Chapter 64: A Close Shave
Chapter 64
"Mom!"
Both of them immediately froze the moment Emily’s voice rang out. Alex’s first instinct was to hide, but his expression changed back to normal after realizing that it was only Emily.
Since it was her, then it was actually better for her to walk in, and feel exactly how he felt when he saw her being pounded by that accursed bastard, Zack.
But then he changed his mind. Sure the revenge would be good... what was he even saying. It was going to be great! But after that, what then? The idea of her only receiving something as small as seeing her crush in bed with her mom, seemed utterly small compared to how he found out that he had been raising someone else’s kid for fifteen long years.
So why in hell’s name should he give her such a light punishment after all she had made him go through! No. If she caught them now then everything would change. She’ll start to see him as an enemy, a predator to be avoided, rather than a pawn to be manipulated.
He might not even get another chance of executing the soul-crushing plans he had spent weeks perfecting.
So with a gloomy heart, Alex decided that having Emily catch them might provide immediate joy, but it won’t be good for any long term plans. Now his only chance was to avoid being seen right this moment.
Emily’s voice came again, and this time closer.
"Mom, are you in there?"
Alex turned toward the already pale woman sitting beside him. With his enhanced hearing, he could even pick up the intense pounding of her heart against her ribcage, as Emily’s footsteps drew nearer.
Scanning across the room, his eyes instantly concentrated on three places in particular, as a plan began to form in his head. The bathroom, the closet, and Sofia’s clothes scattered across the room. If he could hide in the closet and have Sofia pretend as if she was just coming from the bathroom after a day’s work of tending to her roses, then Emily might eat the plan up, and not suspect a single thing.
So after revising the idea in his head, he hurriedly got up, grabbed the nearest piece of clothing underneath the bed, and tossed it toward Sofia before gesturing urgently toward the bathroom.
"Go splash some water on your face and act like you just came out of the shower. Remember, do not stammer if she asks you anything, just look her calmly in the eyes whenever she throws any questions at you.... And do all those things that mothers do." He whispered quickly.
Sofia didn’t need to be told twice. With hurried movements, she fixed her messy hair quickly, picked the rest of her clothes from the floor, and darted to the bathroom to pour some water on her face. After she was done, Sofia began to wear her clothes at the exact same speed she would normally have done after each shower.
Meanwhile, Alex moved smoothly across the room without making a single noise. He ducked into the closet and pulled the door shut, just as the bedroom door opened.
"Mom?"
Emily stopped mid-step, blinking as she took in the scene.
"Oh... You’re still dressing. Sorry, mom."
Sofia forced a small, composed smile, even though her heart was currently pounding at a speed that could rival that of a trapped mouse.
"It’s no problem, sweetie," she said while casually adjusting her dress. "But you should really knock before barging in like that? So why is my darling looking for me?"
Emily stepped fully into the room, still looking slightly embarrassed, but her expression shifted from apologetic to mildly irritated.
"Mom, do you know where Alex is? You know, the guy who I brought in earlier as my friend. I haven’t seen him since he went to dry himself off, after wetting his pants. It’s like he just vanished."
Inside the closet, Alex’s expression darkened. What the hell did she mean by wetting his pants? Now Sofia might misunderstand that sentence and think that he pissed himself, when all he did was just spill a little water on himself. But he let the insult slide, since she wasn’t suspicious of anything.
Sofia tilted her head, acting the part of the slightly distracted, doting mother
"Alex? Oh, yes. I saw him wandering around, so I asked him to give me a hand in the garden."
Emily raised a brow.
"Gardening?"
Sofia nodded smoothly.
"Yes, gardening. After all, you never really liked helping your dear old mother with her flowers, and the young man looked like a good kid, so I asked him for help and he agreed. But he got a call that sounded really urgent and rushed out without saying anything."
Emily’s lips parted, then she huffed and crossed her arm with a pout.
"Seriously? He just ditched me like that without even telling me anything? Ugh, how rude."
Sofia let out a soft chuckle and stepped closer. After reaching Emily’s position, she placed a reassuring hand on her daughter’s shoulder.
"I’m sure it must have been an emergency, dear. If not he wouldn’t have left my beautiful princess all alone." She said gently. "Besides you know how these things can be, so cheer up honey and don’t let this ruin your day."
Emily hesitated, then sighed.
