Line #97 StockLightNovelHero/Literature


1	A listing of the StockLightNovelHero trope, specifically within its [[LightNovels home medium]].
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6	* ''Literature/The8thSonAreYouKiddingMe'': Wendolin von Benno Baumeister ticks every box. A normal {{Salaryman}} falls asleep and [[ReincarnateInAnotherWorld wakes up]] as a nobleman with extremely high magical power. He then gains a harem of female consorts, and amasses both wealth and authority that make him one of the key players within his new fantasy world.
7	* ''Literature/AccelWorld'': Haruyuki mostly fits the trope. He was once an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent, albeit a very unattractive one with a NonStandardCharacterDesign, who finds his life changed forever when he gets introduced to Brain Burst, an augmented reality game. As a Burst Linker, Haruyuki gains PoweredArmor and fights other Burst Linkers. While he's fairly pathetic at first, he soon discovers he's one of the only Burst Linkers to have a Duel Avatar with ''wings'', giving him the ability to fly and a huge advantage over everyone else. As the series progresses, he also acquires an UnwantedHarem of girls fawning for his attention.
8	* ''Literature/AkashicRecordsOfBastardMagicInstructor'': Glenn Radars appears to be a subversion at first, as he's a {{Jerkass}} ApatheticTeacher at the local WizardingSchool who openly complains about his job and students and was only forced to take it because he was threatened to do so by his foster mother and appears to have very little power to speak of. That is, until he's properly motivated to work thanks to Rumia talking about her goals and dream. In his teachings he shows them how to actually [[CombatPragmatist practically apply magic to real world situations]] like the ones he's been in. Later it's revealed he's one of the strongest {{Mage Killer}}s in existence, making it very likely he's holding back in the WizardDuel. Furthermore, he's shown to be more heroic than thought as shown through [[ChronicHeroSyndrome the lengths he's willing to go to to protect his students]] from the [[VillainOfTheWeek Villains of the Week]] that target his students (or more specifically Rumia) for one reason or another quickly earn the respect of nearly all the students he teaches and the affection [[HaremSeries of two of his students]]. However this trope isn't truly played straight, but more played with since he's still a [[GoldDigger Gold Digging]] lazy bastard.
9	* ''Literature/ArifuretaFromCommonplaceToWorldsStrongest'' both double-subverts and deconstructs the trope. In the case of the main character, it double subverts it as his life in Tortus is initially ''much'' worse than Earth, and Earth was pretty bad. After Hajime goes through hell, quite literally, he's forced into the trope when he meets Yue, falls in love with her, and then has a harem so unwanted, he's actually ''shot at them'' and they still insist on following him around and trying to get into his pants. The deconstruction comes from several supporting characters, Kouki, the "hero" and Yukitoshi Shimizu. Both of them get the nifty powers and abilities the average fan of isekai stories desire, but have personalities that show why such a thing is not always a good idea. Kouki has his "hero" title go straight to his head and makes him even more of an obnoxious twit than he was back on Earth, where he actually comes down on Hajime for the "crime" of getting assaulted, 4 on 1 by the school bullies, and then doubles down, thinking he's the indisputable paragon of virtue who is fated to save the world, and everyone ''must'' follow him, regardless of how stupid and reckless his actions are. As for the other one, Yukitoshi, despite being granted control of the powerful "Dark Magic," he's a total SuperLoser who completely falls apart the moment even the tiniest thing goes wrong and insists that ''he'' should be the "hero" and lets his resentment blind him to the nature of the Demon race, as long as he gets to be a "hero" for them.
10	* ''Literature/AssassinsPride'': Zigzagged with Kufa. In terms of appearance and role in the plot, he seems to be the definition of this trope: he has the short dark hair with soft facial features that one would expect of a Japanese protagonist (even though the series doesn't even take place on our Earth), wears dark clothing, is much stronger than most of the cast from the start, and is surrounded by pretty girls who like him and fight together with him. When you see his personality and backstory however, he has a lot of unique aspects: his skill is not simply innate power, but also from having far more experience in battle than a person his age should have. He may look like an AllLovingHero at first glance, but that's just a façade he puts on for the sake of his mission, in reality he is cold and calculating. And while he does comes to genuinely care about one girl, his core personality remains the same and he only looks more heroic than he actually is due to [[PragmaticVillainy pragmatism]].
11	* ''Literature/TheAsteriskWar'': Ayato Amagiri is a talented fighter who claims ownership of one of the most powerful weapons in the world thanks to his enormous magical potential, becomes an instant celebrity amongst his peers and gains the affection of several girls across the Asterisk city. The family of one of the aforementioned girls has even considered putting him in an ArrangedMarriage because of the possible political benefits such union could bring.
12	* ''Literature/AsuraCryin'': Tomoharu is an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent who happens to have a best friend that's a ghost. However, it turns out that said "ghosts" are actually [[PoweredByAForsakenChild the power sources]] of HumongousMecha called "Asura Machina". In addition to this, various factions become worried about Tomo's growing relationship with various beautiful demon girls, because any romantic and/or sexual commitment to a demon allows a human to gain a {{Familiar}} called a "Daughter". A human with both an Asura and a Daughter is called an "Asura Cryin"--a PersonOfMassDestruction whose own powers erase both their memories and ability to love, driving them mad.
13	* ''Literature/{{Bakemonogatari}}'': Koyomi Araragi is a blend of both this trope ''and'' StockLightNovelEveryman. He's your average guy possessed by the strongest vampire in existence and suffers from a desire [[TheDulcineaEffect to help any cute girl he meets even if he barely knows her]]. But in a world where problems are solved with [[TalkingTheMonsterToDeath words]] and not fighting, his powers are hardly useful. He's gotten his ass kicked to the point of death multiple times. In fact, his ChronicHeroSyndrome [[FreudianExcuse comes from]] a FriendlessBackground; his sense of self-worth is so low that the only way he feels useful is to [[DeathSeeker sacrifice himself for someone]]. He does his best to help, but can't fix their problems for them--they have to do it themselves, and some of the arc resolutions make you wonder if his actions [[FailureHero even made a difference at all]]. Furthermore, most of the girls he saves end up attracted to him. Sounds great, except that [[OfficialCouple he enters a relationship with one of them very early in the story]], and stays with her until the end. The way neither the other girls nor his girlfriend seem to care about the UnwantedHarem only shows that they're [[DysfunctionJunction all really traumatized in some way or another]], and it's not usually presented as something cute or healthy. In fact, Koyomi's inability to just reject his {{Hopeless Suitor}}s ends up [[spoiler:causing the main conflict of the Second Season of the novels, when Nadeko Sengoku ends up possessed by an evil god due to [[{{Yandere}} her insane love for him]] and threatens to kill him and Senjougahara if he doesn't go out with her instead...and everything above is mentioned in Kaiki's TheReasonYouSuckSpeech to Koyomi, because all of it could have been avoided if he'd just had the courage to reject Nadeko, and continuing to act in a way that would convince her she still had a chance with him was just causing her to suffer for no reason]].
14	* ''Literature/BanishedFromTheHerosParty I Decided To Live A Quiet Life In The Countryside'': Exactly like it says in the title, D-Rank Adventurer Red was exiled from the Hero's party during her quest to defeat [[MaouTheDemonKing the Demon Lord]], so he opens up a apothecary in a small village and dedicates his life to making medicine and running a successful shop with the A-Rank adventurer Rit. Though Red appears weak due to his D-Rank status, he's actually a GeniusBruiser that ''easily'' defeats even B- and A-Rank adventurers with little effort. While at his village, he constantly gets drawn back into conspiracies and conflicts involving the demons and other villains, but he remains adamant that (despite his strength) he will ''not'' get drawn back into the human/demon war and just wants to live with Rit in peace and quiet.
15	* ''Literature/TheBeginningAfterTheEnd'': Arthur Leywin fits several of the criteria for an {{Isekai}} protagonist by virtue of being comparable to the TropeCodifier for the ReincarnateInAnotherWorld variant, [[Literature/MushokuTenseiJoblessReincarnation Rudeus Greyrat]], in that he reincarnates as a child into a fantasy world and becomes a prodigal mage and adventurer. He is a MagicKnight able to control the four classical elements and his power gradually accumulates over the course of the story through either his own past life experiences or via the aid of various mentors whom a normal person would not have been able to earn the attention of which includes a dragon, the royal family of the elves, a band of famed adventurers, a MagicalAcademy, the race of gods from which said dragon originated from, [[spoiler: and even the VirtualGhost[=s=] of his ancestors]]. To illustrate how quickly his power grows, he unlocked his mana core at a much younger age than usual in his universe which grants him a considerable head start compared to others his physical age. He also has a powerful familiar in the offspring of said dragon, which combined with his existing magical prowess grants him a share of unique abilities including some which are only useable by the highest of the gods such as being able to partially manipulate ElementNumberFive. In short, he effectively won the SuperpowerLottery in his new life.
