The Fourth Wall
As always, Kyle Meyer swung his sword in one of the academy’s private training rooms. Even after reaching the level of Master, his training time had decreased, but that didn’t mean he had stopped altogether. Plenty of students practiced secret sword techniques and profound insights they couldn’t reveal to others, so Kyle had no trouble borrowing one of the many available private rooms for himself.
After a long session that left him drenched in sweat, he stepped out of the training room and found someone waiting for him at the entrance.
“……Kyle Meyer.”
“Hmm, who are you again….”
“Did you forget me? You’re joking, right?”
“Yes, it’s a joke. Senior.”
Kyle chuckled as he looked down at Izna Hella, whose face had flushed bright red. Realizing she was being teased, she stomped her feet in frustration. Considering how she used to scream and avoid eye contact the first time she saw him, this was remarkable progress.
“You didn’t faint this time.”
“Hmph. I can’t stay scared forever just because of how you look.”
“Do I really look that scary? That actually hurts a little.”
Despite her confident tone, Kyle noticed her arms and legs trembling slightly. He simply chose not to mention it out of respect for her pride.
After grinning for a moment, he met her eyes and got straight to the point.
“So what brings you here, senior? Weren’t you the one who told me never to come find you again?”
“……You know quite a bit about the Saintess, don’t you?”
“About as much as anyone else.”
“That’s not what I mean. There’s a widespread rumor that the Saintess came to the academy specifically to find you.”
Izna pulled a sheet of paper from her pocket and handed it to him. Kyle took the drawing and examined it. It depicted a handsome, manly face he had never seen before.
“What is this?”
“Your composite sketch.”
“My composite sketch?”
In other words, this was supposed to be his face. Kyle stared at the portrait intently, then let out a hollow laugh as he looked back at Izna.
“Do I really look like some pretty-boy gigolo?”
“Of course not. It doesn’t resemble you at all.”
“That’s a relief.”
“Is that really something to be happy about?”
Anyway—Izna took the sketch back, slipped it into her clothes, and cleared her throat.
“Since it’s confirmed that the Saintess came here looking for you, I can only assume the two of you are acquainted.”
“And?”
“……Introduce me to her.”
“That’s a pretty big favor.”
When Kyle seemed ready to refuse, Izna shook her head quickly as if that wasn’t her intention.
“─It’s because of my ability. I have something I need to tell her.”
“Your ability, huh.”
Now that she mentioned it, he remembered she possessed the innate Force that let her view other people’s status windows. It was the standard system given to playable characters in the game. The fact that an NPC like her had it was strange enough, and even Sera—who knew everything about this game—seemed unaware of that detail.
“If you help me, I’ll do anything within my power……”
“Fine.”
“R-really?”
“On one condition.”
“Condition……?”
Izna swallowed nervously as she looked up at him. Since she had offered to do anything, she knew she would have no choice even if he demanded her body. Of course, not many men were interested in her delicate frame, but the world was large and full of perverts. She had heard there were people with tastes that ran in her direction.
Keeping the possibility in mind, she watched him cautiously……
“I want to bring one more person to that meeting.”
“Ah……”
Izna nodded as if that much was acceptable. Kyle told her he would arrange the meeting with the Saintess and left. Watching his broad back disappear down the corridor, she let out a long, heavy sigh.
……He’s still terrifying.
In her eyes, Kyle’s updated titles were clearly visible. Despite only a short vacation interrupting things, new benevolent titles had appeared—Savior of the Empire, Guardian of the Academy, and many more of the same alignment. It felt like seeing a sign on a zoo tiger that read Does Not Bite, letting her approach him despite the slight tremble in her limbs.
Kyle Meyer
Titles Acquired:
▸ Savior of the Empire
▸ Guardian of the Academy
▸ Benevolent Hero
▸ Protector of the Weak
▸ Youngest Aura Master
[Additional virtuous titles increasing...]
In truth, the titles did not betray her expectations. Still, a few things puzzled her. Several titles that hadn’t existed the last time she saw him. Her gaze lingered especially on Guardian of the Academy.
Guardian of the Academy?
