"I'll come back to you my baby," he muttered at the black card.
[You're a child]
Ethan sat cross-legged on the floor, his back leaning against the old couch that groaned under his weight. The air in the apartment was thick with silence, broken only by the faint hum of the fridge.
He stared at the system's interface floating before him, the blue glow casting faint shadows on his tired face. There was something unsettling about the way the rewards glimmered, waiting for him to explore them.
He realized he hadn't even bothered to read the description of Charming Smile. That seemed reckless in hindsight. What if it came with some hidden side effects? "System," he murmured, rubbing his temple. "Show me the description for Charming Smile."
The system complied immediately, the text appearing in front of him:
"The joyless priests of Athraia used this smile to refresh the dying. Its radiance brought peace to sick worshippers who sought solace in their final moments. Though fleeting, the smile was said to grant a semblance of serenity before death claimed them."
Ethan read it twice, then a third time, his stomach churning. "The dying?" he muttered to himself, his voice barely above a whisper. He leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees as he read the words again.
Athraia. The word sounded foreign, almost ancient, but it sent a chill crawling down his spine. The system had mentioned before that other worlds existed, but he'd brushed it off as a passing comment, something that didn't really concern him. Now, however, it felt different. Tangible.
His fingers brushed against his lips absentmindedly as he thought about the priests of Athraia. A world where death loomed over worshippers, where joyless smiles were a form of mercy. What kind of place was it? What kind of people lived there? And what happened to them?
The idea made his skin crawl. He was just beginning to realize the weight of the system's implications. Other worlds weren't just a myth or a passing remark—they were real, and their remnants were somehow tied to him.
He shook his head, trying to shake the creeping unease. "This is too much," he muttered, standing up to stretch. His joints cracked as he paced the room, the small space feeling even more claustrophobic with his thoughts racing. "Alright, focus on something else," he told himself. "The B Card. Let's deal with that."
He called up the card, and it materialized in his hand. Sleek, black, and completely blank except for the word Seth written across the top in faint gold lettering. No description appeared, no explanation.
Ethan frowned, turning the card over, but the back was just as empty. The longer he stared at it, the heavier it felt in his hand. There was something… wrong about it.
A strange sensation crept up his spine, like cold fingers brushing against his neck. His skin prickled, and he glanced around the room instinctively, half-expecting to see someone standing behind him. But he was alone.
Yet the feeling didn't go away.
It was subtle at first, but as he held the card, the sensation intensified. He felt eyes on him—unseen, unblinking, and everywhere. His breathing quickened, and he set the card down on the table, nearly dropping it in the process.
"What the hell is this?" he muttered, his voice shaky. His palms were damp with sweat, and his heart pounded against his ribs.
The system chimed in its usual calm tone:
[Seth is not a card to be used lightly. Exercise caution when activating it.]
"Yeah, no kidding," Ethan said, his voice laced with sarcasm as he wiped his hands on his pants. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was watching him, even though the card was now lying harmlessly on the table.
He took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. "Okay, moving on. What's next?"
The hidden reward. Right. He focused on the interface, pushing the unease from the card to the back of his mind.
"How do I reveal the hidden reward?" he asked.
[Say the phrase Burn Reward.]
"Burn Reward," he said without hesitation, eager to distract himself from the lingering creepiness of Seth.
The room seemed to shift the moment the words left his mouth. A golden light flickered in the air in front of him, swirling and shimmering like liquid fire. The glow grew brighter, forcing Ethan to shield his eyes until the light condensed into a single, solid shape.
The system's text updated, displaying the reward in bold letters:
The Audience
Ethan froze, his eyes glued to the name. His breath hitched as the weight of the words settled over him.
"The Audience?" he whispered, his voice barely audible.
His mind raced, trying to make sense of it. The name sounded ominous, almost theatrical, but there was no description to explain what it actually did. All he knew was that it was a hidden reward—a rare gift from the system—and yet, it felt heavier than anything else he'd encountered.
He stared at the words, his heart pounding in his chest. For a moment, the room felt impossibly small, the silence deafening.
Whatever The Audience was, Ethan knew it was unlike anything he'd received before. It wasn't just a reward—it was something bigger. And it scared him.
"What is this skill?" Ethan muttered aloud.
[Not a skill]
"Then what is it?" Ethan stared at it unblinking, his eyes were so focused on it that it felt like nothing else mattered.
"Shtghpbgh," Clueless nothings began to hum in the air, it revolved around the air, the sounds of so many speaking at once.
[They] were talking, [They] were many, and [They] wondered who Ethan was.
As he stared at the Audience, the Audience stared back at him.
Ethan's pupils were so transfixed on the letters it felt like his eyes could pop out of their sockets anytime. His fingers had wrapped around his clothes, veins popping on his hands.
"I'm listening," Ethan muttered, almost disillusioned and then–
[Mental fortitude re-established]
The moment the system's voice chimed in his head he blinked, gasping for air, his heart racing so very fast. He coughed as he gasped for air like a man saved from drowning.
"What….. what just happened?" Ethan choked out.
[Are you not aware an actor is never meant to acknowledge his Audience?]
"What? What the fuck does that mean? I was hearing this voice–?"
[There are three rules to follow to use The Audience. One is never look at your Audience, two is never speak to your Audience, three is never listen to your Audience]
He frowned, clearly bamboozled. What kind of item had he unlocked?
"Why?" He breathed out.
[When you look at The Audience, [They] look back at you, when you speak to your Audience, [They] speak back to you, I'm sure from your little rendezvous just now you're aware of how dangerous it could be having [Them] speak and look at you]
"Those whispers were them?!"
[Yes]
"So if I listen to them, they listen to me back?" He asked.
[No, you'll go crazy]
"…."
"This seems a lot more like a curse than a gift.]
[Despite it's danger level, it is very profitable, The Audience are very resourceful and very generous. As for the danger level, it is what must be expected from an SS rank medium]
Ethan's eyes nearly popped. SS rank?!