Chapter 65

Lunch break.

With the school festival approaching, I need to check the equipment. I head to the storage room behind the gym with a clipboard and a checklist.

"Hehe... You're such a cute one, aren't you?"

Suddenly, a suspicious voice comes from behind the gym. I peek out cautiously. There, Freed Black, the cool guy, is holding a black cat and petting it with a grin. What is he doing...? His usual cool demeanor is completely gone.

He sits down, placing the cat on his lap and petting it. Is he a cat lover?

"Here, eat this."

He says this while taking out some dried meat from his pocket and letting the cat nibble on it.

"You're really whimsical, clingy, and lonely..."

He starts a painful monologue. The cool guy is unexpectedly poetic.

"Yet, when I want you by my side, you're always there. You're such a mysterious one..."

What is he doing, coming all the way to the back of the gym to talk to a cat? When you're talking to yourself, you should only say things that are okay to be heard. We, the royal and noble families, can sometimes be held accountable and used for our casual remarks. The cool guy is being a bit too careless, isn't he?

"Even someone like me, you still accept and cling to... Even your whimsicalness, I find endearing now. What is this feeling? It's like you..."

You're already being charmed, aren't you, the heroine?

"I wish she would turn to me like you do..."

I don't think so. Cats get food from all sorts of people and are happy about it. It's not just you. In that sense, the heroine is the same. You should realize that.

"I know. It's because I'm cold. I'm afraid of my feelings for her being discovered, so I can't be honest. But I don't know what to do with these feelings. Maybe I'm just pretending not to know..."

He sighs. It's a serious case.

"Will I ever be able to take off this mask of my heart..."

Ouch... I want to give him some advice on his love life.

Your mask is already transparent, you know? It's more like a paper mask.

Before you even think about being honest, I think you should stop pretending to be tough and holding back.

Well, I can't keep watching this love scene between the cool guy and the cat. I quietly move away and then walk loudly toward the storage room, muttering to myself, "Hmm, was it this way?"

"Hey, what are you doing in such a strange place?"

I pretend to just have noticed him.

The cool guy is momentarily flustered but quickly stands up and puts on his cool act. "What do you want?" He's too late, but I don't say that. The black cat slides off his hand and runs away.

"I'm checking the equipment for the school festival. Could you move a bit, please?"

I say this as I open the storage room door.

"...You do such work too?"

The cool guy is a bit surprised.

"I do all kinds of work. That's what being the student council president is about."

I open the dusty storage room and look inside.

"Hmm, this sign is too old. We should make a new one this year..."

"...I was in the way."

"Wait a moment."

I want to talk a bit.

"How about it? Is that pink-haired girl still being bullied?"

"...Why are you asking me?"

What a troublesome guy.

"We were both drenched with water. Shouldn't I care about what happened after that?"

"Do you have feelings for Rinse too?"

"'Too'? Don't lump us together like that."

The cool guy realizes his slip and looks embarrassed.

"I have a fiancée, Selia. I love her, we're very much in love. Other girls don't matter to me at all. I just want to make that clear."

"Don't say that..."

The cool guy is taken aback by my blunt words.

"If that's the case, why do you help her? I heard from Picard that you've tried to hide defamatory notes on her back and replaced her torn textbooks. Why would a prince go so far as to get drenched with water?"

"I love this school. Trying to eliminate bullying from the school, is that so strange?"

"You're lying."

"Why do you think that?"

"There's no benefit for you."

"Did you quickly calculate the pros and cons in that situation and decide it was beneficial to get drenched with water? What benefit did you see? I'd like to know for future reference."

"...If I had refused to get drenched with water there..."

"Refusing to get drenched with water would have been pretty embarrassing, wouldn't it? As a man! Haha!"

I hit a sore spot. He glares at me.

"...Think about it. My fiancée, Selia, was there too. She was the first to get drenched with water. Drenching your own fiancée with water, is that cool? Everyone was stunned. I didn't do it to look cool. Selia and I have a trust that allows us to do such things. I have no interest in attracting the pink-haired girl. I'm telling you this straight."

"...I know you usually mock Rinse."

