The Heartthrob Halo Doesn't Work on the Villain - Chapter 3

Aside from rescuing Lou Yubing from that group of people a week ago, Lin Yan had made no further moves toward her in the days since. No conversation, no interaction—her detached demeanor struck 555 as sheer negligence, a complete abandonment of her duties.

Finally, on the Friday morning exactly one week later, Lin Yan, who had just slumped onto her desk and drifted into a deep sleep, was jolted awake by an electric shock.

Yes, a literal electric shock.

The other students in the classroom, who were engaged in morning reading, were startled by Lin Yan’s convulsive jerking in her seat. Lou Yubing glanced over, then stood up, moved her chair slightly away, and sat back down.

As the others debated whether to take Lin Yan to the School Infirmary, they noticed sweat beading on her forehead. With a strained smile, she waved them off, yet inexplicably gritted her teeth.

“No need, thank you. I just had a nightmare and got a little scared.”

Her explanation made sense, and the others dispersed. With that matter resolved, Lin Yan turned her simmering anger toward the entity residing within her wristband.

“555, were you behind this?”

As Overseer System 555 of the Temporal Bureau, its purpose was to answer questions. When Lin Yan asked, it replied earnestly:

This is a common disciplinary measure used by the Temporal Bureau to punish Missioners. When the System detects a prolonged absence of proactive efforts from the Host toward completing their mission, it automatically initiates disciplinary action.

Though the System mentioned “automatically,” Lin Yan scoffed.

“You have the authority to control these ‘disciplinary’ actions.”

It wasn’t a question, but a statement.

As soon as she spoke, Lin Yan clearly sensed that the voice only she could hear didn’t respond immediately, instead falling silent for an unusually long time.

Yes.

“So, you deliberately triggered this ‘punishment’ just now, didn’t you?”

Over the past few days, this self-proclaimed System had repeatedly urged her to accelerate her mission progress. At first, Lin Yan hadn’t thought much of it. But as these urgings grew more frequent, she began to sense something was amiss.

If the mission failed, she should be the one panicking, after all, the System had previously told her that failure would result in her annihilation across the Three Thousand Worlds. Yet Lin Yan hadn’t given much thought to the consequences for this so-called System if the mission failed.

In her original world, Lin Yan had been a businesswoman. Among merchants, the most crucial principle was always a fair exchange. Now that she had revealed her needs, it would be unacceptable if the other party was still concealing something.

When she posed her question, she received the answer she had already anticipated.

Yes.

“Technically, we’re work partners now. But you seem far more anxious about this mission than I, the Missioner, am. Can you tell me why?”

Lin Yan hadn’t expected to get the answer she wanted so easily. But after a moment of silence, she heard an inexplicable electrical hum, and warning symbols flashed across her wristband. Time around her froze, just as it had before.

Beep—Forced disconnection from the Main Terminal. Danger…

This had never happened before. Lin Yan frowned, but the strange noises vanished in the next instant.

I do have other plans.

Lin Yan finally understood who had orchestrated the earlier scene, but she remained silent, listening quietly as 555 finished speaking.

After what felt like an eternity, Lin Yan learned everything 555 knew about the Temporal Bureau. The more she heard, the more horrified she became. Only then did it reveal its complete understanding of this Small World.

Before you, nine other Missioners entered this world, and none of them succeeded in completing their missions. In fact, their interference only accelerated the collapse of the world’s order. After that, neither the Missioners nor their Systems were ever heard from again.

“Didn’t you mention earlier that Missioners would be annihilated upon mission failure?”

That was merely a conclusion I drew from analyzing all the Temporal Bureau’s mission records. According to past cases, if a mission succeeds, the Missioner is teleported back to the Bureau, their memories erased, and then sent to the next mission world, repeating the cycle until they fail, at which point they cease to exist.

Hearing this, Lin Yan lowered her gaze, lost in thought.

“So, when you promised I could stay in this world with a new identity, that was just a lie to buy time?”

No, I was—trying to find a new way.

“If compliance leads to the same outcome, then defiance might be the only way out.”

555 hadn’t expected Lin Yan to say this. Its usually emotionless voice now trembled slightly.

That’s right.

Before this candid exchange, Lin Yan had seen 555 as merely a machine. Now, that perception had blurred.

“If that’s the case, why did you keep urging me to complete the missions assigned by the Temporal Bureau?”

