The Villain Who Stole Hearts
Chapter 119: If It Works Every Time, Why Change It?

Chapter 119: If It Works Every Time, Why Change It?

Early in the morning, the production crew entered the room and began setting up the filming equipment.

It didn’t take long before the dimly lit livestream room lit up with a live feed.

Despite the early hour, a large group of viewers were already waiting. The moment the stream went live, the number of online viewers began climbing rapidly.

Five thousand.

Ten thousand.

Fifty thousand.

...

Eight hundred thousand!

"Wow, I get to see my husband first thing in the morning! He looks so adorable in those pajamas—so handsome! I just want to hold him tight and comfort him!"

"My dad might be busy, beautiful lady upstairs—comfort me instead, and I’ll return the favor."

"Shameless. If I had known you’d turn out to be our kid, I would’ve made sure my husband wore protection that night!"

"Guys, not now. Can we not start drama at a time like this?"

"Has anyone noticed something weird? I tried looking up Veil’s personal profile online, and apart from clips from the show, there’s absolutely nothing on him. Not even a basic personal homepage!"

"I just checked too—nothing came up. It’s bizarre. They say he’s a nobody, a regular person, but he’s on a hugely popular variety show and still doesn’t have an official page? That’s just suspicious."

"The song ’Regret’ is blowing up already! And yet the artist behind it has no homepage? Come on!"

"Shhh... Don’t say too much. If you keep talking like that, something’s bound to get exposed."

"Wait... are you saying Veil also signed one of those confidentiality agreements back then?!"

The moment the livestream started, the chat exploded with messages.

Behind the control screen, the director took a sip of tea, a strange feeling lingering in his chest. The barrage of comments was almost entirely about Veil.

And yet—Veil was supposed to leave the show today.

That alone was going to unleash a wave of viewer outrage.

And guess who was going to take the blame?

He, the poor director.

Inside the room, Anna sat beside Veil, resting her chin in her palm. She stared at his computer screen, her voice laced with curiosity as she asked, "What are you writing?"

Veil rolled his eyes without hiding his annoyance. "What do you think? Who was it again who told me there were no decent acting offers lately? That all you had left were endorsement gigs for skincare products? If I don’t come up with a good script myself, are you planning to sell yourself to someone else just to stay relevant?"

"Ohhh... So it’s a drama script, huh?"

For some reason, even though she was being scolded, Anna didn’t feel angry. In fact, she was secretly happy.

All it took was one complaint from her last night, and today Veil was already writing a script?

Just so she wouldn’t have to accept that Chanel endorsement?

She hadn’t expected this—turns out she meant more to him than she thought!

"Is it a romantic drama? Or a family soap?" Anna asked like a curious kitten, her eyes lighting up.

Those two genres were huge right now. After all, Anna had skyrocketed to fame through romantic dramas and had become the queen of the entertainment world.

Veil shook his head. "Neither. It’s a fantasy martial arts story."

Anna frowned slightly, kindly reminding him, "Veil, the fantasy genre isn’t doing too well these days. Even a lot of popular fantasy novels haven’t translated well to TV—the market’s been shrinking. Romantic dramas or spy thrillers still have an audience and decent reputations. At least they’re not a total gamble."

Veil waved her concern off. "You don’t need to worry. I’m just writing a novel for now. Whether it flops or becomes a hit, I’m still going to film it. If you don’t want to star in it, I’m not going to force you."

Besides, was there really no audience?

In his previous world, every new fantasy series had triggered waves of excitement. And in this parallel world—where fantasy fiction hadn’t even been explored yet?

The potential was enormous.

"Star in it? Of course I will. Someone’s willing to throw money at me—I’d be stupid not to take it. Who complains about getting paid more?" Anna shot him a flirtatious glance.

Veil was funding the production and writing the script himself—he’d definitely be watching the shoot like a hawk.

As the lead actress stuck on set, she’d have even more time to spend with him.

That sounded perfect.

Veil paused his typing, then turned to look at her, curiosity flickering in his eyes. "By the way, I forgot to ask—how much is your rate for starring in a series now? If it’s too low, won’t that make me look bad?"

"You decide," Anna chuckled softly. "You’re about to become a big-time director, little junior. As your senior, of course I have to support you however I can."

"Well, since you put it that way, I guess I’ll need to take this script seriously," Veil said with a straight face. "I can’t let you go out of your way to help me, only for the result to be a terrible movie. That’d just be a stain on your résumé."

"How about this—let’s find some time to really dig into the script together, just the two of us, in private."

...

As the next guest arrived, it was time for the previous guest to leave.

The livestream chat exploded with messages begging Veil to stay. The viewers were clearly reluctant to see him go.

Even the director tried hard to convince him to remain on the show, but in the end, he couldn’t change Veil’s mind.

The truth was, Veil only agreed to join the show partly because of Anna’s request—and partly to give himself a little exposure through the program.

Exposure to the audience’s personal circles?

