Happy Evil Heartbreaker [Modern LitRPG]

Luciel, overwhelmed with astonishment, couldn’t help but cast a gaze of admiration towards Xanthia, who had maintained a calm composure from the start.

In her eyes, Dematero being able to achieve his lofty ambitions at such a young age was nothing short of extraordinary. Yet, to Xanthia, this seemed no more than a routine accomplishment.

It was the misunderstanding caused by the gap in knowledge.

Dematero, being a false "reborn," was unaware that the actual future wouldn't unfold according to his fabricated memories. He foolishly mistook the deviations as the so-called "butterfly effect" triggered by his rebirth.

Though Dematero's claims of being "reborn" were shallow, the writing skill he honed through immense suffering was genuine. His painful, false memories served as excellent material for his stories.

Xanthia smiled faintly, "Let's go. There's bound to be more entertainment in class soon."

Luciel shook her head in resignation. Everything about Xanthia was great, but her inexplicable obsession with "watching drama" was something else.

Nevertheless, Dematero had performed exceptionally this time, proving Xanthia’s judgement right. This gave Luciel a sense of pride.

Xanthia thought to herself: Others believed Dematero succeeded through his own merits, but they had no idea she was the true mastermind behind his transformation through deception.

She had orchestrated Dematero's evolution, and now she could savor the sight of others regretting, fuming, and losing control because of him. He was, indeed, the perfect fuse.

The mere thought of it was amusing enough. It would undoubtedly please her, and the influx of pain-points turned into coins would be rather substantial.

After all, it was the classic "underdog rising" plot. Dematero could only indulge in such fantasies through his writing, while Xanthia had the privilege of directing it in reality. The difference in their levels was stark.

Soon after, Xanthia and Luciel returned to their classroom, Year One, Class 3.

The room was sparsely filled with students, as many of them preferred to return to their dormitories for a nap after lunch.

Thessaloniki First High School offered students considerable freedom during the midday break. Unlike some schools that mandated afternoon self-study sessions, here it was entirely voluntary for Year One and Year Two students to choose rest over study. By the time they reached Year Three, however, as the college entrance exam countdown on the blackboard dwindled, the atmosphere intensified, and most Year Three students would voluntarily attend afternoon self-study sessions.

It was worth noting that Year Three students' evening study hours were also extended, unlike Year One students, who could leave by 9:20 pm.

For Xanthia, this first year of high school was the most relaxed period, yet even so, the strict academic integrity at Thessaloniki First still made some students feel as if they were in a prison.

The student who had earlier asked Xanthia to buy a book, Hannah, was absent. Clearly, she wasn’t too anxious to find out whether Dematero's work had been published, likely because the odds of it happening were nearly zero.

Hannah had merely spent a bit of pocket money on what she saw as a surefire way to humiliate Dematero. Even if his work wasn't published, the book itself was a nice distraction—perfect for killing time and unwinding.

Xanthia, unfazed by whether Hannah was present, left the unopened book on her desk and quietly waited for the drama to unfold.

Back at her own desk, Xanthia casually browsed Dematero's short story, which spanned about 8,000 words.

The plot borrowed from the popular Korean film, though instead of reliving the same day, Dematero's protagonist experienced an endless loop within a month.

In the early part of the story, the protagonist revels in the discovery of his ability to endlessly reset time, leading to all manner of reckless behaviour—something that would surely thrill readers. However, by the middle and later stages, the narrative took a turn, falling into the well-worn trope of "reality bites," as the protagonist succumbed.

The reason for the protagonist’s descent, of course, was the appearance of the heroine, Maria La Natina.

Dematero used elegant and refined prose to bring Maria to life, making her exceptionally captivating. Naturally, she captured the protagonist’s heart.

The protagonist soon realized that being trapped in the time loop, unable to have a future with the heroine, was an unbearable torment.

He tried everything to break free, and the most endearing aspect of Maria La Natina was that she was the only one who believed in the protagonist. She was always willing to stand by him, seeking a way out of the loop together.

Their interactions were, unsurprisingly, full of affection and sweetness, heightening the readers’ anticipation.

Everyone desperately hoped the protagonist would eventually escape the loop and live happily ever after with Maria La Natina.

But Dematero, true to his notorious style, had no intention of satisfying his readers.

He went for the gut punch.

In the end, the heroine sacrificed her life to help the protagonist escape the time loop.

After all that effort, escaping the loop turned out to be a curse, not a blessing!

It was the kind of ending that could make anyone slam their desk in frustration.

