"Yes. This is our store’s latest import—a device that temporarily heightens mental perception. In combat, it lets you predict opponents’ moves a split second earlier. A rare weapon indeed."

The shopkeeper rattled off his pitch. Theos, the customer in question, examined the bracelet in his hand, thoughtful.

"To see you here on a weekend, Theos—it’s unexpected," Caina remarked, a trace of surprise in her voice.

Today, Theos had traded his academy uniform for proper noble attire. Elegance radiated from his posture, his clothes perfectly capturing his youthful grace. His delicate features held an alluring charm, and the slight furrow in his brow made more than a few girls outside the shop swoon.

Boys his age were magnets for attention. Moyu even spotted several girls outside, hearts practically sparkling in their eyes as they stared at him.

*Real-life players are so damn enviable,* Moyu Manatsu thought, jealousy prickling under her skin.

"I’ll take it."

Theos finally spoke, his tone flat. He wasn’t entirely satisfied, but no better option existed.

"Your decision honors this humble shop, Young Master Frithas!"

The shopkeeper beamed, carefully wrapping the chosen Magic Artifact.

"Hm?"

Sensing a gaze on his back, Theos turned. Two beautifully dressed girls stood there.

"Lunorette and Caina—what a coincidence."

He executed a flawless noble bow, etiquette polished to perfection.

"Uh… hi, Theos."

Moyu felt awkward not greeting him. Their bond wasn’t deep, but after fighting together in the Death Forest, they were at least acquaintances.

"Good day, Theos," Caina replied smoothly, lifting her skirt hem in a graceful curtsy.

*Lunorette looks stunning today.*

But Theos’s eyes lingered on the silver-haired girl. At the academy, they’d only ever met as rivals. Today, dressed so delicately, Lunorette seemed softer—less fierce, almost fragile. Naturally, his gaze stayed on her longer.

"Theos?"

"Hm? Nothing. By the way—are you two alone today?"

He cleared his throat lightly, masking his fluster as he changed the subject.

"I wanted to go out just with Luno-chan. What about you, Theos? Out alone?"

Caina fielded the question for Moyu.

"No. My maid accompanies me. We’ll rendezvous shortly. If you’ll excuse me."

With another noble bow, Theos tucked the Magic Artifact into his satchel and strode out. Moyu Manatsu’s sharp eyes caught a girl across the street. The moment she spotted Theos, she dipped into a perfect maid’s curtsey.

"You kept me waiting, Young Master."

"It’s fine. Let’s go."

Watching them leave, Moyu Manatsu fell silent.

*That perpetual runner-up… he’s not as simple as he seems.*

(Truthfully, she was just jealous of the girls around him.)

"Let’s go too, Moyu-chan."

"Yeah. I’ve seen enough here. What else is worth checking out?"

"Nothing fun comes to mind… How about the fruit stalls?"

With no better plans, Moyu Manatsu let herself be led along.

*If only this world had internet cafes…*

*Yeah, ‘fun in another world’ is totally a lie.*

The streets teemed as usual. Commoners hawked wares from makeshift stalls while nobles glanced down with mild disdain, tossing coins only when amused. The air reeked of medieval England—stiff with the divide between aristocrat and peasant.

"Coconuts from Zazvita Duchy, ladies! Care to try?"

The fruit seller targeted the pair. It wasn’t hard to spot their status: Caina’s noble aura was unmistakable. Commoners knew nobles’ coin flowed easiest.

"Wanna try, Moyu-chan?"

"I’d rather have watermelon."

It wasn’t that she disliked coconuts—watermelon just held her heart.

As she scanned other fruits, Moyu spotted a familiar figure next door. The boy stood with a girl, deep in discussion with a blacksmith who listened intently.

"Theos?"

What a coincidence—barely ten minutes since parting, and they crossed paths again. Fate was strange indeed.

"Ah, Lunorette. Good day."

Theos seemed startled but quickly composed himself.

The girl beside him blinked at Moyu Manatsu’s elegant appearance.

