Screwed.
That was my life, I meant.
When I regained consciousness, I found myself in an unfamiliar place.
A room adorned with oddly luxurious items, set against antique wallpaper.
At first, I thought maybe I had fainted during a game and ended up in a hospital…
But that notion was short-lived.
Why, you asked?
A glance in the mirror revealed a darkly atmospheric pretty boy staring back at me.
…I knew this face all too well.
It belonged to Yujin Calliope, the protagonist of the popular Academy's Instructor series.
I tried pulling at my face and even plucking out hair in disbelief, but eventually, I had to accept the truth.
I had become Yujin Calliope.
"…Damn that director bastard."
I slumped into the chair, clutching my forehead with one hand.
I had envied characters in novels who fell into game worlds; now, I regretted it.
Little did I know I'd fall into a game riddled with death events.
All this time, I thought protagonists who complained were just whining, but experiencing it firsthand, I realized how screwed up it was.
My teeth grated.
That devil of a woman. Just because I cursed her out over email, does that give her the right to drop someone into this hellish game?
If I ever got back, revenge was a must.
For a while after waking up, I was in denial, screaming into the void to be sent back, even threatening to jump out of a window if not, but there was no response.
At any rate, I had to accept it.
I had fallen into the game world, and I had to survive here.
No, it's not just about surviving; I needed to achieve a happy ending in this world.
It's not a matter of justice or fulfilling the director's request—it's about survival.
Why? Because if you didn't strategize, you'd die.
It's that simple.
"First, let's make a plan."
If this world aligned exactly with the game, then tomorrow was the Academy's entrance ceremony.
I must make the most of the time given.
For a while after enrolling, I wouldn't even have time to think leisurely.
Of course, fleeing the Academy to live elsewhere was an option, but that would be akin to suicide.
Most events I was aware of occur within the Academy.
Conversely, I knew very little about what happens outside of it.
Surviving in this unknown world?
The mere thought terrified me.
Even if, by some stroke of luck, I managed to survive outside the Academy, a grim fate likely awaited me.
Ultimately, to become stronger using my knowledge, staying within the Academy was the natural choice.
Sighing, I gazed out the window at the majestic and refined building that, in another reality, would be a tourist attraction.
'Carnea Academy'
The 'Academy Instructor' universe's most prestigious academy.
Attended by descendants of high nobles and even royalty, its reputation was unparalleled.
For the protagonist—well, for me, Yujin Calliope, even as the third son of a noble family, I managed to enroll. The various backgrounds and circumstances leading to this are irrelevant for now.
What mattered was how I planned to conquer this world.
"Obviously…"
The most crucial task was to increase my stats. This insane game had a higher combat difficulty than most RPGs. Without boosting your stats, you were likely to be killed by a random mob.
But there's also a problem…
[Name: Yujin Calliope]
[Occupation: None]
[Title: None]
[Stats]
Strength 10, Agility 10, Stamina 10.
Intelligence 10, Magic Power 10, Luck 10.
[Skills]
None.
[Traits]
None.
Look at these dismal stats.
All stats were at 10.
That's the level of a thug A who received a harsh lesson right outside the academy at the start.
I couldn't help but scoff.
When I witnessed the ending of the first run, I wasn't even expecting any stats or traits.
But this was ridiculous!
If the game became reality, shouldn't there be some adjustments to make the protagonist's stats more favorable? Otherwise, it's as if I was being sent to my doom.
Okay, let's assume the stats were fixed.
I could boost the stats through events or items that I mostly remembered, as long as I didn't die before then.
But was it merely about desperately clinging on and increasing stats?
"…Absolutely not."
Most main events couldn't even be participated in unless the heroine's training level was raised above a certain threshold.
It seemed absurd that the protagonist couldn't participate in main events, but in this lousy game, it actually made sense.
Right after enrolling, you couldn't even join the first boss fight unless the heroine's training level was sufficiently high.
Yes.
Training.
I had to train the heroine.
Someone like me, who had only played adult games and barely held a woman's hand in real life, had to train a woman.
The last conversation I had with a woman was when a convenience store clerk asked if I needed a bag. And lately, I had been ordering online, so I hadn't spoken a single word to a woman in a year.
