The first thing Ethan felt was... the floor. Cold. Hard. Uncomfortable.
The second was his back cracking like an old IKEA piece of furniture.
The third was a mechanical voice echoing in his head:
[System Activated.]
Welcome, Player. You have been transferred into Love Destiny Academy.
Role Assigned: Eliott Vesper. Class: Superior Beauty Mob.
Ethan brutally opened his eyes.
He didn't see his student dorm room, his crumpled posters, or yesterday's still-full cup of coffee.
Instead: a purple sky, stone towers, flags of excessive nobility. And around him, a paved courtyard typical of magic academies designed by people who don't know sobriety.
"Oh... no. No, no, no. Not this. Not an isekai in a bubblegum pink dating sim!"
The system continued, imperturbably:
Main Objective: Achieve the Perfect Ending.
Release Condition: Prevent the villainess, Lady Astria Evernight, from harming the heroine.
Failure = Character death and confinement in the game.
"WHAT?!"
A pink butterfly flew past him, as if to mock him. Ethan swatted the air.
"I'm going to kill my cousin when I get back. If I get back..."
He pulled himself up with difficulty and caught his reflection in the kitschiest fountain in the history of a video game.
There, he almost screamed.
"Is... is that me? Wow. I'm... beautiful. Like, 'poster in a teenage bedroom' beautiful."
Slightly wavy black hair, glacier blue eyes, a slender silhouette, a splendid uniform.
He looked like the kind of character whose fans write: "he breathes, I tremble."
System Note: According to the lore, your role is to decorate the background.
"Charming, thanks," he muttered.
Only one mission: prevent the villainess from causing chaos.
Easy?
Not at all.
In the game, Lady Astria Evernight was the supreme bitch: poisonous smiles, political low blows, social harassment, magical dramas at the slightest annoyance.
Poison in human form.
But, well, saving the heroine and surviving the scenario... it had to be doable.
Maybe.
He hoped.
In front of him rose the Asterhall Academy of Magic, majestic and intimidating. A portal of runic stone pulsed with a bluish light. Students entered and exited; some were levitating their luggage, others were chatting with their magical familiars.
Ethan moved forward.
[Integration Procedure: Compulsory Aptitude Test.]
"Of course. Why would it be simple?"
He found himself in a vast, circular room, filled with students: aristocrats with their chins tilted to the sky, studious mages, a boy trying to stuff his giant owl into a backpack.
In the center, a crystal pillar shone as if it thought it was a star.
A professor with a stern face approached :
"Name?"
"Uh... Eliott Vesper."
The professor consulted a long list.
"Ah. The commoner."
"Excuse me?"
"The lower-class people like you should already be grateful to have the right to set foot here."
Ethan wept internally.
"Place your hand on the crystal."
He obeyed. The crystal lit up with a pure white glow.
"Magic Affinity: Light. Good potential... even if wasted," he added, coughing.
Wasted.
What an atmosphere.
The other students passed one by one: fire, water, shadow...
A blonde boy triggered a halo of pure gold. The whole room murmured.
"That's Prince Saphir... the main hero," a student whispered.
Ethan watched him: noble appearance, gentle eyes, perfect posture. The kind of guy who exudes OPness and that the scenario loves.
Then he spotted the heroine. A sparkling, clumsy, red-headed girl... exactly like in the game.
Target spotted.
A sudden scream shook the room. The crowd parted like the Red Sea.
A young woman advanced, surrounded by a chilling wind materialized by pure hostility.
Perfectly tailored black dress, silver hair, blue gaze sharp as a guillotine.
Every step seemed to say: "erase yourself, insect."
Lady Astria Evernight.
The villainess.
She scanned the room with contempt and stopped on a student who had the audacity to breathe within her radius of action.
"Your posture is awful. You look like a wobbly chair."
The student burst into tears.
Astria walked past Ethan without noticing him. The air became freezing. Even the system seemed to panic.
[Alert: Antagonist identified.]
[Advice: Do not provoke. Risk of instant burn.]
Ethan swallowed ]
And suddenly... she stopped.
Slowly turned towards him.
Her gaze fell on him like a particularly insulting divine judgment.
"You."
Ethan felt his soul take off.
"Your presence. It bothers me."
"...Sorry?"
"I don't repeat myself."
She looked away, as if Ethan's existence risked giving her an allergy.
Only one interaction. Only one. And the villainess already wanted his psychological death.
"This is starting well..."
Later, the students were led to a circular arena for the magical demonstration. Enchanted dummies waited. The jury watched.
The prince launched a perfect spear of light.
The heroine succeeded a clumsy but adorable spell.
A student summoned an aggressive rabbit; no one judged.
Then it was Ethan's turn.
"Eliott Vesper!" the professor announced.
He stepped forward, his soul already ready to leave his body.
No idea how to cast a spell.
The system displayed:
[Tutorial: Channel your energy. Visualize the light. Only die if necessary.]
"Super encouraging."
He raised his hand, thought "light," and prayed.
A tiny ray shot out... then ricocheted everywhere.
The audience threw themselves to the ground.
A professor screamed.
The giant owl passed out.
The ray finally hit a dummy, which miserably burned.
Total silence.
"...Acceptable," the professor said in a traumatized voice.
Later, Ethan went out into the gardens, relieved to be in one piece.
That's when he saw her again.
Astria.
Sitting on a marble bench, surrounded by black petals fallen from a perfectly normal tree.
Her gaze fixed the void with a disdain so powerful it seemed toxic.
Ethan backed away slowly.
Not today. Not now.
"I hear you," she murmured without looking at him.
He froze.
"You're breathing loudly. It's annoying."
He opened his mouth.
Closed it again.
Walked away.
"What a bitch..." he mumbled.
Yet, he knew it: to get home, he was going to have to get closer to her.
To the worst person in the game.
And that promised a lot of trouble.