It was late into the night, but from a certain window of a noble family's manor, lights could be seen coming out of it, and inside that room, a certain girl could be seen sitting at her desk as she desperately wrote down something onto a notebook.
That girl was Amanda Faeber, an office lady from Japan who reincarnated into the body of a girl with slightly wavy brown hair and an average appearance. She was the 5th child of a count family that ruled a territory quite a distance to the east of the Royal Capital. In other words, she was the epitome of a mob amongst mob girls!
… … … And don't ask how this works alongside the other stuff related to that same place, it's magic, I guess.
And right now, she was desperately trying to remember everything that she knew about an otome game called Doki Doki Magical Love, that she used to play in her past life, after spending almost two 20 years in this world without ever bothering to think about that game… And now she needed to remember everything about it for yesterday.
And to put it nicely about how her progress was going…
She was still at the starting line, due to the combination of the game's overwhelming amount of extra paid content, exclusive content from limited editions, merchandise, and the most hindering of all, her overly vague memories of the game, which she had almost completely forgotten about until now.
As well as because the game's entire progression and story were completely broken, thus making Amada's knowledge even more fickle as she wasn't even sure whether it would be useful or not anymore.
But then, as Amanda had another outburst of arguing inside her mind, a sudden fragment of memory came on top of her head, related to what she had just complained about.
Due to how old it was, that fragment of memory was mostly foggy, but she could remember that it was from a side character wiki page that she once read to find out any side quest related to that character. She couldn't remember their appearance, their name, or any of the information related to that character. But she could remember one thing about this character's background.
… In the game, he mentions having been once contracted as a bodyguard to a count family from the east for a few years, before he became a captain in the territory of the… In the Official DDML art book extra contents, his backstory is further explained, with a map of his journey being provided alongside it with all the places he visited being highlighted…
She couldn't perfectly remember what it said, but the most important that came was… The image of the character's journey map, which was now repeating inside Amanda's head, and… She felt like she knew where one of those places was…
"!!!"
With a chill running down her back at that information, Amanda hurried out of her room and beelined her way towards her father's office, where she knew that there was a big map of the kingdom hanging on the wall.
Quickly reaching the office's door, she opened it without even bothering to knock on it, only to enter the office that was currently empty, she turned on the lights, allowing her to see the map in full view. But it wasn't enough, so she got closer to it, and stared at the map with great intensity, looking for the place still stuck in her mind, and then… She found it.
"Ah… Aaaahhh…"
And the image of the place stuck in her mind was none other than… Her family's territory.
"No, no, no, no, no, no… There's no way that that character passed here, I'm sure I would've remembered someone going after strong people to fight, there's no way that I could miss such a person passing here!!!"
However, against her wishes and denial, Amanda felt an itch on the back of her head, an itch that she had seen someone like the person described in that fragment of memory from her past life when she was younger. And that itch kept on growing until…
"Ah… … … Oh… Oh no… … …"
She remembered exactly about having met a person searching for strong people to fight.
.
.
.
Years ago
It was a rather cloudy day, and in front of a famous bookstore in the Faeber territory, a young girl followed by a maid could be seen leaving it, as the maid held two bags filled with romance books, while a knight stood guard outside of the store.
"Lady Amanda, did you really need to buy all these books in one go?"
"Yes! Especially when the books in question are popular, and you never know when the next batch is going to come! You must buy one copy of each volume that you can before they're out of stock!"
"… If you say so"
With that short talk finished, the two continued on their way back to the manor, with the knight following right after them. Although Amanda was the youngest daughter of the territory's lord, and her appearance clearly said that she was a noble, no one dared to approach her. Mostly because the knight exuded a clear intimidating atmosphere around him, which alongside his quite visible strength, made most people look away.
But one man didn't do so, rather he was intently looking at the bodyguard, almost as if he had found a worthy opponent for his legendary battle. With a smirk at his luck, the man got up from his chair and walked towards the young lard and her small entourage.
"Ayo, young miss! Can I have a word with you?"
"!?"
"!"
"!" *Grabs his sword's handle*
The man's appearance surprised the three, and also put the knight on guard, ready to react in case the man made any suspicious movement.
"So, I am on a journey searching strong opponents to fight, and your knight here…"
As the man began explaining himself, Amanda practically stopped listening as she put her mind in full gear to get rid of the man, who in her view, was just a crazy drunkard.
