Nobody likes Monday mornings.
But Magnus's Monday blues had the added flavor of System dread. Figuring out how the quests worked had been both a blessing and a curse. On one hand, they knew what to expect — a quest would trigger sometime Monday morning, as long as someone targetable was in sight. On the other hand, that knowledge came with the constant tension of waiting for the other shoe to drop.
It didn't help that he had to start the week bright and early — before five A.M. — thanks to Jordan's complete lack of mercy for sleep-deprived mortals. His muscles ached, his brain felt two steps behind his body, and the knowledge that a new quest could hit at any moment kept him wound even tighter.
What did help, however, was the fact that, last night, he and Alex had said "I love you" for the first time.
Well. Technically.
They'd barely had time to process it before Sofia barged back into the dorm, loudly announcing that Tony was "creepily waiting" near the entrance like some kind of raccoon-shaped cryptid. According to her, he'd already spooked a few passersby — and, Magnus suspected, single-handedly added fresh fuel to the ever-growing Raccoon Boy rumors.
He'd left with a groan after kissing Alex goodbye, while Sofia made exaggerated gagging noises in the background.
Worth it!
Now, post-training and running on fumes, Magnus stood near the cafeteria entrance, staring out at the quad while waiting for Alex. Students streamed past in loose clusters — juniors and seniors, if he had to guess — talking, laughing, blissfully unaware that any one of them could be picked as the next target by a supernatural, booty-quest-giving System.
As if on cue, the familiar ping chimed in his head:
[Conquest Quest Initiated: Seduce and Sleep with Target — Brooke Harlan. Time Limit: Complete by Sunday at Midnight.]
[Random Power to assist with the mission: Please Stand By.]
As the power wheel spun, Magnus winced. He knew he should be used to it by now. And in some ways, he was. But it still dragged discomfort up from somewhere deep in his gut.
Alex arrived mere moments later. She nearly tackled him with an embrace, followed by a quick peck on the lips — completely ignoring anyone and everyone around them — before pulling back when she saw his expression.
"What's wrong?"
And then it hit him.
The world tilted. A numbing sensation washed through his senses, like he was both here and… somewhere else — as if someone had switched on a projector inside his brain.
They were at the animal shelter. Alex was speaking — or rather, her voice echoed inside his head.
"Now that we know what we know, it's a good thing you were able to prevent that accident. If Jordan had been hurt, the whole monthly quest would've taken a hit."
"Yeah. Lucky us, but—" he heard himself start to say—
—and then the sensation snapped away.
He was back in the present, still in Alex's arms, staring straight into her worried gaze.
"What's wrong?" She asked again, concern plain in her voice.
He took a deep breath.
"Quest," he managed at last, returning her hug. "And… a new power." After a brief pause, he gently disentangled himself. "I'll fill you in in a bit. We should probably get some food — and caffeine — in our system first."
She nodded and let him lead her into the cafeteria by hand, their fingers interlacing. They earned a few groans from passersby, but neither of them cared.
With the System looming over their lives, moments of quiet, intimate normalcy like this were how they coped.
***
They grabbed food and settled into a quiet corner, away from the worst of the morning rush. Magnus took a few deep breaths, fingers tightening briefly around his cup before he finally spoke.
"So… it happened right before you got here."
Alex exhaled and asked casually — almost too casually, like they were just talking about the weather:
"Who's it?"
"Brooke Harlan. Our year, I think? And the power I got is…" He hesitated. "Premonition."
She blinked. "Like seeing the future?"
"Exactly like that," he said. "And I'd already had my first vision… when you, uh, kissed me earlier."
Alex blinked again. Then her eyes widened as the moment clicked. Magnus filled in the rest: what he'd seen, or rather, what he'd heard.
When he finished, she leaned back in her chair, expression thoughtful.
"Alright," she said slowly. "I can't really guess why I'd say that. But from what you just told me, there are a few clear takeaways."
She held up a finger. "One: there's potentially an accident involving Jordan soon."
A second finger. "Two: you're probably going to be there to stop it."
A third. "And three — for whatever reason — future us thinks stopping it is crucial to you sleeping with her."
Magnus rubbed the back of his neck. "So… I should keep an eye on her? Maybe tail her?"
"That sounds like a horrible idea!"
"Why?!" He looked genuinely caught off guard — and a little wounded — by how fast she shot it down.
"If you get caught, it'll wreck whatever progress you've made with her so far. And no offense, babe," she added dryly, "but you suck at stealth."
"Hey, I've gotten better," he protested. "Tony doesn't go easy on me!"
She remained unconvinced. "I don't think learning how to be a raccoon is going to help you stalk Jordan without getting caught."
