Unlock all hidden classes.

System: Please select your starting class.

It was the same familiar voice, but the scene before me was completely different. Countless figures in all kinds of outfits had appeared before my eyes.

A warrior holding aloft a gleaming greatshield. A mage surrounded by storms of ice, fire, and wind. A knight standing atop a dragon’s spine. A holy maiden bathed in sacred light. An assassin whose blurred silhouette radiated a chilling bloodlust.

A closer count revealed several hundred of them. With the imposing aura each one carried, they looked like an invincible army.

Of course, that was if you ignored the jarring contrast between their fearsome presence and their naturally adorable faces and figures. Otherwise, their charge would look less like a terrifying assault and more like a bunch of little girls squealing as they threw themselves into your arms.

“Why are there so many?”

If I remembered correctly, the Human Empire in my previous life had only around a hundred hidden classes. Even if the real number was a bit different, it couldn’t possibly be this ridiculously high.

But I soon figured out why. These figures weren’t all human; they included hidden classes from other races, too. I even spotted classes from the Dark Faction among them.

The Light Faction and the Dark Faction were the two major factions in Era. Yet for a long time during the early game, players could barely find out anything about the Dark Faction.

That didn’t change until a player team unlocked an ancient ruin and discovered “The Other Side of the World,” triggering the launch of a new game expansion. Only then did the Dark Faction gradually reveal itself to all players.

After that, Era opened up a way to switch factions. Lured by the potential profits, plenty of players, guilds, and even corporate groups flocked to the dark world. I’d considered it in my previous life, too, but in the end, I gave up on the idea.

I was glad I’d made that choice. Even by the time I was reborn—more than four years after Era’s launch—the Light Faction still had the Dark Faction completely suppressed. Dark Faction players were up in arms about it on the forums.

Putting that aside for now, I realized it wasn’t just the race information that was missing. The class descriptions that should’ve been there had vanished, too.

“Did something go wrong when the data was swapped?”

That meant I’d have to judge each hidden class’s traits and fighting style by appearance alone. But that wasn’t difficult for me.

First, I ruled out the Dark Faction classes. I didn’t want to start out as the enemy of every player, and joining the dark world would wipe out all the advantages I’d gained from being reborn. Next, I ruled out every non-human race. Finally, I made a separate list of the magic classes.

Of course, I’d reached these conclusions by observing them, so there was a chance I might be wrong. But I wasn’t going to worry about that.

Even after all that filtering, more than thirty figures remained. But I still had one final criterion.

Dark magic.

Even the Light Faction had classes that used dark magic. But dark magic was only a means to an end for them; they still yearned for the light. Take the Dark Word Mage I’d played in my previous life, the shadow priest who weakened enemies’ attributes, and the Warlock who drew on outside forces to strengthen themself.

Dark magic classes offered both damage and control. Their only drawback was that they were more fragile than other magic classes. That meant there weren’t many of them to begin with, and the hidden classes that made it through my screening were even rarer.

So, among the dark magic classes that remained, one figure immediately caught my eye: someone completely wrapped in a dark-gold cloak.

Maybe it was the terrifyingly dense aura of darkness surrounding them. Maybe it was just my gut. Either way, I could tell this figure was powerful.

“Could it be a Dragonkin?”

When I saw the pair of massive horns jutting out from either side of their head, the possibility suddenly occurred to me. Dragonkin were the extremely rare hybrid offspring of dragons and ancient humans.

They had extraordinary bloodlines and the kind of destructive strength that could shatter mountains with their bare hands. Dragonkin mages might not have such terrifying physical prowess, but they could wield powerful draconic magic with ease. Their magic power and mental growth were among the very best of any magic class, too.

It was practically the perfect choice.

I made up my mind in an instant and reached out to touch the figure in front of me without a second thought.

At the time, I didn’t know that horns didn’t necessarily mean someone was a Dragonborn. There were other possibilities, too—and the system instructor gave me the right answer the very next second.

System: You have selected Demon King as your starting class.

“So it’s the Demon King. No wonder they look so… in…cred…ibly… powerful. Huh?”

I froze for a moment, then suddenly realized something didn’t seem quite right.

System: Error A1500#. Unable to execute current task. Adjusting logic A1501#. Changing starting race to Demon [Primordial Demon]. Changing faith to Dark Faith. Changing faction to the Dark Faction.

Only then did I realize what was happening.

“Wait! You’ve definitely got something wrong!”

But as if to prove my point, a sudden, blaring alarm drowned out my voice completely.

System: Error A1502#. Error B121#. Error B475#… Warning, warning. Critical terminal error…

Wait, was the system about to crash?

I swallowed nervously as red warning bars kept popping up all around me. “Um, actually, I don’t mind being the Demon King…”

Just as the alarms around me grew more and more urgent, a clear, melodious female voice rang out. It was unmistakably different from the electronic voice—and the alarms fell silent at once.

System: Retaining record A1502. Forcing logic A01. Entering game.

Before I could react, a flash of white light swallowed me whole.

…

When I opened my eyes again, I found myself in a lavishly decorated room. The black walls and richly detailed oil paintings gave it the feel of a medieval castle.

“Where am I?”

I’d only asked out loud out of habit, because I was in a new place. I hadn’t expected anyone to answer.

“The Other Side of the World. Herentis, the capital. The Demon King’s Castle.” The clear, ethereal voice sounded strangely familiar.

Following the sound, I turned my head—and only then noticed a slender figure sitting beside me.

Golden hair fell beside a face so flawless and delicate it looked sculpted. She paid me no mind, calmly cutting a piece of cream cake with her cutlery and bringing it to her lips. She was as elegant and composed as a noble young lady determined to uphold every rule of etiquette.

Sunlight streamed through the glass skylight, bathing everything in a sacred glow. The scene was as beautiful as a masterpiece painted by the hand of God.

“Beau—”

My lips parted slightly.

“Those words are meaningless to me. Even if you aren’t just saying them to flatter me, praise like that won’t make me happy.” The blonde girl spoke in a flat tone, as if stating the obvious.

“That looks really good.”

I glanced at her in confusion, then turned my eyes back to the food on the table. Maybe it was because kids loved sweets, or maybe it was because I’d rushed through lunch. Either way, the lavish spread had worked up my appetite.

“…”

For some reason, the girl’s expression seemed to stiffen.

“Can I have some?”

“…”