ABSCS 02

Chapter 02 

The Angel of the Slums (1)

[Mom: Yuna, are you okay?]
[Mom: You’re not answering your phone or coming home. I’m worried.]
[Mom: If you see this, please call me. And make sure you’re eating well.]

“…Mom.”

I stared at the constant string of messages on my phone, then turned my gaze away.

I was standing on a rooftop.

It was dawn, and below, only a few cars passed by. Not a single person in sight.

This might be sudden, but let me confess something.

Today, I plan to die.

“Even if the surgery goes well, you’ll likely lose your vision.”

I had cancer in my eyes.

‘What terrible luck.’

It was already absurd enough to be diagnosed with cancer at such a young age, but of all places, it had to be in my eyes.

‘And I’m broke on top of that…’

I touched my eye.

The cancer had already blinded my left one, and now my right was fading into a fog.

“The cancer has already spread to your brain… Honestly, your chances of survival are below 5%.”

“If I’d known this would happen, I wouldn’t have even gone to grad school.”

I had spent everything—every last penny—working toward my PhD. Now, it was all pointless.

I sighed and stepped forward.

If I’m going to die anyway, can’t I at least choose how it happens?

One more step and it’ll all be over.

But then…

[Vaccine program detected.]
[Program name: Lee Yuna.]
[Installing…]

“…Huh?”

A blue window appeared before my eyes.

It was eerily sharp and vivid in a world that had become nothing but a blur.

[Wish detected.]
[New quest!]
[If you fulfill your role properly, your body will be restored, you’ll return to your world, and receive generous financial compensation.]
[Do you accept?]
[Yes / Yes]

…What is this?

“You’re saying… you’ll cure my illness?”

In response to my murmured question, the blue window answered:

[Correct.]

“And you’ll pay me, too?”

[We promise compensation equivalent to approximately 100 billion won.]

“…Are you insane? I’m in.”

As soon as I heard the amount, I pressed the “Yes” button like I was possessed.

It’s not like I had another choice anyway.

And so, I possessed someone.

A pretty silver-haired, blue-eyed girl named Justinas.

[Main Quest]
Save 1 billion people.
Current: 0

“…What the hell.”

When I first saw the main quest, I couldn’t believe my eyes.

One billion people?

One billion?

“How the hell am I supposed to save a billion people?!”

Even if I spent my entire life traveling the world, I wouldn’t even meet that many people, let alone save them.

Is this even a clearable mission?

[We promise compensation equivalent to approximately 100 billion won.]

‘…Screw it. I’m doing it.’

They’re offering 100 billion won and a cure for a terminal illness I couldn’t treat with that money otherwise.

The most important thing was figuring out what counts as “saving” someone.

So I tried giving water to someone collapsed on the street.

“Here, sir, please drink this.”

“Oh, ah… Thank you, little one.”

As he chugged the water, the system window updated.

[Main Quest]
Save 1 billion people.
Current: 1

‘Oh?’

If something this simple counts, maybe this quest is more doable than I thought?

And that wasn’t all.

[Austin feels gratitude toward you.]
[Virtue Points +1]
[Tip: You can purchase desired items with virtue points.]

“Virtue points…?”

When I blinked, a flashy item window appeared in the air.

[Cleanliness Maintenance – 10,000p]
You’ll always be fresh, fragrant, and immune to disease, even without bathing.

[Halo Effect – 5,000p]
Your back glows like a light source, making people perceive you as holy.

[Extra Life – 100,000p]
Grants one resurrection upon death.

[Pain Suppressant – 200,000p]
Reduces all pain sensations to below 10%. Doesn’t prevent death—so be careful.

“…They’ve got all sorts of crazy stuff.”

But the prices were way too high to afford anything right now.

Except maybe one:

[Kind Tone – 1p]
Makes others more favorable toward you.

It was cheap, so I gave it a try.

[‘Kind Tone’ has been applied!]
[Tip: This skill evolves as you accumulate more virtue points.]

“Yikes! (Oh crap, what the hell?!)”

…Huh?

Just to test it, I tried swearing.

“Ugh! Ugh! Ugh! (Sht! Sht! Sh*t!)”

What the hell.

“Did I just get scammed?”

