System Error: The Hero is a Villain? Chapter 10

System Error: The Hero is a Villain? Chapter 10

Home. Lucian showered.

I sat on the bed, thinking, then tapped the system.

“System. I need to say something.”

“What is it?”

I lifted my head. Voice firm. “I’m abandoning the original transmigration mission.”

Lucian had been nothing but genuine. I’d approached him with a lie.

It felt unjust.

The system gasped. “Host. You’re serious?”

It stammered. “If you abandon the mission… you forfeit the one-hundred-million-point reward!”

I paused. “…Do I look broke right now?”

“Kidding.” The system sighed. “You know the cost better than I do.”

I did.

Abandoning the mission broke the fated plot. The price? Permanent exile in this world. No return.

For most, unacceptable.

Not me.

“Nothing waits for me back there. No family. No friends. Nothing to miss.”

I smiled softly. “But here? I have the person I love.”

So even without the system’s reward, I won.

Because my greatest reward stood right beside me.

Before I finished the thought, I froze.

A lean, muscled arm wrapped around my waist.

Lucian’s husky voice brushed my ear. “Honey. Thank you.”

My hands clenched. Mind blank with panic. “…You knew?”

He buried his face in my neck. Mumbled, “A long time.”

“Since that garbage system told you to run. I knew that day.”

That early?

I’d crafted that escape-room lie on the spot. Thought I’d fooled him.

He’d known all along. Chosen not to expose me.

I turned, confused. “You knew I was lying. Why say nothing?”

“Why would I?” Lucian countered. “You were enjoying it. I was enjoying it. Point in ruining it?”

Guilt washed over me. “But I deceived you. That’s awful…”

Warm fingers pressed against my lips. Silencing me.

“Not awful. Since you came here, despite all the power… you’ve never hurt anyone. You’d stay with someone like me. A villain…”

He moved his fingers. Kissed me under the dim light.

Voice soft. Reverent.

“You’re a good person.”

“You’re my love.”

My heart shattered and remade itself at those words.

I wound my arms around his neck. Kissed him back, clumsy and desperate.

“But I bullied you so much. I feel guilty…”

Lucian crushed me against him. Steam rose around us, painting my cheeks crimson as his voice dropped lower.

“You’ve bullied me all this time. So let me bully you back once.”

“Don’t be scared, honey. Just one night.”

Winter arrived.

Lucian’s birthday.

I led him, nagging the whole way. “Eyes closed, okay? Almost there. Peek and it’s ruined!”

Lucian laughed, helpless. “Tenth time you’ve said that.”

“Honestly, honey. I haven’t peeked.”

The man who made the underworld tremble. Letting me guide him blindly.

My heart fluttered. I laughed. “So obedient. Scared I’ll sell you?”

“Would you?”

“Mm… maybe not. Beg me, and I’ll reconsider.”

“Alright.” His voice warmed with amusement. “I’m begging you, honey. Don’t leave me. Don’t go anywhere. Satisfied?”

Impossible to refuse.

I clutched my chest. Swore, “Wouldn’t sell you if I was destitute. Joke’s over.”

“Open your eyes.”

Lucian obeyed.

The moment he saw the room, he stilled.

Warm, golden light bathed everything.

Soft orange glow wrapped the furniture. Familiar comfort in every corner.

This was… the home he’d shared with his mother.

On his twelfth birthday, everything here had changed.

When he returned, it was a tomb of dust.

And with it, the news of his mother’s death.

Since then, this place was a nightmare he avoided.

But now? It felt like childhood again.

Shadows retreated. Replaced by gentle light.

I stood aside, watching him motionless. Unease gnawed at me.

This gift was my idea.

The house held Lucian’s happiest memories. A crime to let it rot.

I’d retrieved archived photos from the system.

Cleaned every cobweb. Restored every worn piece of furniture.

Tried to rebuild what was lost.

Some scars of time couldn’t be erased. I’d added my own touches.

Modern warmth blended with nostalgia.

I’d been proud. But…

I looked at Lucian. Growing anxious. “Don’t know if you’ll like it. Or if your mom would mind…”

Lucian seemed to surface from a trance.

He turned. Pulled me into a crushing embrace.

I could barely breathe. Patting his shoulder, I whispered, “You haven’t answered. Do you like it?”

He loosened his hold fractionally.

His eyes glowed amber in the light.

“I love it.”

He said he loved the house. But his gaze never left my face.

Then, as if he couldn’t wait another second, he kissed me.

A tear slid down his neck.

“Thank you, honey.”

Once, his mother stood here. Smiling. Saying, “Lucian, welcome home.”

Now, the woman he loved stood here. Eyes shining. Saying the same.

“Lucian, welcome home.”

Finally, he had a home again.