"Yeah I guess."
Her eyes lingered on her mother for a moment, then suddenly lit up.
"Oh! I almost forgot. I found something I wanted to show you. Come with me."
Before Sofia could even respond, Emily grabbed her wrist and began pulling her toward the door. Sofia wanted to protest, but the thought of Alex still hiding inside the closet, told her to just go with the flow. So with an amused smile on her face, she allowed her daughter to drag her out of the room.
After waiting for their footsteps to fade into the distance, Alex exhaled and pushed the closet door open before slowly stepping out.
"Oof... That was a close one." He muttered.
He ran a hand through his thick hair, glanced toward the door, then toward the window. Since Sofia had already helped him out with a solid excuse, then there was no need to stay here any longer.
Without wasting any time, Alex crossed the room in quick, quiet steps, pushed the window open and slipped out, like a nimble cat. He landed lightly on the grass outside and scanned the perimeter, just to make sure that no one saw him jumping out of someone’s window.
After confirming that everything was fine, he brushed some dust from his pants, then walked away with a smug smile on his lips. Even if he hadn’t fully gotten his revenge, it was still a nice start.
Plus, the thought of how much Desire Points and Energy he had gained just from today’s encounter, was possibly one of the biggest achievements of the day.
Just as he was about to call out to the system to ask about his stats, his phone suddenly buzzed against his back pocket.
Opening it, he nodded his head with satisfaction after seeing the message. Nyx had finally fulfilled her promise and sent the one hundred thousand dollars.
<Deposit Received
Account ending in: ...4323
Amount: $2,100,000.41
Description: WIRE TRANSFER -
EXTERNAL DEPOSIT>
"Good, good. Now I currently have about two point one million dollars in my account, that should suffice for a lot of important things. Looks like today was really a windfall. Though I just regret that I won’t be able to buy some food supplies and other important stuff, since it’s already late.... But I can at least buy them tomorrow."
Alex slipped his phone back into his pocket and continued walking along the quiet street. He had already estimated that it would take him around fifteen minutes to reach his apartment, so there was no need to hurry.
’Before I forget. System.’ He called out internally.
The familiar chibi-like girl instantly popped into existence with a teasing smile on her lips.
[Yes Alex. I was wondering when you would finally remember me, especially after you’ve been so busy with a certain woman’s mother. But I really got to hand it to you, you’re now finally making some progress. At least now, your harem slot has three occupants]
"Yeah, thanks for the flattery. Now show me my spoils."
[Yes, I’m on it]
At that moment the reward panel suddenly materialized beside the chibi.
[Reward Calculating...]
[+200 Desire Points For successfully Adding a New Harem Member]
[Total Points: 1010 desire Points]
[+25 Desire Energy For Adding a New Harem Member]
[Total Desire Energy: 156/300]
[+5 Will Now Be Added To All Physical Stats]
[Status — Updated]
[Name: Alex Walker]
[Age: 21]
[Body Condition: above average human]
[Vitality: Good]
[Strength: 57→62]
[Speed: 60→65]
[Agility: 60→65]
[Perception: 53→58]
[Charm: Above Average]
[Baseline Charisma: High]
[Libido: High]
[Desire points: 1010 points]
[Desire energy: 156/300]
[System Rank: D]
[Skills:]
• Aura Of Seduction (Lv.1)
• Profit Instinct
• Spatial Storage Space
• Infinite skill absorption
[Physical Development: Stable]
[Current length: 10 inches]
[Harem Slots: 3 / ∞]
[Titles Earned:]
• The Indomitable Cockroach
Alex stared at his stats with a faint melancholy in his eyes. A few days ago he had just been reborn with zero stats and only one skill, now today his stats were already like this. Even though he didn’t get any new skill this time, he was still happy with the +5 increment in his physical stats.
Meaning both his attacking and defensive abilities had grown significantly stronger, but he sobered himself up. Even if he had grown stronger, it still wasn’t enough. Especially with the existence of awakened, most especially powerful ones, who could kill him in the blink of an eye without batting an eye.
If he truly wants to grow stronger to the point that he never feels intimidated by anyone, then he has to subdue more women and add them to his harem.
He knew it wasn’t going to be easy, hell, nothing was ever really easy in this life, but his abilities had already given him a head start, and if he couldn’t capitalize on it then he would truly be an idiot.