"Good morning!" A girl exclaimed brightly, her voice full of energy as she rushed toward her friend.
"Good morning. You're unusually cheerful this early," her friend replied with a smile, matching her energy as they walked together toward their classroom.
Engrossed in their conversation, they failed to watch where they were going and ended up bumping into someone's back.
"I'm sor—" they started to apologize but froze mid-sentence as their eyes widened, realizing who they had just bumped into.
Standing before them was a tall, muscular man exuding an intimidating aura. His sharp, menacing eyes seemed to pierce straight through them.
They couldn't believe their rotten luck—of all people, they had to bump into the most fearsome and notorious delinquent in the city first thing in the morning. Panic gripped them as they stood frozen, unsure of what to do. But to their immense relief, the man merely glanced at them with disinterest before turning away and continuing toward his destination.
They audibly let out a sigh of relief. "I-I thought we were doomed," one of them stammered, still shaken.
"R-really, I thought so too. My legs are still shaking, as expected of the most terrifying delinquent in the city."
"Why hasn't the school expelled him yet?"
It was the question on the minds of most students at the school.
'Because I never broke any rules and I do my studies well,' the guy in question thought to himself, as he could hear their every word clearly.
A tired sigh escaped his lips. "Why are they so scared of me? I never wanted to become someone like this," he muttered under his breath, frustration lacing his voice.
The story flashed back to when he was just a kid. He'd watched an anime about delinquents and thought they were the epitome of cool. The rough, macho guys who fought against injustice—he admired them more than anything. From that day on, he made it his goal to become just like them. The very next day, he joined an MMA gym, throwing himself into training with unwavering dedication. To his surprise, he had a natural talent for fighting, picking up every move with remarkable speed and precision.
From the moment he started his first year of high school, he eagerly pursued his dream. He immediately began fighting against the bullies and delinquents, thinking that everyone would thank him and hail him as a hero. But to his shock, things didn't go as planned. Instead of admiration, the next thing he knew, everyone was terrified of him. Soon, all the delinquents in the city started targeting him, never giving him a moment of peace—not even in the toilet.
"It's all Mikey's fault," he grumbled under his breath, his anger bubbling up as he blamed the anime character who had sparked his misguided inspiration.
After school ended, as he made his way home like any other day, a group of delinquents appeared to block his path. Unfazed, he led them into a nearby alley, where he swiftly dealt with them out of the public's view. Just as he was about to leave, his foot accidentally kicked over a trash bin. The loud clatter drew his attention, and amidst the spilled garbage, something unusual caught his eye—a pristine DVD of an anime he'd never seen or heard of before, its cover looking totally new and clean, as if it had just been placed there moments ago.
"'Troubled Heroines'? What a strange title," he muttered, picking up the DVD and reading the name aloud. After a moment's thought, he added, "Hmm, tomorrow's a holiday. I might as well give this a watch. It's been ages since I last watched an anime." With that decision made, he slipped the DVD into his pocket and continued on his way, leaving the battered delinquents sprawled in the alley behind him without a second glance.
Just as he had planned, the next day he holed up in his room, ready to watch the mysterious anime DVD he had stumbled upon. His excitement was palpable as he held the disc in his hands. "I really hope this DVD isn't broken," he muttered, a hint of apprehension in his voice.
Saying a silent prayer, he slid it into the player. To his relief, the screen lit up, and the anime began to play smoothly. A grin spread across his face as the opening sequence started to roll.
He settled into his seat in front of the screen, a bowl of popcorn and a cold drink within arm's reach, ready to immerse himself in the anime. As the episodes played on, he found himself surprisingly engrossed. To his surprise, it was actually quite good. The anime turned out to be a high school romcom, but it wasn't all lighthearted fluff. Hidden within the cheerful facade were darker scenes and events that added depth and intrigue, making the story far more captivating than he'd initially expected.
The anime's plot centered around an average high school boy living a mundane, everyday life—until one fateful day changed everything. After a chance encounter where he saved a girl, his once-ordinary existence was thrown into chaos. What began as a simple act of kindness spiraled into a series of events that upended his world, introducing him to new relationships, unforeseen challenges, and secrets that he never could have imagined. It was a mix of heartwarming moments, comedic twists, and unexpected darkness that kept the story gripping.
However, there was one aspect of the anime that he couldn't stand—the protagonist. A textbook example of your genaric dense as osmium, oblivious harem protagonist, the guy couldn't pick up on a single hint from the girls throwing themselves at him. To make it worse, he'd blush a hundred times per minute over the smallest interactions, making him frustratingly predictable and infuriating to watch.
"Why does every romcom need a protagonist like this?" he sighed frustratingly, rolling his eyes as the main character fumbled his way through yet another awkward moment.
To make matters worse, the protagonist wasn't just dense—he was a complete coward too. In the end, when all the girls confessed their feelings and outright asked him to choose who he loved, he panicked and ran away.
"Seriously? You goddam coward, man up and give them at least an answer, you spineless bastard!" he groaned, feeling a mix of disappointment and secondhand embarrassment. The lack of resolution left a sour taste in his mouth, making him question why the author ruined such a great story with a protagonist like this.
"Hey! Can you keep it down? I can't focus on my studies with all that noise!"
His sister's annoyed voice rang out from the next room, cutting through his rant. Startled, he froze mid-complaint, his body stiffening as though caught red-handed. "Oops," he muttered under his breath, glancing guiltily toward the wall. Without another word, he sank back into his seat, his mouth firmly shut.
