I, Roel, Speak No Lies

Nora Xeclyde.

This was a name Roel remembered from the memories of his previous life, as well as one of the individuals whom he would prefer to stay away from if at all possible.

She was the future head of the Xeclyde House, as well as the future Holy Eminence of the Saint Mesit Theocracy, which meant that she would eventually become a powerhouse of this world. Nora Xeclyde was revered no matter where she went, such that in the game she was deferentially addressed by the academy students as the Queen. Together with Alicia, they were known as the Golden Sun and Silver Moon of the Saint Mesit Theocracy.

Needless to say, she was one of the four capture targets.

It was just unfortunate that her exterior portrayal of a perfect young lady was not an accurate reflection of her true character. To put it in simple terms, Nora Xeclyde was an extreme sadist.

She put on a dignified look before outsiders, compelling others to defer to her authority, but the truth was that she was someone who derived great joy from inflicting pain on others. That gave rise to her other reputation as the 'Bloodthirsty Angel'. Any fight that involved her would need to be mosaiced out in order not to traumatize onlookers.

The concepts of good and evil blurred when it came to Nora Xeclyde. She treated those who were close to her kindly and, at the same time, would never hesitate to stand up against evil. But, on the other hand, it was hard for anyone to claim that she was a good person; not after witnessing the mountains of corpses and rivers of blood left in her wake following a violent rampage, especially with the knowledge that she relished in it.

Roel's deepest impression of Nora Xeclyde came from a CG in the game. It depicted the supposedly saintly Nora posing with her bloodstained wings unfurled as she stared at the player with an intoxicated look on her face. The contrasting elements of good and evil harmonized in her, forming a breathtaking work of art.

Art appreciation aside though, Roel wanted nothing to do with such a person in reality. He felt like he needed to distance himself from Nora for the sake of his own sanity.

One must know that even the main character had to spend three whole semesters shamelessly pursuing and fawning over Nora Xeclyde, even nearly losing his life in the process, before finally successfully capturing her. If it was already that tough for the main character, there was no way anyone else in the world could possibly win her over!

If Roel, an antagonist in the game, were to try to do the same, he would definitely be killed in a heartbeat!

Heh, I even have a professional team to send me off with fanfare if that were to happen!

Thinking about the Skeleton Pallbearer Army he had exchanged his Affection Points for, Roel suddenly felt a foreboding sensation in the pit of his stomach. One must know that Nora had played a huge part in orchestrating Roel's eventual death in the game!

Once again, Roel reaffirmed his determination: I mustn't get involved with this girl!

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"Your Highness Nora, is the red tea to your liking?"

"Yes, it's delicious. Thank you, Miss Alicia."

In the lounge, Nora, Alicia, and Roel were seated together, sipping on tea while having a pleasant conversation. So far, an hour had passed since everyone first met in the foyer, and Roel's group parted ways with the adults. Elsewhere, the grown-ups were in the midst of a secret conversation inside one of the guest rooms.

Roel had no idea what his father and Kane were discussing as he was not privy to any of it, but it was bound to be something of significant importance. The fact that Kane chose to bring Nora along also hinted at one thing—the Xeclyde House wished to get on good terms with the Ascart House.

What better way to ensure close, long-term ties between the houses than to have their children play together?

The Ascart House was known as one of the Five Eminent Noble Houses inside the Theocracy, and this was an accepted fact even within the Holy Capital. The Xeclydes had much to gain from rallying the Ascart House over to their side, and the best way to do so was to win over their young successor, Roel.

In fact, it was a convention for successors of noble houses to socialize and forge amicable ties with other houses. For that reason, children of nobility had to mature early so that they could maneuver their way through all sorts of social situations.

The battle to build factions had long begun, and those who were slower to realize it would be at a disadvantage. The three children sitting in the lounge were all very cognizant of this fact.

Nora, despite her high standing, carried no arrogance in her attitude. She guided the conversation with grace and magnanimity as she attempted to get on closer terms with her two companions.

Alicia could see through Nora's intent, but the experiences she had been through made her extremely guarded against all of her peers except for Roel.

