The next morning, I was too embarrassed to look Keith in the face, but for better or worse, he had left early with father on a work-related trip, so I didn\u2019t encounter him. I was grateful for that, because I thought that the awkwardness of seeing him would probably subside after a day or so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I didn\u2019t have work at the Ministry that day, and I normally would have spent my free time working in the fields, but I had more urgent things to think about\u2014I had to find more information on FL2<\/em> and its bad ends, especially now that I had decided to seriously think about Jeord\u2019s and Keith\u2019s feelings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n My plan was to go to the castle\u2019s library. Since I was the daughter of a duke and the fianc\u00e9e of a prince, they\u2019d let me use it if I asked for permission. The reason why I wanted to go there was the Japanese-language note about the game that I\u2019d found between the pages of the romance novel in my bag.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I had asked several people, including Sophia, who had lent me the novel to begin with, whether they knew about that note and if they\u2019d seen any others like it, but they didn\u2019t know anything about it. I even checked Sophia\u2019s own library but found nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The only explanation I could think of was that the note had found its way into the book while I was at the castle. So although the chances of actually finding anything were slim, I decided that visiting the library was worth the effort. And it was some effort, for sure, considering how many books were kept in that place. The idea of having to wade through all that paper kept me from putting this plan into action for a very long time, but I knew that, sooner or later, I had to act. Once at the castle, I would also visit the storage room where my bag had been kept when the note was put inside it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I prepared myself and then boarded the carriage, ready to go to the castle for the second day in a row. I had already asked for permission to enter the library beforehand, so there was no problem. I was on my way there when I saw a familiar face walking toward me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, Prince Alan!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHm? Katarina? You\u2019re here again? What gives?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI don\u2019t have work today, so I took the opportunity to check the library here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou<\/em> visiting a library<\/em> in your spare time?\u201d he asked mockingly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n True. I usually never use my head in my spare time. It\u2019s all about farming. I didn\u2019t even visit the library very often while I was at the academy.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPlease. It\u2019s very normal for a lady like me to do some research for her own enjoyment,\u201d I replied, glossing over the fact that I\u2019d never done so before in my life.I was trying to look offended, but Alan didn\u2019t seem impressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhatever. Try not to fall asleep.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The prince had grown a lot in the past few years, but inside he was still a kid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSmugface bullypants…\u201d I whispered to myself. However, Alan somehow heard me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat\u2019s that supposed to mean?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNothing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo way! I can tell it\u2019s an insult!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf you can tell, then there\u2019s no need to ask me what it means!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat\u2019s with the attitude, dull duchess?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou\u2019re the one insulting me now!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut you\u2019re the one who started it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBecause you were mocking me!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI just told the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHow dare you?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n We kept bickering for a while, but then, all of a sudden, Alan started laughing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHuh?\u201d I stared, confused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s just, you know, it\u2019s been so long since we last argued like this. It\u2019s kind of funny,\u201d he replied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The innocent smile he now had on his face made me forget why I was offended, and I started laughing along with him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou\u2019re right. You always teased me like that when we were kids, and then we\u2019d start fighting!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah, well… I guess I couldn\u2019t help myself,\u201d he replied while awkwardly scratching his head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When I first met him, he was constantly troubled by his inferiority complex toward Jeord. Alan had become so much calmer now that arguing with him felt somewhat nostalgic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m sorry for being like that back then,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou\u2019re apologizing for that? Now?!\u201d I fired back, surprised that he\u2019d say something like this more than ten years after the fact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI know it\u2019s been due for a long time. But I just realized I\u2019d never apologized to you for it… Also, thanks.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The look of confusion on my face made him laugh again, so I couldn\u2019t even ask him what he was thanking me for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Oh, right, I should ask him about <\/em>that…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSay, Alan, what do you know about love?