The Villain with a Red Gem Gaze

“Help…! Save me!!!”

The moment Romance System 886 entered Mission World No. 6117, it was greeted by heart-wrenching screams.

Under a leaden-gray sky, a blood-red moon slowly rose, dragging the last sliver of light into the abyss. Ravens, symbols of ill omen, perched within the heavy shadows of the trees, their crimson eyes coldly overlooking the panicking crowds fleeing below.

Men and women, young and old, dressed in a motley of styles and clutching various strange weapons, fled with expressions of sheer terror. Their eyes were fixed in a single direction. As they scrambled, people collapsed one after another, their shrinking pupils reflecting the distant silhouette of an ancient castle.

In mid-air, unseen by anyone, 886 wobbled. Pale blue light leaked from its transparent, spherical exterior, swirling with endless, shimmering streams of data. The light-ball hung in the air, wiggling exaggeratedly as if it had only just acquired a physical form.

886 admired itself for a moment and let out a very human-like “phew.”

Time to find my host!

886 was a newborn system. Upon its creation, the Main God had issued its directive: it needed to find a task-taker belonging to the Villain Department named Xue Zhen and transition him into the Romance Department for a life of happy labor!

886’s life motto was: Have sweet romances! Be the best system!

According to the Main God, this task-taker was exceptionally talented, even spending his vacation time acting as a villainous NPC in various worlds.

Full of drive, 886 dived toward the ground. It zipped left and right, bypassing the fleeing crowds until it reached a wide, open clearing. Ahead lay a bottomless precipice where a magnificent castle stood abruptly against the cliffside, its spires topped with sharp crosses, shrouded gloomily in darkness.

The task-taker wasn’t hard to find; the castle doors were wide open.

In the center of the hollowed-out great hall sat a chair. Thorns crept out from the darkness, crawling up the backrest until a delicate, dripping rose bloomed at the top. At this moment, a pale, pristine hand was carelessly brushing against the petals.

The petals were a deep, saturated crimson, like concentrated blood, which only served to make the hand appear more slender and snowy—as if carved from fine soft jade.

Looking up, one could see a thin wrist with fingertips tinged pink and faint violet veins visible beneath the skin. A black formal suit embroidered with dark gold patterns and layers of ruffled lace clung to a lean, delicate frame.

It was a youth.

He looked to be about seventeen or eighteen, with a face of pure, naive beauty. Soft, mid-length black hair rested on his shoulders, dipping into the exquisite hollows of his neck and collarbone. His skin was incredibly pale, as if it had never seen the sun, reaching a point of near-transparency. His cheeks still held a hint of baby fat, flushed with a faint pink.

His brows and lashes were deep black, striking against his snowy skin. His thin, pale eyelids were lowered; his lashes were long, and a few stray hairs dangled over his forehead, giving him a lazy appearance. He toyed with the rose before him, his fingers moving fitfully, looking utterly bored—entirely out of place in this deep, eerie fortress.

This was especially true given the tall young man kneeling before him. The man held himself up with one hand on the floor, his clothes soaked in dark blood and the veins in his neck bulging. Despite his wretched state, it was easy to see the man was quite handsome.

Currently, the wounded young man was knitting his brows tightly, glaring fiercely at the beautiful youth sitting leisurely in the chair—the contrast was stark.

886: !

The pale blue light-ball suspended in the air rushed forward impatiently.

Host, I’m here!

At the same time, the youth sitting quietly in the chair looked up, his gaze landing directly on the light-ball. Only when he looked up could one see his ruby-colored eyes; they were a startling scarlet, much like the ravens outside. In the dim light, those red pupils were exceptionally pure, casting an eerie shadow over his beautiful features.

He was a little vampire.

“Huh?”

In the silence, the vampire youth in the chair frowned slightly and let out a soft hum of confusion. His lips parted slightly, revealing a tiny pair of fangs.

Even his voice sounds good!

886 felt itself instantly sprout pink bubbles. The entire system felt as if it were drifting on clouds; its data streams flickered and lagged. With such a beautiful host, they would surely complete the mission perfectly!

Just as Romance System 886 was about to pounce on its host—feeling as though it could already see a future of promotions, raises, and the envy of all other systems—a white light suddenly flashed…

The blue light-ball, frozen in mid-air, suddenly stumbled. Following an unseen force, it rolled forward in a very human-like fashion.

886: What happened?!

A faint white light floated like a galaxy ribbon, one end of it wrapped steadily around the youth’s fingertip. The rookie system shivered, realizing the white light wasn’t an illusion. It had been caught before it could even introduce itself!

“System Number 886…”

“Oh my!”

Xue Zhen narrowed his eyes slightly, calling out the intruder’s name with unerring accuracy. With a flick of his hand, the trembling blue light-ball came rolling to a stop in front of him.

“This is my mission world,” Xue Zhen glanced at the dazed stranger system. “Why were you able to get in?”

He released his grip, the white light vanishing into his fingertip as he looked on expectantly. His role wasn’t over yet; why had the Main God Space sent a system over?

