'Emil, you love me, don't you?'
I had a dream.
'Please, okay?'
The scene in my dream was the most impressive one I had seen near the end of my third life.
'…Me?'
This was a memory from my third regression.
'Ah ha ha, I certainly loved you very much too, Emil.'
Her mint-colored side ponytail swayed playfully.
Her smile, too, was as mischievous and arrogant as usual.
'So…'
But.
'Sacrifice yourself for me, Emil.'
Her eyes were filled with despair more than ever before.
"..."
When I opened my eyes, I saw the dormitory ceiling.
It was summer vacation.
'Is that why I had a dream like this….'
I saw a part of my third regression's memory as a dream.
The reason I had such a dream was probably because today was the first day of summer vacation.
It must be because the time to conquer the third heroine was approaching.
"Hoo…"
I sat on the edge of my bed and ran a hand over my face.
Honestly, recently, there had been a slight hesitation mixed in with conquering heroines.
The reason was the unexpected changes in the heroines I had already conquered.
And the disappearing male protagonists.
Lastly….
Because someone I didn't want to see hurt had also appeared.
But.
Through that dream just now, I recalled the memory of my third regression again.
'Of all times, it had to show me that moment….'
Perhaps my deep-seated resentment, hearing my weakness, tried to awaken my desire for revenge.
The effect wasn't bad.
Thanks to it, I gained motivation.
'Then, shall I go out right away?'
I put on my clothes.
Although it was summer vacation, I was wearing the academy's uniform.
Because due to school rules, wearing the uniform inside the academy was mandatory.
*Creak….*
"Ah, you're awake, Emil."
"..."
"Well, did you sleep well? …Ah, there's dust on your shoes."
As I left the male dormitory, Chris scurried up to me.
Then, kneeling before me, she wiped my shoes with a handkerchief.
After wiping them, she looked up at me and smiled nervously.
"Um…, Chris…."
"Huh? Why? D-do you need something? Just say anything…! If you want it, even right here…!"
"No, that's not it."
I looked around, confirmed no one was there, and then helped her up.
"Are you planning to come every day?"
"Huh…? U-um…. Well, because Emil might need me at any time…."
"I see…."
I had accepted her offer to become a tool.
The reason was that I hoped she wouldn't die.
Therefore, I couldn't tell Chris now, 'Why don't you stop doing this and go home to rest?'
But fortunately, there was a solution.
After all, she was my tool.
"Chris, could I ask you a favor?"
"A favor? Yes! Tell me anything!"
At the mention of a favor, Chris smiled brightly and nodded.
To that, I calmly replied.
"Please don't wait in front of the dormitory anymore."
"Huh, huh…?"
"And I'd prefer if you didn't follow me around closely if possible."
She let out a small sound.
"You know, others might misunderstand."
"Yes…, th-that's true…."
Fortunately, Chris seemed to understand.
Of course, if she refused or argued here, she would be breaking her own word about becoming a 'tool'.
"Then…! I'll keep waiting nearby…! If you need anything, please call me…!"
"Ah, yes, I will."
Afterward, Chris ran off somewhere from in front of me.
By the way, she said she'd wait nearby.
'It feels unsettling, like a stalker….'
It was difficult to calm down thinking that Chris would be watching me from somewhere no matter what I did.
But there was nothing I could do.
For now, this was the best option.
If I pressured her any more, her mental state could become even more precarious.
'Then, shall I go?'
I left the dormitory and headed towards the academy's main building.
***
During summer vacation, the academy provided something for students who remained in the dormitory.
That was the 'Limited Club Activities'.
It was a kind of consideration for students who, due to personal circumstances, remained in the dormitory and couldn't fully enjoy the summer vacation.
Because there were also students from foreign countries.
The difference between these vacation-limited clubs and regular clubs was 'freedom'.
Normally, clubs at the academy could only be established for purposes such as student self-development, socializing, and culture.
But in these vacation-limited clubs, that rule disappeared.
"Here it is…."
I found the promotional material for the club I wanted on the bulletin board.
The content was:
[Summer-Limited Board Game Club]
'The location…it's the same as in my third regression.'
After checking the details, I filled out the application form and headed towards the annex building.
No, I was about to head there.
"Ah! Emil!"
"Huh…?"
I turned around at the familiar voice.
