I Got Reincarnated as a Villainous Noble, and When I Tried to Create an All-Male Academy to Avoid a Bad Ending, for Some Reason the Gender Ratio Reversed?

Chapter 2: The Reason the Gender Ratio Reversed

I recalled my memories from my previous life five years ago. It happened at the exact moment I first met my fiancée.

The instant I saw the silver-haired girl, everything came back to me.

Yes, I was originally born and raised in Japan, worked at a black company. I was a burned-out corporate slave who went on leave in my third year after graduating.

I got reincarnated as the villainous noble in the eroge I played during that leave.

And if things continued this way, I would meet a doom ending.

Realizing that fact, I struggled to create an all-male academy to avoid the doom flags, but for some reason the gender ratio reversed.

There was no way I could accept such an incomprehensible reality…

“Rose, is this the real thing?”

“Yes. It is the genuine enrollment list received from the academy director.”

“Don’t you think the proportion of women is suspiciously high?”

I immediately began doubting the list.

Well, it was understandable to doubt it.

After all, the gender ratio was 1:99. It would be more believable if someone said it was a creation error.

But Rose did not seem to doubt it at all. She shook the black hair peeking from under her headband and murmured with a calm expression.

“It is certainly more than imagined, but this is all the result of your policies bearing fruit, Lord Ol.”

“I didn’t intend to increase the proportion of women at all…”

“What are you saying? You aimed for meritocracy. An academy where ability is evaluated regardless of status, class, or gender difference.”

“Yes, I advocated meritocracy. But it’s strange that women increased, right?”

“On the contrary, I think it was an inevitable flow. The ratio is certainly high, though.”

“That can’t be—”

It happened as I tried to refute Rose’s words.

A knock sounded at the door.

“Lord Ol, it’s Fran.”

“Come in.”

The person who entered at my signal was my fiancée.

She wore an elegant dress in shades of blue and white, with her silver hair tied in a half-up style. Her name was Fran Chevalier.

She was the second daughter of a count’s house and became my fiancée at age ten—a girl the same age as me.

Her appearance was beautiful even if viewed favorably, truly suited to be the heroine of a story. Though in reality she wasn’t the heroine.

In the original story, Orufusen openly built a harem at the academy despite having such a beautiful fiancée, so it was no wonder he got executed.

It was deserved retribution.

“Lord Ol!”

She ran over in small steps and spoke while directing her deep purple eyes at me.

“This academy reform was truly splendid.”

“Uh, yeah.”

“Did my efforts to fully understand and support your noble goals meet your satisfaction?”

“You worked hard.”

In fact, Fran really helped a lot.

It was true that toward the end she put in so much effort it felt like she handled most of it.

Regardless of the result, her efforts deserved reward.

By the way, the six academy reform proposals I suggested this time were the following.

・Abolition of compulsory education.

・Elimination of recommendations based on family status or lineage.

・Abolition of class systems by social rank.

・Complete merit-based system.

・Introduction of a scholarship system.

・Prohibition of romance within the academy.

That was it.

The first one, abolishing compulsory education, was obvious.

If attendance was mandatory, women would end up enrolling whether I liked it or not.

—Only those who truly wanted to learn would enroll.

I hoped that policy would turn it into something like a science graduate school.

The second, third, and fourth points were simple.

To eliminate discrimination. And to create a place where ability, not status differences, was evaluated.

That also unmistakably aimed for a science graduate school.

Science graduate school = only guys.

Because I believed that equation held true, I carried out reforms based on Japanese values.

For reference, in my previous life I was a corporate slave who went from a science graduate school straight into a black company. In other words, I walked the standard overwork-death route.

The fifth point, scholarships, hardly needed explanation. It was for a science graduate school.

Finally, prohibiting romance in the academy was purely for my own selfish reasons.

I planned to physically prohibit romance to prevent building a harem at the academy. In other words, it was perfect.

And so Fran helped with these clearly demanding reform proposals.

Even for a fiancée, doing this much deserved endless gratitude… but something felt off.

Her purple eyes sparkled brightly, as if she was satisfied with this result.

Normally confusion would come first, yet something was strange. The same went for the maid Rose—her reaction felt unnaturally calm.

“Did you anticipate this result, Fran?”

“Yes. Achieving your noble goals was already inevitable.”

“I see.”

Fran clasped both hands together and floated an ecstatic expression. Her worshipful eyes somehow felt dangerous—

“By the way, may I ask something?”

“Yes. Please ask anything.”

I cleared my throat with a cough.

“As a result, almost all enrollees turned out to be women. When did you start anticipating this outcome?”

