After a few more hours of waiting in a tree, we finally caught a deer! Or at least Janek killed a deer. My shot missed. Thankfully, Janek already had a pistol drawn and ready.

  Augusta, Janek, and I gathered around the animal's corpse. Turning to them, I asked a single question.

  "Do either of you know how to cook venison?"

  Augusta shook her head.

  "I know how to cook squirrels, birds, and boars. But I was never good at hunting deer," her voice was like a cool breeze.

  Janek shrugged.

  "I know how to cook a little bit. It isn't much, but I picked up a little in my army days," he said. "However, I wasn't expecting any of us to cook it. We were going to bring it back to the school. Then, some of the chefs there can make venison."

  Of course, I already knew that a lot of this would happen. The last part of the bonding event was Dante and Janek carrying the deer corpse back to the school. I just modified some dialogue from the game to get us to that point. Not that we wouldn't have reached it anyway...

  "Alright, let's carry the deer back," I stated.

  I grabbed the animal's front legs. Janek grabbed the back. Then, to Janek's utter shock, Augusta picked up the middle. She lifted the dead deer with incredible ease.

  "Y-You're Royal Highness," Janek stuttered out. "You do not have to help us carry it back."

  "Why not? I'm stronger than both of you," Augusta said.

  I could see Janek's ego shrivel up. We both knew that what she said was true, but this was the first time it was outright said. Of course, I doubted Augusta intended any harm by it. She was way too socially awkward for that.

  "You are a princess. You should not have to do manual labor," Janek stated.

  "Nobles of your family's station shouldn't have to do it either," Augusta replied. "But Dante's the only commoner here. I'm not letting him do all the work."

  Janek was behind me, so I couldn't quite see him, but I got the feeling he was grimacing.

  "I was a soldier. It is my duty to serve higher nobility. I would be neglecting it if I let a princess like you carry this deer," he said. "What would your parents say if they heard you were touching dead animals?"

  A sudden silence overcame Augusta. I felt an incredible unease flow through me. Then, a shifting sound came from Janek's feet. It seemed he was nervous, too.

  I remembered what Millia told me about Augusta. Her parents were clearly worse than I thought, or she at least had some issues with them.

  "Augusta, are you alright?" I asked.

  "I'm fine," she answered, a tone of frustration flowing through her. "Dante, Janek, what do you think of your parents?"

  Janek spoke up without hesitation.

  "I love them dearly. My greatest wish is to make them proud of me."

  A moment of silence passed. Then, Augusta addressed me.

  "What about you, Dante?"

  This...was not good. I had no idea what Dante thought of his parents. But I couldn't get out of this question. So, I decided to be honest.

  "I don't remember," I said.

  An unexpected amount of pain flowed out of my voice.

  "You don't remember?" Augusta asked.

  "How did that happen?" Janek questioned. "Did you take a blow to your head?"

  My heart seized up. That's right. I didn't remember my parents. And I knew nothing about Dante's parents. Hell, I didn't even know if they were alive. And...it felt awful.

  "I don't know. I just don't remember much past a week before classes started," I said. "And it's been this way since then."

  "We should get you to a doctor. They could help," Janek suggested.

  Shaking my head, I responded.

  "No. If people knew I had amnesia, I might not be allowed to attend King Casimir Academy. I remember enough to know how good an opportunity going here is."

  And I doubted that any doctor in the world had any idea how to treat amnesia. From what I knew of medicine, it could be difficult even in the 21st century. These people were about 400 years less advanced than that era.

  "Are...are you sure about this, Dante?" Janek asked.

  "I am," I answered. "I would appreciate it if you two didn't tell anyone about this."

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  A thump came from where Janek was. I felt a change in the body of the deer. My guess was that he let it drop to put on some gesture.

  "Very well, Dante. I swear on my honor that I will keep this a secret," Janek said.

  "And you, Augusta?" I asked, turning my head back to look at her.

  Her face was filled with incredible sadness. Regret settled over Augusta's eyes.

  "I swear. But Dante, how much have you been suffering? How many of your smiles have hidden sadness?" she questioned.

  That was a ridiculous question.

  "You shouldn't worry about my suffering. Focus on your own problems. I'll even help you with them. That goes for you, too, Janek," I said. "And Augusta. Judging from how you responded to Janek asking you about your parents, you probably have a lot."

  Augusta looked away.

  "I can't fix my problems. At least, not yet. Not even with your help," she stated. "But I could help you with yours, Dante."

  Shaking my head, I responded.

  "My problems aren't worth focusing on. Don't worry about me. Let's just get this deer to the chefs."

  That's right. Augusta, Janek, Millia, and Robert all had real troubles. I just had amnesia and whatever baggage Dante carried with him. Since I ended up in his body, it can't be much.

  And considering how I didn't warn Robert as much as I could have about the soles...I didn't even deserve to have the others worry about my issues. Especially since I was just getting them to join my party so they'd risk their lives to save my miserable hide.

  Then again...I knew when the first boss was coming up, didn't I? I did not have to include the others in my party. I could sneak off and fight it ahead of them. That way, I'd be the only one risking my life.

  I'd never defeated the first boss in the game before. And now, I had to fight it in real life. But that was fine. I could just train more until I'm more than good enough to take it out.

