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ON the day of the soirée, Nina was in her room preparing for her departure.
The dress Ed delivered was the sort of beautiful gown perfect for a heroine. It was gorgeous and classy, made with fabric in the same pale coral color as Nina’s eyes. The abundant white lace gave it a flowery yet elegant impression.
Even Nina, who didn’t know much about this sort of thing, could tell how incredible this dress was—and the accessories were both dazzling and cute.
She stood in front of the mirror admiring herself, thinking this was a good example of the phrase, “You can put a pig in a dress, but it’s still a pig.”
“I am grateful, but everyone’s gonna know there’s no way I could get a dress like this on my own,” she noted.
She was a commoner who entered the academy partway through the year and ended up weeding and cleaning. Some students thought she was just a cleaner or a servant, which didn’t bother her—it was basically the truth.
The problem was: How did a non-noble cleaner get her hands on such a high-quality dress?
“I have no idea how much this’d cost, but I know I’d never be able to afford it, that’s for sure.”
So, the new question was: Who got it for her?
The answer to that, in truth, was a god, but she couldn’t tell people that—and no one would imagine that either.
“So…that means someone with a lot of money had it made for me…”
And what would people think about a heroine who had someone like that? Should she pretend it was Dino who did it? On the contrary, it would be incredibly sketchy for him to be giving other girls dresses when he had a fiancée.
Usually, saying something like that would damage Dino’s reputation, but the main love interest boost would probably make people interpret that in a convenient way.
And then, once Nina had her downfall, she should be the only one whose reputation was damaged.
Nina wasn’t entirely satisfied with that, but it was all for Aida.
She sighed and looked at herself in the mirror again. “Anyway, it truly is annoying. I can’t put this thing on without help.”
She had a go at it herself because she didn’t want to bother Aida, but there was no way. With any standard dress, she only had to pull over her head and button it up. This gown was splendid; there was no way she could dedicate that much time every day to put clothes on.
That aspect was probably because she was nothing but a commoner and not a chosen heroine.
“All right, into battle!” she proclaimed, getting herself pumped before heading off to her battleground at the academy.
And when she got there, she found her energy quickly whittled down.
“This power-up is too strong…” muttered Nina, unable to stop herself.
The dance was held in a building that seemed to exist only for soirées and the graduation party. Nina was shocked at how extravagant that was—and even more shocked when she went inside. Finely detailed decorations covered the walls, and chandeliers hung glittering from the ceiling. It was like being in a dream.
Silky tablecloths covered the decorated tables with sumptuous dishes packed close together. Even the glitter of the silverware sent her heart fluttering.
Everything was so new and exciting that Nina felt like she was walking through a dream the moment she entered the hall, but then the boys surrounded her. They started to talk to her and ask her to dance.
Each time someone else approached her, she somehow managed to parry their request and run away, but it was tiring work. She hid behind a pillar in a corner, but honestly, she just wanted to go home.
“I can’t go home until I’ve had a tiff with Lady Clarissa,” she reasoned. She wasn’t here to have fun. Assuming her real goal was to carry out her duties as the protagonist, it would all be for nothing if she left before running into Clarissa.
Even if that was the goal, she wished she could at least find time to eat. However, she couldn’t get herself to move. She was convinced it would be the end of her if she stepped out.
For now, she decided to stay hidden until Clarissa arrived. Then, they could have their little drama, Nina could snatch some food and shove it in her mouth, and then she could run home…
That plan wasn’t really befitting the beloved heroine, but sacrifices had to be made.
“Oh, Miss Nina?” came a voice from behind as Nina was sighing in the shadows of the pillar.
She turned timidly back and saw a smiling boy she didn’t recognize coming her way.
Oh no, I’ve been found.
She resisted the urge to let out another heavy sigh and somehow managed to put a smile on. A heroine wasn’t ever in a bad mood in front of people.
“Is something wrong? Why are you back here?” inquired the boy.
“Oh, I’m simply taking a little rest,” she replied and tried to make a natural-seeming getaway by backing up, but the student took a step forward for every step she took back.
After taking a few steps, her back bumped against the pillar, and the boy grinned. They were hidden. The other students out dancing couldn’t see the two of them.
Nina had a bad feeling about this.
She opened her mouth to say something, anything to get herself out of this, but then a cool voice came from behind the boy. “I apologize for keeping you waiting, Nina.”