And just like that, the anime ended—with that awful, unsatisfying conclusion, which left a bitter taste in his mouth, the kind that made him regret even starting it. "What a waste of time," he muttered, slouching back in his chair, staring blankly at the credits rolling across the screen.
"Ugh, my mood is completely ruined, and my day off is almost wasted," he groaned, running a hand through his hair in frustration. With a resigned sigh, he stood up and shuffled toward his bed. "Guess I'll just take a nap until lunch," he muttered, already feeling the weight of disappointment settle in. He climbed into bed, pulled the covers over himself, and closed his eyes, hoping a quick nap would help clear his mind and salvage the rest of the day.
.....
A few hours later, he woke up, his head feeling heavy, and his hair poking into his eyes. He quickly brushed it aside, groaning at the grogginess lingering from the nap.
"Ugh! My head hurts, probably from all that shouting earlier," he groaned, rubbing his temples in an attempt to ease the discomfort.
Because he was still sleepy, he failed to notice that his hair was unusually longer than his original hair.
With sluggish steps, he made his way to the bathroom, only to freeze in place the moment he opened the door. Because instead of the familiar sight of a toilet, he was greeted by an abandoned room, thick with dust and cobwebs, as if it hadn't been touched in years.
"I'm such an idiot for mistaking another room for the toilet," he muttered, facepalming in frustration. But then a thought struck him—was there even a room like this in the house? This unfamiliar sight made him pause, but the urgency of his situation quickly overpowered his curiosity. He dismissed the thought and resumed his search for the actual bathroom, as the pressure was becoming unbearable.
He hurriedly opened every doors in the corridor, only to find more unused rooms, just like the first. Growing increasingly desperate, he finally reached the door at the very end of the hallway. As he swung it open, relief washed over him—the bathroom he had been searching for. A joyful smile bloomed on his face as he finally found what he was looking for.
"What the heck is going on? Why couldn't I find the bathroom in my own house?" he muttered in confusion. Despite his bewilderment, a look of pure bliss spread across his face as he finally relieved himself in peace.
After finishing his business and heading for the door, his gaze happened to fall on the mirror mounted on the wall. He froze, flinching as his eyes widened in shock.
The reflection staring back at him wasn't his own, but that of a stranger—a figure with long, unkempt black hair, its messy bangs nearly covering his eyes. From beneath those dark strands, a pair of Gloomy crimson-red eyes peeked through.
"W-Wait, that's… me? How did I end up like this?" he exclaimed in confusion, his voice trembling. He raised his hands to his face, frantically feeling his own features, hoping the unfamiliar reflection was some sort of hallucination.
Minutes passed, but nothing changed. Lost in thought, he wandered out of the bathroom, his mind racing with confusion. He searched for his sister and mother, but neither of them were anywhere to be found. The room next to his, which should've been his sister's, was now empty—just another unused space, completely abandoned. A strange feeling of unease settled in as he stood there, trying to make sense of it all.
Unexpectedly, memories began to flood his mind—memories that surely didn't belong to him. Through these unfamiliar recollections, he saw two strangers whom he was addressing as his parents. According to these memories, he had lived in Tokyo with them, attending school there while his parents worked long hours. But his school life wasn't easy. He had been relentlessly bullied, with no one noticing, least of all his parents, who were too consumed with their jobs. Things took a darker turn when he became the center of a massive incident, one that went viral on social media and caused a huge uproar.
When his parents finally learned about the situation, they dropped everything and rushed to his side, leaving their work behind. It turned out they weren't so bad after all—they truly cared about him. After the incident, they decided to send him to Akiyama City, their hometown, to live with his grandmother. He had been living there for a few months, but unfortunately, she passed away a couple of weeks ago. Now, he was left all alone in this large house, the silence hanging heavily around him.
"So his name is also Hayato? Amane Hayato, Akiyama City, Akatsuki High School," Hayato muttered, recalling the name that had surfaced in his mind. Then, like a sudden shock, it hit him. Akiyama City. That was the setting of the anime Troubled Heroines, and Akatsuki High School—the very school where the plot took place. His heart raced as the realization dawned on him. "No way..." he whispered under his breath, the pieces of the puzzle starting to fall into place.
"I can't believe it… Did I really get transmigrated into an anime world?" Hayato muttered, still in disbelief. "But this kind of thing only happens in anime…" His mind raced, trying to make sense of it all. Then, a thought struck him. "Wait… if my memories are right, Hayato was supposed to attend Akatsuki High School as a first-year two days from now." He paused, his brow furrowing. "So why can't I remember someone like him from the anime?" The more he thought about it, the stranger it seemed.
But that wasn't important right now. Now that he understood the bizarre situation he was in, one question echoed in his mind, growing louder with each passing moment: What is he going to do next?
"Should I just live like Hayato would?" he muttered, frowning. "But... I want to go back home. Is returning even possible?" The thought weighed heavily on him, and a sense of uncertainty settled in. Then, another thought struck him like a bolt of lightning. "And what happened to my real body?" He paused, staring blankly ahead. The idea of being trapped in someone else's life, with no answers to where his true self was, sent a chill down his spine. There were too many questions, and no answers in sight.
He realized that spiraling into endless questions wouldn't get him anywhere. Taking a deep breath, he decided to calm his mind and focus. The first step became clear: attend the school. If this really was the world of Troubled Heroines, then Akatsuki High would hold the key to everything. He needed to see it for himself, meet the people from the anime, and figure out exactly what's his role in this strange new reality.