kscans

Chapter 2 - Nothing but Discrepancies

"Liberation... from the System, you say."

It seemed Lupia had slept for a short while, as she felt much better. Perhaps out of consideration, her guard, Alfred, was no longer in the room.

But more importantly, what was that inorganic voice and the sound of something shattering just now? She tried to think about it, but it didn't make much sense. She did recall it saying something about a game...

Lupia sat up and tried to think.

A game. As in, a pastime.

What was even more confusing was that line about 'liberation from the System,' spoken in that flat, robotic voice. She didn't understand what 'liberation' meant, either.

She sat up fully on the edge of the bed and tried to sort through the situation.

"To begin with, what even is a... 'System'?"

Hmm, a low groan escaped her lips. An unfamiliar term and a voice that didn't seem human. It was all a complete mystery.

"...System... System, huh... No, it's no use. I can't think of anything."

She didn't know what it meant. But it did seem to be a fact that she had been freed from something troublesome. That strange sensation, the feeling that she cherished Falty, had completely vanished.

In the first place, Falty was no best friend of hers. They were simply classmates who would occasionally run into each other at the library and, if the tables were full, sit together to study. That was the extent of their relationship.

She knew Falty was a count's daughter and a special scholarship student, but that was all. Besides, the number of people Lupia would call a true friend was exceedingly small—she could count the number of people she could bare her soul to on one hand.

The rest were classmates she was moderately friendly with, or daughters of other noble houses she was close to due to their parents' professional relationships. As a noble lady, she had to master the use of public facades and private truths, and she had to know how to expand her social circle—all in preparation to become the future Crown Princess.

But then Falty became the Crown Prince's lover, and just like that, the engagement between Lupia and the prince was dissolved.

The annulment of an engagement decreed by royal order. Her father had told her that, because it had been so one-sided, the ducal family had received a considerable sum in reparations.

What Lupia thought, as the daughter of the Calmond Ducal Family, was, Can they really overturn a royal decree so easily? As for the knowledge and manners she had acquired through her education as a Crown Princess, she was actually grateful for them.

Still, she'd heard that her memories concerning the various affairs of the royal family, learned during her training, were scheduled to be erased at a later date.

And for some reason, she seemed to recall being asked to support Falty as her best friend, but that was out of the question. She felt no need to lend a hand. Since Falty had, of her own volition, stolen the position from the original fiancée, it was up to her to manage it somehow. Surely even she could understand something so simple, Lupia thought, letting out a grand sigh in the empty room.

"I wish they'd hurry up and erase my memories with poison or magic already."

Just as she muttered this, there was a knock at the door. Knock, knock, knock—three quick raps.

"Come in."

She called out loudly enough to be heard outside, and in hurried her father, her mother, and Alfred.

"Father... Mother...! Uh, um... Alfred, did you... bring them...?"

"Yes, my lady. The reception has concluded, and above all, I thought it imperative to inform the Duke and Duchess of your poor health as soon as possible..."

"Oh, thank... you...?"

"Oh...! My darling Lupia!"

Before Lupia could even finish thanking Alfred, the Duchess of Calmond, Millière, swept her daughter into a tight embrace.

"You must have been so devastated...! You should have been the one standing there...!"

"M-Mother?!"

"The Crown Prince and the King and Queen, what a truly foolish thing they've done!"

"Excuse me! Mother!"

Her daughter's near-shout finally brought Millière back to her senses. "Oh, my," she murmured, looking embarrassed.

In front of family or those she trusted, the Duchess of Calmond would occasionally let such moments slip out. But as Lupia thought back, she couldn't recall her mother ever showing this side to her before, leaving her more confused than anything.

"What on earth has gotten into you...? I truly do not mind the engagement being called off. Yes, from the bottom of my heart."

"What?"

"What?"

The first "What?" came from Millière. The second came from Lupia.

Up to this point, Lupia's father and the current Duke of Calmond, Aristerios, had been observing his wife and child without saying a word. He'd done so because, for some time now, his daughter had often worn the emotionless face of a doll during her life at the academy. The marchioness who had served the ducal family for generations was the one who had educated Lupia to be a 'proper lady,' and that same marchioness had always given Lupia glowing reviews, and yet...

"Lupia."

"Yes, Father."

At the sound of his name, Aristerios's daughter straightened her posture and looked directly at him. Seeing her like this, it was easy to fall under the illusion that she must have been under some sort of spell during her time at that academy.

"How are you feeling now?"

"Regarding the broken engagement, I am grateful. Regarding my health... not very well, I'm afraid."

"I should think not. You're far too pale. Millière, Alfred, we're going home. Alfred, you will guard Lupia."

"Yes, my dear."

"As you wish, Your Grace."

A simple answer to a simple question. That was all that was needed.

As a father, he had been worried sick about Lupia, but his position had its constraints. Still, he now felt he would cast all of that aside to protect this daughter of his.

But Lupia was not so fragile.

"Alfred, lend me your arm."

"Yes, my lady."

She stood, though unsteadily, and placed her hand on Alfred's offered arm to begin walking. Her pace was slow. In fact, her steps were faltering.

Aristerios wondered what could have possibly brought Lupia to this state, but no answer came to mind.

This was his precious, beloved daughter who, even when unwell, even with a sprained ankle, had always performed her public duties without a hint of pain or hardship on her face. Of course, he had never been negligent in dispatching healers to ensure her swift recovery.

"Lupia."

"Y-Yes. ...I-I do apologize for walking so slowl—Kyaa?!"

Without a word of warning, Aristerios swept Lupia up into his arms. The one being held turned bright red with fluster, but Millière's gentle voice told her, 'No, you must let yourself be doted on now,' and she could only nod in response.

Contrary to Lupia's panicked thoughts of Aren't I heavy?!, the Calmond Ducal Family was also a line of soldiers. They had inherited the bloodline of a former king's younger brother who had served the kingdom as Captain of the Knight Order. Following generations of tradition, Aristerios also demonstrated his prowess to the fullest as the current Captain of the Kingdom's Knight Order.

He never neglected his training, so even at forty-two, Aristerios's strength was far greater and more formidable than that of any ordinary adult man. And so, held in her powerful father's arms, he strode through the royal castle, enduring the startled gazes of the surrounding nobles, until they finally reached the carriage bearing their family crest.