First Encounter with the Protagonist
9. I want to be pampered by the protagonist. I want to become a medieval noble lady and live without a care, being waited on hand and foot. There were days when I endured, day by day, praying to some unknown god for that. Somehow, half of it came true. Everything except the pampering part.
"Well, it's just the beginning."
When I first became Celestia, my goal was survival. In the story, Celestia is a mid-boss villain who betrays the protagonist's party at the end and gets killed by her friend Mariella. Mariella achieves mental growth, and Celestia dies. Something like that. So, from the moment I became Celestia, I had to worry about survival.
But that worry vanished completely.
'The final ancient dragon, Caldercion, that the protagonist's party barely managed to defeat after all their growth... she was putty in my hands...'
Something like that. Caldercion was putty in my hands, and thanks to her, I confirmed I was stronger than I'd imagined. In simple terms, I now had full confidence I could win even if Mariella and the protagonist's party all ganged up on me—armed with nothing but a tree branch.
Survival was no longer my goal.
"Milady, everything is ready. All the luggage has been loaded."
"Good work. Oh, and please pack some comic books too. Prioritize ones with cool protagonists."
Now, my sole goal was dopamine. At first, I chased it by throwing myself at strong opponents like a maniac. But the stronger I got, the harder it became to get my dopamine fix from fighting them. In other words, I needed to devise a new venture where my overwhelming strength would directly lead to dopamine highs.
After much deliberation, I reached one conclusion.
'I just need to be worshipped.'
Just like I'd prayed for—let myself be pampered. That sense of superiority would fill my dopamine reserves on its own. The pleasure from that superiority was more than worth developing into a full business.
Thus, I needed to emulate those cool protagonists who naturally drew worshippers.
"I had no idea you enjoyed reading comic books, milady."
"They're more fun than fairy tales."
"Understood. I'll select some suitable ones from the family library and pack them."
My personal maid, Annette, bowed as she said this. Just as she turned to attend to her duties, she paused and looked back at me.
"Is something wrong?"
"Oh, milady. Before entering the special class dormitory, you can choose maids to accompany you. Up to two... Have you decided?"
"No need to agonize over it. Annette, it'll be you and Yuna."
"Very well. I'll prepare the maid residency application."
She headed off to handle it. First-year students at the Imperial Central Academy are required to live in the dorms. And since it's an academy mainly for nobles, you can bring up to two servants. They handle chores and daily tasks so their master can focus solely on studies. In that sense, the Imperial Central Academy was thoroughly noble-centric.
Commoners occasionally got in, but...
'Speaking of which... Mari's probably taking her second exam right about now, huh?'
I got into the special class after just the first exam, but Mariella had to pass the second proper one too. She wasn't from just any noble house—she was the lady of the Raiklant ducal family—so she'd pass easily enough. No need to worry about Mari.
At that moment, Mariella was tasting despair in the exam hall.
"What the hell is that...! How is this even possible!?"
"What's wrong, everyone? If you can't even withstand an attack like this, how do you expect to handle the high-level education at the Imperial Central Academy? You have to endure at least this much."
"Run!"
The second exam was a battle royale. Normally, you'd hunt monsters or fight other examinees while the field shrank toward the center, until a final winner emerged.
But then a weird professor crashed the party.
A young man who introduced himself as the "special class homeroom professor" started beating down examinees—one hand holding a spellbook, the other a wooden sword.
"A plain battle royale is boring, isn't it? Don't you think so, everyone?"
Yes. Mariella was tasting pure despair. Her vision was going dark.
A few days later.
I'd loaded all my luggage onto the carriage and was ready to depart for the academy dorms. Just like with Cedric, the family had come out to see me off.
"Getting into the special class is worth celebrating, but don't think it ends there. Since you've abandoned magic, you'll need to prove even more."
Father still seemed upset about me giving up magic. I'd already proven it was beneficial to the family, though...
