Chapter 1: The Protagonist Comes to Conquer Me?  

“Host—World Book loading in progress…”  

“Bzzzt—”  

Lin Yu was an Executive Officer specializing in Quick Transmigration across various Small Worlds, tasked with resolving troublesome issues from different dimensions.  

His emotions remained eerily calm, as if he held no expectations for the journey ahead—even though he was a top-rated Quick Transmigration agent, praised even by the administrators.  

He had just completed a Small World mission and was lazily sprawled on the couch in his private space, the SSS-rated evaluation screen from the previous world floating before him. Satisfied, he tapped the central control button of his personal domain with his fingertip.  

Poking the glowing orb fluttering around him, he voiced the question that had lingered in his mind for a long time:  

“Why is it always me conquering missions in these worlds? Why isn’t there a mission where someone has to conquer me?”  

How dull, wasn’t it?  

Raising a blade was his norm; lowering a gun was his rare moment of leisure.  

Suddenly, 001 emitted a distorted, buzzing screech, loud enough that Lin Yu had to cover his ears in exasperation. “Host! There’s a Small World that perfectly matches your request!”  

“What?” Lin Yu perked up, raising an eyebrow.  

“It’s an emergency task just assigned by the Executive Officer! You need to deploy within 24 hours to salvage the situation!”  

“The original host in this world is a Universally Beloved character. The world’s requirement is for the original host to resist being ‘conquered’ by various side characters—including the protagonist! Hey, stop pulling me—”  

Lin Yu reluctantly withdrew his hand.  

“The original host couldn’t maintain the persona and started juggling multiple relationships under the side characters’ advances! A severe violation of our Quick Transmigration Bureau’s principles!”  

The orb circled Lin Yu a few times before continuing slowly, “Doesn’t this fit your request perfectly?”  

It proudly fluttered its wings, its glow expanding to fill the dark crevices of the room. “Though it was forcibly assigned by the administrators, I still deserve credit—”  

Lin Yu clamped his hand over the orb, effectively silencing it. The orb struggled violently in his grip.  

“Let’s go, 001. I’m satisfied.”  

In an instant, the familiar space unraveled like threads, replaced by blinding light that flooded his vision. Twisting beams of luminous energy swirled before him, flickering wildly as they danced through the cosmic void.  

……  

……  

Lin Yu slowly opened his eyes.  

Before him was a dimly lit university dorm room. A single, crooked ceiling lamp cast a sickly yellow glow, while the oppressive silence of night was occasionally pierced by the crackle of faulty wiring.  

—Drip. Drip.  

The dorm door was tightly shut, but the sound of dripping water permeated the heavy stillness. Humid air clung to his skin like fog, thick as the monsoon season and just as suffocating.  

A droplet fell, striking the porcelain sink with a ripple of sound that echoed clearly in Lin Yu’s ears.  

He glanced down at himself—185 cm tall, with a lean, broad-shouldered frame, no different from his usual appearance.  

Lin Yu extinguished the system’s glowing orb, and his vision returned to the dim dorm lighting. The elongated filament flickered rapidly in the darkness—  

Silently, he absorbed the basic world information the system fed into his mind.

The tranquility here surprised him.

He pulled over a chair—an old wooden one with peeling paint—that creaked under his weight. Wooden splinters clung stubbornly to its yellowed surface.

Lin Yu had barely adjusted from the stiff posture of sitting on his university dorm stool when he suddenly sensed a shift in the air currents around him. The dorm door swung open, and before he could react, he found himself face to face with—

A casually handsome young man with tousled, slightly curly hair, who gave Lin Yu a puzzled look before asking,  

“What’s wrong, Lin Lin? Are you sick?”  

Lin Yu shook his head. “No.”  

A glance at the virtual screen floating before him revealed the identity card the Small World had automatically refreshed for the person in front of him.  

**[—Chen Shuhua]**  

“But… isn’t today the finals of your faculty’s basketball tournament? It starts in twenty minutes,” Chen Shuhua said, scratching his head with a conflicted expression. His slight head shake deepened the confusion in his eyes.  

**?!**  

“Thanks for reminding me, Shuhua.”  

