Every night this week, I've spent my free hour each evening by teleporting to the lightless caves and using singularities to crush dozens of monsters. Truly a just and noble cause. But as I've pointed out, it's not sustainable. So tonight, I dressed down, and wandered into the dorm commons to see what's going on. Socializing is good for me, I can't put all my free time into destroying bogeymen.

  Almost everyone in the building was down there, people liked to enjoy their free hour and this was just about the only place to do so.

  Between sixteenth and seventeenth bell, we've got a free hour. After study hall, before lights-out. During that time, all the faculty buildings and class halls are locked up. The gates are sealed tight. The quad and fields are being treated by the landscapers. So, the options are to either hang out in the dorm commons, or hang out in a dorm room. Almost everyone chooses the commons. And, we've got faculty chaperones to make sure that everyone in the dorm building is a resident there, so we can't bring boys over.

  So, this room just has me, and all the freshman girls, and the chaperone.

  To my surprise, that's Healer Licard, the muscle-bound mender who's technically one of my love interests. But also, Thumper Kuritan, Tiviti Wirrel, Belisa Roadaway and Kurumi Lautan all have the tags for an antagonist love interest- my love interests. This.... is a situation that had not had a precedent in the original game. Nathan's strictly hetero, all of his romanceables are female, and so they were never living in the same dorm as him, and would never be in the same game room as him. I, on the other hand... Four of my fellow students were romanceable in this room. And the chaperone.

  As an aside, Licard is a good choice for a chaperone for the freshmen girls because he is very intimidating and unapproachable. I can see a handful of these students looking at him like a large chiseled piece of candy, but they keep their distance so I'm supposing that the last couple days involved them trying to get cozy and getting rebuffed hard.

  Part of that supposition on my part comes from the fact that he's tagged for me. If he's listed as a love interest for me, I know he's not available for any of the local talent.

  Anyway, all seven of the women that Nathan can potentially pursue at this time are present - since neither Josse, Zauria nor Filly are available yet, and I've already scratched Belisa and Kiri off of his list of options for good. I can see [ Love Interest ] without the Antagonist flag still hanging over Clash, Curigi, Kurumi, Lyric, Sicimmi, Lachel and Delizabeth. Kurumi is on his list and mine, still. I wonder how soon she has to choose for good and lock one of us out?...

  Also in this room, a lot of Antagonists without the Love Interest flag, which means that their job is to oppose Nathan's progress with certain love interests, whether or not I'm involved with them. So for example Lady Elica who opposes Princess Lachel, or Skeici Gianwen who will later cause trouble for Josse. In the corner, Quinnifred Horvin-Grennick, the bully that torments Sicimmi. There's Lere Lowyer (who one could expect to be a barrier to Curigi since they share the back story) who pushes back against Kiri if Kiri was still in the running. I wonder what'll happen with Lere now?....

  Now this may be hard to believe, but even with all these status bars and alliance flags waving around, almost everyone in this room was completely unattached to the stories of either Nathan or myself. Sure, the named characters with affiliations tended to be flashier, with brightly-colored hair and exciting outfits, but they were still outnumbered by a dozen to one by ordinary, pleasant, normal kind of girls with manageable hair, reasonable clothing, achievable appearances. Not ugly, not plain, not homely, not bland, just... realistic. Not like the love interests and plot-relevant characters.

  Or me, for that matter. I caught my reflection in a window- dark out there, lights on in here, the glass became a mirror - and there stood a tall, lithe woman with elegant proportions, neatly-arranged features, snow-white hair and face, with an expression fused into a cold haughty disdain. Eyes vibrantly colored and mismatched, dressed in striking form-flattering fashions in bold colors.

  Behold I am anime, destroyer of conventional beauty standards.

  The game room itself is incredibly well-equipped. Foosball, billiards, dartboards, cornhole, shuffleboard, chess sets, decks of cards, table-tennis, go, dominoes, and a slew of board games were all available. Almost all of the offerings were very social in nature, competitive or cooperative, to foster group sharing and conversation. There were also nooks, alcoves, and some private rooms near the back for people who were not feeling quite so openly sociable. Some folks need more social time, others need more sequestered time.

  And of course, those that just stayed in their rooms, either to study in peace or just try to find whatever privacy and quiet could be found in these cramped living conditions and cramped schedules.

  "Lady Natalie!" Elica said, waving me over. I walked over to their table, the three of them were sitting around to play some game with cards and chips, and I sat down across from them. Elica gave me a wicked smile, and placed one hand on the deck. "Deal you in?" I'm sure she meant that smile to be encouraging and tempting, but it was entirely predatory.

  I glanced at the deck and the discard pile, and the stacks of chits. Vancy was losing badly, which meant this was a game of skill and intelligence. "Nah, I'll just keep you guys company," I said. "I'm just looking for something quiet and easy. So far, every day here has just been a lot, you know?"