16	** However, Arthur does play with the trope in a few areas. Rather than having been an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent, {{Otaku}}, or {{Salaryman}} in his past life like most versions of the trope, he used to be a monarch named King Grey and as such him being a GeniusBruiser and InstantExpert even in his youth originates from him drawing on his past experiences on the battlefield and applying the know-how to his new life. While does attract a harem of his own, he shuns every girl who shows interest in him due to being aware of the mental age gap and having been a CelibateHero in his past life. In addition, in spite of his power [[spoiler:Arthur is not an InvincibleHero and suffers his fair share of failures and tragedies courtesy of the BigBad. After a major WhamEpisode, Arthur ends up getting DePower[=ed=] and thus BroughtDownToNormal, which forces him to look for a way to RePower himself while fighting to survive in an alien land. He does so through increasing his understanding of and affinity towards said ElementNumberFive, and in the process of winning the SuperpowerLottery yet again ends up [[CameBackStrong Coming Back Strong]] in a form that matches if not outright surpasses that of his previous powerset]].
17	* ''Literature/BeingAbleToEditSkillsInAnotherWorldIGainedOpWaifus'': Nagi Soma is summoned to another world along with his entire highschool class when the schoolbus they were riding gets summoned there. Because he's GenreSavvy enough to ask King Nadla the proper questions regarding their situation, instead of simply going along with what the king says at face value, like the rest of his class does, the king has the royal knights literally throw him out with little more than the clothes on his back. The rest of the story is him getting one slave haremette after another dumped on him by circumstances beyond his control, and having to use his unique "skill restructure" ability to make them all into over-powered warriors, just to get by.
18	* ''Literature/BofuriIDontWantToGetHurtSoIllMaxOutMyDefense'': A unique light-hearted take on the subgenre. Maple is a newbie gamer whose timid disposition motivates her to build her character with every point placed in Defense. Thanks also to Maple's [[FearlessFool fearless ignorance]] she also stumbles into some of the strongest monsters that the game devs never intended to be fought with her specific set of skills, and thus gains insanely powerful skills and equipment from the rewards. Maple quickly becomes known for being one of the most powerful players in the game, but her [[{{Moe}} cute]] and friendly personality can't help but win her many friends and allies. This being a "cute girls doing cute things" type of show, Bofuri lacks any type of harem elements.
19	* ''Literature/BladedanceOfElementalers'': Kamito Kazehaya is the only known male Elementaler, a person who is able to make contracts with spirits. This, of course, means that he is the only boy to attend a school devoted to that craft, thus guaranteeing an UnwantedHarem. Also, he is secretly Ren Ashbell, the [[WorldsBestWarrior world's greatest bladedancer]], capable of defeating just about any opponent singlehandedly once [[LetsGetDangerous he gets serious]]. Further, he is contracted to two immensely powerful spirits: Est, [[LegendaryWeapon one of the most powerful holy swords ever created]], and Restia, another powerful sword which is the literal manifestation of the goddess of Darkness.
20	* The ''Literature/BoogiepopSeries'' makes this an UnbuiltTrope, as the series was first published long before this character archetype became standard. Nagi Kirima is CrazyPrepared, [[GeniusBruiser extremely physically and intellectually gifted]], and throws herself into danger on a daily basis for no reason. Unlike other examples, her ChronicHeroSyndrome is a deliberate choice because [[MartyrWithoutACause she actually does have a death wish]], and even though she has plans within plans, she rarely saves the day on her own, generally requiring the timely intervention of the title character. Unlike other stock light novel heroes who tend to be {{magnetic\|Hero}}, most others, save for the few who know, just find her weird and avoid her.
21	** Her younger stepbrother Masaki shares her combat prowess and ChronicHeroSyndrome as well as being a ChickMagnet, but his naivety and trust of others makes it easy for them to trick him by exploiting his personality for their own ends.
22	* ''Literature/{{Campione}}'': Godou Kusanagi is another OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent who winds up being TheChosenOne that [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu kills a god]] and thus becomes the seventh and youngest "Campione". He is even special amongst that elite group by defeating the God of Victory, whose power allows him to kill any ''other'' god once Godou [[AwesomenessByAnalysis understands the god's origins and powers]]. The moment Godou becomes a Campione, Erica throws herself at him and "permits" him to have mistresses (although she insists he only have one) so long as it helps him fulfill his destiny. However, the fastest way to grant a Campione knowledge is by kissing them, and the GirlOfTheWeek is usually the only one with the knowledge he needs.
23	* ''Literature/ACertainMagicalIndex''
24	** [[PlayingWith Played with]] in regards to Touma Kamijou, despite being one of the [[TropeCodifier earliest]] and [[UnbuiltTrope most copied examples]]. Sure, he may have an ability that is [[GameBreaker incredibly overpowered]], but that doesn't mean he himself is invincible. In fact, his tendency to take quite the beating before winning, his spiky (if generically black) hair, his {{Determinator}} status, as well as being an AllLovingHero, put him closer to a StockShonenHero than the typical light novel protagonist. Played straight, however, with his UnwantedHarem, most of whom were [[DefeatMeansFriendship his former enemies]]. If anything, he could be seen as a sort of "Missing Link" between the StockShonenHero and the StockLightNovelHero.
25	** [[InvincibleHero Accelerator]] fits the darker versions of the trope pretty well. Again though, the fact that he started as a villain (not an AntiVillain, an out-and-out villain who had systematically murdered 10,031 people) fits closer to the shounen tradition of DefeatMeansFriendship and HeelFaceTurn than the light novel protagonist who is the morally ambiguous viewpoint character from the start.
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30	* ''Literature/DateALive'': Shido is, of course, an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent. The necessity to build a harem, though, is baked right into the plot--the danger threatening the world are {{Apocalypse Maiden}}s called "spirits" who can only be saved by falling in love with him and then kissing Shido, who absorbs their power into his body. [[spoiler:This is because, before the story started, he was temporarily killed and resurrected to be capable of wielding Spirit powers without any drawbacks. When he achieves adulthood, he will have the potential to become a magical god.]]
31	* ''Literature/TheDeathMageWhoDoesntWantAFourthTime'': Played with. On one hand, Vandalieu once was an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent, has a unique power and is outwardly quite stoic, but he had such a crappy family life he thought a new life would be better. His second life was so horrible he downright swears vengeance against those who killed him, even if he has calmed down since. On his third life he decides to live to its fullest, charming women and gaining power, but he's far from an AllLovingHero, being a PragmaticHero instead. He also finds himself physically unable to let his many eager suitors to bear his children (being a child and all).
32	** His foil Hiroto Amemiya is more of a deconstruction. A NEET back on Earth who happened to be on the same boat, he accidentally received twice as much fortune and unique gifts, deciding to use his new life to help others. Unfortunately, he's rather naive and puts his trust on the wrong people, making mistakes that end up causing several deaths, with governments downright fearing him for his uniqueness and plotting to kill him. He's also a one-trick pony, being HappilyMarried to Narumi Naruse.
33	* ''Literature/DeathMarchToTheParallelWorldRhapsody'': Satou is a quintessential example of the trope, being an [[SummonEverymanHero Everyman summoned into another world]], who quickly gains an absurd level of power, can acquire new abilities basically any time he wants, and gains an ever-growing [[UnwantedHarem harem of pretty girls]] to accompany him. Even appearance-wise, he sports the standard short black hair and BadassLongcoat.
34	* ''Literature/DemonLordRetry'': Oono Akira is translated into a game world where he takes up the appearance and identity of MaouTheDemonKing (who, in this world, takes the position of a stoic, chain-smoking adult BadassInANiceSuit). Due to being one of the game's developers, he has access to numerous Administrator privileges, which makes him practically a god in this new world. Early into his travels, he meets several beautiful girls who fall in love with him (or one of his many other alter ego characters that he can randomly transform into).
