My Milf System

Chapter 391 - 391: 391. Stacks

I spent the entire day operating out of the market district, where I sold off a few high-tier system health potions to some ultra-wealthy elites. Flipping them at a premium prize secured me a nice stack of cold cash to fund my operations on Earth.After wrapping up my business, I returned to my guard post as usual. Laying flat on my single bed inside the caretaker's quarters, I pulled out my phone to dial Mio.

My plan was to use Mnemomancy on her to allow me to smoothly lock onto her brainwaves, giving me a clear grasp of her mind, her daily schedule, and whatever twisted thoughts she was harboring.

Ring... ring...

The line droned on until the automated voicemail cut it off. No answer. I furrowed my brows, staring at the blank screen.

'What the hell is this bitch doing that's more important than answering her phone?'

Groaning as I forced myself up from the mattress, I walked over to the wooden bookshelf lining the far wall.

I reached out and firmly pressed the spine of a copy of Fifty Shades of Grey backward. A crisp click echoed through the room, and the entire bookshelf swung smoothly inward like a vault door, revealing the glowing array of monitors in my hidden CCTV hub.

Stepping inside, the secret passage sealed itself shut behind me. I sank into my comfortable leather office chair, cracking my knuckles as I pulled Mio's designated apartment feed onto the center screen to see what she was up to.

The eccentric woman was completely cooped up under a mountain of blankets on her bed. She was lying flat on her back with a laptop resting precariously on her chest, completely engrossed in whatever video was playing on her screen, a pair of headphones clamped over her ears.

I initiated another call to her device.

On the monitor, I watched her smartphone vibrate and light up against the wood of her nightstand, but she didn't even glance in its direction.

"This bitch..." I muttered, leaning my head back against the leather headrest with a frown.

This frustrating pattern persisted for the next couple of days. Mio never bothered to return a single one of my missed calls. Even when I finally sent her a direct text explicitly stating that it was me—the caretaker—she simply responded back with a lazy, nonchalant message: 'There haven't been any weird sounds coming through the walls lately... it's honestly so disappointing.'

I was beginning to share her disappointment, though for entirely different reasons. The narrative velocity of the past few days had slowed to a grinding halt.

There wasn't a single shred of actionable data coming from Secretary Kim, Josh, or my ex-wife. The only exception was a brief anomaly a day prior, when I observed Karen emptying every single scrap of illicit cash from her master bedroom safe into a duffel bag before speeding away in her car.

I was also deeply underwhelmed by the Shinigami syndicate. After trading blows with a Division Commander like Mr. Zero, I was entirely convinced their upper echelons would launch a coordinated retaliation to hunt me down. Instead, it was absolute silence.

I was bored out of my mind.

That was... until Friday night finally arrived.

And right on cue, the underworld ecosystem exploded with movement. Josh was running late, exactly as I had anticipated based on his weekly logistics schedule.

But over in my ex-wife's unit, the main event was already underway. Tonight, Karen had a visitor: my old, loyal friend, Tom.

He stepped into her living room carrying a briefcase, a mask of profound exhaustion and deep anxiety etched into the lines of his face.

The moment he crossed the threshold, Karen immediately shifted gears, her face warping into a miserable, sympathy-seeking expression. "Thank God, Tom," she gasped, her voice trembling dramatically. "I thought you were never going to show up again."

Tom sank heavily onto her couch, setting the briefcase flat on the coffee table. "I was hustling..." he muttered, his voice dropping into the low, gravelly register of a man who had been pushed to his absolute physical limits. "But finally... I managed to raise the capital."

He popped the latches and flipped the briefcase open. Packed tightly inside the interior compartments were thick stacks of US dollars, practically smelling of fresh ink.

A fleeting smirk danced across Karen's lips before she instantly masked it, throwing herself forward to wrap Tom in a suffocatingly long embrace.

"Oh, Tom... you're an absolute lifesaver," she murmured into the crook of his neck.

Tom remained entirely stiff, his hands hovering awkwardly until she finally disengaged from the hug. He looked her straight in the eye, his expression deadpan and serious. "This is a full million dollars, Karen. I had to secure high-interest loans and grind myself to the bone to compile this. I even... I even sold the small family restaurant that my late parents passed down to me."

He sold the restaurant!?

I leaned forward in my leather chair, my eyes widening as my brows knit into a tight, furious line. "Are you fucking kidding me, Tom?"

That local noodle shop meant the absolute world to him. It was the sole inheritance his parents had left behind, the sacred spot where he and I used to crash and devour bowls of hot noodles after getting completely wasted at the neighborhood bars.

I couldn't fathom that he would sacrifice something so precious for my ex wife. Damn her.

"It was the only way I could raise the sum in time... to guarantee my family's safety," Tom said, his voice cracking slightly. I almost screamed that Karen was playing you for a damn fool! "I just want my wife and kids to live peacefully, without the constant, looming threat of the Shinigami hanging over our heads because of the massive debts Alex left behind before he died. His ghost put a heavy burden on all of us."

I clenched my fists until my knuckles turned stark white. Debts? I didn't leave a single cent of debt to anyone before I crossed over. The venomous bitch had fabricated an entire narrative of financial ruin to exploit my closest friends.

Karen went into full, theatrical overdrive. She began weeping bitter, manufactured tears, showering Tom with manic gratitude until she literally dropped to her knees, groveling on the carpet and kissing the tops of his leather boots.

"With this amount... the Shinigami won't have a reason to target us anymore, Tom," she sobbed, clutching the money to her chest. "You're our true savior. The moment my corporate assets stabilize, I swear to you, I'll pay back every single dollar."

Tom stood up, adjusting his coat as he looked down at her. "Ah, there's no need for that. Alex was a brother to me. Restoring his family's safety is enough. Well then, I'm heading out. Wouldn't want to keep the wife waiting any longer."

Karen waved a trembling hand as he walked out the door. But the absolute second the lock clicked shut, her fragile demeanor instantly vanished.

She lunged back toward the coffee table like a ravenous animal, snatching up the bricks of cash. A massive, twisted smile stretched across her face as she lifted a stack to her nose, deeply inhaling the scent of the currency like it was the very oxygen she required to breathe.

"Finally..." she whispered, her eyes wide and manic. "This should be more than enough. I'll transport it to them tomorrow evening."

Them?

I raised an eyebrow, my analytical mind instantly mapping out the variables. 'Who the hell is 'them'? What is she actually plotting with a million dollars in liquid cash? For what specific purpose?'

As the strategic questions piled up in my head, time was also moving forward. Just like the previous week, the primary hallway cameras didn't catch a single glimpse of Josh entering the building. The first and only indication of his presence was the bathroom monitor flickering to life as he walked in to take a leak.

The mystery of his spatial displacement remained, but tonight, I wasn't relying solely on my cameras. Everything was riding on my newly tamed asset Loona.

I just hoped, for her sake, she wouldn't disappoint me.

To be continued...