No, not quite.

No matter how popular he became in one episode, the spotlight would eventually fade with time. Viewers forget.

But a lasting work?

Now that would continue to live on.

Take "Regret," for example—his original song had surged into the top ten trending list in under twenty-four hours and even broke into the top five on a major music chart.

And that was just the beginning. It was only going to get more popular from here.

Who knows—maybe "Regret" would soon become a lunchtime staple at universities all over the country.

That level of virality? Definitely blockbuster-tier.

Meanwhile, the director had already started updating another section of the show’s site with news about Veil’s upcoming project—"Legend of Heroes"—with Anna listed as the female lead.

Anna’s fanbase? Easily in the hundreds of millions.

The novel itself was already considered a classic, and now that Anna had publicly confirmed she would be starring in its drama adaptation, it sent shockwaves across the literary world.

And for the entertainment industry? It was a bomb waiting to go off—guaranteed to draw massive attention.

Every single show Anna had starred in before had gone viral. Every. Single. One.

For rising actors, a good script was one thing. But being part of a guaranteed-hit IP? That was the golden ticket.

With Anna’s role confirmed, all eyes were on the remaining female roles in "Legend of Heroes." There wasn’t just one heroine—there was a female lead, a second lead, and several major supporting female characters.

Soon, the competition for those roles would be fierce.

And the final casting decisions?

They would all come down to Veil.

As for who would make the cut—that would depend on how well the actresses fit their roles, and how passionately they threw themselves into the script discussions.

...

After hugging everyone goodbye, Noah asked curiously, "Where’s Zoe? Veil’s already leaving and she didn’t even come say goodbye?"

Luke Brown sighed, shook his head, and silently walked toward the kitchen.

Jack gave an awkward smile. "She’s just a kid. Can’t really handle goodbyes. We’ll all stay in touch offline when we can."

Veil nodded, picked up his two suitcases, and started walking toward the village entrance.

On the way, Anna’s expression turned slightly puzzled.

"Something doesn’t feel right. We all saw how Zoe was acting the past couple of days. There’s no way she’d just let you leave without saying a word. Even if she’s shy, she wouldn’t avoid saying goodbye altogether."

"What’s so strange about that?" Veil said casually. "She’s just a girl. Maybe she’s got her own little thoughts."

Just then, a familiar system notification chimed in his mind.

Ding! Child of Fate Zoe has experienced an emotional fluctuation. Congratulations, Host, you’ve gained +500 Villain Points.

Hearing that, Veil instantly understood.

So she wasn’t avoiding saying goodbye. She just didn’t want to show her emotions in front of the cameras?

She must have followed them here.

Feigning ignorance, Veil let out a heavy sigh and said seriously, "Honestly, this whole novel I’m working on—and the show opening a special section just to promote it—it’s not just about building my own name."

"You’re already a queen in this industry, Anna. You could star in anything and immediately elevate the project several tiers, no matter the content."

"But Zoe... she’s young and kind-hearted. And she has no real breakout role to her name. Reality shows might get her some attention, but they’re not a long-term solution. If she wants to make it in this business, she needs a defining project."

"So with ’Legend of Heroes,’ I always planned to cast her in one of the roles. And with you as the lead—well, having you guide her as her ’big sister’ would be the perfect way to introduce her to the industry. You could send a message to everyone: Zoe’s under your wing. Who would dare mess with her then?"

Anna pouted, her beautiful eyes brimming with exasperated charm. She jabbed her finger against Veil’s forehead, grumbling playfully.

"Unbelievable, Veil! So this is who you really are?"

"Let me guess—you’re just using my fame to boost Zoe’s career, huh?"

"What else was I supposed to do?" Veil blinked innocently. This was no time to show even a hint of softness.

If you keep giving without stirring the pot once in a while, your kindness eventually loses its value.

Sometimes, you had to cause a little ripple—otherwise?

Otherwise, your good intentions would be taken for granted.

Besides, that whole speech... wasn’t really for Anna to hear.

Ding! Child of Fate Zoe has experienced an emotional fluctuation. Villain Points +500.

Ding! Zoe’s Favorability has increased. Villain Points +500.

Ding! Zoe’s Favorability continues to rise. Villain Points +1000.

Just around the corner, hiding behind a small building, Zoe clutched her hands over her mouth, eyes starting to redden.

What she thought she knew—was wrong.

Veil hadn’t been ignoring her at all.

He was just trying to use Anna’s influence to help her find her place in the entertainment world.

How could he be like this?

Why did he have to be so good to her?

Even though they were about to say goodbye, she had tried to bury her feelings in silence, watching him from a distance as he walked away.

She never expected to overhear something like that.

Now, she couldn’t keep hiding anymore.

But she couldn’t just run out either—not with Anna standing right there.

So she stuck her head out timidly from behind the wall and called out in a soft, sweet voice, "Veil~"

It was barely louder than a whisper, but so adorable it made you want to pinch her cheeks.