What exactly had he done?
Swallowing the question, Izna looked forward to the meeting with the Saintess.
The meeting with the Saintess was arranged immediately. It was only possible because Kyle received endless goodwill for the inexplicable reason of being the hero.
After successfully setting up the appointment, Kyle informed Izna of the time and later arrived at the meeting place with Sera in tow. Sera, who had been abruptly dragged along, glared at him with a pouty expression until she spotted the Saintess already waiting. Her face instantly brightened.
“S-Saintess?!”
“Yes~ I’m the Saintess.”
Watching the Saintess beam with a bright smile, Sera’s eyes widened in disbelief. Kyle found her reaction amusing and leaned in to whisper quietly in her ear.
“Why do you like the Saintess so much?”
“What do you mean, why? She’s beautiful!”
“I thought you hated every female character with big breasts.”
“The Saintess sister is different! She’s a total girl crush!”
Sera launched into a passionate recounting of the Saintess’s accomplishments—how she had single-handedly wiped out demon armies, crushed demon worshippers, and saved the people of the slums. Even though she kept her voice to a whisper, the Saintess’s face turned red and she lowered her head as if she had heard every word.
While Sera continued singing her praises, she suddenly froze upon noticing the small girl standing beside the Saintess.
“……But who’s that?”
“Izna Hella.”
“Izna Hella… Izna Hella?!”
Upon hearing the name of the Hella Archduke’s daughter, Sera jumped in surprise and stared at her. After taking in the girl’s below-average height, slender build, and delicate features, Sera quickly pulled Kyle aside and dragged him away from the area.
Wondering what had gotten into her, he only understood once they were far enough that the other two couldn’t see or hear them.
“……That person is really Izna Hella?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“The Duke of Hella’s daughter?”
“I believe so.”
“That can’t be……”
Sera kept stealing glances back toward where Izna and the Saintess were standing, looking utterly confused. When Kyle tilted his head, unable to understand her reaction, she began scolding him as if he should have known better.
“You don’t know Izna Hella? I was sure you’d recognize her immediately.”
“Uh…… First time seeing her.”
“Of course you wouldn’t know just from looking. Even I didn’t realize who she was at first…… Let me put it in one phrase. The villainess.”
The academy’s villainess. The moment those words left her mouth, an image flashed through Kyle’s mind like lightning. The villainess heroine who dominated the academy’s social scene with her stunning looks and even more impressive figure, constantly harassing the protagonist at every turn.
He remembered her now. It was actually natural that he hadn’t connected the name Izna Hella to that character.
“She’s a completely different person?”
“Exactly!”
In the game, Izna Hella had been the epitome of curvaceous beauty—the kind of meticulously designed appearance that appealed to almost everyone. Not this loli-type figure that only people with very specific tastes would notice.
“What on earth changed?”
“Hmm……”
Sera couldn’t guess the reason behind the change, but Kyle had a fairly good idea. After all, it was impossible for an NPC in the game to possess a status window. If Dairos Academy had been designed with such a unique setting, Sera would have known about it. Which meant Izna Hella’s awakening of her Force ability was a singularity unique to this world.
People grow according to the genes and environment they are born into. With her status window, Izna would have been able to read people’s hearts, actions, and desires. For a fledgling who had only just broken out of her shell, the dangerously dark underbelly of human nature would have been more than enough to breed deep distrust of others.
“Sera, the real reason I asked you to come today was—”
Kyaaaaaaaak—!
A piercing scream suddenly erupted from the room where the Saintess and Izna had been waiting.
The instant he heard it, Kyle rushed back to the room. Inside, he found Izna clutching her face in agony as blood dripped from both eyes, while the Saintess stood beside her, clearly at a loss.
“……What happened here?”
“I don’t know either……”
While the two of them stood there stunned by the incomprehensible situation, Izna slowly opened her blood-soaked eyes and glared at Kyle and Sera behind him.
Dairos Academy
Game World
Player Entity Detected
Fourth Wall Fracture Imminent
“Dairos Academy…? Game? What is all this…….”
From her lips came words that no resident of this world should ever speak.