  "I know," Vancy sighed unhappily. "I miss my own bed. I miss sleeping on my own schedule. I am just so tired all the time! And every time I get into the rhythm of a class, the bells go off and it's time to do something else!"

  I patted her on the arm consolingly, but she sent back a weak smile in return. Elica grimaced prettily - it was a gesture that looked practiced, like she had sat in front of a mirror studying how to look displeased and relatable without giving any bad pictures. "I just wish they weren't wasting my time so much! An hour to do a shower and get dressed? An hour for three meals each? A homeroom and a study hall that have no grade? All of this is just making me sit around doing nothing! It's bad time management! And then on top of that, every building in the campus is like ten minutes away from each other but we switch out every hour! If they weren't so mad for dramatic vistas and belvederes, it'd only take half the time, but they'd rather make this campus gorgeously scenic than easily walkable! And a different building for each subject? That's a long way from being optimal!"

  I chuckled, and she glared a little. Elica jabbed a witchy finger at me, but her tone was more facetious. "And don't you start, Miss Magic! You can just vanish around, as many dramatic entrances and exits as you like! Nobody can keep you anywhere, I'm surprised you spend even half the school day here on campus! I'd be down at the parlors making huge stacks of coins betting on stuff in the future!"

  "I don't get that kind of vision," I protested. "And I wouldn't use it for money if I did."

  Larianne looked at my face and scoffed, Elica smirked. Vancy patted my arm consolingly. "The important thing is that you believe that," she told me earnestly.

  She's dumb as laundry and she's patronizing me. Ouch.

  "I haven't actually been in here before," I said, craning my neck around. "Looks fun."

  "Sure does," Elica said wistfully. "But Mother says that the only ladylike games are card games."

  Larianne waggled her fingernails. "I can't afford to chip them." They clicked against each other like arrows in a quiver.

  Vancy looked at me helplessly, shrugging. All of her friends were at this table.

  And it's not like I could blame her, I was sitting here with these three because they're the only ones I really know well enough to have a conversation with. There's a handful of girls here that I am on a first-name basis with, like Kurumi, but if the only thing you have to talk about is your math class that's not the same thing as being friends with one another.

  What's more frustrating is that I still feel like I know many of these girls much better than this. I'm caught in an awkward place between "maybe you've seen me around" and "we've already gotten married to each other three times now". I should renew some acquaintances. Hopefully that lowers the odds that I just walk up to someone and forget that we've got drastically different experiences.

  I glanced around some more. "I'm gonna take a brief tour. I'll be back to sit with you all in a little bit, I need to make some conversations."

  Elica shrugged dismissively. "All right, but make sure you're ready to play when you come back. Vancy needs a partner."

  "I really do," she murmured unhappily, looking at her meager supply of chips.

  I got up, and made a super-casual approach to various people who were highlighting on my status display.

  "Hiiiiii. Sorry to interrupt, do I hear correctly that you know my brother Nathan?.."

  Josse Salles gave me a sharp direct nod. "Oh yes. He's sharp, that one. Well-positioned too. He's definitely going places. I'm not going to be the only one who notices that you could make a whole career just by attaching to him early. They say it's not what you know it's who you know, and your brother is a 'who' to know!"

  Well, as someone who's more of a 'what you know' type, I almost hope you're wrong!

  Next was Delizabeth "Dizzy" Capstan. "Wow yeah for sure! He's pretty great and really good at math and he has been helping me with my formulas and he's really patient about it but I can tell that I frustrate him a little bit but it's the kind that is also a little bit amused and I honestly get that reaction a lot for some reason but that's okay I've learned to really thrive on it because everyone's got a niche in this world and maybe mine is to talk a little too fast a little too much and just hope that at the end of the day I'm charming enough that people like being around me and if they don't then i guess that's really all about them making their own choices and I might have regrets and stuff like wow do I ever but usually it kind of sees me through and sometimes it's easier than others to let go of when they stop being so charmed and start getting really annoyed but I hope your brother's not gonna be like that because he's really kind and helpful and good at math and he's dreeeeeaamy and I kinda like the way he talks to me."

  I cannot tell if he's pursuing this as a romance quest or not. Talking to her is a good way to learn a lot about things you didn't ask about.

  I renewed my acquaintance with Filly Coltorn. "HI Natalie! Yeah, I skipped ahead a grade so I could get into Hearstcliff early, and I'm so lucky I'm in the same year as you both! I've got a Natural Philosophy class with him, but he's nowhere near your level! Still, it's nice that he's the only one around who doesn't treat me like a kid!"

  Except that next year, when you become legally an adult, you become a romance option. He is very much treating you like a kid still.

