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Grace was startled by the sudden, childish outburst.
In the next second, her previously exhausted body was suddenly filled with energy. Before she had a chance to figure it out, Martha entered with a strange expression on her face and called out, "Ma’am."
As soon as she spoke, a little kid peeked out from behind her legs.
He had big, grape-like black eyes set in a clean, pale face, with soft, slightly curly hair. He wore a black suit with suspenders and ankle-high white socks, looking like a character straight out of a comic book.
The boy stared at Grace for a long time before scrunching his nose in distaste.
“How did Uncle end up marrying such a dried-up woman?”
The boy muttered in dissatisfaction, his voice soft and childlike.
Martha quickly interjected, “Young Master, you shouldn’t say such things. Even if Ma’am’s figure is a bit... slim, she’s still the one Sir married with a proper ceremony.”
The little boy pouted disdainfully, “Don’t think I don’t know—Uncle doesn’t even like her.”
Grace looked down at the little kid, who barely reached her knees, then glanced behind Martha.
[Where’s the male lead?]
The system’s soft, gentle voice chimed in: [Right here~ Look down~]
Grace lowered her gaze.
The little boy stood in front of her, looking up with a proud, childish voice, “Hey, woman. Are you mute or something? Why aren’t you saying anything? Are you playing hard to get with me?”
Grace raised an eyebrow.
[This little brat is the male lead!?]
The system replied shyly: [Yes, isn’t he handsome~?]
[Yeah, he’s got a sort of... stupid handsomeness.]
System: [...]
Grace, now having met the young male lead, withdrew her gaze and said to Martha, “I’m going to bed.”
She turned and walked upstairs.
The little boy stood there, shocked.
“She... she just ignored me!?” He looked up at Martha, his eyes welling with tears, utterly disbelieving.
Could this be the evil stepmother that TV shows talk about—the kind who uses cold violence against children?
“Diga, my light, where are you!?”
Completely unaware of the drama playing out in the little boy’s mind, Grace closed her bedroom door and collapsed onto the floor.
Ethan did indeed have a nominal “son,” a child born just before his older brother passed away. The kid lost his father at birth, and Ethan took him in as his own.
Though they were officially father and son, they were really uncle and nephew.
The boy had always been raised elsewhere, so why had Ethan suddenly brought him home?
The system explained in its soft voice: [Leon, the male lead, grew up with only an emotionally distant uncle who provided for him materially but didn’t show love. As a result, he developed a twisted personality later in life, becoming a possessive maniac.]
[If the male lead, still young, is approached by transmigrators with ulterior motives, it will undoubtedly affect his feelings for the female lead in the future.]
[You’ve read those novels where the villainous supporting characters make the young male lead fall in love with them, right? We need to stop that from happening.]
The system sounded determined, but Grace was barely paying attention, almost falling asleep. She yawned: [So where do I find these transmigrators? I don’t even know the original plot of this book.]
The system reassured her: [Don’t worry, transmigrators will actively seek out the male lead. I’ve read the whole book and know that they’re using the bodies of the locals. Anyone who acts out of character—I’ll spot them.]
Grace narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
Could it really be that easy?
She lifted her skirt, peeled off the thermal leggings that had bunched up around her knees, and then, with disgust, tore off the white dress and swapped it for her comfortable sweats before flopping onto the bed.
[Now that you’re inside me, does that mean the original system is gone?] Grace asked, barely able to contain her excitement.
Unfortunately, the system’s soft, regretful voice replied: [It’s still there.]
[I don’t have enough energy to completely remove it from your body. I can only suppress it to prevent it from shocking you, but you still have to maintain the original character in front of Ethan. Otherwise, the transmigrators will notice.]
[Once we drive out the transmigrators and I gather enough energy, I’ll destroy that system, and you’ll be free in this world.]
Grace’s eyes flashed for a moment.
She had been suppressed by the system for so long that she had almost forgotten her true nature—she wasn’t someone who sat around waiting to be saved.
Taking initiative and cutting through problems quickly was more her style.
With that thought, she crawled off the bed.
[What should I call you? It’s confusing to just call you “system.”] She hesitated.
The system, sounding happy, replied: [How about you give me a name, Host? Something cute and soft!]
Grace smiled confidently: [I’m really good at this.]
[From now on, your name is—]
[Lil Peep.]
System: [...]
[Isn’t that name a bit... indecent?] The system’s voice sounded like it was about to cry.
Grace coldly replied: [The vulgar only see vulgarity.]
As Grace got out of bed, Lil Peep couldn’t help but ask: [Where are you going?]
Grace, holding a hair tie in her mouth as she tied up her long black hair, replied: [I’m not going to just sit around waiting for these transmigrators to show up. I’m going to interrogate that little brat and see if anyone suspicious has been around him lately.]
Lil Peep: [...]
[Aren’t you the most suspicious one here?]
Just as the system was about to advise against alarming anyone, Grace’s phone, which had been casually thrown on the ground, suddenly rang.
The sound was unnervingly loud in the quiet, empty room.
Grace was momentarily stunned. Given her special status, her phone, developed by the Quill family, was secure, ensuring her privacy.
She didn’t have any social contacts or friends, so she didn’t even get spam texts.
Besides, it wasn’t even time for her favorite male streamer to go live.
Puzzled, she picked up the phone, its screen cracked and shattered. She unlocked it.
A text from an unknown number popped up.
Unknown: “Miss you, babe. How’ve you been?”
Lil Peep’s voice was full of surprise: [No doubt about it, that’s definitely a transmigrator!]
Grace calmly typed a reply.
Grace: “If you miss me, send money. The more you send, the more you miss me.”
Unknown: “o”
Grace: “Stop laying eggs. Pay up.”
Lil Peep: [...]
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