*Slap!* Ben slapped himself to calm down. “Get a hold of yourself! It was just a nightmare!” He dreamed all of his Mystery Boxes opened trash for the next week, 8 days expired, and he was crushed to death by a giant banana peel. He was nervous that his next lottery would give him trash again, and it even haunted …

‘Don’t get friend-zoned. Don’t get friend-zoned. Don’t get friend-zoned.’ Ben repeated the mantra in his head as he listened to Annabelle speak. It was time to build comfort, but Beluga told him the attraction needed to be high enough. Her current attraction level was interested. He hoped that was sufficient. The reason he spent so long chatting before was to …

The blonde girl stared at Ben, speechless for several moments. Then she giggled. “Are you serious?” “Dead-ass…It’s my spirit animal. A psychic told me if I could commune better with it, my destiny would cover the Earth. Her suggestion was to seek a legendary artist.” Beluga gave Ben a tip once. He said girls love talking about fantasy elements like …

“I’d be open to a different method.” Ben understood the importance of staying open-minded. It seemed his motivational speaking wasn’t at the requisite level yet. Beluga squinted at him. “I’d sure f*cking hope so…That’s not what you say in the first minute of a date. Once you’re at that stage, it’s all about building comfort with the female.” “Comfort?” Ben …

“I like what I like!” Antonio wouldn’t budge when Beluga suggested he order a cappuccino next time as the three walked in the noisy, crowded streets of Union Square. Ben found it admirable. ‘I can respect that Antonio won’t change who he is to fit in. That’s how a man should b—’ He cut his thought short as he slapped …

When the system delivered Ben 200 points out of the blue, he figured it must’ve been giving him a partial refund for that trash banana peel. That’s must’ve been it. He hoped that was it… Ben exited the subway station into Union Square, a famous plaza in Manhattan. It was one of the bustling landmarks of the city. As he …

Ben was in the best and most private place for an unboxing—sitting on a toilet stall in a public bathroom. Well, It was the best place he could find. Since he didn’t plan to return to his dorm yet and it was too out of the way, he stopped in here. He hoped this men’s bathroom would be the location …

People get what they deserve and snakes get stomped. If you bully enough people, you’re bound to run into one with a System. That’s what Ben thought anyway. He didn’t care about Zachary’s suffering. Ben only ever shared his goodwill and mercy with beauties and animal-eared NPCs. He decided to relish in Zachary’s pain and fear like Pennywise. Ben was …

“Bravo!” The one shouting and clapping loudest was the professor. He’d never seen an undergrad student orate such a splendid speech! That was close to professional level! While he admired the performance for its skill, the surrounding students applauded it for a different reason—they felt something! The speech resonated with them. It gave them ideas and encouragement, evoked rare emotions …

Ben’s breath became shorter as nerves took control. It was the same as last time…with one exception—Ben’s eyes were calm. ‘Deep breaths,’ he reminded himself. He took slow inhales and exhales as everyone waited for him to start. The other students stared, some whispering amongst themselves, some shaking their heads. “Can he really do it? We should just skip him.” …