The first day of class at King Casimir Academy arrived. A few days had passed since I was accepted into the school. I stood at its gate with my books, notebooks, and writing implements. Reflecting on my knowledge of The Duke's Duplicity, I recalled that there were three characters I should meet as I entered the school. And the first one would come very, very soon.

  She was running down the road, a short girl with long brown hair and green eyes. A plain brown dress adorned her body. It went down to the girl's knees.

  I remembered her having a bit of a panicky face as she ran to class in her introduction in the game. She was much more calm than I recalled. Was I remembering things wrong, or was something else going on?

  "Hey, there. You seem to be in a rush," I called out.

  The girl stopped dead in her tracks and blinked in shock.

  "Y-You're talking to me?" she asked.

  In the game, she greeted Dante first. He didn't even seem to want to talk to her. Is she surprised that I'm talking to her? But she doesn't know about Dante. Why is she surprised?

  I nodded.

  "Yes, I am. Is there a problem with that?" I folded my arms.

  She rapidly waved her hands.

  "No, not at all," the girl said. "It's just that you come off as a bit standoffish."

  Despite her words, I saw a hint of suspicion flicker in her eyes like the light of a candle. Still, she kept up a cheery smile.

  "My name's Millia Newhawk. It's nice to meet you," the girl stated.

  Millia Newhawk, a cheerful and kind girl. From what I've played of The Duke's Duplicity, she's the intended love interest. And while I've avoided spoilers, I knew that a different character was the more popular love interest.

  Unfortunately, I didn't know who that character is. I was pretty sure it was Princess Augusta. But it's difficult to say for sure since I never made it past the first boss.

  "It's nice to meet you too. I'm Dante Montresor," I introduced myself.

  Millia seemed a bit surprised. That was increasingly suspicious.

  "Is something wrong?" I asked.

  "No, it's nothing," she answered. "You're just a lot nicer than you seemed from a distance."

  I nodded.

  "Well, I guess you can't judge a book by its cover," I said.

  Dante was a massive edgelord in the original game. So, he probably looks pretty off-putting to the people of this world.

  "What class are you in?" Millia asked.

  "The Fourteenth Class," I answered.

  "I'm sure you know the class schedule," she nodded. "So, perhaps we could walk to class together?"

  That line was a bit out of place. Millia was rushing to class before. Was the running an act? It clearly wasn't in the game.

  "That sounds great," I stated, deciding to keep a close watch on her.

  I saw suspicion in her eyes, and my own eyes no doubt showed distrust to her.

  As we walked along the main path to the school, we passed by several groups of students. Within my mind was the knowledge that the next important character would show up soon enough.

  He fell right out of a tree. This boy was shorter than even Millia and had a head of orange hair. His eyes were like those of hawks, and while he wore a school uniform, links of mail could be seen under parts of it.

  Millia ran over to him with a look of exasperation on her face. I joined the girl. Though I knew that the boy would be fine.

  "Are you alright?" Millia asked as she halted right in front of him.

  The girl bent over, gazing at the fallen boy. He was upside down.

  "That was a pretty big fall," I noted.

  He stayed down and shook his head. There was a somewhat blank look on his face.

  "Thanks for your concern, but I'm fine," the boy said.

  "Are you sure?" Millia questioned.

  She sounded like she was reading from a script, very disingenuous. I recalled Millia in the game speaking with genuine kindness from the heart.

  "Yes, I'm sure," the boy nodded with a smile. "My name's Janek Kamienski, by the way."

  "I am Millia Newhawk. And this is Dante Montresor," she introduced us.

  Memories flashed through my mind. I didn't know Janek Kamienski's backstory, which wasn't revealed in the first section of the game, but he's really good with a gun. The most advanced weapons this world has are flintlock muskets, and Janek never misses in the lore.

  Of course, he can miss in gameplay. But his Firearms skill starts maxed out for the section. So, he almost always hits. Whether this world is based on the lore or the gameplay didn't matter all that much. Janek was a formidable marksman, and I'd need him in my party to fight the first boss.

