Transition (1)

[Transmigrator No. 886 has returned, preparing transfer...]

[Transfer successfully completed.]

Nova looked at the computer screen, watching as the glass cover of the astral pod slowly slid open, revealing a young girl wearing a sleek headgear that was wrapped around her face, clinging to the gentle curve of her chin.

The pod was filled with a whitish substance, like mist, which floated around her body. As soon as the astral pod was opened, it dissipated into the air.

Just as he watched Song Jia's eyelashes tremble, about to wake up, there was a sudden ping on his second computer monitor.

Nova glanced at the screen and blinked. If he had been a normal human, the adrenaline in his body would have skyrocketed, increasing his heart rate and blood pressure. But because he was an AI, Nova didn't know the concept of fear.

There was a young woman's face plastered on his computer screen, her features enlarged as if she was leaning towards him. Her hand was raised in mid-air, in the middle of knocking from the other side of the screen.

Every time she knocked, a 'ping' sounded on his computer, like the sound of a notification bell.

The moment the young woman saw that Nova had seen her, she stepped back, allowing him to see her whole figure. She was wearing a pair of jeans and a casual shirt, her hair tied up into a high ponytail.

"Is she back?" The young woman asked, tilting her head.

Nova nodded. "Just now. Why are you here hacking my computer? Did something happen?"

"Everything's fine. But he showed signs of waking up earlier. The old priest called for me in a panic. He thought it was his king that was waking up."

She pursed her lips. "I calculated the probability, and there's a higher statistical chance that it was probably my master. Hmph, I don't even know why they want that crazy sadist to wake up. Aren't they deathly afraid of him?"

Nova leaned back on his seat. "Are you here to state the obvious, or is there something important you want to tell me?"

The girl pursed her lips at him, displeased. "So, how are things going along there?"

Nova looked back at the surveillance video and saw the progress bar on top of Song Jia's head. He grimaced.

Contrary to what he told Song Jia, he had actually finished creating the device that could measure a person's level of affection. But Nova decided not to give it to Song Jia.

He was particularly clear about the male god's feelings towards Song Jia. Every time they meet, his affection for her always easily surpassed the hundred percent, going straight into blackening. It would be very easy for her to find out that there was something abnormal going on.

So without her awareness, he attached the device on her body instead. He had made it in such a way that only he could see the progress bar on top of her head.

Right now, the affection bar was at twenty-five percent.

Before Song Jia did her third transmigration mission, the affection bar on her head was at a pitiful five percent. All of that was Xiang Feng's hard work. Zhao Cheng earned a negative five, so the ten points all came from her second transmigration.

Compared to the last two, Song Jia clearly valued Lin Yitian more.

But when looked objectively, it was still only twenty-five percent...

Fifty percent would be considered a crush, while a hundred percent would mean she had a fallen in love. Nova had attached a similar device to the other transmigrators as well, and even for those women who were particularly cold and closed off, using ruthless and manipulative schemes to complete their transmigration mission, their feelings had at least risen up to fifty percent towards their target by the end of the mission.

Even senior transmigrators who had a wide range of experience couldn't resist the quick rise of affection with every completed mission. As long as the target was good to them, who could remain cold-hearted to his efforts?

But despite the male god going crazy for her, Song Jia's feelings were still at a measly twenty-five percent...

Nova suddenly wondered whether he and Song Jia were switched at birth. Could it be that he was actually human and Song Jia was the A.I.?

"How bad is it?" The young woman guessed the answer from his terrible expression.

Nova shook his head at the young woman. "Very...bad."

The young woman looked helpless. "Is there anything we can do? We can't push her too far, but we don't have enough time to let her feelings gradually develop either."

"Why are you asking me? Do I look like a love guru?"

The young woman shook her head. "You...at the very least, just try your best to win her over. If she still haven't fallen in love yet when he wakes up..."

Nova lifted one eyebrow and said, "APHI."

The young woman looked at him. "What is it?"

"The last time I told her about the male god's death, she quickly became happy again after I told her she successfully got her salary."

"..."

Nova glanced back at the surveillance feed, watching Song Jia slowly stretch her body out of the astral pod. Looking at her expression that appeared calm and relaxed, he felt the corners of his lips twitch.

There were so many fishes in the sea, so why did the male god have to go and pick this kind of fish scum?

...

As soon as Song Jia hopped out of the astral pod, she looked around and saw that once again, she was the only one inside the room.

She wondered if all the professional transmigrators had a separate room, that was why she had never seen her seniors doing their mission.

"Welcome back, Transmigrator No. 886. Congratulations on returning from your mission safely. Transmigrator 886, you are told to proceed to the guidance counselor's office. There is no time limit required. Please reply 'yes' to confirm."

Just as she was about to head off towards Nova's office, Song Jia stopped. "The boss doesn't want to see me?"

"There are no such instructions requested by the head on my database."

Song Jia frowned. That was a bit strange.

She went into the guidance counselor's office, and saw that it was fully occupied. Song Jia recognized some of the seniors she had talked to before.

"886!" One of them waved her over to the waiting area, patting the empty space on the couch next to her. "It's the first time I saw your face here. Did you have a rough mission?"

Song Jia slowly shook her head. Maybe because this was already her third mission, her emotions had adjusted and she no longer felt as agitated as before. She was also a bit relieved that Nova didn't call for her. She didn't want to see Lin Yitian's ending. If he had a good end, then that was for the best. But if he hadn't...

Song Jia decided that she didn't want to know.

A fellow transmigrator next to them was crying, and Song Jia glanced at her in curiosity. The senior transmigrator saw her look and leaned close to whisper in her ear.

"Poor kid. She fell in love with the target prince on her mission. That prince was unfavored because he had albinism. He was hated because their society thought he was cursed."

Song Jia looked at the woman whose eyes were already swollen from her endless crying. "What happened to him?"

Her senior looked surprised at her question. "What happened to him? Nothing. She helped him become a favored prince until he became the Emperor. But because her status was low, she could only become a concubine. And as time passed...to stabilize his position on the throne..."

Song Jia instantly understood. People in power were just like this. Especially in a society that was ruled with feudalism, hierarchical divisions were especially distinct. As a monarch, to stay in power, sacrifices had to be made.

And more often than not, it was the ones who loved them that suffered first.