Startled, Lenny wheeled around, causing his balance to teeter on the edge.
"W-Whoa!" he frightenedly shouted, narrowly avoiding a potentially perilous fall. Without needing a reminder, he quickly scrambled back to safe ground.
Surveying the dimly lit edifice without pointing his light so as to not risk annoying the stranger, he discerned the outline of a figure peering from one of the broken windows at the right side of the first floor.
He asked, "Who are you… exactly?"
The voice, eerie and dispassionate, replied:
"Just a stranger."
Recognizing the enigmatic stranger's reluctance to reveal more, Lenny decided not to press further. Taking a deep breath, he turned to face the expanse of the sea.
"Very well then, Mr. Stranger," he began, his voice carrying a note of curiosity. "I must ask, why me?"
This was the primary question that plagued Lenny's mind. He knew the stranger had been watching him for quite some time now, as though he was… chosen, in a way. And having witnessed life's unforgiving side, he understood that nothing came without a price in this world, most especially what was good.
The stranger's reply was simple and direct.
"There's no specific reason. Consider it a trade. I offer you hope and a fresh start, and in due time, you'll perform a task for me."
'…As expected. Such an amazing opportunity wasn't without its price…' Lenny nodded and questioned further, "But, I don't understand. What if I hadn't returned here and attempted to jump into the sea again for you to respond to me? How would you have told me that I would repay you?"
A cold silence donned the area, and after a brief extended period, the surreal voice said succinctly, as though stating a fact:
"...I just knew."
Lenny was unable to grasp the meaning of those words, and maybe because he felt that the stranger presumably knew enough about him already due to the stalking, a chill ran down his spine.
This shadow-lurking individual was too mysterious!
"You're… You're an admin, aren't you?" Lenny asked, his assumption met with silence from the lurking figure, which he took as confirmation.
Pressing forward, he inquired, "What even is this app, Top Idol? How is… How is any of this even possible? Am I being constantly watched or something? Because how else can it know my situation and give me a task? And how does the task suddenly appear in my mind, like I only just forgot it before?"
The stranger responded simply, "The app is what it is. A chance. For how it is all possible, such information is worth over a thousand v-points, nearly equivalent to a billion dollars…"
At the mention of a thousand v-points and a billion dollars, Lenny's eyes shot open and in shock, he turned his body slightly to the shadowy figure in the broken window of the first floor of the abandoned structure. However, he wasn't there anymore!
Lenny's eyes frantically darted around and caught the same shadowy figure, now from a broken window of the second floor, on the left side of the building!
'...What that—When did he move all the way there?' Lenny's initial shock from the high-caliber words of the stranger had now turned into a deep fright.
Chillingly, the mysterious shadow-lurking stranger added, "Can you afford it?"
Lenny fell into a contemplation.
'Can I afford it…? A billion… dollars…? Is that what it costs to know? I-I guess I don't want to know anymore. But… how on earth can I hear him so clearly when he's so far away…?'
Understanding that the stranger most likely wouldn't want to reveal, Lenny asked another question that plagued his mind:
"Can you at least tell me if you admins are the Creator?"
Lenny felt the area turn slightly cold, accompanied by an unfriendly and unsettling silence. He started feeling angsty, believing he hit a nerve by covertly asking a question that had the answer to other questions. The question he asked had an answer that would clarify that the shadow-lurking stranger was an admin, tell a little about the nature of the admins, and also a little about the nature of the Creator.
But then, the stranger stated calmly, "We are not."
Lenny let out a sigh of relief. He felt if the stranger got angry with him, he could probably die without knowing how and why.
'...If they aren't the Creator, then, do they also want to be the Top Idol and have their deepest desire granted, or are they just his lackeys?' Lenny deeply contemplated.
Before he could ask further, however, the stranger suddenly spoke:
"Let me offer a few friendly tips. Firstly, don't delve too deeply into these questions. The cost of certain knowledge in this world... is often death.
"Secondly, odd Irregulars like you often assume it's all a bed of roses. For your own good, until you become a Specialist, do not try to meet other pointers. I am certain you can figure out the reasons why.
