Chapter 2: The Summer Vacation from Hell Begins

“Lean?” He blinked, sounding like he was only just recalling this.

“Yeah! She’s going to come over and spend two or three days here! We’re going to have a sleepover! I can’t wait,” she told him, beaming.

Gilbert narrowed his eyes. “You said you told her you’re really a girl. Haven’t the two of you gotten a bit too close lately?”

“What?!” Cecilia yelped, her voice cracking unnaturally. “I—I guess?”

“You have been. You aren’t keeping anything from me, right?”

“I—I am not! Nothing at all!” she chirped in a strained voice.

“What are you hiding?” he demanded. His calm attitude had dissipated; now he emanated danger.

Gilbert sat up and pressed close to her; Cecilia averted her gaze.

“You asked me to work with you, and yet, you’re keeping some of the most crucial details from me, aren’t you? If you do that, I won’t be able to help you even if I want to.”

“Ummm, but…”

“Since it entails your past life, I’ve been considerate and have waited for you to open up to me about a lot of this yourself. But I’m just about at my limit. If you’re going to keep so much from me, I’ll get my own ideas about things.”

She could feel his gaze boring into her. Even if she tried to run, she couldn’t—his arms were bracketing her in. He had her trapped. When she peeked up at him, their eyes met—and he was obviously angry.

Scary!

Just then, there was a knock on the door. Overjoyed that she’d been saved, Cecilia called out, “Y-yes?”

One of her maids entered. “Miss Cecilia, I— Ah!”

As soon as Reina caught sight of what was happening, she froze. Then she blushed faintly, covered her face with her hands, yelped out, “I-I’m so sorry!” and attempted to leave.

Meanwhile, Cecilia panicked as she saw her helping hand do an about-face. “W-wait!”

“Ah?”

“Do you need me for something? What is it?”

“Y-you want me to tell you now?” Reina stammered, still beet red. Unable to meet Cecilia’s gaze, her eyes darted all over.

“Wh-what’s wrong with now?”

“Nothing, but… Ah… Aren’t I intruding?” she asked, chancing a glance at them.

Not wanting her lifeline to leave, Cecilia shook her head emphatically. “Not at all! How could you be?”

“Ah, um, but…Master Gilbert…”

“He’s fine with it! Right, Gil?”

After an oddly long pause, Gilbert nodded and muttered, “Sure.”

Cecilia pasted on a bright smile. “See! He says it’s fine!”

“I wonder about that, Miss Cecilia.”

“What? Me?” She blinked, confused at Reina’s suddenly critical gaze.

Sighing in resignation, Gilbert moved away from his sister and got to his feet. Then he asked Reina, “Has something happened?”

With Gilbert’s blessing now given, Reina explained nervously, “Ah, we have a visitor who says she’s Miss Cecilia’s friend.”

“We do? Who is it?”

“A Miss Lean, daughter of Baron Rhazaloa…”

Surprise flashed across Cecilia’s face.

“Here we are!”

“Here you are…,” Cecilia murmured, cringing as she hid most of her face beneath a folding fan.

And no wonder. It wasn’t just Lean standing in the foyer of her house—behind her stood Jade, Dante, and Huey. All they needed was Oscar, and then the whole gang would be there.

As the guests looked around the grand foyer, they let out admiring sighs and whistles. With its chandelier, the foyer was as grand as a ballroom all on its own.

“Lean, could you come with me?” Cecilia asked, motioning the other girl over to the edge of the hall. There, she hissed, “Why did you bring everyone else?! And why are you here earlier than we planned on?! You weren’t supposed to show up for another three days!”

Lean giggled. “I’m just too impatient, I guess.”

“Is that any excuse?”

“I told you you’d better remember what you did, didn’t I?” Lean smiled wickedly. In other words, this was revenge for the Chinese qipao dress incident—carried out to an insane degree. Her angle here was too inscrutable to follow.

Cecilia was at her wit’s end. “How did you explain things to everyone before you came?”

She needed to get a full handle on that first. Of everyone present, only Gilbert and Lean knew that Cecil was, in fact, Cecilia and vice versa. Dante had probably figured it out, but since she hadn’t confirmed it to him yet, it was safest to treat him as if he wasn’t aware.

Cecilia continued. “You didn’t tell them I’m Cecil, did you?!”

“Of course I didn’t; who do you think I am? I told them you’re an old friend of mine. And then when we were all chatting, I mentioned I was going to see you, and they said they wanted to come along. And so here we are! They were all ever so curious to see what a duke’s estate is like,” she explained, making it sound like it had been out of her hands. And yet, the fact that she had specifically mentioned going to visit Cecilia in front of them pointed to it being premeditated.

