3rd Person POV:

He was taking a walk like he would normally do every day at lunchtime, when he suddenly felt a short but sharp pain coming from his head. Everything went black immediately. When he came to...everything around him was suddenly white. He squinted his eyes rapidly because of the bright light, when he suddenly heard a voice in his mind.

{Hello, dear Host! I'm your system! Welcome to the 'Help the unfortunate Villain' project.}

He couldn't help but frown. Was he imagining things? 'No.. More importantly, what happened? And... Where am I?' He asked, but without an answer to these questions, the mechanic voice rang in his head for a second time.

{Host Number 1, you have been selected to travel through different worlds to help the big boss villain in each of them. Each of these villains have a tragic fate. It is your duty to help them avoid their death and find a happy ending for themselves. You can deny doing so, but if you really decide that you won't do it, your soul will scatter, never to reincarnate ever again}

He widened his eyes in surprise, before lowering his eyelids again. "Fine..", he began talking to that weird voice. "But please answer my questions first. What happened? And where am I?"

He heard it answer him this time. {Host, you died because a bullet penetrated your skull and brain, killing you almost instantly. You died before the ambulance arrived at the scene. I pulled your soul into this space before it could enter the reincarnation cycle, because you fit every requirement needed to be chosen for these tasks}, it said.

*"I understand. Somebody must have betrayed me. I always disguise myself when going out.. Without someone telling, there would be no one knowing..", he sighed. It's not that he was that disappointed to know that he was betrayed.. Since almost everybody wanted him dead for his brilliant success he was experiencing. 'But I would've loved to live just a bit longer.. Dying at the age of 30 wasn't really that pretty. I mean, it could've been worse, but..'*, he thought and sighed again. 'Never mind.. What's done is done.. I can't go back now... Instead of losing my memories by reincarnating or getting my soul scattered, I would rather do these tasks...'

"So.. System, what's your name? I can't really keep calling you System.. And.. Can you help me with these tasks or am I on my own?", he started asking, since he had to know more.

{Host can give the system a name if he wishes to do so. We systems have no gender or special identity. We help our hosts accomplish their tasks and nothing more, which leads to the second question the host has asked. The host can get points for finishing tasks. With these points, Host can train and learn skills which will be helpful. But other than this and giving information to the host at the beginning of the world, Host will only receive help per the system shop.}

"I see.. Then.. Let's name you Pencake. Also, please call me by my name. The way you said it.. are the points a diffrent currency from the one needed for the shop?", he answered the voice in his head

{Yes, Edwin. Points will be earned for completing the main task in each world. But there will also be side tasks, for which the reward will be coins. These coins can be used in the shop to exchange for different pills and other necessities like food for example.}

"Understood, I will check all of that later.. So.. Do I get any 'first time' bonus?"

{You do, Edwin. You get 1.000 points and 500 coins for bonding with the system. You can also choose one skill to learn for free from those you can choose for the tutorial world.}

"Tutorial world? So.. Are there different difficulties or something?", he immediately asked.

{There are. The tutorial world is basically unfailable. After that, there will be more difficult worlds. These worlds will be ranked with rank 4 being the most dangerous and difficult to complete}

"Okay, now I understand the basics. Thank you, Pancake. Which skills can I learn for the tutorial world?", he now answered with more excitement.

{Ding!}

{Processing....}

{Host Edwin can learn following skills:

-Hacking [Host already mastered this skill, searching skill to replace...]

-Replacement Skill: Acting [350 points]

-Singing [300 points]

-Musical Instruments [500 points]

-Photographic Memory [700 points]

-Sense For Danger [700 points]

Please choose}

He stared at the weird interface that opened up in front of him in surprise. "Wow.. That's interesting!', he exclaimed with excitement. As he read through the screen, he gave everything some more thought. 'It seems I will be going into a world that's Modern.. I don't know if it'll be as advanced as mine but.. Photographic Memory seems nice.. Singing as well, since I won't have much more points for anything else..', and so he chose exactly those two skills.

