"Sheng Nian, what game are you playing now? Don't think pretending to be sick will make me go soft on you!"
Sheng Nian had only just come to his senses from the suffocating darkness when he heard an impatient male voice.
"Can you stop being so unreasonable? If this happens again, I won't waste my time coming to see you. That's all I have to say. You're on your own."
Only then did Sheng Nian lift his head from his thoughts and look at the male alpha sitting beside his hospital bed.
His name was Jiang Shu, and he was this world's male lead.
And according to the plot that had awakened in his mind while he was unconscious, Sheng Nian himself was the foil to the innocent little flower in a melodramatic entertainment-industry novel with two male leads-the vicious supporting character, Sheng Nian.
The plot in his head and that bizarre electronic voice had stunned him. Before he could even process his situation, someone had already pointed a finger in his face and given him a dressing-down.
Meanwhile, the male omega beside Jiang Shu, quietly urging him to be nicer, was this world's other male lead, He Gu.
Sheng Nian and Jiang Shu had been childhood friends. After they grew up, Jiang Shu differentiated into an alpha, while Sheng Nian differentiated into an omega, just as he had wished.
The adults in both families felt that the two had an innocent childhood bond, came from equally well-off backgrounds, and had quite compatible pheromones, so they arranged an engagement once both reached adulthood.
Barring any surprises, the normal course of events would have seen them marry and have children.
But by chance, at Sheng Nian's nineteenth birthday banquet, the male lead, Jiang Shu, encountered a delicate, pure, innocent little flower from a troubled family background who nevertheless strove tirelessly to better himself. He was the book's other male lead, He Gu. From then on, the three began a tangled, melodramatic romance full of suffering.
As the novel's biggest villain, Sheng Nian repeatedly used his family background to make trouble for He Gu. Framing him, paying for smear pieces, stealing his opportunities... he did every bad thing he could, and his methods were particularly brainless. Not only did he fail to hurt He Gu in the slightest, but He Gu also struck back through all kinds of means.
With Sheng Nian as his foil, He Gu became synonymous in the entertainment industry with a beautiful, strong, tragic innocent. He shot to fame across the internet, and he and Jiang Shu became the nation's favorite couple, shipped by everyone online.
Meanwhile, after Sheng Nian's repeated schemes, Jiang Shu became utterly fed up and flew into a rage for his beloved. Taking advantage of Sheng Nian's trust in him, he engineered a casting-couch scandal involving Sheng Nian, then brought down the Sheng Family using business secrets he had stolen from the original Sheng Nian.
In the end, the Sheng Family went bankrupt. His father suffered a fatal heart attack in his fury, his daddy could not withstand the blow and suffered a mental breakdown before slitting his wrists, and his older brother was imprisoned over the company's crisis. Sheng Nian himself, left dazed after the destruction of his family, finally jumped from a high-rise, ending his miserable life.
Having reviewed the plot, Sheng Nian had only one thing to say: "What a fucking life!"
He was already annoyed when he heard He Gu's voice beside him. "Ah-Shu, don't talk to Xiao Nian like that. It's all my fault. I shouldn't have joined the same variety show as you two. Xiao Nian just, just..."
As he spoke, he lowered his head, ever so casually revealing his slender, fair neck and the gland covered by a suppressor patch.
Sheng Nian: "..." You fake-ass innocent. Your neck's already been bitten, hasn't it? Why are you playing pure here?
"Xiao Gu, don't defend him. You think I don't know his tricks? How many times has he bullied you already? Uncle Sheng and Auntie Sheng have spoiled him rotten!"
As Jiang Shu spoke, his gaze at Sheng Nian grew even more impatient.
"Sheng Nian, apologize to Xiao Gu already!"
Watching the two put on their show, Sheng Nian even had the leisure to pick up a snow pear from the bowl of washed fruit and take a bite. Honestly, it was pretty sweet.
[Because the Main God System detected signs of collapse in this small world due to a supporting character awakening and turning dark, it specially dispatched me, the 01100 System, to assist.] [Following precise calculations by the system, we recommend that the host win over the male lead...]
Before 01100 could finish, Sheng Nian flatly refused in his mind. "No!"
[Win over the top male lead and become the bottom male lead, and you'll receive the top male lead's exclusive love~]
Sheng Nian: "Blech!"
"What's worth fighting over about some scumbag's love? If He Gu wants it, let him have it."
[The top male lead is merely an alpha chauvinist with a bit of toxic straight-alpha syndrome. He's wavering at this stage, but he still has affection for you. Once you win him over, you'll get a devoted puppy of a man~]
01100 continued tempting him.
Sheng Nian: "Wow~ What a wonderful reward~"
Just as 01100 thought things were looking promising, Sheng Nian's expression changed, his mental state ahead of its time. "Then this world might as well be destroyed. If everyone dies together, at least we won't be lonely."
01100: [...] [Ding... Congratulations to the host for unlocking the supporting male character's self-rescue route. Want to escape your predetermined gruesome death and resist the plot's influence? Come to the 01100 System! We have everything you want. Not 18,888, not 8,888, just 998...]
Sheng Nian: "..." What the hell? Why does this sound like a clearance-sale ad? Is this system actually reliable? This isn't some new kind of scam, is it?
As the 01100 System kept playing "Good Luck Comes" in his head, a vein throbbed violently at Sheng Nian's temple. "Get to the point!"
The goofy mechanical voice froze. [Uh... each time you resist the original novel's predetermined plot, you'll unlock a certain amount of supporting male character self-rescue progress and receive a certain number of System Coins, changing your fate in the original novel. Once your progress reaches a certain point, you can also unlock the System Shop, with plenty of products and plenty of deals~ Do your best, host!]
Sheng Nian: "..."
"Do you systems get a cut when hosts buy things from the System Shop? You're awfully dedicated to promoting it."
01100: [Oh dear, you caught me, host~ How embarrassing~ In that case, please give 01100's sales performance plenty of support. Xiao Ling's electronic potato chips are counting on you~]
After listening to him talk for ages without getting to the point, Sheng Nian asked outright, "What does resisting the main plot mean? What counts as resisting it, and how far do I have to go?"
01100: [The host will need to explore that independently~ Oh, and a friendly reminder: please don't act OOC during this period, host, or something unexpected will happen~]
Sheng Nian: "You don't know anything. What use are you?"
01100: [Boohoo~ How could you say that about Xiao Ling!]
Sheng Nian took a bite of his pear. "Then give me a cheat."
[Sorry, Xiao Ling doesn't have the authorization for that~]
"I don't care. Then how about we all go down together..."
[...] [Xiao Ling is applying to the Main God for cheat assistance on the host's behalf. Please check back later for details and wait patiently...]
While Sheng Nian bargained with System 01100, Jiang Shu frowned when he saw that Sheng Nian had neither spoken for so long nor apologized to He Gu.
"Sheng Nian, I told you to apologize to Xiao Gu!"
His face darkened. He was clearly very impatient by now.
He Gu was still fanning the flames beside him. "Ah-Shu, it's fine. Xiao Nian might really have fainted. He wasn't trying to frame me. You've misunderstood."
"Xiao Gu, you're still defending him! The doctor already said there's nothing wrong with him. He was just pretending to faint to frame you. How did he become like this? No, I'm making him apologize to you today." Jiang Shu was adamant.
Before you continue