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  I extended my hand to him.

  "Here, let me help you up," I offered.

  "No thanks," Janek stood up on his own. "If I touched your hand, I might crush it. I do not want to do that."

  Right. Janek also had a decently high strength stat. I wondered if I could bring up a status menu to see my own stats, but then I realized that I had no idea how I'd even start doing that. Doing it in a game is one thing, but in real life...there wasn't exactly a tab button to press.

  "We could at least walk to class together. Then, if you're injured, I can carry you to the healer," I suggested.

  Janek nodded.

  "I guess that would be fine. I don't have any reason to not, and you guys seem decent. That is, as long as you're in Class Fourteen," he said.

  "We are, so come with us," I replied.

  Millia's voice slammed into my ears like a freight train.

  "Hold on a minute! You asked him if he could walk to class with us before you knew which class he was in! Did you just assume he was in Class Fourteen?" she asked.

  That was a pretty good question, even if she was raising her voice more than Millia did in the game. I'd have to come up with a cover story.

  "No," I answered with a smile. "I just hoped, and my hopes came true."

  "That's...definitely a...strange thing to hope," Millia stated.

  Her words were oddly accusatory.

  After that, the three of us went into the building proper. The entry hall of King Casimir Academy was a massive area filled with pieces of artwork created by various students. Statues, tapestries, and other such items filled the hall.

  Stained glass windows coated the walls. They were filled with images of King Casimir himself. Sunlight shone in through them, painting the hall in a brilliant glow that illuminated the countless students who filled it.

  A male student with short black hair and yellow eyes approached us. He had an expression of utter seriousness on his face. I noticed that he was not as muscular as Janek was, but only by a slight bit. This was something that The Duke's Duplicity's graphics struggled to convey.

  Thinking back on it, seeing this game world the same way I saw the real world was a bit surreal. Or was it the same way? I remembered how the game's graphics were different from how real people looked, but this world didn't have the same contrast. It was a bit brighter, and the colors were more vivid than what I could remember. But I still couldn't recall anything from my past.

  "Excuse me," the newcomer's voice broke me from my thoughts. "Are you in Class Fourteen?"

  "As a matter of fact, we are," Millia smiled with her mouth and not her eyes.

  He nodded.

  "Good. I was having trouble finding it, and I'd like to get your help," the boy said.

  Then, he narrowed his eyes.

  "There is just one thing I'd like to know first. Are there any nobles with you?"

  Janek raised his hand.

  "I'm a noble," he said. "Is that going to be a problem?"

  The newcomer narrowed his eyes.

  "As a matter of fact, it is."

  This is Robert Baker. He's a prodigy and also a commoner who has a grudge against nobles. Or at least he hates them. Commoners tend to have very different thoughts on the nobility, so I don't know his particular reason for having a grudge against them.

  "I don't like nobles in the slightest," Robert stated. "And I especially hate that I'll have to share a class with them."

  "That's foolish of you. After all, most of the students in this school are nobles," Janek pointed out.

  "Hey," I spoke up. "Could we please be civil at least until class starts? We're all here to learn, right? When we're in King Casimir Academy, that should be more important than social class."

  Robert turned to me with a glare on his face.

  "Are you a noble too?" he asked.

  "No. I'm a commoner," I answered.

  Robert looked at least somewhat relieved to hear that.

  "Well, that's good. You're a bit naive, it seems, but it's good to see someone putting their education first. I can at least respect that," the boy said.

  "Good," I replied. "And if you need any help studying, feel free to talk to me."

  Robert gave me a slight smirk.

  "I might take you up on that offer," he said.

  Millia placed a hand on her chin. She seemed to be thinking about something. I turned to her.

  "Is there a problem, Millia?" I questioned.

  "No," she spoke with swiftness. "Come on. Let's get to class. It's on the second floor."

