Chapter 11

As winter deepened and the end of my first year at the academy drew near, my school life remained as solitary as ever. Alicia, too, remained unchanged, showing no particular enthusiasm for leveling up. The countdown to the hellish dungeon runs for level grinding was almost over.

Since the beginning of the school year, Alicia and the other targets seemed to have been warned by the principal and the king, so they rarely bothered me. While I still received hostile glances, I found this peaceful and saw no problem with it.

"Recently, Alicia's belongings have been disappearing. Do you have any idea who might be behind it?"

Prince Edwin approached me. Farewell, my peaceful days.

"I don't know."

Alicia's belongings disappearing? In the game, I was supposed to be the one doing that. Is someone else bullying Alicia in my place?

"I know you're always alone, doing something."

Being alone is partly your fault, you know.

In the prince's mind, I was already the culprit who had hidden Alicia's belongings.

"Stealing people's belongings, how quaint of a demon king you are."

Their perception of me is still incomprehensible. I've been suspected of causing a landslide in a distant territory a few months ago, and even of vandalizing the school's flower beds.

It seems they just blame everything bad on me. Of course, I don't take it seriously, and people around me are exasperated.

However, my strength has only reinforced the suspicion of me being the demon king.

"Damn it, I'll definitely catch you in the act. When I do, I'll have you expelled from the academy."

Prince Edwin left, muttering a petty line. He works hard every day to have me expelled from the academy, but it's futile since neither the king nor the principal has any intention of doing so.

Probably, the prince can't back down. Acknowledging that I'm not a demon king or a villain would mean admitting his own mistake, which he can't do, given his lack of setbacks and failures.

William and Oswald, the other targets, also continue to view me as an enemy for the same reason. Alicia is just unusually stubborn.

I pondered who might be behind the disappearance of Alicia's belongings.

Many students at the academy dislike Alicia.

Some dislike her because she's a commoner, others because she's friends with the princes. Many treat her like a sore spot, knowing that upsetting her would upset the princes.

Alicia's allies at the academy are only the three targets. Poor thing... but I'm even more pitiful. At least I have Patrick, who said I can call him by his first name the other day.

Thinking about it wouldn't solve anything, so I decided to take action. I decided to keep watch in the classroom after school.

I don't have the skills to completely hide my presence or blend into the shadows, so I had to do it the old-fashioned way.

After about an hour of surveillance, Alicia and the princes only came to check if anything was missing once. Then they left, saying they were going to try a new dessert. Do they really intend to catch the culprit?

I was getting bored and was about to leave when a female student entered the classroom.

She usually accompanied the duchess's daughter, Eleanora, who likely comes from a radical family and follows Eleanora, the leader of the radicals.

She cautiously looked around and started rummaging through Alicia's desk.

Having found the culprit, I landed silently and confronted her.

"What are you doing?"

I had been sticking to the corner of the ceiling, ninja-style.

"Ah, no, it's not what you think! I was worried about Alicia's missing belongings... Ah, Yumiera-sama..."

She started to explain frantically but then looked as if the world had ended when she realized it was me.

"Please don't kill me! I only did it because Eleanora-sama told me to..."

I often wonder what people think of me. I haven't killed anyone yet.

She started spilling details I hadn't even asked for.

She was the lowest-ranked member of Eleanora's faction and often did menial tasks. This was one of them.

Still, what should I do? Turning her over to the prince would leave a bad taste in my mouth. Eleanora would likely disown her, claiming she acted on her own.

"So, Yumiera-sama, are you saying I told her to hide Alicia's belongings?"

I decided to confront Eleanora directly. The culprit easily led me to the salon where Eleanora was.

"No, I'm just telling you because someone in Eleanora-sama's faction was doing something bad. She says she acted on her own."

"That's true. She did something unforgivable."

"Yes, if the prince hears about this, he'll be angry. Since she's Eleanora-sama's friend, Eleanora-sama might also be disliked."

Eleanora, who had been pretending to be unaware, changed her expression when she heard she might be disliked by the prince.

"But she acted on her own, why should I—"

"The prince might see her as part of Eleanora-sama's faction.

But don't worry, I won't tell anyone. It might be better not to punish her, as people will suspect. Then, Eleanora-sama marrying the prince will be certain."

"What about that thief cat?"

"You mean Alicia? A commoner can't marry into the royal family."

It's a lie. The king intends to have her marry the prince as the reincarnation of the holy maiden, to prove the royal lineage and gain popularity among the commoners.

"Yes, a commoner can't marry into the royal family."

"Right, we can't let such trivial bullying tarnish Eleanora-sama's reputation. I recommend you tell your faction not to bully Alicia."

Stopping the bullying, protecting the culprit, and ensuring Eleanora stays out of my way, I left the salon in a good mood.

"Unusual for Yumiera."

Patrick's reaction after hearing the whole story. What does he mean by unusual?

"Usually, Yumiera would have turned the culprit over to the prince and left it at that. Stopping the bullying is one thing, but Eleanora wouldn't want to get involved with you, who the prince dislikes, right?"

He's right. Why did I do something so roundabout?

"Because the culprit could have been me."

In the game, I was supposed to be the one hiding Alicia's belongings.

"What do you mean?"

"Imagine if I was hiding my dark magic and not leveling up."

I'm talking about the game's Yumiera. She was probably...

"Someone who was told by parents she'd never met to get along with other nobles and desperately tried to join Eleanora's faction."

I would have been the lowest-ranked member, doing the tasks no one else wanted.

"Then, I would have been forced to bully Alicia, and if it was discovered, Eleanora would have disowned me."

Did the game's Yumiera have any friends?

"Without any friends, hating my parents, hating Eleanora, and most of all, hating Alicia for her light magic and the prince's love."

The game's Yumiera might not have been a minor villain who becomes a hidden boss, but a victim of this world.

"So, I started leveling up to seek revenge. But dark magic is weak against light, so I couldn't defeat Alicia and was killed."

The only difference between the game's me and the current me is whether I leveled up or not. The presence or absence of a reliable power.

"Because of this 'what if,' I wanted to help the culprit.

What's wrong, Patrick? It's just a hypothetical."

I smiled, but was I really smiling?

"You haven't changed."

Patrick said it with a pained expression.

"You haven't changed, whether it's the hypothetical you or the current you. The only difference is your level."

"That difference is significant."

No, the biggest difference is that I have memories from my past life. I'm mentally older, that's all.

"Does the current Yumiera have any friends? Do you hate Alicia? Do you dislike this world? If so, I—"

I don't hate or dislike anyone. If things get too bad, I can just run away and hide.

But there are things I like about the current situation.

"No, I don't. If I have a few acquaintances to talk to, that's enough."

Thinking that, with Patrick around, I could stay in this country even if something unpleasant happens.

As I said this, looking at Patrick, he fell silent.

Did I say something wrong?

"I see..."

Patrick said in a warm voice, then

"...just acquaintances."

He said it as if sighing.

If we talk this often, we're more than just acquaintances.

It's so difficult to make even one friend. When will I ever make a friend, let alone a lover?