[Status — Host: Lucien Cross]
Strength: 30 (+15) - How hard you can swing a punch or accidentally bruise your girlfriend while hugging her.
Speed: 23 (+9) - You will arrive late to class by choice, not because you couldn't run fast enough.
Charm: 114(+15) (Broken) - Even gods are not immune to your charm (System Warning: charm above 100 bypasses rational defense. Targets may comply against better judgment.)
Endurance: 24 (+11) - More stamina in fights. More stamina in… other things.
Resolve: 6 (+5) - Longer than three seconds. Almost a full sentence of resistance before you cave.
Mana Perception (Upgraded): Active (Medium Range) - Basically "magic Wi-Fi." Lets you see vibes, auras, and who's lying with their heartbeat
Affinity: Yoshida Saki (100%) — Bound(Love stat maxed. Translation: she'd forgive him if he accidentally blew up the kitchen.)
Tsukimi Chifuyu (100%) — Bound (Humiliation)(Love stat maxed. Translation: She'd forgive him if he ruined her life, because she believes she has no other choice.)
[Flagged Rival](The system's favorite pop-up ad. "Close this tab permanently or suffer the consequences.");
Takagi — Active
Hayato — Active
[Inventory] (Cannot store snacks. Lucien tested this):
[Anchor Token x1]
[Silken Thread] Consumable. - "Invisible tether. Bind one target emotionally to the host for 48 hours. Effects mimic obsession. Removal may cause target collapse." (Emotional duct tape. Use responsibly. (You won't.))
[Whisper Key] Passive Unlock. - "Allows host to implant a single 'truth' into the target's subconscious. It will be believed without question. Limit: 1 use per individual. Cannot overwrite core values." (Brainwashing Lite™. Some assembly required.)
[Blood Blossom Charm] Accessory. - "While worn, Charm stat is considered double against weakened or emotionally unstable targets. Warning: effects permanent if applied during trauma." (Predator mode: activated. (Also, the system is really not subtle.))
[Titles]
Pure Lover — "He only wanted one girl." (A title for people who still believe in fairy tales.)
Corruptor of Innocence — "But the system wanted everyone else." (The system's way of saying 'good job, you monster.)
The stats hovered in my vision like a bad joke. Numbers stacked on numbers, items with names that sounded like they'd been pulled from a cursed gacha.
But the evidence folder in my hand was real.
Printed photos, raw and damning: Takagi with "Tsukimi" pressed against him in a kiss. His hand laced with hers. His lips caught mid-whisper. All of it fabricated, courtesy of the Mirage Veil, and all of it believable enough to splinter a girl's world.
I flipped through them, each shot twisting tighter in my stomach. They looked like memories, not illusions. If I hadn't been the one behind it, I might have believed them too.
When the knock came at my door, my pulse spiked. I already knew who it was, her aura brushed against mine before the handle even turned.
She stepped inside hesitantly, her eyes swollen from last night's tears. She didn't speak right away. She didn't have to. Every breath she took carried the weight of suspicion, of betrayal, of someone bracing for their world to end.
The folder felt heavier than lead in my hands.
"Tsukimi," I said softly, "There's something you need to see."
Her hands fidgeted at her sides, knuckles white, like she was holding herself together by threads only she could see.
I set the folder on the desk between us. My fingers lingered on the edge before I slid it toward her.
"Look."
She blinked, hesitating. Her gaze darted between me and the folder, the way someone glances at a locked box they already know hides something cruel. Finally, she reached out.
Her fingers trembled as she opened it. One photo slipped free and fell face-up onto the desk: Takagi's arm around "her," lips pressed against "her" temple. The Tsukimi in the picture smiled, trusting and radiant.
Tsukimi's breath hitched. "That's…" Her voice cracked. She picked up the next photo. Then the next.
Each one was worse. Takagi laughing, leaning close. Takagi's hand in "hers." Takagi whispering into "her" ear. Lies captured in perfect snapshots.
Her lip trembled. She pressed a hand to her mouth as if to hold the sound in, but the tears came anyway, silent at first, then choking. "No… he wouldn't... he wouldn't do this to me…"
I swallowed, "I didn't want to show you this. But you deserve to know."
She clutched the photos tighter, crumpling the corners. Her shoulders shook, fragile as glass. "Why… why would he....?" Her eyes flicked to me, red and wet. "Why would you even have these?"
For a split second, the villain mask threatened to crack. But I didn't let it. "Because I thought you should see the truth. No one else would show you."
Her breath came fast and shallow, a girl drowning in evidence she couldn't deny. She stared at the smiling mirage-version of herself, then at the boy who had supposedly betrayed her.
Her knees buckled, and she sank onto the chair, clutching the photos like knives. "I… I thought he loved me."
I crouched down slowly, meeting her at eye level. "Maybe he did. But sometimes… love isn't enough."
The words tasted like poison, but they were soft, calculated, just sharp enough to cut, just gentle enough to sound like comfort.
[Tsukimi Chifuyu — Affection 100% (Humiliation Binding). Status: Dependent.]
She looked at me through blurred lashes, broken trust swimming in her gaze. And when her hand reached, not for the door, not for the phone, but for me, I knew the fracture had deepened into something permanent.
