Damn it!

I thought I had the situation under control only to have it flop. I'd made plans on how to counter Heath's innate ability to tell lies, and decided on being as rude and snarky as possible. Like a carbon copy of himself, multiplied by ten. But I must've gotten too sentimental at the end because he wanted to know how Rael died. That's one thing I can't ever disclose. 

I had plans on blackmailing Heath, acting antagonistically so to get what I wanted, and then avoiding him so it wouldn't come and bite me in the ass. But the fact that I had to be truthful meant that I couldn't make any promises that I couldn't keep. I needed to use him because he's a love interest. He's comfortably protected by plot armor, while I'm stepping on legos and nails for every step I take. And it hadn't been a day. If I have to survive, I need to start planning.

I threw myself on my bed. I was sweating, exhausted, and hungry. I'd left to practice one last time with Wei, and now I couldn't feel my legs. I groaned. I didn't have the energy to stay awake. But I had to.

Because tomorrow would be the start of my doom. I stood up and went to my large desk. I pulled out a few papers and an ink pen. I sat down on the comfy chair and took a deep breath.

The only way to survive this hellish world would be to document every event. As long as I did that, I wouldn't leave off any crucial details. Like... Heath's innate ability to tell truth and lies. I hit my forehead on the desk, wincing from the pain. 

I was reminded of my mistake again. I had forgotten about Heath's ability, exposed myself and my intention, and proceeded to ruin everything by denying him the truth. 

I had to document everything and carefully mark out what had been cut from my memory. I knew that whoever sent me here, didn't want me to know it all. But why would they do that? Is knowing the villain's identity, or even what happens after arc 5 that dangerous? 

Not to mention, they'd erased my memory of myself. I had no clue about who I was before I became Rael. My interests, dislikes, and personality could easily have been fabricated and made up.

I took a deep breath. I shouldn't think of something scary like that. I had to trust that I was an actual human being from the start, tragically sent to this world for an unknown reason.

It's a shame that Heath knew of my secret. Should I be truthful about everything? But if I am, there'd be nothing to use and manipulate him with. I wouldn't lie, merely give him vague theories and speculations I'd read on the DKQ wiki. But I wanted to know why I was chosen. I couldn't even remember my old self so I'll never know.

What reason could it be? Seeing as I became Rael Vandergarden, perhaps my mission is to prevent his death? But even if I succeeded in doing so, I'd have little to no benefit from it. I didn't know what might happen if I die. I have no information so maybe blindly drinking poison might return me home? 

I shook my head. It couldn't be that easy. I had to take it easy before I could start speculating. 

"Arc 1: Starting Lore Academy. Magic Examination and then..." I frowned. Do my troubles ever end? Arc one starts strongly, immersing the player in the rich and expanding world of DKQ, by having Ophelia travel to Lore Academy with the little money she had left. One of the first things that happen is a magical examination. It's where you examine your magical capabilities, what sort of magic you're compatible with, and your potential. Ophelia is one of the last to do the test, and the moment her hands touch the orb, it explodes. She's embarrassed as the teacher excuses everyone and tells the girl to be evaluated later. Ophelia tries running away from the scene when she's stopped by someone.

I slowly write down the name. Oden Turner is one of the love interests. Oden tries picking a fight with her but accidentally bumps into an upperclassman. Instead of apologizing, Oden pisses him off even more and he decides to challenge the boy to a duel. Ophelia tries calming both of them down, which causes the upperclassman to mistake Ophelia as Oden's friend, and he challenges her instead. Oden, angry at Ophelia for intercepting, walks off without any gratitude.

And that's the start of the game. The first mission of arc 1 is defeating the upperclassman, with a month being the time limit. That doesn't sound too hard, does it? Except... it is. Unless you're playing the game on easy mode, the upperclassmen can vary in strength, usually being two or even three times stronger than you. If you played the game on hard mode? The upperclassmen could be one of the strongest students in the school. 

I shrugged. That had nothing to do with me because this wasn't on hard mode. I played the game on normal mode, so it should be fine. Now, what comes after this event?

Arc one has a dramatic first act, but it falls flat on its face in the second and third. I remember skipping most of the dialogue with how pointless it was. The two acts are about the backlash Ophelia receives because she defeats someone far stronger than her. She starts getting bullied for receiving a lot of attention, most of the attention from her love interests. But after amassing enough friends and popularity, they go away for fear of offending her. After that, the second arc begins.

If it wasn't obvious, every arc stands for each year in Lore Academy. One year is equivalent to one arc. And arc 2 is... the romance arc as I'd like to call it. It's where all the tension with any of the love interests is amped up to the max. 

"Ophelia accidentally saves Ru. Creed University students who become transfer students stir up trouble... Ophelia gets the attention of those students and they try involving her in their fanatics. Ophelia is saved by a love interest who happened to walk by." I scribble quickly and think. Wait, wasn't it Ru in every route? "Ophelia is saved by Ru who happened to walk by." I nod.

No matter which route you pick, Ru is a vital part of the story in arc 2. He plays a big role considering how Ophelia helps him from a life-threatening situation at the start of the arc. So he gets himself entangled in the plot.

"Ophelia is invited by a third-year to help him with his assignment. His assignment is to locate a core beast, kill it and bring back the monster's core. He has three months to finish his assignment. As he doesn't know many students, he asks Ophelia to be a part of the team but..."

Ophelia agrees, of course, she's so infuriatingly kind that you can't decline the third year at all. She brings a few friends, it's optional who, and they set on a journey, finally leaving the school. Once again, the situation is never as simple as it looks. If the assignment was to fight an E-class moss bear, then you'll encounter a C-class Gargoyle. The difficulty is always amped up to two. I sigh. I remember having to fight an A-class Griffon that had been hiding in the mountains far north. It was a hard battle and I died multiple times before I slew that wretched beast.

And now I have to trust Ophelia to do this and make it alive? Thankfully, she isn't alone in this. If you aren't an idiot like me, who didn't explore every inch of the location, you'll meet with a different group who have a similar assignment to yours. And they coincidentally have Ru in their team. So when you meet a core beast that's leagues above you, you team up with the other team.

But it's not enough. The other team was in a rough shape from fighting with other monsters so their attacks are weak and barely harm the monster. If you're playing someone else's route, Ru manages to defeat the monster. However, if you're in Ru's route, you need to give him mana as you're the only one left standing beside him. You have two options, either take the slow route and hold his hand, which is slower but it works. Or... kiss him. I think it's pretty obvious which one I picked, hehe.

No matter what you pick, Ru will eventually defeat the monster and everyone returns victoriously. You get to spend time with the love interest of your choice as the two of you grow closer. And the third arc opens up with Ophelia meeting the powerhouses of the academy.