Rides the Titan, a Gyaru Kind to Otaku
The world isn't fair.
That was the first thing I realized after I reincarnated into this body.
Even in a world where giant humanoid weapons called Titans wage war, the class system is still alive and kicking. No, it's actually worse. The empire's rigid hierarchy makes the old Korean caste system look like a playground game.
I was reborn as a commoner. The lowest of the low. A civilian with no noble blood, no connections, and worst of all—no talent for piloting.
But the real problem wasn't any of that.
It was me.
Why did I have to be such a pathetic loser in both lives?
I sighed, slumping deeper into my creaky dorm room chair. The ancient wooden desk in front of me was covered in textbooks I barely understood. Fundamentals of Titan Neural Sync. Basic Tactical Formations. All of it might as well have been written in alien hieroglyphs.
Back on Earth, I was the ultimate otaku. The kind who spent every waking hour consuming anime, manga, light novels, and mecha games. I knew every trope, every pilot archetype, every heartbreaking death flag. But knowing about it and actually doing it? Two completely different things.
Especially when your own stats look like this.
> NAME: Kang Jin-hyuk
> RANK: Civilian Cadet (F-Class)
> NEURAL SYNC RATE: 12.4% (Critical Failure Threshold)
> APTITUDE: Piloting - F | Tactics - E | Academics - D
> SPECIAL TRAIT: Self-Loathing (Passive)
Yeah. Pathetic.
At Bethesda Academy, the elite training ground for Titan pilots, commoners like me were basically walking punchlines. The noble kids got the latest models, private tutors, and neural enhancers that boosted their sync rates into the seventies. We got hand-me-down training simulators that smelled like old socks and failure.
I was failing every practical exam. My sync rate wouldn't budge past fifteen percent no matter how hard I tried. The instructors had already written me off as a lost cause. One more semester like this and I'd be expelled. Sent back to the slums to work in a munitions factory until I died in some meaningless border skirmish.
Just like my previous life. A complete waste of oxygen.
A sharp knock on my door jolted me out of my spiral.
"Jin-hyuk! You in there? Open up!"
The voice was bright, bubbly, and way too energetic for 7 a.m. I froze.
No. Not her. Anyone but her.
Before I could pretend to be asleep, the door swung open. Standing there in the doorway was the academy's biggest anomaly.
Blonde hair with pink streaks. Tanned skin that practically glowed under the hallway lights. A uniform modified to academy standards but somehow still screaming gyaru fashion—shortened skirt, loose tie, and enough confidence to power a small city.
Sera von Adelheit.
Top-ranked cadet in the entire sophomore class. Daughter of a duke. Pilot of the experimental Titan Aurora Dawn. And for some incomprehensible reason... ridiculously kind to a worthless otaku like me.
"Morning, loser!" she sang, leaning against the doorframe with a bright smile that made my chest hurt. "You skipped breakfast again, didn't you? I brought you something."
She held up a paper bag that smelled suspiciously like fresh pastries. My stomach betrayed me with an immediate growl.
"I... I wasn't hungry," I mumbled, avoiding her eyes.
"Liar. Your stomach just said otherwise." She stepped inside without waiting for an invitation, her long legs carrying her across the tiny room in three strides. She plopped the bag on my desk and ruffled my messy black hair like I was some kind of pet. "Eat. That's an order from your senior."
She's not even that much older than me. Just one year.
I reluctantly reached for the bag. Inside were two perfectly golden croissants and a small container of what looked like handmade jam. The kind of breakfast that probably cost more than my monthly stipend.
"Why are you doing this?" I asked quietly, staring at the food instead of her face. "I'm just a commoner. An F-Class failure. You'll lose points with the noble faction if they see you hanging around me."
Sera tilted her head, her long earrings swaying. For a moment, her usual playful expression softened into something gentler. Something that made my heart do stupid things.
"Because you remind me of someone," she said simply.
I looked up despite myself. Her emerald eyes were warm, lacking any of the usual aristocratic arrogance.
"Someone...?"
"Yeah. A lonely otaku kid I used to know." She grinned again, the serious moment vanishing like it had never been there. "Besides, you're cute when you're all depressed and self-deprecating. It's like a wounded puppy. Makes me want to spoil you."
Cute? Me?
My face burned. I quickly looked back down at the croissant, tearing off a piece with more force than necessary.
This was the other problem.
Sera von Adelheit was dangerous.
Not because she was strong—though she was terrifyingly so—but because she treated someone like me with genuine kindness. In a world that had kicked me in the teeth twice now, that kind of warmth felt like a trap. Like the universe was setting up the ultimate death flag.
Because in every story I'd ever read, the kind beautiful girl who reaches out to the pathetic protagonist always ends up...
No. I shook my head. This wasn't a novel. This was real life. My life. And I wasn't some destined hero. I was the guy who was going to get expelled and die in obscurity.
"Anyway," Sera continued, completely oblivious to my internal meltdown, "we have joint training today. You're paired with me for the mock battle. Try not to pass out from nerves, okay?"
I nearly choked on my croissant.
"W-what? Me? With you?"
"Yup! I requested it personally." She winked. "Don't worry. I'll protect you, my little otaku knight."
She turned to leave, but paused at the door. Looking back over her shoulder, she gave me one last dazzling smile that probably violated several academy conduct rules.
"Oh, and Jin-hyuk?"
"Y-yes?"
"Stop thinking you're worthless. You're more interesting than you give yourself credit for."
Then she was gone, leaving behind the faint scent of vanilla and the sound of my heart trying to escape my ribcage.
I stared at the half-eaten croissant in my hand for a long time.
Interesting? Me?
The system window that had been dormant in the corner of my vision suddenly flickered to life.
The Gyaru's Favor
Objective: Survive the mock battle with Sera von Adelheit without your sync rate dropping below 5%.
Reward: Unknown
Failure: Permanent expulsion from Bethesda Academy
I groaned, dropping my head onto the desk with a loud thud.
This world really wasn't fair.
But for the first time since reincarnating, I felt something dangerously close to hope.
Maybe... just maybe... being an otaku in a mecha academy wasn't the worst thing that could happen to a guy with crippling self-esteem issues.
Especially when the prettiest, kindest gyaru in the entire empire decided you were worth her time.