"Are you just trying to infuriate your readers, Dematero? You absolute villain!" many would shout.

Xanthia, however, was unfazed. She had been prepared. Dematero's works were always tragic, so she approached them with that in mind.

Even if a story appeared to have a happy ending, the journey was always fraught with twists designed to tug at the readers' heartstrings and squeeze out their tears.

Besides, in printed books like this one, out of every ten short stories, probably eight would have tragic endings. Readers at this age, mired in their teenage angst, were often addicted to that feeling of wistful sorrow after finishing a story. It had a strangely addictive quality, which was why melancholic coming-of-age novels sold so well.

As Xanthia finished reading Dematero's short story, she wasn’t too emotionally stirred but found herself deeply impressed by the character of Maria La Natina. Dematero had lived up to his reputation as a seasoned bestselling author, with the system’s rating of his writing skills being well deserved.

Maria La Natina’s death was the climax of the entire story. Xanthia knew that readers unfamiliar with Dematero’s tricks would be utterly blindsided, racking up a wealth of emotional suffering.

And that was exactly what delighted her.

She was already looking forward to Dematero writing more works of this kind. After all, he had shown mercy this time, sticking to a pure love story rather than the infamous "green hat" plots. It felt like a small mercy—a rare perk of being a newer writer.

Dematero was clever. He didn’t want to be branded a "green hat" author too soon. He was biding his time, luring in pure romance fans, only to shock them later with the occasional betrayal plot...

As Xanthia thought about the delightful spectacle awaiting her in the future, she couldn't help but find it amusing. After all, she was confident she wouldn’t fall into any traps. That pretentious, sentimental style so popular among literary youths wasn’t her cup of tea.

As Xanthia casually flipped through the book, more and more students from Class Three trickled back into the classroom.

Hannah entered with her two dorm mates, Yannis and Elena. The moment she saw a pristine, unopened copy of Pen N' Pen Weekly on her desk, she raised her voice dramatically, "Oh wow, the new issue of Pen N' Pen Weekly that Xanthia bought for me has finally arrived!"

At that moment, Dematero, Glen, and Felizidad were already seated in the classroom. Hearing Hannah’s theatrical exclamation and seeing her over-the-top antics, they all exchanged amused smiles.

The three boys were seated quite far apart—Dematero was in the first group, Glen in the fourth, and Felizidad, having earned his place among the “back-row slackers,” was in the second group’s last but one seat.

The reason for their knowing smiles? They were already privy to the result of Dematero's attempt to get his work published. His two good friends, Glen and Felizidad, could now sit back and enjoy the show as the others made a spectacle of themselves.

Hearing Hannah mention the new issue, which Xanthia had bought for her, Dematero couldn’t help but silently cheer.

“Xanthia, you’re brilliant,” he thought, elated. “I thought I’d have to wait until tomorrow evening’s study session to flex, but now I get to enjoy the satisfaction of shutting them up today. What a thrill!”

By now, most of Class Three had gathered in the classroom, all of them drawn in by Hannah’s attention-grabbing antics. After her exaggerated performance, Yannis chimed in with perfect timing, "Xanthia really is such a kind-hearted girl, but why didn’t she open it beforehand to see the result? Could it be she’s lost confidence in her own judgment?"

Hannah, fuelled by Yannis’s playful banter, gleefully retorted, “You’re so blunt! Can’t you leave a bit of face for that arrogant boy who clearly has no sense of self-awareness?”

“Leave face? For what? If he dared to make such big claims, then it’s only right he should lose face if he fails! No point denying the truth until it’s staring you in the face—better to learn some humility and rebuild his image."

Though Yannis hadn’t named Dematero outright, her loud voice left little doubt as to who she was referring to. The class knew exactly whom she was targeting, and it wasn’t subtle at all.

Elena, on the other hand, refrained from joining in the over-the-top back-and-forth. She was someone who carefully guarded her reputation and found such overt antics beneath her. While the thought of Dematero making a name for himself would make her feel emotional pain a bit, it wasn't beneficial to her in any way. Whether the person himself has made it, so what? Elena had already considered such possibility.

So at this moment, she really don't care.

A rational person doesn't consider their feelings. Elena knew where she invest her feelings right, she knew dwelling on negativity wouldn't do goodfor her in the long run.

Xanthia, sitting beside Elena, had a similar mindset. Though the two shared a good relationship as desk mates, there was a subtle rivalry between the two "beauties" when it came to Dematero. After all, Dematero was someone Elena had discarded, while Xanthia saw potential in him.

