The Heartthrob Halo Doesn't Work on the Villain - Chapter 1

As one of the many ordinary people in this society, Lin Yan worked tirelessly from nine to infinity, day in and day out. In her rare moments of leisure, she enjoyed reading novels, finding her heart warmed by the sweet interactions between the female characters.

Just like any other day, after returning home exhausted from work, Lin Yan opened a certain green app, ready to browse for new books. She clicked on an ABO novel, but before she could even finish a few chapters, she drifted off to sleep.

In her hazy consciousness, she felt someone calling her name, and her head throbbed dully. When she finally managed to open her eyes, she found herself in a completely unfamiliar setting.

Ding! Most Popular System 555 successfully bound.

Ignoring the strange voice, Lin Yan glanced around. It was clearly a high school classroom, and the person at the podium was persistently calling her name.

This must be a dream… a nightmare, at that.

Lin Yan swallowed hard, mentally reviewing several methods to quickly wake herself up. In the end, she decided on a swift solution: she slapped herself twice.

After two slaps, her face was only slightly swollen, and the scene before her remained completely unchanged.

Perhaps I didn’t hit myself hard enough? As Lin Yan prepared to slap herself again, the students who had been stunned at the front of the classroom and the mysterious bracelet on her wrist simultaneously spoke up to stop her.

Please cease self-harming behavior, Host.

“Lin Yan, if you can’t answer the question, just sit down and listen attentively. You can’t threaten the teacher with self-harm.”

The fact that she had forced the rigid old scholar at the podium to say such a thing sent the entire class into uproarious laughter.

Lin Yan could vaguely understand what they were laughing at, but she couldn’t bring herself to smile, feeling more like crying.

Someone explain what’s going on here!

Just as she thought this, the transparent bracelet on her wrist suddenly lit up. The world seemed to freeze in place—the rustling of pages, the teacher’s lecture, even the scribbling of notes all stopped. Then, the strange voice she had heard twice before spoke again.

Welcome, Host, to Book World #10001. As your exclusive Most Popular System 555, I will assist you in completing the Small World missions for the foreseeable future.

Hearing this strange entity spout a string of incomprehensible words, Lin Yan remained silent. But one thing was now crystal clear: she had transmigrated.

After reading novels for so many years, Lin Yan never imagined such a thing would happen to her. Yet, hidden within those words were indeed some crucial keywords.

“All-Enchanting Halo?”

Considering the difficulty of the Host completing the mission alone, I will bind you to the All-Enchanting Halo. With this halo, the favorability of those around you will gradually increase, their guard will lower, and it will be easier to complete the mission.

That sounded promising.

But since her arrival, this self-proclaimed System had mentioned “mission” countless times.

“What exactly is this mission you keep talking about?”

Now that Lin Yan had asked, 555 gave her a brief overview of the Small World’s basic information and the mission she needed to complete.

This Small World differed from Lin Yan’s Original World in several ways. Beyond the differences in primary sexual characteristics, people here developed secondary sexual characteristics at a specific time after reaching adulthood, differentiating into three types: Alpha, Omega, and Beta.

The female lead of this Small World was named Xia Qiyu. She grew up in an orphanage and was later adopted by a childless teacher couple. The main plotline follows Xia Qiyu’s journey from childhood to adulthood, working diligently and studying hard. After graduating from junior high with a scholarship, she attended Hai City First High School, where she was classmates with another female lead for three years. She eventually gained admission to Capital University and was discovered by a talent scout. After struggling in the entertainment industry for several years, she established her own private studio, which grew into a major success. On the night she won the Triple Gold Best Actress award, she announced her relationship. Despite facing numerous setbacks along the way, she ultimately achieved both romantic and professional success in an inspiring love story.

This seemingly perfect narrative was shattered by the sudden emergence of the world’s greatest villain, Lou Yubing. Due to the Small World’s instability, this supporting character, who should have been written out midway through the plotline, inexplicably remained. In the end, the female lead’s company went bankrupt, her acting career collapsed completely, and she jumped from the 28th floor. Even her family and friends fell victim to Lou Yubing’s machinations.

The host’s mission is to ensure the female lead follows her designated plotline, prevent the main villain’s excessive darkening from disrupting the world, and ultimately achieve the small world’s original ending.

“Hiss—”

This plotline bore a striking resemblance to the novel Lin Yan had been reading before bed. She had often wondered if the other end of such stories might lead to a parallel world, and now she was actually witnessing it firsthand.

“Is that all?”

Secretly, Lin Yan had hoped this seemingly unreliable System would provide a detailed script, allowing her to study it thoroughly. Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated. But reality was far more skeletal than her idealistic expectations.

That’s all for the basic plot. Detailed information will be transmitted to the host shortly. Main plot points can only be unlocked in advance by encountering plot-relevant characters. Please hurry, host, and focus on redeeming the villain while maintaining a normal level of darkening.

