[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-i-became-the-academy-s-final-boss":3,"chapter-i-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-i-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-chapter-1":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","I Became the Academy’s Final Boss",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":18,"prevChapterSlug":19,"totalChapters":20,"novelImage":21},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":12,"translator":16,"content_hash":17},1319720,1753,"Chapter 1","i-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-chapter-1",1,"\u003Cp>Chapter 1\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the middle of the torrential downpour, a man drenched in blood stood alone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His face was frozen cold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had finally won the battle against the final boss.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But there was nothing left by his side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The victory he had gained upon the blood of those he loved felt unbearably hollow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Across from him, a man with golden eyes clad in black armor lay collapsed, a faint sneer curling on his lips.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man’s arm was crushed, and a massive hole had been pierced through his chest. His legs were blown far away, and his waist was half torn off, exposing his bones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You… in the end, you couldn’t protect a single thing. Not the world, not your friends, not your lover…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before he could even finish speaking, the golden-eyed man’s head flew through the air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man holding the sword muttered through gritted teeth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Shut up. With your death, humanity will rise again. We will mourn the fallen, rebuild, and rise even higher…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rain began to stop, and sunlight broke through the dark clouds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【NOMAL END】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The screen froze, and the credits began to roll.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thud!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I slammed the desk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ssshh, sss… damn it…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A dull pain throbbed up my arm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I immediately regretted hitting the desk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Patient, is everything all right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A nurse’s voice came from outside the door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I hurriedly made an excuse, saying it was nothing, fearing she might come in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this lifeless, desolate hospital room, I couldn’t even get angry as I pleased.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The game screen, indifferent to my mood, continued beyond the credits, showing the lifeless body of the final boss.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once again, I had failed to reach the happy ending.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How many months had it been now?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yeah… maybe about half a year.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Half a year spent chasing the happy ending of a single game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I thought it was a choice I wouldn’t regret—to spend the remainder of my life, after being told I was terminally ill, on something I loved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If only I could have seen that happy ending.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had tried everything I could over the past six months, but still failed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As if the happy ending had never existed in the first place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the developers had clearly declared that there was a happy ending.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That faint hope was what kept me going until now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now that I had unlocked every ending with every playable character, all that remained in me was emptiness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Honestly, I hadn’t expected to become so obsessed with this game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before I was diagnosed as terminally ill, gaming had been a luxury I couldn’t afford.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I barely managed to live day by day—I had no time to waste on something like that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had spent every waking moment working odd jobs, saving money like a madman, dreaming of one day owning a house.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, that money had long vanished, devoured by hospital bills and treatment costs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like a tree withering in a drought, I had needed something—anything—to endure the tedious hospital life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I tried watching those webtoons everyone said were fun, scrolling through social media, but eventually, I settled on gaming.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Games—something I had always wanted to try, but never had the time for.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I used to feel a strange envy watching people play late into the night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the game I poured the last six months of my life into turned out to be what people called a trash game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A cleverly disguised landmine, wrapped in fancy advertising that made it look like a masterpiece.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like a piece of spicy pollack gangjeong pretending to be sweet fried chicken in a school lunch tray.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a game about boys and girls attending an academy to become heroes who would protect a world filled with demons, villains, and monsters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With its stunning illustrations, charming heroines, seemingly limitless freedom, and three main playable characters offering a variety of storylines—it had been hyped as one of the most anticipated titles ever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the “most anticipated title” had, upon release, become one of the greatest disasters in gaming history.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reasons were clear: absurdly high difficulty, unfriendly progression, and a complete lack of convenience features.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It didn’t even have a basic save function—once you died, you had to start all over again from the beginning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet, a small number of people still played it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And I was one of them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For someone stuck in the hospital all day with nothing but time, Become a Hero was the perfect game to kill time with.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It might have been hostile to players, but there wasn’t a single lie in its advertisements.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Charming characters, immense freedom, and hidden Easter eggs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was why I’d been hooked for half a year.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I stared at the lifeless final boss reflected in the descending credits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Pitch-black hair that seemed to swallow all light, skin pale as death. Even though he was dead, his golden eyes still shone fiercely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was only an illustration, and yet, there was something overwhelming about it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was the game’s final boss—the very being who had kept me from ever reaching the happy ending.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because defeating him always required the sacrifice of my comrades.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, I had tried other methods.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had gathered every hidden piece, maxed out my stats, equipped the most powerful items, and challenged him alone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had even tried using the game’s report system to eliminate him while he was disguised within the academy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could proudly say that I had attempted everything possible within the limits of the system.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And yet, look at the result.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All my efforts ended in failure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some might have called me obsessed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why cling so desperately to a game’s happy ending?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I knew it too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That this wasn’t normal behavior.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I just didn’t want to accept the death waiting for me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By chasing a happy ending that never came, I could pretend that the end of my own life wasn’t so near.