So much for spring.

Winterfield was as brutally cold as its name suggested.

To be fair, even though it's called *Winter*field, it’s not blanketed in snow year-round. After all, it’s still part of the Empire, and unless you go further north to the Riclant Autonomous Region, it does experience some semblance of spring and summer.

But spring here is only less cold than winter, and summer is just cool, comparable to autumn in other regions.

Ironically, this made it a popular getaway for nobles. In the heat of midsummer, they’d flock here to escape the sweltering temperatures and enjoy the mildness. At the lower areas near the town, the snow melts in spring, but the mountain peaks stay snow-covered, creating breathtaking scenery that you wouldn’t find elsewhere in the Empire.

The Riclant Autonomous Region may be mired in conflict between warlords, the local government, and imperial forces, but that’s far from the heart of Winterfield. The territory is vast, and the main areas are down south, where it’s comparatively warmer.

“Brr, it’s freezing… Is it still winter here, even in May?”

While the snow does melt in spring, it doesn’t mean there’s no snowfall. And when it does snow, it doesn’t melt right away. Even back home, in particularly harsh years, you could get snow as late as May.

“It’s Winterfield. The people here may think differently, but to everyone else, it’s winter all year round,” Leo said, shivering as he addressed Claire, who was trembling beside him.

“Well, it’s not literally winter all the time,” said another voice, startling Leo.

“There’s a summer, too. It’s cooler than in the capital, though. Honestly, from my point of view, the capital’s unbearably hot,” Jennifer said with a shrug.

“It’s just now spring,” Leo said, still shivering.

“That’s what I mean by hot. This place doesn’t go a full season without a single snowfall,” Jennifer replied.

Leo and Claire, as well as the other noble students gathered here, fell silent at Jennifer’s comment.

“Honestly, I worry about how I’ll survive in summer… but I suppose it doesn’t matter since there’s summer break,” she added.

Not that it truly didn’t matter.

Jennifer would be sweating bullets even before real summer arrived. And with her penchant for wearing revealing clothes, she’d end up as one of those “ideal figure” characters, loved by figurine collectors everywhere.

Not that this game had a lot of figures, though. Which was a shame.

In the game, the cold setting and reactions were present, but the characters could wear any outfit. If I didn’t pick otherwise, they’d default to their winter coats, like the one I was wearing now. But you could still dress them in DLC costumes if you wanted.

Oddly enough, putting other characters in swimsuits here felt out of place. Jennifer, though, somehow pulled it off. She’d always been complaining about the heat back in the capital from the start of summer.

“Alright, is everyone here?”

Despite Winterfield’s frigid climate, the territory was a sprawling area of strategic importance, and several people were disembarking from the train besides Class A’s noble students.

Businesspeople in suits checked their pocket watches as they bustled along, while officers in military uniforms walked by in the distance. Some soldiers, likely returning from leave, also moved through the station. No one paid us much attention. Jennifer, out of uniform and dressed in civilian clothes, wasn’t saluted.

They might have recognized her face if they’d looked closely, but Jennifer was technically a retired officer, so she wasn’t owed any formal gestures.

Alice, now serving as class representative, answered Jennifer’s call.

Jennifer glanced around, taking us all in.

Unlike our homeroom teacher, Caroline Northwood, Jennifer didn’t order us to line up in rows. She was an instructor of a different sort, one with a streak of independence.

“Before I left, Caroline asked me to take good care of you all,” Jennifer began, addressing us.

“I’m not usually fond of high nobles, but Caroline’s different. You probably feel the same. There aren’t many people out there as genuinely good-hearted as she is.”

Several of the students nodded in agreement. After all, no one would dislike a beautiful, kind, and dedicated teacher.

“So, I won’t tolerate any reckless behavior. If you mess around or put yourselves in danger, I’ll make sure you regret it. I can’t send you back injured on another teacher’s watch.”

She scanned the group one more time before continuing.

“Winterfield is a dangerous place for first-timers. I’ll go over the details once we reach our lodgings, but for now…”

Jennifer took out her pocket watch and glanced at it.

“We have about an hour to spare, so you’re free to explore a bit. This isn’t the heart of the territory, but it’s not isolated either, so feel free to take in the atmosphere of Winterfield. There are plenty of soldiers here, so it’s safe.”

