Special Target

[ Aria's Affection increased to 6%! ]

"Then I'd better be heading out now," Carl said, turning to take his leave.

"Wait! Here, you said you wanted two, right? Take it..." Aria pushed the freshly wrapped sandwich directly into his hands.

"Ahh... Right, right. I completely forgot," Carl chuckled softly. In truth, the request for a second sandwich had merely been a clever tactic to buy himself more time upstairs with Natasha, and it had served its purpose brilliantly.

"How could you forget something you literally just asked for?" Aria shook her head, letting out a light laugh.

"Well, maybe I'm starting to get old too, haha," Carl teased, though his mind was still completely consumed by thoughts of his intense encounter with Natasha.

"Careful, or Mom might infect you with her memory loss," Aria joked. She couldn't help but feel surprisingly comfortable around a boy she had only just met today.

"Haha, what a great joke! Alright, jokes aside, I really need to get going now. Goodbye, Ms. Natasha, and goodbye, Aria. I'll be sure to drop by your humble home from time to time," Carl said, waving his hand while taking a large bite of his sandwich.

"Goodbye! See you around, Carl!" Aria waved back with a bright smile.

"My, my... smiling as if you just stumbled upon your greatest love, my dear. How wonderful it is to be young..." Natasha teased her daughter from the sofa, trying to deflect any lingering suspicion.

"Ahh... no way, Mom! I just think Carl is a genuinely nice guy, that's all." Aria didn't hold any romantic feelings or a crush yet—it was simply the natural comfort one feels when conversing with someone who radiates warmth and confidence.

Unbeknownst to her, that subtle draw was the direct result of Carl's newly upgraded Charisma stat. Though his base attributes were still quite low overall, they were no longer completely down in the gutter.

"By the way, Mom... why does he address you as 'Ms. Natasha' instead of 'Mrs. Carter'?" Aria asked, tilting her head in confusion. "That seems a bit unusual for a neighbor."

"Uhh... well, he's just a cheeky boy, dear..." Natasha stammered, feeling her cheeks flush slightly.

'Ahh, perfect. I finally unlocked my virginity achievement with a gorgeous MILF. Not bad at all—in fact, totally incredible,' Carl repeated in his mind as he walked down the path. A top-tier mature woman with a tight core that could rival any untouched virgin—what more could a guy ask for?

'Hehe... now if I remember correctly, this body of mine has a stepmother too. I can already sense where this is going—she's bound to be a total stunner,' Carl mused, recalling how sparse the Sterling household currently was.

The Sterling family consisted of nine members in total, including himself. That meant four out of his seven stepsisters were currently out of the house, along with his stepmother. It was a remarkably large family structure, but he certainly wasn't going to complain about being surrounded by so many beautiful women. Just the three stepsisters he had met so far were enough to ignite his wildest desires.

There was Clair Sterling, the youngest daughter at nineteen years old—an untouched, pristine beauty.

Then there was Silvia Sterling, the third oldest at twenty-five. While he hadn't uncovered all her secrets just yet, her charm was undeniable.

Finally, there was Lyra Sterling, the second oldest at twenty-six. She took charge of the household in their parents' absence, fully aware of the subtle tension between him and Clair—which was precisely why she had initiated their private "Sex Education" sessions.

'Hehe, I really am becoming the absolute best stepbrother in the world,' Carl chuckled quietly to himself.

'System, open status...'

[ System Status Interface ]

Name: Carl Sterling

Age: 18

Lewd Points (LP): 250

Skills: Sweet Talk

Shop: Locked

[ Attributes ]

Strength: 2/10

Intelligence: 1/10

Charisma: 2/10

Luck: 1/10

[ Inventory ]

Bronze Gacha Pull x1

[ Target Overview: Stepsisters Interacted (3/7) ]

Clair Sterling: Locked

Silvia Sterling: Locked

Lyra Sterling: Affection 10% (Active Quest: Sex Education)

Special Target: Stepmother (Unmet)

[ Standard Targets ]

Natasha Carter: Affection 89% (Status: Fully Available)

"Wow, that's a lot of information to digest," Carl murmured, scanning his updated profile. He noticed his Lewd Points hadn't increased after his encounter with Natasha, remaining at 250.

'Wait... do Lewd Points only generated from interactions with my stepsisters?' Carl realized. He had earned an LP through his moments with Silvia and Clair, but received none from sleeping with Natasha.

'Damn, so that's how it works. I won't be able to make real system progress with the others until I partially complete Lyra's active quest line.' His doubts vanished completely. If he wanted to unlock the rest of his stepsisters and claim those fresh rewards, he needed to prioritize Lyra's task immediately.

...

"Carl! What took you so long? Did something happen to Mrs. Carter?" Silvia asked the moment he walked back into the yoga studio, inspecting him carefully for any signs of trouble. She found nothing out of the ordinary, except for the sandwich in his hand.

"Everything is completely fine, Sister—Ms. Natasha is feeling much better now. I just helped her stretch and relax her leg for a bit, and ended up chatting with her daughter for a few minutes," Carl explained smoothly.

In a sense, it was the absolute truth—he had certainly helped Natasha feel like a renewed woman.

"Hmm, so that explains why you walked back in munching on a sandwich! Look at you, getting pampered by the neighbors!" Silvia teased playfully, giving his side a light pinch with a smirk.

"Haha, well, I guess my effort to help Ms. Natasha definitely paid off, Step-Sil."

"Mhm... it really is wonderful to see you out and about, enjoying your surroundings, Carl. I'm genuinely happy to see you opening up like this," Silvia said softly, her expression softening with genuine warmth.

The entire family had been looking for ways to connect with him more deeply, and seeing Carl take proactive steps to engage with the world around him felt like a major breakthrough.