4 Plans [1]

"Serena?"

"Ah... n-no, it's nothing."

I can't let my thoughts wander. My father is looking at me with a suspicious expression.

"Cough... Anyway, don't forget, you are the daughter of the Duke of Ravenhurst. Depending on the situation, appropriate consequences might be necessary."

"Yes, I understand."

My father seems ready to start a war with the kingdom based on his current demeanour. Even though there is no reason to worry about Prince... But well.

"Sigh... Maybe at that time, I should have pursued engagement with someone like 'Cardis' or 'Raphael' without being stubborn."

"Father, while it's fine for you to heave a sigh, please refrain from mentioning the names of the two princes in front of me, disregarding Prince Elysion, my fiancé."

"Uh... I apologize..."

The two princes, Cardis, the first prince, and Raphael, the second prince, are also Prince Elysion's brothers.

Cardis has achieved excellent grades at the Royal Academy and is actively participating as the student council president.

Raphael also excelled in his studies, and surprisingly, despite the average person having an aptitude for only one attribute of magic, he can use the magic of three different attributes. This is extremely unusual.

There is already fierce competition for the succession to the throne between the two princes within the kingdom.

"...But Father, you haven't mentioned 'Vikir' at all."

"Of course not. Even if the King wished my Serena to be his fiancée, I would have stopped it at all costs. Even if it means starting a rebellion."

The fourth prince, "Vikir Silvercrest."

The most despicable and miserable 'unclean prince' in the history of the Silvercrest Kingdom.

Considering his origin, it's impossible for the Ravenhurst Duke's family, the largest noble family in the kingdom, to acknowledge him.

Even without that, I would absolutely refuse someone as lowly as him.

"Please rest assured. I would never wish for anyone other than Prince Elysion to be my fiancé, even if the world were to end."

"...Well, I don't like that, but..."

My father, with a displeased expression, turned his face away.

Thanks to that, I could spend the time until we arrived at the mansion thinking about my beloved~!

I gazed at the slowly receding palace through the carriage window, suppressing the excitement in my chest...anticipating Prince Elysion's efforts in the future.

'—The handkerchief with a dragon embroidery that I received from him on that day!~'

My cheeks turned red as I gently clutched it.

*******

"Now... what should I do from here?"

The morning after meeting Serena, I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, lost in thought.

In this world of the game "Engage hundred times," the romantic parts with the heroines unfold in chat format, while the main scenario, including battle parts, progresses in a one-way RPG format with card battles.

In other words, if I get involved in the game's scenario, I'll inevitably face combat situations. The enemies vary, ranging from thieves, assassination groups, nations, armies, and legendary magical beasts to heroes, and more.

Imagine encountering such foes. The current me, without any capabilities, would quickly meet his demise.

So, I inevitably need to become stronger. The problem is how to get stronger.

In "Engage Hundred Times," each character has skills and attributes, all fixed except for the protagonist, Vikir. 

In addition, equipping weapon cards raises attack and defence in turn allows the use of special skills set on the weapon card. The rarity of weapon cards and whether they match the character's attribute affect the power increase.

However...

"...But, male characters don't appear on cards."

Don't forget, "Engage Hundred Times" is a chat-type romance smartphone RPG. There's no demand for male characters from the start. 

"Though the battles between the protagonist and Elysion have happened several times, the official information on Elysion's stats for events has never been released."

Yes, indeed. Elysion, the designated character for... certain roles, isn't strong. Well, using the term "weak" might be a bit misleading. 

Probably because the creators weren't interested in Elysion too much, they casually set his abilities, making him weird. Unlike Cardis, Raphael, and other royals who all have light attributes, Elysion is the only one with a dark attribute. 

His magical attack and defence are exceptionally high, but his unique skill is the opposite: a single option of physical attacks only. Moreover, his physical stats are the lowest among all named characters, especially physical defence – he's as fragile as paper.

Well, the creators played too much with Elysion... it seems I'm stuck because of their arbitrary setting.

Although I told Serena to "wait for three years" all grandiosely, at this point, isn't the bad ending almost certain?

"No, no! I have to figure something out!"

I know everything about "Engage hundred times ." Even if I can't match the protagonist, but still, I should still be able to become reasonably strong. 

Besides, Elysion's stat setting is just messed up, but concerning magical attack and defence, he's not inferior to Raphael, and in terms of SP, he's the top among all the characters. I believe his potential is sufficiently high.

Now, I need to figure out how to cultivate myself.

"And also, what should I do about weapons? Elysion's exclusive weapon, the 'Reaper's Scythe,' is just hopeless."

The 'Reaper's Scythe,' despite its name, is sadly not a dark attribute but a light attribute weapon. Even if I train myself, this is too much.

However, in "Engage Hundred Times," there are more weapon cards than major characters and heroines combined, and the protagonist and heroines can freely choose and use weapons.

So, I should be able to choose weapons freely... at least, that's what I hope, praying that the game reincarnation's "forcing power" won't come into play.

"Well, I need to confirm that as well."

Anyway, there are three years until the main story starts. Until then, I need to do everything I can so that when the main story begins, Serena and I can live peacefully, ignoring the game's affairs. 

After all, I have no interest in the succession struggle for the throne.

Of course, when the main story begins, I have no idea what will happen, so I'll prepare for anything.

"Now that it's decided, I need to wake up early and find a weapon."