It's Actually Not Easy Wanting to be a Supporting Male Lead

Chapter 5.1

Opening his eyes in the fifth world, the first thing Sui Yuan does is glance at 5237. Hovering at eye-level, the system shakes its head wordlessly, indicating that they were not quick enough. They didn’t manage to lose Zhao Xihe, once again allowing him to follow them into this world.

Although a sense of disappointment immediately rises, it is almost drowned by a slightly relieved and nonchalant, "Ah...is that so..." After keeping in close contact with another for an extended period of time, even cats and dogs will grow to tolerate each other, let alone human beings. Sui Yuan lived with Zhao Xihe in the same residence for several decades in the last world, and engaged in the most intimate of acts more times than he can count. One can consider them to be very familiar with each other, so Sui Yuan no longer instinctively rejects Zhao Xihe’s presence or touch. He even felt a little reluctant to part with the other man.

Besides, even if Sui Yuan didn’t accidentally stuff up the middle portion of the plot, he reckons the ending would have been similar, if maybe a little more frustrating on his side. In any case, everything worked out for the better. Zhao Xihe gave him a lot of help to achieve an ending that didn’t land him with a terrible score...

"On top of that..." 5237 coughs, displaying a rare case of awkwardness. "In this world, I have to trouble you once more..."

Sui Yuan wags his tail, tilting his head to the side and barks once to indicate that he understands.

...That’s right. It’s not a mistake. He does indeed have a tail and he did bark. Fixedly licking the claws of his foreleg, he acts as though saddened by the loss of his human form. While he doesn’t really care if he becomes a cat or a dog or whatever, he was born in the form of a human being, and has been living as such for quite a long while. Suddenly being thrust into the body of another animal requires a period of adjustment so he can get used to it.

Therefore, Sui Yuan’s first few steps are very shaky and tottering, stumbling as his hind legs get tangled around his forelegs and so on. Still, such a display is understandable...

Compared to the previous worlds filled with battles, magic and mayhem, this current one is a peaceful, slice of life story. The female lead, Wang Yican, is a senior high school student who lives alone due to her parents working in foreign countries. In order to stave off loneliness, she bought a puppy and raised it as a companion. As for the male lead, he is her form teacher^[1].

Originally, the two of them have a normal student-teacher relationship. However, things start to change when the female lead’s puppy is met with an incident. Gradually, they go from complete strangers to familiar acquaintances. As feelings begin to develop between them, this pair of student and teacher struggle to restrain themselves, resulting in several misunderstandings and hesitation. Now, Sui Yuan’s role in this world is that of an important supporting male lead puppy, responsible for facilitating romantic notions between the forbidden couple.

"When we were in the space between worlds, I handed in an application for BL worlds. However, I have not received approval yet, so I decided to use this chance to test something," 5237 states confidently, as though it already knows it will obtain the desired outcome. "If Zhao Xihe is able to look past your physical appearance, glimpse your true nature laying beneath, and willingly turn this shoujo school romance plot into an intense bestiality story, I will kneel down to him! And I will never say another bad word about him ever again!"

Seeing 5237 make such a solemn vow with a malicious air, Sui Yuan lifts his front paws and folds his ears down. Just because he is used to his system’s headstrong attitude doesn’t mean he wishes to listen further.

In any case, being a mere dog, Sui Yuan’s assignment this time is relatively simple. He doesn’t need to do more than eat, drink, act cute, and when the time comes, he just has to serve as a living stage prop. This can be considered a rare vacation period. action

"I reckon you should have used this trump card in the previous world," Sui Yuan grumbles in his heart as he yawns. Having taken over the body of a puppy barely out of infancy, he naturally feels not very energetic.

"......I didn’t think about this plan then," 5237 admits shamefacedly. "But enacting it now as soon as I came up with it is not too late!"

"...If Zhao Xihe doesn’t notice that I am acting the part of the dog in this world and we manage to break away from him, would we still need to transfer to BL worlds?" Sui Yuan questions. Truthfully speaking, he much prefers BG worlds. After all, that’s where he began working in as soon as he was created, and is hence a very familiar environment.

"That..." 5237 trails off tentatively. Since this is its first time applying for transfer, it is rather ignorant regarding this matter.

"Still, I feel our odds of success is pretty big," Sui Yuan says assuredly as he skims over the script. It is his belief that after an actor goes through countless worlds, they will habitually assume every role they play will be a humanoid character. Thus, he is betting on the fact that Zhao Xihe might assume Sui Yuan is a human in this modern world too. Moreover, besides this important supporting male dog, there is another male student who has intentions towards the female lead. Perhaps Zhao Xihe’s target would be that person and not him...this dog.

"If so, let’s put in a great effort to achieve victory!" 5237’s will to fight has escalated a hundred-fold.

Sui Yuan emits a low whine, lazily wagging his tail to acknowledge his system’s words. Head on his front paws and curled into a small ball, he seems to be in a gloomy mood

Ring ring, the small bundle of small bells chime as the pet store’s door is pushed open. A schoolbag on her shoulders, a female, senior high school student walks in, glancing around the place inquisitively, eyes roving over the various animals lounging within.

Delicate, pretty facial features and slender build coupled with a shy, soft air, it is clear as day that this girl is a goody-two-shoes. Perhaps it is natural intuition between a supporting male lead and a female lead, but as soon as Sui Yuan lays eyes on her, he instinctively knows that she is Wang Yican. Instantly, his good mood returns, and he leaps to his feet happily.

Fluffy, snow white fur all over his small body, he resembles a puffy furball with a madly waving tail. Forelegs braced against the top of the cage, his eyes lock onto the girl hopefully. Faint whimpers rumbling in his throat, he appears more refined than the other dogs barking madly at the appearance of a stranger.

