As I watch Lu Cian walk toward me, a strange feeling washes over me. He says, "Whenever I look at you, I always feel like I'm looking in a mirror." That line, one that echoed through the years, only hit harder now because I've come back from my past. I know what happens next.
He's a reflection of our father, with his gray hair and matching eyes. It's uncanny. Lu Cian always embodied the heir of the Pion family.
Meanwhile, I was the reminder of our mother, Von Fey Larisa, with my black hair and those same gray eyes. The eyes of the family I barely knew growing up. But now, standing here, it's like the distance between us—the secrets, the pain—it all feels so small.
"So am I?" I chuckle weakly, touching my head as a wave of memories hits me again. Every painful, vivid detail of my past life flashes behind my eyes.
"Not yet. To be honest, I kind of feel groggy. It's probably because all of my memories are coming back," I admit, rubbing my temples.
The rest of the family watches us, clearly confused. They can't understand what's going on between me and Lu Cian. They don't know everything that's been buried beneath the surface for years—what I can now see, coming back to this moment.
Lu Cian steps closer, and despite his tough exterior, I can feel his concern. He slides my arm over his shoulder, supporting my weight. "Let's go, I'll help you walk," he says, his voice steady.
I nod. "I'm sorry. I'm kind of late, aren't I?"
"It's fine," Lu Cian responds with a deep breath, his hand firm on my waist, steadying me. The air feels lighter, but my heart is anything but. If only they knew what would happen... what had already happened once.
As we start walking, I hear Lu Shirley pipe up, "Wait! Don't leave us!" She looks frustrated, hands on her waist. Meanwhile, the others are following us into the house, all oblivious to the truth.
"I didn't know the two of you knew each other like this," Father says, stepping inside. He doesn't know either. None of them do.
"We've known each other since elementary school," Lu Cian answers, glancing at me with that same familiar look, the one that I missed for so long. He was always there, quietly watching over me, even when I didn't know it.
As the others file in—Shannon, Shan, Shirley, Shey Gen—I can feel the tension ease. But not completely. It's the calm before the storm, the calm before I lose him again.
Lu Shan, always the curious one, crosses his arms. "Why didn't you tell me? I would've given you more food back then."
Lu Cian chuckles, his tone casual but protective. "If you did that, Aden would've bullied Shian even more."
Ah, Aden. The name makes my stomach churn. I remember all too well—the insults, the punches. That resentment that brewed between us because of our different mothers. Even now, I can feel Lu Cian's grip tighten slightly as he supports me, knowing the scars I carried—inside and out.
"You mean the Von Fey pig?" Shan's voice is sharp, filled with anger.
"It's bad to call him that," Shannon mutters, half-laughing.
Lu Cian looks over, unimpressed. "Your face doesn't match your words, man. Creepy."
Onel's voice echoed in my mind as I trudged behind the group.
[Onel: Master, why don't you try asking Master Cian? We've already passed the stairs to another floor.]
Leyton chimed in right after, his tone more pointed.
[Leyton: It's probably because the master system didn't tell him.]
I sighed. These systems, always observing, always give their input. But they weren't wrong—Cian's silence about our destination had been dragging on for far too long.
"That system! It never deserved my brother," Shirley muttered with her usual mix of annoyance and amusement, clenching her fists like she was getting ready to punch someone.
I could almost sense her frustration boiling under that smirk she wore.
Before I could say anything, Shannon beat me to it. "Hey, Brother Cian, how long are we going to walk? You seem like you've been here before. Do you even know where we're heading?" His face was serious, eyes narrowing as he glanced at Lu Cian.
All eyes turned to Cian. For a moment, I was relieved someone finally asked, but then, as usual, Cian didn't seem to care about our concern.
"What? If I say I don't know, would you all think I'm embarrassing myself? It's not my fault you decided to follow me," Cian shrugged casually, as if leading us into the unknown was a minor inconvenience.
I stopped in my tracks, rubbing my forehead as I processed what he said.
"So, we're just walking into the unknown?" The more I thought about it, the more my headache worsened. My feet were aching too, and it wasn't helping my patience.
Sympathy was written across everyone's faces, but I wasn't looking for that.
Suddenly, Nero's voice cut through the discomfort, his tone matter-of-fact as usual.
