Chapter 15 : Lone Tombstone

Lloyd, who had decided to close the store for the day to take some rest, was peacefully napping when Selita's voice rang in his mind.

[Owner, it's time to wake up.]

"...Let...me...smoke..."

[What ?]

"...in...the...airplane..."

She tried to wake him up as gently as possible, but it only made him bury himself deeper under the blanket, muttering unintelligible gibberish she couldn't understand.

[Owner, the construction of the tombsto—]

"...silence...old hag..."

[...]

Selita got the sudden urge to beat him up.

Since she didn't have a physical body, she could only send a light discharge of energy through his neural network.

[Oi, open your eyes you lazy ass !]

*bzzzt*

"Huh...? What's happen—Arghh !"

This was effective.

Lloyd jolted out of his bed sweating, his body contorting in pain. His limbs were numb and he felt a stinging sensation running down his back, as if sharp needles were planted in his spine.

"What the...! Did I just get tased ?"

[Finally awake ?]

"Selita ? What the hell did you—Ah, it hurts..."

[Since you didn't answer, this 'old hag' was worried and thought that the owner may have suddenly died in his sleep. Thus, this benevolent 'old hag' was just checking if the owner was alright.]

"What, are you a cat now ? Why the hell would I die in my sleep ?"
(author nt. : If your cat wakes you up in the middle of the night and it's not because he's hungry, then it's very likely that he was checking if you were still alive. No, I'm not joking. That's what cats do with each other.)

[Meow ?]

"..."

[Tsk. It wasn't convincing enough I guess.]

"...Do you take me for an idiot ?"

[...]

Selita paused for a moment, before changing the subject.

[...Anyway, stop making a fuss for nothing and leave your bed.]

"Who the fuck wakes people up by electrocuting them ?!"

[A certain 'old hag' do, so the owner better get used to it. Unless the owner prefers this humble 'old hag' to freeze him to death next time ?]

"Alright, fine, you win this round Selita," Lloyd groaned as he rubbed his temples. He knew that arguing with her was a waste of time.

He had no idea what happened while he was asleep and why she was calling herself an old hag, but he could tell she was upset.

And he could guess why.

Lloyd wasn't just a heavy sleeper ; since childhood, he was suffering from a harmless disorder called somniloquy, also known as 'sleep talking'. As its name suggests, it was the act of talking while sleeping.

It was usually just gibberish or muttering unintelligible words, but when he was a kid, Lloyd remembered his late parents telling him that sometimes he uttered entire monologues in a single breath.

It wouldn't be surprising if he'd said something rude to Selita when she tried to wake him up.

'Why would I call her an old hag though ? Wait, now that I think about it, it does make sense... She's probably even older than grandpa-'

[Stop thinking about useless things if you don't want to get tased again, and go down to the Backroom. Your 'short nap' lasted more than 6 hours. It's already twilight, the Lone Tombstone construction has been finished for quite some time now.]

"Hum, sorry... Whatever I said during my sleep, don't take it too seriously."

Lloyd scratched his head apologetically.

[...It's fine, just hurry up. You're not the only one who's tired, I also want to rest.]

"Yes, m'am."

Lloyd stretched his body and quickly changed his clothes, before rushing down the stairs to enter the Backroom.

On his way to the control room, as he was traversing the now familiar Dark Chamber, Lloyd asked Selita.

"Last time, you talked about quests from the system that I would need to complete to get resources and unlock new chambers. When will I receive the first mission ?"

[Sigh... Did you really not notice ? You already received it.]

"Really ?"

[...Does your soul leave your body whenever you close your eyes ? If even the system's notifications can't wake you up, calling you a heavy sleeper is an understatement.]

"Haha, sorry. So, how can I check it ?"

[I can show it to you, but sooner or later you'll have to link yourself with the stone tab in the control room. After setting up a keyword, you will be able to access all the Backroom functions without needing my help.]

"To be honest, I would rather not touch this damned slab again unless I'm sure it's not harmful. The last time I did, I opened my eyes hours later in my bed with a terrible headache."

Lloyd recalled what happened when he listened to Celestine and put his hand on the strange slab in the control room.

[There's always a small backlash the first time a new owner registers with the system. That's why Igor sent Celestine to assist you, so she could guide you safely to the control room and relieve the toll on your body after you linked to the system for the first time.]

"I see... Did Grandpa Cheon also lose consciousness when he registered in the system ?"

[He didn't, but... you shouldn't take him as an example. This basta—I mean, this 'peculiar' man, was truly one of a kind when he was younger.]

Selita was about to call the old man a bastard, but Lloyd ignored it. He didn't know what transpired between these two, but he could tell that she meant no ill.

If anything, she probably missed him more than he did. They spent decades together, after all.

