An Early Joining
I grabbed Arlan by the arm.
Then hauled her along toward where Eva and the others were.
"Wha— wait a moment, please!"
Arlan struggled with all her might to break free from my grip.
She leaned her hips backward, digging in her heels to resist the direction my feet were pulling her.
"Let go of me! Why are you doing this!?"
"Why am I—? Because you said you were interested in Chloe, and I'm giving you the chance to meet her."
This was all for your own good, really.
You know how parents force a wailing, sniffling kid to choke down carrots and cucumbers they're whining about, just to shut off the miserable crying? Same thing.
"Well, of course anyone would balk if you dragged them off without so much as a discussion."
Maybe it looked reckless.
But even so, I marched straight ahead without so much as a glance back.
Arlan's opinion of me would probably take a nosedive, but that was no problem of mine.
"Writer, you know as well as I do. This is an opportunity handed down from heaven — a time to push forward."
Right now, Chloe was in the middle of meticulous groundwork to completely capture Eva's heart.
Even if I sabotaged things thoroughly, unpredictable variables could always rear their heads.
I needed a more certain obstruction.
And Arlan was the perfect person for exactly that role.
Better still, she would help fulfill the shared wish of mine and the Writer's: Eva's happiness.
"If Arlan joins earlier than the original story, she'll become the most powerful rival to check Chloe."
The blazing contest for the seat beside their beloved that Arlan and Chloe waged in Part 2 of Academy Yuri Princess.
In that rivalry, Arlan stood in an overwhelming position that Chloe simply couldn't compare to.
Her only shortcomings were joining the group late — and the fact that she never reappeared because she laid down her life for the one she loved and met a tragic, glorious end.
If we could recreate that rivalry as early as Part 1, our plans would leap forward by leaps and bounds.
"Hold on a second, though. You asked me to bring Arlan to Eva, I made my pitch and I'm doing exactly that — so why am *I* the one getting chewed out?"
"You think that'd work? Absolutely not, no chance."
I was no Goebbels, and I had no silver tongue capable of bending hearts on the spot.
Her past. The secret about her benefactor.
I *could* lay it bare in front of Arlan and tell her to latch onto Eva right this second.
But I had no confidence in surviving the relentless interrogation that would inevitably follow.
"Writer, you frustrating old softie. If we picked apart every little thing like that, there'd be no end to it."
Was I doing this because I actually hated the idea of Arlan standing beside Eva?
As if.
Arlan was the one who longed most desperately to stay at Eva's side.
It was because she loathed herself, because she believed she was different from everyone else, that she was content just watching Eva from afar.
It wasn't like an ordinary boy-and-girl love story between two people.
She was never loved even by her only family, and she was forced out into the world to stain her own hands with blood — a tragedy upon tragedy.
All of it twisted together into self-loathing, her self-esteem in free fall. No wonder the girl couldn't manage a single word with Eva.
"You can't live your life doing only what you like, only what you want. Sometimes you have to grit your teeth and push through what you don't want to do — only then does the next pleasure come peeking out from behind it."
Oh dear.
It seemed our tender-hearted Writer just couldn't bear to watch this situation that Arlan so obviously dreaded.
"If it bothers you that much, take a break for a while. I'll handle everything and sort it all out myself."
With those words, the chat window floating beside me winked out of existence.
Tsk tsk. With a heart that soft, honestly.
Who'd have thought she'd give me grief for *dragging a person along by the arm*?
'She was always unusually fussy whenever I touched the other girls, but when it comes to Arlan, her attachment runs even deeper.'
Was it because Arlan was the only heroine in the story who actually died?
I understood the doting — but the overprotectiveness was out of control.
It wasn't like I was gripping her hard enough to snap her wrist. And yet there she was, acting horrified like I was abducting her off the street.
{You should understand her. She does love making a fuss.}
"Well, well. Look who's here."
Just when I thought things might finally quiet down with the nagging complainer next to me gone, the empty space got filled by a certified lunatic.
{It's thanks to you blinding her eyes, you see. The moment I confirmed the connection was severed, I came rushing straight over.}
Once a suspicion, now a certainty.
I'd expected it, but I hadn't guessed he'd show up the instant the Writer stepped away.
{Now, the situation. You're dragging Arlan Carnelian off somewhere, I see.}
"I consulted with the Writer and judged it more appropriate to pair her up with Eva. I'm executing that plan as we speak."
{Hmm, and you weren't trying to drag her off to bed? I naturally assumed you were trying to relieve the poor girl while she was in heat.}
"She does look like she's in heat, I'll give you that."
