Chapter 1 – Nobody Wants to Be the MC

【Eksu PoV】

I was reincarnated as a baby.

Yes, a chubby-faced, burp-loving infant.

I still go by the name Eksu.

No dramatic name change—just Eksu.

I quickly discovered one thing: my 【Absolute Defense】 stayed with me.

Even in a diaper, nothing can penetrate my defenses.

But my attack? That remained embarrassingly ordinary—like a baby’s feeble swipe at a dangling toy.

Life as a baby was a whole new adventure.

Imagine a man’s mind trapped in a squirming infant’s body.

Every day was absurd.

I had to navigate playpens, teething rings, and a world of oversized pacifiers.

I remember my first encounter with baby magic.

I tried to cast a spell with my tiny hands and a rattle.

Instead, I ended up producing a flicker of light that looked like a cheap party trick.

My fellow infants giggled.

It was humbling—and hilarious.

Then there was the great bath episode.

I was placed in a warm, soothing tub.

For once, my defense wasn’t even needed.

I splashed and cooed, oblivious to the enchanted water’s magic.

I simply enjoyed being clean and warm.

But trouble never stayed far behind.

A mischievous imp once hurled a minor fireball at me during nap time.

The attack bounced off me like a rubber ball.

Even as a baby, my 【Absolute Defense】 was on full display.

The imp’s surprise was as priceless as it gets.

Of course, life as a baby had its daily disasters.

I once attempted to grab a floating bubble; the bubble burst in a loud pop, drenching me in enchanted water.

Instead of giggles, my protest came out as a frustrated wail.

It turns out even magic enjoys a good laugh at my expense.

Another time, I played with an enchanted rattle.

It swung around and smacked me square on the forehead.

My defense absorbed the hit, but I ended up with a bump that matched my mood.

Each day brought new challenges—struggling with teething, dodging flying toys, and managing endless diaper changes.

I faced it all with a mix of baby grunts and clever maneuvers.

I tried to blend in with the other infants.

We formed our own little alliances in the nursery.

Our version of gossip revolved around the best milk flavors and the coziest blankets.

Yet beneath the cute coos and clumsy antics, I retained the heart of a warrior.

I could block any magical attack with my 【Absolute Defense】, but my offense was as weak as a baby’s first step.

I often sat in my crib, staring at the soft ceiling.

Inside, I planned how to regain my former glory.

But for now, I had to embrace this absurd existence.

It was both ridiculous and strangely liberating.

I learned to enjoy every messy moment and every comical mishap.

I might not cast devastating fireballs or swing a sword, but I could survive the chaos with a smile.

Every giggle and every stumble was a small victory.

As I lay in my crib, eyes twinkling with mischief, I realized something important:

My life had taken a wildly unexpected turn.

Sure, I was reduced to babbling and crawling, but I was still me—Eksu, the one with 【Absolute Defense】.

Even if my attacks were as harmless as a newborn’s pout, my determination burned brighter than any spell.

I couldn’t help but feel a spark of excitement for what was to come.

In this world of magic, mayhem, and mismatched baby skills, anything was possible.

Well… this life will definitely be better than my previous one.

◆ ◇ ◆

【Siegfried PoV】

Before Eksu reincarnation

I’ve been reincarnating for years—years of endless escapes, countless deaths, and a bitter familiarity with this cursed cycle.

I used to love yandere, but those yandere are crazy as fuck. But that’s not even the worst issue: it’s the damn narrative itself.

When I first reincarnated, they gave me a gift—a twisted boon that let me withstand the insane antics of Elizabeth and Lilith… as long as I followed the novel.

That would have been a saving grace if this lazy bastard of an author, Carrara, hadn’t screwed it all up.

Carrara, that worthless, half-assed scribe, only wrote one fucking chapter—one chapter—and then he vanished, leaving me with protection only until I was ten.

I only knew Elizabeth when I was 18, and as you can predict, I was without that shield, and so… I died.

I died a lot.

I remember the last time vividly.

I was barreling through a ravaged town, the skies burning with magical fury.

Behind me, Elizabeth’s manic laughter mingled with Lilith’s cold, relentless pursuit.

A stray fireball—wild and untamed—smashed through my defenses and sent me crashing into rubble.

I could taste defeat as life slipped away in the chaos of shattered dreams.

Before that, there were many ends.

I’ve seen Elizabeth’s jealousy morph into a rampaging storm, and felt Lilith’s obsessive rage pin me against a wall until I could fight no more.

Each death was a grim reminder of Carrara’s twisted humor—a comedy of errors where I was the perpetual punchline.

Carrara cast me as a weak character on purpose, just to squeeze cheap laughs out of my suffering.

I hate him. I hate him for being so lazy, juggling endless projects and never finishing a damn one.

The world I was reborn into was supposed to be grand—a proper web novel with epic quests and heart-pounding battles.

Instead, it turned into a tragic farce where my every rebirth was just another act in his incomplete, cursed script.

Yet, even as I trudge through the broken streets, haunted by memories of each brutal demise, I catch sight of something unexpected.

At the edge of a crumbling courtyard stands a eighteen-year-old Eksu.

He isn’t the babbling infant I once saw—no, he’s older, fiercer, a spark of defiant light amid the chaos.

I watch in awe as he charges into danger without a flicker of hesitation.

Magic explodes around him, and his 【Absolute Defense】 glows with a stubborn, unyielding brilliance.

Citizens gasp and cheer as he intercepts a wild burst of energy, saving them from certain doom.

In that electrifying moment, all the endless cycles of death and despair crystallize into a single, shattering truth.

I can’t keep being the doomed protagonist in Carrara’s lazy, broken narrative.

Every time I’ve died, every brutal end handed to me by Elizabeth or Lilith has only deepened my resolve to break free.

I’ve been the sacrificial lamb, the perpetual casualty of a script that never evolves.

But as I watch young Eksu stand tall where I once fell, I know the time has come for change.

I found a replacement for myself.