Warning chapter is almost 2,000 words long!
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In the bathroom, the white-haired boy stood frozen before the large mirror, his purple eyes wide with disbelief. His reflection stared back at him like a stranger wearing his face. The fancy silver frame around the mirror made everything look even more unreal, like he was looking at a painting instead of himself.
He raised his hand and touched the glass surface. It was cold against his fingertips. The person in the mirror copied every movement perfectly. This wasn't a dream or some weird hallucination from the lightning strike. This was actually happening.
He had really transmigrated into the body of Leroy - a game character he barely remembered from two short scenes.
"This is insane," he whispered to his reflection. His new voice was deeper and smoother than his old chubby self. Even his voice was handsome now.
But he knew he couldn't just stand here staring at himself forever. He had to accept what happened and figure out what to do next. Being shocked wouldn't help him survive in this dangerous world.
From what little he remembered about the game, Leroy was supposed to be incredibly weak. The guy had a terrible physique that couldn't handle physical training. His mana capacity was so low that he could barely light a candle with magic, while other people his age were throwing fireballs and casting healing spells.
In the game, most nobles could use magic by the time they were ten years old. But Leroy couldn't even make a spark appear in his palm. People whispered that he was cursed or broken somehow. No one understood why someone from a good family could be so powerless.
"Great," Leroy muttered, running his fingers through his silky white hair. "I get a perfect face but a useless body. Just my luck."
But at least now it was his problem to solve, not some background character's tragic story.
"Haa," he sighed deeply, the sound echoing in the marble bathroom. He couldn't change the past, but maybe he could change the future.
Leroy walked back into the huge bedroom, and his eyes lit up with wonder all over again. The room was even more beautiful in the morning sunlight. Golden rays streamed through the tall windows, making everything glow like it was made of treasure.
The paintings on the walls caught his attention again. There were landscapes of rolling green hills, peaceful lakes with swans, and forests that looked so real he could almost hear birds singing. Back on Earth, he had loved art. His tiny apartment had been covered with cheap posters of famous paintings because he couldn't afford the real thing.
But these weren't reproductions. These were original oil paintings, probably worth more money than he had ever seen in his old life. The brushstrokes were perfect, and the colors were so vivid they seemed to jump off the canvas.
"At least being rich has some benefits," he said with a small smile.
The calm feeling from the paintings helped settle his racing thoughts. His old life had been stressful - working a boring job, living in a cramped apartment, spending all his free time playing games to escape reality. But this room felt peaceful, like a sanctuary where he could actually think clearly.
After staring at the paintings until his heart felt lighter, Leroy went back to the bathroom. He found a set of clothes hanging on a golden hook - a white silk shirt that felt like water between his fingers, black pants that fit perfectly, and a dark blue jacket with silver buttons.
When he looked in the mirror again after getting dressed, he almost gasped. The clothes made his pale skin look even more striking, and his purple eyes seemed to glow against the white shirt. He looked like a prince from a fairy tale.
Just then, a soft knock echoed through the room.
"Master Leroy?" a young voice called from behind the door.
Leroy walked over and opened it, revealing a girl who looked about fourteen years old. She wore a black and white maid uniform with a frilly apron. Her brown hair was styled in two buns that looked like bunny ears, and her bright red eyes reminded him of ripe tomatoes.
"Good morning Master Leroy!" she said with a respectful bow. But there was something strange in her red eyes - a warmth that seemed genuine, not the fake politeness he expected from a servant.
"Good morning..." Leroy replied, trying to remember if he had seen her in the game. But the story had never really focused on Leroy's daily life. Most of what happened to him was just background information mentioned in passing.
The brown-haired girl stood in the doorway, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. She seemed to be waiting for him to say something more, but Leroy just stared back at her. He had no idea what the original Leroy would normally say to her.
The silence stretched on until it became awkward. The girl's smile faltered slightly, and she looked down at her feet.
"Lord Herald told me to remind you that Lady Lisa Von Duncan and her father Harry Von Duncan will be visiting us today," she said, her professional smile returning. "It's about preparations for your official engagement."
Leroy's eyes widened in shock. That name hit him like a punch to the gut.
Lisa Von Duncan. The blonde elf lady from the game. The one who had been captured by Orcs while Leon walked away without helping her. The one who had screamed for help as those monsters dragged her away.
But somehow, in this timeline, she was supposed to marry him instead of following Leon around like a lovesick puppy.
