"You are a monster," the man before me said.
He made me feel small—not because of his height, but because of his eyes.
That look—
like I wasn't even there.
He was my idol, the reason I cared about this world at all. Watching him speak those words to me.
It felt... almost empty.
He turned around, tucking his hands within his pockets. He sighed and then looked over his shoulder.
"But so am I. So, what are you sitting there for?"
I didn't see his face clearly, but for a split second before he turned—I could have sworn I saw a smile.
I was thirteen then.
And just like that, I was thrown headfirst in a world of mysteries and riddles. Four dizzying, blazing years of my life were spent with him by my side.
Then one day, he just retired—left me his title like it was some hand-me-down.
Along the way, I picked up an assistant. A waste of space, at first, a spoiled rich kid who lived in filth and his own fantasies.
Now... he looks somewhat like a functioning adult.
"Ughhh.... I wanna go home and read arc five again. Lucien is about to reclaim his sword!"
Never mind.
You can't expect too much from him.
"Are you ever gonna read it, Master?"
"I might try it out."
"Yes!" He practically vibrated with his excitement as if he was a little kid. He'd been nagging me for months about it.
And I finally gave in.
'I'll read it tonight. It might surprise me.'
Spoiler: it didn't even come close.
"This novel is so... bland."
Reading it felt like dragging my eyes over a brick. Not even a cursed, ancient artifact brick,
Just a plain old brick.
I was about to close the tab—along with all the shred of curiosity left for it.
Then a soft ding mellowed from my computer.
A new tab blinked in the corner of my screen.
You have one new email
"Hmm? I thought I had notifications off."
Then again, I made my assistant read and write all the emails that come my way.
Had to give him something to do, right?
'Cases like no other? A world of unsolved mysteries? A challenge even I can't crack open...?
As a detective, I was trained to never overlook the smallest details. Even a vignette could be part of the grandest murals.
****
Two days later. I was standing in a locker room, soaking in the faint smell of musk and effort.
It didn't take long to realize I was in the novel's world.
The vice principal's speech, the uniforms, the names—It fell into place perfectly, a bit too perfectly.
So far, I've kept a low profile trying to fade in the background.
Being a detective here seems... ineffective per se. In a world where heroes command thunder and flame, deduction feels small in comparison.
'I mean I don't really have any connections to this world. I didn't even read past the first two chapters. Plus, I doubt anybody here even knows my name.'
But then—
"Huh? Where did my clothes go?"
The voice beside me pulled me back.
Leon Terrence.
The protagonist of this glorified brick of a world. Rank 1 in the academy. The genius who saves the world.
He was incredibly good-looking, probably the most handsome person I've ever seen. He had bright, cerulean eyes that shone like a lake beneath the moonlight and hair that was as dark as night.
Porcelain skin, long eyelashes, and perfect hair. It was enough to make any girl jealous and even more so for guys.
He stood in front of his locker, peering inside of it carefully like it had swallowed his clothes whole.
I took a glance at it: small, metallic, almost too cramped to be practical. Its top panel drooped ever so slightly, and a faint layer of powder coated the inside.
I reached out and ran my finger across it to test the theories wrapping around in my head.
'Coarse. Grainy. Not quite dust, most likely ash.
Dust is finer, smoother. This had been burnt.'
"Uh... hello?"
Right. Social context. I forgot people don't usually caress random lockers.
"Hey," I said. "Do you know any fire magic users? Noble types. Maybe someone with a grudge? They also have to be quite skilled."
Leon blinked. "...Huh?"
"Someone who might want to mess with you or looks down on you?"
He paused, thinking. "Kael comes to mind."
"Then it's probably him."
"Wait, how—?"
"The top of your locker is warped, heat damage. The academy keeps things spotless, so dust wouldn't make sense. But ash? That fits. The texture and size even match."
Leon stared at me, dumbfounded.
"But it could be someone else."
"The locks that the academy provides us can't be easily tampered with. Which most likely means the magic was used from when it was closed. Only a skilled fire magic user would be able to do it."
"So... what now?" He said, his expression betraying his uncertainty about the entire situation.
"We confront him. There's only one way we can know for certain."
And just like that I had made a connection with the world's favorite child, Leon Terrence.
We waited till after classes and asked around to find out Kael and his group were at a nearby cafe on campus.
"Do you see him?"
"Yeah, he's in the middle over there."
I followed Leon's line of sight to see a trio of boys, laughing and talking like any other friend group. Kael was a tall yet slender figure, he had circular glasses and seemed to radiate with an academic aura.
Nothing like what I expected, but what is?
His hair was a blondish orange that seemed to display his innate talent for flames.
"Kael," Leon suddenly spoke up from beside me. His steps were steady, and his gaze was unwavering as he approached the group of boys.
"Hmm? Leon, what are you doing here?" His voice was calm, unbothered by the burning gaze that weighed down on him.
"Did you burn Leon's clothes?"
'It's about time I join into the fray. I still have to prove my theory.'
"Of course not. Why would I do such a thing?"
He said, but in this line of work, people rarely answer questions. They just throw more back at you.
He was still calm, unnaturally calm, as if he knew he would be just fine.
Not in a fight, but with his mind. It wasn't confidence, but calculations that kept his cool.
That's how I knew he was our suspect.
"Maybe it's because he's a commoner. The fact that he's rank 1. Or maybe it's just because he's more handsome than you. Most girls would die for a guy like him."
His expression grew colder, his jaw ever so slightly tightening, he might look calm—
but I knew the thoughts rampaging in his mind will eventually break free.
'He reacted to that last part. Is it that his girl fell for him or something? I mean he is the protagonist, it's to be expected.'
I no longer held any hope or expectations for the novel, so anything was to be expected for me.
"Seriously, I've heard girls are even leaving their boyfriends to try and get him. No luck though. Poor guys really."
Suddenly, I noticed.
The air was really—
Hot,
it was burning hot.
And in my eyes, it was like the sun had just appeared before me. The light was blinding and the smoldering air warped around my head.
His speed was unnatural; he blurred in front of me in an instant not even giving me a chance to blink.
"Ash!"
Leon blinked over in an instant and even though I never told him my name, he yelled out towards it like he had known it for years.
The crackling roar of the flames coiling around his hands snapped my mind back to reality.
This was a fantasy world.
Deduction isn't shit when people can vaporize an entire city in minutes.
'I now see why all fantasy detectives are also genius mages.'
If I wanted to survive this world, solve its riddles, and crack open the truth behind my arrival—then I couldn't rely on deduction alone.
I needed strength.