Breaking The Script

I didn't answer the professor.

I just sat there, my lips sealed, heart pounding.

If this world is truly resetting… if I've been thrown back to the beginning again, then this moment—this very moment—is my test.

Because I remember the words.

I remember everything.

What he said to me the first time I arrived here. The glare. The insults. The hum of laughter around me. I remember it like it's been carved into my bones.

So now I wait.

If he says the same thing again—word for word—then maybe I'm stuck in some kind of loop. A script bound by my own damn story.

But if he says something different…

Then it means everything I experienced—from the first day until that horrifying moment in the dungeon—was real. Not a dream. Not an illusion. Not a story.

It means the quest was real.

It means I was given a glimpse into a possible future. One where I had to make the cruelest choice of all.

I refused to move.

The students around me started murmuring again, clearly enjoying the show. But I didn't care. My eyes were fixed on the professor, heart hammering against my ribs like a war drum.

Say it, I begged silently. Say anything that breaks the script.

The professor's lips curled into a frown as his eyes narrowed on me.

Then—

"Stand up and get out of the class." he snapped coldly. "If you are not interested, you may as well leave. We don't need students like you here."

My breath hitched.

That wasn't what he said last time.

He never told me to leave.

Last time, he just mocked me. Humiliated me. But now—now, he wants me out.

He changed the line.

My chest tightened, but not from panic. From realization.

So it's true.

The dungeon, the monster, Dante's voice slowly fading into static—it all happened. It wasn't just in my head.

The quest was real.

And it's still waiting.

Waiting for me to choose—

Become the hero and take Dante's place.

Or embrace the role of villain and stop being weak.

It's not a loop.

It's a second chance.

I stood up, my legs moving almost on instinct, but my mind was a tangled storm. Thoughts spun and clashed inside my head like a hurricane refusing to calm. Was this really a reset? A second chance… or just another test?

The bell rang sharply, the sound cutting through my thoughts like a blade.

The professor's cold glare didn't linger long. Without another word, he turned and walked out, leaving behind the stench of judgment and mockery. Laughter still echoed from the students as they packed their things, snickering and whispering while throwing glances at me—like I was some joke of the day.

I didn't look away this time.

I let them laugh.

Because I wasn't the same Elias anymore.

And I knew what was coming.

Zaden.

That name alone was enough to make the air feel heavier.

Before I was dragged into this world, before I ever took control of this body, the Elias who existed here already had a history with him. He mouthed off. Pushed the wrong buttons. The dominoes had already started falling before I arrived.

So the confrontation with Zaden?

It's inevitable.

And Dante… I clenched my jaw. I already knew how it would go. He'd step in. Play the hero. Save me, just enough to look noble, just enough to keep the image.

But this time, I wouldn't stand in the shadows, waiting to be rescued.

This time, I'd watch the pieces fall exactly how I remember.

And then I'd decide how to move.

I made my way to the lunch area, my steps calm but calculated. I looked around—half-expecting Zaden and his gang to be lurking already, throwing their weight around and picking out a new victim.

But…

They weren't there.

I scanned every table, every corner. Empty. No sign of them.

Strange.

Still, I didn't falter.

Instead of sitting at my usual corner, isolated and ignored, I walked up to one of the tables where a group of guys sat. Some of them glanced up at me in surprise, like they didn't expect me to dare show my face near them.

But I said nothing. Just pulled out a chair and sat down.

Let them wonder.

Let them talk.

This time, I wouldn't hide in the shadows. I wouldn't run from Zaden, from the system, from the curse of the quest I didn't ask for.

This time…

I would wait.

I would wait for Zaden to arrive.

Because when he did—I wouldn't just be a bystander in someone else's story.

I'd be ready.