That night's stream was officially terminated due to "technical difficulties," but the clip featuring the "god-tier NPC" went viral instantly. Overnight, I became internet famous.

My follower count exploded by millions. Sponsorship offers flooded my inbox. Major talent agencies that wouldn't have glanced my way before were suddenly fighting to sign me.


The agency threw an extravagant celebration party—all crystal chandeliers and champagne flutes, the ballroom buzzing with industry players.

My rival Mia Lynn was there too, draped in designer silk but wearing a thundercloud expression. She slinked over with champagne in hand, her voice dripping venom. "Well played, Sophie. Hiring that gorgeous actor for your little stunt. Now that you're famous, I bet he's expecting quite the payoff."

The nearby influencers tittered, eagerly awaiting the catfight they'd been hoping for.


I ignored her and reached for a petit four. Just as it touched my lips, strong fingers wrapped around my wrist. A familiar presence—cold and commanding—enveloped me instantly, raising goosebumps across my skin.

I jerked my head up in shock.


Sean Shaw stood before me, transformed. Gone were the white robes, replaced by an impeccably tailored black suit that emphasized his tall, lean physique. His beauty was almost painful to look at—like a fallen angel or a deity stepped from a Renaissance painting, radiating an otherworldly elegance.

The room's chatter died instantly. Every eye locked onto him with a mixture of stunned appreciation, burning curiosity, and instinctive reverence.

Completely ignoring the attention, he plucked the dessert from my fingers and tossed it into a nearby trash can with casual disdain, his movements fluid and decisive.

"Too sweet," he said, his deep voice carrying effortless authority. "Bad for you." Then, while Mia and the entire room watched in shock, he lifted my hand to his lips and pressed a gentle kiss against my skin. His lips were cold, yet the gesture sent electric currents racing through my body—a clear statement of possession.

"Time to go home, my fiancée."

The room froze in absolute silence. You could have heard a pin drop as everyone stood paralyzed with shock. Mia's champagne glass slipped from her fingers, shattering against the marble floor with a crash that echoed through the stillness. Her face cycled from white to red to purple as she pointed at me, literally speechless with rage.

My agent Charlotte's jaw practically hit the floor, her eyes wide with horror and confusion. This bombshell about my personal life was clearly not part of her carefully crafted PR strategy.

"What are you doing?" I hissed, trying to yank my hand away, but his grip only tightened.

His palm remained ice-cold yet held me with supernatural strength. My heart raced wildly as blood rushed to my face, my cheeks burning with embarrassment.

"Don't you remember our agreement?" His expression was perfectly innocent, though his dark eyes danced with mischief and calculated cunning. He spoke just loudly enough for everyone nearby to hear clearly. "You kissed me in that haunted house and promised to take responsibility. Having second thoughts already?"

Haunted house? Kiss? Responsibility? The information overload caused visible confusion among the onlookers, their expressions cycling through shock, disbelief, and rabid curiosity.

They exchanged stunned glances, practically salivating for gossip. Mia's complexion continued to fluctuate wildly as she jabbed her finger toward me, sputtering incoherently. "You—he—how—"

Charlotte recovered first, swooping in with her professional crisis-management smile. "Sir, I think there's been a misunderstanding. Our Sophie is very much single and—"

"Not anymore." Sean's glance toward her carried such cold authority that Charlotte physically recoiled. Her professional smile froze, sweat beaded on her forehead, and she visibly trembled. The temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees from his presence alone. This was no joke or publicity stunt.

He practically dragged me from the ballroom and deposited me into a waiting Rolls-Royce at the curb. The heavy door slammed shut with finality, instantly muffling the commotion behind us.

"What the hell do you want from me?" I finally exploded, my voice shaking with fury and fear.

He leaned across me to fasten my seatbelt, his breath hot against my neck despite carrying that strange cool scent. His fingertips brushed my collarbone, sending unwanted shivers down my spine.

"I'm here to collect on your promise." His voice was deep and hypnotic. "You made yourself responsible for me. In return, I'll give you... everything you desire."

Everything I desire? What I wanted most was to be free of him.

"You're ruining my life!" I snapped, trying to sound rational despite my racing heart and quickening breath.