On the other side, 886 stood up dizzily and even patted off non-existent dust. Judging by the light-ball’s posture, it was meant to be a “standing” motion, but since its exterior was a round sphere, the action looked rather comical.

“I… I am System 886…” The resilient 886 wobbled and floated cautiously toward Xue Zhen. The rookie system’s appearance seemed to have been carefully tuned; it looked much rounder and chubbier than other systems, appearing a bit dim-witted.

Xue Zhen: “Mm.”

He reached out and casually flicked the round light-ball, hearing another “Oh my!” The new system’s default electronic voice was stretched out, sounding somewhat rhythmic and strange.

Amusing.

The corners of the beautiful vampire’s lips curled upward, making the crimson pearl of his upper lip more prominent. The youth tilted his head.

“Speak.”

The task-taker dressed as a vampire showed no remorse for his prank. Instead, he urged the dazed system: “What mission did the Main God give you?”

Realizing it had left a bad first impression, 886 shook its head in frustration. The warm welcome it had planned was gone, so 886 honestly confessed: “I was born ten star-cycle days ago. I received a mission from the Main God Space to travel to Mission World 6117, bind with the task-taker Xue Zhen, and transfer him out of the Villain Department.”

Despite losing face, 886 couldn’t help but nuzzle against the youth, rubbing its round head against him.

“Bind with 886…” It acted spoiled while transmitting data. “886 is a very responsible system! Although… although I have no experience, 886 will definitely work hard! If the host refuses…” The light-ball drooped, its electronic voice sounding pitiful. “886 will be scrapped…”

Xue Zhen arched an eyebrow.

The number of task-takers in the Main God Space was limited, yet mission worlds increased by the second. Systems were created to meet this demand. They were categorized meticulously, and task-takers could choose them based on their needs. Systems also had performance standards; those who failed to meet them for too long would be sent back to the Main God Space to be “reforged.”

Reforging meant wiping all data. For a system, that was the ultimate punishment.

Xue Zhen had entered this C-rank world without a bound system. Judging by 886’s low-functioning performance, it wasn’t the type that would be popular among task-takers. No wonder it hadn’t found a partner despite being ten days old.

Watching the light-ball squirm and whimper on his lap, Xue Zhen pondered for a moment. “Do you have the mission data?”

“Yes!” 886 bounced up and quickly transferred the data to Xue Zhen. The pale blue data stream projected into the air, with occasional golden meteors streaking through it.

Xue Zhen sank into thought. The data 886 provided wasn’t fake. Although he didn’t know why he was being transferred so suddenly, data from the Main God Space couldn’t be forged.

Just then, a small raven flew in from outside and landed on Xue Zhen’s shoulder. Xue Zhen stroked its fluffy head. The raven suddenly spoke in human tongue, reciting a string of words 886 couldn’t understand.

Xue Zhen nodded.

“Fine,” Xue Zhen looked at the wiggling light-ball. “My role here is finished.”

Working in the Villain Department, his screentime was hit-or-miss. Setting aside the parts where he was slapped in the face by the “Dragon Aotian” protagonists, the benefits were actually quite good.

In this world, Xue Zhen’s job was to play a vampire NPC in a horror escape game. He had to terrorize players, cosplay as a monster, and then go offline once the protagonist made his move. The wounded man before him was this world’s Dragon Aotian.

Before 886 arrived, Xue Zhen had already completed the task of making things difficult for the protagonist. Usually, the weak early-stage protagonist would discover his potential through the villain’s torment, grow strong, and eventually kill the villain. Xue Zhen had experienced this in countless worlds.

He liked this job. Xue Zhen had a bad temper; if he were forced to play the protagonist and endure all that early-stage suffering, he would have quit long ago. In his view, being a villain was the best—he didn’t have to work until the world ended, and he could block pain when logging out.

But which department was 886 transferring him to? If it was a high-pressure department, he wouldn’t be happy. Xue Zhen knit his brows slightly.

“Great!” 886 spun in a happy circle, its non-existent tail practically sticking up. “Host, let’s sign the contract now! We can enter the mission world right away!”

Xue Zhen paused. “Wait. I didn’t say yes yet. I was asking where I’m being transferred…”

886’s efficiency was terrifyingly high. Before Xue Zhen could react, the binding was complete.

Xue Zhen: ?

His eyes widened. Countless data streams erupted from the light-ball, wrapping around the startled youth like planetary rings.

The binding was in effect.

886 announced excitedly: “Host, we’re heading to the next world!”

The dying Dragon Aotian on the floor regained some clarity. He looked up with difficulty, his fading vision catching an unexpected sight. The vampire NPC, who had just been leisurely commanding ravens to track them, was now frozen. The youth looked at the air in shock, muttered something, and then his silhouette slowly dissolved into nothingness.

Seeing that its host was secured, 886 introduced itself: “Host, 886 is a Romance System!”

“Host is the very first task-taker in the Romance Department! We’re going to have a sweet, sweet romance with a Dragon Aotian!”

Xue Zhen: !

886 giggled sillily.