  The walk back to the school building was quiet. I didn't understand why, but Janek and Augusta didn't seem interested in talking. Whenever I brought something up, they made some small comment, and we moved on. Was it something I said?

  To my surprise, Robert was waiting for us near the school entrance. He had his arms folded along with an evil look aimed at Janek. But the boy moved over and helped us carry the deer.

  "Dante, after this, can I talk with you in private?" Robert asked.

  "Sure thing," I answered.

  "Good," he nodded.

  When the deer was delivered, Robert and I went to an empty room. There was a serious expression on his face. I could see a flicker of admiration behind his eyes.

  "Is there a problem?" I questioned, having no idea what else to say.

  "Hopefully, not," Robert said. "I'll be blunt. Dante, you come from a family of monster hunters, don't you?"

  I blinked in shock.

  "What?" I asked.

  "It's the only thing that makes sense. You knew what those things we fought in the tunnels were, you know magic, and you aren't afraid of the Bloodbath Princess. You must have fought things even scarier than her," Robert answered.

  Nothing he brought up had anything to do with Dante's family. But Dante might have come from a family of monster hunters. I didn't know. It looked like I'd have to tell Robert about my lack of memories. How else could I possibly get out of this mess without saying something about my family?

  "I don't remember," I said.

  Robert scoffed.

  "If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine," he replied. "But just tell me this: are there any other monsters that I have to worry about?"

  He'd be on the trip with the first boss. But Robert wouldn't have to worry about it. I'd deal with it alone or die trying.

  "Not for a while," I stated.

  Robert breathed a sigh of relief.

  "Thank the gods," he said.

  "If that's all, I have some planning to do," I replied.

  "Ah, yes, the game," Robert nodded.

  Then, a grimace crossed his face.

  "Did you ask Janek if he wanted to play?"

  "I forgot," I said. "I'll ask him later."

  Robert sighed.

  "Dante, would you mind if I asked you to not have him join? It's bad enough that I'm playing it with one noble," he stated.

  Then, a voice came to our ears.

  "Not have me join what?"

  It was Janek, entering the room. Augusta walked in right after him. Robert was clearly struggling to hold in a glare. I did...not want to deal with this right now.

  I ran over to Augusta and grabbed her hand.

  "Oh, Augusta, it's good to see you here! I just remembered something that I wanted to talk to you about!" I said.

  "You did?" she asked with her emotionless voice.

  However, I saw a flicker of interest in her eyes.

  "Yes! Now, come with me!"

  I dragged Augusta out of the room and into the hallway. We then kept walking until we were some distance away from where Janek and Robert were. Then, I let go of her.

  "So, Augusta...you know how I've had a hangout day with Janek and Robert?" I asked.

  "Yes," she answered.

  "Well, for full disclosure, I was planning on having them with Millia and you. Millia's was supposed to be sooner and yours later, but she wasn't interested," I said.

  Now, Augusta looked confused.

  "Why is mine later than Millia's?" she questioned.

  "I don't know," I shrugged. "Probably because you're a lot stronger than her."

  A sudden sense of understanding crossed over Augusta. The girl nodded.

  "You were going to spar with Millia," she said. "You wanted to compare yourself to someone closer to your level."

  I opened my mouth to object, but then I closed it. Dante and Millia's bonding event included a sparring match between them.

  In the Duke's Duplicity, Millia was worried that her kindness and passive nature would cause her problems in the future. Dante then had a fight with her to build up her confidence. He let her win. Millia realized this right away. She appreciated the gesture, even if it didn't help much in the end.

  And I think I was starting to understand even more why Millia didn't want to go on this bonding event with me. Aside from seeing it as a waste of time, the Millia I knew was the furthest thing from kind and passive. She really didn't need to have her confidence built up. If anything, it might be best if it were knocked down a few pegs.

  "I mean, I was going to spar with her. That wasn't the only reason why I was going to hang out with her. It wasn't even the biggest. But she isn't interested at all," I said.

  A flicker of annoyance passed over Augusta's eyes. Great. Here, I made her mad.

  "Why do you even spend time with Millia? She is a very unpleasant woman," Augusta stated.

  I let out a slight sigh.

  "We have some formal business together," I replied. "But since I'm not going to hang out with Millia, do you want to hang out instead? We don't have to spar. We can do whatever you want. And if you're mad that I didn't want to spend time with you first, I'll understand."

  Augusta shook her head.

  "I'm not mad. We spar all the time in physical education class. It's fine if you wanted to be with some of your other friends instead of me," she said.

  "It isn't an instead thing. It's more a...I'm not sure what to call it," I admitted.

  Augusta gave me a single nod.

  "When are we...you called it hanging out?"

  I held a thumb up.

  "Yes, I did. But only if you have enough time. If you're busy on the next free day, I don't want to get in the way of whatever you have to do."

  Augusta turned away.

  "The next free day? Okay. Meet me at the school entrance then. Dress in something casual. We're going into town. I have something in mind that isn't sparring."

  With that, she started walking off.

  I was hoping we could get in some extra training during our bonding event. But it looks like that isn't an option. Well, I suppose that making sure Augusta enjoys herself is more important than my training anyway.

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