Chapter 6

I wanted to smack the protagonist.

It wasn’t that his brain was bad. Sure, I hadn’t invested in his intelligence stat, but compared to a magic character, it was only low—Lucian’s base stats were high, as expected of a protagonist.

The problem was… he had no foundation at all. You can’t teach multiplication to a student who doesn’t know addition.

Even when I explained things, his “Why does it work like that?” questions would make even a sage start to lose it.

I wanted to slap his back, but my hand would probably shatter. Lucian’s physical resistance was 99, after all.

I gave up quietly. I didn’t want the tragedy of breaking my hand twice in one day.

“…Sorry.”

Lucian glanced at me, then dropped his head and apologized.

“It’s not your fault.”

If anyone was to blame, it was the orphanage jerks who didn’t teach him basic common sense.

Alright, the Lucian in front of me was a complete newbie. A fragile newbie lured in by the flashy graphics of Lapis Academy, aka ‘Lapidemy.’ As a veteran, a newbie’s erratic behavior could be frustrating, but this was cute by comparison.

Okay, self-hypnosis complete.

“You’ll get better with slow study.”

“Mm.”

“Who’s good at anything from the start?”

I’d seen newbies put strength stats on a magic character. This level of mistake was nothing.

Truthfully, my head had been throbbing for a while. I was disgustingly tired. With my mental stamina drained and extra studying on top, my physical stamina was barely hanging on.

“There’s class tomorrow, so should we stop for today?”

“Okay. Thanks so much for helping. I’ll definitely repay this debt later.”

What was I expecting from a mere study session—wait, no, this was a golden opportunity to legally fleece the protagonist. Getting a wish voucher to cash in later would be perfect.

“If you insist, maybe do me a favor later.”

“That’s nothing!”

Hey, Hero Candidate. You shouldn’t say stuff like that so easily.

“Of course I’ll help!”

The protagonist smiled radiantly.

But why did I feel an odd sense of déjà vu? That smile felt familiar.

The vague unease lingered even after turning off the light and lying in bed. I was so close to remembering. Where had I seen it…

“Ah!”

I remembered! It was the exact smile from an illustration in the main story, where Lucian was thrilled to make his first friend.

…Wait, did that mean I was Lucian’s friend now? Me, with a shining strength stat of 3, whose only asset was a single, useless unique skill?

“Haha, damn it.”

I barely swallowed the curse I couldn’t say aloud. I was screwed.

* * *

What was the fate of an NPC friend in a game with a growth-oriented protagonist?

Simple. Sacrificing their life to awaken the protagonist.

Lapidemy had such an NPC. They helped Lucian adjust to the Academy, only to die taking an attack meant for him.

Damn it, sacrificing myself for the protagonist? I just wanted to suck honey and live a happy golden spoon life!

“Ugh, I want to run away.”

Seeing Lucian’s empty bed made my heart even heavier. Diligent Lucian had gone off to train again today.

“Hoo…”

Fine, since I couldn’t escape anyway, I had to get stronger, fast.

I refused to be a sacrificial lamb for the protagonist!

+++

<Tutorial Quest> (3/4)

You have possessed this world.

Adapting to the Academy shouldn’t be too hard for you.

1. Enroll in the Academy. [Completed]

2. Spend a day as an Academy transfer student. [Completed]

3. Make a new friend at the Academy. [Completed]

4. Spend a day with a friend at the Academy. (new!)

-Reward: EXP 1000, Mana 10

-Failure: Game Reset

+++

“This damn system!!”

The only person I could call a friend right now was Lucian. In other words, the system had officially recognized our relationship as friendship.

“Why is the ‘make a new friend’ task already completed?!”

Couldn’t it tell I was in denial?! Stupid system!!

If I could, I’d grab the system by the collar and shake it. My head was spinning to the point of exhilaration.

“Damn, damn, damn.”

I was getting tired of self-censoring my curses!

“Ugh, time to bail?”

[If the player deviates from the ‘original storyline,’ the game will automatically reset.]

I gritted my teeth at the warning window that popped up again.

Damn system. No need to show these warnings every time.

“I’ll get revenge.”

Someday, I’d land a massive blow on the system.

Steeling my resolve, I changed into my uniform just as Lucian returned to the room.

