I Became the Crazy Instructor at the Academy

1 – 1. Looking for the Protagonist

What woke me up was an uncomfortable sense of strangeness.

My shoulders ached, every toss and turn made me aware of an alien sensation, and something was tightly cinching my waist.

Because of this, I found myself awake, and it wasn’t even dawn yet.

“Could it be sleep paralysis…”

Even in my semi-conscious state, I knew.

This uncomfortable feeling wasn’t a result of a nightmare caused by going to bed frustrated the previous night.

Though I couldn’t confirm with my eyes in the unlit room,

I could tell by feeling around with my hands.

“I’m sure I slept in a T-shirt and shorts.”

The sleek and rough sensation was a clear indication that I was now wearing a suit.

Had I changed clothes unconsciously?

I’ll need to visit the hospital when it’s daylight.

Yes, this is all because of that damned game.

After witnessing a 12-year epic saga get demolished, it wouldn’t be surprising if I developed some mental disorder.

I resolved to rid myself of the lingering attachment and booted up the computer on my desk beside me to finally get rid of the game.

Or at least, I tried to.

“Huh?”

It was before realizing that where I woke up wasn’t my room.

My desk and computer are definitely right next to my bed.

But as much as I groped around from where I got up, I couldn’t feel the desk.

Only then did I start to make out the unfamiliar surroundings.

Even though the lights were off, my eyes, becoming accustomed to the darkness, could discern that this wasn’t my room.

The arrangement of the furniture was completely different.

Click-

I felt cold sweat dripping as I fumbled along the wall and found the light switch.

The bright light illuminating the dark room then confirmed my suspicion.

“…Where is this?”

The first thing I saw was the furniture on the wall.

My room is adorned with figurines of protagonists from the Arcadia series that I’ve collected over the years.

I was planning to throw them all away when the sun came up.

But where that display should have been, there was a completely different piece of furniture.

An unnecessarily antique wooden bookshelf that seemed out of place in the almost studio-sized room, filled so tightly with books that it seemed like not even air could pass through.

That was the clincher; this was not my room.

I’ve been estranged from books since I stopped wearing a school uniform.

Everything else was the same.

The overall vibe of this place made it hard to believe that it could belong to a 21st-century office worker.

If I had to make a comparison, it was more like an inn, specifically, a room in a medieval-style upscale inn.

“What is this… wait a minute.”

Only then did I notice my reflection.

Far from a T-shirt and shorts, I was dressed in a suit that was both decent and flashy.

No one in their right mind sleeps in an attire like this.

However, that wasn’t a concern at the moment.

Serious as the issue might be, it wasn’t what was important right now.

With trembling hands, I carefully removed the name tag attached to my chest.

“Ivan Herson.”

Yes.

Not only did I not wake up in my own room,

I didn’t wake up in my own body either.

—

Waking up before dawn was, in a way, a stroke of luck.

It gave me some time to make sense of this unrealistic situation.

I was now flipping through the register in the corner, looking for someone’s name.

It was a fairly straightforward task, allowing me space to gather my thoughts.

Firstly, I needed to review the confirmed facts of the situation.

Yesterday, I was the first to unlock the true ending of the Arcadia series, and I fell asleep engulfed in disappointment.

And when I woke up, I was in an unfamiliar house, my body transformed into an unfamiliar man.

Well, not entirely unfamiliar.

Because it’s a game character.

The name Ivan, clearly written on the badge, compelled me to rush to the bathroom and check the mirror…

“It can’t be.”

Reflected in the mirror, standing with a horrified expression, was Ivan Herson, the third-rate villain from the Academy Tutorial.

A tall, ordinary handsome man with cold eyes.

However, there was never a time in the script when Ivan was referred to as handsome, even in jest.

Firstly, because of his character, and secondly, because of these dark circles under his eyes.

Living up to his third-rate villain status, he was sinister and engaged in peculiar behaviors, a low-ranking instructor at the academy soaked in authoritarianism, despising the students.

Especially if the student was of commoner status – he treated them as less than human. He was garbage. s*xual harassment was also habitual for him.

He was an impossible character to get attached to, possessing nothing but a noble title, a decent family name, and horrendous abilities that wouldn’t even allow him to make a living without his connections.

Being on the receiving end of disapproving glances from all students and staff, the shock was still fresh when his plot to reveal his true colors and open the academy’s gate was exposed.

The absence of a twist was the twist.

Anyway, it was undeniably Ivan Herson reflected in the mirror,

The most cliched and worthless villain.

That was me.

And that’s when I began to think.

Normally, if something impossible happens, you either escape from reality, or assume you are having a ridiculous dream and go back to sleep.

But I couldn’t do that.

The sensations I felt throughout my body were too real.

The unnerving reality of it all robbed me of the option to lay back down.

Even if I woke up feeling refreshed, I wouldn’t wake up in my own room.

Therefore, I decided to calmly assess the situation.

I don’t know what the hell I did or what happened to me while I slept last night,

But there’s no room for disagreement that this is what people call ‘possession’.

