TVEDR 05

Chapter 05 …

The Reborn Luciana — Part 3

At that very moment, I found myself staring up at the exact person whose name I had just been chanting in my head as someone I must absolutely never approach, and my mouth fell open.

Rakash Fritillaria—the heir of the foremost ducal house, and Crown Prince Ernesto’s cousin who was one year older than him.

In other words, even among the ducal houses standing at the very pinnacle of nobility, his family possessed the highest status of all, and he himself was the successor to that position.

On top of that, he possessed flawless beauty, intelligence, and overwhelming magical power.

Rakash, who had been blessed with every conceivable talent, was truly one of the “chosen ones.”

Because of that, Rakash had inherited the unpleasant trait common among those born into the highest ranks: his pride towered higher than the tallest mountain in the world.

He seemed to regard anyone beneath him—that is, everyone except royalty and his own parents—as lifeforms of a lower order. That impression held true both in Luciana’s memories and in the game I had played in my previous life.

“Lady Dianthus, allow me to offer one piece of advice. A girl of your type has likely come to this academy in search of a marriage partner, but this institution does not exist for such purposes. You would do well to leave at once.”

He said something astonishingly cruel in the same casual tone one might use to discuss the weather, but almost none of the meaning actually registered in my head.

Because one of the beautiful capture targets was leaning in close enough to peer directly at me.

I froze in shock and, still completely rigid, stared fixedly at the face before me.

Rakash possessed black hair and black eyes, with a beauty so perfectly sculpted he looked like a statue.

As I gazed at him from such close range, I suddenly remembered that Rakash’s nickname was “The Walking Statue.”

Of course, the nickname came from his perfectly refined appearance… but it also carried another meaning.

“A statue whose expression never changes.”

In other words, when dealing with people beneath the foremost ducal house—people like us—his emotions never moved, and his face remained as unreadable as a Noh mask.

“Lady Dianthus?”

Still locked in close eye contact, I had forgotten not only to blink but even to breathe, and he addressed me in a suspicious tone.

Yet even then, I could not move a muscle.

B-b-because I used to be a forever-alone woman!

What am I supposed to do!? Even searching through every memory I have, I can’t remember ever staring this closely into a guy’s face before!

(Note: Luciana’s behavior before regaining memories of her previous life has been excluded.)

Whaaaat is this? Human eyes can sparkle this beautifully!?

Ah, no, this must be a different species altogether. His face is too perfect—it’s terrifying. His voice is gorgeous too, and that’s terrifying. Getting this close makes it hard to breathe… what is he, some evil sorcerer? Scary. Beautiful men are terrifying.

While those incoherent thoughts spun wildly around inside my head, my body remained frozen, unable even to breathe.

Ah, I’m going to suffocate—

The moment that thought crossed my mind, Rakash said, “My lady?” and reached a hand toward me.

The instant his hand was about to touch me, my body finally broke free from its paralysis.

“Hiiiii!”

With a shriek, I leapt out of my chair, then crashed noisily onto the floor with a loud clatter.

Rakash—Rakash Fritillaria, a noble among the highest-ranking nobles—did not, as a gentleman might, offer his hand to help the fallen young lady sitting collapsed on the floor.

Instead, he only furrowed his brows slightly and spoke.

“What exactly is that reaction? Are you intending to claim I was about to assault you and gain something from it? …Though I must admit, I have no understanding of the thought processes of young ladies like yourself, so I doubt my imagination is accurate.”

As he narrowed his eyes slightly, he continued in a chilly tone.

“Lady Dianthus, it seems that while absent from the academy, you devised some troublesome little scheme. While walking through the hallway, I happened upon the unprecedented sight of you actually opening a textbook. Naturally, I wondered what sort of event could possibly cause such a phenomenon, so I observed you for a moment. Then you deliberately began reading a document labeled ‘Classified Documents’ in plain sight. Of course, I admit I share some blame for approaching out of curiosity. Still… what exactly is this ‘The Cinderella of the Magic Kingdom ☆ Academy Capture Target List’? For your own sake—and Ernesto’s as well—you would do best not to drag us into your games.”

I heard every word he said.

But at that moment, my attention was focused on something entirely different.

Namely:

“Ooooh, so this is the legendary ‘Ernesto-calling’!”

I was inwardly thrilled.

In the entire kingdom, aside from the king and queen, Rakash alone was permitted to address Crown Prince Ernesto without honorifics. Because of that, in my previous life, the act of casually calling him “Ernesto” had been revered under the name “Ernesto-calling.”

“As expected of you, Lord Rakash! Addressing His Highness the Crown Prince so casually—it sends shivers down my spine!!”

Overcome with excitement at witnessing a live “Ernesto-calling,” I ended up speaking to Rakash without thinking.

The moment I realized what I had done, it was already too late.

Standing before me was a slightly disturbed-looking Rakash.

“…Shivers? It gives you… shivers? My sincerest apologies, but I can only hope that is a symptom of your fever.”

“Huh? O-oh, y-yes, that must be it. I was absent until yesterday, after all. Yes, it seems my cold hasn’t fully gone away yet.”

“A cold? I heard you were absent because you twisted your ankle when you collapsed and had trouble walking.”

“Y-yes, exactly! It was a sprain-like cold!”

“………A new species, then.”

Rakash let out a sigh that sounded almost resigned.

Apparently deciding that continuing this conversation any further would be exhausting, he glanced sideways at me.

“I did warn you.”

With only those words, he left the classroom. Since his classroom was next door, he was probably returning to his own class.

Watching Rakash’s retreating figure, I blinked several times.

…Huh? Isn’t he actually surprisingly kind?

I had expected Rakash to be more the type who believed, “Punish all who seem suspicious”—the sort of person who would eliminate anyone remotely questionable without hesitation. Even in the game, while it was never directly stated, there had definitely been implications like that.

And yet, he approached me himself because he found me suspicious.

He checked what I was doing.

And even after deciding I was suspicious, he still gave me a warning. He told me, “You should stop.”

…Isn’t that actually kind?

Or perhaps, because I used to be a forever-alone woman, my judgment completely stops functioning whenever I stand in front of a man, resulting in me becoming absurdly lenient in my assessments?

As I pondered that while carefully observing Rakash’s back, something suddenly felt off.

…Huh? Something about Rakash feels different from what I expected. What was it again?

I tilted my head, thinking hard about it, but before I could figure it out, Rakash disappeared from sight and the bell signaling the start of class rang out.