Her eyes fluttered slowly with each heavy movement. Her vision spun, dizziness clouding to her mind. Alexia tried to focus clawing her hands, and slowly, the view became clear. Her eyes were cold, sharp as usual, scanning the endless black void around her.
At the corner, an orange cat back faced sat upright in a sassy pose resting his arm to rusted white panel stand. One paw tapped at a glowing junk panel, searching through hidden skills, numbers and stats. He smirked with smile with a hint of mischief. Its tail swished back left and right like broom.
"Design level max. "
"Creative level max. ''
''Craftmanship max.''
''Charm level...''
[86] as his finger glide pass it.
''Seriously! Charm level 86''. He clutched a dummy fish between his paws with dissatisfaction and nutpick. Alexia edged closer to him for better view maintaining her composure.
''It's pathetic.''
''Most user needs 100 to bypass the system. And ours are 1000. Why the heck is she here for?''
''This is disrespect.''
He didn't notice her at all. Not yet.
[System Rank : Trash]
''Not now. Look at the past. We had more standard _''
Alexia blinked realizing she was only the person there, in rage with no limit to hold herself, she stride forward from his back with a deadly stare.
''Ahh! ''The orange cat continued yapping, his voice throwing up full with mockery like apparent would.
"Did the system really jump to Rank 20 by her or just you had a problem? He asked to the old rusted stand panel.
[:{]
He didn't notice her approaching from behind ready to throw him at the side garbage. As she was just right back him, her gaze slides elsewhere to the glowing blue control panel with her profile on a stand.
"What are you doing?" she asked, clipped with low and icy voice instantly distracted .
The cat sprang back throwing off his precious dummy fish toy.
He bounded, claws flailing, and chase to protect it—but Alexia didn't flinch and quickly shift to panel.
She instantly tapped next after taking a look.
[Companion Info : Muffin Truck]
Long Resident
Cuteness level : 200
Agility level : 30
Intelligence level : 140
Mischief level : 200
Loyalty level : 70
Alertness level :45
[System Notification]
[Contract : Make Muffin the Owner of a house.]
Yes No
Haah! Ginger gluped with a sense of getting caught what he just spitted on.
"Hey! There fella" Clearing his throat
"I know you are angry with me''
''but lets slid it off and stay in good terms with my intro "
"I'm called Muffin. The biggest divine companion of all the system.' 'As he pumps his chest knitting his thought.
"'In the past" Instantly gets back to his flabby stomach back cutting back to present.
Cough Cough
"But you are very lucky. Cause I am your companion without any hardship".
[No clicked]
[Launching New System]
Yes No
No, Wait ! As his eyes quickly falls on her finger.
[Yes Clicked]
[Cleaning junk]
What did you do you just do? Muffin completely goes in ire and bluttered with heavy voice.
''Keeping you at place.'' Alexia flatly sorted out.
[Loading]
Old hag!
Alexia face blacked out, as soon she heard. Muffin spotted her evil form quickly transforming his rage to cold sweat.
"Ahh! I was just."'
His death was near than the mouse .
"Nooo—" As Alexia grabs his tail.
Then, he suddenly disappears.
[ Cleaning junk Complete]
[ Rebooting system to new…]
Alexia blinked and, calmed her composure as ever.
The void spinned and run in the speed of light. Then, glitched occur with a sound of system notification.
Ding!
The blue panel, new high tech than the first junk one floated infront of her glowing steadily.
Suddenly, a pair of dounle doored glass boomed, reflecting heavily with infinite light.
[System Notification : Welcome Home]
Alexia sighed, her expression unimpressed same as usual. She pushed open the glass doors.
***
''It looks just like my home.''
The interior was still in construction and the furnitures, plant and stairs were forming from streams of light and energy.
"Did I came back where I started," she muttered alone in the big palace.
A portrait of motivation showed up on one wall—dark aesthetic, dramatic, and utterly childish by Alexia.
Alexia embarrassed with, unimpressed face.
"Delete it," she muttered.
Almost immediately, the system began redesigning her quote.
"I said delete it'' she ordered as a final verdict.
The system quickly scared replaced it with her portrait in elves form.
"Ahh! Leave it!" She snapped, waving her hand down, and the system highlighted her portrait with candle facing directly as a funeral. She was pissed off with lost for words at the same time.
From behind her, an orange tail swirled in a soft movement caught her attention. Alexia checks on a long curved luxurious ivory sofa. The orange cat was laying flat cleaned and shiny, than before. The dummy fish with colorful stripes clutched firmly in his paw. His face practically radiated excitement, eyes wide and shouted, "Yes! Yes! Finally! I'm rich" showing his comfort.
His eyes fell over a white star emoji plushie, "Woo.. You're cute. ''
''Excuse me! Do you live alone? ''
Alexia glanced over sofa, narrowing her eyes judging his behaviour.
"…Why are you here?" she called out in cold tone.
"Waahh!" Caught off guard, the cat stammered, flustered by her cold tone. Ouch! My back muffin growl in pain.
Are you hurt? Showing no emotion.
"Yes I am! I had nearly a two heart attacks from every blind surprise! " zooming his cute face wide eyes, two blinks showing his pure annoyance. ''You have right to say Sorry"
''I'm fine by the way"
''Anyway can I stay here''?
''No!'' She frankly rejects him without any second thoughts.
"Come on! I..I come along with this system! " He puffed up, trying to look brave and cute at the same time.
A ridiculous expression plastered across his face, making Alexia ignored him as if he ever existed without debating.
The cat exhaled a dramatic sigh, buckling onto the sofa.
"Yeah, right," he muttered, rolling his eyes.
He quickly gets submerged by the richness of comfort raising his dopamine.
"Finally… we're here, my lil' fish" he opens up with a relief longing for years.
Alexia's cold doubtful gaze scanned the system panel, her long yet firm fingers tapping over the glowing bar.
[Client History. (Blank)] Tap
[Fabric Locked. Opens at Level 2.] Tap
[Personal Assistant. Opens at Level 10.] Tap
[Online Delivery. Opens at Level 7.] Tap
So, Am I in level one?
[Talking Muffin Locked. Opens at Level 124]
"Talking Muffin?" Alexia raised her eyebrow, voice sharp and distant turning slightly to the cat.
"You're… still locked?"
''And why are here when I have reached the level yet''.
Muffin got that immediately and turned back lazily onto the sofa, with his tail flicking.
"Well… In short, this system was once a supreme of all systems, used to control fate and power and rewrite the rules. Owner of this system has the power eclipsed over everything but overtime, people stopped coming due to high level of skills needed to enter one, so it got untouched by anyone for several years," he said with a sigh, voice tinged with exasperation.
"So, To run back, it kept lowering its level… and met me along the way.. … until eventually, we became trash. Forgotten."
"And then… finally you came along. Somehow. Maybe by fate—I don't know. But somehow, this happened."
''No, I'm not talking about that. ''
Muffin got curious and bumped up by her response. ''Then! What?''
''You're still locked in the system''
"So, could you comeback at level 124, and disappear right now."
"Not gonna happen." Muffin slapped back her request.
**After sometime
His amber eyes rolled at Alexia. "Just… give the system a little time to process."
Alexia didn't cared. She slightly tilted her head, her cold stare on the panel, scrolling through her panel .
"Why is it not giving me any task?"
Muffin muttered to himself, tail swirling, "I guess… it's not every day someone breaks the system just by showing up…"
After a while she gave up and sank onto the sofa, she felt restful that she had only felt after death, almost heavenly. She let her body emerged completely and slowly drifting off.
***