Chapter 57

Princess Oskar’s gaze turned towards Regina.

“Oh my, who do we have here? Hello, President Regina.”

Princess Oskar greeted her with a smile on her face.

The expression on her face didn’t truly reflect their closeness.

If anything, it would be more accurate to say she saw Regina as having sufficient utilitarian value.

Erenbert, who had established himself in the cold and barren northern part of the empire, had long served as a barrier, steadfastly defending the border from the savage tribes of the snowy fields.

Although the population of his territory was small due to the barren land, this alone was not enough to judge the power of the Erenbert family.

This was because each of his soldiers was a strong warrior with abundant combat experience.

The knights were also famous for their strength and bravery.

If there was a significant deficiency, it was economic power.

It was likely that Max of the Celtrine family, the eldest son, was chosen as a strategic marriage partner to compensate for this economic weakness.

It was a guess, but likely a correct one.

For the Celtrine family, there was nothing bad about acquiring a partner who could fill their lack of military power.

An ideal union where both parties are in a win-win situation.

Of course, if there was a critical problem, it was that the man in question, Max, was far worse than expected.

But since my possessed self has been diligently fixing things, the relationship between the two families was sure to move in a completely different direction than before.

“Anyway.”

The power of the Erenbert family was indeed a force that Princess Oskar, who was laying the foundation, needed.

So it was natural that she couldn’t treat him carelessly right now.

After all, she was hiding her true colors.

“But wju did President Regina call for him? This is a training ground… Could it mean that this senior here can help with training?”

“Yes.”

Regina answered curtly.

She probably didn’t feel the need to explain herself since it was a personal matter.

However, Princess Oskar seemed to take that answer in a different sense.

“Does President Regina evaluate him that highly? Does that mean there is something special about this senior?”

Princess Oskar looked at me with a scrutinizing gaze.

Then she blurted out,

“Or is it because he’s your fiancé?”

This woman knows everything.

She’s probing because she knows, typical of her nature.

“Ah, that can’t be it. President Regina is someone who clearly distinguishes between public and private matters.”

Princess Oskar clapped her hands together and smiled coyly.

The smiling face felt menacing, probably because she knew her true colors.

“Yes.”

Regina responded curtly once again.

Answering so dispassionately twice to the empire’s first princess, she was indeed extraordinary.

Princess Oskar was still smiling on the outside, but she might be thinking, ‘Wow, look at this lady. She’s quite something.’

“Ah, I see. Understood. Have a good time. I shall take my leave.”

Finally, Princess Oskar said her goodbyes and turned around.

“Please go safely, Your Highness.”

I greeted her naturally.

Regina also bowed politely.

Soon, Princess Oskar’s figure disappeared up the stairs.

“Phew.”

Only then did I let out a short sigh.

“Why the sigh?”

“I was startled by the sudden encounter.”

I continued with a small laugh.

“Let’s go.”

Training Area 1.

As soon as I entered, I leaned against the wall.

“It’s fine not to train since I didn’t come for that, right?”

“It’s not fine.”

She said that, but Regina also leaned against the wall next to me.

Of course, unlike ordinary engaged couples, we weren’t sitting too close together.

That was the current distance between her and me.

“Did you check everything well?”

“Very well.”

“That’s a relief.”

I chuckled.

“When did you start having such abilities?”

“I haven’t had them for long. If I had them before, I wouldn’t have lived like that.”

I gave the response I had prepared.

A convincing explanation for the sudden change in a person who lived as a problematic delinquent.

At least Regina would no longer doubt my dramatic transformation.

“How did you know the date? Can you see that too?”

“Sometimes I can feel it. Sometimes it’s clear, sometimes it’s vague, and sometimes I don’t feel anything at all.”

“What about the empire’s strife? How about that?”

Regina asked me, looking me directly in the eye.

That must have been what she was most curious about.

“Vaguely. But there isn’t much time left. Two years? Maybe even less than that.”

The imperial conflict is an event that inevitably occurs in the middle of the game.

It might seem ridiculous to users who haven’t seen the ending to divide the game into middle and late stages.

But that standard is simple yet surprisingly reasonable.

The genre of this game, as revealed by the creators, is role-playing fantasy academy.

That means the main stage of the game is the academy, and the protagonist is a student.

Thus, graduation is essentially assumed to be the endpoint of the game.

Why?

Because once you graduate, it’s no longer an academy story.

So, the first-year after enrollment is the early stage.

It’s peaceful like a typical academy story, with hardly any serious incidents – a fake-out by the developers to make the atmosphere reversal more dramatic.

The sophomore period is the early-middle stage.

From there, the atmosphere gradually darkens, and serious incidents begin to occur.

Especially from the second semester of sophomore year, events happen more rapidly.

Students and faculty begin to die, and it becomes clear that this is not a normal academy story.

The junior year marks the true middle stage.

From this point on, blood-curdling incidents happen non-stop, and episodes noticeably lengthen.

The empire’s conflict also erupts during this period.

But even that is just one of many incidents.

Empire, kingdom, church… no, there’s never a dull moment across the continent.

Cults and the ‘Red Rain’ group that seeks to purify the world with blood start to make serious moves.

Conspiracies, intrigues, and strategies of humans with different dreams clash chaotically.

It’s truly a time of upheaval.

From this point, the deaths of characters around the protagonist become more frequent.

-It’s the period when the protagonist dies the most.

Lastly, the senior year is the latter stage.

Sadly, I don’t know much about this period.

