Save 12 - School Festival

What is youth?

There is a very philosophical answer to that, but I won't say it because I am bored by its answer.

For me, it would be to suffer again in the worst stage of my new life.

Yes, new life. For I, Rudel van Bradford, am someone who died tragically and my soul is now reincarnated in the body of a poor nobleman known as a country baron in another world.

A strange fantasy world of swords and magic. It all looks very nice, but the reality is that it sucks to live here.

There are wars and crime every day somewhere, the nobles and aristocrats abuse their power against the commoners and mainly the young women are manipulative little women who are only interested in living at the expense of men. What a disgusting world this is.

The place I am now is the Royal Academy of Altfode Kingdom, in one of the rooms used for meetings I was suffering.

"W-wait please... give me a little more t-time..."

"Rudel-san, please give up, there's nothing you can do anymore."

A person made a mischievous smile.

"He's right, your end is here, it's time to pay!"

"Noooooo!"

"Take this!"

Something descended on the table and it was....

"Royal flush! I win! Again!"

...A playing card.

"Noooo, damn it, because I lose to you!"

The person she was saying it to was an aristocratic girl. Her uniform was pure white with a red ribbon on the collar of her shirt, her hair was golden blonde with a short style that reached her neck, with a ponytail at the back and a braid that covered her head from the back of her ears, her eyes were red like a rabbit. Her name was Alicelotte von Bismarck.

She laughed like a sadistic queen at my pitiful self.

"Ohohoho, Rudel, you can never beat me, even if you cheat you never can, ohoho."

The girl next to her defended me.

"Alisa, please don't be cruel to Rudel-san, he's crying for real. And you, Rudel-san, why do you challenge her knowing that she's better than you? It's been nine times in a row that she's beaten you, you've lost a lot of money already, haven't you?"

Just like me, she wore a black uniform, the difference was that both wore a ribbon and I wore a tie, but the color was the same. Her hair was light blonde with a bob cut style, on one right side of her hair she wore a purple ribbon, her eyes were a deep blue that hypnotizes you just looking at them. She, unlike us, was a commoner, her name is Irisdina.

These girls and I, we were from totally different social worlds. But thanks to some events we became friends, we even called each other by short names to symbolize our friendship.

The kind and charming girl. Airi.

The strong and proud girl. Alisa.

Both of them were my friends and we had a lot of fun in the summer vacation of the previous semester.

Before the new semester started, I got into a fight with the wrong person and was rewarded for it by becoming a low ranking knight.

Truly what a bizarre vacation it was.

While crying I found an opportunity.

(Now!!!)

I was indeed crying lying on the table, but that was partly a sham for my real plan. And that was, to watch the growth of these two.

She spoke plainly about her breasts.

(Airi's are still the same, they don't seem to have grown, but Alisa's are three cups bigger and I can't tell if they're actually growing or not!)

My thoughts at times were obscene about these two, I even regret having a moment of happiness thinking about them, several nights while they were sleeping in my mansion.

It looks like Alisa finished apologizing to Airi so it's time to recover.

She came up to me and put her hand on my shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Rudel, I know you suck at cards, but you still dared to challenge me and I couldn't resist in making you cry."

"Hey, those words hurt more when they're sincere!!!"

I lifted my face and told her that, but it still hurt so I really cried again.

They both comforted me after that.

◇

I pulled myself together after a while and we went back to talking normally, we talked about silly things while drinking tea.

The room we met is a small room I used to use for my social gatherings where no one would come or destroy if they did. But now I don't care anymore because he enjoyed my company with these two.

Airi spoke to me as she saw me very quiet.

"Rudel-san, you've been very quiet lately, is something wrong?"

Her concern makes my heart overflow with happiness, I replied with a smile.

"I'm fine, I was just wondering if it was okay to have quiet days like this."

Alisa made an honest comment for my answer.

"Indeed. It seems unbelievable how much peace and quiet there is around after what happened last semester, but it's also thanks to that that I can spend my time together with you."

I made an equally charming smile as Airi finished her sentence, both; me and Airi nodded to each other.

My life was very happy now, there were annoyances, but nothing unusual. Except for...

"I wonder, what was that strange sound at intervals?"

They looked at each other face to face at my question, but it was Airi who answered me.

