bignt
Disclaimer: If you haven't noticed, I didn't put a romance tag on the novel. This is because what I am writing is less about romance, and more about smut.
If you have a good romance novel to suggest, I am open to ideas, but please give me a constructive comment and not straight-up say: "It sucks."
Again, what might be enjoyable for others to read might not be satisfying to you, like how some people like pizza but not hamburgers. So, if you don't enjoy those parts, don't judge. You can give me a constructive comment if you want.
Thank you for your understanding and enjoy.
Sometime later...
Tess was in her room, changing into her new clothes.
Meanwhile, I sat on the couch, fidgeting while struggling about how I should tell her things.
As for why I am struggling so much?
Of course, it is because it is ridiculous and cringe as fuck.
You need to be next-level crazy to suddenly tell someone something like: "Hey, you can't do yandere stuff. It's bad, m'kay?"1South Park reference.
Then again, I killed an army... Even if out of self-defense.
"Still, I need to put some bottom lines..."
{You are overthinking things. There is an obvious solution you can use.}
"Really? What is it?" - I asked curiously.
{It is...}
A few minutes later...
Clack*
I looked over and saw Tess exiting her room with a brilliant smile.
She wore a marine blue v-line knee-long wrap dress, accentuating her curves and slightly revealing a deep ravine. Her feet were also decorated with strap sandals, fitting the summer weather. And on her neck, she adorned a simple necklace, further highlighting her chest. And she also had a small handbag in her hand, completing the look.
Even without hair, earrings, or makeup, she was naturally stunning.
"What do you think?" - Tess smiled and did a twirl.
"Looks amazing. It compliments you." - I gave a thumbs up.
"Thank you~. Arly picked it for me." - Tess smiled and raised the AR assistant.
[Oh, Tess, I am weak to praises~] - Arly playfully replied.
"Haha, I'm glad you two are getting along. Anyways, I have something to discuss with you, Tess." - I smiled and said.
"Sure. What is it?" - Tess blinked and sat next to me.
"We are now a couple, so I think we should have some rules." - A said gently.
"That's a great idea! What do you have in mind?" - Tess asked with a bright smile.
"Well..."
Sometime later...
"So, healthy relationship rules 101?" - Tess raised an eyebrow.
"Pretty much." - I nodded.
I talked to her about some common sense things; Honesty, a harmonious atmosphere, no cheating, no arguing in public, Being upfront about being jealous(Super important), sharing desires, personal space, no threatening, no violence, etc.
It was the obvious-if-you-think-about-it solution.
"Well, I agree on almost all the rules, but there is one that I would like to amend..." - Tess said, a mischievous grin playing on her lips.
"Oh? What's that?" - I asked curiously.
The moment I asked that...
"Wah!"
Tess pounced on me, pinning me on the couch.
"Tess?" - I warily looked at the beautiful face barely 10cm away.
Her hot breath lightly tickled me, and her Azure eyes stared at me with a burning passion.
"Hmhmhm~ Caught you~" - She playfully said like a mischievous cat and leaned over.
I thought she was about to kiss me, but instead, she leaned over to my right ear, her chest pressed against mine and her right knee brushing against my groin.
"Phew~" - She blew hot air on my ear, making me shiver.
I lay there, frozen like prey, waiting in a strange mixture of trepidation and excitement about what she was about to do next.
She then started to whisper in my ear.
"I..."
A bit later...
I lay on the couch alone, speechless.
I never took her for the type.
It turns out I read her in the wrong way.
She isn't a Yandere type.
She is... She is...!
Going back in time...
"I am fine with you sleeping around~." - She said softly to my ear.
"W-Wha..." - I uttered, unable to comprehend what I heard.
"Oh, Iver~ You're the incarnation of a god. I can't monopolize you~. It is even normal for you to have a harem~." - Tess whispered while rubbing my chest.
"B-But don't you feel uncomfortable about it?" - I couldn't help but ask.
