Lust System: Conquering the World Beauties

Chapter 478

Anya kept her eyes on Liam’s hand, her expression tight, her mind clearly running through possibilities and none of them looking good. She had seen injuries before, bad ones too, but this didn’t sit right with her at all. The way it looked, the speed at which it was changing, it didn’t follow anything she understood.

She lifted her head and looked straight at him.

"If you don’t do something about this," she said slowly, choosing her words carefully, "you might lose it. I’m serious. It might get amputated."

The words hung in the air, heavy, real.

Tatiana’s grip on the wheel tightened again.

But Liam...

He just shook his head.

"No," he said calmly. "It will heal."

There was no hesitation in his voice.

No doubt.

Just certainty.

Anya stared at him for a second, trying to read his face, trying to see if he was bluffing, if he was just being stubborn, but she couldn’t find it. He didn’t look scared. He didn’t look worried. If anything, he looked mildly annoyed.

Inside, Liam was already talking to his system.

Why the infection?

The question came sharp, direct.

Ding!

The familiar interface lit up in his vision, the blue screen appearing clean and structured.

[Status Update: Host condition monitored]

[Analysis: External interference detected]

[Source Identified: Tatiana’s passive ability]

[Effect: Rot Touch]

[Description: Passive effect suppresses regenerative functions and induces accelerated tissue decay]

[Current Response: System actively counteracting foreign effect]

[Progress: Suppression in progress]

[Estimated Recovery: Regeneration will resume shortly]

[Recommendation: Avoid further exposure until full recovery]

Liam’s eyes narrowed slightly as he read through it.

So that was it.

The system was already working on it.

He didn’t say anything out loud. There was no need.

Anya was still watching him like she couldn’t figure him out. She had just told him he might lose his fingers and he responded like she said nothing important. It didn’t make sense to her, but she didn’t press further. Something about him told her there were things he wasn’t saying, things she wouldn’t understand even if he explained.

She let it go.

For now.

Meanwhile, Liam reached for his phone.

No hesitation.

No delay.

He typed quickly, his movements smooth despite the condition of his hand, and within seconds the transaction was done.

Anya’s phone buzzed.

She frowned slightly and picked it up, her eyes scanning the screen casually at first.

Then she froze.

Her breath caught.

The number sat there clearly.

Another fifty thousand.

Her eyes widened, her fingers tightening slightly around the phone as she stared at it like it might disappear if she blinked wrong.

For a moment, she didn’t move.

She had thought maybe he would forget.

Or maybe he wouldn’t bother.

Or maybe it was all talk.

But he did it.

He actually did it.

Now a full hundred thousand dollars sat in her account.

Her hands started to shake slightly as reality settled in.

Without thinking too much, she opened her wallet and quickly initiated a transfer. Her fingers moved fast, almost like she was afraid to waste even a second.

Eighty five thousand.

Sent.

Liam glanced at her screen briefly, noticing the amount, but he didn’t comment.

After the transfer went through, Anya lowered her phone slowly. Her chest rose as she took a deep breath, her hand coming up to rest over her heart like she needed to feel it beating.

Then she spoke.

Softly.

Almost like she was talking to herself.

"I’m free."

A tear slipped down her cheek.

Then another.

She didn’t wipe them.

She just sat there, breathing, letting it sink in.

Whatever that money meant to her, it wasn’t small.

It wasn’t casual.

It was everything.

Liam looked at her for a second longer, then turned away.

He didn’t understand it.

And honestly, he didn’t care to.

This woman...

She was strange.

Too emotional.

Too complicated.

He had already done what he promised.

That was enough.

Without another word, he moved back to the front seat, settling beside Tatiana again, his attention shifting away from Anya completely.

The car continued forward in silence.

No one spoke.

The tension had changed now. It wasn’t just about danger anymore. It was heavier, filled with things each of them carried on their own.

Tatiana focused on the road, her mind still replaying everything that had happened, her guilt still sitting heavy in her chest.

Anya leaned back quietly, her hand still resting over her heart, her breathing slowly evening out as the reality of her situation settled deeper.

And Liam...

He just looked ahead.

Waiting.

Thinking.

Planning the next step.

The city lights passed by quickly until eventually the car slowed.

They had arrived.

Irina’s mansion.