"Rudel-san... don't tell me you forgot what day tomorrow is..."

I blurted out "huh?" -at her worried reply.

Alisa with a face of discomfort answered me.

"Rudel... you really are an embarrassment to this school you know? How could you have forgotten that tomorrow is the school festival for the foundation of the academy."

"Foundation? School festival? I didn't know about that!"

They both made the same anguished face at me.

Alisa resumed her words.

"Every second semester for three days there is a festival to celebrate the founding of the academy. They told us not only at the inauguration, but also at the welcome to the new semester. What kind of student doesn't know that!"

"S-sorry for not knowing, but I didn't care about that..."

Alisa proceeded to get up and pinch my cheeks hard.

I was apologizing as Airi tried to stop an annoyed Alisa. Even without counting my sore cheeks, my days at the academy were quiet and I wished they would never end.

◇

In one of the adjoining rooms, there was someone who was listening to the conversations of Rudel and the girls, that person had made a hole in the wall and with a glass of water was reproducing with her hand on the glass the vibrations of the sound from the other side. That person was Erselica van Reinfield, like Rudel, she was also a reincarnated person, but she was just one more person in that world.

That world that Rudel said was just a world of fantasy and magic was not wrong, but he did not know that this world was actually the world of an RPG game. Erselica had a vein in her forehead which swelled when she heard three happy people who should never have gotten together.

Starting with the last person who spoke, Alisa. She was a turn villainess, her role in the story was to be a bully who spoke demeaning things about the heroine, causing the protagonist to show up saving her and giving Alisa her comeuppance, thus ending her role.

The other girl who laughed thanks to Alisa was Airi. She was the main heroine of the game, she was an existence that suffered abuse and harassment by the nobles. Until one day she met the main character, Prince Liam, and her life took a turn to the point of becoming queen and his wife.

Erselica's face had more and more veins in it from the silly, friendly-sounding conversations between the three of them, but she felt a deep hatred for one of them. The only male in the room, Rudel.

"That guy is supposed to be just a despicable villain, he had to have lost to him prince and then maybe dead, but seeing as that didn't happen, this just means we're headed to the other endgame."

"In Rudel's fight with Liam in the game, if you didn't meet certain requirements, Rudel died, but in the end the prince's remorse would have led him to get rid of the throne after a few years. Instead, if Rudel survived, it meant that the direction of the game would go the true final route. The greatest war the world has ever seen."

In other words, a world war.

Erselica was frightened, after seeing that not only did it seem that the direction of the story indicated going in that direction thanks to Rudel not dying. To make her more scared, Rudel was awarded and the prince disinherited from the crown until further notice.

She thought that Rudel might be like her, a transmigrator, because he avoided his end and also has two girls who should never have gotten along with each other.

For, if he were not a reincarnate, he would have no reason or knowledge in himself to have altered history to such an extent that it seems very upsetting to fix.

Therefore, mumbling and well annoyed, Erselica said.

"I didn't want to do this, but there is no alternative. I'm going to have to get my hands on your life, you dirty bastard, I won't allow you to keep altering history as you please."

◇

The school festival for the founding of the academy had started some time ago, in fact, today was already the last day, I had had a good time with my friends those two days. The first day was just paying our respects to the founders of the kingdom and the academy, from there it was all fun for me.

Every food stall among other stores was raided by my wallet, I left the stores almost empty as my appetite grew enormously after the vacations. The girls would give me confused and embarrassed looks, sorry, but I'm really hungry.

After going to test our aim at a magic weapon store, I ended up crying. It's because Airi and Alisa had so much magic power that they made holes in the tent, but I couldn't even release one.

We sat in an attractive servant's cafe opened by some aristocratic girls, I didn't want to be surrounded by fake people, but my mood was at rock bottom.

Airi cheered me up after seeing me down.

"Ru-Rudel-san, please don't be discouraged, even if your magic power is very small you are still someone big inside!"

That sounded a bit strange to me, her intentions were pure, but my sadness only made me think bad things even more.

Alisa backs her up after drinking some tea.

"She's right, your armed unit. Battler and even your airship, Brunhilde, move without prana. You explained to us that they don't use magic power, but still possessing and moving two large objects on your own would leave anyone scared thinking what kind of monster you are to pull it off."

