episode_0095

I’ve been feeling more and more these days that this world doesn’t revolve around me.

Even if you try to skip the story you don’t want to hear and ignore everything else, the good characters keep moving according to their own thoughts.

Just as in the original, Alice was stimulated by Claire and Alice’s relationship and went undercover in the casino dressed as a bunny girl, this time Alice was stimulated by Bella and went undercover in the casino.

You probably felt a lot while talking to me yesterday. Bella’s appearance was completely different from usual, she was the epitome of a ‘woman with a story’. She had a dream, but the harsh reality made her into that situation. If I didn’t have prior knowledge, I would have been fooled in the same way.

The reason Bella approached us at that time was probably because she wanted to provoke me. She probably wanted to tease Alice while she was at it.

Actually, I skipped the intermediate step and ran straight out, and Alice went in wearing bunny girl clothes as Alice. There was no need to think about who gave Alice those clothes. Of course, it was Bella.

Bam!

“Huh!”

As I opened the door and went in, Alice, who was holding a piece of blue cloth, took a deep breath.

Even though I haven’t even worn stockings yet.

“Are you thinking of starting from here?”

“What, what!?”

When I asked her directly, Alice opened her mouth as if to deny it for a moment, but then looked at her hand, which was in my sight, and hid it behind her back.

I went completely into Alice’s room and closed the door.

“If you wear it from here, it will be too noticeable.”

“I, I know that too?”

Alice finally realized that I had been watching her from the beginning, and spoke with resignation.

As Alice let go of her hand, the piece of cloth and stocking she was holding fell to the floor. When she turned her gaze, she saw a mask and a rabbit-eared headband on the desk.

“Me too… … .I was going to wear it inside and take off only the outer layer… … .”

“… … .”

But Alice blushed and lowered her head, perhaps because she found it difficult to bear my gaze.

The sight was strangely pitiful.

I thought Alice was much more confident than in the original thanks to the confidence I had steadily instilled in her since childhood, but it seems that wasn’t the case.

I tried to sigh but held it back. Looking at Alice in front of me now, I felt like if I had done something like that in front of her, Alice’s pride would have fallen even further.

“First, let’s sit down and talk. Then you can decide whether or not to do what you were going to do now.”

“… … Yeah.”

As I pointed to the bed, Alice sat down on the bed without saying a word.

Even if he thought about it, he probably thought that what he was trying to do was not something a princess could do.

I looked at Alice, who was sitting on the bed, and headed towards the chair, but then changed my mind and sat down next to Alice.

Of course, I didn’t sit so close that my body was touching her. I sat a little bit away, but not so far away that she felt like I was too far away.

“First, please explain why you wanted to go out in this outfit.”

Let me say this while looking at Alice’s hand,

“No, I mean, I’m not thinking of wearing this—”

Alice, who had turned her head toward me as if trying to make an excuse, shut her mouth when she saw my face.

“That’s… ….”

And then, after mumbling for a while, he slowly opened his mouth.

“Because I feel like I’m not doing anything.”

“You’re not doing anything?”

“Even when I went to Winterfield for my internship, I was comfortably doing requests and carrying out tasks with my friends.”

“I just did what I had to do as a student.”

“But… …you’ve done a great job in the meantime. It wouldn’t have been strange if you had received a medal right then and there.”

“… … .”

That was… … That was it. Strictly speaking, it had nothing to do with the request, so I should have gotten a failing grade, but Jennifer couldn’t ignore the work I had done during that time, so she gave me full marks and passed. Aside from that, I might even get a medal or something.

“What I did was what I had to do—”

“… … What should you do?”

Alice cut me off.

“What do you have to do?”

“That is—”

“What is it that a princess like me should do?”

“… … .”

Alice was looking straight at me. We were sitting next to each other, but Alice turned her body slightly toward me and looked straight at me.

And there was a strange force in that face.

I’ve felt this kind of atmosphere once before.

When I entered the Academy, the Emperor tried to send me to the Northern Battlefield instead of the Academy. Alice was indignant and came looking for me. She found morphine in my room, and went to the Emperor to negotiate and have me taken to the Academy.

Alice’s face, looking at me now, had that kind of atmosphere.

“Father… … doesn’t differentiate between you and me. Not Bella and me, not Lucas and Jaden. You know that, don’t you? ”

Alice clenched her fist. The piece of cloth she was holding crumpled in her fist.

“But, after hearing that you thought of me as the next emperor, my father didn’t say anything else. That’s because he trusted your will more than my ability, right? No?”

Was that the story you shared with the Emperor when you met him?

… … Certainly, looking at the way the Emperor treats me, I think he may have been thinking more of my judgment than Alice’s will.

“I have a question for you too. Last year, I thought I was just receiving your approval, so I didn’t think about it and just let it go… …Why do you think I should be the next emperor?”

“… … .”

“What did you see in me that made you think I was the next emperor? Ability? Personality? Or were you just looking at my bloodline? Or my utility? Am I going to do something beneficial for you in the future? ”

Where in Alice did I look and think, ‘I’m going to make her an emperor’?

The reason I was so soft on Alice.

It was simple, without even thinking about it.

I liked Alice.

Not only Alice, but I liked all the characters that appeared as main characters in the Azerna Chronicles.

The reason I was nice to Alice was the same reason I was nice to Claire. They were characters I liked before I came to this world.

Honestly, I’d be lying if I said my heart didn’t race when I first met you.

There was so much urgent work to do, so many enemies to deal with, so many things to consider that I was just buried in my thoughts, but the first thought that came to my mind was, ‘Yes, I’m happy.’

When I met Claire, I was scared. If I stayed there, I would have ended up in the same way as Claire in the original. When I met Alice, in addition to the joy I felt from meeting Alice, I also felt fear of the Emperor and annoyance at Lucas who would rush at me without warning.

But even so, I couldn’t completely erase the joy I felt from being part of the game’s story.

The reason I work so hard in it is because I ultimately want those characters to live safely.

“… … .”

But, strangely enough.

It was strangely difficult to just say, “I like it.” Even though I thought that I wouldn’t feel embarrassed if I did it and then went back. Even though I could just do it and then go back if I felt embarrassed—

Strangely enough, I felt like I shouldn’t do that.

“Look at that.”

But Alice seemed to have taken my silence differently.

Rather, Alice didn’t show any expression of disappointment or sadness at my attitude.

There was a somewhat relieved expression.

And I couldn’t figure out the reason for that expression.

“Then let me prove it.”

Alice looked at me with a powerful expression and said.

“That I am the one who has the ability to ascend to that emperor’s seat. That I am not just the one who is protected by you, but the one who is qualified to protect you.”

“… … .”

“I hope you give me a chance to prove that I’m not just someone who claims to be your older sister, but someone who can be a real older sister.”

“… … I,”

“Yeah, you might already know everything. So, I know this is far-fetched. And it’s not something a sister should say. But… … .”

Alice clenched her fist.

“But… …I want to do that.”

I just wanted to do it that way.

If you dig deeper, it’s just an unreasonable request, without any logic, just a request for self-satisfaction.

but-

“… … Okay.”

After all, I was also moving with that kind of mindset.

“Instead, I will go with you. Princess… … no, Alice, move however you want. I will follow you and help you when necessary. ”

“That’s it.”

“The Emperor is not a being that moves alone. I think it is okay to use one person.”

If you’re going to do it, I’d like you to do it somewhere I can see it.

It’s an important event, right?

“… … .”

Alice was blankly staring at me as I said that.

It was to be expected.

Right now, at this moment, I wasn’t trying to control my expression as hard as I usually do.