[✪ ω ✪]
'I'm excited, I'm excited.'
The System was genuinely thrilled, as if it had been eagerly anticipating my question.
"My abnormal intervention rate is currently around 15 percent. Perhaps that's why I can interfere for longer than I initially thought," the System replied, adding that there would be no further issues.
'But you said you couldn't even peek completely.'
If so, it was similar to when Knox interfered with the System, causing the text to break. Still, being able to pick up a few words was better than hearing nothing at all.
[A few minutes will be fine, and you'll get better with practice!]
"I have to practice? That's a bit much."
[Don't worry, I'll help you! (^∀^*)ノシ]
The System's motivation was burning bright. Yes, it was clearly happy.
Kyle, noticing that I was speaking to someone unseen, waited patiently. He was often curious and suspicious about the 'Absolute' entity I frequently mentioned, but he seemed to be holding back from asking until I explained first.
"Your Highness," I said, feeling a pang of guilt. When I motioned for him to join me on the bed, he gracefully climbed up, settling in a relaxed position with his back against the headboard, his arms wrapped around my shoulders.
"I think I can do it," I told him.
"You are capable," he affirmed.
"Sometimes, I might seem absent-minded or even talk to myself. Please don't think it's strange."
"If you think about it..." Kyle began, a hint of amusement in his voice. "Is there anything stranger than you being my companion demon?"
He had a point. In a situation where I was either a human or a hamster, what else was there to consider? His words were perfectly reasonable. I smiled softly, relaxing my body, and leaned back against him.
"Then, just a moment."
I lowered my gaze and mentally asked the System, 'Is there anything I need to be careful about?'
A moment later, the System's reply came.
[Change 'power to protect' to 'power to penetrate' and 'power to block' to 'power to connect'.]
[You may experience unconfirmed recoil.]
'What does that mean?' I tilted my head, asking again. 'Is there any threat to my life?'
[Of course not! Don't worry, I'm maintaining at least a minimum defense!]
I was skeptical, but the System had never lied to me before. I could trust it that much. If I wouldn't die, then... well, that was good enough.
[Attempting connection.]
As soon as the System window vanished, my vision plunged into darkness. I was momentarily disoriented and forgot to look around. Whether my eyes were open or closed, all I could perceive was absolute blackness.
Yet, something still existed even if it wasn't visible. I vaguely felt Kyle's arms wrapped around my shoulders, and that sensation brought a measure of relief.
I squeezed my eyes shut and focused all my attention on any change that might occur within me. Perhaps the Ma Tower masters were conversing about the 'System,' or exchanging direct messages like messengers.
"..."
But all that awaited me was a chilling silence. My breath hitched, a suffocating sensation like being trapped in a cramped, coffin-like space.
'Are they still not saying anything?'
Just as I didn't talk to the System all day, there was no rule that they had to be constantly conversing.
Then, a voice. It was a human voice, but it was harsh, like the scream of a young boy.
"Be careful!"
"...Form! Behind you!"
"Ahh!"
It was strange. It sounded as if someone was speaking directly to me, yet it felt more like a distant echo, resonating deep within me.
'Oh.'
In an instant, I understood. This wasn't a conversation between the Ma Tower masters. The sounds I heard weren't memories from a connection, but rather memories trapped within me, breaking through some unseen barrier.
'It's a side effect!'
I hadn't even seen the proper effect yet, but the recoil was already hitting me! It was unfair!
Just as I was about to protest to the System, several scenes flashed rapidly before my eyes. Though I didn't consciously recognize what I was seeing, a cold dread seeped into me, making my entire body tremble as if all the blood had drained away.
'No way, is this...?'
A pair of pale lights engulfing my entire body, the blare of a horn, a tingling pain spreading through me, a sensation of floating, and a feeling of immense distance...
I couldn't breathe.
A forgotten feeling, a memory I had suppressed, poured into me through a sudden crack in a wall. It was as if I had been thrown onto scorching earth, then plunged into a half-frozen sea, and was now drowning.
"Stop."
Someone whispered urgently. But I couldn't respond. Was that voice truly speaking to me? It sounded so far away, as unreal as reading a passage aloud from a book.
I forced my eyes open, but the terrifying scenery before me remained unchanged: a street shrouded in darkness, a long eight-lane boulevard, a truck hurtling towards me, someone's shouts, people screaming, the screech of car tires on asphalt, and the sensation of something rising and falling in the air.
"Shu! Stop now!"
The suppressed sensation returned with violent force. I trembled uncontrollably.
