Chapter 1
Chapter 1
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: The Protagonist is a Villain
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"Fuck."
That was the first thing I spat out upon waking up in the plush bedroom. The situation was just that absurd. I'd gone to sleep and woken up buried in a luxurious bed. I had no memory whatsoever of what had happened after getting blackout drunk last night.
I distinctly remembered catching up with old friends for the first time in ages, grilling some meat, cracking jokes as the drinks flowed, and turning down a friend's offer to call a taxi so I could walk home through the night streets. After that, I'd stopped at a convenience store for some hangover remedy, but everything after was a blank.
And that blank spot was making me anxious as hell.
What the fuck had I done last night? How the hell did I end up sleeping in some opulent mansion's bedroom? Had I wandered into a furniture showroom or something?
I hurriedly scanned my surroundings. Compared to the lavish bed, the room itself was stark and barren. A small wardrobe was shoved into the corner like a coat rack, and a full-length mirror hung on the wall. It sure as shit wasn't a furniture store—this looked more like a kidnapping den.
Right in front of the bed stood an altar etched with bizarre symbols, flanked by a rack overflowing with pristine white robes. I'd seen that symbol somewhere before, and those robes looked familiar too, but I didn't have time to dwell on it. Figuring out what the hell this place was took priority.
"What the fuck."
Something about this heretic-cult-headquarters vibe felt eerily familiar. It wasn't my old apartment or the reserve army barracks, but it rang a bell all the same. Definitely something I'd encountered in media before.
I slid out of bed to inspect the room, and that's when I noticed my viewpoint was oddly low and my body felt light. I'd shrunk a good ten centimeters, and the phlegm rattling in my lungs was gone.
Yesterday's me had been wrecked by booze and overwork—every movement a scream of agony. Now? I brimmed with the vitality of my high school days. Testing it out, I stretched my back, and instead of the usual crack, it bent smoothly backward.
But that wasn't the only baffling change. My rough, callused palms were now smooth. Sagging skin had tightened with a healthy glow. My arms were slender yet toned, and my lower body felt solidly heavy. Energy surged through me—I could've unloaded cargo for three days straight without breaking.
What the actual fuck was going on? I bolted to the mirror hanging on the wall. Staring back was a pretty boy with blond hair and red eyes. Delicate features that could almost pass for a girl's, wavy golden locks lending a noble air, and slightly pointed ears to top it off. I knew exactly who this was in a heartbeat.
This bastard was a game character.
The Japanese fantasy RPG eroge Heroine Legend featured a character whose concept had meme'd into oblivion: Peta Lucius. Son of Peta Sirius, the priest from the previous Hero's party, he was a powerhouse physical DPS with top-tier buffs that made min-maxers swoon.
But beyond the stats, he had a backstory that shook story-focused players to their core: he was an extreme pushover.
Peta Lucius was frugal by nature, and as a half-elf, he barely needed to eat. So he charged tenant farmers half the going rate compared to other territories. Those farmers exploited his kindness, using bad harvests as an excuse to pay even less. His domain ran at a loss every year until the Hero's party arrived.
Amusingly, as a priest of the Great Heavenly God Church, he prayed annually to enrich the barren soil—which worked. His lands boasted the empire's lowest rents and most fertile fields.
First time you enter his domain, you see fat-bellied tenant farmers hiring slaves to skim produce while praising Lucius and the Church's benevolence. Just not knowing about it screamed incompetence and gullibility. But Lucius's sins didn't end there. Even when the Hero's party witnesses the corruption and tells him, he shrugs it off:
"I don't mind if the tenant farmers get a little greedy with the crops."
His nonchalance makes the Hero's party—and players—burst a vein.
To top it off, next door lurks the villainous Fat Blond Tanning NTR Lord. Sieri, Lucius's childhood friend from his Church training days and a nun, works on that lord's lands.
The lord tempts her with debt relief and donations if she'll become his concubine. Unable to refuse the man who basically controls the Church's operations, she politely says she needs Lucius's permission.
And Lucius? He blesses their "eternal love" and gives it.
Despairing, Sieri becomes the fat lord's concubine. When the Hero's party visits the neighboring domain, they find her sitting blankly beside him, dead-eyed.
It resolves when the Hero brutally slays the sleazy NTR lord, but players frothed at the mouth over Lucius handing his girl to a slob.
After the Hero's party fixes all his messes, you can take the Peta family's Hero's Relic or recruit him. I remembered ditching him for just the relic—great stats or not, stuffing a dude in a harem party felt off.
So, the conclusion: I'd possessed this pushover lord. I scratched my head, deep in thought.
If I'd possessed this pushover lord, what the hell do I do now?
Mulling it over, I realized this was an isekai reincarnation setup. Fantasy world? Why not go full trope? I raised my hand to the air and called out.
"Status Window."
⚔ STATUS ⚔ Name: Peta Lucius
Occupation: Southern Priest Leader of the Great Heavenly God Church
Level: 36
⚡ Strength: 89 💨 Agility: 78 ✨ Intelligence: 124 🍀 Luck: 88 Traits
Assault Trooper
>Deals double damage to sturdy structures and objects. Mace Proficiency
>No accuracy penalty when using maces. Heretic Inquisitor
>Can declare opponents as evil or dark attribute.
>Deals double damage to evil/dark targets and takes half damage from them. "Holy shit, it actually appeared."
Stunned that the status window was real, I slowly read through the details.
By Heroine Legend standards, Lucius's stats put him firmly in powerhouse territory. Average adult male strength was 4-5. Over 20 was superhuman—four times an adult's. This guy started with 18 times that.
Of course, numbers weren't everything; reality might differ slightly.
And check out Heretic Inquisitor. In the game, nobody challenged Lucius's lordship despite his pushover antics for a reason: he was a beast, ruthless to those crossing his lines. His boundaries were lax on personal or family wealth but ironclad on his inherited lordship and his father's honor.
His father died slaying the Demon King, and Lucius's filial piety was extreme. Anyone eyeing his seat or insulting his dad? Minced meat on the spot.
In a cutscene, a bandit taunts him about his father—Lucius snaps, maces them all to death.
Meant to show he wasn't all pushover, but players were more frustrated that a beast like him let shit slide otherwise.
"My lord. Are you awake?"
I looked up. A woman's voice came from beyond the door. Did Lucius use honorifics with servants? My memory was fuzzy. Probably, so I'd play it safe with polite speech. Sudden half-assed arrogance would raise eyebrows.
"Come in."
The door opened, and the first thing that hit me was a bountiful bosom. Then a cute face dusted with freckles. Classic noble housemaid outfit, but her figure and looks didn't fit servant work.
Wonder if she has a status window? I mentally wished for it.
⚔ STATUS ⚔ Name: Aira
Occupation: Con Artist
Favorability: 12
Level: 6
⚡ Strength: 4 💨 Agility: 8 ✨ Intelligence: 12 🍀 Luck: 3 Traits
Accountant
>Years handling money have made her highly skilled in accounting.
>Automatically organizes domain operating costs. Acting
>Can impersonate other occupations.
>Currently impersonating: Maid Skilled Lockpicking
>Can open any locked door up to her current level.
>Receives additional bonuses based on tools. Now it clicked—this "maid" was the culprit. I didn't recall the name Aira, but a con artist under Lucius was key. Early game, he laments her running off with the ledgers. Major foreshadowing for his gullibility.
Accounting skills and con artist occupation? Yeah, this bitch was behind it.
I glanced at her chest again. Hands clasped in front, making those tits jiggle even more.
"Lucky me."
"Pardon?"
"No, nothing."
Already scheming how to grill this bitch, my mood soared.