Ebnis Rothschild de Repelheit

In the original story, Ebnis Rothschild de Repelheit was a character overflowing with a sense of justice. Or rather, she was so brimming with it that she ended up shackled by her own righteousness.

Maybe that's why I really liked her route—where she wanders lost, bound by her convictions and unable to find her way, until she meets the protagonist and finally charts her true path.

—I'll forge my own justice here. So follow by my side, Erhan.

I was drawn to that knightly resolve of justice. It even extended to her pushing aside the irredeemable trash that was the Repelheit Marquis and claiming the marquisate for herself.

But peel back one layer, and she's just a self-willed girl who's dishonest with herself and clumsy at expressing her emotions.

The 'Ebnis' I saw in the game took Adrian's death as ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a harsh lesson, coming to utterly despise corruption and favoritism, believing justice alone was the path forward.

But now that I'm alive, none of that will happen.

She seems to hate my guts right now, though.

"This is the magic department, isn't it? I'm in the knight department."

"Just follow me."

"Don't give me orders, Adrian."

It was late afternoon, right around sunset.

"Look, Ebnis."

When I stopped at the corner, Ebnis's grumbling trailed off as she caught up behind me.

"Whoa……."

A soft exclamation of awe.

The corridor was bathed in sunset hues, pillars stretching long shadows across the floor. At the far end, the sun dipped toward the horizon.

Leaning against the wall, I watched Ebnis stare blankly at the scene.

"What do you think?"

"Hmm. Not bad for a spot you picked, Adrian. Pretty cool."

Yeah. This was the real hidden screenshot spot.

Line up a character by each pillar and snap it with the backlight—you get some seriously badass shots. It was my messenger profile pic. Total insider vibe, right?

"Feeling calmer now?"

"Sigh…… Yeah, I am. So, will you answer my question now, Adrian?"

"First off, I'm not explaining the moves you saw during my fight with Melwood Elion."

"Why not?"

Because I don't want to.

At that, Ebnis silently drew her Holy Sword 'Destruction'. The light gathered in her hand, morphing into a massive battle axe. A monster hefting it one-handed glared at me from the backlight with gleaming eyes.

Hmm. One wrong word, and that axe might cleave my skull.

"……We're rivals competing for the Repelheit family headship, Ebnis."

"So?"

"Wouldn't it be pointless if we laid all our hidden cards bare?"

She pondered my words, then nodded and dispersed the light.

"Fair point. But……."

"I know. This power wasn't gained through any foul means. I swear it."

"……I don't trust you, but seeing how you handled the Melwood incident, I'll let it slide this once."

"Who are you to 'let it slide'?"

Don't swing that axe.

"Sigh, fine. Then explain that thing. The demon clan's remnant thoughts…… How is a darkness spirit wandering around outside?"

That's my expertise.

I summed it up in three lines, and Ebnis touched her lips, eyes full of disbelief.

"I know nothing about any of this, but how do you know?"

"I've spent more time in that position than you, so of course I know more."

Not really. This was all from my 10,000 hours of experience—knowledge no Repelheit sub-marquess could access.

But telling the truth would just breed more suspicion or get me called crazy. My dodge seemed to satisfy her.

"Adrian."

"No."

"Adrian, I'm serious……."

"I know what you're gonna say. You want to trade for info on 'the demons I know right now,' right?"

"Urk."

Ebnis flinched and shot me a glare.

"You idiot. That kind of info you earn by growing yourself. What's the point of trading for scraps from someone else's mouth?"

Her face twisted in disbelief.

"……Didn't know Adrian had it in him to say something like that."

"Your ugly mug pisses me off that much."

"Who made it ugly?!"

She glared once more, then glanced at the darkening corridor.

"Fine, you're right. I'll find out myself. That's what I should've done from the start."

"Mood better now?"

"No, it got worse because you showed concern."

She jabbed a finger at me.

"Adrian."

"Spit it out quick—whatever long-winded speech it is. I'm tired and want to crash at the dorm."

"Hear me out. I'll walk my own path. I don't need anyone's help."

"……."

This time, she drew not her Holy Sword, but the longsword at her waist, pointing it at me.

"I'll forge my own justice here. This is something only I can do."

Familiar lines. But different.

"I'll defeat you—the villain blocking my way—and become the marquis myself."

This time, I didn't scoff. Eyes filled with resolve. A firm mouth and determined expression.

"Do it. I won't lose either."

Who could mock that resolve?

……So that's it.

I'd just passed a 'branch point.' Not in the game, but in the reality of the Salenium Saga.

The Salenium Saga was brutally realistic—heroines derailed from their original routes could turn dark and become bosses. Ebnis had multiple corruption paths, and having seen every ending, I knew they weren't pleasant.

That stubborn fool needed to be my rival, not the academy's enemy.

But.

"What? More to say?"

Ebnis Rothschild de Repelheit. My shallow worries about her were just unfounded fears.

No corruption or fall—instead, she was breaking free from the 'heroine' system shackles, choosing her own path and marching toward the future.

A far cry from the original, where she doubted everything, was petty and twisted, and crumbled without Erhan's help.

Right now, she was growing on her ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠own, no one's aid needed.

"Keep that in mind. Well then……."

Her shoulders had slumped on the way here, her steps hesitant.

But now she strode the corridor straighter than anyone……

Then she stopped dead and turned.

"More to say?"

"Oh yeah, I forgot—you called me a 'strength 20 gorilla' earlier, right?"

"I never—cough……said that."

Damn, I slipped up on my expression there—not like ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠me.

"Laughing? You just laughed! Get over here! Attribute Sword: Destruction!"

I sidestepped lightly, sliding past her axe swing.

"Adriaaaaaaan you slimy bastaaaaaard I'll kiiiill yooooou!"

A monster's roar echoed through the empty magic department corridor.

Mm. Music to my ears.

"By the way, you're paying for anything you break."

Just hearing her roar brought a genuine smile now.

* * *

Heading back to the dorms.

I'd forgotten the most important part, so now I was fixing that.

The Act 1 clear reward.

In the original, clearing the tutorial-cum-Act 1 unlocked a bunch of features—from field exploration to weekly attribute dungeons.

Act 1 down, so now I could use them too.

Finally, something worth enjoying in this godforsaken game. Life felt a bit livable.

I dragged open the message I'd shoved to the corner last time.

Alright. Let's see what it gave me.

As I recalled, clearing Act 1 boss Melwood Elion gave three rewards: one item and two new content unlocks.

They said it opened in Act 2, but the unlock condition was just clearing the Act 1 boss.

Soon, text appeared before my eyes.

A silver bracelet dropped from the sky into my hand. No ornaments—just a small green gem embedded at the top.

Vitality Circulation Bracelet. Nicknamed 'VitCirc Brace'—a newbie essential.

Even Erhan equipped it early on, and with my vitality at 5, I needed it.

I nodded and slipped it on. The silver gleamed, invigorating my exhausted body.

"Mm. Nice."

I checked the rest.

True Ending progress up, Fireball leveled, stats incoming, and Dagger Mastery to boot.

Lots popped up, but that wasn't the highlight.

The very last one brought a smile.

I clenched my fist. Perfect. Act 1 clear met the minimum for weekly attribute dungeons—they'd spawn somewhere now.

No more scraping by with two low-tier spells. Farewell to those tears.

I smiled to close the window.

……Then I doubted my eyes.

"……Why is this popping up for me?"