Someone embraced my struggling body. I think I swung my fist, but I couldn't tell if I hit them. He pulled me into his arms as I thrashed, holding me close and urgently calling my name.
"Shu."
"..."
"Shu, it's okay. It's okay, so stop now..."
My subdued consciousness finally began to awaken.
Kyle was holding me tightly, his upper body pressed against mine. He buried his head in the nape of my neck, his arms wrapped around my back and waist, calling my name with fervent concern.
"...Ugh."
My hands, drenched in cold sweat, clutched the hem of his robe. My trembling hands slowly stilled. He gently but firmly squeezed my hand and whispered, "It's okay. You're here. You're alive."
"Ugh, heh... Ugh..."
"I shouldn't have said anything. I think it's better to stop this. Give up your strength. Hmm?"
He held my cheek with his other hand, making eye contact. My blurred vision cleared, and his face gradually came into focus.
It was painful. I almost nodded and agreed. Perhaps my consciousness had already done so while I was incapacitated.
But then.
[...Ghost, there...]
At that moment, an unfamiliar voice pierced my ears.
As I stiffened, Kyle gritted his teeth, sensing my renewed pain, and hugged me even tighter.
This time there was no physical pain. A stranger's voice simply flowed through the noise.
[...Who is it?]
[Fool... Sound, here... No, who...]
'They're the wizards!'
I quickly squeezed Kyle's hand. I didn't have the confidence to speak properly while still gasping for breath, and I worried they might hear my voice, so I kept silent. Then, I quickly tried to write on the back of his hand.
Kyle swiftly snatched a piece of parchment and a quill from the nearby table and held it out to me.
[Why is this plan... Is it going to be? Time...]
I silently mouthed the words: 'Planning,' 'Time.'
I tried to write them down, but my mind was too scattered, and my handwriting was illegible. After a few fumbles, Kyle took the quill and began to write down what I was mouthing.
His large, warm hand approached and gently caressed the corner of my mouth, indicating that he would read my lips. I pressed my lips into his palm and waited for the next words.
[The Emperor is about to come... I'm going to go to.]
I wished I had been more diligent in raising the incident intervention rate.
I was dumbfounded by the word "Emperor." Kyle, a little surprised, played with my lips, mouthing the words back to me. He quickly wrote it down after I repeated it a few more times.
'Where is the Emperor going? To the manor? Or somewhere else? Are they completing the 'Heart of Winter' ritual? After all, they're talking about Lorenz.'
My stomach churned. Just connecting seemed to have a massive side effect. I felt an unbearable power clawing at my stomach, and I grew nauseous. If Kyle hadn't held me so tightly, I might have collapsed.
At that moment, my nausea lessened slightly, and the voices became a little clearer.
['White Wraith'.]
[Yet, it's not even been a few days since I brought him.]
[Why don't you melt it all down and swallow it?]
My mouth froze as I tried to convey the conversation as fully as possible. The words were unexpectedly chilling. Knox's gaze, which sometimes stared at me as if he would devour me whole, truly meant he was thinking about getting rid of me entirely.
[There are quite a lot of things to dig up, and there's a clear helper there.]
He wasn't talking to me, but he was definitely talking to something with an ego.
[However, when the self is revived, it cannot serve as a conduit. That's it. Have you forgotten how the 'undertaker' created the 'empty soul'?]
[There may be a way!]
A voice full of joy cut off the nervous woman's words.
[Keep researching, I'll support whatever you want. I can do it like that. You said you were a guy from the northern territory, right? The Emperor just needs to persuade him, oh!]
[...After all, that's my job.]
[Don't you like that, Drown? If you don't like it, kill the Emperor and put him on the spot. Let's sit down!]
The conversation passed too quickly. Before I could fully grasp their exchange, Knox cut off the frantic conversation between the woman and the other person.
[Calm down, I don't intend to drag this out forever either. After solving it in a week, I'll tell you the results. Whether it's dragging, swallowing, or crushing.]
[What will the Emperor do?]
[If you feel like you're going to lose patience, give him a carrot, that's enough.]
[Okay, then I need to sleep for a while. I've been running around lately and I've lost strength. The new Emperor was so meticulous and diligent that it was annoying. Tsk.]
The conversation ended with an atmosphere akin to a group call. I still lightly kissed Kyle's palm as he carefully fiddled with the corners of my mouth.
'I don't know why, but I'm glad I heard it well at the end. I guess I need to disconnect now.'
At that moment, the tired blue System window appeared before me.
[Has the 'Curiosity' of the Little One been resolved?]