The Fourth Imperial Princess, Mezlena.

One of the heroines of Luminar Academy, and the youngest of the emperor’s direct descendants. While she was born in the same year as Antonio, the Fifth Imperial Prince, their birthdays are almost ten months apart, so the practical age difference between them is similar to that of siblings born a year apart.

‘In the game, Mezlena naturally treated Antonio like an older brother too.’

Among the emperor’s direct royal family, the older they were, the worse their relationships tended to be, whereas the younger ones generally got along better. This was mainly because the older ones were significant competitors in the imperial succession. The younger ones, being less established, were not seen as threats and thus weren’t worth expending energy on. It was more practical to focus on keeping an eye on the Second Prince, Third Prince, or the First Princess, who were serious contenders.

For instance, Seraphine wasn’t particularly hostile toward Antonio. From her perspective, Antonio wasn’t a rival in the imperial succession. And in reality, he wasn’t.

Regardless, making a good first impression with Mezlena during her introductory event was crucial. While other characters might be more manageable, Mezlena was like a ticking time bomb in many ways. She had been raised like a “flower in a greenhouse,” shielded from the political machinations of her older siblings’ power struggles. She was the perfect example of someone oblivious to the harsh realities of the world.

Because of this, it was imperative to stick close to her as soon as possible and prevent the troublesome events she might stir up.

"Excuse me..."

"Ah, yes?" she said, her voice soft but hesitant as she spoke to a passing male student.

Even though Antonio seemed to be heading in a slightly different direction from his portrayal in the original story, the “Imperial Carriage Day” at the academy hadn’t changed, and right after entering through the academy’s front gate, I observed the young princess, Mezlena, seemingly on the verge of causing trouble. I silently watched for now, curious to see if she, like Antonio, had diverged from the character I knew.

"You there, sir... Didn’t you just make eye contact with me?" Mezlena said, her tone dripping with an odd combination of arrogance and innocence.

"Huh? What do you mean..." the student began, confused.

"You definitely made eye contact with me... I know you did, so there’s no need to feel shy..."

"…"

"I can’t help it if my appearance catches the eye of commoners like you... I suppose it’s understandable that a plain, ordinary man like yourself would be entranced by someone as beautiful as me..." she continued with brazen audacity.

Her pure expression contrasted sharply with the venomous words she spoke, and the male student’s face twisted in frustration.

"What kind of nonsense is this?" he retorted, his face darkening.

"Even so, you mustn’t fall for me... Marriage between commoners and royalty is not recognized under imperial law, so as an imperial princess, I can’t fulfill your expectations..." Mezlena added, unbothered.

"Y-You're royalty?! I’m so sorry for my rudeness!" the male student quickly dropped to the ground, bowing deeply in panic.

As soon as Mezlena had introduced herself as a princess, the male student had no choice but to act accordingly. Whether she was truly royalty or just someone pretending to be, bowing in such a situation was the safest course of action. Bowing to an impostor might result in some embarrassment, but failing to bow to a real member of the imperial family could result in losing your head.

Even though Luminar Academy claimed to be a place where social status didn’t matter, no one wanted to build up bad karma that might come back to bite them later in life.

‘Every time I see this event, I can’t help but sympathize with the guy,’ I thought.

Honestly, the male student hadn’t done anything wrong. Mezlena had been the one to initiate the conversation, spouting nonsense right from the start and dragging him into a ridiculous situation.

Yet the clueless princess continued, completely unaware of her own delusions, twisting the knife into the poor student’s heart as he lay prostrate before her.

"It’s fine... It’s my royal duty to bear the burden of commoners who are spellbound by my beauty..."

"T-Thank you..."

"But I don’t want to be too harsh in cutting off your first love. Why don’t you start working hard to build up achievements and become a noble? Then, maybe, just maybe..." Mezlena said, her voice laced with false sympathy.

"Enough. Let’s go, Mezlena. Lady Seraphine is waiting for us at the dormitory," Antonio interjected.

"Oh, yes, Brother..." she replied, her tone suddenly obedient.

At least she still treated Antonio as her older brother, as in the original story. Antonio, looking much more reliable than before, gave the appearance of a responsible older brother as he led his younger sister.

In the original storyline, Antonio would have been sighing in frustration and dragging himself around like a zombie by now, having left Mezlena to fend for herself.

‘In the original game, this is where Mezlena got lost on her first day at the academy, and the protagonist came to help her. That was her introductory episode.’

