Millia put her head in her hands.

  "You are giving me such a headache, Dante," she said.

  We were in an empty classroom, and it was blatantly obvious to me that Millia was upset. This room was in the abandoned wing of the school, far from where anyone might be listening in on us.

  "I'm sorry," I put my hands together. "I didn't have time to think of anything else, and I had to tell Augusta something."

  "I know. And you could have told her something worse. But this is still a brand new headache," Millia stated.

  "If it helps, I didn't say that you were interested in playtesting the game. So, you could stay out of it," I pointed out.

  She let out a deep groan.

  "I have to get involved, Dante. At the very least, I need the basic details of the game you end up making. Otherwise, people will get suspicious if they ask me and I know nothing about it," Millia said.

  "That's a good point," I nodded. "But you could just say that you forgot."

  The girl scoffed. She folded her arms with a huff. Then, she sat on the desk behind her.

  "Do you really think I want to be seen as forgetful?" Millia shook her head. "No, Dante, we are figuring out this game together. Or, rather, you're figuring it out and telling me about it."

  I decided that it would be best to change the subject. At that point, I had some ideas for the game, but not enough to make something. I'd figure it out later.

  "And speaking of this whole incident, someone overheard us the last time we talked. Do you think whoever it was was spying on us?" I asked.

  Millia grimaced harder than before.

  "It's unlikely. We haven't exactly done anything worth...spying...on," she suddenly became dead silent.

  A few moments passed.

  "Millia, is there a problem?" I asked.

  The girl slapped her forehead.

  "Of course! Why didn't I think of it before!" Millia groaned. "You befriended a princess, Dante! That alone makes you a target for spies! And her parents are probably spying on you right now if they know."

  I sighed.

  "Of course, this is an Early Modern society. Being a helicopter parent for a princess is expected," I shook my head.

  Millia let out a loud scoff.

  "Helicopter parents? More like Komodo dragon parents," she said.

  Before I could ask Millia what she meant by that, the girl jabbed a finger into my chest.

  "Be very careful, Dante! You have no idea just how much danger you're in!" Millia declared.

  "You could just tell me," I pointed out.

  She scoffed and turned away, sending a flicker of annoyance through me. Then, I saw Millia shiver.

  "I'm sorry, Dante. You're better off not knowing for now. There's nothing you can do about it yet, so please just don't think about it," she said.

  Another shudder pulsed through Millia's body.

  "Let's start planning something else out. You've got Janek's bonding event next, right? And I'm sure the Bloodbath Princess will be there too..."

  Just as Millia predicted, and I knew full well was going to happen, I met Augusta on my way to Janek. It was the weekend. No classes, and Janek wasn't at his horse club.

  To be more specific, I met Augusta in a hallway that led to a forest outside of the academy. I had no idea how she got here before me. Did the girl somehow know that I was going to meet with Janek today? Or did Augusta predict it based on my past actions with Robert?

  "Hey, Augusta," I waved. "It's good to see you today."

  The princess gave me a curt nod.

  "Dante," she said, her voice empty of emotion.

  We stood there in awkward silence for a moment. That was happening a lot to me recently. Sweat started to trickle down my brow.

  "Do you have anything to say, Augusta?" I asked.

  "Yes," she answered. "You're going to talk to Janek, right?"

  Now, it was my turn to nod.

  "I am. How did you know?" I questioned.

  "It was obvious," Augusta said. "Are you going to be in danger today, too?"

  Ah, she remembered last time. I was a bit surprised that Augusta was bothered by it. Yes, I was almost killed, but I didn't see why that should trouble anyone.

  "Hopefully not. There shouldn't be any really dangerous violence today," I assured her.

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  Augusta nodded. However, there was a doubtful expression on her face.

  "Dante, I respect you," she said.

  "Thanks," I replied. "I respect you too, Augusta."

  A slight smile crossed her face. Then, it returned to its stoic composure.

  "I don't want to interrupt your alone time with Janek..." she started.

  What was it with the people of this world and the sexual implications of their wording?

  "...but I want to make sure you are safe, Dante. I would like to follow you while you and Janek do whatever you're doing," Augusta finished.

  You know...considering how she asked permission...this is pretty good progress for her. I'd have let her come anyway. But this was a bonus.

  "Go ahead," I said. "Just don't interfere unless I'm in danger."

  "I won't," Augusta promised.

  With that, I walked out of the building. Augusta followed me at a distance. We found Janek standing next to a table. There was a musket in front of him, and he was in the middle of cleaning it. A pair of clean pistols was at his side on the piece of furniture.

  Being careful to not startle Janek, I didn't want him to accidentally discharge a gun into my face, I approached him with slowness while intentionally making a small amount of noise.

  I stopped a few meters away from him. Then, I stayed there until Janek finished cleaning his musket. When he was done, Janek turned to me.

  "Thank you for waiting, Dante," he said.

  "Don't worry," I waved it off. "You were in the middle of something. I wouldn't want to interrupt you."

  A slight smile crossed Janek's face.

  "And you still have my thanks for it," the noble stated.

  He glanced at Augusta, who was standing behind a bush. Fear flickered through Janek's eyes. I saw him shiver.

  "Do you know she's here?" Janek asked.

  "I do," I answered. "She's just making sure I'm safe."

  A look of pride crossed the boy's face.

  "Ah, that's right, Dante. I heard that you are a warrior now," Janek said.

  I shook my head.

  "I'm not a warrior. I almost got killed by a horde of soles," I replied.