Her fingers shook so violently the photos slipped from her grasp, fluttering to the floor like feathers cut from a wing. She didn't bend to pick them up. Instead, her hands fumbled forward, searching, until they caught the sleeve of my jacket.
She clung to it as if the fabric itself might keep her from shattering. Her forehead pressed against my chest, and her small frame shook with the kind of sobs that didn't sound like they belonged to someone alive.
"Why…?" Her voice was muffled, breaking against me. "Why does it hurt so much?"
My arms lifted, almost on instinct, circling her shoulders. I drew her in gently, letting her cry against me, each tremor of her frame pressing deeper into my ribs.
"Tsukimi," I whispered, "You're not alone. I'll always cherish you."
The words were too soft, too tender for the mask I wore, but they fell from my lips anyway.
Her fingers twisted into my shirt like a lifeline. She tilted her head just enough to look up at me, eyes red, lashes clumped with tears.
"But… you already have Saki."
The name was a knife. It slid under my ribs, sharp and merciless. I should have pulled away, corrected her, reminded her of lines that shouldn't blur. But her eyes held me in place, desperate, pleading, waiting for an answer that could keep her from drowning.
I brushed a tear from her cheek with my thumb, the touch slow, deliberate. "Saki is… Saki. But you…" My voice caught, a careful fracture. "You're not replaceable. You never were."
Her breath hitched, and for the briefest moment, the brokenness in her gaze softened, like she wanted to believe me, like she needed to.
Her grip tightened on me, trembling, but she didn't let go.
Her breathing steadied by degrees against me, ragged sobs smoothing into fragile silence. The photos lay scattered across the carpet, but her eyes, wet, searching, fixed on me like they were hunting for something stronger than evidence.
Her voice came out small, trembling, but direct: "Lucien… do you… love me too?"
For a heartbeat I thought of Saki's smile, her careful tamagoyaki hearts, the warmth that asked nothing but honesty. Then Tsukimi's grip pulled tighter, desperate and breaking. Two truths warred in my throat, and I knew if I lied, she'd hear it in the falter of my voice.
So I told her the sharpest truth I could afford.
"I… like you, Tsukimi. More than I should. But love…" My thumb traced the edge of her jaw, tilting her face up. "Love takes time. If you want… we can work on that. Together."
Her breath caught. For a second she was still, stunned, as though the word together had rewired her heart. Then her eyes, still glossy with tears, lit with a fierce, almost feverish relief.
[Affinity: Tsukimi Chifuyu — 120%, Status Shift: Obsessive Love. "Humiliation" debuff removed.]
Her fingers climbed higher, clutching at my collar, dragging me down until her lips brushed mine in a trembling, terrified kiss.
The taste of salt and urgency filled the space between us. For a moment, she didn't breathe, just pressed closer, pouring all her fear and devotion into the contact.
[Affinity: Tsukimi Chifuyu — 135%, (Warning: Target devotion surpasses natural thresholds. Risk of fixation: irreversible.)]
[Uhh... Host? Be Careful, alright?]
She broke the kiss only long enough to whisper against my lips, "I'll do anything. Just… don't let me go."
Her forehead pressed to mine, tears sliding down even as she smiled faintly through them, like she'd found something worth bleeding for.
And I, villain or not, didn't pull away.
Her fingers climbed higher, clutching at my collar, dragging me down until her lips brushed mine in a trembling, terrified kiss.
The taste of salt and urgency filled the space between us. For a moment, she didn't breathe, just pressed closer, pouring all her fear and devotion into the contact.
She broke the kiss only long enough to whisper against my lips, "I want you. Now."
I hesitated. "Tsukimi… are you still sore from-"
"I don't care," she breathed, her hands already working at my shirt. "I need you. Please."
[Target Request: Physical Intimacy. (Warning: Emotional State Unstable. Proceed with Caution. (Or don't. We're not your mom.))]
I didn't stop her.
...
The room was quiet except for the sound of her breathing, slow and steady, as she lay curled against me, her body warm and pliant.
[Affinity: Tsukimi Chifuyu — 200% (Yandere Unlocked). Status: "If you leave her, she will end you. (Not a joke.)]
[New Title: "Heartbreaker (Literal)" — "Congratulations! You've achieved peak emotional damage. Enjoy your new, slightly terrifying girlfriend!"]
Tsukimi's fingers traced idle patterns on my chest, her voice soft and content. "You're mine now."
I didn't answer. Just held her tighter.
[New Quest: "Break the Rival (Permanently)". Target: Takagi]
[Method: Any means necessary]
I closed my eyes, the villain mask slipping back into place.
"I know."
She propped herself up on one elbow, her gaze intense. "What's wrong?"
I hesitated. "Nothing. Just thinking."
Her eyes narrowed. "About him?"
She sat up, the sheets pooling around her waist. "I don't want to see him again. Ever."
I brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "Then don't."
Her fingers tightened on my arm. "I want to transfer to your school. So you can protect me."
[Affinity: Tsukimi Chifuyu — 220%. Yandere Mode: Activated (Caution: May include knives, threats, and/or excessive clinginess.) O-O]
[Good luck, man.]
I nodded. "Okay. I'll help you with the paperwork."
Her smile was sharp, triumphant. "Good."