"…I'm screwed."
What kind of crazy woman told a porn game otaku to train women? Games and reality should be distinguished.
Pressing my throbbing forehead, I picked up a pen from the desk and began jotting down what I needed to achieve the ending.
-Decide on an occupation.
-Choose a heroine to train.
-Acquire traits, titles.
-Avoid death events.
-Look for growth events.
There were a few other minor things, but the most pressing need right now was an occupation.
Events would come whether I avoided them or not, and training the heroine…
I didn't know what I would do.
I guess I'd just have to do it, somehow.
For now, it's the occupation.
[Please select an occupation.]
▶[Knight] ▶[Mage] ▶[Unique Ability User]
Look, even the status screen was urging me to choose an occupation quickly.
The job tree of the Academy Instructor split into three major types:
A Knight that used physical strength.
A Mage that used magical power.
A Unique Ability User that used the mind.
In the first run, that was, when I pursued Lucia for the normal ending, I chose Knight.
It was the most balanced choice since Lucia was a Mage, and it was also the safest choice.
Obviously, as far as I had seen to the end, Knight was the job I knew the most about, but…
"Knights are definitely out."
Choosing a Knight now just didn't make sense.
Back then, I wasn't the character in the game, so I could fight even if I got stabbed in the belly or lost limbs.
Now, I'd be rolling on the ground screaming if I even cut a finger, let alone a whole limb.
…And above all, there was the issue that the job I had seen the ending with was the knight.
A knight couldn't achieve a happy ending.
That was my conclusion.
I could survive somehow and see the ending, but it always stopped at a normal ending.
Really, it's barely better than a bad ending. I had no intention of living in such a world.
And a mage?
Better than a knight, but still concerning.
I had to chant spells matching each attribute and distribute magic power properly. Could I really do that?
Maybe I could memorize the incantations since my memory was decent, but how long would it take to use this entirely new sensation of magic power in combat?
Learning to walk now and becoming a track athlete would be difficult, if not harder.
That left the unique ability user.
A unique ability user was similar to a mage, but while a mage was versatile with various types of magic, a unique ability user was specialized.
They could use abilities not found in attribute magic instinctively without incantations, but conversely, they couldn't use anything outside their unique abilities.
"…Mage or unique ability user."
A balanced mage, or a specialized unique ability user.
As I hesitated in front of the status screen, I noticed something sparkling in the right corner.
▶✉
A small envelope icon was blinking, tempting me to press it.
As if mesmerized, I pressed the envelope icon, and a message appeared.
"…Check the message."
Suddenly, numerous messages poured out.
『Congratulations. You have become an academy instructor. Your first clearance is confirmed.』
『Scoring is in progress. Please do not close the status screen and wait for a moment.』
『First Clearance Bonus + 300%』
『Normal Ending Bonus + 33%』
『Heroine Conquest Bonus + 25%』
-『Complete Conquest of Lucia Urella Bonus + 200%』
『Special Event Bonus + 37%』
『Forced Transition Bonus + 150%』
...
『Total Bonus: 774%』
『Searching for a reward fitting your score. Please wait.』
『Search complete. No result matches your score.』
『Identifying error….』
『Error identified』
-Cause: Score exceeded expected range.
『Error Correction Proposal』
-Upgrade reward grade.
『Approval complete: Your first clearance reward (Rank S) is upgraded.』
『You are granted a first clearance reward (Rank EX).』
『Would you like to receive your first clearance reward?』
▶Yes. ▶No.
I had never heard of a first clearance reward. Well, I was the first to clear it, so who would I have heard it from?
But that aside. It's a reward. Even the name EX rank reward was exciting. If it helped even a bit in conquering this game, why not take it?
As I selected yes with a nervous face.
◆◇◆◇Congratulations!◆◇◆◇
A sound came, and the message scrolled down. As I looked at the first clearance reward, I swallowed.
An EX rank reward was not just a little helpful. With this…
"It might be doable?"
It seems like I had found a way to survive in this damn luck-based game.
*****
Support me on my pat reon and gain early access to my creations.
https://www.patr eon.com/RroY_r18 (remove the space)
You can access up to 10 advanced chapters.