Do Virtual NPCs Have to Play Tragic, Beautiful Powerhouses?

Yu Bai, a doll on the verge of being scrapped, was bound to a game system just before his disposal. As long as he plays an NPC in the game and earns the players' affection, he can gain popularity points, repair his missing doll parts, and redeem modules to upgrade his abilities. Yu Bai couldn't help imagining the possibilities. "So all I have to do is find a way to get the players to like me and earn their popularity points?" System: [In theory, yes.] [But this is a respectable game, so put down those books in your hands: How to Sell Your Looks and Lure or Guide Players into Completing Quests Without Leaving a Trace, How to Make the Most Brutal Tragic Plot Twists, and The 1-2-3-4 of Crafting a Beautiful, Strong, and Miserable Character.] The first virtual online game in the world, Abyssheart, had only just launched, but it quickly became a sensation thanks to its stunning character models and its hellishly tragic character stories. The game's planners followed one principle: the more popular an NPC, the more brutally they would kill them off. Players were constantly torn between "I can fix her" and "Please don't let my wife die." The characters who got killed off included, but were not limited to: 1. A sacrificial boy who bore the power of a curse. As the tutorial NPC in the early game, he always soothed and encouraged players with the gentlest words, making him the kindest guide of all. To get the players out of a high-risk evil god dungeon, the boy broke the seal on his curse and stayed alone in the depths of darkness. As shadows slowly consumed him, he continued to gaze at the players with the same gentle eyes. "Live on in my place, and then kill me." Official announcement: [New boss: Corrupted Aberration of the Evil God has arrived. All players, stay alert!] 2. An experimental subject used as an artificial weapon. After cruel genetic experiments robbed him of pain and emotion, he forced himself to keep fighting through his injuries and led the players through the monsters' encirclement. Amid the celebrations, the gravely wounded, near-dead subject went alone into the darkness, awaiting the inevitable loss of control as his genes broke down. "Don't worry about me. Treat me like a tool, just as they did. In the end, set me free." Official announcement: [New boss: The Shattered Test Subject has arrived. All players, stay alert!] 3. A half-corrupted being who carried both human and contaminant bloodlines. Accepted and understood by neither side, he offered simple hidden quests with generous rewards, earning a reputation as the most beloved roaming NPC. The half-corrupted being always led players on world explorations with a sunny smile. Only at the very end did the players discover that those hidden quests were steps in a plan to use the NPC as a vessel for contamination, kill him, and thereby purify the world. Before the corruption consumed him and made him lose control, the young man smiled as he guided the blade in the player's hand through his own chest. "I knew you could make it this far." Official announcement: [New boss: The Corrupted Savior has arrived. All players, stay alert!] Players: [It hurts, it hurts so much! What kind of hellish story makes players kill off a character they love with their own hands?!] The official account, blamed for countless things, fell silent and looked at the doll who was counting his popularity points. Yu Bai quietly locked secret identity number one, the doll curse plugin; secret identity number two, the doll genetic modification plugin; and secret identity number three, the doll contamination plugin, in the wardrobe. He wore an innocent expression. The doll just wants a tiny bit of popularity. What did the doll do wrong? P.S. 1. The main characters in this story are all gen. 2. The doll's appearance and self-identified gender are both male. The secret identities have no independent consciousness and are all played by the doll. 3. The game in the story is the world's first virtual game, set in the transitional period between keyboard-and-mouse games and full-immersion games. 4. Comments are generally unrestricted, but please don't insult characters, pit characters against each other to provoke arguments, or make inflammatory comments by changing the lyrics. 5. Updates are at midnight every night, with the schedule following the rankings. Theme: The world is beautiful. Treasure the present.