The system had taken many task-takers before. Among the worlds it accompanied those task-takers through, there were quite a few people like Duan Liming, who could be considered a big boss.
But it never worried about the previous task-takers, because those task-takers themselves were very strong. Yet its current host was only an ordinary 21-year-old.
Facing someone like Duan Liming, she had absolutely no ability to fight back.
The system felt that if it had hair, it would definitely already be bald.
How could it help the host escape?
The system racked its brains thinking, but still couldn’t come up with anything.
Host,don’tbeafraid.Ifshereallywantstobreakyourlegs,I—I’llknockbothofyouunconsciouswithelectricity.Host, don’t be afraid. If she really wants to break your legs, I—I’ll knock both of you unconscious with electricity.
The only thing the system could do was shock the host. If the current was strong enough, it could be transmitted through the human body.
Liu Qiu didn’t respond to the system. If she talked to the system, the Duan Liming in front of her would definitely notice the ankle ring.
Liu Qiu lowered her head and looked at her toes. Uneasily, they pressed together on the carpet. The gentle stroking at the back of her neck did not relax her.
To her, Duan Liming’s actions felt more like a warning.
Duan Liming squeezed Liu Qiu’s slender nape, then leaned closer and lightly kissed her forehead, praising softly,
“Good child.”
From beginning to end, Duan Liming’s movements were very gentle. Her tone was calm. Whatever she did seemed as casual as chatting.
Liu Qiu sat on the edge of the bed, holding back the sobs in her throat. She wanted to look less cowardly, but her body kept trembling slightly.
She was sad about Fu Jinyin’s death, afraid of Duan Liming’s words, and blamed herself for being powerless.
She couldn’t do anything well.
“Be good. Don’t make me angry.”
“I’ll give you the reward you need.”
After saying that, Duan Liming released Liu Qiu and slowly stood up, taking the warmth with her.
Liu Qiu sat at the edge of the bed, breathing slowly and steadily. She was trying to control herself from crying so easily.
“I… I will behave.”
Her voice was hoarse, mixed with crying and trembling.
In Duan Liming’s deep black eyes, Liu Qiu’s reflection could not be seen. Her brow ridge was slightly high, and the light cast shadows over her eyes, making her features look even deeper.
“Mm. I believe you.”
“Liu Qiu, go sleep for a while.”
Liu Qiu’s eyelashes trembled as she fell sideways, unable to stop a small sob.
Burying her face into the pillow, she said in a muffled voice,
“I didn’t wash my feet.”
“They’re dirty.”
In response, someone held her feet and placed them onto the bed.
The room became very quiet.
After a while, there was the sound of the door closing.
Duan Liming had left.
The tears Liu Qiu had held back for so long started falling again. The sound of her sobbing was muffled by the pillow, spreading softly through the empty room.
System…IthinkIwanttogohome.System… I think I want to go home.
Imissmydadandmom.I miss my dad and mom.
The system sighed and comforted her.
Host,itwillbesoon.Justcompleteonemoretask.Host, it will be soon. Just complete one more task.
Thetaskprogressinthisworldisalmostfull.The task progress in this world is almost full.
The system was not the type that forced humans to complete missions.
But reversing time required energy, and it simply didn’t have enough. Without enough energy, it could not reverse time.
Liu Qiu nodded.
The soft, fragrant pillow rubbed against her cheek as she wiped all her tears on it.
Mm…System,I’llcalmmyselfdownforabit.MaybetomorrowI’llfeelbetter.Mm… System, I’ll calm myself down for a bit. Maybe tomorrow I’ll feel better.
The system replied,
It’sokay,host.Emotionsneedtobereleased.It’s okay, host. Emotions need to be released.
This was normal. Humans had emotions. When facing people they spent day and night with, feelings would inevitably be invested unconsciously.
If the host didn’t feel sad about the octopus monster’s death, then she would be no different from an AI without emotional modules.
After thinking hard, the system finally came up with something it could do.
Host,I’llplaysomemusictosootheyourmood.Host, I’ll play some music to soothe your mood.
It’smusicfromahigherplanethatcancalmemotions.It’s music from a higher plane that can calm emotions.
Okay,system.Playit.Okay, system. Play it.
As her voice faded, gentle and pleasant music began sounding in her mind. Her consciousness gradually relaxed with the melody, until she finally closed her eyes and fell asleep.
