Chapter 408

* * *

From here on, it's a collection of side stories about various people.

First up is the story of Sara Salar, the Baron's daughter (appeared in Arc 5).

To be continued in the .

Ding, dong... Ding, dong...

The sound of the bell announcing the time echoed through Royal Kiralimake Academy, bathed in the setting sun.

In this season, when the sun sets early and it's too cold to play outside, few elementary school students remain in the school building at this hour.

Unless they have a specific reason, children return to their dorms before sunset and start their homework.

"Strange... this is strange..."

In other words, this pink-haired beautiful girl, walking down the empty corridor, muttering to herself with a ghostly expression, with her arms crossed and her head down, had a reason to "stay in the school building until this hour".

The name of this girl, walking alone, her blazer-like uniform bathed in the yellow light of the setting sun streaming through the semi-circular window, is Sara Salar.

She has excellent grades and is also very athletic.

She embodies the ideal of being both academically and physically gifted, and is also a beautiful girl.

Although her birthright is low, as the daughter of a baron from a rural area, "normally", she'd already be attracting attention from the royal family and powerful nobles, even at this stage in elementary school she's that much of a prodigy.

Yes, "normally".

But her current situation is far from being surrounded by high-ranking people... in fact, people are keeping their distance from her.

They're thinking, "Ehhh... no, that girl... isn't she a bit weird?".

Why?

...It's because of her personality and behavior.

Despite being from the countryside, her behavior is completely lacking in common sense.

Even though she's still in elementary school, no even if she wasn't in elementary school, it would be strange, she blatantly treats certain male students differently.

She lacks modesty.

Her sense of distance is off.

She's filled with this mysterious confidence that 'she deserves to be loved by 'everyone'', and it's kind of scary.

She sometimes mutters things that don't make sense, which is creepy.

She often acts preemptively, as if she can see the future, which is super creepy.

There are countless reasons why she's being avoided.

On top of that, she's unable to "reflect".

For example, let's say she does something outlandish, and the teacher, in a logical and easy-to-understand way, cautions her.

She's intelligent.

So she can understand the teacher's lecture perfectly.

While listening, she'll tremble, her face pale, tears welling up in her adorable eyes, "acting as if she's reflecting".

But.

After an hour or so.

She'll completely forget about the lecture and, with an adorable smile, repeat the same thing.

The teachers have given up on trying to improve her behavior.

There was a hypothesis that 'she's being manipulated by some advanced curse or magic', but it was denied.

They secretly examined her, but nothing came up.

If her behavior is due to a curse...

It's a super advanced curse that can't be deciphered by humans.

The only ones who could cast such a thing...

Are gods, for example.

Ridiculous.

A god, cursing a human child?

Impossible.

Saying that, the adults stopped investigating further.

'In other words, Sara Salar, the Baron's daughter, is a strange girl.'

They decided that, and stopped trying to investigate her, or guide her.

Even the excellent teachers, who are passionate about education.

In other words, there's the intervention of a supernatural being, twisting the teachers' ideals and beliefs without them realizing it, but there's no way for humans to notice such a thing... and even if they did, there's nothing they can do about it.

* * *

Back to the story.

Now then, why was Sara Salar still in the elementary school building of Royal Kiralimake Academy in the deserted evening?

"Why isn't Akinaine-kun here...? According to the 'Kira Academy' storyline, he should be in the classroom, looking for his hidden textbook...?"

It's to intervene in the "otome game" event and increase her favorability rating with her capture target.

She's been "made to believe" that she's reincarnated as the protagonist of the otome game 'Swords and Magic and Romance ~Sparkling Academy, Underdog Love Story!~'

And she's further been "implanted" with the desire to "capture all the targets and build a reverse harem".

She's been "guided" to act outlandishly, to become a person whose tragic end wouldn't make the "viewers" feel sorry for her.

This time, she was trying to capture Akinaine, the son of a newly-rich merchant.

Because Akinaine is the child of an upstart, some of the sons of high-ranking nobles resent him.

So, originally, he should be bullied in class...

His textbook should be hidden, and he should be desperately searching for it, holding back tears...

But in reality.

No matter how desperately Sara Salar searched, she couldn't find the son of an upstart being bullied anywhere.

The student named Akinaine, although enrolled in the academy...

Has already improved his relationship with the sons of high-ranking nobles, and they're all laughing and getting along.

In this situation, the "event" couldn't happen.

"This is all... because of that villainess, Ijiwaar, again! That wicked girl must have used her family's power to intervene beforehand, stopped Akinaine-kun from being bullied, and brought peace to his class... As expected of a villainess, what a hateful, wicked act...!"

Well, if she brought peace to the class, that's a good deed.

It couldn't be the act of a villainess.

Putting that aside.

Sara Salar's words, muttered as she bit her nails, were born from her delusions, without any evidence, but they're actually correct.

The Ijiwaar she's referring to is Ijiwaar Deswaar, the Duke's daughter.

Indeed, Ijiwaar Deswaar, the Duke's daughter, unlike Sara Salar, acted before the bullying occurred and resolved the issue.

Originally, Ijiwaar should have been a selfish, arrogant girl who doesn't care about others.

But in reality, she's kind, cheerful, and although a bit tomboyish for a Duke's daughter, she's a popular girl who's liked by everyone.

Like Sara Salar, she excels in both academics and athletics, has a wonderful personality, and was born into a high position.

On top of that, despite her young age, she's already involved in various businesses... the spinning technology called 'Ijiwaar Magical Weave' she devised is creating a huge movement in the fashion culture of the Golden Continent.

Everyone praises her as a wonderful person.

'It's as if she's loved by God', they say.

...Well, she actually is loved.

Anyway, Sara Salar hated Ijiwaar.

She dislikes the fact that she's acting like a good girl despite being a villainess.

It's frustrating that only she knows that she's a villainess... but no one believes her.

"Ahh... damn it!"

Thinking about Ijiwaar, Sara Salar's thoughts gradually became clouded, and she couldn't think straight.

And in the end, only the feeling of 'hating Ijiwaar' remained.

And that's also really unpleasant, a source of irritation for her...

Frustrated, Sara Salar scratched at her beautiful pink hair, messing it up.

It was at that moment.

"...?"

Sara Salar felt a breeze gently caress her cheek.

"Did someone forget to close a window?"

Then she has to close it.

Sara Salar naturally thought so.

Although she's been "made to act" outlandishly when it comes to "otome game" matters, she's relatively good-natured and common-sense at her core.

If the window is left open, the room will get cold, and the heating costs will increase, and it's a shame for the child who forgot to close it to be scolded.

Thinking that, Sara Salar walked towards the source of the wind, a door at the end of the corridor that seemed to be left open.

That room was the art room.

Is it empty...?

She thought that and peeked through the open door, but...

There was a boy in the room.

The boy was positioned in the center of the room, moving his arm intently towards a canvas.

He was painting.

A room filled with the setting sun, bright and glowing.

White curtains swaying in the wind.

Cold air caressing her skin.

The smell of paint.

A boy painting.

A scene that didn't appear in the 'otome game'.

Sara Salar before she knew it...

Stepped into the art room with a light heart.

Her heart is light, but...

Her mind is strangely clear.

She felt that way.

The fog in her head, the irritation, the hatred...

It seemed like those things had faded.

"Hey."

Sara Salar spoke to the boy who was painting.