Chapter 605: Chapter-605
Inside the dim carriage, the System floated silently onto Heena’s lap. It didn’t make a single sarcastic comment. It didn’t bring up points, missions, or the Prime Minister. It just curled its digital, glowing body into a small ball and rested its chin on her knee, offering a quiet, undeniable comfort.
Heena closed her exhausted eyes, leaning her head against the swaying wooden wall of the carriage. The headache was throbbing with a terrifying, rhythmic intensity, a grim reminder of the six-month countdown ticking away in her brain.
The System still , curled up on Heena’s lap, was looking up at her with profound, digital worry. It was fully prepared to offer hours of emotional support and therapy for its deeply traumatized Host.
Then, suddenly, a perfectly calm, incredibly lazy voice echoed in the System’s mind.
’Damn, I am hungry.’
The digital lion’s pixelated ears immediately shot straight up.
"What the...?" the System muttered telepathically. It floated up, hovering directly in front of Heena’s face.
Heena was leaning against the velvet cushions. Her eyes were still slightly red, her cheeks still tear-stained, looking exactly like someone who had just suffered a massive, heart-wrenching emotional breakdown. But the completely bored, deadpan look in her eyes completely ruined the illusion.
"Host...?" the System asked, its voice laced with intense, absolute confusion. "Were you... were you not just crying right now? Like, aggressively sobbing? Broken? Traumatized?!"
Heena glanced at the glowing blue lion out of the corner of her eye. She gave a microscopic tilt of her chin, motioning for the System to come closer so she could maintain her sad posture for her grandfather.
’So what?’ Heena replied internally, completely unfazed.
"Wait!" the System shrieked in her mind, its digital jaw hanging open. "You were literally having a total psychological collapse a second ago, and now you are cursing about food?!"
Heena mentally scoffed, looking at the glowing lion like it was the dumbest creature in the multiverse.
’Don’t tell me you actually thought that was real,’ Heena drawled.
"Of course it was real!" the System yelled defensively, waving its paws. "Wasn’t it?!"
’Are you crazy? Why the heck would I actually cry?’ Heena replied, an internal sneer of pure pragmatism lacing her words. ’Over a line of dialogue? Please.’
The System just floated there, its AI brain completely short-circuiting.
’You absolute idiot,’ Heena sighed mentally, leaning her head against the carriage wall and closing her eyes, making it look to her grandfather as though she were just exhausted. ’Sometimes, you have to show a little weakness in front of people.’
"Weakness?!"
’Yes, weakness,’ Heena snapped. ’Do you know how terrifying I looked in that throne room today? I just flawlessly dismantled the highest-ranking civil official in the empire, forged a state document, and humiliated him in front of the Emperor without blinking an eye. If I act like a cold-blooded, emotionless monster every second of the day, do you know how threatened those old politicians and generals are going to be?’
Heena opened one eye, giving the System a chillingly logical look.
’If they think I am completely invincible, they will either try to assassinate me out of pure paranoia, or worse... they will send me to the frontlines to fight a damn war. I had to soften the blow. I had to remind them that I am still just a "fragile, traumatized young woman." Now, instead of fearing me, those generals feel protective of me.’
The System stared at her, its glowing blue form glitching slightly as it processed the sheer, unadulterated sociopathy of her logic.
"Wait a minute," the System stammered, pointing a trembling digital paw at her tear-stained cheek. "So... the crouching on the ground. The covering your face. The chest-heaving sobs. That was all..."
’Of course it was a lie, you fool,’ Heena interrupted smoothly.
"You... you cried like that... and it was a lie?!" the System whispered in sheer disbelief.
’Am I speaking a foreign language?’ Heena retorted, entirely shameless. ’Of course it was. I pinched my own leg to force the tears out.’
The System violently grabbed its digital head, letting out a silent, telepathic scream of absolute agony.
"I FELT BAD FOR YOU!" the System wailed, aggressively pulling its own pixelated hair. "I literally almost cried! I sat on your lap to comfort you! I thought you were a broken, tragic heroine, and you were just manipulating the entire imperial military complex so you wouldn’t have to go to work?!"
’It is called tactical vulnerability,’ Heena corrected lazily. ’And it worked perfectly. Now, stop screaming in my head. I have a headache, and I want a roast duck.’
Sitting right across from her, completely oblivious to the chaotic telepathic screaming match happening inches from his face, the old Vanguard Marquis watched his granddaughter rest her eyes.
Seeing her exhausted, pale face, the old warhorse’s heart ached with protective warmth. He reached into a hidden compartment under the carriage seat, pulled out a small, carefully wrapped box of sweet lotus pastries, and gently nudged her knee.
"Here, kid," the Marquis said softly, his voice full of grandfatherly pity. "Eat something. You’ve had a very hard, very traumatic day."
Heena slowly opened her eyes. She looked at the pastries, then looked at the old Marquis with a perfectly crafted expression of tragic, fragile gratitude.
"Thank you, Grandpa," Heena whispered softly, her voice still hoarse from her "crying."
Hovering right next to the pastry box, the System aggressively threw its digital paws up in the air, completely giving up on the Vanguard Madam’s moral compass.
"Host, you are a monster. An absolute, literal monster."
Heena took the sweet lotus pastry from her grandfather with trembling, delicate fingers. She took a small, polite bite, chewing slowly as she gazed out the carriage window with a perfectly crafted look of melancholic exhaustion.
The old Marquis watched her, his heart practically melting into a puddle of absolute devotion. He silently vowed to personally execute anyone who ever made his precious granddaughter cry again.
Hovering near the ceiling, the System watched the scene play out with a look of profound, digital disgust.
"I cannot believe I am bound to a sociopath," the System muttered, crossing its arms and floating upside down. "A literal, unrepentant villain. The heavens must have glitched when they chose you for this transmigration."
’The heavens chose me because I survive,’ Heena retorted telepathically, taking another bite of the pastry. ’If they sent a saint into this body, the Vanguard family would have been executed for treason an hour ago. You’re welcome.’
The System opened its mouth to argue back, but suddenly, the glowing blue interface in its vision flashed with a sharp, warning red hue.
The digital lion flipped right-side up, its annoyance instantly vanishing, replaced by genuine alarm. It flew down, scanning Heena’s vitals.
"Host..." the System’s voice dropped its usual dramatic flair, becoming tight and serious. "Your pain receptors are spiking again. Your blood pressure from the ’acting’ aggravated the clot."
Heena didn’t respond to the System. She couldn’t.
Beneath her flawless, calm facade, a sudden, blinding wave of agony washed over the inside of her skull. It felt as though a hot iron spike was being slowly driven through her right temple. The fake tears she had forced out earlier were suddenly threatening to return, this time born of pure, unadulterated physical torment.
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