3 - Mainhwa

The fanfic novel I possessed, Reincarnated Academy, holds great significance as a tale of the protagonists' academy life—a backstory not covered in the game Reincarnated Hero. Its early popularity stemmed from letting readers glimpse the characters' first encounters, which the game skipped or glossed over. And the academy featured in the fanfic is none other than Clarice Academy, the main stage of the story.

A city rivaling a third of the imperial capital in size, it's massive enough to be called an academy city. Inside, there are training facilities for nurturing successors to purify corrupted holy sites, plus commercial districts, mage quarters, cathedrals, sanctuaries, administrative buildings, and even civilian residences—all integrated into the urban economy. The cadets hail from all walks of life: royalty, nobles seeking family glory, recently admitted elves, and a handful of commoners aiming to become heroes for survival and a shot at turning their lives around. Regardless of race or status, there are over 3,000 of them.

The number might seem excessive, but they gather from across the continent, and like an audition show, the roster thins out progressively—so the actual number of graduates isn't that high. In any case, since eradicating monsters is the top priority even in the game, it's a pure meritocracy where only skill matters. A city for cadets, by cadets... New students spend their first two months in basic training and theory classes before combat tests unlock the real curriculum.

And so, I stepped into the grand dormitory.

"Pretty impressive."

Slipping my student ID into the square magic device activated the orb, which displayed my info briefly before unlocking the door.

"..."

The dorm interior didn't scream medieval fantasy. Thanks to the author's reinterpretation, it felt surprisingly modern and sleek. The main hall had fountains, sculptures, and benches for cadets to chat anytime, even what looked like mana-powered elevators.

"Ooh, no roots here."

Reincarnated Hero wasn't strict fantasy to begin with. It was a post-mana-industrial era where magic supplanted science, and the author built a world with guns, so nothing too outlandish. With so much story happening in the dorms, signs pointed to auxiliary facilities like gyms, cafeterias, club rooms, and more.

'Trials, Evolution Chamber... it's here too.'

No time to gawk, though.

The status window was still loading. First priority: gather intel. Checking the dorm schedule, tomorrow was positioning day. Recalling the main story, at this point, Lev Denek was a clear side character to any third party—and doomed to fuse with the academy's training monster "Ragtag," becoming a Ragtag Mainhwa within the next day or so.

For the record—info I'd rather not know—"Ragtag" is an F-rank low-grade monster stitched from monster scraps.

"If I'm gonna undergo Mainhwa, at least make it something cool like Lucifer!"

Plus, as a one-off side character existing solely for the protagonist's awakening, he gets zero mentions beyond this. If I didn't want to end up as Edwin's EXP farm, I'd have to rewrite my own future...

'Kaeran ending be damned—I'm screwed!'

One silver lining: this novel has academy slice-of-life vibes, so if I survive the initial Mainhwa, I can catch a breather. Smashing the author's trash self-insert Kaeran—pure evil with a shitty personality—can wait.

Then, a key detail popped into my head.

'Right, that exists.'

The villain tied to Lev Denek's Mainhwa: the antagonist Lilith Larosel. She's ambiguously rooted since she appears indirectly in Reincarnated Hero, but right now, she's pure villain. A demon pawn seeking revenge on her abandoning noble house by pledging to the demonkin. To prove loyalty, she's hiding as student council president. She'd probably start building toward my Mainhwa today or tomorrow...

'If I dodge this...?'

Newbies use temp rooms, so finding Lev Denek's was easy. Spacious for one, with neatly arrayed cadet uniforms and a private shower. First thing, I hunted for a mirror.

Ash-gray hair, black eyes. Yep, Lev Denek.

"Hoo."

Tossing my jacket aside, I checked the paper on the doorknob. A notice stamped by the dorm supervisor.

"...Expected that."

Of course. Useless punk with a shit school life—getting rejected after confessions and blackening over it? Various fuckups piled up into Mainhwa, no doubt.

-Slide!

Rifling the drawer revealed magic tools and books for spellcasting—pristine, unused. Amid swirling thoughts, deep inside: a few letters, an unknown pendant, and junk.

"Let's see."

The "student council" mention surprised me a bit. Not a massive power bloc, but it ties into Edwin episodes. Did this Lev guy hold a seat?

"Fuckin' hell."

Not even an officer—just a bought position, student council bottom-feeder.

"No way he blew his entire enrollment gems here..."

Academy uses internal gems only—no outside currency, for "equality." Newbies get a fat welcome fund, but only scraps left? He dumped it all into the council.

Stuck in with the expulsion notice: a mystery note.

"So this is where Lev met Lilith."

No way a trash third-rate like Lev goes Mainhwa solo. Backstory ties him to Lilith for the setup—unmentioned in the main story.

'And this...'

-Clink.

A pendant mixing purple and gold. Ominous as hell—definitely tied to Mainhwa. Squeezing him dry for cash and turning him Mainhwa? Vicious.

"Whatever, next."

A crisp letter this time.

-Rip rip.

I shredded it. News of losing to Edwin reached home? His standing here must be rock-bottom—total ignore-fest. String of bullshit, but whatever. Not my mess.

Last: a crystal mana gauge from entrance exams. Why keep it unused? Nobles like him usually have higher base stats or talents. Focusing on it revealed my stats easily.

"Just become a Mainhwa already."

Stats were pathetically low—even worse than expected. Perfect hexagon trash. Strength and agility bottom-tier, worse than his decent looks. 1-circle specialty means he's barely a mage by binary terms. Not everyone has magic talent, so he scraped in on potential—water rocket admit.

Right before possession, a feedback message flashed.

Meant to lose to early Edwin and become Mainhwa fodder, so no detailed stats preset? Makes sense.

-Flop!

I sprawled on the bed.

"Fucking trash-tier for ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠real."

That spec? No beating Edwin without Mainhwa.

'Shit. Merging with some grotesque monster?'

Reincarnated Hero beasts are freaky. Better to die than fuse? 'Answer: run!'

Not viable. Dodge Mainhwa? These stats mean flunk or expel. Clarice is survival of the geniuses. No plans for a no-future side character. Cosmic orphan fate awaits.

"Happy now, author bastard?!"

-...

My scream echoed in the stupidly spacious dorm room. Gotta vacate post-selection test anyway... Insane. Endless worries.

Then—

A final lifeline for a man with nothing to lose.