Chapter 22: System 2.0
"Right this way, Master Ip — here's your new place. Two bedrooms, one living room. Biggest unit I've got. And the rent is very reasonable — fifteen hundred a month. Family discount applies, but we're still keeping it on the books. Clear accounts make good neighbors."
Ethan jingled a set of keys with the enthusiasm of a real estate agent showing a penthouse.
Behind him, Caine trudged forward loaded down with bags. His daughter — little Ye — followed close behind, a pink Hello Kitty backpack bobbing on her shoulders. John Wick brought up the rear, dragging three suitcases.
"Come in, come in!" Ethan crouched down when he noticed the girl hanging back, her eyes wide and wary. "Hey there, sweetie. What grade are you in?"
Little Ye shrank behind Caine's leg. She'd been through a kidnapping not long ago — the wariness was understandable.
"It's okay, Ye." Caine set down the bags and rested a hand on her head. "This is the man who saved you. He's a friend."
"The community school will be up and running soon," Ethan said, straightening up. "You can enroll her there. And Caine — I'm thinking you take the Dean of Discipline position. You'd get to see her every day, make sure she's safe, and keep an eye on the other kids too."
Caine considered it. His daughter had already been kidnapped once. Sending her to any ordinary school felt like a risk he wasn't willing to take. At Ethan's school, he could watch over her personally while keeping her shielded from outside threats.
He nodded. It was a good fit.
· · ·
Today's agenda: get Caine and John settled in, then wait for the system upgrade.
Ethan's building was a seven-story walk-up. Ground floor: the Lucky Dragon on the left, the apartment lobby in the center, and a parking garage entrance on the right.
The entire second floor was Ethan's private space, accessible via a hidden passage from the restaurant kitchen — convenient for the commute — or by the regular elevator.
Floors three through five had ten units each, all one-bedrooms. Floors six and seven had seven units total, all two-bedrooms. Caine's new place was on six.
By Hell's Kitchen standards, Ethan was practically landed gentry. A whole apartment building, and thanks to his reputation, the surrounding blocks were the safest real estate in the neighborhood. His building was easily the best address in Hell's Kitchen — the only problem being that people who could afford decent rent generally didn't choose to live in Hell's Kitchen. Vacancy rates stayed high.
After helping Caine unpack, Ethan walked John to his unit on five.
"You're right next to Marcus. Figured you two could keep each other company. There's one more tenant at the end of the hall, but he's been in Japan for a while — hasn't come back yet. So it's just you and Marcus for now. Pets are allowed, but keep the noise down."
"Your old place got blown up, so you'll need to go shopping for furnishings. And report to the lobby tomorrow morning — you're our new security guard. The safety of this entire building is now in your hands."
Ethan handed over the keys and was already speed-walking toward the elevator before John could respond.
John Wick — legendary assassin, the Baba Yaga, a man who'd killed six hundred people across four films — stood in the hallway holding an apartment key, staring at the space where his new landlord had just been, wearing the expression of a man who'd been assigned lobby duty.
· · ·
Ethan's rush had a reason. The system had just pinged him.
「System upgrade completing in 5 minutes...」
He made it to his second-floor apartment, grabbed a Coke from the fridge, flopped onto the couch, and pulled out his phone to scroll while he waited.
Five minutes later.
「DING!」
「System update complete.」
"Alright, what's new? Give me the rundown." Ethan sat up.
「This update includes the following changes: the stat panel has been streamlined. Given Host's current power level, mundane skills will no longer be displayed — only core abilities are shown. Additionally, a new Gacha function has been added. Host may now draw rewards from across the multiverse.」
Ethan opened the gacha panel immediately. His eyes went wide.
The prize pool was stacked. Devil Fruits from One Piece. The Sharingan from Naruto. Zanpakutō from Bleach. Items from the DC Universe. And — character portraits?
"What do the character portraits mean? Are those recruitment cards?"
「Character portraits represent Growth Templates. Acquiring a template grants Host that character's abilities and growth trajectory. These are NOT recruitment cards — this system does not possess the capability to summon individuals from other universes.」
Ethan felt a pang of disappointment. He'd been hoping for the real thing — imagine Boa Hancock or Nico Robin showing up in the flesh.
But the Growth Templates immediately pulled his attention back. Raw power was what he needed most. The nuke incident had made that painfully clear — he wasn't strong enough yet. This upgrade was exactly what he'd been missing.
"How many draws do I have?"
「DING!」
「Host currently has 5 Family Points and 600 Friend Points. One Family Point = one draw. 100 Friend Points can be exchanged for 1 Family Point.」
「Exchange all?」
"Do it."
「DING!」
「Exchange complete. Total: 11 Family Points. 11 draws available. Proceed?」
"Wait — how do I earn more points?"
「Each new Family member = 1 Family Point. Friend Point earnings by Friendship Level: ★1 = 1 point, ★2 = 10 points, ★3 = 20 points, ★4 = 30 points, ★5 = 40 points.」
Ethan did the math. The system was incentivizing depth over breadth — investing in existing friendships and nurturing them to Family status. One friend taken all the way from stranger to Family generated roughly two draws' worth of points. But grinding new one-star friendships? You'd need a hundred of them to match a single Family member.
Quality over quantity. The system wanted him to care.