I never got to progress properly.

Whether I can survive in this game world will be decided during this period.

‘For that reason as well.’

I must become stronger.

And yet, I must also build proper relationships.

My sole heroic trait, ‘lust’.

[Lust]

The eternal truth, heroes are lustful.

One of the qualities of a hero.

A hero must receive the love of many women.

Your heroism increases in proportion to the number of women who have affection for you.

The higher the fame of the women who have affection for you, the greater your heroism becomes.

The current number of women who have affection for you: 0. Fame: 0.

‘Of course, it’s still the early days.’

Anyway, this lust trait is the weapon that will determine my fate.

Thus, relationships, especially with women, are crucial for me.

I need to become an irresistibly attractive man.

‘To be honest, I’m not confident.’

While I was thinking this, Regina, who was one of my relational goals, spoke up.

“Two years or even less? Are you sure about that?”

“From my experience so far, I can say that’s the case.”

I nodded in agreement.

“What exactly did you see?”

“The mourning flags were raised at the imperial palace to announce the death of the emperor, imperial soldiers killing each other, my family’s house destroyed by fire and turned to ruins, and my own miserable death scattered about.”

A moment of silence followed.

Regina seemed lost in thought, then she took a cigarette out of the platinum cigarette case I had given her as a present.

“Sigh.”

She lit it, deeply inhaled the smoke, and then exhaled it quickly.

Her smoking habit.

It was the first time she smoked a cigarette in front of me since the possession.

This scene showed a slightly reduced distance between us.

Why?

Because she wouldn’t casually smoke like this if she were in a place alone with someone who was no different from a stranger.

“You saw yourself dying?”

“Yeah. I died, and my family was destroyed.”

“I see. So?”

“You’re right in what you’re thinking.”

I said with a complex smile.

“That’s why I need to become stronger, and I have no intention of breaking off our engagement. I want to be in the same boat as you.”

“Because you need power?”

“I won’t deny that’s a big reason. But let me be honest about my feelings. You are a good fiancée. A good woman. And I don’t ever want to lose you.”

There was nothing embarrassing about it.

Regina was undeniably an excellent woman to be engaged to.

Moreover, I confirmed that the ice wall hadn’t formed yet.

It would be absurd not to take care of an engagement that was in place under such conditions.

“Sigh.”

Regina exhaled smoke from the cigarette once again.

Then she spoke.

“Continue to hold hands with a family facing destruction? Continue an engagement with a fiancé who’s going to die? Can that really work?”

A sharp point.

But I wasn’t flustered.

I had anticipated this.

“I can change my own future or anything related to me. I’ve experienced it multiple times.”

“Like what?”

“I got terrible grades both in Professor Karen’s evaluation and in archery. That was the future I saw in my prophetic dream. But as you know, the results I actually got were completely different. The future changed.

It seemed I had a knack for cheating.

It’s surprising I can say such things with a straight face.

“Hah.”

Suddenly, Regina laughed uncontrollably, as if she couldn’t help it.

“You knew about the problem.”

“Yeah. Disappointed?”

“No, that’s also a part of your abilities.”

She was cooler than I thought.

Maybe because she knows that skills aren’t limited to the sword and magic.

“And an archery evaluation isn’t something that a prophetic dream can solve, right?”

“That’s true.”

An evaluation where one’s own abilities are the only things that matter.

That was proof that I had changed the outcome through my own efforts and talent.

“Well, OK. So, can you have these prophetic dreams whenever you want?”

Regina asked as she flicked the burnt-out cigarette butt into a portable ashtray.

“No, if I could do that, it would almost be a divine power, wouldn’t it? I have no control over when I will have a prophetic dream or what it will be about.”

“So there’s a limit.”

“Yes.”

“But still, it’s a very special ability. It makes me think there must be a reason why you have such a power.”

“A reason. I haven’t really thought about that. I just want to live. I want to save my family. And with that…”

I paused for a moment and then said with a clear voice.

“Regina Erenbert. I want to add you to that list.”

Even though we’re engaged, she’s not yet family.

It was a clear statement of intent to her.

We are still incomplete, able to return to being strangers at any moment.

I wanted to show her that I value her and wish to progress beyond our current relationship.

I won’t let you die.

‘Was that too strong?’

If it had been an ordinary romantic relationship, it would have been almost like a confession.

But because it was an engagement, it didn’t feel that way, although it was still powerful.

But no matter how you look at it, now was the time.

I had to seize a definite result now that I had shown trust by bringing up the card of prophetic dreams.

“Did you dream that I would die?”

Regina’s eyes shone differently than usual.

“No. It’s just pure worry.”

“Pure worry? Ahahaha.”

Regina laughed heartily, placing her hand on her forehead.

It was an unusual sight to see.

In my confusion, I wondered if I had misspoken.

But then.

“Sorry. It’s been so long since anyone worried about me that I can’t remember.”

Yes, that makes sense.

Who would worry about Regina Erenbert, the Knight of the Whirlwind?

“If your family ended up like that, mine would not have been safe either.”

Is that where the conversation is going?

Thinking about it, it seems that if Regina herself had lost her life, the Erenbert family would have also collapsed.

“That’s possible.”

I replied ambiguously.

“Well, OK.”

For the first time, Regina reached out her hand to me.

I smiled and took it.

I understood it as an affirmation of my words.

But then.

“Get up.”

“Huh?”

“Get up,” she said.

And with that, Regina pulled me to my feet.

What’s this about?