Election Campaign
The tumultuous kidnapping incident finally came to an end, and Isis was elected as the new Student Council President. She strode onto the stage with confident, unwavering steps. The anxious girl who used to fidget and worry about me was nowhere to be seen. Right now, Isis looked incredibly reliable, steadfast, and breathtakingly beautiful.
After receiving her official appointment from the Headmaster, she took hold of the microphone.
“A-ah—everyone. Nice to meet you. My name is Isis Priuli, and I will be serving as your Student Council President starting today.”
Her speech was short yet impactful. She covered every necessary point without leaving any room for criticism, while maintaining a perfect pace that kept the audience from getting bored. Her enchanting voice drew everyone’s attention and soothed their ears.
‘Now what am I supposed to do about this?’
After returning to the academy, I spoke with Abel, who had come looking for me. From our conversation, I learned that the event involving election rigging had never occurred. That meant Abel had lost his chance to grow closer to Isis.
This was probably my fault.
‘I got too close to Isis.’
In the original game, my relationship with Isis was so terrible that there was no need to kidnap her. But things were different now. Remian had become convinced that by using me, he could manipulate Isis. That was why, the moment I started insulting her, he realized his miscalculation and rushed over in a panic to gather information.
Regardless, what I wanted to say was that the current situation had diverged far too much from what I originally knew.
Did I still need to keep acting like a worthless scoundrel?
By now, most of the other transmigrators had probably figured out my identity anyway. More importantly, after absorbing the Phoenix Egg, my combat ability had improved dramatically. I no longer needed to worry about getting killed instantly.
Of course, I couldn’t exactly say I’d been perfectly discreet, but I had at least tried to keep a low profile. After thinking it over for a moment, I shook my head at the answer that refused to come easily.
‘Ugh, whatever. I don’t care anymore.’
I already had too many things to think about. I didn’t want to waste time on this. From now on, I’d just do whatever I felt like in the moment. Besides, there was no guarantee that my reputation would change immediately even if I tried.
The moment I roughly settled on that conclusion, Isis’s speech came to an end.
──Waaaaaaaaah!
Clapclapclapclapclapclapclap!
Thunderous cheers and applause crashed against my ears like a storm. Soon after, the Headmaster appeared and ordered everyone to disperse. The entire student body began filing out of the auditorium in neat rows under their professors’ guidance.
In the midst of that, Abel and his group pushed through the crowd and approached me.
“Luan, let’s go!”
“What the hell? Suddenly? I can walk by myself.”
“Still, you never know! Let’s go together.”
It seemed he was worried I might get swept up in the crowd and get hurt after having been kidnapped. I appreciated the sentiment, but I wasn’t particularly thrilled about receiving concern from another guy.
“That’s right, Luan! We can’t let you go alone!”
“Really? Then I’ll leave it to you.”
“…That’s so unfair.”
I gladly accepted Deborah’s words as she cut in from behind and stood close to her. Abel’s disappointed voice dug into my ears, but I gently brushed it off and left the auditorium with the group.
On the way, I happened to spot Isis walking side by side with the Crown Prince.
‘Where are those two going?’
Isis didn’t look particularly happy, so it probably wasn’t anything lighthearted. I was a little curious, but I figured it must be related to the succession of the Student Council President position and let it go. I headed to the classroom with the others.
*
“What is your business?”
The moment she arrived at the Student Council room, Isis got straight to the point. The Crown Prince paused for a moment before standing by the window and speaking.
“It’s about Remian. She has been successfully expelled. She will leave for the imperial palace tomorrow morning.”
“I see. Is that all you wanted to say?”
Isis was openly avoiding him. Sensing that she would kick him out the second he received permission, the Crown Prince turned his head and stared at her intently.
His crimson eyes, swirling with countless emotions, clashed in midair with her silver eyes, which were armed with an iron wall of resolve.
“Lady Isis. Have you given any more thought to the proposal I made before?”
“…I believe we already finished that conversation. Besides, must we discuss this today? Lady Remian will be heartbroken.”
“What Remian did was no ordinary matter. It was something that could have ended the lineage of a marquis family. It is more than enough reason to strip her of her qualification as Crown Princess.”
