Mirror King [A LitRPG Comedy/Satire/Fantasy Adventure]

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

⭐ Comedy/Satire/Adventure RISING STAR⭐ Gregory Zell is a relatively normal, 30 year old paramedic living in Northern California. Life is pretty good. He owns his own home, has a wonderful wife, a couple of dogs, and plenty of buddies. One day, when helping his overly rich college friend move into a new loft in San Francisco, he drops an ancient mirror down the stairs. In the process of trying to catch it, he falls over the banister. Instead of the mirror breaking, he falls into it... and his entire life changes. Greg finds himself in a new world where magic is real, skills and spells are gained through suspiciously thematic and powerful books, and almost everything is trying to kill him. Told in first person, Greg's main goal is to get powerful enough to find a way back through the mirror... collect his loved ones... and come back. Because life on Earth right now... well... you know. This is a progression based LitRPG novel with a unique magic system. Not heavy on the stats mid text, but big into skills, theory crafting, blacksmithing, strategy, character development, and a minor lens into real world issues. The book weaves in some horror elements and uncomfortable feelings while providing a salve for trigger warnings with satire and comedy (just like people in healthcare would). Releases Mondays and Thursdays 2pm CST. Occasional Random drops. What to Expect ✦Portal Fantasy / Isekai ✦LitRPG progression without constant stat spam ✦Unique magic system based on powerful spell books ✦ Creative problem solving (not a murder hobo) ✦ No Harem ✦Exploration, monsters, and dangerous encounters ✦Steady power growth and progression Perfect For Fans Of ✦Progression fantasy adventures ✦Unique magic systems ✦LitRPG worlds where the system enhances the story but doesn't rule it ✦Characters who grow stronger through learning and experimentation ✦ Ridiculous shenanigans and banter

Information

Status: Ongoing
Year: 2026
Author: Barasadian

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.8/ 5.0
Followers: 147
Views: 11,931

Chapters(48 total)

What readers say about Mirror King [A LitRPG Comedy/Satire/Fantasy Adventure]

“This is my new favorite thing to binge. I hadn't made an account until now, but I had to so I could write this. Not my favorite thing to have logins, but I saw this on a friend's Insta and checked it out. I'm glad I did! I'm new to LitRPG but not to Satire…”
kb_89Royal Road5.0 / 5
“I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started Mirror King, but it pulled me in fast and kept me smiling, and not many do that. The first person narration works beautifully, I’m pretty picky when it come to that, but the contemporary setting and topical modern…”
mrcbooksRoyal Road5.0 / 5

Reviews

No reviews yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!

Community Reviews(10)