Returning to her seat, Elena noticed Xanthia flipping through the book, which was unusual since Xanthia typically preferred comic magazines or manga. Before she could voice her curiosity, something caught her attention—Dematero stood up from his seat, holding a copy of the book in his hand grinning like no other. He walked directly over to Yannis and Hannah, who were still engaged in their mocking game.

"My work has been successfully published in Pen N' Pen Weekly. Why don’t you open the book that Xanthia brought for you and verify the fact before continuing with this ridiculous, overblown performance?"

Dematero’s face lit up with satisfaction. He had long dreamt of such a triumphant moment in his “previous life,” but circumstances hadn’t allowed him to act on it then. He had been forced to endure the mockery and scorn, even dragging Xanthia down with him.

The thought that his failure had once caused Xanthia to suffer lingered as a knot in his heart. It didn’t matter if he lost face, but he refused to let her be humiliated again. Now that he had the chance to strike back, he’d do it with full force, even if it made him seem smug. After all, his reputation among the girls in Class Three was already in tatters. Why not fully embrace his role as the vindictive underdog?

It wasn’t in Dematero’s nature to play it cool. Deep down, he was obsessive and emotional, not the calm and composed type. When it came time to strike, he was all in.

Yannis and Hannah were utterly dumbfounded by Dematero’s sudden involvement in their conversation. It was surreal! In their entire lives, they had never encountered someone as shameless as him. Most boys adhered to the unspoken rule of "a gentleman doesn’t argue with women," but Dematero clearly didn’t care for such principles. He had no qualms about delivering a direct hit to his female classmates through verbal assaults!

Some of the boys in the class couldn’t stand Dematero’s petty behavior. They felt his public falling-out with Elena, particularly his shameless demand for the return of his love letter, was beneath any man with even a shred of dignity.

It was already an accepted norm in society that men should not degrade themselves to this level.

In their eyes, it was akin to a professional boxer mocking a non-boxer: “Hey you! You bullied me when I was a kid. Now look at this! Look at my belt! Look at my belt! I’m the boxing champion! Do you hear that?!”

How could a man who squabbles with girls over such trivial matters ever achieve anything great?

Why was Dematero participating in a domain that was supposed to be reserved only for girls?

The boys who witnessed the scene gave Dematero strange looks, and the girls’ dislike to him turned to loathing.

Recovering from her shock, Yannis grabbed the book from Hannah and tore open the plastic wrap. These premium magazines, with their sealed packaging, were a nightmare for students who preferred to sneak a read in the bookshop.

As she angrily ripped open the packaging, she shot back at Dematero, “You’re the real clown here! I refuse to believe someone as vile as you could get published in Pen N' Pen Weekly!”

Unlike Yannis, who was still putting up a fight, Hannah’s bravado crumbled. She didn’t believe Dematero either, but seeing him confidently march over and throw accusations at them made her nervous. He clearly had something to back up his words.

Feeling intimidated, she sat down, avoiding Dematero’s gaze. She was the kind of girl who would back down after being proven wrong, but her penchant for walking into traps only made it worse.

Yannis flipped through the book, her eyes scanning the table of contents. Her heart sank when she saw Dematero’s name listed. Still in denial, she turned to the page, and sure enough, there it was—underneath the title of the story, his name, “Dematero.” Her face flushed with a mix of red and green as she gripped the book, completely at a loss for words.

Dematero smirked, continuing his attack. "Now that you’ve seen the truth, do you still want to deny it? If you need further proof, I’m more than happy to show you the electronic receipt for my payment!"

It was, after all, the digital age. In the past, authors had to wait for paper checks and head to the post office to collect their payment, but now everything could be settled online.

The entire class was in awe at the unfolding scene. Watching Yannis’s mortified expression and Dematero’s relentless taunts, they were left speechless.

“Bloody hell! Dematero, that fool, really turned the tables?”

"I don't know what to feel about this anymore."

"Indeed, I don't like either of them"

“Both are scu-- ahem. Who’s the real clown now?”

“Xanthia’s judgment is flawless! She believed in Dematero from the start, but who knew he’d rise so quickly? Publishing in Pen N' Pen Weekly? That’s no small feat!”

“She saw potential where Elena La Loannou dismissed it. I guess her rejection of Dematero was short-sighted after all. She turned down a future literary star!”

"Girls don't like his antics right now."

“Well, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. He’s only published one piece. Unless he writes a bestselling novel, it might just be dumb luck.”