Alone for the first ti in what felt like ages thanks to Ananara deciding to grace soone else with his insufferable presence she found herself in an uneasy silence.
Liria threw herself onto the massive bed with a groan, the plush mattress swallowing her with excessive luxury. "Finally. Peace and quiet. No murderous pineapples. No fiery princesses. Just ."
As if summoned by the universe's spite, a familiar voice cut through the silence.
[Oh, you're that excited to be alone, are you? Heartbreaking, really. I thought you'd be thrilled to see .]
Liria bolted upright, clutching a pillow like a weapon. "YOU!" she hissed, her voice barely above a whisper. "Where have you been? You disappeared for a whole day! I thought sothing happened to you."
[I'm touched by your concern. Truly. But no, I wasn't abducted or corrupted by so rogue virus. I was working, Liria. Doing my job, unlike so people.]
She glared at the air, knowing exactly where this was going. "Oh, please enlighten , oh great and mysterious system. What exactly does your 'job' entail?"
[Gathering information about your freaky body scales, obviously. And while I was at it, I might've uncovered so things about your parentage. You're welco.]
Her irritation instantly transford into curiosity and dread. "Wait—what did you just say?"
[You heard . Scales. Parents. Big news. Now, do you want the details, or should I save my breath while you throw a tantrum.]
"First of all, systems don't breathe. Second, spill it. All of it. And don't leave anything out this ti."
The system's voice grew smug, a tone Liria had co to both loathe and weirdly appreciate.
[Alright, settle in. This is gonna be a ride. So, you know those creepy black scales that randomly showed up during your little Hellbeast fight? Well, those aren't just so weird demonic puberty side effect. They're tied to your lineage.]
"My… lineage?" she repeated, her stomach twisting. "What does that even an?"
[It ans, dearest Liria, that you've got so very interesting bloodlines. Or should I say, bloody dangerous bloodlines?]
She threw the pillow at where she imagined the system's face might be. "Stop being dramatic and get to the point!"
[Fine. You're half-human, half-demon. But not just any demon. Your demonic parent? The Dark Sovereign.]
Liria froze. Her brain stalled. Her mouth opened, then closed like a fish gasping for air. Finally, she managed, "You're joking."
[Do I sound like I'm joking? No, I'm not. Your dear, dearly absent demonic mother is none other than the forr Queen of All Nightmares herself. Crimson skin, fire-hair, terrifying horns, and a reputation for causing absolute chaos wherever she went.]
The words sunk in like a rock into deep water. "You're telling ," she said slowly, "that that woman is my mother?"
["Correct."]
"And you didn't tell this before because…?"
[Because I didn't know for sure! I needed to confirm it before dropping that particular bombshell on you.]
Her hands trembled as she gripped the bedsheets. "The Dark Sovereign… But she's supposed to be imprisoned. Sealed away. Right?"
[Right. She's locked up tighter than a miser's coin purse, but her influence hasn't disappeared. And clearly, so of that power leaked into you.]
Liria's mind spun. "Wait. Does this an I'm what, destined to take over her throne or sothing? Am I cursed? Am I going to turn into so world-ending demon queen?!"
[Whoa, slow down there, Overlord Junior. No one's saying you're destined for anything. Except, you know, making a ss of your life, which you're already excelling at.]
She threw another pillow, her face burning. "I hate you."
[You love .]
"Focus, system. What about my human side? Does this an I have so long-lost human parent out there too? Or did I just spring fully ford from a fiery abyss?"
[Your human parent is drumroll, please completely ordinary. Nothing special. They were probably just really unlucky to catch the Dark Sovereign's attention. Classic case of 'oops, I seduced a mortal.']
Liria buried her face in her hands. "This is a nightmare."
["No, this is your life now. Buckle up."]
She groaned, flopping back onto the bed. "Okay. So, what about the scales? Why are they showing up now?"
[Good question. It's likely because of the stress you've been under. Life-or-death situations, adrenaline spikes, using that clever little sword of yours. All of it probably woke up your latent demonic traits.]
"And I suppose you don't know how to control them either," she muttered.
[Not yet. But don't worry, I'll figure it out. That's what I'm here for.]
She rolled her eyes. "Great. So, what now? Do I just go about my life pretending I'm not part demon royalty?"
[Pretty much. Oh, and maybe avoid telling anyone about this, especially the royal family. They'd probably freak out and chain you to a wall 'just in case.']
Her chest tightened at the thought. "I'm not telling anyone. But this is going to make things a lot more complicated."
[Understatent of the century.]
