Leon felt he could explain.
First of all, that was not a doll. He knew what an inflatable doll was; even the top students liked to visit museums. Back when he was still a student, he hardly ever went out, but when he did, it was to the museum. Inflatable dolls were the ancestors of love machines, simple and crude, not comparable to today’s technology at all.
Secondly, although he rarely interacted with others, he would visit some forums and communicate with people online. As far as he knew, it was quite normal for a single adult man to have one or several dolls in his bedroom. It was nothing to be shocked about.
Thirdly, even if he didn't socialize, he still understood basic etiquette. It was absurd to just wander into someone else’s bedroom like that. So, this incident was entirely her fault for casually stepping into a single man’s sacred space.
Fourth, this was something he couldn’t say out loud. The system was such a fool! He had said to package and encrypt all the videos, yet this fool didn’t think to expand the concept and encrypt the surveillance recordings in the bedroom too! It was hard to believe such a foolish system was created by him.
Although a flurry of thoughts raced through Leon's mind, his body stiffened, and even his neck turned red. He couldn't explain himself, let alone let out a single sound.
Just then, three "Han Yanyan" approached him, their gentle and teasing expressions surrounding him as they grabbed his arms and tried to pull him towards the bed. Normally, when Leon returned to his absolute domain, he would certainly enjoy this kind of treatment.
But now, Han Yanyan stood there, smiling and watching!
Leon felt like there was a volcano inside him, about to erupt.
"Close, close it!" With this command, the three "Han Yanyan" who tugged at him suddenly froze as if hit by a paralysis spell.
"System! Quickly get rid of them!" Leon, red-faced and neck-veined, ordered, "Hurry!"
The cabin door opened, and immediately robots came in to lift and carry away the three dolls.
"Master, how should we handle this?" the system asked cluelessly.
Leon wished he could format it.
"Destroy them!" he yelled angrily, "Melt them down!"
"As you command," the system replied dutifully.
Just disappear already.
When the door shut, only Han Yanyan and Leon remained in the room. Without the distractions, the atmosphere suddenly turned quiet.
Han Yanyan regarded Leon with curiosity and took a step toward him.
Leon took a step back.
Han Yanyan raised an eyebrow and stepped forward again.
Leon retreated once more.
After a few steps, Leon's back hit the wall; he had nowhere else to go. Thankfully, Han Yanyan stopped and didn't advance further. But she extended a hand toward him.
Leon watched her hand reaching out in terror, pressing his arms tightly against the wall, making himself appear like a large "M".
Han Yanyan's hand hovered just three centimeters from his cheek, then suddenly stopped, extending a finger to poke him gently.
Leon shivered as usual, but thankfully, he had grown accustomed to Han Yanyan's proximity these past few days and didn't embarrass himself.
Han Yanyan studied him intently for a moment, then confidently declared, "Virgin."
Discovered! Leon's face flushed red like a ripe tomato.
Han Yanyan withdrew her hand, crossing her arms as she looked at him. "You live in seclusion, but you have money, skills, and abilities. Even if you want to hire a high-class escort, you could. Plus, you can easily kidnap people onto your ship…"
"I always thought you just had social anxiety, but you’re telling me you’re in your thirties and still a virgin?" Han Yanyan sighed, "Leon, so you’re afraid of women."
Leon’s face shifted from red to pale.
"Distorted personalities are often a result of childhood trauma. Who hurt you?" Han Yanyan locked eyes with him, "Mother? Sister? First love?"
She had known the answer for decades but pretended to peer through his eyes, seeing the deep pain of his soul, and sighed, "So it was your mother? She hurt you, didn’t she?"
Leon pressed his lips together tightly, his face turning pale, refusing to answer. He didn’t want to remember the pain, sadness, and repression of the past.
"After all, she is the one who gave you life…" Han Yanyan pretended to console him, stabbing him in the heart.
Leon’s gaze suddenly sharpened.
"She is a loose woman!" he exclaimed sharply, "She couldn’t keep herself in check, toyed with and discarded by others, and she punishes me for her mistakes! She is trash! A worthless inferior gene!"