Cecilia cradled her throbbing head in her hands. Just when she thought she’d get to take it easy, this happened. Plus, there was also the clearly murderous aura Gilbert had been emanating this whole time to contend with. It was too much to bear.

“Ugh…”

“It’ll be fine—don’t worry. We’ll leave this evening! I only stopped by to give you a nice big shock! I’m going home for a little bit, and then I’ll be back in three days!”

“That’s fine, then, but still…”

The fact that the group had shown up the day Gilbert and Cecilia had returned to the estate meant that they’d come here straight from the academy dorms. There was no way they could have arrived so quickly if they’d all been coming from their respective homes. While it was easy for them to just stop by for a quick visit, Cecilia couldn’t abide the brazen initiative Lean had taken here.

“My, my! Oh, look at all the guests we have today,” came a serene voice from the staircase leading to the second story. A woman with the same flowing honey-blond hair as Cecilia was slowly descending the stairs.

“Cecilia, are these your guests? Or Gilbert’s?” asked Cecilia and Gilbert’s mother, Lucinda Sylvie.

A dignified lady who exuded all the grace and poise of a noblewoman stopped before the group, beaming with delight. “Welcome to the Sylvie estate. I’m afraid I don’t know what business you’ve come on, but please do make yourselves at home.”

Acting as representative of the group, Lean curtsied. “I’m very sorry for the intrusion. My name is Lean Rhazaloa, eldest daughter of Baron Rhazaloa.”

She acted the picture of a fair maiden, almost unrecognizable from her usual self.

Lucinda’s eyes sparkled. “Oh! You’re Miss Lean? Cecilia’s friend?”

“Ah, yes!”

“And the people behind you?” Lucinda asked, her cheeks as flushed as a girl’s, peering around Lean.

“Ah, these are—”

“I apologize for so many of us arriving uninvited. My name is Jade Benjamin. I don’t know Cecilia, but I’m friendly with Gilbert at school. I came along once I heard we would get to see your beautiful home!” Jade chimed in smoothly with a good-natured smile, as befitting the son of a merchant.

“So you’re a friend of Gil’s, then? I suppose that means you’ll all be staying the night? You are staying over, Miss Lean, aren’t you?” asked Lucinda, her smile glowing. She was overjoyed that her children’s friends had come to visit.

Lean smiled again at the lady’s amiable attitude. “Ah, yes. However, I thought I’d come and do that on another day. We’re merely stopping by on our way home today.”

“We were only following her,” added Jade.

Once Lucinda heard they wouldn’t be staying the night, she took one of Lean’s hands and squeezed it. “Nonsense, I insist that you stay over tonight! We’ll take care of clothes and meals and everything for you. Jade and the other young men are invited as well.”

“Mother?!” Cecilia yelped, shocked that she was not only inviting Lean but the boys as well.

“Oh, I know! We have a lovely little cottage out by our lakeshore. You can all use that if you’d like. It has plenty of rooms, and I’ll assign some servants to it—and guards, too, of course.”

“H-hold on just a minute!” protested Gilbert, equally unable to bear his mother’s steamrolling. “I think their parents will be concerned if we jump right to this…”

“That’s no worry at all. I’ll contact each of their families myself. If anything’s amiss, they can tell me then.”

This was true authority. If a duchess contacted anyone personally, that meant the situation was as good as settled. No one would be able to object.

“You’re not worried about Miss Cecilia alone with a group of young men?” asked Dante, raising his hand to provide support.

But it had no effect on Lucinda. “Why, but Gil will be right there. I’m not worried about that at all. He’ll protect his sister at any cost. Isn’t that right, Gil?”

“Well…I suppose, yes, that is true…,” he hedged.

Since she likely knew about his feelings, Lucinda turned eyes full of absolute trust on him. He massaged his temples to quell his oncoming headache.

Now that she’d silenced her son, the person most likely to protest, Lucinda clapped her hands, convinced of her victory. “Then it’s all settled! Every one of you should take this opportunity to become closer friends not just with Gil but with Cecilia as well!”

No matter how placid her attitude, the duchess excelled at having her own way.

Expression frozen on her face, Lean poked Cecilia. “Your mom is really something.”

“Mm-hmm. She’s bizarrely overprotective of me…”

“Overprotective?”

“I think she’s worried that I can’t make friends,” she said, remembering when she was younger and completely selfish.

Her parents weren’t bad people at all, but they spoiled their daughter rotten. In addition to her father, who bought her whatever she wanted and granted any request no matter how small, her mother treated Cecilia as if she were made of glass. Simply coughing once would lead the woman to call for a doctor, and if her daughter got so much as a scratch, Lucinda would blanch and faint on the spot.

While things had gotten much better lately, sometimes that overprotectiveness would rear its head, as it had just then. She was especially sensitive when it came to Cecilia’s social ties.

“All right, I’m off to get everything set up. Go on and relax in our grand salon until it’s ready!”

