Transmitting Memories.

Detecting Error. Isolating defected Data.

Isolation failed.

Issuing repair. Error not found.

Issuing Mission.

Mission: Return to the Royal Magic and Knight Academy

Description: Return to the Royal Magic and Knight Academy forcefully and revoke your suspension.

Hint: Encountering the heroine and shaking her emotional balance will increase your mission rewards.

“I really don’t know what happened. The lady was recuperating exactly like the doctors had advised her to, her meals were light and good for her constitution but now she isn’t waking up. The doctors also couldn’t find a reason for her situation and advised me to be on stand-by until she wakes up on her own or there are some other changes of her situation. Please forgive me.”

As I was slowly gaining consciousness again, I heard my maid uttering an explanation to somebody.

“How long has she been sleeping?”

“This is the fifth day, master.”

‘Huh?’, wasn’t I in the process of going through Sophien’s memories?

Somehow I felt that these memories did not fully correspond to my own experiences as Sophien. Strictly speaking, it was too little. Was it because there were only fragments of her soul remaining?

I tried to open my eyes but it was incredibly difficult.

Notice: Due to an error in the Game System your body functions were not fully preserved. Right now your body is in a weakened state. Instead a mission has been generated to accelerate the healing process. During the duration of the mission your Health Stat will be increased by 10.

Do you wish to view the mission? Yes/No

The cold voice of the Game System helped me to focus my thoughts while a blue panel appeared inside my head.

Mission: Return to the Royal Magic and Knight Academy

Description: Return to the Royal Magic and Knight Academy forcefully and revoke your suspension. +10 Health Points during the mission.

Hint: Encountering the heroine and shaking her emotional balance will increase your mission rewards.

Will you accept? Yes/No

After accepting the mission the world finally stopped spinning and I could read the panel in earnest. It was about time for me to return so I had no complaints.

“My lady?”, the strict maid – no – Ines called out to me after noticing the change of my posture. “Call the doctors and notify the Duke, the Young Miss has awoken.”

There were hurried footsteps and it sounded as if someone ran into something before everything quieted down. “My lady? Are you awake?”

Ines was still in my room, her round face was the first thing I saw. Why did I ever think she looked strict again? She clearly had an adorable round face which suited her short dark hair.

“Ines”, I had to still be immersed into Sophien’s memories otherwise I could not explain the sadness inside me. Sophien never had a personal servant but the servant which had been by her side during all her re-living experiences and even during her auto-pilot times was Ines.

I had to fight down the tears and slowly calmed myself.

“What day is it? How long have I been asleep?”

“It’s been exactly five days, my lady. I already notified the house, a light meal will arrive shortly. You have to strengthen your body. The doctors too should arrive in a few minutes.” The moment she began explaining her countenance seemed to change. She stood uptight and spoke stiffly, like she didn’t know what to do. It was adorable.

“Relax, Ines. I am feeling much better. I do not think I will need to see the doctor since I am feeling surprisingly well, but I will do so anyway. Just make sure to tell the Duke that I am sorry for making such a fuss, everything is alright”, it felt much more comfortable to speak now. How should I describe it? Was it more harmonious? I certainly felt much clearer than before.

The following process was a mess. It seems like I had severely underestimated the influence I now held. To sum it up, three doctors came just to tell me the same diagnosis: Everything is fine. My body was even sturdier than before my short coma, at least, that is what they believed since only I knew about the changes that this body underwent during the Death Cycle.

Luckily, my words have been transmitted to the Duke so he had no reason to reprimand me. On a whole, the system and I got over this incident successfully. I explained my short coma with the facts and that was the improvement of my constitution, so rumors about some sort of awakening inside the Duke’s daughter went around.

That was fine by me, at least it could explain my new Status Window which had been recorded by the doctors and would be transferred to the academy.

I still had to rest for a few days though. It couldn’t be helped so I just shrugged my shoulders and enjoyed my second holiday which came unexpectedly.

My total Health Stat right now was 15 out of 21 which was fine by itself but thinking about the additional 10 points… I was glad, I was alive right now and would certainly not entrust my body to the Game System again. To think five days were enough for my body to deteriorate to such a point!

However there was one problem left. My suspension. I would have to talk to the Duke, didn’t I?

I sighed, already working as a 17 years old, it really was not easy to be a noble. Concentrating on the few memories I had left, it felt like I too hadn’t been working.

After the whole ruckus was over, I sat myself before the old fashioned make-up table and looked at my reflection in the mirror. It was the first time I really saw my new face, I had all these new memories of Sophien and I was intimately aware of my new body but I never really looked at this new self.

Sophien was incredibly beautiful. Objectively, she should have been very popular in her class. She inherited the famous red eyes of the family bloodline and the dark, black hair of her mother but her features were sharp and gave her an unapproachable feeling. She gave off the feeling of a cold beauty. And while I found her black hair with a light bluish touch breathtaking, the main family always had blue hair without fail.