I lifted my head from the table to speak to them looking them in the face.

"Th-that may be true, but it's still a bit humiliating that my magic power is minuscule compared to you guys."

My face was no longer on the table, but my discouragement was still on the floor.

I heard footsteps, behind me, a maid in a man's suit called out to me.

"I am sorry to disturb you in your chatter, Lady Bismarck, but there is a person who requests to speak to Baron Bradford."

I shook my head at the maid as I repeated the same thing she did, but she didn't even turn to look at me or answer me, but what a bitch she was.

Instead, Alisa asked her my same question and to her the bitch did answer this one.

"May I know who is requesting to see you?"

"I'm sorry, but the person in question told me not to tell you anything as I would make a fuss afterwards."

Alisa without blinking answered him.

"I understand. Rudel, make sure you behave properly, remember I'm still your patron and you're my squire. You will make me look bad if you do anything improper."

Looking at me sharply as she said that made me uncomfortable as I stood up.

"I-I know; I won't do anything strange so relax. Hey you, show me the way."

How she didn't look at me even once, I spoke to her in the same disrespectful way, she without even turning to look at me turned around and not a word said.

It bothered me more than I thought it would. I turned to look at them and said goodbye in a cool way, they laughed a little funny.

◇

The bitchy maid told me to walk long and the last door on the left to knock on asking if she was done with her meeting with someone else, she left leaving me after indicating that, she had a name badge.

"Don't worry, Jannethe-chan, I'll make sure you get your pay cut at the end of the month."

After my perverse statement I walked to where she told me and saw the blissful door. I didn't knock as the knob was opening and I stepped aside standing properly, but upon seeing who it was, my composure was undone as my face made an unpleasant grimace at the person in front of me.

That person was...

"Ehhh? What are you doing here?"

...Prince Liam.

As he left the room he closed the door, his ears heard my words and he turned to look at me.

Unlike me who made a disgusted face, this guy just made an angry expression.

It bothered me to see this guy. With his pure white uniform, his weird platinum hair, his weird purple eyes and finally his stupid little boy face. No, his face wasn't the problem, his kids show vigilante personality was.

I was disgusted watching him, but he noticed that and spoke to me.

"May I know what business you have here, villain, I mean, low ranking gentleman Bradford?"

(Hey, I noticed how you emphasized the middle.)

(But I dislike seeing you too so we're evenly matched, though you're an idiot unlike me.)

Politely I replied, sounding like a responsible adult.

"I was called here by the person inside in question."

Liam with his dumb face widened his eyes.

His stupid mouth spouted words just as stupid as his personality.

"I see, so that person wants to talk to you too..."

(I don't know who that person is, give me a hint, you big animal.)

His eyes looked at me after thinking of insults for him.

"Bradford, let's fight again in the next interschool in this semester."

"I refuse." -I quickly replied.

"Guhh...so in the next one next semester?"

"Don't you understand me? I don't plan to fight with you again, you, stupid prince. You caused me a lot of trouble. Besides, Alisa asked me never to get involved with you again and that's what I plan to do."

Liam's eyes widened like saucers as did his mouth. A stupid expression for someone stupid no doubt.

I'm sorry, but you're stupid to the core.

His mouth then went back to normal and he spoke to me before walking out of there.

"I will never acknowledge the lies you told about Klein, you hurt him to such an extent that he won't even answer my letters let alone enter his territory, I will never forgive you for hurting my childhood friend!"

"Fine with me, I won't forgive him either for being human garbage and you for being a manipulable idiot."

Once again his face made a stupid expression, he ran off while yelling at me just like a child.

"You're going to pay for this, Bradfordddd!"

Seeing the idiot run off like that, I just laughed and went into the room.

◇◇◇

Running out because of Rudel, Liam, was melancholy sitting in a corner of the academy where the sunlight hardly illuminated him, no one knew he was there so it was a perfect place to think about the things that happened this semester.

Wiping his boogers, Liam was talking quietly.

"Chlust and Frey are staying away from me, since they called themselves weak so they won't talk to me again until they gain confidence."

"Klein is grounded and locked in his territory until further notice. I can't do anything for him."

Liam narrowed his teary eyes at the next name he uttered.