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sora had told me that love and romance weren\u2019t things you could understand by asking people, and I agreed with him, but maybe hearing different opinions would help me realize it earlier when and if love happened to me. At least, there was no harm in asking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not that I had great expectations for his answer\u2014his engagement to Mary was a political one, and the two of them didn\u2019t really seem to be in love with each other. I imagined he\u2019d just be another entry in the \u201cnot knowing anything about love\u201d club.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWh-Why are you asking me that out of the blue?\u201d he stammered, blushing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat? You don\u2019t possibly mean…you do know something about romance?!\u201d I replied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n More than future wife and husband, Mary and Alan looked like a crime boss and her lowly thug. Thinking that they really loved each other was shocking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDon\u2019t act so surprised! I\u2019m an adult, you know? Of course I know about it… What about you<\/em> though?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell… I…\u201d I paused, trying to come up with a good reply. I couldn\u2019t just tell him that I didn\u2019t know the first thing about the topic, or he would have started mocking me again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLet me guess,\u201d he jumped in before I could talk, \u201clove\u2019s still a mystery to a kid like you, huh?\u201d As expected, he had already started mocking me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNot at all!\u201d I instinctively replied, offended that he was making fun of me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo…you do<\/em> know something about romance?\u201d he wondered, looking dead serious. \u201cThen… Who are you in love with?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cW-Well, er…\u201d I hadn\u2019t thought that far yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIs it Jeord? Did you end up…?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He was getting so wound up that I ended up stopping him and admitting my lie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m sorry, I lied. I don\u2019t know anything about love and such. I just didn\u2019t want to say it…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For some reason, Alan seemed relieved to hear that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Could it be that he was also lying and he doesn\u2019t know anything about love either?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, I see. So you don\u2019t know about that yet. Yeah, yeah,\u201d he muttered, nodding to himself. He was probably mocking me again. He looked so satisfied that I wanted to ask him whether he was lying too, but he said that he had to leave for work. \u201cGood luck with your homework.\u201d He patted me on the head before skipping away like the happiest man on Earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s not homework. It\u2019s research,<\/em> I thought as I walked toward the library, disappointed that asking Alan about love had been a waste of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n\n\n\n I, Alan Stuart, was lighthearted as I headed to work. It turned out that my very brief despair had all been caused by a misunderstanding. First and foremost, I was happy to be able to see Katarina two days in a row.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On the previous day, when I heard from father that he\u2019d be telling her about our family\u2019s violent history, I was so worried about what she\u2019d think of us that I remember feeling dizzy. While he was talking to her, time seemed to stand still. I could imagine Katarina coming out of there and saying that she never wanted to see us again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thankfully, she said that it didn\u2019t matter to her, because what our relatives did was their fault and not ours. She looked so cool as she said it that I ended up falling even deeper in love with her. I noticed the loving gaze that Jeord was pointing at her, and I quickly looked away. After all, she still was his<\/em> fianc\u00e9e.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When I saw him escort her out of the castle, I cursed myself for falling in love with my brother\u2019s fianc\u00e9e of all people. But what could I do? There were no other women like Katarina. I couldn\u2019t stop wanting her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Just like me, my own fianc\u00e9e Mary was also in love with someone she shouldn\u2019t be in love with. She insisted that this wasn\u2019t going to stop her, but I couldn\u2019t be that optimistic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jeord and Katarina were going to get married. I had to give up. The one thing giving me hope was that everyone knew how much Jeord loved Katarina…except for Katarina herself. She was too immature, or naive, or whatever, to understand that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s why, when she told me that she knew about love, I feared that she\u2019d finally fallen for my brother. Thankfully that was just a misunderstanding, and, as I\u2019d thought, she didn\u2019t know the first thing about romance. When I heard her admit that, I couldn\u2019t have been happier. I knew that I\u2019d have to give up eventually, but I wanted to hold onto hope for as long as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As I kept walking, I raised the hand that I had used to touch her hair and pressed it against my lips.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n\n\n\n The castle\u2019s library wasn\u2019t that big. Only a few people could access it to begin with, and there weren\u2019t many specialized books in it, at least as far as I could tell. Of course, maybe there was also a secret underground library like the one at the Magical Ministry\u2014the one full of naughty books.