I Stole the Heroines’ Tragedy Flags

She stared blankly at the massive sphere floating in front of her.

It was slightly larger than her own body, radiating a sinister, deep violet glow as it hovered in midair.
‘…Did I go overboard?’
The kid who had been standing before her just moments ago had been sucked into the sphere in the blink of an eye.

Annoyed that he had given her extra work, she had put in a bit too much force.
As she examined the sphere, which had turned out larger than expected, she eventually lost interest and leaned back onto the sofa.
And then, she pondered.

Would that kid be able to escape from her pocket dimension?
Since he had mana flowing through him, he likely had some level of proficiency in magic.
He also seemed to wield aura—so how skilled was he?

‘A Magic Swordsman, huh… those are pretty rare.’
She had seen plenty of fools who recklessly trained both magic and aura out of sheer arrogance.
But among them, only a handful had ever been strong enough to earn her recognition.

That was just how difficult the path was.
Crunch!
She chomped down on the remaining piece of her lollipop, shattering it between her teeth.

Then, she casually pulled out another one and popped it into her mouth.
The rush of sweetness sharpened her dulled mind.
‘Will he be able to get out?’

She had only been joking when she said she’d kill him, but the likelihood of him actually escaping was close to zero.
After all, the pocket dimension she had created wasn’t something that could be broken through so easily.
Dispelling it with magic was impossible.
That sphere wasn’t a spell but one of her race’s innate authorities.

In fact, attempting to use mana inside would only feed the domain itself.
Cutting through it with aura was even more hopeless.
Even among master-ranked warriors, few could break through her personal domain.

Judging by the amount of aura he had displayed earlier, at best, he was Low Expert tier.
In short, at his level, there was absolutely no way to escape by conventional means.
She had locked him inside knowing exactly that.

After all, catching a dragon’s interest was far harder than most could imagine.
To intrigue a dragon, one had to make the impossible possible—
Only then could someone truly spark her curiosity.

‘Five minutes… It’d be nice if they passed quickly—’
Crack!
"…?"

Her tongue, which had been lazily flicking against the lollipop, froze in place.
If you are reading this translation anywhere other than .net or SilkRoadTL, it has been stolen.
At first, she thought she had misheard.

Because the sound that just rang out was something that absolutely should not have come from that direction.
Crack—!
She turned her head toward the sphere.

The once flawless, smooth surface was now fracturing—
And at an alarmingly fast rate.
‘One minute? No… faster than that.’

This was completely beyond her expectations.
Yet despite that, a wide grin spread across her lips.
Crack! Splinter! Shatter—!
…
…
…
Clang!

Thud.
From the shattered remains of the sphere, a young man emerged.
His heavy breathing made it clear—he was utterly exhausted.

"Hah… Huff…! You really… have no damn conscience…!"
"…Wow. I actually didn’t think you’d make it out."
"I thought I was going to die!"

"But you didn’t. That’s all that matters."
"…Every last one of you damn lizards is completely unhinged…"
As he collapsed onto the sofa, grumbling under his breath, she let out a quiet chuckle.

For the first time in a long while, no, in her entire dragon’s lifespan, something genuinely interesting had come along.
***
"…What’s so funny?"
"Hmm~ Who knows?"

She smirked while looking at me, clearly amused by my exhausted state.
Ignoring her, I took a deep breath and slowly steadied myself.
I had used up every ounce of strength I had just to escape from that damned space.

Both my mana and aura were completely drained.
‘I never thought she’d actually lock me in a real lair…’
Lair.

People often referred to the academy as the dragon’s nest metaphorically.
But the place she had just trapped me in? That was a real one.
Even though it was only a makeshift lair, the overwhelming mana and pressure inside were near infinite.

I almost passed out before I could even do anything.
"Hoo…"
"Looks like you’re recovering? Your regeneration speed is insane~"
"…"
The indifferent expression she had earlier was gone, replaced by a lazy yet intrigued look.

It was an expected reaction. A kid barely past his coming-of-age had just broken out of her lair.
I had successfully piqued her interest.
"Then, does this mean I’m accepted into the academy?"
"…Who knows?"
"What?"
"I feel like you’re still a little lacking?"
"…"

‘What the hell is this crazy dragon planning now?’
She was lying.
Her expression already told me everything.

So what else did she want from me?
"Isn’t this enough to meet the requirements?"
"What you just did was a replacement for the entrance exam. Even for special admission, there has to be a test, right?"
"No, but…"
Even if they made all the new students go through what I just did, none of them would pass.

No matter how high this year’s average skill level was, not a single one of them could escape a lair.
…Maybe the Hero, at best.
"Has special admission always had such high requirements?"
"It’s my choice."
"…Hah, unbelievable."

