Chapter 264: Chapter-264

But she kept that thought carefully hidden behind her concerned servant expression.

Soon, Maya’s tear-filled eyes turned to look at everyone present—the gatekeeper, the physician, Heena, and a few other servants who’d rushed over when they heard the commotion.

“How did this happen?!” she demanded. “How did my husband get so severely injured?!”

The gatekeeper—and God bless him, maybe he genuinely felt pity for Heena, or maybe he was just stating the simple truth—looked at Maya and said:

“Um, the filing drawer fell on the Master while he was working in his study. It was a terrible accident. This servant girl and I worked together to lift it off him as quickly as we could.”

Hearing that explanation, Maya looked like she didn’t quite believe it was the whole truth.

She opened her mouth to ask more pointed questions, her suspicious gaze starting to focus on Heena—

But the old Master cut her off sharply:

“Enough! Stop interrogating everyone like we’re in a criminal investigation!”

He glared at his wife despite his obvious pain.

“Get me some water! And everyone else—get out! I need rest, not a crowd of people staring at me!”

Hearing that sharp dismissal, there was unmistakable unhappiness on Maya’s face.

But she couldn’t directly disobey her husband in front of others without losing face.

Heena, watching this dynamic, had only one thought: ’Lovesick fool. No—just a fool. A big, bloody fool who thinks crying prettily will solve every problem.’

Everyone filed out of the study respectfully.

Maya remained behind to tend to her husband, her tears still flowing.

Heena left as well, her own eyes filled with tears—the concerned tears of a servant who’d witnessed her master’s suffering and felt helpless to prevent it.

Such a good performance.

—

’’[Celebration in the Kitchen]’’

After walking a safe distance away from the study, Heena maintained her distressed expression until she was absolutely certain no one was watching.

Then she slipped into the kitchen, closed the door firmly behind her, and—

Burst into laughter.

She laughed so hard she had to lean against the wall for support, her whole body shaking with mirth.

The System appeared beside her, huffing and puffing from exertion—because even though he was incorporeal to others, using his abilities to physically move objects in the real world took considerable energy.

He looked at her expectantly and asked, “Host, how did I do?!”

Hearing that proud question, Heena gave him an enthusiastic thumbs up.

“Really the best! Perfect execution! That drawer fell at exactly the right angle and exactly the right moment!”

Hearing that praise, the System looked incredibly proud of himself and puffed up with satisfaction.

“Of course! Whose System do you think I am? I’m the best!”

But then he remembered something and his expression became worried.

“But Host… what if we’d miscalculated? What if that old man had actually died from the impact? Wouldn’t that cause huge problems?”

Hearing that concern, Heena just waved her hand dismissively.

“Nah, that wouldn’t happen. The universe plot armor wouldn’t let him die—not until the original story events are completed. I’m not getting involved in any murder that would trigger major plot corrections. So don’t worry about it.”

She stretched happily, feeling the satisfaction of a job well done.

Hearing that reassurance, the System relaxed slightly. “Well, anyway, it was really fun, Host! But I have to say, it took so much of my energy reserves just to tip that drawer over onto him at the right moment. That thing was HEAVY.”

Hearing that complaint, Heena nodded sympathetically. “Yeah, that drawer was genuinely massive. But you did an excellent job. Good work.”

Hearing that praise, the System beamed with happiness.

But then Heena added casually, “So now, start lighting the fire for cooking. We still have work to do.”

Hearing that additional order, the System’s happy expression fell immediately.

He looked at her incredulously and said, “Can’t you just go light the fire yourself, Host?!”

Hearing that protest, Heena looked at him flatly and said, “Do you want me to literally huff and puff, blowing on timber to get a flame started? Just use the lighter, idiot.”

Hearing that, the System paused and muttered under his breath:

“You could just do it the normal way—use the metal fire-striker or blow on the coals properly. At least that would look normal to anyone watching…”

Hearing that muttering, Heena looked at him with a dangerous smile and said sweetly:

“Oh really? Then how about this: you become me, I become you, and YOU go take care of that old bastard’s needs right now. Deal?”

Hearing that terrible suggestion, the System immediately shut up and said quickly:

“No! No, I’ll light the fire! I’ll do it right now!”

He pulled out the small modern lighter that Heena always kept hidden in her belongings and began lighting the cooking fire.

This lighter had been purchased by Heena the very first day she’d gotten this particular System assigned to her.

The System had never quite understood it.

His Host never smoked—she genuinely hated smoking and would lecture anyone who did it around her.

She rarely drank alcohol except when absolutely necessary for a mission, and even then she consumed it responsibly like a sensible person.

So he’d never understood why she even owned a lighter.

But now, watching her refuse to light fires the traditional labor-intensive way, he could guess the reason:

’This woman literally bought a lighter just because she doesn’t want to spend time and effort lighting fires the hard way.’

It was so perfectly in character for her that he couldn’t even be surprised.

As the fire crackled to life under the cooking stove, Heena began preparing the evening meal with a satisfied smile still playing at the corners of her mouth.

The old Master would be bedridden for months.

He wouldn’t be able to corner her in the kitchen or make inappropriate comments or touch her “accidentally” while she worked.

And even better—the “accident” was so perfectly executed that no one could possibly blame her for it.

’Problem temporarily solved,’ she thought with satisfaction.

’Now I just need to deal with Maya, negotiate properly with Samuel, and figure out the truth about everyone’s parents.’

’Piece by piece, I’m taking control of this situation.’

’Just as planned.’

She hummed quietly to herself as she cooked, genuinely happy for the first time since arriving in this miserable world.

The System watched her and shook his head.

’My Host is terrifying,’ he thought, not for the first time. ’Absolutely terrifying.’

’But at least she’s on my side.’

’…I think.’

But what Heena had forgotten—or perhaps underestimated—was that when dealing with a bloody fool like Maya, it didn’t matter whether you were innocent or not.

Logic and evidence meant nothing to someone driven purely by emotion and jealousy.

Maya knew she couldn’t directly attack Heena right now. Driver Li had disappeared after that failed assault, and she had no concrete evidence linking Heena to any wrongdoing. The “accident” with the filing drawer was clearly just that—an accident that no one could reasonably blame on a servant girl.

Maya understood that if she acted against Heena too obviously right now, everyone would point fingers at HER instead. They’d see her as a cruel mistress persecuting an innocent servant out of paranoid jealousy.

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