Chu Zu was a novelist in his past life. He died from overworking himself to meet a deadline, pulling an all-nighter to finish his manuscript. After his death, he was bound to the “Marginal Character Correction System.” The system proposed a deal: if Chu Zu could successfully play the roles of hated side characters and “fix” them, he would be given a chance to live again.
Chu Zu: “So, I just have to tweak their personalities, right? That’s my specialty!”

·

First novel—

Reader A: “You can dumb down a villain, but don’t expect your readers to be dumb too. Is that so hard to understand?”

Same Reader A, later: “Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit!!! It was a mastermind’s scheme within a scheme ?! Grandpa Zu, I was wrong! I shouldn’t have spoken so loudly!!!!!”

Second novel—

Reader B: “Enough with this forced character setting. No matter how many times you repeat that he’s a ‘cute loyal dog,’ all I see is a bootlicker—a pathetic one that doesn’t even bark.”

Same Reader B, later: “I take it back!! He’s an invincible, sunshine-bright, loyal big dog! Where can I adopt one? A-zu….let me raise you!!!!!”

Third novel—

Reader C: “Is the author’s life really that miserable? Do you have to create a character this venomous and unbearable? If you’ve hit a creative block, maybe just go get a real job?”

Same Reader C, later: “F**k! Lord Zu, I’m so sorry! I’m an utter fool!!!!”

Fourth novel. Fifth. Sixth…

“So? My acting might be so-so, but I did a decent job fixing them, right?” Chu Zu grinned widely

System: “…Do you even know what a ‘side character’ is?! How does turning them into massively popular fan–favorites count as a side character?!”DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT A ‘SIDE CHARACTER’ IS?! HOW DOES TURNING THEM INTO MASSIVELY POPULAR FAN FAVORITES COUNT AS A SIDE CHARACTER?!”

The smile playing on his lips froze..