"Then there's that Bradford dude. Not only did he cowardly defeat them to the point where he broke them, he also humiliated me by calling me manipulative and even calls me a stupid prince."

Liam clutched his arms tighter at the thought of Rudel.

"I'm more annoyed by the fact that my father praises him for hitting me while mother says I deserved it for playing around. He even forced me to apologize to him Duke Bismarck himself. Alicelotte was not at home at the time, so the problems in my apology were minor."

Liam wanted to cry again just thinking about the misfortunes he went through thanks to Rudel.

"That villain got away with it, I wanted to show him that justice exists and that I was never going to let wicked acts go unpunished."

Liam shed tears of helplessness.

This was an event that happened in the game, it was assumed that after being slighted by the guest he went to see, Liam would leave upset and somehow end up in the same place. One person would find him and make him see that his actions were not wrong. That person was Irisdina, but she never met him nor did words ever pass once.

But it was someone else who appeared to him, that person was ....

"I don't think you're wrong, your Highness Liam!"

...Erselica.

Liam after hearing her name wiped his tears with his sleeve and looked up at the voice calling his name.

The sunlight was streaming in, but it was a bit dark, still, he managed to see the girl. She was petite, black uniform with white ankle-length stockings, her hair was orange with zucchini-shaped and L-shaped sideburns, her eyes were hazel and she wore round glasses.

Liam wanted to ask her what she was doing here and who she was, but the girl answered him first.

"I'm very sorry for my rashness and discourtesy for meddling in your personal affairs, but I heard everything."

Liam wanted to scold that girl for being nosy, but she shut his mouth with the following words.

"Your Highness Liam is sad because he was scolded by that bastard-villain Bradford isn't he?"

(How does she know that) - Liam thought as no one had seen him meet Rudel.

Erselica continued speaking.

"I was originally here, due to the fact that I am very small, my classmates tease me about it. Today I was thrown into a laundry basket and left locked in a closet there until a janitor opened the door."

Liam was dumbfounded at what he heard, he didn't know what was worse. Yes, the fact that he ignored someone's existence or that the person in front of him had been constantly going through harassment from other nobles?

Liam understood that his problems were minuscule compared to those of someone physically weak.

Liam bit his tongue after thinking about how foolish he was so far, he only focused on Rudel, but ignored the other cases and cruelties in the academy.

Erselica called him once again to tell him lines that only Irisdina was supposed to say.

"Prince Liam, please don't give up."

Liam opened his eyes once again, the place was dark, but a large beam of light illuminated the area. Erselica's silhouette marked a shadow that was marked on Liam's face, he could clearly see Erselica's face now.

Her face was small and fragile, she had features that looked like a girl's, but her body was that of a young girl of sixteen.

"I saw what that evildoer Bradford did, and that the actions the prince took were the right ones. I'm sure something must have happened at the palace for him to have been rewarded, but please your highness. Don't give up on your path which is the right one."

After saying that Erselica curtsied to run out of there.

Liam tried to raise his hand to catch her, but he couldn't.

Liam blurted out words he never intended to say.

"That girl... was she an angel by any chance?"

The event was very similar to the game, but the new factor called, Erselica, had also altered an outcome. Irisdina should have been the one to say those words of comfort, but another girl had done it, Erselica was filling in the holes the heroine was to take next to the protagonist.

She thought it didn't matter if the formula was different as long as she got the same result.

◇

After entering the room, I quickly bowed because of the person sitting on a large sofa.

(What is this person doing here?) -I said to myself as I looked at the floor.

It was only an instant, but I saw the person before me who was a woman, she was wearing an off-white ankle-length dress, it was for going out, but, even so, it was very elegant with flower ornaments baked on the sides.

Her face had youthful features like a teenager, lips painted highlighting the pink of the flesh. Her eyelashes were long and looked natural, long ash blonde hair. Navy blue eyes. She had a floral plastic headband the same color as her eyes. Her hair was lying on her left shoulder. The woman in front of me was drinking tea in a refined way that reminded me a lot of Alisa.

She was Liam's mother and the queen of this country, she was Lecia von Altfode.

The part that reminds me the most of Alisa, are her ample breasts, they are so large that they seem to have their own center of gravity that I am inclined to jump on them, for sure it is thanks to motherhood, what a beautiful result.

