Charlie looked at Lucas with wide, hopeful eyes.
"Brother, did you bring me my brain?" he asked with the sincerity only a child could carry.
The team captain standing nearby shot Lucas a worried glance. If he could, he would have gone to the in-game store himself and purchased one of those so-called pig brain flowers just to satisfy the child. But the game mall had strict rules: no living animals or parts of them could be sold—especially not anything removed from a living creature.
And then—
Ding——
A familiar system notification chimed in Lucas's ears.
> [System Prompt: Player Lucas has triggered a hidden mission.]
[Hidden Mission: Properly guide Charlie.]
[Task Tip: A child's environment in their formative years shapes their future. It is the duty of every orphanage employee to offer the most suitable guidance.]
[Reward: Unknown]
The air shifted with the unexpected prompt.
: "Wait, Lucas has to guide a child now? That shouldn't be hard…"
: "Yeah, what could possibly go wrong? Worst case, he fails."
: "Let's be real, that little chubby guy won't take anything seriously. No matter how you guide him, he won't listen!"
: "I have a bad feeling… Is Lucas going to pull out a weapon? Thank god the mission appeared!"
The sudden challenge made Lucas reconsider his initial plan. With a slow breath, he placed one hand behind his back and crouched down to Charlie's level.
"I didn't bring a brain," he said gently, "but I brought you a gift."
Charlie let out a disappointed sigh, an audible "Ah…" escaping him. Clearly, in Charlie's mind, a "brain" was far more precious than any gift.
Lucas opened the in-game arcade interface.
> [Confirm search?]
[Confirm]
[Reordered]
[Confirm purchase?]
[Buy]
[System Prompt: 100,000 points have been spent.]
Suddenly, a pair of knives and forks appeared out of thin air behind Lucas.
The captain looked even more puzzled. Would a mere set of utensils really solve the problem?
Lucas held out the knife and fork to Charlie. "Here. This is your gift."
Charlie took them with a forced smile, clearly underwhelmed. But as soon as he touched the utensils, his expression shifted.
"Huh?"
He tilted his head and examined the knife and fork closely, eyes filled with curiosity.
---
> [Item Name: Hannibal's Knife and Fork]
[Type: Souvenir]
[Quality: Ordinary]
[Attack Power: That of an average kitchen knife and fork]
[Attributes: None]
[Description: A pair of ordinary utensils once used by Hannibal. Useless, really—aside from being stained with a hint of his will. Which lunatic would spend 100,000 points on this?]
---
Lucas smiled as he noticed Charlie's gaze brighten.
"These knives and forks…" he began.
Before he could continue, Charlie hugged them tightly against his chest.
"I really like them!" he exclaimed.
The captain: ??? He couldn't understand what just happened.
: "Wait... what??"
: "A pair of utensils solved the problem??"
: "Did he just kill the inner perversion of that naughty kid with a fork and knife?"
: "Hey, why do these utensils look kind of familiar?"
: "Knives and forks all look the same to me…"
The captain stood still, visibly reflecting on his approach to problem-solving. Had he been too rigid?
Meanwhile, Lucas lowered his voice and leaned in closer to Charlie.
"You feel it, right?"
Charlie, still holding the utensils like they were holy relics, nodded eagerly.
"Yeah! It feels warm... kind... almost like it's alive!"
---
> [Charlie of Angel Orphanage: Danger Level nearing Intermediate]
---
Seeing Charlie so elated made Lucas feel lighter too.
"You know," Lucas added with a half-smirk, "only the freshest brains can really nourish your own. They need to be taken as soon as they bloom…"
Charlie's eyes sparkled brighter with each word.
"Brother, you're incredible! I totally understand now!" he said, filled with admiration.
---
> [Hidden Mission: Pending Evaluation...]
[System Notification: Evaluation Passed.]
[Player Lucas has successfully guided Charlie and completed the hidden mission.]
[Reward: Charlie's Worship.]
---
Lucas stood up slowly, watching the child still clutching his "gift."
"Sometimes, the best way to educate a little weirdo… is by giving them something only a bigger weirdo would understand." He chuckled at his own logic.
"But seriously… what kind of reward is this?"
---
> [Item Name: Charlie's Worship]
[Type: Story-Related]
[Quality: Excellent]
[Attack Power: Ignorance]
[Attributes: None]
[Note: Every child deserves guidance tailored to them. Your insight mirrors that of a seasoned preschool teacher. A child's admiration is often the purest and most heartfelt gift—treasure it.]
---
As Lucas walked away toward the next misbehaving child, Charlie didn't take his eyes off his back for even a second.
"He's amazing…" he whispered under his breath.
---
: "Wait, what just happened?"
: "The mission was completed? Just with a fork and knife?!"
: "I feel bad for the captain. He didn't even notice it got completed."
: "I can't understand it… but I'm completely shocked."
: "Hold up. Aren't all the kids in Angel Orphanage mentally... unique? Maybe Lucas is on the same wavelength as them. That's why we can't understand it."
: "That… actually makes a lot of sense."
: "Rational."
: "Agreed. Rational +1."
---
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