“I don’t mind what’s happening, but aren’t you going to try and stop her?” asked Lean, pointing to Lucinda, who was calling servants over.

Cecilia shook her head. “Once she gets like that, there’s no stopping her.”

As if by instinct, no one else spoke up; they all just watched, resigned to their fate.

Still obscuring her face behind a fan, Cecilia felt cold sweat trickle down her cheeks.

How should I attempt to ride this one out…?

It was all but guaranteed that once the other boys got a good look at her face, they’d figure out that Cecilia was Cecil. Her hair was different, and she was wearing makeup, so she could disguise herself to some degree, but the wisest course of action would be not to spend too much time around them. This made a sleepover entirely unreasonable.

But I can’t think of a way to stop Mother…

“Lots of guests here today,” declared a very familiar voice from the doorway. All turned to look and found the crown prince Oscar there, accompanied by a knight as his personal guard.

Oscar?!

Immediately, Cecilia shrank back into the shadows. She completely froze. The person she most needed not to be here had just made his entrance.

“Oh, Your Highness!”

“Sorry, I had to take care of some things, so I’m here later than planned… Hmm? What the…?!”

He gawked at Lean and the others once he finally noticed their presence.

“Hey, Oscar! What a coincidence!” shouted Dante with a grin, slinging an arm around Oscar’s neck.

“Why are you all here?”

“That’s what I’d like to ask you, Your Highness,” said a sour-faced Gilbert, pinching the bridge of his nose.

It was Lucinda who answered. “My, my. Several days ago, I received a letter from the prince expressing a desire to visit on his way home to the palace. Naturally, I wrote back to say that he was more than welcome to come.”

Ordinarily, Gilbert would have nipped that in the bud.

“After all, both of you would be coming home as well. Wouldn’t you like for Cecilia to see His Highness after so many years?”

“Mother…”

Lucinda was hell-bent on doing what her daughter neither wanted nor had asked for.

Feeling that she could not meet Oscar here and now, Cecilia slowly attempted to sneak away.

The crown prince was probably the worst person in the world who could learn of Cecil’s true identity. In the game, he sends Cecilia to prison and executes her time and time again. Depending on the route, he sometimes kills her right there. While the Oscar in this world didn’t harbor any unpleasant feelings toward Cecilia, she had no idea how he would take finding out that she’d dressed up as a boy and tricked him; it could very well go awfully.

And besides, I still haven’t given him a real apology…

She’d yet to make amends with Oscar for pushing him to the floor when she was in the qipao dress. After that incident, he’d usually been absent whenever she stopped by his classroom. On the rare occasions he was there, he would be talking to someone, which made it difficult for her to approach him. He was also extremely busy and not at school more often than not. Thus, she hadn’t found a chance to apologize yet.

This meant that at the moment, Cecil and Oscar were on slightly rocky terms.

Don’t act suspicious; slowly back away…

Cecilia turned and padded out silently. She’d find an empty room and hide herself there.

But as she fled, a merciless voice stopped her in her tracks. “Are you…Cecilia?”

She flinched. With jerky, tin-man movements, she slowly turned around and locked eyes with the slack-jawed prince. She’d lost her chance to escape.

Cecilia brought the fan up even higher over her face. Her voice wobbled nervously. “I-it’s been a very long time, Your Highness.”

“It…really has,” he concurred, sounding soft and relieved.

She darted a glance at him over the edge of the fan. Oscar’s face really had lit up in satisfaction, and his eyes were half lidded as he directed a gentle smile Cecilia’s way. He didn’t even bring up how rude it was to obscure her visage.

Why…?

Why did he look so happy?

Before she could contemplate it, yet another ridiculous suggestion from her mother rang in her ears. “Perfect! Your Highness, why don’t you spend the night here as well?”

“What?”

“What?”

“The others have plans to stay overnight in our cottage. As far as I can tell, you’re also acquainted with everyone, so I must insist you stay as well,” demanded Lucinda.

“Er…”

It was so sudden that even Oscar winced.

Tugging on her mother’s sleeve, Cecilia shook her head desperately.

This couldn’t happen. It was too dangerous.

However, Lucinda Sylvie’s policy was not to ask her daughter’s opinion on things that were for her daughter’s own good.

“Your Highness, there’s no need to be polite. I’ll write a letter to His Majesty myself about it,” Lucinda reassured.

Duchess Sylvie and the king and queen were old friends from childhood. The king was also the type who could never refuse a friend’s request.

“I’ll just strengthen the security a little more,” she insisted, making it sound like a done deal. No one present had the power to stop her.

“Now, all of you play nicely with my Cecilia, all right?” Lucinda requested firmly, many times more the picture of a fine lady than Lean had been.

