Chapter 3: A Pleasant Lunchtime (2)
Danger.
Danger, danger, danger. I just had a normal conversation with a girl for the first time.
Was there anything weird about it? Did my breath smell? What if I looked like some awkward outcast?
“…Haah.”
Taking a deep breath, I felt like my panicked mind was finally starting to clear up a bit.
Still, was I sure I had acted normal during that interaction?
Up until now, I’d only ever spoken to women of higher or lower status than myself—not someone my own age.
Honestly, I was surprised. Apologizing out of the blue after calling someone over? That was fresh.
I half-expected something more along the lines of ‘So-and-so young lady has a message for you! Know your place, hohoho!’
Maybe I wasn’t as ostracized as I thought. If there were girls polite enough to come apologize to me, perhaps my reputation hadn’t gone completely down the drain.
The idea that I might blend into academy life as quietly and uneventfully as I had during high school made me feel a little better.
So, her name was Iris, huh? She was a cute girl. But more than anything, I envied her amethyst-colored hair.
Every morning, I had to deal with my own conspicuous mess of white hair streaked with black strands, looking like salt-and-pepper chaos.
No offense to my parents, but if I’d taken after my father’s jet-black hair instead, maybe I wouldn’t stand out so much. Not that it would’ve helped much, what with my tail and animal ears drawing attention. Still, humans naturally want to hide even the smallest parts of themselves.
At least I do. Even in my past life, when my mom bought me brightly colored clothes, I’d wear them once or twice before retreating back to my collection of plain black t-shirts.
Anyway, maybe I’d been too rattled earlier and fled in a panic, but I had somehow ended up in an unfamiliar part of the academy.
A glance at a nearby clock told me there were still more than 30 minutes left of lunchtime.
The buffet had been self-service, so I regretted not sampling more food, but I couldn’t recall any dishes that offered the kind of bold flavors I was craving.
I made a mental note to spend more time filling my plate with food that suited my taste next time. For now, I looked around and found myself in a strangely bustling area.
…Where’s the school store? This is suffocating.
Asking someone for directions wasn’t an option. Everyone who saw me scurried away as if I were Moses parting the Red Sea.
I couldn’t muster the nerve—or shamelessness—to stop someone actively avoiding me just to ask for help.
What a dilemma. I briefly considered requesting a map from a teacher after classes, but then I spotted someone.
White hair similar to mine but a different shade, sapphire-blue eyes that gleamed brightly, and, most importantly, the name etched in the official profiles I’d read before: The Outcast.
Amidst the academy’s socialites, who excelled at emotional manipulation and covert bullying, this girl stood out in stark contrast: Anastasia, the Northern Duke’s daughter.
The backstory said she had joined battles against northern barbarians at the age of 13 and spent six years gaining real combat experience before enrolling in the academy… not that I cared about that.
What caught my attention was her early portrayal in the story as an outcast. Her awkward demeanor and subtle mistreatment by others had made her one of the most relatable characters to me.
She was someone who wielded weapons instead of fans and struggled with noble etiquette, often speaking bluntly. Watching her interactions had always been satisfying.
She either hadn’t heard about me or simply didn’t care. Oddly, that indifference was comforting.
If anyone could give me directions without much trouble, it was probably her.
Seeing someone familiar—even a minor character—made my tail reflexively puff up in excitement.
“…Who are you?”
Her voice was awkward, as I’d expected from an outcast like her. For some reason, the fact that she matched my mental image so perfectly made me feel a little giddy.
“I’m Baek Hoyeon. Nice to meet you.”
“…Ah, I’m Anastasia,” she replied.
“…”
“…”
Silence. I’d resolved to ask her a question, but I hadn’t thought through exactly what to say. What could I ask to make this less awkward?
“…Do you know where the school store is?”
“The school store?” she repeated, blinking.
I nodded. Her guarded posture didn’t relax, but I could sense she was at least willing to answer.
By the way, she really was stunning. I’d read descriptions of her beauty in the text, but seeing it in person, there was no other word for it: beautiful.
And yet, eventually, even she would end up befriended by that hypocritical socialite protagonist.
I couldn’t recall exactly when it happened, but I’d skimmed the extra chapters and vaguely remembered it. Though honestly, 19 years of living had erased most of my knowledge of the novel.
Thinking about it made me bitter. Here I was, stuck as a nobody, while that guy got to live a carefree life of excess. Still, I felt better looking at Anastasia’s face.
Maybe, just maybe, I could mess with the plot just a little.
“If you go left from that dormitory over there, you’ll see the Student Union building. The store is on the first floor.”
“Thank you.”
I wanted to chat with her longer, but it wasn’t like she knew me. Holding her back any further would’ve felt selfish, so I gave her a slight bow and headed for the store, already anticipating the bread waiting for me.
