I Definitely Did Nothing

The blue window suddenly materialized in front of my eyes without any warning.

“Ah, I get it already, so go away!”

With a flash, the message window vanished as abruptly as it had appeared.

“Huff. Huff.”

I kept taking deep breaths, trying to calm my heart that was pounding from the sudden shock.

“What… what is this? He’s suddenly breathing so hard.”

“Oh my god. Look at that face. How can a person look that beastly….”

The new students around me recoiled in horror and began quietly slipping away, but that wasn’t important right now.

…Calm down. This is an eroge world. A system like this isn’t strange at all.

The purpose of the Heroine Info window was obvious. It wanted me to humiliate and train Arzenne until she was fully conquered. The gameplay loop of an eroge was painfully predictable. Once that conquest stage reached its maximum, Arzenne would probably become what they called my… sex slave, or something along those lines.

…Is this the reincarnation ability I received? Yeah. It must be.

The protagonist of an NTR story who embodied the Geumtaeyang archetype. For that kind of protagonist, a status window showing exactly how sexually corrupted each heroine had become was the most essential ability imaginable.

…No. It’s actually fortunate I learned about it this early.

Of course, I had no intention of ever using this ability. Pure love had no need for cheat powers like this. What I needed was love and innocence—nothing else.

Arzenne… she’s already gone.

When I came back to my senses, Arzenne had already disappeared. The other new students, now that the spectacle was over, began heading one by one through the main gate. I should hurry to the auditorium where the entrance ceremony was being held. Showing up late would only draw unnecessary attention.

Arzenne Rubelia stepped down from her carriage and swept her languid gaze across the surroundings. The male students staring at her with open admiration, the female students desperately trying to conceal their jealousy—it was a sight she had grown utterly tired of.

Bees would always swarm around a beautiful flower. That was simply the way of things. The flower of Rubelia, the youngest Imperial Mage in the empire. Those predictable accolades that always followed her beauty and talent.

So boring.

Endlessly, crushingly boring.

The fact that she, a second-year, had deliberately arrived at the main gate in a carriage well before classes began—precisely timed to coincide with the new students’ entrance ceremony—was entirely to alleviate that boredom. She had come to bask in the interest and envy of her inferiors.

Yet it brought her no joy.

Why was that?

Still, there had been one person among the freshmen who managed to catch her interest.

There was a man who looked like a savage.

The enormous black-skinned freshman who had radiated an overwhelming presence amid the crowd.

Since he was admitted to this academy, he must be the young master of some fairly prestigious family…

If a noble house of any renown had produced a son with such a distinctive appearance, rumors would surely have spread through high society. In that case, the information would have reached Arzenne’s ears as well.

For the first time in a long while, genuine interest stirred within her.

The more I think about it, the stranger it becomes.

She grew curious about where exactly such a freshman had come from.

Could that black skin truly be the result of barbarian blood? Those rugged muscles suggest he might be the scion of a renowned knightly family…

Enjoying the endless chain of questions blooming in her mind, Arzenne passed through the crowded main gate and entered the quiet campus. It was still early morning, with more than an hour remaining before classes began. As long as she stayed away from the auditorium where the entrance ceremony would take place, she was unlikely to encounter anyone.

With that thought, Arzenne decided to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠savor a rare leisurely walk by herself. She stepped into the garden situated on one side of the campus. The grass and trees swaying in the breeze, the birds chirping softly. Just as she was about to fully enjoy that tedious yet peaceful scenery—

“Oh my, Your Highness Klaus really is…”

“…!”

A sickeningly familiar voice stabbed sharply into her eardrums. She hurriedly hid behind a nearby tree and peered toward the source.

A man and woman sat on a bench, conversing affectionately. She knew them both.

The male student on the left was Klaus Archesia, Crown Prince of the Archesia Empire.

And… Arzenne’s fiancé.

The faint warmth that had kindled in her chest from curiosity about the unidentified freshman plummeted straight into the abyss. Her gaze shifted to the female student sitting beside Klaus. Long brown hair, plain features. No matter how generously one looked, she was far beneath Arzenne—a commoner girl named Milena.

It had already been nearly a year and a half since Klaus began fooling around with that girl. It had happened in the blink of an eye. Milena had slyly wedged herself between Arzenne and the crown prince with that ever-present smile. Before Arzenne realized what was happening, the seat beside the crown prince had become Milena’s instead of hers.

People had begun to whisper. Why was the crown prince behaving so wantonly? How could he carry on with another woman when he already had an officially recognized fiancée? And what exactly was Lady Arzenne doing about it?

