I Became an Academy Game Character

The New Beginning

One day when I was 10 years old.

That day, I discovered the game I would dedicate my life to.

“New World Academy.”

Among many virtual reality games, it was the masterpiece that changed the world.

High-performance AI that was like seeing real humans and ultimate freedom.

And the realism combined with fantasy settings made it feel like traveling to another world.

As the title suggests, the main story of this game centers around an academy.

But perhaps because the freedom was too vast, players could progress through the main story without necessarily going to the academy.

And this is where New World Academy’s unique setting becomes apparent.

It’s that the main story is actually a kind of tutorial that runs before the game properly begins.

After completing the tutorial, players create their own character instead of playing as the protagonist they’ve been controlling.

New features are unlocked then, including beings from other dimensions.

For example, the raid system where you can PVP with other players or hunt boss monsters together.

By the way, there’s one small drawback to creating a new character.

It’s that you can’t use the powers of the protagonist from the tutorial.

Well, maybe that’s to be expected.

After all, when you create a new character, the tutorial’s protagonist becomes an NPC.

But it’s not all disadvantages.

In other words, this meant you could learn abilities other than the protagonist’s powers.

Unlike the tutorial where you had to learn predetermined skills, you could now customize skills as you wanted.

Imagine yourself using attractive character skills while pushing through the main story.

How exciting is that.

Thanks to this feature, New World Academy offered constant novelty, especially in PVP, with various skill combinations that never got boring.

“Really… are you a monster?”

“That’s what I want to ask you.”

In the Colosseum where PVP takes place.

Among them, the battles between rankers take place not in the regular Colosseum, but in the Sky Arena floating in the air, where now two men were standing precariously, both in terrible shape.

“I’ve thought this before, but you’re more of a monster than I am.”

“It feels good hearing that from the rank 1 player.”

“Let me correct that. You’re now the owner of this position.”

After 10 years of playing New World Academy.

Finally, I defeated the rank 1 player in PVP and took that position.

If I had been unlucky, I would have lost this time too.

If we fight again, I’ll probably give this position back to him soon.

So, I want to enjoy this joy, even if it’s just for a moment.

“Well done, challenger.”

The knight wearing pure white armor with golden wings fluttering on his back spoke to me.

The one who had consistently held the first place until now, who I had been fighting for the top position, reached out his hand to me.

“From now on, you are the apex of this place.”

“Really, your commitment to the concept is perfect.”

I smiled slightly and took his hand.

Then the ‘former rank 1’ turned to dust and disappeared.

At this moment, a new apex (rank 1) had been determined.

As my opponent disappeared, the wounds on my body vanished as if washed away.

My body had fully recovered as the battle ended.

I stared blankly at the hand that had just shared the handshake and said.

“I really won.”

I had reached the peak of the game I started playing at age 10.

Having spent more than half my life with this game, the emotions I felt now were beyond words, and with trembling hands, I took numerous screenshots to record this moment.

Crackle.

“Huh…?”

While taking and saving screenshots, suddenly the sky began to shake.

And then, like a mirror breaking, large and small cracks started appearing in space.

Damn, again?

Some might panic thinking something’s wrong with the game, but having experienced this situation several times before, I waited calmly.

‘At least it happened after the fight was over…’

If this had happened during the fight, I would have been really angry.

After watching the cracking sky for a moment, a game warning message appeared before me.

[Logging out due to user’s critical condition.]

As my original body started malfunctioning and the game console began its automatic shutdown sequence, my vision flickered as I looked down at the Sky Arena until the very end.

Beep.

Blackout.

Everything went dark instantly and my whole body felt heavy.

Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep…

Along with the familiar mechanical sound, I painfully lifted my arm to remove the game console, and the familiar hospital ceiling came into view.

When I tried to raise my body, every single movement demanded tremendous energy from me, as if heavy stones were attached to me, causing me to break into a sweat.

“Ughh…”

I could fly so freely in the game, but in reality, even crawling is difficult.

As I sat there leaning against the bed trying to catch my breath, I suddenly felt something rising from within and covered my mouth with my hand.

“Cough! Cough!”

Beep… Beep… Beep…

My body heaved and pain stabbed at my throat.

When I slowly lowered my hand, it was stained with blackened blood.

I routinely grabbed tissues from beside me to wipe it off, pressed the prepared nurse call button, and held the New World Academy’s game console I had just removed from my head.

“First, I need to transfer the screenshots to my phone…”

A calmness that seemed impossible for someone who just coughed up blood.

However, there was no point in being surprised or finding anything special about this anymore – it had become such a routine part of my daily life that it barely fazed me now.

