I Think My Fiancé Has Regressed

Chapter 26: Dreamweed (1)

I can count on both hands the number of days until the day I get Miss Sierra out of Academy Light Romance.

The final assessment, the last event of the semester, is just around the corner, and so is the arrest of Miss Sierra.

Ever since Miss Sierra was placed on academic probation, she hasn’t been paying attention in class and has become even more distracted, as if her mind is in the bean field.

Instead of buying time by making up her grades, she seemed to be thinking about cheating her way out of this situation, as I’d expected.

Well, of course, I wasn’t about to let her get away with it.

In order to use the dreamweed to bring about change, the most important thing is not to be noticed by others.

The reason she was able to use the dreamweed on Alex in the first place was because of her strategy and luck.

The first and only time she was able to brainwash Alex was when he visited her alone in her hospital room, when she collapsed after drinking the tea I gave her.

Perhaps he wanted to resolve the issue himself because he thought it might be my fault as his fiancé, but the result was something that left only regrets for both Alex and me.

After the first brainwashing, the subsequent ones probably weren’t that difficult.

All she had to do was make sure that she had regular opportunities to be alone with Alex, so that the drug didn’t wear off.

Therefore, this time, I monitored her thoroughly to make sure she didn’t get into trouble, and kept an eye on the situation to make sure no one, including Alex, could interact with her alone.

As a developer, I know all the key events with targets that Sierra will be looking forward to, and I know all the details.

In addition to making sure that the event itself didn’t happen, I also made sure that the target characters were never left alone as much as possible.

Alex’s pretty much in my line of sight except when he’s in class, and Prince Eamon has his fiancée Charlotte keeping an eye on him at all times.

I’ve also firmly warned Kael, who still has events to attend, to never walk around alone.

It doesn’t work as well for people of the same sex, but I’ve also told Charlotte and Natalia, who are close to me, to be careful.

With those contingencies covered, all we have to do now is wait for the big day to arrive.

“…Why hasn’t he shown up, it’s almost time!”

Unable to let go of her frustration, even at nearly midnight, Miss Sierra stood in the back of the dormitory where the original event was supposed to take place, waiting for the other party to show up.

Normally, it would have been Kael’s event.

It would have been an event where Kael, after dinner, was taking a leisurely stroll down a secluded boardwalk and happened to run into Sierra for a quick chat.

Given that she’s having a hard time getting Alex to talk to her, and she’s even trying to brainwash another character, she thought it’s a good idea to take Kael aside after dinner today.

If she wants to have any chance of success, she shouldn’t start with someone who is close to her, but someone who she can get a one-on-one with.

Unless she sequentially narrows the distance like that, there’s no way they can fall for her obvious tricks.

And from what I know of Ms. Sierra’s character, she’s not the kind of person who would come up with such an idea.

Not to mention, she wouldn’t have the time to do it.

She’s already on academic probation, and this semester will be her last before she’s expelled.

The time for our original heroine to leave was fast approaching.

* * *

A few days later the long-awaited final practical assessment day finally arrived.

We gave Miss Sierra one last chance to participate in the practical exam, but the results were predictably abysmal.

Attempting to manipulate High Light magic without a proper foundation of knowledge, naturally, the formulas were never going to work.

Having wasted so much magic on uselessness, she ended the test unable to produce even a fist-sized ball of light, much less her usual output.

Unsurprisingly, her grade is at the bottom of the class, but it’s still higher than the average of her practical grades.

She would have gotten at least the attendance points she’s been missing.

Now Miss Sierra is out of the picture, and there’s no point in watching her anymore.

If she had some last-minute magic, I might have considered the possibility of using her in an event that needed her.

As it is, there’s probably no chance she’ll ever show any decent magic, whether at the end of the main plot or beyond.

She has no value now, and it’s in everyone’s best interest to get her out of the way as soon as possible.

Of course, there was one last thing left to do: arrest her for illegal drug use and attempting to overthrow the state…for using the dreamweed on Alex.

