I Possessed a Military Rofan Novel, but There’s No Romance in Sight

“Soldiers, welcome to the Border Defense Corps after your enlistment.”

I looked up at the man standing on the podium with a stunned expression.

Everyone else here had similarly bewildered faces.

“The Border Defense Corps bears the heavy responsibility of protecting the borders of the Adolb Empire. The fate of this empire, and the safety of its citizens, lies in your hands.”

Why on earth am I here?

“Judging by your expressions… it seems you’re still far from becoming fine soldiers. However, if you undergo training, you will all be able to develop enough strength to protect this empire.”

Training? I have a bad feeling about this.

“Enough talk! You have a lot to do today, so move out to your assigned units immediately!”

Everything surrounding me felt utterly unfamiliar.

The training ground where dust rose with every movement, the soldier standing on the podium in uniform, and the crowd of people my age filling the field.

And all of them wore either blank, dazed expressions like mine or stood awkwardly in place.

As we wandered around cluelessly, unsure of where to go, I locked eyes with a boy standing right in front of me.

He had jet-black hair and reddish-orange eyes with a faint crimson tint.

His eyes slanted slightly upward, and his lips were tightly pressed together, giving him a somewhat prickly, sharp impression.

…Wait.

This is a military camp, and there’s a black-haired boy with orange eyes standing in it? And he’s got a cat-like face?

This description feels weirdly familiar.

“Ah.”

At that moment, a lightning-like realization struck my mind.

Right. No wonder I kept hearing familiar words lately.

So this place is…

It seems to be inside a military-themed romantic fantasy novel, “Four Madmen Who Are Obsessed With Me.”

＊ ＊ ＊

So, that novel, “Four Madmen Who Are Obsessed With Me”—or “Ne-Mi-Jip” for short—had a fairly typical romance fantasy structure.

The female protagonist lives in the Adolb Empire, but she belongs to a different ethnic group from the citizens—the so-called “other race.”

The other race had strikingly beautiful appearances and exceptional physical abilities that set them apart from imperial citizens.

But more importantly, after their people were annexed into the Adolb Empire in the past, they were bound by a magical contract that forced them into service, meaning they were destined to serve the empire.

Even the heroine, who had been living as a maid, is eventually conscripted into the Border Defense Corps as the contract magic activates.

The Border Defense Corps protects the northern borders of the empire, where monsters appear beyond the frontier. Because of this, members of the other race—with their strong physical abilities—serve in the corps.

And there, the heroine meets four male leads, and as in any romance fantasy, all four of them become obsessively attached to her…

“Of course the male characters are predictable.”

The author had set them up in a very classic way.

Male Lead 1: Quiet, fierce-looking, basically a madman. Cold to others, but warm only to the heroine. Fire attribute.

Male Lead 2: A cold ice guy. Cool about everything. A perfectionist who rarely speaks, making him seem rigid. Ice attribute.

Male Lead 3: Gentle and soft. But according to modern trends, he seems kind on the surface while actually being closer to a hidden mastermind type. Still a madman.

Male Lead 4: A younger, dog-like type. Very cute. Of course, he turns into a madman if anyone touches the heroine.

In short, it’s just a classic F4 structure with an added “obsessive madman” twist.

And the reason the male leads become interested in the heroine is also very cliché.

“…You resemble someone who died a long time ago.”

Yes. The heroine resembles someone who used to be the male leads’ comrade in the Border Defense Corps, who died during battle a few years ago.

And that “someone” was their first love, which is why they become obsessed with the heroine while remembering their dead first love.

“However I look at it, my life is doomed.”

So I possessed the female lead of this romance fantasy?

No, that’s not it.

“…You resemble someone who died a long time ago.”

That’s right. I possessed “that person.”

The dead first love of the male leads. Me.

＊ ＊ ＊

“Haa….”

While riding in a rattling cart, a sigh escaped me involuntarily.

Right now, I was being transported to the unit where I would serve from now on, together with my “fellow recruits.”

There were seven people in this cart besides me. All of them had equally dull, confused eyes.

The others kept sighing nonstop too, and one boy was even tearing up slightly.

“Yeah, cry all you want right now.”

A man sitting with us spoke in a contemptuous tone.

Judging by how he had been observing us and the military uniform he wore, he seemed to be a senior soldier.

“Once we arrive at the unit, you won’t even have time to cry.”

Meanwhile, I imagined my future in my head.

Since I had possessed a rofan novel, I would naturally have to follow its rules.

First, I definitely did NOT want to become the “dead first love,” so I would need to survive and get out of this unit.

And then, when the male leads eventually found me, I’d say something like, “You suddenly became obsessed with me? Huh, the original story changed?”

‘Hmm, but honestly, I don’t want obsessive love.’

There might be a reason obsessive male leads are popular, but they just weren’t my type.

At that moment, the cart jolted heavily and finally stopped.

“Hey! Get off, rookies!”

We stepped down from the cart with confused expressions.

The senior waiting in front of the cart immediately frowned.

“You idiots, you’re already falling apart on day one? Get your act together!”

…Wait, something feels off here.

“The new recruits this time don’t look useful at all, damn it!”

This isn’t my imagination—this is clearly weird, right?

“Ugh, I can’t believe I have to manage these stupid kids… Hey, hurry up and get off!”

No, no, scenes like this don’t usually appear in rofan novels. This was supposed to be a military romance fantasy.

“Want to start your first day by putting your heads in the mud, huh?”

…I take back what I said earlier.

Who cares about obsessive male leads anymore?

Escaping the original story? Is that even important right now? I’d rather just be obsessively loved by one of them.

‘Damn it, this is just the military.’

Give me my romance fantasy back.