Infinite Evolution: My Idle Evolution System - Chapter 177

Chapter 177: {[Urgent Side Quest #23!]} – [S++ Rank]

When he found himself stepping into the living room, Cassius suddenly saw a short black-haired girl zip around a corner. She was wearing a loose T-shirt of his and had nothing on underneath. Her hair was also a bit wild, but it suited her quite nicely.

However, right now, what Cassius felt most when looking at her… was confusion. She was, after all, tearing up in both eyes and pointing in the direction of the kitchen.

It was only then that he smelled the distinct odor of something burning.

“C-Cass… I… The cooking… W-Whyiz it so hard…? *Sniffle, Sniffle*”

Bella was not even faking her emotions. She was genuinely distressed.

A sigh resounded, and Cassius walked up to the sniffling girl. He was going to question why she was still in his house, but that would have to wait for later, it seemed.

With a brief head pat, he said, “You trying is what matters most, I would say. And it’s not certain that what you made isn’t unsalvageable. Who knows, it might even be delicious as is.”

“Really…!?”

“Mhmm…”

Bella immediately leapt at him and clasped onto his waist like a spider monkey. Her tears of sadness had already transformed into tears of happiness as she snuggled her cheeks up against his shirt.

If not for her Affection Rating of 100, Cassius definitely would’ve wondered why she was all of a sudden acting like this. But all along, he’d sorta figured she was just acting. And for the longest while, she had him convinced. Even with the constant Affection Rating chart serving as a reminder, she had him fooled on more than one occasion.

“Danks you, Cass…!” Bella lovingly murmured with hearts swirling around inside her pupils.

“Yeah…” was all Cassius said as he dragged her into the kitchen, where his neutral expression quickly morphed into a shocked one.

What he saw in that kitchen… Even if he had the necessary words to describe it, he wouldn’t be capable of saying them…

After a dramatic pause. “This… You did all this yourself…?”

“Uhn!” Bella beamed as her grip on him tightened.

“I… I see…”

Cassius had been enlightened.

It wasn’t every day that he witnessed a catastrophe like the one before him.

And was that an eyeball…? An eyeball swimming in some tentacle substance over a boiling stove…??

Was Bella a girl or was she the wicked Witch of the East!? Why did Cassius feel like the answer was the latter???

“So…?”

Suddenly snapping back to reality, Cassius looked at the adorable face leaning over his right shoulder. Only now registering what she had said, he repeated, “So… what?”

Bella’s head bobbed cutely as one of her sharp K-9s hung over her lip, making for an even more charming display. “So, which are you gonna try first!?”

She could barely contain her excitement.

Cassius could barely contain his puke inside his throat.

However, he didn’t have it in him to just outright deny her like that after he said what he did earlier. Therefore, it was with great difficulty that he walked over to the least disgusting thing of all the disgusting things inside that kitchen. A horrid smell instantly assaulted his nostrils, which made him feel the urge to slit his throat.

But he held strong.

He had to.

This was just another…

*Ding~!*

Having heard something that he hadn’t seen in quite a while, Cassius glanced over at an illusory blue screen. A screen that featured a smug, almost insufferable emoticon face.

[Character Development! I see that this fine piece of ass lass has quite the knack for building the Character of others! Good, good!]

[Here! This is on the house, sweetheart!]

BLING!

{[Urgent Side Quest #23!]} – [S++ Rank]

—[Survive the Terrorist-level Threat that is the cooking of one Miss Bella Crestmore!]

REWARD 1 – [Life]

REWARD 2 – [Not Death]

REWARD 3 – [The best head you’ll ever have! Nah… just kidding! The only reward you get is to continue living! But hey, maybe try farming some AP while you’re at it!]

[Punishment for Failure: 12 Hours in Nightmarescape] – (You’re still going here… Let’s say today! But why not go twice!? Double the fun, yeah!?)

Cassius: “…”

He truly didn’t know why the hell he even bothered living anymore.

For who knows how many years to come, the only partner who’d be with him at any and all times would be his shithead of a System.

Fate really was a b*tch…

*Bzzzttt…!*

A sword tattoo sewn across the right side of Cassius’s body started to vibrate. Though only at a level he could feel.

Immediately realizing his mistake, he internally apologized. ‘Sorry about that, Lilith. Of course, I’ll still have you. Perhaps that dickhead will catch a hint and realize how much of a third wheel it’s being, then get right the fuck on out of here. Or, at the very least, become non-sentient.’

[….]

The Idle Evolution System’s emoticon became rather sad-looking. A dark cloud seemed to loom over its head, and what looked like virtual tears began to appear.

Cassius wanted so badly to simply ignore whatever it was doing. But upon recalling how much help it had done for him—virtually bringing him up from nothing—he knew he couldn’t just ignore it.

With a sigh, he also apologized to the System while patting the floating emoticon screen. ‘I’m sorry—’

[No~! You Fiend~! How could you up and touch your System like that~!? For this blatant harassment, do you accept an additional 30 hours in the Nightmarescape for today!?]

“…But there aren’t even 30 hours in a day…”

[True men always learn to find a way! ദ്ദി(˵ •̀ ᴗ – ˵ ) ✧]

Cassius was on the brink of freaking the f*ck out, but thankfully for his sanity, an expectant voice sounded out from atop his right shoulder:

“So? Which one are you going to try first!? I recommend that one!”

“…That one…?” Cassius repeated while staring directly at what looked like his final meal on Earth.

“Yes, that one!”

*Gulp…*

Forget everything he previously thought.

There would be no saving grace for him this day…

….