"What the fuck."
Boyd cursed as he slammed the heavy wooden door hard enough to make the structure shudder slightly.
The anger burning inside him wasn't just because the trap had failed.
What truly consumed him was the humiliation of realizing those creatures had seen right through the plan with the same ease an adult solves a child's puzzle.
And to make it even worse, they hadn't shown the slightest concern.
They had found the whole thing amusing.
Knock. Knock.
Two soft, rhythmic knocks echoed from the other side of the weathered wood.
"Already tired of playing, Boyd?"
Smiley's voice filtered through the cracks, carrying that slow, unsettling calm that somehow made every word infinitely more irritating.
The sheriff clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white.
"Go fuck yourself, asshole," he hissed through gritted teeth, unable to contain his frustration.
"Come on... we were just getting started. Let's keep playing."
This time, it was a woman's voice from the other side of the boards. Soft, melodic, and gentle, like someone inviting an old friend inside for coffee.
Father Khatri, who had remained a safe distance from the entrance with his lantern pointed toward the floor, cautiously stepped forward. The yellow beam illuminated part of the sheriff's rigid face.
"You know how this works, Boyd. Don't listen to them." Khatri spoke firmly when he realized his friend was on the verge of answering again. "That's exactly what they want—to make you lose control."
Closing his eyes for a brief moment, Boyd ran a hand across his face, damp with a thin layer of sweat.
"I know. I know."
The air left his lungs in a long, rough sigh before he stepped away from the door and walked toward the center of the barn.
...
Hours earlier, after the Matthews family had left, Julie grabbed a change of clothes and headed for the bathroom.
A smile began to form on Daniel's face. The prospect of sharing a shower seemed like an excellent way to end the day.
Before he could dwell on the idea any further, a familiar sound echoed inside his mind.
[Update complete. I hope you didn't die of boredom while I was away.]
"Finally." Daniel leaned back against the couch. "I was starting to think Kael forgot to pay the server's electricity bill."
[Your sense of humor remains intact. An excellent sign of neural stability.]
"Skip the formalities. What did this update add?" He settled more comfortably as he watched Julie close the bathroom door.
[A new function has been unlocked: Subsystem.]
"Subsystem..." He repeated the word quietly, already imagining several possibilities.
[Correct. You now have the authority to link another individual to the system. That person will receive their own interface, access to an inventory, a shop, and the ability to evolve.]
His eyes lit up. It was precisely what the name suggested.
"So there are requirements, or can I give this to anyone I want?"
The question came almost instinctively as his mind was already constructing possible scenarios involving useful subordinates.
[Establishing the link requires either a genuine romantic bond or a direct descendant. The trigger for this update occurred when you verbally stated, and the system validated, your "I love you too" to Julie Matthews.]
Daniel blinked twice as he processed the information.
"If I give her this power, is there any chance it could be used against me?"
[Yes. However, should that happen, you may revoke the Subsystem and erase all memories related to it with a single thought. Any attributes already distributed will remain, but granted skills will be removed.]
"Fair enough." He rested one arm along the back of the couch. "And your annoying voice? Does that come with the package? Because I don't want you tormenting the poor girl."
[My wonderful company is an exclusive privilege reserved for you. Her Subsystem will consist only of a silent and intuitive interface.]
Daniel nodded slowly, satisfied with that answer.
"Can I share my skills with her?"
[Yes, with certain restrictions. Initially, you may transfer only one skill. Each Life Level she obtains will allow one additional skill to be granted. The level of any granted skill will also remain under your control.]
"Good." His fingers began idly tapping against his knee. "Can I transfer attribute points, skill points, or coins directly?"
[No. They are non-transferable. Additionally, the Devour function remains exclusive to the primary System.]
"So how does she level up?" His brow furrowed.
[She will receive daily missions focused on physical training. In addition, one hundred silver coins may be converted into one attribute point for exclusive use within the Subsystem. You spend them. She receives them. There is also another progression method that will be revealed after the link is established.]
One hundred coins per attribute point.