  I was able to find Princess Lachel Freckentop and get a few words in edgewise with her. She lit up when I mentioned my brother. "Oh, my, yes! He's been an absolute treasure to me! Right now things are very difficult for me, but he's stuck by me through thick and thin to find ways to redeem my reputation! Your brother is so gallant, and so willing to stand by those who suffer in public esteem. You must be so proud of him!"

  I am not bitter that he is more willing to defend her than he is for me. I'm not. But this does hash some of my plans, and I need to adapt.

  And there, is Kurumi the girl who is on both of our lists. "Oh, yes, and he's been such a help. I know you assured me that the class president position was guaranteed, but I've been working on a campaign anyway to help destiny along. And your brother has been helping me, we're working on a campaign based on discipline and duty, making ourselves worthy of the school. I know that might not go over well; you've had a bit of trouble with school rules yourself. But it'll be great, you'll see!"

  Huh, really seems like Nathan's made more progress with Kurumi than I have. That's not bad for him, just a little personally insulting.

  Next up is Kiri Sizomaji. "Oh, uh, no, sorry."

  Her entire storyline with him gets started when she lets him try a bit of her food on Day One and it's the best thing he's ever tried. By ruining that first impression, I've cut off her whole story here.

  Ah yes, Sicimmi Safis, whose trope is Shy and Nerdy. Some players find her irresistible. "I think he's in my class? He sounds familiar. Is he the one who's always raising his hand with extra questions?"

  Yes, that would be him. That's his Lettering class and clearly he's not letting anything distract him from penmanship, again.

  Belisa is not listed as one of his romance options any more, though she is one of mine. This would be a good time to open at least some kind of conversation. I sat down and asked a few small questions. She did not at any point acknowledge my presence.

  I think pursuing a romance option with her will be really difficult in this state. Maybe she's like Josse or Zauria and Filly, and doesn't really open up until later.

  I braced myself and approached Lyric Vainting. She was another one who was irresistible to certain players. It's not her personality. "Oh hi. Yes we talk sometimes. He's really nice. We've got plans to take in a show on Sixthday."

  I feel like I shouldn't be surprised that he's made more progress with Lyric Vainting than any other girls. Still, not actually disappointing, her Good-Plus ending is probably the best in the game. All of her other endings are among the worst..

  Next I found Curigi Ghant, Nathan's first crush from childhood. "Oh, yes! He's actually taking a class to learn the language of Lecight, my homeland! I'm in the same class that I may better understand your language from that perspective. He is just darling, and I'm so glad that the years have treated him so well!"

  Sounds like he's pursuing that option as well. I hope he knows this game doesn't support harem endings.

  Ah, and here is Claise "Clash" Atland! "Oh yeah! Great footwork, and a good wrist, but he doesn't extend for the lunge and he's slow on a parry unless he's backstepping. Very hard to read, and sneaky! I caught him showing false tells to sucker me with a feint! Sorry, until I make team captain, I'm not paying attention to anything else!"

  Default dialogue. He's barely spoken to her.

  Last but not least, Zauria Uncin. "Fuck off."

  That's the best response to get from her until this time next year. She's not available as a romance option for a while, she's going through stuff.

  I finished my scouting and headed back to the Mean Girl table. Elica was smirking at me. "So, little birds tell me that you've been snooping around looking to see who's interested in your brother." Oh right because of course rumors already whipped back here. I went off to chat with a dozen students and you've already gotten back gossip about exactly what I'm doing.

  "More like who he's interested in," I said, sliding back into a seat. "We don't talk but I'm trying to watch out for him."

  "Well, it seems he's been busy based on how much you were moving around. So what about you," Vancy said, fluttering eyelashes at me. "Any prospects for Princess Harigold? Anyone looking like a likely lucky suitor?"

  I groaned and put my face in my hands, and slumped down until I was almost under the table. "Please let's not get into that," I said, whining.

  Elica laughed. "Natalie, relax, it's only the first week of school, you don't need to worry! If you just give it some time I'm sure that some-"

  She thought I was tormented that I didn't have a swain yet. I dropped my hands from my face and let her see the weary annoyance on my face.

  Larianne looked at me, and figured me out, and started snickering cruelly to herself.

  "Thanks Larianne," I said a little bitterly. She waved nonchalantly back at me with her daggerlike nails.

  Elica was looking at me suspiciously. "Really? Already?"

  "uh huh," I grunted.

  "How many?" Vancy said, cutting to the real topic a little faster than Elica.

  "aduzzen"

  Elica leaned in closer. "It doesn't what?"

  I huffed and spoke up. "A dozen."

  Vancy looked over at Elica with a distressed look. "Elica? I think I'm gonna hit her. Is that okay? If I hit her?" She held up a clenched fist in my direction.

  I channeled essence of steel. "Do what you have to do, Vancy."

  Clank.

  "Ow!"