"Uncomfortable? Perhaps, if you don't follow my rules~." - Tess said while pressing her finger against my chest, her fingernail lightly scratching my skin.
"Gulp* What rules?" - I asked.
"Rule number one: You can have sex with however many bitches you want, but I am your number one~." - She tapped my chest.
"Rule number two: Having sex with other women will not prevent you from having sex with me~." - She dragged her finger up.
"Rule number three: Every time you have sex with another woman, tell me about it, including all the juicy details~." - Her finger reached my nape.
"Rule number four: If another woman wants to have sex with you, tell her you are in a half-open relationship, and don't lie." - Her finger dragged itself to my lips.
"Rule number five: If another woman wants to be in a serious relationship with you, despite knowing your situation, she needs my approval. Similarly, I can kick them out if they displease me." - Her finger gently tapped my lips.
"Rule number six: If you, intentionally or not, impregnate another woman I did not approve of..."
"Oof!" - I groaned.
I felt her right knee press harder against my groin.
"...then the child will not be recognized as yours. So think twice before irresponsibly impregnating women."
"Have I made myself clear, honey~ Mm*" - Tess said and lightly bit my earlobe.
I felt an electric shock running through me, Iver Jr. screaming against her knee.
"Y-Yes, ma'am! Understood, ma'am!" - I could only say.
"Hmhmhm~ Good boy~. I need to prepare some legal documents for the company. And you also owe me a date tonight~. Mwa*"
She chuckled seductively, pecked me on the cheek, and left me on the couch, feeling weirdly horny.
However, I now know what she is.
She isn't a dormant Yandere.
She is... she is...!
"She is just batshit crazy!"
Recalling her personality traits, I also realized I missed a crucial point.
A Yandere has the Jealous trait. In contrast, Tess is even less Jealous than 99% of the women on the planet.
In other words, I didn't read her character correctly.
Instead, she has a weird fetish...
"Is this some form of self-NTR fetish?" - I asked myself while staring at the ceiling.
While thinking about that, Trod suddenly spoke.
{Perhaps that was an incentive, but she is likely protecting you.}
"Hah? What do you mean by that?" - I asked back.
I failed to understand how that was her protecting me.
{She is your Zealot, and her priority is guarding you, sometimes of yourself. Perhaps she believes you are romantically awkward and easily deceived, yet cannot control your actions directly, so she chose this method to protect you from future harm, physical or spiritual. And she is right on the money.}
"Hey! I am not easily deceived!" - I retorted.
{Oh, please. Would you freeze there like a deer under the headlights if it was true? Your resistance to seduction is only powered by your mental scars, which are ebbing away as we speak. As you stand now, that girl at the gym could have seduced you. You don't even realize you are firmly under Tess's heel. And she noticed the problem at a glance and took proper countermeasures to prevent you from hurting yourself. I commend her foresight.}
"By turning it into some sort of fucked-up half-open relationship?!" - I exasperatedly said.
{Why not? I know of much weirder godly relationships, and the one you now have with Tess is one of the conservative ones.}
"You call that conservative?! She just gave me the go-ahead to knock up strangers!"
{And also warned you of the consequences. Perhaps, in her mind, you are like a Hellenistic god's incarnation, having many love affairs and bastard children, many ending up badly, so she created a foothold for you so you won't sink into a quagmire of your own making. And she is correct in her thoughts. In eventuality, you would succumb to your desires, whether you like it or not.}
"... This is fucked up..." - I said in my mind.
{Perspective, Iver. It is all about perspective.}
"... Fuck this. I'm strengthening myself..."
After deciding not to think about it anymore, I checked my energy.
Basic Energy: 11,761 -> 8,642
Evolution Energy A: 2,418 -> 2,108
Enhancement Energy A: 111,610
Nodding to myself, I spent strengthened myself for the fifth time...
Basic Energy: 8,642 -> 7,642
Evolution Energy A: 2,108 -> 2,008
...And lost consciousness again.
