Two Million Dollars to Steal the Male Lead

Chapter 1

I had transmigrated into a Boys’ Love novel as the villainess supporting character.

The Mission System wanted me to win over the male lead.

“That doesn’t seem right. We should respect other people’s sexual orientations…”

“Two million dollars.”

“Rest assured. I’m on it.” I thumped my chest, my gaze turning resolute.

I had transmigrated into the BL novel as the vicious female antagonist—the glamorous, shameless seductress type.

I tried negotiating with the Mission System several times.

“Wait. You want me to pursue the male lead, but this is a Boys’ Love novel! He likes men, and I’m a woman. I mean…”

“Shouldn’t we respect his orientation? He likes men, and I’m a woman. If you turned me into a man, then maybe…”

“You’re not seriously asking me to turn him straight, are you?”

I had never dated anyone in my life, and my first attempt at romance was going to involve pursuing a man who wasn’t interested in women.

My heart was already dead.

“Two million dollars. Enough with the nonsense. Are you doing it or not? If you refuse, someone else will gladly take your place.” The System’s cold, mechanical voice sounded exactly like my boss—the kind of boss who squeezed every last drop of labor out of his employees.

“I’ll do it, I’ll do it! I never said I wouldn’t.” I forced a flattering smile.

As an overworked employee who had stumbled into a once-in-a-lifetime chance to make money, how could I possibly let it pass?

Two million dollars. That had to be enough to let me live extravagantly for the rest of my life, right?

“Host, please read the book carefully,” the Mission System instructed before logging off.

I stared at the book that had appeared out of thin air on the table, then picked it up and began to read.

The moment I did, my expression cracked.

Oh…

So it was a reverse-harem story, packed with every kind of explicit, forbidden content imaginable.

No morals. No boundaries.

Fuck.

The botanical kind.

The male lead I was supposed to win over was Adrian Weston. Fortunately, he was only one of several male leads, and by far the most innocent and law-abiding of the bunch.

The Mission System had even been considerate enough to send me into the novel before Adrian had fallen for a man.

The future was bright. Positively radiant.

Wearing sensible flats, I went to submit my resignation letter.

The villainess whose body I had transmigrated into was Vivian Ashford. She was an office worker too, though unlike me, she came from an incredibly wealthy and influential family.

She could have lived in luxury at the Ashford Estate without lifting a finger. So why had she chosen to work as someone else’s secretary?

To chase one of our male leads, of course.

Granted, Peachy Temptation had so many male leads that some clarification was necessary. For now, I would call this one Male Lead Number One.

Chapter 2

Male Lead Number One was Sebastian Sterling, the cold and aloof CEO of a publicly traded corporation. He radiated such an intense keep-out aura that strangers hardly dared approach him.

He and Vivian were bound by a strategic family engagement and were supposed to marry in six months.

Their families were evenly matched in wealth and status. On paper, Sebastian and Vivian were the perfect golden couple. Unfortunately, Sebastian had fallen in love at first sight with Elliot Carter, a young intern, and insisted on breaking off the engagement.

Vivian and Sebastian had grown up together as childhood sweethearts. She had long since decided he would be her husband, so naturally, she refused to accept the breakup. She tried everything she could think of to win him back.

That was why she had become his secretary at Sterling Group Headquarters. She had begged him to give her a chance to pursue him properly.

Sebastian knew he was the one at fault, so he had let her stay and do as she pleased.

He had only agreed to the engagement in the first place because he assumed he would never fall in love. If he had to choose a fiancée anyway, he might as well choose someone he had known all his life.

But now that he had found someone he truly loved, nothing Vivian did could dislodge Elliot from his heart.

Vivian hadn’t understood that. She had pulled out every trick in the book to seduce Sebastian, eventually going so far as to drug him.

Naturally, everything she did only served to advance the romance between the two men.

The more shameless and calculating Vivian appeared, the more innocent and extraordinary Elliot seemed by comparison, and the deeper Sebastian fell in love with him.

“You’re resigning?” Sebastian’s voice was as cold as ice.

There wasn’t a trace of displeasure on his face, but his sharp gaze swept over me from head to toe.

I knew exactly what he was thinking. He suspected I was plotting something even worse.

Summoning every scrap of acting talent I possessed, I burst into tears. “I finally understand how much you hate me. I see everything clearly now. Let’s end the engagement. I’ll explain it to my family.”

The plot had reached the second week after Vivian drugged Sebastian.

Her plan had failed spectacularly. Instead, Elliot, the unfortunate intern who had taken the incapacitated CEO home, had suffered the consequences.

Sebastian had confessed his feelings to Elliot and begun subjecting the defenseless young man to coercive romance in his office every night.

Even the leather couch was permanently creased.

Sebastian still looked suspicious, so I decided to give my performance one final push.

“We shouldn’t see each other again.” My voice trembled. “I’m afraid I’ll fall in love with you all over again if I do. Boo-hoo…”

Chapter 3

Male Lead Number One’s career was still on the rise, and the Ashford family was every bit as powerful as the Sterlings. He couldn’t afford to treat Vivian too harshly.

As I sobbed in front of him, the furrow between Sebastian’s brows deepened. At last, his patience snapped.

“Just go.”

I gazed at his face several times as though I couldn’t bear to leave. Then I squeezed my eyes shut, stamped my foot, and fled the office in a single dramatic burst.

My sobs continued echoing behind me even after I disappeared down the hall.

Only when I was far enough away did I stop and quietly catch my breath.

I had to admit, he looked every inch the male lead.

“Vivian?”

A young, worried voice reached me, and a pale hand appeared in front of my face.

I looked up.

Large, dark eyes. Soft red lips like rose petals. Pink cheeks that made him look like a ripe peach.

Who else could it be but Elliot Carter?

I’d run straight into the story’s delicate romantic lead.

How had I recognized him at a glance? Easy. The novel had described Elliot as pink and peach-like more times than I cared to remember.

I ignored his offered hand. “I’m fine. Really.”

Please don’t worry about me. If Sebastian sees you being nice to me, he’ll only accuse me of bullying you again.

“Don’t be too heartbroken, Vivian. After all…” Elliot hesitated. “There are plenty of other fish in the sea.”

Only then did I notice the people around us staring at me with sympathy. The instant I looked their way, they hurriedly averted their eyes and pretended to focus on their work.

Oh, wonderful.

I had humiliated myself in front of the entire office.

Had I really been crying that loudly?

“I know.” My voice was hoarse, with a lingering tearful quaver.

I couldn’t drop the act yet. I was still inside the company.

Elliot gave me an apologetic look. As I turned to leave, he whispered so softly I almost missed it.

“I’m sorry.”

Right. At this point in the story, he probably thought he was the other man who had destroyed my relationship with Sebastian.

I gave him a complicated, sympathetic look.

A gambling-addicted father. A critically ill mother. A younger sister still in school. And four—no, now three—men tangled up in his love life…

All I could do was wish him luck.

With the mess involving Male Lead Number One finally handled, I rushed straight off to find Male Lead Number Four, the man I was actually supposed to win over: Adrian Weston.

Adrian was the last of the male leads to appear in the novel. He was also the youngest and still in college.

More specifically, he was a fair-skinned athlete major with a body built for sports.

I grabbed a cab to his university as fast as I could.

He was the only one of the four who was still straight. I had to move quickly.