Perhaps Jon's mental projection was too strong, because the System gave a [Ding-dong] to acknowledge receipt, then controlled Jon to duck behind a corner.
Only then did the buzzing in the transmigrator's ears fade away, allowing him to hear his own heart pounding so hard it felt like it would burst out of his chest.
So far, the System had only been online for barely a day, and Jon already felt like he had lost half his lifespan.
With this level of intense stimulation, the transmigrator began to suspect he would be the first unlucky soul in transmigration history to die of a heart attack.
But before his heartbeat could settle, the rustling sound of silk echoed from the Broken Tower.
Not long after, a soft voice grew from a low murmur to something much louder.
Hearing this sound, a notification chimed in Jon's ear at the most inappropriate time.
[Important Opportunity Detected. Continue One-Click Auto-Pilot to Intelligently Upgrade and Level Up? YES / NO]
At this moment, aside from his conscious mind being clear, his body was still firmly under control.
He tried hard to move his eyes to express his true intentions.
After all, looking at the current situation, even a stupid dog would know what kind of price he'd have to pay for this so-called "Upgrade."
Although Jon didn't exactly object to the idea—and Cersei was famously beautiful across the Seven Kingdoms—his lingering sense of shame and his cautious commitment to "lying flat" made him solemnly choose:
"No... NO!"
In the next moment, his previously tense body regained its freedom, and the bastard let out a huge sigh of relief.
However, in the silent night, that sigh was incredibly loud. It instantly alerted the Queen ahead, who was still unsatisfied, causing her to cry out.
"Who is it?! Is that Jaime?"
As her voice fell, the moonlight happened to spill into the breach of the Broken Tower. Queen Lannister's pale, smooth skin was now fully exposed, reflecting the dazzling light.
And further back, Jon was also illuminated by the light, instantly revealing his silhouette.
Their eyes met. Both looked extremely panicked and scrambled to act.
Suddenly, the mechanical voice rang out again.
[Detected that the Host has retracted their decision. The System will proceed with the Upgrade on your behalf. Intelligent Auto-Pilot Activated...]
Jon: "?!"
Then, Jon felt his body tighten again. Instead of retreating, he advanced straight toward Queen Cersei.
"System??"
At this moment, Jon finally realized what was happening.
"Holy sht, System, what the fck are you doing? Stop! Stop right now! Do you know who that is? That's the woman of the Protector of the Realm!"
However, Snow finally understood.
Clearly, this retarded System wouldn't stop until it got him killed!
The time that followed became extremely clear in the transmigrator's vision, playing out almost frame by frame like slow motion.
Especially his "Wolf Waist," which he was most proud of, was now living up to expectations, engaging in a fierce, high-frequency, seesawing battle.
Jon felt like he was going to explode. Although he roared furiously in his mind, he couldn't stop the pleasure from rising, accompanied by the constant System notifications.
[Host's missing life experience replenished. Strength +0.01, Constitution +0.01...]
[Intelligent Auto-Pilot Complete. Acquired new Title: "The Persuader"]
[Detected massive Affinity gain. Upgrade complete. Reward: "The Queen's New Clothes" Limited Time Trial]
...
After a night of ceaseless battle, Jon's consciousness began to blur. As the first rays of dawn hit the Broken Tower, the transmigrator—who had already come up with countless excuses and escape plans—finally slowed down.
In front of him, the figure with the now extremely hoarse voice let out a long breath and looked ready to collapse to the ground.
However, as a terrified, young face appeared in the window gap, the System prompt appeared again.
[Emergency Event Detected. System will perform an Emergency Upgrade. Please complete preparations immediately. Auto-Pilot ending in: 5, 4, 3...]
As the countdown approached zero, Jon's movements became more frenetic, rushing to a peak in an instant.
On the other side, the small figure, seeing such an explosive scene, lost his footing and fell toward the ground.
In that critical moment, Jon regained control of his body. Leaving an afterimage behind, he flashed forward and snatched Bran by the ankle.
Then, he hauled the little boy back into the tower.
But before he could speak, a commanding voice rang out from beside him, brokering no argument.
"Kill him! Or you both die!"
The voice was bone-chillingly cold, without a hint of hesitation, clearly accustomed to deciding the life and death of others.
Hearing this, Jon, swaying slightly on his feet, first set the dangling Bran on the ground, then squatted down in front of the boy with a smile.
"Listen, Bran. Forget everything about today!"
"Also, you must promise never to come here again. Do you hear me?"
Although Snow tried hard to maintain his authority as an older half-brother, using a gentle and negotiable tone to control the situation, his current... image... was clearly not very persuasive.
Fortunately, perhaps because he was terrified, Bran simply nodded silently without questioning anything.
After dealing with this little brother, Snow patted Bran on the back of the head and watched him escape down the ladder.
As for himself, he turned to solve the problem of his other little brother.
"Your Grace, please calm down. I can explain..."
Of course, that was what Jon intended to say.
But when he turned to look at that beautiful face mixed with madness, the words that came out of his mouth were:
"Queen Cersei, surely you wouldn't want..."
...
Morning.
The hunting party was already geared up and waiting. They only needed the King's command to head for the hunting grounds.
Among the entourage, besides Prince Joffrey and the accompanying Robb, even the Imp—famous across the Seven Kingdoms—was present. But the King was nowhere to be seen.
As Eddard Stark's trueborn second son, Bran could have joined the hunt. But because he was only ten, Lord Eddard had ordered him to stay in the castle with the girls, keeping Princess Myrcella and Prince Tommen company.
Bran was incredibly disappointed by this.
In his nurse's words, he was destined to become a great knight, just like the fearless Ser Barristan, renowned in Westeros for his loyalty.
At the very least, he wanted to have immense strength like the Kingslayer.
But Bran knew very well that he couldn't even shoot an arrow straight. The other knightly skills seemed destined to elude him.
If it were Jon, maybe he would become a great warrior, but Jon wouldn't see that day.
After all, early tomorrow morning, Bran would leave his mother and older brother to accompany his father to King's Landing.
And that taciturn bastard brother would head north to Castle Black to join the Night's Watch.
Thinking about leaving his familiar home, Bran fretfully threw his wooden sword over the wall, venting his anxiety about the parting.
Then, with a whimper, a furry figure darted out after it.
---