part with my hands.

Not long after, that gaze disappeared, along with the mysterious voice inside my head.

"Oh yeah," I patted my forehead again as I remembered I still had a question for Eros. "I forgot to ask about the deal with this expired world thingy."

Well, it might be important for someone else, but for me now, it's not important enough that I just remembered it at the last moment.

"Well, I guess I could ask him later. Let's just focus on my quests for now."

As I said so, I once again opened my status window, checking on today's gain.

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