Lee Min-jae had always considered himself an ordinary person.
At twenty-five, he worked the graveyard shift at a convenience store in Gangnam, lived in a cramped apartment, and had exactly zero romantic prospects. His life was the definition of mediocre.
And he was fine with that.
"YA! Lee Min-jae!"
Manager Kim stormed out from the back office, his face red. "How many times do I have to tell you?! The premium drinks go on the TOP shelf!"
"Sorry, sir. I'll fix it—"
"Sorry doesn't pay for mistakes!" The manager grabbed an energy drink and threw it at Min-jae's head.
Min-jae caught it reflexively, jaw clenched. He wanted to tell this man exactly where he could shove his premium drinks, but he needed this job.
"I understand, sir. It won't happen again."
Manager Kim sneered and stomped back to his office. Min-jae let out a long breath and looked at the clock. 2:47 AM. Still five hours until his shift ended.
This was his life. This was all it would ever be.
The shift dragged on until finally, mercifully, 8 AM arrived. Min-jae clocked out and stumbled into the morning sunlight, starting his forty-minute walk home. He couldn't afford subway fare.
He was halfway home when it happened.
A truck barreled down the street, completely out of control. The driver slumped over the wheel. And directly in its path—a little girl, frozen in fear.
Min-jae didn't think. He just moved.
His legs pumped as he sprinted toward her. The truck got closer, closer—
He grabbed the girl and threw her toward the sidewalk.
She tumbled to safety.
The truck hit Min-jae.
Pain.
Overwhelming, all-consuming pain turned his world white. He was flying through the air, then crashing into pavement. Something broke. Several somethings.
Blood filled his mouth. He couldn't breathe.
'Ah,' he thought distantly. 'I'm dying.'
His vision faded. The Seoul sky turned dark.
'I guess I couldn't make anything of myself after all.'
The darkness swallowed him whole.
And then—
Light.
Blinding, impossible light.
Min-jae's eyes snapped open. He was in a bed. A hospital room. The pain was gone.
"What the hell?"
He sat up, hands flying to his chest. No blood. No broken bones. Nothing.
"I'm alive?"
A soft chime rang out—like a smartphone notification.
But it hadn't come from his phone.
Min-jae's eyes widened.
Floating in the air directly in front of him was a translucent blue screen. Like something from a video game.
He blinked. Rubbed his eyes. Blinked again.
Still there.
Words appeared, typing themselves out:
[SYSTEM INITIALIZATION COMPLETE]
[WELCOME, LEE MIN-JAE]
[YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN]
Min-jae stared. "I'm either dead, in a coma, or insane."
[NEGATIVE. YOU ARE ALIVE AND CONSCIOUS]
[YOU HAVE BEEN SELECTED AS A CANDIDATE FOR THE HAREM DESTINY SYSTEM]
"Harem, what?"
[CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN TO BECOME THE NEXT HAREM LORD]
[MISSION: FIND AND BOND WITH YOUR 12 FATED COMPANIONS]
[TIME LIMIT: 1,095 DAYS (3 YEARS)]
[CURRENT PROGRESS: 0/12]
Min-jae's brain short-circuited.
"Is this a prank? Did Manager Kim finally snap?"
He waved his hand through the screen. Just air. But it remained visible.
[THIS IS NOT A PRANK]
[THIS IS THE HAREM DESTINY SYSTEM]
[YOUR COMPATIBILITY RATING: 87%]
[YOU HAVE BEEN DEEMED WORTHY]
"Worthy?! I work at a convenience store! What part of my life screams 'worthy'?!"
[WARNING: FAILURE TO COMPLETE THE MISSION WITHIN THE TIME LIMIT WILL RESULT IN PENALTY]
"What penalty?"
[PENALTY FOR FAILURE: DEATH]
Min-jae's blood ran cold.
"You're saying if I don't find twelve women in three years, I'll DIE?!"
[AFFIRMATIVE]
[CORRECTION: YOU DID DIE]
[THE SYSTEM REVIVED YOU]
[YOU NOW HAVE A SECOND CHANCE]
[USE IT WISELY]
Min-jae slumped back against the bed. This was impossible. Absolutely impossible.
And yet the screen was right there.
"How do I find these companions?"
[THE SYSTEM WILL ALERT YOU WHEN NEAR A FATED COMPANION]
[WOULD YOU LIKE TO VIEW YOUR CURRENT STATUS?]
"Sure. Why not?"
The screen changed:
[STATUS WINDOW]
NAME: Lee Min-jae
AGE: 25
TITLE: Candidate Harem Lord
LEVEL: 1
STATS:
STRENGTH: 8 AGILITY: 7 ENDURANCE: 9 CHARISMA: 12 INTELLIGENCE: 14 LUCK: 3
FATED COMPANIONS: 0/12
"My Luck is 3? That explains everything."
[FIRST QUEST GENERATED]
[QUEST: MEET YOUR FIRST FATED COMPANION]
[REWARD: First Bond Activation]
[TIME LIMIT: 24 Hours]
Before Min-jae could respond, the door opened.
A nurse walked in, smiling. "Oh, you're awake! How are you feeling?"