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since I had already obtained permission, they let me enter without any problem. When I walked in, I saw someone already there sitting in front of a desk with a pile of books on it, reading. That day must have been a day for unexpectedly meeting friends, because, when I looked more closely, I realized that the person reading there was Nicol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I greeted him and he turned around, smiling as he noticed me. Whenever he smiled, you could just imagine a background full of blooming roses appearing behind him. His attractiveness was as magical as ever, and, since I hadn\u2019t met him in a while, it took me a second to snap out of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAre you here for work?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, and you?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m just here to research something.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI see. What would that be?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHmmm… Old folk tales.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even with its relatively limited size, I couldn\u2019t hope to read through every single book in the library, so I had to focus on a specific genre. I wanted to look for romance novels, since that was the kind of book where I had found the note about the game, but this library had nothing of the sort on its shelves, and the same was true for other similar genres. The closest thing they had here were old folk tales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A librarian informed me that while they did have quite a few books of folk tales, if I only needed to flip through the pages I could probably go through their whole collection in one day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn that case, you will find them over there.\u201d Nicol pointed to a corner of the library.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Wow, he even remembers where different genres are!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThank you!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou are welcome.\u201d He immediately went back to his reading.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even the way he looked at his book was attractive, but I had no time to lose and opened the first folk tale book I found. At first, I had planned to only flip through the pages, but some of the stories in there were so interesting that I found myself reading them to the end. There was a story about some magicians who\u2019d traveled to Sorci\u00e9 from far away lands, a story about an altar that was built to increase magic powers, a story about using magic to seal away a rampaging monster, and so on. There were stories from all areas of the kingdom, and they all were so unique that I lost myself in reading.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2014rina. Katarina.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n While I was completely absorbed in the book, I heard Nicol\u2019s voice calling my name.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou seem to be very focused,\u201d he observed, looking at me with the hint of a smile on his face.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes… I lost track of time,\u201d I replied, embarrassed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt just so happens to be lunchtime. Do you already have plans?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat?! It\u2019s lunchtime already?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019d been so enthralled in that book that I\u2019d spent all morning reading it, forgetting about the real reason I was here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI have brought my lunch,\u201d I explained, \u201cand I thought I\u2019d eat that outside, since the weather is so nice today.\u201d Also, eating in the library was forbidden, so that was another reason to eat at one of the tables in the garden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I continued, \u201cWould you care to join me? The food I have is too much for one person anyway.\u201d I thought back to just how much I\u2019d asked the Claes cooks to make. It was the first time in quite a while that I had them prepare my lunch, and I was so excited that I ended up requesting a veritable feast. I didn\u2019t want that to go to waste though, so I would have appreciated Nicol\u2019s help consuming it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He thought for a while. \u201cIt would be my pleasure.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n We walked into the garden and laid out the delicious-looking results of the cooks\u2019 efforts on the table. Nicol and I both started eating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Munch… Munch… Munch…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHmmm! This is so good!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I hadn\u2019t eaten outdoors in a long time, and today\u2019s lunch had been masterfully tailored to my preferences. I had nothing against the usual meals at the Ministry\u2019s cafeteria, but right now every bite filled me with sheer joy. I saw Nicol eagerly eating as well, and I remembered how he\u2019d cooked for us when we all went to the orphanage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe things you cooked for us that one time were delicious too. It\u2019s incredible that you\u2019re also a good cook!\u201d I remarked, impressed by how he seemed able to do just about anything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, our cooks did most of the work. I just lent a hand here and there,\u201d he demurred, but I knew that he was just being modest, as his loving sister Sophia had told me how he\u2019d spent the whole night cooking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He looks dangerously attractive, but inside he\u2019s a humble, reasonable guy whom anyone would want as an older brother. The contrast is almost disturbing. Now that I think of it, maybe he knows more about love than Alan does. I should ask him my usual question about that…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSay, do you know anything about ro\u2014\u201d I started, but I immediately stopped as I remembered something that he\u2019d told me years ago, before we even went to the academy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019d casually asked him whether he had a crush on anyone, and he confessed that he loved someone that he wasn\u2019t supposed to. That meant that he already knew at least something about romance and love, and thus asking the question I was going to wouldn\u2019t be a good idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat is the matter?