Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Riverside High School, Senior Class 12.

The class bell had rung twice, yet the classroom remained a hive of activity. Students, still basking in their pre-class freedom, seized every moment to chat—some recounting last night’s escapades, others sharing the juiciest gossip.

At the back of the room, by the window, a cluster of rowdy boys was making a racket.

One, with a few yellow streaks dyed into his bangs, piped up, “Heard the news? We’re getting another transfer student today.”

“Another one?” a boy beside him chimed in. “Why do all the transfers end up in our class? Wonder if it’s a guy or a girl. If she’s a looker, I’m totally making a move.”

The yellow-streaked boy scoffed. “As if she’d even glance at you. Go take a long look in the mirror. If she likes anyone, it’ll be our boss, He Xu.”

He gestured to the side, and the group instinctively turned their eyes to a tall boy seated in the last row.

The tall boy lounged against his chair, feet propped on the desk, clad in a black T-shirt under a jacket, black jeans, and matching Doc Martens. He stood out starkly among the uniform-clad students.

His short, stiff hair was cut into a buzz, with rebellious lightning bolt patterns shaved into the sides. His ruggedly handsome features and sharp eyes made him the type that little girls on the street would do a double-take for.

Yet, a perpetual scowl marred his brow, dampening his appeal with an air of aggression that instantly marked him as someone not to be trifled with.

The boy had been resting, arms crossed and eyes closed. At the mention of his name, he barely cracked an eyelid. Ignoring the others, he pulled back one long leg and kicked the chair in front of him, where a thin, bespectacled boy was hunched over his homework.

“Hey,” he rasped, his voice slightly hoarse. “Go get me some water.”

The kick sent the bespectacled boy’s pen skidding across his paper, leaving a long black streak. But he dared not show anger. Instead, he turned to He Xu, stammering, “B-but… class is about to start. The teacher will be here any second.”

He Xu’s gaze sharpened, his thick, dark brows lowering slightly. “You’re not going?”

The bespectacled boy shivered under his stare, his face paling. Without another word, he snatched the black cup from He Xu’s desk and bolted out of the classroom.

The commotion drew the attention of the entire class. Everyone had witnessed the scene, and their whispers died down as they cast furtive glances toward the group at the back.

The troublemakers, however, only laughed louder at the sudden silence.

The one who’d joked about chasing the transfer student earlier said, “If it’s a pretty girl, she’s obviously for our boss. But what if it’s a guy?”

The yellow-streaked boy made a slashing motion across his neck. “Then he’ll end up just like that kid earlier! Hahahaha!”

The group erupted in laughter.

Footsteps approached the door, and a middle-aged male teacher strode in, rapping sharply on the doorframe. “Quiet down!”

His stern gaze swept the room, landing abruptly on the group at the back. “You lot, get back to your seats! Sun Ran, you dyed your hair again? Change it back by tomorrow!”

He then fixed his gaze on He Xu at the very back. “And you, He Xu! No uniform again! Sit properly and get your feet off the desk!”

The troublemakers instantly fell silent, scattering back to their seats like scolded puppies. He Xu scoffed, turning his head away, lazily dropping his feet and slumping back in his chair, hands stuffed in his pockets.

After a few more reprimands, the teacher finally turned back, his tone softening. “Zhang Yu, come in.”

A boy with a backpack stepped inside and walked to the front of the class.

“This is our new classmate, Zhang Yu. Let’s give him a warm welcome,” introduced the homeroom teacher, Mr. Zeng.

The boy flashed a bright smile, dimples appearing on his cheeks. “Hi, everyone, I’m Zhang Yu.”

A ripple of excitement went through the class, especially among the girls.

“Wow, he’s a hottie!”

“He’s so cute! Such a baby face, he looks so young.”

“His hair is so curly and soft-looking. I want to touch it.”

“…”

Amid the hushed chatter, He Xu lifted his gaze, meeting the transfer student’s eyes.

Those jet-black eyes stared directly at him, subtly conveying a sense of appraisal. He Xu narrowed his eyes, a flicker of annoyance crossing his brow. But the next second, the transfer student looked away, his expression gentle and harmless, as if that fleeting, almost aggressive gaze had been nothing but an illusion.

He Xu gave the curly-haired newcomer a quick once-over.

A pretty boy with twig arms. He could probably take him down with one hand.

Must have been mistaken, then.

Little did he know, as he assessed the transfer student, the transfer student on the podium was also evaluating him in his mind.

“He looks really scary, System. Is he my target?”

A robotic voice responded: “Yes, Host. He is the villain of this world—the school bully, He Xu.

“In the original timeline, during this period, the protagonist Xiang Yiming’s father fell seriously ill. To seek treatment for him, his mother transferred here with him.

