Chapter 5 - Irritation

Lunaria had lost track of time, completely absorbed in the text in front of her. Her eyes remained fixed on the screen, occasionally twinkling or showing signs of realization.

Luke glanced at her and found this amusing. He realized he must have looked the same when he first touched a computer a month ago.

Unbeknownst to him, something groundbreaking was happening inside his internet cafe. However, he was too engrossed in clearing a level in his newly bought console game to notice something amiss.

Suddenly, the timer he had set earlier buzzed, indicating that a customer's time was up.

He almost lost his concentration. In response to the buzzing sound, he muttered in frustration.

[Power Off]

Suddenly, as if it heard Luke's word, the buzzing sound stopped.

At the same time, the computer in front of Luna also turned off on its own, blacking out the moment his words were spoken.

This is one of the applications of his skill: [Power Off] he thought of after some deliberate experimentation. Given the computer-related name of his skill, he immediately thought of using it in this manner.

Essentially, he could power off anything(?) as long as he employed this skill.

"W-what happened?"

Just then, confusion filled the air as a woman's screeching voice resonated throughout the cafe. She appeared both confused and dismayed, her frustration evident in her red eyes.

"Owner! Please tell me what happened?"

She demanded an explanation, momentarily forgetting that she felt scared of him earlier.

With his eyes still glued to the console, Luke gave a nonchalantly reply.

"Your time is up."

Those simple words struck her like a blow.

"Nooo! I haven't finished reading the grimoire yet."

She cried out, holding her head as if it were the end of the world.

Though irritated by her voice, Luke still gave a response.

"You can either extend your time by paying another gold coin or come back next time."

After hearing Luke's words, her eyes lit up. She rummaged through her bag, fetching a pouch filled with gold coins. Luke's lack of attention no longer bothered her; all she cared about was obtaining the beautiful magic that's quite fitting for her nickname, Spirit Goddess.

She hastily stood up from her chair and rushed towards the counter.

"More hours please!"

She pounded the pouch full of gold coins in the counter table.

Seeing this, Luke frowned for a moment.

'This addict!'

Even he was not that desperate when he first got to hold a computer.

Luke clicked a button on his console with the intention of pausing his game to address the computer addict standing before him.

He then turned to face her.

"No. There are only three hours left until closing time so you can only extend for three more hours."

"Why?! Owner! Please let me extend for a hundred days!"

Luke's irritation grew.

Her desperate pleas annoyed him, as the way she looked at him made him feel like she would choke him if he didn't comply with her request.

What's more, she had interrupted his momentum in the game which is his current favorite.

He stared at her, sighed, and thought, 'At first glance, she seemed elegant, but she's just a computer addict. It would be wise not to get too involved with this woman.'

Lunaria had no way of knowing that her initial positive impression on Luke had crumbled to dust.

"A no is a no. Don't bother me anymore. Also, call me 'Boss'."

Luke firmly replied and seeing his unwavering determination, Lunaria reluctantly gave up. She complied and handed over three gold coins to extend her computer usage for three more hours.

"Good. Then..."

[Power On]

Suddenly, the computer which Lunaria had been using a while ago, turned on by itself.

Earlier, when Luna had just arrived, Luke could have turned on the computer using this skill: [Power On] but he chose to manually open it to not waste his energy.

Apparently, using a skill will drain some of his energy, occasionally leaving him dizzy or sleepy when he overused it. That had happened during his skill experiments, forcing him to take breaks and explore other activities like playing games in his console.

Seeing the computer turn on, Lunaria quickly positioned herself in front of it, determined not to waste a single second of her precious three hours.

She discovered that the grimoire containing the flying magic was still there, which made her grin with joy as she delved back into reading.

Seeing this, Luke finally found inner peace. He resumed gaming, only to realize that his game had not been paused, resulting in his in-game character being killed by mobs. Apparently he pressed the wrong button earlier, not the pause button.

A mild seed of resentment took root within him as he looked at the innocent elf who had inadvertently caused this misfortune. Determined to assert his authority, he made up his mind to be stricter with her later.

