The Hustle (3)
Wait, does that mean I have a Status Window or something?
First things first, let’s finish what I started.
I grabbed the guy by the tips of his ridiculous pompadour and hauled him up from the floor. His ugly face was a mess of tears and snot.
“Hey.”
“Guh-huck.”
“Kuh-ack!”
I slammed the bastard’s face into the ground for not answering. Man, every single hit I land just copies more Magi. I lifted his face again; it was caked in sand, and his nose was bleeding profusely.
“Hey.”
“Cough!! Guh…! Ye… Yes!!!”
Even while coughing, he answered immediately, terrified I might hit him again. He was trembling. Good. He was in the perfect state to be intimidated.
I let go of his hair, crouched down, and locked eyes with him.
Flinch!
As soon as our eyes met, he looked away. I loved that reaction. His emotions flared up again—pure fear. I smiled at the Magi steadily accumulating inside me and opened my mouth.
“Hand over everything you’ve got.”
What I squeezed out of him was a smartphone and 30,000 yen in cash. The phone was a necessity; I couldn't keep using Veronica’s tablet forever. I told him to buy a new one and contact me. I threatened that if he didn't listen, I’d find out where he lived by asking the girls and kill him. Of course, I added that if he reported me or tried to run, the two girls would suffer, too—that made him look completely broken. The despair and terror he radiated provided a nice bonus of Magi.
I couldn't believe how much Magi I’d copied just by shaking down one punk. As I headed toward the family restaurant where the girls were waiting, I muttered under my breath.
“Status Window.”
> Name: Teo (Kim??)
> Race: Demon Lord / Human (Shell)
> Magi: 450 / Infinite
> [Unique Trait]
> R-18: An impurity fallen from another world. Contains the seeds of 'True Malice' that might shatter this beautiful, pure world to pieces.
> [Stats]
> Strength: Normal | Stamina: Normal | Agility: Normal | Virility (New!): Normal
> [Skills]
> Absolute Subjugation (Lv. Max) [Magi Cost: ???]
> Magi Punch (Lv. 1) [Magi Cost: 50]: Infuses Magi into the shoulder and arm to strike the enemy.
“Huh?”
I felt like I had generated way more Magi when I used Magi Punch to crush his hand and slam his head. And when I threatened to kill him, I felt a massive surge of Magi peaking. But now that the status window had appeared, it felt like my total Magi had plummeted.
If Magi Punch cost 50, I should have had over 1,000, but seeing only 450 left meant...
“Did it cost that much to manifest the status window?”
Bzzzt!
As I muttered my thoughts, the window flickered in front of me, buzzing. It looked as if it were confirming my guess.
“Hah.”
Click!
Then, the status window suddenly vanished, like an unstable connection cutting out.
“Man… I need to replenish.”
Did I regret wishing for a status window? No. Objectively, having quantified data would be helpful for the future. I decided to figure out the rest later and headed to the family restaurant.
Jingle-jingle!
“Welcome! How many are in your party?”
“Oh, I’m meeting some people.”
“Understood!”
I brushed past the clerk and scanned the restaurant. I’d had a sliver of doubt that they might have taken the money and run, but I spotted a table in the corner where two women—one blonde, one with pink hair—were sitting. I slowly approached them.
“Hey.”
“Whoa! You’re here?”
“I’m here. Sit down.”
The two women were sitting on the same side, pointing to the empty seat opposite them, welcoming me enthusiastically. I noticed there was no food or drink on the table yet, so I sat down and spoke to them.
“Why didn’t you order anything to drink?”
“Aww, we didn’t want to since you weren’t here yet.”
The girl with pigtails laughed sheepishly and waved the bills I’d given her. How cute. I grinned and sat down.
“How about we just have a quick dessert here, and then head somewhere nicer later?”
“Huh?”
“Somewhere nicer?”
Both women looked intrigued. Even if you strip away the filth, they still had that look typical of girls their age. I glossed over the details of "somewhere nicer" to keep the estimate vague and changed the subject.
“You guys aren’t students or anything, right?”
“Eh? No way? Have you ever seen students hanging out like this on a weekday night?”
“Exactly! And we’re not delinquents, either.”
Giggle!
I was worried only the guy was an adult, but thankfully, that wasn't the case.
“Let’s get something to drink first. I’ll have a Coke. What about you two?”
“I want a jumbo parfait!”
“Hmm… then I’ll have a jumbo strawberry parfait!”
It was a bit funny seeing them order sweet desserts as if they’d hit the jackpot, but since I had plenty of cash from the shakedown, I bought their drinks and desserts.
