episode_0160

When Alice and I went back down to the lobby, Claire and Leo were there. From what I heard, Claire was in the same room as Charlotte. Leo was in the same room as Jake.

Mia Crowfield and Sophia… … No, I don’t know what they’re thinking when they’re together. ‘So that they won’t be uncomfortable’, you say? If they’re together, wouldn’t they just be uncomfortable for each other?

But then again, if they had shared a room with someone else, it would have been uncomfortable for the two of them. Mia Crowfield isn’t the type to like making friends with others, and Sophia hadn’t been here long. She was also a foreigner, so she had no connections to the Empire’s social circles.

Maybe that’s why I thought there would be no conflict. It was ambiguous in many ways to put Mia Crowfield in the same room as Claire, who was from a royal or imperial family like us.

“Oh, that.”

When Alice took out the invitation she had brought down to start the story, Claire responded immediately.

“Did you get it too?”

“No, I didn’t get it.”

Claire’s expression as she answered was full of regret.

“But I saw Charlotte get it. From Lotti.”

“What is that?”

Leo asked curiously after hearing the story.

“An invitation to a boring banquet held at our estate tonight.”

Jake answered. It was a strangely subdued atmosphere, different from the Academy, so he looked much heavier than usual. Well, Jake’s personality was always light as if he could fly, so even if he just landed on the ground, he would have looked ten times heavier than usual.

“I’ll tell you in advance, but you don’t have to go. I didn’t send you there thinking your father would come.”

“But we can’t refuse an invitation from the local lord where we are staying, right?”

Charlotte said, frowning slightly.

“In the first place, we are not providing this place by invitation. We are providing it in cooperation with the academy education course. Strictly speaking, we are in the middle of a class, so it is different from a normal invitation.”

And then he looked around and continued talking.

“Has anyone else received it?”

While the surroundings were quiet for a moment, there was a girl who cautiously raised her hand.

“I, I got it too… … .”

It was Mia Crowfield.

And only after seeing that did the people around them realize what criteria these invitations were distributed on.

“That’s right… …so blatant. So doesn’t that mean that not a single person from the common class received it?”

Alice said with a look of disbelief.

“Well, that’s right. It was originally sent only to families that were of the rank of count.”

Seeing our gazes focused on each other, Jake said with a bitter smile.

“Even if you call it a peacock, isn’t it too explicit?”

“… … Well, I guess I can’t say it’s that bad. Even at banquets held by other dukes, the baron usually doesn’t invite anyone other than his own people. Not to mention the commoners. ”

Alice opened the envelope, unfolded the invitation and said.

‘We would be honored if you could attend the banquet we have prepared this evening and grace the occasion with your nobility.’

And the duke’s signature, location, and time were written on it. Except for the signature, the rest isn’t that important. Even if we forget, someone will come get us.

“Are you trying to make a connection in advance while you are a student?”

If Alice becomes the emperor, neither Alice nor I will have time to come here. Because Alice is the emperor, and I will be assisting Alice.

So, if you want to build up your network, now would be a great opportunity. Not only with the royal family including Alice, but also with the children of other high-ranking noble families.

“Um, well… … right?”

Jake answered vaguely.

“A banquet, I’m curious… … .”

Sophia said with sparkling eyes. Of course, Sophia was officially a ‘hereditary knight’, so she was barely considered a noble, but in terms of rank, she was not even a baron. She did not receive an invitation.

“Well, that’s what it would look like to someone who doesn’t know.”

Alice, Charlotte, and Mia Crowfield, who had actually received the invitation, didn’t look very happy. And neither did I.

… … Besides, I also know the Duke’s other intentions. I won’t be included in those intentions, but for the sake of the other girls who will be caught up in them, it would be better for me to go along.

“… … Hmm.”

Jake stroked his chin and thought for a moment after hearing Sophia’s words, and then a smile appeared on his lips.

“Hey, buddy.”

“Huh!?”

Suddenly, Jake put his arm around Leo’s shoulder, startling him.

