I'm Really Not the Mastermind

[Please think carefully before reading. For details, see the author's note in the latest chapter.]

Aside from his heterochromia, Nanami Xiao is an utterly ordinary high school student.

He thought he would live an ordinary life, but after playing a virtual-reality game, he suddenly found himself in another world, just like something out of a novel.

An AI calling herself Usami told him that he had to start from scratch in Yokohama, a city in another world, and build a gaming company famous beyond the high school level.

With money in short supply, he even had to play all the company's employees himself.

And so, before long...

A strange game company appeared in Yokohama. Its oddness lay in its staff: a white-haired "cult leader" spreading hope, a rabbit plushie that could talk, a family of black-market gangsters, a foreign princess...

People rejoiced at the rise of this company, which kept producing one hit game after another. They had no idea that all along, someone had been watching them with a secret, mocking smile as the company's games took the world by storm.

Until the day...

A black-and-white bear plushie appeared out of nowhere, and the age of despair began.

"Upupupu, let's play a game."

[Little skit]

Usami (System): Um, wasn't our original mission to build a game company famous beyond the high school level?

Nanami Xiao: That's right. Why?

Usami: Then what's going on now?! We're all about to be branded as the villainous bosses who are going to destroy the world.

Nanami Xiao (calmly): Is there a problem?

We achieved our goal of becoming famous beyond the high school level, didn't we? Is there anyone in this world who hasn't heard of our game company?

Usami: We did achieve the goal, but... (completely breaks down) That's not the kind of fame we wanted!

Theme: Find yourself and reinvent yourself.