Selene blinked. "Wait. That's a thing?"
The interface shimmered golden, like a game show wheel just before the jackpot.
[Loan Limit: One billion dollars!]
[The amount must be spent within 24 hours or the funds vanish.]
[Interest rate: To be determined later.]
[Accept Loan? [Yes] / [No]]
Selene slammed [YES] so hard the button glitched for a second.
Ding!
[One billion dollars have successfully been transferred to your bank account!]
[Initializing Bribery Estimation Protocol…]
The system paused dramatically.
[Bianca Sinclair has spent five hundred thousands in bribes to secure loyalty from key prison officials over the past ten years. It appears that many officers were willing to work for her for free—given her rare peerless jade-like beautiful face and her high status.]
Selene's eyebrow twitched.
Her expression suddenly soured.
The system continued nonchalantly.
Ding!
Here's a list of bribes the player will need to issue to buy Bianca's loyal followers!
Warden – One million five hundred thousand dollars
So he forgets what "warden" means.
Deputy Warden – Five hundred thousand dollars
For forwarding emails like "Ma'am is sleeping, please be quiet."
Seven Senior Prison Officers - Seven hundred thousand dollars
For caring for you like you're their soulmate.
Cellblock Managers (3) – One million two hundred thousand dollars (four hundred thousand each)
For installing an indoor fountain and hiring a violinist.
Kitchen Chef – Two hundred fifty thousand dollars
For importing French lobster and making it medium rare.
Head Nurse – Three hundred thousand dollars
For replacing jail meds with Korean skincare.
10 Random Guards – One million dollars (one hundred thousand each)
For breaking every law in the book while smiling.
Janitor – One hundred thousand dollars
For whispering "Your Highness" every time she walks by.
Selene stared.
Then she looked up at the two officers seated up front, both of whom had been giving her the stink eye ever since they picked her up.
Her lips curled slowly into a smile.
She pressed [Confirm Bribes] like she was placing an Omazon order for revenge.
Thirty-seven seconds later...
The first officer's phone buzzed.
He blinked at it. Frowned. Then straightened so fast he nearly dislocated something.
His partner looked down at her own phone and audibly gasped.
The other escort vehicles buzzed like a hive of hornets on payday.
Each officer stared down at their devices.
Every single message read the same:
You have received a financial gift from Miss Selene Sinclair. Disappoint her, and the money — and detailed receipts of your sins — will be sent to your enemies.
And the press.
And your mother.
A deadly silence filled the van.
Then the lead officer cleared his throat.
"Miss Sinclair," he said, suddenly adopting a tone like he was addressing a medieval duchess, "would you prefer still or shimmering sparkling for your holding cell beverage selection?"
Back in the present…
Blake's fists were clenched.
His face, unreadable. His posture, solid steel.
The man said little. He never needed to.
But right now?
Even a blind and mute person would've screamed Blake is pissed just looking at him.
He had stormed into the prison like a noir god of corporate vengeance. Bribed, intimidated, and calmly walked past three checkpoints with a single card flash. Behind him, Hamilton Group bodyguards trailed, dressed like the secret service met GQ.
Selene, meanwhile, stretched like a cat.
Draped in a ridiculous silk kimono, now sipping what looked suspiciously like pink champagne (sparkling electrolyte water, technically), she smiled as if nothing about the situation was completely insane.
"You bribed a maximum-security prison into being a five-star spa," Blake muttered, his voice like sandpaper and suppressed stress. "BUT. You did not bother to leave?"
Selene raised a brow. "I was curious."
"You what?"
"My mom used to say prison life builds character," she replied breezily. "She once ruled the laundry ward in Crescent Jail. This was… a legacy trip."
Blake slowly closed his eyes.
Behind him, his guards whispered nervously.
"Should we extract her?"
"She looks… kinda happy."
"Is that a buffalo skull under her bed?!"
There was a long silence.
Too silently silence.
Then, Blake let out a deep sigh and murmured.
"Please come with us now, Miss Selene. We don't want to attract more negative articles about you."
Selene sighed as well and got up.
After all, she did have to complete a quest. Pushing her feet into furry rabbit slippers, Selene fixed her kimono, took a bite of a strangely black meat, almost vomited, then followed Blake out of the cell block.
During the entire time, Blake said nothing.
His guards followed like shadows.
Selene's kimono dragged on the gravel as she wondered why… why the man she had met just once before was so concerned about her?
Did the reputation of Hamilton Group mean so much to him?
But why should it?
Blake was just an employee.
Not a Hamilton.
And his boss? Reynold looked as sour as one could be.
How could Blake go against him?
No matter how much Selene thought, something seemed to be missing. Something about Blake was not adding up.
Selene was lost in her thoughts when Blake suddenly stopped. She almost hit him, staggered as she suddenly stopped herself—and fell after tripping on the silk kimono.
"Ouch, can't you watch where you're going, Blake—" Selene mumbled, rubbing her temples.
Blake stood protectively before her.
Then… Selene saw him.
An older man wearing two dozen medals on his black, crisp uniform. Square jaw. Ice eyes. A Sinclair family pin gleamed on his lapel like a silent declaration of war.
Selene felt her stomach drop. A bad, sinking kind of drop.
'System! Do something! Bribe him too!' Selene pleaded in her mind.
The response was almost immediate.
Ding!
[Transfer failed!
[High loyalty detected! The subject is immune to bribes!]
Selene hissed under her breath. "Damn it."
The system chimed.
[Reminder: Some bosses cannot be bribed. Try charm or seduction.]
"He is OLD!" Selene snapped, "And what do you take me for?"
Blake inwardly cursed, 'I should have prepared a psychiatrist too!'
Delano scoffed gruffly. Beside him, was a pale-looking warden who looked utterly confused and conflicted. Delaon commanded, his voice sharp, "All luxuries are to be stripped from this Sinclair brat. All favors revoked. Return her to a real cell. NOW!"
Selene did not bother getting up from the ground.
Her heart was pounding too fast.
Her mind refused to work!
[Error: Intelligence Buff Deactivated because of player's emotional instability!]
'Then why did you even bother giving it to me?!' Selene demanded.
[Emotional instability can be overridden after reaching higher levels.]
Blake's guards subtly moved into formation.
Three to the left. Two behind.
One even cracked his knuckles like he had a side hobby in bone rearrangement. The tension could be sliced with a platinum credit card.
But Delano? He was unfazed. As if fighting a dozen trained bodyguards was his hobby!
"You turned my prison into a dam resort," he growled. "This ends now."
Blake stepped forward immediately. Protective. Wordless. Dangerous.
Selene blinked between them.
She was flanked.
Bodyguards to her left. Rage-monster to her right.
And suddenly…
She wasn't sure who was in more danger.
Her?
Blake?
Or the entire prison?
Ding!
[Time left for prison escape: 12 Minutes]
[PENALTY ZONE INCOMING IF QUEST IS NOT COMPLETED.]