But I didn't know that, at this time, Tess leaned against her door, staring at the ceiling, lost in thought.
"Am I really okay with sharing him? Will I not get jealous and hurt? But it is to protect him..." - Tess thought.
Did she want him for herself? Of course, she did! But...
"As things stand, he has no resistance to women. And, with his status as a god, and his ability to go to other realities, it is only a matter of time before he cheats on me. Until I build up his resistance, I need to take an understanding approach and be his stable ground." - Tess sighed, resigning to her role as a Zealot.
"Hah... But the thought of him sleeping around with hussies, getting other lovers, knocking up girls left and right... And all under my consent, with those poor girls under my mercy... being the superior alpha female that the beta females need to beg and listen to, to get the scraps of meat on my plate... This forbidden pleasure no other woman can experience in her life..."
Subconsciously, her hand reached under her dress.
It was wet.
"... I'm batshit crazy, aren't I?" - She thought.
No sane woman would think this is hot. You had to have more than a few screws loose for this.
"Is this because I became his Zealot? Or is this because of the years I was repressed? Or, maybe I was always like this? Or was it a combination of the three?" - Tess questioned herself.
However, those thoughts became inconsequential as she put her fingers in her mouth.
"Mm~"
"Forget it. I will relieve myself first~."
With that thought in mind, she entered the bathroom and locked the door.
...
An hour later...
I sat on the couch, studying my mind files, absorbing their knowledge.
I currently focused on the Ascended general knowledge, which included their likely thought patterns and conduct.
And, oh boy, what I read is shocking, if not disturbing.
According to research, the Ascended have an elitist oligarchic, utopian socialist society.
Something like this is impossible in human society, but the Ascended are ultimately not humans but genetic transhumans.
First, they have an inherent weakness to authority, making them yield to those higher on the evolution chain.
Second, they are based on the Spore-Spreader, and all the facilities in the Spore-Spreader are controlled by the whole community, making capitalism almost impossible.
At most, the Ascended would adopt a credit-based structure to reward meritorious deeds to the community.
And third, the problem of having lazy or inapt individuals in roles of power is almost nonexistent. This is because the Ascended are highly intelligent and productive, and with their inherent knowledge and hunger for advancement, ideal socialism can work.
However, I also made a somewhat disturbing discovery.
The General knowledge includes in-depth wisdom about sex, reproduction, and all the taboos and consequences.
And there is also non-general knowledge that includes things that rival sex gurus.
In other words, the newborn Ascended are like adults trapped inside a kid's body. When they have an adult body at age 1, they are adults, body and mind, not to be treated as innocent children.
No, perhaps they are more mature than most adults.
That means treating them like children is humiliating.
"Until now, I treated Primrose like a child. I should re-evaluate how I treat her..." - I muttered.
While I was thinking that, Tess exited her room, looking radiant.
"I am done with the paperwork. I only need to send it." - Tess smiled.
"Oh, great! I need to get to my old apartment soon for a quick check and officially move out. Can you give me a lift?" - I asked.
"Sure! Just give me a minute, and we can go." - Tess smiled and walked back to her room.
After waiting five minutes, Tess returned, wearing natural lipstick, sunglasses, and a brimmed hat.
"Classy." - I remarked.
"Thanks~. But can I ask you to keep the laptop for me? I don't want to keep it in my safe..." - She sheepishly said.
"Hah... Alright." - I nodded and stored the laptop.
And after activating the alarm and locking the door, we left.
...
Ten minutes later...
I sat inside a black Chevrolet Impala with Tess on the wheels.
Surprisingly, the car was clean of drugs, and only the driver's seat had a synthetic towel for sweat insulation... which Tess threw away.
She refrained from taking drugs in the car to avoid driving on drugs and running someone over, a considerate move in light of the high number of drug-induced car accidents.
"So, you were working part-time at telemarketing after graduating from college? And only recently became an incarnation of a god?" - Tess asked.
