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I'm Not the Hero #3
An Education in Magical Affairs: An Isekai LitRPG
A zero-turned-hero continues his action-packed journey to greatness through a world of magic and mayhem in this exciting LitRPG fantasy series that’s perfect for fans of Dungeon Crawler Carl.
On Earth, the scrawny Orrin may have been a big nothing, but he had a bigger buddy in his athletic bestie, Daniel. They were inseparable, like two sides of the same coin. But when a tragic accident transported them to an RPG-like reality, that coin got seriously flipped.
At first, Daniel was the natural-born hero, and Orrin the dead weight. But Orrin found himself growing beyond the role of sidekick, gaining powers no one had ever heard of. Genuine hero stuff.
Alas, trying to be a hero is how he ended up a prisoner of the ruler of Odrana, and his even more conniving mother, Anabella, who sees potential in Orrin as a political pawn. All Orrin has to do to gain his freedom is infiltrate an elite magical academy, make friends with some very influential students, and help maneuver Anabella back into power.
Unfortunately, school in this realm is pretty much the same as school on Earth—albeit with less bullying and more attempted murder. Now, Orrin’s only hope is for Daniel to somehow find him and do what he does Save Orrin’s ass.
The third volume of the hit LitRPG fantasy series—with more than 600,000 views on Royal Road—now available in paperback, ebook, and audiobook!
Tropes zero to hero, role reversal, unlikely hero, revenge of the nerds, and fog of war.
On Earth, the scrawny Orrin may have been a big nothing, but he had a bigger buddy in his athletic bestie, Daniel. They were inseparable, like two sides of the same coin. But when a tragic accident transported them to an RPG-like reality, that coin got seriously flipped.
At first, Daniel was the natural-born hero, and Orrin the dead weight. But Orrin found himself growing beyond the role of sidekick, gaining powers no one had ever heard of. Genuine hero stuff.
Alas, trying to be a hero is how he ended up a prisoner of the ruler of Odrana, and his even more conniving mother, Anabella, who sees potential in Orrin as a political pawn. All Orrin has to do to gain his freedom is infiltrate an elite magical academy, make friends with some very influential students, and help maneuver Anabella back into power.
Unfortunately, school in this realm is pretty much the same as school on Earth—albeit with less bullying and more attempted murder. Now, Orrin’s only hope is for Daniel to somehow find him and do what he does Save Orrin’s ass.
The third volume of the hit LitRPG fantasy series—with more than 600,000 views on Royal Road—now available in paperback, ebook, and audiobook!
Tropes zero to hero, role reversal, unlikely hero, revenge of the nerds, and fog of war.
460 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 1, 2025
173 people are currently reading
98 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
May 28, 2025
I greatly enjoyed the first 90% of this novel. In case it wasn't clear who the main protagonist was, Orrin's POV dominated the book. He was captured, collared, and put to work under the thumb of an enemy nation's first family.
Orrin's stint as a spy at the magic academy was interesting and served as a believable power-levelling method. After all, the next foe is the great Demon lord.
As to the last 10%; it seemed to run on rails — barely a bump. I prefer ending on the crescendo rather than the subsequent ritardando.
Orrin's stint as a spy at the magic academy was interesting and served as a believable power-levelling method. After all, the next foe is the great Demon lord.
As to the last 10%; it seemed to run on rails — barely a bump. I prefer ending on the crescendo rather than the subsequent ritardando.
June 28, 2025
Hard to enjoy a story about a coward
I had high hopes for this one due to finally being separated from the hero, figured the main character would grow up a bit and gain some courage. Yet no, he doesn't. Even by the end of this book he's still looking to avoid fighting at all costs. He's still scared, his first instinct is to always teleport away from conflict. It's pathetic. Not at all fun to read.
Not only is he a coward. He's spineless. He was literally collared for less than a week before he started to get all soft for his captor. Where he wanted to help her and risk his life to fight for her. Where he was following her orders to the letter even when away from her.
Every time he showed the smallest spine, he'd backtrack in the next page. It was enough to make me WISH someone would kill him.
Then there is the whole 'lets beat the bad guys' mentality. not let's kill them so they can't do harm. No, the whole lets just beat them and let others deal with them after we've 'defeated' them even though knowing they'd just get free and cause more trouble.
The MC and the Hero are the two most important people in the world right then, have all the power and yet let everyone push them around. They instantly act like it's their job to save the world yet give them nothing for it. Even the healers rebelling against them. GROW A SPINE! Go execute the head healer, drag the rest of the healers to the pass by the scruff of the neck and tell them to heal or die. End of story.
If you refuse. Then the hero and his party are leaving, not defeating the demon lord and they can deal with it on their own. End of story again. Stop bending over backwards for people. It is not a good read. It doesn't make a good story.
So what if the demon lord wins. They obviously are surviving over on the other side of the pass. It would just be like any other LITRPG world where killing people gave exp. It wouldn't be the end of all life, just a change. It's not a big deal. It also isn't two kids from earth's job to fix that worlds problems. If they aren't ready to put full support behind the pair and do WHATEVER they say, then they don't deserve to be saved and the two MCs should just walk off and leave them to fight for themselves.
