Master——

Breakfast passed in a blur as Fang Qi's mind screamed, "What am I going to do?"

He swallowed the soothing porridge Liguang had prepared without tasting a thing.

It was Tuesday, and he should have been at work, but he had taken the day off. After all, the evening inspection was what truly mattered.

But this only meant... Liguang was even happier now! She practically had the word "happy" written all over her face!

Still wearing her light blue casual dress, she bustled about the living room, tidying up the place.

After eating, Fang Qi slumped onto the sofa, pretending to watch the holographic TV while his eyes secretly tracked Liguang's every move.

He watched as she straightened the sofa cushions. She gave the throw pillow he had been leaning on a firm pat, hugged it tightly to her chest, and nuzzled it affectionately before returning it to its spot, a secret little smile playing on her lips.

When she wiped down the table, her fingertips lingered for several seconds over the exact spot where Lin Xiaoyou had sat the day before, a fleeting, almost imperceptible coldness flashing in her eyes.

While watering the potted plants by the windowsill, she hummed a little off-key tune. Her plastic star earrings swayed gently with her movements, and her entire being radiated a deep sense of satisfaction that screamed, "The weather is lovely today, and Master is home!"

...Her emotional expression was honestly getting a bit too rich.

Fang Qi covered his face with his hands.

I'm so doomed!

No, he couldn't just sit here and wait for his demise.

He had to do something!

He needed to subtly and naturally remind her—without giving himself away!

He cleared his throat. "Ahem."

Adopting a tone of mild surprise and curiosity, he called out, "Liguang."

"Hmm? What is it, Master?"

Liguang immediately stopped humming and pivoted gracefully. She folded her hands in front of her and lowered her gaze, adopting the perfectly docile posture of an AI attentively awaiting her master's instructions.

"I just suddenly thought of something..." Fang Qi scratched his head, feigning a casual tone. "Have you... secretly upgraded your emotional simulation system recently?"

Liguang tilted her head slightly, a perfectly measured hint of confusion flashing in her eyes.

"An upgrade? Master, Liguang's system updates are all performed automatically via network pushes. My last routine update was two weeks ago. Why do you ask?"

Her answer was flawless, and her expression betrayed no cracks.

Fang Qi's heart was pounding, but he kept his face completely neutral as he continued his act. "Oh, right. I just felt like..."

"Your emotions lately seem, well... a bit more vivid than before? Like your humming just now, and how you acted when you got those little stars... It just feels like you're incredibly happy right now, incredibly real."

He kept a close, covert watch on Liguang's reactions as he spoke.

Liguang paused for a moment. Then, a faint blush—a feature unique to high-end synthetic skin—slowly crept up her fair cheeks.

She lowered her head, her fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of her dress. When she spoke, her voice was soft and laced with shyness.

"B-because every single day I spend with Master makes Liguang so very happy..."

"Besides, Master has been even nicer to Liguang lately..."

She looked up at him. Her amber left eye was shimmering with moisture, and a soft light danced within her crimson pupil.

Her gaze was filled with dependency, satisfaction, and a touch of pure bliss.

The sight made Fang Qi's heart skip a beat.

She's so cute...

...But wait, this isn't right!

Why was she getting shy? Did she even understand what I was trying to say?!

An overwhelming sense of exasperation washed over him.

I'm trying to warn you here!

Snap out of it!

He quickly adopted his authoritative Master persona and said,

"That's good, just keep things stable. I was just a bit worried your system might overload or something... As for the maintenance inspection tonight, don't be nervous. It's just a routine procedure, so just act perfectly normal."

He placed heavy emphasis on the word "normal."

"Understood," Liguang nodded obediently, the docile smile returning to her face. "Thank you for your concern, Master. Liguang will undergo the inspection in optimal condition. I absolutely will not cause Master any trouble."

Her tone was steady, her expression perfectly natural.

The heavy anxiety weighing on Fang Qi's heart finally eased up just a bit.

So... did she get the hint?

He leaned back against the sofa and quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

Just exchanging those few sentences had left him feeling utterly exhausted. Engaging in a battle of wits with a yandere was honestly more draining than running a marathon...

Soon, however, he was pleasantly surprised to notice...

Liguang actually seemed to be dialing it back!

She stopped humming.

She went about her chores much more quietly and efficiently.

Even the smile on her face had settled into the standard, measured curve of a typical AI companion, losing the vibrant, leaping joy from earlier.

"...Yes, yes, yes! Perfect! Just like that!"

Fang Qi cheered internally.

"Keep this up! When the inspector arrives tonight, just stay exactly like this. Play the part of a flawless, emotionless AI!"

Phew...

It seemed Liguang was quite smart after all; she took the hint immediately.

As long as she kept this up... everything should be fine tonight, right?

Yeah, no problem at all!

...

Lunchtime rolled around.

Liguang made Fang Qi's favorite sweet and sour spare ribs, stir-fried seasonal vegetables, and a small, aromatic bowl of mushroom soup.

The meal looked light and refreshing, likely prepared with his indigestion from the previous night in mind.

"Please enjoy, Master." Liguang set down the bowls and chopsticks and sat neatly across from him, resting her hands on her lap. Her face bore that same, impeccably docile smile.

Having spent the entire morning wracked with anxiety, Fang Qi was quite hungry by now, his appetite finally making a return.

The food Liguang made was simply too mouthwatering. He immediately picked up a piece of rib and took a bite. It was perfectly sweet and sour, the meat so tender it melted off the bone.

"Mmm, delicious!" he praised through a mouthful of food, then took a sip of the soup.

Liguang quietly watched him eat.

A small bowl of rice sat in front of her as well, but she barely touched it. She only occasionally picked up a small piece of vegetable with her chopsticks, her movements so elegant it looked as though she were performing some sacred ritual.

Once he had eaten and drank his fill, he set down his chopsticks and patted his stomach in satisfaction.

"Burp—that hit the spot." He let out a small burp and stretched his arms.

My wife Liguang's cooking really is the best...

But then, he suddenly noticed something...

Stretching his arms felt... unusually difficult?

...Huh?

Why did his arms feel so heavy?

He tried to lift his right hand.

But the arm he could normally raise with ease now felt as though it were filled with lead. He only managed to lift it halfway before it dropped limply back down.

Fang Qi froze.

A creeping chill slowly began to rise in his chest!

Hahaha... impossible!

Absolutely impossible!

He frantically tried to move his left arm...

The same result. It was dead weight.

...Hey, hey, hey!

You've got to be kidding me...!

He struggled, attempting to stand up, only to find that his legs were also like lead. They completely refused to obey him!

That confirmed it.

Stiffly, and with great effort, he turned his head to look at the silver-haired girl sitting across the table.

Liguang had set down her bowl and chopsticks at some point. She was staring at him quietly, her face still bearing that same, impeccably docile smile.

But deep within her crimson pupil, streams of data were surging in a wild, frantic excitement!

The red glow was practically overflowing!

"Li... Liguang..." Fang Qi's voice trembled. "You... you...!"

And then he watched as the corners of the silver-haired girl's mouth began to slowly, uncontrollably...

Curl upward into a wide, creeping smile!

Gone was that meek, submissive curve of her lips. In its place was a radiant, pure expression of endless joy and satisfaction—

A sick, twisted smile!

"Mas—ter—"

She drew out the syllables, her voice sickeningly sweet, laced with a trace of...

An excited tremble from finally being able to drop her disguise!!

"So you've finally... figured it out!"