Mirror Therapy (1)
Mirror Therapy (1)
Well...
If someone was watching this world, or manipulating it, I thought they really ought to stop playing around by now.
I mean, sure, even if the girl in front of me turned out to be someone from outside the original work, I wouldn't particularly mind. When you get dropped into a world from a game or a novel, befriending a character who never actually appeared in the story but happens to possess absurdly overpowered abilities or incredible skill is practically a cliché.
I had no idea what abilities this Lena Meyer in front of me possessed.
The fact that she was the daughter of the Riklant Autonomous State's commander—well, she'd told me that herself a moment ago, so I could accept that much.
The Riklant Autonomous State was one of the areas heavily rumored to become a visitable region in the sequel, so meeting someone like this wasn't strange. Perhaps she wasn't just a character from outside the game but had been one of the figures intended to be added in the sequel.
In the story, they'd managed to fight the emperor and thwart the conspiracy, but in the process, heroines and major characters had died. Even under those circumstances, the setting hadn't reached a true conclusion, which meant that problems aside from the emperor would continue into the sequel.
Though I didn't yet know exactly what those problems were.
Anyway, the fact that the Riklant Autonomous State commander's daughter had come all the way here probably meant that the autonomous state had also judged me to be a person of interest. Considering everything I had done as a single individual, I could see why they might think that.
...I could see why.
"The Noble Class A garden is already full."
In the sequel, several heroines had died and the class garden count had dropped, so it had only been natural for a transfer student to arrive. In the original work, during Claire's transfer process, there had been a mention that one of the nobles had withdrawn from the academy due to family matters.
But at this point, not a single person had left the academy. Naturally, if this Lena Meyer entered, it would exceed the garden limit.
"Thanks to the governor-general's benevolence and His Majesty's broad magnanimity, I have been permitted to transfer into the Imperial Rondarium Academy."
"... Is that so."
Judging by her crisp responses to my questions, she didn't seem to harbor any ill will toward me. I didn't know exactly what Lena Meyer's father and the governor-general were thinking, but at the very least, this girl didn't appear to hold any particular feelings about me.
The meal served was beef steak. The girl called Lena Meyer ate it with incredibly disciplined movements. When she cut the meat with her knife, I barely heard the sound of the knife touching the plate. Her table manners alone were so refined that it wouldn't have been strange to call her a noble, which showed just how strictly she'd been raised and educated in a rigorous household.
"Do you have any particular complaints about attending the academy?"
"I do not."
At my question, the girl's hand stopped dead.
And when she raised her head to look at me, her face didn't seem to hold any particular emotion—
"The Imperial Rondarium Academy is not only the finest academy in the Empire, but in the entire world. No one would dislike the fact that they have been given the opportunity to enter such a place."
If it hadn't been for the subtle pressure I sensed in that tone, I would have thought she had memorized even this line.
Emotion might not register on a face, but there are also emotions you can feel from a person's attitude.
What I felt from this child's attitude was anticipation.
"......."
Could Alice actually distinguish that kind of attitude of mine?
... If the pressure Alice felt every time I told her she could become the next emperor was this sort of thing, then it wouldn't be strange for her alone to read my expression.
And eventually, the others would probably be able to read my expression too.
"And..."
And?
Since this expressionless girl seemed to show the faintest hint of hesitation, I waited quietly.
"And, I also consider it an honor to have met Your Imperial Highness. I have heard of your exploits on the battlefield. Surely there are few heroes in the world like Your Imperial Highness. Particularly by the standards of our autonomous state, Your Imperial Highness is also a benefactor to countless subjects."
"......."
For a moment, my hand curled up so hard I nearly dropped the utensils.
What was this.
Why did talking to this girl keep giving me déjà vu?
I got the feeling that I'd done a fair amount of speaking with that exact attitude myself.
.......
That was it. Alice's face kept surfacing in my mind.
"Surely you were able to accomplish such magnificent feats because the blood of Fangriffon flows in your veins. There could be no greater honor than studying in the same place as someone like you."
No, not a single drop flows. Actually, if it weren't for Lucas, I'd be a stranger, you know?
But I couldn't exactly say that out loud.
