How a Straight Man Survives in a World of the Supernatural

[You're a new student about to enroll at Lunaria Academy. Before you leave, your older brother asks whether you want to live on campus or commute. What do you say?] A mechanical System voice rings out in his mind, flat and emotionless, with occasional crackling interference that gives anyone who hears it a strange, chilling feeling. Ying Qi looks at the man standing before him, his older brother. The man wears a mature, impeccable suit and has a warm smile on his face, as if he would graciously accept any answer. He stumbles over his words and doesn't answer right away. One second. Two seconds. The mature man's smile suddenly vanishes. Outside the window, thunder cracks through a clear sky. Dark clouds gather, and the world instantly grows dim. Lightning flashes, making the man's stern face look menacing for an instant. "I'll do whatever you think is best, Bro." The boy, normally carefree and rebellious in the throes of adolescence, looks at the man with complete trust, deeply satisfying his older brother's terrifying need for control. The dark clouds outside suddenly disperse, and the sky clears as if nothing unusual had happened. The man resumes his thoughtful big-brother act. His upturned lips show how much he enjoys his little brother's dependence, but he lectures him like a strict parent. "You're an adult now. Why are you still clinging to your brother every day? You should be more independent. Live on campus, then." * [In the woods at Lunaria Academy, you run into your childhood friend. For a long time, he mistook you for a girl, and things got awkward between you after the misunderstanding was cleared up. You catch him flirting with someone he's seeing. Do you march over and loudly demand an explanation, or quietly leave and pretend you saw nothing?] Ying Qi is horrified. He has barely taken a step back when the backpack holding his basketball bumps into the swaying branches. The rustling sound quickly draws his childhood friend's lazy glance. A strong, muscular arm braces against a tree trunk, its bulging muscles enclosing the girl in his arms. The rakish-looking man turns his gaze toward the boy he hasn't seen in ages, raises an eyebrow, and grins. "Oh? It's you. Want to join us?" He narrows his alluring eyes. Every leaf and branch in the woods starts rustling, and a gust of wind rises, nearly strong enough to sweep someone away. Ying Qi tries to keep his footing, but still can't stop himself from stumbling back several steps. Branches whip and lash as if trying to attack him, and one screaming face after another appears on the dark brown tree trunks, like children's doodles: playful, yet somehow eerie. [Looks like something very bad will happen if you don't join them.] The impassive mechanical voice speaks, with a hint of schadenfreude. Ying Qi calmly replies, "No thanks. I like men." His childhood friend's expression falters. He lets the boy walk past him with his backpack slung over one shoulder. A faint, sweet scent drifts into his nose on the breeze. He can't help taking a quiet sniff, his eyes half-lidded as he lingers over it. * [It's pouring, and you don't want to go out, so you curl up on the couch and let the TV news serve as white noise to help you sleep. The broadcast reports that a car accident has occurred in Yongping Residential Complex due to the heavy rain. You suddenly open your eyes, realizing that's near your own home.] [You suddenly remember that your ex-boyfriend, whom you broke up with three months ago, has been lurking around your neighborhood lately. You're fed up with his harassment and stalking. You can't help wondering whether he had something to do with the accident.] Ying Qi is curled up comfortably on the couch, his whole body heavy with sleepiness, when a sudden chill runs down his neck. A large hand that wasn't there a moment ago slides down his neck. Thick liquid drips onto Ying Qi's hair, soaking his soft, fluffy black hair in sticky, blood-red fluid. Ying Qi's eyes fly open as he looks behind the couch. Another figure has appeared in the house, where he should be alone. The familiar face is covered in blood, as if he'd just been in a car accident. It trickles down his cheeks, pattering onto Ying Qi. Goosebumps rise all over his body. The news is still reporting on the horrific accident, but its victim has somehow appeared in his house and is holding him tightly. The man sighs. "Baby, don't you think it's time we got back together..." Reader's Guide: 1. Everyone is a villain. The story has a series of one-on-one pairings, and all pursuers are sexually inexperienced. 2. Includes forum posts. 3. The System mostly just serves to make things even more chaotic (not really). 4. The protagonist grows over time. At first, he's a beautiful, kind, upright straight guy who doesn't know he's beautiful and is a little too nice to everyone. Later, he's forced to use his looks and match wits with a bunch of perverts. 