Things have gone from bad to worse…

In the afternoon, the entire party arrived at the cottage. Perhaps cottage was underselling it, though; it was more like a stately mansion that was situated on the banks of a lake amid the glory of nature. There were rooms aplenty for servants and guards as well, and there was even a separate annex building. Space was not an issue at all.

While the group had been taken aback at first by such a sudden development, they were now emboldened enough to settle in nicely. That is to say, that they’d begun to play around. Everyone frolicking by the waterside wore huge grins.

That looks fun…

The nominally frail Cecilia sighed from her shady spot under a nearby tree. But she wasn’t sighing because she was jealous of the others’ enjoyment—no, it had more to do with the person beside her.

“Are you all right?” asked Oscar anxiously. Instead of joining everyone else, he had chosen to sit next to Cecilia. Evidently, he was conscientious of the fact that she’d been left on her own.

Covered in a light sheen of nervous sweat, she smiled at Oscar from behind her fan. “I’m perfectly all right. Please, go on and join the others, Your Highness.”

“No, I’m okay. I had something I wanted to talk to you about anyway.”

Not only did he intercept her neatly, he also brought up a reason to stay, making it impractical for her to chase him off. She hadn’t wanted to get near him or talk with him if at all possible, but now things had reached the point of no return.

Cecilia shifted the tiniest bit away from him. A few inches didn’t make much of a difference, but it did wonders to calm her heart.

Why is he coming on so strong…?

Oscar had once told her he “didn’t hate Cecilia” and that he “wanted to rebuild our relationship (for my future with Lean).” Therefore, this must have been his first step toward rebuilding that relationship.

But what good will it do to repair things when Lean has Huey?

Just like in the game, Oscar still had feelings for her even though she was with someone else. Cecilia could understand that. But why was he trying to rebuild his relationship with the fiancée he didn’t even want, all for a woman whose heart was already set on someone else? That, she couldn’t fathom.

Was he still hoping he could infatuate Lean so she’d come back to him?

If so, I feel a little sorry for him…

She glanced at Oscar. Their eyes met. He must have been staring at her the whole time.

Quickly, Cecilia looked away.

I need to start with doing something about this!

She stared imploringly at Lean, who was closest, begging for help. But all she said was, “Huey, look! Those fish are huge!”

“You’re right; they are.”

“They seem like they’re having such fun swimming together! Shall we join them?”

“Cut it out. You’re not even dressed for swimming.”

“Oh, but…if it’s in front of you, I wouldn’t mind stripping down—”

“Hey! Like I said, cut it out with those jokes!”

“Hee-hee.”

She was too busy enjoying her time with her boyfriend—or was it more like she was having fun teasing him and making him blush?

But in the end, she murmured flirtatiously to him, “If I was drowning, would you save me?”

“Well…of course I would.”

It was enough to inspire jealousy in anyone.

I see your boy toy is more important than your friend!

Had Lean forgotten whose fault it was that Cecilia was in this mess now?

“Cecilia, are you feeling all right?” came an impatient voice as she was glaring daggers at her best friend. She looked over to find Gilbert, out of breath. Since the others’ arrival, he’d been tied up giving directions to the staff. Without their parents present, he was the de facto head of the cottage.

“Gil!” she cried rapturously. It was like an angel had descended to rescue her. However…

“Gil! You’re just in time!” shouted Dante as he slung an arm across her brother’s shoulders.

Jade was behind him. “Does the cottage have any fishing gear? And nets?”

“It…does, yes…,” Gilbert replied reluctantly.

“Then let us borrow them! Jade and I were just talking about fishing.”

“And if you’re free, you should join us! We just saw a catch that was this big!” enthused Jade, holding his hands far apart.

When had those two gotten so chummy?

Dante slid his arm up around Gilbert’s neck. “I’ll be borrowing your baby bro, Cecilia!”

“Hey!”

“Hey!”

“At least just show us where the fishing stuff is.”

“What should we do for bait, hmm?”

No! Gil!

They practically dragged Gilbert off. She wondered about the significant look Dante had shot Oscar as he left, but her head was already reeling from how quickly her trusty little brother had gotten whisked away. She couldn’t spare the mental energy to think about it.

“It’s unusual for him to want to get so close to others,” remarked Oscar, apparently just as bemused by that mysterious look.

Now that they had been left all alone, Cecilia made up her mind. She had to overcome this solely through her own power. Somehow.

But what should I talk about with him?! First I’ll apologize for the dress incident… No, no, I have to do that when I’m Cecil!

It felt like whatever she said would only be digging her own grave.

“Cecilia.”

Oscar’s voice was firmer than usual, and she turned to look at him. His gaze was serious and resolute.

“I’ve thought a lot about whether I’d bring this up with you the next time we met. But it’s not my style to beat around the bush, so I’ll just ask you directly.”