There, Sierra was waving at me, holding a stack of club promotional materials.
"Sierra…? Why are you here…."
"Huh? Well, I came to do club activities."
"Then why aren't you doing them? What are you doing?"
"I've already been all around, look."
At my question, Sierra held out the promotional materials in her hand to me.
Could it be that she had visited all those places?
"After hearing you talk, I got interested and thought I'd try it."
"Then why are you still here instead of going in quickly?"
"Ugh…, because there wasn't really any place I liked."
At my question, Sierra pouted her lips and answered.
And then, her gaze suddenly moved to my hand.
To be precise, it was the club application form in my hand.
"Ah! As expected, Emil has already decided where to go!"
"Huh?"
"Show me for a moment."
"Whoa! W-wait a moment!"
Before I could stop her, Sierra snatched the application form from my hand in an instant.
And immediately, she checked the contents and tilted her head.
"Board games…?"
"..."
"Hmm~, do you like these?"
"No, rather than liking them exactly…."
I, who was about to answer thoughtlessly, hesitated for a moment.
…Wouldn't it be even stranger if I said I didn't like them?
"…I'm trying to like them."
"Hee, that's unexpected."
At my roundabout answer, Sierra agreed and nodded.
Then she glanced at me.
She grinned and ran to the bulletin board, bringing back an application form.
"Great! I'll join there too."
And then, she suddenly declared that.
"What?! Why, why?!"
"What's wrong…? Do you hate me joining that much?"
"N-no, it's not that I hate it, it's just a bit sudden…"
"It doesn't matter, does it? It's fine, right? I want to do it together too."
"..."
What should I do?
'This is troublesome….'
If possible, I wanted to prevent Sierra from getting involved in future heroine conquests.
There were three heroines left.
Because I didn't know what mental state those three would be in after seeing the 'Memories of Despair'.
And it was possible that Sierra might become a target for such heroines.
'Is there anything I can say to get out of this…?'
I fell into thought for a moment.
But no answer came.
If I suddenly tried to persuade Sierra here…, she might misunderstand that I had bad feelings towards her.
Such a misunderstanding…, I hated it.
I instinctively felt repulsed.
"Uhm…"
As I groaned to myself, unable to come up with any answer.
"What are you doing? Let's go quickly!"
"Huh, huh?"
Sierra suddenly grabbed my wrist and started walking towards the annex building.
I let out a bewildered sound and was led away by her hand.
Ultimately, unable to prevent her from joining the same club.
"Excuse us~."
*Clatter.*
We ended up visiting the [Summer-Limited Board Game Club] together.
"Oh? What can I do for you?"
When the door opened, two people were sitting inside.
One of them.
A girl with mint-colored hair tied to the side rose from her seat and looked at us.
Opposite her.
A large man with short hair and an indifferent expression.
He said to the mint-haired girl.
"Looks like they're club applicants."
"Huh? Is that so?! Wow! Oh my! Two people?!"
At the man's words, the mint-haired girl smiled brightly and scampered towards us.
And *grab!*
She firmly grabbed Sierra's and my hands and pulled us inside.
"Are you joining the club? Is that it? Right?"
Perhaps because she had suddenly approached and grabbed them, Sierra nodded with a flustered expression.
"Ah, yes. …More importantly, it seems we're in the same year."
"Oh? You are? Wow! Anyway, nice to meet you! We almost ended up playing games just the two of us all summer vacation~! Come on! Come over here quickly!"
"Okay, let's go, Emil."
"..."
I looked at the mint-haired girl and the indifferent-faced man.
'They were already here.'
Lia Bent and Bran Hellion.
Those were the names of the mint-haired girl and the indifferent-faced man.
And.
Those two were the heroine and the male protagonist of this conquest.
*Clatter….*
I, who had entered last, closed the door.
Lia was grinning widely, showing her fangs, at the arrival of new club members.
Bran remained seated in his chair, his face still devoid of emotion, looking between me and Sierra.
'I didn't really want Sierra to join, but… anyway.'
I sat in the chair Lia had prepared for me.
Sierra sat opposite me.
Then Lia made a very proud face.
"Alright! So, it's the first day, what game should we play first?!"
With an excited face, she lifted a large box from the floor.
Inside were countless board games.
'The third conquest begins.'
I looked at the board games and grinned.