*
“Beep—beep—”
The moment Liu Qiu stepped out of the door, the ring on her ankle emitted a sharp alarm.
The two people guarding the door immediately reached out and stopped her.
“Madam, you cannot leave this room.”
One of them handed her a small square device with a tiny button on it.
“Madam, if you need anything, press this and speak. It will transmit your request.”
Liu Qiu blankly accepted it, then turned around and stiffly walked back inside.
Duan Liming truly would not let her leave this room.
Standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, she looked outside at the flowers that had been washed by rain, looking delicate and bright.
Uneasily twisting her fingers, she said in her mind,
System…whatdoIdo?Ican’tleavethisroomnow.System… what do I do? I can’t leave this room now.
The system said,
Host,doyouremembertheS−61cruiseship?Host, do you remember the S-61 cruise ship?
Liu Qiu was not stupid. Hearing the system mention it, she immediately understood.
System,youmean—System, you mean—
Yes.Ifeelthatpersondidn’tsayitcasually.Somethingmustbestrange.DuanLimingsaidifyoubehave,shewillsatisfyyourneeds.Sohost,behaveforawhileandseeifyoucangetontothatcruiseship.Yes. I feel that person didn’t say it casually. Something must be strange. Duan Liming said if you behave, she will satisfy your needs. So host, behave for a while and see if you can get onto that cruise ship.
Okay.Whenthetimecomes,Icanjumpintotheseaandkillmyself.Thenwecanreincarnateagain.Okay. When the time comes, I can jump into the sea and kill myself. Then we can reincarnate again.
She didn’t want Duan Liming. She was afraid of her.
The system was silent for a moment before saying softly,
Mm.We’lllistentoyou,host.Mm. We’ll listen to you, host.
Her thoughts became clearer.
Liu Qiu pressed the square device and said quietly,
“I’m hungry. I want food. I also want a sketchbook and a pen.”
She wanted to keep drawing.
The servants quickly delivered everything she asked for.
After eating, the tray was taken away. Liu Qiu sat at the desk and opened the brand-new notebook.
Thewedding.Agrandwedding.ButMissQiudidn’tlikeit,becauseitwasaweddingwithMissMing.The wedding. A grand wedding. But Miss Qiu didn’t like it, because it was a wedding with Miss Ming.
…
MissYindied.MissQiufeltverysad.Shedidn’tunderstandhowsomeonewhowasfineonesecondcouldsuddenlystopbreathingthenext.Miss Yin died. Miss Qiu felt very sad. She didn’t understand how someone who was fine one second could suddenly stop breathing the next.
MissQiucriedforavery,verylongtime.Miss Qiu cried for a very, very long time.
“Drip.”
A tear fell onto the white paper, spreading into a darker stain.
Liu Qiu pressed her lips together and whispered,
“You’re really like a child. Willful and always crying. But I think that version of you was very well-behaved.”
“I just had to coax you a little and you would stop crying.”
“Jinyin… I’m sorry. If I hadn’t agreed to marry Duan Liming, you wouldn’t have broken in, you wouldn’t have been caught, and you wouldn’t have suddenly died.”
The system had never seen the host this upset before.
It believed this was related to how much care the host had invested in Fu Jinyin.
In the first world, Bai Qingqing was mature.
In the second world, Su Li was sensible.
The monsters in those worlds were smarter, and the host had been the one taken care of.
But Fu Jinyin in this world cried easily and caused trouble. Her tragic past made the host obviously favor her.
Moreover, Fu Jinyin somewhat resembled the host’s real-life friends and even the host’s own mental state.
All these factors combined made Fu Jinyin the one the host favored.
The system felt a certain human saying was very accurate:
The crying child gets the candy.
Even though the octopus monster had died, the system still felt annoyed with her for making its host this miserable.
So it deliberately mentioned something:
Host,lasttimeshewentoutwithanotherbossandorderedwomen,anddidn’tcomehomeallnight.Host, last time she went out with another boss and ordered women, and didn’t come home all night.
Idon’tthinkshewasasinnocentasyouimagine.I don’t think she was as innocent as you imagine.
Liu Qiu wiped her tears with a tissue.
System,stop.Jinyinisalreadydead.System, stop. Jinyin is already dead.
The system fell silent.
