Did I Succeed in Redeeming the Villain Today? - Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Lu Ning Realized Instantly that Mu Qiuyu was About to…

The morning rain had washed away the dust in the air, leaving the sunlight entering the room clean and translucent.

Outside the window, a tree branch tapped twice against the glass of the lounge—abrupt and startling—exploding right next to Lu Ning’s “head.”

Mu Qiuyu’s voice wasn’t particularly loud, laced with a harmless hint of a smile.

She had merely tossed out a simple question to Lu Ning, but it instantly caused Lu Ning’s brain to crash.

Easy to fool?

So the vulnerability and fear Mu Qiuyu had displayed in front of Teacher Wang just now were all an act?

She knew that the “crying child gets the candy,” so she made herself look as weak as possible?

Was the fragility Lu Ning saw after coming out of the inner world also fake?

And when she asked Lu Ning to stay by her side… was it really because she was afraid?

Lu Ning’s thoughts spiraled deeper. Considering the attitudes of Teacher Wang and the Principal, she even began to wonder if Mu Qiuyu had stepped into that trap on purpose.

Surely not…

Lu Ning really couldn’t understand why someone would choose to harm themselves just for revenge.

When she read the novel, she only felt heartache for Mu Qiuyu’s unyielding nature beneath her obsession and power. She only remembered such self-harming behavior occurring much later in the original text.

The afternoon sunlight fell brightly across Mu Qiuyu’s face, yet it couldn’t dispel the gloom between her brows.

Lu Ning shivered involuntarily, feeling for a moment that the girl before her didn’t seem seventeen at all.

But if Mu Qiuyu wasn’t seventeen, how old could she be? If this were a “rebirth” scenario or something similar, wouldn’t the Main System have noticed? Perhaps her imagination was running too wild.

This was likely just the latent gene of a “Great Villain”—it showed through even before the official “blackening.” Lu Ning noted that in future missions, she must be careful to guide Mu Qiuyu and prevent her from taking extreme actions.

Lu Ning forced herself to use a calm, pedagogical mindset to analyze the situation, comforting herself against her own frightening theories.

She didn’t notice that the halo on her body was flickering along with her thoughts, while those mocking, smiling eyes watched her for a long time.

Then, Mu Qiuyu stood up from the sofa.

Swish.

The sound of fabric friction echoed in the quiet lounge as something suddenly dropped to the floor.

Lu Ning keenly caught the sound and looked up, only to see Mu Qiuyu stripping off her wet clothes right in front of her. She was left in only a semi-dry white shirt that barely covered her thighs.

The bright spring light intertwined with the shadows of the trees outside, creating a dappled curtain of light. The girl’s legs were exposed boldly within it.

Those legs were long and well-proportioned; the light traced a path from her ankles up her calves, drawing a pale, clean line.

Lu Ning’s gaze went blank for a second. Then she saw Mu Qiuyu reach up and pull off the bow at her collar.

The slender ribbon peeled away from the shirt collar with a faint friction sound, then wound around Mu Qiuyu’s well-defined fingers like a stream of liquid before falling lightly to the floor.

The wind toyed with the partially drawn curtains as if offering a warning.

But Mu Qiuyu didn’t care. She raised her hand and casually unbuttoned her collar. Her collarbone, recently stimulated by cold water, was exposed to the air, showing a faint flush beneath the skin.

The buttons clinching the fabric were flicked open one by one by the girl’s fingers. The shirt was about to lose its purpose as a covering.

Staring at the fair skin being revealed, Lu Ning realized instantly that Mu Qiuyu was about to take off the shirt as well. With a flushed face, she hurriedly turned around.

What is wrong with this Mu Qiuyu? Why is she undressing right in front of me?!

She… she isn’t some emotionless “real” system!

Noticing Lu Ning’s reaction, Mu Qiuyu’s hand paused on a button.

The sunlight filtering through her eyes showed a hint of amusement: This little ball actually knows to avoid looking.

Cherry blossom petals drifted past the window, tinting the indoor light with an extremely pale pink.