His hair was still damp, suggesting he’d just finished training.

You’re working hard too, huh. Well, the fate of the Empire and the world’s peace rests on you. But first—

“Wanna grab food together?”

“Sure!”

Ugh, that felt so friend-like it gave me chills.

Look at those eyes. They were practically screaming, “We’re friends, right?”

…I had to get strong before becoming the protagonist’s awakening trigger. Strong enough to at least protect my own life!

My goal was survival!

* * *

Right after dinner, I came to an open field under the pretense of a walk.

I’d spent all my time outside of class with Lucian. That should count as spending a day with a friend. Now, I felt like I could stay calm no matter what happened.

+++

<Tutorial Quest> [Completed]

From today, you are a full-fledged Academy student.

Prepare for the horrific future ahead and save the world.

-Reward: EXP 1000, Mana 10

+++

…Was something wrong with my eyes?

I rubbed my face and blinked repeatedly, but the phrase ‘horrific future’ didn’t disappear.

Fine, I took back saying I’d stay calm no matter what.

“Why can’t I just be happy?!!”

I shouted with all the frustration boiling inside.

This was too much. Groaning, I rolled around on the bed.

“Life’s not easy.”

It’s fine, calm down. If the system had any conscience, it wouldn’t just demand I save the world without reason. It’d give trials along with fitting rewards.

“And if it doesn’t?”

The system was a lunatic that’d destroy the world over and over for not completing a mere tutorial quest.

All I could do was my best. If that wasn’t enough, I’d live in an eternally repeating half-month, I guess.

“Status window.”

+++

<LapidemyBunnyPrincess> Lv.3 (+2)

-Class: Writer

-Title: Possessor

-Health: 80

-Mana: 10 (+10)

-Strength: 3

-Agility: 2

-Physical Resistance: 0

-Magic Resistance: 0

-Intelligence: 40

-Luck: -99~99

+++

Nice. The tutorial reward bumped me to level 3, and my mana increased to 10. But that wasn’t the only change.

+++

▷Exclusive Skill: I Am the Writer

The words you write become reality.

※Usable Characters: 13 (+13)

+++

As expected, my usable characters increased.

I couldn’t say I wasn’t annoyed about only having thirteen characters, but it was better than zero.

Should I try it out?

“I Am the Writer, skill activation.”

As I recited lightly, a parchment of transparent light, like the system window, and a silver quill pen scattering radiant sparkles appeared in the air.

This… felt serious? Would writing on the parchment with this quill do the trick?

The moment I grabbed the quill, a breeze brushed my cheek.

A unique class never even mentioned in the story. The system had explained that my words could literally change the world.

Was that really possible? My heartbeat felt like it was pounding through my entire body.

Should I test it out?

Might as well… go big and change the weather? The sky was perfectly clear without a single cloud right now.

「It rains」

I carefully wrote five characters.

An indescribable, strange force surged through my body.

But the sky remained clear, as if mocking the idea of rain.

“Was that too much?”

Weather-control magic was an arcane art only a few great mages, like Father, could perform.

Even with a unique class’s exclusive skill, this was probably too much.

As I turned to head back to the dorm, disappointed—

Plip, plip-plip.

Feeling something touch my shoulder, I looked up again.

Shwaaaa—

Rain poured as if a hole had opened in the sky. It felt like the world was asking if this was what I wanted.

“Whoa, holy crap!”

Was this actually possible?

The cold rain soaked my uniform, stealing my body heat, but that didn’t matter much.

A hotter, almost euphoric feeling coursed through me.

If everything I wrote truly became reality, surviving might not be so hard—

A sudden dizzy spell made me stumble, and I collapsed.

Red liquid seeped into the rain-soaked ground.

Blood trickled from my nose.

“Oh.”

At the same time, the rain stopped, as if that was the limit.

“What the hell.”

All that rain, and I got dizziness and a nosebleed?

I quickly wiped my nose with my uniform sleeve and scuffed the bloodstains on the ground with my shoe.

“Ten seconds of rain?”

I still had a long way to go.

But I wasn’t discouraged. My lips kept curling up, almost embarrassingly so.

“Prepare for a horrific future?”

If the system wanted that and had possessed me into this world, one thing was clear.

Well done, system—you picked the right guy!

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