Because the two noble students who had been sitting with somewhat languid expressions until just a moment ago were now watching this way.
"Allow me to go and say a word to them."
And as if she'd caught my gaze, Lena started to rise, so I quickly said,
"That's all right."
Fortunately, it didn't seem like I'd spoken too hastily.
Lena, who had tensed her legs to rise from the chair, stared straight at me.
I mean, emotion was definitely palpable in her tone and attitude, yet her face itself was utterly expressionless, which gave me a deeply cringey feeling. Well, her youthful appearance, her way of speaking, and her ingrained manners were quite adult, but the content of her words was immature, which was endearing.
It was endearing, but the problem was that if I got dragged into that sort of endearing behavior, I ended up feeling incredibly embarrassed too.
In a situation where I felt like cold sweat was about to break out on my back, I spoke in an effort to somehow calm Lena Meyer down.
"There's no need to react to every single attitude, every single word. The school you will attend is the Imperial Rondarium Academy. A great many noble students attend, so there are also many who pay attention to the actions and words of others. If you react to every single situation, your school life will become exceedingly exhausting."
At my advice, Lena Meyer nodded.
"Thank you for the advice."
"......."
Was this a bit?
I thought about it seriously.
No matter how I looked at it, her expression and her attitude seemed to be operating on different tracks.
.......
Was it possible that I also came across that obviously? Were the others all aware but just pretending not to notice?
Thinking that sent goosebumps down my back.
"Then will you be accompanying our party today for the journey?"
"That is correct."
Lena Meyer spoke in a firm voice.
"My luggage has already been packed and has arrived at the train station."
"......."
Ah... um.
I... see.
"Allow me to ask once more."
I asked Lena Meyer, feeling a little tense.
"Which class will you be studying in?"
"Noble Class A."
"......."
Ah....
I see.
Um.
Right.
...I don't know what to say.
*
"Kyaah!"
The girl who entered the room raised both arms and let out a cheer.
Then she quickly covered her mouth and glanced around. Naturally, the room where the girl would stay for several hours that morning was a private room. There was no one else around. Judging by the thickness of the door, the chances of anyone outside having heard were low.
But still, with a slightly uneasy heart, the girl cracked the door open and looked outside.
No one was there.
After carefully closing the door again, the girl—
"She's so cool!"
—shouted once more.
Lena Meyer had spent her childhood near military bases, following her soldier father.
There were children her age around, but she couldn't play with them without reserve. Her father was one of the commanders of the Riklant Autonomous State's military and one of the governor-general's trusted confidants. The people around her always treated Lena Meyer with caution, and her father treated her sternly. Lena Meyer's daily routine was almost indistinguishable from a military schedule.
Because of that, she usually put on a mask and acted like a stiff soldier. Then the people around her would praise her. They said she was gallant, a talent more than sufficient to carry on the commander's household. And indeed, she did have the talent.
But that didn't mean she was a soldier to the marrow of her bones.
Lena threw herself onto the bed and kicked her legs.
Her father was strict, but her mother used to indulge Lena's childish side. Until her mother passed away three years ago, at least in front of her mother, Lena had been no different from any innocent child her age.
After that, she'd managed by letting loose like this whenever she was alone.
But that didn't mean Lena harbored any antipathy toward the military profession. On the contrary, she admired it. Having been influenced by it from an early age, she genuinely thought it was a wonderful profession.
And, today.
Lena Meyer had met a hero.
The ability of Princess Sylvia Fangriffon, as her father had described, was the very stuff of legendary heroes.
Moreover, the princess's figure had appeared several times in the testimonies of the few autonomous state soldiers who had fought alongside the Imperial Army, as well as in the testimony of the surviving mercenaries.
The image of her breaking through a trench alone and collapsing it from within, becoming the key to victory—was that not the very model of a soldier?
And the glimpse she had gotten during their brief conversation that day showed a perfect superhuman who even possessed the dignity befitting an imperial family member.
"......."
And she was going to take classes with someone like that.
"Mmmmph!"
With her face buried in the bed, Lena made an unintelligible sound and kicked her legs several times.
On her desk, a puppy plushie stared blankly at her.
It was a plushie of the dog from that fairly famous cartoon, the one that was very good at digging.