…Come to think of it, she had also been heading toward the store. But after I asked for directions, she seemed to change course.
Surely it wasn’t because she didn’t want to walk in the same direction as me, right? That’d be too much. Shaking off the ominous thought, I arrived at the Student Union.
As expected of Amaurus Academy, the building was both grand and ornate.
If I were grading it on extravagance alone, I’d give it 150 out of 100. It was so massive that even a city hall would seem small in comparison—more like a small palace.
Did it really need to be this big? The thought crossed my mind, but I quickly dismissed it.
This was a school for the children of noble families who saw grandeur as a virtue. For them, this level of opulence was probably just right.
Now that I think about it, my parents had always been frugal. Despite being an emperor, my father despised unnecessary luxuries, and my mother, who was deeply detached from worldly affairs, was even less inclined toward extravagance. It was no wonder I wasn’t accustomed to such splendor.
Like a bumpkin gawking at the grand scenery, I looked around while searching for the school store.
Finding it wasn’t hard; its large sign practically screamed, “I’m the store!” making it stand out instantly.
I entered, suppressing a small worry—hopefully, a single loaf of bread wouldn’t cost a whole gold coin. Thankfully, the prices weren’t that outrageous.
Of course, as soon as I stepped in, the atmosphere around me froze over, so leisurely browsing wasn’t really an option.
It felt like my mere presence was stealing the peace of those who had come here to relax. As someone who deeply valued my own alone time, I felt genuinely sorry for them.
Scanning the shelves, I didn’t notice anything particularly special. While the bread looked different from what I was used to, the smell was familiar.
I picked out a few items and grabbed a carton of milk as well. When I paid, it didn’t even cost a full gold coin.
So even the wealthy don’t gouge prices unnecessarily. With that minor curiosity satisfied, I stepped outside, only to feel a familiar, lingering gaze. I’d never experienced such attention in my previous life, but in this one, it had happened several times.
Something—or someone—was watching me.
The thought barely had time to form before the gaze disappeared as abruptly as it had come, leaving me unsettled.
Was it the shadowy hand of noble society? But there hadn’t been any malice in that stare.
Perhaps it was the non-human blood running through my veins, but living as Baek Hoyeon gave me senses I never had in my past life.
I could detect the faint movements of insects, the intentions behind distant gazes, even the subtle emotions hidden in someone’s breath.
Of course, this wasn’t always a good thing. While I could use my heightened senses to find peace in the stillness of nature, the combination of my personality and hypersensitivity often resulted in near panic when I found myself in crowded places—a frustrating synergy.
But for now, I decided to dismiss the gaze from my mind. Whoever it was didn’t seem worth investigating, especially since the lunchtime rush was causing students to flood the store. I quickly moved on, needing to escape the suffocating environment.
***
Elsewhere, Camilla and her group had just finished pestering Exipri, essentially robbing her and scolding a man for daring to hold Exipri’s hand.
Thankfully, I managed to get away by playing along with their mood enough to appease them.
Camilla’s role early in the story had been to showcase just how unpleasant nobles could be, so she wasn’t a particularly popular character.
However, she did play a significant role in overcoming the first major crisis, so there was no reason to antagonize her unnecessarily.
Now then, I’d already encountered Exipri and Camilla—next up was Anastasia. A fan favorite heroine even in the latter half of the story.
She was a battle-hardened heroine, a cool and aloof tsundere. Yet, she also believed that holding hands with a man would instantly result in a child.
And now, that very character was alive and breathing before my eyes. How could I possibly miss this?
Her heroine event had taken place at the school store. Unable to pay for her items because she’d forgotten her wallet, the protagonist had stepped in to cover for her, marking their first encounter.
Being in the next class over, they ran into each other often, and by around chapter 100, they even had a spicy scene together.
The gap between her initial awkwardness and that moment? Truly a masterstroke by the author.
Even though the ending had been botched, didn’t someone once say that messing up the final chapter was a hallmark of a masterpiece? It even inspired me to write that forbidden 5,700-word critique, which ultimately brought me here. In a way, I was grateful.
Factoring in the time I’d wasted dealing with Camilla’s group, I decided there wouldn’t be time for a proper meal.
Heading straight for the store seemed like the best option. As I walked, I wondered idly what Anastasia’s voice would sound like in person.
But then, I noticed something strange—a tension in the air in one particular area.
Curious, I tried to recall if anything like this had happened in the original story, but nothing came to mind.
Now that this was reality and not a novel, I figured it must be something happening outside the protagonist’s perspective.
My curiosity got the better of me, so I followed the strange atmosphere.
And there, I saw Baek Hoyeon and Anastasia facing each other.
…Why?