\u201d he asked curiously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How can I fix this? Ugh…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cY-You know how you mentioned you had a crush on someone back in the day? I was just wondering if you still have the same feelings for her. Like, what would you say if you met her today…?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That was way too direct! <\/em>I thought, regretting ever bringing up the topic at all. I knew that he\u2019d been very sad about his forbidden love, and I also knew that his family had later convinced him to meet potential fianc\u00e9e candidates… I couldn\u2019t have asked a more hurtful question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cO-Of course, you don\u2019t need to answer that if you don\u2019t want to…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before I was even finished saying that, Nicol spoke as well: \u201cI love you.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Being told that while he looked straight into my eyes made my face feel hot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI-I see! That\u2019s what you would say to her<\/em>… Right?\u201d I asked, and he nodded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He\u2019d always been a man of few words, and I often ended up misunderstanding him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I thought he was saying that to me for a second…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI tried to forget these forbidden feelings of mine…\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So he even went through those matchmaking efforts while still loving that mystery person…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I wondered who his crush was, and why being together with her would be a problem. I\u2019d considered the possibility that maybe his crush was a him<\/em>, not a her<\/em>, but even then I knew that men were just as attracted to him as women were. The only remaining explanation was that he\u2019d fallen in love with a woman who was already married.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m afraid there\u2019s no help for it if that\u2019s the case. It\u2019s so sad.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n After a short silence, he went on, still looking at me. \u201cBut I can\u2019t. I can\u2019t change the way I feel.\u201d Even though I knew that he was talking about somebody else, hearing a guy that handsome say those things was basically giving me a fever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd I know that I\u2019ll never feel this way again, not to this extent…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I wish he wouldn\u2019t say things like that with that sweet voice and hot stare of his… I mean, I\u2019m the one who asked, but…my immunity to his handsomeness has really faded after all this time spent without any meaningful interaction with him…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n And then, he dealt the finishing blow. \u201cI love you,\u201d <\/em>he declared once more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There was so much passion in his voice that my head couldn\u2019t take it anymore, and I just passed out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n\n\n\n As I, Nicol Ascart, held the just-fainted Katarina in my arms, I was torn between panic and regret. Seeing her for the first time in so long already had me overjoyed, but eating with her, just the two of us, made the excitement get to my head. I even spoke romantic phrases that I would never normally utter, only because she mistakenly thought that I was not speaking directly to her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The way she blushed and shook her head, as if to convince herself that, indeed, I was not talking to her, was so endearing that I could not help myself. I went overboard. She fainted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Just like my sister Sophia, Katarina loved reading romance novels, but she was not used in the least to hearing romantic declarations toward herself. I had seen with my own eyes how shocked she looked every time her fianc\u00e9 Jeord made advances toward her. What I found most lovely was how a girl so brave and forward as she would suddenly turn timid when it came to these matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was also surprised to learn that she still remembered what I had told her many years ago, while we danced together at the ball to celebrate her coming of age. I had honestly almost forgotten about ever saying that myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now she felt so light in my arms, and she had the pleasant smell of a sunny afternoon. The object of my forbidden desires was literally in my arms, and I started conjuring dreams of making away with her. It was then that my savior appeared to keep me from sin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBrother, what has happened?\u201d Sophia asked, holding a lunchbox as she looked at me. Her gaze immediately erased all traces of sinful thought from my head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou could not have come at a better time. Thank you,\u201d I replied, explaining the situation to her and asking for her assistance in dealing with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pink walls, a black table, and a metal-frame bed with azure duvets and blue cushions… This was Acchan\u2019s room. I was dreaming about my past-life friend again, and this was a great opportunity to see her play FL2<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I couldn\u2019t choose what part of the game she played, but I hoped to see something about the new characters that were closely related to my doom: Sora, Cyrus, Dewey, and the hidden character Cezar. Since I knew that there was also one more hidden character in the game, I really wanted to see him too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As if to punish me for my overly wishful thinking, the first character to greet Acchan as she turned on the screen was Jeord. \u201cHello, my beloved.