"Let go! Let go of me this instant!"
Arlan was still defiant.
She bit at me with her teeth, kicked at me with her feet.
She even shrouded her whole body in mana to boost her physical abilities and drove attacks at me — but not a single scratch.
"Now, whatever happens to you, it's not my fault!"
As a last resort, she wove her mana together, gave it form, and unleashed her specialty — magic.
The top student of Class C, where support-track students gathered.
Specialized in auxiliary roles, sure, but her spellwork was first-rate as well.
Her ferocious offensive spell locked onto me.
"Won't work, kiddo. Come along quietly."
A single touch of my finger was all it took to neutralize it.
The Usurper — Solis's power. Performance confirmed, rock solid.
{With this, it's proven that Arlan can never beat you. Now hurry — sex. Have sex, SEX!}
"Not interested, so go bother someone else."
{Aaaah, no! Seeeex!}
"Oh. Sure."
What a lunatic.
Did he really have that little to do?
What made it funnier was that he vanished right after saying just that.
The chat window had closed, just like when the Writer had left. That much was certain.
If you're going to do that, why even talk to me in the first place?
"Solis, you're back."
"Yep, back in the flesh."
Anyway — mission accomplished, Arlan delivered to the group.
Marin greeted me first, and I answered her welcome with a gentle expression.
"D-d-drong at last. My Sol's eyes!"
"You're late! Why were you dawdling so long over one drink?"
Eva darted up to my side and snatched the drink right out of my hand.
Chloe jabbed a finger at me, ripping into me for being late.
"Shut it, loser. You got wrecked by one hit from Marin, and *you're* talking big?"
"Wh-what! You're the one who lost to Eva, so aren't we even?"
"You got your ass handed to you by me too. In the rankings, you're dead last."
"Kyaiaaaak!"
Heh. Chloe, you sure love it when I poke where it hurts.
She was foaming at the mouth and convulsing, and my own mouth kept twitching upward — I couldn't manage my expression at all.
"Solis, more importantly — who's the girl next to you?"
"This one?"
"Kyaaah!"
I yanked Arlan out from where she'd been hiding behind my back and planted her in front of me.
"Allow me to introduce — a devoted fan of yours, Chloe, she says."
"Your fan?"
"H-hup!"
Chloe leaned right up into Arlan's face, studying her closely.
Arlan turned her head away, but it was useless.
"Huh? Wait — you're!"
Chloe had the name and face of every single student at Purity Academy memorized perfectly.
There was no way she wouldn't know a classmate — one who'd enrolled alongside her at the top of the entrance ranks.
"It's Arlan! Top of Class C, right?"
"Y-yes."
Arlan smiled awkwardly.
For someone who'd declared herself a devoted fan, she sure was shy.
Or maybe her conscience was pricking her for having blurted out a lie?
Honestly, it didn't matter either way.
The core of it was that a bond — a connection by the name of 'fate' — had now been forged.
"Wow, so nice to meet you. Did you stop by the training grounds for the ability evaluations too?"
"Mm-hm. If I don't work hard, someone will steal my top spot."
"Mm-hm! I know exactly what you mean. The crushing pressure of being first — the bone-deep effort to not fall behind the other students."
Fellow top students. For Chloe, that alone was more than enough to build a bridge of empathy.
And since Arlan had declared herself her fan, she had no choice but to welcome her warmly all the more.
"Perfect timing, then. If you're free, let's all spar together right here!"
"A sp-spar?"
"Everyone, that's fine with you, right?"
"Doesn't matter how many of you come at me. It's one fist's worth, either way."
"O-of course! If Chloe wishes it."
The mood was tilting, fast and decisively, toward sparring with Arlan.
That's our Chloe for you.
Social skills maxed out — welcoming her without a hint of awkwardness.
"What about you? If it feels like too much, you can say no."
"..."
Arlan hesitated for a moment amid all their kindness.
Her gaze wandered, unable to find its footing.
Then it settled, before long, on the person she most wanted to talk to.
"A-ah. Hello."
Eva raised her hand with a shy shuffle and greeted Arlan.
Eva, who didn't warm to strangers.
And yet there she was, bearing the discomfort, trying her best to welcome her anyway.
Perhaps that sight was what moved Arlan's heart.
"Okay. I'll do it."
Arlan accepted Chloe's offer.
I watched the whole scene unfold from the side.
What a lovely sight.
The original protagonist and her heroines, all gathered together in one place.
There couldn't have been a more satisfying, more gratifying scene than this.