[System 012001: Level up your status, and you'll be fine. Also, I need a name. Anyway, just flick your fingers and imagine your house. You have high-level space-time magic and enough mana to transport everyone.]
I paused for a second, considering Nero's advice. High-level space-time magic... right. I hadn't even thought of using it. "Is that so? Fine, let's do it. Cian, put me down," I ordered.
Cian, without hesitation, set me down. I flicked my fingers, following Nero's instructions.
I visualized the grand living room of my estate in vivid detail—the high ceilings, the luxurious furniture, the soft lighting. Within a blink, we were all standing there.
"You could've told me that earlier so I didn't have to walk," I muttered, irritation creeping into my voice as I slumped onto the nearest massive couch.
Father stood nearby, watching with a bemused expression.
"Your system has quite the attitude. Let's hope you don't turn out the same way," he remarked, eyeing me and Shirley with a slight smirk.
"Well, it's my system," I replied with a chuckle, lying back further into the cushions. "Nero, convert 500,000 gold into coins."
At that, the room fell silent. The others exchanged looks of disbelief, as if I'd just said something impossible.
*Converting 500,000 gold into coins.*
*Notification: 1 gold equals 55,000 coins. You will receive 25 billion coins.*
*Congratulations! You now have 25,000,000,000 coins.*
*Current coins: 25,000,049,905.*
Their reactions confused me. Why were they staring like I'd sprouted another head? "I'll buy 50 thousand status points," I announced, scanning their bewildered faces. "What? Isn't this normal?"
Shirley couldn't help herself. "Father, Brother Shian is richer than you. Maybe *he* should be the father," she teased. That earned her a sharp flick on the head from Mother.
"Ow! Can't anyone take a joke around here?"
Cian finally spoke up, crossing his arms. "Having 50 thousand gold is already a miracle for most people. But 500 thousand? That's like cheating."
"I don't know what you're talking about. I received 100 million gold after completing my last quest," I said, watching as the room fell silent once again.
*Buying 50,000 status points.*
*Congratulations! You have received 50,000 status points.*
*Current coins: 24,999,999,905.*
*50,000 status points received.*
"Status," I commanded, rubbing my head as a familiar screen materialized before me, listing out every detail.
---
**[Status Window]**
[Profile; ✓ VIP]
Name: Lu Shian
Titles: King of the New Underworld, Head of the Lucist Family, Loved by His Powerful Grandfather, Master of Butler Ghouls, Tamer of Evil, more.
Nickname: SPHYNX
Level: 151
Class: Summoner
Species: Miracle Human [**** *****]
Gender: Male
Age: 22
Height|Weight: 185.5cm|75.5kg
**Stats:**
Strength: **1500**
Vitality: **1600**
Agility: **15000**
Intelligence: **6000**
Mana: **25000**
Health: **50000**
---
"Should I put 7,000 points into every stat?" I asked aloud, looking over at Shey Gen.
His eyes widened. "No! You can't do that," he said urgently, sitting next to me.
"Exactly," Father added, his tone somber. "Unless you're ranked SSS Intermediate or higher, like SSS Catastrophe, it's too risky."
I furrowed my brows, genuinely confused. "I don't understand."
Shannon, lounging on the other couch, yawned. "Why not try 1,000 points for each stat? You'll get a lot of new info without overloading yourself. Too much at once and—" he made a small explosion gesture with his hands. "Boom. Welcome to ghost hood."
I exhaled sharply. "Nero, allocate 1,000 points to strength, agility, intelligence, health, endurance, charm, and mana."
Almost instantly, a warm glow enveloped my body, growing in intensity. Everyone shielded their eyes from the blinding light. When the glow subsided, I felt an overwhelming surge of vitality. My body hummed with new power—I felt faster, stronger, sharper.
*Congratulations! Your system is now level 2 You can give your system a name. Be mindful—the system has begun developing feelings. The higher the system's level, the stronger those feelings become.*
*Connecting to the Creator…*
*Connection established.*
I groaned. "Damn, it's happening again," I muttered as the world around me shifted, turning black and white. Time itself seemed to freeze.
*Receiving your system profile link…*
*Link received.*
*Please open the system profile.*
"Ugh, fine," I grumbled, half-resigned. "I guess I'll open it." There wasn't much else to do.
"I hate this scenario more than anything," I mumbled as I clicked the link,