Cheat Awakening

"Gwen, are you sure this is your house?" Myne asked, a hint of concern creeping into his voice. "Aren't you worried that it might collapse on your head while you sleep?" The corner of his mouth twitched as he surveyed Gwen's dwelling.

He wondered what kind of courage it took to live in such a place, especially during the rainy season, It is not different than a miracle the house didn't get flooded and the roof collapsed on them during a heavy rain.

"The door wouldn't fall on you right?" Myne questioned with genuine concern as he watched Gwen struggle with the seemingly jammed lock, which showed no sign of getting unlocked.

Gwen chuckled awkwardly. "Haha, Lord Myne, worry not. Though it may appear old and rickety, the house is sturdier than it looks. My mother and I have lived here for years, and nothing bad has happened...yet." Despite her attempt at humour, Myne could clearly detect the embarrassment in her voice. She was likely very ashamed of her poverty.

"Ahhh, what's wrong with this door? Why isn't it opening? It was fine this morning." After a few moments of awkward silence, Gwen's frustrated mumbling brought Myne out of his thoughts and tried again to unlock the door but the lock didn't give her face.

He looked at her and couldn't help but smile helplessly, seeing Gwen's crying face as she tried her best to unlock the door, but clearly, luck wasn't on her side. Now Myne feared that if he said a few more words about her house, she would surely start crying.

"Sigh, let me give it a try."

With a sigh, Myne decided to intervene. He gently grabbed Gwen's soft waist, lifted her up with ease, and positioned her behind him. Placing his hand on the lock, he closed his eyes and activated his Etheric Marionette skill, although using brutal force might be the best and easiest way to deal with this situation but then Gwen surely be very sad as the door would be broken into pieces.

[ Etheric Marionette ( Active Skill )

Description: The art of manipulating the invisible strings that connect all living beings, turning them into mental marionettes. Etheric Marionette allows the user to control the movements and actions of others remotely, making them dance to the puppeteer's mental commands.

Note: The host should have strong mental power and will to use this psychic skill; otherwise, it can cause great damage to the brain of the person using it, leading to permanent memory loss or craziness.

Cooldown Time: 5 minutes after each use ]

This was the second time Myne had used this skill since acquiring it from the slug monster in Alban's lab. Due to the warning note regarding potential side effects, he had only ever used it once before, simply to test its functionality by moving a glass back and forth in mid-air just by his thoughts.

However, after just six minutes of playful manipulation, a dull ache had settled in his head, reminding him of his limitations. After which He had never used it casually just for the sake of fun. Nevertheless, unlocking a small lock was no problem; this would be finished in a few seconds and wouldn't push his boundaries.

As Myne activated the skill, a complete image of his surroundings materialized in his mind, even the most minuscule details on the ground becoming clear. He also noticed an extreme nervousness and anxious look on Gwen's face, she was staring at his back while tightly gripping the edge of her long skirt, although a part of him wanted to tease her, he chose to prioritize his task.

After all, his time is limited.

Myne focused on the lock, a detailed mental image of its inner workings materialized in his mind and he instantly understood why it wasn't opening. A small piece of wood lodged at the end of the keyhole was obstructing the mechanism.

Since Gwen said the lock was working perfectly fine in the morning, now having the wood inside the keyhole meant someone had tried to unlock the door but didn't succeed, which wasn't exactly comforting news. Despite a surge of anger, Myne held his tongue, knowing his concern would only worry Gwen unnecessarily.

He used his mental power to extract the wooden piece, then forcefully manipulated the lock mechanism, quickly unlocking the door in a snap.

"Ugh, I am really sorry, Gwen. It seems I'm unable to open it as well," Myne didn't forget his motive to tease Gwen, after fiddling with the lock, he feigning despair and self-blame, he turned to face her with a downcast expression. "Perhaps our only option is to break the lock...

or the entire door, and force our way in." He quickly wrapped his arms around her slim waist and tight hug her, before burying his face in her chest to mask the mischievous grin he couldn't suppress.