"… So, I would like to ask your permission to fight your knight here. Because he appears that he'll be a good time killer before I go back onto the road"
"… Not only are you an idiot, but you also have a death wish, huh? Very well, I shall show you my skills!"
"Oho! Very well! I have been itching for a good fight for quite a while recently!"
"Erm… Mister"
"Hm? What is it, young miss?"
"Hmm… If you go… West?… Yes, west, past the royal capital, you are going to find a retired adventurer who was a really strong one as well as a high-ranking one at that!"
"…" *Looks at Amanda* "Really? Is that true?"
"Yes! Yes, it is!"
"And how high was that adventurer's rank?"
"Erm… … … S-rank?…"
"S-rank, huh? And did they accomplish anything significant?"
"… … … They killed a dragon or two… And a demon… I think… No, I mean, I'm sure"
"Hmm *Nodding with a pensive face* Alright, you convinced me. Sorry for bothering you, and Mr. Knight, let's have our duel some other day I hope you'll get stronger until then"
And with that, the man walked away leaving the knight fuming in anger.
"Lady Amanda, why did you let that man go!? I would have taught him a lesson for looking down on you and me!"
"Do not you get it?"
"Huh? Lady Amanda, are you saying that I would lose to him?"
"What? No! Did you not see that that man was just a crazy drunkard? For people like him, you just talk about what they like and use that to convince them to go somewhere else away from you, why bother yourself doing what he wants?"
"… … … You are completely right, Lady Amanda… But, where did you hear that there was a retired S-rank adventurer to the west?"
"Oh, that. I just made it up, but I'm sure he's going to pass by some other strong adventurer on his way west and completely forget about us. In any case, what is done is done, and I want to return home and get reading my new books, so let us get going"
"… Very well, Lady Amanda"
.
.
.
Back to the present
"… … …"
Realizing the massive mistake that she had committed by rightfully using her common sense of not involving herself with suspicious people, Amanda fell to her knees and then on all fours.
"It's over… It's so over… I went and broke this otome game world progression and story by accident… just because I made a reasonable decision to shoo away a crazy drunkard!!! Why God!?… … … Hm?… … … Huh?… … … Wait a minute"
As Amanda was wailing from desperation, she suddenly had an epiphany about what was going on and what she had seen.
"All that I messed up with, was just the timing of when that crazy drunkard becomes captain of Edward's family and his relationship with Florence, in other words… I just messed with the side story related to him! And the main story is still going on as normal!
Yeah, that's most likely what happened! So that means that I'm still safe and my knowledge is still valid! Yes, I'm back! I'm so back!
Ah! But just to be sure, I should ask Father about the crown prince's engagement. But I'm sure that he's still engaged to Lysette… Or was it, Lynette? Eh, I can just check that tomorrow"
And so, Amanda managed to calm herself down by reasoning that the changes that she had caused by accident, didn't affect the game's main story in any significant manner. She left her's father office and returned to her room to have a good night's sleep with no weight to her conscience.
.
.
.
The next day
"Nee, Father. Can I ask you a question about the academy?"
"Hm? Oh, sure! Sure! Amanda, ask anything that you want to know about there"
"Okay! So… I heard that in the academy, everyone is supposed to be treated like equals, and I heard that the Crown Prince is also in his second year there… So I was wondering if there would be any problem in someone like me trying to talk with him, just for networking, even though he's already engaged and a prince"
"… Hmm… Well, as far as I remember in my days at the academy, there are not many problems in lower ranking nobles talking to those of higher rank, of course, we still need to keep some formalities when doing so, but overall… You do not have to worry about being reprimanded for talking with the prince, as long as you do not act rude to him"
"I see, I see"
"And about the crown prince being engaged… Where did you hear that from, Amanda?"
"Eh? Is he not engaged to Lady Lysette, Father?"
"Not that I am aware of, in fact, I heard that the crown prince has yet to find a fiancée"
"Huh? T-Then is perhaps Lady Lysette engaged to someone else?"
"Yes, from what I heard, she has been engaged to the heir of the Harding family for quite some time already. And talking about him… I also heard that he managed to snag an engagement with the princess of Akeshi a few years ago"
"Eh?"
