The curtains blocked the moonlight, plunging the room into complete darkness. Even though Wang Haoranâs X-ray vision came with night vision capabilities, it only let him make out the general layout of the room and where people wereâit couldnât reveal fine details.
âWeiwei?â His voice was soft, barely above a whisper. Even though he was almost certain of the roomâs occupant, he still called out cautiously just in case.
The person inside had already fallen asleep, but the faint noise stirred her from her dreams. Tantai Yaoyue was no ordinary woman. Even in deep sleep, her vigilance never faded completely. The moment Wang Haoran entered the room, she already woke up, but in the pitch-black darkness, she couldnât see who it was.
Still, she didnât panic. Given how few people had access to this area, she instinctively assumed it was one of her younger sisters, maybe someone who had gotten up in the middle of the night and entered the wrong room by mistake. After all, not every bedroom in this newly remodeled house had its own private bathroom.
She was just about to ask who it was, ready to speak up and dispel the misunderstanding. But when the manâs gentle voice called out again, her words died in her throat.
She recognized the voice immediatelyâWang Haoran.
And his intentions? They werenât hard to guess.
This room was the smallest one. Originally, it belonged to the Seventh Sister. But Tantai Yaoyue, in an effort to be kind and build goodwill, switched rooms with her. Now, Wang Haoran must have mistaken her for the Seventh Sister and snuck in with certain ideas in mind.
She almost cleared her throat to give him a warning, to let him know he made a mistake and back out before it turned into something awkward for both of them.
But just as the thought surfaced, another memory flashed through her mind.
âYouâll meet your destined match soon. Your Love star has stirred, and a joyous event is near. When the moment comes, you must not let it pass.â
Those had been Qin Fanâs wordsâspoken in the calm, confident tone only her mysterious master could manage.
At the time, she hadnât taken it too seriously. But now, here he was. This wasnât something planned. Wang Haoran clearly didnât know who was in the room, and yet the situation aligned perfectly.
If she stayed silent, wouldnât he assume she was the Seventh Sister and proceed as planned?
Wouldnât that just fulfill her masterâs prophecy?
Tantai Yaoyue felt a strange sense of awe rise in her heart. She hadnât done anything, hadnât even opened her mouth, and yet everything was unfolding just as predicted.
So was this the moment she was meant to seize? Was this the opportunity that would vanish if she hesitated?
As she pondered, his voice came again, even closer than before. âWeiwei?â
He was right beside her now.
Tantai Yaoyueâs mind raced. A thousand thoughts passed in a breath, and then she made her decision.
With a smooth motion, she reached out and touched his arm, gently pulling him toward her.
Wang Haoran had already sensed the response and felt sure of his earlier judgment. He didnât think he entered the wrong room.
ăDing! Host has successfully taken the female lead Tantai Yaoyue for the first time. Youâve gained 12,000 Villain Points. Tantai Yaoyueâs Female Lead Halo -600. Qin Fanâs Protagonist Halo -600. Hostâs Villain Halo +1,200!ă
But no sooner had it begun, Wang Haoranâs heart started to pound with unease.
At first, he believed everything was going according to plan. But halfway through, the nagging suspicion struckâsomething was wrong. Very wrong.
The woman beneath him hadnât made a sound, and that silence was starting to feel unnatural. No matter how silent someone tried to be, there would always be clues in their breathing, their reaction, their voice. And Wang Haoran wasnât deafâhe could tell the difference between voices.
He could tell this wasnât Weiwei.
But could he stop now? Back out halfway?
Of course not. A villainâs path was one of commitment.
He already made a mistake. Whether it was a small one or a massive one, the fact remainedâit was done, and so no turning back now.
Still, his heart clenched at the consequences.
Qin Fan was a walking cheat code of a protagonist, with sky-high combat power. And Tantai Yaoyue was no pushover either. If she refused to suffer in silence and this whole thing reached Qin Fanâs ears, Wang Haoran could kiss his life goodbye.
Is this where his glorious villain career ends? Brought down not by some epic clash, but by a nighttime blunder?
No. He refused to accept that.
His mind spun at full speed, desperately searching for a way to salvage the situation.
But the woman next to him didnât give him much time to think.
âWho⊠who are you?â her voice cut through the darkness at last, deliberately dazed and uncertain.
Wang Haoran almost rolled his eyes. She was obviously acting. Trying to save face by pretending ignorance.
He had no choice but to play along. âWeiwei?â
âIâm not Weiwei,â Tantai Yaoyue replied coldly, a layer of anger hidden in her tone. Most of it was for show, but there was some genuine frustration underneath.
She was happyâbut also furious.
Her younger sister might be used to this kind of thing, but she certainly wasnât.
This bastardâŠ
She wanted to punch him. Really, she did. But when it came down to it, she couldnât bring herself to hurt him.
âWait⊠youâre⊠youâreâŠâ Wang Haoran feigned horror, dragging out the suspense as if he had just uncovered an unspeakable truth. âYouâre big sister?!!â
Then, without missing a beat, he launched into a performance filled with regret and anguish. âWhy didnât you say something earlier?!â
Tantai Yaoyue was momentarily choked with emotion, caught between guilt and shame.
Yes, this situation could have been avoided entirely if she had just said something. But she believed in her masterâs calculation, in that prophecy of fate.
A chance like thisâonce missed, it might never come again.
Still, she couldnât just admit that, could she?
âI⊠I thought I was dreaming,â she murmured, offering an excuse that was almost comically implausible. But it was enough to cover the awkwardness, if only barely.
Before he could question it, she pressed on with a cold edge to her voice.
âWhatâs done is done. Now, there must be a solution. So, do you want to liveâor do you want to die?â
The words werenât a simple question. They were a threat.
Wang Haoran immediately understood what she meant. If he chose to live, heâd have to accept full responsibility. Heâd be forced to apologize, to beg for forgiveness, maybe even explain everything to Qiu Qianwei in painful detail.
Meanwhile, Tantai Yaoyue would emerge unscathed. The victim. The dignified elder sister who had been wronged but chose forgiveness over vengeance.
She could go to Qiu Qianwei later and say something like,
Seventh Sister, I spared your boyfriend for the sake of our sisterhood.
The unspoken meaning would be clear:
You know what you should do now, donât you?
With guilt gnawing at her and deep respect for her elder sister, Qiu Qianwei might just surrender her place in Wang Haoranâs heart altogether.
Such a clean strategy. As expected of the goddess-like eldest sister, her schemes were flawless. But if it really played out that way, Wang Haoran knew he would be doomed.
Choosing to live meant becoming Qin Fanâs enemy and stepping straight into a bigger storm. Once he starts asking questions about Tantai Yaoyueâs romantic situation, there was no way she could hide the truth from a master she respected that much.
At that point, Wang Haoran can only await his death.
Unless⊠Unless he chose to die.
Because in death, there was a chance for rebirth.
He understood one thing clearly: Tantai Yaoyue would never really kill him.
So what was there to be afraid of? If he was going to bet, might as well bet big.
âIâm sorry. Iâm sorry⊠I never imagined things would spiral like this. Itâs all my fault. Please⊠kill me. Only death can pay for my sin.â
His voice came low and hoarse from the darkness, laced with self-reproach and bitter regret. A soft thud followed, the sound of him slapping himself, then anotherâhis fist pounding his chest.
Tantai Yaoyue was smiling just a moment ago, smug and pleased with herself for pulling off her plan.
But as she heard his voice, and the genuine remorse behind it, her smile froze on her lips.