"Strip!"

WTF?!

What kind of lewd command was this?!

Damn subtitle team—why translate it like that?!

Derek was stunned.

At this near-cruel order, Teresia’s petite frame trembled as if struck.

Ever since learning her fate from her mother, Teresia’s heart had been wound tight. Though she hid it well, she was barely holding on.

Now, Derek’s shout snapped her composure. Her tear ducts activated.

Glistening moisture pooled in her eyes. She bit her lower lip, a choked sob escaping.

Her small hands, clutching the thin straps of her nightgown, began sliding them down inch by inch. Milk-white skin slowly bloomed into view.

Perhaps by instinct, Derek turned his head away before he could think.

Then he froze.

He hadn’t expected his inner gentleman to surface—automatically—even as a villain in an R18 game.

But what good was gentlemanly conduct now?!

A trace of regret flickered in his "gentlemanly" heart. He prepared to turn back and face the R18 world head-on.

This was wrong, but things had gone this far… He’d figure something out later.

Besides, his brain wasn’t exactly sharp in this situation.

As Derek pondered this, his gaze suddenly locked onto…

A silver mirror directly opposite him.

Bathed in the glow of the magic lamp, it reflected his lavish room—and Teresia’s small, pitiful back. But Derek’s focus snagged on the darkness beyond the window in the mirror’s depths.

Duke Wudewen’s estate sprawled wide, its lawns dotted with oak trees.

Gardeners tended the plants daily; they thrived beautifully.

The tallest oak soared over ten meters—higher than the mansion itself, its branches thick and dense.

On pitch-black nights, a person hiding in those trees would be nearly invisible.

But…

Derek had spotted him!

He didn’t know why he could see through the darkness—perhaps his affinity for shadow magic—but he saw clearly:

Someone hid in the tree facing his balcony!

The figure stared intently into his room, observing everything inside.

Confident Derek couldn’t see through the night, the watcher hadn’t bothered to hide well.

As Derek squinted, he recognized the eavesdropper…

Clad head-to-toe in black suit: Xinzel Yuka!

Derek had intel on Xinzel. This old steward wasn’t some perverted creep who got kicks spying on young couples.

So why was he here?

Racking his brain for "fate"-related details, cold sweat slicked Derek’s back.

In the game, Xinzel Yuka was a unique NPC.

He served Duke Wudewen, but not out of loyalty.

Xinzel had been forced into service after a failed assassination attempt.

Technically, he wasn’t even on the villains’ side.

No matter which route players chose, when the heroes confronted the powerful Duke Wudewen, they always needed Xinzel’s help.

When the heroes crippled the Duke, Xinzel would seize the moment to strike—killing them both in a final act of justice.

In short, Xinzel was a mole in the villain camp, ready to betray the Duke whenever his sense of justice flared.

So now the question was:

Why was Xinzel spying on him from that distant tree?

Sent by the Duke to "learn"?

Bored, climbing trees for nighttime strolls?

Or drunk on poetry, planning to hang himself from a southeast branch in homage to some ancient tragedy?

None of it fit!

Had Teresia’s pitiful state awakened Xinzel’s sense of justice?

If so, he might leap through the window any second!

Derek’s suspicion deepened.

Since Xinzel would eventually betray the Duke, killing Derek now on impulse wouldn’t be out of character.

Derek was only ten—no match for a Gold Rank Assassin like Xinzel!

Was his route ending in destruction on the very first night?!

What to do?!

How to survive?!

Spotting the watcher, Derek forgot Teresia entirely, mind racing.

Neglected, Teresia felt the weight of his silence like icy violence.

The room’s suffocating quiet made her panic. Her thoughts spiraled.

*Why isn’t he speaking?*

*Did I displease him?*

She’d lowered her nightgown straps slightly but couldn’t release them. Frozen mid-motion, she looked like a trapped bird.

*If Young Master Derek is angry… will Mother suffer again?!*

*No! She couldn’t let that happen!*

*But what could she do?!*

Guilt and terror left her utterly lost.

The crushing pressure had worn her spirit raw—too heavy for any young girl.

So Teresia broke…

If she couldn’t strip before him, she simply wouldn’t!

Gritting her teeth, a tear rolled down. Her actions turned fierce.

Tears streaming, head bowed, she charged at Derek!

Arms wide, she clamped onto him, holding tight.

*Fine! Do what you will—just do it yourself! I’m already like this!*

Her inner cry was defiant, but her face showed no bravery.

Utterly flustered, her once-clear eyes darted wildly, unfocused. In a game, artists would’ve drawn swirling spirals in her pupils.

The sudden assault from young Teresia left Derek dumbfounded.

He’d been strategizing against Xinzel outside—when did Teresia become so desperate?!

Reincarnated as a villain in an R18 game, Derek had daydreamed about plucking innocent little cabbages someday, once his life was secure.

He never imagined his first night in this world would have a cabbage ravishing *him*!

Was this the local custom in R18 game worlds?

In normal circumstances, Derek…

Would’ve welcomed it.

But now—danger loomed! Teresia’s bold move might provoke Xinzel in the tree!

If that old man snapped and leaped through the window for a backstab of justice… things would get messy.

Derek tried prying Teresia off, urging her to calm down.

But she clung like a mad thing, refusing to let go!

Their struggling bodies brushed intimately. Her faint, sweet fragrance filled his nose. Hormones surged. His thoughts scattered…

*Is she the Holy Maiden or a troublesome little cabbage?!*

*And this cabbage can’t even undress properly—but she’s top-tier at fanning flames!*

Torn between watching Xinzel outside and the girl clinging to him, Derek’s mind frayed at the edges…