It wasn't outrageous, considering he had just accumulated nearly five thousand, but it also wasn't cheap enough to spend carelessly.
Better to find out what that other method offers first... and what the daily missions actually reward.
A few minutes later, the bathroom door opened.
Julie stepped out, wrapped in a thin veil of steam, her skin lightly flushed from the hot shower.
Daniel stood up. In just three long strides, he crossed the distance between them.
His hands wrapped firmly around her waist before effortlessly lifting her off the floor.
"Daniel!" She let out a small yelp of surprise as she was lifted off the floor, instinctively grabbing his shoulders. "What got into you? Have you lost your mind?"
He spun her around in the air, letting out a deep, spontaneous laugh. Finally, he set her back on the floor but kept his hands firmly around her waist.
The smile on his face was different from the one she had grown used to seeing. There was no sarcasm, teasing, or irony hidden behind it.
It was genuine happiness.
"What made you so happy all of a sudden?" she asked, watching him with growing curiosity.
"Let's just say a huge problem has been solved. And now I can finally tell you everything I promised before."
The real reason for his happiness, however, remained unspoken.
Ever since reaching Life Level 2, an unsettling thought had lingered in the back of his mind.
With every evolution, his lifespan would continue to increase. A few extra decades now could eventually become centuries.
The thought of remaining young while Julie grew old before his eyes was a future he had never wanted to face.
Now, for the first time, that future no longer seemed inevitable.
The Subsystem offered exactly what he needed: a path that would allow her to remain by his side throughout his long life.
Julie took his hand and pulled him toward the couch. "Come on. Start talking."
Originally, he had intended to finish the Mind Reading Block Rune before revealing any of his secrets.
The System's update, however, had created an even better alternative.
"Before anything else, I need to explain why I never told you any of this." He held her gaze as he spoke. "You know those creatures know everyone's names, right?"
Julie nodded silently.
"The crows aren't normal animals either. They're constantly watching us... and they can read minds."
"Read minds?" The mere possibility sent a chill racing down her spine.
Knowing the monsters wanted to kill her was already terrifying.
Finding out something could rummage through her memories, emotions, and deepest thoughts felt even more invasive.
"Relax." Daniel gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "In my case, they only managed a superficial reading on the day I arrived here. They've never tried again since."
"And I already have a way to stop them from doing the same thing to you. That's exactly why we're having this conversation now."
Julie took several deep breaths.
The panic didn't disappear completely, but it eased at the sound of his calm voice.
"Okay..." She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "How?"
"I'll get to that part. But first, you need to hear the whole story."
Then he began.
He told her about his death.
About Kael.
About Limbo.
About the second chance he had been given.
And finally...
About the System.
When he finished, Julie simply stared at him in silence for several seconds before shaking her head.
"This is a joke, isn't it?" An incredulous smile appeared on her face. "My God... I actually thought you were serious. Dan, you just described the plot of a TV show."
Her reaction didn't surprise him.
She had immediately believed him when he talked about the crows because there was already tangible evidence. Those creatures knew names they had no business knowing.
On top of that, the crows near the fallen tree were strange enough to make the explanation believable.
But this...
This belonged to an entirely different category of insanity.
"I'm telling the truth." His firm tone erased every trace of humor. "The Inventory I use to summon guns, knives, and equipment is part of the System. My strength, my reflexes, my endurance... none of it is human."
He watched the conflict written across her face.
The rational part of her mind rejected everything he had said.
At the same time, her memories kept presenting an inconvenient problem.
She had seen him materialize objects.
She had seen him perform feats that should have been physically impossible.
She had watched him survive situations no ordinary person ever could.
"I know it's almost impossible to accept a story like this just by hearing someone tell it," he continued matter-of-factly. "That's why I'm not asking you to believe me just because I said so. The System just got an update. Now I can share part of it with you."
"Share it?" The word barely escaped as a whisper. "You're going to give me that power?"
"You just need to hold my hand."
Julie hesitated for several seconds before slowly extending it.
