The Unwanted Hero and the Crimson Knight

“…Helena Glask.”

“I’ve been looking for you everywhere, Raon Rigbelto. Why are you here?”

A woman stepped in through the broken wall, her red hair fluttering. I couldn’t help but admire her.

‘Damn, she’s insanely beautiful.’

Helena Glask was a character loved regardless of gender.

Her righteous personality, a voice actor that perfectly matched her image, and a beautifully designed character.

She was so well-made that people even said the developers had poured their personal bias into her.

But now that I see her in person, it feels like even that bias wasn’t enough.

‘She looks way better than the graphics could ever show.’

Tall, with long wavy red hair, ruby-like red eyes, and pale skin that contrasted sharply.

Her striking beauty, embodying the image of a strong female knight, even shook my loyalty as someone who only ever played Raon.

‘Feels like her performance is better too.’

Well, Helena was a popular character recommended for beginners and widely used by experts.

Of course, I had never once lost in PVP against someone using her…

‘Still, I always thought if I had played her instead, I wouldn’t have gone bald.’

“Raon?”

Helena tilted her head when I didn’t respond.

I quickly fixed my expression.

Well, I don’t know what kind of relationship they had, but I should just act like Raon—rude and arrogant.

“That’s what I should be asking. Why are you here?”

“Obviously because you went missing. I’m not someone who would ignore a classmate’s disappearance.”

From that line, I realized they weren’t very close.

If they were, she would’ve said “friend,” not “classmate.”

‘So she really came because an academy classmate disappeared…’

Well, considering her righteous personality, that’s not strange.

No, wait.

The strange thing is something else.

‘…Why is she even here??’

In Gate of Heroes, once you choose a character, the others never appear in the game.

Even I, who had the highest playtime in the world, had never seen this happen.

How is this possible??

‘…Did things change because I transmigrated?’

Then does that mean the game’s settings and rewards changed too?

I’m not sure, but if that’s true…

‘Shit, I’m screwed.’

My life would be completely ruined.

If this were still a game, I might’ve found such changes interesting.

A new protagonist? Who cares—Raon was a trash-tier main anyway. His identity wouldn’t be threatened.

‘But this is reality.’

Even with full knowledge of rewards and settings, survival was hard.

If even that knowledge disappears?

Cold sweat ran down my back. Still, my poker face held. Helena didn’t suspect anything and asked again.

“Now I’ll ask. Why are you here?”

“…Just out for a walk.”

“Who goes for a walk in a place like this? You have strange tastes.”

“Be quiet.”

Helena scanned the surroundings. Her eyes swept the room and landed on the unconscious mage.

“…Unbelievable.”

She instantly grasped what had happened.

“Did you subdue him alone?”

“Yes. Why? Is that a problem?”

I asked sharply on purpose. That was Raon’s personality.

Arrogant. Twisted. Never kind.

Helena shook her head.

“No. I’m just surprised. More importantly, are you hurt?”

Normally, she might have doubted me.

But she deliberately avoided saying anything like that.

‘She’s kind.’

No wonder she’s popular.

Completely different from my character, who was unpopular because of his awful personality.

“…No. I wouldn’t get hurt over something like this.”

“Right after battle, you often don’t realize you’re injured due to adrenaline.”

She stepped closer, placing a hand on my forehead, then on her own.

“Hmm. Your body feels a bit cold.”

“…Take your hand off.”

“Of course. Sorry for touching you without permission. But you don’t seem injured. That’s a relief.”

She stepped back obediently, then looked at the unconscious mage with cold eyes.

“So it’s him. The infamous back-alley mage. I didn’t expect him to have the guts to kidnap you.”

Her last words were barely audible.

But I heard them.

‘She already figured it out.’

Sharp as hell. Or maybe just well-informed.

Either way, I felt relieved now that she was here. I had been wondering how to deal with the aftermath.

“Or… did you hunt him down yourself?”

“Be quiet.”