All this, you got a quest so you have to suffer and do what ever we say BS is just pathetic and not fun to read. No backbone MCs just makes you want to spit on them and toss the book away.
I had high hopes for this one due to finally being separated from the hero, figured the main character would grow up a bit and gain some courage. Yet no, he doesn't. Even by the end of this book he's still looking to avoid fighting at all costs. He's still scared, his first instinct is to always teleport away from conflict. It's pathetic. Not at all fun to read.
Not only is he a coward. He's spineless. He was literally collared for less than a week before he started to get all soft for his captor. Where he wanted to help her and risk his life to fight for her. Where he was following her orders to the letter even when away from her.
Every time he showed the smallest spine, he'd backtrack in the next page. It was enough to make me WISH someone would kill him.
Then there is the whole 'lets beat the bad guys' mentality. not let's kill them so they can't do harm. No, the whole lets just beat them and let others deal with them after we've 'defeated' them even though knowing they'd just get free and cause more trouble.
The MC and the Hero are the two most important people in the world right then, have all the power and yet let everyone push them around. They instantly act like it's their job to save the world yet give them nothing for it. Even the healers rebelling against them. GROW A SPINE! Go execute the head healer, drag the rest of the healers to the pass by the scruff of the neck and tell them to heal or die. End of story.
If you refuse. Then the hero and his party are leaving, not defeating the demon lord and they can deal with it on their own. End of story again. Stop bending over backwards for people. It is not a good read. It doesn't make a good story.
So what if the demon lord wins. They obviously are surviving over on the other side of the pass. It would just be like any other LITRPG world where killing people gave exp. It wouldn't be the end of all life, just a change. It's not a big deal. It also isn't two kids from earth's job to fix that worlds problems. If they aren't ready to put full support behind the pair and do WHATEVER they say, then they don't deserve to be saved and the two MCs should just walk off and leave them to fight for themselves.
All this, you got a quest so you have to suffer and do what ever we say BS is just pathetic and not fun to read. No backbone MCs just makes you want to spit on them and toss the book away.
September 5, 2025
Didn't really enjoy this much, but it's better than book two.
This was a slight slog, as I'm halfway through and the protag didn't improve his abilities.
I wonder if this is the "school arc" you get in anime. Next thing you know, you will have some stupid tournament.
I understand this book is supposed to build up the protag's confidence, and show that he doesn't need to be "Damn Daniel's" shadow. That he can do things on his own, and actually be the hero. But damn is it boring.
Things picked up in the last quarter of the book. I hope the sequel doesn't stretch things out like the first half of this book did.
3/5 Stars
This was a slight slog, as I'm halfway through and the protag didn't improve his abilities.
I wonder if this is the "school arc" you get in anime. Next thing you know, you will have some stupid tournament.
I understand this book is supposed to build up the protag's confidence, and show that he doesn't need to be "Damn Daniel's" shadow. That he can do things on his own, and actually be the hero. But damn is it boring.
Things picked up in the last quarter of the book. I hope the sequel doesn't stretch things out like the first half of this book did.
3/5 Stars
January 4, 2026
Orrin goes to school and deals with politics. The politics are pretty bland and not well done. The main viillian is presented as a political genius but certainly doesn't feel like one.
More minor side characters appear. I say minor because you barely get to know them before the book is over.
Orrin still believes his skills are invincible even though he has been shown time and again that they are not.
Overall this book is definitely the best one so far and does keep you turning the page. This is mostly from just the amount that is happening. The author has also vastly updated the stats and skills text to be extremely legable and more obvious.
More minor side characters appear. I say minor because you barely get to know them before the book is over.
Orrin still believes his skills are invincible even though he has been shown time and again that they are not.
Overall this book is definitely the best one so far and does keep you turning the page. This is mostly from just the amount that is happening. The author has also vastly updated the stats and skills text to be extremely legable and more obvious.
Read
May 23, 2025The school arc was fun but the politics side was messy (generally a good thing?) and a bit hard to follow.
However part of the turning point for the story hinges on something that requires too much suspension of disbelief....it requires one character having known another for all of a day and suddenly knows them well enough for everything to work out in the end. If had been a week or two maybe I would belive, not an afternoon.
That being said, I really enjoyed this book. It also made me want to re-read Mother of Learning.
However part of the turning point for the story hinges on something that requires too much suspension of disbelief....it requires one character having known another for all of a day and suddenly knows them well enough for everything to work out in the end. If had been a week or two maybe I would belive, not an afternoon.
That being said, I really enjoyed this book. It also made me want to re-read Mother of Learning.
September 18, 2025
And here comes the magic school plot—because apparently no fantasy series is complete without one. To be fair, it’s not badly done, but it leans heavily on familiar tropes: classes, cliques, competitions, and the usual schoolyard drama. It can feel a little too much like ticking the boxes of “what a fantasy series should have,” instead of pushing the story into fresher territory. Still, the worldbuilding carries some charm, and if you enjoy the magical academy setup, you’ll find things to like. Personally, I was hoping for something less predictable.
