It Wasn't a System Error

'This woman gives orders the second she lays eyes on me?'

I didn't have the luxury to worry about that right now. I needed to find somewhere quiet fast and check my status window.

"Sorry."

I gave a quick bow and started heading toward the infirmary. That's when it happened.

"Gasp!! How?!"

"A work-study kid like you?"

Whispers stabbed at my ears from behind. This was the usual treatment for commoners.

Slap! Someone grabbed my arm in a panic. A delicate, slender touch.

"W-Wait a second!!"

"......?"

I turned to see Evangeline staring up ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠at me, breathing raggedly. Her red eyes churned like there was an earthquake.

"What's wrong?"

"Just... just for a moment. Please."

She clutched my sleeve tight, refusing to let go. Her voice trembled precariously, like she was teetering on a cliff's edge.

'Ah... I'm kinda busy right now.' Part of me wanted to shake her off and bolt. But.

"Got it."

I wanted to cut out my tongue for not learning to say no sooner, but the words were already out.

"Follow me."

Evangeline pushed through the surrounding murmurs and took the lead. I let out a deep sigh and trailed after her like a lamb to the slaughter.

The academy's northernmost edge, the Abandoned Forest.

An old brick building covered in vines emerged through the eerie mist.

'The Old Annex...'

Gulp. Was she seriously going to suck my blood here? No, my alibi was solid for now.

"Do you live here?"

She stopped in front of me. Instead of answering, she kicked the rusted iron gate open with her bare foot.

Creeeak— The chilling screech of metal sliced through the forest's silence.

She glanced back at me over her shoulder. Her red eyes gleamed in the darkness, contrasting sharply with the hollow dark circles under them.

"Come in."

"Y-Yeah..."

Thud! The heavy gate slammed shut behind me like a death sentence.

The dim corridor reeked of musty mold and unidentifiable chemicals.

'This is insane. I'm totally screwed...'

The ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠brutal atmosphere finally hit me. This was a girl's home? No wonder they called her a witch.

Cold sweat trickled down my spine. My heart pounded like it was about to burst.

No more loops from here on out. If I died now, it was game over for real. Soul deletion.

'Please... just not the "discard after human experimentation" ending.'

She sat me down not on a sofa, but in a dining chair.

"Sit."

"Y-Yes, ma'am."

Evangeline stared down at me in the rickety chair.

"Your name."

"Huh? It's Evan..."

"Your real name."

"??"

She picked up a pen and flipped open a worn notebook. Oh, ID check? Like logging today's "test subject"?

"Uh... no family name as a commoner. Just Evan."

"......"

Click. Her pen froze mid-air. Her red eyes swept over me.

But there was no familiar contempt or disdain in that gaze.

"I see. Wait a moment."

She scribbled something briefly in the notebook, then turned to the corner cluttered with lab equipment.

Clatter, clatter.

Bubble bubble—

Huh? I braced for the ominous clink of beakers or flasks.

Instead, it was the surprisingly homey sound of chopping on a cutting board and stew simmering.

'What? Not poison brewing?'

I craned my neck to peek. There she was—her small back to me. A black-haired beauty in an apron, cooking something for me in the tiny kitchen.

For a split second, my nose tingled.

'Come to think of it... has any girl ever cooked for me since I got here?'

All I'd had were stale bread scraps tossed by the cafeteria ladies. Maybe the villainess-witch was actually a tsundere serving a warm home-cooked meal to a lost lamb?

'Good thing I'm still alive...'

Tension melted away, and I got lost in sentiment. Yeah, you can't judge a book by its cover.

Thud. She set a plate in front of me.

"Eat."

"Thank you—gasp?!"

My jaw hit the floor mid-gratitude.

What was in the bowl... wasn't exactly "food."

"What... is this?"

"Mandragora Stew."

Stew? This?

I peered trembling into the bowl's abyss.

Bubble bubble— Pitch-black broth boiled like lava. Purple tentacles of unknown origin and eyeballs that looked like animal organs floated lazily on top.

