Max let out a shaky breath, his voice carrying a rare sense of defeat.
“I know that…” he muttered.
The woman sighed, leaning back in her chair. “Max, let go of your foolishness. You’ve done more than enough for that human. He should be grateful.”
Her voice softened just a little. “Even if he found out what you did to him, I doubt he’d hate you. Don’t worry.” She glanced at Max, who stood on the table with his tiny hands clenched into fists.
Max scoffed, shaking his head. “I know… I know he wouldn’t hate me.” His voice trembled, frustration mixing with something deeper. “Even if he found out I was raising him like some livestock manipulating him, using him, only to discard him when his purpose was fulfilled…”
He exhaled, his small shoulders slumping. “Lucian is a fool… but he’s not like normal humans.” His voice softened. “He’s special. He’s kind. And he’s… innocent.”
The woman clicked her tongue. “You don’t have to use such dramatic words.” She ran a hand through her golden hair. “He’s not an animal, Max. His luck is just… really bad. That’s all.”
She twirled a strand of her hair between her fingers. “Max, you haven’t done anything wrong. You’re simply fulfilling your duty as a system. You’re not forcing him.”
“I’m manipulating him.” Max’s voice rose, anger seeping into his words. “That’s even worse than forcing him outright!”
The woman sighed, shaking her head. “You’re making a big deal out of nothing, honestly.” She gestured vaguely. “All you did was give him missions. That’s it. The way he chose to live his life was entirely up to him.”
She leaned forward slightly, her gaze unwavering. “Lucian had so many options. He could have taken the easy path gone to clubs, thrown extravagant parties, built his own harem, enjoyed his wealth, his power.” She waved her hand. “No one stopped him. If anything, he’s one of the strongest humans in that world. He could’ve lived like a king.”
She sighed, rubbing her temple. “But instead, he chose suffering. He wanted a family. He wanted love. He wanted something that was never meant for him in the first place.”
She tilted her head, studying Max. “Sure, he would have gotten more rewards by sticking with the real heroines, but he could have played it smarter. Why was he so honest with them?”
She scoffed. “You know the truth, Max. Due to the author’s influence, those women were never meant to be his friends. If anything, they were destined to be his enemies.”
Max remained silent, his tiny fists trembling.
“Yet he still loved them,” she continued. “Was he forced to? No. Did you push him? No. He willingly let himself get hurt, betrayed, and tortured emotionally and mentally.”
Her golden eyes gleamed. “He did this to himself.”
Her voice dropped to a whisper. “This human is stupid if you ask me. Humans have never been like this. They’re selfish, arrogant, ambitious, and cruel.”
Max suddenly looked up, his dark eyes filled with rare defiance. “Not all of them.”
The woman raised an eyebrow.
Max took a deep breath. “There are humans who are good. Who are kind. Who have beautiful hearts.”
His voice softened. “Lucian… he’s special. I know him better than anyone.”
He closed his eyes for a moment before continuing.
“I’ve watched him from the day he was born. I know him better than he knows himself. He was always different from the others.”
His voice grew stronger. “Lucian is smart. Smarter than anyone gives him credit for. He understands the meaning of life in a way no one else does.”
Max opened his eyes, a distant look in them. “He knows that life isn’t about being the strongest, the richest, or the most powerful. He knows that true happiness only exists when shared. When you have people who belong to you who love you.”
His small voice trembled slightly. “He understood that because in his past life, he lived without those things.”
A deep breath.
“Life is good when you are happy. But it’s much better when others are happy because of you.”
Max looked down, his tiny hands curling into fists. “That’s what Lucian believed. That’s what made him different.”
His voice wavered. “Even when he gained power, wealth, and strength, he never abandoned his ideals. He never let go of what truly mattered to him.”
He looked up, his dark eyes shining. “The love I’ve seen in him… for his mother, for his sister, for Avey, for his friends he cherished them all. Even if they hurt him, he never stopped loving them. They were his everything.”
Max let out a small, sad chuckle.
“Maybe… maybe even me too.”
The woman’s expression softened just slightly, but she said nothing.
Max took a deep breath. “Yes, maybe he was obsessive. Maybe he loved too deeply, too recklessly. Maybe he cared too much.”
His lips trembled. “But so what?”
He swallowed hard. “He never had any bad intentions. All he ever wanted was to love and be loved in return.”
Max closed his eyes, feeling the weight of everything pressing down on him.
“He wasn’t wrong.”
A long silence followed.
The woman watched him carefully, a strange glint in her golden eyes.
Max exhaled slowly.
“I don’t understand humans sometimes,” he admitted quietly.”They’re so complicated.
He shook his head.
“But I know this.” His voice was firm.
“Lucian…he wasn’t wrong. He was right.”
Max let out a heavy sigh, his small body slumping slightly. “Maybe he just chose the wrong people to love…” he murmured. “No… maybe the wrong world.”
The woman leaned back in her chair, adjusting her glasses with a calm expression.”His character, his personality, his goals… they don’t fit the plot he’s in.”
She tilted her head slightly, watching Max. “If he were cold-blooded, ruthless, or even just a little more selfish, this world wouldn’t be painful for him. It’s simple, really. Rather than trying to change others, maybe he should change himself.”
Her voice remained steady. “Change his personality, change his goals. Stop looking for love.”
She exhaled softly. “If you’re so worried about him, why don’t you do that, Max? You’re his system. You could guide him in that direction.”
Max’s small hands clenched into fists. “Master… I’ve tried.” His voice carried an unusual amount of exhaustion. “Not once. Not twice. So many times.”
He looked up at her, frustration flickering in his tired eyes. “I told him to give up. I told him to move on. I told him to look for someone else, to live his life, to forget about love. I cursed him, insulted him, tried to break him.”
Even tho i was the love system but…
His fists trembled.”But he doesn’t listen.”
His voice dropped to a whisper. “I’ve tried… maybe if I had done it earlier, back when he first started… maybe it would have been different.”
Max closed his eyes, an overwhelming sense of helplessness washing over him.
“But it was too late.”
A moment of silence passed between them.
Then, Max let out another deep sigh. “Sometimes… even though I know the truth, I really, really want to kill those women. Torture them for millions of years in the 19th layer of hell.”
His voice was low, bitter.
The woman let out a short laugh, amused by his sudden outburst.”Oh? That could be arranged.”
But just as she was about to continue, something changed.
Her expression stilled.
She slowly turned her head to the right, her golden eyes narrowing slightly.
At the same time, Max did the same.
Neither of them spoke.
Their gazes pierced through the walls of the office, cutting across space, across time, stretching trillions of light years away.
ohh my
—-
thanks for reading