"Well, that's all that I know about those people, but what about the academy? Is there something else you want to ask me about there?"
"Ah… How are the dormitories there?"
"Quite good, if I say so myself"
"I see… Then that's all that I have to ask, Father"
"Is that so? Very well then, have a good day, Amanda"
"You too, Father"
And with that, Amanda made her way out of her father's office with trembling steps, and once she closed the door behind her. She dashed towards her room, and after locking herself inside, she fell to her knees and then on all fours, as she once again… began wailing in despair.
Amanda was on the verge of screaming at the complete surreality of that situation, of the only side character who was always guaranteed to have a happy end in the entire game, somehow getting himself a harem. But This wasn't the end quite yet, as Amanda still had one ray of hope left for her.
However… Amanda had a bugging feeling in the back of her head, which was bringing doubts to her reasoning just now, and then she realized something.
"…"
When Amanda realized that fact, she couldn't deny herself anymore, if Edward had already gotten three girls into his harem, with two of them being villainesses, nothing was stopping him from also having gotten the protagonist as well, with basic reasoning.
"… … … *Deeply breaths in* FU-"
.
.
.
Years ago at the Harding Territory
"Humu! These are some beautiful-looking apples"
"I'm glad you liked it, Miss Camilla. I'm confident in the health of my trees to get these beauties!"
"I can see it, then… Please, get me two dozen of your best-looking apples, sir!"
"Very well, miss!"
Once the stallkeeper got Camilla's order and was paid accordingly for it, she began walking away from it, all the while she continued to feel an intense stare on her back, that had been present for quite a while already, but that she had been ignoring it for the time being.
For quite some time, Camilla continued doing the groceries, as her hands became more and more filled with bags, as she showed no attention to their weight, almost as if they were nothing, that she also felt to be increasing the intensity of the stare.
Once she was finished with it, Camilla began making her way back to her home, which eventually led her towards a rather empty road, with very little in the form of buildings or people, with only a certain manor breaking what would otherwise be an unending green open grassland.
There, Camilla came to a stop as she put all of her bags on the floor, and finally addressed the source of the stare she had been receiving for almost the entire day.
"So? Are you going to reveal yourself, or will I need to force you to?"
"… Oh-ho, very impressive to notice me, miss"
The person following her, revealed himself to be a guy who appeared to have just spent a whole day drinking.
"When you kept staring at me like that for the entire day, it would be natural for me to notice it from the start. But, enough chit-chat, who are you?"
"Kukuku… I am Hughes Keegan, a swordsman by trade, and currently on a journey to find the perfect opponent for my blade"
"I see, and how did you find me?"
"I received a tip from a young lass in the east past the royal capital, who said that beyond the capital I would find a retired S-rank adventurer who killed a dragon on two in their active years.
If I'm going to be honest, I was a bit suspicious of her words, especially when I arrived at the capital, but I'm glad that I decided to go with the lass' words… As I didn't expect to find the renowned Kamilla Mac Eachairn here"
"*Sigh*… To think someone who knows about my old life would come all the way here… Well, you said that you are searching for strong people, right? Then I guess, I should at least entertain you a bit for your determination"
"Heh, thank you for your kind words, Miss Kamilla. But I must tell you that I've been making a name for myself thanks to my unparalleled speed with my sword"
"Enough talk, and more action"
"! Kuku, very well"
Camilla and Hughes both prepared their stances, Camilla made a basic upright stance as if she were in a boxing match, while Hughes held both his scabbard and sword handle in a low position, ready to pull it for a fast swing at any given moment. The two were ready to attack and then…
"!? GUAH!"
Without any warning or delay, Camilla closed the distance in the blink of an eye, and before Hughes could even pull out his sword, he received a perfectly landed punch right into the middle of his face, as he was sent flying to a lone tree amidst the grass, hitting it with such a great force that all of its fruits broke away from their branches.
"*Taking the dust out of her hands* Phew… *Checking her clothes* No, damage to my clothes… … … Hm? Now that I think about it… Dear, said that we needed to get a new captain as the previous one retired from old age"
As Camilla remembered that fact, she looked in the direction that she sent Hughes flying, and came up with an idea"
A short time later, she would arrive at the Harding family manor, while carrying all of the groceries in one hand, and dragging Hughes through his feet with her other hand.