I learned that their birthdays were close, and the pink-haired one was turning twenty today. They had been on their way to hang out with the delinquent who usually bought them snacks when they ran into me. The menhera-style outfits they were wearing weren't their usual look, either.
“Hmm~ Honestly, you look like you have a lot of money, oppa~ And you’re handsome and tall, so I just felt like hanging out with you.”
There was no malicious intent like prostitution or gold-digging, but since they were basically punks, they took getting free snacks and meals for granted. The pink-haired girl, today’s protagonist, spoke up triumphantly.
“I’m not going home until 12:00 tonight. Isn’t that crazy?”
It wasn't about getting gangbanged or doing drugs; for them, changing into a bold outfit and staying out until midnight was a huge act of rebellion. Having gauged the situation, I smiled and made a suggestion.
“Do you want to go to a hotel with me?”
“A hotel?”
“Uh…?”
The girls looked slightly flustered at my suggestion. It wasn't what they expected. I asked them something else instead of pushing it.
“Where were you planning on hanging out today?”
“Hmm… eat, go to karaoke, the arcade, and… shopping.”
The pigtail girl counted on her fingers. They were going to do all that with an ugly delinquent in tow? I smirked at her answer.
“Eh, that’s a course even high schoolers do. You’ve gotta try drinking at least once.”
“Eh?”
“Drinking?”
This time, their reactions were intense. They were adults, but in Japan, the legal drinking age is twenty. I assumed they were nineteen-year-old adults. The pink-haired girl looked at me, slightly intimidated.
“Actually…”
“It’s your birthday party, and you’re adults, so a drink to celebrate is fine, right? Besides, if we buy alcohol and take it to a hotel, there’s no risk of getting caught.”
“I, is that so?”
They were intrigued. The pigtail girl looked at me with interest, too.
“Really? A hotel. We’ve never been to a hotel before.”
Their eyes were filled with anticipation.
“I’ll help you out today, so how about we go together?”
I made the offer again.
Nod!
Nod!!
This time, I easily got their consent. After they finished their parfaits, we left the restaurant. I headed toward the convenience store where I’d sold the figure earlier.
Jingle!
“Welcome.”
I handed the clerk the remaining money from the restaurant plus an extra 10,000 yen and said,
“Pick out everything you want to eat.”
At first, they moved timidly even when I told them to buy whatever they wanted. But once I started picking out alcohol, the girls started piling up snacks in earnest. They left the alcohol to me, not touching a single bottle, and swept up everything else. The restaurant bill had been about 5,000 yen, but the convenience store bill came to over 6,000 yen.
Jingle!
“Thank you for coming.”
“Are you okay? Should we carry some?”
I walked out with both hands full of convenience store bags, and the girls clinging to my sides chattered away, looking worried. I handed them the bags containing the alcohol.
“You two carry one.”
“Okay!”
“Leave it to us!!”
The bags were filled with sweet, refreshing chuhai, and it was funny watching them sneak peeks inside the bags as we walked. We arrived at the hotel I’d searched for on the phone I’d stolen from the punk. It wasn't a five-star hotel, but it was between three and four stars. Even so, the exterior looked more luxurious than a motel, and I could see their shoulders tense up.
“Wait here. I’ll go check in.”
“O…okay!”
I walked to the counter with a natural gait and checked in. It wasn't a cheap motel, so there were no warnings about three-person occupancy, and I rented the most expensive room for the night for about 20,000 yen. I solved everything with the money I’d squeezed from the delinquent, received the room key with a good mood, and gestured to the girls.
Click!
Beep!
“Let’s go in.”
“Excuse me…”
“Yay! It’s a hotel!!”
The pink-haired girl entered timidly, while the pigtail girl was excited. We placed the convenience store bags on the table in the room. Then, I suggested,
“Do you want to wash up first?”
“Huh?”
“Uh… why?”
They weren't wary of me because nothing sexual had happened yet; they just looked confused as to why they should wash. I smiled at them, looking relaxed.
“Well, I booked the most expensive room, so there’s a huge bathtub in the bathroom. You should check it out.”
“A bathtub?”
“Yeah. There’s bath salts, too.”
“Bath salts?!”
“And isn’t it standard to drink after you’ve showered or bathed and feel refreshed? Didn’t you know?”
At my words, both girls glanced toward the bathroom.
“Go take a look.”
At my permission, they shuffled toward the bathroom.
“Kyaaa!! Amazing!!”
“It’s huge!!!”
After that, they didn't even wait for me to say anything; they just shut the bathroom door to wash first. I called the front desk to order extra bed sheets and a simple room service meal. It was my first time doing a 3P, but in a world like this, I knew I’d be good at it.
Gulp!
Ah, I’m already so fucking horny.