Pack of Wolves (1)

As a reward, a modest amount of experience came flooding in, followed by a message announcing a level-up.

On this route, you gained the characters' affinity, but the price was a drain on your Reputation. Which path you took depended entirely on your choices, and since the options had been broad, the opposite outcome was just as possible.

I had gotten what I wanted.

By taking my preferred route, I would now be free to move without issue all the way to the next episode's designated branching point.

And yet, none of that registered in my eyes at the moment.

"So this guy was secretly abandoned too, huh."

An ugly memory stirred back to life.

Arina, who handed over money and then never came looking.

The permission she dropped along with the words that he was free to play his fill now that he'd been paid.

The Snowflower Festival, bursting at the seams with food, sights, and amusements.

And Karsein, who never realized he had nowhere to return to, waiting with an armful of gifts.

Every last bit of it was no different from my own experience.

The unlimited ticket pass dangling from a wrist after checkout. The amusement park—a place my family had visited out of curiosity, a space I'd only ever been dragged to. My past self, who never noticed that they had deliberately let go of my hand and made me lost, who simply stood there watching the sun sink from where I'd been left.

An amusement park. A snowflower festival.

Only the era and the setting were different. This was the same thing.

Even the way he was found again.

"Damn it. Never thought I'd live through this kind of thing twice."

A hollow laugh escaped me on its own.

In my old life, I'd been a lost child at an amusement park; here, I'd become a kid secretly cast out.

That was enough to make the blood pound in my head.

But it wasn't heat that came—it was a frigid chill swirling through my skull, cooling it right down.

Getting angry over an ugly memory lasted only an instant.

"That's right. I need to act with a level head. There's no reason to waste emotion on things like this, one by one."

Because this was my second time through it, I could say it with certainty.

Karsein, too, must be thinking much the same thing.

If their positions had been swapped, he would surely have acted exactly this way.

While lost in thought, I turned my attention back to the Status Window I hadn't looked at in a while.

First, I took stock of the situation now that I'd made it this far.

The fake mana stone flames had been exposed, and once the commotion died down, Isabella would go searching for Karsein. His hastily improvised excuse would end up catching on Arina's lie, and Isabella would order her household knights to find him.

That much was how the original game unfolded.

All that's left is... just arriving late.

After the encounter with Arina, the scene skipped straight to the ducal residence. In other words, this stretch of time was meant to be skipped.

Which meant that even though the Hidden Episode had popped up, it hadn't disturbed the original flow at all.

From here on out, it didn't matter where I was or what I did, as long as I entered the ducal residence late.

The real question was where to spend this time.

More importantly... what on earth is this?

The question mark at the very bottom of my stat window caught my eye.

It had only just registered, but this was a stat of zero that had never once been visible back when this was a game.

"Hm..."

I fell into a small bout of deliberation.

The other stats all had their own methods for raising them, but this one came with no clues whatsoever. That said, it wasn't as if a stat could ever work against me. Not only did they help avoid bad endings, they occasionally even unlocked additional choices.

So I resolved to pour my remaining stat points into it. The rest of my stats were pointless to raise anyway—their growth rate far outstripped any loss.

Even a small boost would never show. Let's dump everything in.

Once the Status Window appeared, I half-wondered whether something in my body had changed—but there was no noticeable difference at all.

What the hell is this...? What changed?

And then.

As he stood gazing up at the sky, deep in thought, a woman appeared at his side without warning.

"What are you brooding over so hard?"

At the voice that came out of nowhere, Karsein whipped his head around.

It was a face he'd grown somewhat used to by now.

A breathtaking beauty whose purple hair and eyes suited each other perfectly.

Beauty aside, she was also a woman who could hold her own in a fight.

"Must you sneak up on people like that?"

"Huh. That's a startled face...?"

"You appeared out of nowhere. Of course I'm startled."

Harnie pulled an exasperated expression.

He really was startled, for the record.

"Anyway, what are you doing here? Did you come to see the Snowflower Festival?"

At the mention of that damn festival, Karsein gave an indifferent nod. Whereupon Harnie cleared her throat and ventured her request with careful hesitance.

"Ahem. Then, would you... perhaps spare me some of your time?"

"Sure, why not."

"I know your time is precious to you t—... what?"

As if she'd misheard, Harnie let out a bewildered sound.

"Did I just hear that wrong? Because I could have sworn you just agreed to spare me some time."

"Is something wrong with that?"

"N-no, it's not wrong, exactly... Are you sure? You must have a schedule."

"I don't. Anything like that."

Time was the one thing Karsein had in overflowing abundance right now.

