Questions and doubts were many.

As I touched my cheek in front of the bedroom mirror, a bewildered expression appeared.

Am I still alive?

No…

The screen in front of me clearly displayed nonsense.

=====

ID: Riley Carl

Admission: Imperial Academy

Special Condition: (Special Exam)

Opening Ceremony Date: First Quarter of the Solar Calendar.

=====

Riley Carl?

Was that my name?

What was my name in the first place?

Just as my headache reached its peak…

A flood of astronomical memories poured into my head.

Ah...?

I remember everything!

In my previous life, I wrote a web novel to finance my higher education, but in a tragic road accident, I died.

Why?

I collapsed onto my bed with vacant eyes, while my head slowly turned toward the window on my left.

The figure reflected in my irises.

Jet-black hair.

Skin as white as a vampire’s.

And the red eyes of a demon.

The reflection in the window wasn’t my face, but a completely unfamiliar one.

The features were rather mysterious, but it wasn’t a face that would stand out.

Aside from the intimidating eyes, I looked like an ordinary man.

While still staring at the status window, I noticed several lines.

Imperial Academy admission?

That sounded familiar.

Furrowing my brows, I began to think of one thing.

The main story of my last novel took place in an Imperial Academy.

Is this a coincidence?

Lowering my eyes, I began to laugh as I read: "First Quarter of the Solar Calendar."

In my novel, the Imperial Academy that signaled the start of the story aligned with the first quarter of the solar calendar. In other words, the start of the next year.

Why was the opening ceremony date the same as in my novel?

Taking a deep breath, reorganizing my chaotic thoughts, another information window projected itself in front of me.

=====

Information:

Official Rank: First Level

Planetary Lord: First Level

Profession: Commander

Class: Support

=====

"It's weak..."

Looking at the new information with curiosity, I let out a sigh.

Riley Carl wasn’t even a side character, nor a named character in my novel.

And why had he enrolled as a Commander in the Support class?

It was a worthless, abandoned profession shunned by everyone.

The Commander profession involved maneuvering an army in battle, capturing key points to secure victory.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

But now this world was focused on interpersonal combat—what was the point of gathering an army to fight a man who could massacre a human army?

Hitting my head stupidly, I began laughing at my situation.

It was like having the job of a monk copying books in the modern era.

Useless and absurdly slow.

Quickly accepting my situation, I reasoned that I had to adapt to my new life anyway, and regardless of my current condition, I had to survive in my novel and be present at the end of this world.

To be honest, I hadn’t even written the ending of my novel.

Oh well, it wasn’t like that was important right now.

Putting those thoughts aside, this world was filled with magic and skills!

It was impossible not to be excited—it was every man's dream to use magic and impressive skills.

But somehow, I didn’t feel any magic in my chest.

Why?

Had a delay occurred because I reincarnated into my novel?

Sweating profusely, I began to realize... I had no mana in my body, not even any useful skills!

There was no chance of surviving in this world unless I found a way to catch up somehow, despite this nonexistent talent.

Placing my hand under my chin, I started planning my next steps.

"Even though my reincarnation is bad, it’s not all lost. I just need to buy skill books, absorb beast cores, and develop allied forces."

Crash!

"Young Master!"

Hmm? Me, a young master?

Oh, wasn’t there a line that said: Planetary Lord in my information?

Thinking back, I guess that line was there.

Planetary Lords were like nobles in the novel; their status completely depended on their level.

Ninth level: Nation

Zero level: Hostile planet

The higher the level, the better the status, and thus, the individual’s political power.

Currently, my planet was considered a colony of the Empire. I was a noble with little consequential power, so my life was comfortable.

"Young Master?" The butler was worried and still waiting.

Shaking my head to clear away useless thoughts, I looked at the old man, waiting for him to speak.

In my novel, I included advisors for Planetary Lords. Some were a kind of butler serving the nobles—it was practically useful and less annoying for the busy nobles.

What was his name again...?

"Stein?"

"Yes, Young Master!" Stein beamed with joy at my words.

Hmm, good.

"What’s going on?"