Han Yanyan pressed a finger against his lips.
"Shh—" she leaned in, whispering, "Don’t say that; she is your mother, who bore and raised you."
Leon’s resentment was evident in his eyes as she sealed his lips.
Han Yanyan drew closer, taking a deep breath, stealing his air, leaving him feeling breathless.
"Have you become like this because of her… or has no one else ever treated you kindly?" she asked.
Leon’s gaze clearly indicated the answer: no one.
Han Yanyan looked at the young man with pity, rubbing his lips with her finger and asked, "Then… would you like me to try?"
She leaned in, her lips grazing against his. It was like a spring breeze, gentle and soft.
Leon trembled, losing all his strength. Strictly speaking, aside from the dolls and the world, this was his first kiss. All his life, he had longed for a woman to treat him with such tenderness.
He had finally waited for this moment.
Han Yanyan touched the buttons on his shirt, and Leon closed his eyes, waiting for the happiness he dared not even imagine to descend upon him.
One button, then two, then three were undone before she suddenly pulled away. Han Yanyan stepped back, looking at him with an odd expression, fingers playing with her chin.
Leon looked down, and his shirt was open, revealing two round, soft metallic plates against his chest—one on each side, perfectly symmetrical, looking exactly like a perverted cross-dresser.
"Emmmmmmm…" Han Yanyan rubbed her chin, deep in thought, "I might have misinterpreted; you might as well let the system return the dolls."
With that, she hurriedly turned and fled.
No, no! It’s not what you think! Leon's heart crumbled and exploded with anxiety as he silently shouted!
Come back! That thing is actually…
An invisible armor! Found it! As Han Yanyan walked, she thought to herself, it was indeed fitted closely.
She had observed him earlier; Leon wore no rings, bracelets, necklaces, or even earrings—common wearable devices. She had always worried that his invisible armor was subdermal. If that were the case, she would have no way to handle it.
Thank goodness, it was external.
She had every confidence she could make a man remove his clothes; now, she would try to make a man willingly take off his armor.
Han Yanyan walked down a corridor lined with portholes, stopping to look outside.
The duke of Kelin’s battleship shimmered with a cold luster, dangerous enough to suffocate. She had rested for seven or eight days; how much longer would that white-clad man give her?
Standing by the porthole, she rubbed her thumb against her lips.
The next morning, during breakfast, Leon arrived with obvious dark circles under his eyes, looking lethargic. He avoided Han Yanyan’s gaze, unable to meet her eyes.
After finishing her meal, Han Yanyan wiped her mouth, sat up straight, and said, “I’m ready.”
“Ah?” Leon didn’t react at first.
Han Yanyan calmly stated, “I’m ready to return to the sleeping pod.”
It felt like the warm, hazy veil that surrounded them had been torn away, exposing their true relationship openly.
Leon, holding a spoon, froze, unable to speak.
After a moment of silence, he asked, “Why do you want to go back on your own?”
“It was bound to happen,” Han Yanyan said as she lifted her red tea, blowing at the steam, “The only difference is whether I return like this or… after you’ve had your way with me.”
Leon’s face turned from pale to red. He wanted to argue but couldn’t find the words. He had secured time alone with Han Yanyan from the attendant; what was the point of that? Even if he didn’t want to admit it, he understood in his heart.
“Besides the bridge and armory, I’ve nearly explored every corner of the ship. Do you know what conclusion I reached?” Han Yanyan said as she blew on her tea. “I can’t escape. Even if I managed to seize your ship, I wouldn’t escape the battleships outside. The reality is clear, and I understand that now.”
She stared blankly at her tea, “That duke of Kelin is really hard to deal with. But back then, Yao Chen did have some influence, right? Couldn’t we save some effort and just copy that world? I could go in and do it all over again?”
Do it all over again? Use all her strength to seduce Yao Chen once more?
