It wasn’t long before hesitation washed over my being. The scene that Sophia had told me to perform with Katarina was the play’s climax, the scene where the characters confess their love to each other. The prince would gently run his fingers through the hair of the woman he loved. With a smile, he would hold her tight. It was one of the play’s most important scenes.
In other words... I had to whisper lovingly. Into Katarina’s ear. While holding her close to me. I could not do anything of the sort! It was not possible. Katarina, who was standing in a somewhat intimidating stance opposite me, however, said “Okay, please go ahead, Master Nicol!”
I did not really understand, but I supposed Katarina was feeling up to the task. Despite my reservations, I found myself walking towards Katarina. Perhaps it was due to her overwhelming presence.
“...Sophia. I...” I may be able to speak the lines provided for me. However, to hold another man’s fiancée in these arms...
“No, Big Brother. You must try. After all, you have already graduated from the academy, and we are at a clear disadvantage! We have to seize the opportunity and approach at this crucial moment!” Sophia spoke softly, but from her tone, I understood that no form of rebellion would be tolerated.
My sister had noticed my feelings long ago. She had sincerely cheered me on, hoping that Katarina and I would develop a deeper bond... but I always knew it was impossible. It was not that I wanted to snatch her away from Jeord. However, if we grew too close... perhaps, my desires would only grow.
Even with those thoughts in mind... I felt myself unable to resist Sophia’s determined, expectant eyes. I steeled myself. “Are you ready, Katarina?” I asked for one final confirmation.
Katarina simply answered me cheerfully. “Yes. I shall do my best to be your partner in this endeavor, Master Nicol, for Sophia’s sake! You can count on me.”
“Is that so... Thank you.” Katarina. Gentle... straightforward. I felt a hint of happiness wash over me as I looked upon her face. Those aqua-blue eyes, staring straight at me. Ah... I truly love this girl.
“I love you.”
The words from my lips... merely a line from a play. Or were they words from my heart...? Katarina was to respond with her lines next. “Me too, my prince,” she would say.
“...M-Me... too. Master Nicol,” she said, with slightly reddened cheeks.
In that moment, my mind was... a blank. And then... I felt a burning sensation, heat, rising up from deep within me. She had answered to my line. “I love you,” I’d said. And yet, she answered with my name. I was filled with a sense of happiness, of bliss, that I had never felt before.
What little remained of my rationality sought to advise Katarina on her erroneous delivery of her lines... But... it was a lie. The thought of me not wanting to snatch her from Jeord’s arms... was a lie. I had lied to myself. I had desperately tried to contain my feelings.
In truth... In truth, I wanted to be with her. I desired the young girl known as Katarina Claes, so much so that it felt like my heart would rend in two. I wanted to snatch her from Jeord’s arms. I wanted to make her my own. The mental cage that I had locked my feelings in... I could feel it shaking, rattling.
“Um... Master Nicol...” Once more, she spoke my name from those lips. I could no longer hold back. With a single, swift motion, I held her soft, warm body close. I held her in my arms.
“...Katarina. Even if you belong to someone else... I... will certainly...” I will certainly never give up on you. Not for all eternity. Never.
And then... what will come of it? When one day... I can no longer hold back these feelings?
★★★★★★★★★
A school festival was being held at the Academy of Magic, the school that I had belonged to just last year. I had joined as a first-year student, and I was a member of the council back then. However... my only memories of the festival were that of us dealing with the troubles caused by one of my classmates, Nicol Ascart. I could not remember anything else.
Two years had passed since then. I had gone by the name of Sirius at the time. The Magical Ministry had taken me in ever since, and I now went by Raphael Wolt — my real name.
Today, as part of my tasks at the Ministry, I was to once again attend a school festival at the Academy of Magic. It was a small area of the festival, really — a display space showcasing works by students, with some of these works being sold. The Ministry would have some items on sale as well, and managing that was part of my job.
Near me was none other than Maria Campbell — with her small display of what seemed to be handmade snacks. Just the previous year, I had been in the council, just like she was. Although I had given her some painful memories and caused her no end of trouble during the incident the previous year, Maria had been astonishingly forgiving, and accepted my apology most graciously. She said these words with the kindest of smiles: “From now on, please live — as your real self.”
Up until then, I had been irritated by the constant monologues of a certain young girl, claiming that “Ah, Maria was really an angel!” and “Maria... my goddess.” When she said those words to me, however, it felt like she was indeed an angel. If I had been anyone but myself, perhaps I, too, would have fallen for Maria.
However... I had fallen for her — before Maria. Her brown hair, whipped up by the winds... my eyes locked onto her form almost immediately. The girl illuminated her surroundings just by being there.
“Lady Katarina, it’s been a while.” At my words, the girl I had fallen head over heels for, Katarina Claes, opened her eyes wide in surprise. Her azure eyes.
“Raphael! You’re participating in the festival too?”
“Yes. I am in charge of curating the items presented for sale at the festival, you see.” I had deliberately altered my appearance after those events. Having retrieved my real name, and now leading a new life, this had been necessary so that I wouldn’t stand out as much. Hardly anyone expressed interest towards me in this form. It was like as if I had become someone else altogether.
