While Karl was on the verge of being forced to confirm what he'd eaten—thanks to the combination of riding a carriage for the first time in ages and the abysmal state of the roads—the Vice Principal, oblivious to his plight, was breaking into a cold sweat as he guided Karl. Around that same time, as the morning sun rose, it was the hour when students began waking up one by one to head to the Academy.
Outside, crowds moved about opening shops or heading to their various livelihoods, while inside, students prepared to attend their classes. A new day had begun at the vast Academy.
Sunlight streaming through the curtains tickled a young girl's face. Finding it bothersome, she turned her head this way and that, but eventually gave up and opened her eyes. This sunlight was no different from an alarm telling her it was time to get up.
The girl, wrapped snugly in her white blanket, rolled once to free herself from it, then suddenly shivered at the cold air touching her skin. It was mid-March, about ten days after the entrance ceremony, and the weather hadn't fully warmed yet on this particular morning.
"Haaaaah~"
Perhaps the sudden chill had fully roused her, for the girl carefully sat up from her lying position and stretched. There was still plenty of time before class, but if she moved too leisurely, time would slip away in an instant.
She'd nearly been late twice already in these past ten days, so she needed to be more careful. Moving quickly but thoroughly through her preparations, the girl finally checked her reflection in the vanity table mirror, nodded in satisfaction, and rose from her seat.
"Let's do our best today too!"
The girl possessed a vibrancy that others found difficult to look at directly and hard to approach. Quite abundantly so.
"Hmm-hmm, hmm♪"
Humming something that wasn't quite a tune but which she would insist was one, the girl stepped lightly forward. Her long pink hair swayed with each step, like cherry blossom petals scattering unseasonably early. Her sparkling eyes were a clear, cloudless blue, as if they held the sky itself.
Passersby who turned at the mysterious sound would nod and convince themselves they'd heard a proper tune. After all, a pretty face completes any melody.
"Luize!"
At the voice calling out to the pink-haired girl humming her tune, Luize turned around, and upon seeing who had called her, broke into a bright smile.
"Irina!"
Luize rushed over to Irina and linked arms with her, as delighted as if they were friends reuniting after a long separation. Of course, these two had been apart for nowhere near that long—they'd even eaten dinner together just yesterday evening. Regardless, once the two best friends joined forces, their travel speed decreased by half, and their party only continued to grow from there.
Whenever someone passing by called out to Luize, she would greet them cheerfully and add them to the group. And so it went: one-third speed, one-quarter, one-fifth. Luize's movement speed decreased as if she were walking directly through a field with stacked speed-reduction debuffs. But what of it? Not one of the five suffering from the group-wide speed reduction complained. For the sake of friendship... wasn't it right to risk even being late?
"At this rate, you'll be late. Weren't you cutting it close yesterday too?"
Still, Luize had a shield who tried to prevent her from being tardy, which was how she'd managed to avoid it thus far.
"Oh, Erich! Good morning!"
"Yeah. Good morning."
Erich, who had called out to Luize, responded to her greeting with a subtle smile. As he naturally approached Luize, Irina, who had been closest to her, smoothly made room. Though he felt a bit sheepish at the consideration, he showed no intention of refusing, slipping into the spot beside Luize.
Watching this unfold up close, Irina and the three other girls whispered among themselves, giggling. After all, one's own romantic affairs might be fierce battlegrounds, but watching someone else's love life was as entertaining as watching a fire from across the river. Unfortunately, it was still one-sided interest rather than romance, but perhaps that made it all the more worth watching.
Erich would have to work quite hard to turn that one-sided interest into something mutual, but that wasn't something the observers needed to worry about. The desperate party would handle it himself.
And so their group grew to six. Yet perhaps Erich carried a movement speed buff, for they managed to move faster than before. That the frequency of conversation didn't decrease but actually increased amid all this could be considered a talent in itself.
"Erich, you've got a gray hair."
"I shouldn't be getting those yet."
"Just kidding. It's actually just a thread."
Luize plucked a single white thread that stood out conspicuously against Erich's black hair and, giggling, released it to the wind. To preserve what little remained of Erich's pride as his face gradually reddened, Irina turned her gaze away. As she watched the thread drift on the breeze, she tilted her head.
"Who's that person?"
At her words, everyone's attention focused on Irina, then followed her gaze to see whom she was looking at.
"You're right? They're not a student, and not faculty either?"
"That's strange. An outsider?"
"Can outsiders even enter at this hour?"
They weren't wearing a uniform, so not a student. They had no blue cloak, so not faculty either. The moment questions began to spread, Erich, who had just barely calmed his flushed face, also turned his gaze where Irina was looking.
"Huh...?"
Erich squinted at the distance—just far enough to barely make out a face—then let out a voice tinged with bewilderment upon confirming the identity of the mysterious outsider. The other person must have recognized Erich's face as well, for they began striding purposefully toward him.
"Erich. Do you know them?"
Since they seemed to have recognized each other, Luize asked Erich. After all, Erich had reacted as if he knew that person, and that person was approaching immediately upon seeing Erich.