I asked cautiously.

She then murmured as if it were obvious.

“From the beginning. Specifically, the very moment you proposed the reforms.”

Huh?

“That far back?”

As I reacted in surprise, Rose—who had been silently listening until now—spoke up.

She apparently could not believe Fran’s words either. Her eyes widened in shock.

“Then shall we explain it step by step?”

Fran smiled gently and sat on the sofa. The movement was extremely graceful and refined, perfectly befitting a noble lady.

※

“The major premise is that Lord Ol is a great person.”

“I-I see.”

The three of us sat on the sofa and listened to Fran’s explanation while drinking black tea.

“Every reform you proposed is wonderful. In the current kingdom, men—mainly nobles—hold strong power, while commoner women are practically treated like slaves. They cannot resist if a noble decides to lay hands on them.”

“…”

“Your academy reforms could become a blow to change that society.”

“Uh, yeah.”

I had no such intention at all, but for now I nodded. A noble who gets underestimated is finished.

In most situations, if you stand in the back with arms folded and nod with a deep voice, things resolve themselves.

That’s how this world works.

So in this world, I make an effort to act like a villainous noble. My speech and attitude fit the part, right?

“In one phrase, your reforms amount to complete meritocracy. No compulsory education. No guarantees based on status. Expulsion if no results are produced. Moreover, romance prohibited within the academy. Nobles would naturally oppose it fiercely.”

“They really opposed it fiercely, didn’t they? Both Lady Fran and Lord Ol looked like they went through a lot.”

“Yes. I wonder how many times blood nearly spilled at the negotiation table…”

“…Yeah.”

I recalled the many intense scenes and floated a bitter expression.

“For nobles who have wielded power until now, it is naturally inconvenient. Their freedom to act decreases. Then who would take it seriously instead?”

Fran directed the question at Rose, who sat across from her.

Rose thought for a moment and then answered hesitantly.

“…People without freedom?”

“Exactly.”

Fran smiled happily.

“In this country, those without freedom are mainly women. Even if they have talent, without opportunities to learn, they end up married off and that’s it. The same goes for me. Just imagining being married to someone other than Lord Ol makes my skin crawl. I’d rather die.”

She directed a smile at me, and I involuntarily shuddered. She was beautiful, yet somehow terrifying.

“Your reforms destroyed the existing structure. If they study, they get evaluated; if they produce results, they can choose their own future with their own hands. That alone is enough, but the rule prohibiting romance also works effectively. For women who do not want to be married off, it is the best possible environment.”

“I see. So…”

“Yes. It was inevitable that ambitious women would gather.”

Fran smiled brightly.

On the surface I forced a smile, but inside I could not hide my confusion.

Inevitable? It was inevitable?

That was not my intention at all. I was certain it would become a science graduate school.

But I could not voice such a foolish remark.

If my fiancée thought I was an idiot, my villainous noble character would collapse.

So no matter how little I understood, I had to say something that sounded fitting.

“…Yeah.”

“As expected of Lord Ol.”

Fran smiled brightly like a sunflower.

When our eyes suddenly met, I quickly looked away so she would not see my agitation.

Then I spoke to Rose, who looked impressed.

“…That’s how it is.”

“As expected of my master. But I still don’t understand why the female ratio is this high. No matter how great Lord Ol is, gathering this many women…”

Indeed.

That part puzzled me too. No matter the reforms, a 1:99 gender ratio was impossible.

It almost made me suspect someone had purged all male applicants.

“Lord Ol, please tell us.”

“Fran.”

Of course I did not know, so I turned my gaze to my fiancée.

“Yes. Allow me to explain.”

She smiled faintly and spoke in a reliable tone.

“The board was arranged that way from the start.”

“…The board?”

“We created an environment where commoner women could enroll easily. We set up consultation desks for applicants, simplified scholarship applications, partnered with the church, and thoroughly informed the public. As a result, rumors spread among the masses—that enrolling in the academy would save them.”

It’s like a religion.

“The rumors spread further and became exaggerated as they went.”

“Exaggerated?”

“That Lord Orufusen is a hero who saves women. That he is the ally of all women. Such rumors circulated.”

I shuddered at the calmly narrated content.

Because I knew none of it. That Fran had been doing such things behind the scenes.

“W-Well done, Fran.”

“No. I merely did what was natural as your fiancée.”

Is that what fiancées do? It would be more believable if she were called a lord or academy director.

“We did purge some inconvenient people, but… Ahem.”

She muttered something terrifying, cleared her throat, and then directed straight eyes at me.

The second daughter of a count’s house—Fran Chevalier.