Reborn as the Black Moonlight of the Male Lead in a Wish-Fulfillment Novel - Chapter 2

Before entering the room, Shu Chen even tested his “superpower.”

With a light wave of his hand, the courtyard gate swung shut on its own, seemingly locked as well.

“Where’s the basement?” The novel the system had given him didn’t include such minor details, and without the original owner’s memories, he had no choice but to ask the system with the unpleasant voice.

[Go straight ahead. The last room.]

Following the system’s directions, Shu Chen found a study.

“Where’s the hidden compartment?”

[There isn’t one. See the scroll on the desk? It contains the most basic cultivation technique. Go learn it, and once you master it, you’ll be able to sense where the basement is.]

Vindictive.

Shu Chen silently slapped that label on the system.

Fortunately, the scroll was written in a familiar script, which greatly reduced how often he had to ask the system for help.

With the system’s assistance, Shu Chen quickly awakened the body’s memories of spellcraft and, using his aura, located where the male lead was being held.

Visibility in the basement was extremely low. As the trapdoor above closed, cutting off all light, the place plunged into complete darkness. Shu Chen stood there, unable to see a thing.

[Go light the candles. It’d be a shame if you couldn’t see the stuff in here.]

Hearing the system’s sinister tone, Shu Chen knew without looking that there was nothing good inside.

His spellwork wasn’t yet refined, so Shu Chen could only resort to the simplest method a flame in his palm to illuminate the area. The sight made him freeze in place.

Not far away stood a disheveled figure with wild hair, staring straight at him.

Seeing this, Shu Chen complained to the system for no particular reason, “This novel is terrible. The secret room doesn’t even have motion-sensor lights.”

[How high are your standards for a place meant for doing bad things? At the end of the day, it’s you who’s lacking. Don’t make excuses.]

Just as Shu Chen was about to use the firelight to find the candles, a sharp voice cut through the air. “What’s the young master doing standing there? Not scared stiff, are you?”

[The male lead is talking to you.]

Neither of them had a pleasant way of speaking. The thought of having to deal with this person and this system on a regular basis made Shu Chen want to give up entirely.

Ignoring the male lead’s provocation, Shu Chen found the candles on his own and lit them.

As the candlelight flickered, he saw what the system had called “good stuff”: a wall covered in torture instruments.

[There’s more good stuff in the cabinet. Open it and take a look.]

Shu Chen: “Maybe next time.” Not in front of the male lead, what if something shocking was revealed?

When the male lead noticed his gaze on the instruments, he let out a disdainful “tch” without a trace of fear.

Hearing that, Shu Chen finally took the time to size up the male lead.

He had to admit he was worthy of being the male lead. Even with his limbs bound and at someone’s mercy, his presence remained undiminished. His tattered clothes revealed glimpses of smooth, flowing lines, and he radiated an untamed, defiant aura.

Shu Chen, who looked in the mirror every day and had long grown immune to good looks, had to concede that the male lead was quite handsome a rugged kind of handsome that he himself didn’t possess.

Noticing Shu Chen’s lingering gaze, the male lead returned the favor, his scrutinizing eyes resting unabashedly on Shu Chen, looking him up and down before concluding, “Pretty boy.”

[No way, you’re actually letting that slide? Or do you secretly want to be a pretty boy?]

When he’d passed a bronze mirror earlier, Shu Chen had noticed that the original owner’s face looked exactly like his own. He’d already been a “pretty boy” for over twenty years, so being mocked by the person and the system didn’t faze him much.

The system kept stoking the fire. [The little whip on the wall has a nice feel to it. Take it down and teach him some manners.]

Shu Chen, who had been a well-adjusted socialist youth not long ago, said, “I want to go on strike.”

The system’s voice dripped with mockery. “You think you can get out of this?”

The moment those words fell, Shu Chen found himself standing under the pomegranate tree, the courtyard gate wide open, with servants outside deliberately taking the long way just to pass by and steal a glance as if he’d been rewound to the very beginning.

[The plot must proceed. If you’re unwilling to do it, I don’t mind keeping you here, repeating this moment over and over.]

[Is it worth giving up your modern-day family for a fictional character who has nothing to do with you?]

Facing the system’s coaxing, Shu Chen stood there calmly for a while. He didn’t argue. Relying on his earlier memory, he walked back into the basement.

With one experience under his belt, he was no longer startled by the male lead’s vicious glare. He deftly lit the candles, followed the system’s instructions, took down the little whip, and stood behind the male lead, head lowered, making no move for a long while.

As a mentally healthy young man with no sadomasochistic tendencies, he needed a moment to psych himself up.

“Idiot, what kind of scheme are you cooking up behind my back?”

The male lead’s venomous voice suddenly rang out, and in that instant, Shu Chen completed his mental preparation. The whip cracked across the male lead’s back.

The sudden attack made the male lead’s back visibly tense.

Having grown up on the streets, the male lead had a mouth full of curses. “Fuck you**! You actually dared to hit me!”

Shu Chen frowned at the words. The male lead really did need some discipline in that regard he was destined to become the top dog of the world one day, and cursing like that just wouldn’t do.

Without the system’s guidance, he walked around to face the male lead and, with practiced ease, pressed the whip’s handle under the male lead’s chin. “Watch your mouth. If I wasn’t going to hit you, why else would I have dragged you here?”

As if deliberately defying him, the male lead tilted his head to the side, dodging the whip, a malicious smirk curling at the corners of his lips as he carefully picked out a few more filthy words for the young master.

Under Shu Chen’s furious gaze, the male lead, with a triumphant glee, leaned slightly forward and chuckled, “Does it sound good, you little runt?”

Shu Chen slowly took two steps back, tightening his grip on the whip. “You asked for this.”

The long whip cracked against flesh, and the male lead couldn’t help but furrow his brow, glaring at Shu Chen with eyes that seemed ready to blaze.

[Put some strength into it you haven’t even torn the clothes. Did you skip your meal?]

Every time the system spoke, Shu Chen wished he could drag it out and deal with it too. Under the double provocation, the male lead’s clothes finally met their end.

Tattered and hanging off him, the sight was discomforting.

Shu Chen paused the punishment, reaching out to tear the clothes away, but as he neared the male lead’s neck, he was suddenly bitten on the hand.

In the blink of an eye, blood began to seep from the corner of the other’s lips.

Shu Chen didn’t stand on ceremony either he tossed aside the whip and dislocated the male lead’s jaw.

The male lead was furious, spitting out a few garbled syllables that were clearly curses without needing to guess.

[See that? A little scuffle won’t hurt him. If you keep being soft-hearted, you’ll be the one taken down.]

Shu Chen, using the bitten hand, snapped the male lead’s jaw back into place, then slapped his face in a deliberately demeaning manner. “It’s only going to get worse from here. Keep cursing.”

At that, the male lead fell silent instead, resting his head against the pillar with a hint of laziness. Before Shu Chen raised the whip again, he licked the blood at the corner of his lips and sneered, “So your blood tastes the same as mine nothing noble about it.”

A blatant provocation, as if he was begging to be beaten to death. Shu Chen found the male lead’s behavior hardly wise.