35	* ''Literature/TheDevilIsAPartTimer'':
36	** Well, to start with, Maou is [[VillainProtagonist The Devil]] (granted, only [[LegacyCharacter the latest in a long line of them]], but still) and was the most powerful [[MaouTheDemonKing demon lord]] back in his home world. On Earth, however, his power can't replenish itself without human emotion, which means each arc requires him to figure out a way to reacquire his abilities. He's rather unremarkable with plain black hair and a wardrobe that consists of Unislo and a fast food uniform. He's also quite intelligent and perceptive, having [[LikeADuckTakesToWater completely mastered]] everyday living on Earth in virtually no time at all. And finally, he of course winds up with an UnwantedHarem (albeit a small one). The overshadowing joke about all this, however, is that all he wants to be at the moment is to live as a regular part-time employee at [[BurgerFool MgRonald's]] and TakeOverTheWorld by playing society's rules.
37	** Emilia is the HeroAntagonist of the story and, thus, an inversion. But otherwise, Emilia fits the role of a Stock Light Novel protagonist including her massive fighting power that allowed her to [[OneManArmy almost single-handedly defeat Maou's forces]]. However, because she lacks the main character status, she lacks the rest of the trope's requirements, such as a harem. [[spoiler:In fact, by later volumes, she is slowly becoming a member of Maou's harem.]]
38	* ''Literature/DidntISayToMakeMyAbilitiesAverageInTheNextLife'': Adele von Ascham (born Misato Kurihara) is a female variant, though still lampshades and parodies the traditionally male version of this trope. Being an overachieving student who is burdened with high expectations in the real world, upon performing a HeroicSacrifice to save the life of a little girl from being struck by a truck, Misato meets {{God}} and is given the chance to reincarnate. However Misato requests in her next life she be [[IJustWantToBeNormal as average as possible]]. But the Creator's idea of 'average' has her reincarnated as Adele, a girl with power that is exactly half of the highest possible value, which is still still ''massively'' overpowered compared to everyone else.
39	* ''Literature/DoYouLoveYourMomAndHerTwoHitMultiTargetAttacks'': This trope is mercilessly parodied through the premise "What if the standard Light-Novel guy was shown up by his mother in the game just like in real life?" Masato's mother Mamako is the one who is insanely overpowered, and though he starts out as a HaremSeeker, being so reliant upon his mother (and extremely immature in his own right) eventually makes any girls uninterested. [[spoiler:Many of these factors turn out to be inherent to the setting, with mothers always being superior to their children in power, and their presence in an adventuring party being an InstantTurnOff to most sexual shenanigans within that party.]]
40	* ''Literature/DragonarAcademy'': While not quite TheStoic nor an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent, Ash has a UniqueProtagonistAsset in that he [[spoiler:and his sister]] can ride any Dragon besides the one that belongs to him. In only a few chapters/episodes, he goes from being on the lowest end of the power spectrum to one of the highest as a Dragonar, with various characters promising that he isn't even ''close'' to his fullest potential. He's also the only known person whose Parr, Eco, has human form. In addition to the aforementioned Eco, he also has several girls who are either in love with him or want to have his child for a variety of reasons. And that's not even getting into the other things related to [[spoiler:being the Knight of Avalon]] which make him even ''more'' special.
41	* ''Literature/DrugstoreInAnotherWorld'': Reiji Kirio, a Japanese {{salaryman}}, gets TrappedInAnotherWorld and starts a drugstore, where he learns how to treat all sorts of magical and unusual ailments plaguing different people and fantasy races. The story is almost entirely without violent conflict, and is more about the wacky hijinks of the main case of loveable goofballs.
42	* ''Literature/TheExecutionerAndHerWayOfLife'' features a subverted example with Mitsuki Mutou. He's an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent with short black hair and a school uniform who gets called by a SummonEverymanHero spell to a world just out of the medieval era where everyone speaks Japanese. He's initially cast out due to lacking a NewLifeInAnotherWorldBonus, but he encounters a beautiful priestess girl named Menou who forms a quick rapport with him and convinces him to work harder. Soon after, he unlocks his true power, which is the Pure Concept of Null, allowing him to destroy anything, and he immediately begins crowing about how he's going to take revenge on everyone who wronged him... at which Menou stabs him through the head, revealing him to be nothing more than a DecoyProtagonist and herself to be an assassin.
43	* ''Literature/TheFamiliarOfZero'': Saito Hiraga is the UrExample of the "Isekai" version of the trope -- he is an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent that is summoned by accident to a fantasy world. While he is a NiceGuy and somewhat powerful, the EscapistCharacter aspects of the character are extremely subdued as he is only the {{Deuteragonist}} compared to the female lead. In fact, many early isekai protagonists that followed began as WishFulfillment "fan fics" that promoted Saito's role into the spotlight.
44	* ''Literature/FateApocrypha'': The protagonist was just a nameless Homunculus created by the Yggdmillenia to be a slave in the Holy Grail War, until he attempts to escape and gets heavily injured. The hero Siegfried sacrifices his heart to save him, dying in the process. Renaming himself Sieg in honor of his fallen savior, the protagonist goes on to become a leader to his fellow homunculii, a major figure in the war and one of the most powerful characters in the story [[spoiler:albeit not [[DeadlyUpgrade without cost]]]]. He lacks the {{Harem}} traits though, as he's both ObliviousToLove and only one girl character is actually in love with him, though his male best friend ([[DudeLooksLikeALady not that you could tell at a glance]]) isn't shy about his affection either.
45	* ''Literature/Gamers2015'': This is parodied by way of subversion. While Amano has the plain appearance and UnwantedHarem, he lacks every other traits like skill or exceptional moral character, and the show repeatedly demonstrates that he has no interest in either. One short scene further cements this by demonstrating that a minor character, Misumi, actually has every cliche and characteristic that the standard SLNH would possess, but [[HeroOfAnotherStory isn't concerned with his story at all]].
46	* ''Literature/GonnaBeTheTwinTail'': Souji Mitsuka[=/=]Tail Red is a ''[[SeriousBusiness huge]]'' [[GirlishPigtails twin-tail]] fanboy who protects the world from evil aliens, earning an UnwantedHarem that consists of his [[ChildhoodFriendRomance childhood friend]], the perverted scientist that gave him his powers, the StudentCouncilPresident and even one of his enemies. The parody is that his superhero alter ego is [[SuperGenderBender a little girl]], and he doesn't mind as long as he gets to enjoy his twintails, completely ignoring his harem. [[spoiler:The one time he showed interest in the female gender instead of just their twintails, he lost his will to fight for twintails, got stuck in his female form and even experienced a mild depression. It's only when he/she gets over it that Souji becomes more powerful than ever.]]
47	* ''Literature/GrimgarOfFantasyAndAsh'': Haruhiro and his party members [[FailureHero aren't even close to being overpowered]], nor are they particularly GenreSavvy or quick to adapt to the world they've been transported to. They struggle to defeat even low-level monsters, and most of the series is just focused on them trying to survive rather than going on an adventure. Which furthers the deconstruction: Haruhiro isn't the strongest party member, nor is he the main focus of the series. [[ThePowerOfFriendship It's only due to the entire party that they're able to keep going]]. In any other series, they'd be the nameless, faceless background characters that the actual {{stock light novel hero}}es save.
48	* ''Literature/HaremInTheLabyrinthOfAnotherWorld'': Michio invokes the trope. He not only actively chose to go to this New World, but was actively warned that return would be impossible ([[AndYouThoughtItWasAGame although he initially missed the warning]]). He actively seeks out {{sex slave}}s, purchases them purely to have sex with them, which he does, and doesn't do anything that different from the locals except being quite talented and seemingly having an eye for "recruiting" very, very talented individuals (said sex slaves) to staff his adventuring party that most others somehow overlooked and dismissed. In fact, the sex slaves are all well aware that he purchases them purely for the sex, and the fact that he actually needs them to fight in labyrinths is only a convenient excuse. He doesn't escape the trope entirely, however, because he genuinely ''loves'' his slaves and not only secretly unlocks more and more potential in them, but actively pampers them like crazy.
