Chapter 77: New residents.

For the past hour, Zyra had been locked in a brutal, unforgiving card game with Hunter. He had claimed it wasn’t just a game, insisting it was a high-level training exercise to keep her brain alert and improve her focus. Zyra had actually believed him at first but only because she was the best card player that she knew. Now, she just thought he wanted an excuse to destroy her confidence.

Hunter hadn’t been lying when he said he was good at cards. Zyra used to think she was a master, but she had officially met more than her match. She had lost fifteen games in a row. Fifteen!

[Ding! New residents have arrived. Chosen by this system. Host, go and meet them.]

Beauty’s mission alert couldn’t have come at a better time. It was the perfect escape route.

Zyra stood up abruptly, aggressively dusting off her pants even though she’d been sitting on a perfectly clean chair the whole time. She glared at the cards in her hand and tossed them onto the table. "I’m done."

Hunter leaned back in his chair, a lazy, insufferable grin spreading across his face. "You don’t make the rules, my dear. You only get a say the day you actually manage to beat me at this game."

"I need a break," Zyra snapped, crossing her arms. "After all, it looks like you’re about to win this game as well, and my mental focus is currently focusing on wanting to flip this table."

She turned and began walking away, trying to maintain some dignity. But she only made it three steps before a low, mocking chuckle echoed behind her. Hunter was laughing at her.

Zyra froze. She spun on her heel, marched back to the table, and slammed her hands down. "Why do you always behave in such an ungentlemanly manner? Is it a medical condition?"

Hunter shook his head, completely unfazed. "Ungentlemanly? Please. My ex-girlfriends would highly disagree with you. I open doors, I pull out chairs, and I’ve offered my coat on cold nights more times than I can count."

Zyra rolled her eyes so hard it practically hurt. The only thing she took away from that sentence was one clear fact. "So, what you’re saying is, you’re a player."

"I am a gentleman," he corrected, smirking.

"Your terrible behavior will never let you get a high-value woman," Zyra countered, lifting her chin defensively.

Hunter’s smirk only widened. He leaned forward, resting his chin on his hand. "You think?"

"I know!" Zyra huffed. She let her shoulders drop a fraction, letting her irritation give way to a small plea. "Look, would it honestly hurt your huge ego if you just let a lady like me win a game? Just one? Just to boost my confidence?"

Hunter threw his head back and laughed. "I am not going to massage your ego, dear wife." Then, just to pour an entire bucket of salt into her open wound, he added, "I mean, I would gladly do that for a woman I was actually dating. But you? You’re more like a little sister to me....and there is a contract and everything in between."

Zyra scoffed loudly, the sound echoing through the leisure room. Any tiny, lingering crumb of a crush she had once possessed for this man instantly evaporated into thin air. The man wasn’t a gentleman; he was a rogue. A chaotic, frustrating rogue. What did she think of a man that fought in pits for a living.

Hunter snickered as he stood up and walked past her. He paused near the doorway, glancing back over his shoulder. "Are you coming or what? We have new residents."

He raised a brow. "New residents?"

She sighed. "Stay here, I will go and meet them. You won’t understand this anyway."

Zyra left quickly, hoping on her electric trike. At the gates, she froze. A waddling procession of mutated ducks stood in formation, their eyes gleaming with eerie intelligence. The largest drake stood proud, feathers shimmering with a metallic sheen. Behind him, three females shifted nervously.

She had no idea how they had found her, but she had a feeling the system had something to do with it. Zyra crossed her arms. "Rent. If you want in, you pay."

[Ding! Warning: Host, we had an agreement. Half of the shelter belongs to beasts. Do not deny them entry.]

Before Zyra could argue, the three females squatted and laid eggs instantly! Each shell had a glow that gave off strange energy.

She blinked, then sighed. "Fine. That counts as rent. Get inside before I change my min."

The ducks quacked in unison, marching past her like disciplined soldiers.

In the security room, Hunter leaned back in the chair, staring at the monitors. He waved his hand in confusion, mouthing silently: "Ducks? Really?"

He said as much to Zyra when he met her at the door. She shrugged, "They paid rent."

He glanced at the eggs and laughed. "Let me guess, they have a nest reserved, with all the perks humans don’t get."

She sighed, walking into the house, ducks on her trail.

The drake paused at the doorway, tilting his head as if he understood. Then, he continued on his way with his wives, as if he knew just where to go, even without Zyra’s guidance. Hunter shook his head. This place was bizarre, and so were the new tenants. If more intelligent beasts showed up, the shelter would become a menagerie where beasts and humans uneasily coexisted.

[New Task: Go to the Beast pavilion and arrange the transferred herbs from the beast dominion on the shelves.]

The virtual screen flashed before her eyes.

"I have a mission," She said stiffly, "Training can wait a while."

She turned around and marched past him again, purposefully shifting her weight to bump her shoulder hard against his. It was meant to be a dramatic, intimidating exit. Instead, she immediately regretted it. Bumping into Hunter’s chest was like slamming directly into a solid brick wall. Her shoulder throbbed, but she forced herself to keep walking without flinching.

Hunter trailed behind her, his curiosity piqued. "What mission? Do you need help?"

"I don’t need your help," Zyra said over her shoulder, her voice dripping with independent pride.

She regretted those words approximately one minute later. As soon as they entered the beast pavilion, a massive mountain of herbs materialized out of thin air, dropping with a heavy thud right in the middle of the feeding section. The pile was huge, tangled, and heavy.

Hunter didn’t lift a finger. He simply leaned against the nearest wall, folded his arms across his chest, and watched her with an amused expression.

Zyra began dragging the heavy bundles of herbs, entering them into the registration base and positioning them neatly on the shelves. Every time she picked up a heavy load, she shot a furious, burning glare at Hunter. Her eyes practically screamed: Are you seriously just going to stand there and watch me do this?

Hunter just raised an eyebrow, silently demanding she say the words.

Finally, her back aching, Zyra snapped. "Fine! Can you please just help me?"

"How can I refuse my dear wife since you asked so nicely," Hunter chuckled.

With his strength, he joined in, and the work became a breeze. Moving with incredible speed, they finished sorting the herbs in two hours. Exhausted, they both collapsed into a pair of automated massage chairs at the back.

As the mechanical rollers began to work on Zyra’s sore shoulders, a bright text covered in confetti appeared into her mind.

[DING! Reward issued: Host, you have been granted unlimited access to the System Shop for exactly one hour! Aren’t you lucky?]

"Lucky my ass." she muttered.