*BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!*
Alex Chen slammed his hand on the snooze button for the third time, groaning as sunlight streamed through his dorm room window. Another day, another pile of assignments he'd definitely fail.
"This is it," he muttered, dragging himself out of bed. "Today I'm finally going to get my life together. Study hard, eat healthy, maybe even talk to a girl without stuttering."
Twenty minutes later, he was running across campus with a piece of toast hanging from his mouth, late for his most important exam of the semester.
*So much for getting my life together.*
The crosswalk light was red, but Alex could see the lecture hall just across the street. Professor Martinez was notorious for locking the doors exactly on time. If he didn't make it...
"Screw it," Alex decided, sprinting into traffic.
The truck horn was the last thing he heard.
---
*SYSTEM INITIALIZING...*
*HOST COMPATIBILITY: 98%*
*VILLAIN SYSTEM ACTIVATED*
*WELCOME TO YOUR NEW LIFE, ALEX CHEN*
Alex's eyes snapped open to find himself staring at translucent text floating in his vision. He was lying on asphalt, but there was no pain, no blood, no screaming bystanders. Just an empty street and glowing words that shouldn't exist.
"What the hell?"
*CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE DIED AND BEEN SELECTED FOR THE VILLAIN SYSTEM PROGRAM*
*MISSION: BECOME THE GREATEST VILLAIN IN HISTORY*
*FAILURE TO COMPLY WILL RESULT IN PERMANENT TERMINATION*
*CURRENT VILLAIN POINTS: 0/100 (PATHETIC)*
*FIRST QUEST: COMMIT A VILLAINOUS ACT WITHIN 24 HOURS OR DIE*
Alex blinked rapidly, hoping the hallucination would disappear. It didn't.
"This is insane," he whispered. "I'm having a breakdown. That's it. The stress finally got to me and—"
*VILLAIN SYSTEM IS 100% REAL*
*COMPLIANCE IS NOT OPTIONAL*
*TIME REMAINING: 23 HOURS, 47 MINUTES*
A chill ran down Alex's spine as he realized he wasn't imagining the countdown timer that had appeared in the corner of his vision.---