49	* ''Literature/TheHeroIsOverpoweredButOverlyCautious'': A hilarious parody of the trope. The goddess Ristarte is charged with saving an S-ranked world (the most difficult) and chooses to summon Seiya because he has some of the highest stats of any potential hero. Seiya is also a dark-haired, handsome {{hunk}} with a chiseled body and [[TheStoic stoic persona]]. From the moment he appears, Rista [[EatingTheEyeCandy lusts over him]], and eventually, he gains the admiration of ''several'' other goddesses within the divine realm. ...However, he is TheParanoiac that won't do ''anything'' unless he is [[{{Catchphrase}} "Ready Perfectly"]]. He will spend ''weeks'' at a time doing nothing but training or working out until he has maxxed out every single skill available, synethesizes the most powerful weapon as well as backups of those weapons and ''backups to the backups'', buys hundreds of helpful items in bulk, and treats every single person he meets with complete suspicion and caution... including his own party members and Ristarte herself. [[spoiler:And [[ProperlyParanoid it's a good thing]], because the villains of this world are just as [[NoNonsenseNemesis savvy and prepared]]]]. His strength and paranoia are even eventually given a concrete explanation...[[spoiler:it turns out it isn't his first rodeo being summoned to another world, and his lack of caution back then cost him dearly]]. In effect, he's actually closer to a StockShonenHero.
50	* ''Literature/TheHeroLaughsWhileWalkingThePathOfVengeanceASecondTime'': Deconstructed with [[VillainProtagonist Ueki Kaito]]. Possibly the darkest deconstruction to date. Summoned against his will, home and family destroyed outside his knowledge, he spent three years struggling to save the new world from the Demon Lord, only to have his "companions" turn on him when he succeeds, get hunted down like an animal for a year, and stabbed to death by said "companions" as they're happily patting themselves on the back rejoicing at "the death of evil" and whining about how long it took them to kill him. [[ResetButton And then the universe resets to the day he was summoned, the the local god having assumed that anyone summoned to another world would have died far, far earlier and had planned on giving him a second chance to get it right.]] Now having some (but not all) of his powers, but every single bit of his memories, he decides to [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope do a swan dive off the slippery slope]] and punish as many people as possible for what they did to him in the previous timeline.
51	* In ''Literature/TheHeroWhoReturnedRemainsTheStrongestInTheModernWorld'', Daiki has all the trappings of one. He has dark hair, is an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent TrappedInAnotherWorld, soft facial features, and is a ShowyInvincibleHero. A lot of the humor of the story comes from him trying to use these powers as perks while living a normal life, only to run headlong into more supernatural situations than he'd care to deal with. Despite this, his personality quirks, such as his BizarreTasteInFood, move him farther away from TheEveryman version of this trope as the story goes on.
52	* ''Literature/HighSchoolDXD'': Issei Hyoudou sits on the fence between this trope and StockShonenHero. He looks and acts more like a shonen protagonist, but (aside from literally debuting in a light novel) fills the HaremGenre, OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent and "power acquisition" requirements. He's the current host of the Red Dragon Emperor--a being so powerful that Angels, Demons AND Fallen Angels [[EnemyMine had to join forces]] to break up a fight with its ArchEnemy. The harem aspect, however, is not by accident--Issei's greatest dream is [[HaremSeeker to become the "Harem King"]].
53	* ''Literature/HowARealistHeroRebuiltTheKingdom'': This series plays with the formula in many ways. When Kazuya Souma's last living relative dies, he is summoned into a fantasy world and finds out that the kingdom he's in plans to sell him off because they are in dire financial straits. Rather than allow that, Kazuya instead resolves to reform the kingdom to solve its struggles, leading to the king [[AbdicateTheThrone abdicating the throne]] to him. Unlike most heroes of this type, he mostly lacks combat skill, with his only form of magic being an ability to imbue a handful of objects with a piece of his soul and thus see through and control them. However, he ''does'' acquire a decent BattleHarem capable of taking care of fights ''for'' him, and several other wives and concubines as well, as he not only turns his kingdom around but gradually expands it beyonds its borders as well.
54	* ''Literature/HowNotToSummonADemonLord'': This trope is PlayedForLaughs regarding Diablo with the cliches exaggerated to ridiculous levels. He's a GodlikeGamer and a shut-in {{NEET}} back in the real world before he is abruptly summoned into an RPGVerse where he becomes his overpowered player avatar, and finds [[ComicallyInvincibleHero that everyone around him is laughably under leveled]][[note]]being level 150 in a world where level 30 is considered normal[[/note]]. He gets a [[SupportingHarem harem]] of two girls fighting over him from his very first appearance, however the twist is that they actually get turned into his slaves by accident so he technically ''owns'' them, and he keeps acquiring more girls after that. He's unusual that he's not a {{bishonen}} human, but a imposing demon lord. Unlike most examples of this trope, he [[TheRoleplayer roleplays]] the mean, selfish Demon Lord[[note]]as that is the only form of social contact he knows about[[/note]], meaning he generally doesn't show altruistic traits on the surface like the typical light novel protagonist. This extends to the relationship he has with the girls, who he is quite perverted towards including groping them on a few occasions. It takes scratching the surface and getting to know him better to see his nicer side underneath who is willing to help his girls when they are in trouble.
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58	* ''Literature/ICouldntBecomeAHeroSoIReluctantlyDecidedToGetAJob'': Raul was once one of the strongest Heroes of his world and led a party of other Heroes against the forces of the Demon King. However, at some point during their adventure, someone else got to the Demon King first and slew him, meaning that the war was over and there was suddenly [[NoPlaceForAWarrior no need for Heroes like Raul]]. With no other prospects, he's forced to take a job in a department store. However, this is turned upside-down when Fino, the Demon King's daughter, starts working at the same store and troubles from his past begin popping up. Raul's skills as a Hero come in handy for dealing with these problems, and his bravery and NiceGuy status still draw the attention of an UnwantedHarem.
59	* ''Literature/InAnotherWorldWithMySmartphone'': Touya Mouchizuki takes the trope to an extreme. He's an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent who dies and gets transported to another world, acquires a BadassLongcoat, and quickly becomes a ShowyInvincibleHero with a harem. Unlike many shows of this type, however, this is the entire point--{{God}} feels guilty for killing him before his time and actively works to give Touya the best life ever, with nigh-unbeatable power and an endless supply of [[MarryThemAll women willing to share him in marriage]].
60	* ''Literature/InfiniteStratos'': Ichika Orimura is the only male in the world that can pilot the titular PoweredArmor, which means he is the only male in a school dedicated to training ''IS'' pilots and gets an UnwantedHarem. He is also a pretty good homemaker, dedicated and passionate about his beliefs and draws strength from his conviction to protect his loved ones. Unlike other examples of this trope, though, Ichika is ''not'' overpowered. His successes are due simply to his determination, courage and whit. In addition, [[CluelessChickMagnet he has no idea that the girls have feelings for him]] and the series derives lots of its humor from his lack of romantic awareness, until it is later implied he only [[ObfuscatingStupidity pretends to be unaware]] of the girls' romance towards him as to avoid getting into further trouble with them.
61	* ''Literature/TheIrregularAtMagicHighSchool'': One of the oldest {{Trope Codifier}}s, especially for the ExtranormalInstitute variety of trope. Further, unlike many later characters like this, the traits associated with the trope are analyzed or [[UnbuiltTrope deconstructed]]. Thanks to its [[{{Anvilicious}} heavy political themes]], Tatsuya Shiba discovers this trope's setbacks. InvincibleHero? His soul was changed when he was still in his mother's stomach, and in childhood was forced to become {{Child Soldier\|s}} to master the most powerful magic known to man so that he could guard the Yotsuba family forever. Many people, however, fear a possible BewareTheSuperman scenario and would rather keep their distance from him. The Yotsuba family even [[spoiler:created Miyuki to restrain him]]. [[TheStoic Stoicism]]? Not by choice. To prevent him from destroying the world on a whim, the Yotsubas altered his brain chemistry and made him unable to feel any strong emotion, except for his love for his sister Miyuki.
62	* ''Literature/IsekaiCheatMagician'': Taichi Nishimura seems like a pretty standard example, being an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent where he was [[TrappedInAnotherWorld whisked away to another world]] full of [[RPGVerse magic, swords, and monsters]]. While there he discovers he possesses overwhelming magical powers which is so great he was considered a 'cheat'. However what sets this series apart is Taichi isn't the sole protagonist, sharing the spotlight with a girl named Rin who is the identical situation to him of being trapped in the world with cheat magic powers.
63	* ''Literature/IsItWrongToTryToPickUpGirlsInADungeon'':
64	** Bell Cranel is a less straight example, but still fits most of the criteria. He starts off being deemed weak by everyone and rejected from most familia, which led him to a steep learning curve of training to increasing his power and actually has to be rescued several times. However, he is able to [[TookALevelInBadass rapidly grow in strength compared to everyone else]] due to his unique skill ''Realis Phrase'', going from being overwhelmed by a Minotaur to being the one to defeat the borderline HopelessBossFight. While he is introduced as a HaremSeeker who goes dungeon crawling to try and pick up girls, this gets dropped early on and he ends up being a ChickMagnet who acquires his own UnwantedHarem. Unlike most light novel protagonists, his physical appearance stands out due to being an albino, and he doesn't belong to any modern society which is reflected in his fashion. In addition, while he isn't exactly an IdiotHero, he has a HorribleJudgeOfCharacter due to being naive and overly trusting.
