Chapter 6: Defending Peace with My Face
Luca was stunned by the effects described by the Lucky Halo.
The skill’s effect was simply too overpowered; no matter what trouble he encountered, he would eventually be able to resolve it, although he would experience some setbacks.
Setbacks? What kind of setbacks could there be? No matter how big the setback, it wouldn’t be a problem! He would resolve it in the end anyway.
Isn't this the protagonist's halo that every protagonist must have?
Luca immediately made up his mind: get it! He absolutely had to get the Lucky Halo!
However, the stronger the skill, the more demanding the learning requirements. Besides needing a large number of skill fragments, he also needed to cultivate the bond to its highest level, Symbiosis.
Symbiosis, that was a bond even higher than family or partners.
“Symbiosis, soulmates… Is the relationship between Leon and Matilda in the original story considered symbiosis?” Luca rubbed his brows, a little confused.
According to the system’s description, symbiosis represents a high degree of spiritual compatibility, with living habits and life goals completely synchronized, reaching an intimacy like that of soulmates.
It seemed a bit distant. It was better to cultivate the bond step by step first.
Both Lucky Halo and Forbidden Dependence required reaching the Symbiosis bond to be learned.
He could consider learning other skills first.
Speaking of which, the skill Trauma Mark, wasn’t it too abstract? It only increased combat power when someone died, and the person who died had to be a partner or above.
Luca felt that even without this skill, if his family or partner were killed, he would explode with combat power out of rage.
Currently, the only relatively easy skills to learn were Harmless Disguise and Dexterous Hands.
The Confidant bond was sufficient for learning, and the required skill fragments weren't many either.
And currently, their bond was:
【Bond: Attention】
After their initial acquaintance, the bond progressed from Stranger to Attention, but it was still far from Confidant; they weren't even considered superficial friends yet.
Comrade still needs to work hard!
However, building a good relationship with an isolated problem girl like Matilda was clearly not an easy task.
Matilda lived in a blended family and suffered long-term domestic violence. Her biological father was an addict and drug dealer, her stepmother was a prostitute, and her half-sister often beat her to maintain her position in the family. This extremely harsh environment forced her to develop an alertness beyond her age.
Moreover, the little brat was abnormally precocious, smoking, having bad breath, imitating adult dress, and habitually lying. She was filling the emotional void in her heart in an extremely unconventional way.
Poor child.
The next two days were calm.
Luca still maintained his regular routine, going out to collect debts during the day, stopping by Uncle Biao’s supermarket to sit for a bit, drinking a couple of cups of tea with Uncle Biao to strengthen their relationship. In the evenings, he would be at the bar, bragging, joking, drinking, and gambling with his family brothers.
Occasionally, he would also help the family deliver fish a few times, bury a few people, and maintain peace in the community.
—Luca ‘I want to eat fish, Uncle Mo’ Greco.
After two days, Luca had accumulated 9 more skill fragments.
He and Matilda were now somewhat acquainted; when they met in the corridor, they would politely chat for a few sentences, though most of the time it was Matilda asking Luca questions. She seemed very curious about Luca’s background.
As for Stan, there were no clear leads yet. They didn’t know where that dog had hidden the drugs. Henry and Jimmy had searched for a long time without finding anything, and Maurizio and the family internally had no clues either.
It was as if the drugs had vanished into thin air.
But Luca knew that a portion of the drugs must be with Matilda’s father.
That evening, at Matilda’s house.
Matilda, wearing a pair of thick gloves, reached into the oven and took out the baked cookies and biscuits.
A rich milky aroma wafted over, and Matilda couldn't help but reveal a happy smile.
She had spent half the afternoon making them.
She carefully put all the pastries into a bag, then returned to her room and picked up her neatly packed medicine box.
Passing through the living room, Isha, who was practicing yoga, saw her sister carrying a large bag and asked curiously, “Matilda, where are you going?”
“None of your business.”
“Hey, don’t try to run! Norman told me to watch you do your homework when he left. Have you finished?”
“Already finished.”
Matilda raised her small head, “Isn’t it exactly what you want for me to go out? At least you don’t have to worry about me grabbing the TV remote. Go practice your aerobics, then go seduce those inexperienced little boys at your school.”
Isha looked exasperated: “Bitch!”
Matilda ran off after her retort, making Isha chase after her in anger. This was already a daily scene in the house; the sisters often fought, but Matilda couldn't beat her sister.
