Human nature is complex.
Virtues such as humility, compassion, kindness, solidarity, and goodwill truly exist.
But that kindness is reserved only for fellow humans—and beings recognized by humanity.
Clearly.
A skeletal monstrosity does not belong in that category.
The girl, cursed by sorcerers and eroded by necrotic energy, had long become a grotesque abomination.
She lost her beautiful face—now hideous and horrifying.
She lost her fair skin—now pale bones starkly visible.
She lost her beating heart—now replaced by a glaring, unmissable soulfire.
"Get out, monster!"
"Quick, kill that thing!"
Angry stones were hurled; blades slashed mercilessly.
Servia Clawphire.
Once the radiant emerald bathed in sunlight, she now experienced malice for the first time—terrified, helpless, as people called her a monster.
It shouldn’t have been like this. It was never meant to be like this.
Servia had no intention of harming anyone.
She only wanted to protect the people of Clawphire Territory as best she could, even if time had stretched so long that they’d forgotten her name.
Yet the girl who grew up listening to tales of "heroes" still wished, in this perilous world,
to shield the innocent however she could.
At the very least.
She couldn’t let her departed parents down.
That was what Servia believed. But the villagers thought otherwise, their faces twisted in terror as they screamed, driving the undead Servia away.
In the end, she could only flee.
In the most pitiful state—stumbling, falling, scrambling back up, running.
She couldn’t do it.
Couldn’t bring herself to raise a sword against frightened people.
So she had no choice but to escape.
Far, far away, where only rot and stench kept her company, back to the ruins of what was once her home.
"Great Sorcerer."
In the rain-drenched, withered forest.
Drops of water pattered, echoing crisply.
The hero clad in heavy armor, half-shrouded in darkness, seemed oddly small, her voice lost and hesitant: "What do you think…"
"Should one judge a person’s goodness by their appearance… or by their heart?"
"My… friend."
"Servia… really, really wants to know the answer."
Her hands fidgeted unconsciously, rubbing rust between gauntleted fingers. Inside that suffocating armor, the undead girl waited for Xu Xi’s reply.
Her voice was hoarse, trembling.
As if filled with leaden grit.
Harsh and grating.
It even disturbed the dead branches above, making the droplets fall faster—one after another, shattering before Xu Xi’s eyes.
"The answer…" Xu Xi recalled past simulations.
Finally, he spoke to the girl hidden beneath layers of steel.
"I don’t know."
"Why?"
The reply left her bewildered, her disbelief palpable.
Even through the thick helmet.
Xu Xi could feel that wordless, stunned gaze—silently pleading for understanding.
Xu Xi met her gaze. "A person’s goodness depends on many things. Not just appearance. Not just the heart."
"In this world, there are no absolute answers."
"Good or bad—no one can truly say."
"Besides, I’ve never believed my worth should be judged by others."
Memories surfaced—of the third simulation, leading the Desperate Army against Da Qian, hearing the furious curses of its officials.
Xu Xi shook his head.
"What matters most in life is believing in yourself."
"So… we shouldn’t care about others’ words?"
"You can care, or not. The choice doesn’t matter. What matters is that you make it."
Inside the armor, the undead girl fell silent.
This sorcerer was… unusual.
Unlike the wicked ones she’d met before, he didn’t toy with souls or revel in cruelty. Instead, he spoke strangely profound words that resonated deep within.
He seemed…
like a good sorcerer.
"Thank you for your wisdom." As if unburdened, her soulfire flickered brighter. She bowed slightly, gratitude in her tone.
"If my friend were here, she’d… surely appreciate your answer too."
Her words were clumsy.
Hiding behind the flimsy pretense of a "friend."
Amid the falling droplets.
The undead girl asked one final question.
"Great Sorcerer… do you think Servia—my friend—is still human?"
She added hastily, "She believes she is. But she wants to hear another’s thoughts."
In the darkness.
A fire flickered.
The glow of a soul—hollow yet burning fiercely.
An invisible yearning hung in the air—a fragile, tormented spirit waiting for Xu Xi’s reply, waiting for affirmation.
The dead forest was silent.
So silent that the soul grew uneasy.
Then—
A "light" appeared.
"Of course. Even with an undead body, her mind is undeniably human."
The words tore through the night like a crack of thunder—harsh yet warm.
Beaten, cursed, driven away, attacked.
The "hero" who rose after countless setbacks.
Now… faltered.
She stood frozen for a long moment.
"...Thank you." The voice inside the armor remained rasping, but now carried relief—and light.
The emerald of the Clawphire family was the most fearless of knights.
Even alone, she would march forward, sword in hand.
She knew she was no hero.
She knew she was pitifully weak.
She didn’t even know if her actions held meaning—only that she sought redemption, haunted by the sin of ending her parents’ lives, desperate to do something right to atone.
"Monster!" "Fiend!" "Demon!"
People loathed her, driving her away again and again.
Even hidden beneath armor, their malice reached her.
But today.
Someone acknowledged Servia’s existence—declared with conviction that within that monstrous shell beat a human heart.
"...Thank you."
The undead girl bowed again.
Guilt gnawed at her.
Her hands trembled as they gripped the helmet, slowly lifting it to reveal her ghastly face once more.
She seemed to steel herself.
"Great Sorcerer, earlier you asked… my true name, and how this body became like this."
"Now, I’ll give you the answer."
"The truth is…"
"I am Servia Clawphire!"
The night was still.
Servia waited for Xu Xi’s reaction—but he remained expressionless, seated calmly, watching her without a flicker of surprise.
No shock. No disbelief.
Servia blinked. "Aren’t you… surprised? About my identity."
"Servia."
"Ah—yes?"
"Has anyone ever told you… you’re terrible at conversation?"
"Eh?! How did you know?!"
] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"
m back to his original world. In the end, he realized he had overthought things. [Hey, why is Shen Manni, the female lead, acting strange? Shouldn't she be fawning over the male lead at this point?] [Zhou Qiaoqiao, are you sick? Weren't you supposed to break off your engagement today?] [Damn it! An Youyi, please do your job as an undercover agent and sell my information to the protagonist, you idiot!] ... At this moment, Xu Mo himself didn't know that these female leads had already heard his inner thoughts. Then they decided not to play by the rules. Xu Mo: Please respect my profession as the big villain!
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
ress Kneels to Admit Wrong] [Dealing with Love-Struck Fools] [Forced to the Throne] Ren Tianye transmigrated into a female-oriented novel world, only to find everyone in it was utterly insane. He risked his life to save a young girl from barbarians, but was accused of arriving too late and branded the real murderer. He held a knife to a military officer's neck, demanding the troop tally, but the officer only cared about questioning his wife: "Do you not love me anymore? All these years of affection and time together, they were all a mistake, a mistake!" After seizing Yunji City, the original defending general, to save face with the Empress, knelt on the ground: "You must give Yunji City back to me, or I'll hang myself at the city gate and let everyone know you're a villain!" The young lord of the Duke's mansion, to please a woman, directly ordered a merchant: "The menstrual pads you buy for her must be studded with diamonds. Loving her means giving her the best." Having become a great general, he was about to marry a merchant's daughter, who set a pre-nuptial rule: "I can divorce you anytime. When that happens, you must give me half of your troops and soldiers!" Even the Empress was a severe love-struck fool, who ordered the execution of 70,000 elite troops simply because they stood in the way of her romance. Ren Tianye was speechless. He was done. Let it all burn! This deranged female-oriented novel world! ...
