The socially awkward villain's furry superpower

"Mother?"

The phone line was making a slight hissing sound, but it wasn't due to a bad connection or anything like that.

The city’s entire telephone service system was built by Optimaze many years ago, and it’s almost impossible to find a place with no telephone signal or slow internet speed.

She's been like this since she was twelve or thirteen.

She didn't really pay much attention to these things at the time, but she did remember the inventor with superpowers who had taken Ell Tele to court because he had stolen a large number of Ell Tele's customers.

His defense was that Ell Tele's service was never very good to begin with.

However, the reason their phone line was crackling was because her father had a habit of refusing to buy new things as long as they were still usable.

They still have a cathode ray tube television in their garage, and Dad just won't throw it away.

The telephone at home was one of those old-fashioned corded phones; if you held it incorrectly, it would ring incessantly.

"Honey!" Mom's voice came from the other end of the phone. "Oh dear, you didn't call yesterday, I was so worried about you."

Why didn't you call yesterday?

“Oh, uh… I forgot,” Sienna said.

That's the truth, at least. So much happened the day before that Sienna was overwhelmed and couldn't remember it all.

"You're having so much fun that you've completely forgotten about your dear mother?"

Sienna laughed and brought the phone closer to her head, as if she could embrace the voice coming from it.

“No, Mom,” Sienna smiled, “it just felt like yesterday was going on forever.”

"Was it a pleasantly long time? How were your classes? Did you make any new friends?"

She was pondering how to answer the question. "I think it was alright, um—yesterday's class was okay."

It talked a lot about things like homework, exams, and credits.

That's all stuff I already know. But my professor seems like a really nice person.

"Is the ordinary kind better, or the special kind better?"

“Mom!” Sienna said, “He’s an old man.”

“Your dad is eight years older than me,” Mom retorted in a joking tone.

Sienna felt her face flush instantly.

“Stop it, Mom,” Sienna paused, “Well, I think I’ve made a new friend too.”

The telephone line crackled a few more times, then made a snapping sound.

"Mother?"

"Honey, what kind of friend have you made?" Mom asked.

Sienna couldn't quite grasp the tone of her mother's words; it sounded like curiosity, but perhaps also a bit cautious.

"It's a girl. Her name is Teddy. She... is a little younger than me. She likes bears."

"That sounds great! How did you two meet?"

“Uh, it was in my dorm. She just suddenly appeared, and then, um…” Sienna’s mind raced, “She ate my donut.”

A chuckle came from the other end of the phone. "That's certainly a way to make friends. Hopefully, it'll be good for you."

“Well. Anyway, I have something to do,” Sienna said, “but I wanted to talk to you for a bit before that.”

"You're already so busy? I understand. You have to be careful, okay, honey?"

I know you're not the kind of girl who causes trouble, but you should still be careful anyway.

"Okay, Mom. I love you."

“I love you too,” Mom quickly replied. “Should I tell Dad you love him too, or should I say I finally won the Best Parent Award?”

Sienna couldn't help but giggle.

In just a minute or two of phone call, Mom dispelled her most serious worries.

“Tell Dad I love him too,” she said.

"I will. Be careful. I'm always here for you if you need anything, okay?"

"Thank you. Goodbye, Mom."

Goodbye, baby.

Sienna pressed the button to hang up the phone and then let her arm dangle on the desk.

Her room was quiet, with only faint background noise, the kind of sounds that are easy to ignore.

For example, the sound of footsteps coming from upstairs, or the faint snoring that sounds like whistling coming from her bed.

She glanced at the time on her phone and frowned.

It's almost three o'clock. She has to leave.

I spent the day in a daze.

She didn't pay much attention during class; from the moment she woke up, her attention had been wandering elsewhere.

“Teddy,” Sienna said as she walked toward her… summoned creature, her sister, her sidekick (she wasn’t sure which word to use yet), “Teddy, wake up.”

The little bear girl blinked, woke up, and lifted her head off Sienna's pillow.