For the Bureau, missions are their means of stabilizing Small Worlds and controlling them. But this world is different. It has suffered too many failures, riddled with flaws and fragile beyond repair. If it collapses again, the Small World will vanish along with the Missioner’s failure. At that point, the Bureau will finally let go…

Hearing these words, Lin Yan thought that if this entity could materialize, she would surely see madness and excitement on its face. Yet, a faint smile tugged at her lips.

“So, you’re having me complete the mission to ensure our future existence in this land, while you’re responsible for deceiving the higher-ups and making them let go.”

The azure light on her wristband suddenly flashed brightly, confirming Lin Yan’s guess. Her expression remained grave.

“But how can I trust you?”

The question seemed both unanswerable and perfectly simple.

You have no choice but to trust me.

The logic was undeniable. Lin Yan chuckled softly, unable to refute it.

“You’re right. According to your explanation, we’re now grasshoppers tied to the same string.”

You’ve also realized that we’re currently beyond surveillance. The longer we remain in this collapsing world, the better I can control the Small World’s primary consciousness, ultimately severing its connection to the Bureau.

Lin Yan nodded in understanding, then, sensing the heavy atmosphere, she quipped, “Now that we’ve all been so frank, I’ll do my best to complete the mission. So next time, no more of those inhumane ‘punishments,’ okay?”

Just thinking about that tingling, numbing pain from earlier made her skin crawl.

555 seemed to take her words to heart. After a moment of silence, it finally responded, Understood. And of course, I’ll do my best to assist you as well.

The two had reached a perfect agreement. With a final “beep,” the negotiation ended, and the sound of students reading aloud filled the air once more.

There’s no specific reason. We simply detected recent signs of Host’s inactivity and used the electric shock to urge you to complete the General Bureau’s assigned tasks promptly.

Everything returned to normal. Lin Yan pressed her lips together, her expression carefully neutral, and played along.

“I was just taking a nap! How does that count as inactivity? Don’t do that so suddenly next time—you’ll scare me to death!”

555 remained silent, but Lin Yan was wide awake. After absorbing such a massive influx of information in such a short time, sleep was now impossible. She turned her head and saw a veritable chasm separating her desk from that of Lou Yubing, the ice queen who could freeze hell itself.

This gap hadn’t been there before she fell asleep, so it must have been created after the sudden incident.

Lin Yan could only chuckle wryly. Most people would have rushed to help in such a situation, but Lou Yubing’s first instinct was to distance herself as far as possible. Their animosity ran deep, to say the least.

Lin Yan hadn’t exactly been idle these past few days. She had simply been preparing for the tragic events that might unfold in six months.

The original owner of this body was truly worthy of being the sole heiress of Hai City’s wealthiest family. When Lin Yan saw the balance in her bank account, she could only sigh at life’s unfairness. The hundreds of millions of yuan that most people could never earn in a lifetime were merely pocket change in her account—liquid assets to be spent at will.

Looking at this wealth, Lin Yan researched the era’s economic systems. If she weren’t bound by her character’s persona, she would have been itching to invest it all.

It had to be said, this body’s physical condition was far inferior to her own. Her mind seemed to be lacking too, often getting stuck when trying to think, which made her abnormally sleepy during the day.

As a result, she had indeed been “neglecting” her primary mission target.

However, she hadn’t completely abandoned the task. After all, she was extremely curious about the so-called All-Encompassing Charm Halo bound to her and wanted to test its effects. Yet, over the past seven days, Lou Yubing’s favorability rating remained stubbornly at -99, while the attitudes of others toward her had improved significantly. She had even received several love letters this week.

According to 555, either Lou Yubing’s hatred for her had already reached its maximum, making it impossible to display with simple numerical data, or… it was because people with strong wills were resistant to the halo’s influence.

As a Missioner, she would have preferred the former explanation. But as an observer, she suspected the latter was more likely.

Lin Yan stroked her chin, turned her head, and inadvertently glanced at Xia Qiyu sitting in the front row. Her thoughts shifted.

“555, as long as the Female Lead doesn’t die, the Small World won’t completely collapse, right?”

Theoretically, yes, but this world is too unstable for me to make accurate predictions.

“Alright, then I’ll just have to prepare for both possibilities.”

