[3rd POV]
The man in the trench coat hesitated at the scene for a full three minutes.
It wasn't because he was trying to make sure the man was really dead, and one look at the bathtub filled with blood, with the water even rising a bit, and it was very clear.
That guy was totally and completely dead.
What troubled him was something else.
He looked at the small jack-o'-lantern in his hand.
"This pumpkin is ugly as hell."
He stared at the jack-o'-lantern for a long time in frustration, unable to figure out why he ever thought it was a good idea to buy such a weird thing from the street.
After all, once this thing was left at the crime scene, the police might not even notice the dead man in the bathtub first, and they'd probably be too distracted by the ugly pumpkin!
Still, it was something he'd bought nearby on the street.
The person wearing a jack-o'-lantern didn't say much, so there probably wasn't any danger of being found out.
Nevertheless… this jack-o'-lantern is really ugly.
After bothering about it for a while, he finally sighed and placed the ugly jack-o'-lantern on the ground, along with a gun and a broken baby bottle nipple.
"Well, there's no way I'm going back out just to buy another pumpkin."
....
Meanwhile, Tony was walking through a dark alley, feeling a little mixed up inside.
He had just taken off his flashy jack-o'-lantern costume. Honestly, Tony was starting to understand those superheroes or supervillains who always wear masks.
Even though he had just worn a jack-o'-lantern on his head, Tony realized he could do things he usually wouldn't dare to do, and no one would know it was him.
He even seriously thought about stealing candy from a bunch of kids, but he held back because bullying kids was just way too low.
Anyway, the jack-o'-lantern head costume was way too noticeable, and it wasn't suitable for the next gig he needed to do.
He looked at the most common cosplay types on the street, bought a pure black robe through the system, and put on a white scare face mask.
Since there were many monsters and spooky costumes all around, Tony easily blended into the crowd in this outfit.
He went through the street crowd, and when he arrived near a warehouse in the Burnley District, the system notified him that he had reached the location for his second gig.
The warehouse door was locked tight, but that wasn't much of a problem.
He spent one hundred asset points to find a different way to sneak in by climbing over a wall.
Since this path was a bit tricky, Tony also purchased something in the system store.
[Beginner Climbing Proficiency]
[Price: $1000]
[Description: The user possesses basic climbing skills, either through natural ability or initial training. They are capable of ascending simple or moderately inclined surfaces, such as low rock faces, tree trunks, or man-made walls with clear and accessible handholds.]
After looking at the complicated route, Tony sighed.
'If it weren't for the decent tips I earned in the past few days, I wouldn't even have enough points to pay for all this.'
'Let's see what's inside first.'
Following the map the system provided, Tony circled the warehouse, twisting and turning for quite a while.
After taking off the white mask, the black robe the system gave him blended in really well with the darkness, and no one on the street saw the skinny, creepy shadow awkwardly climbing up the warehouse.
The climbing skill worked really well. Even though his climbing looked a little weird, it was quiet and sneaky enough.
Moreover, Tony was pretty skinny, and he could squeeze into tight spots and pull himself up easily.
"Bang."
The sound of a heavy object hitting the ground.
He landed on the ground and then quickly rolled to soften the fall. He held his breath quietly and observed the area for a while.
The warehouse didn't seem to have any guards. Even though his landing echoed somewhat loudly in the empty space, Tony didn't hear any footsteps approaching.
"No one's here… Perfect."
Muttering words to comfort himself, Tony's eyes gradually adapted to the darkness.
He could vaguely make out what seemed to be a black pile in the middle of the area.
'What the hell, why is it so big?'
Tony widened his eyes in disbelief, "What kind of job is this? Isn't this supposed to be the Arsonist or whatever?"
He pulled out his old phone, which didn't even have a flashlight function, and used the dim light from the screen to search for the light switch.
He had already noticed on his way in that there were electric lights on the ceiling.
"Where is it, where is it…"
He cautiously walked through the warehouse with fear something strange might suddenly jump out from the darkness or that he'd trip over something and end up with a bloody head injury.
Finally, in a corner of the warehouse, Tony found the big switch he had been desperately searching for.
'Let me take a look and see what this is all about.'
"Click."
He flipped the switch, and the warehouse lights instantly turned on.
Tony's eyes, which had just adjusted to the dark, were now overwhelmed by the sudden light, blurring his vision.
'Whoa! I didn't know the lights could be this bright!'
As his vision cleared and he finally saw the mound inside the warehouse, the system's explanation popped up right above it.
Then Tony saw the big pile in the middle of the warehouse, and just then, a message from the system popped up over the pile.
[Halloween Arsonist]
[Description: Mr. Harvey has some extra work tonight, which means he won't be able to spend time with his family. Maybe you can take over this job for him?]
[Objective: Burn all illegal money inside the warehouse.]
[Reward: every 1% completion equals 200 asset points.]
"WHAT?! The 'Halloween Arsonist' is about actually me setting stuff on fire?! I thought it was someone else, and why was Harvey Dent doing this extra work in the middle of the night? Was he already this crazy before becoming Two-Face?"
Tony let out three consecutive complaints to vent his shock.
The scene before him was way beyond anything he'd ever experienced before.
There's a stack of green hundred-dollar bills piled up super neatly, packed tight together.
There were so many that they formed a whole mountain of money in the middle of the warehouse, and picking up a few would be more money than Tony usually made in a whole day.
'Holy crap... this so much counterfeit money —and Batman's not doing anything about it?!'
Looking at the huge rewards listed in the mission prompt... Tony's mind began to struggle with a big decision.
...
150 Power Stones = 1 Extra Chapter ✓
250 Power Stones = 1 Extra Chapter
450 Power Stones = 1 Extra Chapter
1000 Power Stones = 2 Extra Chapters
2000 Power Stones = 3 Extra Chapters