I Stole the Heroines’ Tragedy Flags

After the long lunch break, we were checking the school map, moving toward our next class.

"…Heh… Heeek!" "‥‥." "…Ugh, damn it! Why is this academy so damn huge?!" "…We’ve only been walking for less than 10 minutes?" "That’s a hell of a lot of walking! …Ah, shit. My legs hurt."
What I learned today:
Kiana Edenvice had much worse stamina than I expected. In the game, I never noticed because it focused mainly on her dying scenes, but as I learned about these little details, it felt strange.
"Hey, why are you splitting hairs? Is this funny?" "…I didn’t laugh." "Shut the hell up! Take your hand out of your mouth, you little brat!"

Thud! Thud!
"…Your stamina’s trash, but why the hell is your punch so strong?" "Do you want another hit?" "Sorry."
It seemed like she was out of energy for any more bickering, so Kiana lowered her fists and started walking again, while her heavy breathing echoed between us. With such low stamina, it looked like she was going to suffer for a while.

"…Ugh, seriously! When are we going to get there?!" "Well, it looks like it’s about 5 more minutes?" "Fucking hell, really?!"
She cursed with every step she took. It was a good thing the weather was cool; if it had been summer, she would have probably turned into a cold corpse by now.
"Ugh… ugh… Seriously, this place is unnecessarily huge…" "Well, at least the facilities are nice. They say the alchemy tools are top-notch, right?" "…Hehe, I really like that part."

Look at her.
Every time alchemy comes up, she’s like an idiot, grinning like that—
"…Did you just curse me?" "……No?" Thwack!
…Did she learn telepathy?
By the way, she can’t be using her aura properly, right? Her bones must have cracks in them.

After a long trek, we finally arrived at the research building where the alchemy class was held. We stared in awe at the advanced magical tools displayed right at the entrance as we moved further inside. Passing by the alchemy section, Kiana’s tired expression was suddenly replaced with excitement as she spotted something.
"…Woah, no way! That’s the Kikkileng flower from the northern Eldon region! They say just one of these costs 5 platinum coins!"
"One flower is worth 5 platinum coins? Is that the Kikkileng flower?" "Yeah! It’s one of the highest quality materials for mana recovery potions!"

The flower had greenish petals tangled together like vines. I knew about the Kikkileng flower from the game as it was used in potion-making in the later stages. The problem was that in the game, there wasn’t an illustration of the flower, so I had no idea what it actually looked like until now. Now, I regretted not accepting it when that elf gave it to me as a gift back then.
'Shit, if I had known, I would’ve taken that damn gift from him…'
I refused back then, dismissing it as a farewell gift while throwing a tantrum. Now, I deeply regretted that decision. The precious treasure I let slip away flashed before my eyes.

If you are reading this translation anywhere other than .net or SilkRoadTL, it has been stolen.
'5 platinum coins... That’s 5,000 gold coins... or 500,000 silver coins? Damn it.'
With that amount, I could at least pay back 10% of the money I borrowed from Professor Chenxi.
"Ain! Hurry up! The class is about to start!"

As I held back the tears of regret, Kiana dragged me along, and I forced my reluctant feet to move.
***
[History and Basics of Magical Engineering]

The large letters on the classroom door confirmed that we had arrived at the right place. Judging by the sounds from inside, it seemed like quite a few students were already there.
Kiana, who had been walking ahead of me, placed her hand on the door handle. Coincidentally, at that exact moment, someone else reached for the handle at the same time.
"Huh?" "…Ah, sorry."

As soon as their hands touched, the person pulled back, startled, apologizing immediately. The way she curled up like a trembling hamster was almost comical.
…And it was a very familiar face.
Her fiery red hair, a symbol of the royal family, stood out. She froze when she met my gaze, and her expression quickly hardened.
"‥‥." "‥‥." "…Huh?"

The awkward silence between us lingered briefly. Kiana, caught in the strange atmosphere, looked back and forth between the two of us with a puzzled expression.
"What the hell—Hey, Ain!"
I quickly brushed past her and entered the classroom before Kiana could call out to me. To avoid the awkward encounter, I quietly sat in an empty spot. As expected, Kiana plopped down next to me.