  Millia started walking towards a grand staircase with a red carpet draped over it. The rest of us followed her. Robert shot glares at Janek, but neither of them said anything.

  Just as we got on the stairs, Princess Augusta stepped out onto the first landing. She must have been hiding behind the railing.

  "Oh, fu-" Robert's voice came out.

  "The Bloodbath Princess? What's she doing here?" complete and utter shock crossed Millia's face, mixed in with a dose of fear.

  Even Janek seemed nervous. Still, he gave a bow appropriate for a noble.

  "P-Princess A-Aug..." Janek started.

  "I'm not here for you," Augusta said without emotion.

  She pointed at me.

  "It has been a while, hasn't it, Dante?" she asked.

  All eyes were on me. And I mean all eyes. Not just my party, but everyone else, too.

  "It's been a few days, but I wouldn't call it a while," I answered.

  "Dante, you know her?" Robert looked at me with his jaw dropped.

  I nodded.

  "Yes. We met when I met the headmaster," I smiled. "She's pretty cool, isn't she?"

  Robert was completely dumbfounded. Janek looked confused as well.

  "This is wrong," Millia said. "This is so wrong."

  "How is it wrong?" I asked.

  Augusta stepped down the stairs, approaching me.

  "I look forward to joining you in class today, Dante," her voice was incredibly calm.

  A memory flashed through me. Augusta and Dante were explicitly in different classes in the game. This means that Augusta must have switched classes. But Dante wouldn't know that at this point in the story. If I did, that would be suspicious. I'd have to play dumb. So, I gave Augusta a smile.

  "I'm glad that we're in the same class. It'll be good getting to learn with you," I said.

  Augusta's expression was blank.

  "I look forward to it too," she replied. "I hope you prove enjoyable."

  With that, Augusta turned and walked up the stairs. I turned to my companions to see that their jaws were wide open.

  "Dante. How are you on such...good terms with Augusta?" Millia asked.

  "I told you that we met before school started. We ran into each other by coincidence," I answered. "Is there a problem?"

  She held up her hands.

  "No. There's no problem, it's just..."

  "Are you fucking kidding me?" Robert was struggling to avoid shouting. "Of course, there's a fucking problem! You know the Bloodbath Princess!"

  And here, Robert's hatred of nobles was flaring up.

  "I appreciate your concern, but it isn't needed. I believe that being a commoner or noble doesn't have to stop people from being friends," I replied.

  "And I already have one noble I'm walking with here."

  Robert facepalmed.

  "It isn't because she's a noble, Dante. The Bloodbath Princess is dangerous! Do you have any idea how many people she's killed in war, including noncombatants, and at such a young age?" he asked.

  Janek shifted with nervousness. The boy looked away from us.

  "And besides, the rumors say she killed her entire fencing class when she was a child! She's an undefeated warrior too! Even adults lost to her when she was five! There's no way any of us would stand a chance against her if she went berserk!" Robert continued.

  I did not believe that for a moment.

  "How does a five year old beat anyone?" I questioned. "That's probably just some rumor her parents spread to make her look tougher."

  Millia raised her hand.

  "If I can interject, I don't think she's as bad as Robert's saying. She probably is bad, but I think this might be a good development. After all, we can keep an eye on her this way," the girl suggested. "I mean, would you rather the Bloodbath Princess be someone you can't see coming?"

  Robert opened his mouth to object, but he closed it.

  "That is a risky game you're playing, but you have a good point," he said.

  A quiet anger had poured into me. I took a deep breath before addressing the three.

  "Okay, I understand your concerns, and I appreciate them. I really do. But I am not going to judge someone for being forced to go to war and fight as a child soldier," I said. "And I will trust my judgment before I trust random rumors. Augusta has been nothing but kind to an undeserving person like me. So, take that however you will, but I will repay that kindness."

  None of them seemed to know what to say to that. So, we kept going and made our way to class.

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