Chapter 1: The Villain Takes the Stage
The crowd buzzes.
The entrance ceremony of Lichten Academy.
A chaotic scene, teeming with countless people mingling and moving.
I stood in the middle of that overwhelming throng.
Looking around, I saw groups of noble ladies taking photos with magical devices.
Freshmen posed with their parents.
As the premier educational institution at the continentâs heart, coveted by all,empire or republic alike dmission to Lichten Academy was a great honor, even for nobles.
Thatâs probably why even highborn aristocrats were so eager to snap photos.
Me, though? I had no one to take pictures with or for.
Five years ago, I fell into this worldâthe world of the novel Eclipse.
I was possessed by one of its characters.
Bisus Granginol, the third son of the Granginol barony.
A villain who appears early in the academy arc and dies pathetically.
When I first realized this, I was overcome with despair.
Iâd come to the fantasy world of my dreams, butâŚ
A powerless villain with no abilities, no high status, destined to die quickly?
No way.
Thatâs not happening.
For the past five years, Iâve tried everything to survive.
I swung a sword day and night to master swordsmanship.
I tirelessly practiced hand signs to awaken magic.
But all my efforts were meaningless.
Bisus Granginol.
This trash,tier character was good for nothing!
Just a disposable villain, meant to die early to prop up the protagonist!
This canât go on.
I wonât pick fights with the protagonist or antagonize them like the original Bisus did.
But being this weak? Thereâs no way Iâd survive the crises that hit the academy later.
No matter what I tried, this pathetic, one,off villain couldnât get stronger.
Itâs like I was fated to die for the protagonistâs sake.
In the end, with every method failing, I thought of a final resort.
Iâll take it.
The opportunities, the events meant for the protagonist.
Iâll steal them all.
This is the novel Iâm possessing, right?
Doesnât that make me the protagonist?
Why does the protagonist need to solve everything?
Iâll do it for them.
Protagonist, you just relax in a corner.
Your big brother will handle everything.
The hidden pieces in the novel? Theyâre all at the academy.
I couldnât access them before enrolling.
So, my only option was to start stealing the protagonistâs events from the storyâs beginningâthe academy entrance ceremony.
Thatâs exactly why Iâm standing here in the middle of the academy plaza.
The storyâs starting point, the entrance ceremony.
The first event the protagonist encounters?
They collide with a saintess, a freshman rushing through this plaza.
That saintess, a key figure in the church, becomes friends with the protagonist through this event.
She helps them repeatedly, playing a major role in their growth.
Sorry, but that saintess?
Iâm taking her.
I stood in the plazaâs center, waiting for the saintess for what felt like ages.
Iâd been there so long that passersby started glancing at me, probably wondering what I was doing.
Embarrassing? Sure.
But I can endure it.
Itâs all to survive!
After waiting and waiting for about two hours, I finally spotted a woman running frantically in the distance.
Unlike the other freshmen in standard uniforms, she wore the holy robes of the church.
No doubt about it.
Itâs Artoria, the saintess specially treated even at Lichten Academy!
I stood tall, firmly believing sheâd pass by and bump into me.
The distance between me and the saintess began to close.
Good.
Just a little more.
A bit closerâŚ!
But as she ran toward me, she saw my face⌠and stopped right in front of me.
âŚHuh? What?
This ruins everything!
Itâs not supposed to go like this!
Sheâs supposed to crash into me, learn my name, and help me later!
Sure, my plan had holes.
She might not come here, might not bump into me, might not get involved with me at all.
It was a flimsy plan, but seeing it fail like this? It was utterly devastating.
No, this canât fail.
If even this doesnât work, Iâm reallyâŚ
âBisus! Finally⌠finally, we meet⌠hehe.â
The saintess spoke.
âIâm so happy to see you againâŚâ
She fixed her gaze on my face, smiling brightly.
âUh⌠so, Saintess, youâre saying⌠I was an angel?â
âExactly, exactly!â
She nodded vigorously.
What the fck is this nonsense?
The saintess and I sat in a cafĂŠ tucked away in a nearby alley.
Even in an academy full of high,flying nobles, the saintessâs authority and influence were immense.
She drew every eye, so we had to find a place to avoid the attention.
Thatâs how we ended up in this rundown cafĂŠ in a remote spot.
I never imagined the saintess would know who I am.
She knew meâBisus Granginol.
No, more than that, she said she was running through the plaza to find me.
This never happened in the original Eclipse.
Was this a butterfly effect from my actions in this world?
I asked her why she was looking for me.
Her response?
âBecause you and I were angels serving Deus in the heavens!â
What kind of ridiculous nonsense is this?
âSo, we werenât originally human. We were seraphim, the closest angels to Deus, serving at His side! Oh, and you and I were lovers. A couple so devoted that Deus Himself blessed our union.â
The saintess, blushing, started pouring out her story with excitement.
âBut one day, I made a mistake! I ate the forbidden fruit from the garden Deus entrusted to us! He told us we could do anything, but never eat that one fruit!â
This sounds awfully familiar. Is that garden called Eden or something?
âI shouldâve stopped there, but I foolishly thought that fruit awakened me! I was so stupid⌠So, I gave it to you, too!â
Yeah, this is that story!
âYou refused to eat it, but because of me, you did. Ugh, why was I so foolish? Anyway, because of that, Deus was furious.â
Well, yeah, Iâd be pissed too if someone ate the one fruit I told them not to touch.
âWe were punished, our memories erased, and cast down to earth as humans. Ugh⌠Iâm so sorry.â
No need to apologize. I donât know this story. Itâs not in the original novel.
When the saintess finished, I stared at her, dumbfounded, and asked again.
âUh⌠so, youâre saying I was an angel?â
âExactly, exactly!â
âUh⌠thatâs hard to believe. How did you even find out? Werenât our memories erased?â
If our memories were erased, doesnât her story fall apart?
âI didnât know until yesterday! But last night, in a dream, I saw all my memories from our time as angels!â
A dream?
She saw it in a dream?
Isnât that just a random dream?
âI didnât even know you existed, but in that dream, I learned about you! My love, my lifelong partner!â
Uh⌠getting the saintessâs attention is great and all, butâŚ
Something feels off.
And whatâs with calling me her âlord husbandâ?
In a luxurious dorm at Lichten AcademyâŚ
âNo!â
A woman, sleeping soundly in her bed, suddenly jolted upright.
ââŚA dream?â
Confused, she rose from her bed.
Creak
âMiss, where are you going?â
Ignoring the butler on the first floor, she grabbed a robe and left the dorm to investigate.
Wandering through alleys, scanning passersby, she realized she was in the heart of Lichten Academy.
âIâve⌠returned? To before his sacrifice, no, to before I even met him?â
She leaned against a wall.
âThen Iâve been given another chance. Maybe⌠maybe I can be with youâŚâ
Sofia, the only daughter of the republicâs leader, clenched her fist tightly.
âThis time⌠this time, itâll be different. This time, Iâll make sureâŚâ