{Ding!}

He saw the screen disappearing again as it was instantly replaced by Pancake's voice.

{Edwin chose 'Photographic Memory' as well as 'Singing'. You will now be sent to the training room, where you will stay until you mastered everything. Good luck, Host}

He immediately started feeling lightheaded as the scenery around him started to change at the same time.

\~60 years later\~

Opening his eyes, he was standing inside that white room once again. It felt a little nostalgic, since he hasn't seen it since..forever.

{Edwin, you are now ready to start your tutorial world.}

"Wait.. Is there a way to get the information for the world right now?", he immediately asked before being sent there.

{Yes, if the Host wishes, I can send a bit of the inform for the world right now, but.. You will only be able to access the memories of your new body once you took over}

"Okay, thanks. Please send me the plot immediately."

Once these words left his mouth, a screen appeared before him once more.

{Processing....}

{Required World information:

[Male Lead]

-Name: Jonas Rede

-Age: 19

-Occupation: Illegitimate Son of the Rede Family

-Profile: He's being hated by his family, has one older brother. Fell in love with the Female Lead since she's 'different than the others'

[Female Lead]

-Name: Lily Allen

-Age: 21

-Occupation: First daughter of the Allen Family

-Profile: She's being doted on by her family as the only child, she's also known as a 'green tea bitch' by the plot. She's a white lotus full of schemes. Fell in love with Jonas at first sight, but actually just wants to help him get the Rede Family's inheritance and be even richer than she is now.

[Villain]

-Richard Wagner Strauss

-Age: 22

-Occupation: CEO of a large Family Business

-Profile: He's rich. Extremely rich, but at the same time, extremely low-key. His family owns these Businesses for generations and they have a extremely long standing history with said businesses. But since he took over, nobody has seen pictures on social media or anywhere else. Dies because of the Female Lead and Male Lead.}

He read everything and started to frown. "Say, pancake.. Do I just take over the Villain's body directly or.. Do I help him otherwise?" He sees the window disappear again. Now Pancake's voice answered him.

{Replying to Host. No, you will not take over the body of the Villain. You will take the body of a cannonfodder near the Villain. The main task would be to help the Villain overcome his fate, for which the reward differs per difficulty. The side tasks mostly contain the last wishes said cannonfodder had before they died}

"I see.. Thank you.", he answered back while taking a deep breath. "Can I talk to you once I enter the world?"

{Yes you can. Since we systems can read minds, you would just have to call for me, Edwin.}

"Good, that's reassuring. Now... Let's enter the tutorial world, Pancake"

{Understood. Transfer process starting now...}

He took another deep breath and closed his eyes. Suddenly he felt dull pains all over his soul and blacked out. The last thing he heard was his system talking.

{Transfer complete. Good luck, host}

3rd Person POV:

Edwin woke up having a terrible headache. Memories flooded into his mind that weren't his, causing him pain beyond words. But luckily, this pain did not last long.

He was now in the body of Arthur Ionas. He's 21 years old and apparently the childhood friend of the Villain..., and the cause for his demise, as he knows by taking a quick peek at the story synopsis before his eyes.

Arthur was an orphan actually. The Villain and the original met when the Villain himself was at the orphanage. The Villain grew up there with him. The original approached him first.

At first, Richard, which is the name of our Villain, ignored him. But Arthur was persistent, eventually gaining his friendship. Since then, these two were always bound to each other, until Richard's father picked him up, which was when he was 12.

The original was 11 back then and cried a lot. He only stopped because Richard promised him that he would find him again, but the original waited a long time. When he was 18, he couldn't wait any longer since he got kicked out from the orphanage.

But he was lucky, he was really smart and always had perfect grades and also suberb computer skills, which earned him a scholarship at a famous school overseas. And right now, he was sitting in his bed at the little apartment he purchased by earning a bit money with tutoring and selling information through hacking. He was apparently almost done with school, since he's a genius, and determined to find his childhood friend.

"So.. Let me guess pancake, I have to reunite them again and so on?", Edwin, now Arthur, asked.