  Janek nodded.

  "Experiences of battle are often painful, especially to first-timers. I figured you might need some time to yourself after that. That is why I didn't go to you. You would come to me when you were ready," he stated.

  Well, that explained a few things.

  "But you are certainly a warrior," Janek said, placing a hand on his chest. "Courage, honor, loyalty. Those are the virtues of the nobility. And any commoner who shows them has my respect, whether that be you or Robert."

  As much as I wanted to say that I wasn't that brave, a different question came to my mind.

  "And what about nobles who don't have those virtues?" I asked.

  "They have my disdain and scorn," Janek answered without hesitation.

  He spat on the ground.

  "It is a shame that many nobles these days ignore our virtues. Some day, they may face me and my musket in battle. Should they run then, the only thing that will change is that I will shoot them in the back instead of the front."

  I remembered this dialogue from the game, as well as the best response.

  "Are you planning to go kill them after you graduate or something?" I questioned.

  Janek shook his head.

  "No. But it is reality that nobles go to war, whether that is foreign or civil. I hope that I do not have to kill others. But if I do, then I do," he said.

  After hesitating for a moment, I asked my next question.

  "Have you killed anyone before?"

  Janek nodded.

  "Yes," he stated. "I killed dozens of birds, a few hundred deer, about ten boars, and eighty-five humans."

  A shiver went down my spine. There were a lot of interpretations of this bit of dialogue online from people who'd only played this far. Some viewed it as a callous way of recalling how he took human lives. Others argued that Janek saw humans as another type of animal, albeit one he was more biased in favor of. After all, he referred to humans by an exact number.

  I thought it was a coping mechanism. Janek killed people at a young age. Maybe seeing humans as animals was a way to deal with it? Despite his talk of honor, killing a person is never easy. Unless you're a sociopath or something.

  However, now I wasn't limited to the game's dialogue options. I could make my own dialogue.

  "You listed humans with other animals. Why?" I asked.

  "You asked if I killed anyone," Janek replied. "Not if I killed any humans. If you just wanted humans, you should be more specific."

  Oh. So that was why.

  "Why did you kill them?" I questioned.

  I already knew the answer, of course. If I didn't, I'd be freaking out right now. It was a bit weird how Dante could be so calm when he heard that one of his friends killed 85 people. Especially considering how Janek was 15 and probably much younger when he made his kills.

  "It was war. They attacked my homeland, the kingdom we are in right now, so I killed them," Janek explained.

  "How old were you then?" I asked.

  A grim expression crossed Janek's face. He shook his head.

  "I was too young. But we needed men, and I had a duty to protect my people," Janek answered.

  He clenched his fists so hard they turned white. Then, Janek let them relax.

  "You seem concerned, Dante. I thank you for this, but I do not want to talk about this anymore."

  "That's fine with me," I replied. "So, you just finished cleaning your guns, Janek?"

  He waved his left hand over the various firearms on the table.

  "Yes. If they are not maintained, they are more likely to jam. And these weapons jam a lot already," Janek said.

  Then, he looked me up and down.

  "Did you not know that, or were you asking for my progress?" he questioned.

  "Eh, I don't use guns," I shrug. "I'm not against them, but I have no training in them. I'd probably shoot one of my allies by accident."

  Janek frowned. Then, he rubbed his musket like someone petting a cat.

  "Perhaps I could give you some training? More options are never a bad thing."

  After saying that, Janek leaned in closer and whispered.

  "And after all those beatings from the Bloodbath Princess, I'm certain you want something that you're better than her at. After all, she defeats you nine out of every ten times you spar."

  I sighed and shook my head.

  "They weren't beatings. We were sparring, and Augusta is very good at holding back," I said. "Or at least she's getting better at it."

  Janek looked at me like he didn't believe a word I said. Still, he shrugged.

  "I find it hard to believe that after losing to a woman, you aren't upset," the noble stated.

  A hint of annoyance flickered through me. I folded my arms.

  "Augusta is a great warrior. So what if she's a woman? She has nothing less than my absolute respect," I said.

  Behind me, I heard someone shuffling on the ground. I got the feeling that we had started talking loud enough for Augusta to hear us. Either that or someone else had wandered over.

  "Well, I suppose I should believe you. You know yourself better than I do, after all," Janek stated.

  He then looked at his musket.

  "So, about training. I was going to go hunting. Are you up for a hunt? They are good practice for war," the noble said.

  "I am," I replied. "Just don't be disappointed if we don't catch anything."

  Janek shrugged.

  "If you fail, I will kill an animal," he stated.

  Well, that meant this trip wouldn't be a complete disappointment if I screwed up. Not that I intended to. But still, there was something else to worry about. I turned to Augusta.

  "Hey, Augusta," I said. "We're going hunting. You should probably stay here. I don't want you to get shot."

  She gave me a thumbs up.

  "Don't worry, Dante. I was shot before, and I was just fine after," Augusta assured me in her emotionless voice.

  ...what the fuck?

  "That...doesn't make things better," I said.

  "Why not?" Augusta asked.

  "Just...stay here. I don't want you to get hurt."

  She shook her head.

  "I can't stay here. I need to make sure you're safe," the girl pointed out.

  "Alright," I nodded. "Then, go hunting with us."

  "No. I don't want to interrupt your time with Janek," Augusta said.

  Janek let out a slight sigh. A small tremble went through his body. Then, he spoke up.

  "If you will give me permission to speak, Your Highness, I have an idea that will let you protect Dante while also not interrupting us."

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