It was fine. Once this world’s mission was finished, it would take the host somewhere to rest. Soon the host would forget the people and events of this world.
That night, Liu Qiu lay on the bed and waited for Duan Liming.
She had stopped crying, though her swollen eyes still hurt.
She lay on her side facing the floor-to-ceiling window, watching the dark night outside.
“Liu Qiu… do you hate me?”
Duan Liming’s low voice came from behind.
Liu Qiu’s voice was hoarse.
“I don’t hate you.”
She was just afraid of the bad version of Duan Liming.
She wondered if the good Duan Liming would let her go.
Two arms slowly wrapped around her from behind, pulling her into an embrace. A faint fragrance drifted into her nose.
Liu Qiu clenched her fingers.
“Miss Duan… Fu Jinyin’s body… how was it handled?”
“Chaoyue handled it. It’s already been cremated.”
Liu Qiu suddenly turned around to face Duan Liming.
Her eyes were red and swollen, looking pitiful.
Her lips opened and closed several times as if she wanted to say something, but swallowed the words back.
Finally she only said softly,
“I understand.”
This was the good Duan Liming.
Duan Liming lifted her hand and held Liu Qiu’s cheek, gently stroking it.
“I’m very sorry.”
“I was the one who captured her.”
“If I hadn’t done that, perhaps your ex-wife wouldn’t have died.”
In the quiet room, Duan Liming’s voice actually sounded somewhat guilty.
Liu Qiu’s long lashes trembled.
“That has nothing to do with you.”
After saying that, she fell silent for a while before asking,
“…Why aren’t you surprised that Fu Jinyin had tentacles?”
Duan Liming’s fingers moved behind her ear and began gently rubbing her earlobe.
“Liu Qiu, I’m very rich.”
“I learn about these things earlier than ordinary people.”
“So I’m not surprised.”
The soft touch made Liu Qiu’s ear itch, and she subconsciously tilted her head to avoid her hand.
Duan Liming stopped and withdrew her hand.
“Liu Qiu, I apologize to you on her behalf. She did some excessive things last night.”
“If you don’t like it, I won’t force you.”
Liu Qiu’s eyes slowly widened.
Then she asked eagerly,
“Then… can you let me go out? I don’t want to be trapped in this room.”
Duan Liming silently looked at her.
The small hope Liu Qiu had just felt was extinguished.
Duan Liming didn’t say anything, but Liu Qiu understood.
Even the good Duan Liming wouldn’t let her go.
“…Do you share memories?”
Liu Qiu asked with a pale face.
Duan Liming nodded gently.
“Yes.”
Liu Qiu took a deep breath.
She suddenly leaned forward and kissed Duan Liming on the cheek, her voice trembling.
“Miss Duan… I want to do it with you.”
She had to behave and be obedient.
But the bad Duan Liming wanted this kind of thing.
Rather than doing it with the bad one, she’d rather do it with the good Duan Liming—at least she wouldn’t be afraid.
If the bad Duan Liming wanted it, she could refuse later by saying they had already done it.
She wanted to leave this place as soon as possible.
Liu Qiu grabbed the fabric at Duan Liming’s chest and nervously closed her eyes.
“C-come on.”
Duan Liming quietly looked at Liu Qiu, who looked almost like she was offering herself as a sacrifice.
She raised her hand and gently traced Liu Qiu’s brows and eyes with her fingertips.
Then she held Liu Qiu’s chin, lifting her head.
Duan Liming lowered her head and kissed Liu Qiu’s lips.
But she only sucked lightly once before letting go.
Pressing her thumb against those soft lips, Duan Liming said calmly,
“Liu Qiu, I won’t do it.”
Liu Qiu’s eyelashes trembled as she slowly opened her eyes.
“W-why?”
Duan Liming lowered her gaze and wiped the moisture from Liu Qiu’s lips.
“Compared to my own desires, I care more about you.”
“I hope that next time you take the initiative, it will be sincere.”
“Don’t make me sad, okay? Liu Qiu.”
Liu Qiu’s lips moved slightly, but in the end she didn’t say anything.
She seemed to understand a little about love.
Duan Liming liked her.
If You Notice any translation issues or inconsistency in names, genders, or POV etc? Let us know here in the comments or on our Discord server, and we’ll fix it in current and future chapters. Thanks for helping us to improve! 🙂