At this, Lin Yan’s lips twitched, and three black lines seemed to materialize on her forehead.

“What happens if I don’t complete the missions?”

After she asked this, the incessant voice suddenly fell silent for a long moment, then switched to an utterly cheerful tone.

Upon review, since the Host’s Spiritual Body in the Original World has already perished, failure in the Small World missions will result in annihilation within the Three Thousand Worlds.

Annihilation? She’d only ever encountered that word in novels.

Wait, she’s dead? How did she die?!

“I… I was just sleeping, wasn’t I?”

According to the Bureau’s Information Database, the Host’s Spiritual Body in the Original World died from sudden cardiac arrest caused by overwork. Cherish life, stay away from 996.

Hearing this, Lin Yan felt a sudden pang of melancholy, though it quickly passed. After all, she had no parents, few friends, and even if she died, only a handful of people would truly grieve.

The real problem was—she hadn’t even spent all the money she’d earned! What a waste!

As Lin Yan was still stewing in frustration, a “ding” sounded in her mind.

Initial plot transmission complete. Plotline integration complete. Small World activated.

The moment these words faded, Lin Yan felt a flood of fragmented information pour into her mind. It wasn’t much, just scattered bits and pieces, and the surrounding sounds began to return.

She glanced at the math formulas scrawled on the blackboard like demonic scribbles, then at the textbook that didn’t seem to be written in Chinese. Immediately, she understood that her counterpart in this world had a brain ill-suited for mathematics.

Lin Yan’s gaze swept sideways. As a self-proclaimed “Face Hound,” she had only caught a glimpse of her deskmate, yet her eyes were already glued to him.

Being deskmates with someone like him must be the luck of three lifetimes, Lin Yan thought, her eyes lingering greedily on the person beside her. His skin was as pale as snow, his eyes like starry rivers, and his fair face resembled flawless jade. His sharply defined jawline, combined with his long, curled lashes fluttering as he read, and his slightly pursed lips, gave off an air of aloofness and unapproachability. He sat ramrod straight, radiating a sense of proud isolation and sharp intensity, exuding the same intense detachment as the “Cold Beauty” archetype from classic tales.

And her own face…

Through the small round mirror propped on her desk, Lin Yan had already noticed that her counterpart in this world looked exactly like her original self—essentially, a ten-year-younger version, retaining a youthful, student-like innocence. With rosy lips and pearly white teeth, she embodied the classic Jiangnan beauty.

Lin Yan had always been quite pleased with her appearance. Initially, she’d worried about needing to adjust to this new world, but it seemed that wouldn’t be necessary.

Noticing Lin Yan’s intense gaze, Lou Yubing turned his head and met her eyes. For some reason, in that single glance, Lin Yan immediately sensed an overwhelming sense of loathing.

At first, she dismissed it as her imagination, but when her deskmate swiftly scribbled a note and passed it to her, she reluctantly averted her gaze.

The clean, slightly torn slip of paper contained only two words:

Are you sick?

Before Lin Yan could even complain about how rude modern high school students had become, the transparent bracelet on her wrist flashed twice.

System detected target. Unlocking middle school plotline. Successfully bound target to Host: Lou Yubing. Loading information…

Key Metrics: Favorability -99, Darkening 0%.

What?! The person she’d been staring at for so long was the future arch-villain who would drive the Female Lead—the one with the All-Enchanting Halo—to such a miserable end!

And a negative favorability score?

Given the murderous look he’d given her earlier, wouldn’t she just drop dead on the street one day…?

Before Lin Yan could dwell further on this, a sudden throbbing pain erupted in her head, and a flood of additional information surged through her mind.

Unknown origins. Grew up in Hai City Orphanage. Due to exceptional academic performance, received sponsorship from the Chairman of the Lin Group. Currently enrolled in Class 1, Grade 11 at Hai City First High School. Possesses a withdrawn and unapproachable personality.

Lin Yan initially paid little attention to this information. But after it had rolled through her mind several times, she suddenly noticed something amiss.

“Chairman of the Lin Group? Could this be related to me?”

Compared to Lin Yan’s shock, 555 remained remarkably calm.

Yes, Host. The identity the Bureau has crafted for you in this world is that of the daughter of Hai City’s current wealthiest man.

“Wealthiest man?”

Lin Yan perked up instantly, her attention laser-focused on those two words. Fortunately, others couldn’t detect her conversations with 555; they would only see her staring blankly into space, or they’d think she was being overly dramatic.

But the next moment, 555 doused her with a bucket of ice water.

Host, please avoid unwarranted optimism. According to the plotline, the Lin Group will declare bankruptcy in six months. Key personnel will be imprisoned, the Lin family’s assets will be seized, and you, burdened by massive debts, will be forced into the red-light district. Therefore, prepare yourself thoroughly to face these challenges.

???

Was this some kind of joke? Expecting a high school student to handle such a monumental crisis?