My vision was obscured by a crimson glow. A cold light that pulsed and seemed to pierce through my thoughts.
'Is this a dream?'
I wondered as I looked at the unreal situation.
But as my lucidity returned, I realized I was inside my own mind, in the same place where I talk to the system.
[DANGER!]
[FORCED INTERVENTION IN THE STORY!]
[EXTERNAL FORCE DETECTED!]
Hundreds of thousands of overlapping floating windows formed a wall of warnings. But unlike the system's usual blue color, these windows glowed in a threatening red.
"Calm down, system!" I shouted mentally at the restless, flickering windows.
My voice seemed to calm the system, as all the danger warnings disappeared and the red that dominated my mind faded away.
After a few minutes of silence, a new text box appeared.
[Host, some external force has interfered with Bai Xue.]
"Straight to the point, huh?"
I didn't know the situation exactly, but I tried to lighten the mood with a bit of humor.
[Host, this is not the time for your jokes. This is serious.]
The system shut me down bluntly, and seeing its seriousness, I began to feel worried.
[Something changed in Bai Xue due to interference from something external. In the best-case scenario, it was a god who took pity on the mortal's suffering and granted her its grace. In the worst-case scenario…]
The dramatic pause made me roll my eyes mentally, but secretly I was impressed by the system's ability to be dramatic in a situation like this—and it was the one who said not to joke around.
"What is it?" I asked impatiently.
[A system. In the worst-case scenario, Bai Xue has awakened a system.]
"That's it?" I was disappointed. "When you mentioned gods, I thought the worst-case scenario would be Bai Xue being possessed by one. But a system? Seriously?"
[First, no god would possess a heroine and risk being assimilated by the narrative. Second, the heroine's mind is unstable, and in this situation, a system is the last thing she should get her hands on.]
"System, you're exaggerating. A system is just a tool, it's not like it would change her personality."
[Host, you don't understand. The problem isn't the system itself. It's what it represents.]
"And what does it represent?"
[Power. But not just power. Potential.]
The blue screen hovered before me; even though they were just words, the system's voice echoed through the darkness of my mind.
[A system offers growth. It offers rewards. It offers a path. And for someone like Bai Xue—someone who is trapped, desperate, and completely obsessed with you—that path can lead to very, very dark places.]
I frowned, still unconvinced. I mean, we're talking about Bai Xue here—even if she turned into a demon, her feelings for me wouldn't change.
"You're being dramatic again. Xue loves me. She wouldn't do anything that would hurt me."
[Correct. She wouldn't do anything that would hurt you. But what would she do to possess you?]
I opened my mouth to answer, but the system continued without waiting.
[Regardless of what external force interfered with her, Bai Xue has become an unpredictable factor. Her corruption trajectory, which was once linear and predictable, has now been obscured by a veil of mystery. And that is dangerous. Very dangerous.]
"System…"
The system's floating windows kept flickering nonstop, and for a moment I was at a loss for words—after all, everything it said was true.
I mentally closed my eyes for a moment, trying to process it all.
And then, like a gentle wave, the memories came, almost as if trying to wash away my growing doubts.
The first time I saw her, fallen on the mansion floor, with everyone around treating her like trash. Her elegant dress stained with tears, her eyes red and swollen, her trembling voice trying to defend herself against false accusations.
I admit I felt bad, even though I wasn't the one suffering the injustice.
When I found her on the park bench, curled up like a wounded animal, knees pulled to her chest. I felt pity for her, but I also felt anger and a need to protect.
Seeing her hesitate even to call me brother showed how broken she was. But when I hugged her, when I said I believed her… she broke down and cried like a child who had finally found her lost parents.
Her tear-filled eyes could be described as a masterpiece, and when those eyes met mine, it was as if the world simply disappeared.
In that moment, she wasn't Bai Xue, and I wasn't Bai Ryuu. We were just a man and a woman, our lips dangerously close.
It would have been perfect if not for the interruption.
The appearance of the gangsters was unexpected, and just remembering it gives me a sense of horror. If I hadn't found Bai Xue at that moment, something very bad could have happened.
Bai Xue was terrified—it was visible in her eyes—but even so, she trusted me blindly when I told her to close them.
I wouldn't have run away, but Bai Xue didn't know that. It was surprising that even when the whole world had betrayed her, she still found the strength to trust me.
I felt disoriented when I woke up in the hospital, but seeing Bai Xue calmed me. The dark circles under her eyes were deep, and her smile was sweet when I finally woke up. It was obvious she had stayed up all night by my side, but she still tried to act like it was nothing.
Although they are few memories, I feel as if those moments are more valuable than my entire previous life. Whenever I recall them, I feel a kind of warmth. A feeling I've never felt before.