Even so, Katarina immediately noticed me. And then, with that usual, straightforward gaze of hers... she turned to me. I had done something unspeakable to Katarina. I wouldn’t have been surprised if she had never wanted anything to do with me again. And yet... Katarina smiled gently, just as she always did. Nothing had changed.
“I see you’re working hard!”
“Yes. I am at the bottom of the food chain, after all. There is much work to be done.” However... I couldn’t be any happier than I was right now. The stagnant sense of anger and hatred within me had long since faded. I no longer lived a falsified existence.
To be able to once again hold that happiness, happiness which I thought I’d lost back in the days of my childhood... I was truly blessed. Up until last year, when Katarina had reached her hand out to me, I could have never dreamed that I would be able to live such blissful days. Such thoughts were nothing more than dreams to me.
Although the Ministry’s research facility stood on the same grounds as the Academy of Magic, we each had our lives to live. I had work to handle at the Ministry, and Katarina and her friends had lessons to take. We couldn’t find the time in our busy lives to meet often. This was why I was glad that we were able to see each other on this day, for the first time in a long time.
I listened to Katarina’s situation and spoke a little of mine. For the first time in a long time, I was able to speak with her for a while — it wasn’t long before Maria noticed us, however, and she soon walked towards us.
“I am very glad that you are here to visit, Lady Katarina. Here... this is your share.” Maria handed Katarina a pack of the snacks that seemed to be the same kind she’d been selling at her stand.
“Wow! Thank you for setting some aside for me! How were the sales?” Katarina inquired, happily accepting the snacks.
“Of course, Lady Katarina. Honestly... I was worried, thinking that the snacks I made would not sell at all... but thanks to you, Lady Katari
na, I am almost completely sold out.” Maria, too, seemed very pleased.
Honestly, I had my doubts about the snacks selling upon hearing that they were handmade by Maria because she was the only commoner in the academy. All the other students were of noble origin. Nobles, of course, did not cook their own meals. All of their food was prepared by trained chefs and staff. Would they be willing to taste food prepared by an amateur? I pondered on these points silently at the time.
It would seem that Katarina was the one who was behind it. As usual, I found myself surprised at her sudden, inexplicable ideas and decisions. For example, I was surprised when Katarina had asked to taste Maria’s baked goods last year, back when we were all in the council. While I had been born a commoner, and did recall tasting some of the snacks my mother baked back when I was a child, Katarina was different. She was born a noble — and the daughter of a duke, of all things. I had assumed that she would simply be fed high-class, haute cuisine food on a regular basis. Why would she of all people ask to taste the baked goods that Maria, a commoner, made?
At first, I’d thought that Katarina was simply being sympathetic to the challenges Maria faced in the academy. It would seem that I was mistaken, however. She really did want to taste Maria’s handmade snacks. And so Maria delivered on Katarina’s desires. Unexpectedly, her baked goods tasted respectable — much more so than the work of a typical patisserie. They were truly delicious.
Ever since, Katarina continued asking for Maria’s snacks, and before long the two had become quite close. Nobles tended to be haughty and arrogant simply because of their position and social standing. It was not uncommon for nobles to look down on others.
Katarina, however, did not have a fragment of that in her soul. Never once did she attempt to approach the princes near her with untoward advances, nor did she look down on Maria, a commoner. It was almost as if she herself did not think very much of her social standing as a noble.
While Katarina felt this way, however, some other students did not necessarily share her sentiments. This was why I had been worried about the whole affair — would Maria’s snacks sell...? But by the time I had thought to look, Maria’s little display stand was almost empty, with only one or two packs left. She was almost sold out.
Even Katarina seemed surprised at this development. “They must have been so popular! Of course, since they’re your homemade snacks, Maria.”
“No, this is thanks to your assistance as well, Lady Katarina. After all, you spread the word far and wide, didn’t you?” Katarina’s advertising attempts seemed to have successfully spread the word amongst the student base.
However, looking at Maria, I didn’t feel like that was the entire reason. Although she seemed a little detached and uncomfortable when she had just enrolled, being amongst a crowd of nobles, it would seem that she had already become somewhat used to the academy. Noble girls who had kept their distance from Maria in the past now comfortably approached her full of smiles, talking to her and purchasing her snacks. Her features, which used to be clouded by a myriad of suppressed emotions, had now softened, and her smile calming and kind. This, too, must have been due to Katarina’s influence.
“Well, I did advertise. But the snacks wouldn’t have sold like this if they weren’t as delicious as yours are! The reason they’re so popular is because they taste good!”
“...Thank you very much, Lady Katarina...” The color in Maria’s cheeks deepened noticeably as she happily listened to Katarina’s shower of praise. The young girl known as Maria Campbell had fallen for Katarina as well, much like I had. This was why... she must have already made a decision.
“Come to think of it, Lady Campbell has decided to sign up at the Ministry, or so I hear...” Talk had come up recently of Maria joining the ranks of the Ministry. In fact, she had received recommendations ever since she had enrolled into the academy — recently, my workplace had been ablaze with talk of Maria’s recruitment.
