Chapter 9
Hurry!
Host, you should be worried!
It had held it in all night. By morning, watching its host wash up at an unhurried pace, it finally couldn't take it anymore.
[Host, there are only ten minutes left! If you don't go now, we don't have any energy at all, and your mission will fail completely. You'll die!]
Qin You said, [Don't worry.]
[...] The system was so anxious that it felt as if its chip might explode!
Five minutes.
Three minutes.
One minute...
Qin You looked at the countdown the system had enlarged on the panel and sighed inwardly.
Having come this far, it would indeed be a shame for the mission to fail like this.
With that thought, he turned and went out. He stopped at the door next door, paused, and raised a hand to knock softly.
[...Host,] the system said, watching the countdown with its heart in its throat, [isn't this a bad time to be so polite? We're running out of time!]
"Come in."
Qin You pushed open the door and found the target in the study, just as expected. "Morning."
[Final ten-second countdown. Ten, nine—]
Seeing him, Yan Tingshen also gave a slight nod. "Morning."
Qin You walked behind the desk. "Let's eat first. I'll go downstairs with you."
[Eight! Seven!]
Yan Tingshen said, "Mm."
After two training sessions, he had grown accustomed to Qin You's occasional assistance. When he finished speaking, he raised a hand and placed it on Qin You's half-raised right arm.
He was about to use it to push himself up when the arm beneath his palm suddenly moved, seemingly turning to support his forearm—
Their movements crossed. Yan Tingshen frowned and tipped slightly backward.
"Hm?"
He heard Qin You sound surprised, but as Qin You stepped forward, his knee pressed against the side of Yan Tingshen's leg, tugging at sensitive nerves and making it even harder for him to keep his balance.
"Careful."
As he spoke, Qin You bent down and scooped Yan Tingshen up.
His right hand pressed against the small of Yan Tingshen's back. Lowering his eyes to Yan Tingshen's unguarded expression, he moved a fraction lower amid their entangled movements.
[Three, two—]
Their mingled breaths drew close in an instant.
Qin You hesitated no longer and gently kissed Yan Tingshen on the lips.
Chapter 9
[One!!]
Before the system's excited voice had faded, the fleeting kiss was already over.
The body in his arms went taut and rigid. Qin You also made a show of pulling back, his gaze sweeping over Yan Tingshen's tightly pressed lips before returning to his eyes.
Those ink-dark eyes, which had remained utterly unruffled even after a car accident, had briefly frozen in surprise and were now clouded with deep emotion.
But the faint anger in them gave that perpetually calm face a touch of life, making it seem less cold.
Qin You betrayed nothing and spoke with concern. "How did you lose your balance? Did your injury flare up again? Are you all right?"
Yan Tingshen retreated to the desk. Hearing that, he unconsciously pressed his hand harder against its surface, but said only, "I'm fine."
Though the warmth of the other person's body had long since withdrawn, traces of the force that had held his back firmly in place remained.
The unfamiliar softness on his lips also seemed to linger, spreading again and again, so light it itched.
But this accident was much the same as the last.
It was only that Qin You had reacted faster last time. This time, he had been a step slower and hadn't managed to avoid it.
Ultimately, it was just a coincidence. He hadn't reacted last time, so changing his attitude this time would be too deliberate.
Glancing over, Yan Tingshen saw that Qin You had also taken a step back, as if anxious to get away. His five fingers tightened again. He withdrew his gaze and headed out the door first.
Qin You watched his retreating figure.
He hadn't expected the target to be so understanding, putting it behind him so easily.
[See, host? How simple was that? One kiss and you passed—huh?]
The system was still happy, but halfway through celebrating, it said in puzzlement, [Something's wrong. The favorability hasn't gone up, and no energy has been credited to our space either. What's going on?]
It opened the mission list, and the moment it saw the details, it drew a sharp breath, nearly frightened into crashing.
[It's over...] The system's joy turned to sorrow, its voice filled with despair. [Host, the mission failed. Now everything's over...]
Qin You stopped. [The mission failed?]
[It's all your fault, host! I told you ages ago to kiss the target earlier and give him a few more kisses, but you just had to wait until the last second and only brush against him once. Does that count as a kiss? That was clearly just a touch!!]
Having given up all hope, the system began pouring out its grievances. [And you cut it so close there wasn't the slightest margin for error. It must be because one kiss wasn't enough, so the mission progress wasn't complete, and there wasn't time to make up for it. That's why the mission failed...]
It projected the panel, which displayed the result in black and white.
Emergency Contingency Mission [Failed]
The word "Failed" was bright red. There was no mistaking it.
The system remembered that they would be separated and began bidding a mournful farewell again. [Host, goodbye forever, boo-hoo...]
