I was in an empty classroom with Millia once more. It was early in the morning, far too early, but she wanted to discuss a few things before classes started. She was not dressed in teacher attire this time; instead, she wore her usual clothes. The girl looked tired. However, I was just glad that she wasn't in the middle of a panic attack. Compared to a few days ago, Millia was in great condition.

  But I needed to get down to business.

  "Before we start," I said. "There's something I need to know."

  Millia scratched her forehead.

  "What is it?" she asked.

  "Is Augusta a party member or a boss in the Duke's Duplicity?" I questioned.

  Millia took a deep breath. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out.

  "You can tell me. I won't get mad," I promised.

  After another moment of hesitation, Millia spoke.

  "Augusta is the hardest boss in the Duke's Duplicity. In the community, she's known as 'The Controller Breaker.' If she didn't have a tragic backstory and the fight's conclusion wasn't so heartbreaking, she wouldn't be as popular as she is."

  I nodded.

  "Alright. That's all I needed to know," I said.

  Millia looked confused.

  "You don't want to know her backstory?" she asked.

  "Augusta can tell me that herself when she's ready," I answered. "Anything else would be intruding on her personal life."

  Millia sighed. She then reached into her hair and scratched it hard. I was beginning to have second thoughts about whether she was in good condition.

  "Fine. Fine. But now, I have something to ask you before we get started: where did you get your magic?" Millia questioned.

  "The rakshasa in the abandoned school building," I responded.

  "Dammit," the girl shook her head. "Congratulations, Dante, you just unlocked the secret boss fight. The second-hardest boss fight in the game because you can't bring your party to it. You'll fight it after the main story is over."

  A sinking feeling flowed through me. I felt a pit form in my stomach.

  "Oh."

  Silence overcame the room.

  "Well, at least that gives me plenty of time to train," I tried to look on the bright side.

  "Train hard," Millia advised.

  She sharply snapped her fingers.

  "Now, Dante, status report: what's your progress with the game you're making?"

  "I have some of the most basic rules made. I still don't have a name," I replied.

  She stomped the ground.

  "Not good enough. Get a name by the end of the week, and have a test game ready before we fight the boss," Millia ordered.

  I saluted.

  "Yes, ma'am!"

  "Now, time for your debriefing and briefing," Millia started. "Augusta successfully defeated the first boss in the Duke's Duplicity after the rest of us failed to. I'd say my failure was the second worst. Running off on your own like you did was worse."

  "No. Not being strong enough was worse," I argued.

  Millia slammed a fist into the desk in front of her. She then scratched her head vigorously.

  "I am not arguing this point. Moving on, this means you've completed the tutorial. Good job."

  At that moment, my mind shattered.

  "The tutorial? Not the first arc?" I asked.

  "That's right, Dante. You won the tutorial. That boss you fought becomes a normal enemy in the late game," Millia answered.

  Well...fuck.

  "It'll only get harder from here," I guessed.

  "Yes. Now, moving on."

  Millia waved a hand through the air.

  "The next boss is the alchemy teacher. The new one. He isn't here yet, but he'll be here soon," she explained. "He's basically a mad scientist who drinks the wrong elixir and turns himself into a monster at the end of the first chapter. He's a tragic character, like Augusta."

  "Should we warn someone about him?" I asked.

  "No one would believe us," Millia answered.

  She then tapped the desk hard.

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  "This isn't like warning people about monsters. As far as most people know, he's an upstanding member of society. His word is better than ours. And even he doesn't think the elixir will turn him into a monster. We just need to prepare for the fight," the girl said.

  "How are we going to do that?" I questioned.

  Millia clawed her head again.

  "First, the bonding events. You've got one with Janek, one with Robert, one with Augusta since you're not doing any bonding events with me, and one with our newest party member: Morgana."

  "That name sounds familiar," I noted.

  A sigh escaped Millia's mouth.

  "Morgana is in our class, but she doesn't talk much. You probably heard about her from the online discourse," she stated. "Out of all of the Duke's Duplicity's love interests, she's the most popular. Mostly because she actively flirts with Dante and pursues him."

  I cringed.

  "Sorry, but I'm not flirting with Morgana. I'm dating Augusta, not her," I said.

  Millia held up her hands in a defensive pose.

  "Don't worry. Augusta made it clear to everyone, including Morgana, that you're with her. Morgana backs down when Dante has another love interest, so she'll treat you like another classmate," the girl assured me.

  I breathed a sigh of relief.

  "That's good. I'm not letting anyone try to part me and Augusta."

  Millia took a deep breath.

  "I still don't know how you managed to romance a boss...well, there's no way you're fighting her at this point, outside of training. You've averted one of the Duke's Duplicity's biggest tragedies. I guess you deserve praise for that much, at least," she said.

  "Thanks," I replied.

  She then shook her head.

  "Moving on, there is something else you'll find out about soon: expeditions."

  "Expeditions?" I tilted my head.

  "They're one of the main non-combat mechanics of the Duke's Duplicity," Millia explained. "You can send your party members on expeditions to get various rewards. You also have to go on a set expedition yourself. This is a quest that will get you a magic item."

  Millia then narrowed her eyes.

  "The core of expeditions in the Duke's Duplicity is balancing the danger of going through them with sending your party members to get other rewards. Party members going on an expedition can't accompany you on your trip."