Haha… I guess that's what happens when lust is romanticized. But one thing I'm sure of.
"She loves me."
I let the words slip to the system, with unshakable certainty.
"She loves me more than anyone else in this world. More than she loves herself."
The system remained silent.
"You say she might become an unpredictable factor. That she might become dangerous. But I disagree."
I crossed my arms mentally.
"If Xue is getting stronger, that's a good thing. It means she'll be able to protect herself. It means she'll never be trampled, humiliated, or dragged away from me while I pretend to sleep ever again."
I'm not a good person, I admit that—if it's to survive, I would commit the worst sins. But I'm not a monster who would hurt someone without reason either.
Selfish? Yes.
Hypocritical? Also.
"She's suffered too much, system. Since I arrived in this world, all she's done is suffer. Rejected by her family, deceived by her sister, imprisoned by her own mother. And not once did she deserve any of it."
I clenched my fists.
I still feel guilty for watching Xue being dragged away and doing nothing. The helplessness I felt shouldn't be greater than the despair she feels every day watching Bai Ning touch me.
"If this external force—whether it's a god, a system, whatever it is—is going to give her the power to never suffer injustice again, then I'm grateful. Because she deserves to be strong. She deserves to be happy."
[And you think her happiness is simple?]
The system's response came cold as ice.
[Do you think she'll be satisfied with being strong and happy by your side, respecting your limits, your desires, your freedom?]
"She loves me. She would do anything for me."
[Exactly.]
I tilted my head. I didn't understand the implications of those words, and as if noticing my confusion, the system clarified.
[The problem is precisely that "anything."]
The system hovered before me, and the letters on the screen somehow felt heavier, more solemn.
[She would do anything for you. Anything. Including things you don't want. Including things you would fear. Including things that would hurt you, as long as she believed it was for your own good.]
"Xue isn't like that—"
[Are you sure?]
The question cut deeper than it should have, and I didn't know how to answer.
[Let me tell you a story, host. A story that neither you nor anyone in this family knows.]
I stayed silent, waiting.
[Bai Ning was once good.]
My eyes widened.
"What?"
[Yes. Before becoming the monster you know, she was a cheerful and lively girl. Shy, but determined. She loved deeply, genuinely and purely. She only wanted to be happy and make others happy.]
It sounded so unreal it was almost funny, but the system's seriousness made me swallow the laugh.
"Bai Ning… good?"
[She loved a man. But he abandoned her when she got pregnant. She blamed the child, and the child died due to her negligence.]
[At first she didn't care and had two more children, but when she realized what she had lost, it was already too late. And the guilt, the loneliness, and the despair turned her into what she is today.]
I remained silent as I processed the system's words.
Bai Ning had a child who died, and then had two more; which I assume are Xue and Yue. But then who was that boy who died, and how do I fit into this family?
[Bai Ning was once like Bai Xue. A woman who loved too much, who was broken by the world, and who, in the process of rebuilding herself, became something unrecognizable.]
The pause was heavy.
[Now tell me, host. Do you really think a Bai Xue who is being tortured, who is watching you being abused, who is drowning in despair and obsession… do you really think she won't give in to the temptation of finally possessing you forever?]
"…"
I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.
[Do you think that, with a system offering power, rewards, and a path to fulfill all her desires… she will choose moderation?]
"…"
[Do you think that when she finally has you in her arms, free from Bai Ning, free from Bai Yue, free from all obstacles… she will let you go?]
The words caught in my throat.
And then, like a punch to the stomach, the memory came.
The hospital room.
A shirtless Bai Xue, her eyes shining with manic determination, her sweet, broken voice saying:
"If the whole world sees a video of us… if they see the scum we've become… the scandal will be so big that no one will want us anymore."
"We'll be ruined together."
"No one will ever want to look at us again."
Social death—that's what she wanted.
She wanted to turn us into pariahs, into trash, into scum.
Just so no one could separate us anymore.
Just so I would be hers.
Only hers.
Eternally hers.
"…"
My knees felt weak, even within my own mind.
[She already tried that once, didn't she?]
[And that was before the system. Before the power. Before the daily torture of watching you in someone else's arms.]
The text boxes floated slowly around me, almost as if mocking me.
[Bai Xue is not evil, host. She is a victim. But victims, when given power, can become something far worse than those who hurt them.]
"…"
"…"
"…"
I was speechless for a long time.
I feel like trash.
Bai Xue can trust me, but I can't trust her. Trust that she won't change, that she'll remain the same obsessive yet innocent girl from my memories.
"Sigh—"
I let out a defeated sigh.
Since I arrived in this world, things have only gone downhill.
I just wanted to survive and touch a few breasts. But it seems that's asking for too much.
"…"
We won't give up yet. There are still many things to do, and not everything is lost… I hope.