Blood Feud with the Shark (7)

The moment I saw that message, my mind went completely blank.

What the hell is this?

I stared at the red warning window floating in the air for a long moment. The system had never spat out an error like this before. Not once. Even when I first received the Lightweight Reinforced Edition and started using the memory manipulation functions, everything had worked flawlessly.

But now it was suddenly telling me I had no permission?

My stomach twisted with an instinctive sense of danger. Something was wrong. Very wrong.

I quickly tried to open the status window again, but the same error message popped up immediately. No matter how many times I called for it, the result was identical. It felt as if an invisible wall had been slammed down between me and the system.

Did the higher-ups notice what I’ve been doing?

The thought sent a chill down my spine. If the beings who created this Lightweight Reinforced Edition had detected my repeated abuse of mind control and memory alteration, then this could be the beginning of the end. I had no idea what kind of punishment they might impose.

Just as cold sweat began to trickle down my back, another window appeared before my eyes.

My breath caught in my throat. This was no ordinary glitch. The system was actively blocking me.

I clenched my fists so hard my nails dug into my palms. Calm down. Panicking won’t solve anything. I forced myself to breathe slowly and think.

The first thing I needed to figure out was exactly what had triggered this. Had it been the memory manipulation I used on the maids last night? Or was it something that happened earlier with Diaochan? No… it couldn’t be. I had used those functions dozens of times before without any issues.

Then what was different this time?

As I racked my brain, a faint memory surfaced. Right before the error appeared, I had been trying to check the detailed status of the women in my mansion. Specifically, I had attempted to look at the hidden psychological profiles and loyalty values of the newly arrived maids.

Was that it? Had I crossed some invisible line by digging too deep?

While I was lost in thought, the door to my room creaked open. A familiar face peeked inside.

“Young Master? Are you awake?”

It was Hongryeon. Her long black hair was tied back neatly, and she wore a simple yet elegant outfit that accentuated her graceful figure. Even without any special styling, her beauty was enough to make anyone’s heart skip a beat.

But right now, I couldn’t afford to admire her looks.

“Come in,” I said, trying to keep my voice steady.

Hongryeon entered with light steps and closed the door behind her. Her sharp eyes scanned the room before settling on me.

“You look pale. Did something happen?”

She was quick to notice. As expected of someone who had served me for years.

I shook my head. “It’s nothing. Just a little headache.”

She didn’t seem convinced, but she didn’t press the issue. Instead, she approached and gently placed her hand on my forehead.

“You don’t seem to have a fever… Still, you should rest a bit more. The banquet last night went on quite late.”

Her touch was warm and comforting. For a brief moment, the tension in my chest eased slightly.

But the system error was still flashing in the corner of my vision like a blood-red warning light. I couldn’t ignore it.

“Hongryeon,” I said quietly. “Have any strange guests visited the mansion recently?”

She tilted her head slightly, thinking. “Strange guests… Not that I can recall. Though a few of the new maids did arrive yesterday. They were sent by the merchant guild as you requested.”

The new maids.

Something clicked in my mind. Those women had been carefully selected and sent by the guild after I made a special request. At the time, I had simply thought they were high-quality servants with good looks and skills. But now that I thought about it, I hadn’t been able to check their detailed information through the system before the error occurred.

Could one of them be the cause?

“Bring the new maids here,” I ordered. “All of them.”

Hongryeon’s eyes widened slightly at the sudden command, but she bowed without question.

“As you wish, Young Master.”

She left the room, and I was alone once again with the glowing error messages.

I sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the warning windows. My mind raced through countless possibilities.

If the system had truly restricted my access, I needed to find another way. There had to be a workaround. There always was.

After a short while, the door opened again. This time, five women entered in a neat line. They were the new maids who had arrived the previous day.

Each one was strikingly beautiful in her own way. Their skin was flawless, their figures elegant, and their movements graceful. They all lowered their heads in perfect synchronization.

