I Stole the Heroines’ Tragedy Flags

Time passed quietly.

Along with her sobs, the trembling that had been coming from her body gradually subsided as well.
Eventually, the room fell into silence. I carefully opened my mouth.
"Have you calmed down now, Your Highness?"

"…"
"…Your Highness?"
Perplexed by the lack of response, I lightly tapped Hella, who was still in my arms.

No reaction. All I could hear was her soft, even breathing.
"…Is she asleep?"
"Looks like it? Probably not because of a dream. She cried her heart out, so the fatigue must’ve caught up with her all at once."

"Sigh… I see."
"You really are a sinful man, huh~?"
Lili grinned as she bit into a candy, looking amused by the scene.

Meanwhile, I felt like I’d aged ten more years and was ready to drop dead.
What a carefree dragon.
"What’s your relationship with the princess?"

"…Just a mere adventurer and client."
"Hmm… really? That reaction from her didn’t seem like it was just that."
"Enough. Please stop teasing me now."

"Aw, but it’s fun~"
I gently laid the sleeping Hella down on the sofa.
The tear streaks left on her face bothered me, so I wiped them away with my hand.
…Both she and I really went through hell today.

‘Anyway, what should I do now?’
Luckily, we both made it out of today’s incident without any serious harm.
But the real problem came after this.

My relationship with Hella.
Through the dream, we had shared memories of the past—and she now knew what I had done.
Judging by her earlier reaction, I couldn’t say things were going well.

‘I’m still her arch-enemy, after all.’
Maybe this was just a continuation of what happened with Ren.
A sudden redefinition of relationships.

Neither Ren nor Hella would see me as an object of hatred anymore.
And that was the problem.
A playable character and an arch-enemy.

According to fate, one of us was destined to die in the end.
Even along the way, I might end up hurting them again.
No matter how close we became, all it would do was make the eventual parting even more painful.

That’s why I kept my distance.
‘…I still don’t have certainty.’
I became their arch-enemy to save them.

But… what comes after that is the problem.
One way or another, in the end, one of us was still bound to die.
Just like in the game I had played. The process had improved, but the outcome hadn’t changed.

Whether they died, or I did—someone was going to die, and that hadn’t changed.
I had no certainty that we could all survive.
‘There is a way… there is a way…’

A solution definitely existed.
Like the great witch from thousands of years ago, who shattered the cursed fate of her own kind.
If I could reach the Akashic Record.

If I could twist the fate they had written in that place.
Maybe—just maybe—we all could survive.
The book I held.

If I could collect all the fragments of this relic, I’d gain the qualifications to reach the Akashic Record.
A half-complete relic. Four fragments.
If only… I could find them all.

‘Honestly, I think it’s close to impossible…’
Even before I came to the academy,
I had wandered across the continent in search of the remaining fragments.

As a result, I now knew the location of most of them. But still, I hadn’t been able to obtain them.
I had plans—but not one of them was without risk. Each one could cost me my life.
There was no guarantee of success.

If we’re talking about probability, it was vanishingly small.
That’s why I couldn’t be certain.
I couldn’t help but think of a backup plan.

If I couldn’t gather all the pieces in time.
If I couldn’t change their fate in the end.
If one of the playable characters or I had to die no matter what.

‘…Then this time, I’ve decided I’ll be the one to sacrifice myself.’
A thousand years ago.
On that day when I had no choice but to surrender to fate—

Just like the one who died in my place.
...
"…Haa."

I clicked my tongue and tightly shut my eyes.
I forced myself out of the whirlwind of thoughts.
There I go again.

Maybe it’s because I only just woke up from a nightmare.
But my head kept getting filled with negative thoughts and emotions.
Like a familiar habit, I rubbed the frown from between my brows.

"Hmm? Are you hurt somewhere?"
"…It’s nothing."
I replied to Lili’s question and stood up.

I gave one last glance at the sleeping Hella.
And finally organized my thoughts.
‘…’

There’s still a solution.
But I might fail.
That’s why—

‘I have to keep the backup plan ready.’
For now, I need to distance myself from her.
With Ren, it couldn’t be helped due to the side effects—but Hella is different.

At least until I’m sure, I shouldn’t let this relationship deepen.
With that resolve, I turned around.
"Leaving already? Classes are over, you could rest a little more."

"…I have an appointment."
"Don’t tell me you’re going to meet a girl?"
"…"

"You're leaving the sleeping princess behind to go meet another woman~?"
God, this lizard…
That teasing tone was so irritating I wanted to punch something.

"…Anyway. Please look after Hella for me."
"Sure~ Don’t worry. I’ll make sure she gets back to the dorm safely."
"Thank you. Then… I’ll be going."