•••

Time passed swiftly for certain races like elves, and Lunaria failed to realize that her three hours were almost up. To her three hours feels like mere seconds.

It was not enough time for her to fully learn the grimoire containing the long-lost flying magic technique.

Finally, the sound of the alarm buzzed and she, being too engrossed in reading, failed to notice the sound.

But Luke, holding some resentment, heartlessly cut off the helpless elf's source of happiness.

Fueled by a minor grievance, Luke harnessed his skill. His energy leaked out unconsciously with a greater force.

[Power Off]

His cold voice echoed.

However, something felt different.

It was because everything in the computer station, even the once brightly shining light bulbs, suddenly died down.

Complete darkness enveloped the place.

Luke was shocked by the unexpected outcome as he had never anticipated this.

He had believed his skills could only be used on things related to computers. Yet, the darkness before him made him question that assumption.

Previously, he had regarded the alarm turning off as a mere coincidence when he used his skill: [Power Off] on the computer, assuming it was due to the alarm's automatic shutoff feature after a few seconds. However, this particular incident made him reconsider his belief. It prompted him to question whether there was a deeper connection between his skill and the unexpected outcomes he had witnessed.

While his skill had been employed with just a hint of irritation towards the elf, it seemed that something had changed in its effect.

Acknowledging the role Luna played in this strange occurrence, Luke decided to be kinder to her.

He tried to use his skill [Power On] to turn the light bulbs back on and to his amazement, it did turn on.

However, something terrified him when he could finally see the hall. He looked at the elf who seems to be in a daze.

"Who am I? Where am I?"

"Eh?"

Luke's eyes widened in disbelief.

'Did the skill work on her too? Did it turned off her memory? This is bad!'

Panic surged within Luke for the first time in a while. He forcefully calmed himself down, searching for a way to rectify the situation.

"If it turned her memory off, I just have to turn it back on."

[Power On]!

A bright light then entered Lunaria's body. It enveloped her head for a brief moment then she finally regained consciousness.

Seeing this, Luke finally sighed in relief.

"Damn! This skill is more dangerous than I thought," he muttered. He remembered that the system had warned him that depending on a user's intention, skills could be used for good or ill will.

'So this is what the system meant. Phew. Good thing I'm quick-witted," he thought, shaking off the incident.

He then looked at the clueless Luna who asked him, "Eh? Is it already time, Boss?"

Luke pointed out the window, revealing the canvas of the night sky adorned with twinkling stars and the waning moon.

"What? It's night already?"

Lunaria grumbled in disappointment.

"Just come back tomorrow. This shop opens at 7 am."

He acted like nothing happened, determined to forget what transpired moments ago.

"I got it. Thanks, Boss. I'll surely come back tomorrow."

He could feel that Luna was still in daze but decided to brush this thought aside.

Meanwhile, Luna entertained a different idea. She hadn't fully recovered from the day's events and felt like she was living in a dream.

She was eager for tomorrow to come, which would bring her closer to mastering the grimoire.

Pinching her cheeks to confirm she was awake, an exciting thought crossed her mind.

'Wait. Is it possible that there are other types of grimoire in there? He did say that I could search for anything.'

Unconsciously, she shivered with excitement and awe at this unbelievable discovery.

Her steps came to a halt, and an irresistible urge to return to the shop overwhelmed her. Her mind urged her to go back and explore the possibility of finding other long-lost magical techniques. The temptation to uncover more hidden knowledge became irresistible, filling her with a sense of anticipation and curiosity.

However, fearing Boss's wrath, she exercised her patience, realizing that she could come back anytime as the shop wasn't going anywhere.

Overwhelmed with glee, she couldn't help but skip along, feeling as though this was the luckiest day of her life.

•••

Back at the shop, Luke let out a sigh of relief as the computer addict finally left.

As he closed the door, he heard the mechanical sound of the system.

[ ACHIEVEMENT: Serve your first customer. ]

[ HIDDEN ACHIEVEMENT: Have your first customer browse for more than 1 hour ]

[ CALCULATING REWARDS... ]

[ PLEASE BE ON STANDBY... ]