"Master Eclipse, why don't you go outside more?"
"Fuck no, I'm not doing that."
Ah shit, Eclipse thought, there I done saying weird things again…
But when he saw the maid's reaction—or lack thereof—he relaxed. A simple nod.
Well that was the most obvious reaction she can give.
First, because her master's decisions were always final. Second, because she had no idea what "fuck" even meant.
Not surprising. That word didn't exist yet.
It wasn't hard to see that Eclipse didn't belong here—not in this world.
Where he came from, people drove cars, and a machine the size of your hand could store the entire contents of a library.
People here still used horses and inked scrolls.
Yup, Eclipse had definitely landed in a different world.
The maid closed the polished wooden door behind her, leaving Eclipse alone in his misery.
She didn't get it—no one did. Eclipse wasn't just hiding from the world outside; he was hiding from something far worse.
"No doubt about it… I'm really going to die," Eclipse muttered, staring at himself in the mirror.
The reflection staring back was, by all accounts, the picture of nobility.
Pale, glowing skin, the mark of a wealthy, privileged family.
His dark eyes looked heavy, and his unkempt hair hinted at a guy who had way too much on his mind for someone living in luxury.
This was Eclipse Warbringer—a name that, back in the modern world, might've sounded cool.
That could be the case, if only he wasn't 'the' Eclipse.
As far as he can remember, this world he's in is based on a game called Sword of Heroes.
And if you read carefully enough, in a small part of the large story, there was a side quest about handling a specific villain–a young noble who pissed off the Protagonist by hurting the people he cared about.
But the hero didn't just lose it on the first offense, though.
No, the villain had to screw up ten times before the Hero finally snapped.
And when he did? Well, that was the last time you ever heard about that minor villain.
Eclipse sighed, pulling at his face.
"I always imagined getting isekai'd into my favorite game," he muttered, "but not like this."
Why can't I just become the hero or someone else that is more memorable than this guy…
With another groan, he collapsed onto his oversized bed, staring at the ceiling.
The room was warm, not like back in his time where he could just crank up the AC to cool off.
His brain felt like it was frying with how long he'd been thinking about his situation.
And then there was the worst part. Remember how the Hero gives the villain ten chances?
Yeah. When Eclipse woke up in this world, the Hero was already pissed off eight times.
Two strikes left.
Two more chances before the Hero ended him.
It was like living under a sword that could drop at any moment. It will fall sooner or later.
Can't Eclipse just kill him before the hero does? Hah, that was the most useless thought ever.
There was no way he could last even a single second fighting the hero who was ranked one in the academy now.
Meanwhile, he wasn't even in the top 100.
Now, shouldn't he just make amends? Apologize? Maybe try to befriend the Hero? Problem solved? Yeah, no. I think I'd die even before I said sorry all because of that–
"Stupid trait…" Eclipse swirled his finger, and with a soft whoosh, a blue screen appeared on the ceiling.
His stats, laid out in painful detail.
There were a lot of words but here are what filled Eclipse's mind these last few days.
"Mana: 0"
"Traits:"
"Warbringer Heir: Enhances all other Warbringer family members' P.ATK, M.ATK, and DEF by 15%. "
"Dignity+: Communication with lower-status individuals reduced by 80%."
Eclipse stared at the screen, sighing.
Unlike all the anime and novels he saw, he had nothing similar.
No cheats, no secret power-ups, no in-game shop to bail him out of this mess.
Then there was that trait.
Hero Academy was where students trained to fight and become real heroes when they graduated. Unlike other schools, students were chosen based on potential, not status.
So, naturally, there were a ton of low-class kids in the academy—kids who didn't care about noble titles or family names.
Which made Eclipse's life way harder.
Because of Dignity+, every time he tried talking to someone of lower status, he ended up insulting them.
No matter what he said, it always came out wrong.
And since almost everyone in the academy was deemed unworthy by the Dignity+, well... his social life was pretty much screwed.
That's why, for the past week, he'd locked himself in his room.
He couldn't afford to tick off the Hero two more times. One wrong move, and that was it.
But this was only a temporary solution.
One of the Academy's tests was happening, and skipping it wasn't an option.
So he had to leave his room.
That was another thing that was trying to kill him.