[Common Sense Hijack System]
[Single Target Hijack]: Ready to Use
[Multiple Target Hijack]: Locked
[AOE Hijack]: Locked
[XXXXX]: Locked...
[XXXXX]: Locked...
[XXXXX]: Locked...
....
Without hesitation, he tapped the Single Target Hijack option on the panel.
[Ding!]
[Connecting to Hijack Hub...]
[10%... 30%... 60%... 80%... 100%]
[Connected.]
[Hijack Hub – Single Target Hijack Active]
[Type your hijack...]
Caleb stared at his phone screen as the opening music of the live interview started playing from its tiny speaker. The studio camera zoomed in on Joe, sitting up straight with a wide smile, like the whole world was on his side.
Caleb leaned back into the couch, his index finger gliding slowly over the screen.
"Heh... no need to rush. I'm gonna make you suffer nice and slow, Joe. Little by little—until your family's ashamed to even be related to you."
His brow arched slightly. Can I... stack this hijack?
[Ding!]
[Hijack effects can be stacked. Each hijack will run for its own duration without affecting the others.]
Caleb's lips curled into a smirk, curiosity sparking in his eyes."Oh? So I can stack these… make you pull off a dozen humiliating stunts at once. Good."He tapped his chin, eyes narrowing. "But the duration's stuck at ten minutes? Can I push it longer with more hijack points?"
[Ding!]
[The hijack duration limit can be increased after reaching Level 3. Use the skill effectively to level up.]
"Hmph..." Caleb kept his gaze on the phone, waiting for Joe's face to return to frame.
"In that case... I'll get a little creative."
A full-sized, transparent keyboard floated in front of the Hijack Hub panel. Caleb set his phone aside and lowered both hands, his fingers flying across the virtual keys, typing without hesitation as if he'd been planning this sentence for a long time.
With his understanding of Old Joe's ego, Caleb executed his first hijack.
[Introducing yourself by revealing your most embarrassing secret is a very admirable thing to do.]
[Enter]
[Ding!]
[1 Hijack Point Consumed]
Caleb picked up his phone again, a wide grin spreading across his face.
The camera feed on Caleb's phone switched angles. Now, it was on the show's host—a young woman with a friendly smile and a voice trained to sound sweet on TV.
Caleb eyed her for a moment, then narrowed his gaze slightly.
Oh... so she's the one interviewing him.
Hnmm... even the entertainment industry's drowning in nepotism, he thought, recognizing the young woman on the TuTube livestream as the daughter of a celebrity family—regulars in gossip shows that love exploiting the emotions of bored housewives.
Clara smiled at the camera, her voice sweet but her eyes reflecting the confidence of someone who knew she was in control of the show.
"Hello everyone, I'm Clara. Today, we're talking about a hot topic that's been blowing up in the media—about a so-called 'Maniac' who harasses women," she said, lifting her eyebrows slightly in a dramatic tone. "And we're here with someone who supposedly knows all the dirt on The ButtManiac... his own neighbor."
She turned to Joe, smiling again. "Go ahead, sir, please introduce yourself."
Joe looked at the camera, shoulders squared.
"My name's Joe, I live near Caleb... that ButtManiac."
From the couch, Caleb immediately grinned.
"...and I like imagining sleeping with young women who have small, cute boobs."
Clara froze. "W-what?"
Her expression was like she'd just heard something impossible.
On screen, the live comments exploded.
[HAHAHA]
[What??]
[Lagging?]
[Deepfake?]
[The hell is going on]
[For real? Bruh... straight up predator LOL!]
[Is this Catch a Predator type shit? XD]
Caleb just leaned back even more comfortably on the couch, eyes locked on the screen.
"One…" he muttered softly, as if counting something.
On screen, Clara froze for just a second before her professional smile cracked into a look of panic.
Her eyes darted toward the crew behind the camera—a quick, desperate What the hell do I do?
The live chat went even crazier than before.
[Is this scripted??]
[What am I watching?]
[LMAO wtf]
[No way this is real!]
[Bro ended his own life XD]
[So this old man's also a Maniac? Is he more dangerous?]
Behind the cameras, the crew exchanged looks, mouths half open.
They'd been briefed earlier that today's topic was supposed to slam Caleb—not expose their own guest's dirty laundry.
A sound tech moved toward the mixer, his finger hovering over Joe's mic switch, but the producer's voice in his headset stopped him instantly.
"Don't touch that mic! We've got too many sponsors in. If we cut the feed or get penalized, we're dead!"
His voice was tense, but there was a hint of excitement he couldn't quite hide.
Clara swallowed hard, trying to keep the conversation going while forcing her eyes to stay on the camera.
"O-oh… uh… that's… quite an introduction, Mister Joe."
On the couch, Caleb raised an eyebrow slightly, his head tilting just a bit.
His left hand still held the phone, eyes radiating satisfaction.
"Ahahaha..."
His right hand darted to the transparent keyboard, typing with one hand because he refused to miss a single second of this beautiful moment.
"Get ready for the next shit!"
His fingers skittered across the keys like the quick legs of a spider.