“Eh?! Maria... you’re going to work for the Ministry?”
“Ah, yes. I have decided to join the Ministry after graduation.”
“Is... Is that so? But Maria... Didn’t you say during your first year that you wanted to return home after graduation and live on quietly?”
I did recall Maria saying something like that to me once before.
“Well... It is true, that was what I had thought shortly after enrolling in the academy, that I would simply return home and live a quiet life... but,” Maria said, her gaze focused and determined. “But. I could no longer... be by your side, then.”
“?” Katarina simply stood still for a while, as if not understanding the significance of Maria’s words. I, however, understood it well enough. After all, I had those exact same feelings as well.
“Just like I asked during the graduation ceremony last year, Lady Katarina... I would like to stay by your side, from here on out. However... even if I am a Wielder of Light, I am but a commoner... I need a certain degree of social standing, Lady Katarina, to stand by you — given that you are a noble, and the daughter of Duke Claes... and so I decided that I would join the Ministry, and attain the position I require.”
Maria’s words, much like a passionate confession of love, succeeded in turning Katarina’s cheeks bright red as well. It didn’t take long for Maria to notice Katarina blushing at her words, and that, in turn, simply served to intensify the deepening shade of red across her own features. Katarina and Maria, facing each other with embarrassed, reddened faces.
I wanted to join in on the conversation as well, but it was like the two of them had created a world of their own. I did not find this amusing in the slightest. In fact, did these two girls forget that I was still here?
“Ah... do excuse me. I hate to interrupt the private world that the two of you have conjured... but I am present as well... yes?” Being left behind and forgotten in this fashion was far too cruel for me to bear.
“Ah... oh, Raphael. A private world, you say...” At last, Katarina was looking in my direction. Maria was still somewhat red-faced, but at last, I was now within her field of vision once more.
“Even so... to think that the motivation for you joining the Ministry, the apple of this kingdom’s eye... is to be with Lady Katarina. As expected of you, Lady Campbell.” The Magical Ministry was the largest association in the kingdom. It wielded the most power, coming only after the king himself. As such, many staff members signed up with suitably lofty aims and noble goals, such as “The advancement and evolution of magic and magecraft.” Maria’s reasons for joining up with the Ministry, however, were a little different.
“I do understand that my reasons for joining the Ministry may be... impure. But even so... I intend to give it my all once I join its ranks. I will be in your care,” Maria replied with no hint of hesitation.
“I do not think that wanting to be close to someone important to you constitutes impurity, Lady Campbell. After all, I would have done the same thing had I been in your position. However...”
“However?”
“Even if you do join the Ministry, Lady Katarina will marry Prince Jeord upon graduation. She will then become very busy, and it is unlikely that we will be able to see her often, as we do now.”
It would seem that Maria hadn’t been aware of the situation from this angle — her eyes were opened wide in surprise. Maria, despite her steadfast nature, occasionally overlooked the strangest things. But then... why? Now, even Katarina herself was surprised... their surprise was contagious. Even I was surprised at the current situation.
Maria being surprised is one thing... but Katarina’s the one getting married, here! Judging by Katarina’s stunned expression, I suppose she’s more airheaded than I’d originally imagined... but for it to be this intense...?
“That... That’s right... Lady Katarina is Prince Jeord’s fiancée... She will immediately become his bride after graduation, and spend her days in the castle... we may not be able to see her then... I don’t think I would like that very m
uch...”
“Yes... if this goes on, I have to marry Jeord and... become a royal. That would be bad... I’m barely making it as the daughter of a duke, but a royal...!”
Given that Katarina herself was so well-loved and pampered by her fiancé, Prince Jeord, it was without question that she would simply be spirited away for the marriage eventually. In fact, given that it was Jeord, she may very well be taken into the depths of the royal castle, and never see the light of day again. How terrifying.
Katarina, being dense as she was, however, did not appear to have noticed Jeord’s feelings for her at all. And she had described her situation in quite the dire fashion; she didn’t seem keen on the idea of marrying into royalty and becoming royalty herself.
I offered some words of assistance to the shaken Katarina and Maria. In fact, I had brought up the subject of Maria joining the Ministry all for it to lead up to this moment.
“...Have you considered joining the Ministry as well, Lady Katarina?”
Katarina, shaken as she was, was immediately attracted by my words. “Eh? I can do that? Actually, does joining the Ministry mean I wouldn’t have to get married anymore?”
“Basically, it is possible for one to join the ranks of the Ministry with the recommendation of a staff member with considerable social standing. Well... while I do not think that simply joining the Ministry would cancel the entire engagement, the Ministry is only second to the King himself when it comes to political power. I hardly think that you would be dragged off to the castle immediately.”
In truth, I had been thinking about this subject for quite a while. What is the best way I can go about this? How can I prevent Katarina from immediately falling into Jeord’s arms after her graduation? After all, I had planned and plotted for a long, long time. Although I had not done so out of my own free will, I had become surprisingly good at it. Upon hearing talk of Maria’s imminent recruitment into the Ministry’s ranks... I decided to get Maria on my side.
My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, Volume 3 Page 8