Chapter 28: At the original event social party.

The soirée was held in one of the capital’s grandest halls.
Crystal chandeliers glittered overhead, and the polished marble floor reflected their light like a mirror.

Since the magic academy was about to enter its long vacation, many noble families with students were in attendance.

I entered the hall arm-in-arm with Cedric.

(He really does stand out…)

I could feel countless eyes turning toward the man beside me.

Pale golden hair, refined features, tall and graceful bearing.
Third-year, top of his class, and already the Duke of Gilbert.
Whispers and admiring glances followed him everywhere.

The perfect “admired senpai.”

(Is it really all right for someone like me to be walking next to him…?)

Just as that thought crossed my mind, Cedric’s arm tightened ever so slightly around mine.
Then he leaned in and whispered,

“You look beautiful tonight, Amelia.”

“—!”

I looked up involuntarily. His gentle blue eyes curved into a smile.
That smile was so dazzling my heart skipped several beats.

“Th-thank you. You look wonderful too, Cedric.”

I somehow managed to reply calmly.
He narrowed his eyes happily.

“Hearing you say that makes all the effort of dressing up worth it.”

(My favorite is too radiant… I’m going to faint…)

But tonight wasn’t only about basking in time with my favorite.
I had something I needed to confirm.

In the original game, this party was the scene where the heroine Emilia entered on the arm of whichever capture target currently had the highest affection.
I wanted to know who that was—who she had chosen.

So every so often I scanned the hall for her.

Eventually, I found her.

A little distance away, pinkish hair swaying softly, Emilia walked through the crowd.
At her side was Noah Ashbel.
The violet-haired, cool-looking young man, heir to the Ashbel marquessate and a third-year like Cedric.

The two of them were talking with obvious familiarity.

Noah, who in the game had always been the quiet type sitting in the corner of the classroom, was now smiled gently at Emilia’s side.

“The dress suits you perfectly, Emilia.”
“Really? It’s because you chose it for me, Noah-sama.”

Emilia shyly pinched the hem of her skirt.
Noah’s smile deepened.

“I would never give you something that didn’t suit you… I chose it for you, after all.”

Um, capture target, your lines are way too sweet.

Emilia’s cheeks flushed faintly as she looked down.

“When you say things like that… it makes me expect more.”
“Then please do. I’ll work hard to live up to those expectations.”

…Yeah.
This is the Noah route, straight down the middle.

Noah wasn’t even trying to hide his affection.
So she had chosen Noah’s route.
At the very least, not Cedric’s.

(…Thank goodness.)

A quiet breath of relief escaped me.
Then I caught myself and panicked.

(No! Why am I relieved?!)

I’m just the villainess side character.
And five years older than Cedric, to boot.

In modern Japan that age gap might not be strange,
but in this world it was practically unheard of, especially with the woman older.
I could feel the curious, sometimes judgmental glances from around the hall.

(An eighteen-year-old husband with a twenty-three-year-old wife… it really is odd, isn’t it?)

Just because Emilia wasn’t aiming for Cedric didn’t mean I was allowed to stay his wife forever.

And yet,

“Because without you, it’s impossible for me to be happy.”

“…!”

The memory alone made my face burn again.

Get a grip, Amelia. Don’t get carried away.

I took a deep breath to calm myself.

That was when I noticed Emilia approaching us.
Noah had disappeared somewhere.

“Good evening, Lord Cedric.”

She greeted him with a flower-bright smile.

“You look splendid tonight as well. That formal attire suits you perfectly.”

“Good evening, Lady Emilia.”

Cedric returned the greeting politely enough for society, but his expression was cool, a perfectly measured smile that kept her at arm’s length.

“Are you enjoying the party?”

“Yes. I’m here with my wife, after all.”

He glanced at me.
Emilia’s smile twitched.

I noticed something odd about her.

She had chosen Noah, yet she was still trying to charm Cedric.
And,

(Huh? Those accessories…)

My eyes caught on what she was wearing.