Despite Luize's question, Erich couldn't answer. It was definitely that person he knew, yet also someone who shouldn't be here. Someone who complained about not having enough time to even go home—how could they possibly be at this distant academy? The shock of seeing someone who shouldn't be here in a place they shouldn't be wasn't easily recovered from.
In the meantime, the mysterious person had approached right up to them and stopped, then spoke while looking at Erich.
"It's been a while. Have you been well?"
***
I managed to find the bathroom just before reaching my peak and being forced into a public reveal of the finale. At least after purging everything, I felt much calmer. Seriously, I've never heard anyone call me frail, so why is this happening?
Recently, I'd been cooped up in my office for long stretches, which meant I hadn't seen sunlight in ages. It had also been a while since I'd ridden in a carriage, and the roads happened to be absolute shit, with the bumping made even worse by the speed. In that state, I still had to eat, so I forced food down even though my stomach felt off.
Mm, that's more than enough reason.
Having finished my self-reflection, I stepped outside the main building and looked around the academy grounds. Whether I like it or not... no, I fucking hate it, but I have to stay at this academy for the next few months. Since the academy isn't exactly small, I need to learn the layout.
How pathetic would it be if I got lost when something urgent came up and I needed to go somewhere? The news would probably reach the Minister somehow, and I'd be publicly mocked. "The Inspection Department Director who can't even find his way around." Just imagining it pisses me off as if I'd actually heard it.
After running my hand through my hair, I moved toward the building that looked closest to the main building. If imagining it is this infuriating, actually hearing it would be even worse. Unable to bear such a future, I wanted to learn the layout as quickly as possible. It would have been perfect if my wandering around hadn't coincided with the students' arrival time.
'What do I do?'
I can hear students whispering as they pass by. Well, it's only natural to react that way when an outsider suddenly appears. Eventually, I turned back toward the main building to hole up there where there'd be no students during arrival time, and that's when I witnessed an impressive sight.
"What the hell is that cluster?"
While others traveled in groups of two or three at most, here was a cluster of six all together. The gender ratio was catastrophically skewed, too. 1:5—I don't know who the guy is, but impressive...
'Wait, that's my younger brother.'
That damn bastard. While his older brother is suffering, his younger brother effortlessly enjoys what's been his older brother's lifelong wish, even dating around. More outrageous than the Second Section Chief. Erich must have recognized me too, as his expression stiffened. Perfect, let's go shake him down.
With considerably lighter steps, I walked toward Erich. The closer I got, the more his pupils seemed to tremble. He's been strangely intimidated in front of me since way back. It's not like I ever bullied him or anything.
"It's been a while. Have you been well?"
"U-uh. How about you, hyung?"
"Same as usual."
The words "I've never been okay" surged up to the tip of my tongue, but since there were many eyes and ears nearby, I decided to keep it to myself. It'd be embarrassing to lament about civil servant life in front of students I'm meeting for the first time.
When I turned my gaze toward the five gathered together, they awkwardly bowed their heads in greeting. They must have realized from our conversation just now that I was their friend's older brother. But one person stood out—someone who didn't seem awkward at all.
"Hello! Are you Erich's hyung?"
A friend with considerable energy popped out, far too enthusiastic to be just making polite greetings. If this were a manga, there'd probably be sparkle effects written next to her eyes.
Blue eyes, pink hair, high energy. The type who'd stand out anywhere.
...
...?
But why does she feel strangely familiar when I'm seeing her for the first time?
I stared at Pink Hair, who had pushed forward, with an odd sense of déjà vu. Pink... blue... something about it rings a bell, but it's hazy. Did I maybe see a photo mixed in with some roster during work?
"That's right. I'm Karl Krasius. Are you Erich's friend?"
If the other person reveals their name first, it's common courtesy to reveal yours as well. If you can't remember who they are, just hearing their name is enough. At least hearing their family name should give you a clue where you've seen them.
"Yes, I'm Erich's friend Luize. Luize Naierd!"
"I see."
'Fuck.'
My body calmly nodded, but my mind went into emergency mode.
Hearing her name jogged my memory. Luize of the Naierd Barony. Pink hair and blue eyes. A human capybara who draws people in like the Pied Piper. Or is it human catnip? Either way, a girl with the setting of being beloved for her appearance and personality.
'She's the protagonist.'
I glanced sideways at Erich. His body was stiff with tension, yet his gaze kept drifting toward Luize. And those faintly flushed cheeks. Fucking hell.
"So it wasn't four but five..."
"Pardon?"
"Nothing. Never mind."
What I meant to keep to myself slipped out of my mouth. Well, not that it wasn't warranted.
My gaze, tinged with subtle sorrow, turned back to Erich. He flinched under my direct stare, but I couldn't bring myself to look away.
'Poor bastard. You're the weakest one here.'
One imperial prince, two princes, one leading saint candidate. There were differences in status, yes, but within the Academy they could at least compete on relatively equal footing. But throw an imperial count's second son into that lineup? Yeah, that's rough.
I patted Erich's shoulder affectionately. A gesture of consolation for my younger brother, whose defeat was all but guaranteed before he even reached the starting line.
On my first day dispatched to the Academy, I met the original story's protagonist. And as my younger brother's friend, no less.
A friend who, judging by all signs, was headed straight for the 'I want us to stay good friends' ending.