He intertwined his fingers with hers.
"Is it going to hurt?" she asked softly.
"Not even a little." He answered only after confirming it with the System.
"Initiate link protocol."
[Warning: Which skill will be attached to the Subsystem?]
"Hunter's Mind, obviously. She needs the mental immunity."
[Unnecessary. The passive skill "Hunter's Mind (Maximum Level)" serves as the foundation of the interface. Select another skill.]
"Even better. In that case, transfer Pain Tolerance."
A cold shiver ran down Julie's spine.
From the tattoo on Daniel's left forearm, a dark substance slowly began to emerge, as though it were alive.
The shadowy liquid slithered across his skin, flowed through their joined hands, and reached her arm.
Every instinct screamed at her to pull away.
"It's okay. I promise." Daniel's voice remained calm and steady.
Julie forced herself to stay still.
Wherever the darkness touched her, there was no pain.
Only a strange tingling sensation, like thousands of tiny currents flowing through her body.
The substance gradually sank into her pores, drawing precise lines beneath her skin.
Seconds later, the process came to an end.
A towering black tree, leafless and imposing, had formed on her forearm.
Identical to Daniel's.
At that very instant, a flood of information poured into her mind.
Julie gasped. Her fingers slipped free from his hand and flew to her temples.
While she was still trying to organize the flood of information she had just received, a familiar notification rang out in Daniel's mind.
[Subsystem successfully linked.]
[Alert: The fusion with her has revealed an innate temporal talent connected to this dimension. New skill extracted, modified, and added to your arsenal.]
His eyes narrowed as he read the panel that appeared in his vision.
[New Skill: Story Walking — Level 1 (0/5)]
Type: Active.
Cost: 0 Energy.
Effect: Allows the user to traverse points in time using a materialized astral body and interact with past events, but without being able to modify them. The accessed location is random.
Activation Requirement: You must be physically positioned over an active "Temporal Fracture" in the local dimension to access the time streams.
Warning 1: The main body remains immobile and vulnerable during the projection. Any damage taken by the astral form will be transferred in full upon returning.
Warning 2: The astral body can only use 20% of the main body's power.
"Using this skill is practically suicidal. From what I remember, in the original timeline, Julie's body wasn't this fragile when she used this power."
[You must consider that this ability could originally only be used in this dimension due to the connection Julie has with this place. Following the modifications made, she is no longer limited to this environment.]
The explanation made sense.
However, Daniel didn't show any excitement.
It wasn't because of the skill's limitations.
Even if he could use it with one hundred percent of his strength, he would still have no interest in exploring the past right now.
He didn't consider himself strong enough yet to take risks involving something as unpredictable as time travel.
By his side, after a few minutes, Julie blinked several times until she managed to completely regain her focus.
Her gaze dropped to her own forearm, where the newly formed tattoo still seemed to carry a residual glow among the dark branches, like fresh ink that hadn't finished drying.
"How am I going to explain this to my parents?"
The initial panic had almost completely disappeared, replaced by a kind of lucid shock. Hunter's Mind was already beginning to take effect.
"We'll just say I tattooed you." Daniel shrugged as if he were suggesting the most obvious solution in the world.
Julie let out a long sigh. It wasn't a particularly good explanation.
But considering the circumstances, it was probably the only remotely plausible explanation.
Deciding to leave that problem for the future, she simply took a step forward and hugged him tightly.
"Thank you for trusting me, my love."
Her arms wrapped around his waist as she rested her face against his chest.
"Who else would I trust?" A low laugh escaped him as he returned the hug.
For a few seconds, they stayed like that, saying nothing. There was no need for words. After everything that had been revealed that night, the shared silence alone was enough.
Finally, Daniel slowly pulled away and kept his hands resting on her shoulders.
The smile had disappeared. Only seriousness remained on his face.
"I need to tell you one more thing."
Julie nodded slowly. Before, she would have been somewhat apprehensive. Now, however, she believed she was prepared to receive any revelation calmly.
Or, at least, that was what she imagined.
========================================
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