I was held tightly in his arms, feeling the trembling of his body. His words, like heavy hammers, struck hard at my heart. So, everything he had done was for me.

He imprisoned me to protect me. He schemed against me to keep me. I felt an unprecedented contradiction.


He is a ghost king, powerful, domineering, and even somewhat obsessive. But his feelings for me are so genuine, so... profound.

For me, he would go to any lengths, even to the point of hurting himself.

I reached out my hand, gently stroking his back. He stiffened suddenly, then held me even tighter.


「Sophia Winters……」

「I... I don't know.」I said softly, 「I don't know what to do.」


He released me, cupped my face in his hands, forcing me to look directly into his eyes. His eyes were rimmed with red, filled with pain and hope, that gaze full of longing for me.

「Sophia Winters,」his hoarse voice was pleading, 「give me a chance, will you?」

I looked at him, a surge of complex emotions rising in my heart. I didn't know if this was what I wanted. I didn't know if I could fall in love with a ghost. But I knew I couldn't hurt him anymore.

I reached out my hand, gently caressing his cheek. The touch was cold, yet carried a strange tingling sensation.

"Sean Shaw," I whispered, "tell me, what exactly are you?"

He looked at me, a hint of hesitation flashing in his eyes. He seemed to be struggling with whether to reveal his secret to me.

"I..." he paused, but finally spoke, his voice deep and magnetic, "I am this world's last... guardian."

I was stunned. Guardian? This word made me feel both unfamiliar and shocked.

"What does that mean?" I asked, my eyes filled with confusion.

He sighed, releasing my hand, then walked to the window, gazing into the pitch-black night outside. Under the cover of darkness, the villa's garden appeared more mysterious, as if concealing countless unknown secrets.

"This world," his voice was deep and weathered, as if he had experienced the passage of countless years, "is being eroded by an evil force. This force, formless and intangible, can pollute living beings, making them twisted and filled with resentment."

"Those vengeful spirits, those monsters, they are all products of this force." He turned his head to look at me, compassion in his eyes, "They were once human too, but were corrupted by that power, becoming what they are now."

I felt a shock in my heart. So those vengeful spirits in the basement weren't inherently evil, but victims of corruption. I suddenly felt a trace of pity for them.

"And I," he continued, his tone heavy with a burden of responsibility, "my duty is to purify them, or... imprison them. To prevent that evil force from continuing to erode this world."

I felt a chill rising from the soles of my feet. This world, it turns out, conceals such a terrifying truth. And I, have been living in such danger all along, completely unaware.

"What about you?" I asked, "Are you also... contaminated?"

He chuckled softly, a laugh tinged with self-mockery.

"I am not," he answered, with pride in his eyes, "I am a spirit born of this land. My existence is meant to protect this world."

"So, the quality within you," he looked at me, his eyes filled with complexity, "is fatally attractive to them. They will frantically rush toward you, devouring your life force. And you are this world's most vulnerable... variable."

I felt dizzy. I am not an ordinary person; I possess a quality that attracts vengeful spirits. I am a variable.

I suddenly understood why he wanted to imprison me. He wasn't imprisoning me; he was protecting me, and also protecting this world. Everything he did was for this heavy responsibility.

I looked at Sean Shaw, and an unprecedented shock surged in my heart. What he was bearing was far heavier than I had imagined.

He wasn't simply a Ghost King; he was a guardian, a warrior who fought alone against evil forces. And I had misunderstood him, and even tried to use him.

I felt a wave of shame, and that shame was like a fire, burning my heart.

"Sean Shaw..." I spoke softly, my voice choked, "I'm sorry."

He walked up to me, reached out, and gently caressed my cheek. His touch was cold, yet tender.

"You don't owe me an apology." His voice was deep and gentle, "You just... didn't know the truth."

I looked at him, tears welling up in my eyes that I could no longer hold back, spilling down my face. I embraced him, burying my head against his chest, feeling the temperature from his body—cold yet somehow reassuring. His embrace was broad and warm, dispelling all my anxieties.