The dress was so well made I couldn't tell if she was wearing a bra or not. It was a spectacular sight but my eyes were more struck by her curvaceous hips. They had a shape that looked like a swan's neck growing with every inch. She was a woman who was probably the same age as my mother, but looked about twenty. If she were a commoner, I would have conquered her even if she had a husband and children.

(Wait, what did I imagine! I'd get both my heads chopped off if I said that!)

A cold sweat ran down my body just thinking about it. But it would be a risk I was willing to take if she were a commoner but not the queen.

"Please stand up, Baron Bradford. Do not be afraid as I am not here as the queen, but as just another citizen."

She said that, but still I am afraid, not for her, but for her statuesque body. I would have a moment of extreme happiness if I looked directly at any part of her body.

I got up slowly thinking of unpleasant things so my mood wouldn't lift.

I looked straight into her eyes, they were beautiful and serious like Alisa's, but at the same time they were warm and charming like Airi's.

"Today, in my busy schedule I came explicitly to chat with some people. I've already talked to some and Liam, now it's you I wish to talk to."

"Forgive me for taking you out of the activity you were in."

I quickly straightened up and reassured her.

"D-don't worry about it, I was just talking to Alisa and Airi!"

I inadvertently blurted out the names of those girls.

She made a slight smile hearing me say that.

"I know Alisa, but that other girl, is she by any chance a commoner?"

"How do you know that?"

"I'm sorry, but I did some research on what you did on your vacation. I was surprised by the fact, not only that you got along with Alisa, more so with a commoner. You certainly are an oddity, Baron."

She sipped tea after saying that, her pink lips kissing the cup as she pulled them back from the rim. It was a glorious sight.

He continued to praise me after that.

"I think it's great for a noble to establish non-commercial, non-working relations with a commoner and it's just pure and sincere friendship. That applies the same to an aristocrat like Alisa."

"I beg your pardon?" -I said astonished at what he commented.

"Right, I didn't know, I forgave my vague answer."

"You see. That girl, Alisa, I met her when I was only six years old. Despite how she looks, that girl always said things like commoners were just tools. For an aristocrat, like us that comment was too much. One day, she changed her behavior a little, after that she spent saying and doing things to prove that aristocracy serves to show an example for others to follow."

"I had come to the palace several times to receive education in case she had to become queen, my days were stressful as she was very domineering and would not let herself be controlled. One day, she even set fire to the dining room, I was scared if she had hurt herself, but she seemed fine, on the other hand, Liam who was there was terrified to see her."

"It was a very scary and comical day, ufufu."

She laughed very nostalgically and delighted, just like with Airi, I feel like I relax just by seeing her.

But her expression got a little sad after that.

"Then I found out what happened with her ex-fiancé and Liam. Seriously, I feel ashamed for not knowing how to control that guy and more so the nonsense he was saying. As a woman, I'm sure she must have had a very painful time."

Her expression was very sad to see, besides us, there was a group of servants who were obviously her bodyguards. They too made sad faces.

The atmosphere was frightening, but then she calmed it down by raising her head and looking at me.

"But then I heard that an untitled gentleman defended her and even made her smile again, reports say she was passing by with a huge smile along with you and that girl. I really appreciate it baron."

"The decision to knight him was certainly a great example to show how our nobles should be."

Her expression of joy was charming. Was this woman really a mother and the queen of this country?

"I wish Liam could learn a little from you. I honestly don't know what went wrong with that boy, I told his nanny to raise him right, but I seem to spoil him too much."

(Ehhh! My queen, did you just say that you didn't raise your son, but a maid did!? Nobility is a weird thing I don't want to get into!)

My head began to spin strangely as I heard that possibly the reason why that boy had been a fool was because of lack of motherly love.

The queen said something, but I didn't understand her because of my confusion.

"Forgive me for being a busybody in your personal life Baron Bradford, but doesn't it make you a little uncomfortable to have a friendly relationship with only two girls? I'm very sorry to say this, but no one thinks that a male-female relationship can happen without romantic or physical ends."

I was still deep in my thoughts, the queen must think that question had upset me and now I was walking around annoyed, so she quickly changed to another question.