Hair ornament, bracelet, necklace.

I recognized all three.

In the original game, they were gifts from different capture targets:
the hair ornament from the older prince, Leonard;
the bracelet from the younger prince, Ensio;
the necklace from the classmate, Victor.

The dress was probably from Noah, but the accessories were from the other three.

At this point in the game, the player could interact with five capture targets total.
She was wearing gifts from four of them.

(This is the harem route. Full-on harem route.)

She had chosen to go for everyone.

(But Cedric isn’t among them.)

None of the items were from Cedric.
In the game, you only received gifts when affection was high enough, so his affection toward her must be low.

(He did say yesterday that he “disliked” her, after all.)

Realizing that eased my chest once more, and I quietly scolded myself again.

“Ah, introductions are overdue.”

Cedric placed a light hand on my back.

“This is my wife, Amelia. The most important person in my life.”

“!”

Don’t just drop heart-attack lines like that!

(The most important person…)

Outwardly I kept my composure and curtsied gracefully.

“A pleasure to meet you, Lady Emilia Crown. I am Amelia Gilbert. Thank you for looking after my husband.”

The instant I lifted my gaze,

Emilia’s smile fractured for a split second.
Through the crack in her mask, a gaze sharp as a blade stabbed toward me.

For just an instant, she glared at me like I was her mortal enemy.

But she immediately smoothed it over with another smile.

“The pleasure is mine, Lady Amelia. I am Emilia Rose. I’m honored to meet you.”

She returned the greeting brightly.

But her eyes weren’t smiling at all.

(It seems… she really hates me.)

I didn’t know why, but to her I was clearly an obstacle.
She wanted to get close to Cedric, and a wife was in the way.

Especially on the harem route, she needed to capture everyone.

(Well, nothing to be done about that.)

I didn’t particularly want her to like me either, so no problem.

“How are you finding academy life?”

“Just a polite social question.”

“It’s wonderful. Everyone is kind, and my studies are fulfilling.”

“I’m glad. Transferring must have been difficult.”

“Yes, but thanks to everyone, I settled in quickly.”

We exchanged harmless small talk.

Emilia kept stealing glances at Cedric, clearly wanting to speak with him more,
but he showed zero interest.

“We’ll excuse ourselves now.”

Cedric ended the conversation.

“There are others we must greet.”

“Ah… yes…”

Emilia looked reluctant.

“Shall we go, Amelia?”

“Yes.”

Cedric placed a gentle hand on my waist, gave Emilia a brief nod, and began to lead me away.

At that very moment,

“—know your place, villainess side character.”

A tiny murmur reached my ears.

From Emilia’s lips.
So quiet no one else could have heard, but I caught every word.

(…!)

I nearly stopped in my tracks.

“Side character,” “villainess.”
Words that should never appear in casual speech in this world.
Terms used only in the game’s description or player reviews.

(In this world, the only person who would use those exact words…)

…is someone who knows the game.
Someone like me, a transmigrator.

(Could it be… she’s also reincarnated?)

I wanted to turn and confirm, but Cedric’s hand guided me forward, and we moved away from her.

My heart pounded.

If she really is a transmigrator,
then everything makes sense.
Why she assumed Cedric was divorced.
Why she hates me.
She’s probably trying to follow the original story.

(Which makes me even more of an obstacle.)

But she’s chosen the harem route.

I’ve played the harem route myself, just to see every event,
but in real life? Impossible.
There’s no guarantee everything would go as smoothly as in the game.

Yet at the same time… it might.

Either way, she clearly has no intention of choosing only Cedric.

…Then maybe it’s okay for me to stay his wife?

(No no no, calm down, Amelia… Even if it’s not her, there are plenty of girls who would suit Cedric better.)

Definitely. Absolutely.

With complicated feelings swirling inside me, I walked through the hall beside Cedric.

The joy of being next to my favorite,
and the anxiety of the inevitable parting that might one day come,
both tangled together in my chest.