Metaphysical. No, this wasn't cuisine—it was a failed alchemy experiment or curse medium.

'Lab rat confirmed.'

Cold sweat poured like rain down my back. What happens if I eat this?

A. Instant death.

B. Turn zombie.

C. Become her slave and lick her feet forever.

Any way you slice it, bad end. I had one life left. Proceed with caution.

"Um... my stomach's not feeling great right now..."

Gruuuumble—! My gut betrayed me with a thunderous roar.

"......"

"......"

Heavy silence descended. Evangeline's eyes flicked between my stomach and face. Her eyes narrowed.

"Liar."

"No, it's just a physiological—"

"Eat. Before it cools."

She scooped up a spoonful and shoved it toward my mouth. Black liquid dripped plip, plop from the spoon. Like poison.

It was a beautiful girl's request. No resisting. My mouth opened against my will.

'Ah... I'm dead.'

"Here, say aaah..."

She fed it to me like coaxing a child. The moment it touched my tongue, an indescribable storm of flavors assaulted my brain.

'Urp.'

It was horrific. Like swamp mud and rotten herbs blended in a mixer, then mixed with sock-rinse water. My tongue went numb; my taste buds screamed for mercy.

But forcing it down my throat changed everything.

Whoosh— My stomach warmed, and an unknown vitality spread from my solar plexus through my body.

Eh? Stamina up?

'No way!'

Over a hundred years, I'd tried everything. Top-tier potions, elixirs, insane stamina training. Even mandragora? Yeah, I'd eaten it.

But this Evan character was a bottomless pit. No matter how much I poured in, stats wouldn't budge. A cursed husk.

'And one bowl of stew does it?'

Why? Witch's secret recipe? Her magic?

I sat there gaping, and her eyebrow twitched.

'Crap!!'

"I-It tastes good. Feels good for the body too."

The corner of her mouth twitched up ever so slightly.

Phew... close one.

'Alright, witch's guinea pig experiment: success. This is my chance.'

I eyed her carefully.

Evangeline had reverted to her blank expression, spoon poised at my lips again.

"Say aaah."

Her red eyes gleamed strangely. Like a grandma eyeing a picky grandson—or a mad scientist watching a rare specimen.

Gulp...

This was my shot. But her feeding me felt awkward and embarrassing.

"Ah... I-I can feed myself."

I snatched the spoon hastily. Watching her reaction, I scraped the bowl clean, pretending to savor it.

Clink.

She nodded faintly at the empty bowl. For a split second, her lip curved 0.1mm.

"I'll do the dishes—"

"Sit."

She snatched the bowl and headed straight to the sink.

Whoosh— Water ran as she washed up. Her jet-black hair swayed down to her waist.

That back view screamed perfect wife material.

I rubbed my full belly and sighed in relief.

'Wait, stamina went up... let's check.'

While she ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠focused on the dishes, I whispered softly.

"Status window."

"!!!"

Stamina had jumped from F- to E-.

F- was "walking hospital," while E- was just "wimp." That tiny gap meant survival odds.

But what stole my attention was something else.

[Piarot Evangeline]

Last loop's final moments flashed by. Her fangs tearing my throat. The system message before death.

No way. Could it be.

With trembling fingers, I clicked her name floating in the air.

Flash—!

"......Pfft."

A hollow laugh escaped. Spec gap for real? I was all F trash life, and she was A-grade just breathing. Noble blood was no joke—beyond gold spoon, diamond-encrusted.

But what dropped my jaw was below that.

"......Huh?"

I rubbed my eyes. That ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠familiar skill at the top.

[Bad Ending Loop (EX)]

My one lifeline. My life insurance.

Why the hell was it there?

Trembling, I tapped [Blood Thief].

"......"

I stared blankly into space. My mind blanked. Brain circuits felt like they were frying white-hot.

Last loop's memories flashed. Her biting my throat. The weird sense of loss as consciousness faded.

'The loop vanishing... wasn't a system error!'