Chapter 71 – Theresa's Proof of Allegiance
Behind the motel lay a stretch of wasteland.
Two bodies were buried there.
The setting sun streamed through the window, casting warm light across William's profile.
"Do you know what a pledge of allegiance really is?" William asked, pressing the cigarette butt into the ashtray.
"What does that mean?" Theresa asked.
William wasn't surprised. Most had never heard the term.
"It's simple," he said calmly.
"You do something—something that can be used against you.
Something that cuts off your path of betrayal completely."
The words sounded like a demon's whisper.
Theresa swallowed hard.
"What do you want me to do?"
William smiled.
---
Thirty minutes later.
A black BMW came to a stop in front of a house in the South Side.
Earlier, when William had been threatened by a Black gang, he had hired a private investigator to dig into their background.
This house belonged to one of their core members—more accurately, it was one of their safehouses.
Theresa sat in the passenger seat, visibly tense.
"Take this."
William handed her a fragmentation grenade.
Her hands trembled as she accepted it.
"How… how do I use this?"
She took a deep breath, forcing herself to stay calm.
She was just a spoiled college girl—not some undercover KGB operative hiding in America.
She had absolutely no idea how a grenade worked.
"It's easy," William said lightly.
"Come on, I'll show you. Step by step."
As William positioned her hands, Theresa felt like crying.
He guided her fingers around the grenade's handle—
—and then calmly pulled the pin.
"Now listen carefully," William said in the same casual tone.
"Whatever you do, don't let go of this hand.
If you do… it explodes."
Hearing something so terrifying delivered so casually—
Theresa's blood ran cold. Again.
Theresa stared at William, unable to speak for a long moment.
"Later, all you have to do is throw the grenade through that window," William said casually.
"Pretty simple, right?"
As he spoke, he flashed her a row of bright white teeth.
"God…" Theresa wailed softly.
But things had already gone this far. What choice did she have?
She had completely boarded William's pirate ship.
And under the lingering effects of the Obedience Whip, Theresa's feelings toward William had become deeply twisted.
At least for now, she simply believed she had some kind of abnormal psychology—
she didn't yet associate it with anything supernatural.
Her hands trembled as she gripped the grenade.
She opened the car door, glancing back at William again and again as she stepped out.
William, meanwhile, watched her with an encouraging gaze—
all while recording her on his phone.
Tears welled in her eyes.
Standing before the house, Theresa could hear reggae music thumping from inside.
All the frustration and fear in her heart turned into raw momentum.
She hurled the grenade toward the window William had indicated.
Crash!
Glass shattered.
The moment the grenade left her hand, Theresa spun around and sprinted back toward the passenger seat.
Even secondhand knowledge of how chaotic the South Side was made her terrified of giving anyone inside time to react.
Flesh and bone were nothing in front of a 9mm round.
"Go! Why are we still here?!" Theresa screamed as she jumped into the car, panic written all over her face.
"No rush," William replied calmly.
"Let's wait a moment."
About two seconds later—
BOOOOM!
A deafening explosion tore through the night.
Theresa instantly clapped her hands over her ears, staring in horror at the house.
She couldn't believe it.
She had just blown up a house—with a grenade.
"Nice."
William shut off his phone and gave her a thumbs-up.
Now there was no turning back.
She was fully on his side.
"You pass, Theresa."
With that, William floored the accelerator, and the black BMW shot forward.
Behind them, several Black men who had survived the blast staggered out of the house, guns in hand.
They opened fire.
Rat-a-tat-tat!
Bang!
A stray bullet shattered one of the windows.
Theresa screamed in terror.
Screams, engine roars, and gunfire blended together—
the night's symphony of the South Side.
---
[Ding! Congratulations, Host!]
Mission Complete: Save Theresa from the time loop and ensure she survives the day.
Reward: Sisyphus Module – 1 Use
---
The night passed.
To prevent any accidents, William took Theresa back to the motel and booked a separate room.
He reinforced the effects once more with the Obedience Whip.
Then he stayed awake the entire night, watching her without closing his eyes.
By the time the next day arrived, Theresa had successfully escaped her loop.
With the reward secured, William checked his current status panel:
[Host: William Blake]
Skills:
Free Combat (Mastery)
Firearms (Mastery)
Regeneration Factor (Beta)
Disease Transfer (Delta)
WRC World Champion Driving Experience
Gambling (Mastery)
MotoGP Champion Riding Experience
Russian (Mastery)
Spanish (Mastery)
Poison Immunity
Demolitions (Mastery)
Mental Imprint
Storage Space: 5 cubic meters
Shop: Firearms Procurement Store
Special Items:
Obedience Whip ×1
Sisyphus Module: Use ×1
Without realizing it, he had accumulated a frightening number of abilities.
He glanced at the time—just past eight.
"Yeah… I should head back to campus early and retrieve Sisyphus."
William had deliberately avoided collecting it the night before, worried it might trigger unforeseen consequences.
"Theresa, I'm heading back to school. Coming with me?"
Theresa lay on the bed, half-asleep.
But when she heard school, she sat up.
"Um… about us," she said hesitantly.
"You won't tell Amanda, right?"
That was the very first thing she asked after waking up.
After a night to process everything, she had more or less accepted reality.
"Do you think I'm stupid, or do you think you are?" William replied flatly.
"At school, we keep things exactly the way they were."
Theresa finally breathed a sigh of relief.
After tidying up, the two drove the BMW to Brad's auto shop.
"Wow," Brad whistled, eyeing the bullet holes and shattered glass.
"Did you just get back from Iraq or something?"
William lit a cigarette and handed one to Brad.
"How long to fix it?"
"About a week," Brad said after inspecting the damage.
"You'll need a full repaint. Same workload as last time."
"Fine. It's yours."
Timing-wise, it would still be ready for Karen's birthday.
After leaving the car behind, William and Theresa took a cab back to campus.
---
Chicago Institute of Technology – Women's Dorm Entrance.
Just as Theresa was about to step inside, a sharp voice rang out:
"Where were you all night last night?!"