The morning of a new day had arrived.
It was getting closer and closer to the beginning of the new school semester and also the last of this cycle.
A young girl was changing her pajamas.
She was a beautiful girl with short hair with a lock on the left side that reached her chin, the color of her hair was dark purple while her eyes were a light green.
Her serious attitude showed that she was a "tough and cool girl" from the point of view of others.
She was Nadine Mably, a royal guard, a character in the game and also part of Eli's personal escort.
Nadine came out of her room heading to the living room for breakfast.
A group of maids were waiting for her.
Nadine's family were once known as a margrave, but thanks to her father, their status as near-nobles stands as he is the captain of the royal guard.
His daughter followed in his footsteps and at a young age became the princess's personal guard.
"Good morning, mother, father."
She greeted her parents and they greeted her.
She sat down with them for a nutritional breakfast meal to recharge her energy.
After finishing her meal, she went to practice.
There were only two days left to enter the last semester of school.
She was practicing so she could enter the magic sword tournament.
Nadine, being one of the main character's harem as one of the many knight girls, was special unlike the others.
"I must... practice... more."
"So as to... protect... the princess."
When she was five years old, she was introduced to Princess Eli.
◇◇◇
Back to that time.
Nadine was with her father walking through the halls of the castle.
"My daughter. I hope you know that this happening to you is the best thing someone your age could ever dream of."
"His Majesty was very surprised when he asked me if I could bring my daughter to be Princess Elicia's playmate."
"I know father."
Nadine nodded her little head.
After reaching the chamber of ministers, there stood in the background the king.
Behind him was a little girl hiding.
When Nadine and her father got close enough, they showed their respects to the king.
The king was a 50-year-old looking man when he was supposed to be in his 30s.
His blue eyes were inherited by his son.
Gilliam von Brune stood up and behind him was a little girl accompanying him.
"I'm glad you came, we're going to chat a bit about important matters, so I'd like the girls to be able to play as soon as possible."
"Understood, Your Majesty."
Nadine watched her father who indicated with his gaze for her to follow a maid to the roof garden.
When she arrived she was surprised at how vast it was.
A woman was reading a book, she was the queen, Olga von Brune.
The woman with the hair and eyes which her daughter inherited from her.
Olga saw her daughter running towards her.
Nadine prostrated herself before her.
"It is good to see you healthy, Your Majesty the queen."
The queen laughed a little at her.
"Come on, you mustn't be so formal. You're still a child, being so serious at your age will get you wrinkles at a very early age."
"...!"
Nadine was shocked to hear that.
The queen approached her with her daughter, took the little girl's hand and showed it to Nadine.
Nadine was so shocked that she unintentionally said something she shouldn't have.
"How beautiful she is."
In front of her stood a frightened little Eli.
For Eli, new people scared her.
Nadine approached her.
Eli backed away.
Her mother reassured her.
"Eli, it's okay. She came to be your friend."
"My friend?"
Little Eli said.
Her mother gave her a loving look and spoke tenderly.
"That's right, you need friends, and reliable people, that's why your father asked the head of the royal guard to bring his daughter, she's the same age as you."
"I see..."
Eli shyly approached Nadine and held out her hand.
"W-We're friends."
She said embarrassed.
Nadine was so surprised that instead of taking her hand, she knelt down and kissed her hand instead of taking it.
"Princess, under the name of my family, I, Nadine Mably swear to protect you forever. I will be by your side until my last breath."
Nadine swore to protect that little girl, the reason for that was something she did not understand. Her heart was pounding just to see her.
Years went by and Nadine became for Eli an irreplaceable friend.
But for Nadine it was different.
Sometime after becoming friends, Eli was kidnapped and saved by someone who years later they discovered was Rei.
Then came the incident where a lunatic broke into the academy and took Eli hostage. It was also Rei who solved that.
Lastly, the incident of the academy invasion.
She couldn't do anything during that crisis.
She felt useless.
Even she believes that, because of her weakness, Eli sought out Rei to guarantee her safety which she could not achieve due to her lack of power.
She swung her sword with great strength.
"I must be stronger than anyone!"
"So as to... protect the princess!"
Nadine's determination was only and for Eli's sake.
◇◇◇
The sun was setting.
A large mansion located in the forest around the capital was the residence of Baron Alanson.
The baron was a thin, plain-faced man with a large mustache covering his upper lip.
The baron's family were just an ordinary family who served as servants to the royal family.