After tucking her watch away, Jennifer added, “Dismissed!” and promptly turned and walked off.

The students, somewhat surprised by the abrupt freedom, began to chatter excitedly.

“Sylvia.”

Among them was Alice.

She was fully dressed in her academy coat, which gave her a distinctly military look—like a cadet. Unlike others, though, Alice had removed the fur around the collar for comfort.

“Shall we grab some lunch? It’s about that time,” she suggested.

“Indeed, it’s an ideal time for a meal,” Charlotte chimed in.

“Lunch, you say?”

“Yes. We haven’t eaten yet.”

“…”

Jennifer might have let us roam freely, but I had a feeling she also wanted us to get a sense of the area.

As it turned out, what most noble students would consider a “meal” wasn’t available here. This wasn’t exactly a hotspot for nobles.

The security wasn’t terrible, but it also wasn’t a wealthy area.

Most of the establishments around here served soldiers and kept things simple.

The food, in true northern fashion, was rustic and lightly seasoned.

And, of course, this was the Empire with that infamous British inspiration. The northern regions’ cuisine came with a reputation, making it questionable whether the nobles here would even touch the food.

“Oh, really? Then let’s eat together!” Claire chirped.

“Yeah, it’ll be easier to eat together than to go separately,” Alice and Charlotte nodded in agreement.

As they chatted, Leo and Claire joined them.

“That sounds good.”

Just then, someone else spoke up.

“I was just thinking I had no one to eat with since Lottie’s in another class.”

Jake Lindborough had appeared.

Though Lottie entered the academy as Jake’s handmaiden, she was in a different class, being a commoner.

All students were nominally equal here, meaning no one could openly employ or keep a servant, especially if that “servant” was also a student. Technically, Jake and Lottie were equals.

“Lindborough?”

Alice looked surprised, eyeing Jake with a hint of disapproval. Charlotte, too, didn’t seem pleased by his casual demeanor.

“Is that alright with you, Sylvia?”

“Sylvia?”

Alice’s eyes widened.

“We became friends after chatting last time,” Jake explained, grinning. Alice glanced at me with a look of mild shock.

In fact, every other student nearby was looking at me the same way.

…Yeah, I guess seeing a quiet girl who always sat in the corner of the classroom suddenly hanging out with this bleached-blond, tan-skinned playboy would be a bit shocking.

But it’s not like that.

“Hm? Why?” I asked.

Jake shrugged, glancing at me.

“Aren’t we friends?”

Uh, we talked for the first time two weeks ago.

And that wasn’t even a real conversation. He’d just walked up to me and said hello.

So, really, it would be more accurate to say we barely knew each other.

“Sylvia.”

As I wondered how to respond, Charlotte sidled up to me, gently taking my arm.

“I know you’re inexperienced with men, so you may not realize it, but you shouldn’t get too close to someone like him. Come, this way.”

Not that we were close. He’s just the one acting friendly.

I glanced past Jake to see a few girls, watching from a distance with nervous expressions.

…Of course.

Jake was escaping from the swarm of girls around him. All the girls here were from prestigious families, and all were strikingly beautiful.

By joining our group, he was likely hoping they’d get the hint and stay back.

“…”

Charlotte and Jake had clashed early on. Well, technically, it was Charlotte who disliked his casual attitude, particularly his tanned skin and carefree manner.

Later on, though, her opinion of him softened a bit when she realized who he truly cared for. Though she still found his attitude off-putting, she became less judgmental, knowing why he acted that way.

“Oh, I see.”

Alice seemed to pick up on my feelings quickly, reading my expression as she looked between me and Jake.

“If you’re approaching Sylvia one-sidedly, I’d like to discourage it,” Alice said, stepping between me and Jake, her gaze serious.

“Sylvia isn’t as simple as you might think.”

“…”

What sort of image do these people have of me?

I’d been working hard to build a perfect reputation by rewinding time as needed—

Just then, I made eye contact with Mia Crowfield, who had somehow quietly slipped into our group.

"…"

Well, maybe not perfect.

Let’s call it “close enough to perfect.”

After all, I’ve managed to fool everyone else but her.