She sighed.

“Do you regret getting engaged to me?”

“Huh?” she yelped, voice cracking at the unexpected question.

He went on. “Do you dislike me or something? You’ve been avoiding me for eleven years now. Or am I just being paranoid?”

“Um…”

His incredibly serious tone had totally thrown her off. Cecilia had never intended to avoid Oscar in the first place. She’d refused to see him because she didn’t think it would be a good idea for them to meet face-to-face, but that had all happened when they were kids. He hadn’t contacted her requesting to meet in close to ten years now, and by the same token, she hadn’t received so much as a letter from him in all that time.

Cecilia shied away from Oscar’s intent gaze. For whatever reason, he seemed to be under the impression that she hated him.

How should I answer this?

She obviously didn’t hate him. But if she was going to cut ties with him, it would be wisest to say that she did.

But what if I say I do hate him, and it only makes him develop a grudge?

As of this moment, he didn’t detest her. But if she told him that she resented him, that could certainly open the door to genuine feelings of hatred on his part.

And if that happened, it would bring her one step closer to her doom.

“If you truly dislike me and would prefer not to continue our engagement, then—”

“There is no need for that concern,” she answered brightly, to cover her true feelings. “Naturally, I do not hate you, Your Highness!”

As she smiled at him, he blushed. Then his face softened, and he nodded once, satisfied, and said, “Good. If you really did dislike me, I was prepared to call off our engagement. But I’m very glad to hear you say that.”

“What?” she said, her thoughts whirring to a stop at that unforeseen declaration.

Call off our engagement?

Once those words sunk in, she broke out in a cold sweat.

You mean I just missed my once-in-a-lifetime chance?!

She had just royally screwed herself over—quite literally. Internally, Cecilia commenced panicking.

Why did I just have to go and do thaaaaat?!

If she could get him to call off the engagement here, that would move her further away from death. So why did she keep sabotaging herself like this?

Just then, he clasped his hand over hers as it rested on the ground. “Cecilia.”

“…Yes?”

Now wasn’t the time for him to murmur her name so intently. Her face was composed, but she hardly heard a word he was saying.

“If you’ll forgive me, then I promise that from now on…”

“Your Highness. Pardon the intrusion,” interjected the knight Oscar had brought along as a guard. He was standing behind them.

Oscar let go of Cecilia’s hand, heaved a long sigh, and turned around. “Yes, what is it?”

“I have captured an intruder.”

“An intruder?”

“Yes,” replied the knight, stepping aside to reveal an unconscious man bound with rope. Oscar caught sight of his face and instinctively recoiled in shock. Cecilia’s eyes widened with surprise as well.

“Dr. Mordred?!” she cried.

“I’m so sorry. I never thought I’d lose my way out here…,” Mordred said contritely while sitting with the rest of the group around the dinner table.

Mordred was not only the school doctor but also a researcher in his own right. He’d discovered stray dogs possessed by Obstructions and had tracked them out to their location. Then he’d gotten lost, which was when Oscar’s knight had captured him.

Oh, that’s right. He’s supposed to have an absolutely terrible sense of direction…

Fan covering her face and leaving her meal untouched, Cecilia instead sifted through memories from her past life.

In the game, Mordred’s sense of direction is so bad that he can’t walk anywhere without guidance, save for the regular paths he traverses within the academy grounds. His tendency to get lost is actually what leads him to meet the protagonist.

Before enrolling at the academy, Lean is out doing some shopping around town when she encounters a man wandering the streets in a state of pure confusion. She asks him what’s wrong and discovers that he’s unable to locate the store where he wants to go. Out of the goodness of her heart, she personally escorts him there. After completing the errand, he takes her on somewhat of a date as thanks for guiding him, and then she goes home. They reunite when school starts, and though it turns out they are school doctor and student, their feelings for each other slowly blossom.

But of course, this is the only part of the story I know. If I’d been aware his route contained clues about the third potential Holy Maiden, I would have prioritized him over everyone else…

Cecilia let out a little sigh. She was one life too late to have regrets at this point.

Even as she exhaled, Mordred was passionately recounting the story of the Obstructions. No one in the group had known he was a researcher, but they were all listening intently.

“There’s still so much we don’t know about Obstructions. Where did they come from? What do they want? Were they originally living creatures? Are they a type of curse? Despite all my studies, that incident in the auditorium was my very first time seeing one. That’s why I very much wanted to look into how they live…”

“That aside, it’s dangerous to chase after one alone,” insisted Jade with a frown. That was true. Mordred’s Sacred Artifact wasn’t exactly battle-ready. Though his healing ability wasn’t entirely useless, since it could weaken Obstructions, it would be far outmatched against a pack of possessed canines.

“So then what happened to the dogs?”

“Unfortunately, they got away.”