Or so everyone thought...
Because in the basement of the mansion, there is a hidden door which can only be entered using a single key.
Down the stairs, there is a deep darkness that is gradually illuminated by candles.
At the bottom... lies a torture room with the worst and most deranged tools.
Why did the baron have this?
Was he a psychopath?
Anyone would think so, but that person is wrong.
In reality, the baron was an exclusive assassin of the royal family.
The baron's family was dedicated to it for generations.
Receiving the title of baron and position of servants, they make them perfect for those who want to make an attempt on the life of the royal family and look for accomplices.
In the center of the place, surrounded by machines to pluck skin from fingers, eyes and even to fill veins with air, stood he and his daughter.
A natural mocha colored girl, her blue-black hair reached to the nape of her neck with a parted fringe on her forehead.
Her beautiful navy blue eyes gave the feeling of being at the beach at any time of the day.
Her attire was usually that of a maid, but now she was naked.
The reason was training.
She, Emma Alanson was a secret assassin like her father.
Several years ago, her father was in the kingdom of Gabino to assassinate a man who fled with information from the royal family.
He managed to do so after a while of following him, he made it to a shopping area to buy something home before returning.
There, he saw a line of children being sold.
The reasons for selling children were varied, usually they were used as slaves for chores.
Among them, there was only one child who caught the baron's attention.
It was a girl who, despite being locked in a box, showed no signs of pain, sadness or hunger.
That child was a sign for him.
He decided to buy her and took her to the kingdom.
When he got home he trained her.
He taught her that her life was only for and for royalty.
If she must die for the sake of royalty, she would.
If she must kill someone from the royal family that hurts the royalty, she will do it.
If she must kill herself to avoid proof that the royalty has assassins... she will do it.
She never had a life of her own.
From the time she turned seven, she became Eli's servant.
This was all for the purpose of protecting her after her kidnapping.
King Liam regrets not having made that decision earlier.
Emma grew up as a beautiful young woman.
At this time, she was posing nude for her father.
It wasn't for reasons of something morbid, but for training.
"Raise your left hand making your elbow at a 45-degree angle."
"Then lift up to your buttocks your right leg and hold for ten more minutes while your right hand holds a tray of sharp knives and your weight is supported by the tips of your two fingers on your left leg."
"Aye aye father."
Emma's entertainment was so hellish that not even Spartan, Korean or Russian workouts compared to it.
Even she had been tortured in different ways such as poisoned to achieve immunity to pain and poisons in order to achieve his goal of making her the perfect assassin.
Ten minutes passed.
It was already dark.
Emma stopped striking a pose where the muscles and bones in her back should kill her with pain.
Her father picked up the tray for her and handed her a robe.
After putting away some tools he went to hug her.
"That was a good workout Emma, I'm proud of you. You are the best creation the Alanson family could have had in centuries."
"Even if you're not my blood, I love you for all you've done without complaint."
"Let's go upstairs to eat, I'll give you a great dinner today."
"Understood father."
Emma went upstairs and changed clothes in her room.
Then she went to dinner.
The Alanson family dinner was just like all of them.
The lord and lady of the house along with their biological daughter and adopted daughter ate normally.
They even laughed at simple jokes like "who's that".
Suddenly, the father said.
"It's true."
"Emma, the sword and magic festival will start a month after entering school, right?"
"That's right father."
"Right. I'm under no obligation to ask you, but it would be nice of you to research the participants and the winner."
"Thanks to Harrisburg, we don't know how many traitors or Calvinists there are in the country."
"I understand father. I'll be sure to find that out."
Before resuming her meal, her mother said something else.
"I forgot. Emma dear, is it true that the princess is engaged to the duke's son?"
"That's a bit wrong mother. He is the new duke and it is as you say. They are engaged."
"Oh dear."
Her mother was shocked, but her father not so much.
"I see. He certainly is the young man who has been attracting a lot of attention recently."
"Emma, it would be good for you to keep your eye on him too. We don't know if he might be planning to take the crown."
Emma was thoughtful at the mention of Rei.
She'd known him for months, but had only seen him from the back.
One day, Rei wanted to do kinky things with Eli.
She volunteered instead and from that moment on.
Something was born in her.
She doesn't know what it is.
She wants to tell someone, but she feels that if she does she failed as an assassin to hide her emotions.
Therefore, she locked it in her heart.
"I will be aware father."
