Villain's Refund System: The Protagonist's Harem Is Mine

Northglass Preserve smelled of wet stone when Damien’s class crossed its training gate beneath two bored proctors.

He checked Mina’s sensor around one wrist, ’they called this route routine after posting an anomaly warning, yeah, disaster clearly took the day off.’

Forty first-years spread along a mossy ravine where blue moths floated above shallow pools and harmless crawler tracks.

Tovin Reed walked behind Damien wearing the same oversized coat, its blank cuff brushing ferns around his narrow legs.

"Lord Sterling, I reviewed every available Northglass recording and found no historic anomaly," he said, holding a tablet against his chest.

"Stop calling me lord while carrying better research than both proctors," Damien replied, looking toward their unlit detection rods.

"That request creates a difficult social problem around your family name," Tovin answered, adjusting sandy hair away from worried eyes.

’He over-explains whenever nervous, great, the boy must feel terrified if research became an entire backpack.’

Proctor Valez raised one hand near the ravine fork and pointed everyone toward the marked eastern route.

"Remain inside blue stakes until your collection charms reach capacity, then return through this exact path," she called, checking a silver watch.

"What happens if the anomaly warning becomes something with teeth?" Damien asked, examining claw marks beyond the western wall.

"The notice came from an unverified sensor fault, Sterling, so avoid alarming your classmates without evidence," Valez replied, tapping her dormant rod.

’Sure, wait for evidence to bite somebody, then update the safety pamphlet afterward.’

The first blue stake snapped beneath the ground before Damien could answer.

Moss lifted around a broad black spine, followed by six legs covered in clear crystal growths.

A wolf-shaped beast tore through the ravine floor and bit one detection rod from the second proctor’s hand.

[Warped Glassmaw]

[Level: 286]

[Correction-class Fauna]

[Divergence: 16% → 25%]

[Correction Threshold Reached]

The percentage burned red as the creature crushed silver between transparent teeth.

Damien watched both proctors lose color, ’they see the number too, good, perhaps twenty-five percent finally makes warnings sound less dramatic.’

’Twenty-five, damn, the story finally grew an immune system, plus it brought a jaw larger than my torso.’

Valez triggered an evacuation flare and pointed students toward the eastern route they had entered.

"Everyone follow blue stakes toward the gate while both proctors contain this beast," she shouted, drawing a hooked staff from her coat.

Eye of Reckoning crossed the eastern wall and found a second level signature moving beneath that safe path.

[Unknown Correction]

[Level: 400]

[Trajectory: Evacuation Route]

"Do not enter the eastern path, something stronger is tunneling beneath those stakes," Damien shouted, stepping across the first fleeing group.

"Sterling, clear our evacuation line before your interference traps this entire class," the second proctor ordered, raising a cracked shield.

"Your safe path has a level four-hundred beast under it," Damien replied, pointing toward shaking mud beyond the blue markers.

Tovin stopped behind him immediately, though several students continued until the ground split beneath their leading stake.

A hooked claw punched through the trail and dragged one empty collection bag below before its owner could release the strap.

"That bag had better survival instincts than academy staff," Damien muttered, forcing students toward the western shelf.

Valez stared at the buried claw before changing her flare from evacuation blue to hazard red.

"Move along Sterling’s western route and remain beneath the stone shelf," she shouted, engaging the first Glassmaw with her staff.

’Finally, now keep the visible beast busy while I stop its larger friend from reaching everyone.’

The level 286 creature lunged through Valez’s guard, throwing her against the ravine wall beneath broken crystal.

Damien Flickered between those jaws and the fallen proctor, then cut one bright growth from its lower neck.

Black residue sprayed from the wound instead of blood, forming hooked marks across his saber.

[Fate Anomaly Core Detected]

[Bounty Multiplier: ×3]

’Triple rewards for Corrections, oh, now that is beautiful, though I should survive before calculating anything.’

He branded the Glassmaw and moved around its front legs, feeding shallow blocks into the tally without accepting direct bites.

Tovin helped three students climb the western shelf, then turned back when Valez failed to stand.

The remaining class crowded beneath a stone lip barely two meters deep, with collection charms clutched uselessly against muddy uniforms.

Several students watched Damien instead of their proctors now, fear turning every previous joke about his Trash rating into uncomfortable memory.

"Lord Sterling, the western shelf narrows after twenty meters and ends above another pool," Tovin called, checking his map while pulling Valez.

"Keep everyone here until this ground completely stops producing teeth below us," Damien replied, watching the Glassmaw gather itself for another charge.

"Hey, keep moving upward before courage gets your narrow body eaten," Damien shouted, ducking beneath a crystal paw.

"The proctor cannot reach cover without assistance, so leaving would create another casualty," Tovin replied, running toward Valez anyway.

’Stubborn little researcher, shit, apparently terrible survival choices spread after people watch me.’

Damien cut across the Glassmaw’s eyes and triggered Iron Veil against its shoulder, forcing the beast away from Tovin’s path.

The barrier shattered, yet Tovin reached Valez and pulled her behind one fallen slab.

Damien’s tally crossed half capacity as the creature turned toward the weaker students gathered above them.

[Flesh Debt: 318]

He Flickered onto its crystal back and drove the saber through a seam near the spine.

The Glassmaw rolled against the ravine wall, crushing him between jagged growths and wet stone.

Pain filled his chest before Iron Veil could form, while the Ledger jumped beneath white tally light.

[Flesh Debt: 547]

"Roll somewhere else before I turn that ugly core into tuition money," Damien said, twisting his saber deeper.

The creature snapped backward toward his head, but Flicker dropped him beneath its stomach through one short pulse.

His injured thigh buckled after landing, ’not now, stupid leg, survive one beast before the larger problem reaches this ravine.’

He pulled the blade along its soft underside and released Reckoning when the branded core crossed above him.

[Reckoning]

[547 Debt × 2.0]

[Damage Released: 1,094]

Silver force tore through the Glassmaw’s chest, throwing its heavy body beyond Valez’s broken staff.

[Warped Glassmaw Killed]

[EXP Gained: 760,000]

[Level: 175 → 180]

[Anomaly Core Acquired]

Valez dragged herself upright behind the fallen slab and stared at Damien’s level update through her cracked detection rod.

The students above her saw his public measure remain at 172 while the proctor’s private rod flashed 180, starting another wave of frightened whispers.

’Great, even the level update became public, though hiding growth stopped working after every camera learned where to point.’

"That bounty pushed you eight levels from one Correction kill," she said, gripping the wall while students watched his glowing saber.

"Dying wildlife apparently offers better advancement than Halcrest coursework," Damien replied, tearing the anomaly core from blackened tissue.

’Eight levels from the weaker one, damn, whatever follows might pay enough to make this terrible idea look reasonable.’

Students cheered from the shelf until the eastern route lifted beneath something much larger.

The second beast broke through every blue stake together, revealing a long armored body beneath four hooked forelimbs.

[Warped Graveclaw]

[Level: 400]

[Primary Route: Student Group]

’That one can cross the ravine in seconds, fuck, forty students cannot survive a normal level gap that large.’

Damien ripped the first anomaly core from its corpse and ran toward the maintenance channel opening beneath the western shelf.

He struck both cores together, sending a black pulse through the narrow tunnel before the Graveclaw chose its first target.

The creature’s head turned away from the students and fixed on the bait inside Damien’s bloody hand.

"Come collect the expensive piece from somebody capable of running," he called, backing into the maintenance channel.

Mina’s wrist sensor began screaming while the level four-hundred Correction followed him away from every classmate.