"Ruining?" He arched one perfect eyebrow, amusement dancing in his eyes. "You mean like handling that woman who was harassing you? Consider it done."

A chill ran down my spine. "What did you do to her?"

"Nothing significant." He started the engine with casual indifference. "She simply won't be able to speak for the next month or so."

Horror washed through me. For a supernatural being, silencing someone might be trivial—a mere thought or gesture. But the implications terrified me. He could effortlessly interfere with my life, hurting anyone around me on a whim.

"Sean, we exist in completely different realms." I took a steadying breath that did little to calm me. "You have no right to interfere in my life."

The luxury car glided through the night streets, weaving between towering buildings while neon signs painted shifting patterns across our faces.

After a long silence, he spoke abruptly. "This 'system' of yours. What exactly is it?"

My blood turned to ice. How could he possibly know about the system? My deepest secret—my literal lifeline—was somehow exposed to him. I felt naked, vulnerable in the most terrifying way.

"It grants you life and can revoke it at will." Sean stared at the road ahead, his tone casual despite the devastating words that cut into me like ice shards. "Your precious freedom is merely a longer leash. I can sever it completely."

My heart hammered against my ribs like it was trying to escape.

"You..." Words failed me completely.

"Sophie." He turned to face me, his eyes bottomless pools under the passing streetlights. "Choose me, or choose the system?"

A question with my life hanging in the balance. Choose wrong, and either he or the system would erase me from existence. The air in the car grew thick and heavy, pressing down on my lungs. An invisible hand seemed to close around my throat, choking off any response.

After an ominous silence, the system finally flashed urgent warnings in my mind.

[WARNING! High-risk entity attempting to breach system protocols! Immediate separation required!]
[WARNING! Sever all contact with target entity (Sean Shaw) immediately or emergency termination protocol will activate!]

Blood-red warning boxes flashed violently across my mental vision, so intense they made me dizzy. All color drained from my face as uncontrollable tremors wracked my body.

Sean watched my reaction with a knowing smile, satisfaction and dark amusement playing across his perfect features. "Interesting. It fears me."

He pulled the car to a stop at a deserted riverbank and killed the engine. The night breeze slipped through the window cracks, carrying the scent of water and darkness, yet did nothing to thaw the ice forming in my chest.

"One final offer." He unclicked his seatbelt and leaned toward me, his body caging me against the door. His presence pressed down on me like a physical weight. "Come with me, Sophie. I can give you eternal life—true freedom from that thing's control."

His voice wrapped around me like dark velvet, a devil's temptation whispering promises too seductive to ignore.

Eternal life.

No one living on borrowed time could easily refuse such an offer. I nearly nodded, the desperate survival instinct within me almost overwhelming all reason.

But just then, the system's cold termination warning flashed again, shocking me back to reality like ice water down my spine.

[TERMINATION SEQUENCE INITIATED: 10, 9, 8...]

I shoved him back with all my strength. "NO!" I screamed.

The smile died on Sean's face, replaced by something ancient and terrible. His eyes turned to black ice, cold enough to freeze my very soul.

The temperature plummeted instantly. Actual frost crystallized on the windows. The air grew thick with a suffocating, otherworldly cold that burned my lungs with each breath.

His eyes swirled with emotions I couldn't fully comprehend—rage and disappointment, certainly, but also something that looked disturbingly like... pain? That glimpse of vulnerability pierced me unexpectedly.

I never imagined this supernatural being could experience something as human as hurt.

"Why?" His voice seemed to emerge from some ancient abyss, each syllable sharp with frost and barely contained fury.

[5, 4...] The system's countdown continued, each number like another nail in my coffin. I couldn't tell him the truth! In desperation, a wild idea flashed through my mind—insane but possibly my only chance at survival.

I forced myself to meet his soul-freezing gaze and spoke each word with deliberate cruelty: "Because I don't like you."

[3, 2...]

"I hate being controlled, and I especially hate being entangled with a... ghost." I forced venom into my voice, deliberately choosing the most hurtful words possible. "From the very beginning, I kissed you only for the task. You're no different from those actors in costume to me."

[1...]