  She then marched forward before poking me in the forehead.

  "And if you go on an expedition on your own, I am going to bean you," Millia said.

  The girl kept jabbing me.

  "You have an extra party member, Augusta, so you have no excuse for not taking someone with you."

  She poked me harder.

  "Do. You. Understaaaaaaaaaand?"

  "I get it! I get it! You can stop poking me," I told her.

  Millia halted.

  "Good," she said. "The expeditions shouldn't be too dangerous, and the school sends mercenaries with the students who go on dangerous ones, so don't worry about anyone risking their lives for you."

  That was good to know. If so, it should be fine for someone else to come with me. And knowing a certain girl, she'd probably find some way to follow me anyway.

  "I'll take Augusta if she's up for it. We can consider it a date," I replied.

  Then, a hint of curiosity flowed through me.

  "So, what artifact is my first expedition for?" I asked.

  "The Ring of Manel," Millia answered. "In the Duke's Duplicity, it increases ranged attack and reload speed. It's most useful for Janek, but pretty much every character can make good use of it. Which is good because he only half needs it after this arc."

  "That's good," I nodded.

  Then, I could potentially have anyone available use it, even if Janek isn't with me.

  "And I think that's enough of a briefing for now. We've spent enough time here today," Millia said.

  "Right, classes are going to start soon," I replied.

  With that, we left the empty room and made our way to our own classroom. Millia went ahead of me, getting some distance. I met up with Augusta on the way there. She was dressed in her usual dress, and there was the slightest smile on her face when she saw me.

  "Dante, my love," Augusta inclined her head. "Are you ready for classes today?"

  I gave her a slight nod back.

  "Augusta, my dearest, I am," I said.

  The two of us started walking to class together.

  "So, Augusta, have you heard that we might have a new alchemy teacher?"

  "No," she replied. "Is that something Millia told you?"

  That's when I realized something. Back when I was fighting the first boss, Millia somehow got the others to charge into the wilderness and go after it, ready for battle. She just got the party, probably because convincing the teachers would be harder.

  But what did she tell them? They'd have questions, like how did Millia know about the monster in the woods?

  "Augusta, back before you saved me from the truiecheval, what did Millia tell you?" I asked.

  "She told me that you're a monster hunter and she's your handler," Augusta answered.

  Great lie, Millia! Robert already thinks I'm some monster hunter, so he'd have backed you up. As far as I know, you don't spend time with anyone in the party. Which means they wouldn't be able to contradict anything you said about yourself.

  Still, I didn't want to lie to Augusta.

  "I'd say that's close enough to the truth," I said. "But that's one of my secrets."

  My girlfriend tilted her head.

  "So, is Millia your handler?" she asked.

  "More like an informant," I shrugged.

  "That explains why you actually bother staying around her, even though she's a massive bitch."

  I almost burst out laughing. To stop myself, I had to place a hand on my mouth. Little chokes came out of me.

  Augusta placed a hand on my shoulder.

  "Dante, are you alright?" she asked.

  "I'm fine, Augusta. I didn't expect you, or any noble, to say something crude like that," I answered.

  Now, my girlfriend looked confused.

  "Why? Bitch isn't that harsh an insult. It is perfectly appropriate for the nobility," she said.

  Ah, it seems that bitch isn't as bad an offense as in my old world. I really wish the game's lore told me that. Then again, maybe this is something that only came up after the tutorial?

  Still, there was something that I wanted to know.

  "Are you calling Millia a bitch because you don't like her or because you don't like me spending time with other women?" I wondered.

  "I'm calling her a bitch because she is a bitch," Augusta replied. "It is an accurate description."

  Augusta reached up and patted my head.

  "Don't worry about being around other women. As long as you're not romantically involved with them, I don't mind it," she said.

  "But you definitely don't like Millia?" I questioned.

  "That's right. I don't," Augusta replied.

  My mind flashed back to one of my earlier conversations with Millia. She had seen some of the worst horrors of the world and might be hiding PTSD. Even if Augusta wasn't exactly wrong about Millia, I couldn't bring myself to outright hate her.

  With a shrug, I responded.

  "I don't really like her either. But she might have some reasons for acting the way she does. And she did come in to save me, even if it was for her own purposes. So, please don't be too harsh on her."

  Augusta shook his head.

  "Dante, reasons and excuses are not the same thing. You're the one who taught me that," she said.

  What?

  "I am?" I asked.

  "Yes," Augusta answered. "I am a princess. I have the right to order people around. But that doesn't mean I should unless I have a good reason to. My status is no excuse. You told me that."

  Now, I really didn't want to think of what Augusta's parents were like if I'm the one who taught Augusta this. A pang of sympathy flowed through me for the people they ruled over. How horrible was her homeland in their hands?

  "It's a shame that I'm not in the position to teach Millia," I stated.

  "She wouldn't listen to you even if you were. I've seen her sort before. She won't change until something bad enough happens to break her," Augusta replied.

  I rubbed the back of my head.

  "Break her worse than..."

  The rest went without saying. We'd both seen how bad her mental breakdown was.

  "Has her behavior changed since then?" Augusta asked.

  "She's given me more information than I thought she ever would," I answered.

  "That's one time she broke, leading to one change. Now, the only thing we can do is wait for her to break again."

  That idea terrified me.

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