However, her drool still left a glistening line on the pillow. "Hmm? Boss?"

Sienna nodded. "We need to get going," she said.

"Now?" Teddy asked.

"It's almost 3 p.m. You're still in your pajamas, which means you've definitely been sleeping since 7 p.m. last night. Do you really want to stay in bed any longer?"

“I got up,” Teddy emphasized. “I went to pee.”

Sienna thought to herself, "That explains how she got from the floor to her bed."

I might need your help today.

To meet a mysterious person who sent those vaguely threatening emails...

This was probably the most unwise thing Sienna ever did.

This incident kept her from sleeping well the night before, and it kept getting on her mind during class.

Teddy yawned and rolled off the bed. "Why didn't you say this from the beginning?" she said.

Sienna turned away as Teddy took off his clothes to change into shorts and a t-shirt with a bear print.

She only turned back when she heard that Teddy was having trouble tying his shoelaces.

She placed all her hopes on a girl who couldn't even tie her shoelaces properly.

This is really worrying.

“Hurry up,” Sienna said after everything was ready and Teddy’s shoes were tied with pretty bows. “The sooner we get there, the sooner this will be over.”

“Sure. Boss, can we grab something to eat on the way?” Teddy said, reaching into Sienna’s hand.

Sienna nodded. "Of course, we can eat it on the way back."

Neither of them spoke as they walked out of the dormitory. Sienna arrived on a cloudy afternoon, and the weather had noticeably turned chilly.

It's not cold enough to be unbearable yet, but the chill is enough to remind everyone that winter is just around the corner.

She had to pull out her phone and Google the address of the "Dark Cup" café. It should be about four blocks from campus.

It was so close that calling a taxi felt like a luxury, yet it was also so far that she worried she'd be exhausted and sweating profusely by the time she got there.

She put her phone back in her bag. "Okay," she said.

[New mission!]

The intimidating power of villains

Make the people in the "Dark Cup" café deeply aware that you are a fearsome villain.

[Reward: Gain 1 skill upgrade point for each person you scare. Gain 1 evil point for each successful scare!]

To accept or to reject?

……

[New mission!]

The Pleasures of Being a Scoundrel

[Propose a wicked condition that they cannot refuse.]

[Reward: 1 skill upgrade point for each person successfully intimidated. 1 point of "Rogue Value" for each successful intimidation!]

To accept or to reject?

Sienna looked at the two tasks.

At first glance, they seemed quite similar to her, though one was clearly not as evil as the other.

She turned both tasks off and removed them from her sight.

She didn't want to play by the rules set by the system, which made her a villain and a scoundrel.

She wanted... she didn't know what she wanted, but she knew what she didn't want.

“Let’s go, Teddy,” she said.

“Okay, boss,” Teddy agreed.

Sienna's figure isn't out of shape, but she can't really be considered an athlete.

Her only real exercise was playing badminton every week with her mother and a few older women at the indoor badminton court.

Sometimes she would use her father's small fitness equipment at home to relieve some of her excess anxiety.

This helped her maintain her slim figure.

Another thing is that she loses her appetite when she's under pressure, and she's always under pressure.

Even so, after they had walked three blocks, Sienna began to regret wearing a sweater and a thick skirt.

This means she has to take a shower as soon as she gets home, otherwise the smell of sweat will drive her crazy.

What if someone notices and thinks she's a slovenly person?

What if that mysterious person in the "Dark Cup" café notices?

Her anxieties reached their peak as she stood in front of a small café-pub nestled between a tanning salon and a construction workers' clothing store.

The old sign at the store entrance looks like it's from the 1970s.

The sign, in large capital letters, that looked like a typical mom-and-pop shop, read "The Cup of Darkness" and hung on a small awning above the shop entrance.

She could barely see inside the shop, but through the frosted glass she could vaguely see tables, chairs, and figures moving around.

Sienna took a deep breath. "Come on, Sienna, believe in yourself."