“……I’m sorry. I must decline.”
Exactly one year ago, when she had been elected as Vice President, the Crown Prince had made her that proposal.
How about becoming my Crown Princess?
He had said he fell in love with her the moment he first saw her, that it had to be her, and that he wanted her to spend the rest of her life with him.
And Isis, upon receiving the proposal, had rejected him with the exact same firmness she showed now.
“What is the reason? Back then you said you had no intention of marrying yet. Is it still the same? You will be a third-year next year. Most noble ladies marry immediately upon graduation. I used to think it was because you had to take responsibility for your family. But that is no longer the case, is it? Lord Luan has reformed. There should be no problem entrusting him with the marquisate.”
It wasn’t just the people involved who had welcomed the improved relationship between Luan and Isis. Even so, Isis shook her head at the Crown Prince’s plea.
“No. I must take responsibility for my family.”
“Why is that?”
“…Because Luan said he has no interest in becoming the family head. He doesn’t want to be trapped in the barren north and waste his life away. Therefore, I must inherit the position.”
“That…! Isn’t that too selfish? Forcing his older sister to make the sacrifice just because he doesn’t want to!”
The one being selfish was the Crown Prince himself. Even though it was something the parties involved had agreed upon, he was criticizing Luan purely to fulfill his own love. The fact that he didn’t realize such behavior only angered Isis more was his fatal mistake.
“No matter what you say, it is useless. I must continue the family line, which means I will need to take in a son-in-law. That would be impossible for Your Highness the Crown Prince. Therefore, it would be best if you forget about me and devote yourself to Lady Remian. Now if you’ll excuse me.”
Isis turned away without waiting for a reply. It was an incredibly disrespectful act, but her true feelings were that she no longer wanted to exchange words with someone who had insulted her beloved younger brother.
The Crown Prince hurriedly stopped her.
“Wait! Stand right there! Just one last question.”
“What is it?”
“…Is there perhaps another man you have feelings for?”
“Pardon?”
“I’m asking if the reason you’re rejecting me isn’t simply because of your family. Are you pushing me away so coldly because there is a man you love?”
“…….”
The moment she heard those words, Luan’s face flashed through Isis’s mind. She didn’t know why. It had simply happened naturally. Even for Isis, it was a shock.
‘What on earth am I thinking…’
Why would she picture her younger brother’s face when asked about a man she loved? This was madness.
As Isis grew flustered and tried to deny her own emotions, the Crown Prince read her expression and spoke in a heavy voice.
“There is one.”
“What?”
“There is a man you love. That’s why you rejected me.”
“N-no, that’s not it…”
“Denying it is pointless. Thanks to you, I understand now. There was never any hope for me. Can you tell me who he is?”
“…….”
Isis remained silent. It wasn’t just that she couldn’t reveal the person. More than that, she was afraid the Crown Prince might seek revenge.
The Crown Prince smiled bitterly.
“You can’t tell me? How enviable. The person you hold so dear… Well then, I’ll be going first.”
Having finally sorted out his feelings, the Crown Prince walked past Isis and left the Student Council room.
Left alone, Isis placed a hand over her heart.
Thump! Thump!
Her heart was pounding violently. Where was this pulse directed? Isis somehow felt like she already knew the answer.
Just as she was about to become aware of her own emotions—
Knock knock.
“Isis. May I come in?”
The knock and Regina’s voice pulled Isis back to reality.
“C-come in!”
Although it was unlikely, she was anxious that her feelings might be discovered. When she gave permission, the door opened and Regina appeared. She glanced behind her before asking,
“What were you talking about?”
“Pardon?”
“You were with my older brother, weren’t you?”
“That’s…”
Isis hesitated, wondering if it was okay to casually talk about the Crown Princess matter. Regina gave her a strangely uneasy look.
“Don’t tell me he proposed making you the Crown Princess or something?”
“What?”
“Remian mentioned it before. That my brother is in love with you. If he called you in alone, that’s the only thing it could be about, right? And now that Remian caused an incident, there’s no problem stripping her of the Crown Princess qualification.”