Leon recalled the clips replayed secretly in the bedroom. At that time, they had been intoxicating and thrilling. But now… simply thinking about Han Yanyan returning to the sleeping pod and entering the “world,” where she would be entwined with another man—passionately or tenderly—even if it was all fake and virtual, he felt a wave of frustration rushing to his brain.
He slammed his utensils down on the table with a loud "bang," grumbling, "Can’t you just use other methods? You’re not some ordinary woman! You don’t have to seduce men like that!"
Han Yanyan scoffed, turning to leave.
As she reached the corridor, Leon desperately followed, and in a moment of panic, he grabbed Han Yanyan’s wrist.
“I… I didn’t mean it that way.” He blushed, stumbling over his explanation.
“I used to live off my own labor, earned my own money to buy a house, everything was done by my own hands and mind,” Han Yanyan coldly laughed, “If you think I’m like an escort, maybe you should consider who pushed me into such a position.”
Leon’s face turned sour.
Han Yanyan shook off his grip and turned to leave. Gritting his teeth, Leon seized her wrist again.
“I…” he said, “The duke of Kelin is a problem that must be resolved; I can’t help that. But once that’s done… I… I…”
To bolster his confidence, he raised his chin, attempting to sound important, “I allow you to live with me in the future.”
Unfortunately for him, Han Yanyan didn’t react with the surprise and gratitude he hoped for.
She laughed coldly, “I don’t care if you’re proposing or asking for fun; I hope you learn to speak properly first. If you don’t know how, I recommend watching ‘The 10,001 Proposals.’”
“But if it’s for fun…” Han Yanyan retracted her hand, “I have no interest in perverts. You’d be better off continuing to play with your dolls.”
She turned and left him there, flustered and red-faced, “I… I’m not…”
During lunch, Han Yanyan didn’t show. Dinner was the same. She dined alone in her room, waiting for the robots to clear the table, before asking the system, “What’s he doing?”
“He’s finished watching ‘The 10,001 Proposals’ and is currently doing nothing,” the system replied.
In other words, he was just daydreaming.
Han Yanyan curled her lips, “If he comes to find me, please let me know in advance.”
The system didn’t respond to her.
Han Yanyan questioned, “Why doesn’t he stop you from telling me his whereabouts? Isn’t that detrimental to him?”
After a long silence, the system said, “Most likely, he doesn’t think anyone would care where he is or what he is doing. To others, he is often like air.”
Around midnight, Leon finally gathered his resolve and walked to Han Yanyan’s room door.
“She… what is she doing?” he asked.
The system answered, “She’s lying in bed.”
“Does she have any weapons?” Leon cautiously inquired one last time.
The system scanned and replied, “No weapons detected.”
Leon felt relieved and took a deep breath, preparing for the system to open the door. But suddenly he remembered something and hesitated, knocking on the door like a normal person instead.
After knocking a second time, Han Yanyan came to open the door.
The room was dim, without lights. Han Yanyan leaned against the doorway in a thin silk nightgown.
"What do you want? It’s late." she asked sleepily. "You’re not going to send me back now, are you?"
Leon covered his nose, struggling to suppress the urge to have a nosebleed. His expression was too foolish, and Han Yanyan couldn’t help but roll her eyes.
She shielded her forehead from the corridor’s light, saying, “Come in; it’s too bright.”
As the cabin door closed, the room turned dim and hazy. The light of a distant star slanted through the porthole, casting the only source of light at the foot of the bed.
“Speak. What’s the matter?” Han Yanyan asked, arms crossed. This movement accentuated her figure.
Afraid of embarrassing himself again, Leon dared only to look at the floor, and after a long moment, he finally spoke.
"When I was little, the one who bore me often hit me with her hands, shoes, sticks, and belts. One time, she got drunk and nearly choked me to death. I… I’ve been afraid of women since childhood; I’ve always thought they were terrifying beings."
"I later only liked one girl. But I didn’t dare talk to her; I’d only sneakily leave the best nutrients in her cabinet as gifts. But she saw my roommate also drinking the same thing and thought he gave it to her, so they ended up together."