May 7, 2025
finally
This series has gotten better with each book but I really want Orrin to go more on the offensive and stop being so passive. It was frustrating bc the character is also annoyed by it but never did anything about it. But we’ve finally arrived lol. Love the action and storylines. Very well written
This series has gotten better with each book but I really want Orrin to go more on the offensive and stop being so passive. It was frustrating bc the character is also annoyed by it but never did anything about it. But we’ve finally arrived lol. Love the action and storylines. Very well written
June 25, 2025
fun
The magic system expands. The world grows. Orin becomes a captive turned slave turned student spy. At school he tries to escape slavery and foil political machinations. He reunites with the hero and stops the war. He learns new skills.
Great pacing. Wonderful narrators. Not a standalone, but an installment please enjoy
The magic system expands. The world grows. Orin becomes a captive turned slave turned student spy. At school he tries to escape slavery and foil political machinations. He reunites with the hero and stops the war. He learns new skills.
Great pacing. Wonderful narrators. Not a standalone, but an installment please enjoy
January 1, 2026
The best so far. I like the duo MC's of this story so i was skeptical with having a whole book almost exclusively about Orin. It didn't disappoint. The writing has gotten better, the narrator is really impressive with their voice variety and emotions and, all in all, this series is becoming one of my favorites right up there with DCC. Cant wait for the next book.
April 13, 2025
Another good read
This story flows well. The characters are dimensioned. The villains are villainous. Easy to read and a continuation of the world construction. Has a small bit of role playing game jargon and statistics but not too bad. Overall worth reading this series.
This story flows well. The characters are dimensioned. The villains are villainous. Easy to read and a continuation of the world construction. Has a small bit of role playing game jargon and statistics but not too bad. Overall worth reading this series.
April 15, 2025
great balance of character growth and interaction and action
Loved this episode! Orin is a great MC and the new characters are great additions to the story. The new settings and explorations of spells and learning were very well done.
Loved this episode! Orin is a great MC and the new characters are great additions to the story. The new settings and explorations of spells and learning were very well done.
May 30, 2025
Too hot for teacher!!! ❤️🔥 If the teacher wasn't your jailer, tormentor, and the evil mother of your enemy 💔☹️🤷♀️
Loved this so much! I really think it broadened the story and its players. I REALLY hope the characters introduced in this book aren't one-offs 🙏😭
Loved this so much! I really think it broadened the story and its players. I REALLY hope the characters introduced in this book aren't one-offs 🙏😭
September 5, 2025
I like this series. I don’t think it has rereading value but I enjoy the journey and will be following this.
I enjoy the brotherhood between the two boys. And love that they have weakness and somewhat balance each other out.
I enjoy the brotherhood between the two boys. And love that they have weakness and somewhat balance each other out.
September 28, 2025
It's a fun book
I'm still giving it 4/5 stars because it's a fun story but nothing too unique about it. The third book is better than the first two for sure. I will be reading the fourth when released
I'm still giving it 4/5 stars because it's a fun story but nothing too unique about it. The third book is better than the first two for sure. I will be reading the fourth when released
January 3, 2026
Engaging narrative from start to finish. The author crafted a fine story, and touches all the right points as he carries us along. I needed pure escape, and I got it. I even enjoyed the "fight" scenes, not my normal interest. Marvelous writing, terrific narration. Warmly recommended.
April 12, 2025
Love this series
The first book hooked me in in and the rest don't disappoint! The storyline and Characters are wonderful. Can't wait for the next book.
The first book hooked me in in and the rest don't disappoint! The storyline and Characters are wonderful. Can't wait for the next book.
April 24, 2025
Good
I have enjoyed the series so far. I really hope that he expands more into the other side of thing in the coming book cause I was hoping for that
I have enjoyed the series so far. I really hope that he expands more into the other side of thing in the coming book cause I was hoping for that
June 8, 2025
This was a bit of a disappointment for me. The beginning was too slow, the MC is too overpowered even when enslaved, and the plot around sending him to school has too many holes in it.
July 3, 2025
Agreat adventure series
I have truly enjoyed this series and look forward to book 4. The cast of characters are fun, believable and it's just a fun read.
I have truly enjoyed this series and look forward to book 4. The cast of characters are fun, believable and it's just a fun read.
October 2, 2025
this series just keeps getting better. some major leveling up for the MC and a magic school arc that was a ton of fun.
October 10, 2025
Who has two hands yet cannot carry a book?
Orrin.
Orrin.
October 10, 2025
If you liked the first two then you will like this, and if you didn't you won't. Easy as that.
October 27, 2025
I really enjoyed the magic academy in this one.
September 15, 2024
Even though the second book was a little turn off for a lot of people, I did enjoy the story. This is the third installment of the series and oh boy am I glad I didn't drop the second one. The story is still ongoing on Patreon but I gotta say that the story so far is amazing. SourpatchHero has kinda outdone himself and there's a major fight in the end that I enjoyed every bit of. I will not give major spoilers on here but that's it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 14, 2025
Audio. Best one so far. Love the academy vibes.
November 23, 2025
Great story and improvements on the narration. The system voice can be over bearing at times.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews