QT: I hijacked a harem system and now I'm ruining every plot(GL)-Chapter 205: The new 404

Chapter 205 – Daphne

I snicker.

Quiet and sharp.

She stops—my little bunny—ears twitching like satellite dishes, scanning the hallway. Her back stiffens, tail tucked tight against her thighs as she looks left... then right.

Poor thing.

She feels it. Me.

But she can’t see me.

I press closer to the wall, blending into the shadows like I was made of them. I want her to feel it. That delicious tension. The thrill of being hunted but not caught. I want her ears to stay twitching all day, her skin crawling with the memory of my gaze.

She tilts her head slightly, nose wrinkling as she sniffs the air.

Her scent changes. Slightly. Barely.

But I smell it.

Crushed clover and warm soil. Innocence with a hint of defiance. It’s like breathing in spring through a slit in a winter veil.

She moves again, hugging her books tighter to her chest. That worn satchel of hers looks ready to fall apart, but she carries it like armor.

My sweet little survivor.

Does she even realize how tempting that makes her?

It’s not her beauty, though she’s adorable in that frazzled, too-many-thoughts sort of way. It’s not even the long ears or the soft tail—though gods, don’t get me started on that tail.

It’s her will.

The way she walks with her head down but always takes the next step. The way her back curves protectively over her sketchbooks like they hold the last pieces of her sanity. The way her fingers tremble when she’s startled but still clench in a fist, just in case.

She’s prey. And she resents it.

She thinks no one sees that fire under all the fear.

But I see it.

And I want it.

I want to see how far I can push her until she bares her little fangs and snaps.

I want to cradle her in my lap, rub behind those twitchy ears, and hear her purr—because yes, bunnies can purr, when you touch them just right.

She hurries off, disappearing into the eastern wing, tail flicking with nervous restraint.

I watch her go.

My mouth quirks.

I head back to my room, weaving between the crowd of students. Ears, tails, horns—it’s a zoo in here. A rich, highborn, over-perfumed zoo.

But halfway down the hall, the world stutters.

The hum of chatter cuts out like someone yanked a cord. Color bleeds out of the world. Everything freezes mid-motion—laughter paused, a sneeze caught in limbo, even a bird outside the window stuck mid-flight.

Ah. There it is.

"Well, hello, dear system," I mutter, not slowing my pace. I sidestep a frozen gryphon-girl mid-blink and continue on toward my dorm.

A familiar purple orb floats beside me, pulsing faintly like it’s trying to pretend it’s been here the whole time.

[System 404 greets the host.]

"Did the upgrade make you more polite too?" I say, glancing at it.

It hovers silently.

I smirk. "What, embarrassed?"

[I DO NOT FEEL EMBARRASSMENT. I AM A SYSTEM.]

"Sure, sure," I say, letting myself into my room. "No need to get shy. I didn’t mean to report you to your superiors, you’ve got to admit you crossed the line there."

[I SAID I AM NOT EMBARRASSED.]

[I DO NOT FEEL EMOTIONS.]

The robotic voice crackles louder than usual, like a kettle about to boil.

"Of course. You’re totally above such human nonsense."

[LET’S TALK ABOUT THE CURRENT WORLD.]

[YOU HAVE TO BREAK THE HAREM.]

That stops me.

I raise an eyebrow. "Excuse me? Did I hear that right? Mr. I Am the Harem-Building System, now telling me to destroy his own pride and joy?"

[I AM NOW THE HAREM-BREAKING SYSTEM.]

[MY JOB IS TO ASSIST HOST IN THE CURRENT PRIMARY MISSION.]

I sit on my bed, crossing my legs. "Okay. You’re clearly going through something."

[YOU HAVE TO BREAK THE HAREM—]

"Yeah, yeah. No need to yell. What’s the emergency? You sound like you’re one emotional crisis away from turning into a sentient toaster."

[I AM NOT ANGR— I MEAN, IRRELEVANT. LISTEN.]

[IF THE HAREM CONTINUES, AND FELIX MATES WITH ALL FIVE WOMEN CURRENTLY TRACKED UNDER AFFECTION CODE 9 OR ABOVE—]

"How greedy?" I mutter.

[—HE WILL HAVE NINETEEN CHILDREN. AND THIS WILL LEAD TO A CIVIL WAR.]

"...Okay, that escalated."

The system pauses, then drops the full, glorious apocalypse:

[One of the wives, from the Dukedom of Stag, will produce a politically significant firstborn heir. However, the bunny girl—Poppy—will use her influence to stack the succession line with nine additional sons. These bunny-born princes form a voting bloc supporting the stag prince.]

[Meanwhile, the other wives—particularly the snow leopard and snake shifters—form competing alliances. The court divides. Herbivores against carnivores. The throne becomes a battlefield. Even civilians begin to riot. Discrimination spikes. Assassinations. Propaganda. Blood in the streets.]

"Wow," I breathe. "All because our dear fluffbutt male lead couldn’t keep it in his pants."

[CORRECT.]

[THE FINAL RULER IS THE SNOW LEOPARD’S SON. BUT HE ASCENDS TO A KINGDOM THAT HATES HIM. HALF HIS SIBLINGS TURN TRAITOR. THE WAR DRAGS ON FOR FIFTY YEARS.]

"Fifty years?" I hiss. "Seriously?"

[YES. THE LONGEST HAREM-INDUCED POLITICAL COLLAPSE RECORDED IN SYSTEM ARCHIVES.]

I drag a hand down my face. "So what—you want me to talk Felix into monogamy?"

[WE’RE NOT TRYING TO TALK HIM OUT OF IT. HE IS INCAPABLE OF RESTRAINT.]

I snort a laugh, surely I’ve lived long enough to see the system bad mouth a male lead.

[YOU NOW HAVE ACCESS TO A NEW FUNCTION. WHEN IN THE PRESENCE OF A HAREM MEMBER, YOU CAN SCAN THEIR:

AFFECTION LEVEL TOWARD THE MALE LEAD

PERSONALITY TYPE

POTENTIAL FOR DESTABILIZING EVENTS

AND RECEPTIVENESS TO INTERFERENCE.]

"Well," I say, leaning back with a grin. "Look who decided to be useful."

[I AM ALWAYS USEFUL.]

"Should we bring up our previous worlds?"

[IRRELEVANT DATA.]

I smile wider.

This is going to be fun.

The moment I finish that thought, the colors flood back into the world. Voices resume. The bird outside continues its flight. The girl mid-sneeze finally sneezes.