While operating my phone with furrowed brows due to my increasingly blurry vision, I grimaced again as I felt something else coming up.

‘What’s this? I already coughed it all up.’

Usually, after coughing once, I could get through the rest of the day without any particular pain until the next day.

But now, why…

At the exact moment I felt something was wrong, I raised my hand to cover my mouth again.

“Kuhak! Cough!”

Drip.

This is different.

Different from just before.

Both the abnormal amount of blood flowing through my hands and this pain stabbing through my entire body, not just my throat, were different.

I tried curling up to minimize the pain, but it was all futile.

“Ugh.”

‘I really feel like I’m dying…!’

I’ve experienced various kinds of pain before, but I can guarantee this is the worst pain I’ve ever felt in my life.

Good heavens, even when I had the accident, it didn’t hurt this much.

Is this what pain meant to kill someone feels like?

My vision was noticeably blurring, and my breathing became irregular.

Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.

Ding.

Despite my body being in such pain, my phone’s notification rang cheerfully, as if ignorant of my suffering.

The message that appeared with a flash of light was somehow incredibly clear, even to my blurry vision.

[A special congratulatory bonus exclusively for you has arrived to commemorate achieving 1st place in the rankings.]

[Do you accept?]

‘Huff… huff…’

I can barely breathe, let alone move my hands.

[If no selection is made, it will be automatically approved in 10 seconds.]

[10… 9… 8…]

Beep…! Beep! Beep! Beep!

‘Kyaah! Patient!’

‘I’ll go get the doctor!’

‘Patient! Patient!’

[7… 6… 5…]

The nurses who arrived during this time began to move urgently after seeing my condition.

The quiet hospital corridor suddenly became noisy as someone rushed toward me.

That familiar face in the white coat… ah, it’s my attending physician.

“Quickly, the one next to…!!”

“Doctor, the current condi…!”

“Move immedi…!!”

[4… 3… 2…]

I can’t hear their words anymore.

Moreover, I can’t even feel the pain that was tormenting me, but from my increasingly heavy eyelids and the people moving more frantically than before, I instinctively realized that death was approaching.

Just moments ago it hurt so much, but now I felt a warmth and distance I’d never experienced since the accident.

[1… 0…]

[Approved.]

[Have a pleasant journey.]

***

“Wake…!”

‘Didn’t I just hear something?’

At first, I thought it was my imagination.

And then I had doubts.

Wasn’t I just about to die in the hospital?

I still remember clearly.

The blood trickling from my mouth, the relentless pain tormenting me, and the doctor and nurse frantically trying to do something.

Finally, reaching nothingness and feeling warmth instead of pain – that peaceful rest.

‘Could it be that I didn’t die?’

I survived in that condition?

Our doctor… must be really amazing.

“…need to wake up.”

‘But I’m a patient, and someone’s been…’

“W-Wake up…!”

Shake. Shake.

With the sound of someone shaking my body, I finally lifted my head that had been face down.

Yes, I ‘lifted my head’ from a face-down position.

Usually, one would normally be lying down.

“Hurry and go out. It’s your turn now.”

“Huh?”

“You’re really something. How can you sleep on such an important day?”

What is this about?

Where am I, and who are you?

No, more importantly, how am I able to move like this?

“Number 71! Are you not here?”

“Number 71?”

Number 71? But why is everyone looking at me?

As if I’m Number 71… wait a minute.

‘This feels familiar.’

That familiar black school uniform and the occasional familiar faces.

And even the man with the scar near his eye calling for Number 71… presumably me.

“Number 71 Zeon!”

Zeon. That name is very familiar to me too.

Of course, Zeon was the name of the character I created.

“Is this… a dream?”

“It’s not a dream, so just get out there!”

The student who woke me up urgently pushed me forward.

“I understand you’re nervous, but get yourself together and come here.”

I nodded automatically at the naturally emanating charisma.

Gray hair, the scar near his eye, and even that fierce build.

No way, is this really Garein?

“Place your hand on the central jewel.”

The massive device with a glowing blue jewel that Garein pointed to.

This situation. Though it was quite a while ago, I’m certain.

This is the Academy entrance ceremony at the New World Academy.

And what’s reflected in the sparkling jewel is undoubtedly the body of Zeon, the character I created myself.

‘Could I have entered into the game?’

If not that, this situation makes absolutely no sense.

It’s too vivid to be a dream, and if I had died, such a situation wouldn’t have been created in the first place.

‘Let’s move calmly for now.’

Whatever this is, it’s not a bad situation for me.

Right now, dealing with the immediate situation takes priority over figuring out what’s going on.