“That means they might still be lurking around this area,” Gilbert concluded, his voice low as he signaled something with his eyes to a nearby servant—probably an instruction to increase the number of guards.

Mordred cast his eyes down in guilt. “I’m truly very sorry. I’m an instructor, and yet, I’ve inconvenienced my students. I’ll leave first thing tomorrow morning…”

“Leave and do what?” piped up Huey. While the look on his face said he couldn’t be less interested, he was apparently somewhat concerned for Mordred after all.

“Spend a few days searching the area, I suppose. Which means I’d like to get Duke Sylvie’s permission to investigate his entire territory.”

“You’re going to look around alone? Where will you stay?” inquired Oscar, frowning.

“I’ve camped outdoors before.”

“Don’t you think it’s kinda too dangerous, though?” put in Dante.

“I’ll be fine. Should something happen, I can simply run away.”

“Do you want me to go with you?” Jade offered, no longer able to stay silent. “You don’t seem like you have a very good sense of direction. I could at least keep you from getting lost. And if the pack of dogs shows up, my Sacred Artifact will let us hide!”

Mordred shook his head. “I couldn’t allow you to do that. I must decline.”

“But…”

I suppose there’s only one solution…

Cecilia gave a long sigh. Then she stared right at Mordred. “Would you like to use this cottage as a base of operations?”

“Well…”

“If you need to go deep into the woods, we can dispatch some of our soldiers. They should be able to take care of things as long as you weaken them first.”

That would mean killing the dogs along with the Obstructions, but there was no way around that. The doctor’s life was more important.

“That does seem like the best offer I could possibly ask for…,” Mordred admitted slowly, dumbstruck by the unexpected suggestion.

Cecilia’s smile grew. “Research into Obstructions is essential for our country. Let’s call it a matter of national interest. In that case, the Sylvie family would be more than happy to assist you.”

“Thank you…very much,” he said, his head bowed low.

At times like this, whipping out the old family name did wonders for speeding things along. Implicit in that invocation was: Get our family involved in your research, too, and, Once your research succeeds, you’d better be sure to drop our name.

Cecilia herself didn’t care whether Mordred brought up their name, but establishing that her side also stood to benefit went a long way in assuaging any of the other party’s potential doubts.

“You sure about this?” hissed Gilbert.

She whispered back, “I can’t just abandon someone who needs help!”

“You’re soft.”

“So what? It means we gain another guest, but it doesn’t really matter at this point!” she muttered, hiking her fan up higher over her face. “Besides, if it means we can get some more info on the third candidate, I’m all for it!”

“Fine. If you’re okay with it, then I am, too.” Her brother shrugged. He was allowing her to do as she pleased, which she truly appreciated.

Oscar, meanwhile, eyed Gilbert and Cecilia’s hushed exchange with suspicion.

After dinner, the group dispersed to do as they liked. Lean and Cecilia retired to the annex next door to the main cottage, which had been designated for women to sleep in.

Cecilia and Lean went into the same bedroom. There were plenty of empty rooms, but considering the occasion, they’d decided to share. She might grumble about her, but Cecilia had still been looking forward to her friend coming for a sleepover.

“I made it through the first day!” Cecilia cried, flopping onto the bed, limp with exhaustion. Now that all the tension of the day had dissipated, she was left more worn out than ever.

“Good job,” praised Lean, unpacking her things behind her. Ordinarily, the servants would do the unpacking for them, but she had refused that service. The reason for this was the bundle of notebooks occupying half her trunk—the journals where she jotted down her ideas for future stories.

“Don’t forget whose fault all of this is! Hmph!” huffed Cecilia, lips pursed at how Lean was acting like it didn’t involve her.

“Oh my. One could also say it’s the consequences of your own actions for deciding to cross-dress at school.”

“All right, you may have a point, but…”

“Although I have gotten some wonderful material because of that. I don’t intend to say sorry for what I’ve done, but I do thank you.”

“I want you to apologize, and I want you to rein yourself in.”

“I’m afraid that’s not possible,” Lean responded with a shrug, a little smile tugging at her lips. She was exactly the same as she’d been in their past lives—always walking her own path, heedless of everyone else’s. If her best friend laid in the middle of it, she wouldn’t care. Lean would steamroll right over her if she didn’t get out of the way.

But despite how she could be a complete menace, Cecilia couldn’t hate her for it, and she enjoyed spending time with Lean. That was as true now as ever.

“Hey, did you notice?” Lean asked after she’d finished putting away enough clothes for two to three days in the wardrobe.

“Notice what?”

“That it’s like we’re in the recap episode of the anime?”

Lying facedown on the bed, Cecilia repeated, “Recap episode?” in a confused tone of voice.