"You observe well."

"But that's going too far. It's hypocritical. It's as if you're trying to avoid being suspected of bullying her..."

Ugh, you're being persistent. Is this the game's forced interaction?

"Stop joking. What reason do I have to bully her? There's none."

"Grades. She's improving her grades and getting closer to your rank. She's even surpassed your fiancée. She'll eventually become a hindrance."

Eh, eh, eh... Do I really look like that?

"Don't jump to conclusions... If I've been bullying her since the start of school because I predicted she would threaten my grades, and getting drenched with water would lower her grades, that's unexpected."

Why are you glaring at me? Are you saying something strange?

"Is there anyone who thinks like that? Maybe the reason she's being bullied is because of that?"

"She stands out. She's considered arrogant. Being from a commoner background, it's natural for her to be disliked by high-ranking noble girls."

That's not all... It's because she's making all the handsome guys in the school her own. Do you realize that?

"Listen, I'm worried. Being the top student, it's not a good thing at all. Do you understand?"

"I don't get it. What are you saying?"

"It means there's no one in this school who is smarter than me. That means there's no one in this school who can help me when I become king. I can't do everything alone."

"..."

"I welcome excellent talent. I want someone to surpass my grades, whoever it is. That's how I think."

"You're lying."

This guy always says "You're lying." Is it his catchphrase? Does he think it's cool?

"Is that so? According to your logic, if someone is about to surpass your grades, you should bully them and kick them out of school. If you were a prince, you would do that."

"Of course not!"

"You wouldn't. A country where everyone is dumber than you. Could you carry such a country? I couldn't."

I check the chairs and tables. Are there enough? The props for the drama club should be checked by the club leader. We need to dispose of some of the old ones to make space in the storage room.

"If you think I'm lying, try to surpass my grades. I should come and bully you and try to kick you out of school, right? That would be fun!"

"You're such a nasty person!"

Haha! This is the second time I've been called that!

"Calling someone a liar is being a nasty person, isn't it?"

"...I only believe what I see with my own eyes."

"That's tough. The meaning of learning in school is zero. You should drop out and travel to broaden your horizons. You're wasting your life."

"...Damn."

"Beautiful words without action are just silly. Remember that."

As a prince, if I don't like someone, I can just tell the school to expel them. Don't you think so?

"..."

"But I can't do that. I can't use such methods. Even if I want to stop bullying, I can't find the bullies or expel them. That's why even a prince has to get drenched with water."

"It's all talk."

"Using any other means besides talk is not what a prince should do."

I finish checking and turn around.

Being a prince is tough. I can't do underhanded things or bad things. Do you understand a little now?

Freed looks at me with a frozen expression.

"Sorry for stopping you. Please keep an eye on the girl who was drenched with water and make sure she's not bullied. If anything happens, tell the student council. Anytime. I'm counting on you."

"...I understand."

"I'm glad you understand. Thanks, Freed Black."

I lock the storage room and turn around. The cat is staring at me.

Was it waiting for the conversation to end? Does it still think it will get more meat? It really is like the heroine.

The next day, I measure the dimensions of the entrance to the main hall of the school. We need to put up a decorative gate and a sign that says "Flora School Festival." The old ones in the storage room are too old, so we need new ones.

Outside the hall entrance...

Powell Hargan, the muscle guy, who no longer needs a sling or a cane but still has bandages on his arm, is playing with a black cat. It's surreal...

"You're lucky, being a cat..."

What is this guy saying?

"You're free... I'm under pressure to follow in my parents' footsteps. My father says, 'If you're seen as weak, it's over.' I tried to be tough, but I lost to a commoner kid. My father yelled at me, saying I made a fool of myself."

I'm sorry, Powell. But the position of captain of the royal guard is not hereditary. You don't have to take it. I plan to make Schrigan my successor, so you won't have a chance. You should remember that.

"But she said, 'The strong you is the best!' 'You defeated the bandits! Powell-sama, you're already a great royal guard! Your injuries are honorable. I respect you!'"

Are you using the same excuse with the pink-haired girl? Don't say I didn't warn you if it comes out later.