**[Dormmate Chen Shuhua has had a crush on you since the first day of university.]**  

**[He painstakingly studies your preferences, answers roll calls for you when you skip class, writes your papers, and signs your name for extra credit opportunities…]**  

“What a great guy~” 001 transformed into a glowing orb visible only to Lin Yu, perching steadily on his shoulder.  

“Host, you must get along well with your dormmate from now on.”  

Lin Yu swiftly turned around, his long arm snatching a baseball jacket draped over the chair. He slipped it on in one fluid motion, the fabric cutting a sharp arc through the air.  

“Hey, I’ll go with you!” Chen Shuhua hastily pulled the dorm door shut and hurried after Lin Yu.  

**[…]**  

**[Though he does have some… unconventional hobbies.]**  

**[Such as secretly collecting your underwear, sneaking into your bed to sleep and sniff your sheets, or wearing your clothes out without permission…]**  

System 001: “???”  

“Wait, is this right?”  

Hearing this, Lin Yu also turned back in astonishment.  

—Chen Shuhua remained docile and quiet, almost submissive, not even daring to meet his gaze as he kept his eyes fixed on the ground.  

Lin Yu looked away, dismissing the thought. He strode forward, his long legs carrying him confidently into the night, vanishing into the darkness.  

Silence. The outside world remained unnervingly still.  

An improbable serenity coexisted in this famously bustling city, within the usually noisy campus, quietly radiating its own brilliance beneath the all-consuming night.  

001 took a long moment to buffer, as if its program had just finished loading, before speaking up:  

“Host, this world primarily unfolds within a university.”  

“You should get yourself repaired by the administrator,” Lin Yu said without slowing his pace.  

“Whoa, unfinished plotlines damage the Small World. Good thing this… uh, Chen Shuhua reminded us.” 001 patted its own head.  

“Your mission objectives in this world are—”  

“To save the family business and complete the original storyline.”  

The glowing system interface appeared before Lin Yu, translucent text slowly materializing:  

**[Original Plot: Campus Life]**  

**[Enjoy sweet dorm life with your roommate, harem +1~]**

【Participating in a basketball game at the enthusiastic invitation of the school team captain~ Getting confessed to, harem +1】

【Going racing with the domineering CEO childhood friend~ harem +1】

【Saving the Small World male lead who ended up in a bar~ harem +1】

……

This original plot was truly something else.

Lin Yu tilted his head toward the glowing orb 001 floating in the distance. “Do I really have to do all these things?!”

“But I can’t let myself be romanced while completing the plot, right?”

001 nodded solemnly, its light shimmering on Lin Yu’s shoulder.

Seriously, living sweet dorm life with his roommate??!

—Whether this dorm could even remain livable was another matter entirely.

Lin Yu’s expression darkened as his sharp gaze swept past the distant teaching building. Raising an eyebrow at the night sky, he quickened his pace.

……

The basketball court buzzed with excitement. Players warmed up while the audience settled into their seats, their chatter rising and falling.

Yan Huaqing paced anxiously nearby, clutching a basketball. Muttering to himself, his footsteps thudded rhythmically against the hardwood court, the soft “thump thump thump” echoing steadily.

Wiping sweat from his brow, he fretted, “Why isn’t Lin Yu here yet?”

His teammate Zhang Shuo frowned and patted his shoulder. “I heard the school invited some big shots today. We can’t afford delays.”

“We could always send in a substitute—”

Yan Huaqing’s eyes suddenly lit up as he spotted Lin Yu approaching. Waving vigorously, he called out, “Lin Yu!”

“Sorry, got held up,” Lin Yu replied briskly, his deep voice cutting clearly through the noise.

A translucent panel flickered before Lin Yu, displaying: 【Basketball Club President & Team Captain—Yan Huaqing】. Lin Yu swiped it away without a second glance.

Yan Huaqing stared at Lin Yu’s face, momentarily breathless. After a few seconds, he lowered his gaze and murmured, “Glad you made it.”

【An enthusiastic 185cm college athlete with above-average looks. Has had a crush on you since you joined the club. Though not in the same major, he’s made sure you’ve had plenty of opportunities to “fight side by side” during matches.】

001 whistled in Lin Yu’s mind. “Not bad~”

Lin Yu picked up a basketball.