Wang Yican is attracted to Sui Yuan at first glance. Limpid, black eyes, mouth curled up as though constantly smiling, pointed ears that are slightly drooping, with a body of soft, fluffy, snow white fur that begs to be stroked. She finds that her gaze refuses to leave the adorable puppy.

"This is a Samoyed pup, a two and a half months old male. Do you like him?" Seeing Wang Yican’s adoring eyes fixed on the little puppy, the shopkeeper immediately walks over to the cage. Picking Sui Yuan up, he holds the dog out to the student, letting her carefully wrap her arms around it.

Wang Yican’s embrace is very gentle, as though she is hugging a fragile, treasured item. Sui Yuan likes this feeling very much, thus can’t help wagging his tail incessantly. Placing his front paws on the girl’s clothes, he lifts his head and rubs against her cheek softly. As of yet, he doesn’t know if the female likes having her face covered in a puppy’s saliva or not, so Sui Yuan decides to be prudent in his actions in order to achieve the desired outcome.

Evidently, Wang Yican has fallen in love too deeply to bear parting with Sui Yuan, reluctant to place him down once the puppy is in her arms. Immediately asking the shop keeper about Sui Yuan’s price, she purchases him without further ado.

The first obstacle has been successfully cleared. Sui Yuan obtained the female lead’s favour, revealing his talent and standing out amongst the other dogs, officially becoming her beloved pet

Showing her attentive side, Wang Yican patiently makes inquiries pertaining to rearing a Samoyed puppy, and proceeds to purchase a pile of goods that a dog will require. Since she is unable to carry it all away by herself, she writes down her home address so it can be promptly delivered to her door.

The shopkeeper is also rather welcoming, so Sui Yuan doesn’t give him trouble. At the same time, he strives to increase the female lead’s adoration for him. His efforts thus earn him the privilege of being personally placed on the large, soft bed, allowing him the glory of sleeping beside the female lead.

What comes next is a period of peaceful activity. Wang Yican is meticulous in taking care of Sui Yuan, her every action following the guidebook accordingly. She drowns him in love and pampers him thoroughly, never punishing him even once. Fortunately, Sui Yuan is not a genuine puppy in soul, so no matter how doted on he is by someone, he will never develop an arrogant and spoiled attitude. Whether it be having a meal, going to bed, even...doing his business, he is equally obedient. One only has to show him to do something once and he will never make a mistake.

Basically, Sui Yuan is the absolute, one and only, well-behaved puppy!

Even if he is locked in the house every day, Sui Yuan doesn’t allow himself to become lax, continuing to keep a firm grasp on the storyline. Of course, part of the reason is thanks to his owner’s attitude.

When an adolescent reaches their sixteen or seventeenth year of life, a young lady will begin to pay attention to the males in her surroundings, especially when her form teacher is a handsome, refined, and scholarly gentleman.

Generally, female school students like to gather together and discuss things about their form teacher, Liu Mingzhou, like how popular he is, how talented, how considerate and kind... Wang Yican’s natural disposition is reserved and shy. She doesn’t like discussing topics like this with her female peers, but in her heart, she can’t help possessing a yearning for Liu Mingzhou. Therefore, Sui Yuan becomes her sole close confidant whom she tells everything to. Every day, after she returns from school and finishes her assignments, she will play with Sui Yuan and tell him everything that happened in school that day. Of course, the majority of it revolves about Liu Mingzhou.

At this moment, Wang Yican only harbours simple worship towards Liu Mingzhou. It is no more than a young girl’s longing for a mature, young and promising academic, like the inexplicable love everyone has for beautiful things. Listening attentively to Wang Yican’s stories, Sui Yuan feels that Zhao Xihe who has taken on the role of Liu Mingzhou is considerably more dedicated to his work. At minimum, he hasn’t tried to do anything that will derail the storyline.

Besides Liu Mingzhou, there is another male student called Sun Jie who has also been mentioned by Wang Yican quite frequently. This person is the other supporting male lead in this world, Wang Yican’s desk-mate and the cannon fodder used to divert that pig teammate Zhao Xihe’s attention.

Sun Jie is a sociable and somewhat unruly boy, which is typical of senior high school male students. As he harbours some regard towards the petite and shy girl who shares a desk with him, he is especially cordial when interacting with her. He can be considered Wang Yican’s first male friend in high school.

"Sun Jie’s house is close to ours, in the small neighbourhood opposite the garden. We promised to find a day to walk our dogs together there." Wang Yican smiles brightly as she lifts Sui Yuan from the ground ad hug him, kissing the top of his furry head. "He also has a dog at home, a husky that is nearly one-year-old. It’s a boy too, so when the time comes, Little Snow, you will be able to make a new friend! You must get along with him properly!"

Sui Yuan pokes his tiny, pink tongue out, licking the tip of the girl’s nose and causing her to laugh.

Little Snow - this is Sui Yuan’s new name. Although it doesn’t sound so fitting for a small puppy, Sui Yuan doesn’t feel the least bit unsatisfied. Each time his name is called, he will cheerfully wag his tail and stare up at the caller with an eager, anticipating gaze.

Regarding this, 5237 has only one evaluation to give. "...For some reason, I feel that you are more skilled at being a dog than a human?"

Sui Yuan reckons that this sentence is a personal attack, right?

The author has something to say: The previous worlds are all action-filled ones with murder and battles, so let’s have a more peaceful world this time around.

Footnotes:

[1] Form teacher: a teacher who is in charge of an entire class for the whole of a school year. They might not teach a core subject (English, Maths, Science, etc) to the select class, but they are responsible for the group of students on their roll-call list.

[2] Samoyed puppy: