Filming for the day finally ended.
The house slowly became quiet again as the staff packed their equipment and the actors returned to their rooms.
But Aria wasn't relaxed at all.
She had just exposed Luna's fake "friendship" on camera, and the tension in the house was still thick.
Aria collapsed onto her bed and stared at the ceiling.
"Well," she muttered. "That was satisfying."
Right on cue—
The familiar mechanical voice appeared again.
[Task Completed.]
Aria sighed with relief.
"Finally."
But the system continued.
[New Task Issued.]
Aria sat up immediately.
"…Please don't be something insane."
There was a short pause.
Then the words appeared in her mind.
[Next Objective: Become Kim Min-jae's girlfriend.]
Silence filled the room.
Aria blinked.
Once.
Twice.
"…What?"
She slowly stood up.
"WHAT?!"
Across the mansion, in his private office—
Kim Min-jae suddenly froze.
He had just heard the system too.
His expression stiffened slightly.
Meanwhile Aria paced around her room in panic.
"Become his girlfriend?!" she whispered.
"Are you serious?!"
Her thoughts ran wildly.
"That man looks like he'd kill me and feed me to his pets if I annoyed him."
In the office, Min-jae leaned back in his chair.
A small smile appeared on his lips.
Feed her to his pets?
Interesting imagination.
Aria continued complaining in her mind.
"Why does this system keep pushing me toward the scariest person in this house?"
Min-jae rested his chin on his hand.
Listening quietly.
Amused.
After several minutes of dramatic pacing, Aria finally stopped.
"…Fine."
She took a deep breath.
"If I want to leave this world, I have to complete the tasks."
She grabbed her jacket.
"Let's go ask the terrifying CEO to date me."
The Proposal
Kim Min-jae was standing alone near the balcony outside the mansion.
The night air was cool and quiet.
He had a feeling Aria would come.
So he waited.
Sure enough—
A few minutes later, Aria walked toward him.
She stopped a few steps away.
For the first time since entering the novel, she looked genuinely nervous.
In her mind she was panicking.
"Okay Ji-won, you can do this."
"Worst case scenario he throws me out a window."
Min-jae almost laughed.
He turned to face her.
"Yes?"
Aria swallowed.
Then she spoke quickly before she could lose courage.
"Mr. Kim… would you like to be my boyfriend?"
The silence that followed was heavy.
Even Aria felt embarrassed.
"Great. Now he definitely thinks I'm crazy."
But instead of rejecting her—
Kim Min-jae simply looked at her quietly.
Then he said something that shocked her.
"…Alright."
Aria blinked.
"…What?"
"You asked," Min-jae said calmly. "I accepted."
Her brain stopped working.
"Wait— that worked???"
Min-jae heard that clearly.
He hid his amusement perfectly.
Meanwhile Aria stared at him like she had just broken reality.
"You… agreed?"
"Yes."
"…Just like that?"
Min-jae shrugged slightly.
"Why not?"
Aria was still processing this impossible situation when—
The system voice appeared again.
[New Task Unlocked.]
Aria closed her eyes slowly.
"…I'm afraid to ask."
[Objective: Act as Kim Min-jae's clingy girlfriend.]
Aria froze.
Then she groaned loudly.
"Oh come on!"
She rubbed her face in frustration.
"Man, can't you be a normal system?!"
Min-jae stood quietly beside her.
Listening.
Then her thoughts continued.
"Why do I even need a man?"
"I could live perfectly fine on my own."
Min-jae's eyebrow lifted slightly.
Her thoughts became even more sarcastic.
"And now I have to act clingy too? What am I supposed to do, follow him around like a puppy?"
Min-jae finally let out a small laugh.
Aria turned toward him immediately.
"Why are you laughing?"
He shook his head slightly.
"Nothing."
Aria narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
But the system voice spoke again.
[Host must complete tasks to advance to the next level.]
Aria sighed dramatically.
"…Fine."
She stepped closer to Min-jae.
Then, awkwardly, she grabbed his arm.
"Hello, boyfriend," she said flatly.
Min-jae looked down at her.
She didn't look like a clingy girlfriend at all.
More like someone forced into a terrible acting role.
In her mind she complained again.
"This is humiliating."
Min-jae smiled slightly.
For the first time since the show began—
Something about this strange girl was genuinely entertaining.
Meanwhile Aria sighed internally.
"Alright system."
"Let's see how crazy the next task gets."
And somewhere else in the mansion—
Luna stood by the window, watching Aria and Kim Min-jae from a distance.
Her eyes slowly darkened.
Because something about the situation felt very wrong.
Aria was supposed to be weak.
Easy to control.
But now—
She was suddenly standing beside the most powerful man in the house.
And Luna didn't like that at all.