“…I still don’t like it.”

In other words, she’s going to meet with Alex alone, at least once.

Technically, he’s supposed to pretend to meet her one-on-one, and then we’re supposed to come out of hiding and arrest her as soon as we catch her using the dreamweed.

Still, in the back of my mind, the thought of having to face the brainwashed Alex again, even if it’s just for a little while, is a gut-wrenching one.

* * *

“Let me get this straight.”

The day before our final operation, we gathered in the student council room to go over the details of the operation to apprehend Miss Sierra.

“When Miss Sierra meets Alex and uses the dreamweed, we’re going to arrest her for possession and use of illegal drugs.

We won’t be able to avoid brainwashing Alex in the process, so Prince Eamon and Kael, I want you to focus on subduing him.”

The four heads nodded up and down.

Alex seemed to have some lingering dissatisfaction, but he just kept his mouth shut and acquiesced, as if he couldn’t say anything to me.

“Well, well, well…Prince Alexandros doesn’t seem to like Ariana’s plan, does he?”

“Nonsense.”

“I don’t know how the person who tries to listen to his fiancé so well has spent the past two years only listening to other women.”

“Charlotte, don’t be so hard on Alex, he was under the influence of the dreamweed….”

“I regret what happened to me, too. So I’m just doing what Ariana says in order to not make the same mistake again.”

“Hmph.”

Charlotte’s hand unfurled, covering half her face.

“If you don’t want to repeat the same mistake, you just need to show your will.”

“…What are you talking about?”

“At first, we didn’t know what had happened, so even if there were extenuating circumstances, you now know for sure that the woman will show up with the dreamweed, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Surely, even you, dumb and pathetic prince, wouldn’t be foolish enough to fall for the same trick twice?”

Charlotte taunted Alex.

“Don’t you dare say that, Charlotte! It’s impossible to overcome the effects of the dreamweed with your mind, I mean, it’s not just…balance destroying…it’s a dangerous drug that’s been banned by the state!”

“…Okay, I’ll try it.”

“What?!”

I was trying to calm Charlotte down to prevent the atmosphere from overheating, but instead, Alex’s side declared that he would take her provocation head on.

“If I succeed in using my willpower to survive the brainwashing of the dreamweed, Charlotte, you’ll see that there’s no room for me to betray Arianna again.”

“Well, then, at least you won’t be played for a fool in the future.”

…Well, that’s about as amiable as it gets.

In the end, I’m relieved to see that Alex’s declaration that he’s going to try to survive the dreamweed brainwashing hasn’t changed the substance of the plan.

“But if you can’t, you’ll have to prepare.”

“…Prepare for what?”

“Just in case the brainwashed First Prince decides to use violence against us to protect her, right?

After all, you’re the second strongest among us in personal force, so don’t you think we should make sure to subdue him before he goes on a rampage?”

The tactical meeting, which was supposed to end peacefully, turned tense once again when Charlotte spoke up.

“You know my magic bullet, I showed it to you at the last mid-term practical evaluation.”

“Wait, Charlotte. I know how strong you say you are, but are you really going to use it on someone?”

“…I’ll dampen the power a bit, but be prepared for it to hurt like hell.”

“…Yeah, okay.”

To be honest, I was a little worried, but by the time I realized it, the conversation was already over between the two of them.

My intervention would only serve to confuse them.

…And I know I shouldn’t be thinking about it, but I’m starting to wonder if Alex can actually make it through the dreamweed of his own volition.

* * *

I hid myself in the bushes on one side of the secret garden, waiting for Miss Sierra to appear.

Beside me, Charlotte, who had a magic bullet ready to shoot at any moment, whispered in a low voice in my ear as I worried about Alex.

“Don’t worry, Ariana.”

“…….”

“I’ll only hit where you can’t see it.”

“That’s…….”

When it was all over, I could only hope that Alex would be okay.