Mu Qiuyu looked at the halo on Lu Ning’s body, seemingly seeing something else within it.

“Systems can be shy too?”

Mu Qiuyu unfastened the last button. The shirt slid down her rounded shoulders.

The sound of fabric was interspersed with her voice, sounding calm and rather casual.

“!”

Lu Ning hadn’t expected her secret to be exposed so easily. Her heart rate accelerated further.

She feigned composure, using the system as a shield: “This is an internal regulation. Systems must respect the host’s privacy.”

Hearing this explanation, a smile appeared in Mu Qiuyu’s eyes: “So, the system actually has such a rule.”

Lu Ning couldn’t quite gauge the tone. It felt a bit like a sneer, but also somewhat disdainful.

Before she could think further, the shadow in her field of vision shifted.

There was no mirror in the lounge, but the sunlight used the human body to trace the shape of a shadow.

Mu Qiuyu took the formal gown Teacher Wang had prepared and began to change unhurriedly.

Her arms moved through the sunlight, rising and falling, stretching into long, slender lines in Lu Ning’s peripheral vision.

The girl’s young and beautiful body had no excess fat. Her slightly tilted chin drew an elegant, graceful curve down her neck, looking like a lonely, proud swan that had left its flock.

So beautiful.

Lu Ning let out a silent sigh of admiration, trying her best to remain calm while staring at the shadow on the wall.

She couldn’t look away entirely; she swallowed hard, praying that Mu Qiuyu would hurry up and put the dress on.

Mu Qiuyu wasn’t slow. She soon had the gown on.

She lightly adjusted the thin shoulder strap, and then the shadow on the wall beckoned to the little ball: “Come here.”

Relieved, Lu Ning immediately flew over eagerly: “Yes, Host!”

“Help me zip it up.” Mu Qiuyu was expressionless as she turned her back to the flying Lu Ning.

The little ball slammed on its metaphorical brakes.

Heaven knows how fast Lu Ning’s heart was beating.

It was like watching a horror movie—just as the most nerve-wracking part passes, a “corpse” suddenly drops right in front of you.

Of course, Mu Qiuyu’s back wasn’t a corpse, but it wasn’t ordinary either.

The dark green satin flared out from her waist to both sides, revealing porcelain-white skin. Her posture was ramrod straight, and the lines of her back were exceptionally superior. Her shoulder blades looked like butterfly wings—lifelike, yet cruelly pressed down by the gown’s straps.

She couldn’t fly.

She wasn’t free.

Lu Ning held her breath, feeling as though the “organization” was testing her today.

Suppressing her fluctuating emotions, she flew behind Mu Qiuyu and used her clumsy spherical body to pull up the zipper.

In contrast, Mu Qiuyu was far too calm.

She stood there, taking Lu Ning’s service for granted, and asked coolly: “I’ve noticed you haven’t introduced yourself to me. What is your purpose in coming to this world?”

Lu Ning was busy clearing her mind and concentrating on the zipper. Hearing the question, she blurted out: “My name is Lu—”

But then, her tensed nerves yanked her back.

She was a system now. Systems shouldn’t have human names.

Having read many novels, she experiencedly came up with a code name: “I am System 6-0 (Liù Líng). I came to this world to help the host achieve a perfect life.”

Lu Ning’s voice lacked human fluidity; no matter how energetic she tried to be, it still sounded somewhat flat.

Upon hearing the words “perfect life,” a dark smile welled up in Mu Qiuyu’s eyes.

She remembered Lu Ning’s pause just now and asked: “6-0… Is your ‘six’ (Liù) written like the ‘Lu’ (Lù) in ‘land’ (Lùdì)?”

“Yes.” Lu Ning nodded.

Great minds think alike.

That was exactly what she thought when she gave herself the name.

“Lu Ning (Lù Líng).” Mu Qiuyu chewed on the name slowly, pronouncing the “Lù” as the one meaning “land.”

Hearing Mu Qiuyu call her name felt incredibly strange to Lu Ning.

She had heard from friends that names are the beginning of a bond. It felt as if the dimensional wall between her and Mu Qiuyu had truly been breached at this second.

