The autumn wind whispered through the maple forest. Though the season had turned bleak, the skies above Central Province remained crisp and clear. Faded leaves danced as they fell, swirling in the air like fragments of a dying dream.
Within that forest stood a woman, her figure slender and straight, clad in white palace robes that fluttered gently in the breeze.
She held a sword in her hand, her gaze calm and cold. Her eyes, clear as autumn waters, stared down at the youth kneeling before her — handsome, bloodied, sword in hand — with deep disappointment and quiet fury.
"Su Jue," she said, her voice soft but firm, "do you have anything left to say?"
The boy staggered, barely holding himself upright. He wiped the blood from his lips and let out a light, cold laugh. Lifting his head, he met her gaze — a beauty so ethereal she hardly seemed mortal. There was a flicker of guilt and longing in his eyes, but it quickly faded into frost.
"Nothing," he replied.
The woman drew a slow breath. "We were Master and disciple for ten years. I'll allow you one final sentence."
"I don't need one."
Su Jue tilted his head toward the sky. On his pale face bloomed a rare trace of relief, almost joy. At last, it was ending.
Ten years ago, he was just a guy chasing updates from a webnovel, loving the thrill of fantasy cultivation and overpowered protagonists. Then lightning struck. When he came to, he was no longer in his world, but inside that novel — not as the hero, but as a side character. Worse still, he'd transmigrated into a classic cannon-fodder villain fated to die.
The System bound itself to him. The first mission was simple: act out the script. Be the villain. Play his part to the end. Only then could he earn his reward — a rebirth as the real protagonist, the one destined to rise above all others. It was the only way to get his own golden path.
But the road was long. He played the role for ten years.
Today, that role was ending.
The woman before him was his Master — Bai Ruxue. In this part of the story, his arrogant and petty persona was slowly eclipsed by a newly arrived junior sister. She was the chosen one, the destined heroine. And Su Jue? The stepping stone.
He was jealous, bitter, twisted by resentment. In his madness, he was seduced by the Grand Elder's promises: cripple your Master, and you'll be named heir to the sect. So he did it. He drugged her.
Tried to destroy her cultivation. But the villain never wins. Just before she took the poison, the junior sister exposed him. And Su Jue died beneath the blade of the woman who had once taught him everything.
"I still don't understand," Bai Ruxue said quietly, shaking her head. "After ten years as Master and disciple, why would you try to kill me?"
If she believed he'd been forced… maybe she could have spared him. Even now, her grip on the sword faltered. For ten years, she had guided him with all her heart. Even if he had turned on her, her blade couldn't find its way.
She remembered the boy he had once been — sharp, gifted, full of drive. She had believed he would one day surpass her and take the mantle of Sect Master. But everything changed when that girl arrived.
After that, Su Jue became someone else. So different. So cold. It had left her confused… and deeply disappointed.
Su Jue tried to speak, but blood filled his throat. He coughed violently, his body trembling. When he looked up again, his eyes were clear, and his words steady.
"Master. You talk too much. Just kill me already."
Hurry up and end it. Thank you for everything these ten years… but I was born to play the villain. There's no happy ending for someone like me.
"…Very well. If you truly seek death, then no one can save you."
Bai Ruxue's eyes went cold. She raised her sword, ready to grant him a clean death.
But just before it fell—
"Wait."
She paused. "What is it now?"
The sword hovered before his brow. Su Jue hesitated, then gave a small nod.
Might as well say goodbye.
He wasn't heartless. He remembered every kindness. From the moment he entered the sect, she had never once treated him unfairly. She gave him everything she could. If he hadn't drawn the villain's script, if the world itself wasn't set against him, maybe… maybe things would have been different.
"Thank you… for these years."
He forced himself to stand, body trembling, pain flashing through every limb. But his eyes were bright. He smiled.
"You…"
Something flickered in Bai Ruxue's eyes.
"I didn't have some tragic reason. I wasn't blackmailed. I just… couldn't accept it."
"Why did everything that should've been mine go to a junior sister who'd only just arrived?"
"I was angry. I didn't understand. And I made a mistake. I deserve to die."
"I'm not saying all this to beg for mercy. I just wanted to speak from the heart."
"Thank you for teaching me. I was… really happy, these years."
"Killing me is the only way I can repay you."
He opened his arms.
In the original plot, he'd died full of hatred, spitting curses to the end. But now… now he remembered the warmth in her guidance, the care in her eyes. He couldn't die like that. Not without saying it.
Bai Ruxue stared at him, unmoving. Her mind spun with memories — ten years of them. The first time she saw Su Jue, it was his eyes that caught her attention. Clear. Pure. The eyes of someone truly kind.
He closed them now, ready.
"…Go."
The word came at last, quiet and cold.
"…Huh?"
Su Jue's eyes snapped open. She wasn't killing him?
Oh no. Don't go off-script now. Don't do this to me.
"Master, please… kill me."
"I told you to leave!" Her gaze locked on his, red-rimmed and full of tangled emotions.
"No. I won't."
"What's wrong with you? If you don't leave now, I will kill you!"
"Please," he stepped forward, "just kill me."
Her brows drew together. Why did he want to die so badly? Was someone forcing him? Was his family in danger? Her mind raced.
"Is it that someone—"
But before she could finish, Su Jue moved.
He stepped forward into her blade.
The sword pierced through his chest. Blood sprayed out, warm and bright.
"You—?!" Bai Ruxue's eyes went wide as she stared at the boy now impaled on her sword, so close she could feel his breath.
"…It's over," Su Jue whispered.
Blood ran down his lips, but he smiled — that same crooked, roguish smile she remembered from long ago.
"…It's finally over."
"What do you mean, over?" she demanded, stunned. "Was being my disciple so painful for you?"
"Of course not," he said softly. "It's because I like you."
"I could only be your disciple… never your partner."
"Isn't that torture?"
"You… you ungrateful little—" she choked.
But Su Jue just smiled and stared at her face — flawless, like a snow spirit from a dream. His heart stirred strangely.
Ten years. Day and night together. Of course there were feelings. She was beautiful. She cared for him. If it weren't for the script, for fate, he never would've let her go.
He had followed the rules for ten years. Now, at the end, maybe it was time to leave something behind.
Pain surged, but he endured it. Stepping forward again, he closed the distance.
She wasn't ready. She wasn't guarding herself. Her mind was still echoing with his confession.
He leaned in… and kissed her.
Warm lips pressed against hers. Her eyes widened in shock, his reflection shimmering in their depths. She froze.
"Love comes without warning… and cuts deeper than the sword."
As the world blurred and darkened, Su Jue finally smiled with peace.
The script… begins.
And in the void, a mechanical voice echoed in his mind—
[Ding——Side quest unlocked. Task completed perfectly.]
[Rating: SSS. System is upgrading to match host's new status…]
[Ding——Strongest Villain System successfully bound!]