The Terminally-Ill Rejects the Approach (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 12
“Aaah!”
I screamed and frantically dodged the arrows and throwing knives flying toward me.
“Why me?! I’m not some bug or whatever— I told you, I’m not!”
Despite my protests, the attacks aimed at me showed no sign of stopping. One of the imperial palace servants charged at me, swinging an axe.
“It was them who provoked us—why are you attacking me… Aaagh!”
“They always target the weakest first. Unlike monsters, they’re cowardly.”
Anselot calmly explained in a relaxed tone as he impaled the charging servant with his white spear.
“And clearly, Your Highness looks weaker than I am.”
The servant who had been rushing toward me collapsed directly onto me.
“Khuh!”
“Aaah!”
Thanks to Anselot swiftly wrapping an arm around my waist, I avoided being crushed by the falling man.
“Huh… huh….”
I panted heavily, staring at the man who had collapsed before me. He was already dead.
It was the first time I’d witnessed someone’s death right before my eyes.
I felt tears welling up from sheer terror, but there was no time to cry helplessly.
Immediately afterward, another man clad in the imperial palace knights’ uniform lunged at me with his sword—only for Anselot to block the strike and pierce the attacker’s abdomen.
“I’ll go clean up that swarm of ants. Wait here. Don’t get hurt.”
With that brief remark, Anselot left me behind and leapt into the midst of the managers.
My heart pounded wildly at the brutal battle unfolding before my eyes.
The managers were falling helplessly before Anselot’s spear, yet there were simply too many of them.
At that moment, my eyes met Roana’s.
“…!”
Instantly, Roana sprinted toward me, dagger in hand, moving as swiftly as Hezen fleeing with some skill activated.
“Damn it, I wish I had a weapon. Ah— a shield! Even just a shield…”
I recalled the time in the western garden of the imperial princess’s palace when I’d conjured a shield against Anselot and tightly gripped the pendant around my neck.
But despite my desperate wish, the pendant gave no response.
“Please…!”
When I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again, Roana’s fierce face loomed right before me, dagger raised high, ready to stab.
“Huh!”
I rolled once across the floor to evade Roana’s dagger, then immediately grabbed her ankle.
Caught off balance, Roana tumbled to the ground and dropped her dagger.
Clang!
For a split second, both Roana and I stared at the fallen dagger.
But I was slightly faster.
I seized the dagger from the floor before she could.
Bereft of her weapon, Roana hesitated for a moment—then turned and fled.
“Nngh!”
She hadn’t run far before collapsing with a final, desperate scream.
Anselot had thrown a spear of light that pierced her back as she tried to escape.
The white spear that had impaled Roana dissipated silently into the air.
Anselot, brushing his hands lightly, paused upon seeing me frozen in shock at Roana’s death.
“Oh… that.”
“….”
“If I’d let her live, she’d just gather her allies and return. Since she saw us, we had to kill her outright.”
I glanced sideways at Anselot as he spoke. His tone, as if seeking my approval or making excuses, felt strangely unsettling.
“…I’m not exactly blaming you.”
It was undeniable fact that Roana had tried to kill me.
After facing a direct threat to my life, I wasn’t foolishly kind or romantic enough to scold him for killing my maid.
“Good to hear.”
At my reply, Anselot gave a small, relieved smile.
“I was worried you’d think I’m some lunatic who kills people at random. Glad that’s not the case.”
‘Well, I actually do think you’re a lunatic…’
But there was no need to correct him aloud.
I exhaled a short breath and adjusted my disheveled clothes.
Unlike me, who’d rolled on the ground in chaos, Anselot remained perfectly composed—even after fighting so many people.
“What exactly are those things?”
“[System Cleaners]. Minions of the system tasked with hunting down and eliminating [bugs].”
“But I’m not some bug or whatever…!”
“You tried to break out of the scenario.”
“…!”
While Anselot answered casually, I suddenly recalled that fleeting instant when I’d struggled to escape the system’s compulsion.
The horrifying sensation of my body moving against my will—and the relief and liberation the moment I broke free.
“This world flows according to one grand scenario crafted by the system. And the system labels anyone who tries to step outside its framework as a bug.”
“….”
Listening to Anselot’s explanation, something felt off.
I was undeniably a living, breathing individual with my own free will—yet the moment I stepped outside the system’s structure, I was marked for elimination.
It felt as if my very existence was being denied.
‘But how does Anselot know all this?’
The question surfaced, making my lips twitch. I hesitated, wondering if I should ask him.
“Need help?”
Anselot suddenly asked me.
“Help with what?”
Bewildered by his abrupt, object-less offer, I questioned him—and he grinned as he replied.
“Help you break free from the scenario.”
“But you erased the system window. All the cleaners are dead. Isn’t that the end of it?”
Instead of answering, Anselot merely gave a meaningful smile.
And right then—
Ding!
Third Imperial Princess of Azester:
Attribute: Lover, Terminally Ill (Remaining Lifespan: Unknown)
That dreadful pink name window reappeared above my head.
“Why is that…!”
“Unfortunately, it wasn’t erased—it was only temporarily paralyzed.”
“….”
I bit my lower lip hard and glared up at the glowing words.
That damned lover status still hadn’t been lifted. The terminal illness attribute remained unchanged. My remaining lifespan still read “Unknown”…
‘I need to annul the engagement quickly.’
