Hero, Go To School!

I crawled on the floor.

All around me, it felt as if the world was bathed in the red light of a setting sun, but my vision was pitch black. Beyond the dim and flickering darkness, the only thing I could see was my own right hand, soaked in blood.

The pounding of drums echoed loudly near my temples. My heartbeat, hammering in my ears, squeezed the breath from my chest.

What am I so afraid of? When I turned my trembling head, I saw that the path I had crawled along was streaked with an immense, smeared trail of blood.

“Ha…”

A shaky breath forced its way out of my dry lips. At that moment, a chilling breeze cut across my cheek. Instinctively, I turned my head in the direction of the wind.

At the end of my struggling gaze, someone was there. Amid the glow of light that looked as if it was engulfed in flames, a figure in black stood with their back to me.

I couldn’t tear my eyes away from that stark figure that contrasted so sharply with the light. I couldn’t even tell if it was a man or a woman. Everything about them was one single, massive, indistinguishable form… Who is that?

The black figure moved without a moment’s hesitation. There was a sickening, crunching sound, and something rolled in my direction.

“…!”

It was the severed head of a young man.

The torn flesh beneath his face, the exposed white bones of his neck, the lips turned a deathly blue. It was the only thing that appeared disturbingly clear. In those green eyes, the pupils dilated wide, staring right through me, branding themselves deep into my mind.

I tried to scream, but no sound came out. My fingers trembled so violently I thought they might shatter, and the fragile view before me went blacker and blacker.

Finally, my head dropped to the floor with a dull thud.

You have died.

***

—You have witnessed the future in which the mysterious traitor murders Prince Celio Hyssus.

―Find the person who will become the traitor at Luxus Academy and return to your original world.

<Beginner’s Buff Activated!>

―To ensure smooth gameplay, a <Helper> has been added.

―By completing sub-quests with the <Helper> , you can obtain clues about the <Traitor>.

My eyes snapped open. It felt as though someone had forcibly pulled my eyelids apart, flooding my vision with light.

What the hell is going on?

Lying on my back, I stared up at the pale red ceiling, breathing heavily. The scent of fresh grass carried on the breeze at my nose tip, it must be from the open window. Birds chirped peacefully, sounding almost unreal.

I’d thought I’d simply lost consciousness, but when I opened my eyes again, I was somewhere else entirely. Instead of a cold stone floor, I felt the softness of a blanket beneath me. My body slackened as a dull ache swept over me.

“Ugh… Wh-where am I…?”

I tried to sit up.

Looking around, I saw I was in an unfamiliar room. Beyond the window, the sky was blue. Soft sunlight filtered in, and the air was warm.

While I was still lost in confusion, something began to appear on the ceiling.

Land of Beginnings – The Grand Mansion of the Zenor Ducal Family

I read the pure white letters slowly, one by one. As I stared, they faded away like mist lifting from a field.

“What the hell is all this…?”

Gasp. My breath caught in my throat. I was definitely speaking, but the voice didn’t sound like mine.

The string of incomprehensible events hit me all at once, overwhelming me with shock.

It was like a game…

Now that I thought about it, Prince Celio Hyssus, Luxus Academy, the Zenor Duke… The names felt not just familiar, but intimate. They were all from that game I had devoted countless hours to over the years: “Sweet Everyday.”

But “Sweet Everyday” never had such precise and lifelike ceiling graphics. Because that game was all about cute, chibi characters in charming pixel art!

Besides, I had seen every single ending in “Sweet Everyday,” and there was never anything about a traitor. It was just a peaceful daily life game where you build a house and maybe fall in love!