Chapter 18

Another beautiful morning in the world of an Otome game that might very well be the death of me. Come to think of it, I have been falling asleep way too quickly when I should be frightened for my life. It must be because of how much the world has changed. Noah and I get along. Marshal isn't evil like he was in the game. Zeno is trying to sleep with me instead of killing me and the heroine… while I don't know what has happened to her. She was meant to be quiet, timid, and she shouldn't have approached me the way she had done. I have no idea what I had done to change her like this but getting along with her is better than fearing she might lead me to my death. I had most likely saved her at some point without realising it when I was still an adventurer.

Bozzair is already awake, sitting on my windowsill, waiting for me to drop the barrier. He looks impatient, so I quickly drop it, letting him out before getting dressed. It looks like Zeno isn't lying outside my window, so it looks like he is learning. Or so I thought. After getting changed into my uniform, I finding knocked out outside my door. He must have thought my barrier didn't cover the entire room. I sigh as I heal him. This is starting to get old.

"I may like it when a girl plays hard to get, but even this is going too far," I ignore Zeno's comment as we meet up with Marshal and Noah for breakfast.

<0>

Well, this is new. When I get to class, I find a form of bullying I have only seen on TV and in books. Someone has written the words "Bully" Into my desk repeatedly. I don't remember the heroine receiving this kind of bullying, so I am generally surprised to see it. I smile at how childish it is as I sit down. Unfortunately, Marshal, Noah and Zeno don't see the funny side. If it wasn't for my insistence, they would have conducted a witch hunt to find out who did this to my desk.

It's not a big problem. Waving my hand over the desk, I quickly wash away the words. Everyday magic used for cleaning was something I was forced to learn to wash away the blood on my clothes when I was an adventurer. It would have been a problem if the words were carved into my desk, but since they were only written there, I was able to quickly clean up the mess.

"You are the future queen," Marshal complains. "You shouldn't put up with this."

"If I were you, I would destroy the people responsible," Zeno suggests.

"Sister, they shouldn't do this to you," Noah says. "We should at least have shown the teacher what they did."

"It's fine," I assure them. "They aren't hurting anyone but themselves by this childish act."

"Hey, do you think it's true?" I look up and notice a group of girls looking my way. "Do you think she really beat up those boys and someone from the other class they were protecting?"

So that's what people think happened. If it was true, I would be worried.

"She hunts monsters," Another girl adds. "She seems brutish enough to attack people."

Great, I guess I can't escape my fate of being a villain who finds her doom at this academy. But it is different from the game. I have some protection that the villainess didn't have. I stop Marshal from saying anything and tell them to ignore them. If he were to defend me, then that would only make people think I really did beat up those guys and the heroine.

<0>

At least it is quiet at lunch. I was a little worried someone might try something while I was eating alone, but nothing was happening. Bozzair returns holding meat. He tells me people have been giving him all day and eats with me. I am surprised he can eat so much when he is still so small. I lay back, leaning against the tree, stroking his back as he rested on my lap.

"You should let me kill them," Bozzair complains.

While he was gone, he learned the identities of the people spreading the rumours of me bulling the heroine. Daniella Allencourt, Charlotte Abel, and Rosalie Harrington. The trio of girls I was supposed to lead in the game, and several other girls are spreading lies about me. They tell people how much I am a bully and how I need to be brought to justice. I can't prove it, but I am guessing they are the ones who vandalised my desk as well.

"Letting people like them live only invites more trouble," Bozzair tells me.

"But killing or harming them will only prove them right," I reply. "I just need to do nothing, and people will see how pointless those rumours are over time."

"Your kindness is going to get you killed,"

"I would rather die by my kindness than live through the fear of others,"

"I won't do anything for now," Bozzair agrees, relaxing on my lap. "But if they try to harm you, I will not hesitate to kill them. I refuse to let you die before we have our rematch."

<0>

"Alright, line up!" Sara wastes little time before barking orders. No one dares oppose her, and we all obediently line up. "Today, we are learning support magic. More specifical, you will be learning about the spell Bless."

Bless is a powerful spell that can turn the tied in battle. I have nicknamed the pell enchant since I many used it to boost the defensive properties of my clothing. Bless has multiple uses. When used on the weapon, that weapon becomes more deadly. When used on armour and clothing, they become more resistant to damage. The most surprising effect of the spell I have found is that they make potions more effective.

"Watch carefully," Sara picks up a weapon and uses the spell on it. "We will be using it on weapons today." She swings the sword and cuts a steel pole clean in two. "When used correctly, you can cut through any defence. Now form groups and practice. Anyone who fails to cut the steel pole by the end of the day will be running laps tomorrow!"

Everyone panics hearing Sara's threat and quickly gets to work, knowing she is a woman of her word. I group up with Marshal, Noah, Zeno, and surprisingly the heroine joins our group as well. We get to work with Zeno and me, being the only ones who can use this spell off the bat. Marshal gets it eventually, but Noah and the heroine are struggling. Zeno starts to help Noah by telling him some tricks he learned along the way, so I go over to the heroine while Marshal works on his spell.

"I just don't get it," The heroine moans as I approach. "How do you make it so easy, lady Lamonia?"

"I have just more experience using it," I tell her. "You will get it. Just close your eyes and take a deep breath." For some reason, she doesn't hesitate to do as I tell her. "The tricky part is putting magic into the weapon. "Just focus on breathing. When you breathe out, push your magic into the sword."

The heroine does what I tell her, but nothing happens. Usually, the sword would glow faintly, but it doesn't in this case. Something is wrong here. I place my hand on hers and tell her to do it again. The heroine pours her magic into the sword with a slight blush. I was right something was wrong here. I can feel the heroine's magic flow through her body and into the sword, but it seems to get stuck.

"I am trying to do what you say, but nothing is happening," The heroine replies, looking defeated. "I'm sorry, lady Lamonia."

"It's not your fault," I assure her. "Please let me look at your sword, lady Lockridge."

She gave me her sword, and I quickly poured my magic into the weapon. Like, I thought this sword was defective. Wait, wasn't this an event in the game? Oh, I remember now! The heroine was given a lousy sword by the villainess. The villainess would make fun of her, but Zeno would detect the sword's defect. I can't say I am glad to steal an event from that pervy elf if it means he won't try anything with the heroine.

"Is something wrong?" Sara comes over to me as I finish assessing the sword.

"Yes," I nod. "There was a defective sword with the weapons that blocks the flow of magic."

"Let me see it," I had the sword over to Sara, and she quickly came to the same conclusion I had. "The supply department should never have let this sword, though," Sara mutters to herself. "We don't have another sword, so you two will have to share."

I hand the heroine the sword I was using and tell her to try again. In an instant, the sword glows brightly like it did in the game. I remember the image of the heroine looking surprised, but this is different. Instead of a look of surprise, she looks at me and smiles. She thanks me as she hands back the sword promising to repay me for helping her today.