[Would Host like a backup hardcopy?]
A hard copy too?
Fuck, yes!
As long as it's free...
Madison still held the pink card, now transformed into a matte gunmetal grey that looked like it belonged to some off-the-books government assassin. But the system was saying something else entirely.
Before I could even finish the thought, I felt a faint shhhk in my pocket—like a whisper of wind folding around metal. I reached in.
Another card.
Identical.
Cool. Sleek. Heavy. Real.
'Okay, system, you're not a complete scammer. That was actually... generous.'
[Host is shameless with praise when receiving free items.]
Thank you for the compliment.
The sarcasm was noted, ignored, and archived. I was in too good a mood to care.
The girls had already exploded out of the car vicinity like a glitter bomb detonation, practically leaving behind a perfume trail in their wake. Shopping bags were only a concept now, but judging by the energy radiating off them, we'd be walking out with enough material to clothe a mid-sized kingdom.
While they plotted their fashion conquest, I stayed leaning against the vehicle like the brooding support character everyone underestimates. Internally, though?
I was knee-deep in System Shop: Wearables Division. The real candy store.
Let's see what kind of gear a modern-day shadow genius needs...
The system shop's Wearables section unfolded before me like the weapons locker of a futuristic rogue—sleek, menacing, and dripping with possibility. I scrolled past mundane gadgets and flashy gimmicks, until I landed on something that made my upgraded brain tick harder:
[Quantum Smartwatch: 400 SPReal-time quantum processing core with adaptive interface. Capable of hosting Advanced Artificial Intelligence. Includes encrypted communication channels, live hacking nodes, and micro-command injection protocols. Designed to be the brain's extension—fast, silent, secure.]
My fingers hovered over the listing.
This... this was it.
The perfect cradle for what I was planning.
No one knows it yet, but I'd already started blueprinting something on the side—a custom-built Advanced AI. Not some off-the-shelf assistant with a cute name and weather updates. No. This one would be a companion. A second brain. Conversational, evolving, capable of code-injection, surveillance analysis, even synthetic decision-making. My own digital ghost in the machine.
Problem was, no smartphone could hold it. Too heavy. Too advanced. But this?
This watch was practically designed for it.
I tapped the listing without hesitation.
This wasn't just a watch. It was a sanctuary—for my personal AI I was building.
Not a glorified assistant. Not a Siri or Alexa knockoff.
I was coding something alive. Something that would evolve with me. A strategic ally. A digital shadow with a voice of its own, capable of controlling drones, breaking into security grids, whispering intel mid-mission—all while sounding like a sarcastic bastard if I programmed it right.
Smartphones and laptops were too weak. They'd fry under the AI's weight. But this watch?This was the temple where it would sit.
[Stealth Suit: 800 SP]Nanoweave construction. Grants full-body invisibility for 30 minutes. Integrated climate regulation ensures optimal internal temperature during operations. Wears like silk, deflects like steel.]
A walking ghost. The stuff of spy legends and hacker wet dreams. Expensive, yes—but worth every point if I was going to keep disappearing from both surveillance and suspicion.
[Neural Interface Glasses: 600 SP]Full-spectrum augmented reality. Real-time overlays. Live blueprint schematics. Heat signature tracking. Facial recognition jamming field. Tactical feeds streamed directly into the eye.]
Slick. Functional. And with the right AI linked through the smartwatch, I could have tactical overlays, dynamic scans, and live extraction routes displayed before I even stepped into danger.
[Voice Modulation Tie: 300 SPHigh-thread-count silk, embedded with voice mod tech. Lets you speak in any vocal tone, mimic any voice, or become completely untraceable. Professional. Lethal. Undeniably cool.]
All tools of a ghost who walked in the open, stole from the elite, and disappeared like a shadow on command.
But it was that watch—my AI's future home—that made my heart beat faster.
I wasn't just shopping.
I was preparing for war.
[CognitiveLink Earbuds: 450 SP]Neural-synced microbuds. Designed for silent communication with linked AI systems. Intercepts subvocal signals and thought-commands, allowing real-time exchange without a single spoken word. Encrypted. Undetectable. Integrates seamlessly with Enhanced Smartwatch.]
My breath caught.
These weren't just earbuds.
They were telepathy for the digital age.
No movement. No voice. Just a thought—and my AI would hear me.I could ask for building schematics, trigger a drone strike, or check thermal feeds—all while smiling politely in a boardroom.
The world would think I was listening to music.They'd never hear the war whispering in my mind.
This was it.
The Operator's Loadout.
My shadow arsenal.Not for style. Not for show.But for the empire I was about to build—and the chaos I planned to unleash.
Jesus.
This stuff costs more than some people's cars.
And then—there it was.
Tucked in like a footnote.
Affordable. Understated.
Deadly perfect.
[Dark Mask: 200 SP
Description: Designed for complete anonymity operations. Upon wearing, Host's facial features become invisible and untraceable by CCTV cameras and will not appear in any digital videos or photographs. Additional: Mask can transform from full face coverage hard mask to simple face mask configurations.]
I stared at the description for a second too long. My cognition was already running a hundred simulations per second.
This wasn't just cool.
This was essential.
This was the difference between Peter Carter, suspiciously lucky trader and Dark Lord, digital ghost with a vendetta.
No CCTV footage.
No digital evidence.
No face. No trail. No compromise.
This was exactly what I needed for what was coming.
Exactly what I needed for her.
Because I hadn't come to La Cherie today for retail therapy.
Not really.
I came to meet Charlotte Thompson—and I needed to be able to disappear like I was never there when I'm meeting her.
'System, buy the mask.'
[DING! Purchase Complete. 200 SP Deducted!]
[Dark Mask added to inventory. Would Host like to equip now?]
I felt it—the silent thump of weight in my pocket.
A phantom presence. Cold. Ready. Alive.
It felt like holding a loaded secret.
Like the first time a thief realizes the cameras don't matter anymore.
Not a weapon.
A boundary.
A veil.
And I had just become invisible.