"So you’re Miss Lunorette. An honor. Forgive my rudeness."

She bowed formally. Moyu could’ve sworn a flicker of something odd flashed in her eyes.

"What are you doing here?" Moyu asked casually.

"Just commissioning a weapon from Master Chedel, the Imperial Capital’s finest smith. And you, Lunorette? Shopping?"

Theos replied politely. His stiff, honorific speech felt unnatural to her—typical noble stiffness. She couldn’t stand it.

"My young master seeks the sharpest blade possible," the girl interjected. "Hence Master Chedel."

So Theos sought a worthy weapon. His earlier stop at the Magic Artifact shop made sense now.

"By the way—who are you?"

"My apologies. I’m Mellu Aselise, Theos’s maid."

She curtsied again. She carried herself like a proper maid, lacking only the uniform.

(She was pretty too—not stunning, but far from plain.)

"Master Frithas."

The blacksmith—Master Chedel himself—finally spoke. "Your sword won’t be ready before a month. Even working day and night… twenty-eight days at the earliest."

"No matter. I can wait. I’ve paid the deposit. I’ll return in a month."

Theos bowed again, etiquette impeccable.

"Where’d you run off to? I almost thought you’d vanished."

Caina found Moyu at the fruit stall, mildly surprised to see Theos again.

His duties done, Theos should’ve left. Yet something about the silver-haired girl tugged at him. Today’s soft, unfamiliar attire made her seem utterly unlike the Chief Student he knew.

"Lunorette."

He hesitated, then called out. "Walk with us, if you don’t mind. There’s something I must tell you."

*Better now than later,* he thought.

"Sure. I’ve got nothing else to do."

Moyu Manatsu agreed without hesitation.

*She didn’t even think?* Theos was taken aback.

"L-Little Moyu, you’re just—"

Caina bit her tongue. Girls didn’t casually accept strolls with boys. Was she oblivious? Or just reckless?

(At least Caina and Mellu trailed behind—this wasn’t a date. A small mercy.)

Walking beside Theos through the Imperial Capital felt surreal. To Moyu, he’d only ever been the rival who challenged Lunorette.

"There’s news you should hear. It’ll spread across the Empire within two days anyway."

His grave tone wiped the casualness from Moyu’s face.

"Zazvita Duchy… has been annihilated."

Silence crashed down. Only street sounds remained—the hawkers’ cries, nobles’ sharp complaints, carriage wheels clattering, children’s laughter. The Imperial Capital’s vibrant chaos pressed in, suddenly too real.

"What did you say?"

Moyu Manatsu’s shock was visceral. She remembered Xiejit of Zazvita—the agony he’d inflicted, the desperate fight to kill him. The nausea that followed… her first life taken.

"You recall the assassin who kidnapped Her Highness," Theos continued, unsurprised by her reaction. Caina’s shock mirrored Moyu’s, though she hid it well. "After Sernaf Xiejit died, the Empire cremated his body and discarded the ashes. Shortly after… they declared war on Zazvita."

"Why?"

"Obvious, isn’t it? Zazvita kidnapped our princess. The Empire deployed its vaunted Imperial Mage Corps. You know how they operate. Naturally… the duchy fell within a week."

*How terrifying.*

Moyu never imagined this could happen.

"As for how many civilians remain in this small nation, I’m not sure. But the former Zazvita Duchy is gone—it’s now part of the Empire’s territory."

Moyu Manatsu stayed silent.

Once, the assassin Xiejit had angrily told the princess he did this out of necessity—to end the war in his homeland.

Who could have thought that after all his efforts for his country, he’d end up beheaded? Worse still, he even caused his homeland’s destruction by the mighty Empire. The nation no longer exists.

The citizens he’d vowed to protect are gone now. His family… who knows what became of them…

"Is this war?" For the first time, Moyu Manatsu felt bewildered by this world’s existence.

"Why tell me this, Theos?"

"You’d find out eventually. I’m telling you because there are things you must know."

A strange gleam flashed in his eyes.