Since rescuing Lou Yubing from that group a week ago, Lin Yan hadn’t made any further moves toward her. No conversation, no interaction. To 555, her nonchalant attitude was nothing short of passive-aggressive slacking—she’d completely given up.

Finally, on the Friday morning exactly one week later, Lin Yan, who had just slumped onto her desk and drifted into a deep sleep, was jolted awake by an electric shock.

Yes, an actual electric shock.

The other students in the classroom, who were reading aloud for morning study, were startled by Lin Yan’s violent convulsions in her seat. Lou Yubing glanced over, then stood up, moved her chair slightly away, and sat back down.

As the others debated whether to take Lin Yan to the School Infirmary, they noticed sweat beading on her forehead and a strained smile tugging at her lips. She waved them off, her teeth clenched inexplicably.

“No need, thank you. I just had a nightmare and got a little scared.”

Her explanation made sense, and the others gradually dispersed. With that matter resolved, Lin Yan turned her simmering anger toward the entity residing within her wristband.

“555, were you behind this?”

As Overseer System 555 of the Temporal Bureau, its purpose was to answer questions and provide guidance. When Lin Yan asked, it responded earnestly.

This is a common method the Temporal Bureau uses to discipline Missioners. When the System detects a prolonged period of inactivity from the Host toward completing their mission, it automatically initiates punitive measures.

Though the System mentioned “automatically,” Lin Yan scoffed.

“You have the authority to control these ‘punitive measures.'”

It wasn’t a question, but a statement of fact.

As soon as she spoke, Lin Yan could clearly sense that the voice only she could hear didn’t immediately respond. Instead, there was a long silence.

Yes.

“So, you deliberately triggered the ‘punishment’ just now, didn’t you?”

Over the past few days, this self-proclaimed System had repeatedly urged her to accelerate her mission progress. At first, Lin Yan hadn’t thought much of it, but as the same phrases kept echoing in her ears, she began to sense something was amiss.

If the mission failed, she should be the one panicking, since the System had previously warned her that failure would result in her annihilation across the Three Thousand Worlds. Yet at the time, Lin Yan hadn’t given much thought to the consequences the so-called System would face if the mission failed.

In her original world, Lin Yan had been a businesswoman. Among merchants, the most crucial principle was always a fair exchange. Now that she had revealed her needs, it would be unacceptable if the other party were still concealing something.

When she posed the question, the answer she received confirmed her suspicions.

Yes.

“By my calculations, you and I are now work partners. Yet your urgency regarding this mission far exceeds mine as the Missioner. Can you explain why?”

Lin Yan had expected to struggle to get the answer she wanted. But after a moment of silence, she heard a strange electrical crackling, and her wristband flashed with warning symbols. Time around her froze, just as it had before.

Beep—Forced disconnection from Main Terminal. Danger…

This had never happened before. Lin Yan frowned, but the strange noise vanished the next moment.

I do have other plans.

Lin Yan finally understood who had manipulated the earlier events. She remained silent, listening quietly as 555 finished speaking.

After an unknown amount of time, Lin Yan finally learned everything 555 knew about the Temporal Bureau. The more she heard, the more shocked she became by its hidden complexities. Only then did 555 reveal its complete understanding of this Small World.

Before you, nine other Missioners entered this book world. None of them succeeded in completing their missions; in fact, their interventions only accelerated the collapse of the world’s order. After that, both the Missioners and their Systems vanished without a trace.

“Didn’t you mention before that Missioners would be annihilated if they failed their missions?”

That was merely a conclusion I drew from analyzing all the Temporal Bureau’s mission records. According to past cases, if a mission succeeds, the Missioner is teleported back to the Bureau, their memories erased, and then they are sent to the next mission world, repeating the cycle until they fail and cease to exist.

Hearing this, Lin Yan lowered her gaze, lost in thought.

“So, when you promised I could stay in this world with a new identity, it was just a lie to stall for time?”

No, I was—trying to find a new way.

“If compliance leads to the same outcome, then defiance might be the only way out.”

555 hadn’t expected Lin Yan to say this. Its usually emotionless voice now trembled slightly.

That’s right.

Before this candid exchange, Lin Yan had seen 555 as nothing more than a machine. Now, that perception was blurring.

“If that’s the case, why did you keep urging me to complete the Temporal Bureau’s missions?”