I didn’t realize it when playing the game, but she had a nastier personality than I thought.
Crazy dragon… her species’ traits are showing.
"Then what else do I have to do?"
"Hmm, well, you did go through something tough. If you answer just one question, I’ll approve your admission."
"That’s so generous I could cry."

At least she wasn’t going to make me go through another ridiculous ordeal.
Answering a question out of curiosity was no problem.
"Alright, I’ll ask. What exactly are you?"
"Huh? Well… I’m just an ordinary human."
"No, that’s not what I meant."

…But her curiosity was sharper than I expected.
"No matter how I look at it, you don’t seem like someone from this world."
For a moment, I felt a chilling killing intent brush past my neck—

…It was probably just my imagination.
"…"
"…"
A heavy silence fell between us.

She was simply waiting for my answer, while I remained silent, unsure of how to respond.
‘…How much does she know?’
I already knew she wasn’t an ordinary being, but I never expected her to ask this question so soon.

Her insight was terrifying.
"Why aren’t you answering?"
"…It’s just an unexpected question. Do you have a reason for thinking that?"
"A reason? …Hmm."
Her eyes met mine.

Her blue pupils flashed sharply, and in the blink of an eye, they slit vertically—revealing the distinct violet irises of a dragon.
She had minimized the external change as much as possible, but I knew exactly what those eyes meant.
‘Dragon’s Sight… seeing it in person is terrifying.’

The dragon’s eye, Dragon’s Sight.
If she was looking at me with that, it meant she wouldn’t tolerate any lies in my response.
Dragon’s Sight allowed its wielder to perceive the core mana of a being as if it were an extension of themselves, making even the slightest tremor in someone’s mana betray their words and actions.

…I had to answer carefully.
Her question wasn’t just because I had escaped the lair.
The real issue was what those all-seeing eyes had uncovered about me.

"I can see the threads that connect living beings."
"…Threads?"
"Yeah. Thin, long threads."
Her expression was as indifferent as ever, but for some reason, there was a trace of sadness in her eyes.
She crushed her candy a little faster than before and continued speaking.

Crunch!
‘…Right, I forgot she had this setting.’
"These threads… you could call them fate. No matter what, they will come to pass."
"…"
"Every being has their own thread. It could represent an ordinary event, or it could mean extreme suffering and death."
"And?"

Crunch!
"The threads of fate can never be avoided. Every living being in this world has at least one. Even I am no exception."
"…"
Now I understood.

Why she was asking me this question.
"But when I look at you, I don’t see any threads at all."
"What exactly are you curious about?"
She hadn’t realized I was an outsider.

Rather—
"How did you escape a predetermined fate? Even I couldn’t do that."
—she must have thought I was the clue to fulfilling the one thing she had wished for her entire life.

"Then, does this mean I’m officially enrolled now?"
"…Yeah."
"Tomorrow’s the entrance ceremony, so what about my uniform and dorm?"
"I’ve already arranged your dorm. Just go there. Your uniform will be delivered to your room today."
"You handle things surprisingly fast."
"I hate hassles, but I’m not lazy."
She glanced at the clock.
‘…Time’s already up.’

I had spent more time here than expected.
There were still things she needed to do as headmaster, so she had to get back to work now.
"I’ll have someone take you to the dorm, so just tell the maid your name."
"Understood. Thank you for allowing my admission."
"…"

—Clack!
‘…He’s gone.’
Yawn—.

Stretching, she let out a long yawn.
Now, she was alone in the office again.
‘I should get back to all the paperwork… ugh, what a pain.’

Thud!
She slumped into her chair and looked at the mountain of documents piled up on her desk.
Just seeing them made her head throb.

…She wanted to quit.
Especially after that conversation.
She couldn’t focus on work at all.

"…"
So instead, she replayed the conversation in her mind.
Something that kid had said was particularly intriguing.

"I never avoided any predetermined fate."
"…But you don’t have a thread?"
"That’s… difficult to explain."
"Even if I don’t let you enroll?"
"…"
She had been disappointed at his answer, but what he said next had completely shocked her.
"But I can tell you this. That thread you mentioned, Headmaster."
"…?"
"If you allow me to enroll, I will definitely remove the thread that binds you."

It was an arrogant claim.
Even thinking about it again, it sounded ridiculous.
But in her Dragon’s Sight, his mana had remained completely steady.

That meant he meant what he said.
‘…Have I finally lost it from living too long?’
Well, she had already approved his admission.

It was too late to take it back now.
She would just have to watch him closely and see for herself.