The choice (revised)

A tense silence filled the small apartment, broken only by the rhythmic ticking of the clock on the wall. Tyla's fingers curled into the fabric of her pants as she stared into the empty space before her, waiting. The mechanical voice had spoken again, yet no visible presence accompanied it.

Her heart pounded against her ribs. Was this a hallucination? A cruel trick of her exhausted mind?

But the voice remained persistent.

"Hello, I am System 111. Would you like to bind with me?"

Tyla swallowed hard. The sensation was eerily familiar, dredging up memories of pain, fear, and betrayal. The last time she had heard this voice, she had been at death's door. Her body had been torn apart, her screams drowned out by the guttural growls of the undead. And yet—she was here. Alive. Whole.

The past and present clashed inside her mind, the edges of her reality warping beneath the weight of her confusion.

Gritting her teeth, she forced herself to focus. If this system had something to do with her return, then she needed answers. Now.

"I asked you a question," she said, her voice steady despite the turmoil inside her. "Why should I trust you? What is the catch?"

The voice responded swiftly, "There is no catch, Tyla White. I have been designed to serve the descendants of the last owner of this system—a human girl who was chosen by Orieus, an eccentric scientist of the Tabana civilization. It's an advanced technomagical civilization. Orieus was stranded in the lower plane of Earth centuries ago, and before he died, he gifted this system to the woman he loved and married. This system was to be inherited across generations of their descendants—until it finally was gifted to you."

Tyla's heart skipped a beat as she processed the weight of the words. Orieus? A scientist from Tabana? She tried to recall anything from history or fiction that could help her make sense of this. The pieces didn't quite fit. She shook her head, still trying to connect the dots.

"Okay, but why me? Why now?" Tyla asked, her voice sharper than before. "You say you were passed down for generations, but the system was activated only now. Why?"

"The conditions were harsh," the system answered. "For the system to activate, the carrier must meet three conditions: the holder must be female, she must be the love of the current heir of the Stone family, and the holder's blood must contaminate Orieus's dagger—my vessel. These conditions were set by Orieus himself, as a safeguard to ensure the safety of his wife or the future wives of their descendants . You, Tyla White, meet all three conditions. Unfortunately, you were dying by then. So I had to take your soul back to the current point in time. But that's a one time life-saving mechanism set by Orieus. He used a lot of resources to realise it .Don't expect it to happen again"

Tyla's breath caught in her throat.

The system had saved her.

The Stone family. The dagger.

Her mind immediately jumped to Arthur Stone.

Were The stone family Orieus's descendants with the human girl?

She remembers herself being torn by the undead, clutching the dagger. Did her blood stain it then?

A bitter taste coated her tongue. That man.

She remembers him — Tall, cold, impossibly distant. The kind of man whose presence felt like an unspoken warning. He had given her the dagger.

They were barely acquaintances. Love..the system said? That was laughable.

Tyla let out a sharp breath, frustration prickling beneath her skin. "You're mistaken. Arthur Stone and I barely know each other. Why would the system recognize me as his 'lover'?"

"The system does not lie, Lady Boss!" The voice chirped, surprisingly cheerful despite the tension. "his soul has already marked you! You are connected to Arthur Stone, and whether you accept it or not, fate has already intertwined your paths."

Fate.

Tyla almost laughed.

Her past had been carved by betrayal, by people she had trusted only to be discarded like trash. If fate had anything to do with her connection to Arthur Stone, she wanted no part of it.

Yet… a flicker of uncertainty remained.

Why had he given her the dagger? Had he known what would happen? Had he planned this?

She clenched her fists, trying to quell the confusion and rising panic. "So you're saying this system was meant for me? What happens if I decide I don't want it? What happens if I don't bind with you?"

The system hesitated for a moment before replying, its voice softer than before.

"If you don't bind with me… I will disappear."

A strange emotion laced its words—something eerily close to fear.

"I was created to serve you, Lady Boss. But if you don't bind me after activation, if you don't grow stronger, if you don't survive… then I will cease to exist."

Tyla exhaled slowly, her mind racing. So this wasn't just about her anymore.But what is the grantee the system is telling the truth?

"I am one of the last surviving remnants of the Tabana's lost civilization," the system continued, its voice tinged with reverence. "Tabana was a world of unparalleled magic and wisdom. But it fell. The knowledge of its people was lost, its magic buried in time. My existence is tied to yours. If you perish, I vanish, and with me, the last traces of Tabana's magic will be lost forever."

Tyla had spent her whole life being powerless. She had been tossed aside, betrayed, abandoned. But this time, she had a choice.

This time, she had power within reach.

But Arthur…

Her lips pressed into a thin line.

The idea that she was somehow bound to a man like him unsettled her. He was rich, powerful and his powers would continue to increase even after the apocalypse—he lived in a world completely different from hers. If he was truly connected to this system, then did that mean he had a say in her fate? Did he already know about all this?

The thought made her stomach twist.

Her instincts screamed to keep her distance, to sever whatever strange link existed between them.

But she wasn't in a position to refuse power.

She thought of Jason and Lily. She thought of the zombies tearing into her flesh.

Her fingers tightened into fists.

"…What happens if I bind with you?" she finally asked.

"You will receive a beginner package to help you start your journey! It includes a potion to activate your magic receptors, a mana cultivation method, and—oh! Oh!—a super cool ability called Astral Projection! You'll be able to leave your body and explore the world in spirit form! Doesn't that sound amazing?"

Magic. Cultivation. Astral Projection.

Tyla's heart pounded with something she hadn't felt in a long time. Hope.

If she had access to magic… if she had a way to grow stronger… then maybe, just maybe, she could change her fate.

She thought of Arthur again, her emotions tangled in a mess of suspicion and reluctant curiosity. Had he set this up, or was he just another piece of the puzzle?

She didn't have answers. But she had a chance.

Drawing in a slow breath, she closed her eyes.

"I accept," she whispered.

The system let out a joyful chime.

"Binding process initiated! Welcome, Lady Boss!"

And with that, a warm golden light enveloped her, marking the first step toward her rebirth.