{Yes Edwin. Here are your tasks}

He heard a {Ding!} sound and another screen appeared next to the story.

{Main Task: Ensure the Villain avoids his story death [Reward 500 points]

Side Tasks:

Ensure Arthur and Richard meet again [Reward 10 coins]

Help the Villain find happiness and let him live a long life [Reward 20 coins]

Find out who Arthur's parents are [Reward 35 coins]

Unmask the Female Lead [Reward 50 coins]}

Arthur smiles a bit. "I see... These were his regrets when he died.. Now for the story..", he mumbles and looks at the other screen.

{Story:

The Story starts when the Male and Female Lead meet each other at a school party hosted by the principal's son, since they attended the same school tofether. The Male Lead was there with his older brother, since he practically urged him to take him.

Of course, with no good motives. But since the elder brother was there, the Female Lead knew who he was almost immediately. The Illegitimate Son of the Rede Family. She secretly smirked.

Since she couldn't get the older son, she'll have to try and get this kid instead. And that's when everything started. She tried to get him with everything she got and got rid of everything in her way. The cannon fodder Arthur was one of those. He had, a few months later, just come back from overseas to search for Richard. He started working for a company under the Rede Family afterward, which was his demise.

The Male Lead noticed his talents and started wanting to get him on his 'side' while the inheritance war was ongoing, which happened about another two months after he started working there. But because of his extremely beautiful face and talents, Jonas, the male lead, praised him a bit too much in front of Lily, the Female Lead.

So she got jealous, since this world is so open about homosexual people, even discrimination is almost nonexistent. She framed him for so many things. Arthur couldn't do anything, since even with his hacking skills, he couldn't find any evidence for his innocence. He didn't know that Lily had an even better hacker behind her, so she succeeded.

The Male Lead knows someone dangerous, so he had him tortured and killed. Arthur's 'Crimes' were: Selling secrets to competitors, almost 'drugging' The Female Lead and of course sexually harassing the Female Lead. It took another year for Richard to find out what happened, and in that time, the male lead became a bigger fish both in the business world and in the underworld. Of course, Richard was still powerful, but in the end he still lost and also got killed with the combined efforts of the leads. They lived happily ever after, got married, beat the brother, and had children.}

Arthur couldn't help but sigh at this plot. "Poor fellow..", he said an rubbed his forehead. He closed the window and started thinking. 'Today is the day of the party, so I still have some time to correct things. I don't have to be near the bi*** to unmask her, so I should not go to that company. I should find one under Richard and go there. It would be easier to meet him then, since he can find me easily inside 'his territory'. The original didn't know who he is right now but I do, thanks to the information provided by Pancake. Okay. Let's do this.', he stood up but was immediately hit by dizziness, which surprised him. 'Hey pancake, what's wrong?', he asked while leaning against the wall.

{Edwin, this body is not healthy due to malnutrition. He mostly stayed indoors and ate unhealthy food, so he was not fit. There's a pill in the store you can buy for 100 coins to strengthen this body's health and looks, but you should take it while showering}, the system anwered him.

Arthur nodded cautiously, to not make the dizziness worse, and made his way to the bathroom using the memories he had just gained. Once he arrived, he immediately but cautiously took off his clothes and got under the shower head. After getting the right temperature, he said "Give me the pill", and heard a {Ding!} sound right after.

{Host purchased the Beauty & Health pill for 100 coins. You have 400 left. The pill will immediately be placed inside your mouth, please be ready.}

Right after he heard what the system said, he had a bitter taste in his mouth and frowned. But he ate the pill, waiting afterwards and wondering what will happen next. After a few minutes, he started sweating black sweat, which immediately got washed away by the running water. Still..it stank like shit. He continued sweating black for 5 minutes before it stopped. He started washing himself right after to get rid of the lingering smell.

Afterwards he dryed himself and looked in the mirror. He was stunned. Looking back at him was a stunning young man with shining blonde hair, different from the dirty blond he saw in the profile. His eyes were beatiful golden with no eyebags left. His skin was still pale, but it didn't look unhealthy anymore.