"That is correct. Crazy, right?" - I said while staring out the window.
"Well, you are indeed lucky. And I am also a lucky girl~." - Tess sweetly said.
Turning my head, I saw a pure, innocent smile radiating happiness.
"Damn, she is cute... totally nuts, but cute..." - I thought.
Just then...
{Wait. I sense something.}
"Tess, hold up. Can you stop the car somewhere?" - I asked.
"Oh, sure." - Tess was surprised but nodded.
"Trod, what is it?" - I asked.
{Hm... I feel the residual presence of the fake. It is faint, likely from an outburst, but I sense it.}
"Where?" - I asked.
{Check the alley on the right.}
Looking to the right, I saw an inconspicuous empty alley.
"Is it there?" - I asked warily.
{No. I would have sensed it. It is safe to check.}
Mentally nodding, I turned to Tess.
"Tess, wait for a moment. I will be back soon." - I said and left the car.
"Okay!" - Tess nodded.
Walking into the alley, I saw nothing special.
The alley seemed empty, even clean...
"Too clean..."
And I smelled something... It was faint, but...
"Chemicals?" - I wondered.
People would find it hard to smell, but my senses were genetically enhanced.
Looking around, there was no visible evidence of what had transpired here.
Just as I was about to give up, a pigeon landed on a lamppost, making me look up.
And then I saw it.
A black-red smudge.
"..."
Without looking back, I returned to the car, my mood feeling sour.
Returning to my seat, I sighed.
"What happened, Iver? You look down." - Tess asked worriedly.
"... It's nothing. Just remember, don't walk alone in the dark. It's dangerous." - I shook my head.
"... Alright." - Tess nodded.
And we continued driving to the apartment, my mind occupied by an unpleasant thought.
"Someone is covering for that monster... It might be a group, organization, or even the government... Shit is getting real..."
With that thought, an idea sprung into my head.
"Maybe I should let Arly hack the government?"
bignt
Disclaimer: If you haven't noticed, I didn't put a romance tag on the novel. This is because what I am writing is less about romance, and more about smut.
If you have a good romance novel to suggest, I am open to ideas, but please give me a constructive comment and not straight-up say: "It sucks."
Again, what might be enjoyable for others to read might not be satisfying to you, like how some people like pizza but not hamburgers. So, if you don't enjoy those parts, don't judge. You can give me a constructive comment if you want.
Thank you for your understanding and enjoy.
Sometime later...
Tess was in her room, changing into her new clothes.
Meanwhile, I sat on the couch, fidgeting while struggling about how I should tell her things.
As for why I am struggling so much?
Of course, it is because it is ridiculous and cringe as fuck.
You need to be next-level crazy to suddenly tell someone something like: "Hey, you can't do yandere stuff. It's bad, m'kay?"1South Park reference.
Then again, I killed an army... Even if out of self-defense.
"Still, I need to put some bottom lines..."
{You are overthinking things. There is an obvious solution you can use.}
"Really? What is it?" - I asked curiously.
{It is...}
A few minutes later...
Clack*
I looked over and saw Tess exiting her room with a brilliant smile.
She wore a marine blue v-line knee-long wrap dress, accentuating her curves and slightly revealing a deep ravine. Her feet were also decorated with strap sandals, fitting the summer weather. And on her neck, she adorned a simple necklace, further highlighting her chest. And she also had a small handbag in her hand, completing the look.
Even without hair, earrings, or makeup, she was naturally stunning.
"What do you think?" - Tess smiled and did a twirl.
"Looks amazing. It compliments you." - I gave a thumbs up.
"Thank you~. Arly picked it for me." - Tess smiled and raised the AR assistant.
[Oh, Tess, I am weak to praises~] - Arly playfully replied.
"Haha, I'm glad you two are getting along. Anyways, I have something to discuss with you, Tess." - I smiled and said.
