Harem Stealing System

After what felt like an eternity, the movie finally came to an end. The credits began to roll slowly across the screen as soft background music filled the now dimly lit theater. Around them, the muffled rustling of clothes being straightened could be heard. Couples whispered to one another, fixing their shriveled shirts, adjusting their collars, or putting on jackets they had previously tossed aside. One by one, they exited, leaving behind only faint traces of warmth and the scent of buttered popcorn. Eiden, however, remained seated.

His eyes weren't on the screen, nor the credits, but on Sasha. She sat still beside him, entirely silent. Her eyes were blankly staring at the half-finished tub of popcorn in her lap like it had committed a crime against humanity. "Poor girl," Eiden thought to himself, the corner of his lips twitching. "She's never going to be able to eat popcorn again without suffering war flashbacks. Tsk, tsk… tragic."

Though earlier she had been visibly flustered and jumpy, she had calmed down somewhat probably out of exhaustion. With everyone else gone, the theater now belonged to just the two of them. Eventually, Sasha stood up, albeit with slightly wobbly legs, and made her way to the exit without a single word. Eiden followed. Outside the cinema, the air was cool and slightly damp. The usual evening buzz of traffic and conversation returned to fill the silence between them as they walked side by side along the pavement. Eiden threw a few glances at her, hoping for some kind of comment or at least eye contact, but she remained stubbornly silent. Her face was unreadable, her eyes straight ahead.

Then, without a word, she raised her hand, hailed a cab, and stepped inside. She didn't look at him. She didn't ask him to join her. She didn't even say goodbye. The cab pulled away and disappeared into the traffic.

Eiden sighed. "She ran out of steam... how pitiful," he muttered under his breath, shaking his head. Still, despite the emotional rollercoaster, a small part of him couldn't help but chuckle. "What a night…" Not quite ready to head back yet, Eiden decided to stroll around for a bit more. He wandered aimlessly through the nearby streets, doing some lazy window shopping and browsing through the soft glow of shop displays. Eventually, as dusk crept in, he decided to head back. He checked his GPS and walked to the nearest bus stop, planning to take the public bus home.

But just as he was making his way through the mildly crowded sidewalk, something or rather someone caught his attention. It was the girl from earlier. The one with the glowing arrow above her head that had the word "TARGET" written boldly across it. That same arrow was still floating visibly over her now.

"System-chan," he whispered. "Ding! That arrow is actually pretty useful. Can you, like, put that on all the targets from now on?"

Ding! "Sure, as you wish!" System-chan replied cheerfully. "Good girl."

He then glanced at his watch. "Still got some time left before curfew… Why not tail her a little? Nothing illegal. Just gathering intel." At least that's what he told himself.

He trailed behind her carefully, keeping a good distance. He couldn't see her face clearly with all the people around, but the glowing arrow above her head made it ridiculously easy to keep track. A cheat for stalkers, really. Eventually, she entered an apartment building.

Eiden followed, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible. He made it inside just as she stepped into the elevator. Without hesitation, he rushed to catch the same one and got in just in time. She pressed the button for the sixth floor.

Thinking quickly, Eiden pressed the seventh. He didn't want to get off at the same floor that would be suspicious. Too obvious. But he didn't want to get off too early either and lose her completely. The elevator began its quiet ascent. As it reached the sixth floor, she stepped out. Just as the doors began to close, Eiden caught a glimpse of a man waiting at the hallway. She smiled at him. Eiden narrowed his eyes slightly. "Was that… her boyfriend?" he wondered.

The elevator continued upward to the seventh floor. Eiden didn't get off. Instead, he waited for the doors to close and pressed the button for the ground floor. But before it could move, the doors opened again and a man in a hoodie, holding a phone, stepped in. The stranger casually pressed the ground floor.

Eiden glanced at him from the corner of his eye. Something about him was… off.

But before he could think more about it, the elevator resumed its journey downward.

Once he was out of the building, he took another glance at the guy with the hoodie as he went away in an alley "strange" he thought then looked at his watch. It was starting to get dark now. He used GPS to navigate to the nearest bus station and finally made his way home. As he stepped inside his house, a familiar voice greeted him. "Welcome back, my little talented singer baby~!" his mother beamed from the hallway. Eiden chuckled. "Isn't that a bit too long for a title?" She laughed as she walked toward the kitchen. "How was your day?"

Eiden hesitated for a moment, thinking about the movie and Sasha's reactions . "It was… interesting. Definitely more eventful than usual." "Good to hear," she said with a warm smile. "Go take a bath. The water should be nice and warm now."

"Roger that," Eiden replied. He went up to his room, changed into his loungewear, and headed into the bathroom. The warm water did wonders in washing away the strange tension of the evening. After drying off and feeling somewhat refreshed, he returned to his room and flopped onto his bed. "System-chan," he called. "What's the name of that new target?" Ding! "That function has not been unlocked yet." Eiden frowned. "Huh? Well… guess I'll have to take it slow." He lay back for a while, staring at the ceiling, lost in thought.

After a few minutes, his mom called him down for dinner. Grumbling, he got up and made his way downstairs. Dinner was uneventful, and he ate quickly before heading back up to his room. "System-chan!" he called again, flopping onto the bed. "Ding! Did Lyra's quest progress?" Ding!

"No." He sighed. "Figures. I didn't do anything today anyway. Maybe I'll do something the day after tomorrow. Tomorrow's Sunday after all…" Just as he was about to close his eyes, he heard another Ding! But this time, it wasn't the system. He lazily opened his eyes and reached for his phone. "Gotta change the system and phone notifications," he mumbled.He unlocked the screen. It was a message. "A word to anyone and you are so dead."

It was from Sasha. Eiden stared at it for a second, then smiled and replied with a zipper-mouth emoji, signaling total secrecy. He waited. No reply came. He sighed, tossed his phone to the side, and closed his eyes again.

Ding!

Eyes wide open again. He quickly picked up the phone, muttering, "Took her sweet time, huh?" But when he saw the message he became confused as it read , "Wanna hang out tomorrow?" He was about to write a reply but then he noticed that the sender wasn't Sahsa but It was from

"Lyra!!??"