He could still remember clearly the sorrow he felt in Selita's voice when she talked about the old man's death.

"The more I learn about grandpa's past, the more I become curious."

Selita internally laughed.

[If you knew only the tenth of the quarter of his life as the backroom owner, you wouldn't be so eager to know his life.]

Before Lloyd could respond, she went back to the original subject.

[Anyway, I strongly recommend you to link yourself with the stone slab when you have the time, so that you can see the Backroom interface at any time without asking for my help.]

"Yes, yes... But for now, can you show me the mission ?"

Selita displayed the same screen as before at Lloyd's request, but this time, a new tab called 'Missions' was added to the upper left corner.

"How do I access it ? Should I click on the icon like I would with a smartphone ?"

[I don't know what's this 'smartphone' you're talking about, but no, you don't have to touch anything with your hands. This screen is intangible, it's only projected through your eyes. If you want to open up a different tab, just think about it.]

Lloyd followed Selita's instruction and pictured himself clicking on the 'Missions' tab with an imaginary cursor as he would do on a computer's screen.

To his surprise, it worked, and a new window appeared.

| Beginner Quest : Starting As A Pet Store Owner In Another World (1/4) |

| Description :
The system detected that the new host's business involved the sale of animals and pet care resources whereas the host has no animals to sell yet, which is a shame for a pet shop. |

| Task :
Acquire a new familiar, or tame a wild beast. Beasts that are not ready to be sold safely and/or present a risk to the customer do not count toward mission progress. |

| Current Progress : 0/1 |

| Rewards :
Nether Points x 10
Crackling Egg x 1 |

| Time Limit : 6d 22h 35m left |

Lloyd wasn't too surprised by the mission's content. Since his shop was a pet store, it was to be expected that the first quest he would receive from the system was related to animals or beasts.

"So I need to get my hands on a new familiar, huh ?"

[Congratulation Owner, you can read. That's a good start.]

Lloyd didn't miss the obvious sarcasm behind Selita's sharp words.

"...Is it me or did your attitude change ever since we first met ?"

[It's your imagination. This 'old hag' wouldn't dare to offend the Owner.]

Lloyd sighed. It seemed like she still held a grudge against him for whatever he said during his sleep.

'No matter the world or the species, it seems that all women are sensitive when it comes to their age.'

Since it was his fault, he didn't mind her mockery, but it made him smile to know that even the usually calm and composed Selita could act this way.

'She truly acts like a real woman... She's so similar to a human that I wonder how her species lived in her dimension.'

From Selita's feminine voice and how she acted, Lloyd guessed that, like humans, her species also had two genders. If he was right, then Selita was without a doubt a female.

'Let's just treat her like I would treat a woman then. From my experience, it's best to just ignore them until they calm down when they are moody and petty for no reason. Wait, maybe that's her time of the month...'

[Why do I suddenly feel like beating you up ? Are you badmouthing me behind my back ?]

"I didn't say anything, though..."

[If I have a sudden urge to beat you up again, I'm sure you thought about something bad.]

Lloyd didn't know what to answer to this ridiculous statement.

'If this isn't that damned six sense they call feminine instinct, I don't know what this is...'

The more Lloyd learned about his unusual companion, the more it confirmed his doubts that she was a woman.

"Since you seem to live inside my head, can you read my thoughts ?"

[I can read the flow of your thoughts, indeed, but only when you're not paying attention. And even then I can only feel your emotions, nothing more. I can't discern your thoughts when you're thinking too deeply, or if you consciously want to hide something from me.]

"Hm, that's good to know...."

[You—]

Before Selita could throw a tantrum or electrocute him again, Lloyd nimbly changed the subject back to the mission in front of his eyes.

"By the way, what are those Nether Points ?"

[Nether Points are the system's currency. They are primarily used to build, unlock, and upgrade chambers. They can also be exchanged for elixirs that can improve your and your familiars' growth rate, powerful artifacts, or any other resources that can help you develop your business.]

Lloyd didn't know how Igor made this system—or if he was even the one who created it—, but it really looked like a video game to him.

The only difference was that this was the real world, and Lloyd never considered himself to be some sort of protagonist.

Maybe Igor designed the system this way so it would be familiar to him, a man who lived on Earth during the 21st century.

'After all, who never played a video game in this modern day and age...'

Another possibility was that the system could adapt itself to its current owner. Maybe it looked like a game right now because Lloyd was the owner, but what about the time when his grandpa or the people before him were at his place ?

If what Igor said was right, then grandpa Cheon started working for him a long time ago, long before the invention of video games. Lloyd didn't even know if the first family computers were available at that time.

As Lloyd pondered over the origin of the system, he soon reached the control room and passed through the purple portal.