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If I didn’t do that, I wouldn’t be able to hold on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The long credits finally ended, and the screen faded to black.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the dark reflection, my frail body appeared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A strange sense of emptiness washed over me at that pitiful sight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was probably time to let this game go.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The familiar BGM played, and the main menu appeared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a screen I had seen hundreds of times over the past six months.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As I moved the mouse to exit the game, something caught my eye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An achievement notification—a number “1” was glowing beside the tab that had long been empty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That shouldn’t have been possible. I had unlocked every achievement except the happy ending.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Drawn by curiosity, I clicked the achievement window.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Achievement Unlocked! – Ending Collector】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【View all endings with every playable character.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Achievement “Ending Collector” obtained. You have seen every ending with every character.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Congratulations! A hidden playable character has been unlocked.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the messages continued to pop up, my mind went blank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hidden playable character?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>had a rather unique system.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It allowed any playable character not chosen by the player to appear in the game as an NPC.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In other words, the relationship between the player’s chosen character and the remaining playable ones directly affected the game’s difficulty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But a hidden playable character?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That could mean a new path toward a happy ending had just opened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still… was I really going to fall for this again?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hadn’t I already witnessed countless massacres where every companion—except the protagonist—was slaughtered?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A part of me feared that I was about to get my hopes up only to be crushed again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And I feared that the ending this time might simply be the death of a pathetic addict who had wasted away his final days on a game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even so, my hand moved the mouse toward the New Game button.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“For the last time… really, the last time…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My body was too frail for hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just striking the desk earlier had been enough to send pain rippling through every inch of me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At most, I had a month left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe two weeks if things went poorly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This would be my final challenge in life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had resolved just moments ago to let it go, and yet My hands naturally moved, setting up the game again as if by instinct.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When I clicked on New Game, the character selection screen appeared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And there it was. A new character I had never seen before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hovering the cursor over it opened an information window.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Name, face, stats—everything was blacked out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was it telling me to find out through gameplay?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I clicked Select Character. A blue window popped up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Would you like to select the hidden character, ■■■■■?】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Yes \u002F No】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, I clicked Yes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Once selected, this choice cannot be undone. Do you accept?】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Yes \u002F No】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My hand, which had been clicking rapidly, froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A new message—one I had never seen before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cannot be undone, huh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that didn’t matter. I had already decided that this would be my final attempt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I moved the mouse and pressed Yes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thump.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that very moment, a heavy sensation sank in my chest, as if my heart had dropped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A piercing ringing sound echoed in my ears.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My vision spun, my strength drained away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The familiar opening theme of the game played faintly in the background as my consciousness began to fade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like a TV turning off, my mind went dark.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>---\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beep beep beep!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A loud alarm jolted me awake.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...Wasn’t I supposed to die?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a body that could’ve failed at any moment, I had thought that was the end.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But I was alive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not only alive—my condition felt unbelievably good.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The pain that had tormented me every day was completely gone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My body felt light, almost weightless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was as if I had returned to a time before I ever got sick.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Slowly, I sat up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This place…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t my hospital room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The familiar medicinal smell was gone, and the sterile white walls that had nearly driven me mad were nowhere to be seen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Turning my head, I took in my surroundings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A small but tidy kitchenette, a washing machine beneath it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A neatly arranged desk and laptop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A tiny bookshelf across from a simple bed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It looked like a modest studio apartment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What the hell happened?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Did I… go back in time to before I got sick?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My mind spun, unable to make sense of the situation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A perfectly healthy body, an unfamiliar room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I started to look around, trying to grasp what was going on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then something caught my eye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A gray laptop with a pineapple logo.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was my laptop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I sat down and opened it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What the… hell?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment the screen lit up, I froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Reflected on the black screen was a face that wasn’t mine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jet-black hair that seemed to absorb the light, skin pale as snow, and eyes that blazed gold like molten metal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A cold, sharp-featured man whose beauty felt empty and hollow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t that I was simply shocked by how handsome I’d become.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That face belonged to the final villain of , the very one I had been fighting until moments ago.\u003C\u002Fp>",1866,"2026-06-05T19:04:26.586Z","novelbin.me","d903f3648f8d20ce1ede4265b16796a991f44420a764704341cdb7aa4981358a","i-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-chapter-2",null,137,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fi-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-cover.jpg"]