For the Bureau, missions are their means of stabilizing and controlling the Small Worlds. But this world is different. It has endured too many failures, riddled with flaws and fragile beyond repair. If it collapses again, the Small World will vanish along with the Missioner’s failure. At that point, the Bureau will abandon it…

Hearing these words, Lin Yan thought that if this entity could materialize, she would surely see madness and excitement on its face. Yet, a faint smile tugged at her lips.

“So, you’re having me complete the mission to ensure our future existence in this world, while you’re responsible for deceiving the Bureau and making them let go.”

The azure light on her wristband suddenly flared brilliantly, confirming Lin Yan’s guess. Yet her expression remained grave.

“But how can I trust you?”

The question seemed both unanswerable and perfectly straightforward.

You have no choice but to trust me.

The logic was undeniable. Lin Yan chuckled softly, unable to refute it.

“True enough. By your logic, we’re both grasshoppers tied to the same string.”

You’ve also realized that we’re currently beyond the Bureau’s surveillance. The longer we remain in this collapsing world, the better I can control the Small World’s core consciousness, ultimately severing its connection to the Bureau.

Lin Yan nodded in understanding. Sensing the atmosphere growing too heavy, she quipped,

“Now that we’ve all been honest with each other, I’ll do my best to complete my missions. So, next time, please refrain from using such inhumane ‘disciplinary’ methods.”

Recalling the stinging, numbing pain she had just experienced, Lin Yan still felt her hair stand on end.

555 seemed to have taken her words to heart. After a moment of silence, it finally replied.

Understood.

Of course, I’ll also do my best to assist you.

The two had reached what seemed like a perfect agreement. With a final “beep,” the negotiation concluded, and the sound of students reciting their lessons filled the air once more.

There’s no specific reason. We simply detected recent signs of Host’s inactivity and used the electric shock to urge Host to complete the missions issued by the General Bureau as quickly as possible.

Everything returned to normal. Lin Yan pressed her lips into a thin line, her expression betraying nothing as she played along.

“I was just taking a short nap. How does that count as inactivity? Next time, don’t be so sudden—you’ll scare me to death.”

555 remained silent. But now that Lin Yan was awake and had absorbed such a massive amount of information in such a short time, she couldn’t possibly fall back asleep. Turning her head, she realized that a veritable chasm separated her desk from that of the heartless ice block who could freeze people to death without a second thought.

It hadn’t been there before she went to bed, so it must have been moved after the sudden incident.

Lin Yan could only chuckle wryly at this realization. Most people would have rushed to help in such a situation, but Lou Yubing’s first instinct was to avoid it at all costs. To say the least, their animosity ran deep.

In truth, Lin Yan hadn’t been idle these past few days. She had simply been preparing for the tragic events that might unfold in six months.

The original owner of this body truly lived up to her status as the only daughter of Hai City’s wealthiest man. When Lin Yan saw the balance in her bank account, she could only sigh at life’s unfairness. The hundreds of millions of yuan that most people could never earn in a lifetime were merely pocket change in her account—liquid assets to be spent at will.

Looking at the money, Lin Yan researched the era’s economic systems. If she weren’t bound by her character’s persona, she would have been itching to invest it all.

However, she had to admit that this body’s physical condition was far inferior to her own. Her mind seemed sluggish, often getting stuck while processing thoughts, which made her abnormally drowsy during the day.

This approach had indeed “neglected” her primary mission target.

However, she hadn’t completely abandoned her. After all, she was deeply curious about the so-called All-Encompassing Charm Halo bound to her and wanted to test its effects. Yet, over the past seven days, Lou Yubing’s favorability rating remained stubbornly fixed at -99, while the attitudes of others toward her had improved significantly. She had even received several love letters this week.

According to 555, either Lou Yubing’s hatred for her had already reached its maximum limit, making it impossible to display further on the data, or… it was because people with strong wills were highly resistant to the halo’s influence.

As a Missioner, she would have preferred the former explanation. But as an observer, she suspected the latter was more likely.

Lin Yan stroked her chin, then turned her head, inadvertently catching sight of Xia Qiyu sitting in the front row. Her thoughts shifted.

“555, as long as the Female Lead doesn’t die, the Small World won’t completely collapse, right?”

Theoretically, that’s correct. However, this world is extremely unstable, so I can’t make any guarantees.

“Alright, then I’ll just have to prepare for both possibilities.”