65	** ''VideoGame/MemoriaFreese'' introduces Argonaut, who also plays with this trope. Although he's an AllLovingHero who eventually becomes the world's HopeBringer through his efforts and incredible optimism, he's ineffectually weak for most of the story, having to run from most threats and get by through the help of others or through his manipulations as a GuileHero. Even after getting a massive power boost from the spirit Jupiter, he ultimately [[spoiler:fails to defeat the Minotaur on his own, requiring Aria to help him finish the beast off.]] He's also a CasanovaWannabe who can't help but flirt with everyone he meets, but he only manages to steal the hearts of two girls, and this is only after [[RescueRomance he saves their lives]] and get to know him. Most of the other girls he tries to help tend to rebuke him or run off thinking he's a weirdo.
66	* ''Literature/IsThisAZombie'': Ayumu Aikawa was an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent until one day he died, but soon after he gets brought back to life as a zombie. Though [[OurZombiesAreDifferent he's not the stereotypical]] [[FleshEatingZombie flesh-eating]], mindless, rotting zombie. He's an [[RevenantZombie intelligent]], [[AttractiveZombie attractive]] FriendlyZombie who doesn't act any different to how he was back when he was alive. Really, the only difference after he was brought BackFromTheDead the assortment of powers he gained, such as a HealingFactor, SuperStrength, and being NighInvulnerable. Also, he has his own SupportingHarem of girls who are all supernatural creatures, including the very necromancer who brought him back to life.
67	* ''Literature/IveBeenKillingSlimesFor300YearsAndMaxedOutMyLevel'': Azusa Aizawa is a gender-flipped variant. Being an office lady -- or as she prefers calling it, a "corporate slave" -- who died of overworking and reincarnated into a fantasy world as an immortal witch with nothing but a knife and an isolated house. Determined to relax as much as humanly possible, she embraces a lazy lifestyle of living outside of town, killing slimes when she goes to do her shopping, and selling their remains to buy what few resources she needs. By the time she is asked to check her status again, it turns out [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin she's been killing slimes for three hundred years and maxed out her level.]] Unfortunately, news of her updated status as one of the most powerful, if not '''the''' most powerful people in the world, leaks out and is quickly confirmed, which sets off the plot -- leading to her gaining a harem / family and generally dragging her out of her isolated, lazy life and into a life of adventure.
68	* Chiba from ''Literature/JKHaruIsASexWorkerInAnotherWorld'' is a deconstruction, especially since he's ''not'' the protagonist; unlike most light novels which narrate from this character type's point of view, we instead see him through the perspective of main character Haru (who's not male, an {{otaku}} or someone given special powers), which shows how he's actually a pathetic jerk. His design is less like your typical light novel protagonist and more like someone trying to cosplay as one, complete with dyed hair. Personality-wise, he's more of a HeroicWannabe than anything, viewing Haru as a victim to save rather than an actual person and coming across as [[EntitledToHaveYou entitled to her affections]]. Even his nerdier traits, which would usually be ways for the audience to relate to him, just make him come across as irritating instead.
69	* ''Literature/{{Kampfer}}'': Natsuru Senou gets dragged against his will in a fight between Kampfers, superpowered girls who act proxies in a war between two planets. Since all Kampfers are female and Natsuru is a male, that means he is [[SuperGenderBender transformed into a girl]] upon becoming a Kampfer. His female form attracts the romantic interest of almost every guy [[EvenTheGirlsWantHer and girl]] in his high school, with only one girl interested in his male form, [[CluelessChickMagnet and he remains oblivious to their interest]] because he is already in love with one girl [[spoiler:who is actually working for the bad guys and is not above manipulating Natsuru in both forms to get what she wants.]] To top it all off, any meaningful development of the Kampfer war is largely put on hold for what's basically an {{ecchi}} comedy focusing on Natsuru's love life.
70	* ''Literature/TheKingsAvatar'': Ye Xiu is acknowledged as a LivingLegend for the InUniverse MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGame "Glory" and its [[UsefulNotes/ProfessionalGaming eSports]] league, having won multiple championships and earned dozens of accolades to his name for years. He's so knowledgeable and skilled at the game that some of his [[RedBaron epitaphs]] include "Battle God", "Glory Encyclopedia/Textbook" and "Master Strategist". Despite being forced to retire from the competitive scene at the start of the story, [[spoiler:he winds up coming back to the league by forming his own team of like-minded talent, all whom defer to his leadership, winning another championship after their debut]]. {{Downplayed}} when the series has no {{Fantasy}}, ''isekai'' or ScienceFiction elements at all; Glory is simply a video game and ''The King's Avatar'' dives into the RealLife aspect and environment of eSports as its primary narrative. While Ye Xiu is certainly touted as one of the best players of the game, there are just about as many equally talented players like him, who have also won championships, earned accomplishments and titles that he does not have. Furthermore, a single person cannot hope to win competitive Glory when it's a ''team sport'', thus group effort is necessitated, particularly when [[spoiler:his team, a RagtagBunchOfMisfits, struggles to even make it into the playoffs upon joining the league]]. Finally, ''The King's Avatar'' has no notions of romance due to an explicit NoHuggingNoKissing policy - despite being close with female characters, the most Ye Xiu's chalked up to is LikeBrotherAndSister with the ChildhoodFriend, VitriolicBestBuds to his employer and serving as TheMentor for a co-worker, negating any {{harem\|genre}} element at all.
71	* ''Literature/KnightsAndMagic'': Ernesti Echevalier is a former otaku {{reincarnate\|InAnotherWorld}}d into another world where {{Mecha}} are the primary combat tools, and immediately manages to increase his kingdom's technology level by a comparable magnitude to what it took the kingdom's best military minds hundreds of years to do in the past despite being [[ImprobableAge only in middle school]], gets a carte blanche from the king to engage in adventure wherever he likes with a small band of his TrueCompanions, and eventually almost singlehandedly saves another small kingdom from an invasion by TheEmpire, all the while treating warfare as nothing but a fun game because he's [[ShowyInvincibleHero just that overpowered]]. He lacks the appearance (as he's a silver-haired, [[DudeLooksLikeALady androgynous]] preteen boy) and the harem (as only one girl shows signs of attraction toward him, and because of their age it's ambiguous whether it's truly romantic or just platonic in nature), although those are justified as the novel is for a younger demographic than what's normally intended here.
72	* ''Literature/KonoSuba'':
73	** Kazuma is a light-hearted parody of the trope. When he first arrives in his new world, he thinks he'll be overpowered, but turns out to have some of the weakest stats, aside from [[BornLucky luck]] and intelligence. And his teammates form the very ''definition'' of an UnwantedHarem, as each one of them is hilariously incompetent except for [[CripplingOverspecialization VERY specific circumstances]] as well as having character flaws which indicate very questionable levels of sanity.
74	** Kyouya, Kazuma's rival and {{foil}}, is the epitome of this trope: an extremely attractive [[TheChosenOne Chosen One]] with an overpowered sword and his own adoring harem. The irony is that Kazuma's harem includes the heroine, Aqua, who Kyouya thought was ''his'' main heroine, but it turns out she forgot all about him. In fact, Kazuma's entire harem hates Kyouya and, [[BelligerentSexualTension despite denying it]], adore Kazuma for various reasons.
75	* ''Literature/LogHorizon'': Shiroe is [[TrappedInAnotherWorld trapped in a game world]] along with many other players, and he happens to be one of the greatest strategists alive with the highest level cap (at first) in the game. His exploits earn him the affections of multiple women, and as he learns more about how the mechanics of the game world work, he learns that his abilities and his intellect are perfectly suited to allow him to [[RealityWarper break reality itself]] through {{Magically Binding Contract}}s.
76	* ''Literature/{{Maburaho}}'': Kazuki Shikimori is an early example, as the novels were first published in 2000. He's a student with a rather plain appearance who attends a WizardingSchool where he's regarded as a loser for having only eight spells while everyone else there has thousands, and while he's not very stoic he's still rather introverted and insecure. However, despite having fewer spells than his classmates, they're all very powerful due to being descended from the strongest mages in Japan ''and'' Europe, and he ends up gaining a harem of girls who fall in love with him.
