"Isaac von Wright! Step into the arena!"
The voice boomed inside Isaac's head.
He blinked, and looked around.
A huge arena stretched out before him.
Stone seats rose in wide arcs, filled with dozens of students wearing white uniforms with green stripes.
Their attention was focused on the center of the arena.
On the opposite side stood a single male student, gripping a wand.
He was staring at Isaac with such intense hatred that you would think Isaac had slept with his girlfriend.
"Isaac von Wright! Please step into the arena!" the referee announced again.
Isaac frowned and looked around.
"Is this… a dream?"
The last thing he remembered was reading the novel, [Overpowered Magic God's Reincarnation will save the Damned World!].
"I must have fallen asleep while reading."
His gaze drifted to the student standing opposite to him.
"Now that I think about it, that guy looks like Merlin, the protagonist of that novel."
White Hair. Blue Eyes.
He had a picturesque appearance.
Isaac used to complain that the author was saying it too many times that the protagonist was handsome, but this guy's handsomeness was really off the charts.
"Isaac von Wright! Son of Duke Wright! This is the last warning! Enter the arena!" the referee shouted with a red face.
"Sheesh. Why is he in such a hurry?"
Isaac entered the arena.
He noticed he was holding a sword while the protagonist, Merlin, was holding a wand.
"The Sacred Duel will begin! As decided before, the winner can demand anything from the loser!"
As the words of the referee fell, the protagonist, Merlin, raised his wand.
He chanted swiftly. Multiple magic circles appeared around him, through which seven Ignis Spears came out.
The crowd gasped.
"Th… That's multicasting!"
"Wait, did he just cast seven magic spells at once!?"
"It's not a Beginner tier spell either! It's an Intermediate tier spell!"
Merlin fired the spell.
Seven Ignis Spears of fires tore towards Isaac.
"Hmm? Are dreams supposed to feel this real—"
Isaac's words were cut off when the first spear shot into his neck, piercing through it.
Merlin was shocked.
He thought he would need to use at least five Ignis Spears to kill Isaac, and being a cautious person, he had fired two more just in case.
But only one did the job…?
The academy students were stunned, seeing a death, and the referee was alarmed.
Deaths did happen sometimes during duels, and Isaac was the most hated person in the academy, whom everyone wanted to see dead.
But Isaac was still the son of Duke, the highest rank of nobility.
His death was going to put a blemish on the referee's track record.
Isaac opened his mouth.
He tried to speak, but couldn't.
Before he even felt the pain, two more Ignis Spears landed. One pierced through his heart, and the other blew up his head.
[Ending 'Loser of the Sacred Duel' reached.]
[You have failed to reach the true ending.]
[Deaths: 01]
"Isaac von Wright! Step into the arena!"
The voice boomed inside Isaac's head.
He blinked, and looked around.
A huge arena. Dozens of students in white uniforms with green stripes. One handsome male student standing opposite to him.
"Isaac von Wright! Please step into the arena!" the referee announced again.
Isaac frowned.
He felt like he had seen all of this before.
"Is this déjà vu?"
Isaac touched his neck and a shudder ran through him.
Even now, he could vividly feel the sensation of burning, smoke clogging his nose, the air not passing through his lungs no matter what he did.
"This is not a dream."
He understood that instantly.
"And…"
'I died and came back.'
He stared at the screen before his eyes.
[Ending 'Loser of the Sacred Duel' reached.]
[You have failed to reach the true ending.]
[Deaths: 01]
'Given what is happening…'
Isaac forcefully calmed himself, and tried to analyze the situation rationally.
'I have possessed the body of a side character inside the novel of [Overpowered Magic God's Reincarnation will save the Damned World!].'
'No, maybe it's not the world of the novel, but a world that is just similar to it?'
But the word 'Ending' made Isaac frown.
Why would there be a normal ending and true ending in a novel?
'Now that I think about it, there was a game that was based on the novel of [Overpowered Magic God's Reincarnation will save the Damned World!]'
'The game was called [Godsfall Epoch].'
'Seems like I'm in a world that is similar to the game, not the novel.'
'Dammit.'
He had read the novel, but he had yet to play the game.
Now that he had been reborn in this world, he regretted that his past-self had procrastinated playing the game.
Isaac's eyes moved towards the Ending he had reached.
[Ending 'Loser of the Sacred Duel' reached.]
'The ending describes how I died.'
'So, the true ending must be based on my ending, and not the main character's.'
He was confused as to why the ending would point at him, not the protagonist, but that was not important right now.
'True ending. Does it mean that I need to live happily until the end?'
'Yes, that must be it.'
Isaac quickly analyzed everything, then focused on how to survive the duel.
