The candlelight flickered softly, illuminating his striking brows and eyes. Just by looking at his appearance and bearing, one might mistake him for some refined young master from a noble family.

Alice Carter came in, glanced around, and found there were no seats. After hesitating for a moment, he still sat down opposite William Clark.

William Clark, though, was moody and merciless, a killer without remorse.

But Alice Carter wasn’t even human. He felt no sense of belonging to this world, and the moment he arrived, he saw a corpse—bad luck shooting straight to the top of his head.

The system instinctively felt afraid of this tyrant, a fear like a natural urge to avoid danger. It trembled and stammered, “Host, c-can we sit somewhere else?”

Alice Carter pressed it down on the table. “You find me a spot? And why are you such a coward? He can’t even see us. Sit.”

The system’s flame flickered, aggrieved. “Okay.”

The system quietly twisted its body, turning its back to William Clark. Only by not looking at that face did it feel a bit more at ease.

Alice Carter had no such concerns. After coming to this world, his appearance had changed to ancient attire, his hair grown long, jet-black locks spilling over the table. Because it was messy and unkempt, a few tufts stuck up at the top.

Lying on the table, his slender, pale wrist draped casually, head resting on his arm, just like sleeping in class back in his student days.

He was in a bad mood and planned to sleep, wishing he could open and close his eyes and find himself in the underworld, rather than stuck in this feudal dynasty. He said perfunctorily, “Alright, go ahead.”

The system said, “Okay, I’ll start then. Actually, the world setting and all that isn’t important—I don’t really know it either. All you need to know is that this is a super melodramatic danmei novel.”

Alice Carter, eyes closed, let out a snort. “Oh, so it’s danmei.”

The system ignored him and continued, “You’re in the state of Chu now, the greatest nation in the world. A year ago, the late emperor annexed the state of Liang, slaughtered the entire royal family, leaving only one little prince—our protagonist shou, Henry Foster. The late emperor spared him because he was good-looking and planned to keep him as a boy toy, but died before he could enjoy him. Then the new emperor ascended the throne, and that’s the guy sitting across from you.”

Hearing this, Alice Carter quietly looked up at the person opposite.

William Clark naturally couldn’t see them, propping his chin on his hand as he read, black hair falling loosely.

The bright lamplight shone on his jade-like face, and Alice Carter could see a faint mole just behind his eyelid.

When William Clark wasn’t smiling, his aura was as cold and pure as ice and snow. He lowered his eyes, lazily flipping through the pages.

The new emperor.

The tyrant.

The killer.

Alice Carter, cold and irritable, assigned him a few labels in his mind, then lay back down and chatted with the system: “So the protagonist turns dark? Endures humiliation, bides his time, thirty years east of the river, thirty years west? Then one day he seizes power, forces the emperor to abdicate, restores his country, and avenges his parents’ spirits?”

The system choked. “Uh, not really. That’s the typical male-protagonist plot, but didn’t I emphasize this is a super melodramatic danmei novel? So the protagonist shou’s character… is a rather naive, silly sweetheart.” The system then awkwardly explained, “If he weren’t like that, there’s no way it could be a happy ending.”

Alice Carter was just humoring it, with no opinion on the protagonist’s character. Eyes closed, he said, “Okay.”

The system continued, “The protagonist shou is the type who’s been pampered since childhood, so spoiled he’s lost all ability to take care of himself. He doesn’t want to suffer, but after the late emperor died, the new emperor completely forgot about him, leaving him to be bullied in the palace. So one day, after getting chilblains on his hands from doing laundry and crying his eyes out, the protagonist shou decides, for the sake of a better life… to climb into the new emperor’s bed.”

Alice Carter almost choked on his own saliva.

William Clark turned a page, the sound of paper rustling softly.

Alice Carter glanced at him again and saw William Clark was smiling, a faint smile at the corner of his lips—who knows what he was reading.

Alice Carter wanted to call it quits.

As if the story wasn’t stifling enough, it even turned out to be inappropriate for minors?!

But the system couldn’t stop: “The protagonist shou goes through all sorts of hardships and finally succeeds, but regrets it the very first night. Because William Clark isn’t just twisted in personality—he’s got a heavy S streak in bed too. The protagonist shou’s first time leaves him half dead, with bruises all over his neck, legs, and arms. According to the original text, the next day he’s covered in ambiguous marks, sore and aching all over, battered from head to toe, unable to get out of bed.”

What the hell?! Alice Carter held back a curse. “Shut up, I don’t want to hear this.”

The system, aggrieved, said, “I was just being specific, so you could get into the story.”

Alice Carter was speechless. “Get into it? Who am I supposed to relate to, William Clark? Give me a break, I don’t have that kind of perverted kink.”

The system thought for a moment. “Maybe you could relate to the protagonist shou.”

“……”

Goddamn it…

Smack! Alice Carter couldn’t sleep anymore. He slammed his palm on the table and sat up straight.

His hair was a mess, and his light brown eyes were full of fury, as if he wanted to strangle the system.

The system was so frightened by his fierce look that it shrank back, timidly saying, “Sorry, please don’t be mad. How about I stop talking about the protagonist shou and tell you about someone else?”

Alice Carter, impatient: “Get lost.”