451: 8.51 Can You Do It?

8.51 Can You Do It?

Diana's pupils dilated heavily, her expression clearly portrayed the shock she felt within. Lu Yizhou looked into her eyes and saw the answer he was seeking. From 666's insistence that 404 was not registered as one of the systems and Diana's incoherent mumbles saying that she had to listen to her system, Lu Yizhou pieced together one whole truth.1

404, Diana's system, was one of the bugs in this world.

No wonder that Diana was sent here together with Lu Yizhou. If 404 had replaced her original system early on and steadily brainwashed her bit by bit, then everything made sense. Her fear, desperation and helplessness. She did not want to rely on Lu Yizhou not because of the bullshit 404 had stuffed into her mind, but because she had had enough of being used and treated like she was not a human.

Diana's lips quivered greatly as another layer of tears misted over her eyes. "H–How do you…" She choked on her words. "Exactly who are you…?"

Lu Yizhou heaved out a sigh and finally let go of her head. "Just another ordinary transmigrator. I know you can't bring yourself to trust me and honestly, I don't expect you either. But my offer still stands. I can, and will get you out of this place as long as you're willing to cooperate with me."

For a split second, Diana's blue eyes lit up. Lu Yizhou saw the flame of hope flickering in her otherwise forlorn eyes as her fighting spirit was rekindled by his words. But no sooner than he noticed it, the fire was doused as Diana's face contorted in pain. 

She huddled over and let out a muffled groan, no doubt if she could use her hands, she would definitely be clutching her head by now. "I… I won't. I'm sorry, I'm sorry… I won't come up with anything funny. I swear. No! Please… Please don't! Yes, I want to wake up again… I want to live…"

Lu Yizhou furrowed his brows deeply. Goddamnit, this system was such a pain in the ass! If he did not take care of it one way or another, then it would remain as a parasite inside Diana's mind and continue to poison her with pain, until she finally lost her fighting spirit, her faith, her heart and finally herself. By then, Diana would finally become a perfect human shield and sword at the bug's disposal.

Lu Yizhou was certain that even if Diana did not have her system, he would be able to bring her out of here. He had Ozzie's help and he knew that somewhere out there, Cyrus and Luan were still waiting for them. Lu Yizhou doubted that they were somewhere in this world otherwise they would be coming to help him with the mission already. But his point stood. 

He could bring Diana out of this goddamn place, unharmed. But the problem was only one… her system.

Just as he was ruminating on what he should do, 666 suddenly spoke in his mind.

[666: Host, will you leave this one to 666?]

Lu Yizhou hesitated for a bit. [Can you do it?] 

It was not like he did not trust 666. After all, they had stayed through thick and thin together as they hacked their way into the main system. 666 had not disappointed him before (except for the small annoying matters) but the bug was still the bug. It was a virus and if it could replace Diana's original system, then… what about 666? What if, by any smallest chance, 666 lost?

For once, 666 was not enraged at Lu Yizhou's distrust. It calmly spoke, sounding oddly mature all of a sudden.

[666: Host, this is 666's battle. Ozzie can assist you directly in your mission but 666 can only give you technical support that is practically useless in this world. Hehe, it's been so long since 666 has a good fight *cracks knuckles* don't worry, if 666 loses, then 666 will kneel down under your feet and call you grandpa!]

Lu Yizhou rolled his eyes. Look at how big it was talking, he doubted whether 666 had even fought another system before. It was such a crybaby, scaredy cat and cowardly. This ought to be their first fight against the bug which Lu Yizhou could not interfere in.

He heaved out a sigh, knowing that he did not have any choice in this matter. [If you win… then I won't call you useless anymore.]

There was silence for two long seconds before 666 exploded into excited cheers.

[666: That's a deal, then! Oh, 666 is getting fired up now! Come on, Host! 666 is ready to fight this shitty bug!]

Lu Yizhou stood up and pulled Diana up with him. He whistled for Ozzie, surely she must have heard Lu Yizhou and 666's conversation while she was playing with the two protagonists because as soon as she received Lu Yizhou's signal, she instantly transformed back into her little cat form and jumped up to Lu Yizhou's shoulder. 