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I was very disappointed\u2014not because I had anything against Jeord, of course, but because, as far as I knew, the returning characters from FL1<\/em> had nothing to do with Katarina\u2019s bad ends in FL2<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There go my hopes of getting some useful information…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt has now been a year since you entered the Magical Ministry. You have grown so much through your efforts there,\u201d<\/em> Jeord, inside the screen, continued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One life ago, looking at him say something like that in-game was enough to make me swoon. Post-reincarnation, I was becoming used to hearing those things from him in person, so this was nothing in comparison.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After some more sweet remarks from Jeord, Maria gave him an equally sweet reply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This feels normal because it\u2019s in the game, but saying those things in real life would be so awkward… I\u2019d be so embarrassed, I\u2019d pass out.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The game then transitioned to an image of Jeord hugging Maria. \u201cWill you marry me?\u201d <\/em>he asked. Of course, after two games\u2019 worth of relationship building, Maria gladly accepted. Cue ending cutscene and credit roll.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This was my first time seeing one of the endings to FL2<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tsk, look at those fiends in the credits. Those are the ne\u2019er-do-wells who make a living out of coming up with ways to kill me! Hm… Huh? Wait a second. What did Jeord say again? It\u2019s been a year since you entered the Ministry? That sounds kind of impor\u2014<\/em> \u201c\u2014rina. Lady Katarina!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I woke up to a pair of red eyes, framed by white hair, staring at me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSophia?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nicol\u2019s younger sister, my beautiful childhood friend, was in front of me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What just happened? I went to the library to look for more notes, then I met Nicol, and we were having lunch together, and then…what?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSophia? Why am I here?\u201d I asked, seeing how I was not outdoors, where I remembered being, but indoors, and in addition to that, lying on a bed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou lost consciousness while talking with my brother,\u201d she explained, sounding very sorry about it, \u201cand he then carried you here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Oh, right. I passed out from his handsomeness.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI see. I\u2019m sorry I bothered Nicol like that. Where is he, by the way?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I wanted to apologize to him, but he was nowhere to be seen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe was very worried about you, but unfortunately he could not get away from work… He reluctantly left you in my care and went back to his duties,\u201d Sophia replied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, of course, he was working before we had lunch together. I really need to apologize to him for all the trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNot at all! He was overjoyed to be able to spend time with you alone after so long,\u201d she replied, and then, in a whisper, she added, \u201cso overjoyed that he lost control and caused this…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I couldn\u2019t quite make out that last part, but at least it seemed I hadn\u2019t been too much trouble for Nicol, which was a good thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m glad to hear that. I was also happy to talk with him for the first time in a while.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThank you. He will be more than happy to hear that.\u201d Sophia wiped her eyes with her handkerchief as if she was crying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah… And, so, by the way… Why exactly are you here?\u201d I asked. I didn\u2019t know of any reason why Sophia would be at the castle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Maybe she comes here to help like she sometimes does at the Ministry?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI came to deliver my brother\u2019s lunch to him, as he had forgotten it at home. My father told me he was in the library, but he was not there, so I went to look for him and eventually found him just as you were passing out.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMy oh my, that was one unbecoming scene to show you. I didn\u2019t know that he had forgotten his lunch by the way.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe may be very thorough, but he is not perfect,\u201d Sophia giggled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I guess he can be kind of an airhead sometimes…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe asked me if I had plans for lunch, but now I wonder what his original plans were.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere are some places in the castle where they serve food to guests, and he probably meant to go there. But I was free today, so I decided to come here to see how he was doing and to deliver his lunch. Our cooks had already prepared it, so it would have been a waste not to do so. But I was luckier than I expected, as I was able to see you too.\u201d Her smile made me happy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m also glad I could see you!\u201d Back at the academy we used to be together every day, but after graduation, we hadn\u2019t had as many chances to see each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI forgot to ask my brother about this,\u201d she spoke again, \u201cbut why are you at the castle today?