Reflections on the Power of Influence

After getting back, I slept literally the entire day away.

Even when I cracked my eyes open for a bit, hunger would hit, I'd grab a quick bite, lie back down, and my heavy eyelids would drag me right under again.

"Haa..."

That morning on the way to work, I glanced in the mirror and saw the dark circles hadn't budged at all.

"Seriously, I slept straight through a whole day and I'm still not recovered?"

I'd thought running scenarios had boosted my stamina a ton, but apparently not.

My body, drained of all its vital energy, felt utterly wrecked—my legs wobbled just walking.

"..."

Honestly, I wouldn't even think about sex for a few days.

That hollowed-out look wasn't just in my head; the second I got to work, Woo Da-young tilted her head and asked,

"What's up~? Your face looks wrecked. You super gaunt."

I couldn't exactly tell her, "I was banging your sister all night and it wore me out."

"Yeah, something like that. Did a bit too much working out. Ugh, I'm dying."

"Pulled an all-nighter gaming?"

"Nah, you know I don't game."

Even during work, the moment break time hit, I'd flop face-down on my desk and pass out.

It took a few more days for my stamina to really bounce back.

"Back from the dead like a beast!"

Waking up to a vibrant morning felt like it had been ages.

"Euuugh."

I groaned as I got up, rolling my shoulders around.

A peek in the mirror confirmed my stamina had recovered decently.

The deep-set dark circles had lightened up, and my sunken cheeks had filled out again.

For a few days, I didn't even glance at the Scenario Book.

Coming up with concepts and fucking was fun, but recovering my strength came first.

"So this is what refreshed feels like..."

Sleeping non-stop had done wonders—humanity's natural healing was no joke.

At work, I tackled the backlog from the scenarios.

"'Good Friends' already has 50 episodes up?"

Last year, Woo Da-young and I had started it on a whim, and now it had built up a solid library.

No sensational titles, just everyday chats between friends—and subscribers had grown nicely.

Mentioning "Good Friends" brought back those scenarios I'd run on Woo Da-young last year.

"Half a year already, huh."

I chuckled at how fast time flew.

At first, I botched scenarios into disasters because I didn't know how to handle them right. Now? I could rewrite the world's common sense.

"..."

Mid-edit, I crossed my arms, leaned back in my chair, and pondered deeply.

To make it apply outside scenarios too, the Influence has to be high enough.

In the last scenario, I was Woo Da-hee's husband's little brother.

So folks like Woo Da-young or Kim Woo-hyun? Zero reaction from them.

Influence only affects the most recent scenario, it seems.

A new one would override it, and old ones lose all pull.

"Prez, this ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠one's done."

"...Huh? Oh, yeah, send it over."

As I reviewed the file Maeng Soyul sent, she hesitantly asked,

"Prez, um..."

"...?"

"Huh? What's up?"

Maeng Soyul fidgeted before forcing the words out.

"My little sibs miss you."

"Me? Why?"

I asked purely out of curiosity—why would her sibs suddenly want to see me?

"Something wrong?"

"No, nothing like that. They just... "

Maeng Soyul trailed off and shook her head.

"Never mind, don't worry about it."

Even though we'd gotten close, her clipped speech still had that edge.

"Hmm, wanna swing by sometime? Tomorrow's Saturday anyway. I'll drop in—the kids are cute."

"Ah! R-Really?"

Maeng Soyul's face lit up with a bright smile—at least, that's how it looked to me. To others, it was probably just a slight eyebrow lift and a tiny lip curl.

"Weekends are ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠free anyway. I'll come by."

"...Yes."

"What do they wanna do?"

"I don't know either..."

Probably just innocent kid stuff.

Seeing Maeng Soyul beam at the news made me scratch my cheek.

Her crush was so obvious.

It was a bit embarrassing knowing it was real affection, not some scenario-fueled thing.

"What time tomorrow?"

"Hmm, after lunch?"

"Got it."

Her formal tone was familiar ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠now—no offense taken.

At first, I'd wondered if she was picking a fight or just rude.

Evening.

After work, back home, I flipped open the Scenario Book.

"Who'd have thought it'd hit Great Work..."

Felt pretty standard when I wrote it, but nope—Great Work it was.

"Standard... huh?"

Handjob and sex from Woo Da-hee wasn't exactly vanilla, but whatever—not a big deal.

This time, the haul was bigger than expected.

"Camera, clothes..."

I eyed the camera stashed in the studio with satisfaction.

"Heh heh heh..."

My cheap DSLR was fine, but new and pricey was just better!

I wiped it down with a microfiber cloth and slipped it back in the case.

A year's worth of clothes too—the Scenario Book's power hit different.

"From their side, it's just 'gifts for cute lil' bro'."

Post-scenario, memories rationalize everything—no weird vibes.

The scam-factor never got old, no matter how many times.

Flip flip.

I opened the Scenario Book.

"Camera's great, but first—I gotta dig deeper into Influence..."

She'd led in 7 so far—5 Averages.

"Whoa..., this is..."

Maeng Soyul even had a Masterpiece, but Woo Da-young? Zero.

But the key was under [Woo Da-young]: #7 Scenario: One Roof, Two Sisters (Average) [28].

That was the trait carrying over to reality.

[28] was her current Influence.

"..."

Needed to swap "One Roof, Two Sisters" for a fresh scenario—one usable in the real world too.

"Can I tweak the timeline myself?"

If I could set past or future in-scenario, it'd be way easier.

Altered common sense and worldviews before, but never time.

"Make it so we've been fucking since way back..."

From our first meeting at 20, no holds barred—zero dissonance, smooth sailing in reality.

"But she'd be too passive."

Scenario made her body move on autopilot—sucking, riding. Without? Dull sex.

Better to go wild in scenarios.

"Hmmm."

I sketched a light timeline while doodling.

Pour Influence into it, so every detail had to be fleshed out.

Unlike before—this rewrote one person's personality and bonds from scratch.

"Big project..."

Practically a full novel's worth. Had to set up all relationships from the start.

"This might not be enough."

Already a hefty chunk written.

The Scenario Book was thick, plenty left—but at this rate, it'd run dry in years.

"..."

The thought made me antsy.

Fill it up, and then? Game over.

Now I got why traits mattered.

"Max out Influence with this, fill the book, and still have fun in reality. Fuck."

Physical book = finite space.

Plenty left, but end would come someday.

"So... only so many people I can claim for real."

Time to prioritize.

"Sisters first, no question."

Anytime, anywhere access—that's the dream.

"Soyul too..."

Company's growing, more people coming.

Or I leave, or others do.

Still needed scenarios for on-call action.

"Influence is the real MVP... Tsk."

I scowled, blaming my late realization.