“We greet the Young Master.”

Their voices were clear ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and harmonious. It was almost too perfect.

I narrowed my eyes and observed them carefully. On the surface, they looked like ordinary high-class maids. But something felt off. An ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠inexplicable sense of unease crept over me.

“Raise your heads.”

They obeyed immediately. Five pairs of beautiful eyes met mine.

And that’s when I saw it.

One of them—the woman standing at the far left—had eyes that were slightly different. While the others looked at me with gentle obedience, hers contained a faint glimmer of something else. Something cold. Calculating.

Found you.

I stood up slowly and walked toward her. The other maids remained perfectly still, but I could feel the tension in the air thickening.

Stopping right in front of her, I stared directly into those suspicious eyes.

“Who are you?” I asked in a low voice.

For a split second, her expression froze. Then she smiled softly, as if nothing was wrong.

“This servant is called Seoyeon, Young Master. I was assigned to manage the inner courtyard—”

“Cut the act.”

I grabbed her chin roughly, forcing her to look at me. The other maids gasped in shock, but none of them moved to intervene.

“You’re not an ordinary maid. I can tell. So I’ll ask again. Who sent you?”

Her smile didn’t waver. Instead, her eyes curved into elegant crescents as she whispered,

The voice that came out of her mouth was no longer that of a young maid. It was deeper. Seductive. And unmistakably familiar.

My blood ran cold.

This voice… It can’t be.

The woman’s appearance began to change. Her plain maid uniform transformed into luxurious black silk robes embroidered with golden thread. Her hair, which had been tied in a simple bun, cascaded down like a waterfall of midnight silk. Her features sharpened, becoming even more strikingly beautiful—and dangerous.

The other maids stood motionless, as if they had been frozen in time.

She tilted her head slightly, smiling at me with blood-red lips.

I staggered back a step, my heart pounding violently against my ribs.

The woman standing before me was someone I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠knew all too well.

Or rather, someone I had known in my previous life—before I had been given a second chance with the Lightweight Reinforced Edition.

“You…” My voice came out hoarse. “How are you here? You should be—”

She laughed softly, a sound like chiming bells laced with venom.

She took a graceful step forward, closing the distance between us once again. Her scent—jasmine mixed with something darker, more intoxicating—filled my nostrils.

“My dear little brother,” she purred, reaching out to trace a finger along my jawline. “Did you really think you could run away from me forever?”

My mind reeled. This was impossible. In my previous life, I had killed her with my own hands. I had watched her die. And yet here she was, standing in front of me, more alive and beautiful than ever.

And judging by the way the system had suddenly cut off my access, she was the one responsible.

She must have done something to the system… or to me.

I grabbed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠her wrist, stopping her hand from moving any further.

“What do you want?” I growled.

Her smile widened, revealing perfect white teeth.

She leaned in close, her lips brushing against my ear as she whispered the final words.

The temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees. The other maids remained frozen in place, like dolls whose strings had been cut. Only the two of us existed in this moment.

My mind raced desperately for a solution. The system was locked. My powers were sealed. And the woman who had been my greatest enemy in my previous life was now standing right in front of me, smiling like a predator that had finally cornered its prey.

This was bad. Really, really bad.

But even as panic threatened to overwhelm me, a familiar emotion began to rise from deep within my chest.

Anger.

Hot, burning rage that pushed away the fear.

I had already killed her once. If I had to, I would do it again.

Even if the system had abandoned me, even if she had somehow returned from the dead, I refused to lose everything I had built in this life.

I looked into her eyes—eyes that were identical to the ones that had haunted my nightmares for years—and spoke in a voice cold enough to freeze hell itself.

“You picked the wrong opponent, sister.”

Her smile only grew wider, as if she had been waiting for those exact words.

And so, the blood feud that should have ended in my previous life began once again in this new world of the Three Kingdoms.

Only this time, the shark had come wearing the skin of a beautiful woman.