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, me? I\u2019m just researching some old folk tales… For work,\u201d I replied, not entirely truthfully, \u201cbut when I started reading, I lost track of time and got hooked…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFolk tales can be very interesting too, can they not?\u201d Sophia also loved books.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI know, right? I wasn\u2019t expecting it, but there was some really cool stuff in there…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n We started discussing folk tales, a topic about which an avid reader like Sophia had plenty to say. If anything, she sounded very excited as we talked about these stories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When I realized how much time had passed, I told her that I should get back to the library. She was worried about me since I\u2019d passed out, but I waved away all of her concerns\u2014swooning never killed anybody.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Learning from the mistake I\u2019d made that morning, I made sure not to spend too much time on any individual book, checking many different ones instead. As a result…I found nothing. I wasn\u2019t really expecting to, but the lack of success still made me sad. The library visit had been for nothing, the dream had been for nothing, and when I went to the storage room where the note had ended up in my bag, that was for nothing too. The sun was setting, and I\u2019d checked all that I could check for the day. It was time to go home. As I walked under the gradually darkening sky, I thought back to the man I\u2019d met the day before. When I\u2019d heard that he was a shut-in, I\u2019d assumed that he was an introverted, weak-willed kind of guy, but in reality he was nothing like that. I was used to the mean stares I got from other noble ladies who thought me unfit to be Jeord\u2019s fianc\u00e9e, but the things he told me were even meaner, and darker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat are you doing here, Katarina?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Surprised by that voice, I looked up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPrince Jeord!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Seeing him made me forget all about the young man, but it also made me remember the embarrassing events of the previous day. I\u2019d hoped we wouldn\u2019t meet for at least a while, but from the way he addressed me, that probably wasn\u2019t true for him. Fighting the awkwardness of it all, I explained the reason why I was here just as I\u2019d done to Sophia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI am glad I saw you on your way out then. It must be fate bringing us together,\u201d he declared with a giggle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Same old Jeord. It\u2019s like what we talked about yesterday didn\u2019t even affect him at all. Maybe I\u2019m just thinking too much of it.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI will walk you to your carriage,\u201d he then announced, taking my hand. As we walked together, he commented on what I\u2019d told him just earlier. \u201cI see that you are working very hard, doing research on your days off.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, that\u2019s kind of rare, actually…\u201d Usually my days off were spent tending to my vegetables.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt has now been half a year since you entered the Magical Ministry. You have grown so much in this time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hm? This sounds oddly familiar… Ah! It\u2019s the line from the game! Except it\u2019s half a year instead of a full one, since I haven\u2019t been working for that long. Something still sounds off though…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n In what felt like an instant, we reached the carriage. He helped me aboard and then kissed my hand, making me jolt in place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI will be waiting for you to resolve those pressing matters of yours,\u201d he told me with a smile, referring to my words from the previous day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I just sat there, blushing and fidgeting, until the carriage finally started moving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why is he like this?! Are handsome princes born with the ability to charm girls? Is it genetic?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n It took a while before my face cooled down to its normal temperature. \u201cWelcome back, Big Sister,\u201d Keith greeted me in the most charming way possible once I was home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Right, I said those embarrassing things to him too yesterday. That\u2019s probably why he\u2019s being so charming… Even my <\/em>brother is doing this to me now…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cH-Hi…\u201d I replied, taken aback by the handsome aura he was emanating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou must be tired after doing all that research in the library.\u201d As he spoke, he patted my head, like he often did, but this time it felt different. It felt…sensual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Please, Keith! I\u2019m close to the edge here! <\/em>My face\u2019s temperature immediately rose back to a feverish level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cTh-Thanks. I\u2019ll go change,\u201d I sputtered, completely defeated by the sexiness overload, and I headed to my room. I realized that, despite turning out to be nothing like the womanizer he was in the game, Keith still had the make-girls-swoon gene in him. After I finally got a chance to calm down, I went to have dinner. This time Keith\u2019s presence didn\u2019t fluster me too badly, maybe because the rest of my family was also there, or maybe because we didn\u2019t interact that much. I finished my dinner and went back to my room, exhausted because of all that had happened that day, and I immediately went to bed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I hadn\u2019t gained any useful information about the game, but I felt that I was missing something very important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s time to think about this properly.