The system paused, its tone growing uncharacteristically serious.
[Liria, listen. You're in uncharted territory here. Your human side, your demonic side, your transmigrated soul it's a weird mix. But you're not alone. You've got . And as much as I hate to admit it, you've got a decent support system, even if it includes a pineapple with a superiority complex.]
A small, involuntary laugh escaped her. "Thanks… I guess."
[Whoa, wait a second. Did you just laugh? Are you actually warming up to ? Should I mark this mont as historic?]
"Don't push it," Liria shot back, though her lips twitched in spite of herself. She sat up, hugging a pillow to her chest. "But seriously, what am I supposed to do now? Just pretend everything's normal while I figure out how not to sprout scales in public?"
[That's the general idea. It's not like you have a better option, unless you fancy announcing to everyone, 'Hey, I might be the offspring of the universe's most dangerous demon! Please don't kill .']
"Yeah, because that would go over so well," Liria muttered, rolling her eyes. "Do you think Daena suspects anything?"
[Oh, absolutely. She's no fool. And those queens? They're probably already theorizing about your parentage while sipping black demon wine or whatever.]
Her stomach churned. "Great. Just what I need more people trying to figure out what's wrong with ."
[Correction: There's nothing wrong with you. You're just... unique. It's like being a cake made with two wildly different recipes. One part angel food, one part death by chocolate. Deliciously chaotic.]
"That's the worst taphor I've ever heard," she deadpanned.
[And yet, it fits perfectly.]
Liria sighed, flopping back against her pillows again. "Okay, so let's say I survive tomorrow without accidentally revealing my demon heritage or growing scales during breakfast. What's the long-term plan? Do you think I'll ever have control over... this?" She gestured vaguely at herself.
[Control is possible, but it's going to take ti. You're dealing with powers that have probably been dormant for years maybe even centuries. Think of it like stretching muscles you didn't know you had. It's going to hurt, it's going to be awkward, and you'll probably embarrass yourself a lot in the process.]
"Gee, thanks for the pep talk."
[You're welco.]
She frowned, fiddling with the edge of her blanket. "What about my human side? Does that, I don't know, complicate things?"
[Oh, absolutely. Humans are squishy, fragile, and overly emotional. Your mortal half is probably why you haven't turned into a full-blown demonic nace yet. It's like a safety valve, keeping you from going off the rails.]
"Fantastic," Liria muttered. "So, I'm basically stuck being a half-functional hybrid who might implode at any given mont. Love that for ."
[Look on the bright side: at least you're not boring. Boring people don't get kidnapped by hellbeasts or babysit moody demon princesses.]
Liria snorted. "Yeah, my life's a real fairytale. Except instead of a prince, I get a talking pineapple with an attitude problem."
[And , don't forget . I'm clearly the superior sidekick here.]
"Sure, if you count vanishing for a day and coming back with cryptic information as 'superior.'"
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[Oh, you wound , Liria. But I'll have you know, my absence was highly productive. I didn't just find out about your mom I also uncovered so fun facts about her other activities.]
Her eyebrows shot up. "Other activities? Like what?"
[Let's just say the Dark Sovereign was a master of contingency plans. She didn't just leave behind a legacy of fear she left artifacts, followers, and… certain fail-safes.]
Liria's mouth went dry. "Fail-safes? What kind of fail-safes?"
[The kind that could cause massive destruction if activated. Lucky for you, most of them are sealed away. But if soone figured out how to use them... well, it wouldn't be pretty.]
"Of course it wouldn't," Liria groaned, running a hand through her hair. "So now I have to worry about ancient death traps on top of everything else? You're really making my night here."
[Hey, I don't make the rules. I just deliver the bad news.]
She sat up straight, suddenly suspicious. "Wait. Are you saying there's a chance I could accidentally activate one of these things?"
[A small chance," the system admitted. "But don't freak out! Just, you know, avoid touching weird glowing objects or chanting ominous phrases. You'll be fine.]
Liria buried her face in her hands. "Why do I even get out of bed in the morning?"
[Because you're stubborn, ambitious, and mildly masochistic?]
"Shut up."
[You love .]
"Do not."
[Do too.]
Liria groaned again, though this ti, there was a faint smile tugging at her lips. For all the chaos and uncertainty in her life, at least she wasn't alone in dealing with it. Even if her "partner" was a snarky, invisible system with zero tact.
After a long silence, she asked quietly, "Do you think I'll ever et her? My mother, I an."
[Honestly? I don't know. She's sealed pretty tight, and even if she weren't, eting her would be... complicated.]
"That's one way to put it."
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