8 7

"Haha and then you glared at Paul like nothing had happened," Anne said, spilling some of her drink in the process as she laughed heartily.

"Yea seriously what do I even think of most of the time," Vice said in a drunken slur. His brown cheeks were tinted red. "This drink really has a kick to it, doesn't it Anne… Hey Anne, wake up, come on,"

Vice tried to shove the girl awake, however she would not let her beauty sleep be ruined. She rested her head against his shoulder, a content smile plastered on her face. A whiff of a sweet vanilla fragrance hit Vice's nose as he tried to move the girl.

"Ahh, why are you like this Anne," Vice said as he breathed out a heavy sigh. He then picked up the with ease, who pressed her arms around his shoulder tightly.

Vice walked up the stairs of her house carefully, until he reached the pink door he recognized was to her room. He swiftly opened the door, and put Anne on her bed, tucking her tightly into her blanket.

'Doesn't she look adorable Vice. Why don't you go snuggle there with her, I doubt she'd be angry,' Favian said in a mocking tone.

'Shut up. She's already asleep, I don't wanna wake her up either. Ahh just shut up,' Vice replied.

'Okay, okay, no need to get so defensive,' Favian said.

Vice walked back down the stairs and went to the couch, slumping down into it. The soft texture of the couch brought him to sleep better than any lullaby could.

"Ahhh, my head," Vice said as he woke up from his sleep. He held his head tightly with his hand as it felt like his brain would explode any moment.

'What's this?' he thought as he noticed a warm, plump sensation on his chest.

Vice rubbed at his eyes, trying to make sense of what was on top of him. Laying comfortably on him, with drool falling off her lips, onto his clothes, was Anne.

"For gods sake Anne, not again," Vice muttered. He tried to move the petite girl off him, however she clung onto him tightly, and coiled around him like as he got up.

"Good morning Vice. Did you sleep well, cos I did," Anne said with a giggle. Unlike Vice who looked sluggish from the night before, she was booming with vitality, as if the alcohol had no effect on her whatsoever.

"What's wrong? Why are you staring at me like that?"

"Huh? Oh sorry. I spaced out," Vice replied.

[DING! Would the host like to accept the quest 'Widow Maker'? Experience reward of 1000 experience and a random reward]

'Is there any more information available on the quest? Like what do I have to do?' he thought.

[DING! The system cannot give you any information on the quest until the host accepts it]

Vice's face contorted into a scowl, much to the surprise of Anne who was standing only a few meters away from him. "Wh-what? Is there something on my face?" she asked.

Vice shook his head to the question, instead focusing his attention to the system. 'Fine, I accept the quest. I can just not do it if it's too difficult.'

[DING! The host has accepted the quest 'Widow Maker'. An mysterious figure is tormenting the family's of Restok and killing off the husband's of various women. Your objective is to find out who or what is causing this tragedy, and put a stop to it by any means necessary]

'Where do I even begin with that? What am I talking about, I don't want to help those toxic humans from Restok who made my life a hell. No way system, forfeit the quest immediately,' Vice thought.

'Haha I don't think it's as simple as saying you forfeit the quest Vice,' Favian said.

[DING! The host has accepted the quest and forfeiting will impose a 95% reduction of rewards earned for the next ten quests the host receives. If the host forfeits any further quests, the amount will be increased gradually]

'Told you,' Favian said with a laugh.

Vice slouched back into the couch before breathing out a long sigh. It was only now that he saw that Anne had been looking at him the whole time. "Sorry, I'm back now. Anyways I've gotta leave now, send me a message when you're done with your end of the job."

"For sure! See you later. Oh say hi to Angeline for me," she replied. Anne walked him to the door before giving him a long hug.

Vice walked through the sunny streets with his hood across his head, despite it not covering his horns as they just pierced through it. Many stares came his way as he walked around, but he ignored each and every one of them, instead focusing on his walk to his temporary lodgings.

It didn't take too long for him to reach the hotel, and after quickly showing the hotel token to a different staff member from the night before, he reached the villa.

"Mom, I'm back. Are you okay?" he asked loudly.

"Yes, I'm in the kitchen," Angeline replied. As Vice walked into the kitchen he could see her cooking some things on the stove.

"Huh? Mum you don't need to cook, you can order some food from the kitchen," Vice said. His mother simply looked back at him and gave a tender smile. It was only then that he smelled what she was cooking, and he salivated in anticipation. "I-Is that your special salmon pasta? You haven't made it in years…"

"Yes honey. I found some inspiration after I woke up today. Here eat up, I know how much you love this dish," she replied, handing Vice a porcelain plate with pasta and a tender,pink salmon that was covered in a red sauce.

Vice hurriedly took the plate and gulfed down the contents, leaving not a single particle on it. The plate looked as clean, if not cleaner than it had been before the food was put on it. Vice was even able to see his reflection on it perfectly.

"Thanks Mom, I needed that. I've got some work to do so just take it easy here. I put your medication next to your bedside table, make sure to take it," Vice said. He gave his mother a kiss on the forehead before he left the villa.

'Ahh I hate being out here during the day. But there's nothing else I can do, I guess? I need to find some widows, first of all,' he thought to himself. The sun was high up in the sky, and it was close to noon by now.

Vice made his way to an information broker, as he needed some help with this quest of his. The system gave him no additional information, so he needed to take matters into his own hands.

A small shabby building made completely out of wood stood in front of Vice. Its windows were tinted black, stopping any light from entering through. The rest of the street was desolate, with not a single building near where Vice was currently standing. Barely any people walked past despite it being the busiest time of the day.

'Awfully quiet don't you think? Guess Jack's got no new business as usual,' Favian said.

Vice walked through the fragile door with a confident stride. A bell rung as he opened the door, and immediately after a high-pitched voice called out to him. "Who's there? Just give me one second I'm in the back."

Vice waited behind a small counter, which only reached up to his hips. The interior lighting was extremely dim, with only a few candles that were placed on the walls adding brightness to the room. After a while, a small dwarf walked through the door behind the counter, bells jingling with every step that he took. His nose protruded out pretty far, and red dots were sprinkled across the dwarf's snow-white skin. The dwarf opened his mouth wide in a smile as he came through to see Vice stood there.

"Oh Vice, long time no see. What brings you here?" Jack asked. He ruffled through some metal pieces behind the counter as he spoke.

"I need some information, apparently there's been an influx of widows in Restok," Vice said.

"Hmm widows?" Jack looked up at the boy towering him with a glint in his eyes. "Now that you mention it, I remember hearing some rumors about a widowmaker recently. Now if only I could remember…" he said as he rubbed at his head.

CLANG

A heavy bag filled to the brim with gold pieces was thrown onto the table, which Jack immediately grabbed. "Eight, Nine, Ten. Ten gold pieces, seems like it's all in order. Okay, so I've heard recently that in the old residential district, more specifically in the Gwabu area, there have been sightings of a mysterious apparition at night. Every week without end one man will die there, and the cause of death is never known," Jack said.