"Sure. What is it?" - Tess blinked and sat next to me.
"We are now a couple, so I think we should have some rules." - A said gently.
"That's a great idea! What do you have in mind?" - Tess asked with a bright smile.
"Well..."
Sometime later...
"So, healthy relationship rules 101?" - Tess raised an eyebrow.
"Pretty much." - I nodded.
I talked to her about some common sense things; Honesty, a harmonious atmosphere, no cheating, no arguing in public, Being upfront about being jealous(Super important), sharing desires, personal space, no threatening, no violence, etc.
It was the obvious-if-you-think-about-it solution.
"Well, I agree on almost all the rules, but there is one that I would like to amend..." - Tess said, a mischievous grin playing on her lips.
"Oh? What's that?" - I asked curiously.
The moment I asked that...
"Wah!"
Tess pounced on me, pinning me on the couch.
"Tess?" - I warily looked at the beautiful face barely 10cm away.
Her hot breath lightly tickled me, and her Azure eyes stared at me with a burning passion.
"Hmhmhm~ Caught you~" - She playfully said like a mischievous cat and leaned over.
I thought she was about to kiss me, but instead, she leaned over to my right ear, her chest pressed against mine and her right knee brushing against my groin.
"Phew~" - She blew hot air on my ear, making me shiver.
I lay there, frozen like prey, waiting in a strange mixture of trepidation and excitement about what she was about to do next.
She then started to whisper in my ear.
"I..."
A bit later...
I lay on the couch alone, speechless.
I never took her for the type.
It turns out I read her in the wrong way.
She isn't a Yandere type.
She is... She is...!
Going back in time...
"I am fine with you sleeping around~." - She said softly to my ear.
"W-Wha..." - I uttered, unable to comprehend what I heard.
"Oh, Iver~ You're the incarnation of a god. I can't monopolize you~. It is even normal for you to have a harem~." - Tess whispered while rubbing my chest.
"B-But don't you feel uncomfortable about it?" - I couldn't help but ask.
"Uncomfortable? Perhaps, if you don't follow my rules~." - Tess said while pressing her finger against my chest, her fingernail lightly scratching my skin.
"Gulp* What rules?" - I asked.
"Rule number one: You can have sex with however many bitches you want, but I am your number one~." - She tapped my chest.
"Rule number two: Having sex with other women will not prevent you from having sex with me~." - She dragged her finger up.
"Rule number three: Every time you have sex with another woman, tell me about it, including all the juicy details~." - Her finger reached my nape.
"Rule number four: If another woman wants to have sex with you, tell her you are in a half-open relationship, and don't lie." - Her finger dragged itself to my lips.
"Rule number five: If another woman wants to be in a serious relationship with you, despite knowing your situation, she needs my approval. Similarly, I can kick them out if they displease me." - Her finger gently tapped my lips.
"Rule number six: If you, intentionally or not, impregnate another woman I did not approve of..."
"Oof!" - I groaned.
I felt her right knee press harder against my groin.
"...then the child will not be recognized as yours. So think twice before irresponsibly impregnating women."
"Have I made myself clear, honey~ Mm*" - Tess said and lightly bit my earlobe.
I felt an electric shock running through me, Iver Jr. screaming against her knee.
"Y-Yes, ma'am! Understood, ma'am!" - I could only say.
"Hmhmhm~ Good boy~. I need to prepare some legal documents for the company. And you also owe me a date tonight~. Mwa*"
She chuckled seductively, pecked me on the cheek, and left me on the couch, feeling weirdly horny.
However, I now know what she is.
She isn't a dormant Yandere.
She is... she is...!
"She is just batshit crazy!"
Recalling her personality traits, I also realized I missed a crucial point.
A Yandere has the Jealous trait. In contrast, Tess is even less Jealous than 99% of the women on the planet.
In other words, I didn't read her character correctly.
Instead, she has a weird fetish...
"Is this some form of self-NTR fetish?" - I asked myself while staring at the ceiling.
