Honestly speaking, although the fight had been exhilarating, when System suddenly popped up, Ximo broke into a cold sweat.
Meow meow, if this damn System really screwed things up, she wouldn’t know how to explain it!
So although she had struck hard, Ximo still quietly communicated with System in her mind.
“So? Can’t you possess the host’s body? Why aren’t you acting? Do you like getting beaten by me?”
But returning to your body takes time. If Xiliya sees the process, how would you explain it?
Ximo understood. Although System could return quickly, there was a return animation, and that animation couldn’t be seen by Xiliya.
“Oh, how unfortunate for you.” In reality, Ximo’s face remained expressionless, and her strikes didn’t lighten at all.
But just then, a rhythmic knock came from the door.
“Hello, sorry to disturb you. Is anyone in the room right now?”
The knocker seemed to be the inn’s server. Xiliya and Ximo exchanged a glance. Ximo hurriedly dragged System to the corner, while Xiliya immediately dispelled the Barrier Magic in the room and slowly cracked the door open.
“What’s the matter?”
The server outside wore a beaming smile. Xiliya blocked her line of sight into the room with her body.
“It’s just this—did you happen to use large-scale magic in the room just now?”
“The front desk alarm went off, so I’m here for a routine check. I hope you understand.”
Xiliya had almost forgotten that Cantelot, as the Imperial Capital, prohibited magic use in public places within the city, and inns were naturally included. She had acted too hastily earlier without thinking.
“Um… a wild cat darted into our room just now. It might have caused a bit of a commotion by accident. Sorry about that.”
“I see. Would it be convenient for me to come in and check? It won’t take long. I hope you understand.”
The server flashed a sincere smile. At that moment, Xiliya suddenly heard a small exclamation from Ximo inside the room. She whipped her head around and caught sight of System breaking free from the binding magic and leaping out the window.
Damn it, had she been too far away, causing the binding magic to loosen?
But at a time like this, the little brat running off wasn’t exactly a bad thing. Xiliya composed herself and stepped aside to make way.
“Of course, but it looks like that cat already jumped out the window.”
The server briefly inspected the room and, of course, found nothing. As soon as the server left, Xiliya looked out the window. Their room was on the fifth floor, and there were a few scattered pedestrians on the street below.
Xiliya frowned. Leaving aside how that little brat would escape after jumping from here, wouldn’t someone that size dropping from upstairs elicit some reaction from the pedestrians on the street?
What Xiliya didn’t know was that as soon as System jumped out the window, her entire figure automatically phased into transparency and vanished without a trace, leaving only a faint flash that quickly sank into Ximo’s chest.
Ximo in the room also breathed a sigh of relief. There was no helping it—they couldn’t let System return right in front of Xiliya.
“Sorry, miss. I was trying to find a space to hide her earlier, but when I turned back…”
“It’s fine. It’s better that she ran off. We’ll talk about this later.”
Xiliya pushed her doubts back down. She still felt that little loli was suspicious and probably connected to the person who wanted to assassinate her.
“Next time, if we get another chance to catch her,” Xiliya narrowed her eyes slightly, “I’ll break her legs first.”
“Th-this…” System’s frightened voice echoed in Ximo’s mind. “This is the Camberlan Family’s Sickly Young Lady? Are you sure this is called ‘Sickly Young Lady’?”
Hearing System voice the same doubts she once had, Ximo couldn’t help but chuckle in exasperation.
Fine, now you know how I felt back then, huh?
This unexpected interlude didn’t disrupt their plans for the day. The two quickly dressed neatly and headed out, with Ximo cradling the long wooden staff in her arms.
What Ximo hadn’t expected was that Cantelot even had public transportation. This proved that this world not only had magitools similar to modern technology but also public facilities and certain regulations that mirrored them.
The only difference was that the public transit was powered by versatile Magic Crystals, so the fares were quite expensive.
Ximo didn’t talk much along the way. Xiliya thought she was still mulling over the earlier incident, but in fact, Ximo was listening to a certain little loli’s frantic apologies in her mind.
System had checked all the previous task records, plus her personal experience just now, and quickly pieced together what had happened. Thus, Ximo heard a string of “sorrys” in her mind.
Although it had felt great to legitimately beat up the System, Ximo still needed to figure out a solution.
“You crossed over to the wrong person because the original Xiliya had already been reborn—like a game account,” System explained proactively. “If the account’s already logged in by someone else, of course another person can’t force their way on.”
But the transmigration process is mandatory, so dear probably ended up reborn in the person most similar to Xiliya at the time… namely, the assassin Ximo.
“Strange, but why did Xiliya rebirth on her own…”
System muttered in surprise, but Ximo frowned, spotting the inconsistency.
“Wait, if it was just a mistake that led me to transmigrate into ‘Ximo,’ then how do you explain these memories in my head?”
This time, System fell silent. After a while, Ximo heard her squeeze out, “Sorry, I don’t know…”
Useless!
Ximo took a deep breath and set the issue aside for now.
At least this System could communicate normally. Ximo had been worried that once customer service mode activated, System would be as incomprehensible as that damn System. Since they could talk properly…
“So,” Ximo raised the key point, “since your transmigration process messed up, I shouldn’t have to do these plot tasks anymore, right?”
System: “…”
This time, System’s silence lasted even longer, long enough for Ximo to feel a bad premonition.
“I’m really sorry, but… I don’t have the authority over that, dear.”
“I’m just a little customer service rep. My abilities are limited to issuing and settling tasks. The plot tasks are set based on the original story’s plot, so…”
System’s voice grew smaller, as if afraid Ximo would drag her out and give her a few more punches right then. But she quickly added,
“But, but I can try to think of something! Though it might take a little time…”
Ximo let out a long breath. Fine, this was acceptable. At least System hadn’t shut the door completely—there was still room to negotiate.
As for the tasks, there was still time before the Imperial Capital Magic Academy opened, and the plot hadn’t entered the second volume yet. There shouldn’t be new tasks in the next few days, so this would do for now.