77	* ''Literature/TheMasterOfRagnarokAndBlesserOfEinherjar'': Yuuto was an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent and a bit of a history nerd. He's summoned to the magical world of Yggdrasil to help the Wolf Clan win battles against their neighboring clans and, by the time the story begins two years later, his strategies and [[GivingRadioToTheRomans knowledge of future technology]] have helped him evolve into the Patriarch of the Wolf Clan as it expands and absorbs several other neighboring ones. This earns him not only the reverence of the clan, but (by way of the "chalice oath" system of fealty in this world) the loyalty and love of several beautiful girls, who he adopts as daughters or sisters, and all of whom want to bear his ''seed''.
78	* ''Literature/{{Maoyu}}'': Yuusha is [[TheChosenOne the Legendary Hero]] fated to defeat Maou, the Demon Lord. To this end, he was born with [[WorldsBestWarrior absurd skill and power]] well beyond that of any human or demon, capable [[OneManArmy of defeating entire armies with ease]]. However, when he meets Maou (the Demon ''Queen''), he learns that she's a very wise and benevolent woman who knows that even if this war comes to an end, nothing will change. She instead proposes that the two of them join forces to [[GivingRadioToTheRomans introduce the very primitive and socially backward world]] to concepts such as agriculture, advanced economics, and social reform. However, this causes him to [[NoPlaceForMeThere to feel that he's become useless]] outside of the occasional use of force when peaceful measures won't work. Further fitting the trope, he turns out to be quite the ChickMagnet, with both the Demon Queen and the Female Knight vying for his affections...as well as many more female admirers who desire him as well.
79	* ''Literature/MushokuTenseiJoblessReincarnation'': Dying on Earth saving a couple high schoolers from an incoming truck, Rudeus Greyrat was reborn in a new world with the loving family he always wanted, as well as an immense amount of magical capabilities to become the WorldsStrongestMan and gains himself a harem. [[spoiler:In an interesting twist, it's his descendants that are the ChosenOne that will save the world.]]
80	** Somewhat of an UnbuiltTrope example as well, due to having to work hard to get powerful unlike most examples, and that he was originally a fat, overweight 34 something NEET as opposed to being a teenager, and that he's reincarnated as a child as opposed to transmogrified to another world like his contemporaries.
81	* ''Literature/MyEntireClassWasSummonedToAnotherWorldExceptForMe'': Parodied. Yato looks as though he will be a stereotypical [[TrappedInAnotherWorld Isekai]] Hero, except he is the only one of his class who did not get summoned over. For his trouble he does get powers though.
82	* Yogiri Takatou from ''[[Literature/MyInstantDeathAbilityIsSoOverpowered My Instant Death Ability is So Overpowered, No One in This Other World Stands a Chance Against Me!]]'' appeared to be an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent until one day he fell asleep on a high school field trip and finds the bus being attacked by a dragon. Turns out the bus was summoned to a parallel world by an AxCrazy sage named Sion, who declares all the students to be sage candidates and either granted them strange powers to become sages... or left them to be killed by the dragon, except for one girl, his classmate Tomochika Dannoura who [[TheTeamNormal gets nothing]] and remains his sole companion. In this new world, Yogiri has the power to OneHitKill, thus starts his overpowered journey TrappedInAnotherWorld. [[spoiler:Except it turns out that he already had those powers ''before'' he got transferred to the new world and according to the conversations of people who used to watch over him, he's actually a lot ''weaker'' than what he could do on Earth.]]
83	* ''Literature/MyNextLifeAsAVillainessAllRoutesLeadToDoom'': Catarina Claes parodies the "Princess" and otome flavor of heroine. In her previous life, Catarina was a free-spirited girl who took a liking to a RomanceGame called ''Fortune Lover''. When she dies young and reincarnates, she realizes she's been reborn in the game's world as the snobbish, villainous HateSink Catarina Claes and seeks to avert the myriad terrible fates the character faced in the game -- except that her combination of PastLifeMemories and sincere NiceGirl demeanor causes every other character's backstories to go OffTheRails and make ''her'' the target of the love interests' affections ([[EvenTheGirlsWantHer including the characters that were supposed to be female rivals]] ''[[EvenTheGirlsWantHer and]]'' [[EvenTheGirlsWantHer the original main character]]). She's different from many characters of this type in that she is a ''very'' blatant {{Idiot Hero}}ine, and she wasn't actually all that good at ''Fortune Lover'' when she played it back in her previous life. Also, she is utterly skillless and lackluster in both swordsmanship and magic. Thus, it's not her knowledge, pragmatism or skill that make her special, but her [[BlitheSpirit quirky]] and [[MagneticHero magnetic]] personality that causes everyone to adore her.
84	* ''Literature/MyriadColorsPhantomWorld'': Haruhiko Ichijo is a ChickMagnet and OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent in a world where supernatural creatures known as phantoms roam free. He joins a club where students accept jobs in handling phantoms, with his club being full of girls that make up his BattleHarem. He also possesses special ability to seal phantoms in his sketch book.
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88	* ''Literature/NoGameNoLife'': Sora fits most of the criteria; he's a {{NEET}} who is unparalleled in both his gaming skills. In addition, and the main reason he fits this trope more than his sister, is because he gains a veritable harem of hot women ([[LittleSisterHeroine including said sister]]) who either love or become his ''property'' by one means or another. What distinguishes him from most light novel protagonists is he's not a stereotypical NiceGuy, being [[SmugSuper incredibly arrogant]] and often [[GuileHero manipulates those around him for personal gain]], along with the fact he's in all aspects still a normal human and defeats others using his own wits rather than any powers that he acquires along the way. It's a plot point that Immanity are the "weakest" species in Disboard, Sora instead sees this as the ultimate strength and he only becomes more formidable as he [[DefeatMeansFriendship defeats and forms alliances]] with the various other species.
89	* ''Literature/OmniscientReadersViewpoint'': Has both a main character and a protagonist, each being a {{Foil}} for the other.
90	** Dokja Kim, the main character of the story, is a subverted example. He is initially presented as a {{Stoic}} {{Salaryman}} with StoryBreakerPower in a BadassLongcoat, but it soon becomes clear he [[spoiler:has absolutely no talent to learn ''any'' skill, everyone thinks he is ugly, and is actually pretty weak compared to everyone else.]]
91	** Junghyeok Yu, TheProtagonist of the novel, is a more traditional example. He is the hero of a web novel InUniverse, with all the tropes associated with it as the building blocks of his character. Junghyeok gains new powers whenever he needs them, is considered unnaturally handsome by all, and never lets his emotions get the better of him.
92	* ''Literature/OurLastCrusadeOrTheRiseOfANewWorld'': Iska is an obvious Kirito expy, and one of (of not the) strongest Saint Disciples in the world. He's got the standard unremarkable and pretty-boy facial features, and while not quite building a "harem", there are multiple women that are implied to have feelings for him.
93	* ''Literature/Overlord2012'': Ainz (aka Momonga aka Satoru) is an interesting variation in that he's not a human but a lich, finding himself incarnated as his MMORPG character InAWorld that shares a lot of similarities with said MMO, but he soon discovers it's not the same as being inside the game. While he does possess ridiculous power (being at max level and inheriting everything from his former guild), he also tries to avoid flaunting it for fear of other players hearing about him and deciding to kill him (and he constantly misjudges just how overleveled he is compared to the rest of the world), and most of his early plans involve recruiting many unique-ability-having people (as it seems neither he nor his allies can learn new abilities) to work for him to round out Nazarick's skillset. His lich body also constantly suppresses his emotions for good or evil, and he finds himself committing ever more atrocities without batting an eye in the name of his utopia. He also has an UnwantedHarem, but he simply can't benefit from it in anyway, lacking the necessary parts or even emotions for love (and of the three girls, none are human, one was programmed to be a necrophile, one is InLoveWithYourCarnage, and another was accidentally programmed to love him as a joke). Finally, he went through an edgelord phase a few years back and is now thoroughly ashamed of what it produced: a LargeHam NPC prone to PuttingOnTheReich and GratuitousGerman.
94	* Wade Watts from ''Literature/ReadyPlayerOne'' is almost a complete Western example. He's already acquired a formidable amount of skills and abilities in the OASIS by the time the story begins, and his quest to find the MacGuffin central to the plot is accomplished through power acquisition. In particular, he bears a distinct resemblance to the "Isekai hero" sub-trope. He even nails several aspects of the stereotypical light novel hero personality, being a DeadpanSnarker, an UnfazedEveryman, and a GeniusBruiser. His backstory-- a {{NEET}} OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent who becomes trapped in a video game world-- also matches the trope perfectly. The main difference, though, is that he only ever has one love interest, [=Art3mis=].
