The Academy Reopens
"Whew... I wonder how many months it's been."
I stopped in front of the academy's main gates.
Though it couldn't quite compare to the imperial palace, the academy's buildings were still so massive, tall, and grand that they couldn't be taken in with a single glance.
Perhaps it was because I had regained the memories of my past life, but even though three years had already passed since I first enrolled, standing here again brought a strange wave of emotion over me.
The countless incidents and accidents I had experienced here flashed through my mind like a kaleidoscope.
So this is it... The youthful friendships I never got to experience in my past life, the overcoming of hardships and trials—to put it in a single word: youth.
Even before I regained my past memories, I had finally experienced the youth of my dreams right here.
Thinking about it that way filled my chest with a mixture of joy and bittersweet nostalgia.
No, no, it's too early for this. My youth isn't over yet.
I still had a whole year left—a precious span of time that was neither too short nor too long.
The dangerous events of the original game that threatened my life had all passed during those first three years.
The only major event remaining was for the original protagonist, Marc Visus, to defeat the Demon King resurrected by the shadowy organization that had been causing trouble across the academy and the continent.
Even that was a scripted, WWE-style showpiece event where the protagonist's victory was guaranteed no matter what, so I didn't really need to worry about it.
From my perspective as a mere extra, that was doubly true. If there was anything to watch out for, it was simply making sure I didn't get caught in the crossfire of that final battle.
Looking at it that way, there shouldn't be any major wildcards left in my life.
"Hey, Rofel! Why are you just standing there dazed? Hurry up, or we'll be late!"
...Ah, now that I think about it, one wildcard had already cropped up.
I had somehow ended up in a relationship with Lilit Tistina, one of the original game's heroines.
I really, truly hadn't intended for this to happen, but a single night's mistake had led to a deep physical relationship.
I must have been out of my mind... Getting drunk and not only pouncing on a duke's daughter but taking her virginity as well...
But it was far too late for regrets now.
The deed was done, and time couldn't be turned back.
And well... it wasn't like I disliked her. I fully intended to take responsibility for her future.
She was my girlfriend now. I needed to steadily build up my own worth in the time I had left so that Lilit Tistina would never have to feel ashamed of me.
Aside from this unexpected development of being together with her, there really shouldn't be any other wildcards—!
"Ah, my beloved. What a coincidence this is."
...Make that two.
"Oh... H-Hello, Seraphina."
Seraphina Serion. The future Sword Saint and, just like Lilit Tistina, one of the main heroines of the original game.
How should I describe my relationship with her? I had only ever thought of her as a close friend, but she felt differently.
I didn't know exactly when it started, but Seraphina had fallen in love with me. Because I was already with Lilit, I couldn't accept her feelings.
The problem was that Seraphina's love was far deeper and heavier than I could have ever imagined—heavy enough that she had gone so far as to violate and blackmail me.
...And now, keeping it a secret from Lilit, she was enjoying a secret, one-sided affair with me.
"...Ah, Seraphina. Hello. Good to see you."
"...It is good to see you as well."
Lilit was the first to speak.
She had treated Seraphina rather coldly when she first revealed our relationship, so she was making the first move to clear the air.
And so, Lilit and Seraphina stood there, smiling as they spoke to each other...
Or to be more precise, they were smiling out of "politeness."
The corners of their mouths were curled upward in a forced mimicry of a smile, while their eyes remained wide and completely lifeless.
One thing was for sure: neither of them was doing well, nor were they glad to see each other.
It was only natural. Lilit was my current girlfriend, and Seraphina was a woman who still hadn't given up on me (though Lilit didn't seem to know that yet).
It would be far more terrifying if they actually got along.
"Come on, Rofel, let's go. It's the first day of the semester, and we can't be late for the opening ceremony, right?"
Conscious of Seraphina's gaze, Lilit linked her arm through mine and began pulling me along.
The sensation of her far-from-small chest pressing against my arm made my face flush, and noticing this, she let out a sweet smile.
Then, as if flaunting it to Seraphina, she began rubbing her body against mine, acting coquettishly.
She nuzzled her face against my chest and held my hand, squeezing it repeatedly.
Uh... how was Seraphina reacting right now?
"..."
Grit.
She maintained her "polite" smile from earlier.
...To be precise, her expression didn't waver in the slightest as she stared directly at us.
And though it was faint, I could hear the sound of teeth grinding.
Honestly, it was terrifying.
