I died.
At least, I think I did.
One moment, I was in my room, chugging instant noodles and binge-reading Rise of the Sovereign on my phone. The next? Darkness. A weird, bone-deep cold. Then... light.
Blinding light.
When my eyes finally adjusted, I wasn't in my apartment anymore. I wasn't even in my body.
Memories started flashing in front of my eyes, with a second I experienced a whole new life. And in the end of this flashes, I saw a face: sharp blue eyes, ash-blonde hair tied back in a noble's ponytail, and an expression that screamed, "I'm about to be punched in the face for saying something arrogant."
Leon Ardell.
The name hit me like a slap. I knew that guy. Minor villain. Petty noble. Jerk. Got slapped around by the protagonist in Chapter 3. Died like a chump in Chapter 5 during the duel arc.
My brain short-circuited.
[System Initialization Complete.]
[Welcome, Player. You have successfully transmigrated.]
[You are now playing: Leon Ardell – Grade D Villain]
[Quest Unlocked: Survive the duel.]
I stumbled back, my heart hammering. A system? Transmigration? Survive?
Okay. Deep breath. I've read this trope a hundred times. Poor dude gets shoved into a novel. Wakes up as some unlucky side character. Usually gets a cheat system and a few lucky breaks, and boom — main character material.
Except I was in Rise of the Sovereign, and Leon Ardell? He was cannon fodder. I remembered reading his scene last week. He picked a fight with the protagonist at the academy over some petty insult, challenged him to a duel, and got absolutely wrecked.
But... that duel wasn't supposed to happen until tomorrow.
So how did I end up—
Something slammed.
"Leon!" a voice boomed. "Face me, coward!"
Oh no.
Standing in the middle of the arena was a tall figure with wild red hair, a confident smirk, and golden eyes that practically sparkled with protagonist energy.
Rael Everhart. The chosen one. Holder of the Sovereign's Legacy. Chosen by fate. Loved by all the heroines. Walking plot armor.
And the man I was supposed to die to tomorrow.
He looked just like he did in the novel... only, in this version, he was already pissed off.
"Do you think you can insult Lady Aria and get away with it?" he snarled, drawing his training sword.
I panicked. "Wait, this is a misunderstanding—!"
He lunged.
I dodged. Barely. Instinct took over. I reached for the sword on my belt — which, by some miracle, I knew how to draw — and parried.
Metal clanged. My arms shook. He was strong.
Rael came at me again, faster. Too fast. I flailed, lost balance — and tripped. My body fell backward, but my arm jerked forward on reflex. My sword thrust forward... right as Rael lunged in.
A horrible sound echoed.
Shhk.
My blade pierced clean through his chest.
Everything froze.
Rael's eyes widened. He looked down at the blood pooling from his chest, then up at me.
"You... you weren't supposed to..."
He collapsed.
Dead.
Dead.
Dead.
{You Have Killed: Rael Everhart – Protagonist Of "Rise of the Sovereign."}
{Plot Integrity: 0%. Storyline Disrupted.}
"OH SH—"
I vomited.
The academy grounds erupted into chaos. Someone screamed. Footsteps thundered toward me. I stared at Rael's corpse, my sword still in my hand, my brain failing to catch up.
This couldn't be happening. I'd just... I killed the main character.
Not a side villain. Not a mob. The protagonist.
I was so screwed.
[Congratulations! You have achieved: "Protagonist Slayer – Unique Title."]
[Congratulations! You have gained: "Protagonist's Fragment– Favorability."]
The system sounded almost cheerful, like this was all just a fun little detour.
I, on the other hand, was having a full-blown existential meltdown.
They were going to kill me. The instructors. The nobles. The entire academy. Rael was the golden boy, the chosen one. His death was supposed to trigger the entire storyline — the villains rise, the love interests gather, the world falls into chaos.
And now... that was me, wasn't it?
The villain. The chaos.
I couldn't breathe.
Then someone grabbed my arm. I flinched.
"Get up," said a calm, cold voice.
I turned. A girl with long black hair and icy violet eyes looked down at me. Aria Valen. High noble. One of the main heroines. The third person Rael fell in love.
"You need to leave. Now."
"What?"
"You'll be executed if you stay. Come with me."
She dragged me toward the side gate, moving fast, like she'd already planned this.
[Favorability Triggered: Aria Valen – (Lv. 2)]
"What the?" I muttered.
In the corner of my eyes, there was still a panel.
[Congratulations! You have gained: "Protagonist's Fragment– Favorability."]
'Is Aria helping me because of this... Favorability?'