95	* ''Literature/ReZero'': When he first arrives in his new world, Subaru assumes he's gained powerful magic or some other talent, but initially has none. The only unique ability he gained is to [[GroundhogDayLoop start over from a "save point"]] after he dies, which is [[BlessedWithSuck only a blessing]] considering the [[CruelAndUnusualDeath horrible ways he constantly meets his end]]. Gaining a harem (with a couple of reciprocated loves but also others with varying degrees of interest) means he has more people to protect or save. And one of those girls, Satella, the Witch of Envy, leaves a trail of corpses whenever she makes an appearance. To top it all off, all of the ability acquisitions he gains throughout the series are extremely nerfed compared to the original users or have conditions that Subaru cannot match, making them completely useless.
96	* ''Literature/TheRisingOfTheShieldHero'': The series begins by [[LampshadeHanging lampshading]] the usual formula, having protagonist Iwatani Naofumi constantly point out all the traits that make him a standard Light Novel hero, right up to him being summoned to another world. The subversion starts immediately after that, with him being only one of ''four'' heroes summoned, the only one of the four that ''isn't'' a [[TheStoic confident badass]], the only one of the four that ''isn't'' a GodlikeGamer, and the one unfortunately chosen to bear the shield, a weapon [[DudeWheresMyRespect that even the people]] that summoned them [[LoserProtagonist snub their noses at]]. He quickly learns why: the shield has no offensive power whatsoever, meaning he struggles to even kill ''[[TheGoomba the weakest enemies]]'', meaning that he [[RPGMechanicsVerse can't earn any XP to level up]], and even when he does level up, it still only increases his ''defense'' and just makes the next level even harder to achieve. Thus, he is continually [[AllOfTheOtherReindeer disrespected at every turn]], and though his first party member is an incredibly beautiful woman, she winds up betraying, robbing, and [[FalseRapeAccusation falsely accusing him of attempted rape]], thus destroying the little respect he had to the point that the entire kingdom sees him as pure scum. This event is the CynicismCatalyst that defines Naofumi's personality for the rest of the series, as he decides to [[ThenLetMeBeEvil play up his role]] as a [[GoodIsNotNice jerkass hero]] because no one will take him seriously otherwise. Later points in the story slowly start the {{Double Subver\|ted}}sion, with Naofumi starting to learn more useful abilities, and gaining a party of female charaters that could ''technically'' be considered a "harem".
97	** Moreover, the series even [[DeconstructedCharacterArchetype deconstructs many aspects of the typical protagonists in this genre]] through the other three heroes. [[HeroesPreferSwords Ren]] is [[TheStoic a heroic but overall stoic badass]] who prefers to let his actions speak over words, and is bad at working with other people because nobody can tell what he's planning or thinking, resulting in him being an IneffectualLoner at the core. Motoyasu is TheCasanova and a HaremSeeker whose party is all filled with girls, making him easy prey for the manipulations of [[BitchInSheepsClothing Malty]] because he'll always fall for a pretty face, and doesn't realize that some of the members of his "harem" are PrettyFreeloaders who deep down can't stand him. Lastly, Itsuki is portrayed as an overall HumbleHero who wants to help those in need, but he intentionally plays himself as the IdealHero to get praise and is actually more arrogant than he lets on, not being above intentionally letting others fall into danger so he can [[BigDamnHeroes step in and save them at the last second]].
98	** Deconstructed even further with Tact. Between his insanely high-level, "rightfully taken" weapons and his harem of girls, Tact only looks like your standard light novel protagonist when the truth is much more sinister and cynical. His high levels are much less impressive relative to his subpar stats and pitiful fighting experience, the weapons he stole were from their rightful owners who kept the bulk of their powers regardless and aren't nearly at their full power in his hands because of this, and the girls under him are either gold diggers all too keen on taking advantage of him or brainwashed into seeing him as a hero and a savior. As a result, he ends up causing nothing but problems in the blind delusion that he alone was meant to save the world, gets numerous people on both sides killed in the process, and when others opposing him are put on a more equal footing with him, he ends up getting his shit kicked in because behind his (poorly maintained) hero facade is a complete idiot who doesn't even know how to fight properly.
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102	* ''Literature/TheSagaOfTanyaTheEvil'': Tanya von Degurechaff is a very dark take on the genre that turns the cliches on their head. It involves a cynical atheist Japanese HR manager who was [[{{Jerkass}} unsympathetic]] to his workers, leading to one of them murdering him in a fit of childish pique by pushing him in front of a train. The man is then confronted with a being claiming to be {{GOD}}, only for the bitter atheist to not only refuse to believe the being's claim (dubbing it "Being X" instead), but to challenge it on how the world [[OutgrownSuchSillySuperstitions no longer needs any faith]]. Angered by this, Being X punishes him by [[TrappedInAnotherWorld reincarnating him a world of constant magic and warfare]], in the body of a little girl named Tanya, who finds herself as a powerful [[ShowyInvincibleHero nigh-unstoppable]] sorceress fighting in an alternate version of World War I. In place of an UnwantedHarem, she is the squad leader of a platoon of male soldiers who serve as her supporting cast along with one female companion. While the Empire she serves sees her as a [[TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior somewhat-unsettlingly bloodthirsty]] but ultimately patriotic hero, Tanya herself is concerned for no one but herself and securing her own safety and advancement.
103	* ''Literature/SeireiGensoukiSpiritChronicles''
104	** Dying on Earth in a gruesome traffic accident, protagonist Haruto Amakawa is reincarnated - his memories are awakened in Rio, a 7 year-old cynical street urchin. Unlike most reincarnation isekai protagonists, Rio has trouble reconciling the PastLifeMemories of Haruto with his current self, especially after tragic events lead to Rio becoming an orphan. As such, Rio does not see himself as Haruto, whom he considers a different person.
105	** Deconstructed with other "Heroes". Teenagers from Earth are randomly summoned to the new world by different factions. However, they were brought regardless of individual personalities and demeanor, which produces unpredictable results. Furthermore, their values from Earth (specifically, Japan) are vastly different from the natives, which interferes with the common sensibilities of the setting when it either turns them into an incompetent puppet ([[spoiler:Hiroaki Sakata]]) or a self-righteous {{Hypocrite}} ([[spoiler:Takahisa Sendou]]). Heroes are nothing but deterrents kept by the faction who summoned them and will use any friends that were brought along with the heroes as hostages to bend them to the faction's will. Finally, the heroes' "[[InfinityPlusOneSword Divine Weapons]]" don't mean squat when they don't know how to fight, have never trained with such weaponry before on Earth and are fighting against an experienced warrior with the power to match these weapons ([[spoiler:Rio]]).
106	* ''Literature/SkeletonKnightInAnotherWorld'': Arc Raratoia was an otaku gamer who one day fell asleep and woke up in the body of his online game avatar, which has the appearance of a KnightInShiningArmor on the surface and [[DemBones a skeleton]] underneath. He is substantially more powerful than other characters with endless grinding having pushed his level to a maximum of 255, which grants him SuperStrength and an assortment of mystical powers. While he doesn't quite have a harem yet, he does encounter and help out a lot of girls on his adventures so ''he's getting there''.
107	* The main character of the 1992 book ''Literature/SnowCrash'', Hiro, is the UnbuiltTrope version of this. While he's written as a cliche example, being a pretty boy with exceptional programming skills and who still carries around a sword in a world full of guns, he's a JadedWashout by the standards of his peers and he has a hard time holding a steady job or relationship.
108	* ''Literature/StrikeTheBlood'': Kojou Akatsuki has silver hair and often wears a hoodie, but other than that, perfectly fits the style of an LN hero. He's the Fourth Progenitor, by his own admission "the most powerful vampire in the world". Progenitors can summon an entire army of familiars--each one by itself a PersonOfMassDestruction, but to awaken familiars he must drink blood. The familiars literally won't respect a "virgin" vampire, and some of them still won't respond if he only drinks blood from the same people over and over, thus ''requiring'' him to acquire an UnwantedHarem. Even if he didn't have to, though, Kojou's power, good looks, and desire to protect others draws a large number of girls (and [[EvenTheGuysWantHim some men]]) to him.
