The Shut-In Prince’s Splendid Social Debut — Me, a Villainous Imperial, Have Spent the Last Fifteen Years Fighting the “Wicked Thoughts” Eating Away at My Mind. When I Finally Returned to High Society, There Were Way Too Many People I Didn’t Recognize — - Chapter 27: Fissure

Ordis Church affiliate—Saint Arterisia.

She was a girl who appeared after Yoan was poisoned and later joined the protagonist’s party as a healer.

However, her true identity was that of a great villain who committed a terrible betrayal at the moment when the protagonist reconciled with the nobles in the final stage of ERT, plunging the world back into a vortex of chaos.

Even so, her motive had never been clearly understood.

The Ordis Church began to sink its teeth into the Azellan Empire after it lost its Emperor.

It was a suspicious organization that worshiped a god called “Seven Aspects,” so the possibility was quite high.

I didn’t know why she had enrolled in this academy, but nine times out of ten, it couldn’t be for anything good.

(Let’s try not to get involved…)

“Then we will take a temporary lunch break. Homeroom will begin in each class one hour from now. Please move to your respective classrooms by then.”

Homeroom, huh. I wonder if we’ll be doing self-introductions.

In D Class, the only person I know is Charl-kun. That makes me a little uneasy.

“By the way, I recommend having lunch at the cafeteria. We won’t be charging money today, so feel free to eat whatever you like and as much as you like to restore your energy. Because harsh days will begin tomorrow.”

Free all-you-can-eat, huh.

That quietly made me happy.

In the past, I could only eat the meager meals served in the hospital.

Being able to eat without restriction was the best.

I noticed the blue-haired girl walking briskly toward me.

“Yoan-sama, there is something I would like to talk about for a moment…”

Here it came immediately.

I activated the Secret Technique: “Vague Evasion.”

“Right, Serta, I’m hungry. Shall we go have lunch?”

“Yes, let’s go.”

However, my fiancée suddenly appeared at my side.

“May we join you as well, Yoan-sama?”

“…Of course.”

Naphna was smiling—nikkori—but her eyes weren’t smiling at all.

I couldn’t refuse.

She was my fiancée, and it would cause trouble if rumors of discord began circulating at this stage.

In the end, the four of us—me, Serta, Naphna, and Larsen-kun—headed to the cafeteria.

The interior was surprisingly modern.

By the way, the nobles of this world were not the stereotypical nobles one might imagine.

Their uniforms were blazers, and glass windows existed normally.

However, the toilets were still “drop toilets” (pit latrines).

There was no infrastructure or communication environment comparable to modern times.

Yet for some reason, technologies that clearly surpassed modern capabilities occasionally appeared, which sometimes surprised me.

Perhaps that was simply because this was a game world.

Since lunch was served buffet-style, I began placing food onto my plate.

Meat sauce spaghetti, grilled steak, vegetable salad with onion dressing, pork cutlet—and there was even miso soup.

I had no idea how cuisine like this had developed, but perhaps it was the result of the cultures of the Seven Kingdoms mixing together.

If this had been a strictly medieval-style fantasy world, something like this would never have happened.

We sat down in a box seat similar to those in family restaurants.

Since we had already introduced ourselves at Serbul’s party before, we skipped formal introductions.

“Then let’s eat.”

My selection was sirloin steak, french fries, vegetable salad, and pork miso soup.

For some reason I felt reluctant to eat too many carbs, so it ended up somewhat gluten-free.

“Yes, let’s eat.”

Serta’s meal consisted of grilled fish, rice, and miso soup.

She had quite a Japanese sense of food preferences.

“Yoan-sama, could you explain what happened earlier?”

Naphna cut straight to the point.

On her plate were spicy-looking soup and extremely spicy chicken.

…Come to think of it, she was someone who liked spicy food.

“…What will you do if I tell you?”

“I am Yoan-sama’s fiancée. If we are to build a relationship of trust from now on, then I would prefer there to be no secrets between us.”

That was a legitimate argument.

But I couldn’t tell her.

Because eventually, my engagement with Naphna would be dissolved.

