The world didn't explode.
That was the strange part.
After everything—the warnings, the frozen time, the glowing eye inside my system—I expected chaos. Fire. Alarms. A dramatic boss entrance with theme music.
Instead, the castle courtyard returned to normal.
Birds resumed chirping. The wind moved again. NPC guards blinked, stretched, and went back to their scripted patrol routes like nothing had happened. Even the fountain stopped glowing and returned to splashing water like an innocent background prop.
I stood there for a long moment, unmoving.
"…Did we just survive?" I asked.
Arcelia lowered her sword slowly. "Master… I think so. But… that was terrifying."
Lyra didn't relax. Not even a little. She was staring at my floating system menu, eyes sharp, fingers trembling slightly.
"No," she said quietly. "It's worse."
I sighed. "That sentence is never followed by good news."
She turned the menu toward me. The Corruption Meter sat at 30%, pulsing gently, like a living heartbeat.
"It stabilized," she said. "But it didn't go down."
I frowned. "So… it's permanent?"
"Not permanent," Lyra replied. "But cumulative. Every illegal action you take… every rule you bend… it leaves a mark."
Arcelia looked at me with concern. "Master… does that mean you're in danger?"
I scratched my cheek. "I mean… I've been in danger since the moment I hacked the system. This just makes it official."
We moved deeper into the castle, choosing a quieter hall away from NPC traffic. I collapsed onto a stone bench, stretching my arms. My head hurt. Not physically—mentally. Like too many tabs open in my brain.
"Okay," I said. "Let's review. Something is inside the system. It knows I exist. It doesn't like me. And it can freeze time."
Lyra nodded. "Correct."
"And there's also a shadow assassin who's immune to the system and keeps appearing like a horror movie character."
"Also correct," Lyra said.
Arcelia tilted her head. "Master… when you say it like that, it sounds really bad."
"It is really bad," I said cheerfully. "But at least it's interesting."
Lyra finally sat down, rubbing her temples. "This isn't a game mechanic anymore. Whatever that entity is… it's not a normal system administrator or correction agent. It's learning. Observing. Waiting."
"Waiting for what?" Arcelia asked.
Lyra hesitated.
"For you," she said.
The air felt colder after that.
I leaned back, staring at the ceiling. "Figures. I always attract attention."
Lyra shot me a look. "This isn't attention like admiration or affection. This is curiosity. The dangerous kind."
I brought up my menu again, scrolling through hidden logs I hadn't checked yet. Most of it was corrupted, lines overlapping, symbols flickering in and out of existence. But one section stood out.
System Log – Restricted Access
Anomaly Record: Subject [UNREGISTERED]
Status: ACTIVE
"…Unregistered?" I muttered.
Lyra leaned over my shoulder. "That's not supposed to happen. Every summoned hero, demon lord, villain, or NPC has a registration code. If it's unregistered…"
"It wasn't created by the system," I finished.
Silence followed.
Arcelia clenched her fist. "Then… where did it come from?"
I closed the menu slowly. "That's the scary part."
We stayed there for a while, letting the tension settle. No attacks. No warnings. Just the uncomfortable feeling of being watched from somewhere we couldn't see.
Then, softly, I felt it.
A presence.
Not hostile. Not friendly. Just… there.
I glanced toward the far end of the hallway. Shadows pooled unnaturally near a column, darker than they should've been. A figure stood within them—still, silent, almost blending into the stone itself.
Kuroha.
She didn't approach. Didn't speak. She simply watched.
Arcelia stiffened. "Master… she's here."
"I know," I whispered.
Lyra swallowed. "She's observing again. And she's closer than before."
Kuroha tilted her head slightly, eyes locked onto me. There was no killing intent. No aggression. Just quiet evaluation, like I was a puzzle she hadn't decided how to solve yet.
After a long moment, she turned… and vanished into the shadows.
No sound. No trace.
I let out a slow breath. "Yep. I officially hate that."
Lyra looked serious. "She's not acting independently. I think she's connected—loosely—to the same anomaly inside the system. Not controlled… but aware."
Arcelia whispered, "So… she's waiting too?"
I nodded. "Yeah. Everyone is."
I stood up, stretching again, forcing a grin. "Guess that means I need to get stronger. Smarter. And maybe… even more illegal."
The Corruption Meter flickered once.
31%
Somewhere deep inside the system, unseen and unheard, something shifted.
And for the first time since arriving in this world, I had the uncomfortable feeling that the game wasn't reacting to me anymore.
It was planning.