“Holy Maiden of Vleugel Academy 3 isn’t just a game. There’s also a manga, novelization, drama CD, anime, and movie. It’s had lots of adaptations. I think the anime has two seasons, so that’s twenty-four episodes and two recap episodes total. The story is based on the main route, Oscar’s, and there’s a special anime-only ending where the main girl doesn’t end up with anyone. So yeah, I think we’re between the eighth and ninth episodes. The way Mordred showed up is exactly the same! Although in the anime, things play out in Prince Oscar’s specially prepared cottage instead of the Sylvies’ lakeside manor. The episode focuses on the knights and the main girl playing around, after all, so the rival character Cecilia isn’t there. Lots of stuff is different.”

“Oh yeah, I think I vaguely recall that…,” Cecilia responded, rubbing at her temples. Their cottage stay resembled a recap episode, what with everyone reminiscing about what had happened up until that point and chatting about it. Nothing dangerous was going on, so it was like an extension of the characters’ fun school lives.

“Cecilia, your memories of your past life are still fuzzy, right?”

“Not fuzzy exactly. It’s more like there are gaping holes,” she answered.

The moments from her life in the modern day were like a jigsaw puzzle with missing pieces. Although she could recall them separately with perfect clarity, some parts were just totally empty. She could kind of remember the faces of her family members, but she was fuzzy on all her classmates besides Ichika. When it came to the schoolmates she’d recognized only by name and face, she drew a total blank.

On top of that, Cecilia’s strongest memory, that of her own death, had been triggered only when a fire was about to engulf her—the same way she’d actually expired in the real world.

“Based on your reaction, is it fair to say you don’t remember what happened during that event?”

“What? What event?”

“The one that happens here, between the MC and Oscar—”

Just then, a knock at the entrance interrupted Lean. “Come in,” said Cecilia, and the door opened to reveal Gilbert.

“Cecilia. Could I have a moment?” he asked.

“What’s up? Why are you here so late?”

“I need to talk to her,” he said, pointing to Lean.

“Allow me to get straight to the point. Both you and my sister have memories from your past life or whatever, don’t you?” accused Gilbert, staring intently at Lean. They had moved to a different room to talk. Only the two of them were there, and Gilbert had cleared out the staff so that no servants were in the hallway.

Upon hearing his question, a look of surprise flickered across Lean’s face for just a moment. Then a smirk he had never seen before materialized on her lips—her true colors.

He went on. “I’ve been suspicious for a while now. You’re so close to Cecilia lately, and you’re always whispering with each other. And when Cecilia got kidnapped and we went to go save her, you said something about not letting her die this time. That made it sound like there was a first time.”

Lean had nothing to say in response, so Gilbert continued on calmly. “There’s also the fact that you knew where Heimat’s hideout was. You probably played through Dante’s route, or whatever it’s called, in your past life and remembered it from then. And the reason my sister hasn’t told me about you must also be because you told her not to. Am I wrong?”

Her eyes glazed over as she took it all in. After heaving out a sigh, she sat down on the bed in the room and crossed her legs. “Assuming you’re right, what exactly would you like me to do, Lord Gilbert? Surely you didn’t come all the way here and summon me just to tell me that?”

“No, I didn’t.”

“Although, if you’ve come to ask me for information, I’m happy to tell you anything. For a price, of course,” she added. Her manner of speaking was entirely different from the persona she’d projected up until now. Although he’d anticipated this to some degree, it still threw him off.

If I had to label one of the two the villain, I’d go with her…

Cecilia might have always been calling herself a villainess, but based on personality alone, Lean obviously fit the mold far better.

Gilbert coughed to clear the air. “There’s only one thing I want.”

“Yes?”

“Lean Rhazaloa. I would like you to become the Holy Maiden instead of Cecilia.”

“……”

“If you do, then I will shoulder all the Rhazaloa family’s debt.”

The light in her eyes changed. With a sigh of resignation, she murmured, “I can see you wear the face of a man who knows everything.”

But despite that, her lips were just the slightest bit upturned at the corners. She didn’t look entirely put out.

Gilbert narrowed his eyes at her. “Lean Rhazaloa, seventeen years old. Raised in Cigogne Orphanage. Daughter of House Rhazaloa head, Cole Rhazaloa, and a former maid in their service, Angie Harrelson. No one knows whether she’s still alive.”

Gilbert had just rattled off Lean’s personal profile. In an instant, the smile vanished from her lips.

“On your seventeenth birthday, you learned you were Baron Rhazaloa’s illegitimate daughter and that the childless baron and baroness wanted to accept you into the family. Once you were taken in, you borrowed money from House Rhazaloa using yourself as collateral. You donated the entire sum of three thousand gold to the orphanage.”

“You’ve certainly done your research,” she remarked, more disgusted than impressed. She leaned back onto her wrists on the bed, her slack posture and crossed legs the exact opposite of what a baron’s daughter should have acted like—especially in front of a duke’s son.

