Within the endless darkness, Suzy felt an invisible force guiding her forward. Trusting the pull, she followed it through the void.

Before long, a faint light appeared ahead.

She moved toward it.

The moment she broke through the glowing barrier, her eyes flew open.

What she never expected to see was Liam.

More specifically, Liam’s face, magnified by how impossibly close he was.

Far too close.

For a moment, Suzy’s mind went completely blank.

Why was Liam here?

And why was he leaning over her like this?

As awareness gradually returned, so did her senses.

She became conscious of a lingering softness against her lips, along with a faint trace of moisture.

Instinctively, she pressed her lips together.

The reaction was immediate.

Liam jerked back as though startled, creating distance between them so quickly it was almost comical. His pale cheeks flushed a deep crimson.

"Liam..."

Suzy’s voice came out weak and hoarse.

Standing several steps away, Liam looked visibly rigid.

He gave her a small nod.

Suzy’s attention settled on his reddened face. Almost unconsciously, she ran her tongue across her lips.

She distinctly caught the way his eyes widened. Suddenly, she found herself feeling awkward too.

Trying to ease the tension, she forced a smile.

"Um... were you giving me water just now?"

"Yes."

"Thank you."

The conversation fell flat almost immediately.

Liam offered no further explanation, and an uncomfortable silence filled the room.

Suzy let out a slow breath and closed her eyes briefly, sorting through the fragments of memory in her mind.

She remembered the darkness. Every bit of it.

In fact, the memories were surprisingly clear.

If she had to guess, the system was the one that saved her.

Throughout the entire ordeal, the only voice she had heard was its.

As for reality...

Liam must have been the one who rescued her.

Otherwise, she would still be lying unconscious in that stairwell.

The more she pieced everything together, the more the events of the past day began to make sense.

Opening her eyes again, she looked toward Liam.

His cheeks were still faintly red.

His gaze remained lowered.

The moment he sensed her looking at him, his shoulders stiffened all over again.

Suzy cleared her throat softly.

"Liam, thank you for saving me."

His Adam’s apple bobbed. When he finally answered, his voice was so low she almost missed it.

"You don’t need to thank me."

After a brief pause, he added quietly, "Besides... you’ve helped me plenty of times before."

He stood there with his fingers unconsciously gripping the edge of his shirt.

It was the posture of someone carrying a guilty secret. Someone who could not quite bring himself to meet her eyes.

Watching him, Suzy suddenly wanted to laugh. He looked absurdly nervous. Painfully obvious.

The usually distant and reserved man now resembled a cat whose tail had been stepped on, every muscle in his body wound tight.

"Why are you standing so far away?"

Suzy attempted to sit up. Unfortunately, she forgot about her injured arm. A sharp pain shot through her shoulder. Her arm immediately gave out beneath her, and she fell back against the pillow.

A hiss escaped her lips. Only then did she look toward the source of the pain.

The wound Wendy had inflicted.

However, it had already been carefully bandaged. The wrapping was neat and secure. Tied into the bandage was a tiny butterfly bow... Slightly crooked.

Suzy stared at it for a moment, caught completely off guard.

"Are you alright?"

Liam’s voice suddenly sounded beside her.

In the span of a heartbeat, he had crossed the room.

"Your arm is still injured. Be careful." Concern filled his expression. "Are you trying to sit up?"

Suzy nodded.

Without hesitation, Liam placed a hand on her shoulder and carefully helped her rise.

Once she was seated, he tucked a pillow behind her back for support.

His movements were smooth and practiced, as though he had repeated them countless times already.

Settled comfortably against the pillows, Suzy looked up at him.

The angle was perfect. The support behind her waist was perfect. Everything felt surprisingly comfortable.

Meanwhile, Liam had already retreated to his previous position by the bed.

Maintaining exactly an arm’s length of distance.

His eyes remained lowered.

Still refusing to look directly at her.

"Liam, how long was I asleep?"

"One day."

He hesitated before adding another sentence.

"You didn’t drink any water during that time."

The second half of the explanation was clearly meant to justify what she had woken up to earlier.

The corners of Suzy’s lips lifted.

She was about to tease him when Thomas and Leonard suddenly came to mind.

The joke immediately died on her tongue.

"What about my uncle and the others?"

"Don’t worry," Liam replied. "They’re fine. They’re in the next room. They just haven’t woken up yet."

Relief washed through her.

"Liam, you’ve really gone through a lot of trouble because of us."

Warmth filled her chest.

Not only had he saved her, but he had also brought Leonard and Thomas back safely.

A genuinely good person. She had not misjudged him.

"And... Wendy?"

Given everything that had happened, Liam had likely already realized there had been a serious conflict between the two of them.

"Her body is still on the fifth floor," he said quietly.

Suzy nodded.

To her surprise, Liam did not press for details. Instead, his attention remained focused entirely on her.

"Are you hungry?" he asked. "Would you like something to eat?"

The moment he mentioned it, she became aware of the hollow ache in her stomach.

She had gone an entire day without food.

Her stomach felt completely empty.

"A little," she admitted sheepishly.

"Then wait here." His answer came immediately. "I’ll make something for you."

Before she could respond, he was already heading toward the door.

Suzy watched his figure disappear into the hallway.

A moment later, the door clicked shut.

The room fell silent.

Now she was alone.

Staring at the ceiling, Suzy quietly called out in her mind.

"System?"

She still had not thanked it.

If not for the system, she would probably still be trapped in that strange void.

"System?"

No response.

A trace of unease crept into her heart.

"System?"

Still nothing.

The silence stretched longer and longer.

Her chest tightened.

Had something happened?

The possibility instantly filled her with anxiety.

"System? Are you there? System!"

Finally, after repeated calls, a familiar voice answered.

[I am here.]

The voice was as mechanical and emotionless as ever.

Yet somehow, Suzy could hear the exhaustion hidden beneath it.

"System, are you alright?"

Concern filled her voice.

The system had helped her countless times.

In many ways, it had become one of her greatest sources of support in the apocalypse.

The last thing she wanted was for something to happen to it. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

[Not particularly.]

There was a brief pause.

[My energy reserves are nearly depleted.]

"Because you saved me?" Suzy asked immediately.

The system remained silent for several seconds.

When it finally spoke again, the voice sounded even weaker than before.

[Yes.]

After devouring Wendy’s system, it had finally acquired enough new energy to begin upgrading.

It had believed everything was about to improve.

Then Suzy’s life had been placed in danger.

Because they were bound together, their fates intertwined, it had no choice but to save her.

As a result, all the newly acquired energy had been consumed.

It had nearly destroyed itself in the process.

Now it could barely maintain basic functionality.

A wave of guilt washed over Suzy.

"I’m sorry."

[It’s alright.]

The answer came gently.

[Host, I may enter dormancy for a period of time. During that period, some system functions will be temporarily unavailable.]

The system briefly explained the situation.

Once dormancy began, many of its abilities would cease functioning.

Even if Suzy met the required favorability conditions, she would no longer receive rewards until the system awakened again.