"Shit." I know it's a popular genre these days, but I didn't expect to experience a transmigration.
I stared at my pale hands in disbelief. They weren't mine. I looked again at the face of the person I wasn't—
Handsome bastard.
I touched the pale, red-eyed face I was… stealing right now.
Now I feel bad.
I sat on the bed, trying not to think about how comfortable it was.
"I'm sorry, Jakob." It was strange, holding this kid's memories in my head.
Jakob is… was the ninth son of a minor noble; the child of a second wife, and nobody particularly outstanding.
Even as a noble, he was considered one of the crowd.
The fact that he was at Eozän—and not an academy in his own country—proved it.
He wasn't particularly strong. He wasn't particularly smart.
Jakob had come here to prove his worth to his family.
I felt bad for him.
His destiny was to be paired against the protagonist, Aeono, and serve as a lesson; how to execute a parry, the different attacks, and the concept of a third phase.
Once the basics were mastered, the protagonist dispatched Jakob. If the player had already completed a Souls-like before, poor Jakob's humiliation was even worse.
After the tutorial, Jakob didn't even become a character you could recruit or bond with.
He was simply there.
A character with no relevance whatsoever. In the end, his family was right.
Jakob is a nobody with no talent.
That was it. That was the last anyone would ever know of Jakob for the rest of the story.
The rest was just speculation.
I'd seen one theory claiming Jakob dies during the second half of the game, based on the fact that his discarded weapons are found in a particular area.
Is that my destiny now?
To be humiliated, then cast aside?
I looked at my right hand. It was covered in calluses. I frowned.
Why is this happening?
Why am I in this world?
The longer I stared at that hand, the more frustrated I became. My own knowledge—and Jakob's memories of this world—stoked a fury in my chest.
"Screw you all." No matter the reason or purpose, I'm here.
I refuse to be a plaything of fate—or of the primordials of this world.
I need power. Now.
I got up, went to the closet, and pulled out the Academy uniform: a black jacket with gold detailing, a white shirt with a gold tie, formal shoes, and matching pants.
It looked good.
After a shower and getting dressed, I left my room.
"…" I stopped, genuinely impressed. The corridor was stone, lined with gothic arches. Suits of armor and paintings decorated the walls, and an expensive-looking red carpet ran along the floor.
It's one thing to see this in a game. It's another to see it firsthand.
The hallway felt ancient. According to the lore, Eozän Academy is a fortress-castle from the universe's early years, built by the King of Souls himself.
"…" This is impossible, I thought—until I reached out and touched the stone.
It was real.
I swallowed hard.
This world is dangerous.
The God of this world had gone on sabbatical.
Order was divided between the primordials—and the lie that the Creator was still here.
That lie wouldn't last long.
I clenched my fist.
I don't have time for this. I need consumables, I need to talk to the Blacksmith, and I need to start training.
As I walked, I recalled where the best early-game items could be found:
The Drain.
The Inner Forest.
The Library.
For now, going to the Drain or the Inner Forest would be suicidal. My only option was the Library.
I need to—
BOING.
THUMP.
Huh? Did I just bump into a marshmallow?
Somehow, I ended up on the floor.
"Nyoh?" A girl's voice made a strange little sound of surprise.
I looked up to see what I'd collided with.
Hey… aren't you…?
"Oh, wow. What are you doing down there, buddy?"
I stayed silent.
I didn't expect to run into a heroine this quickly.
Long pink hair reached her waist and covered her left eye.
Red-rimmed glasses. A long skirt, and on top, something like a black sweater.
2.5 meters tall.
Armine Kraftvollarm
[The Half-Giant Iron Maiden]
One of the least-chosen options among players. Her {Royal Path} is among the longest, and her build is heavily focused on Strength.
In a normal run, by the second half of the game, her {Royal Path} would be completed, and she would offer to be your "shield and sword against the world."
She's really not someone I expected to meet this soon.
"I fell by accident," I said, standing up. There was no reason to be nervous.
She's just a game character.
Still, seeing her in real life was surreal. Up close, she was genuinely cute—and it was also very clear how… developed she was.
What is a woman like this doing at an academy that teaches people how to fight?
"But are you alright, buddy? Do you need help—or a nurse?"
It was rare to see someone show that much concern for a stranger.
"I'm fine, miss. You don't need to worry so much." Honestly, everything about this still felt unreal.
Armine's large golden eye studied me. She tilted her head slightly, then smiled.
"Okay. Don't hesitate to ask for help if you need it," she said, then started to walk away.
Wait.
"Miss, do you know about the Entrance Exhibition?" The exhibition—the moment Aeono would arrive, take his place as the protagonist, and defeat me in the process.
Armine turned back, frowning at me like I'd grown a second head.
"The school year hasn't started yet, buddy. How could there be an exhibition test right now?"
Not yet?
I rifled through Jakob's memories. She was right. The school year hadn't started.
Then why—
"Liedschlag…" Jakob's family had sent him to the Academy as early as possible, hoping to get rid of him.
Huh. We have something in common.
"The exhibition will be in two months," Armine said, her expression tightening with concern. "Are you sure you're alright?"
The honesty in her voice made my heart—Jakob's heart—skip a beat.
Dangerous!
I almost forgot I'm in an eroge world. All the women here were designed to captivate the player.
"I'm fine," I said. "I just woke up, and I'm still a bit sleepy."
The beautiful half-giant smiled, and her hand—big enough to cup my head—settled on my shoulder.
Hey. This is the first time I've really thought about it, but… isn't this terrifying?
Standing in front of me was someone with the physical strength to lift a tower (according to the lore), and if I ever had to fight her, she'd rank in the top ten hardest bosses in [Kings Roads].
Can I go back to being a streamer, please?
"Hey, comrade," she said. "Would you like to have breakfast with me?"
Hey—wait a minute.
This is an event on Armine's {Royal Path}.
In this world, hybrids weren't rare, but Armine—her height, her strength, her weapon choice—made people reject her.
Something so stupid. All her lore painted her as a sweet girl who liked eating chocolate.
This was how Aeono earned her trust, and later her love: by accepting her as who she was.
"Sure," my mouth answered automatically. It wasn't Jakob speaking.
It was the person wearing his body.
A solitary person—who wanted to help another solitary person.
"Great!" Her giant hand took my arm, warm and steady, and she started walking with cheerful energy.
And all I could think was:
Hey… this isn't bad.