Getting to the main topic, Stein took on a pained expression, leading my thoughts toward bad news.

And my prediction seemed to unfold.

"Officials from several cities have demanded independence for their towns in parts of the region. They’ve united to resist our government’s power. We absolutely must send an army!"

Wait, a rebellion now?

Why does my luck seem nonexistent?

Shaking my head again, tiring my neck from constantly turning out of habit, I dismissed Stein and pulled up a magical map of the entire region.

On the map, I was at the center, surrounded by a symbol resembling a building. It was a medium-sized city, but it served as the capital.

At the heart of Carl’s domain.

Several areas had turned red.

Seemingly territories taken by the treacherous officials.

Ring-

Several dossiers were sent to me.

It was Stein who had provided all the names of the foolish officials who had rebelled. This man was rather useful.

Reading through the email, I didn’t recognize a single name.

Well, this planet wouldn’t even have had a single line in my novel, let alone my character, so external actors were nonexistent.

That was better for me.

No repercussions if they all died.

Leaving my office, familiarizing myself with the surroundings, I stepped out of the building, which strongly resembled a ten-story structure.

The streets were filthy, reeking of piss and excrement. The trees were completely dry, making the environment feel distorted. And the people sleeping in tents on the streets made it even worse.

How many homeless people lived in my domain?

Just at the entrance of the building, there were at least a thousand.

And we hadn’t even crossed a section of the city; other popular districts must be in even worse condition than this.

At least the soldiers seemed to have better conditions than the residents, although some wore a morbid expression.

"Sir!" A man in his fifties greeted me in a tent near the city's main gate.

Commander Lionel.

Though his position was high in the military hierarchy, he was only human. His only usefulness lay in a mana-enhanced sword.

Ordinary soldiers only wielded regular swords.

"Good day, Commander Lionel."

"Oh, no need to be polite with me, Young Master," he smiled.

"Alright then, call me Moretti—Riley."

I almost revealed my previous name instead of my new one. Lionel seemed not to notice and continued the conversation.

“Well…? Our scouts have detected unknown movements in the forest areas, the place where we lost contact previously.”

“Do we know how many they are?”

“Taking into account the variables… 5 armies of 1000 soldiers with a combined mage unit among the five officials.”

“A coalition, then…”

The situation had become complicated.

We only have a few thousand soldiers by combining the soldiers from the capital and the three other regions. A numerically inferior force.

They think they can topple me from my position.

Me? The one who created this world from scratch? I’ll show you how to fight.

Lionel continued and showed several places with strategic zones. Pointing to a spot, he asked, “The best position to intercept their armies would be the valley. I think we should gather all our soldiers in that direction.”

Considering his words, I silently tapped the table.

Lionel thought I was hesitant and gave more arguments.

“There are three regions ahead of us before their coalition armies reach the capital. We should concentrate all our military forces towards the second region. Reducing our gathering efforts and fighting with our full strength.”

“That’s not the problem, Lionel.”

Lionel raised an eyebrow. “?”

“This confrontation will cause many losses… How will we defend our planet if our strength weakens?”

There were two factors to consider. First, the rebels who wanted to organize a rebellion. The second being the surrounding planetary lords who were closely watching the battle’s progress.

In case of weakness, I was certain that hundreds of spaceships would be around my planet, waiting for me to surrender.

“Young master Riley, I know. But what else can we do? If that were the case, I would have already chosen another solution. This is a war, not a game.”

It was Lionel’s main occupation, but what could he do? Lionel was a seasoned and capable military man, with many experiences, he knew that this situation was already very bad, so I nodded.

“Your intuition is good, it’s a good solution, but not the best.”

“Are you saying you have a better solution? If I may, can you tell me? I’m curious.”

Lionel wasn’t arrogant, but what could he expect from an eighteen-year-old student who had never fought on the front lines?

He thought?

I might not be a strategist, but using a technique used in the novel against armies with an immeasurable number of enemies was surely not as difficult as claiming to be a god.

When Lionel heard my words, he widened his eyes before nodding frantically and ordering the advance of the army.

“Hm… I hope everything goes well.”