You’re Just a Supporting Character, So Why Do You Seem More Like the Lead?

Name: You’re Just a Supporting Character, So Why Do You Seem More Like the Lead?
Author: Grilling Cold Noodles

你一配角，咋比主角还像主角

by Grilling Cold Noodles (烤上了冷面)

Status: Completed
Length: 344k Words
Genre: Mystery
Subgenre: Mystery High-Concept
Updated: 1y ago
English: Request a translation

Read on Fanqie

Synopsis

[No CP] [Mostly Everyday Life, Slow Pace] [Original Anime Setting] [Popular Supporting Character] [On-Screen Comments] [Bilibili System (?)]

Note: The author is a woman writing for a male audience. She is new and her writing could use work. Some parts of the logic haven’t been fully thought through. The male lead isn’t much of a big shot at first, the story builds slowly, and the System doesn’t play a major role.

For the first decade or so of his life, Li Yuan believed that only he and a handful of others knew the truth about the world. The existence of nightmare demons was responsible for most paranormal incidents, but ordinary people couldn’t see them or even knew they existed.

They fed on fear and souls.

On top of that, he was born into a family of ghost tamers that had fought nightmare demons for generations, and whose members were all fated to die young. For a time, he thought of himself as a low-key savior of the world. In a way, he wasn’t wrong.

That was until one day, Li Yuan saw several lines of text float past him:

[The handsome background character is back! There’s definitely something special about him. You can tell from his vibe alone!]

[We’re three episodes in, and I still don’t get it. Why is this anime’s worldbuilding so complicated?]

[That chubby kid in the main cast is hilarious, but the protagonist really is handsome. It’s obvious when you put them side by side.]

So this world of his was actually just the backdrop for a show aimed at teenage boys?

And he was the minor character who led the main cast into the other side of the world, only to get killed off early?!

If he wanted to escape the fate of being killed off by the plot, he had only one option: become more popular with the audience and turn into a fan-favorite character.

Other names

Supporting Character Bigshot: Without Popularity, You Die配角大佬：没有人气就会狗带Alternate title on Fanqie

Stats

167Chapters

2.9kReads · 30 days

348.4kReads · all time

259Shelf adds, last 14 days

8.7Score

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Reader comments 50

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Who understands? The male lead is really like a cold little cat, occasionally getting agitated, super cute, right? He can cook and take care of people, Li Yuan, you're such a wife! The interactions with the shadow are so sweet, the shadow is like a puppy, obedient to its master, and they're even split from the same soul, so he's like another kind of narcissus!
303 likes2y ago
This book is pretty good; I've read up to chapter 135. The author's writing style is about average, around Tomato's level, and it's quite readable. But then again… First, due to the simplistic writing style, the character development is somewhat inconsistent.
192 likes1y ago
This book has many regrets. For example, Xiao Ren's unflattering photos were never used, I didn't witness Xiao Li's further growth, I don't know the story of Qing Li and Xiao Zhe, and we can't see the continuation of the two worlds of Xiao Li and Xiao Ren.
37 likes2y ago
It looks like a good book from the start!! The author didn't say whether there's no female lead, but so far the protagonist hasn't had any ambiguous relationships with any women. However, there are comments shipping Li Yuan (the protagonist) and the original protagonist Ren (well, I'm actually a fan too). I hope it gets lots of updates and becomes a huge hit! This book is really good!
20 likes2y ago
It's very good, really great. Just a small suggestion: the protagonist's system doesn't provide much help. It would be better to add some items that can be exchanged to enhance the protagonist's abilities; otherwise, the lack of money makes the experience a little less satisfying.
19 likes2y ago
The protagonist, Li Yuan, is the perfect character—a gloomy, male ghost, and all that's best. As a mortal, I absolutely love watching this! (ૢ˃ꌂ˂⁎) Xiao Yuan's gloomy temperament and personality are so cool! His interactions with Ying Gui are so cute. They are from the same root and inseparable. He has such a strong sense of loyalty and obedience like a puppy. I'm totally shipping them! (´◊ω◊`)
17 likes1y ago
I hope to see this book rebooted in the future, for Yuanbao, and for this worldview that I find so vast. Rebooting a book is no easy task; it requires constant revisions and changes. Just like how Da Yuan in the book is repeatedly killed by the Heavenly Dao to correct his course—that's cruel. However, I think putting Yuan Bao into a completely unfamiliar world is even crueler.
14 likes1y ago
It's good, but the plot is progressing a bit slowly right now. It's not that the slice-of-life scenes are bad, but I hope Lengmian can fill in the plot holes sooner. Some of the descriptions really give you the feeling of watching anime, and the damp male ghost is awesome, isn't it? But it doesn't seem to fit the character's personality very well right now. The main plot is still unclear, but we can already see a glimpse of it. Anyway, Lengmian, keep it up!
14 likes2y ago
I liked it, but I was drawn in by the fact that even the male cannon fodder in the shonen anime background could see the comments. Author, could you please add more comments? Every time I watch, I forget that Li Yuan has a system that allows him to see comments 🤦
13 likes2y ago
The premise really resonated with me. After finishing it, all I can say is that it's too short, leaving so many plot holes and a lingering sense of unease. The theme is very novel and quite enjoyable. I almost forgot about the live stream at the end, but the later explanations do a good job of explaining why Li Yuan had so much screen time.
12 likes2y ago