CHAPTER 79: SIDE MISSION

It would have been an ordinary, uneventful meal if the Idol System hadn’t suddenly popped up and announced that a mission had been completed.

[Mission: Collect 200,000 Fame Points!

Time limit: 20 days

Reward upon completion: Lucky Spin x1

Punishment for failure: Be buried together with this world

Mission Progress: 200,000 / 200,000]

[Congratulations! You’ve completed the mission! Lucky Spin x1 has been added to your inventory. Please check and claim it!]

[To unlock new missions and earn more exciting rewards, please complete the side mission!]

[Side mission: Wear a shirt that isn’t yours in room 202 and go outside.

Time limit: 10 days]

"Oh, at least this one’s less perverted than the last mission. Wearing each other’s shirts isn’t that bad," Joshua thought, then glanced at his reward.

[Lucky Spin x1.

Description: Lucky Spin! It’s time to show off your luck! Will it be a grand prize or absolutely nothing? Are you ready to test your fortune?]

Joshua’s eyes practically lit up. He barely resisted the urge to rush and wash his hands before spinning the Lucky Wheel.

Nine looked at Joshua’s eager expression and couldn’t help but think he probably wouldn’t get anything decent. After all, people who loved games of chance usually never had luck on their side when it mattered.

Still, he didn’t say anything.

Just then, Joshua felt someone pinch his cheek, snapping him out of his excitement. Luther looked at him and grinned, "Didn’t I tell you to stop overthinking? It’s because you overthink that you’re not growing taller. All your energy’s going straight to your brain."

Justin chimed in from the side, "That’s right, Joshua. You eat slowly and space out too much, so you’re getting thinner so fast."

"You need to eat your vegetables too, that’s how you get proper nutrition," Henry added calmly.

Joshua: "..." You guys are just ganging up on me, aren’t you?

"Nine!"

Joshua raised his voice, only to hear Nine reply,

[You really should eat some vegetables. How do you still function normally when you never touch a single one?

That’s a secret, Joshua thought, pushing Luther’s hand away and muttering, "That’s because you’re all too tall! I’m only seventeen, and I’m already this tall! Just wait till I’m your age—I might even be taller than all of you!"

Thinking of that, Joshua couldn’t help but feel excitement. When he finally grew taller than Luther, he would show him what it felt like to be the one getting looked down on!

Luther suddenly flicked him on the forehead as if he could read the thoughts behind Joshua’s gleaming eyes. "Alright, eat."

That night, when Joshua lay on his bed, he was so tired he could barely stop yawning. Still, he forced himself to stay awake to spin his Lucky Wheel. Nine watched him, silently hoping he’d at least get something decent—he didn’t want to deal with Joshua sulking and crying again. That was way too much trouble.

"I love luck, and luck loves me. I love luck, and luck loves me..."

[You weren’t this excited when you got your previous rewards,] Nine couldn’t help but comment.

"Don’t interrupt my spell!"

Nine: [...] Men really never grow up.

After muttering his mantra for a while, Joshua finally pressed the button to spin the Lucky Wheel! He squeezed his eyes shut and kept asking, "Nine, where is it now? Is it stopping yet?"

Nine looked at the spinning wheel, which seemed like it was about to create a miniature vortex before him, and was momentarily speechless.

[Probably not anytime soon.]

He had no idea how many prizes were even on that wheel—it was just a single circle—but somehow it kept spinning for over five minutes before finally stopping!

By that point, Nine’s vision was swimming. He felt like there were two little whirlpools spinning endlessly in his eyes.

The wheel finally stopped—but the result didn’t appear.

Nine frowned. It was then that he noticed Joshua had gone entirely silent.

[Joshua...]

He called softly, only to realize Joshua’s breathing had already turned slow and steady. The boy had fallen fast asleep—noise-canceling earbuds in, an eye mask over his face—completely lost to the world.

Nine: [...] I thought he was so eager to see what he’d get.

It was also the first time Joshua had gone to bed while the dorm lights were still on. Usually, even when he was exhausted, he could never fall asleep early; even with his eyes closed, it took ages before he drifted off.

Nine frowned. Something felt off about Joshua, though he could only assume the boy wasn’t feeling well for now.

...

"...I told you, no matter how dangerous the world out there gets, I’ll protect you."

Ace’s voice rang clearly in Joshua’s ears.

The surrounding landscape was devastation—ruins stretched as far as the eye could see, and even the sky was a dull, indistinct shade of gray. The only thing that stood out in this desolate scene was Arthur’s eyes, glowing with a faint silver light that seared into Joshua’s gaze.

He spoke each word slowly, calmly, yet with unshakable certainty. The two massive wolves under his control could only writhe helplessly on the ground.

The members of Mantis seemed equally stunned. None of them had expected their new captain to possess power of this level!

Justin furrowed his brow, his eyes cold as he looked at Arthur. Then he suddenly sneered. "Looks like Mantis has really hit the jackpot."

Even as he spoke, the two wolves hurried back toward him, as if they could find protection in his presence.

Justin smiled faintly, running a hand over their head before glaring at Arthur. "Then let’s see which happens first—my beasts dying, or your brain exploding."

The moment his words fell, all three beasts roared at once, as though they had forgotten pain entirely. At the same time, faint silver lights appeared around Arthur, encasing him in a shimmering aura. Without warning, the heads of the beasts exploded in unison!

Blood splattered everywhere, dyeing the ground in vivid crimson that flowed like a river woven from gore.

But it didn’t end there. The beasts began to regenerate.

Flesh and bone knit together rapidly, and their steps didn’t slow. Rows of sharp fangs emerged from gaping maws wide enough to swallow a man whole as they lunged straight for Arthur.

"Clang!"

The sound was sharp—like glass being struck with tremendous force. Joshua’s eyes widened. Before them stood a transparent silver shield, keeping the beasts at bay.

But the creatures didn’t relent. Their eyes now glowed blood-red as they hurled themselves again and again at the invisible barrier, massive bodies slamming into it without hesitation. Flesh tore, blood splattered, yet they showed no sign of pain.

No—Joshua could tell they did feel pain. But their master’s command mattered far more than agony.

Arthur sensed someone passing by him. Joshua stepped forward, his snow-white hair fluttering lightly with each stride.

"Joshua!"

Arthur frowned and called out sharply, but Joshua didn’t seem to hear him at all. He stared at the massive tiger before him—a beast roaring and thrashing, its blood-soaked maw gaping wide. Its hide was shredded from the repeated impacts, flesh mangled and oozing, as if its entire body had been ground to pulp.

Sensing Joshua’s approach, it opened its jaws in a thunderous roar, biting down on the barrier as though it could swallow him whole in a single gulp.

Joshua tilted his head slightly, then slowly raised his hand. He reached out through the thin, transparent shield and touched its nose.