"Status," he spoke, knowing everyone in this world could access their data through the command.
Name: Isaac von Wright
Rank: Unawakened
Elements: War (Unawakened), Weapon (Unawakened), Sand (Unawakened), Poison (Unawakened)
Stats:
Strength: 5
Dexterity: 8
Endurance: 2
Mana: 0
'What are these garbage stats?'
'The only good thing is elements. They are quite powerful.'
'War Element is useful for large scale battles. It's called the element of champions (conquerors).'
'Weapon is the strongest element. Each and every user of it has left a mark in history.'
'Sand is… well, it was called one of the weakest elements. Still, it's better to have a dull blade than no blade at all.'
'Poison was called the 'Weapon of the weak, to kill the strong.' The protagonist hated the Poison element, but nonetheless, it's a strong element.'
'My elements are quite good.'
'But all of them are Unawakened right now, so they might as well not be here.'
In the first place, an Unawakened rank person could not enroll in the academy, where the kingdom's most talented geniuses gathered.
Isaac was only able to enter this haven of knowledge because of his father, who was a Duke ranked noble, the highest ranked noble.
"Isaac von Wright! Son of Duke Wright! This is the last warning! Enter the arena—"
"Shut up," Isaac cut off the referee with a cold voice.
The cold voice was a result of his desperate acting.
Inwardly, he was sweating bullets.
This was a world similar to a game—a game he had not played—but the game was still inspired by the novel.
A lot of things in the game should be the same as in the novel.
Isaac had read the novel enough times to know its plot by heart.
If he entered the arena, he was going to die.
The previous Isaac had tried to sexually assault the 'girlfriend' of the protagonist, who was the daughter of another Duke, Duke Falcon.
Technically, she was Isaac's fiancée.
She loathed him, and stayed away from him, and overtime became friends with the commoner and the protagonist Merlin.
Isaac hated that, and tried to force himself on her.
While legally he had done nothing "wrong", because he was her fiancée, Duke Falcon was enraged beyond measure.
He was now pulling the strings from behind the scene and had told Merlin that as long as he killed Isaac in the Sacred Duel, Duke Falcon would cover everything up and deal with the aftermath.
'This was a major event in the novel. So, the game must have included everything as it was in the novel.'
Duke Falcon was a pro-noble faction member.
He did not like commoners.
After Merlin helped him take revenge for his daughter, it made Duke Falcon see Merlin as an equal, something he would never treat a commoner as.
'Zara's father is ready to kill the son of another duke in order to bring her revenge.'
'But my father won't even look at me, since I'm a disgrace to the family name.'
Isaac clicked his tongue inwardly.
Asking for Duke Wright to save him was useless.
He had to figure out something by himself.
"Isaac von Wright! Enter the arena! You are smearing mud on the Sacred Duel by wasting time!" the referee bellowed, angry that he had been cut off by Isaac earlier.
Isaac stared at his status screen for a split second.
'With these stats, I'm definitely dying if I enter the arena.'
He made a decision.
He turned around and began to leave the stage.
"Where are you going!?" the referee and the protagonist, Merlin, shouted at the same time.
The guards who were standing below blocked Isaac's path.
"Isaac von Wright! Sacred Duel is an honorable battle blessed by the Goddess Qaia! Once you have accepted the duel, you cannot leave like this!"
Isaac turned around to stare at the referee.
His blood-red eyes and cold gaze made the referee flinch.
It wasn't that Isaac suddenly became a top tier actor.
Rather, his natural looks—gained from Duke Wright—gave him a cold, and authoritative presence.
Until now, Isaac had been a blabbermouth who kept boasting, but now that he had stopped speaking like that, the cold eyes the Wright family was famous for stood out and they made everyone flinch.
"The duel will be tomorrow. I have important work to attend today, and my schedule leaves me no time to waste on this pathetic duel," Isaac said coldly.
Though, inwardly he was sweating bullets and cursing himself for coming up with such a pathetic excuse..
He was no schemer.
But he needed a reason to avoid this duel.
So, he decided to be a bull-headed person and shamelessly leave the duel!
What could they do?
Insult him?
Their insults were no different from insects, who buzzed around someone for their attention.
It would have no effect on him.
"Isaac von Wright—"
"I don't remember accepting the duel."
"…what?" the referee uttered, genuinely stunned.
"You did! Your family accepted the duel! We received the letter signed by Duke Wright himself!" Merlin shouted, desperate to get Isaac on the stage.
When Isaac heard that he nodded.
"Exactly. As you said, Duke Wright accepted the duel on my behalf. I haven't accepted it."
"You! Are you using an excuse to—"
"If you had asked me for the duel, I would've scheduled it tomorrow. I'm busy today."