He'd been racking his brain over where to dump this surplus, and had she not come looking for him, he might well have been wandering somewhere alone with a hollow feeling in his chest.

"Hmm... I don't know what's been going on with you, but taking advantage of you like this doesn't sit well with me."

After a moment's thought, Harnie raised her index finger and made her proposal.

"How about we make it a transaction instead?"

"A transaction?"

"Yes. It's more familiar and more comfortable for both of us, isn't it—for you and for me?"

She wanted to buy his time.

That was what Harnie was saying.

...Not a bad deal, actually.

It was time he needed to burn one way or another, but he was currently flat broke. As things stood, he'd have to toss this time away somewhere and return to the ducal residence empty-handed.

Far better to spend it on someone and walk away with something gained.

"Where would you like me to spend my time, then?"

"Hmm... well, you see, this is my first Snowflower Festival too, so I was wondering if you might show me around?"

"...Pardon?"

Karsein narrowed his eyes, as if to check he'd heard her right. Harnie responded with a bout of exaggerated throat-clearing.

"I-I've been too busy to properly enjoy the festival any given year, I'll have you know. And besides... there will probably be people who cling to me again, and..."

Then, as though embarrassed, she averted her gaze and started blinking rapidly.

Karsein just stood there blankly, unable to make sense of it, until she planted a hand on her hip and demanded:

"So are you going to help me or not!"

Guiding someone through a festival was no difficult task.

Borrowing Karsein's memories from the Memorial, he could manage it easily enough.

It was simply that he still couldn't wrap his head around the situation itself.

"A-are you laughing right now?"

"No. It's just a little funny. This situation."

"Wow. Excuse me, young lord. You did this last time too—why on earth do you always—"

Whatever she said after that never reached his ears.

But Karsein had no intention of refusing, either.

"If I help you with this, teach me noble etiquette in return."

"Pardon? What etiquette?"

"It's a transaction, isn't it? I'm asking you to teach me, like before. I'm hopelessly inexperienced in all sorts of ways, am I not?"

"I suppose that's true, but..."

She seemed to be wondering whether the math actually added up.

"Then let's say you also cover my expenses—a guide's fee, if you will. How does that sound?"

"Are you certain that's enough? Time can be worth far more than that kind of money."

"I don't consider it a losing trade. I have my own reasons, you see."

"Hmm..."

Even at this offer, Harnie's expression wasn't entirely satisfied. But the moment he framed it as a transaction, she readily gave in. He had his reasons too—that ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠part had weighed the most with her.

"Fine. But in exchange, if I decide it's a complete waste, you get nothing at all. Deal?"

"That's harsh. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠To your own fiancé."

"Oh, please. So you're only my fiancé when it suits you? I'm the one who has to actually act like a lover because of you."

Harnie huffed out a long sigh, then promptly took hold of Karsein's arm.

"Never mind that—just play the part of a lover properly."

Harnie began by crossing her arms with his and teaching him the etiquette of noble couples.

That was how she'd put it, but she taught him everything that ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠needed teaching, and before long they moved straight into practice, and he gradually got the hang of it. Tedious business, but still.

By the time they reached the entrance, the Snowflower Festival had slipped into its liveliest hour, and bright lights began glimmering into view—far more dazzling and splendid than anything shown in the Memorial.

"Wow."

Harnie let out a gasp at the decorations stitched across the sky.

Apparently her claim of it being her first visit was no lie.

If she'd been a little younger, he'd have taken her for a child at an amusement park for the very first time, no question about it.

"It's amazing. So many things I've never seen before, all gathered in one place. Have you come to the Snowflower Festival often, Karsein?"

"No. I've only seen it properly a handful of times myself."

Actually, no—this is my first time too.

It was Karsein, not me, who'd seen the festival those few extra times.

"And yet you don't seem very surprised? Everything's fascinating to me."

"..."

At her words, I looked over the decorations.

Granted, it would be astonishing—if not for the fact that two vile pasts, the very source of this filthy feeling, kept surfacing in my mind.

But in this game-world where my life hung in the balance, there was no leisure for enjoying things like this. That was the single biggest reason I wasn't surprised.

Then, all at once, the hand linked through my arm tightened its grip.

Before I could ask what was wrong, she spoke first.

"Karsein. That deal we made earlier... you remember it, right?"

"Pardon?"

"The, um... the part where I asked you to act as my lover."

"Of course I remember."

After all, he was doing it to fulfill the contract in the first place.

But why bring that up now?

"Y-you absolutely must keep to it, okay? Strictly."

"Huh?"

Before he could get a word of reply out, a noblewoman's voice came ringing from dead ahead.