“That’s just how suspicious I found you,” replied Gilbert.

There was no information that House Sylvie’s connections couldn’t bring to light. That being said, he was only the future head of the house, so he couldn’t make use of most of them yet. Still, it had been easy enough for him to uncover that much.

Shooting him a long-suffering look, Lean said, “It’s not like I hate my current parents or anything. Apparently, the man and woman who conceived me loved each other and were only torn apart because of their difference in social stations. And my current mother, who my father married after that, hasn’t done anything wrong. Actually, I think she’s very fond of me.”

Then, for the first time, Lean looked away from Gilbert. “But I didn’t want to become the heroine so badly that I’d just throw away the family who raised me because some random nobleman came along claiming that he’s my father and wants me to come live with him.”

Lean and Cecilia had both used the term, but Gilbert still didn’t fully understand what a heroine was. All he could tell was that it wasn’t someone like Lean, which must be why discord had arisen between the heroine and her.

“At first, I asked the baron to donate money to the orphanage because he wanted to adopt me, since it was the place where I grew up. But he wasn’t willing to accept, so I told him to buy me from the orphanage for a fair price. I promised that until I could pay them back the full amount, I would be theirs to do with as they pleased.”

“And because of that, they’re going to force you to get engaged.”

“Yes. To some second son of a nobleman who I’ve never even met. It’s unbelievably absurd!”

“I can help free you from that if you cooperate with me,” said Gilbert.

Lean fell silent.

He pressed further, adding a few finishing touches. “Once I take over as duke, I’ll see to it that you can be with Huey Cranebel. You won’t be together officially, but as long as you carry out your duties as Holy Maiden well, the people around you should turn a blind eye to keeping him as a lover. Plus, taking the position means that the orphanage where you were raised will receive all kinds of benefits. What do you think? It’s not a bad offer, in my opinion.”

After a considerable pause, Lean grinned. It wasn’t quite sweet—rather, it was the smile of a woman whose depths could not be fathomed. Her perfectly shaped lips formed the word no.

“What?”

“I said no. The answer is no, Gilbert Sylvie.”

She got up from the bed and walked over to him. “My debt isn’t so heavy that I can’t come up with the money quite naturally, even without your help.”

“Because of your business dealings with Jade?”

“There’s that. But I have other methods as well,” she revealed, her smile widening at the implication. “I care about Cecilia, too. I’m sure you don’t know this, but she saved me time and time again in our past lives. I’d do anything for her.”

“Then—”

“But I won’t hand over my life. I’m going to be happy, and so will she. I can’t accept any other outcome than that,” she insisted, as self-righteous as ever. As he listened, a little furrow developed in his brow.

She pointed at him. “You don’t have enough guts, Gilbert.”

“……”

“You’re the type to sacrifice everything for your sister’s happiness, aren’t you? Even yourself. Somewhere inside, you’d even be willing to let the prince have her if that’s what she wanted. You rail against it with all your heart, but deep down, you’re also working out how to give up on her.”

Gilbert gritted his teeth. She’d really hit him where it hurt. He wanted to give some sort of excuse, but she was too on the nose. He couldn’t even say a word.

“I hate how calculating you are, Gilbert. The type of person I hate most of all in this world is a coward who’s given up,” she spat, brushing him aside to get to the door. She unlocked it and laid her hand on the knob. “You should learn from Cecilia. Her fate is more tragic and inevitable than you know. But despite it all, she’s fighting it with everything she has—and with a smile, to boot. Isn’t she amazing?”

Finally, she gave him a smile—an adorable, carefree grin.

Lean opened the door and moved to leave. Just on the threshold, she turned back. “But I do approve of how much you want to protect my best friend. So I’ll let you in on one thing.”

“You will?”

“Yes, I will. If I had to guess, I’d say you haven’t asked Cecilia much about her past life. Am I correct? Because you don’t want to end up hurting her.”

“……”

It was like she could see through to his very soul. His lips contorted into a disgruntled pout.

“That’s why I’m going to tell you something.”

A pause. “Tell me what?”

“You already know that this world bears a striking resemblance to a game she and I played in our past lives, right?”

“What does that…?”

“Actually, Cecilia also had one.”

“One what?”

“A favorite. Like how Huey was mine… You know, the person she liked the most.”

Gilbert’s eyes grew wide. “Do you mean—?”

“And it’s someone you all know, of course. But it’s a secret who. I won’t reveal that part,” she promised, index finger pressed to her lips, eyes dancing.

Finally, her voice and expression molded into that of Lean Rhazaloa, the heroine, before she bowed. “Well then, a very pleasant evening to you, Lord Gilbert.”

He bit his lip, staring at the door as it swung shut behind her.