All stats were pathetic. Only her Charm attribute, which she didn't know what it was for, was higher than the rest. However, Parita didn't mind them since she had no intention of going on an adventure like other isekai protagonists.
With her well-paid job, shelter, and free meals, her life was comfortable. She could even freeload these stinky elves forever. What could even go wrong?
After dinner, the girls retreated to their rooms and called it a day. Meanwhile, a modern person like Parita had no issue staying up late. She continued cleaning more areas in the mansion, one zone at a time.
After midnight, the system notified her.
DING
[Your skill 'Idol Meeting' is ready.]
The cooldown was over. Parita grabbed a candle and exited the mansion, challenging the massive mountain of abomination.
She activated her system skill. The mocap suit automatically started the incantation.
"In the Toilet Goddess's name, I, an idol, hereby declare the ultimate standard of sanitation! Witness the salvation of the elven kind and the purge of your sins! Idol Meeting Magic! Divine Flush of Judgment!"
A dozen earth jars full of waste, and a pile of clothes glowed white. The content in the jars vanished while the clothes fluttered and floated in the air. All remaining objects were restored to brand-new condition, including the earth jars.
The system skill ended. The light was gone. However, the majority of the dirty clothes and earth jars full of wet trash remained, as the skill effect only covered 30 square meters.
Parita gazed at the remaining junk and clothes. She smacked her lips.
"This will take a few days."
She sighed and approached the floating clothes. She stuffed them in her inventory for the time being, and she would distribute them tomorrow.
DING
[You have received 214 Idol Points. Current Points: 224 Idol Points.]
[Your skill 'Idol Meeting' will be refreshed after midnight.]
That was a lot of points! After receiving more system cash, Parita licked her lips and checked the system store. She checked what she could buy with her current points.
The system store's webpage finished loading. The site's homepage and design resembled modern online retailers from Earth. Items were sorted by type and brand for simple navigation and searching.
Parita immediately searched for food. As long as she could purchase food from the modern world, she wouldn't mind working as a housekeeper for the rest of her life.
She instantly discovered an issue. Despite the variety of selection, only a few items were purchasable. The rest were locked.
Parita had been eyeing premium Wagyu steaks and pineapple pizzas. When she noticed an overlay image of a lock on top of her food icon, her face distorted in anger.
'What the hell are the locks?! Why do you lock the food?! I want to buy those!'
[To buy better items, you'll have to increase your level. Every item comes with certain requirements.]
Parita frowned and reread the descriptions of a pineapple pizza and an A5 Wagyu steak.
[Requirement: Level 3, Fitness 3]
[Requirement: Level 9, Strength 5, Fitness 7]
She rolled her eyes. Because of the foul mood, she closed the store system screen.
For the moment, she called it a night and slept in her mocap suit. She used one of the clean sheets that she had purified as a blanket.
* * *
The next morning, 4.30 AM local time, the elf team woke up and came up to inspect the deed. When they discovered that their clothes and furniture remained dirty, everybody stormed into Parita's room.
Parita was in a deep sleep. Last night, she managed to enter the dream world at 1 AM.
Parrot pulled Parita's crisp white blanket and yelled. She didn't notice that the sheet belonged to someone in the mansion.
"Hey, Kestrel! Didn't you do your job?"
Parita woke up from slumber. Fortunately, she remained in her disguised appearance. Slowly, she sat up and rubbed her eyes.
"Don't shout. My ears are ringing."
Parrot frowned and was about to continue yelling. Her eyes fell upon the white blanket and paused. The item got her thinking.
"Is that blanket yours? I didn't see it yesterday."
Parita yawned and looked at them. Calmly, she ejected some of the purified items onto the floor, which she had mopped with various detergents last night.
The girls were taken aback. Not only were they stunned by the clean clothes, but they were also astonished by the fabled 'Inventory'.
"Wait, Kestrel. You… can use the INVENTORY?!" Parrot's voice cracked.
Parita paused for a moment as her brain recalibrated data. When Parita realized that she had accidentally revealed one of her secrets, she smacked her forehead.
"Aw, shit. Don't worry about it. Anyway, I cleaned some of your clothes last night. I won't be ironing them. I have no idea which items belong to whom, so take your things."
"…No, that's the most important thing! Are you an inventory user?!" Sparrow urged.
"Yeah, no." Parita grinned and lied with a straight face.
"…"
Sparrow inhaled deeply. She reassured Parita.
"I know it has been difficult keeping this a secret. We're sisters. We won't tell anybody. You can trust us."
"…Sure."
"For now, let's have breakfast and talk afterward." Sparrow nudged everybody, who nodded in understanding.
The girls retrieved their clothes and went back to their rooms with glee. Parita yawned and then slowly started to get ready, fixing her appearance and smoothing out her messy hair.