“Originally, the protagonist should have focused on his studies here. After acing physics on a midterm, he would have caught the attention of his physics teacher, participated in international competitions, landed early admission to a top university, and eventually achieved outstanding results, winning a Nobel Prize and becoming a renowned physicist, reaching the pinnacle of his career.

“But in the current timeline, due to the villain’s bullying, the protagonist is unable to concentrate on his studies. He misses several midterms, derailing the subsequent plot entirely.

“Without the competition prize money, his father never recovers. His mother, overworked, also falls ill. Forced to support his parents, the protagonist drops out of school just before the college entrance exams to work grunt jobs. It isn’t until many years later that he finally gets back to studying.

“Though he eventually becomes a physicist, his older age means depleted stamina, leaving many research projects unfinished. This stunts technological advances, preventing the world from fully evolving…

“Host, are you listening?”

Zhang Yu, who had spaced out halfway through, snapped back to attention. “Huh? Oh, sorry. It’s a bit complicated. My head’s spinning.”

System 9527: “…”

Well, the host wasn’t human—just a giant octopus. It couldn’t expect too much.

“In short, Host, you only need to do two things. First, protect the protagonist so he isn’t bullied by the villain. Second, get the villain pregnant so he’s too busy to harass the protagonist. These two tasks are essentially one. Our ultimate goal is to neutralize the villain, let the protagonist focus on his studies, and restore the timeline…”

Seeing the host’s vacant stare again, System 9527 sighed internally.

Once more, it repeated the phrase it had uttered countless times since arriving in this world: “Host, are you listening?”

Zhang Yu perked up. “Yeah, yeah! So, just get him pregnant, right?”

System 9527: [SYSTEM OVERLOAD]

It exhaled a staticky sigh and stressed, “Getting the villain pregnant is just the means. Our *ultimate* goal is to stop him from interfering with the protagonist and return the timeline to its original path. Only then will the world reach completion, and you’ll receive your final reward.”

“Reward!” At that word, Zhang Yu’s eyes lit up. “So I’ll really get a place where nothing can disturb me?”

“Of course,” System 9527 said. “Great God has already prepared an isolated oceanic space for you. There, you can do whatever you want without any other creatures intruding.”

Zhang Yu perked right up. His true form had natural camouflage abilities, but because it was too effective, he’d often get bumped into by oblivious sea creatures whenever he spread out to relax. Though they usually ended up as snacks, constantly getting interrupted during naptime and zoning out was *annoying*.

The mere thought of being able to space out or nap in a quiet space in the future, with all six brains relaxed, melting into a puddle, and sixteen tentacles free to wiggle about without any interference, had Zhang Yu practically vibrating with excitement.

“Then let’s start the mission now! Can’t we just snatch the villain and get him pregnant right now?”

As he spoke, his body beneath the school uniform began to shimmer with shifting colors, ready to drop his human disguise and revert to his true form.

System 9527 urgently stopped him: “No!”

It had honestly had enough of this host’s trigger-happy attitude.

It rattled off, “Except in front of the villain, it’s best not to reveal your identity to anyone else, to avoid disrupting the world’s natural flow.”

Considering the host’s warped logic, it added, “Also, you can’t just abduct the villain or make him disappear. The villain is an existing character in the world’s storyline—his absence would cause the whole timeline to go kaboom, resulting in immediate mission failure!”

“What happens if the mission fails?” Zhang Yu tentatively asked. If the consequences weren’t too severe…

He was already halfway out the door.

“The world timeline will reset, and you’ll have to start the mission over. As punishment for failure, the ocean space will disappear.”

Zhang Yu immediately folded, sighing in disappointment, “…Alright.”

For his precious ocean space, he’d better not mess around.

The whole back-and-forth took only a few seconds. When Zhang Yu refocused his attention, the teacher who had brought him in was pointing to an empty seat in the next-to-last row. “Zhang Yu, you can sit there for now. We’ll adjust seats after next month’s tests.”

“Okay.”

As he walked over, the teacher scowled at another empty desk. “Where’s Xiang Yiming? Is he late?”

The other students glanced at He Xu in the corner, but nobody breathed a word.

The teacher put two and two together immediately and scowled. “He Xu, are you at it again bullying classmates?”

He Xu leaned back in his chair, arms crossed behind his head, his slightly hoarse voice drawled, “He went to get me water on his own. I didn’t force him.”

Just then, pattering footsteps sounded from the hallway. The glasses-wearing kid who had been sent out earlier appeared at the door, gasping for air. “R-reporting.”

He Xu jerked his chin up. “See? Ask him yourself.”

The teacher frowned. “Xiang Yiming, did He Xu bully you again?”

The entire class turned to look. Under the collective gaze, Xiang Yiming gulped. Seeing He Xu staring at him and the other delinquents giving him threatening looks, he trembled and stammered, “N-no.”