The first thing he saw when he stepped inside the Chamber of Nurturing was Blackie sleeping on his back in front of the portal, his fat belly completely exposed.

[Like master, like dog. It seems like you're not the only one who likes taking naps in the middle of the day.]

"Sleep is life, Selita. A rested mind is the secret to happiness."

Selita wanted to retort that it was bullshit, but she couldn't find the strength to say anything after seeing the subtle expression of sadness flashing on her Host's face.

'He has his own circumstances I guess,' she thought silently.

Lloyd kept his smile, but she knew that it was just a facade.

After watching over him the last day, she originally thought that Lloyd was the kind of man to laze around and enjoy sleeping more than necessary... but she now realized that she may have been completely wrong.

After his parents died, there were times when Lloyd couldn't sleep for weeks. As the lack of sleep coincided with the periods of his life when he was the most depressed, Lloyd vowed to himself to always put his mind at rest whenever he felt the need to.

He lived alone in hell for an entire year before his grandpa managed to pull him out of depression, so Lloyd knew better than anyone how important it was to rest his mind.

He truly meant it when he said that sleep was the secret of happiness.

"Woof !"

As Lloyd reminisced about the past, Blackie woke up and approached, rubbing one of his heads against his leg. His second head was still half-asleep, a bubble of snot hanging from its nose.

"Yes, yes, I didn't forget about you don't worry."

Lloyd smiled at his dog and caressed his head for a moment, before approaching the newly constructed tombstone. He stopped just before stepping in the gray mist, which now covered a wide area around the tombstone.

"This looks like a cliché graveyard in those cheap horror movies."

As Lloyd was contemplating whether or not to enter the mist, Selita became curious about something.

[Tell me, Owner, don't you feel strange standing so close to the mist ?]

"Well... I do feel an ominous aura coming from the tombstone, but so far it didn't feel harmful."

Selita was momentarily stunned by her host's words.

Usually, people would get uncomfortable just standing a few feet away from the mist. Even the previous owner, Cheon In-Su, never bothered building the Lone Tombstone since he couldn't bear the presence of death aura.

Darkness-type and Light-type mana were already special kinds of mana that very few people could handle, but among them, there existed variants even harder to control.

If one out of a hundred people gifted with a mana heart could tolerate Darkness-type mana, only one in a thousand could bear standing so close to a Death aura.

'As I thought, the current owner may have an affinity with Death-type mana... Is that why Igor offered him a Cerberus out of all beasts ?'

The fact that Lloyd didn't show the usual repulsion the other owners felt toward the dark energy spewing out of the Tombstone greatly surprised Selita.

It was unexpected that such a weak-looking man had an affinity with Death-type mana.

Unbeknownst to Selita's complex thoughts, Lloyd asked.

"Now that the Tombstone has been constructed, what do I have to do exactly ? Should I just let Blackie live here for now ?"

[Because the owner received his first mission and can not build another environment for the time being, I would recommend looking for a beast to tame that can be raised within the Lone Tombstone's aura.]

"Do you have any ideas ? Except for skeletons and zombies, I don't know what could thrive in a graveyard, to be honest..."

Since Blackie seemed to enjoy bathing in the gray mist surrounding the tombstone, Lloyd thought about using him to complete the first task, but the mission clearly stated that he had to capture the beast for it to count toward progression.

There was no way Lloyd would sell his dog.

[If at least you knew the basics of beastmancy, I could have recommended you a few places to visit where you could find Death-type beasts to tame, but in your case... Your best bet is to directly buy them at an auction house, but I doubt you currently have enough funds for it.]

"Well..."

Thanks to the huge sum of gold Igor gave him when he first arrived in this world, Lloyd still had enough money saved up to buy food and necessities for another year, but even he knew that it was far from enough to compete in an auction house.

[In the year that you spent here, didn't you get some income from your shop ?]

"I did earn some gold and silver yeah, but not that much..."

The money he made by running his shop and selling accessories to the few customers who visited his store was just enough to regularly buy meat for him and Blackie ; there was no way it would be enough to compete in an auction house against nobles and other wealthy people.

[I see... You don't have a choice then, you'll have to capture a beast yourself.]

"Sigh, I guess so..."

[The best would be a wild beast compatible with Death-type mana, but since they're so rare in nature, you should just forget about it for the moment.]

"Does that mean I've built the Lone Tombstone for nothing ?"

[Not exactly. Blackie's species is compatible with Death-type mana, so you can just let him live from now on. The more time he'll spent within the aura, the faster his bloodline will awaken.]

Just the fact that the tombstone could benefit Blackie and help him grow was enough for Lloyd.

Now, he just had to capture a new beast to complete the system's mission.