Caught off guard by his sudden embrace, Gwen instinctively patted his head in a comforting manner. Despite his obvious strength, she found his childlike behaviour odd, especially considering the simple obstacle of a locked door. However, this didn't stop her from gently offering solace to her first love.

"Oh dear, Myne, don't worry about it," Gwen soothed, placing her cheek on his head and gently stroking his back. "It's no big deal. If it won't open, then forget it. There's a hidden door that leads inside the house. We can use that instead.

Don't be discouraged; you at least tried to help, and that's all that matters to me." Lost in her emotions, Gwen didn't realize she was being lifted off the ground and carried inside the house.

"A hidden door, huh? That's wonderful... wait, what?" Myne exclaimed, pulling his face away from Gwen's embrace in shock. He couldn't believe his ears. After all, Gwen's house is only one story and right beside the main road.

There's no way someone with a right mind would build a hidden door in the house which is located at such an inappropriate place, after all, a door can be open from both sides, what if someone saw that door and used it for ulterior motive at night?

"Sshh, please keep your voice down! What if someone...? How did we enter the house?" Gwen started, concerned about Myne's outburst. But she suddenly paused seeing the scenery around her, replaced by a familiar interior. Glancing back, she saw the open door and instantly understood her mischievous boyfriend had tricked her.

"Myne! You lied to me!" Gwen pouted playfully, gently thumping her fist against his chest, careful not to hurt him. She pulled away from his embrace and bolted the door shut from the inside.

"Sorry, I couldn't stop myself from teasing you after I saw your anxious look. By the way, can you show me the hidden door? I want to confirm something," Myne asked with an apologetic smile while taking Gwen back into his arms again while looking at observing her house.

The interior of the house was hardly worth mentioning. It was practically bare, devoid of furniture except for two wooden chairs tucked away in one corner. Sunlight streamed through several holes in the cracked ceiling, illuminating various bird droppings scattered across the floor. The left side led to the kitchen area, while the right side had two rooms. And that's it.

Gwen's house is as small and bad as it seems from the outside.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Fine, but don't do this again." Gwen, unable to stay mad at Myne's sincere apology, and her fake anger quickly melted, and happily led him towards the kitchen. The kitchen as expected was very small, with an old but cool-looking Y-shaped Wood Fired Rocket Stove, probably custom-made, as Myne had never seen such a unique stove on the market.

Expect that there were some utensils, pots, a bucket full of vegetables and fruits, lying on the wooden table in the middle and finally a small window on top of the stove. And that's it. There was nothing else in the kitchen, simple as f*ck.

Gwen led Myne to the right-hand wall in the kitchen. There, she picked up a meter-long iron rod with a hook and inserted it into a hole in the wall. With a firm pull on the rod, a small section of the floor near the ground lifted, revealing a window-sized opening. After raising the hidden door to her stomach height, she removed the rod and wedged it underneath for support.

She then looked at Myne with a proud expression, as if saying, "Cool, right? Praise me now."

Myne, however, ignored Gwen and meticulously examined the hidden door. He noticed a thick layer of dust around the opening, indicating disuse for a long time. However, just a few meters away, he spotted a trail of fresh footprints, suggesting someone had been there recently. Pondering this discovery, Myne slipped through the hidden door and retrieved the iron rod.

Without the rod's support, the hidden door slammed shut behind him. Myne looked around and found himself standing outside Gwen's house in an unexpected scene. Several children were playing nearby, but their focus shifted curiously towards him as he emerged from the hidden door.

A flicker of surprise and amusement crossed their faces when they saw Myne or more specifically the hidden door, but as soon as he made eye contact, they quickly resumed their charade of play, albeit with their attention still lingering on him.

After studying the children intently with the raise of eyes brown, Myne gently pushed the hidden door, which, as expected, opened easily. With a helpless sigh, he walked back inside.

Naive, innocent, or perhaps foolish, Gwen was still looking at him with a proud expression, waiting for his praise. But nothing she imagined happened, and what she got was a hard love fist on her head.

"Ouch!"