Chapter : 1
I’ll Save You From the Bad Ending Route
The Bad Ending Specialist Character
Blood splattered beneath the moonlight. Airan’s mint-colored hair turned a dark crimson.
[S-sorry… I should have… protected everyone…]
Airan died.
There was no time for grief. A wolf beast’s massive claws slashed toward my face. Just as death closed in, a flash of metal cut the darkness like lightning.
Clang!
Aaron blocked the monster’s attack and shouted:
[Run!]
[But—! What about you?!]
[At least you live!]
His face was already covered in blood.
[No! I’ll fight to the end with you! We’re all going home alive!]
Someone grabbed my arm. Rowan. The beast had torn his left eye open.
As he cast a healing spell on me, he said:
[You must survive. And don’t… forget us.]
[How can I leave you—!]
[Go!]
My legs trembled at the force of their command. I reached desperately toward them.
[No—don’t do this!]
Then the spell Airan had cast on me just before she died—Wind of Hope—activated. A whirlwind swallowed me and flung me away.
[No…]
Their figures blurred and faded. Facing death, Rowan and Aaron smiled at me.
[No! Rowan! Aaron!!]
My scream was swallowed by a giant explosion.
Aaron’s sword flew through the air and stuck in the ground.
[No… no…]
Flames roared high, devouring the forest.
[Bad Ending. The survivor who abandoned his companions.]
“Ugh, come on.”
I swore and hurled my console onto the bed. This was the twenty-fifth Bad Ending already.
“Dead again! Airan, it’s your fault! What the hell are you doing?!”
I cursed Airan and thrashed around furiously.
“This stupid game ruined my life! I should’ve studied for certifications instead!”
I flopped back, panting. It was already five in the morning.
[Hour of the Sun — Roas Academy.]
The first-ever domestic console RPG—a smash hit from launch.
A year ago, I picked it up on a whim… and sacrificed my entire leave of absence to it.
“Why would anyone unleash this monster on the world?!”
Prince Raven Aorua of the Dawn Empire loses his homeland to a mastermind in the shadows.
To take revenge, he enrolls in Roas Academy, where he gains comrades…
That was the tagline.
Beautiful illustrations. A moving story. Characters who felt alive.
And the multi-ending system—you could replay forever. Completely addictive.
But the real charm was the companions.
Each character had a story that felt like it breathed, and I cried over them countless nights. If a route didn’t work, I just dove in again.
Then my phone buzzed.
“Who is it at this hour?”
A notification popped up.
[New comment received.]
“Oh! The guide video I uploaded!”
I checked my site—120 walkthrough videos uploaded, and the latest one had racked up a thousand likes overnight.
User: DontYouTouchMyKids
Great guide! Your planning is flawless. 2000-hour veteran confirmed.
I nodded. Gotta take care of the newbies.
Then another comment caught my eye—one I didn’t like.
When are you uploading the happy ending route with Airan as a companion?
That cursed name again.
Replies flooded beneath it:
⤷ Lmao who clears the game with Airan??
⤷ She said she’s going for 100% achievements.
⤷ Why would she see a bad ending?
I threw my phone.
“Yes!! Exactly! Airan is the problem! Worst character ever!”
Because of Airan, I couldn’t finish my 100%.
⤷ LOL want Hardcore mode? Bring Airan along
⤷ Only four slots and you waste one on trash Airan LOL
That’s how infamous she was.
Three years since release, and not a single player had taken Airan to a happy ending.
If I pulled it off, I’d be the first in the world.
But of course—Airan Chandler. Bottom-tier recruit, the worst of the worst. So weak everyone dropped her.
I’d already watched my party wipe twenty-five times in the same battle.
Even losing one companion was fatal—if someone died, the whole party fell like dominoes.
To reach a happy ending, you had to win dozens of battles without losing a single ally.
But precious little Airan?
She died—bleh!—in the second fight.
And boom—Bad Ending.
“Road buddy?! Angel of wind my butt! You’re the Angel of Death!!”
I cursed the game developers.
“I’ve put 2000 hours into this—if I can’t do it, who can?! Does the happy ending even exist?!”
I yelled until I remembered—it was five in the morning.
“Ugh, whatever. I’ll sleep and figure out a new strategy later.”
I collapsed into bed. Playing five hours every day left my brain spinning. The ceiling looked yellow.
“…Maybe it really is impossible with Airan.”
I remembered that scene again—the companions dying to save the protagonist.
Airan, too, cast Wind of Hope before she died, letting the hero escape alone into a Bad Ending.
I sighed.
“They could’ve at least made her strong or something… I just want everyone to live…”
Then I passed out.
And just like magic—I woke up and became Airan.
I’m Ahn Ji-eun—an ordinary Korean college student who preferred hanging out with friends to homework, and skipping classes more than attending them.
If I’m guilty of anything, it’s wasting my leave from school staying up all night gaming instead of studying.
“Hahaha… what the hell…”
I was wandering the gorgeous academy like it was a painting when I stopped in front of the grand temple.
Stained glass gleamed, depicting the Academy’s god.
I screamed at it.
“Damn you, Game God! I said I wanted a happy ending, not to become Airan!!”
My shout echoed through the bells; pigeons scattered. The god’s serene painted face seemed to smirk.
Let’s rewind one week.
I opened my eyes and saw a strange ceiling—no, actually familiar.
The dorm room from the game.
“Lana! Oversleeping? You’ll be late!”
Too vivid for a dream: a cute girl character waking me up.
“Huh…?”
I bolted upright. There was Pina—Airan’s only friend and roommate.
Long braided red hair, big green squirrel-like eyes. She wore the Roas Academy uniform.
“You really slept this late? It’s the first day of winter remedial classes! Hurry!”
“Winter… remedial…?”
Pina called me by Airan’s nickname—Lana—and dragged me up. Stronger than she looked.
I stumbled to the bathroom.
…Okay, maybe it felt a little too real—but no way this was reality, right?
Weird dream.
Must’ve fallen asleep playing again. Yeah, this is why they say gaming addiction is dangerous.
Then I saw her in the mirror—Airan, breathtakingly pretty.
“Whoa…”
Blue-green semi-long hair, emerald eyes, delicate features, rose-tinted lips—a flawless beauty.
I touched my cheek; the reflection moved.
“3D doesn’t compare… She’s insane. I’m really dreaming I’m Airan, huh?”
Amazing. I’d been so stressed about Airan I was dreaming as her.
After washing, Pina helped me into the uniform: white jacket, black shirt, flared skirt.
Wearing it, I really did look like a game character. Elegant, light—almost enchanted.
Airan was like a masterpiece painting.
So this is what it feels like to live as a beautiful girl? Wow.
“Come on! We’re gonna be late for Magic Theory!”
Up to that point, it was fun.
Walking to class with Pina.
Sitting with students.
Experiencing my favorite game world myself.
What gamer wouldn’t love it?
…Until I sat through three hours of hell—Magic Theory was worse than calculus.