So, she played along, mimicking the AI voices from her world: “I am here.”

The robotic voice was so silly that Mu Qiuyu couldn’t help but laugh.

She reached back and brought the ball that was zipping her up to the front. Her dark, deep eyes scanned Lu Ning carefully. Calling its name, she issued her first command: “Lu Ning, go to the audience and wait for me.”

“Yes, Master.” Lu Ning flashed her light.

As a system, she would resolutely carry out Mu Qiuyu’s orders.

The school placed great importance on this Arts Festival. Worried that the noon incident would affect Mu Qiuyu’s state, they moved her performance slot toward the end.

While Mu Qiuyu was preparing in the lounge, both the Principal and the Dean visited. They offered her a round of reassurances, promises, and encouragement—so much so that Lu Ning almost forgot how dire Mu Qiuyu’s actual situation was.

As the preceding contestants finished their performances, it was finally Mu Qiuyu’s turn to take the stage.

When Lu Ning arrived at the spectator area, the host was just announcing Mu Qiuyu’s name. The audience, made up of students from several schools, gave a somewhat tired and scattered round of applause.

The stage lights dimmed, casting a silhouette on the side stage.

Mu Qiuyu walked into the audience’s view holding her violin.

The faint light fell on her skirt, flowing like a river of stars.

Holding her bow and violin, she bowed slightly to the audience. Her dark hair was like a waterfall, cascading down her shoulders.

Due to time constraints, she had only tied a simple, neat ponytail, which exuded a calm, unhurried elegance.

“I have to say, Mu Qiuyu is quite good-looking. Is this the charm of a fallen young lady?”

“Fallen your head! Her face has always been top-tier, okay?”

“You try wearing your hair pulled back that tight; I guarantee you’ll look disastrous.”

The stage lights brightened on Mu Qiuyu’s face, sparking a few hushed discussions in the audience.

But this was a competition, after all. They had seen plenty of pretty faces; strength was what mattered.

Then, the sound of the violin rose gloomily—long and melodious.

It was as if a sudden wind had risen in the hall, carrying the sound from the judges in the front row to the very last row.

After hearing so much music woven from cellos, violins, and pianos, the tired faces in the crowd lit up.

The girl’s cheek was pressed against the violin’s body, as if she were leaning in to listen to her partner’s voice.

At the same time, her hands maneuvered the bow and strings with ease, turning the music into surging waves to share with everyone present.

Her slender fingertips danced over the strings, shifting through one difficult passage after another with spirited intensity.

No one dared to call it “showing off”—the piece demanded such exquisite and varied melody.

By the end of the piece, the lethargy in the audience had vanished completely. There was only applause, surging toward Mu Qiuyu in wave after wave; they were captivated by her.

“So, a phoenix in distress isn’t necessarily worse than a chicken.”

“She is Mu Qiuyu, after all.”

A girl’s calm, smiling voice rose amidst the applause, her words filled with admiration.

The system had extremely keen voice-capture components. Lu Ning caught that voice instantly.

She looked toward the source and saw the same girl who had spoken up for Mu Qiuyu during the English class.

Lu Ning had a very good impression of her.

But mostly, she felt a surge of pride for Mu Qiuyu because of those words.

Yes, she is Mu Qiuyu.

“Host!”

“Host, you’re amazing!”

“My host is the absolute best!”

Lu Ning was so excited she wanted to clap for Mu Qiuyu, but having no hands, she simply flew back and forth over the audience.

The small ball’s originally dim light brightened exponentially because of her excitement. Lu Ning didn’t realize what a dazzling beam of light she had become in Mu Qiuyu’s sight.

Mu Qiuyu, holding her violin in one hand and bowing, looked up and saw Lu Ning flying all over the place.

The system’s voice fluctuated amidst the tide of applause. Even though this was just a highly advanced intelligent product, Mu Qiuyu felt she saw a vivid life within it.

She proudly enjoyed the glory that belonged to her, then narrowed her eyes slightly toward the direction of the audience where Lu Ning was:

“Lu Ning, who says I’m ‘yours’?”

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