With those words, Isaac began to leave.
The guards stopped him again.
But they lowered their weapons with some hesitation after he stared at them and let him pass.
This was the world where nobility ruled.
Isaac, as the son of a Duke, was someone everyone needed to bow to. Mere guards couldn't stop him unless a higher up gave them a thumbs up.
This was why Isaac had been able to act like an irredeemable trash without worrying about anything until now.
'Disgusting bastard.'
'He had his own fun, and dumped his body on me when the time came to receive the punishment.'
'His father is a bigger bastard.'
'He definitely knows Isaac will be killed by Merlin, and he still allowed the duel to happen.'
'No, perhaps, Duke Wright made a deal with Duke Falcon behind the scenes. He must've received a lot of compensation to agree to the duel.'
It was laughable.
Duke Wright was allowing his son to die a pathetic death for some lump sum.
The more he thought of his current situation, the worse irrational anger bubbled within Isaac.
He had to take deep breaths to calm himself.
'I have no reason to live as Isaac.'
'Even if I somehow survive tomorrow's duel, the Duke Falcon will see me dead, one way or another.'
'Besides, the protagonist hates me. That bastard is a reincarnation of Magic God. If he wasn't hiding his strength, he could defeat Court Mages.'
'He can kill me anytime he wants.'
Isaac decided to leave this place.
He would use his knowledge of the novel to live a comfortable and carefree life, away from all these problems.
By the time he reached his room in the academy dormitory, his decision to leave was firm.
He pulled open drawers, and checked every place the original Isaac had kept money.
'Thankfully, I gained fragments of Isaac's memory after dying in the duel. So, I know where the money is.'
After gathering everything, he poured the contents onto the bed and counted carefully.
110 gold coins.
"This much money is enough for me to live comfortably for ten years."
It was good, but he decided to pack more.
He looked around the room.
Expensive paintings. Expensive pens. Expensive curtains.
Every item in the room was worth their weight in gold.
He walked to the table next to his bed, and pressed the bell on it.
A knock on the door followed soon after.
"Young master, you called?" the soft, feminine voice asked from the other side.
"Come inside."
The female butler entered.
She was quite beautiful with white fox ears and golden eyes.
Isaac had purchased her from the slave market ten years ago.
The academy allowed everyone to bring one servant, and Isaac brought her with him because of her good looks.
'She should already be colluding with the protagonist at this point of time.'
'Anything I tell her would reach the ears of the protagonist.'
Isaac wanted to laugh.
He brought her, fed her, and this was how she repaid him?
Sure the previous Isaac abused her, but if someone else had purchased her from the slave market, they would've used her as a sex slave, sold her as a prostitute, or used her for human experiments.
That's what happened to most slaves sold in the market.
Isaac fed her, provided her clothes, and shelter.
He never touched her either.
In the novel, it was said that she was friends with Isaac's little sister, and touching her would make his sister complain to their father.
That was why Isaac did not touch her.
But Isaac was never the type to care about those things.
If he wanted something, he would take it no matter the cost.
He had never touched Hazel of his own choice.
'Why am I defending a scumbag like Isaac?'
'Ah, I'm him now, that's why.'
Even while thinking like that, a thought kept occurring to him….
'Isaac was a scumbag, but he never tried to force himself on anyone. He is still a virgin.'
'I am sure of it because of the fragments of memories I have inherited from Isaac.'
This raised a question.
'Why did he suddenly try to pounce on Zara, his finance?'
Things didn't make sense.
Isaac shook his head.
It didn't matter.
He was going to leave this place today.
Someone clearly wanted him dead. The best choice was to leave.
"Hazel, sell everything that is in this room."
"…what, young master?"
"Sell everything by the evening, and bring me the money."
The fox-kin maid's eyes widened.
"What happened young master? Why are you—"
"Do what you are told, Hazel. A slave like you has no right to question their master."
Hazel froze.
The word slave was a derogatory term. It was a reminder she could never escape.
She clenched her fists, trying to hide her anger and growing claws.
'She is angry?'
'Well, whatever. Even if she is angry, she won't try to kill me, since it would reveal that the protagonist undid her slave mark.'
'The revelation would get both herself and the protagonist into trouble.'
The words Isaac had spoken to her were born out of his anger— no, they were born from the lingering anger of the previous Isaac, who had felt betrayed.
Isaac suppressed the feelings.
Hazel brought the money by the evening.
It should've been hard to sell everything in a few hours, but she was competent after being bullied by previous Isaac's unreasonable requests for years.
'I got 190 Gold Coins from selling items.'
'And I had 110 beforehand.'
'So, now I have a grand total of 300 Gold Coins.'
Enough for thirty years of a peaceful and comfortable life.