"I-I'd better change my question... Baron, I heard that you don't get a fiancée yet. Could it be that there is no girl to your liking? If it's all right with you, you can tell me what kind of woman you are interested in and I would help you through a recommendation of some interested house!"

I was still in my thoughts until Ixion spoke.

"Master." -said an electronic voice.

I opened my eyes as I heard him, he was hidden thanks to an optical camouflage that deflects the light.

This boy, Ixion, was an artificial intelligent known as an automaton of ancient humanity. His body was spherical with thin pincer-like arms on the side of his body, his color was metallic gray with red lines and a large glowing red eye in the center.

It came to my mind the troubles I went through getting it, but now it didn't matter since it was my property. I spoke to him in a low voice that only he could hear. By the way, where was he hiding all this time and why is he coming out right now?

"What's wrong?"

"The queen asked you something for a while now and you don't answer."

I made a hiccup in response to that and a cramp recurred my body. Making the queen wait was bad.

"Quick, tell me what she said to think of something!"

Ixion after taking a few seconds, in a despondent manner told me....

"...I see." -I said with a smile.

I raised my head and straightened my body, my face made a serious expression and I spoke to him calmly.

"Sorry to keep you waiting my queen. I was lost in my thoughts."

"I-I see, your answer what is it?"

My mouth moved to say the answer to the simplest question in the world.

"Plain and simple just one type. Big and ripe."

The queen's face let out an "excuse me!" -after my answer.

"How did I say. Big and ripe."

That's right, big and ripe fruits are the best. Some people enjoy eating fruits that are still green or undeveloped, I never understood that kind of taste.

"How I will open a resort is normal to have the best and biggest exotic fruits at my disposal."

"I like the ones that have their growing time to the point of being categorized as ripe, also if they are this curvy it's much better for me."

My hands made a curvy shape of a pear that looked like a figure eight. The queen's look was very red to the point of being almost a tomato, the bodyguards had the same expression on their face. Was a pear that shape weird?

I continued with my explanation.

"I've tasted several ripe ones so far in my life."

The queen blurted out a comment and made an embarrassed face after hearing my words. She must have been embarrassed at how I enjoyed eating whatever I pleased while she perhaps didn't?

"T-Tested you say...?? ...c-can you tell how many in total????"

"Umm, the exact number I don't remember, but I think if I'm not mistaken it would be over two hundred."

Of course, this is just a summed value of my old and new life to give that result.

My eyes were on the floor as I was thinking of a number. When I looked up, I could see that the queen had not only her face red as a tomato, her body was trembling slightly to the point that it made her hand with the cup move shaking and sprinkling small drops on her dress.

Her open mouth seemed to want to say something, but she stuttered while her eyes looked like billiard balls darting back and forth.

I tried to approach her to calm her down, I don't think it was a lot of fruit I ate to make her like this?

As I approached she screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Stay there!!!"

His breathing was getting faster and faster and he was panting as if he had been heated in an oven.

I went back to my post and noticed that the guards were not only surprised, also red and it even looked like some of them wanted to draw their weapons.

Maybe she doesn't like ripe fruit, in that case I think the proper response to her would be...

"Forgive me my queen."

The queen stopped turning her head to slowly turn to me.

"I-is that so? I'm glad you're sorry-"

"What you like are young men aren't you!"

The queen's expression this time was stronger than before.

Her body began to let off steam from how hot it was from my response. Her eyes opened wide to the point that she looked like she wanted to cry.

I'm sure that must be the answer.

"From your expression I notice that it must be so, next time you come, or if you prefer, I will send you to the castle several young fruits not yet ripe, I will bring them myself if you wish."

This time the queen crumbled to the ground.

I seemed to have guessed right, some bodyguards ran to her while others came up to me to shoo me away.

They seemed anxious and impatient so without making trouble I left.

Ixion appeared after that.

"It seems she was very pleased with your answer to the queen."

"It seems to be so; Alisa was saying things like don't put her to shame. Let's go get them, Ixion."

"Understood, you sure made a great achievement in this country's history today."

◇◇◇

From that day on, a story was born that will bring Rudel trouble forever. How the man who abruptly, brazenly and sexually harassed the queen of Altfode kingdom, at the same time that day a strange feeling was born towards Rudel that the queen herself could not explain.