“……”

Whether or not she felt embarrassed for calling someone else “Your Highness” instead of me, there was no way to tell. Her expression hadn’t changed at all.

I could rewind time if I had to, but she couldn’t.

“Meyer, Meyer…”

Alice, the *actual* princess, sat beside me, furrowing her brows slightly as she muttered.

“Oh, right. The commander of the autonomous state’s military is Felix Meyer.”

As a princess, Alice hadn’t neglected her studies on neighboring nations, and she quickly deduced Lena Meyer’s background.

Hearing her comment jogged a faint memory in me, too, of the name buried deep in my mind. But it wasn’t a name from the original story or the game’s lore. In the game, the only Riklant figure given a proper name was the governor, Maximilian Schmidt.

In *Legend of Azerna*, if a new character’s name wasn’t explicitly introduced, they were labeled as “the woman with black hair” or “the rough-looking man.” This applied not just within a single series but across the entire work. Even if characters from previous installments appeared, unless they were introduced or met the protagonist’s party, they’d be described with vague titles.

It was almost amusing sometimes, like when a character’s face, known to everyone—even from the opening—would be half-concealed and described as “the young man with red hair,” as though it were a big mystery.

Anyway, Felix Meyer was a name I’d only heard since coming to this world, so it was a bit different from all that. He might have been the name of some background extra next to the governor in the original story.

“Yes, I’m the only child of the Meyer family, a military family in the Riklant Autonomous State. I look forward to working with you all.”

Though her expression was blank, her tone showed a subtle hint of pride anyone could have picked up on.

“A transfer student? But isn’t Class A already full?” Alice asked.

“Thanks to His Majesty’s grace, I was able to transfer.”

“My father’s?”

Alice frowned slightly.

Lena Meyer probably didn’t fully grasp Alice’s relationship with the Emperor. She might have imagined it was a typical father-daughter relationship.

But Alice had actually gone to confront the Emperor herself before joining the academy.

I wasn’t sure exactly what happened, but given Alice’s expressions whenever the Emperor came up, it was clear she didn’t view him favorably.

Alice’s gaze moved between Lena Meyer and me.

“We met this morning at the dining hall.”

Not that we did much more than a basic introduction. Other than that, we just sat in silence, waiting for time to pass.

Thanks to that, I hardly remember what I ate for breakfast.

“Oh… really?”

Apparently, deciding she wouldn’t get much more from me, Alice turned back to Lena Meyer.

“So… how do you feel about attending an academy in another country? I’ve heard Riklant has a few prestigious academies of its own. Isn’t it a bit odd to come all this way?”

“It doesn’t feel that way,” Lena answered immediately.

“Even in the autonomous state, the Royal Rondarium Academy is highly renowned. I consider it an honor to be granted a special transfer here.”

“But if you were attending another academy, wouldn’t you have had to leave your friends?”

“I’m still a year too young to enroll in any academy. However, both the governor and His Majesty saw value in my abilities, so I was allowed to transfer. My only goal is to avoid being a burden.”

“Hmm… is that so?”

Alice glanced at me briefly, hearing that Lena was a year younger than us.

Though she wasn’t particularly short or undeveloped, Lena Meyer’s face had a slightly younger look. Since the academy's entry age was fifteen, she must be fourteen if her birthday had already passed.

Alice leaned back into her seat with a casual air.

“Well, if my father allowed it, he must have had his reasons.”

If anything, knowing the Emperor was involved made Lena Meyer seem even more suspicious.

Despite Alice’s scrutiny, Lena’s expression remained unchanged.

“How was it, meeting the Swordmaster?”

I attempted a change in topic. We still had a long way to go before reaching the academy, and I wasn’t eager to spend the trip sandwiched in awkward silence between these two girls.

The one small blessing was that there were only four seats here.

Charlotte and Mia Crowfield were seated a few rows over, while Jake and Leo were on the other side. With so many seats open, splitting up in pairs still left plenty of room.

Jake and Leo sat far from us, but Charlotte and Mia Crowfield were across the aisle, close enough to overhear our conversation.

Sitting on the aisle side instead of by the window showed their interest in the discussion.

After all, they had come to the academy partly to find ways to keep the Emperor in check. There were even a few willing to consider more drastic measures.

“The Swordmaster…?” Alice looked at me.

“Oh, right, Sis! The Swordmaster really does live up to the title!” Claire interrupted excitedly before Lena Meyer had a chance to register any reaction, stealing my opportunity to observe Lena’s expression.

“After just one night of training, it felt like my eyes had been opened! He watched us spar for just a moment and instantly pointed out our weaknesses, correcting us. We trained almost all night!”

“...and I’m still exhausted because of it,” Alice added, running a weary hand over her face.

“Oh, come on. You improved a lot. You’ll thank him later for it. And he did invite us back.”

“Considering how far it is from the capital and the fact that you have to drive for hours and then hike up a mountain to meet him, do you really think we’ll visit regularly?”

“Why not go during vacation?”

“...It didn’t look like that small hut had room for anyone to stay.”

“So? Just climb up every day. It only takes a few hours anyway.”

If we got up at four every morning, there’d be plenty of time to climb and train.

Of course, Alice didn’t seem thrilled at the idea.

“...If that’s the plan, maybe count me out.”

“Really?”

Claire’s expression showed a hint of disappointment, but her eyes soon sparkled as she looked at me.

“...Still, considering it’s the Swordmaster, it might be worth visiting him again someday if I have the time.”

Unable to ignore that gleam in Claire’s eyes, I nodded.

“Good thinking!”

“The Swordmaster… are you referring to Sir Frederick?” Lena Meyer, who’d been listening quietly, suddenly spoke up as soon as Claire finished. She seemed to have been holding back until now.

“Yes, that’s right,” Claire replied without hesitation, leaving Lena looking slightly dazed.

“To think… the Swordmaster is that close…”

He may have been in hiding, but he was far from unknown. Among those who trained in swordsmanship, his name was as famous as any royal or noble title. He was, after all, the *Swordmaster*. Before aiming to surpass the Emperor, even Lucas had initially set his sights on defeating the Swordmaster.

Now, for some reason, I seemed to have taken that position.

“If you’d like, you could join us on a visit sometime,” Claire offered, displaying her usual boundless friendliness even to this stoic new girl.

“Would… that be all right?”

...If she got any more excited, her carefully maintained demeanor might break.

Though her expression remained blank, I could see the faintest twitch in the corner of her mouth.

“I don’t see why not. Whether he teaches you or not is up to him, but I’m sure he wouldn’t mind meeting you.”

“……”

He did seem like the sort to allow it. If someone he’d already accepted as a student brought another, he’d welcome them. Though he preferred his solitude, he wouldn’t turn down someone interesting.

“Thank you!” Lena Meyer responded enthusiastically.

“……”

And silence fell over us once again.

...Why did I feel so unsettled?

I was certain I was keeping my own “character” better than anyone here.

But a deep-seated unease slowly crept up inside me.

The real problem was, I had no idea where this feeling was coming from.