Chapter 1

Chapter 1

In the blink of an eye, everything changed.

“As a noble who should have set an example, to think you were committing organized evil deeds… This time, you won’t be able to get away with it.”

Blond hair fluttered before my eyes.

“My name is Arlhardt Remina Astrid.”

Her sharply focused gaze pierced me.

“That necklace is…”

“N-no way! That’s the Astrid royal family pendant!”

“She’s Princess Arlhardt?!”

The surroundings instantly became noisy.

“Arlhardt?”

I muttered the name in disbelief.

Of course, it was a name I knew well.

Not only the name, but her appearance too.

What made the situation even more confusing was the male student standing beside Princess Arlhardt.

“Duke Ren?”

Only after glancing back and forth between the princess and the black-haired male student did I slowly look around me.

“No way.”

When I muttered to myself in bitter resignation, the princess raised her voice first.

“As the princess of Astrid, I will no longer overlook your indulgence.”

So that’s how it happened.

Hearing the princess’s anger-laced voice, I closed my eyes.

From here on, events would unfold exactly as I knew they would.

‘Of all things.’

Yes.

Of all things.

I had entered the world of the game Royal Academy Yggdrasil.

And not just as anyone—but as the most disliked character of all.

Royal Academy Yggdrasil.

Commonly called Yggdrasil.

It was once praised as the hope of domestically-produced console games.

‘After its release, I played it every single day without missing a single day.’

I was one of the players who had checked in daily for over two years.

I must have played from start to end dozens of times.

‘And yet…’

Even though I had entered the game I enjoyed so much, my feelings were far from simple.

As I was dragged to the reflection room, I caught my appearance once more in the mirror.

‘This is what I look like now.’

A tall, lanky frame like a telephone pole.

Pale white skin and black hair.

A man with sharply upturned eyes that left a strong impression stood there.

My furrowed brow seemed to reflect my troubled state perfectly.

‘Villed…!’

Nickname—Small Fry Villed.

Despite his cold and chic exterior, he repeated nothing but obnoxious lines and petty behavior, only to be disgracefully removed from the story as the Chapter 1 boss.

Thanks to this incident, the princess and the protagonist would make acquaintance and eventually develop a closer relationship.

I was the sacrificial lamb for that.

‘Why did it have to be this guy?’

The character voted overwhelmingly as the most unlikeable.

‘I nearly broke my controller.’

‘This bastard’s attitude is unbelievably bad. Can’t we just delete him?’

‘Even after he gets put in his place and kicked out, it’s still not satisfying.’

‘I almost deleted the game because of him. The entry barrier is way too high.’

From the prologue through Chapter 1, he relentlessly subjected the player to trials, debuffs, and spiteful insults.

Even his smiling voice and lines were so unpleasant that he was universally hated.

It was said that he was the “entry barrier” of Yggdrasil—that said it all.

If only I could have become the protagonist, Duke Ren.

He was the main character, with fast growth, exciting adventures, and loyal companions ahead of him.

‘No helping it, though.’

Unfortunately, I couldn’t delete this character and remake him, so I had no choice but to accept reality.

“We will now begin the meeting regarding Villed’s expulsion.”

Even though I was sitting in the reflection room, I could faintly hear voices from the meeting room next door.

But I didn’t bother to listen closely.

‘What’s the point? I already know exactly what’s going to happen to me.’

Normally, this would be an expulsion-worthy incident, but since I was a noble’s son, I would get away with it.

Barely, though.

“Villed, you will be sentenced to manage the livestock shed until graduation.”

The decision on my punishment came quickly.

Everything went exactly as I had expected.

I nodded while rubbing my face.

‘Knew it.’

On a corner lot of Yggdrasil stood a small farm.

Even in the game, it was a fully implemented map.

A place for part-time jobs or requests to earn currency.

But its reputation was…

‘Guys, never take farm requests.’

‘Even with free time, I don’t want to work on the farm.’

‘You have to chase runaway animals, feed them, clean up… I can’t tell if I’m playing a game or doing labor.’

‘It’s boring, time crawls by, and there’s way too much to do. No wonder it’s unpopular.’

And no, the rewards weren’t any better either.

‘Not that I’m in a position to be picky about rewards anyway.’

What could I do?

For me, this wasn’t labor—it was punishment.

For committing immoral acts against the princess and the protagonist.

‘The one who committed the crime and the one who gets punished aren’t the same person.’

With a deep sigh, I trudged toward the farm.

‘Looks just as shabby as it did in the game.’

It was a rectangular-shaped livestock shed.

The wooden walls were stained as if they had aged for a long time.

Rust clung to the iron pillars supporting the roof.

Even just approaching it, a stench sharp enough to sting my nose made it clear how poorly it had been maintained.

‘Why are there so many?’

There were a total of three pens in the shed.

They were packed full of animals—horses, cows, rabbits, chickens, and more.

Knowing I would soon have to work here only made it all the more dreadful.

“Well, if it isn’t young master Villed? What brings a man of your standing to such a shabby place…?”

“I can tell it’s shabby without you saying so.”

“Oh, wait, if you go there…!”

While walking with a handkerchief pressed against my nose, I felt something heavy brush against my toes and my face contorted.

Damn it.

“I-I’ll fetch you a brand-new pair of shoes right away! Just a moment, please…!”