I worried she might use the magic tool she had placed on me to do something crazy, but since Seraphina and I had a mutual agreement, she wouldn't lay a hand on me as long as I was with Lilit.
At least, not today.
...Probably?
Putting those worries aside, I let Lilit pull me toward the academy's auditorium.
The academy's principal, Rium Kitokal, stood at the podium and began reading his speech, his voice amplified by magic.
"This semester... safety must be our top priority...! Care for your fellow students... exchange students...! Especially the beastman student discovered by the professor... this is crucial for our relations with the beastmen...!"
Rather than his voice echoing through the hall, my attention was drawn to the sheer number of security guards filling the auditorium due to the recent staff increases.
Just by eyeballing it, their numbers were substantial. It might even be comparable to, or greater than, several squads of a regular army combined.
In particular, they stood in a tight circle around Rium Kitokal on the stage, as if forming a defensive barrier.
On top of that, the security measures had been tightened significantly; we had to pass through numerous magical detection gates just to enter the auditorium.
Not only did they inspect our belongings using clairvoyance magic, but the identity verification process was also long and tedious.
First, they scanned our registered irises, then our fingerprints, and finally, our mana flow.
Since all students, faculty, and staff had to go through this process, just getting inside took a massive amount of time.
I had heard there wouldn't be any classes today other than the opening ceremony, and this was probably why.
It felt a bit excessive, but considering the incidents and casualties that had occurred recently, the precautions weren't entirely unreasonable.
Once the long speech finally ended, the seated crowd began to stand up one by one, filtering out of the auditorium through the complex security checks once more.
"Ugh... it's finally over!"
Stepping out of the auditorium at last, Lilit and I stretched our stiff bodies.
"Seriously, the principal talks way too much. I think that every year! I wish he'd consider our perspective, having to just sit there and listen..."
Lilit pouted, grumbling under her breath.
I had to agree.
Given his past actions, I knew he was a good person who genuinely cared for the students, but his annual speeches were simply too long.
Some of the upperclassmen apparently pulled all-nighters the day before classes started just because of this.
They claimed it was much better to sleep through the boring speech than to sit there struggling to stay awake.
Hm? What did the principal say during his speech, you ask?
To be honest, I hadn't paid attention to a single word.
Still, it was bound to be the same boring, repetitive stuff that school principals always talk about, so missing it wouldn't cause any problems.
Though the word "beastman" did catch my ear...
"Anyway, I never expected to hear about beastmen again while at the academy. Right, Rofel?"
The beastmen, as their name suggested, were a race that combined the traits of magical beasts and humans.
Created through the experiments of ancients before the academy was even founded, this race fell under the human category but possessed superior physical abilities akin to magical beasts.
However, they also possessed the uncontrollable emotions and wild instincts characteristic of magical beasts, making them despised across every nation and continent.
Of course, they did their best to integrate into society, and the vast majority of them were fundamentally good-natured.
There were villages where they gathered to live together, and even a beastman nation of sorts, though it existed in name only.
But in the latter half of the original game, the mastermind behind the scenes uses all kinds of instigation and sabotage to turn the beastmen into public enemies.
In response, the beastmen resist, and in their struggle to survive, they are ultimately absorbed into the Demon King's faction—exactly as the mastermind intended—appearing as enemies blocking the protagonist's path.
Transformed into complete beasts with no trace of humanity left, they fall helplessly before the protagonist and are wiped out.
Even the few surviving beastmen are reduced to being hunted down as mere "monsters."
In a way, they were tragic, ill-fated beings who suffered the worst kinds of unfair treatment in the game.
That was why I felt a great deal of pity for them.
In fact, even before I recalled the memories of my past life, I had already met a beastman once.
If I remembered correctly, she had shown hostility and acted cold during our first meeting, but once we became close, she turned out to be a kind, pure-hearted girl who laughed and chatted easily.
During our second year, when I was stranded in a remote area, she had helped me without any ill intent. We stayed together for a while, and when we parted, we even promised to meet again.
It was an unexpected accident, but during that brief time, I had managed to forge a wonderful bond.
But if the original game's scenario was anything to go by, the beastmen were destined for extinction.
The mention of their race in the principal's speech was likely the trigger that signaled the start of their systematic oppression.
I hadn't realized it back then, but thinking about it now left a bitter taste in my mouth.
If I had known, I would have pushed myself to go see her again during our third year.
It was such a tragic fate that I couldn't help but wish I could change it...
"Still, I never dreamed the academy would start accepting beastman students."
...Huh?
Wait, what?