The System screen blinked in front of his face.
[Oops. My bad. I forgot to install Defence Module.]
Liu Yang's jaw dropped. "Y-you what?!"
[Installing Defence Module…]
[Adjusting Stats…]
[Displaying Refreshed Stats.]
The screen reset, numbers shifting.
[Stats]
[Level: 1]
[HP: 100]
[MP: 100]
[Strength: 10]
[Defence: 10]
[Stamina: 15]
[Agility: 20]
Liu Yang grabbed both sides of his head, pulling his hair like he wanted to rip it out. "You mean I almost got killed by bats… because you forgot to press install?!"
The System appeared in front of his eyes.
[As compensation for almost killing you because of System fault…]
[We are giving you one free skill.]
Liu Yang's face lit up, his mouth wide. "Finally! A near-death award, right? Compensation because of your bug, right?!"
He pumped both fists in the air, then quickly crossed all his fingers together, tight, like some desperate gambler before rolling dice. "Come on, come on… and please, please, no useless crap this time… don't you dare give me Daydreaming 2.0."
He stared at the System screen so hard his eyes didn't even blink, sweat rolling down his forehead.
[Skill Acquired]
[Unlocked: Charm Morph (Female)]
[Locked: Charm Morph (Male) (Unlocks at Level 10)]
[MP Cost: 100 MP / 5 min]
[Description: Host can transform into a beautiful, sexy human girl. The transformation will hide demonic horns, skin, and aura. Perfect for disguise, infiltration, or confusing thirsty idiots.]
Liu Yang's jaw fell open. His lips twitched. His awkward smile stretched wide. "W-wait… you're saying… I can turn into a… a hot girl?"
The System screen blinked back.
[Correct. Congratulations, Host. You unlocked Gender-Bender DLC.]
He just waved his hand in the air, top to bottom, like "whatever," not even looking at the System screen anymore.
His lips pulled in that twitching smile, his eyes half rolling.
In his head he was thinking, at least it's better to save his skin. In this world everyone wanted to kill demons, no matter what.
But a sexy human girl? That might have some charm, that might trick people, maybe even save him.
Then the number popped in his head. 100 MP for just 5 minutes.
His face twisted. "Damn it… that means I only got 5 minutes to run for my life before I turn back. Five minutes to escape or I'm screwed."
He sighed loud, his shoulders sagging, and waved again, this time left to right. "Haaah… whatever…"
Liu Yang kept walking through the tunnel, the System screen floating in front of his eyes, glowing with the details of the new skill.
He stared at it hard, reading again and again. The skill had two versions. One let him turn into a beautiful human girl, already unlocked.
The other was the male version, but that one was locked until level ten.
His eyes went wide, shining all of a sudden, almost glowing on their own. His mouth started pulling up, the corners stretching big, until his lips opened into a wide stupid grin.
That meant he could actually aim for the Hero's women, actually snatch harems like the System was made for.
This was it. The real start. With a human form he could sneak close, walk into towns, blend in, even get near the Hero himself.
All the Hero's girls, all the noble daughters, all the wives clinging to powerful men—he could slip in, take them, twist them, make them his.
Liu Yang knew he could only steal them if he looked the same. If he stayed in his demon shell, he would never even get close.
With the human form he could sneak in, step into the Hero's place, blend in like one of them.
And it wasn't only about the Hero. There were other strong men too, other nobles, other leaders, all with women at their sides, all with harems of their own.
If he could get close, if he could infiltrate, he wouldn't need to fight them face to face.
After that it wouldn't matter if he was human or demon. Once the skills worked, they would belong to him.
The grin grew bigger as he thought about it.
But then a thought came crawling into his head, sharp and ugly.
Female form… was also a trap.
His face twitched. His body shivered. What if this sexy girl body of his didn't just fool humans, but also attracted the wrong kind of people? What if some pervert man saw him and tried to do something nasty?
The thought made his stomach turn, his spine cold. He shook his head fast, waving his arms like he could swat the idea away. A sound slipped from his lips, half disgust, half fear.
He smacked both of his cheeks hard with his palms, the sound sharp in the quiet tunnel.
His eyes opened wide, almost popping, his breath coming rough.
He forced himself back, forced his mind away from the sick thoughts. He told himself again and again, he had to focus, he had to stay on track.
"This skill… it's not for games, not for fights, not for running… it's for harem, harem, harem—ALL HAREM!"