Chapter 38 - Earth Intermission - 5
Dick trembles in fear and raises his hands in surrender. The yellowish-warm liquid spread in his pants and wet the floor.
"It's Boss Pom! Boss Pom sent us here!" he stammers.
"What does he want from me? Kill me?" Vesper questions sharply.
"N-No! Of course not! H-He wanted us to investigate where you got the gold from. A-Also, he wants us to steal your money if you somehow managed to sell that gold bar," Dick explains nervously.
"…Hah," Vesper responds with a deep sigh. He'd been expecting thieves and gangsters, but he couldn't believe that they would be coming after him as soon as he showed a bit of wealth.
"What else?" Vesper probes for more information.
"T-That's it! We have no intention of offending you, Boss! P-Please, let me go," Dick pleads.
Vesper pauses to think, contemplating how protagonists from Hollywood action movies would handle this situation. He gestures with his gun and commands, "Call your boss."
"Y-Yes?" Dick responds fearfully.
"Call your boss, NOW!"
"Y-YES, SIR!" Dick hastily retrieves his phone and dials Pom's number, putting the call on speaker as instructed.
As the call connects, Pom's voice booms from the phone. "Why is it you? Where is Peter? Why hasn't he called me?!"
Vesper whispers to Dick, "Tell him you have my gold."
Dick gulps and follows the instruction, his voice trembling. "B-Boss. W-W-We have the gold bar."
Pom chuckles, "That's my boy. Now, bring it to my place!"
Dick looks to Vesper for guidance, who whispers again, "Where is his place?"
"W-Where is your place, boss? I forgot." Dick repeats Vesper's question.
"YOU IDIOT!" Pom's voice booms, "IT'S MY VILLA! YOU KNOW WHERE I LIVE, YOU DUMBASS!"
Vesper smirks as Dick continues to shake uncontrollably. Gesturing to Dick, he signals for Dick to end the call.
"A-Alright, Boss. W-We'll be there soon," Dick stutters nervously.
"Don't forget to dispose of that brat's corpse. I don't want him causing trouble with famous TV lawyers or internet influencers!" Pom warns.
"Yes, b-boss," Dick replies with a sigh of relief as Pom ends the call. He then turns to Vesper, pleading, "I-It's done, boss. Can you let me go?"
"One more task. Write your boss's address on this paper," Vesper commands, tossing a paper and pencil at Dick.
Reluctantly, the hostage writes down the address and hands it to Vesper, who grins sinisterly.
*BANG!*
Without hesitation, Vesper fires a bullet into Dick's head, ending his life.
"…Hah," Vesper exhales deeply. The golden body spell has also long expired. He turns to the broken door, planning to repair it, but realizes the trouble isn't over.
The commotion has attracted the attention of neighbors in the same apartment, who witnessed Peter and his gang breaking into Vesper's room and heard the subsequent gunshots. They should be calling the police by now.
Vesper surveys the room, realizing he may face questions about the corpses. His expression turns dark.
This country's laws aren't the same as Florida's. There's no concept of self-defense by gunning intruders within one's home. If Vesper had been caught, he would have been tried for murder.
'What should I do with these? Should I claim self-defense? But the local justice system is corrupt.'
Vesper is aware that the local police won't simply arrest him for murder. Instead, they're likely to feign mercy and extort money from him in exchange for his freedom.
While this deal may seem tempting for criminals, Vesper has lived here long enough to understand the authorities. Though they accept bribes, they'll continue to extort and blackmail until the criminals can no longer pay. At that point, they'll either make the arrests or silence the criminals.
Vesper can't afford to get the local authority's attention. He needs to clean the crime scene!
Turning to the black chest, Vesper wonders, 'Can it store human bodies?'
Not waiting for the police, Vesper begins clearing the crime scene. He drags Dick's body to the chest and pushes his bloody head inside.
The corpse disappears into the void!
It works!
*DING*
Vesper Is surprised. However, he gives his approval without hesitation, finding the system's sinister nature appealing.
"Do it."
*DING*
"…"
Vesper hasn't checked his account yet, so he's unaware of the value of the credits in the other world. Given the currency's importance, Vesper touches the box and asks if he can access his account through it.
*DING*
His hopes are realized as the box functions as expected.
Vesper tilts his head and presses the downward arrow button to review his account statements. The system screen displays all the transactions.
.
+400.00 Stage 1's Rank S Clear Rewards
+253.40 Stage 1's Rune Rewards
+400.00 Stage 2's Rank S Clear Rewards
+536.40 Stage 2's Rune Rewards
+400.00 Stage 3's Rank S Clear Rewards
+808.80 Stage 3's Rune Rewards
+1,050.00 Selling Dead Body (Dick Tamma)
.
Looking at the statement, Vesper dryly laughs. He pats the box and muses, "Can I access whatever store from the other side? I heard the survivors have that."
*DING*
Another screen appears, allowing Vesper to access the shopping menu. An array of item icons lines up in a grid, making it easier to browse. Most of the items are weapons like holy stakes, daggers, short spears, and runes that can be acquired from the stage.
However, one item catches Vesper's attention: gold bars, each costing only 100 points.
He calculates quickly, realizing he can buy 38 gold bars, amounting to 2,660,000$!
Vesper silently closes the system screen, slapping his forehead to snap out of his greed-induced trance. He decides not to squander the credits, remembering he might need them for life-saving items if he returns to that place again.
Turning his attention to the corpses, Vesper silently drags them into the box and closes it.
*DING*
Vesper doesn't understand the value calculation but welcomes the credits nonetheless, increasing his balance to 6,948.60 credits.
Although Vesper has already cleaned the room, bloodstains remain. He deeply exhales and picks up the wand to cast spells at a concrete wall, focusing on the most stubborn bloodstains.
'Gold Enchantment!'
The spell turns the bloodstains into gold stains, changing their color instantly.
Satisfied with the result, Vesper moves to the next stain. However, when he tries to cast the same spell again, he's struck with a severe headache.
*DING*
The cooldown extends to real life, prompting a bitter smile from Vesper.
'I guess I have to wait a bit.'