"I will become even stronger! I will win the martial arts tournament three years in a row! I'll use any means necessary. And then I'll propose to her. You'll see. I'll do it!"

What are you going to do by showing the cat? Show the girl.

"Using any means necessary" is a red flag. You're a person to watch.

In the game, this guy isn't such a bad character. He's always under pressure from his parents to win no matter what, but when he fought me in the final of the first-year martial arts tournament, I told him, "Don't think of me as a prince. Come at me with all your might!" That's when he woke up. Compared to a prince who gives up his status to fight fairly, he realized how he should be. After the tournament, Powell aimed to be a true knight and not use underhanded methods. He met the heroine and became a passionate, righteous man who can't do anything shameful to her...

Originally, the heroine was supposed to transfer in as a second-year student, and Powell was supposed to have beaten me in the first-year tournament. But I skipped the tournament and didn't participate, so that event didn't happen. Without that event, he became such a lousy person. I didn't expect that.

I slam the door. Powell is startled and turns around.

"Ah, Powell, you're here. Could you help me?"

"Ah, eh?"

Surprised Powell. The black cat runs away after seeing me. It turns and looks at me.

"I need to measure the entrance for the school festival decorations. Could you hold one end of the tape measure?"

"...Why me?"

"You look free. You should help with school events. A knight who doesn't serve others is no knight, right?"

Powell is a big guy, so he's perfect.

I measure the dimensions one after another, draw a diagram on the clipboard, and take notes.

"I've always wondered, are you really a prince?"

"I act as a prince in official duties. Haven't you seen me? It's just that I don't want to be a prince when I'm at school because it's a hassle."

"Do you really need to do this work? Can't you get someone else to do it?"

"That's why I'm asking for your help. You know the student council members, right? There are two girls and Harthis. I'm the tallest."

"...Are you trying to act like a saint?"

"Is that what you think? Do you think you're a saint just because you helped with this work?"

He glares at me a bit.

A prince being a saint is the worst thing for the people. No country would put such a foolish king on the throne. The world isn't all about noble ideals. A prince is someone who can do dirty things cleanly.

"At first, I didn't understand why you got drenched with water. Why would a prince go that far? But thinking about it later, if the culprit drenched even the prince and me, they would be too scared to continue. In fact, I haven't heard of Rinse being bullied since then."

"That's good."

"But I don't understand why you would go so far to support Rinse. It's not like it matters to you if she's bullied."

"Wouldn't you want to catch the culprit, expose them, and kick them out of school?"

"Exactly."

"That's a problem. I don't want to create dropouts. If a student can't graduate from this level of school, they're not fit to be a noble. Is it right to go that far? People aren't perfect. It's enough to teach them that they're wrong."

"...Do you know the culprit and are covering for them?"

"I don't know. More importantly, eliminating bullying from the school is a higher priority. Don't you think so?"

"No, you're wrong. Justice isn't served without strict punishment. I don't agree with your approach."

"If you don't agree, you don't have to get drenched with water anymore. I won't ask you for anything in the future. Thank you for your hard work."

I roll up the tape measure and hold it.

"If the pink-haired girl is bullied again, even if you know the culprit, don't try to do anything yourself. I want you to keep an eye on her and consult the student council if anything happens. But I don't think you can do that."

"Of course not."

...Yeah, if someone doesn't listen to the student council president, who will they listen to in the royal guard? If this guy comes to the royal guard recruitment, I'll fail him in the interview.

"What you're doing is hypocritical."

"Everything a prince does is seen as hypocritical, from one to ten. A prince can't do their job if they're afraid of being called a hypocrite. I know that very well."

You're a typical example of someone who thinks they're righteous but can only see things from their own perspective. You think anyone who doesn't do as well as you lacks righteousness, and if someone does better than you, you call them hypocritical. I've seen enough of such people.

"You..."

"Hmm?"

"Do you have feelings for Rinse?"

This guy too?

"I have a fiancée, Selia, whom I love. Other girls don't matter to me. If there's bullying in the school, I want to stop it. When Selia and I got drenched with water, she thought the same way. That's all."

When