"Confused. How long was I out?"
"About six hours. You should have died from those injuries, but you're completely healed. It's a miracle." She checked his vitals. "Oh, someone paid all your hospital bills. Anonymous donation."
"What? Who would—"
The system chimed.
[PROXIMITY ALERT]
[FATED COMPANION DETECTED]
[DISTANCE: 50 METERS]
[APPROACHING: 30 METERS... 20 METERS...]
Min-jae's heart raced. "Now?!"
[10 METERS... 5 METERS... 1 METER...]
[FATED COMPANION ARRIVAL IMMINENT]
The door swung open.
Min-jae's jaw dropped.
A stunning woman in an expensive black business suit stood there, holding white lilies. She looked to be in her late twenties, with sharp features and unusual amber eyes that seemed to glow in the light.
She looked equally shocked to see him.
For a long moment, they stared at each other.
Then the system chimed:
[CONGRATULATIONS!]
[FIRST FATED COMPANION IDENTIFIED]
[NAME: HAN SEO-YEON]
[SPECIES: DEMON (HALF-BLOOD)]
[DANGER LEVEL: EXTREME]
[CURRENT AFFECTION: 0%]
[SPECIAL NOTE: SHE CAN SEE THE SYSTEM TOO]
Min-jae processed three things:
One: His first companion was this gorgeous woman.
Two: She was half-demon.
Three: She could see the system.
Seo-yeon's expression shifted from shock to fury.
She dropped the flowers.
Her amber eyes began glowing crimson.
"You," she said, voice low and dangerous. "You're the one the system chose?"
"I can explain—"
"Explain what? That I'm being bound to a convenience store worker?"
Her hand shot forward, nails elongating into black claws. She crossed the room in a blur, hand closing around his throat, slamming him against the wall.
Min-jae gasped, feet dangling.
"I am NOT being bound to some random human!" Seo-yeon hissed.
The pressure increased. His vision blurred.
Then the system chimed:
[WARNING: FATED COMPANION HOSTILITY DETECTED]
[DEFENSIVE PROTOCOLS ACTIVATING]
[BOND FORCIBLY INITIALIZING]
[BOND STRENGTH: 1%... 5%... 10%...]
Seo-yeon's eyes widened. "No. NO!"
She tried to pull away, but invisible force kept her there.
Min-jae felt warmth spreading through his chest, oddly pleasant even while being strangled.
[FIRST SKILL UNLOCKED: SHARED VITALITY]
[YOU AND HAN SEO-YEON NOW SHARE LIFE FORCE]
[SHE CANNOT KILL YOU WITHOUT HARMING HERSELF]
Seo-yeon gasped and released him, stumbling backward.
Min-jae collapsed, coughing.
"What did you do?!" She stared at her hands in horror.
"I didn't do anything! The system—"
"I felt the bond." She looked disgusted and afraid. "This can't be happening."
Min-jae got to his feet, rubbing his throat. "I don't understand this either—"
"Do you know what you've done?" Her eyes glowed. "We're bound now. If you die, I die. We're stuck together."
She paced the room. "This is a disaster. My family will— No. They can't know."
"Why not?"
"Because I'm heir to the Han Clan. One of the most powerful demon families in Seoul. If they find out I'm bound to a powerless human, they'll kill you or use you to control me."
Min-jae swallowed. "That's not great."
"Not great? It's a death sentence!" She ran a hand through her hair. "And I can't even kill you because of this bond."
[AFFECTION UPDATE: HAN SEO-YEON: 5%]
"What do we do?" Min-jae asked.
Seo-yeon composed herself, voice cold and business-like. "We keep this secret. You tell no one. Understood?"
"Okay."
"I'll give you money and protection. You stay out of my way."
"Fine."
"And every companion you find will be dangerous. The system doesn't choose ordinary people." She walked to the door. "The last Harem Lord died. Along with all twelve companions."
Min-jae felt a chill. "How?"
"They were hunted." She glanced back. "Get stronger, Lee Min-jae. Because once other factions detect you, your second life will be worse than your first."
She left.
Min-jae stood in the empty room.
[QUEST COMPLETE]
[NEW QUEST: SURVIVE YOUR FIRST WEEK]
[WARNING: Difficulty - HIGH]
[TIME LIMIT: 7 DAYS]
[FAILURE PENALTY: DEATH]
He looked out at the Seoul skyline, sun setting in orange and red.
Twenty-four hours ago, he was nobody.
Now he had to build a harem or die.
"This is insane."
But despite the fear, Min-jae felt something new.
Excitement.
His phone buzzed. Unknown number:
"I know what you are. Welcome to the game, Harem Lord. Try not to die too quickly. —M"
The lights flickered.
Once.
Twice.
Complete darkness.
In the shadows, Min-jae heard... purring?
Two glowing eyes appeared. One blue, one gold.
A feminine voice spoke:
"Nya~ Found you, Master."
[EMERGENCY ALERT]
[SECOND FATED COMPANION DETECTED]
[SPECIES: NEKOMATA]
[CURRENT AFFECTION: 87%]
[WARNING: SHE HAS BEEN SEARCHING FOR YOU FOR 300 YEARS]