The criticism aimed at the crown prince soon turned its arrows toward her. Absurd rumors claiming that the crown prince’s philandering was somehow Arzenne’s fault as well.

Just… why?

She couldn’t understand why he had chosen that commoner girl over her. Rage surged through her.

There could be no love in a political engagement arranged before she had even turned ten. Even so, Arzenne had done her utmost to fulfill her duties both as the daughter of a grand duchy and as the crown prince’s fiancée. What she received in return was only the crown prince’s cold sneer.

Are you trying to win my favor at this late stage? How amusing.

When the frustrated Arzenne had finally pointed out his misconduct, Crown Prince Klaus had simply brushed off her direct words with contempt.

It would have been better if you resembled Milena even a little.

“Oh dear, Milena. There’s a leaf stuck in your hair…”

“My goodness.”

The moment Klaus wrapped his arm around Milena’s neck, Arzenne spun around and fled the scene.

Her steps were as heavy and lifeless as her heart.

…Perhaps I should have an affair myself.

In a relationship that held no love, only obligation, if he had already abandoned his duty first… then even if she cast hers aside, she would have some justification, wouldn’t she?

Who would make a suitable partner?

Countless faces of young noblemen flashed through her mind. Yet none of them satisfied her.

…Perhaps.

Then a face suddenly rose in her thoughts. Golden hair, black skin, rugged muscles. It was the mysterious freshman she had glimpsed at the main gate that very morning.

A few days ago, purely by chance, she had picked up a novel in the family library. Its title was Black Sensuality. It was a book she had never seen before. Driven by curiosity, Arzenne had opened the cover. The contents were… nothing short of obscene. They depicted a young lady of a ducal house being sexually tormented by muscular men. That was essentially all there was to it.

Plausibility, realism, literary merit—none of the qualities a proper work should possess. It was nothing more than a trashy third-rate novel designed to satisfy perverse fantasies. She had no idea why such a thing was even in the family library. Arzenne had hastily returned the book to its shelf and left the room at once.

Yet… for some reason, its contents refused to leave her mind.

For example—this is purely an example, of course.

Before she realized it, Arzenne had begun inserting herself into the story. The protagonist young lady was herself—a beautiful woman admired by all, yet a rebel who longed to escape her tedious existence. The one violating her was… that freshman. He seized both her wrists in his massive hands and shoved her against the wall. Then he forcibly stole her lips, and after that…

“No, what on earth am I thinking!”

Arzenne jolted out of her deepening fantasy and shook her head violently. These were shameful thoughts unbecoming of the daughter of the Rubelia Grand Duchy. She desperately tried to erase the freshman’s face from her mind as she hurried away.

…It should be all right to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠simply learn who he is, shouldn’t it?

“That concludes today’s schedule. Tomorrow is course selection, so please consider your aptitudes and goals carefully in advance.”

The instructor standing at the lectern neatly stacked the bundle of papers on the desk with a sharp tap.

“Thank you all for your hard work. I look forward to the coming year.”

The homeroom teacher left the classroom, and the room immediately erupted into the noisy chatter of the new students.

“Lady Jane, which subjects will you be taking?”

“Hmm. I plan to take Magic Studies and Accounting as the basics, at least…”

It was a familiar scene. It reminded me of the lecture halls from my own college freshman days. Lively new students chatting happily about their ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠futures. One could even call it heartwarming.

“That guy really is a freshman…”

“Is he actually going to take classes with us…?”

Of course I am. We’re classmates. Looking forward to the year, buddy?

With that thought, I directed the warmest possible gaze toward the guy standing beside me.

“Hiiik…”

“Hey, don’t make eye contact with him.”

Like water receding at low tide, the students around me vanished from their seats in an instant.

“…Damn bastards.”

Who was going to take responsibility for this wounded, delicate heart of mine?

Anyway, I remained seated until the classroom had completely emptied. My plan was to leave leisurely after everyone else had gone, avoiding their eyes. If I were to summarize the day… I suppose I could say I did my best.

The entrance ceremony in the auditorium and the orientation in the classroom. The entire time, I had tried not to stand out and to appear as harmless as possible, keeping a kind smile on my face. Judging from their reactions… I wasn’t sure how well it had worked. Even the homeroom teacher had flinched visibly the one time our eyes met, and afterward ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠never once looked in my direction again.

“Sigh… Still, they’ll get used to it eventually.”

They say true talent shines even when hidden. If I kept living diligently, surely the day would come when these guys recognized the pure heart trapped beneath my Geumtaeyang exterior.

“Time to head out, I suppose…”

I had just packed my bag and was about to stand when—

“…Haha. Bullshit.”