Help! My Moms Are Overpowered Tyrants, and I'm Stuck as Their Baby!-Chapter 188: Truly alone

Night pressed against my window like a question with no answer.

For the first time since Aria's spectacular escape, I was alone truly alone in my dormitory room, surrounded by the velvet hush of sleeping halls. The lamplight flickered over books stacked in teetering towers, shadows thrown by silken curtains and the fluttering of parchment on my desk. Outside, the castle's bells tolled the late hour, muffled by stone and distance, but inside my skull the clamor of the day rang on and on.

I sat on the edge of my narrow bed, knees drawn to my chest, staring at nothing in particular. The familiar trappings of my life felt suddenly alien a bedspread I'd chosen for its ridiculous purple tassels, a wardrobe stuffed with uniforms and cloaks I barely remembered buying, the chipped mug emblazoned with "World's Best Tyrant (In Training)." All of it was my life, but none of it felt real anymore.

It had been hours since the confrontation in the cafeteria. The whispers still hadn't died down no doubt the entire student body was speculating about Aria, about Velka's furious resurrection, about the next inevitable disaster. But I didn't care about rumors. I cared about the truth, and the truth had splintered beneath my feet like thin ice.

I pressed my forehead to my knees, fighting the urge to scream. Or laugh. Or both.

This wasn't supposed to happen. None of it. I'd come into this world with a mission, after all a simple, straightforward one (or so the system had promised): Prevent the people from revolting against your parents. Maintain stability. Secure the throne. Keep the world spinning, basically. Do not, under any circumstances, allow yourself to become a meme in the history books.

Except that now, after everything, history was veering off script, and I had no idea what came next.

The room was silent, except for the faint hum of magic beneath my skin the ever-present thrum that came from being the unwilling host of an interdimensional annoyance.

[I'd give you a penny for your thoughts,] the system piped up, its voice dry as sun-bleached bones. [But we both know they're worth less than that.]

I sighed, dragging my gaze up to the ceiling, tracing the cracks that spiderwebbed above my bed. "Very funny. If you're here to gloat, you can save it for my obituary."

[Oh, I'd never gloat,] the system replied. [Mock, maybe. Ridicule. Drop some biting commentary and then leave you to wallow in existential dread. But gloat? Never.]

Somehow, that almost made me laugh. Almost.

I pressed my palms to my eyes, trying to block out the swirl of memories: Aria's face, shifting from terror to cold resolve; Velka's barely restrained fury; Mara and Elira standing by my side, bruised but unbroken. How many times had I wished for an uncomplicated day? Just one day without magical kidnappings, political intrigue, or the sudden realization that the people you trust most might stab you in the back or, at the very least, lock your favorite vampire in a magically sealed broom closet.

"What do I do now?" I whispered, the words as brittle as spun glass.

[My, my, you're actually asking for advice,] the system marveled. [Mark the date, this is progress. Or perhaps a sign of the apocalypse.]

I glared at the spot above my wardrobe, where the system liked to imagine itself as a smug, floating pineapple. "Don't you ever get tired of this?"

[Oh, absolutely. But watching you flounder is my only hobby. Well, that and cross-dimensional sudoku.]

I huffed, rolling onto my back, staring at the beams above. "I transmigrated into this world to keep everything together. To make things better. I was supposed to be the one holding all the threads. And now I can't even trust my own shadow. Or my friends. Or " My voice cracked. "Or myself."

[You're being dramatic,] the system said, but not unkindly. [You were never meant to do it all alone, you know. You have minions. Loyal allies. People who like your questionable sense of humor and even more questionable leadership style.]

I snorted. "Not sure how loyal they are after today."

[Velka's still here. Mara would fight a dragon for you, and Elira would fight Mara if she thought you needed a good laugh. Even Riven she saved you the last slice of cheese, though I suspect it's because she wanted to watch you suffer.]

That almost made me smile. Almost.

I let the silence stretch, counting my breaths. One, two, three each one slower, softer, until the storm in my chest began to settle. Outside, the wind rattled the windowpanes. Somewhere in the hall, a clock struck midnight, the sound ringing with eerie clarity.

"You remember how it started?" I said quietly, more to myself than to the system. "The day I woke up here, wearing this body, this ridiculous hair, and everyone expected me to know what I was doing."

[You screamed for a solid three minutes,] the system recalled fondly. [I was impressed.]

"I thought if I played along if I made the right choices, kept the nobles from revolting, charmed the council, looked out for my parents I could win. Or at least survive."

[You have survived,] the system pointed out. [Sometimes spectacularly.]

"But at what cost?" I whispered. "I don't even know who I am half the time. Am I Elyzara the Princess, the Tyrant-in-Training, or just some lost soul who got thrown into a mess I can't untangle?"

[You're all of those things,] the system said, unusually gentle. [And probably a few more you haven't discovered yet.]

I rolled over, burying my face in my pillow. "It was easier when the only threat was public opinion."

[Was it, though?] The system's tone was almost wistful. [People are always more complicated than monsters. And you're not the only one whose life got upended. Look at Velka imprisoned and replaced. Aria, running from everything she ever cared about. Even Mara and Elira they'd both rather punch their way through a wall than admit they're terrified for you.]

A pang of guilt lanced through me. For all my self-pity, I hadn't thought about what my friends were feeling. They'd risked everything to get Velka back to keep me safe. Even Aria, in her own twisted way, had done what she thought was necessary.

And yet, I was the one sulking in the dark, paralyzed by indecision.

[You could start by sleeping,] the system suggested. [You know, that thing mortals do when they're overwhelmed. Or, if you're feeling especially bold, you could ask for help. You might be surprised who's willing to offer it.]

I rolled my eyes. "Is this one of those 'teamwork makes the dream work' speeches?"

[No, this is one of those 'if you burn out now, I have to find a new host, and do you know how hard it is to get Wi-Fi in other dimensions?' speeches.]

That finally broke through my gloom. I laughed a small, surprised sound. It felt rusty, like something I hadn't used in a while.

"I just… I wanted to fix things," I said, softer now. "But I keep breaking them instead."

[That's what fixing things looks like, sometimes,] the system replied. [Messy. Loud. Full of mistakes. Welcome to leadership.]

For a long moment, I just breathed letting the system's words settle. Maybe it wasn't about winning. Maybe it was about surviving long enough to try again. To trust, even when it hurt. To pick up the pieces, however many times they shattered.

I looked around my room, at the bits of myself I'd collected in this borrowed life the books, the silly mug, the cloak Velka had once charmed to keep me warm. Maybe I wasn't alone after all. Maybe there was still something worth fighting for.

I slid under the covers, pulling the blanket over my head, letting the darkness soothe my nerves.

[You'll be alright,] the system said quietly. [You always are.]

"Only because you annoy me into action," I murmured.

[It's a gift.]

I let my eyes drift shut, the storm in my mind quieting at last. Tomorrow, I'd face the world again. Tomorrow, I'd find Aria ask her why, ask her what she needed so badly she'd betray us all. Tomorrow, I'd gather my friends, admit that I couldn't do it alone, and maybe, just maybe, figure out how to stop this world from sliding into chaos.

But tonight, I let myself rest. Just for a little while, I let myself be Elyzara not a princess, not a tyrant, not a transmigrated stranger but just a girl, lost and found, waiting for morning.

Under the heavy quilt, the world outside faded: the whispers, the betrayals, the impossible expectations. I focused on the quiet rise and fall of my breath, the warmth seeping into my bones. For once, I allowed the uncertainty to simply exist. No answers, no grand plans, just the comfort of surviving the night, tonight, I had a fragile, precious peace