【However, he enjoys slandering you behind your back, adhering to the principle of “if no one else likes you, I can swoop in.”】

【Persistently posts defamatory claims about you being a gold-digger on the Confession Wall, diligently ruining your reputation among peers.】

001: ……

“My bad, Host. This is actually my first mission—didn’t realize it’d be such a toxic mess QAQ.” 001 bowed apologetically in Lin Yu’s consciousness, spinning guiltily in his mental space.

Chen Shuhua, who’d been struggling to keep up, finally caught up, panting heavily. After catching his breath, he stepped forward with a smile, locking eyes with Lin Yu. “Go get ’em, Lin Lin. I believe in you.”

“You guys can definitely win.”

Lin Yu shot his roommate a complicated sidelong glance before calmly turning away, withdrawing all scrutiny.

“Thud—”

The basketball slammed into the ground at Chen Shuhua’s feet with tremendous force, rebounding perfectly to strike his kneecap—

The tremendous force instantly made Chen Shuhua crouch down, clutching his knee with an almost twisted expression. His handsome brows were tightly knitted together as he desperately endured something.

His hands clenched into fists, lips pressed tightly together as he bit his lower lip.

“Mmm…” Chen Shuhua let out a pained moan.

It hurt—it really hurt—

Yan Huaqing looked down at him coldly for a while before speaking in an indifferent tone, his eyes carrying a hint of mockery as he took two deliberate steps back. “Sorry, classmate.”

“You know how it is—we athletes get a bit too excited before games.”

“The people in this world are unbelievable,” 001’s glowing sphere perched on Lin Yu’s shoulder like a person, covering its mouth in exaggerated shock. “Your basketball teammate just maliciously attacked your roommate!”

Chen Shuhua’s brows remained fiercely furrowed as he stayed crouched, firmly holding his injury. After a moment, seeming to notice the concerned crowd wanting to help him up, he slowly rose to his feet.

Chen Shuhua wobbled as he stood up, deliberately glancing toward Lin Yu’s direction before staggering and stumbling that way.

Then with a soft voice and pout, he said, “It’s okay, I know Captain Yan didn’t mean it—he’s just like that before games.”

Lifting his head, Chen Shuhua blinked his seemingly moistened eyes, his gaze flitting nervously toward Lin Yu:

“Yan couldn’t have done it on purpose. Lin Lin, you should be careful not to get hurt during practice later.”

Lin Yu had been keeping his eyes downcast. Hearing this, he gave a somewhat absentminded nod.

The high-wattage stadium lights bleached Lin Yu’s face white, casting thick shadows from his eyelashes that fell across his cheeks like feathers.

The overlapping shadows in the gym shifted constantly, the stark contrast highlighting his high nose bridge and slender frame—like a sculpted artwork under exposure.

Holding the basketball expressionlessly, Lin Yu watched everything unfold before him, only knocking mentally on 001 with slight exasperation. “What are they even doing?”

God knew what these people were up to—

What he excelled at was gutting enemies and sharpening blades with their blood.

Yan Huaqing, whom Lin Yu had always remembered as a “good person,” frowned displeasedly with crossed arms, turning away in silence while pressing his lips tightly together.

Still holding the basketball, Lin Yu thought for a moment: “There’s medical supplies in the coach’s office.”

“Thank you, Lin Lin… I’m fine.” Chen Shuhua lowered his head, lips pursed. “It’s not that bad.”

The sarcastically addressed “Captain Yan” Yan Huaqing finally caught on—

The passive-aggressive tone made his hair stand on end, goosebumps rising. He rubbed the back of his hand, struggling to suppress his nausea.

Yan Huaqing rolled his eyes, his words tangling in his throat before coming out in a drawl, “Lin Yu, my hand really slipped this time.”

Not to be outdone, Chen Shuhua put on a pitiful act: “Lin Lin, it really hurts. Aren’t you going to comfort me?”

Lin Yu held the basketball while avoiding eye contact, feeling the weight of their stares like a thousand pounds—

His sneakers squeaked faintly against the gym floor as he subtly inched backward, his gaze flitting uncertainly between the two like a spinning top.

Their gazes were scorching, their eyes fixed intently on Lin Yu like red-hot branding irons, forcing him to retreat repeatedly.  

He took a few more steps back.  

—”Lin Yu, why aren’t you saying anything?”  

They spoke in unison.