episode_0013

Weekend.

Literally, a word that signifies the end of a week.

“······It’s the weekend.”

Before being transmigrated here, it was a word I loved more than any other. I always eagerly awaited Friday. Even on Monday, Tuesday. I even felt regretful on Sundays. The joyful fantasy of the weekend coming to an end and having to return to reality was truly regrettable for me. Perhaps this is a sentiment shared by most office workers. It’s unlikely that among working professionals, there exists anyone who dislikes weekends. And in truth, it was no different here. There were two items listed in the Seacrest Academy dormitory rules. Item 1: All students must use the dormitory. Item 2: Except for special circumstances, students can only visit their homes on weekends. It was mainly due to this second item that most students looked forward to the weekend. Except for a few bookworms who were engrossed in studying even on weekends, almost all students eagerly anticipated the weekend, as it was practically the only time they could visit their homes. For this reason, places that were usually filled with academy students were typically empty on weekends. “······There really is no one here.” As someone who had never once visited home during the past year living as Lian Trice, it was a strange yet somewhat bittersweet situation. At times like this, I couldn’t help but feel a bit lonely. It’s not like I spent weekdays with other friends, but it meant that my mood was slightly off. When you think about it, whether it was the weekend or not, I always wandered around the academy alone. “···.” Hmm. Suddenly, my heart hurts. I was needlessly having these thoughts. Needlessly, my heart was aching. Anyway. This was how the weekends passed for ordinary students at the academy. “······Should I take on a request and come back?” Students like me, who didn’t go home, spent their weekends studying or taking on requests. Request. In reality, it was essentially the same as part-time work. Surprisingly, there was also the concept of work here. Moreover, it was a job directly connected through the academy.

A system existed internally, gathering requests for tasks and recommending them to students.

“I don’t remember exactly when it started, but it was a system created for students struggling with living expenses while attending the academy,” as Alice from the original work told the protagonist, leaving a lasting impression.

The protagonist remembered that explanation and the scene where they said, “Then should I give it a try?” starting the weekend request episode.

“…It’s a bit unbelievable.”

Looking back now, it was truly an absurd development. No matter how much of a protagonist one may be, it was quite an extraordinary turn of events to immediately stumble upon a major incident in their first attempt at a request. They weren’t the protagonist of a detective comic who goes around causing incidents everywhere they go, bringing joy to the viewers. Even though they faced hardships and adversity, ultimately achieving their goals. …Unlike me. No matter how many times I’ve said it. I was never the protagonist. I thought I might be far from it. To think of myself as the protagonist. Of course, there was a time when I thought so. A time when I, too, harbored the delusion that I could become like the countless novel protagonists I read about. Yes. Delusion. What I did was delusional. A pure delusion, not yet realizing reality. A pure delusion of a wretch unable to accept the reality before them. That was the delusion. The future I dreamed of in the past. It would change if I tried. If I worked hard, I could break others’ prejudices. It was nothing more than the pure delusion of a wretch who prepared for the future harder than anyone else while having such thoughts. When faced with the wall called reality. Finally, that delusion shattered into pieces. The reason I had never taken on a request until now.

I couldn’t even ask for the task because I didn’t have time.

“······I didn’t have time.”

I truly didn’t have time.

Especially on weekends, I had even less time.

Cleaning up past mistakes was never an easy task.

Especially when those mistakes weren’t even your own.

That’s why I demanded information from Alice as a hostage to uncover the real identity of Ellis Arkstra.

Because I don’t know.

I truly don’t know what I did wrong.

It was the day I first received the details of what Ryan Trice had done in the past from Alice.

– *sigh*

– Whoa, why the sudden sigh? Who really has the luxury to sigh like that?

– Sorry, it wasn’t directed at you. Thanks for the information.

Even Alice, who was listening, was taken aback by the sigh, perhaps it was all part of the predetermined course.

From that day on, I began to take action.

During the week, I attended academy classes.

And on weekends, instead of going back home, I started to make amends for the things past Ryan had done.

Having lived through this repetitive daily routine until now, receiving a commission in such a daily life was practically impossible, or so it seemed.

If there was anything fortunate about it, it was the fact that money was periodically deposited into an account under the name of Lian Trice. One million won. Not a particularly large sum, nor a small one. Assuming a life confined to the academy, it was a surplus amount unless one indulged in luxury.

However, considering the fact that Lian Trice was the heir of the Trice Viscount family, it was an incredibly small amount. This was the reason I did not head to Lian Trice’s ancestral home. The Trice family was not financially lacking. In fact, there had been mention in Aria Trice’s work that among the viscount families, the Trice family was rather wealthy.

Yet, it was one million won. The figure stamped with the Trice family name was always one million won. There was no need to look any further. Just thinking about this much made it clear how Lian Trice was being treated within the family.

“···.”

I was someone who knew that fact better than anyone else. Because I had experienced it firsthand.

I’ve experienced the value of the name “Lian Trice” through the eyes of the academy. I never wanted to receive more hateful looks from people I’d never seen before, especially if those people happened to be family or relatives of the Lian Trice whose body I had possessed. I didn’t know the reason. It might be because I had already experienced being Aria Trice. It hurt several times more than the gazes of other students. Was it because I had possessed the body of her older brother? Or perhaps because a part of the deceased Lian Trice still lingered within me. I didn’t know the exact reason. No, even if I tried to know, I couldn’t. How could I know that? I’m not someone who can see souls through. It just felt a little unjust. The reason I’ve suffered until now is actually because of the original Lian Trice. If the original Lian had lived a good life from the start, none of this would have happened. “······What’s the point of blaming it now?” But that was just a bit harsh in the past. Now, even that sense of injustice hardly remained. I’ve resolved to live comfortably. As I left the awkward atmosphere of the clinic, I had already made up my mind. The past wasn’t all that important. What mattered was how I could comfortably spend the future ahead of me. And as I reached this thought, another sudden thought occurred to me. “······Does taking on these requests even have any meaning?” Now that I think about it, it seems unnecessary to take on requests. I’m not completely broke. Yet, I don’t really need money for anything. Do I really need a lot of money in my current situation? It was a reasonably sound consideration. If I’m not going to spend the money, then I don’t need it. There’s no action more meaningless than hoarding money I won’t use. With these thoughts in mind, I was reading the various requests posted on the bulletin board at the academy. “I always found it strange that you didn’t come to the library on weekends. Were you taking on requests?” “······Your Highness?”

“Alright. Lian Trice. What kind of requests do you usually take?”

It was then that Labilaa suddenly appeared.

Labilaa, bearing the noble title of Princess Hwangtae, which hardly seemed to fit with the word “requests.”

It was truly a bewildering sight.