If so, my task was clear.

“Return to my original world.”

Even if I’m sitting on a stone slab, and the rug has been pulled from under me,

The most important part is missing.

I never wanted to transmigrate to this world, I swear to the heavens.

This possession isn’t a delightful accident, but a disaster.

I had a duty to return as my mother’s son, not Ivan Herson.

But how?

At this moment, I don’t know when, where, how, or why I got possessed.

How do I escape this?

“Ending.”

If I know nothing else, I should take the most common approach.

It’s clear that this world is within a game, which means there’s a limit to its narrative.

In other words, once the true ending is seen, there’s no more world to be rendered.

When I got that far in my thinking, I ran out of the bathroom,

And since then, I’ve been rummaging through the student registry.

I was looking for the protagonist’s name.

Adam, the protagonist of the last series of Arcadia Chronicles.

I was the first to clear this game, and the core of that achievement was the ‘all-in on the protagonist’ strategy.

While others flirted with the heroines along the paths laid out by the game developers,

I felt it the moment I saw the protagonist.

“This guy can score a win with energy to spare, right?”

An irrationally superior initial stat and protagonist-worthy growth rate.

While other gamers believed, “Solo-clearing is a stunt you pull off once you become a veteran”, I took bold action.

Indeed, even Laplace, the final boss, couldn’t defeat Adam under my control, affirming my choice.

So, even after being possessed, I’ll employ the same strategy.

There’s no reason not to follow a proven route.

No matter how pathetic Ivan is, being an instructor, he can at least find out which department the protagonist belongs to.

Approach him, build some level of trust.

Then, support him from both ends, ensuring not to influence the story too much. I know every item and event in this game.

In short, the protagonist, unknowingly, will continue a cheat-level easy play, only needing to advance on the path I’ve paved.

Even if the real final boss emerging after Laplace is defeated is Ivan Herson,

By then, I was supposed to be sleeping in my own bed.

The easiest true ending route.

…I thought so until about ten minutes ago.

“Why, why isn’t it there? Why on earth?”

By the time I had gone back and forth between the first and last pages of the register about three times,

I had to accept it.

There’s no protagonist’s name.

“If there’s no protagonist, there’s no answer at all…!”

You can clear the game without the heroines.

Even the supporting characters can be treated as non-existent.

But, the protagonist must exist.

Why? Because of the special ability that only Adam possesses, the ‘Discernment’.

Put crudely, it’s what the world refers to as the ‘status window’.

First, you need that to recruit companions, unlock potential, and adjust your own growth.

Without it, what, am I supposed to die?

I even looked for the name of the female playable protagonist, Eve, but when that too didn’t appear,

I despaired.

This world is just hell.

For the sin of achieving the first clear of a trash game, I’ve been reincarnated as a villain in a doomed world, destined to suffer.

Until now, the only sound echoing nervously around the room was the flipping of pages,

Finally, I could let out a scream.

“What have I done to deserve this, what the hell is this, you piece of-”

Knock, knock-

A sound from outside.

Someone was knocking on the dormitory entrance door.

‘Who is it? Wait, if someone is visiting at this hour, it means…’

Just as there are no graves without excuses,

In a game, there’s no unnecessary event without a reason.

Outside the window, dawn was just breaking,

And the person visiting at this early hour must have had their own purpose.

In short, the first event.

It was as if it signaled that the world had begun to move.

Knock, knock-

While I was considering ignoring it, the knocking sound echoed once more.

After hesitating, I quickly fixed my suit and opened the door.

Creak-

Beyond the opened entrance door, waiting for me was,

A female student dressed in an academy uniform.

“Sir, I’ve brought your breakfast.”

“…”

She looked down, reporting mechanically as if she always did.

In her hands, a tray held a neat Western-style breakfast.

“Um, sir?”

When I didn’t respond, the female student lifted her head to look at me.

I quietly accepted the tray and nodded.

“…?”

Realizing I had thanked her, her eyes widened and her head tilted in confusion.

However, I did not resolve the questions in her eyes and simply closed the door.

Bang!

After the door closed and a brief silence ensued, a mutter from outside.

It was the female student’s.

“Sigh. Well, it is what it is. But did he just greet me?”

And that monologue clearly revealed Ivan’s usual behavior and image.

“That man, showing courtesy? Unless, perhaps, the sun is rising from the west.”

Her footsteps gradually faded.

While the experience of not being believed for even greeting was novel, I had no leeway to be amazed at Ivan’s rock-bottom image.

One thought buried me.

‘Discernment.’

The protagonist disappeared without a trace, I thought I would never see it again,

But the moment I opened the door and encountered the female student, I could clearly see it.

＜Meina Rupel＞

Strength: D

Agility: C

Magic: B

Mental: E

Stamina: E

Luck: C

Potential: C

Skills: Lower Ice Spear Creation (D), Lowest Physical Enhancement (E)

Affinity: Contempt

Only Adam could have seen her stats.