Isaac packed all the money with some less catchy clothes.
"The library had maps, correct?" he asked.
"Yes? But why—"
Hazel closed her mouth when he gave her a stare.
Isaac flung the bag over his shoulder and added, "You are dismissed for the day."
"Understood, young master."
Once she left, Isaac moved through the academy grounds and entered the library.
It was large. Larger than the house he had lived in during his previous life.
Rows upon rows of shelves stretched into the distance, filled with books, scrolls, and records from centuries past.
Isaac went straight to the map section.
He took maps of surrounding regions and read them until night, memorizing everything.
He heard students gossiping during that time.
"Hey, is it true he refused to fight a Sacred Duel after accepting it?"
"Yes, I heard an Inquisitor of the Church has been deployed already. I can't believe he dared to insult a duel blessed by the goddess."
"He is an irredeemable trash. What else can we expect from him?"
"Shh, speak quietly. He might hear—"
Isaac turned his head and stared at the students.
They flinched, and quickly left, afraid he would punish them for the gossip.
'Damned cowards.'
'All they know is to talk behind someone's back, but they run with their tail between their legs when you face them.'
A few minutes before it was the library's closing time, Isaac entered the fantasy novels section where books were arranged in alphabetical order.
'ESCAPE. In the fantasy novel section, go to section E, then S, then C, then A, and so on until the last E is done.'
'For E pull the first book on the first shelf.'
'For S pull the second book on the second shelf.'
'For C pull the third book on the third shelf.'
'Do same for all alphabets of Escape.'
It was a simple pattern, so it was easy to remember.
When Isaac was done pulling all the books, nothing happened.
He was not surprised.
He moved towards the final shelf in the deepest corner of the library, specifically to the area between the wall and the final shelf.
Isaac stopped a few meters away.
'It looks perfectly normal from outside.'
Isaac stepped into the narrow gap between the wall and the shelf.
There was a faint pop, like the sound of a soap bubble bursting.
A section of the wall peeled open silently, revealing a hidden passage. The opening was large enough for a person to pass through comfortably.
This area only appeared after pulling the books in the fantasy novel section.
Even then, it was concealed by layered magic.
Unless someone stood right next to the entrance, they would never notice anything was wrong.
Isaac stepped inside.
The entrance closed behind him without a sound.
Darkness swallowed him.
"…I should've brought a lantern."
He placed his hand on the wall, and used it as a guide to move forward.
This hidden tunnel was one of many tunnels built in the academy.
They were created one thousand years ago during the war between the kingdom and the Third Disaster Army.
The passage was created to evacuate academy staff and students in case the Third Disaster Army attacked the academy suddenly.
There were too many passages and information about quite a few were lost to time.
Isaac was currently using one of these passages.
…
Merlin POV
"Be prepared. He would be out anytime," Merlin said, his gaze fixed on the darkness ahead.
"Y-Yes," Hazel nodded.
They were standing at a secluded clearing deep inside the forest, roughly two hours away from the academy.
This place was where the "evacuation route" present in the library would open up.
There were many evacuation routes in the academy. They were built during the war with the Third Disaster Army one thousand years ago.
It wasn't just this evacuation route.
Almost every evacuation route leaving from the academy had people waiting outside.
These were the people of the Duke Falcon.
They were going to assassinate Isaac today.
"A-Are we sure we should be doing this?" Hazel asked, fidgeting.
Merlin looked at her, then placed a hand on her shoulder to help her calm down.
"I didn't want to kill anyone either, Hazel. You know how I am.
"But Isaac, that scumbag, tried to force himself on Zara, and this is just one of his shameful acts.
"If we don't eliminate him now, he would become a tyrant in the future after inheriting the position of Duke Wright," said Merlin.
Hazel hesitated.
Her ears drooped slightly as she struggled with her thoughts.
In the end, she nodded.
Merlin sighed seeing her reaction.
Truthfully, he did not want to kill a child—Isaac—either.
Merlin, as a reincarnator, was old.
He saw everyone in the academy as a child.
He was someone who was willing to give children a second chance, hoping they would improve.
But Merlin had seen Isaac act like a beast while he pounced on Zara.
If Merlin had not been there….
'We need to eliminate him. An irredeemable trash like him can never improve.'
Hazel had informed Merlin of Isaac's strange behavior in the evening.
After finding out Isaac was selling everything, Merlin theorized he was trying to run away, realizing he was going to be killed.
Merlin informed Duke Falcon of what was happening.
Then, Duke Falcon made the plan to ambush Isaac and kill him.
They would make the death look like work of bandits.
The plan was perfect.
However….
Merlin and Hazel waited throughout the night, but Isaac never appeared.