𝐑𝐎𝐂𝐊 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐋𝐃 𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐋𝐃

The Untouchable

When I finally crack my eyes open again, I'm greeted by searing, retina-burning light. For a second, I wonder if I've been launched into a nuclear explosion-again-but no, it's just the absurdly bright lighting in this room. I blink furiously, squinting at my surroundings, and realize... okay, this place is gorgeous.

The room I've woken up in looks like something straight out of a luxury magazine. Pastel curtains so delicate they might dissolve in the air, marble floors you could probably eat off of (if you're into that), and furniture that screams, I cost more than your whole life savings. The original Faye really had impeccable taste, and honestly, I vibe with it. The giant, gold-framed mirror across from me makes me do a double-take-yeah, I could get used to this. For once, I'm glad I wasn't dumped in some cave or a dingy basement like in other transmigration novels I've read.

"At least I'm not in the middle of some... awkward situation," I muse, adjusting to the absurd brightness. I think back to some of the wilder stories where hosts wake up in a full-blown crisis-like that one novel where the protagonist transmigrated in the middle of a freaking sex session. Yeah. Imagine that. Mid-romp, confused, and the poor guy doesn't even realize his woman's soul has been swapped out. Nightmare fuel. Thank you, system, for not doing me dirty like that-but, of course, I'm not about to give the system any credit out loud. Can't have it getting a big head.

Speaking of the system."Ayo, dickydick system," I call out, crossing my arms over my chest. "Any ground rules while I go about this 'mission'? Like, is going out of character a thing, or can I do whatever the hell I want? How about murder? Can I murder people? What about dealing drugs? Or selling weapons? Can I nuke the world? Technically, no world means no zombie apocalypse, so... mission accomplished, right?"

Bee 69, my annoying, buzzy companion, materializes in the form of a giant, fat cartoon bee in front of me. It floats there for a second, blinking its ridiculous bug eyes, and then, of course, gives me a massive side-eye. Yeah, that's right, side-eye me, Weewee.

"Host," it begins, in that grating robotic tone, "if you had bothered to read the terms and conditions manual provided to you, you would know that killing anyone is strictly prohibited during your mission. Any breach of the rules will result in disciplinary action as per the punishment grades listed in the Red Book. I can read it out for you, if you'd like, seeing as you're quite illiterate-"

"Red Book? What is this, a BDSM manual? Don't tell me you're gonna start spanking me next," I snicker, rolling my eyes. "And by the way, hearing you read out terms and conditions in that baby-robot voice? No thanks, that's some cursed ASMR right there."

The system, as always, chooses to ignore my sass. "Out of character behavior is allowed," it continues in its usual deadpan tone, "as long as no one in this world suspects that you are, in fact, a foreign soul. The statistical probability of anyone figuring that out is less than 0.001%. But in the rare case that someone does, you will be punished accordingly-"

Suddenly, there's a knock on the door, cutting off both the system and my latest round of sarcasm."Miss Faye," a dry, monotone voice says from the other side, "are you up yet? Breakfast has been served downstairs. Sir and Madam are waiting for you."

Oh, right. There's a whole world still spinning outside of this bedroom, and I'm not here to argue with my glorified AI butler.

"Yeah, yeah, coming!" I shout back, scrambling out of bed. It's school day, after all. Oh god, it's the day. Today's the day the female lead transfers in, meets all the main characters, and kicks off this entire mess. Why couldn't the system have dropped me into this world, like, a week earlier? Or even better, into a different body? Why not transmigrate me as Caden's mother or something? I could've raised him into a normal, law-abiding citizen! But nooo, I'm stuck as Faye Lozero, number one bully and cannon fodder. Just my luck.