The Protagonist's Party is Too Diligent

Roti and Jake never fully integrated with us, but neither did they try to force themselves into our group.

Being a noble is a position where one inevitably becomes keenly aware of social cues. What to ask, what not to ask, what to know, and what it’s better not to know... and, of course, what things to bring up that might make the person uncomfortable. This was something that Leo, the baron, Charlotte, the royalty, and even Alice, a princess like me, all knew well.

They must have something to say, right? Given the situation, it seemed everyone thought so.

Of course, I awkwardly inserted myself between the two of them.

“It’s been a long time since we had fun like this. It really felt like returning to my childhood.”

“Childhood?”

Charlotte, sitting on the mat, asked when she heard me.

“Yes, exactly. The times when I didn’t know anything... When I wasn’t worried about politics or international affairs and just played around.”

...But, you’re only fifteen, aren’t you?

When I was fifteen, I spent my time watching anime and saving my allowance to buy figures.

No, actually, when I think about it, that kind of lifestyle didn’t change as I grew older. I guess I never really graduated from that stage.

“The time when you didn’t know anything...”

But it’s nonsense to think that the mindset of an ordinary person from my world would be the same as someone who is destined to become a ruler here.

Even Alice, sitting between me and Charlotte, proves that. Alice... well, she never had a time when she didn’t know anything, like Charlotte did.

I couldn’t even imagine the Emperor playing with children.

No, I couldn’t imagine the Emperor sitting leisurely, enjoying a hobby for that matter.

But then again, it makes sense. Even in matters of statecraft, the Emperor is someone who would think of maintaining power and climbing higher as a hobby in itself.

“Alice, didn’t you have a time like that?”

“Me? I...”

Alice couldn’t quite answer Charlotte’s question.

A sharp personality, one who never had the luxury of playing around, having never even learned how to have fun.

That was Alice’s original character.

When Alice couldn’t answer, Charlotte’s gaze turned to me. Her eyes, slightly lowered as she looked at me, were filled with curiosity.

My relationship with Alice was good. In fact, it would be an understatement to say that we were close. I could easily imagine Alice throwing herself into danger to protect me if needed.

Whether I wanted that or not, that was another story.

“...Sylvia always followed her father’s orders before she grew up. She probably lived a harsher life than I did, and she probably never had the luxury of just relaxing.”

“...”

Charlotte’s mouth opened slightly when she heard this.

“Ah, so...”

So what?

I wasn’t sure what Charlotte was thinking, but it was clear that whatever she was recalling must have made her feel pity for me.

Did she notice how I finish every parfait, leaving no whipped cream behind?

The atmosphere became awkward for a moment.

“This winter,”

After a while, Charlotte finally spoke up.

“This winter, I’ll make sure to invite you to Belvur. Forget all the worries that fill your head, and let’s just have fun, alright?”

“...Should we?”

Alice’s expression softened a little at Charlotte’s words.

...but, I knew that this invitation was ultimately one that would never happen.

In the original story, war broke out that very winter.

* * *

Before the sun fully set, we quickly changed clothes. Though the sun was blazing hot during the day, the temperature dropped significantly in the evening, making it easy to catch a cold if we stayed in our swimsuits after the sun went down.

Even if the original characters were meticulously designed with all kinds of hidden details, there are parts that can’t be shown.

You can set things like favorite and least favorite foods. You can set character measurements or even underwear sizes.

But you can’t make every little habit of a character, because, in the end, those things aren’t something you would necessarily reveal.

After all, given that the studio is known for its reused modeling and motions, it would be hard to add such subtle motions for each character, and if you were to add them, they would be more likely to become pivotal story clues rather than mere “quirks.”

That was something I noticed most after coming to this world.

Watching someone blow on hot meat to cool it, or the way they hold a fork and knife, the movement of their hands while talking, or their gait.

Those small differences, which felt different from the original, made every character here feel alive.

No, they are alive.

They breathe, they laugh when they’re happy, they cry when they’re sad, and they shout when they’re angry. They don’t just recite preset lines; they speak their minds or show their feelings through actions depending on the situation.

That’s why I want to preserve all of this.

But at the same time, I couldn’t help but wonder if I was capable of doing it right.

“Sylvia.”

I turned my head when Alice called my name, and the sausage I was eating accidentally fell into my mouth.

“What are you thinking so deeply about?”

If she wanted an answer, maybe it would have been better if I didn’t shove a sausage into my mouth.

I chewed and swallowed the juicy, smoked sausage before answering.

“I was thinking about the things to come.”

“...”

Alice stared at me silently for a moment.

“Do you know what’s going to happen?”

I didn’t answer right away.

When I didn’t respond, Alice sat next to me and asked.

“Is what’s going to happen that terrible?”

Well...

I used to think I knew, but now, I’m not sure.

In the original, battles were just about swords and bullets and people falling over. But here, it’s different.

Bombs tear people apart, swords slice through flesh, and intestines spill out...

Of course, in the original, these were just things that were skipped over for various reasons.

But I’ve seen the battlefield. I’ve seen people fall from the shots I took, and I’ve seen people torn apart by grenades I threw.

If one of my friends were to die like that, would I be able to bear it?

“I’ll have to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

“...”

When I said this, Alice continued to stare at me quietly.

She kept gazing at me with her blue eyes, before speaking.

“Don’t try to shoulder everything alone.”

Alice said softly.

“You have so many people around you.”

That’s true. There are many.

So many, in fact, that I don’t know how to protect all of them.

“...I understand.”

But I couldn’t say that to Alice, so I simply responded like this.

Alice’s gaze lingered on me for a while after that.

* * *

Things went smoothly after that.

We completed a few more requests to meet our quotas.

Even though all the first-year students were gathered, the atmosphere was still relatively relaxed. Most of the requests were for hunting wild animals, so there was no need to rush into them. Jake wasn’t thrilled about hunting, which is probably why we didn’t take on wild animal hunting ourselves.

More importantly, there was nothing particularly hidden about this. There were a few covert quests, but most of them were just to secure Marmaros, and there was only one quest that had a significant impact on the main story.

“Still, I’m glad we got to relax before leaving. Sometimes... spending a vacation like this isn’t so bad.”

“You made a good decision.”

I answered.

“If you don’t take breaks and only work, people will break down.”

“...Are you the one to say that?”

I was the one relaxing, after all.

Of course, when I reverse time, my physical fatigue returns, but I feel comforted by the fact that I can sleep more.

“Since today is the last day, we can just relax and leave tomorrow.”

“I was already planning on doing that, you know.”

Alice responded with a small retort.

Well, I still had one more thing to do.

* * *

One difference between this world and the game is that I need permission to enter certain places.

In the game, I could just walk into any house and talk to the people inside. It was “game allowance,” but strangely enough, quests sometimes proceeded like that.

That means, in this world, to enter the Duke’s mansion again, I would need an invitation from the Duke. Even though I’m a princess, it’s impolite to invade someone’s personal space without an invitation.

But fortunately, I had the ability to sneak into that mansion.

“....”

Alright.

I’ve gotten better at this, sneaking in after getting caught five times by the guards.

Now, let’s go do the important covert quest.