"Alphons Klishal. By the authority of this court, I hereby declare the revocation of your position as the heir to the marquisate, as well as your expulsion from the nobility."
In the frozen air, the inquisitor's low voice echoed. This was the royal capital, Luxteria, in the council chambers of the Central Assembly. The condemnation of a noble was carried out in this solemn hall.
I see, so that's the script.
To protect the family, they cut me loose. In the noble society of this world, it was an utterly rational choice.
At the center of it all, I, Alphons, simply stood in silence. My back straight, my head held high. Without a hint of emotion.
No, it would be more accurate to say my emotions were in a different place.
(Just as I thought. This is from that game...)
The moment the words of condemnation were spoken, I was certain. As if experiencing deja vu, a visual from my memory superimposed itself on the scene.
Character portraits. Dialogue windows. Choices. And the music, this was a scene from the otome game I used to play, Celestial Love Romance.
A glamorous academy, the sons of prestigious families, the crown prince, the knight commander, a young mage... Encounters and romance with handsome men known as love interests. A story where a young noblewoman grows up, at times agonizing over love and shedding tears for friendship, a classic isekai romance fantasy.
And this condemnation scene was the villainous son's exile event. It was a major turning point that always occurred around the game's midpoint.
In other words, I, Alphons Klishal, was the villain.
"With this... I have nothing more to do with you."
Letizia's voice was dignified as she spoke. She no longer called me her fiancé.
Her silver hair swayed. Her clear eyes were looking straight at me, but I couldn't read the emotion behind them. Her demeanor was simply resolute, cold, and somehow proud.
The very picture of an otome game's heroine and protagonist.
And then I remembered that this condemnation and engagement-breaking event was a crucial turning point in the original story.
[Even while being treated unreasonably, the heroine stays true to her convictions and moves people's hearts.]
[The affection level cap is unlocked, and the story branches into the different character routes from here…]
(...Ah, I get it now.)
In that case, my condemnation was just a bit of spice for her story.
Standing beside the dignified Letizia was the top love interest, Crown Prince Kaiser. His cold, condescending eyes were unequivocally those of a victor.
(My role is to harass her, have our engagement broken, and be condemned)
But that's not right.
I now have the perspective of a player.
To be precise, I'm the villainous son with someone inside, having been reincarnated as Alphons and regained my memories. What's more, I'm a former player who had absolutely no interest in the romance events.
The reason I had no interest in the romance events was because Celestial Love Romance had a divine, deeply engaging element called a combat system!
Weapon skills, magic skills, a guild system, a monster encyclopedia, titles, the interplay of stats in combat, the existence of hidden events, multiple skill growth paths,
It was truly a god-tier game.
Despite that, it was barely explored outside of the romance routes and was treated as side content that had little effect on the ending.
At best, this content only truly shone during the combat events that appeared toward the end of the story. But there were only a handful of those... and once they were over, no more such events would appear before the ending.
Perhaps that's why the general player base was only interested in romancing handsome men and playing dress-up with gowns.
I thought it was a real waste. If you looked at the combat system alone, it was so elaborate it could rival a full-fledged RPG.
(But I'm different. I'm the only one who know the true nature of this game.)
Which is precisely why my current situation is so incredibly convenient.
I've lost my title, my fame, my status, my engagement, everything. I've been exiled from noble society and... just now, disowned by my family.
But what that means is this:
(I can fight to my heart's content!!!)
The inquisitor impassively read out the charges. The insults, the schemes, the humiliations I had inflicted upon Letizia... all of it was the doing of the "previous" Alphons.
But I felt absolutely no remorse or desire for atonement for any of it.
Because, to me, it was nothing more than something someone else did.
Of course, I have the same body and the same name. To those around me, these are the sins committed by Alphons Klishal.
But the current me, I can only see them as mere data.
That line, that action, they're nothing more than a fixed event I saw countless times in the game.
Besides... for the current me, romance was the last thing on my mind anyway.
Love, jealousy, engagements, a noble's pride. This world's combat system seemed so much more interesting than any of that. The various feelings I'd had for Letizia just moments ago had long since vanished.
"...Finally, if you have any words of defense, you may speak them now," the inquisitor said.
I slowly raised my head and smiled.
"Words of defense, you say. Well... I have none in particular."
My father, who was present, didn't so much as twitch an eyebrow, merely giving a placid nod. My mother, too, with a distant look in her eyes, snapped her fan shut on her lap. There were no voices to defend me.
Meanwhile, Letizia, who had declared my condemnation, blinked in surprise. It was as if she was faced with an unexpected reaction.
Crown Prince Kaiser also furrowed his brow quietly. His expression, which should have been filled with a victor's confidence, seemed to hold a mixture of confusion and caution.
"H-Hey... we're not done, "
"Someone stop him!"
"What are the guards doing!"
Such voices reached my ears.
But I had already turned around. I turned my back on them and left the chamber.
In this moment, I was no longer a noble. Which meant I had no obligation to follow their order.
(The Adventurers Guild. Skills. Checking my stats... Heh, this is going to be too much fun!)
My life as a noble ended here. But my life as a player was just beginning.
Forgetting the people who could only stare as if they were looking at something bizarre.
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