Emma resumed her meal and thought about Rei until bedtime.
◇◇◇
Someone else was having strange thoughts about Rei before she went to sleep.
Her long caramel blonde hair was silky and reached down to her lower back, she had a braid behind her ears which was attached to a large red bun at the back of her head.
Her asymmetrical bangs went down to almost cover her right eye, which was ice blue both eyes.
She was one of the heroines of the game.
Sasha Harvey.
"What's the matter, can't sleep?"
"It's not that."
Asked a woman next to her.
She was twice her age.
Her hair was combed to the left side and was orangey blonde.
Her eyes were a beautiful turquoise color like the transparency of a lake.
She was Sophia Catley.
A background character in the game.
Weeks ago, she and Sasha were involved in an incident that almost ruined the Kingdom.
They were part of the Kingdom's Four Favored Families who helped the royal family kick out the Frazier family.
The Ashton family was a family of counts and were awarded the position of chief court magician.
The Harvey family was given the post of finance minister as they were good at economics.
The Redblades were already dukes, the award is something unknown to anyone.
The Catley's were given the post of prime minister as they were close friends of the Brune's, but as time went on they were filled with corruption to the point of losing their money and almost bringing their own destruction.
The only relative of that house is and will be only Sophia.
Sasha wanted revenge on Sophia's husband for being directly responsible for her mother's death.
She wanted revenge, for that desire her father gets involved, they almost ruined the country as well.
They were about to lose their properties and their lives if it were not for Rei who saved them.
The Harvey's mansion was attacked by the enraged people, they destroyed almost everything and even set fire to it.
It is currently being repaired.
Sasha having lost her room was visited by Sophia who told her that she could go live in her house.
Sophia's house was in bad shape as there was also rioting and chaos, but by her own servants.
But since Rei had ordered earlier that he wanted Sophia by his side, he sent money and repairs began quickly.
The case of the servants was another matter that did not matter for now.
Since that day, Sasha has been depressed.
Her life when she returned to the academy would not be the same.
That's why she thought about the dream her mother told her, that she should help Rei.
She doesn't understand why she should help him, but she was grateful to him.
She had to help him whether she wanted to or not.
Sophia looked at Sasha and stroked her head.
"Are you really okay?"
"I am, I just don't know what will happen now."
"I'm afraid that when I get to class they'll start bullying me, I know I made a mistake because of my desire for revenge, but I'm such a coward not to look up and see the faces of those who hate me."
Sophia hugged Sasha as if she were her mother.
"It's okay. That's why they're called mistakes, they're acts that hurt us to have committed."
"I feel the same way. If I had stopped my husband, at least he would be in jail, not in a grave now."
Sasha lifted her face to see if Sophia was crying.
"Sophia-san, what did you feel that day?"
Sophia closed her eyes and opened them slowly.
"It would be a lie if I said it didn't hurt, but I quickly understood that it was only a psychological affection. I never loved him, for that reason the pain was just a passing thing and at this point it doesn't bother me anymore."
"I understand. Unlike me, you are strong."
Sophia laughed at Sasha.
"What's so funny?"
"You see... it's just that I'm not strong at all."
"The only reason I made it through after losing my family was him. Rei-kun."
"Him!"
Sasha asked very quizzical at that answer.
"He told me he wanted me and he wasn't going to let anything happen to me. He kept his promise."
"I'm not strong, I just have a motivation not to throw in the towel. And that's what I wanted to tell you."
"If you think you have nothing to fight for yet, get a goal or objective. In your case it would be to regain your position you lost."
Sasha turned away.
"Why should I think about that guy? It's absurd."
Despite saying that, she knows it's true that without Rei, they would be dead.
He even blamed himself for the crimes they committed.
He was an idiot who became the object of the hatred of many just to save her.
Sasha knew it was petty of her to treat him badly.
"Well. I'll greet him formally when you see him in class."
"Fufu. I'll be waiting for you, since you'll be living here for a while won't you."
"Yeah..."
Sasha took Sophia's hand before closing her eyes.
The two women had the same thought before falling asleep.
(Having someone who listens to you, it's very warm. It reminds me of...)
They slept soundly without saying who they reminded her of.
________________
I was going to put fanservice of Emma for being the first chocolate waifu in my novels, but I decided to put this better.
Sophia got an update and now she looks like Bianca from Dragon Quest: https://chan.sankakucomplex.com/es/post/show/17556373