"Palmeria, are you sure?" Leroy asked with sudden seriousness, his voice sharp with concern.
The maid looked confused and tilted her head to one side. "Ria? Should I get her for you, young master?"
Leroy felt his hands clench into fists. Heat rose in his chest as anger bubbled up. He had been trying to remember this girl's name during their entire conversation, and he had gotten it completely wrong.
"I was trying to recall your name while we were talking," he said through gritted teeth, forcing himself not to snap at her. It wasn't her fault that he didn't know anything about the original Leroy's life.
The girl's red eyes widened with surprise, then dimmed with hurt. "Young master... I'm Rebecca."
She said it quietly, like she was trying not to show how disappointed she was. Leroy could see the pain in her expression, and it made his chest ache with guilt.
"I've been your caretaker for five years," Rebecca continued, her voice smaller than before. "But I understand if you don't remember. You've been... different lately. Usually you would yell at me or ignore me completely."
Leroy felt like someone had slapped him. This girl had been taking care of him for years, and the original Leroy had treated her badly? That explained the surprised look in her eyes when he spoke politely to her.
"I also overheard your sister talking about another event that's supposed to happen today," Rebecca said, clearly trying to move past the awkward moment. Despite being hurt, she still looked out for him with genuine concern.
Hearing about a sister made Leroy pause and think. He placed his fingers on his chin, trying to remember everything the game had mentioned about Leroy's background.
According to the story, Leroy was half-human and half-elf. His real parents had been killed in some kind of attack when he was very young. A noble family who had been close friends with his parents took him in afterward. They even gave him their family name and raised him like their own son.
At least, that's what the parents did. The children in the family were a different story entirely.
Lord and Lady Herald had genuinely cared about Leroy and wanted him to succeed. But their biological children saw him as an outsider, a burden, someone who didn't really belong. They found every opportunity to make his life miserable. They would "accidentally" break his things, spread rumors about him being cursed, and make him feel unwanted in what was supposed to be his own home.
This explained why Leroy never got proper training like other noble children. While his adoptive siblings learned swordsmanship from expensive tutors and studied advanced magic with the best teachers, Leroy was left to figure everything out on his own.
The worst part was his awakening ceremony. Every noble child awakened a class on their sixteenth birthday - something that determined their role in society and their potential for power. Warriors got classes like "Sword Master" or "Guardian." Mages got "Arcane Scholar" or "Elementalist." Even merchants and craftsmen got useful classes like "Master Trader" or "Legendary Blacksmith."
But when Leroy's turn came, he awakened the class "Avatar Summoner" - which sounded impressive until people realized it was completely useless. The avatars he could summon were weak copies of himself that had less than a quarter of his already pathetic strength. They couldn't use magic, they broke after taking any real damage, and they disappeared after a few minutes.
People called it a cursed class, a sign that he was never meant to have power. His adoptive siblings used it as more ammunition to torment him with.
In the original game, this constant abuse and isolation eventually drove Leroy to despair. He died early in the story, killed off before he could discover the true potential of his abilities or play any important role in the plot.
But now things were different. Leroy had knowledge from playing the game. He knew about secret locations where powerful items were hidden. He knew which skills were actually broken if you understood how to use them properly. He knew about events that hadn't happened yet and dangers that could be avoided.
Most importantly, he knew that his "useless" class was actually one of the most powerful abilities in the entire game world - if you knew the secret to unlocking its true potential.
"There's also one more message," Rebecca said, pulling him out of his thoughts. "Lady Freya has asked to meet you in the garden outside the manor."
Her voice was gentle and respectful, not forced or fake like he would expect from a servant who disliked him. There was something genuinely caring about the way she spoke, like she actually worried about his well-being.
Leroy couldn't understand why a character like Rebecca had never been mentioned in the game. She seemed like exactly the kind of loyal companion who would help a protagonist grow stronger and overcome challenges. Her red eyes held intelligence and kindness that most people would overlook.
Maybe the original game developers had missed an opportunity by not including her in the story.
"Hmm... Okay, I'll meet her now," Leroy said, making his decision.
But as he prepared to leave the room, his mind was already spinning with plans. He had an engagement to figure out, a sister to deal with, and a whole new life to navigate. Plus, he needed to start training in secret to unlock his true power before anyone realized what he was capable of.
The game had given him and Leroy a second chance at life. He wasn't going to waste it.