“Stop. I don’t need them. More importantly, starting today, you don’t have to come here anymore—so get lost. Now.”

“Pardon?”

When I gave a brief explanation to the clueless staff member, his face suddenly lit up.

“R-really? That’s the school’s decision? I get to work somewhere else?”

He must have really hated farm work.

Seeing his face look as if he could take flight only soured my mood further.

“Here, you just follow what’s written in this notebook… And since you don’t want to get dirty, wear this too…”

Even while gauging my mood, the staff member passed along some basic instructions and placed work clothes in front of me.

It was a set consisting of shabby overalls and rubber boots.

‘So much for noble dignity.’

A highborn noble cleaning manure in livestock shed attire?

I could already feel my ears itching from the gossip that would spread across Yggdrasil.

Villed’s punishment would last from today until graduation.

Since it was only about a month after the start of term… the thought of how many years lay ahead made my vision go dark.

‘Should I just drop out?’

I considered it for a moment, then shook my head.

‘If I don’t even graduate, I won’t have an excuse to cling to anyone later… Besides, the only events I know in this game happen inside the school.’

In the end, there was only one thing I could do.

Grit my teeth and endure until graduation.

‘Damn it.’

With a sigh of self-mockery, I began my work.

If memory served, when Villed first ended up in this situation, he refused to accept reality and rebelled—only to be utterly beaten down.

If I slacked off too much and got caught, I wouldn’t even have bones left.

The princess would surely have people monitoring me regularly.

‘Let’s see… What was I supposed to start with?’

I began working by combining the notes I had been given with my memories of farming in Yggdrasil.

‘This weakling Villed… couldn’t you at least have built some muscle?’

I strained to lift the water bucket, only to set it down again.

Though tall, I had no muscle at all.

Even the easiest jobs left me winded, and any heavy lifting had me groaning in strain.

Some time passed like that.

“Phew, let’s rest… just a bit… just a bit…”

Even though I had only finished washing the floors with water, my whole body felt like it was falling apart.

I sat down heavily, wiping the sweat pouring down my face with a towel.

When I looked up at the cloudless blue sky, a sudden complaint came to mind.

‘Everyone else is using magic and swinging swords, and here I am…’

Then a thought struck me.

‘Come to think of it, what was Villed’s ability again?’

Villed.

Like the pathetic boss he was, appearing and disappearing without much fanfare, his abilities were shrouded in mystery.

As I pondered what exactly he was supposed to do—

A familiar screen appeared.

Riz Villed Dedencman Ludwig

Age: 17

Status: Fatigue, Confusion

Fame: 7 / Infamy: 133

A noble from the Ivory Tower.

Second son of Count Doshik Deron Dedenk Ludwig, ruler of the Dedenkman Territory—a peninsula at the southernmost point of the Astrid Empire, surrounded on three sides by the sea.

His fame plummeted after the incident with the princess.

“What the…?”

A sleek, silver system window.

The character description and UI were exactly as I had seen in the game.

Health: 1

Mana: 4

Strength: 1

Willpower: 1

Agility: 1

Owned Skills: 1

‘…These are his stats?’

They were perfectly in line with the word “pathetic.”

‘Compared to the protagonist, this is nothing.’

As someone who had played Yggdrasil, I couldn’t help but be disappointed.

And then, something else caught my eye.

Class – 븭뿕∀ㄵꠓꠑ├ŁげꠛQ

In Yggdrasil, character classes were divided into Warrior, Archer, and Mage.

But what was this?

‘Some kind of bug?’

I blinked at the bizarre jumble of text.

‘Don’t tell me… they didn’t even bother to implement a class for him because he leaves the story so early?’

It was possible.

He was, after all, a boss character with not a single actual combat scene.

The glitch was annoying, and I had no shortage of other problems either.

‘Well, with this frail body, I couldn’t be a Warrior or an Archer anyway. My only option is Mage.’

Fortunately, my mana was higher than the other stats.

If I trained it, I might be able to make myself at least somewhat useful.

Besides, I even had a skill—if I grew slowly over time, I’d manage.

While managing the livestock shed, I could also build up my health and strength little by little.

‘Yeah. Think positive. Positive.’

All that remained now was my unique skill.

It was the defining trait of any character.

But then…

Unique Skill – 6둸?m㈓%樹6둼i섡ㄵ?

Once again, an error filled my vision.

‘Why are there so many bugs?’

I couldn’t check it this time either.

No matter how many times I tried, it was the same.

‘Bugged piece of crap.’

Abandoning my hopes, I massaged one shoulder and got back to my feet.

I still had mountains of work left to do.

‘Let’s finish the quota first.’

The next job was feeding the animals.

When I poured out the feed that the staff had prepared in advance, the cows eagerly buried their faces into the troughs.

They mooed happily, clearly enjoying themselves.

And then—

Unique Skill Activated

“…Unique skill!”

Startled, I dropped the feed I was holding.

At last, its true nature was about to be revealed.

Skill: ✿Animal✿Farm✿

Welcome to the Animal Farm!

A wonderful animal farm created together by 900 types of animals and the farm owner!

To log in, please say “Enter Animal Farm!”

This is an animal farm made just for you!

A cutesy, pink-tinted system window.

“…What the hell is this?”

Something that didn’t fit this world at all had just appeared.