109	* ''Literature/SwordArtOnline'': Kirito is one the most well-known example of the trope, being one of the {{Trope Codifier}}s, especially for the [[TrappedInAnotherWorld Isekai]] variant. He's an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent with a BadassLongcoat, a CluelessChickMagnet with a BattleHarem, and is known to be a [[TheStoic stoic]] IneffectualLoner. He's a GodlikeGamer in an RPGMechanicsVerse which allows him to become the WorldsBestWarrior of SAO, routinely gets given new abilities and skills such as his DualWielding, and he's an InvincibleHero with most enemies being fodder to him. He also quickly climbing the ranks in other virtual-reality games as well and is able to keep defying the limits the System has set. This is subverted in ''Alicization'' where despite this arc shifting the series closer to the Isekai genre, Kirito himself moves away from the usual cliches for this character archetype. He is a lot more underpowered than previous arcs as he has to gradually learn about the new world and work towards power, unlike previous arcs where he was often at his peak when he took on obstacles. Also the girls that join his SupportingHarem each arc has largely been replaced by a BashBrothers dynamic with Eugeo.
110	* ''Literature/SwordArtOnlineAlternativeGunGaleOnline'': LLENN is an interesting mix of a gender-flipped urban version. She starts off as an [[OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent ordinary college student]] who decides to try out VR gaming. Upon landing in Gun Gale Online she gets given an advantageously [[FunSize short]] and [[SuperSpeed speedy]] avatar which made her one of the deadliest players in the game. Noted for being able to defy the conventional laws of physics and proving to be a GodlikeGamer in her own right, she ends up almost single-handedly winning the first Squad Jam tournament and becomes FamedInStory. While the harem aspect is mostly absent due to her being a female, she still ends up garnering a few [[EvenTheGirlsWantHer female admirers]] to her annoyance.
111	* ''Literature/ThatTimeIGotReincarnatedAsASlime'' is a pretty ridiculous take on this trope. Rimuru Tempest was once an ordinary human with a contractor job and okatu hobby in private who died and got [[TrappedInAnotherWorld reincarnated in another world]] that was magical. The twist however is he got reincarnated, as the title suggests, as a [[BlobMonster slime]]. He discovers that the nature of his reincarnation granted him the unique Predator Skill that allowed him to quickly amass power by [[TheAssimilator absorbing enemies he defeated and acquire their abilities]], so that after a few weeks he's already reaching InvincibleHero status by most ''isekai'' protagonist standards [[spoiler:and by the end of the series is literally the new effective god of ''TheMultiverse'']]. He gets an assortment of girls following him in a SupportingHarem, but it's also balanced by the large number of male companions he has too, and as much as he'd like to give up his virginity, as a slime he now [[NoBiologicalSex lacks the equipment necessary]], and to complicate matters further he ends up acquiring a humanoid form that has a female appearance that gets both girls ''and'' guys [[StupidSexyFlanders sexually confused]]. He's also not so much concerned with adventuring to defeat some great MaouTheDemonKing as he is just trying to make a thriving civilization that promotes equality between humans and monsters while putting down threats to that (befriending ''several'' of the Demon Lords running around) [[spoiler:and ends up ''becoming'' a Demon Lord and joining their ranks.]]
112	* ''Literature/TsukimichiMoonlitFantasy'': {{Reconstructed}}. Makoto Misumi has the StoryBreakerPower most [[TrappedInAnotherWorld Isekai type heroes]] have, but everyone who understands this about him treats him like a living DoomsdayDevice, one that must be kept far away from politics and taking sides in conflicts, lest he starts wiping out civilizations. Fortunately for the world, he's more interested in being a merchant...Which he's less than talented at. As for his appearance, the goddess he was summoned to serve found him [[HollywoodHomely ugly]] and sent him out of sight. And his companions are balanced between men and women, and while the women are interested in him, he's a CelibateHero (And even distrusting a few of them), [[spoiler: Until he consummates a proper harem.]]
113	* ''Literature/UndefeatedBahamutChronicle'': Lux Arcadia is the legendary Black Hero that destroyed his own empire to save innocent people, is the only guy in an all-girls school (which means an UnwantedHarem), saves the newly formed kingdom (ruled by one of the girls in the aforementioned harem) on a regular basis and, along with his sister and Aeril, is [[WhiteSheep the only good person]] in family of hideous and pathetic excuses for human beings.
114	* ''Literature/UnlimitedFafnir'': Yuu Mononobe is the sole male [[OurWitchesAreDifferent "D"]], which automatically makes him incredibly special and an attendee of a school where he is the only guy. In addition to this, he is considered [[WorldsBestWarrior the world's strongest assassin]] and capable of defeating any human opponent(s) in combat. Even against the series' main antagonists (the [[{{Kaiju}} Dragons]]), he has the UniqueProtagonistAsset of being chosen by one of the Dragons to [[HunterOfHisOwnKind kill its own kind]], with the price for such power being his memories. [[spoiler:Later in the story, it's revealed that he's even ''more'' special than that, being considered one of the "Counter Dragons" created by [[EarthMother Gaia]] to defeat the "True Dragons" that threaten the world. It's later revealed that he might even ''be'' a True Dragon himself.]]
115	* ''Literature/ViceroysPride'': Referenced. Henry Ibis thinks that Dan is ''literally'' a light novel hero, and tries to convince him to find a harem on the new world.
116	-->'''Henry Ibis:''' My boy, you can't let this opportunity pass you by. You have dark hair, a weak personality, and you're heading to a new world. I bet you'll have a buffet of women dragging you to a [[BeachEpisode beach]] or a [[HotSpringsEpisode hot spring]] within a week of your arrival.
117	* ''Literature/WhenSupernaturalBattlesBecameCommonplace'': Andou is the sole male member of the Literature Club, with every other member being part of his UnwantedHarem (in addition to the StudentCouncilPresident). The catch is that he's actually more of a StockLightNovelEveryman than this trope; after the MassEmpoweringEvent that grants he and the other girls superpowers, his ability turns out to be the ''weakest'' of all of them with [[WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway absolutely no combat or support utility whatsoever]][[note]]Even its NextTierPowerUp is mostly useless because A) it slowly burns him alive and B) cannot be turned off by any means.[[/note]]. He is also a ''massive'' {{chuunibyou}} obsessed with indulging his overactive imagination and living on RuleOfCool. However, these traits are also what not only endears him to the girls, but also makes him the pillar of their lives; without his {{Genre Savv\|y}}iness, none of the girls would have the slightest idea what to do with their incredible powers, nor their own personal failings. He also takes advantage of ''this very trope'' by convincing an enemy [[spoiler:with PowerParasite abilities to steal his powers]] by telling her that main characters always [[MagikarpPower start the weakest and become the most powerful]].
118	* ''Literature/WiseMansGrandchild'': Shin Wolford is a former Japanese {{Salaryman}} who died and managed to ReincarnateInAnotherWorld as an absurdly gifted youth with innate magical talent, combat prowess and an incredible moral fiber. He only lacks a harem because he falls in love with and becomes engaged to his primary LoveInterest within days of meeting her, just before he enters a WizardingSchool where his talents can be recognized.
119	* ''Literature/WorldBreakAriaOfCurseForAHolySwordsman:'' Moroha is a first-year student at an ExtranormalInstitute which instructs "Saviours", students who can use powers gained from PastLifeMemories. Almost instantly, he gains the attention of two girls who were once his lovers in a past life, which also means that with two reincarnations to draw from, he has more innate power than anyone else at his school. In fact, it immediately becomes clear that he is an S-Rank Saviour--only seven of which exist, including him. And his power is ''so'' immense that he still puts the other S-Ranks to shame, easily defeating two of their ranks when they threaten his friends. As the story progresses, he only acquires more powers and gains the affection of more women.
120	* ''Literature/WorldEndWhatDoYouDoAtTheEndOfTheWorldAreYouBusyWillYouSaveUs'': The main character, Willem, was a standard light novel protagonist 500 years before the main story. He acquired a formidable number of skills and abilities in typical light novel hero fashion. However, his strength ultimately had zero impact on humanity’s fate. His final battle was a SenselessSacrifice and everything he held dear was destroyed by the [[EldritchAbomination 17 Beasts]]. He learns this unfortunate fact after being unfrozen 500 years later and discovering he’s the last living human. To add insult to injury he lost most of his fighting ability due to being petrified for so long, resulting in him being forced to remain a bystander while others fight and die in his place. [=WorldEnd=] shows just how insignificant even a StockLightNovelHero is in what is basically a CosmicHorrorStory.
121	[[/folder]]
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Context StockLightNovelHero / Literature