"Seriously," I muttered, dragging my hand down my face. "Of all the characters in this damn game..."
I leaned back against the stable wall, staring at the faint cracks in the wood.
The horses shifted restlessly nearby, the sound of hooves thudding softly against the ground.
I was inside a world I already knew by heart—
but this time, I wasn’t holding the controller.
I was inside the tragedy.
The protagonist would soon begin his rise.
The heroes would form their party.
And as the timeline marched forward, the world would edge closer to its inevitable end.
Unless...
I did something about it.
*****
I stopped dawdling and cursing my luck.
Whatever this situation is... it’s my reality now.
Complaining won’t magically uninstall the world and respawn me at home.
So, I began packing.
I had to admit — this guy lived like royalty.
Everything in the room screamed luxury.
The bedside lamp? Pure gold. Like legit, pure gold, not gold-plated nonsense.
Paintings lined the walls, each probably worth more than my old apartment back on Earth.
Racks of tailored clothes, fragrance collections, and—
"Seriously? A luxury watch set? Who the hell needs seven expensive watches in a medieval world!?"
Heck, even if I was kicked out of the academy dorms, money shouldn’t be a problem.
Noble privilege is one hell of a cheat code.
I grabbed a storage bag — a simple-looking duffle bag, but enchanted with spatial expansion magic.
It could store up to a hundred liters. That might not sound like much but see the size of the bag. A small duffle bag having storage of 100 litres.
Only mages with spatial affinity could craft such a thing — and they were rare.
One of these bags could feed a middle-class family for months.
And here I was, just tossing shirts into it like it was Amazon packaging.
Though, honestly, the weight remained the same no matter how much I crammed in.
Not that it mattered. I wasn’t going to haul furniture around.
Clothes packed, I glanced around the room again.
Jewelry, watches, rare ornaments... I left them.
I never cared for flashy things anyway.
If I ever needed them, I could just... buy them again.
"Being a noble is actually the only good part about transmigrating here..."
I sighed, almost smiling.
But that smile didn’t last.
Just when I folded the last shirt, there was a knock.
Tap. Tap.
Then a letter slipped under the door.
"...Hm?"
I opened the door.
No one outside.
After glancing up and down the corridor suspiciously, I closed the door and picked up the envelope.
On the seal was the Ashborne family crest.
’So... it’s from the family.’
I felt a small spark of hope.
Maybe they were finally offering support?
A private residence?
A scolding, sure — but surely they wouldn’t abandon their heir entirely, right?
I broke the seal and unfolded the letter.
As I read, my hands slowly froze.
My eyes trembled.
The room spun.
And then—
"WHY GOD!? WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME?!"
I wanted to tear the letter apart, but my arms were too weak with shock.
****
Lucien Ashborne,
Your disgraceful behavior has brought shame to our family’s name.
Until you rectify your actions and redeem your honor, you are hereby exiled from the Ashborne household.
All financial support will cease immediately.
You are forbidden from using family properties, wealth, or connections.
Earn your keep or perish alone.
—Darius Ashborne
****
"Exiled...? Cut off financially...?"
My knees hit the floor.
Not only was I kicked out of the dorms...
I no longer had any of the noble perks this bastard took for granted.
No allowance.
No family credit.
No influence.
"...I take it back. Being a noble sucks."
My situation had gone from villain with luxury problems to villain with homelessness problems.
The academy hated me.
Family abandoned me.
The world was heading toward apocalypse.
And the original plot had Lucien disappearing soon anyway.
If this continued...
I might really die as early as he did.
I slumped onto my bed — the bed I wouldn’t be allowed to sleep in tomorrow.
"...Okay. Deep breath."
Inhale. Exhale. Try not to cry. Repeat.
As I mourned my cursed luck — which apparently had no bottom — my eyes landed on the envelope lying beside me.
Wait...
There were two pieces of paper inside?
A second letter.
"Great. More trauma," I muttered, ripping it open.
This one didn’t have a seal.
But the handwriting was elegant... almost divine. Literally divine, as it turned out.
*****
Hello James...
Or should I call you Lucien now? 😊
You must be confused about how you ended up inside the game.
Well, I brought you here.
— Yes, I am God. 🎶
As you may have realized, Asteria is not just a game.
It is a real world heading straight toward destruction.
And I don’t want that.
Someone needs to save it.
Then you came to mind —
A guy obsessed with this world, playing it relentlessly for years.
And what perfect timing! You died!
I couldn’t let such an opportunity pass~
So I stopped your soul from drifting to the afterlife
and... reincarnated you here.
Why can’t I save this world myself?
Because every world follows its own laws.
I cannot interfere directly.
But tossing a soul into a side character?
A teeny-tiny loophole. 😉
Oh! And don’t worry —
I won’t leave you to fend for yourself.
I’m giving you a gift that will help you survive.
Sorry about not asking permission,
but you were dead, so... ¯\(ツ)/¯
Please save this world,
and enjoy your second life!
With divine love,
— God ❤️
*****
I stared at the letter.
"...Who the hell puts emojis in a divine revelation?"
My eyelid twitched.
So this wasn’t just reincarnation by accident...
I’d been kidnapped by God.
Dragged into a doomed world I spent years trying to save — and always failed.
"Save the world," huh?
God made it sound like he was asking me to take out the trash.
I lay back on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
"...Let me guess. You gave the protagonist all the cheat buffs and left me with a participation trophy?"
Silence answered me.
But then—
Ding!
A sudden notification echoed in my head.
A translucent screen flickered into existence before my eyes.
My heart jumped.
No way.
A system...?