kb_89Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
This is my new favorite thing to binge. I hadn't made an account until now, but I had to so I could write this. Not my favorite thing to have logins, but I saw this on a friend's Insta and checked it out.
I'm glad I did! I'm new to LitRPG but not to Satire and Comedy. This one has my funny bone while also a nice intro into the genre.
I like the MC. He's a believable, adult, but still fallible guy. The other characters really add depth. Trelain is ridiculous. I like Benji. There's a lot here. The dialogue really shines and makes me feel like I'm hanging out with friends.
Good world building in the fact that its not crazy exposition dumps but I still feel like I know about the world, or at least as much as the MC does.
The grammar is good and is unique enough sort of story style that makes me relieved to not pick up on any of the AI slop vibe that's going around in the amatuer author world.
I like the style. Again, it's like listening to a friend's sometimes meandering story. When its action its action. When its hang out time, its spliced with some internal thoughts and some fourth wall breaking. I like that the spell text drops after a while but I also like seeing the character sheets every once in a while.
Will be following this one and excited to see where it goes! Nice work Barasadian!
mrcbooksRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started Mirror King, but it pulled me in fast and kept me smiling, and not many do that. The first person narration works beautifully, I’m pretty picky when it come to that, but the contemporary setting and topical modern references land easy, making the whole thing very comfortable to fall into: we get Scrubs, COVID, and Magic the Gathering in the first 15 lines. It makes you feel like you’re listening to an old friend telling you about their day.This is a really fun and refreshing take on the LitRPG isekai genre. The story follows Gregory, a very relatable paramedic who gets yanked through a mirror into a dangerous new world. What could have been a standard “guy wakes up with a system” story instead feels fresh thanks to Gregory’s grounded, sarcastic personality and the way he reacts to the insanity around him.I especially loved Chapter 4’s skill selection scene. Watching Gregory absorb his first two Disciplines (Fauna and Metallurgy) and choose abilities like Spirit Avatar and Furnace was such a great sequence, the ‘hint’ cracked me up. His humorous internal commentary as he weighs the options and immediately tests his new powers made the power fantasy feel satisfying and fun rather than dry. Even in a life-or-death situation, he still feels like a real person; cracking jokes, overthinking, and rolling with the punches.The writing style is smooth, engaging, and easy to read. The action hits hard when it needs to, the humor lands naturally, and the world is already full of mystery. That ending with the mysterious voice has me very curious about what comes next. Dialogue is snappy and easy to read, the grammar is polished, and the story draws you in.Characters so far are distinct and memorable, the LitRPG elements are introduced cleanly, and the whole thing moves at a really enjoyable pace. This one has serious binge-read energy.If you enjoy LitRPG stories with a likable protagonist, solid humor, satisfying progression, and a das
LanikinsRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
This story has a really engaging voice and a ton of personality right from the start. From the very first chapter, it’s clear that the author has created a world that is both imaginative and carefully thought out. The writing has a rare quality where it feels effortless and witty, drawing you in immediately, while also hinting at a depth and structure to the story that makes you curious to see how everything will unfold. The main character is instantly relatable and easy to root for, and their journey is full of quirks and humor that make the reading experience feel lively and enjoyable.
One of the best things about this book is how easy it is to keep reading. The pacing, the tone, and the clever use of humor all combine to create that “just one more chapter” feeling, where it’s impossible to put the book down. Even as the story hints at larger stakes and deeper worldbuilding, it never loses its charm or accessibility, making it appealing for both new readers of LitRPG and seasoned fans.
If you enjoy stories with humor, creativity, a strong sense of voice, and a main character who’s fun to follow, this is absolutely worth picking up. It’s a memorable, fun, and promising start to a story with a ton of potential. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
LitExplorer26Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I'm not all the way caught up yet, but this has been a really fun read so far. It feels really casual without being boring or lazy - clearly Barasadian is having as much fun writing this as I am reading it. Lots of potential for this to get WILD - unhinged in a good way! I'll be following this.UPDATE: Having gotten further in the series, I felt compelled to come back and say more - my bad for reviewing too early. This is so much freaking fun :D I've laughed and giggled out loud many times by this point (on Ch 32) and am really enjoying the relatable depth and banter with these characters. I often find either well written dialogue or well written fight scenes but this has both, plus a really dynamic power system with so much creativity and variety. I stand by my previous assessment that this *is* (and probably will contribute to be) unhinged in a very good way. The weight is there when it's appropriate, but no moment is too serious for Greg to be a little bit of a lovable crazy man and I'm starting to feel a real fondness for his party, especially Benji. This is fun, wild, funny, and not pulling the punches so far. I'm stoked to keep reading!
MaximumCatRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Gregory Zelle has a savage mix of good, whimsical, and awful luck.
With a home of his own and a wife who responds fast to his texts and jokes with him about BS at her job, the MC isn't in dire need of getting portaled to another world.
Tough break. Stuff happens.
Buck-nekkid and freezing, a shiny HUD shows him the way to a lovely place where he's forced into mortal combat. Tough break for a medic.
Retains his sense of humor.
The ancient mentor is fun, sassy, forgetful, and rhymes like Fezzik. Hell yes.
Prose flows well, with excellent grammar and amusing word choices sprinkled everywhere.
Now, I find myself wondering if Greg will ever make it home to his wife or if his new powers, awakened through books, will send him even further from the comfortable life he once knew.
Get ready to find the bucket, prance like a springbok, and give warm hugs to beasties who love to kill people.