A bead of cold sweat trickled down my spine.
‘If I can just prove Hezen is infertile, I’ll be able to annul it…’
“It won’t be easy.”
As if reading my thoughts, Anselot suddenly spoke.
“He’ll likely do everything he can to prevent annulment, since it would trigger a bad ending penalty for him. Or he might even kill you himself to complete his awakening before the annulment happens.”
“Kill… me…?”
“Besides, if you try to break out of the scenario again, the bugs will immediately come after you.”
“….”
“Now that you’ve become a player’s target once, there’s no escape. Either he meets a bad ending, or you become the sacrifice for his awakening.”
“So no matter what I do, I’m going to die?”
I shouted, furious.
My life as Louise Belle Azester had always been peaceful.
But in the past few weeks, I’d faced betrayal from my trusted fiancé—or rather, betrayal by this entire world I’d believed in—sudden terminal illness, and now an assassination attempt by these so-called system cleaners or whatever they were.
“Why do I have to die like this?”
A deep sense of injustice welled up inside me.
“That’s why I’m offering to help.”
“What makes you so special?”
The question I’d long wondered but never asked.
This man bore no name window above his head—as if he’d broken free from the system entirely.
He wasn’t a player, yet he could see Hezen’s system window without relying on any suspicious pendant like mine.
He was the one who had nullified the system’s compulsion and disrupted the scenario’s flow.
“Well, borrowing their own words…”
Anselot tilted his head as if pondering for a moment, then let out a dry chuckle as he introduced himself.
“The most dreadful and malicious bug?”
[This is the timeline separator]Beneath a glittering chandelier, a tall, handsome man tilted a champagne flute to his lips.
He was the [System Manager] responsible for the Azester Imperial Palace and the capital, Brillanta.
Entrusted with overseeing the [System Cleaners] in this sector, his duty was to ensure the world ran smoothly under the system’s order.
“Hmm.”
He swept back the lock of hair that had fallen over his forehead, letting out a faintly irritated sound.
Moments ago, his connection to the Cleaners had abruptly severed.
Which meant they were all dead.
“So some filthy vermin crawled all the way into the imperial palace.”
He hadn’t even gotten a chance to find out who killed them.
“Who could it be?”
He lazily scanned the crowd at the banquet.
Foreign dignitaries, Azester nobles, members of the imperial family—including Empress Christine Yoanna Azester.
Above everyone’s heads floated the familiar blue name windows, displaying their names and titles.
No one stood out in particular.
Yet that audacious piece of filth who’d invaded his territory might very well be standing right here, sipping wine with a perfectly calm expression.
And speaking of players—why was this one so utterly incompetent?
Just thinking of Hezen, who couldn’t even complete the simplest of awakenings, made him click his tongue in annoyance.
At that moment, his eyes landed on Louise Belle, the only one in the entire hall bearing a pink name window.
The powerless third imperial princess of Azester—and the designated sacrifice for the player’s awakening.
Beside her stood Prince Anselot Luhenhart, visiting from the Luhenhart Kingdom.
Had they stepped outside for some fresh air?
He’d never heard of any closeness between them, so they must have grown familiar during this recent visit.
The two standing side by side looked like a well-matched pair—but…
The man’s eyes narrowed slightly as he silently watched them.
It was a troubling sight.
The sacrifice meant for the player was now standing beside another man.
“So that useless player’s about to lose his sacrifice too.”
Remembering Hezen’s failure even in the tutorial-phase awakening scenario, an irritated sigh escaped him.
“At this rate, I’ll have to intervene personally to assist the awakening.”
With obvious annoyance in his voice, the man handed his empty champagne flute to a passing servant.
Male lead fell into her trap — and shattered when she walked away
This is also on my reread list!
This one is a slow burn, but when it burns, it burns hard.
Definitely worth a read, y’all!
The story follows a thousand-year-old seductive spirit who, on a bet, sets out to charm the male lead—a once-promising but unfortunate cultivator.
But just when she succeeds in making him fall for her, she heartlessly leaves, driving him to madness.
Determined to find her at all costs, he captures her, keeping her by his side no matter what, even if she hates him.
I love this kind of trope—I enjoy watching the male lead suffer in agony.
The ending drags a bit with unnecessary filler, but that’s fine.
As long as I enjoy the beginning, I’m good.
Intro
As an enchantress, Su Heng possesses captivating eyes and charming beauty, easily manipulating the joys and sorrows of living beings at her fingertips.
But to enchant a god, making him taste the bitterness of love’s separation, long-lasting resentment, unattainable desires, and inability to let go…
Do you dare?
Su Heng assists a divine lord in his cultivation, aiming to make him experience all the sufferings of love, so that he can attain the Great Dao.
Only after being chased down from the heavens by the divine lord, confined and completely possessed by him, does she realize how successful she has been.
The once gentle and polite youth has transformed into someone she no longer recognizes.
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
MANGA DISCUSSION
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Chapter Comments (41)
Oh my God, poor Louise! Why can’t they just break off the engagement right away?- Oh, but he can’t log out. Louise, get away! Why is she so stupid? Doesn’t she know he wants to kill her?
- What is this? How vile and despicable! If it’s a game you can escape from, why do you want to kill people?
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Miioo