Sera checked her earned points and the items in the shop's inventory with a cynical smile on her lips. As she browsed the items, she was immensely pleased to see valuable items that she could use later. She had several ideas in mind on how to get even with those treacherous people who hurt Anna. It wasn't like she wanted to avenge Anna, but Sera liked the idea of seeing Prince Adrian, especially Saintess Liliana, in despair.
The shop's inventory listing items were fewer in number and were more carefully crafted to ensure chaos upon usage. The system presented items not just with descriptions, but with subtle, tempting taunts, whispering temptations directly into her mind.
As her gaze lingered on a delicate hairpin with a name, 'Saintess Liliana's hairpin', the system said, "Wouldn't you like to see the Saintess's reputation crumble from the inside? It would be so satisfying, my lady."
'Oh, please,' Sera thought, rolling her eyes. As if she needed a system to tell her that.
Her eyes then moved on to a dagger named "Knight's Oathbreaker"; the system's voice purred on her and said, "Sir Lawrence's loyalty is a vulnerable thing. One push is all it needs… Just imagine how he would fall from grace."
But Sera knew better than to believe the system's words. The system was like an evil god—it offers exactly what you wish for, preys on your darkest intentions, and charges a premium for the privilege, all while pretending to be on your side.
The items seemed useful, but they all came with a hefty price tag, with the 'Final Confession' amounting to 2,000 VP. These items could potentially consume all the points she earned, but in case the system was forgetting, she was a mage.
She was capable of making potions and enchantments that could yield the same results as the items inside the shop. It might take some time to procure them, but Sera would rather use her knowledge than rely solely on the system's items.
Creating chaos doesn't have to be expensive. It has to be clever. Instead of purchasing the 'Final Confession', she could create a vitriol that could make the target confess the absolute truth. The ingredients were rare, but not 2000 VP rare. She could gather and brew it herself. Sera just wasn't sure if the system would punish her for it.
The shop items were useful, she'd give it that. But the system wasn't offering her power. Instead, it was offering her convenience while charging an outrageous price for it. It was so hard for her to earn points, and she could not just recklessly spend them out of convenience.
The system sensed her resistance and tried to reason with her.
"Why waste time and effort, my lady?" It whispered, "These items could guarantee the most damaging outcome possible."
Sera almost burst into laughter; the system felt like a little demon, whispering sweet words in her ear.
"Trying to upsell me?" she mused, closing the shop interface with a decisive tap. It vanished from her vision, leaving only the familiar sight of her chambers.
A faint, almost imperceptible hum of displeasure lingered in the back of her mind. No doubt the system didn't like her rejection of its proposal. Good. Let it sulk. She didn't need its guarantees anyway. Sera knew that she couldn't trust anyone, especially the corrupted system that brought her to life. She reveled at the idea that she won against the system for that round.
However, her victory was short-lived as she found Anna's journal on her bedside table. Sera picked up the small, leather-bound book and opened it, not expecting to see scripts she had never seen before. It was structured, clearly like a language, but Sera was sure it was alien to this world.
"What in the nine hells is this?" she thought, as she turned the pages one after another, trying to find a single word that might seem familiar to her, but there was none.
The system mentioned that Anna's last entry was about Cedrick hiding something. Sera thought that going through Anna's journal would give her some clues on what was going on with her stupid adoptive brother.
A familiar, opportunistic presence emerged in her mind.
"How frustrating to hold the answers, but lack the means to read them. Perhaps the very reason why she was schemed is on those very pages."
Sera's eyes narrowed in annoyance. The system had expertly prodded her weakest point. While she may procure potions, items, or learn complex ancient runes, Sera couldn't decipher a language that came from another world.
"The Linguist Insight potion in the shop is only 500 VP, my lady," The system coaxed her, like a merchant sensing a sale. "It could grant you a temporary gift of comprehension. You will know her secrets in no time. There's no need for other methods."
Sera glared at the empty air. Even as the shop interface popped up before her, she immediately swatted it away.
"My lady, be practical," The system continued to persuade her, "This language does not exist in any archive in this kingdom. You could spend a lifetime, but you will never decipher it. The potion would surely solve your problem."
"No," Sera said out loud."If this is how she wants to keep her thoughts, then I will learn her language. I will read her words the way she wrote them."
Sera closed the journal and put it back on the side table. This wasn't just about convenience. The words written in the journal were personal. Since Anna had written it in her native language and not in the one she learned from this world, it meant that she wanted to keep the entries a secret.
The system's voice had faded, but its words lingered. 'This language does not exist in any archive in this kingdom.'
'This kingdom, it said, and not 'this world.' A deliberate limitation carefully constructed by the system to make her feel helpless and coax her to spend her points.
Wouldn't this mean that somewhere in this world, there was a record of the language Anna had used? Was it possible that Anna wasn't the first transmigrator that arrived in this world? Sera wondered.
A weary sigh escaped her lips as the night's tension finally settled upon her. Extinguishing the sole lamp in her chambers, Sera allowed the moonlight to spill through her window. She slipped into bed; the sheets felt warm against her skin.
As she shut her eyes, her mind, ever restless, refused to allow her to succumb to sleep. Perhaps she could find a clue in Anna's journal on how to overthrow and defeat the system. She would be damned if she used some system-brewed potion to read it. There was no doubt that whatever she read under the influence of that potion, the system would also know as well.
The system had tried to sell her a key, not knowing it had also given her a map.
A faint smile appeared on her lips as sleep finally began to claim her. The revenge on the saintess could wait.
First, she would need to find a reliable translator.