“Are you thinking of coming to the banquet? There must be a lot of pretty noble ladies there.”

At those words, the girls around him all glared at Jake with cold eyes. Even Sophia… … Ah, now that I think about it, she was the one who said something about premarital chastity and such.

“Huh? No, I… … .”

Leo made a face that clearly showed his discomfort. It was a natural reaction for a clueless male character, but in reality, Leo’s reaction wasn’t that important.

How could the game’s protagonist be involved in such an important event?

In the original, Jake, who figured out the real purpose of the plot, drags Leo into it and ruins the situation.

I don’t know if that idea will work here, where the plot has changed in many ways, but it can’t be a bad thing if the main character is nearby.

“And, there’s Leone’s younger sister.”

“My name is Claire. And I’m not your younger sister. I’m your older sister.”

“Really? Then Claire.”

Jake smiled at Claire.

“Banquet, don’t you want to attend together?”

“Huh? Is that okay?”

“Of course. If a brother goes, a sister can’t be left behind. Sophia, you too.”

……hmm.

What should I say?

Although the original had this kind of atmosphere, I can see why some doujinshi writers liked Jake so much.

If you just look at his attitude, anyone can tell that he’s the golden sun who’s trying to seduce the heroine.

It also seems like he is intentionally creating that kind of atmosphere.

It was a good thing Roti was still handing out invitations. Otherwise, I might have been unable to stand it any longer and hit Jake on the back of the head.

“… … What are you up to?”

“What do you mean, a secret plot? I just want to have fun with my friends.”

Alice’s reaction was a little different from the original.

Alice, who was awkward in social circles because she only studied this and that to win over Claire when she was young, was about to decline this invitation at first, but when she heard that Leo was going, she made up her mind for sure.

The other female characters had similar reasons.

Actually, Alice didn’t seem to have any romantic feelings for Leo.

“I will go.”

When I suddenly interrupted and said that, this time everyone’s gaze turned towards me.

“Oh, really?”

“There’s a big difference between hearing about what kind of person the Duke is and seeing him in person.”

In fact, I really wanted to join Jake’s plan.

Well… … that’s obvious, right?

In this context, if there is a pure-hearted couple who are in a forbidden love, it would be common sense to continue.

“Hmm.”

Jake looked at me quietly, then shrugged his shoulders.

“Okay, fine. You already got an invitation.”

“Are you okay?”

Alice, who was standing next to him, asked quietly. She was still looking at Jake with a slightly suspicious look in her eyes.

“Probably no big problems will occur. And… … ”

I said this while looking at Claire and Sophia, who looked obviously excited.

“There are two people who will be extremely disappointed if you say you won’t go here.”

“You’re also a fool.”

Alice laughed bitterly at my words.

*

The southern part of Lindburgh is almost always exposed to the scorching sun, but the daily temperature range becomes quite large around September.

Of course, the car that picked us up in front of the hotel was warm. So warm that we didn’t have to worry about the cold.

“Then an invitation… … ”

“It’s okay.”

At the entrance to the mansion, before we could even hand over our invitation, Jake spoke to the gatekeeper.

“I will vouch for the identities of the people here. They are my friends.”

“Is that so?”

The gatekeeper stepped aside without asking any more questions at Jake’s words.

“Have a nice time.”

“Over there, over there… … .”

Claire followed Jake in confidently, gently tugging on my sleeve with her fingertips and asking.

“Sister, do we not have to wear dresses or anything?”

That’s a really cute worry.

Is it too late to worry?

“We are students, so school uniforms are enough.”

It wasn’t a proper social gathering to begin with. Rather, it was just a gathering of ‘students’ that the Duke wanted to see.

In particular, you’ll want to see female students who don’t have a fiancé.

A female student suitable for marrying his son.

Because the Duke knew that Jake Garroti often hung out with him.

You could call it the so-called forbidden love.

In a game with this kind of background, it’s not like there’s anything forbidden or anything, it’s just a couple that was created to be together.