"I... I will help you from now on," I said with a hoarse voice, filled with determination.

His body stiffened, then he tightly embraced me back. His arms tightened, drawing me deeper into his embrace.

"Good," he said softly, his voice filled with gratification, that gratification full of affirmation for me, "We'll do this together."

In that moment, I felt my heart filled with a warm feeling. I was no longer afraid of him, no longer resisting him. I even felt that I was beginning to... fall in love with him. That love, like a seed, was taking root and sprouting in my heart.

【Task Prompt: True Love's Kiss Task Progress: 90%】

The system's cold notification sounded again. My heart trembled. 90%! I really was almost in love with him.

I looked up at him, my eyes filled with complex emotions. I didn't know if this was the ending I wanted. But I knew I couldn't deceive him anymore. I had to tell him the truth.

I looked at Sean Shaw, my eyes full of struggle. I couldn't deceive him anymore. I had to tell him the truth, even if it would make him angry again, imprison me again.

"Sean," I softly began, my voice trembling, "I... I have a secret."

He looked at me, his gaze deep, as if he could see through all my thoughts. In that gaze was inquiry, and a hint of concern.

"Tell me," he said softly, his tone gentle.

I took a deep breath and told him everything about the system, the tasks, and everything I had done.

From the initial life value crisis, to the issuing of system tasks, to how I had used him, how I had tried to manipulate the vengeful spirit, how I had tried to escape from him.

I told him everything without reservation, like a child who had made a mistake confessing to an adult.

I thought he would be angry, disappointed, and would imprison me again.

But he just listened quietly, with no fluctuation in his gaze, as if hearing a story that had nothing to do with him.

Only after I finished did he reach out his hand, gently stroking my cheek, his touch cold yet tender.

"So that's how it is," he said softly, his tone so calm it made me uneasy.

"Aren't you... aren't you angry?" I asked cautiously, my eyes filled with confusion.

He laughed lightly, a laugh carrying emotions I couldn't understand, seeming like self-mockery, yet also resignation.

"Angry?" he asked in return, with a playful look in his eyes, "Why should I be angry?"

I was stunned.

"You used me!" I blurted out, beginning my accusation.

He looked at me, his eyes filled with helplessness and indulgence. He reached out and gently pulled me into his arms, holding me tight. His embrace was cold, yet carried a powerful strength, firmly restraining me.

"Sophia Winters," he said in a low voice, with fondness hidden in his tone, "you really are a little fool."

I struggled, trying to push him away, but he held me even tighter.

"Did you think I would really be fooled by your little tricks?" he said softly, his voice full of confidence, "I've lived for so long, what haven't I seen?"

I felt a wave of despair. So everything I had done was just little tricks in his eyes. I thought I was clever, thought I could use him. In the end, I was the one being played like a puppet.

"Let go of me!" I shouted angrily, my voice trembling.

He didn't release me, but instead held me even tighter, saying domineeringly.

"No."
"You kissed me, now you have to take responsibility."

"Did you think your little schemes could fool me?" his tone carried mockery, "Everything you do is under my control."

I felt a moment of suffocation. His words were like invisible shackles, trapping me firmly in place. I was completely desperate. I had no right to choose at all.

I stopped struggling, allowing him to hold me. My heart was like stagnant water, unable to stir even the slightest ripple. I thought I had fallen in love with him, thought I had found someone to rely on. In the end, everything was just a trap he had set.

He was merely toying with me, like a caged canary.

"Sophia Winters," he whispered softly by my ear, his tone gentle, "Have you truly fallen in love with me now?"

I suddenly opened my eyes and looked at him. His gaze was profound, filled with inquiry, as if waiting for my answer. My heart trembled.

Love? Did I really love him? Or was I just confused by the illusion he had created? I didn't know. I truly didn't know.

【Mission Hint: True Love's Kiss Progress: 99%】