When Parita was ready to leave the room, she paused to think. She turned to the system message screen and asked in her mind.
'Say, if I collect everything in the inventory and use the Idol Meeting skill, will it clean everything in my possession?'
[As of your current level, no.]
'My current level? Oh.'
The system reminded her of the other perks of the system store. Last night, she found a category called 'Upgrades' when she searched for late-night snacks. Curious, she opened the system store and browsed the upgrade section.
This section had a simple introductory explanation.
[Upgrade Section: You can exchange your Idol Points to upgrade your stats, skill levels, or system perks.]
Seeing the detail, Parita got excited. She checked the price and the status attributes that she could upgrade.
[Temporary Inventory System > Level 1 Inventory System: 100 Idol Points]
[Temporary Live Stream System > Level 1 Live Stream System: 100 Idol Points]
[Level 0 > Level 1: 100 Idol Points]
[Strength 1 > Strength 2: 1 Idol Point]
[Fitness 1 > Fitness 2: 1 Idol Point]
[Magic 1 > Magic 2: 100 Idol Points]
[Singing 1 > Singing 2: 10 Idol Points]
[Dancing 1 > Dancing 2: 10 Idol Points]
Something seemed wrong. Parita questioned the system.
'This has been on my mind for a while now. What are the differences between the temporary inventory system and the permanent version? The live-stream one, too? What are the changes?'
[The temporary version expires after seven days. If you do not upgrade it to level 1 within the time frame, the system will be erased.]
[Please note. The livestream and inventory system will expire in six days.]
Parita's face turned white. Her heart skipped a beat. Fortunately, she asked the system when she had time to react and plan for the future. If she had seen it after the expiration date, her life would have been ruined.
'Okay. Thank God I realize this now. What about the level and the attributes? What are the benefits? Also, why singing and dancing? I don't remember I need these attributes!'
[Singing and dancing skills are essential for a good idol.]
'But I heard Vtubers are gifted comedians. Some can't even sing a note.'
[You've already mastered that trait, so there is no need to integrate that status attribute into the system. You are already a clown as soon as you complete the tutorial quests.]
'HEY!'
[For starters, you should upgrade the temporary system features to level 1 to enjoy their full benefits. Then, you can allocate your Idol Points to upgrade your stats.]
Parita was still mad, but she scoffed and grudgingly accepted the suggestion. Considering everything, she had to spend 200 points on those two system features sooner or later. She pressed the purchase button, and two hundred points of her hard-earned currency vanished.
DING
[Your inventory system has been upgraded to level 1!]
[You can now see basic information about your items.]
[Your Live Stream system has been upgraded to level 1!]
[Viewers are now able to send SUPER CHAT.]
[You can now view chat messages.]
"…"
The upgrades were insignificant. Parita shook her head and shifted her attention to the other attributes. She pointed at the fitness and strength stats, which required fewer points.
Why are two of these worth just one point, but the other requires ten?'
[The upgrade cost reflects its compatibility with your specific traits and attributes. Your DNA resembles a gorilla's, so fitness and strength are easy to improve. On the other hand, you're dumb. Magic won't be your strongest attribute.]
'Oi!'
If the system had a physical avatar, she would have tomb-stoned it until the ground was six feet deep. Because of the frustration, Parita exchanged all her remaining Idol Points for strength, raising it to 25.
After adjusting her attributes, Parita puffed out her chest, proud of her decision. She then glanced at her level, which remained at 0.
'What about my level? What will it do if I raise it to 1?'
[Leveling up will randomly boost your stats by one to three points, based on your luck. Additionally, you will learn a new class skill every five levels.]
'Wouldn't it be more cost-effective to increase my strength to 500 rather than using 500 points on my level?'
[Increasing your level also increases your max attributes. Before reaching level 10, the maximum value for every attribute is 100.]
Parita rolled her eyes. In the end, she had to unlock the stat caps in the future. Changing mood, she browsed other sections to see what she should aim for.
Her eyes spotted another section, which never existed in modern online stores.
Magic Tombs and Skill Books
Parita pressed a button and entered the section. However, all skill books and tombs were locked. All of them had strict requirements, demanding level 10 at a minimum.
[Requirement: Level 10, Magic 20]
She rolled her eyes and stopped browsing. But when she was about to close the store system, the flashing promotion icon on the top left attracted her. As a woman, she could not resist the bargain offer, so she clicked it without reading the details.
Parita realized her mistake only after she pressed the banner.
DING
[You have accepted a daily random quest.]
[Activate the live stream system and do the chores while the cameras are on. If you fail to complete this quest today, your mocab suit will transform you into a gorilla for a week.]
[Rewards: 10 Idol Points and bonuses, depending on donations.]