Chapter 4: The Landlady

Lucas walked out of the towering glass structure of Vertex Management with a thick manila folder tucked under his arm. He felt like a soldier carrying a live bomb through a minefield.

The sun was setting over the city and casting long shadows across the pavement as he navigated his way toward the subway station. He had secured a job working directly for a wealthy CEO but the promotion came with a mandate to sabotage her worst enemy.

The System had ordered him to play double agent between two ruthless women who could both destroy his life with a single phone call.

He pulled out his cracked smartphone and checked his banking app while waiting for the train.

His available balance was seven dollars and forty-two cents. His new salary as a personal attaché would not hit his account for another two weeks. Surviving a corporate interrogation was a victory but it did not change the fact that his rent was due today.

The subway ride to his neighborhood was a loud and bumpy reminder of his place in the world. He traded the polished marble floors of the financial district for the flickering fluorescent lights and damp concrete of the lower east side.

He arrived at his decaying brick apartment building and trudged up three flights of stairs. He just wanted to lock his door and figure out a way to survive the upcoming charity gala without getting sued or murdered.

A figure was waiting for him at the end of the narrow hallway.

Evelyn Higgins stood with her arms crossed over her chest while tapping her foot against the faded carpet.

She was his landlady and the bane of his existence outside of office hours. She wore a worn floral wrap dress that clung tight to her generous curves and her brown hair was pulled back into a messy bun.

She was a strict and tired woman who spent her days managing the crumbling building alone since her husband passed away and her children moved out.

"You are late," Evelyn said as her sharp eyes tracked his approach. "The banks close at five. I told you I needed the cash by three."

"Mrs. Higgins," Lucas started while forcing a polite smile. "I can explain."

"I do not want an explanation," she interrupted with a heavy sigh. "I want my money. I have property taxes due on Friday and a building inspector breathing down my neck. If you do not have the rent I am going to have to ask you to pack your things."

Lucas felt a knot form in his stomach. He was exhausted. He had spent the entire day fighting for his life in a boardroom and now he was facing eviction in a dingy hallway.

"I got a promotion today," Lucas said while holding up his hands in a placating gesture. "A good one. I am working directly for the CEO now. My first paycheck will clear in two weeks and I will pay you double for the delay."

Evelyn stared at him for a long moment.

Her gaze drifted down to his cheap scuffed shoes and back up to his tired face. She looked like she wanted to believe him but decades of dealing with deadbeat tenants had hardened her heart.

"Words do not pay the water bill," Evelyn muttered while pinching the bridge of her nose. "I cannot keep covering for you just because you have a polite smile."

A familiar chime echoed in his mind.

[Target Scanned.]

Name: Evelyn Higgins

Age: 46

Status: Frustrated Landlady

Hidden Vulnerability: Currently overwhelmed by building maintenance and suffering from the physical cold due to a broken radiator in her own living room.

Lucas stared at the blue text hovering next to her face. The System was offering him a lifeline in the form of a household chore.

[Acquisition Quest Generated!]

Objective: Demonstrate practical value to the target.

Task: Repair the broken radiator in the target’s apartment.

Reward: 50 AP and Rent Extension.

Failure Penalty: Eviction and Homelessness.

Lucas quickly dismissed the floating screen and looked back at his frustrated landlady. "Your radiator is broken. The one in your main living room."

Evelyn frowned and dropped her hands to her sides. "How do you know that?"

"I heard it clanking on my way down the stairs this morning," Lucas lied smoothly. "You cannot get a plumber out here on a Monday night without paying a massive emergency fee. Let me fix it. If I can get your heat working tonight you give me a two-week grace period on the rent."

She looked at him with clear suspicion. "You are a glorified secretary. What do you know about cast iron plumbing?"

"More than you think," Lucas said as he stepped past her and gestured toward the stairs leading down to her ground-floor unit. "Lead the way. If I fail you can kick me out tomorrow."

Evelyn hesitated before giving a reluctant nod. She turned and walked down the stairs. Lucas followed close behind while trying his best not to stare at the hypnotic sway of her wide hips under the thin floral fabric of her dress.

The woman was older and carried the stress of the world on her shoulders but she still possessed a heavy natural beauty that made his mouth go slightly dry.

