My Scumbag System-Chapter 417: What I Am

I reached for the shot glass, grateful for a relatively tame question. The whiskey burned going down, but I’d had worse.

"Her name was Mika. She was this girl who sat two rows ahead of me in elementary school. She shared her lunch with me once when I forgot mine, and my ten-year-old brain decided that meant we were practically married."

Natalia snorted. "What happened?"

"She moved away the next year. Tragic love story."

I looked around the circle, aware that my next choice would set a tone. Impossible Mode required escalation, transparency, and somehow convincing these women that sharing me was a good plan.

"Akari, truth or dare?" 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Her black hair swung as she tilted her head, green eyes dancing with mischief. "Dare, obviously."

I considered my options. Too aggressive would spook Emi. Too tame would lose Akari’s interest.

"I dare you to trade one article of clothing with Skylar for the rest of the game."

Skylar raised an eyebrow. "Playing it safe, Nakano?"

Akari stood up, already pulling her nightie over her head, revealing a black lace bra and matching panties underneath. "Come on, Amane. Strip."

Skylar rolled her eyes but pulled her oversized shirt off, confirming my suspicion that she wasn’t wearing shorts underneath—just black boy underwear that made her ass look incredible.

They exchanged clothes, Akari now swimming in Skylar’s shirt while Skylar looked ready to burst out of Akari’s nightie at any second. The material strained across her chest, barely covering anything important.

"My turn." Akari’s grin was predatory as she surveyed the room. "Emi, truth or dare?"

Emi hesitated. "Um... dare?"

"I dare you to give Satori a lap dance. For thirty seconds."

Emi’s face went from pink to crimson. "What? I don’t—I can’t—I don’t know how to—"

"Two shots if you back out," Akari reminded her, already filling a glass.

Emi looked at me, mortification written across her face. I kept my expression carefully neutral despite the chaos in my head. Nel was probably laughing her ass off somewhere in the system interface.

"You don’t have to," I said quietly.

Something shifted in Emi’s eyes—determination replacing embarrassment. "No, I’ll do it. Someone play some music."

Skylar pulled out her phone and a slow, thumping beat filled the room. I swallowed hard as Emi approached, her blue hair bouncing with each step.

"Just... don’t laugh, okay?" she whispered.

"Wouldn’t dream of it."

She placed her hands on my shoulders and began moving her hips to the beat. Her movements were awkward at first, tentative and unsure. But as the music continued, something changed. Her body found the rhythm, and suddenly her hips were swaying in a way that made my mouth go dry.

She turned around, pressing her ass against my thighs, arms raised above her head. The tank top rode up, exposing a strip of her back. Her shorts hugged every curve as she moved.

I kept my hands firmly at my sides, aware of Natalia’s eyes on me, of Cel’s quiet observation, of Skylar’s amused smirk, of Akari’s satisfied grin.

Thirty seconds had never felt so long.

When the time was up, Emi quickly retreated to her spot, face blazing but a small, proud smile playing at her lips.

"Not bad, Aoyama," Skylar commented. "You’ve got moves."

"Emi’s turn," Akari announced.

Emi took a deep breath, still flushed. "Celeste, truth or dare?"

"Dare," Celeste said, surprising everyone.

Emi thought for a moment. "I dare you to... sit in Satori’s lap until your next turn."

I really should have seen this coming. Every dare would somehow involve me, because of course it would. That was the whole point of the game—to push boundaries, test waters, see who would flinch first.

Celeste rose gracefully, crossed the small space, and perched herself primly on my lap. Her nightdress was silky against my bare legs, her silver-white hair close enough that I could smell her shampoo—something expensive and subtle.

"Comfortable?" I asked quietly.

"Quite," she replied, her voice betraying nothing.

Celeste looked around the circle, her posture perfect even while sitting on my lap. "Natalia, truth or dare?"

Natalia narrowed her eyes slightly. "Truth."

Celeste smiled, a small, calculated thing. "Have you ever been jealous of anyone in this room?"

Natalia took the shot without breaking eye contact. "Yes."

"Akari," Natalia said, changing targets. "Truth or dare?"

"Truth." Akari grinned. "Surprise."

"Why did you really suggest this game?"

Direct hit. Akari’s smile faltered for just a fraction of a second before she recovered. She took her shot, grimacing slightly.

"Because we all know what’s happening, but no one’s talking about it. Satori has something with each of us—different things, different intensities, but something. And pretending otherwise is stupid."

The room went quiet. There it was, out in the open.

"Your turn," Natalia said, her voice neutral.

Akari looked at me, green eyes direct. "Satori, truth or dare?"

We were six questions in, and already the pretense was starting to crack. Impossible Mode loomed over me like the sword of Damocles.

"Truth," I said, because if I was going to do this, I might as well start digging my grave now.

"What are we to you? All of us. Honestly."

Celeste shifted slightly in my lap. Emi’s eyes were wide. Skylar watched with calculated interest. Natalia’s expression was unreadable.

I took the shot, letting the burn center me.

"The honest answer?" I met each of their gazes in turn. "You’re all different pieces of a puzzle I’m still figuring out. Natalia is my queen—the first, the foundation. Emi is my heart—the kindness I never deserved but somehow got anyway. Skylar is my mirror—the parts of me I recognize but haven’t admitted to yet. Cel is my challenge—the impossible thing I keep reaching for. And Akari is my wildcard—the chaos I can’t predict but can’t look away from either."

The room was silent. I could hear my own heartbeat, too loud in my ears.

"But there’s more to it than that," I continued, because if I was doing this, I was doing it right. "There’s something I need to show you. All of you. Something that explains everything."

Emi leaned forward. "What is it?"

I took a deep breath and opened the interface, making it visible to everyone in the room for the first time.

"It’s called the System," I said. "And it’s been running my life since the day I woke up months ago."