Even at this hour, the place was alive.

Lights on.

Movement everywhere.

Figures could be seen on the balconies, on the grounds, gathered in groups, all of them waiting.

Watching.

The moment the car pulled up, attention shifted instantly.

Eyes locked onto it.

Onto him.

They already had the information about the bombs. The locations were known. The mission was clear. And yet they were told to wait.

For Liam.

No one liked waiting when action was this close.

The energy in the air was thick, restless.

Tatiana brought the car to a stop.

Liam stepped out first.

The night air hit him immediately as he straightened, his eyes scanning the place briefly before he started walking toward the mansion without hesitation.

The moment he stepped forward, more eyes followed him.

Expectation.

Curiosity.

Pressure.

But then, halfway through his steps, he paused.

Something clicked in his mind.

He turned slightly.

Anya.

She was still in the car.

He blinked once, realizing it fully now.

He forgot to drop her off.

Liam looked at Anya for a second, his eyes calm but carrying something sharp beneath it, something that made his next words land heavier than they sounded.

"Stay close to me if you love yourself."

Anya didn’t even try to question it.

She didn’t fully understand what he meant, but she didn’t need to. The moment she lifted her head and looked around properly, she felt it. The eyes. So many of them. Watching. Measuring. Not curious, not friendly. Just cold awareness, like she had stepped into a place she didn’t belong.

Her chest tightened slightly.

Without wasting another second, she moved quickly, closing the gap between them and sticking close to his side, almost instinctively. Her fingers hovered near his arm before lightly holding onto him, like she needed that small point of contact to steady herself.

Liam didn’t react to it.

He just let her stay there.

His attention had already shifted.

He looked up at the group in front of him, his expression settling back into that calm, controlled look he always carried, then he spoke.

"Where’s Irina?"

There was a brief pause, a few heads turning, but before anyone else could answer, a voice came through clean and steady.

"I’m right here."

Irina stepped forward from within the group, her presence cutting through the space without effort. The moment she appeared fully, the attention in the room adjusted around her. Not forced. Natural. Like everyone already knew where the center was.

Her eyes locked onto Liam immediately.

There was expectation in them. Not doubt. Not hesitation. Just a clear demand for answers.

Liam didn’t keep her waiting.

"I know everything I need to know," he said.

That alone shifted the room again.

You could feel it.

Irina’s gaze sharpened slightly.

"Then explain."

No wasted words.

Liam nodded once, then stepped closer to the table, placing his good hand lightly on it as he leaned forward just a bit, enough to ground himself but not enough to look tense.

"The bombs you and your pack were about to go after..." he started, his voice steady, measured, "they’re bait."

A ripple moved through the room.

Not loud, but noticeable.

Confusion.

Disagreement.

Before anyone could fully react, he continued.

"If you had gone there, gathered your people, moved in like you planned... you’d all be dead."

That one landed harder.

Someone scoffed immediately from the side, unable to hold it in.

"This guy has no idea what he’s talking about," one of the pack members said, stepping forward slightly. His tone carried irritation, almost offense. "I held the scanner myself. There were clearly explosives in that warehouse."

A few others nodded along with him.

They trusted their own.

They trusted what they saw.

Liam didn’t get defensive.

He just shook his head slowly.

"No," he said, calm, firm. "Those were not explosives."

The room quieted again, just enough to hear him clearly.

"I don’t know exactly what they are," he continued, "but they were designed to look like one. To radiate like one. Heat signatures, structure, energy output... everything. Enough to fool any scan."

Now the confusion deepened.

People exchanged looks.

Tatiana, standing slightly behind, frowned without realizing it, her mind trying to piece it together.

Irina didn’t move.

Her arms folded slowly across her chest as she stared at Liam, processing every word.

"So what you’re saying..." she began, her tone even but sharper now, "is that there are no bombs?"

For a brief second, Liam didn’t answer.

He straightened slightly, then moved his injured hand onto the table.

He placed it down firmly.

The sound was small, but in that silence, it carried.

Then he looked around.

Not just at Irina.

At everyone.

Making sure they were all listening.

And then he spoke.

"There are bombs," he said slowly.

A pause.

"But they have already been set at the targets."

The room froze again.

Completely this time.

No movement.

No sound.

And then he finished it.

"They go off today... by 7AM."