“Really not?” The teacher skeptically gave the room the stink-eye. As soon as his gaze shifted, the delinquents immediately averted their eyes—some suddenly found the walls fascinating, others flipping through books.

Xiang Yiming shook his head. “Really, I went on my own.”

Since he insisted, the teacher had no choice but to relent. “Then go back to your seat. Don’t be late next time.”

Xiang Yiming hurried back to his seat like a death row pardon. Noticing Zhang Yu beside him, he did a double-take.

Zhang Yu flashed him a grin, and Xiang Yiming automatically returned it before sitting down.

“Alright, everyone, turn to page 135. Today, we’ll be covering…”

The teacher began the lesson.

Following System 9527’s instructions, Zhang Yu took out his textbook and opened it. At first, he listened with some curiosity, but soon he zoned out completely, his expression blank.

God… so tired.

He tried to fight it, but his eyelids grew heavier and heavier, slowly getting lead-heavy.

Just as they were about to shut completely, his chair was suddenly kicked. The jolt snapped him to attention. Instinctively turning around, he saw the villainous school bully leaning back in his seat, arms crossed, eyeing him with a sneer before turning to look out the window.

Zhang Yu turned back, baffled. “The hell was that?”

System 9527 paused. “He was bullying you.”

Zhang Yu perked up with understanding. “Ohhh, so this is human bullying? Should I act scared?”

He’d never been bullied before.

System 9527: “This system only provides necessary reminders. How you proceed is up to you.”

As long as the world’s progression wasn’t disrupted, the host could even pretend to be a beggar if he wanted—as long as the mission was completed.

“Also, host, I must remind you. Although the Great God has created an independent space, its size depends on your mission completion rate. The higher the completion, the larger the final ocean space will be.”

“How do I increase the completion rate?” Zhang Yu asked.

System 9527 replied, “Preventing the villain from bullying the protagonist, making the villain pregnant, assisting the protagonist in studying well and achieving good grades… all of these can improve completion. However, based on this system’s assessment, I recommend focusing on the first two.”

Asking a host who had just come ashore two days ago to help the protagonist study was too much to ask of a fish.

Zhang Yu wholeheartedly agreed. He even cast a fearful glance at the passionate human teacher at the front of the class, shuddering. “Studying is terrifying. I just woke up when the sun rose, and now I want to sleep again.”

If he had to study every day and sleep this much, he wouldn’t even have time to hunt. Wouldn’t he starve to death?

“By the way, System,” Zhang Yu suddenly remembered something, “can you send me back to the ocean directly? I want to eat jellyfish tonight.”

The mechanical voice replied calmly, “Apologies, this system cannot do that. This system is a Pregnancy Assistance System and can only provide pregnancy-related services. Other abilities are beyond its scope and cannot be granted.”

Having only been ashore for two days and not yet learned human tact, Zhang Yu blinked and bluntly said, “Then you’re pretty useless.”

System 9527: …

It swallowed its digital frustration and dutifully assisted. “If the host wishes to increase mission completion, an opportunity will arise after this class. The protagonist, Xiang Yiming, will accidentally knock over his water cup while standing up, spilling water on the villain, He Xu. As a result, He Xu will beat him up. If the host can prevent this and protect the protagonist, the completion rate will increase.”

“Ohhh, so I just need to protect the water cup and stop the protagonist from spilling it? Easy!”

Eyeing the blue water cup on the protagonist’s desk, Zhang Yu mentally pumped his fist. For that sweet, sweet private ocean, he would guard that cup like his life depended on it!

Fueled by this resolve… he was out like a light.

He didn’t mean to, but studying was just too terrifying. After listening for barely two minutes, his eyelids betrayed him.

The next thing he knew, System was blaring in his skull.

The usually calm mechanical voice was sharp, even borderline panicked: “…Host! Host, wake up! If you don’t wake up now, you’ll miss the plot!”

Plot? What plot?!

Zhang Yu shot upright, abruptly standing up. His chair legs scraped as it wobbled, and the next second—a yelp cut through the room!

Turning his head, he saw the protagonist, Xiang Yiming, beside him, his face draining of color as he made a grab for something—but missed.

Right in front of his hand, the open blue water cup suddenly toppled over, and the still-hot water inside splashed out, soaking the passing schoolyard tough head to toe, leaving dark stains on his black clothes.

“Clatter, clatter, clatter…”

The plastic cup hit the ground, bounced a few times, then rolled to someone’s feet.

The classroom went dead silent, the surrounding students staring at the scene in shock.

Amid the dead silence, the schoolyard tough raised his head, a vein popping on his forehead.

He glared at Zhang Yu, who stood frozen and seemingly unresponsive, and spoke word by word:

“New kid, you got a death wish or something?”