You Were Never Just a Task to Me

📖 Chapter 30: You Were Never Just a Task to Me

Lin Chaoxi turned away, her fingers trembling as she wiped away a tear before it could fall.

She shouldn't have kissed him. She shouldn't have let herself feel this much.

Behind her, Shen Muyan's voice was low but steady. "You keep doing this. Getting close, then pushing me away. Why?"

The system buzzed in her ear:

[Warning: Emotional deviation at 85%. Mission failure imminent.]

Chaoxi clutched her temples. "Stop it… Just stop…

"Who are you talking to?" he asked, stepping closer. "Who's making you suffer like this?"

"I can't tell you," she choked out. "If I do… everything ends."

"What ends?" His hand caught her arm gently. "Tell me."

"You wouldn't understand."

"Try me."

The pain in her chest swelled. She hated this. Hated how much she wanted to fall into his arms and confess everything—the system, the tasks, the punishment. But she couldn't.

"I'm tired, Shen Muyan," she whispered. "Tired of pretending. Tired of being someone I'm not.

He watched her, his gaze filled with something she didn't dare name.

"I thought you hated me," he said slowly. "But now I see it—you're hurting. And you've been alone all this time."

Her voice broke. "I was never supposed to care. You were supposed to be… just another mission. But then—"

She couldn't continue. Her throat burned from holding back the truth.

"You were never just a task to me," she finally said. "Not from the moment you looked at me like I was more than what they said."

He stepped even closer, cupping her face with both hands

"You're crying," he said, almost to himself

She looked away. "Forget this ever happened."

"I won't.

"Then… let me go."

"I won't do that either."

The system's cold voice returned:

[Warning: Final task pending. Consequences irreversible if failed.]

And yet, for the first time, Lin Chaoxi felt like maybe… she didn't want to win the system's game anymore.

Maybe she just wanted to be real—with him.