Chapter 4: Bargaining for Freedom

His voice was soft, almost pleading. He brushed my hair back with careful hands, tucking the blanket around me. For a second, I almost believed he truly cared.

"Landon." I stared at the pale, sickly guy in front of me, my eyes rimmed red.

"Landon, how long have you liked me?"

"I’ve always liked you…" Landon mumbled, his gaze burning with obsession.

But my heart dropped. The chat was right—Landon’s heart belonged to the real love interest.

No wonder, when Landon opened the closet and saw my face back then, his eyes melted from cold to gentle in a heartbeat.

[Does the cannon fodder think that’s him as a kid? LMAO, what a clown.]

[When the real love interest shows up, this pampered stand-in’s gonna get the worst death.]

[Yeah, who told him to mooch off someone else’s life for so long?]

[It’s fine, the substitute’s just here to get wrecked, hehe.]

My knees buckled, and right then, the bullet comments exploded on the screen.

[Aaaah! The real heartthrob is here!]

[Finally, the main love interest made it to this level—get ready for the boss to go nuts!]

[The protagonist doesn’t play by the rules; this double standard is so wild!]

I remembered the fog world. Whenever I left my room—even if I ran into ghosts—I was never really in danger.

Even in wild weather, when everyone else struggled to survive, if I just sat quietly on the porch swing, Landon would always show up, umbrella in hand.

Landon, my loyal little dog, always by my side. No one dared touch me.

He’d appear, rain or shine, boots splashing through puddles, umbrella tilted to shield us both. The other players would watch, envy and fear all over their faces. For me, the storm was just background noise.

A lot of players saw me as a guardian angel. With Landon’s protection, anyone who crossed me or called me a lapdog wound up dead.

Word got around quick—if you wanted to live, you stayed on my good side. Landon’s vengeance was swift and merciless. The mansion became a maze of whispers and nervous alliances.

And if I cared about someone, Landon would even spare them.

But all my privileges came down to one thing: I looked like the real love interest.

My heart pounded, sick and heavy.

Suddenly—ding—Landon looked up.

"Baby, there’s a newcomer. I’ll go check it out."

[Aaaah, three days and three nights—imagine how crazy the yandere will get with the real love interest.]

[He’s had plenty of practice spoiling the stand-in. Now he can really go all out.]

[He’ll treat the main love interest like royalty!]

Everything was spiraling out of control. I was terrified—certain I was doomed.

So I grabbed Landon’s arm, desperate.

"Baby, don’t go, please?"

Normally, Landon let newcomers fend for themselves, but this time he shook his head.