Once that engagement was broken, I would be removed from the framework of the Azellan Charter and lose my “Imperial Succession Rights.”

If that happened, the possibility of me becoming Crown Prince would disappear, and I wouldn’t be poisoned either.

That said, the risk of interference from the other two factions still existed.

So that would only become an option after I had secured some allies and stabilized my position.

While I was thinking about that, I noticed someone standing beside me.

“…………Yoan, sama…”

“Tsk…”

The one standing there was the silver-haired girl I recognized—Fryure.

However, her face was deathly pale, and she seemed unable to stand on her own, supported by a female attendant.

“…Haa, haa… Yoan-sama… haa, I………… I……………… haa, haa…”

“What’s wrong, Fryure? Are you feeling unwell somewhere?”

Fryure’s eyes were unfocused, and she was hyperventilating.

She didn’t seem to hear Naphna’s words at all.

“Yoan-sama became… Lv. 1………… because of me. Ah… Yoan-sama, please order me to die…………! If Yoan-sama wishes it, I will do anything…………!”

Fryure was in a seriously unstable mental state.

Realizing this was bad, I made Fryure sit beside me.

“Let’s calm down, Fryure. It’s alright. Calm down… slowly exhale. Keep exhaling until it feels painful.”

I spoke to Fryure while gently rubbing her back.

As if hearing my voice, Fryure nodded.

“Haa…”

“Yes, now inhale.”

“Suu…”

We repeated this several times.

“How is it? Have you calmed down?”

“…Yes.”

Fryure’s complexion had improved significantly.

Even so, I couldn’t simply leave things like this.

Letting someone who had become unable to make decisions for themselves go with a casual “Good luck from here on” would be the same as maliciously pulling away the ladder beneath them.

So I decided to step into Fryure’s heart.

And plant myself there deeply.

“Fryure, do you remember what I said the other day?”

“Eh…”

“It’s important, so I’ll say it again. Fryure—I need you. So for now, stay by my side without thinking about anything. This is an order.”

“…! …U-Understood.”

(This should be fine.)

Honestly, I hadn’t expected Fryure to become this dependent on me.

However, that could also be considered convenient.

If it came to this, then I would make full use of it to accelerate my “Plan.”

However, one person present clearly wasn’t convinced.

“…Yoan-sama. What exactly is the meaning of this?”

It was Naphna.

She looked angry.

But what kind of anger was it?

Jealousy as a fiancée… was unlikely.

“N-No, Naphna… This is…!”

“Fryure, remain silent. I am speaking with Yoan-sama.”

“Yes…”

Under Naphna’s intimidating glare, Fryure fell silent.

“…What did you do to Fryure? I have never seen her this flustered before.”

I see.

So she was suspicious about my interaction with Fryure.

But this might actually be an opportunity.

“I cannot say that, Naphna-dono. This is an issue between Fryure and myself. It is not something you should involve yourself in.”

“But what Fryure said earlier seemed related to the fact that you are Lv. 1, did it not?”

I suppose it looked that way.

“Hmm, that is a different matter entirely.”

“…Are you saying you won’t tell me no matter what?”

“Yes.”

“I see.”

Naphna cut off the conversation and turned her gaze toward Fryure instead.

“Fryure, why are you obeying what Yoan-sama says?”

“….T-That is…”

Fryure hesitated.

“He is holding some weakness of yours, isn’t he? If that’s the case, then I will—”

“N-no…! That’s wrong. Yoan-sama is… not that kind of person.”

“Fryure…?”

Fryure defended me.

However, I had already ordered her not to speak about the crucial details.

“…I’m sorry, Naphna. But I truly don’t mind what happens to me. So… please stop looking at Yoan-sama like that. Your fiancé is… a truly wonderful person.”

“…”

Fryure seemed very conscious of the fact that Naphna was my fiancée.

She really was a kind-hearted girl.

But the more she defended me, the deeper Naphna’s suspicion grew.

At this rate, a crack might form in their friendship.

So I decided to throw them a lifeline.

“—Naphna-dono. I’m sorry, but I would like you to stop probing any further. You have one or two things you cannot speak about as well, don’t you?”