The two chased each other all the way to the front door. Matilda ran straight to the opposite door and knocked loudly, “Luca! Luca! Open the door quickly, someone’s trying to hit me!”
“Bitch! Not even God can save you today…”
Click!
The door opened, and Luca walked out, looking confused.
Isha’s movements instantly froze: “Oh, my God…”
Matilda slipped behind Luca in a flash, peeking out her small head to make a face at her sister.
It was Isha’s first time seeing Luca, their new neighbor who left early and returned late, elusive as a dragon.
When she saw Luca’s face, which was even more handsome than a movie star’s, Isha couldn't help but gape slightly. All her anger towards her sister had long been forgotten, and her eyes were filled only with desire for the handsome man.
Fuck God! He’s too handsome! Why didn’t I discover this new neighbor earlier!
She immediately realized she was a bit out of line and quickly put on a bright, gentle smile, waving her small hand in greeting:
“Hi~~”
She swayed her hips and walked forward, smiling more gently than Matilda had ever seen her. “Are you the new neighbor who just moved in? I’m Matilda’s sister, my name is Isha.”
Matilda silently rolled her eyes.
Such a slut, can’t even walk straight when she sees a handsome guy.
Luca nodded politely, noticing that the system had no reaction whatsoever and didn't even pop up a character card, which made him a bit disappointed.
Just a passerby, not even worthy of a character card?
Well, in the original story, she only had a few scenes and was shot by Stan with a shotgun shortly after appearing.
“Luca, Isha wants to hit me!” Matilda reported like a child telling on someone to a teacher, “And she called me a bitch!”
Bitch! Isha cursed inwardly, You shut your mouth! Don’t ruin my image!
“Misunderstanding, that was just a little joke.” Isha quickly explained to Luca, her voice incredibly gentle, making Matilda roll her eyes.
Luca also wanted to roll his eyes. Are they really treating him as a domestic violence mediator?
He looked back at the little brat, saw she wasn’t hurt, and then turned back to Isha, “It seems Matilda doesn’t like such jokes. I think she probably needs more respect.”
“Of course, I definitely respect my sister, you…”
“You can call me Luca.”
“Luca, please believe me, the truth is not what you see. I just wanted to urge Matilda to finish her homework.”
“I already finished it!” Matilda retorted loudly, completely disregarding her sister’s feelings.
Isha was so angry she wanted to beat her sister, but looking at Luca’s handsome, mature, and masculine face, she felt that prioritizing a man over a friend wasn’t a difficult thing at all.
“Then you should have told me clearly. I thought you were trying to sneak out to play.”
Isha tried to use a gentle tone to show a sister’s concern. She then said to Luca, “Children always like to find excuses to avoid homework. Actually, I don’t want to restrict Matilda too much, but supervising her studies is my responsibility as a sister. I hope she can achieve excellent grades in school.”
I truly believe your nonsense… Luca had a lot of complaints he wanted to vent, but if she had truly been a little bit kinder to Matilda, she wouldn’t have become such a problem girl now.
Luca was too lazy to expose Isha’s lies. Since she wanted to pretend, let her pretend well.
Coincidentally, Luca hadn't known what excuse to use to sneak into Matilda’s house and install listening devices.
Didn't this opportunity just present itself?
He looked back and saw that the little brat had already slipped into his room. He turned back to Isha and said, “I can see that you genuinely care about Matilda. However, she might not want to see you right now. How about letting her stay here for a while? After she cools down, I’ll send her back.”
“You’re really going to a lot of trouble for me.”
“It’s nothing. I used to have a mischievous sister too. I know how to get along with them.”
Looking at Luca’s handsome, mature face and gentle smile, Isha suddenly felt that her sister was right; those little boys at school really weren’t good enough.
The two chatted for a couple more sentences, and then Isha reluctantly said goodbye and left. She also wanted to go inside and sit, but her sister was in there, and she might start bad-mouthing her again.
Never mind.
There would be plenty of opportunities later.
But Matilda seemed to have a good relationship with Luca. What if Matilda said bad things about her in front of Luca?
No, no, it seems I really need to mend my relationship with my sister.
【You stopped a domestic dispute and made Isha initially change her attitude towards Matilda. You defended the peace of your neighbor’s family!】
【Gained Skill Points x3】
Luca looked at the sudden pop-up notification, his expression extremely strange.
This works too?
I only said a few words just now, I didn’t use any weapons, right?
Am I already strong enough to defend peace with my face?