My Taming System Makes Me Overpowered

Chapter 23: Bird in a golden cage

The deep midnight silence of the Mansion was thick and suffocating. Inside the heavily warded private study of the Duke, the air suddenly rippled. Vince stepped out from the shadow of a massive velvet curtain, his movements completely devoid of sound. He had already neutralized the two guards patrolling the lower archive corridor—not by killing them, which would trigger life-sign arrays in the central guard tower, but by using a precise application of his new kinetic harmony ability to disrupt the blood flow to their brain stems, inducing instant, deep unconsciousness.

Stained-glass windows filtered the pale moonlight across the room, casting jagged, colored shadows over a massive mahogany desk. Vince didn’t waste a second. Guided by the 3D blueprint burned into his memory, he bypassed the decoy safe and approached a concealed compartment built into the floorboards beneath the heavy rug.

With a gentle flex of his ability he began vibrating to frequency of the atoms of the vault, then, the hidden latch clicked open. Inside lay a heavily warded iron ledger sealed with thick, black imperial wax.

Vince cracked the seal silently, his eyes scanning the dense text. He had expected to find regional tax reports or military troop movements. Instead, his gaze locked onto a header that caused his pulse to quicken: [Project Blank: Imperial Anomalies Ledger].

His eyes narrowed as he devoured the contents. The dossier detailed a highly classified, multi-generational imperial investigation into souls born completely devoid of continental magic. Shockingly, the records didn’t start with him. The project had been active for over a century, tracking "Blanks" across various provinces, noting their sudden, unexplained appearances and subsequent, systematic "neutralizations." More disturbing still was a recent addendum containing a terrifyingly detailed psychological profile of Vince himself, compiled weeks before his arrival at the Royal Oakhaven Academy.

They knew about me before I even drew the system’s attention, Vince thought, his jaw tightening slightly. Someone at the highest level of the empire has been watching the ledger’s manifestations.

He closed the file, storing it away into his pocket dimension. Running away was no longer an option. If the imperial authorities possessed data on his very existence, fleeing the province would only turn him into a perpetual rat in a maze. He needed a massive institutional shield. He needed to hijack the very machine hunting him. Looking at the financial records scattered across the desk—detailing the Duke’s absolute economic monopoly over the region’s magic-crystal trade—Vince’s grand scheme solidified. He wouldn’t destroy House Owen from the outside. He would usurp it from the shadows, turning the entire duchy into his personal platform.

As he slipped out of the study and melted into the dimly lit, vaulted residential hallways of the upper tier, his translucent purple interface violently flared.

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[ CAUTION: Regional Sovereign/Harem Sub-System Triggered! ]

[Target Detected: Duchess Emily Owen (Tier 4 Aristocratic Bloodline).]

[Condition Identified: Severe emotional isolation, deep-seated resentment toward her spouse, and proximity to a dominant entity.]

[System Quest: "Taming the Duchess" — Tame the target to secure absolute shadow authority over the Owen Duchy without tripping imperial alerts.]

[Reward: 10,000 System Tokens, Complete Access to the Owen Family Vault, and 100% Shadow Authority over regional military assets.]

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Vince paused in the shadows, a cold, predatory smile playing on his lips. Perfect timing.

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Meanwhile, inside the luxurious master suite, Duchess Emily Owen stirred restlessly. Beside her, Duke Owen lay completely motionless, his breathing deep and heavy, yet his posture even in sleep radiated the terrifying, coiled tension of an elite warrior. The sheer pressure of his passive aura made the very air in the bedroom dense.

Feeling an overwhelming sense of suffocation, Emily quietly slid out from beneath the silk sheets. She needed to ease herself, but even after doing so, the persistent, haunting thoughts of her hollow marriage and the brutal, unyielding nature of her husband kept sleep entirely out of reach.

Seeking an escape from the oppressive atmosphere of the bedroom, Emily wrapped a sheer, emerald-green silk robe over her nightgown and quietly slipped through the heavy double doors, stepping out into the long, silent corridor of the residential wing.

The marble floor was cool beneath her bare feet. She walked slowly, her mind drifting, entirely unaware of the dark silhouette gliding soundlessly along the vaulted arches above her.

Vince tracked her from the shadows of the high pillars. His Perception mapped the rhythm of her breathing, the slight tremble in her hands, and the complete lack of defensive wards around her person. She was completely isolated.

Emily stopped by a massive arched window overlooking the moonlit gardens, letting out a soft, weary sigh. "How much longer must I play the part of a bird in a golden cage?" she murmured to herself, her voice laced with bitter resentment.

"As long as you allow the cage to define you, Your Grace." freeweɓnovel.cѳm

Emily’s heart violently seized. She spun around, her mouth opening to scream for the elite guards stationed at the end of the wing, but the sound died instantly in her throat.

Vince stepped out of the absolute darkness, his tall frame draped in a stolen black cloak. His twin purple irises glowed with an ethereal, hypnotic brilliance in the midnight gloom. He was completely free, devoid of any shackles, standing mere inches away from her.

Before she could take a step back, Vince smoothly raised a single hand, a faint shimmer of kinetic force subtly freezing the air around her vocal cords, preventing her from making anything louder than a soft gasp. He placed a single finger over his own lips, his expression wearing a mocking, devastatingly handsome smirk.

"Shh," Vince whispered, his voice smooth, carrying a terrifyingly calm authority that seemed to vibrate directly against her soul. "Let’s not wake your formidable husband. You and I have a nation to run."