"Ain. What the hell was that about? Was that the princess? Are you two... familiar with each other?" "‥‥." "Why are you silent? Seriously, did you—"
"Long time no see, Ain."
Cutting off Kiana’s questioning, a familiar voice interrupted. It was calm and gentle, with a hint of the untainted innocence I remembered. But the distinct difference was the faint hostility and resentment in her voice now.

"…We’re not really on speaking terms, are we?" "……I suppose not." "‥‥." "‥‥."
Our conversation ended awkwardly. The princess had always been shy and never great with words, and with Kiana sitting next to me, it was hard to speak freely. If I were alone, I could have dropped the mask, but with Kiana there, it felt impossible.
The two gazes from either side of me were uncomfortable.

Creeeak!
"Hello, everyone~ I’m Halen Aines, and I’ll be teaching you Magical Engineering from now on."
A middle-aged woman entered the classroom through the door, smiling. She was Professor Halen, the one now in charge of our class. It seemed that, due to the butterfly effect of the Fourth Prince’s death, the professor for this course had changed to her.

After briefly scanning the class, Professor Halen’s gaze landed on us.
"Hmm, since today is the first day, how about we do a quick group activity?"
***

"Pair up with the three people closest to you! For now—"
I quickly raised my head and looked around the room. No matter how I looked at it, the only people in the corner seat were the three of us.
'…This is really the worst.'

These awkward situations never go the way I want.
***
Kiana Edenvice was feeling extremely uncomfortable in the current situation. Although she was enjoying the Magical Engineering class, the strange, heavy atmosphere between us on either side was impossible to ignore. She couldn’t hide her frustration due to her personality.

'What’s their relationship? Why do they look at each other like that, like enemies?'
Even she, despite her brash nature, could sense something. It had been a while since they last saw each other, but it didn’t seem like they were exactly welcoming.
'It doesn’t look like they completely hate each other, though…'

Ain was always hard to read since he didn’t show his emotions, but she could clearly feel the emotions from the princess. The brief glances she threw at Ain were filled with pity and longing, but at the same time, they were full of betrayal and hostility.
It was hard not to suspect something.
'…Ain, you bastard. Did you actually flirt with the princess or something?'

No, could a commoner even have that kind of connection with royalty? At this moment, Kiana suddenly remembered a story her mother had told her when she was younger about an affair between adventurers and royals. Naturally, she began to compare Ain to the characters in that story.
A shameless, flirtatious, beast-like man.
'…Oh, damn.'

Kiana’s face turned red almost reflexively.
"Ain." "…Yeah?" "You’re such a piece of shit."
"‥‥?"

***
Rustle—rustle—
The only sound filling the room was the rustling of paper. The only other noise was the scratching of a pen.

—Knock knock.
"Who is it?" "Mm~ It's me." "…Ah, Lily-sama."
The door to the principal's office opened, and a familiar silhouette entered. She chewed on candy, her blue hair swaying as she walked in.

"Ugh—ah! Ugh, there’s a mountain of papers on this desk." "…Lily-sama, you shouldn’t sit on the desk." "What’s the big deal? It’s my room anyway, and it’s only Sharine here, right?" "‥‥."
She was about to say something but closed her mouth tightly. No matter what she was doing, the real principal wasn’t her, but Sharine. And no matter how many times she was corrected, Lily had no intention of changing her ways.
"By the way, Lily-sama, did you manage to find out everything you were looking for?" "Mm~ well… most of it?" "Then—" "Yeah, the Demon King will be born soon." "…Again with this?"

At her words, Sharine tightly gripped the pen she had been holding. The rebirth of the Demon King. This meant that the clash between the hero and the Demon King was imminent. The horrific scenes she had witnessed over the centuries as a witch came flooding back into her mind.
"…Once again, everyone will be wounded. Both the hero and the Demon King." "That’s right. But the real trash that needs to be cleaned up are other people." "‥‥."
Sharine gazed at her master, who was calmly licking her candy.

"‥‥? Lily-sama, is there something good happening?" "Mm? Nothing, why?" "You’re smiling more today than usual."
What she was talking about was no light matter. No matter how much we might be unable to intervene in outside affairs, if it were the usual Lily, she would have constantly been considering alternative ways to handle things. But for some reason, she seemed unusually at ease today.
She smiled at her question and then took out a new candy, opening her mouth.

"Well, maybe this time it’s different~?" "…What?" "I saw a possibility. From a certain child."
As she popped the new candy into her mouth, she thought about the one boy who had the potential to twist fate, bound by no laws of the world.