Even though it only cost 1 point, it felt like my speech had been hijacked.

“Ugh, whatever…”

It didn’t seem like I could turn it off.

Might as well focus on gathering more points.

Eventually, I discovered some facts through experimentation.

“Thanks, you’re such a kind soul.”
[Virtue Points +2]

→ The amount of virtue points increases based on how grateful the other person feels toward you.

“You’re giving that to me, sis? Thanks!”
[Virtue Points +10]

→ Helping children yields more points than adults.

“Do you want to live at our house?”
“…Really? Is that okay?”

[Virtue Points +100]

→ Taking responsibility for someone earns a huge point boost.

That’s how I accidentally became a collector of orphans.

‘This is an efficient way to farm points.’

Kids constantly ask for things—shelter, food, water, care…

I provided everything they needed, and the points poured in.

[Virtue Points: 32,435]

This was the total I had earned over the past two years.

At first, I thought I’d never be able to afford the 5,000-point items, but now I owned several of those skills.

Most notably: Cleanliness Maintenance.

‘A no-shower-needed freshness skill? Absolute best!’

No puffiness in the mornings, no oily face.

Even viruses bounced right off me—I hadn’t caught so much as a cold.

Life had drastically improved thanks to just this one skill.

[Main Quest]
Save 1 billion people.
Current: 514

…Of course, the real quest still had a long way to go.

“How am I supposed to save a billion people?”

Turns out, the total population of this planet is roughly one billion.

Which basically means I’m being asked to save everyone in the entire world.

“Do I need to become a war hero or something…?”

No, that would maybe save a single empire—but not the world.

Sigh. Still, I have to try.

Maybe if I keep going one step at a time, I’ll get there eventually.

But truth be told, I had recently fallen into a slump.

‘If I keep increasing the number of kids I care for, the point intake should stay steady. Maybe I should buy some useful skill and become a religious figure?’

Because “saving” didn’t always mean physical rescue.

For example, if I could persuade a suicidal person to find a will to live, that also counted.

‘Spiritual salvation, basically.’

Many people in this world seek comfort in religion.

Though saving the entire world still felt impossible…

More than anything, I was too young right now.

My top priority was still earning points by caring for the orphans.

—At least, that was my naive thinking, until the next turning point completely shattered it.

It started off as an ordinary day.

“Are you okay? You look really sick.”

I found a sickly-looking boy collapsed in a back alley.

Was this anything unusual?

Not in the slightest.

Kids like him were everywhere in Kieto. The only luck this boy had was being noticed by me.

“Can you stand up?”

I reached for my trusty point-farming treasure chest.

‘His hair’s black. Must be from dirt?’

No one in this world had black hair. Not once in my years living in the slums had I seen anyone with it.

I assumed it was just a quirk of this world’s genetics. So I figured this kid’s hair was just dirty and stained dark. Poor thing.

“I’m Justinas!”

His scrawny appearance tugged at my heartstrings. I quickly introduced myself and handed him a piece of bread.

“Here, eat th—Whoa!”

Before I could finish, the boy tore into the bread like a wild animal.

[Cedric Neon feels gratitude toward you.]
[Virtue Points +100]

‘…Huh?’

I froze at the name that popped up.

It felt… oddly familiar.

‘Have I met him before?’

But I was sure I hadn’t seen a boy like him.

‘Cedric Neon… Cedric Neon… Cedric Neon?’

As I mentally repeated the name, realization struck me like lightning.

“You’re really bringing a dirty slum rat like me into the party? I’ll never understand you Easterners.”

Cedric Neon.

He was—

“A hero party in this day and age? What is this, a fairytale?”

—a supporting character in the anime “I Reincarnated as an Extra in Another World and Defeated the Demon King to Return Home.”

“Don’t cry. It’s not like I’m dying because I like you.”

—He died in place of the protagonist, leaving him with deep trauma.

“Did you trust me? Too bad. You’re going to die here.”

—And later returned as a demon general who betrayed the hero.

‘Are you kidding me?!’

This isn’t just an isekai trip—it’s an anime possession?! And of all things, a hero fantasy genre?! The revelation was earth-shattering.

I forced a calm expression and asked him,

“Wanna come live with me?”

Thankfully, he nodded.