I take a deep breath, trying to steady the dark energy swirling in my gut, and head back inside.

  Olivia is sitting on the edge of the sofa, her spine a straight, unforgiving line. The "grieving mother"

  I saw earlier has vanished, repced by a "strict parent" whose authority is forged in worry.

  I have never seen her this serious before.

  The air in the room is thick enough to cut with a knife.

  Chloe is huddled beside the armrest, her hand reaching out to grab mine the second I sit down. She holds on so tight her knuckles are white.

  "So, Harry Vedman," Olivia begins. Her voice is low, stripped of its usual warmth, and carries a dangerous edge that makes the hair on my arms stand up. "Do you have anything you want to say to me?"

  I look at her, then down at Chloe's white-knuckled grip. The weight of the truth is a physical pressure in my chest.

  'I was murdered. I was thrown off a cliff. I am no longer the human boy you raised.'

  I can't tell them. To speak those words would be to set fire to the only sanctuary I have left.

  "Um... I was..." I stammer, my tongue feeling like a foreign object in my mouth. I gnce at Chloe, my eyes pleading, begging her to bridge the gap I'm failing to cross. "I was with Alex. I told Chloe about it earlier. Right, Chloe?"

  The silence that follows is agonizing. Chloe looks at me, then at Olivia. She's smart—she knows I'm lying, but she also knows the fear she felt today was real.

  She chooses to protect me. "...Yes. Brother told me."

  "I know about the message," Olivia says, her eyes narrowing as she leans into the light of the floor mp. "But why didn't you come home st night, Harry? Why stay away without a single word? Do you have any idea how much worried we were?"

  "I... I had to finish the assignment. College opens tomorrow, and I stayed at his pce to get it done. I lost track of time."

  "And your phone?"

  "I lost it. At the bus stop. I'm sorry, Olivia. I really am." The lies feel like lead in my mouth. I hate lying to her, but how do I expin a cliffside execution?

  "You could have used Alex's phone, Harry. You let us think the worst."

  "I was afraid," I say, and that, at least, is the truth. I am afraid to tell them what I've become.

  "And the text Alex sent about Sawaii Isnd? This morning?"

  "It was... a prank. A stupid, immature prank. I told him not to, but Alex thinks he's a comedian."

  Olivia stares at me for a long time. The silence is deafening. "Harry... look at my eyes."

  I raise my head, and my heart nearly stops. Her beautiful green eyes are brimming with tears. The strict mask has shattered, revealing the raw, bleeding vulnerability of a woman who almost lost one of the only things she has left.

  "We were so worried about you, Harry... I thought... I thought I'd failed your father. I thought I'd lost you."

  As she speaks, she leans forward, the light of the mp catching the curves of her neck. Seeing her like this—weak, crying, and utterly dependent on my presence—something inside me shifts. The "Lesser Incubus" core somewhere inside me pulses.

  The grief and love in her eyes make her look... intoxicating. Desirable. I find myself staring at the way her lips tremble, the way her chest heaves with her sobs. I want to reach out. I want to—

  [DING!]

  The sharp, mechanical chime of the system rings in my head, shattering the trance.

  [New Quest: Be the man of the house.]

  [Objective 1: Establish a physical retionship with Olivia Vedman.]

  [Objective 2: Establish a physical retionship with Chloe Vedman.]

  [Reward: 1000 EXP, Random Skill, Title: The Man.]

  I freeze. The air in the room suddenly feels ice-cold. I look at the screen, then back at Olivia's tear-streaked face.

  'What the fuck, Nova? Are you serious? How could you even give me this type of quest?'

  [To remind the host, Harry Vedman, Quests are generated in real-time basis based on your desires. If this quest has been generated, it is because some part of your new nature craves this.]

  SIGH

  I let out a long, ragged sigh, closing my eyes to block out both the screen and the woman in front of me. The guilt is a physical weight, but the System's cold logic is harder to fight.

  "Harry? Are you listening?" Olivia's voice is thick with concern, her hand reaching out toward my shoulder. I can't let her touch me. Not while that prompt is still burned into my retinas.

  "Sorry, Olivia," I say, standing up so abruptly that Chloe jumps. "I... I'm just exhausted. Can I go and rest?"

  She looks hurt for a moment, the rejection of her comfort stinging, but then she nods slowly.

  "…Okay. Sleep, Harry. We'll talk more tomorrow."

  I don't wait for her to change her mind. I move upstairs, my feet feeling heavy on the wooden steps.

  I retreat into my room—the only pce that still feels like "Harry's" domain—and colpse onto the bed.

  "Umm, big brother? Are you really alright?"

  Chloe's voice comes from the doorway. She followed me up, her small shadow stretching across the floorboards. Her face is still stained with the salt of dry tears.

  "Yeah, Chloe, I'm fine," I say, forcing a smile that feels brittle. "Just a little bit tired. By morning, I'll be back to normal. Don't worry."

  "Okay, brother." She lingers for a second, as if sensing the darkness clinging to me, then nods and heads back downstairs, maybe to help Olivia.

  Lying here, the silence of my room feels safer than the luxury of Velora's chamber.

  But as I close my eyes and drift toward a restless sleep, the glowing violet words of the System still linger behind my eyelids, a digital ghost reminding me that I am no longer the person who lived in this house.

  HiralVedman