"I have Invisibility," he said weakly. "For emergencies. And I could—uh—maybe ask animals to help keep an eye on her while I keep my distance?"
She raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Can you actually do that?"
"I think so! Maybe?" He paused. "…Okay, probably not. But I could ask Tony to ask other animals. Possibly."
Alex rolled her eyes. "Weren't you the one who told me — and I quote — 'animals are unreliable and easily distracted'? Tony was included in that assessment." She tilted her head. "Also, your Invisibility lasts ten minutes. Three times a day."
She paused, tapping her finger against the table.
"How about we find a reason for you to be near her naturally, instead?"
Magnus sighed. "Okay. What's your idea?"
"I'm still thinking."
They ate in silence for a bit. Alex's finger tapped rhythmically as she stared at nothing in particular.
Finally, she sighed. "Alright. No clean reason for you to be around her outside of training."
Magnus tensed.
"So," she continued, "you tail her, but I tag along. If we get caught, we pretend we're just on a date."
"And that's less suspicious how, exactly?"
"It's not," she said calmly. "But her suspicion falls on me. She'll think I'm up to something and that you just got dragged along."
Magnus considered it.
"I don't like it," he admitted. "But I don't see a better plan."
She smiled and reached across the table, squeezing his arm. "It'll be fine. And if things go sideways, you can always turn invisible."
He let out a shaky laugh. "Right. Okay. That's that. But what about Brooke?"
Alex's expression shifted — thoughtful, but confident. "I know her. We've had a few classes together over the years. Not close, but close enough that I have an in."
She met his eyes. "Let me talk to her first. See how that goes. Then I'll update you."
***
Meanwhile, in a café across campus.
Lila Voss had claimed a corner table by the window — half for the natural light, half because it gave her a clear line of sight to both the entrance and the counter. Predictable layout. Minimal noise. Manageable variables.
Her laptop was open, notes neatly organized in two columns. One earbud hung loose, the other tucked in, playing something soft and unobtrusive. Every few minutes, she tapped a key, paused, then resumed typing — steady, efficient, controlled.
She was midway through annotating a particularly dense paragraph when someone slid into the chair across from her without asking.
"Still color-coding your notes like a serial killer?"
Lila didn't jump. She just looked up, mildly annoyed.
"…It's efficient."
Emily Carter — Lila's cousin and their College's student council VP — grinned, already pulling her bag onto the table. "Mm-hmm. That's what all the scary organized people say."
Behind her, another girl followed, balancing two drinks.
"Don't listen to her," Brooke Harlan said as she set one down in front of Lila. "She color-codes her closet."
"I do not," Emily shot back.
"You literally have a 'formal-neutral' section."
"That's just called having standards."
Lila's lips twitched faintly as she slid her laptop a few inches aside to make space. "Thanks," she said, nodding at the drink.
Brooke waved it off, dropping into the chair beside Emily. "You looked like you needed caffeine."
"She always looks like that," Emily said. "It's her default setting."
"I do not," Lila protested, though she sounded resigned.
Brooke laughed softly, then leaned back, stretching her arms. "God, I needed this. Lit seminar is going to kill me."
"Because you waited until last night to read?" Emily asked sweetly.
"I read!" Brooke objected. "Just… selectively."
"Ah. Selective literacy. Bold strategy for a Literature major."
"It's called prioritizing themes," Brooke shot back. Then, with a grin, "Also, I already know how it ends."
Emily snorted. "You say that about everything."
"I'm usually right."
Lila tuned them out for a moment, typing another line before glancing back up. "You two are loud."
"We're fun," Emily corrected. "There's a difference."
A brief lull settled as Lila returned to her notes, Brooke sipping her drink, Emily scrolling through something on her phone.
Then Emily's gaze flicked up — sharp in a way that didn't quite match her casual posture.
"So," she said lightly, "fun question."
Lila didn't look up. "That's never a good sign."
"When was the last time you talked to Alex Reyes?"
That made her pause. "…A few weeks ago."
"Mm." Emily tilted her head. "Was that before or after she started dating that guy?"
Lila's fingers stilled on the keyboard.
"…Before," she said, carefully neutral.
Brooke perked up slightly. "Wait, Alex Reyes? Like, the Alex Reyes?"
"The one and only," Emily said.
"The one who—" Brooke made a vague gesture. "—kind of runs half the social scene without even trying?"
"That would be her, yes."
Brooke let out a low whistle. "Okay, I've heard some things recently."
Emily's mouth curved. "Oh? Do tell."
"Well…" Brooke leaned forward a little, lowering her voice — not conspiratorial, just instinctively quieter. "There was this post floating around last week. Not, like, viral or anything, but… you know. Circles."
