Professor Erwind's history class had lasted...
No, seriously.
How many hours had it lasted?
It honestly felt like two full days stitched together and dumped on my head without mercy.
Whatever.
I had already forgotten most of what he said the second I stepped out of that torture chamber. I couldn't bring myself to care about some war that had happened a thousand years ago, not when half the lecture had sounded like a list of dead people betraying other dead people for reasons no one alive should still be discussing with that much passion.
The moment class ended, I got out of my seat faster than everyone else and started down the stairs before the crowd could thicken.
There had been way too many main characters gathered in that auditorium, and for the time being, I had no interest in getting dragged into trouble. It was lunchtime anyway. Escaping was the smartest move.
As I went down, the students who had been about to take the stairs stopped in place and quietly moved aside to make room for me.
It was at moments like that that I felt really grateful for my reputation.
People feared me.
And for now, that worked just fine.
"Hey, Edward!"
Jayden called out to me the moment I stepped outside the classroom.
I glanced back, already annoyed. "What?"
He hurried closer, looking mildly offended. "Why didn't you take the seat I reserved for you?"
He actually sounded upset.
"We're friends, right?"
I smiled at him, then let my eyes slide toward Lyra, who was standing just behind him.
"Ask Lyra. I'm sure she knows why."
"Lyra?"
Milleia turned toward her immediately, and Lyra's expression became visibly awkward.
She wasn't actually going to say it, was she?
She wasn't going to admit that she had hoped to watch me fight those three idiots for her own entertainment... right?
"Actually," Lyra said at last, putting on the most shamelessly innocent face I had ever seen, "I wanted to mend Edward and Alfred's relationship as their childhood friend…"
"..."
I stared at her with my mouth half-open.
She really had no shame.
"Eh?" Milleia blinked in surprise. "You're not on good terms with Prince Alfred?"
This girl really knew how to get close to people fast.
"Good terms?" I sneered. "With those three idiots? Hell no."
And with that, I walked away.
Hell would freeze over before I got along with them.
"Three idiots?"
Tyler had somehow joined the group without me noticing. I didn't even know when he got there.
"Yeah," I said flatly. "The idiot prince, the dumb brother, and the idiot prince's mistress."
If someone asked me where I got those nicknames from, the answer was simple.
Alfred was, without question, one of the most idiotic princes to ever breathe. If he kept walking down this glorious road to ruin of his, rejecting Layla's efforts, ignoring her, acting like the world would bend itself around him, then one day he really would become an idiot king. A legendary one.
Loid, on the other hand, was the dumbest of the trio by far. I still couldn't understand how someone like him had ended up with Miranda as an older sister. It made no sense.
None.
And Thomas?
Thomas was always glued to Alfred's side like some loyal house pet. At that point, I wouldn't even have been surprised if the two of them had already exchanged their virginities in the name of friendship.
[
Cleenah burst into laughter the instant she read my thoughts.
It was so loud and sudden that for a second I almost flinched.
I had never heard her laugh like that before.
"Hahaha!"
Tyler and Lyra lost it too, both of them laughing so hard they nearly doubled over.
"Shhh!"
Jayden and Milleia tried to calm them down, but it was pointless. Once they started, they weren't stopping anytime soon.
I ignored all of them and continued toward the cafeteria.
Of course, thanks to that, we ended up at the center of attention all over again.
People turned to stare.
A few whispered.
Lyra, who usually cared far too much about protecting her image, was trying desperately to contain her laughter, which only made it worse. She had one hand over her mouth, her shoulders trembling, and even then she looked ridiculous...
Ridiculously beautiful, to be precise.
The boys around us couldn't stop staring. I couldn't even blame them. Seeing Lyra laugh so openly was rare enough to count as a miracle.
…
…
When we reached the cafeteria on the first floor, we found an empty table tucked away in a corner and sat down.
This time, no noble idiots came over to bother us.
That was because I had been careful.
I had picked a table in the most inconvenient corner of the room, one of those spots that decent people ignored and annoying people usually never noticed. More importantly, it was a place the main characters were unlikely to wander into unless fate decided to spit in my face again.
[
'Shut up. I just need some time.'
I was certain one of them would come to annoy me sooner or later. That part was inevitable.
Things had changed.
I was no longer just the son of a Duke with solid standing behind him. Thanks to my worthless father spreading the news that he had driven me out, the entire kingdom now believed I had lost his support. Otherwise, that random noble from yesterday would never have dared to insult me to my face.
And if even nobodies like him had started to get brave, then what about the main characters?
Yeah.
Exactly.
I pushed the thought aside and focused on something more important.
This afternoon's class.
Weapons and Hand-to-Hand Combat Mastery.
In short, we were going to learn how to fight in close quarters with little or no mana involved.
And since it was the first day, today's class had a special purpose.
We were going to choose our weapons.
The famous weapon selection.
...And to make things even worse, it was a joint class with the [Phoenix Class].
Oh, please, Eden.
Kill me now.
There were four walking headaches in that class.
I honestly would have preferred the [Pegasus Class]. At least that one was more manageable. Layla only cared about Alfred, and John only cared about Layla because she was his sister.
Or maybe not.
Tyler was in that class too.
I forgot that pain in the ass.
"Hey, man! Answer me!"
Speaking of the devil.
Why the heck was he sitting at my table?
No, seriously, why?
It had to be Jayden's doing. Or Milleia's. No way Tyler would have had the self-awareness to realize that cramming himself here was a bad idea.
