Chapter 14: Quest Completed
Julian slowly pulled out his rod while letting out a satisfied sigh. Mira was a lot tighter than he had expected.
After pulling out, he gently put Mira down and before he could say anything, Mira lowered her body, giving him a nice and passionate blowjob, cleaning his rod in the process.
Julian felt Mira's tongue coiling around his rod and tensed up. He quickly put his hands on her head and let out a low moan, which made Mira slightly chuckle.
After a few minutes of receiving her sweet and heavenly blowjob, Julian came again in her mouth, which Mira swallowed without hesitation.
Mira quickly stood up and wiped her mouth before going to pick up her clothes, which were laid on the ground and quickly wore them.
Julian, on the other hand, simply pulled up his pants and sit down on the large and old long chair right beside him, trying his best to control his breath.
Mira adjusted her clothes, smoothing out the wrinkles before running her fingers through her messy hair. A light flush still dusted her cheeks, but her usual composure was returning. She turned toward Julian, who remained seated on the worn-out chair, his chest rising and falling as he caught his breath. His expression was unreadable, a smirk lingering on his lips as his gaze followed her movements.
For a moment, neither of them spoke. The air between them was still thick, the weight of what had just happened lingering in the dimly lit storage room. Mira eventually broke the silence, crossing her arms as she looked at him.
"You look too smug for someone who nearly collapsed just now," she teased, tilting her head.
Julian chuckled, running a hand through his tousled hair. "Can you blame me?" His eyes flickered with amusement. "I just had the best night of my life."
Mira rolled her eyes but couldn't completely hide the small smile tugging at her lips. She exhaled and leaned back against the wooden wall, shifting her weight from one foot to another. "So… what now?"
Julian glanced at her, his smirk fading slightly. "That depends. You tell me."
Mira hesitated, her fingers tapping against her arm. "I don't regret it," she admitted, her voice quieter than before. "But… this doesn't change anything."
Julian raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
She turned her gaze to him, her expression serious now. "You're still a servant of the Averill household, and I still have my own responsibilities."
Julian leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he studied her. "I never expected anything to change, Mira." His tone was casual, but there was an edge of something unreadable beneath it. "I knew what this was."
Mira nodded slowly, as if reassuring herself. "Good." She pushed off the wall and took a deep breath, rolling her shoulders. "We should go before someone notices we're gone."
Julian stretched lazily, standing up. "You worried someone's going to find out?"
Mira shot him a warning glare. "If anyone does, I'll make sure it's only you who gets in trouble."
Julian chuckled, raising his hands in mock surrender. "Noted."
With that, Mira turned and opened the creaky door, stepping out into the cool night air. Julian followed, watching as she walked ahead, her usual confident stride returning. He shook his head with a smirk before stuffing his hands into his pockets and trailing after her.
One night of passion didn't mean everything was different. But deep down, Julian knew—things weren't exactly the same either.
***
As Julian walked through the quiet halls of the Averill estate, he kept his steps light, ensuring he wouldn't attract any attention. Mira had already disappeared into the shadows, leaving him to navigate his way back to his quarters alone.
The cool night air still clung to his skin, and despite the exhaustion settling into his muscles, a smirk tugged at his lips.
Ding!
A familiar chime echoed in his mind.
[Quest: Cultivate Influence – Completed!]
[Rewards: +1000 Coins, [Shop] Unlocked]
Julian glanced at the floating system screen in front of him. The sight of his newly acquired [Shop] tab and the glistening 1000 Coins was satisfying, but something was off.
There was no XP reward.
Frowning slightly, he muttered, "No XP for completing a quest?" That was strange. He had expected some experience points, yet his XP bar remained at zero.
Ding!
Suddenly, a new notification appeared.
[You have overcome an important milestone in your personal growth.]
[Level Up!]
Julian's eyes widened as his status window flickered and updated.
—
[Status]
[Name: Julian]
[Title: None]
[Rank: F]
[Class: Fighter]
[Level: 2]
[XP: 0/200]
[HP: 200/200]
[Mana: 100/100]
[Unique Skill: Absorption Lv.1]
[Skill: Basic Sword Technique]
[Strength: 11]
[Agility: 9]
[Stamina: 9]
[Durability: 11]
[Intelligence: 6]
[Coins: 1000]
[Quest]
[Shop (Locked)]
[Map]
[Inventory]
—
A slow grin spread across Julian's face as he examined the changes. His HP and Mana had doubled, and the next XP requirement had increased.
Julian exhaled slowly as the glowing system screen faded from view. His level had increased, yet there was still that odd detail—the quest hadn't rewarded him any XP.
He frowned slightly. "Weird," he muttered under his breath. Was it just an exception? Or was there some hidden mechanic he wasn't aware of?
"No XP from the quest, but I still leveled up…" he muttered, rubbing his chin. "Does that mean there's another way to gain levels besides XP?"
The system hadn't offered an explanation, leaving him to speculate. Was it because of the nature of the quest? Or maybe some other hidden condition had been met? He shook his head—there was no point dwelling on it now. He'd just have to pay attention to future quests and see if this was a one-time thing.
His gaze shifted to his status window again. One thing was clear—his stats had increased. His strength, agility, stamina, durability, and even intelligence had all gone up by one.
"Leveling up boosts my stats automatically…" Julian murmured, flexing his fingers and rolling his shoulders. He did feel stronger, if only slightly. If this pattern continued, even small increases would add up over time.
He pushed off the door and walked over to his bed, plopping down onto the mattress. The exhaustion that had been creeping up on him finally hit in full force. His muscles ached, his mind felt heavy, and his body screamed for rest. But before sleep could claim him, there was one last thing he wanted to check.
"[Shop]," he commanded mentally.
A new screen popped up before him.