This was one of the reasons Sophien was isolated from other noble kids. The color was clearly inherited by her mother and mixed with the bloodline but Sophien often had to face ridicule because of it. If it weren’t for her deep red eyes which clearly proved her origin, much worse rumors would have spread.

It was truly ridiculous. If there had been friends around her to guide her…

I sighed. There was no use contemplating the past. I would have to show them that there was no way to ridicule a Duke’s daughter and I would show her, at least her remnants, what it meant to be happy.

Looking around the cold and somehow clinical room, I decided to sleep for now, soon I would have to fight my first battle.

*****

A few days later, I had nurtured my body back to full health and so I made my way over to the working room of the Duke. An uncomfortable feeling started to linger in myself from seeing this unfamiliar familiar door. Harsh words from Cato – my instant brother – surfaced.

I knocked.

“What is it?”, the loud voice of the Duke sounded much deeper through the thick wooden door.

“It is Sophien. I will enter.”

Two knights opened the door for me as I walked into the room with confidence. There was no point in minding a past I haven’t lived through even though I knew of it.

“Father, I have something important to talk about with you”, I did not add a request to have a talk right now because I guessed he would let it pass as long as I did not act improperly.

In contrast to my new brother, the Duke had never shown an interest in Sophien. As such he was quite fair. I continued to stand before his grand desk, waiting for him to finish.

He resembled the Cato of my memories. They both had bluish hair with dark red eyes like our last name, rubys. His hands were large and full of calluses he most likely gained from wielding the sword. His presence made me aware that I now truly lived in a medieval world and not in the modern times, I was used to.

I had to be more careful if I did not want to become a chess piece in his hand.

“You can sit down to wait”, he motioned to the little couch standing further in the room but I shook my head.

“This is a good exercise to prove the improvement of my body to you so I will remain standing. Take your time. Besides talking to you I have made no other plans for today”, I tried to soften my tone a little. Even if I did not like him because of his former behavior, I could only ask him for permission to return to the academy. He had enough power to revoke my suspension.

As he resumed his work, I resumed my observation of him. Reynold Aden Rubien, from now on this would be the name of my father. He was not a good father but on the other hand Cato, who started off as a good brother to Sophien was able to watch her die multiple times. Sometimes he was even involved in the process.

The Duke, albeit not being a good father, had always remained neutral between the siblings and always tried to oppose his daughter’s execution even though it would put him in an awkward and disadvantageous position. This time too, he immediately increased my guards without complaining. He surely was searching for that damned assassin.

Honestly, he was a contradiction.

I promised myself to get some sort of revenge for her and to remain alive. I wanted to prove that there was a way for this villainess to live but I couldn’t fathom where to put the Duke in this.

For now I chose to remain neutral. I would have to make up my mind in the future.

Finally he put his pen down. “What is it? I don’t have much time.”

“Thank you father. You should have read the report about the miraculous improvement of my body since I woke up, right?”, after he gave me a short nod, I continued. “As you know, I was suspended for misconduct against a fellow student. You have also been briefed about what prompted my actions, so I will make it short. It is a disgrace to our house to be suspended for a commoner who has clearly misbehaved first. Her conduct of meeting high-nobles without a servant or another student is improper, especially, since one of them already has a fiance.

In favor of my body’s improvement I ask you to send me back to continue my studies. As a replacement of my suspension, I could be signed up for physical training or I could take on the second major of knighthood to show my remorse.

My stats right now are more than enough to endure the training. Furthermore it will be helpful to cultivate my body since there are already attempts to take my life. This penalty will be far more graceful than a suspension. I ask you to think about it.” I ended my long speech with an earnest bow and remained in this position until he motioned me to stand up.

“Enough. I will think about it. Go back to your room.” He too got up and I noticed the vast difference in height. If it weren’t for my dark red eyes it would likely be hard to find any resemblance between us. The bluish hair of this family was in a sharp contrast to my black hair with only a small hint of dark blue. The only other point I resembled this father was in the coldness he emitted. My appearance too, was befitting of a cold beauty perfectly capturing my role of a villainess.

“Yes father. I will be waiting in my room. Take care.”

Again I bowed deeply to indicate my obedience.

“However let me say one last thing, father. Be aware that I will not step down. I have been punished for disregarding the rule of equality which holds inside the school, but to begin with I always kept this rule in my head. If I come to the conclusion that this girl is misbehaving again, I will not hold back because that is what this house taught me.” While my body was still in a bowing posture I stared straight into my fathers eyes. ‘So you will have to protect me’, I thought.

After a moment that seemed to be forever, I saw him smiling.

“Naturally.”