'Don't you dare to lose, idiot system!' She harrumphed. And then after some thought, added, 'If you win, then… I might call you uncle once in a while. Only once in a while, okay?!'

[666: Host, do you hear that?! You hear that, don't you?! Okay, 666 has recorded our conversation. You guys won't be able to back out from the deal now! Just watch, 666 is definitely going to win!]

"Aww…" Ji Yan approached them with a pout. "I haven't finished playing with Ozzie yet. Why do you suddenly—oh!" He finally caught sight of Diana after being too distracted by Ozzie's gigantic form. There was a split second silence before he burst into tears and lunged forward to hug the defenseless Diana. "T–Thank God, you're still alive! Do you know how scared I was when I saw your… your…" Unable to bring himself to complete the sentence, Ji Yan wailed out loud, tears and snots running down his face.

"Ew," Olivia voiced out Lu Yizhou's thoughts perfectly, complete with the disgusted grimace. She did not say anything to Diana, but when Lu Yizhou looked closer, he could spot the hint of tears on the corner of her eyes.

Stunned by the sudden affectionate gesture from Ji Yan, Diana could not react in time and resignedly let herself be smothered into a tight hug. Her eyes glazed over in thought. How long had it been since someone had cried for her? How long had it been since someone had hugged her this tightly? For hundreds of years, she had traversed through one world and another, mechanically followed through the original plot to save the villains and treated them as another task she had to complete. Endlessly.

She had almost forgotten the joy and pride when she managed to save her own villain for the first time. She had forgotten that they had feelings too and… they could feel so warm.

"Alright, let's spare the reunion for later." Lu Yizhou clapped twice to draw their attention. Then without any preamble, he picked Diana up and slung her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Instinctively, Diana began to scream and struggle around, but Lu Yizhou was expressionless as he faced the two shocked protagonists. "Come on, we still have a lot of tasks to do." After saying that, he turned and walked back toward the mansion. 

"W–Wait a moment," Ji Yan tried to catch up with him. "What are those glowing cuffs around Diana's wrists? Why is she tied up like that?"

"It's a long story." Lu Yizhou saw Ailín from afar and did not hesitate to dump the annoying task to him. "Ask him. He will tell you more."

Flabbergasted, Ailín pointed at his own face. "Me…? Wait, what should I tell them?!"

However, Lu Yizhou had already picked up his pace and left the three of them behind. Ailín had sharp wits and Lu Yizhou decided that he would trust the man to deal with the two protagonists for the time being. He brought Diana back to the room where they placed her body. Fortunately, Lu Yizhou still had the lock inside his pocket.

"I have something very important to talk about with Diana." He said whilst looking straight into Ailín's eyes. "In the meantime, I will rely on you three to complete the special quest. Can you do it?"

Ji Yan and Olivia clearly had a lot of important questions to ask and complaints to be filed, but Ailín slipped between them and slung his arms over their shoulders, guffawing. "Of course. We only have to search for four more pieces of Madam's comb, right? With Ji Yan's luck, we will surely be able to complete it in no time at all! You two go and have your own talk. We will gather again after you finish."

"Wait… Wait a moment!"

"What the hell, Ailín?! Don't pull us!"

Lu Yizhou watched as Ailín dragged Ji Yan and Olivia somewhere else. After that, he entered the room and locked the door behind him. Placing Diana down to the couch, he opted to sit on the low table instead. "Now, there's just us two."

Diana had gotten all breathless and red faced from the struggle earlier. Gradually, she realized that she was no match for Lu Yizhou's strength and had stayed silent for half the way. Chest heaving, she glared at Lu Yizhou like a bristling wild animal. "What do you want from me?! I have told you, I am not interested in—"

Lu Yizhou massaged his aching shoulder and rolled his neck. "This will hurt a little bit so bear with us."

Diana only had the chance to stammer out a, "W–What—" before Lu Yizhou grabbed hold of her head with both palms and closed his eyes. [Time to work, 666.]

[666: Aye, aye, Host! Finally, it's time for 666 to shine!]

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