"What weapon will you take?" He asked.
"It's none of your business."
"Come on, man! We're best friends with Jayden and you!"
Since when?!
"Dream on."
"Edward, you're too mean to Tyler."
Milleia spoke while shoving a forkful of food into her mouth.
There wasn't a trace of elegance in the way she ate, but somehow it didn't look unpleasant on her. She had her own charm, simple, warm, and unpretentious.
"Yes," Lyra said, nodding with surprising enthusiasm. "Edward, relax a little. We're not your enemies."
"You're the last person I want to hear that from, Lyra."
More importantly, could Tyler get off this table?
There were five of us sitting around a table meant for four.
It was awkward.
It was cramped.
And for some reason he was sitting like he belonged here.
"What about you, Jayden?"
Since I clearly wasn't going to answer no matter how much he pushed, Tyler turned his attention to Jayden instead.
[
[He is the main antagonist of the second game, after all.]
-Clang!
I nearly cracked the porcelain plate when I tried to stab a meatball with my fork.
Mary.
Mary was the only one by my side in this body of mine.
"Um, my decision's already made," Jayden said with a bright smile. "I'm taking a sword!"
Well, that wasn't surprising at all.
He was a genius with the sword.
"What about you?" Jayden asked Tyler in return.
"Me?" Tyler grinned stupidly and scratched the side of his nose. "Hehehehe."
My lips twitched.
Just watching him prepare his answer was irritating.
"It's obviously a greatsword! It's the biggest weapon and the strongest one!"
"A fitting weapon for a muscle-head like you."
The words slipped out before I could stop them.
Well.
Not that I regretted it.
"Muscle-head? Right! I do have a lot of muscles, look!"
And then the idiot stood up and started to take off his shirt.
Wait a minute!
That dumbass!
Without changing expression, I picked up a meatball with my fork and sent the faintest thread of mana into it.
The meatball shot through the air at frightening speed and went straight into Tyler's still-open mouth.
"Kuhh!"
He choked instantly.
"Tyle?r!"
Milleia, alarmed, grabbed a glass of water and shoved it toward him.
Damn, this ended up funnier than expected.
Outwardly, though, I remained perfectly calm and continued eating as if nothing had happened.
[
'Then the world would've lost an idiot.'
[<...>]
I was honestly proud of myself.
My mana control really was excellent.
That was good news for me.
Fortunately, no one seemed to realize that I was behind it.
Or so I thought.
When I lifted my head, Lyra was staring at me with a huge smile, her eyes bright with amusement.
She knew.
Of course she knew.
Jayden and Milleia were too busy fussing over Tyler to notice, but Lyra had caught it.
"This is what happens when you stand up suddenly after eating," I said with a perfectly straight face.
No one in their right mind should have believed that.
"Really?" Milleia looked genuinely shaken. "That's dangerous…"
No one except Milleia, apparently.
This girl…
"I-I see! My bad! Thanks, man!" Tyler said after swallowing some water and pounding his chest a few times.
He believed me too.
Now I was starting to feel a little guilty.
Only a little.
"Milleia, what weapon will you choose?" Tyler asked between mouthfuls, already back to eating like a starved farm animal.
At that point, I was beginning to understand why the nobles bullied him so much.
He had the face of a cheerful country bumpkin, and his easygoing personality probably irritated every proud noble who thought manners mattered more than character.
"Let's not talk about class during lunch!" Lyra cut in quickly. "I've had enough of lectures for one day."
To be fair, I understood her.
Professor Erwind's lesson on the First Great Holy War had been mind-numbingly boring.
"Milleia!"
"Yes?!" Milleia stiffened up when Lyra called her out suddenly.
Yeah.
Good luck, Milleia.
Judging from Lyra's expression, she had already decided to drag this in a completely different direction.
"During Professor Erwind's class," Lyra said, raising her hand like it was a microphone and holding it in front of Milleia's face, "you were being all lovey-dovey with Prince Alfred. Can you explain that?"
"Eh? I...um...don't know..."
"You can't lie to me, Milleia!"
Milleia immediately averted her gaze.
"..."
The moment I saw that expression on her face, my mood soured.
I didn't like it.
Not one bit.
She was supposed to end up with Jayden.
Not that idiot prince.
I leaned slightly toward Jayden and squeezed his shoulder.
"Are you serious, Jayden?" I whispered. "That idiot prince was flirting with her right in front of you, and you didn't do anything?"
Jayden visibly flinched.
"B-But he's the prince," he mumbled. "I am not a match…"
Then he lowered his head.
"..."
Right.
That was my fault.
I kept forgetting where we were in the story.
This was still the beginning of the game.
Jayden wasn't the Jayden from the endgame yet. He wasn't that sharpened, battle-hardened version I had gotten used to in my memories. He was still growing, still unsure, still too kind for his own good.
I let out a sigh.
"Listen," I told him quietly. "During the afternoon class, help Milleia choose her weapon. Stay close to her. You can still win her."
"Yes!"
He nodded immediately, like an obedient child receiving orders from an older brother.
"Good."
I smiled, satisfied.
That idiot prince…
I really had to do something about him before he actually stole Milleia away from Jayden.
I still wasn't strong enough to match Alfred head-on.
Not yet.
But I was smarter than him.
Much smarter.
What if…
Slowly, a plan began to take shape in my mind.
It was risky.
It was dangerous.
And if it failed, it might create even more trouble for me.
But it could work.