Emily raised an eyebrow. "Circles?"
"Dorm chats. Group threads. That kind of thing." Brooke took another sip. "Mia Chen — freshman, I think? — posted on social media that Alex's boyfriend is, quote-unquote, 'great in bed.'"
Emily let out a short laugh. "Bold."
"Right? Especially since everyone knows Mia practically idolizes Alex." Brooke grinned. "But that's not all, Sofia Ramirez liked and commented on the post, singing him praises — well, it was one of her lesser-known accounts, but still — so it's unlikely Mia cheated with Alex's boyfriend or was trying to break them up, which means—"
She stopped, glancing between them.
"Wait. Why do I feel like you two know something I don't here?"
Emily didn't answer immediately. Instead, she looked at Lila. Slowly. Deliberately.
Lila stared back at her for a second, then looked away first, picking up her drink. "…Ems, don't!"
"Oh, I'm absolutely going to," Emily said, delighted. "You know something."
"I don't—"
"You do," Brooke cut in, eyes lighting up. "Oh my god, you do!"
Lila exhaled through her nose, already regretting everything.
"…It's not—" she started, then stopped.
Emily leaned forward, chin resting in her hand. "Lila."
A beat.
"Okay, I don't know about Mia," Lila said finally, voice low, like she was stating a technicality more than making a confession, "but Alex told me they were experimenting. And… they technically weren't dating yet at the time. So it was just three consenting people… experimenting, no strings attached."
Silence.
Then…
Emily's grin turned sharp. "I knew it!"
"Damn, girl, respect!" Brooke breathed. "Didn't expect you to have a threesome before I did!"
"It wasn't like that," Lila added quickly, cheeks faintly pink. "It was… structured."
Brooke blinked. "Structured?"
"Yes."
Emily laughed. "That is the most Lila answer you could have given."
"It was," Lila insisted, a little defensive now. "Clear expectations. Boundaries. Everything was discussed beforehand."
"Of course it was," Emily said. "You'd only agree to something like that if there was a spreadsheet involved."
"There was no spreadsheet!"
"A checklist?"
"…Maybe." Lila was blushing furiously.
Brooke covered her mouth, trying — and failing — not to laugh.
"Okay, about that post," she said once she recovered, "I'm intrigued now. Spill, love, was he really as good in bed as they say?"
Still blushing, Lila's expression shifted, just slightly.
"…He's…" She hesitated, then settled on the safest word she had. "Definitely more than meets the eyes."
"Oh, come on! You've gotta give me more than that," Brooke protested.
Meanwhile, Emily's eyes flickered with a different kind of interest.
"Magnus Chane," she said, almost idly. "That's his name, right?"
Lila nodded.
Brooke tilted her head. "You know him?"
Emily shrugged. "I know of him."
That wasn't entirely true, but it wasn't entirely false either. Even if she weren't keeping an eye out for Lila — after what happened with her ex and all — she would've come across him eventually, everything considered. Lila had just put Magnus on her radar a little sooner.
She'd seen him around campus. Just in passing. But lately, he'd been becoming something of a minor campus celebrity. And there were patterns, if you knew where to look.
"Is he actually as awkward as people say?" Brooke asked.
"Yes," Lila said immediately.
Emily snorted. "And?"
Lila paused. "…Also not."
Brooke leaned in. "That is the least helpful answer possible."
"It's accurate."
Emily's fingers tapped idly against her phone. "Funny thing about him," she said, tone light. "He keeps ending up in… interesting situations."
Lila glanced at her. "What do you mean?"
"Just an observation."
Brooke frowned slightly. "Like what?"
Emily shrugged again, too casual.
"Wrong place, wrong time. Or maybe right place, right time." A small smile. "Depends how you look at it."
There was something in her tone, something just off enough that Lila noticed.
"…You're watching him," Lila said. "Why is he on your watchlist?"
Emily met her gaze, unbothered. "It's my job to know things."
Brooke rolled her eyes. "God, Ems, you sound just like him!"
"Like who?" Lila asked.
Emily smirked. "My boyfriend."
"Our dear student council president!" Brooke teased. "Mr. Dashing Dashiell. The dash in—"
Emily rolled her eyes and cut in. "You've already made that 'em-dash' joke one too many times."
"It's not a joke," Brooke shot back. "It's your ship name. And it's funny — and punny — in my professional opinion as a Lit major."
Emily groaned into her hands while Lila huffed quietly, shaking her head as she turned back to her laptop.
"Your lives are unnecessarily complicated."
"And yet," Emily said, leaning back in her chair, "I wasn't the one who had a quote-unquote 'structured' threesome."
Lila didn't respond.
But she was faintly blushing again.