"A heartfelt welcome to all of you joining the Vanguard Hero Academy."

  I raised my eyes to the stage, where the impeccably dressed headmaster was delivering his opening address.

  Tuning out his speech after a few moments, I let my gaze sweep across the massive auditorium. An expansive view of the ceremony unfolded before me: rows upon rows of silent students, faculty members positioned with military precision, and large banners draped across the far walls.

  [Class of 2023 Vanguard Hero Academy Freshman Convocation]

  Everything around me felt intensely nostalgic, yet entirely foreign.

  "Will the valedictorian of our 20th freshman class, Julian Vance, please step up to the stage?"

  The headmaster's voice echoed through the hall, summoning a male student. Julian strode confidently toward the podium. Instantly, the eyes of every cadet and guest locked onto him, as piercing and direct as a volley of arrows. Yet Julian looked utterly bored. He swept an apathetic glance over the sea of faces, completely unfazed by the thousands of people staring at him.

  "Oh my gosh, look. That's him, that's Julian Vance."

  "Wait, Julian? The heir to the Vance Conglomerate?"

  "He is so incredibly gorgeous."

  "Tell me about it. He's even more breathtaking in person."

  Hushed voices erupted all around me, buzzing like bees. A few seats away, a cluster of girls chirped away like excited birds. He was a wealthy aristocrat, a prodigy, and stunningly attractive. Their expressions were painted with sheer awe and infatuation.

  "Man, what a joke. Even I have to admit he's a masterpiece."

  "If I stood next to him, I'd look like a complete troll."

  "The world is totally rigged. He gets the brains, the money, and the looks? Unbelievable."

  The guys nearby grumbled, clicking their tongues in sheer bitterness. While the girls swooned, the boys were suffocating in jealousy. And honestly, who could blame them?

  Julian was practically flawless. Between his striking visuals, elite lineage, and absurd talent, any guy would feel inadequate. Honestly, he felt like someone ripped straight out of a romance novel designed strictly for women.

  Julian Vance, huh...

  I watched as he began reciting the freshman oath, getting lost in my own thoughts.

  Julian. The absolute top ranker of the 20th Vanguard Academy cohort. The golden grandson of one of the nation's top five mega-corporations. The protégé of a legendary swordmaster, destined to become the academy's undisputed ace. And his looks? Unmatched by any other guy on campus. If memory served right, he had taken the number one spot in the male character popularity polls two consecutive times.

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  "Hold on, is that Damian Steele over there?"

  "Damian Steele?"

  While I was busy observing Julian, a nearby girl gasped, frantically tapping her friend's shoulder and pointing at someone else. I followed her finger, spotting another figure slouched in the distance.

  "Yaaaawn... man."

  Sporting fiery red hair and leaning back in his chair, the guy let out an obnoxiously loud yawn. He looked like an absolute street thug or a lazy bum. But Damian was far from your average delinquent. He was, after all, the bloodline descendant of the legendary hero, Arthur Steele.

  "Damian Steele? From the infamous Steele Clan?"

  "Yeah, they’ve been dragged into a lot of shady rumors lately."

  "Even so, they're still one of the most powerful hero families in the country, right?"

  Damian Steele. The fifth-ranked cadet of the freshman class. The second son of the nation's leading hero, Arthur Steele. Famous for his explosive temper and feral combat instincts, he was the spitting image of his old man.

  In sheer fighting power, he was projected to rival Julian at the absolute pinnacle. The only reason he dropped to fifth place was his abysmal written exam scores. He was a polarizing figure among female fans, but he commanded a massive, cult-like following. His rugged, unpredictable "bad boy" and "wild beast" persona was a total magnet for certain audiences. I recalled him usually hovering comfortably in the top three of the character polls.

  To think I'm actually seeing them all in the flesh.

  Julian Vance and Damian Steele. I knew these guys inside and out. In fact, I could boldly claim to know them better than anyone else in this entire room. Because these two men were the central 'Heroes' of this universe.

  "Oliver."

  While I sat there, sneaking glances at the main male leads and getting lost in my musings, a soft, sweet voice tickled my ear.

  "What's got you staring so hard?"

  I turned toward the cheerful, airy voice, and a stunning silhouette came into focus.

  "Caught you~." The girl eyed me with a cheeky, playful smile. "Scouting for pretty girls, are we?"

  She giggled, radiating a comforting, familiar warmth. I slowly met her eyes. Her hair was as deep and dark as a midnight sky. Her skin was a flawless, creamy ivory, as soft as a newborn's. Thick, sweeping eyelashes framed her vividly sparkling, mischievous eyes.

  Even after ten years, her face never ceases to amaze me.

  Just a single, quiet look from her was enough to melt any man's heart. She looked like the magnum opus of a master painter who had poured his entire soul onto the canvas. Her beauty was so ethereal she seemed like a goddess descended from the heavens.

  Well, I suppose you'd need to look like that to ensnare the hearts of all those male leads.

  You could say her incredible beauty was practically required for the plot.

  "......"

  Shaking away the random thought, I simply stared at her.

  Her name was Lily Pierce. She was just another aspiring hero who barely scraped into Vanguard Academy at rank 257. But it would be a grave mistake to dismiss her as just another pretty face with big dreams. Because Lily Pierce was fated to be courted by an array of elite male leads on her journey to becoming the academy's ultimate hero.

  "What is it? Why are you looking at me like that?"

  She was the one and only female protagonist of the otome game, Heroic Hearts Academy. And at the same time...

  "Do I have something on my face?"

  She was my actual, real-life girlfriend.

  "No," I replied.

  That’s the truth of my reality. I had reincarnated into the world of a female-oriented RPG I used to play in my past life.

  "I was just looking at you."

  I had been reborn as the mob character, Oliver Brooks, the doomed NPC boyfriend who was fated to be tormented by the jealous male leads, eventually suffering a miserable and pathetic exit from the story.