The script read:
Scene 54 – Rooftop Confrontation. Character: Ayla. Emotion: Despair, betrayal, collapse. Cry. Scream. Fall.
The irony wasn't lost on Lina.
They wanted her to perform a breakdown when she was already dangerously close to living one.
---
[System Notification: Major Scene Detected – Emotional Depth Required: 9.5/10]
[Main Task: Perform the Rooftop Breakdown in a Single Take]
[Optional Objective: Infuse Real Emotion (Memory Sync Bonus)]
[Reward: +9000 Credits | Acting Mastery +2 | Global Impact Spike]
[Punishment: Director Reputation -2 | Career Opportunity Loss]
[AI Companion: You've done this before… just not on camera.]
---
The cameras rolled.
The lights dimmed.
And she walked to the rooftop set, wind machines simulating a storm.
In the script, Ayla finds out the truth—that her lover betrayed her, her mother's death was orchestrated, and her identity was fabricated.
In Lina's mind, it wasn't Ayla collapsing.
It was her.
---
She didn't fake the scream.
It tore out of her.
The kind of sound that made silence jealous.
She collapsed to her knees, hands clutching her chest, eyes wide and empty. Tears streamed freely. Her lips moved, but the words weren't in the script.
> "Why didn't you just leave me alone?"
Even the crew forgot to breathe.
---
[System Sync Engaged: "Orphan Memory Thread – Emotional Collapse"]
[Real-time Emotion Match: 97.8%]
[Director Tag: ★★★★★ – Scene Locked as Final Cut]
[Reward: Acting Mastery +2 | Global Impact +3 | Charisma +1 | Trauma Buff (Controlled Channeling)]
[AI Companion: I'm proud of you… but rest. You're bleeding beautifully, and too much beauty kills.]
---
But then—
The static returned.
In the hallway.
Faint, but unmistakable.
Lina stepped off set, sweat cooling on her back.
And the mirror flickered again.
This time, not just a symbol.
A face.
Or rather—several.
Eyes that were not human.
Voices layered over each other, like shattered glass.
> "She is the apex of the experiment. Her soul-to-system ratio is optimal."
> "Acquisition must begin."
> "We request transfer."
---
[System Alert: DIRECT INVASION ATTEMPT – SPECTER NETWORK ENGAGING TRANSFER PROTOCOL]
[Countermeasures Activating: SHIELD PROTOCOL – 1 Use Remaining]
[AI Companion: Lina, I have to use it. Say yes.]
---
Her hands trembled.
"Yes," she whispered.
And then the world exploded.
Not literally. But in light.
A pulse radiated from her chest outward.
The mirror shattered into clean white dust.
Every light in the building flickered.
Seo Jihan, three floors away, clutched his head, eyes wide with memory.
And far across the city, a Specter server shorted.
---
[Shield Protocol Activated – Specter Breach Repelled]
[Status: Safe – Temporarily]
[System Cooldown: 7 Chapters]
[Warning: Specter will return, upgraded.]
---
Later that night, in her dressing room, Caden called.
No video. Just his voice.
> "Whatever happened tonight… I felt it. Again."
She didn't lie. But she didn't explain.
> "I almost got pulled apart," she whispered.
He was quiet.
Then:
> "Then I'll come hold the pieces."
---
System Log: Lina Vale
Acting Mastery: +2
Charisma: +1
Global Impact: +3
Specter Invasion: Repelled (1/3)
Shield Protocol: Used
Emotional Condition: Fragile, Focused
Caden Affection: +1
---
End of Chapter 37
---