"I thought I liked her, but I didn’t dare speak to her, even less dare to touch her."
"You… you are the only one who is different."
Leon looked up, meeting Han Yanyan’s gaze.
"I… I often dream of… being with you."
"I dare to touch you; I especially want to touch you."
"To me… you are different. I’m ninety-two this year and can probably live for another three hundred years."
"I… Han Yanyan!” Leon Parker summoned his courage, “In the next three hundred years, would you be willing to spend every day with me?"
Han Yanyan laughed. This was the line from the male protagonist’s first proposal to the female protagonist in “The 10,001 Proposals.” Although Leon was copying, at least he could speak properly now.
“Then… are you proposing or asking for fun?” she laughed.
Leon’s face flushed red, lowering his head and mumbling, “Both…”
Han Yanyan pursed her lips, scanning him before frowning and asking, “You’re not wearing that feminine lingerie again, are you?”
Leon’s head shot up, blushing as he asserted, “Of course not! That… that was not…”
Before he could finish his words, Han Yanyan’s soft, fragrant lips brushed against his like petals against his lips, silencing him and making him freeze.
Han Yanyan smiled, leaning in again for a kiss, but suddenly paused, “Is that system still monitoring?”
“It’s just a program,” Leon stammered.
Han Yanyan drew back: “It can talk, it can see, and it can record.”
Leon panicked and called out, “System! Turn off the monitoring!”
The system responded, “Yes, Master.” But then fell silent.
Han Yanyan chuckled, then kissed him gently again, watching him for a moment. Yet Leon stood rigid, showing no initiative. For this fearful man, even contact was a considerable challenge.
Han Yanyan sighed, taking his hand and pulling him toward the bed, giving a gentle push that sent the already weak Leon down onto the bed.
Leon trembled in nervousness. He looked up, and Han Yanyan stood at the foot of the bed, bathed in a beam of light as she fiddled with a thin strap, letting her silk nightgown drop to the floor. The starlight illuminated her body as if she were glowing. She looked at Leon with a smile and leaned down, shedding her final piece of clothing.
Leon felt dizzy under her luminous presence and lay back, breathing heavily, nervously waiting for happiness to arrive.
What he didn’t know was that as Han Yanyan leaned down to remove her last garment, two fingers slipped inside her body, clutching a long but sharp piece of glass, slowly withdrawing.
Han Yanyan had shattered a mirror in this room when she first woke up. After Leon left, she crawled over and hid this sharp piece of glass before the robots took all the shards away.
Before she had full assurance, she never dared to touch the glass. This was her last weapon.
Han Yanyan stood up, holding the bloodied piece of glass.
I've studied you for decades… you have your sufferings, your sadness. I know the pains of your childhood.
But this cannot justify your imprisonment, enslavement, or torment of me.
How many have died before me, how many have gone mad? Do you even count?
Let me go, not because I am a person but because I am a woman. Because I happen to satisfy your desires, your emotions. And afterward, there will still be someone like me, lying in that glass coffin, cold and helpless, until madness takes hold, right?
Han Yanyan climbed onto the bed.
Leon opened his eyes in excitement.
Han Yanyan flashed him an enchanting smile, leaning down to kiss his lips.
You shouldn’t have slept through that. You thought I was still Ding Yao, still Yao Chen. You thought I would willingly resort to my body for freedom, for better treatment in exchange.
You truly shouldn’t have missed my final world. You don’t know what kind of person Tang Ke Burnett made me into.
Han Yanyan’s lips pressed firmly against Leon's as the sharp glass in her hand pierced his carotid artery.
Blood sprayed against the wall like a high-pressure hose.
Leon’s eyes bulged, filled with disbelief.
Leon, what will happen if I die in that world?
You have to take care of yourself! If you die outside, I will truly let you die!
Leon transformed into a flash of white light, dying away. Han Yanyan’s pupils constricted!
In the end, he deceived her!
This place! Still “the world”!!!
The author has a message: Seeking some pre-orders for “The Side of the Sleeve” in my column.