Mason stood there, frozen in a sea of students.
His mind raced as he tried to make sense of this absurd new world.
A bunch of young people passed him by, chatting and laughing, none of them paying him any mind.
Except for one group.
The girls.
They were giggling as they approached him, and one of them nudged her friend. "He's cute."
Mason didn't know how to react.
He was more confused than flattered. He wasn't exactly used to people noticing him like that.
Before he could even respond, their faces turned bright red, and they scurried off in a hurry as if he'd somehow sprouted horns in the last five seconds.
『SYSTEM MESSAGE: YOU HAVE UNLOCKED "CHEST FLUSTER" EFFECT. +10 AFFECTION WITH RANDOM GIRL IN RANGE.』
Mason blinked at the floating message.
"What…? Fluster? I didn't even say anything."
He stroked his cheek, feeling a little self-conscious.
Something was definitely off here.
Sure, he loved games like Harem Academy — who didn't, really?
But he had deliberately stayed away from this one.
Everyone kept talking about it, but after the way things were going with other games, he figured it was better to let this one marinate.
Plus, no one had apparently found the "true ending" of the game, and that made him curious.
According to the rumors, the game had an ending where several key female characters died, and people were furious.
The emotional rollercoaster was apparently so intense that people got attached to their choices.
The title was enough to get people to buy the game, but the plot kept them hooked. It was like a deep cut from a classic anime.
The problem? He knew jack squat about it.
All he really knew was that this was a magic-filled world, and there were a bunch of romantic routes, like in every other dating sim.
That was all and he had a feeling he was going to get screwed.
But there was something off about this place.
Before he could dive deeper into his thoughts, a guy approached him, waving his hand.
"Hey!" the guy called, his voice a little breathless. "You — are you a transfer student?"
Mason blinked, about to respond when the guy beat him to it.
"Homeroom's starting soon. Are you lost?"
Mason shrugged. "Yeah, I guess I am. Can you point me in the right direction?"
The guy scratched his head and looked around. "I think I'm late too… but, hey, no worries! I'll show you the way."
Mason raised an eyebrow but nodded. "Thanks."
And just like that, they started walking. The guy led the way down the cobblestone path, clearly in a rush, but Mason didn't mind.
It gave him a moment to think.
He realized he had no idea what his new name was in this world.
The whole "game world reincarnation" thing had a weird glitchy vibe to it.
When he first arrived, there had been a flash of text in front of him, but it was too fast to catch.
『SYSTEM MESSAGE: NAME REGISTERED AS: LEONARD LUMBERFOOT. PLEASE NOTE: THIS NAME IS FINAL.』
"Lumberfoot?" Mason muttered under his breath. "That… sounds like a character in a bad fantasy novel."
He wasn't even sure if that was his actual name or just some glitch in the system. Either way, it was going to be awkward if everyone called him that.
As he continued walking, the guy leading him kept glancing over his shoulder.
Mason couldn't help but feel like he was being sized up.
"So… you're a transfer from the capital, huh?" the guy asked casually, his hand on the back of his neck. "Must be nice, getting that kind of attention from the faculty."
Mason wasn't sure what the guy was talking about, but he went with it. "Uh, yeah. Totally. So, where are we going?"
"Oh! Right, yeah. Homeroom's this way. You're gonna meet a lot of… uh… interesting people," the guy said, his voice trailing off.
Mason nodded, unsure of what to expect.
He didn't know whether to laugh or panic. Was this really a game? Was he supposed to be making friends already?
They turned a corner, and Mason suddenly froze.
The building ahead of him looked like something out of a high-budget fantasy drama.
Stone walls stretched up toward the sky, and elegant ivy draped along the columns.
Huge windows let in a soft golden light, making the place feel more like a majestic castle than a school.
Mason stared, taking it all in. The vibes here were… royal.
Like, the princess would definitely have a secret room somewhere in this place.
『SYSTEM MESSAGE: "HAREM ACADEMY" HOMEROOM BUILDING IDENTIFIED. UNLOCKING MAP MODE…』
Mason felt his phone buzz in his pocket. He pulled it out and glanced at the screen.
Sure enough, a detailed map of the campus had appeared, with his location marked with a blinking arrow.
『NEW OBJECTIVE: ENTER HOMEROOM – MEET CLASSMATES AND PROFESSORS. PENDING AFFECTION UPDATES.』
"Alright, here we are," the guy said, stopping at the large doors. "Good luck, man. It's gonna be a crazy first day. Trust me."
Mason nodded but didn't feel any more confident than before.
He stepped into the so-called "homeroom" — and immediately stopped short.
It wasn't a room.
It was a damn coliseum.
The ceiling soared so high he couldn't even see the top.
A massive circular space stretched before him, with rows and rows of rising stone seats built into the walls.
Magic torches hovered in mid-air, casting a gentle gold light over everything.
The place buzzed with voices, but it all seemed to fade into background noise as Mason tried to take it all in.
『NOTE: YOU HAVE ENTERED — "HAREM ACADEMY: CENTRAL GATHERING HALL"』
He blinked up at the system message, then glanced over at the guy who'd led him here.
The dude looked around like this was nothing special, already climbing up the stairs to find a seat.
"Guess I'm following you," Mason muttered, hurrying after him.
They settled into a mid-level bench seat, somewhere that didn't feel too exposed or too cramped.
His new acquaintance turned to him with a casual smile.
"Name's Ren," the guy said, holding out a hand. "Ren Oclaire."
Mason accepted it with a nod. "Leonard. Uh, Leonard Lumberfoot."
The guy stifled a laugh and Mason turned pale… he hated this name.
Now that things weren't moving a mile a minute, Mason took a good look at Ren.
Green hair. Not dyed — like actual emerald-green hair that shimmered under the torchlight.
『MENTAL STABILITY -5』
That wasn't great.
Looking around the arena, he noticed hair colors that looked ripped straight from an anime character select screen.
Blue, pink, snow white, even what looked like glowing purple. A cold sweat traced down his spine.
'This is insane…' Mason thought. 'Am I in an episode of Magical Love Empire or something?'
『"MAGICAL LOVE EMPIRE" IS A RIVAL SERIES. PLEASE DO NOT COMPARE QUALITY.』
He blinked at the snarky system popup. 'That was a joke, man.'