It seemed siblings really did think alike. Regina had the same thought process as her older brother. Isis could only smile faintly.
“He did make such a proposal, but I refused.”
“You refused?”
“Yes. Because I must continue my family line.”
“Really? You used to say you had no interest in becoming the family head.”
“Actually, during summer break, I talked with Luan about the position of family head. But Luan said he doesn’t want to become the head. He doesn’t want to be trapped in the barren north and waste his life.”
“Is that so? Well… then there’s nothing that can be done.”
Regina let out a sigh of relief, thinking that the worst-case scenario she had been worried about hadn’t come to pass. Isis could only tilt her head in confusion.
“Anyway, let’s head back to the classroom quickly. Even if you’re the Student Council President, you can’t be late for class, right?”
“Of course. Let’s go.”
The two quickly left the Student Council room.
Thud!
With the sound of the door closing, the Student Council room fell into silence. As if nothing had ever happened.
*
A few days later, the long-awaited inter-class competition season finally arrived.
I was blankly staring out the window. Men dressed as repair workers were carrying huge boxes in and out of the tall clock tower entrance. Every time they set a box down, a thick cloud of dust rose up. Whatever was inside must have been quite heavy, but I couldn’t tell what it was.
Just then, one of the workers hung up a “No Entry” sign.
‘What is that about? Did the clock break?’
While I was wasting brain cells on useless thoughts, Sara slammed her hand on the lectern to get everyone’s attention.
“Everyone, pay attention! You all know the inter-class competition is next week, right? Each student must choose at least one main event. Make sure to consult with each other. First up is the obstacle race.”
Although it was called an inter-class competition, it wasn’t all that different from the sports festivals back on Earth. The only real difference was that the obstacles were so enormous that they were impossible to overcome with ordinary physical ability.
For example, if there was a 1-meter hurdle on Earth, here it would be raised to about 10 meters. Naturally, mages could never participate in such events, so there were several separate categories only open to combat and magic majors.
Anyway, I didn’t particularly need to stand out, so I figured I’d just participate in some unpopular event.
The problem was that the world refused to leave me alone.
“Alright, next is the three-legged race. One boy and one girl. Anyone want to participate?”
Normally, couples signed up for the three-legged race. And coincidentally, there wasn’t a single couple in Class 3 right now. To be precise, there were no couples within the same class. The one couple that had existed had broken up recently.
So in the end, they decided to take recommendations…
“Okay. Rujia. Who do you want to recommend?”
“Deborah and Luan!”
“I agree!”
“Me too! They’re dating anyway, so it’s fine!”
It seemed the classmates still believed those ridiculous rumors. They were trying to force Deborah and me into the three-legged race.
‘Ah, fuck.’
I had left it alone because it was annoying, but the misunderstanding seemed to be getting worse.
Deborah panicked and started stuttering.
“A-ah! G-guys, calm down. We’re not like that!”
“What do you mean you’re not! Wasn’t it the weekend before last? Some kids saw you two going on a date!”
“H-huh? Date?”
“Yeah! They said you left on Saturday and didn’t come back until Sunday afternoon! You’re still going to deny it?”
“U-um, that was…”
I had been so focused on clearing the dungeon at the time that I hadn’t noticed, but apparently some friends had seen us leaving together. This was seriously fucked.
“Luan. What do you think? Don’t want to?”
“It’s a hassle.”
“Then should only Deborah participate? Is it okay if she teams up with another guy?”
Rujia spoke as if Deborah participating was already a done deal. I imagined the scene.
‘That feels disgusting.’
I wasn’t dating Deborah, but the thought of her sticking close to another guy and struggling together didn’t sit well with me at all. Since I didn’t really care about the rumors anyway, maybe I should just participate?
‘I have to do at least one event anyway.’
Looking at the kids now, they didn’t seem to care about the results, so I probably didn’t need to try too hard. I finished my deliberation.
“Do whatever you want. I don’t care.”
“Really? Nice! Deborah, you heard him, right? You two are doing it!”
“I-I-I…”
“You’re doing it, okay? Got it? Yeah?”
“…F-fine.”
“Great! Then it’s decided!”
And so, I ended up participating in the three-legged race with Deborah.