[Sylvia, you’ve been looking brighter lately!]
“Really?”
With no worries about money, having moved to a nicer house, and finally getting a room suitable for broadcasting, it would only be strange if I didn’t look brighter.
“Honestly, you do look brighter. But if you ask me how to express it properly, I’m not sure what to say.”
“Maybe it’s because I upgraded the lighting a bit more appropriately?”
With some money left over, I properly upgraded the broadcasting equipment. I haven’t installed a soundproof booth yet, but at least we’re using better lighting so our faces can show up better on camera, and since I switched to a better camera, my expression might look brighter, even if it’s similar.
“Overall, the situation has improved a lot. My worries have been significantly reduced.”
[Did you win the lottery or something?]
Sharp as a tack! Although it’s more likely they just guessed it rather than being actually sharp.
“At the very least, I can say I no longer have to worry about living expenses.”
[Haha, does the Crown Princess really have to worry about living expenses? LOL]
[So, have you finally inherited the throne?]
A deadly donation has arrived!
“The throne is going to Alice, not me, so there’s no need to worry too much.”
Alice’s expression got a bit subtle at my response, but I shrugged it off and said, “Well then, let’s continue the game today!”
*
After Sylvia blew up the warship and vanished, we still hadn’t found her. Life carried on uneasily after her disappearance. Alice smiled less than usual, Claire had a deflated mood, and the Empire and Kingdom remained tense, but still, there was no one to threaten the entire world with disaster.
Amidst all this, suddenly, an incident broke out in the Imperial Capital.
[Please wait here. As of this moment, no one in the academy may exit.]
[What do you mean by that? Do you know who is here? Especially me, I have a right to know what’s going on!]
Alice shouted at the Imperial troops surrounding the academy, but they shook their heads.
[This is a direct order from His Majesty the Emperor. Nobles must wait here.]
[What the hell…!]
But as the knights did not move, Alice muttered despairingly.
“……”
Everyone stared at me intently as I played the game.
“I’ll say it again, I am a different existence from that Sylvia Fanggriffon. If I were the same as that being, wouldn’t I have caused the same trouble in the world we were in?”
“I know that, but…”
Alice cocked her head at my defense.
“To be honest, isn’t Sylvia the type to stir up trouble?”
“What do you think of me?”
I was at a loss for words.
“Exactly.”
Still, Claire supported my defense.
“If it were her, she would have acted before she thought, and if it didn’t work, she would have reversed time.”
…
What kind of image do these kids have of me?
[Sylvia would totally do that, right?]
Ding ding!
Just as that donation came, I made a serious face and turned it off.
“At the very least, I would have acted when I was with you all.”
At my words, the four who were watching the game behind me pondered for a moment and nodded.
“Definitely true.”
“They won’t just say nothing to us. They would act rashly.”
I had nothing to say to Charlotte’s remark.
Yeah, everything I’ve done so far went down that way.
“……”
Mia’s gaze bore into the back of my head. I decided to ignore that gaze and continued playing the game.
Time passed a bit, and inside the academy, students gathered to discuss countermeasures. Naturally, the main members were everyone but Sylvia.
Of course, Rena and Sophia weren’t here yet either, given that they hadn’t appeared in the storyline.
Sophia appeared in the previous installment, but I really had no idea who Rena was. I didn’t even know that character!
Anyway, with the character Sylvia Fanggriffon appearing, she might show up in the sequel. The Empire’s storyline might have concluded, but conceptually, more than half the continent was still undiscovered on the map. Perhaps the next installment would relate to the Riclant Autonomous State.
…Anyway.
[One thing I’m suspicious about.]
While the students gathered and shared their opinions, Alice voiced her thoughts.
[I know the knights well. They were guarding me since I was little. I wasn’t exactly sociable, but I at least recognized their faces…!]
[……All the knights were wearing helmets.]
Leo muttered.
[They were completely covering their faces. It was like they were afraid someone would see their faces.]
[That could happen if it’s during a mission.]
But Charlotte rebutted Leo’s words.
[Isn’t it normal for them to be armored up during combat?]
[…Then should we check?]
Alice suggested.
[Let’s ask them to lift their visors so we can check. If a Crown Princess says it, they’ll probably comply.]
“That’s true; most of the knights’ faces would be familiar.”
Alice pondered, saying, “I was really worried that Sylvia would take the throne from me during our childhood. I thought if I knew everything about the royal family, my father would recognize me. So I desperately memorized the faces and names of people working in the royal family.”
[Are you sure you’re really a Crown Princess? LOL]
[You’re way too into character, aren’t you? Hahaha!]
It was about time to give up, but there were still people reacting to what we said.
Still, most were like, “Well, it does sound like something Alice would do” or “I remember something similar was mentioned in the developer’s notes.”
…Did I translate those developer’s notes? That thought crossed my mind for a split second, but not wanting to reveal such past details, I pushed that memory deep down.
“Surely, it is only natural to remember the faces of people close to you. Trust is the most important thing in protection, after all. Trust can lead to intimacy.”
Charlotte nodded and added her input.
I wasn’t that diligent, but thinking over a few faces I could surely remember, it seemed like Charlotte’s words rang true. I could probably rely on these kids at least to some extent, even if not to the level of them being my bodyguards.
“Is that so…?”
However, when Mia, who was watching the game behind us, tilted her head and said this, the room turned cold, as if water had been splashed in it.
“……”
Come to think of it, Mia’s family was one that made money by selling drugs.
Moreover, Mia’s mother suffered from extreme delusions, suspicious of every female servant that came into the house.
Did Mia have anyone she could absolutely trust growing up in that kind of environment?
“…There might be people she can’t trust, but in that case, it would still be advantageous to remember more faces, right?”
At the words I barely managed to muster, everyone nodded. This time, even Mia said, “Ahh,” and nodded along.
She still had that darkness within her heart.
[Mia-chan! T_T]
[We must buy something for her to eat!]
…Maybe I should order some late-night snacks for her today.
I pondered seriously while manipulating the controller.
*
“Who are you guys?”
Denied a request, Alice stared with piercing eyes at the knight guarding her.
[…]
[Did your father order you to hide your faces? If that’s the case, he wouldn’t have ordered you to wear knight armor like that. He’s always thorough.]
Alice took a step back. The comrades beside her drew their weapons.
“Honestly, I’ve seen this scene too many times, but… where did you pull those weapons from?”
Charlotte squinted her eyes when she saw weapons suddenly appear in their hands.
“…It must be a setup that they already had them.”
“Is that so?”
“…Probably.”
“So you’re saying you don’t know?”
That’s right.
No one asked such odd questions, and thus it was a story that even the developers hadn’t given insight to.
If we were to dig into every detail, we’d have to scrutinize all the cutscenes.
Guess we’ll just chalk it up to game mechanics!
[If you don’t reveal your identities, we will consider you as enemies.]
[…]
[…Fine. Then we’ll subdue you somehow and see your faces.]
Saying this, Alice laid her hand on her sword.
“…Do you truly think you can subdue the Knight Order with your sword skills? Seriously?”
“…It’s the same for me as well.”
Alice delivered a justification identical to my previous excuse.
Well, in any case, this is a game we control to win.
We’ve defeated monsters much larger than humans, so why not a knight?
So if you asked how we won, well, I wouldn’t have an answer!
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