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Meeting chairwoman: Katarina Claes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Meeting representative: Katarina Claes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Meeting secretary: Katarina Claes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, well, well, everyone. Let\u2019s try to see what we are missing here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAre we even missing anything? Are you sure?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI cannot prove it, but something just feels off.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPrecisely. And we need to understand what that is.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCould it be today\u2019s lunch? Was something off about the sides?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, today\u2019s lunch was delicious. The Claes family\u2019s cooks really are great.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIndeed they are…but I suspect that lunch has nothing to do with this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThen it could be Nicol, with whom we had lunch.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe really was too handsome to handle.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat was something to behold!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut there was nothing wrong about him specifically.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThen, maybe…Alan? We still don\u2019t know whether he knows anything about romance or not.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe was probably just acting tough. I\u2019m sure he doesn\u2019t know the first thing about it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, that is very likely. That being said, I think that is not the answer we are looking for either.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThen it must be Keith. Why was he so sexy today?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe was always sexy, I guess, but today it was on a whole different level. It\u2019s like having a Nicol in our own house.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPerish the thought! We would lose consciousness every single day. But no, Keith was not the problem either.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, that only leaves Jeord. He was also sexier than usual, and the things he said sounded even sweeter too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe things he said… Of course! That<\/em> is what was off!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou mean when he told us that he\u2019d be waiting for us to resolve our matters?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, before that!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe part about it being half a year since we joined the Ministry?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cExactly!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, but that\u2019s true. It has indeed been half a year, more or less.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s not the point! That line came from the game!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, sure. Except in the game he said a year<\/em> instead of half a year<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe did\u2014and then the ending played.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo…?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo there is one year between when Maria entered the Ministry and when the game ends!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHuh?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cKatarina, you\u2019re a genius…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWere you a detective in a past life or something?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh no, not at all… Probably.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMaybe we should open up a detective agency. What do you think? Let\u2019s get started on that!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe could call it the Super Genius Detective Katarina Claes Agency<\/em>!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOho… Enough flattering! Let us go back to the issue at hand.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, ma\u2019am!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, ma\u2019am!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe now know how long we have until the game\u2019s ending. It has been half a year since we started working at the Ministry with Maria, which leaves us with half a year. If we survive for that period of time…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019ll have escaped doom!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cExactly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHalf a year! Just six short months! At least now there\u2019s an end in sight!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSeeing the light at the end of the tunnel surely gives us some peace of mind.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cJust half a year…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe should keep in mind, however, that this half a year may hold yet more surprises for us. We shall keep looking for information and never let our guard down.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, ma\u2019am!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, ma\u2019am!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n When the Katarina meeting ended, it was already late at night. They were talking about not letting our guard down, but right now they were all dancing with joy knowing that they only had half a year of fear left to face. They were being so loud inside my head that I worried I wouldn\u2019t be able to sleep until dawn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, minutes later, I was fast asleep. I must have been really tired.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The next morning, I was too embarrassed to look Keith in the face, but for better or worse, he had left early with father on a work-related trip, so I didn\u2019t encounter him. I was grateful for that, because I thought that the awkwardness of seeing him would probably subside after a day or so. 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