The newly appeared boy was gorgeous. He had white hair with no hint of discoloration, sparkling in the rainbow light from the chandeliers. His bangs were a little on the long side, a blue eye as clear as the summer sky peeked out, and graceful features that in no way detracted from the beauty of those colors but instead enhanced them.
That, in combination with his fine clothing, made him look like a prince who had just jumped out of a fairytale picture book. Both Nina and the other boy were struck speechless.
He had apologized to Nina for keeping her waiting, but…who in the world was he?
There was a chance he knew this other boy who had been talking to Nina, but if that was the case, wasn’t it weird that he mentioned Nina’s name rather than the boy’s?
Nina stood there, unable to process what was happening, and the white-haired boy smiled kindly at her. “I had a hard time finding you, with you hiding somewhere like this.”
“O-Oh…” She didn’t remember anyone looking for her, so she didn’t know what to say back. All she could think of was how beautiful his swaying white hair was.
“What do you think you’re doing?” demanded the other boy. “I’m talking to Nina.”
“Perhaps, but I can’t say I’m impressed by someone who traps a girl in a hidden corner,” remarked the white-haired boy.
The other boy spluttered while the beautiful boy took Nina’s hand and pulled her behind him.
She looked at his back, filling her vision, her mind racing.
He wasn’t an acquaintance of hers; she’d never met an attractive boy like this. She also got the impression he was trying to save her, but she couldn’t think of any reason for all this, which meant the only explanation was that this was also some sort of scene to bring her closer to her heroine’s downfall and he was an actor in that.
That would explain why someone so extraordinarily beautiful would ever talk to her.
And if that were the case, then it would be a good idea to match his story, assuming he was going to fall for Clarissa later or something and cast Nina aside.
“Y-You’re late. I nearly got tired of waiting,” she stammered. She went for something one might say to someone they were close to if they’d agreed on a time in advance. The other boy glowered.
“Less savory individuals have a habit of coming out when you put yourself where others can’t see you,” replied the white-haired boy, and the other boy huffed in frustration before he backed away and left.
Nina sighed, having escaped the immediate threat. “Um, thank you,” she said as she bowed. The gorgeous boy smiled and nodded.
His looks were on par with Dino’s, which meant he was likely an important character.
“You’re welcome. But as I pointed out, you really shouldn’t be somewhere like this where no one can see. Especially as you are now,” he noted.
“I’ll be more careful. Now, if you’ll excuse me…” She was grateful for his help, but she didn’t want to get close to anyone involved with her future downfall. She’d have to if the contract said something like, “The heroine grows close with an attractive white-haired boy who then throws her away,” but it didn’t. The best thing was not to get involved if she didn’t have to.
Considering she was hired for her role, she had no obligation to go above and beyond whatever was written in the contract.
Besides, she was hungry; she seriously wanted to eat.
Having bid her thanks, she attempted to leave, but that seemed to fluster the white-haired boy for some reason.
“Wait, I want to talk to you,” he interjected.
That nearly made Nina roll her eyes. In the end, he was just another victim of her effect. “I don’t think there’s anything in particular we have to talk about.” She tried to walk away, but he moved in front of her.
“Please, look in my eyes,” he asked.
Of course, an attractive guy like him’s going to be confident, she thought, a little impressed. She looked at his eyes and realized they were mismatched, one blue and one gold. They were beautiful, like two shining gems, but…so what?
“…You have gorgeous eyes,” she noted, trying to give a compliment to be polite, and tried to leave again, but he jumped to stop her.
“W-Wait! Don’t you…recognize them?” he nearly pleaded.
Nina searched her memories, but she didn’t know anyone with eyes as unique as his. White hair and mismatched eyes were pretty memorable. And with how pretty he was…there was no way she’d forget someone like him. She cocked her head to the side.
White. Blue. Gold.
That color combination made a certain white cat messenger of a god pop into her head. Now that she peered closely, the colors perfectly matched Ed’s. But he was a cat working for a god, and this was a handsome boy in an academy—they were totally different creatures.
He watched Nina grumble as she thought and let out a gentle, frustrated sigh. “I did say I would help you, didn’t I?”
“Huh?”
She did remember something like that: “I can’t say for sure yet, but I think I may be able to help you,” he’d promised, his tail swishing back and forth.
“…Ed?” she said timidly, and a smile spread across the boy’s face. It was as beautiful as all the buds in a flower bed bursting into bloom at once. She couldn’t help letting out a gasp of admiration.