Chapter 04 …
The Reborn Luciana
The textbook I opened was Ancient Kingdom Language.
Out of all the textbooks, the reason I chose the ancient language one was simple:
…it was the thinnest.
Since it was called an ancient language, I assumed it would contain lists of grammar rules and archaic vocabulary once used in the kingdom.
But instead, it contained nothing but numerous short passages.
No—even calling them “short passages” was generous. Some were only single sentences, and others were nothing more than incomplete fragments.
For now, I decided to start reading from the page I had opened.
“‘By the covenant of the wind, thus spoke the spirit, most exalted…’ …Wait, that’s the end? Isn’t this obviously the middle of a sentence? Ughh, fine, let’s move on to the next one… ‘The green serpent that appeared within the Forest of Black Lilies shall sleep eternally upon the crimson lake.’ …Hmm. Even when the sentence actually ends properly, I still don’t understand it. What is this, some kind of code??”
If I had attended classes properly, perhaps I would have understood these incomprehensible phrases.
But unfortunately, not a single memory of ancient language lessons surfaced in my mind.
The only thing that came to mind was the sight of third-year students practicing swordsmanship.
…Ahh, now I understand why Luciana chose this seat. It gave her a perfect view of the lessons held outside for the other year groups.
And if thinking about ancient language class immediately brought up scenes of third-year swordsmanship practice, then Luciana must have spent every ancient language lesson peeking out the window at the training grounds.
For someone constantly glued to the Crown Prince’s side, she certainly had wandering eyes.
…And then it suddenly hit me.
Uwaaaah, this is a villainess trait!!
No matter which hero the game’s protagonist chose, the villainess needed to stay involved as the antagonist—so Luciana had probably been simultaneously flirting with, or at least gathering information on, every single capture target.
Nooo, Luciana wasn’t just an arrogant noble lady—she was fickle too. Seriously, what a defect-ridden young lady!
…This is no time for joking around.
If I wanted to avoid our family’s exile, then my absolute top-priority strategy had to be keeping my distance from every single capture target.
To steel my resolve, I opened the bag hanging beside my desk and pulled out a chart labeled “Classified Documents” that I had prepared while absent from school.
…Fuhaha, don’t underestimate me.
In my previous life, I was a dedicated gamer who played The Cinderella of the Magic Kingdom every single night without ever getting tired of it.
Listing the capture targets was child’s play.
The problem was that this game was famous for having an absurd number of romance targets.
Even within the academy alone, there were four.
I stared at the page labeled “Within the Academy.”
The Cinderella of the Magic Kingdom ☆ Academy Capture Target List
1. Crown Prince Ernesto Lilium Highlander
Second Year, Class A (same class). Age 18.
Usually omits his middle name because he dislikes it.
2. Second Prince of the neighboring kingdom, Karl Nymphaer
Second Year, Class A (same class). Age 17.
3. Heir of the foremost ducal house, Rakash Fritillaria
Second Year, Class B. Age 19.
Crown Prince Ernesto’s cousin.
4. Third son of a ducal house, Louis Wisteria
First Year, Class A. Age 15.
Member of a ducal family renowned for possessing immense magical power through generations.
After reading through the list once, I let out a long breath.
Uwaah… looking at it again, they really are exactly what you’d expect from capture targets—all of them are high-ranking nobles.
Not a single ordinary noble among them. Only royalty and ducal families—people so rare that even among a thousand individuals, you might not find one.
That concentration is obviously abnormal.
Good grief, good grief. Since I am a virtuous lady, I absolutely will not approach these four.
“…Yes, yes. At the very least, these four are absolutely off-limits. Total avoidance. The Complete Ignore-and-Ignore Strategy.”
Before I realized it, I had raised the list in both hands, peering closely at it while muttering to myself.
I was studying the chart so intensely—so completely absorbed in the life-or-death mission of fleeing from these four—that I failed to notice one of them approach until he was standing right beside me.
“—Why is my name written there?”
Only after hearing that question did I realize someone was standing immediately next to me.