“I see. Well, that works. What will you do now?”

I frowned deliberately.

“My walk is over. I’m going back.”

“Then I’ll call people. This place needs to be cleaned up.”

She didn’t just mean the mage.

She meant wiping out this entire back alley that dared target a duke’s heir.

‘…Feels strange experiencing this firsthand.’

Seeing my silence, Helena added,

“He’ll rot in the darkest prison for life. No sunlight, no fresh air. You don’t need to worry.”

“I don’t care about that.”

“As expected.”

She moved on.

“Do you want it announced that you captured him? Or should we keep it quiet?”

“I handled it.”

“Then we’ll announce it that way.”

Once things were settled, she contacted someone.

I removed the chains binding the mage and turned around coolly.

Then—

Thud!

“Ghk!”

“Oh, don’t mind that. Just stepped on a rat.”

‘…Was she really just here to save me?’

Seemed like she had personal grudges too.

“Finally, that annoying problem is solved.”

With a refreshed expression, Helena gave orders for cleanup and caught up to me.

Walking beside me, she said,

“Congratulations.”

“?”

“Looks like you’ve finally escaped that suffocating place. You seem happy.”

She smiled faintly. I instinctively looked away and touched my face.

…Did I look happy?

‘I’m actually scared to death.’

What if she realizes I’m not Raon…

Or I suddenly lose control of mana and die…

This anxiety won’t go away until I figure everything out.

Damn, I hope I don’t get insomnia. I’ll go bald again.

&

‘Interesting.’

Inside the carriage returning to the academy, Helena secretly observed Raon.

His intimidating appearance—handsome, yet shadowed by messy hair, dull eyes, and chains wrapped around his body.

She didn’t care much.

‘Still better than my master.’

Her master, now the warden of a prison, was far more terrifying.

People called him a monster, but to her…

‘…More like a cat.’

Back then, maybe not. He was much sharper.

But now… Raon seemed different too.

His slouched shoulders were straight.

His lifeless eyes now had light.

And more importantly—

‘…I didn’t expect him to be that strong.’

The mage he defeated, Mainando, was well-known in the underworld.

An exile.

A mage banished for researching forbidden spells.

Which meant—

‘He was stronger than most mages of his level.’

And Raon defeated him without injury.

‘That means Raon is far stronger.’

Even considering anti-mage tactics…

‘The chain… was a mana-absorbing artifact.’

No one used chains as weapons. Too heavy, too unstable.

Yet Raon did.

‘Was he hiding his strength?’

Could he really control that immense mana…?

Even her father had called it a curse.

‘This could be fun.’

Maybe.

She felt excitement just from the possibility.

They weren’t close. Just classmates.

But now—

She intended to become his friend.

‘Not certain yet… but I’ll find out.’

Maybe he would become a powerful figure in the future.

Her eyes fixed on him, a smile forming.

‘…Why is she staring at me like that? That’s scary.’

Meanwhile, Raon felt nothing but pressure.

“Young master!”

The moment I got off the carriage, someone rushed into my arms.

I recognized her instantly.

‘The maid, Abella.’

The only servant who stayed by Raon’s side.

But I felt uneasy.

Honestly, I wanted to throw her away.

“Young master! Are you alright?! Are you hurt?!”

She looked like a loyal and caring maid.

But—

-Then, farewell. My lovely young master.

Inside that loyalty…

Was a crazy assassin who would randomly appear and kill Raon.

‘…Seriously.’

I sighed.

How is this character both weak and surrounded by danger like this?

If anything had to change, why not fix this part?

Well…

‘I can handle the maid.’

I’ve dealt with her plenty of times.

But—

‘The academy…’

Seeing it in real life made me sigh again.

A place that gives nothing but suffering.

A place you can’t escape.

‘…Wait.’

I suddenly realized something.

‘I don’t have to go.’

In the game, I was forced by choices.

But this is reality.

Which means—

‘I’m dropping out.’