While thinking about that, Trod suddenly spoke.
{Perhaps that was an incentive, but she is likely protecting you.}
"Hah? What do you mean by that?" - I asked back.
I failed to understand how that was her protecting me.
{She is your Zealot, and her priority is guarding you, sometimes of yourself. Perhaps she believes you are romantically awkward and easily deceived, yet cannot control your actions directly, so she chose this method to protect you from future harm, physical or spiritual. And she is right on the money.}
"Hey! I am not easily deceived!" - I retorted.
{Oh, please. Would you freeze there like a deer under the headlights if it was true? Your resistance to seduction is only powered by your mental scars, which are ebbing away as we speak. As you stand now, that girl at the gym could have seduced you. You don't even realize you are firmly under Tess's heel. And she noticed the problem at a glance and took proper countermeasures to prevent you from hurting yourself. I commend her foresight.}
"By turning it into some sort of fucked-up half-open relationship?!" - I exasperatedly said.
{Why not? I know of much weirder godly relationships, and the one you now have with Tess is one of the conservative ones.}
"You call that conservative?! She just gave me the go-ahead to knock up strangers!"
{And also warned you of the consequences. Perhaps, in her mind, you are like a Hellenistic god's incarnation, having many love affairs and bastard children, many ending up badly, so she created a foothold for you so you won't sink into a quagmire of your own making. And she is correct in her thoughts. In eventuality, you would succumb to your desires, whether you like it or not.}
"... This is fucked up..." - I said in my mind.
{Perspective, Iver. It is all about perspective.}
"... Fuck this. I'm strengthening myself..."
After deciding not to think about it anymore, I checked my energy.
Basic Energy: 11,761 -> 8,642
Evolution Energy A: 2,418 -> 2,108
Enhancement Energy A: 111,610
Nodding to myself, I spent strengthened myself for the fifth time...
Basic Energy: 8,642 -> 7,642
Evolution Energy A: 2,108 -> 2,008
...And lost consciousness again.
But I didn't know that, at this time, Tess leaned against her door, staring at the ceiling, lost in thought.
"Am I really okay with sharing him? Will I not get jealous and hurt? But it is to protect him..." - Tess thought.
Did she want him for herself? Of course, she did! But...
"As things stand, he has no resistance to women. And, with his status as a god, and his ability to go to other realities, it is only a matter of time before he cheats on me. Until I build up his resistance, I need to take an understanding approach and be his stable ground." - Tess sighed, resigning to her role as a Zealot.
"Hah... But the thought of him sleeping around with hussies, getting other lovers, knocking up girls left and right... And all under my consent, with those poor girls under my mercy... being the superior alpha female that the beta females need to beg and listen to, to get the scraps of meat on my plate... This forbidden pleasure no other woman can experience in her life..."
Subconsciously, her hand reached under her dress.
It was wet.
"... I'm batshit crazy, aren't I?" - She thought.
No sane woman would think this is hot. You had to have more than a few screws loose for this.
"Is this because I became his Zealot? Or is this because of the years I was repressed? Or, maybe I was always like this? Or was it a combination of the three?" - Tess questioned herself.
However, those thoughts became inconsequential as she put her fingers in her mouth.
"Mm~"
"Forget it. I will relieve myself first~."
With that thought in mind, she entered the bathroom and locked the door.
...
An hour later...
I sat on the couch, studying my mind files, absorbing their knowledge.
I currently focused on the Ascended general knowledge, which included their likely thought patterns and conduct.
And, oh boy, what I read is shocking, if not disturbing.
According to research, the Ascended have an elitist oligarchic, utopian socialist society.
Something like this is impossible in human society, but the Ascended are ultimately not humans but genetic transhumans.
First, they have an inherent weakness to authority, making them yield to those higher on the evolution chain.
Second, they are based on the Spore-Spreader, and all the facilities in the Spore-Spreader are controlled by the whole community, making capitalism almost impossible.