This story manages to weave in murder and a splash of gore without making it too dark.
If you're into carefully-crafted Systems with a huge number of skill choices that not only make sense but sometimes make you chuckle, this story is the ticket.
MightyBophadesRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I’m really glad I stumbled onto Mirror King. It has that rare combo of “this is genuinely fun to read” and “oh no, something is deeply wrong here.”
The voice is the secret weapon. Gregory Zell narrates like an actual guy talking to you, cracking jokes, calling himself out when he gets melodramatic, and still landing the tension when it counts. The opener with the loveseats is hilarious, then the mirror accident goes from goofy to terrifying in about two paragraphs, and the story never loses that momentum.
Also, the progression angle is handled in a way that feels fresh. The HUD, quests, achievements, and Discipline books are familiar ingredients, but the delivery is punchy and character-driven, not a spreadsheet. The choices feel risky, the powers feel cool, and the “irreversible and body altering” line has just the right amount of dread baked in.
And then there’s Trelain, who is equal parts helpful, unhinged, and suspicious, which is exactly what you want from the first “guide” character in a story like this. The banter is great, the vibes are off in the best way, and the book dangles a bigger mystery without bogging down the fun.
If you want a fast, funny, slightly unwell portal fantasy with real escalation and a narrator you actually enjoy hanging out with, this is it.
Roscoe_pRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Mirror King Review
Mirror Mirror on the Wall, Who’s the Dopest of Them All
Are you looking for a fun isekai with a strong narrative and quality humor? Look no further than Mirror King. A 30-year-old helps out a buddy, an old lady, and a cat, but no good deed goes unpunished. Thrown into a fantasy wilderness for no longer than ten minutes, Gregory is already getting attacked. Did I mention he was naked? Come on and catch a ride as you enjoy this first-person story.
Style: Barasadian kicks in the door with his first chapter, having an extraordinarily strong narrative voice. You are immediately pulled into the story the way that the peak stories of the genre grab your attention. Everything he writes is vivid and evokes imagery, putting the reader in the MC’s POV. The first-person narrative works really well here as well. Fights are written remarkably well. Many fictions will leave the reader struggling to track characters in action scenes, but with this story, you will swear the author was a Hollywood fight planner.
5/5 Style.
Story: Instant Isekai, instant fun. The story structure works well. Literary devices and plotting are both wielded well. System incorporation in the story is both written and designed well. Well, well, well... Well, maybe I need to take a page from the author's book, because he doesn’t get stuck reusing sentence structures, and has a diverse vocabulary. All the while, the writing doesn’t come off as pretentious or haughty, as many on RR can do.
5/5 Story
Grammar: Okay, while I was reading chapter one, I was questioning my decisions. I promise, enjoy the setup, because by the middle of chapter 2, the author finds his groove, and the grammar is strong.
4.5 Grammar in the beginning, quickly reaching 5/5
Characters: It is a telltale sign of a competent author when the characters they write are relatable, and you catch yourself comparing them to people in your own life. Characters that are only mentioned, ones who aren’t in scenes, are developed well
SaltAndSigilsRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
This is a voice‑driven, character‑first LitRPG isekai that leans hard into paramedic gallows humor, modern references, and a very grounded MC, while still delivering real stakes, gore when it matters, and a clever magic/progression system. It reads more like a funny friend telling you about the worst few days of their life than like a spreadsheet‑driven stat grind.
and Im HERE FOR IT
The big strength is Greg’s narration. It’s conversational, self‑aware, and actually funny without feeling like Marvel‑quippy sludge.
scienceguy90Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Quite frankly, one of my favorite things on Royal Road. I've been creeping without making an account for quite a while now and Mirror King and Barasadian's writing finally made me do it.
My prose is fresh and feels like it's a good friend. Just telling me a story over a cozy campfire hang. I actually like the amount of Oxford commas that Barasadian uses. It makes me feel like I'm in his head and can hear all the pauses he's using.
The grammar is good and makes me feel confident that the author isn't using any generative AI to write this piece, unlike a lot I've seen on RR right now.
I love all the characters. They feel like they're their own people instead of just a carbon copy of the main character. The main character also has social skills which I really like, in comparison to a Jake Thane type who can't relate. I also like that he's not completely super intelligent and makes mistakes and chooses things on whims and is kind of an idiot in the beginning. It makes more sense than someone who just has it all together, even if he is a paramedic
The story over all isn't high stakes world ending drama which feels great, especially for someone who's dropped into a brand new world struggling to survive. I also really like the weird old wizard guy who may or may not be trustworthy.
I think this is a really strong LitRPG in a sea of sameness and monotony of big numbers big crunch silliness.
CynicalOrangeRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
So Mirror King kinda snuck up on me. I went in not really knowing what to expect and found it's got that dangerous "just one more chapter" thing going on.The writing has this really natural, almost conversational quality to it like someone's just telling you a story. It meanders sometimes but in a good way, the way a real person would. And it's genuinely funny. Not trying-too-hard funny, just sly and witty in a way that catches you off guard. Greg as an MC is a huge part of why it works. He feels like an actual adult making real (if sometimes ridiculous) decisions, not some power fantasy self-insert.The LitRPG system stuff is there and it matters, but it doesn't drown you in stat blocks every other paragraph. The combat is solid too. It's not just action for action's sake, fights actually tell you things about the characters and the world.If I had any gripe, some of the dialogue punctuation feels slightly off in places, and the very early combat might undersell the stakes just a tiny bit. But honestly that's nitpicking. It's still early days but the foundation is really strong. Definitely worth picking up.