And as for Roel…

He was simply smiling his way through the situation, trying his best to feign death. He made his stance very, very clear through his actions: I want no part of this.

Nora might be a huge tree, and an alliance between the Ascarts and the Xeclydes was indeed a very enticing proposal. There were great benefits if one were to look at it from the standpoint of their houses, but Roel was currently looking at it from his own shoes.

As a boss in the common route, he was a villain who was deeply hated by the main character and the capture targets. He would, one day, be killed by them. In order to avert that tragic fate, he only had a single goal at the moment, and that was to pull out all his death flags.

As long as he succeeded in it, he should be able to live to a ripe, old age.

It seemed like a feasible plan, but there was just one little problem.

How was he supposed to remove his death flags when he wasn't entirely sure what they were? He didn't have full knowledge of the storyline!

The solution that Roel came up with to his dilemma was simple enough: don't do anything the original Roel would have!

If the original Roel was extremely cruel to Alicia, the current Roel would dote upon her to the high heavens! Or, something along those lines.

It was likely that the original Roel would immediately catch on to Nora's goodwill and proceed to fawn upon her. So, the current Roel decided to stay as far away from Nora as possible.

Trying to display goodwill to me? Sorry, but I'm blind! Trying to butter me up with compliments? Sorry, but I'm deaf!

Say anything you want, I'm not going to see or hear anything anyway. I'll just sit here and smile like the wallflower I am. Detest me if you want to. I don't mind. It'll be best if you detest me to the point where you never want to meet me again!

"Can I call you Roel?"

The dignified Nora asked with a sincere and intimate tone. Roel pondered for a moment before replying with a smile.

"Of course, Your Highness. It's my honor."

Tsk, can you stop acting like we're close to one another?

What Roel was saying with his mouth had nothing to do with the thoughts in his head. He plastered a polite smile on his face and responded to Nora's questions with the minimum level of civility required.

"Roel, can I become your friend?"

"Of course, Your Highness."

Who would want to be friends with you?

"Am I being a little too abrupt here?"

"Of course not, Your Highness. It's my honor."

If you know that it's too abrupt, you shouldn't have done so in the first place.

"… What do you think of me?"

"Your beauty is as the rays of the sun; your kindness overwhelming like the embrace of the earth. Our country shall prosper under the leadership of a great person like you. May Sia bless you."

Now you're asking me to fawn on you too? Tsk, how shameless.

"… What do you think of our Xeclyde House?"

"Our Ascart House will be your most stalwart supporters. There's no one in Saint Mesit who doesn't know of our unwavering loyalty toward the royal family, and…"

"Alright, that's enough."

Nora cut Roel's blathering off with a wave of her hand, causing the latter to blink his eyes for a moment, but he readily stopped the stream of nonsense coming from his mouth.

Are you finally getting sick of the bootlicking? If that's the case, let's just have our tea in peace, shall we?

Roel thought as he lifted his teacup to take a sip. It was at this moment that Nora took out a red pendant from beneath her clothes.

"Roel, what do you think of this pendant of mine?"

"It's gorgeous, Your Highness."

"Yes, I think so too. I do fancy this pendant a lot. It refracts sixteen different rays of crimson light when light shines into it."

"Astounding." Roel shot a glance at the crimson pendant and replied with a compliment.

Meanwhile, Nora leaned forward and continued with narrowed eyes, "I should also mention that it has a unique ability. Are you curious to know what it is?"

"It would be my honor to know, Your Highness."

"Yes, of course."

A smile crept onto Nora's lips as she beckoned Roel over with her finger.

Roel was a little surprised by the gesture.

Something's really not right.

He felt there was something amiss, but after a brief hesitation, he still chose to lean over and listen to what the girl had to say.

Now that Roel was blocking her from Alicia's view, Nora's smile swiftly grew colder and colder as she revealed the secret behind the crimson pendant with a frigid voice.

"Its effect is none other than… lie de-tec-tion."

"… Crap."

Under Nora's playful look, Roel finally spoke his true thoughts aloud for the first time in the past hour.