“…”

Naphna had been actively leading the Third Prince faction until now.

There was no doubt she had her own agenda.

So if I implied We’re even, then the conversation would naturally end there.

“Of course, I will not do anything that harms your friend. I swear it on my name.”

“…Yes. I also spoke too harshly. Please forgive me.”

For now, I reconciled with Naphna.

Because I couldn’t dissolve this relationship yet.

And I expected the intelligent Naphna to understand this boundary.

Beside me, Fryure sighed in relief while holding her chest.

However, there was no doubt that a fatal fissure had now formed between her and my fiancée.

(Fryure, you really did well.)

I had been wondering how to naturally lead things toward dissolving the engagement, but the timing couldn’t have been better.

In my future “Engagement Dissolution Plan,” Fryure would become the most important piece.

And if I secured Fryure, her father Hraesvelgr would naturally join my faction as well.

If that happened, I would have partially cleared the requirement of “Making Allies.”

However, there was still one unstable factor—

The possibility that Fryure might change her mind.

Right now, she was acting for my sake only because of the “debt” of me saving her life and the “guilt” of having sealed my level.

But that alone was somewhat insufficient.

For example, if someone else saved Fryure in a similar situation and approached her the same way I had, I couldn’t predict what might happen.

Which meant—

I needed a stronger “Chain.”

The more chains binding Fryure, the better.

For example, “Affection.”

Parent-child affection, affection between friends, or…

The affection of a lover.

Then the problem became—

“Sorry, I ended up in D Class.”

—That we were in different classes.

“It is alright! This Serta will save up a lot of money and definitely pull Yoan-sama up to A Class!”

Serta puffed up enthusiastically—funsu.

“…I-I will also… um… do my best to help.”

Fryure also spoke quietly, showing mysterious determination.

To transfer classes required saving “Two Alf Platinum Coins.”

“I wonder if it might be a bad thing for me to enter A Class. Since Prince Roberto is there.”

“That’s true… The three Princes, including Yoan-sama, ended up in completely different classes… Could this really be just a coincidence…?”

The distribution was:

The First Prince in A Class.
The Second Prince in C Class.
And me in D Class.

By the way, the Last Boss was in B Class.

“That’s right… If this class sorting itself is part of the ‘Crown Prince Selection Battle,’ it wouldn’t be strange. Anima-sensei’s earlier words could also be interpreted that way.”

In other words, the Prince who ended up in A Class at the end would become Crown Prince.

“Then I will transfer to D Class!”

“…M-Me too.”

Good.

It seemed neither of them felt any resistance toward coming to D Class.

However, I doubted the academy would allow that so easily.

“—That will probably be difficult.”

The one who said that was Naphna.

“Why?”

“This ‘Underworld Wail Dungeon’ is known as an especially vicious dungeon. The monsters are strong, and above all—drops and treasure chests are extremely rare. Unless you venture into the middle layers or deeper, you won’t obtain anything.”

If drops and treasure chests were rare, then the only rewards would be combat skills and experience points.

In other words, even converting earnings into “Alf Coins” would be difficult.

“Therefore, the ‘Alf Coins’ you can obtain will mostly be the monthly allowance provided by the academy. Compared to the total amount one person receives over three years, even two Platinum Coins would likely be insufficient.”

“No way…”

Fryure and Serta both turned pale.

“—There’s no need to be so pessimistic, though.”

“Yoan-sama?”

“Anima-sensei said there would be ‘Assignments,’ didn’t she? I think it wouldn’t be strange if those assignments provided opportunities to obtain large amounts of Alf Coins.”

Of course, depending on the situation, the assignments might actually cause the opposite—inconvenience.

But I kept that thought to myself.

“Depending on the content of the assignments, there might be frequent personnel changes. If the two of you come to D Class, I would be happy too.”

Both of their faces brightened instantly—paaa.

“—By the way, Naphna-dono, if you manage to gather two Platinum Coins and transfer classes, would you come to my class?”

I asked casually.

Since she was part of the Third Prince faction, it would be strange not to include her.

“…Yes. I intend to.”

Naphna answered after a brief pause.