"Oh my. Is this the gentleman they say is Lady Harnie's fiancé?"

No. Correction warranted.

Not a noblewoman—this was a pack of noblewomen.

The Snowflower Festival paid no mind to rank, sex, or age.

Naturally, then, running into nobles was always a possibility. He'd actually crossed paths with them a few times back when he was with his family.

But this was...

They're not looking at me, are they?

The woman with her lips curled in a smirk had addressed me as Lady Harnie's fiancé, that much was true... but watching them carefully, they seemed less interested in me than in Harnie herself.

Even at a glance, every gaze behind the woman leading the pack was fixed squarely on Harnie.

One might call it a leap of logic, but my instinct—honed through hard-won experience—was telling me plainly.

This was bullying.

First, let's dig for more information.

"Is something the matter?"

At the blunt question, some of their attention shifted my way.

"Nothing much. We simply heard that Lady Harnie had acquired a fiancé, and came to pay our respects."

That woman had just said that Lady Harnie.

As though Harnie had committed some terrible offense.

Another young lady then stepped forward, piling explanation onto explanation.

"We've seen quite a lot of Lady Harnie over the years, you see. And knowing so much, we found ourselves with reasons we simply had to come in person."

At those words, the grip on Harnie's linked arm tightened further.

Her expression didn't waver, but her teeth were surely grinding.

Without so much as flinching, I asked what this reason might be. Whereupon the young ladies, grinning as though they'd been waiting all along for exactly this moment, began to prattle.

"Lady Harnie is terribly popular with the gentlemen, you know. But among all of them, there isn't a single man she's ever given her heart to."

"Because she charms men senseless and then discards them without a shred of mercy! She's done it every single time, without fail!"

"There are countless eyewitness accounts and testimonies. Some say she drained them of their money outright; others claim she extorted them outright. Surely you're aware there are rumors even worse than these floating about?"

"That's precisely why we've been warning gentlemen in advance, lest more victims appear. It would be dreadful if her list of casualties kept growing."

"And so we wondered—might her fiancé perhaps be deceived? Might he be unaware of all this? That's why we came."

At last, the woman at the center delivered the closing remark.

"Lady Harnie does not carry love in her heart. So if you are being deceived, speak now. We can put an end to this wickedness once and for all."

Summed up, their argument went something like this:

Harnie deliberately seduces men for some undisclosed purpose, and throws them away without mercy once they've outlived their usefulness. Because there might be men who knew nothing of this, the ladies had stepped forward—and hearing that Karsein was her fiancé, they'd come to check whether he too was being taken in.

To distill it further:

If that woman has you fooled, shake her off while you can—because Harnie Theresia is a black widow.

That was the shape of it.

Harnie must have been stung, because she launched into denial.

"That's slander! I've never done such a thing! I've never even so much as met a man before, let alone—!"

"Oh my, look at that. More lies!"

"Same as ever, I see. Aren't you ashamed of yourself, as a noble?"

The condemnation began pouring down.

She'd stepped up to deny it with everything she had, but this was one against many, and Harnie had no choice but to be pushed back.

Worse, she carried a fatal vulnerability of her own.

"Then answer just this one question. Why is it, then, that Lady Harnie entered a business dominated by men?"

"..."

"There. You can't even answer that."

"It's obvious, isn't it? She got into it to fleece men, plain and simple."

She'd entered a trade that no other noble daughters touched. Merely by charting a course different from everyone else, she could not escape censure.

Even if it had all been for the sake of the Theresia family.

And so this entire affair came to rest squarely in my hands alone.

"And now it seems she means to deceive House Vagrand next?"

"Young lord. Just be honest with us. We'll handle whatever comes after."

Then, with desperate, pleading eyes, Harnie appealed to me.

"It's not true! Truly, I...! I have never once tried to deceive you."

The answer came to me at once.

Questions like this resolved themselves in my head with almost embarrassing ease.

Over and over. Over and over again.

The conclusion stood so clearly that no double-checking was even required.

I released our linked arms without hesitation.

-Shff.

"Karsein...!"

Harnie stared up at me, her eyes trembling in an instant—but—

"Kyah?!"

The arm I'd freed wrapped straight back around her shoulders, drawing her protectively against my own body. Her startled gaze turned toward me.

Yes.

Just now, I had chosen one side in a one-against-many fight.

"What utter filth you people engage in. How dare you stand before me and drag my fiancée's name through the mud?"

Those were the eyes of someone wronged to the bone.

How could anyone look into eyes like those and side not with Harnie, but with these women?

I, for one, could never act that way. Not in a thousand years.