Caleb's eyes slowly opened. "Fuck…" He slowly sat up, holding his aching head. Then, a robotic voice and a bluish panel appeared.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations. You have obtained the Common Sense Hijack System.]
[New Title Granted.]
Title: Common Sense Hijacker
___
"What the…" He slowly touched the panel. "Is this real or…" He let out a breath. "Am I schizophrenic right now?"
[Incorrect.]
[Host's mental health is only in a state of severe stress.]
"Wait, what?" Caleb was a little shocked that the panel actually answered him. He swallowed hard. "Shit, I guess my mental state really is bad now…"
The panel didn't disappear. It actually became more aggressive.
[Ding!]
[Host is too self-aware. Loading Picky Filter...]
"Picky… filter? What the hell is that," Caleb smirked, sounding more annoyed than curious.
[Activating system...]
[Adjusting to Host's core personality.]
[Host detected with traits:]
‣ Chooses who to be kind to.
‣ Often thinks: 'They don't deserve my kindness.'
‣ Quiet but chronic grudges.
‣ Too logical to be good, too lazy to be evil.]
"Wait… did you just insult me?"
[Full personality diagnosis:]
‣ Picky Beater: A type of human who only moves when the situation is annoying AND the person deserves a social beating.]
Caleb went quiet for a moment. He couldn't deny what the panel showed. "I'm still not sure, maybe I'm hallucinating like this because I got smacked earlier?"
[Ding!]
[Correct and incorrect!]
"Huh?"
[The Traveler has granted the Common Sense Hijack System because the Host has made a transaction with them.]
"The Traveler? That old woman?"
[The Traveler has no true form. The Traveler is a unique entity that travels across the universe and grants power to anyone who makes a transaction with them.]
The panel blinked, and now it displayed something strange, like a movie. The quality looked better than modern films with overdone editing and refusal to hire specific individuals under the excuse of discrimination.
The panel showed a white sphere floating in outer space. Slowly, the sphere turned into an asteroid, descended to a planet, and then transformed again into a strange ape-like creature. That entity left, was greeted by a group of apes, and got pelted with a banana. The eyes of the sphere-ape glowed white, then all the apes went still, their eyes turning bright white too. Slowly, their fur disappeared, their bodies straightened, and they became elegant beings.
Clip…
The panel blinked and ended that strange broadcast.
[Ding!]
[That is one example of The Traveler.]
"Transaction, huh?" He exhaled, glancing at the sky, now turning orange. "Well, whether I'm crazy or not, it doesn't matter… nobody's going to care…" As soon as Caleb finished speaking, the panel popped up with another notification.
[Ding!]
[First quest active.]
[Use the Common Sense Hijack System on one individual for 10 minutes.]
[Hint: Use Single Target Hijack (Cost: 1 Hijack Point/10 minutes). Say 'Open Menu' to view the Common Sense Hijack System menu to use it.]
[Reward: 10 Exp. 10 Hijack Points.]
[Quest Duration: 00:15:00.]
[Penalty will be given if the quest is not completed within the time limit.]
[Penalty: Prefrontal cortex will lose function, causing the Host to behave spontaneously and lose self-control.]
[Warning: Spontaneous thoughts like wanting to strip naked will be executed by the Host. Please complete the quest.]
[+1 Hijack Point as a starter bonus.]
"Huh… Threatened with 'going crazy' by something that's already crazy? Sounds… fun. But whatever. No money…" Caleb leaned back against the park bench. "Not even dignity." He stood up slowly.
"Alright, let's do this!" Caleb took a deep breath.
"Open Menu!"