He touched it and was amazed how soft it was. He smirked with a bit of a mischievous hint in his eyes. "Damn, I hope the male lead won't fall for me instead. This boy is goddamn beautiful.", he said and put the used clothes in the washer. He then walked to his room, put on some clothes and started the computer. 'Okay.. Let's get everything started'

3rd Person POV:

It took Arthur a while before getting everything ready. He sent his resume and everything else needed to a company working with technology under Richard's Name. Well, not directly since it was under his family's name, but it was still the same. Also, he bought a flight ticked back to C City, since he needed to go back anyway.

After he was finished, it was time to get ready for the last exam he had to take. He stood up and walked into the kitchen. He was always alone in his past life, so he knows how to cook. Well, he wasn't really alone, but his parents hated him.

Anyway, he started making some food. After 30 minutes, he was finished and sat down to eat. Once that was done, he washed the dishes and walked into the bathroom to brush his teeth. Then he grabbed everything he needed and rushed off. Since he was pretty close, but not that close, to school, he had a bike. He unlocked it and made his way to take the exam.

Once he had the exam before his eyes, he immediately started writing down the answers. Edwin himself was really smart, plus he also came from a world much more advanced than this one, so he could easily continue getting Arthur's perfect scores. It still took a bit before he finished.

He gave the papers back to the teacher after 30 minutes. The teacher was surprised, but allowed him to go, since he was already finished. He still talked a bit with the teacher before going though, to fish for information. What he learned was what he already guessed: He didn't need to stay overseas anymore.

Everything else can be done per Mail and phone, so he could go back the day after tomorrow. He smiled while going back home. It's a bit earlier than the plot states, but it should be fine. Once he arrived back home, he started packing everything. It's going to be stressful until then.

Richard 3rd Person POV:

He was working on his documents when he heard someone knocking on his door. His mood went even lower than before, but he still said, "Come in", with his deep, seductive but icy voice. The person on the other side shuddered, clearly sensing his boss's bad mood.

But he had to do this, since it was something his boss ordered to be reported immediately. He opened the door, closed it behind him and walked toward Richard, who didn't even look up from his paperwork. "Sir", he started and put the document right before his eyes, blocking his sight from what he was working on.

"We got information on that person you had so desperately been looking for. Well, not really information itself but.. He sent one of our smaller side companies working with technology his information to work there", he continued. The first sentence itself got his whole attention.

He just wanted to scold this employee for blocking his sight, but instead read the document he gave him. His cold facade instantly melted as he brushed his fingers over the paper with a gentle expression, which startled the employee greatly.

Richard coughed a bit and stored the document in a drawer underneath the desk. "Let him work there.. And tell me instantly once he starts working.", he ordered in his usual cold voice. The employee nodded his head "Yes, Sir", he answered and left the office right after. Once he was alone, he pulled the document out again.

"I said I'll find you, but here you are, coming to me instead.. Then..don't be surprised when I don't let you go ever again", he whispered. He didn't have a good life. The only light he had was this friend of his and he wants it back. He needs someone to talk and laugh with, or else he would go insane. The only thing keeping him sane is Arthur in this filthy world.

Arthur 3rd Person POV:

He sneezed a bit and looked at his half packed stuff. He then looked toward the clock, which indicated that he should sleep. He let out a sigh 'Fine.. I'll eat and then sleep', he thought. He made himself something to eat, ate it afterwards, washed his dishes and brushed his teeth.

He then put on his Pyjamas and layed himself down on the bed. 'After packing the rest tomorrow, I can finally go back and start my task.', he thought while yawning. It didn't take long before he fell into deep slumber.

\~One day and a half later\~

Arthur stood outside the airport and took a deep breath. 'Heh, and here I am. Let's get this Villain to be happy', he thought while smiling a little bit. He got a taxi and went to the new but still small apartment he rented and started sorting his baggage out. He got an email stating he would start his work next week. He read it smiling. This world is going to be easy, but oh well.. The system did say it was unfailable, so.. It's pretty obvious. He hoped the next world would be a bit more challenging.