5. More to be added. Coming soon: The Comic's Background Character Is Still Trying to Get Some Panel Time Mu Wenxing has the classic beautiful white hair of a comic-book character, long, slender, pale fingers, and a knack for dazzling card tricks. He's the never-before-seen magician of the Fateful Circus. Just before he dies, everything suddenly seems to pause. A cheerful chime rings in his mind, and the System tells him that he's in a comic-book world. He's also a background member of the villain organization, the kind who's about to be written out as cannon fodder. [That face is incredible. I'll bet a hundred steamed buns this is the old crook showing off his art skills!] [A new character gets killed off just like that? (What?)] [Damn! The white-haired guy's a flop] This is the hottest urban academy comic around. The main cast is a team of four students from the same school for people with supernatural abilities. They end up together through a series of coincidences, grow closer as they learn to work together, and uncover the villain organization's conspiracy. Naturally, the story ends with justice triumphing over evil. Mu Wenxing, on the side of evil, scrolls through the comic's comments and lengthy forum threads. He shares the readers' question: With a face like his, there's no way he's a random character who appears in just one chapter before getting killed off, right? Isn't that a terrible waste? The System says, [Host, make an effort to get close to the main cast. The higher your popularity, the longer you'll survive~ It's a golden opportunity, a sure thing!] Time automatically rewinds to five minutes before Mu Wenxing is killed off. That day, when he encounters the righteous main cast, Mu Wenxing is crouching on the ground with a roaring blaze behind him. The beautiful boy lifts his face. His little face is smudged with dirt, like an expensive cat that's wandered away from home. He blinks at the brown-haired leader and calls, "Big brother?" The brown-haired man's steps falter. Mu Wenxing smoothly puts on a helpless, bewildered expression. His clear pink eyes glisten with tears. "Have you seen my big brother? I can't find him." * Mu Wenxing is brought back to the school for people with supernatural abilities by the main cast. The four leads keep him well fed and cared for, and he grows more and more naive and spoiled. Whenever the main cast goes on a mission, he follows right behind, insisting that he can't miss a single chance to find his big brother. Mu Wenxing's pretty face earns him a surge in popularity, and as the story progresses, his popularity on the comic's forums keeps climbing. Even the casual glimpses of his innocent cruelty are easily rationalized by the readers. [Bad guys should be eliminated completely. Don't call our little Mumu evil! What did Mumu ever do wrong? Letting a tiger return to the mountains is a huge mistake!] [I love this double standard. The aloof cat only shows its soft belly to the main cast, and acts fierce with everyone else] [My poor little sugar cake. He must have suffered so much as a child, that's why it's hard for him to trust people] [Spoiled beauty for the win!! When he does bad things, it's like a kitten deliberately knocking over a glass. I just can't bring myself to blame him, ahhh] Mu Wenxing tilts his head, puzzled. He thinks it over carefully, then comes to a firm conclusion. Oh, so that's what being tsundere means. * On the day they confront the main villain, Mu Wenxing stands among the main cast, well protected. "Haven't you had enough fun?" The main villain, dressed in a black trench coat and radiating a cold, intimidating air, stands opposite them, his tone calm and assured. As soon as he finishes speaking, a sharp knife plunges into flesh with a muffled thud. Mu Wenxing's pale, jade-like fingers, beautiful as a work of art, are stained with blood. He pulls out the knife, spins it in his hand, and it turns into a playing card. Then he steps to the opposite side from the main cast. The lead who's been stabbed keeps spitting up blood. His temple bulges with strain as he stares at Mu Wenxing, now standing beside the main villain. "Come back. Mu Wenxing. Come back!" Mu Wenxing acts as if he doesn't hear him. His eyes shine with adoration as he looks at the main villain, speaking as if to earn praise. "Big brother, I'm back." [What?!] [What?!!] [My cat is actually part of the villain organization?!] [So the big brother he's been searching for is the main villain? He must have had no choice. I've silently imagined a hundred-thousand-word tragic childhood for him TT] [Who could've seen that coming? At least this villain fan finally gets a taste] * Reader's Guide: 1. A series of one-on-one pairings 2. More to be added Theme: People grow and transform through change