Qin You frowned, glanced at Yan Tingshen ahead of him, and asked it, [With the mission failed, how much longer can I stay?]
[Huh? Stay?] The system suddenly came to its senses. [That's right! When the mission fails, our energy is deducted into the negatives, and your body should die immediately, host. How are you still here? No, no, this isn't right!]
Qin You had already given up hope that it could be relied on. [So the emergency mission didn't need to be completed?]
[How could that be, host?!] The system was equally baffled. [Apart from having enough energy, the only way to offset the penalty for failing the mission would be a breakthrough in the main quest's progress. But we haven't triggered a single important plot point, and we haven't even caught a glimpse of the real main quest. Where would a breakthrough have come from?]
Qin You said, [You don't have a way to find out?]
The system hesitated. [There is one way. A host can apply to the Main System through their system, and not only receive one-time access to check the main quest's progress, but also see the details of that progress. But host, this application is very precious. Each host only gets one chance per world...]
Qin You said, [Apply.]
The system tried to persuade him again. [Host, the fact that we can stay means we're safe now. This chance might come in handy later. Do you really want to use it now?]
Qin You said, [Use it.]
Since there had been enough progress on the main quest to offset the failure penalty, used properly, this access could open another path for him.
[...] The system couldn't prevail over its host, so it could only obey. [All right. I've applied to the Main System for access.]
Qin You accompanied Yan Tingshen downstairs to the dining room, and a notification sounded.
[Access granted.]
The system hurriedly opened the panel, ready to record the information for its host in real time.
But what its host wanted to know was presented succinctly and clearly at a glance.
Main quest progress: 0.6% Protagonist's romantic progress: 0.6%
A precious use of access had been traded for two lines of data that could be read at a glance. The system's heart bled. [...Host, the access has been used up.]
Qin You said, [The protagonist's romantic progress is the same as the main quest progress?]
The system said, [Yes.]
Qin You's brows shifted slightly. [The relationship between those two can progress without me appearing. Are you sure this mission needs outside help?]
[Oh, oh, oh, host, you've misunderstood!]
The system hurriedly explained, [The protagonist in the main quest refers to the male lead gong, Yan Tingshen, alone, not the male lead gong and shou!]
Qin You raised a brow, sensing something odd. [I haven't done Yan Tingshen's mission. Why is there romantic progress for him?]
[Oh, host, you've misunderstood again!]
The system continued explaining. [You see, romantic progress and favorability are different. Mission favorability is unique: it refers to how favorably the mission target views the host. But that doesn't mean the target has any special feelings for the host; it's just preparation for getting through the official plot smoothly. Romantic progress refers to special feelings, but it isn't unique.]
At this point, it tried to give an example. [For instance, you humans can like many people at once and have different levels of romantic progress with different people. The mission takes the highest value, regardless of who it's with. Of course, the target selected by the system is definitely the best choice!]
In other words, fluctuations in the protagonist's feelings weren't necessarily strongly connected to the mission.
Qin You's thoughts turned. [Exactly when did the progress make its breakthrough?]
The system answered honestly, [I don't know. The main quest progress record hasn't been generated yet.]
Having said that, it ventured a guess. [Maybe it was sometime in the last few days. Host, you brought the target home to live with you and have been so good to him. When they were in contact, the target must have praised you to the skies in front of the protagonist. On the surface, the protagonist acted dismissive, but before he knew it, he was getting jealous—]
[...] Qin You said, [All right, stop making things up.]
The system said, aggrieved, [Okay...]
Qin You voiced his question. [Since all we need to do is increase the protagonist's romantic progress, why was Pei Sheng chosen as the mission target?]
[Because the protagonist is completely hard-hearted! He never fell for anyone in the original plot. He's ultimate difficulty; it wouldn't succeed...]
The system backed up its argument. [Look, host, the breakthrough in the protagonist's progress was only 0.6 percent—not even one percent! Now look at our target. His favorability rose a full ten percent from just one plot-point mission. The contrast in difficulty is brutal!]
0.6%
10%
Placed side by side, the two figures made the contrast obvious.
Qin You promptly gave up on the shortcut of skipping the mission and going straight for the main quest.
Compared with the protagonist, the target was clearly easier to approach.
Besides, if he was going to pursue a man, choosing someone he found pleasing to the eye and treating him as a friend was better than putting on a false front with someone he found unpleasant.
[Also, the target and the protagonist are childhood sweethearts. In the original story, he had the best chance of breaking through the protagonist's psychological defenses. So once you help him awaken his feelings, host, he can go win over the protagonist!]
Having said that, the system buttered its host up a little. [Hehe, most importantly, you're the key, host! You intervened in just one mission, and the main quest already made progress! And who'd have thought this mission would be so simple? With you on the job, won't the completion reward be as good as ours?]