"If anyone disrespects the Fredericia family, send word. I'll kill them."
"..."
Mother said the exact same thing as she had for Cedric. Report to her if anyone disrespects us, because she'll kill them. Who would dare disrespect the Fredericia family anyway? And even if they did, what could Mother do about it? The whole family was a bit off.
"I'll be off, then."
"Do it right. Even in the special class, first place must belong to the Fredericia family. Understood?"
"Father, you wouldn't know since you've never been in it, but the special class has no rankings."
"..."
"Farewell."
The special class didn't even have exams to begin with. Sure, you could get expelled for total incompetence, but it never happened—anyone borderline never made it in.
With that, Yuna and Annette boarded last, and the carriage set off toward the Imperial Central Academy.
"This is so exciting! The Imperial Central Academy!"
The carriage left the Fredericia Mansion and headed deep into the capital. Yuna was hyped even though she wasn't the one enrolling. It probably wasn't that exciting, though...
"Yuna, act more mature. From now on, we'll be representing the Fredericia household as maids."
"Ah... yes, Senior."
I turned away from their light banter. Follow the capital's central road north, and you'd hit the Imperial Central Academy. I'd been here for the exam, but the sheer scale still overwhelmed me. The empire's top educational institution, filled mostly with scions of noble houses.
'Imperial Central Academy.'
Our carriage arrived at the entrance.
"Milady, that's the special class dormitory over there."
Annette pointed to a building. The special class dorm stood out from the others—isolated, larger, more luxurious, and farther from the main school building. With the free schedule, there was no need to be close anyway.
"Excited, milady?"
"Yes. Quite."
This was the true starting point of the original story, 'Stareye Sword'. I hadn't spotted the protagonist on exam day, but I'd find him soon enough. Just track down Mariella.
'What kind of guy is the protagonist, I wonder...'
It had been the same when I saw my own reflection—there's a huge gap between reading about characters and seeing them in person. Naturally, I was curious about his looks. He was probably a walking bundle of plot armor, handsome enough to charm every girl, as described...
For example, that boy walking alone with a backpack...
Wait. Alone with a backpack?
"Hold on. Stop the carriage, please."
I asked the coachman to halt. The carriage slowed to a stop, and I hopped out immediately.
"Milady? Where are you going?"
"Go on ahead. Unload the luggage and settle in. I'll wander the academy a bit."
I sent the carriage off. The coachman glanced at me but followed orders. Then I eyed the boy with the backpack.
'I remember him. The protagonist moves into the dorm alone because he has no servants...'
Yes. A perfect match to the description. Brown hair, yellow eyes. Annoyingly handsome. A commoner skilled in magic and swordplay, body honed by years in a mercenary band. But zero defense against women, thanks to no girls in the mercenaries.
That was him, no doubt.
'Glan Braden.'
The protagonist of 'Stareye Sword', last of the dragon slayer bloodline. And eventually, my enemy.
I watched him quietly. Sensing my gaze, he approached.
'Did I stare too obviously?'
But his first words weren't what I expected.
"If it's not too much trouble, can I help you?"
Suddenly offering help.
"Pardon?"
"Ah, sorry. You were standing there with your eyes closed, so I thought you might be unwell..."
"Oh, my eyes are fine. Glan. My apologies for the rudeness."
"...?"
His eyes widened when I said his name. He flinched at it—confirmation he was the protagonist. A bit later than expected, but sooner than thought.
'Glan Braden.'
We'd meet often from here on. The story couldn't progress without him... Plus, I needed to keep him from growing too strong. And since he was the protagonist by default, using him could...
'Let me get worshipped.'
Yes—he got worshipped effortlessly. If I stepped in and slaughtered all the monsters he was supposed to fight, that popularity would flow to me. Bonus: it stunted his growth.
Perfect plan.
I gave him a sly smile and a wave.
"We'll meet again soon, Glan. I hope your path stays smooth."
With that, I dashed full speed after the carriage.