To Summarise and Conclude:
I did not realise, that if you use a file-path that is only the file name or folder name (hence held in the same folder that the project is in) - that it will recreate those files for the published version of the bot - so running the published version will not update the files held within the original UiPath Studio Project folder.
This is due to tests I ran - which always gave me the results I wanted - blinding me from realising the truth behind how UiPath Assistant actually works.
Hence why you need to pick a folder and/or file held outside the project folder - so that it will also use the exact same file/folder once published.
By the way - for those who want to know - you can access the Published version of the files (such as Excel or Word) by pausing the Bot while it has opened a file that it is working with - and than click File, select “Info” - & select “open file location”.
It will. lead to a file path similar to
C:\Users\username\.nuget\packages\Project.Name\1.0.0\content
I also have a separate issue where the UiPath Studio Project runs smoothly - but then when I publish it to UiPath Assistant - it crashes. This dual behaviour makes no sense - from my perspective - that should be impossible. I can’t afford to waste time solving a problem that shouldn’t even exist in the first place. (I will post the cause and solution of the issue asap, either here, or linked to this message).