"And lastly, desire… is the true currency here. You will be tested, your beliefs will be upturned, your values will fade, and you will be pushed to risk everything… just to prove how deep… your desires run.
"Therefore, you should genuinely ask yourself if you truly are willing to pay the price."
Unyielding, Lenny closed his eyes, embracing the sound of the tranquil yet tempestuous sea and taking in the three key advice.
He reopened them, gazing at the silent night sky, adorned only by a lonely moon, devoid of stars.
He grinned, "What other option do I have…?"
With an eerie tone, the shadowy presence responded, a hint of a wry smile in its voice, "Very good."
…
Outside the foreboding abandoned mental hospital, an inconspicuous sedan vehicle remained parked at a significant distance from the ominous structure.
"Contraband."
"Desolate."
"Cap," intoned the deep voice from the front passenger seat.
A heavy silence enveloped the vehicle, briefly broken by the hesitant words of the driver, who cautiously uttered:
"Persuasion."
Seated in the back, the individual with a mocking voice continued the word chain.
"Nicotine."
After a brief silence, the deep voice intoned once again, "Monday."
Once again, the air was filled with an awkward silence and an uncomfortable stillness.
Brrr~
Just then, a phone call pierced the tension, prompting the burly man in the passenger seat to reach for his phone.
Answering the call and placing it to his ear, a calm yet chilling voice on the other end inquired, "Have you got him?"
The towering, deep-voiced individual shook his head.
"No, Boss. Since you wanted us to do it quietly, we followed him to an abandoned building in Queensgate. He entered since and has not come out yet. We are not sure if he is alone—"
"Where in Queensgate are you?" the voice on the line interrupted abruptly.
"On the outskirts, Boss. I think they call this area — Old Town."
The voice on the other end reacted with a sudden outburst, "Old Town?! Near the sea?!"
"Yes, Boss."
"You idiots! Go capture him now!" the voice roared with anger.
The driver, visibly anxious, interjected on the phone call, "B-But Boss, the abandoned hospital is believed to be haunted—"
Boss Falcone cut him off sharply, yelling at the top of his lungs, "Idiot! The kid withdrew 10k! Do you really think he was planning to give it to us?! He was attempting to flee, you fools! And we took that cash! He should be on the brink of suicide! Get this, if he dies without me recovering my money... all three of you are dead."
Upon hearing their Boss's chilling final words, the three henchmen swiftly sprang into action.
…
"What is the task I owe you about?" Lenny inquired of the mysterious shadow-lurking stranger.
From the darkness of the abandoned structure, the voice simply replied, "You will become... different… than you are now. That is who is indebted to me."
Lenny pondered the cryptic response.
'…Is he implying I should first have a higher class before he tells me? Or that I'd have changed my beliefs and values after going through the tasks from Top Idol, so I could perform the task without any moral indignation or something? Geez, can't this dude just talk straightforwardly...?!'
He rubbed his temples.
"Alright. But when can we speak again in the future?"
The stranger answered succinctly, "Become a Master, first."
Lenny, drawing from his previous research on the app, understood the stranger's implication.
The Master Specialist class, often referred to simply as 'Master,' was the fifth level of ascension, just after Triple Specialist.
Lenny, however, was still an Irregular, not even a Specialist yet.
The stranger continued, delivering a stern warning, "Next time, if you are ever as desperate, and attempt to end your life to gain my audience, you will truly die. Also, you had better start heading for the exit."
"Huh?" Lenny, confused at that last conjecture, asked, "I should start heading for the exit? Why?"
However, the shadowy figure had already disappeared from the window.
At that very moment, Lenny's ears caught the sound of rapid footsteps from the far right corner, prompting him to turn.
A middle-aged man, dark-skinned with a bald head and sturdy build, pointed a gun-shaped object forward and shouted, "You bastard! You were really going to kill yourself!"
Lenny's body tensed.
'...Isn't that one of Boss Falcone's men? Have they been tailing me?!'