Her apartment smelled like cheap vanilla candles and old wood. It was warmer than the hallway but a distinct chill hung in the air near the large iron radiator sitting beneath her living room window.

Lucas knelt on the hardwood floor and inspected the metal valve. He had no idea what he was looking at. He had never fixed a piece of plumbing in his life.

He mentally opened the Skill Shop and browsed the available options. He had two hundred and fifty points left over from his encounter with Victoria.

[Intuitive Mechanics (Level 1) - Cost: 50 AP]

Description: Grants the Host a fundamental understanding of basic household machinery and fluid dynamics.

He purchased the skill immediately.

A sudden rush of technical knowledge bloomed in his mind as he reached out and touched the cold iron pipe. He instantly recognized the problem. The steam trap was clogged with mineral buildup and the pressure valve was seized tight.

"Do you even know what you are doing down there?" Evelyn asked while crossing her arms and watching him from the doorway.

"I need a pipe wrench and a flathead screwdriver," Lucas said without looking back. "And maybe an old towel."

Evelyn raised an eyebrow but walked into her kitchen to retrieve a small toolbox. She handed him the tools and stepped back to observe.

Lucas got to work. His hands moved with a practiced efficiency that surprised even him. He bled the pressure from the line and dismantled the seized valve with a few sharp twists of the heavy wrench. He scraped away the calcified buildup inside the steam trap and reassembled the components in under ten minutes.

He wiped a smudge of black grease off his forehead and twisted the main valve open.

A soft hissing sound filled the quiet room followed by the gentle rush of steam entering the iron chambers. The metal began to radiate a steady comfortable heat that pushed the chill out of the apartment.

Evelyn stepped forward and hovered her hand over the warm iron. Her tired eyes widened in genuine surprise.

"You actually fixed it," she whispered.

Lucas stood up and wiped his dirty hands on the towel she had provided. He was slightly out of breath and his dress shirt was clinging to his chest.

"I told you I was good for it. You just have to trust me."

Evelyn turned to face him. The frustration that usually dominated her expression had melted away into something much softer. She looked at his grease-stained hands and then met his eyes.

They were standing close enough that he could smell the sweet vanilla scent clinging to her skin.

"I suppose a two-week extension is fair compensation for a repair job," Evelyn said softly. Her voice lacked its usual harsh edge. "You should go wash your hands before you ruin your clothes."

[Quest Completed!]

[Reward: 50 AP awarded.]

[Target dependency level increasing by 2%.]

Lucas offered her a polite nod and stepped out of her apartment before he pushed his luck any further. He walked back up the stairs with a renewed sense of confidence.

He had a roof over his head for another two weeks and his early game practice was already paying off.

He unlocked his flimsy apartment door and tossed his keys onto the small kitchen counter. The room was cramped and smelled like old laundry but it was his sanctuary.

He sat down at his wobbly dining table and opened the thick manila folder Victoria had given him. He needed to understand exactly who Camilla Verman was before he ruined her charity gala.

The first page featured a glossy photograph of a woman who looked like a dangerous weapon wrapped in expensive clothes.

Camilla had sharp aristocratic features with piercing green eyes and dark hair cut into a sleek bob.

She wore a crimson dress that left very little to the imagination and smiled at the camera with the arrogant confidence of someone who owned the entire room. She was Victoria’s age but radiated a much more aggressive and flirtatious energy.

A blue window shattered the air above the photograph.

[Target Scan Complete.]

Name: Camilla Verman

Status: Hostile Corporate Rival

Hidden Vulnerability: The target is currently experiencing intense social pressure from her board of directors to settle down. She is actively seeking a male pawn to act as a fake fiancé in order to publicly humiliate Victoria Sterling at the upcoming charity gala.

Lucas stared at the glowing text while a cold sweat broke out on his neck.

Victoria wanted him to infiltrate Camilla’s inner circle and ruin the event. Camilla was apparently looking for a fake fiancé to parade around the same exact party.

The System was not just asking him to play a dangerous game of corporate espionage. It was marching him directly into a trap where he would be forced to romance a rival millionaire right in front of his new boss.

Lucas closed the folder and rubbed his aching temples.

He was going to die this weekend.