At most, the Ascended would adopt a credit-based structure to reward meritorious deeds to the community.
And third, the problem of having lazy or inapt individuals in roles of power is almost nonexistent. This is because the Ascended are highly intelligent and productive, and with their inherent knowledge and hunger for advancement, ideal socialism can work.
However, I also made a somewhat disturbing discovery.
The General knowledge includes in-depth wisdom about sex, reproduction, and all the taboos and consequences.
And there is also non-general knowledge that includes things that rival sex gurus.
In other words, the newborn Ascended are like adults trapped inside a kid's body. When they have an adult body at age 1, they are adults, body and mind, not to be treated as innocent children.
No, perhaps they are more mature than most adults.
That means treating them like children is humiliating.
"Until now, I treated Primrose like a child. I should re-evaluate how I treat her..." - I muttered.
While I was thinking that, Tess exited her room, looking radiant.
"I am done with the paperwork. I only need to send it." - Tess smiled.
"Oh, great! I need to get to my old apartment soon for a quick check and officially move out. Can you give me a lift?" - I asked.
"Sure! Just give me a minute, and we can go." - Tess smiled and walked back to her room.
After waiting five minutes, Tess returned, wearing natural lipstick, sunglasses, and a brimmed hat.
"Classy." - I remarked.
"Thanks~. But can I ask you to keep the laptop for me? I don't want to keep it in my safe..." - She sheepishly said.
"Hah... Alright." - I nodded and stored the laptop.
And after activating the alarm and locking the door, we left.
...
Ten minutes later...
I sat inside a black Chevrolet Impala with Tess on the wheels.
Surprisingly, the car was clean of drugs, and only the driver's seat had a synthetic towel for sweat insulation... which Tess threw away.
She refrained from taking drugs in the car to avoid driving on drugs and running someone over, a considerate move in light of the high number of drug-induced car accidents.
"So, you were working part-time at telemarketing after graduating from college? And only recently became an incarnation of a god?" - Tess asked.
"That is correct. Crazy, right?" - I said while staring out the window.
"Well, you are indeed lucky. And I am also a lucky girl~." - Tess sweetly said.
Turning my head, I saw a pure, innocent smile radiating happiness.
"Damn, she is cute... totally nuts, but cute..." - I thought.
Just then...
{Wait. I sense something.}
"Tess, hold up. Can you stop the car somewhere?" - I asked.
"Oh, sure." - Tess was surprised but nodded.
"Trod, what is it?" - I asked.
{Hm... I feel the residual presence of the fake. It is faint, likely from an outburst, but I sense it.}
"Where?" - I asked.
{Check the alley on the right.}
Looking to the right, I saw an inconspicuous empty alley.
"Is it there?" - I asked warily.
{No. I would have sensed it. It is safe to check.}
Mentally nodding, I turned to Tess.
"Tess, wait for a moment. I will be back soon." - I said and left the car.
"Okay!" - Tess nodded.
Walking into the alley, I saw nothing special.
The alley seemed empty, even clean...
"Too clean..."
And I smelled something... It was faint, but...
"Chemicals?" - I wondered.
People would find it hard to smell, but my senses were genetically enhanced.
Looking around, there was no visible evidence of what had transpired here.
Just as I was about to give up, a pigeon landed on a lamppost, making me look up.
And then I saw it.
A black-red smudge.
"..."
Without looking back, I returned to the car, my mood feeling sour.
Returning to my seat, I sighed.
"What happened, Iver? You look down." - Tess asked worriedly.
"... It's nothing. Just remember, don't walk alone in the dark. It's dangerous." - I shook my head.
"... Alright." - Tess nodded.
And we continued driving to the apartment, my mind occupied by an unpleasant thought.
"Someone is covering for that monster... It might be a group, organization, or even the government... Shit is getting real..."
With that thought, an idea sprung into my head.
"Maybe I should let Arly hack the government?"