...
Click.
I quietly opened the door to the headmaster’s office and stepped out.

"Hmm."
Lili stared silently at the door the boy had just exited through.
Then, turning her head, she shifted her gaze to the princess lying asleep.

A bitter taste lingered on her tongue as she chewed her candy.
‘What’s the use of having power? If you can’t help them.’
Their story belonged solely to them.

Even for someone like her, meddling with fate was a realm difficult to reach.
Not to mention—she herself wasn’t free from those shackles either.
Frustrated, she kept swallowing candies down her throat.

‘…Still. What the hell is this?’
She unwrapped a new piece and popped it into her mouth.
Then tilted her head slightly, as if she truly didn’t understand.

Her half-lidded eyes narrowed further.
‘They look way too alike.’
That expression, that way of speaking.

A human she hadn’t forgotten for even a moment, despite a thousand years passing.
The more she watched him up close, the more he reminded her of that one.
She recalled what he’d said back then.

—"See how pretty you are when you smile? You should try smiling more often."
"…"
She looked into the mirror.

Unlike back then, the body she now inhabited was that of a brat.
A face so lifeless it was nearly expressionless, slack from laziness.
Slide—

She used her finger to force a smile up at the corners of her mouth.
…Didn’t suit her at all.
"Pretty, my ass…"

With a sigh, she crunched the candy in her mouth.
What was she even doing?
Was she really still hung up on the past?

Or had she truly gone senile?
"Tch."
Crunch.

Crunch.
Empty candy sticks piled up.
She stared blankly out the window as the sun sank low on the horizon.

…For the first time in a while, she found herself reminiscing, lost in thought.
***
"Huuh…!"

Using aura to rush to my destination, I arrived quickly and breathless.
Thankfully, thanks to Lili’s treatment, my body was in decent shape.
Clatter—

As I opened the door and stepped inside, a familiar space greeted me.
The training facility I’d visited just yesterday.
I scanned around quickly in search of her.

"…What the. Did she already leav—"
"Over here."
"Ah, fuck. You scared me."

A whisper brushed against my ear, «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» sending chills down my spine.
Whipping my head around in shock, I found Ren giggling like she found my reaction hilarious.
"Ain. That was a funny reaction."

"Why do you always sneak up on me like that?"
"Because it’s fun?"
Try being on the receiving end. Feels like my heart’s gonna drop.

I couldn’t bring myself to get mad at that smiling face, so I just let out a long sigh.
"And this is your fault anyway."
"…For what?"

"You’re late. I already finished training."
Beads of sweat on her face proved her point.
And the bag on her back made it clear she’d been about to leave.

"You promised you’d spar with me…"
"…Sorry."
"Hmph."

Ren turned her head away, pouting.
Yeah… The whole ordeal with Hella had taken time. The sun had already gone down.
‘Thankfully, the side effects haven’t gotten worse.’

I studied her closely.
I was worried she might have even forgotten the promise we made yesterday.
But thankfully, that hadn’t happened.

"I’m mad at you, Ain."
"I… I said I’m sorry."
"If you’re sorry, keep your schedule open tomorrow."

"…Huh? Tomorrow?"
"Come with me somewhere tomorrow."
Tomorrow was the weekend.

A precious time for me to run around and prepare for upcoming episodes.
I couldn’t afford to waste a whole day tied up with her.
"Well… tomorrow’s kind of…"

"Can’t you?"
"…"
This time she looked genuinely upset, her eyes brimming with tears.

…She’s making me feel like the villain here.
‘Well, considering I already wrapped up the first episode with Hella ahead of schedule… I guess I do have a bit of breathing room now.’
Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to spend one day with her.

With that judgment, I slowly nodded.
Ren smiled brightly, as if the world had suddenly lit up.
"Ain. Since we didn’t get to spar today, let’s at least have dinner together."

"Dinner? What about Ron… was it? What about him?"
"Hmm, dunno. Said something came up and he’d be gone till the weekend or whatever?"
"I see."

Probably because of my request.
He must’ve gone straight to the Magic Tower after class to gather materials.
"Ain. Eat with me. I’m all alone today and it’s lonely."

"…Alright."
"…!"
Grab.

Without warning, Ren latched onto my arm, intertwining hers with mine.
From the deepening smile on her face, she seemed seriously happy.
She was even more expressive than she had been yesterday.

"Let’s go, Ain!"
"…Hey. Could you at least let go of my arm…?"
Drrrag.

I wasn’t even sure if she heard me.
Like a pet on a leash, I was getting dragged along.