I had positioned myself at the front gate specifically for this part, waiting for the imperial carriage to arrive. But with Antonio taking such good care of his sister, it didn’t seem like Mezlena would end up lost this time around.

"Stand up now. My sister may have been a bit rude to you," Antonio said kindly to the male student.

"N-No, it’s fine! It’s an honor just to have spoken with the princess!" the student stammered, grateful for Antonio’s intervention.

"See, Brother? He even says it was an honor to talk to someone as beautiful as me..." Mezlena said smugly.

"You really need some proper lessons from Seraphine," Antonio sighed, clearly exasperated by his sister’s attitude.

Watching Mezlena, I couldn’t help but feel my enthusiasm deflate. The thought of playing matchmaker for her was becoming less appealing by the second.

Then again, characters like her were often the most loyal once they fell in love. While her personality was grating now, she could become endearing when she truly cared for someone.

In my past life, I had actually enjoyed the Mezlena route in the game. Watching her fall head over heels for the protagonist, willing to give him everything, had been part of the fun.

‘Fine, I’ll tolerate this because of our connection in my past life,’ I told myself.

After all, I had taken this character all the way to the ending once. It wouldn’t be too strange to wish her a good love life this time around as well. Plus, the most important thing was that she was a candidate to be Ethan’s fiancée.

Despite her incurable princess complex, she wasn’t a bad person. As a mage, she was on par with Agnes and me, and once she fell in love, no one could match her loyalty.

If Mezlena were truly Ethan’s hidden fiancée, I could rest easy knowing she would take good care of him after I left.

"…"

The thought of Mezlena potentially being Ethan’s fiancée left a strange, tight feeling in my chest.

Even if Ethan ended up marrying someone else, it wouldn’t happen until after I had left the academy, so I wouldn’t have to witness it with my own eyes. There was no need to worry about it now.

"Mezlena, don’t leave everything to Kate. Carry something yourself. You have two empty hands and shouldn’t make your maid do all the work."

"Oh, no, Your Highness! I can carry everything myself!" Kate, the maid, quickly interjected, clearly trying to avoid a confrontation.

"Kate says it’s fine, Brother. Even if I’m such a threat in the imperial succession due to my beauty, breaking my delicate wrists to prevent me from casting magic won’t work on me..." Mezlena said, feigning distress.

"You never dared to call yourself beautiful in front of Seraphine before. Now that she’s not around, your mouth has gotten a lot braver," Antonio retorted, unimpressed.

"T-That’s not true... Oh, Brother, you used to be so much kinder... What could the throne possibly offer that would make you treat your adorable sister so coldly?" Mezlena whined, continuing her melodramatic act.

"I think I understand how Seraphine felt about me now," Antonio sighed.

Antonio had become a much more reliable character, and by comparison, Mezlena seemed even more of a headache than usual.

Still, seeing how Antonio managed to get Mezlena to carry a light bag at least showed that their sibling relationship was in good shape. I could still hope that Agnes and Antonio’s partnership would work out well.

"Oh, this is so heavy, Brother... I feel like my arm is going to fall off... I’ve never carried anything heavier than my wand in my life..."

"Stop complaining, Mezlena. I’ve seen you lug heavier stacks of books around the imperial library on a regular basis."

"Ah, Brother... How could you slander me like this... You’re so heartless..."

"Prince Antonio, perhaps it would be better if I carried it instead? I don’t want Princess Mezlena to push herself too hard..." Kate suggested.

"You need to stop indulging her, Kate. If Mezlena becomes completely useless one day, are you going to take responsibility for that? Just because she’s a princess doesn’t mean she shouldn’t face discipline once in a while."

"Discipline...?" Mezlena pouted. "But Brother, even though we have different mothers, we share the same father, so we can’t be together like that..."

"Save your nonsense for when you’re asleep, Mezlena."

Hmm, what should I do?

Antonio didn’t seem likely to abandon Mezlena at the dormitory any time soon. If anything, he looked ready to drag her along by force if she tried to get lost on purpose. That was the downside to Antonio becoming a more responsible character.

…Well, I guess I’ll just have to force my way in.

"Oh, I can’t walk any farther... Kate, carry me..."

"Enough of this, Mezl—"

"Greetings, Prince Antonio. I trust you’ve been well," I said, stepping forward.

"Lilith?!" Antonio exclaimed, surprised.

When the situation didn’t present itself naturally, sometimes you had to push your way in. If I didn’t get Mezlena’s attention today, there might not be another chance.