The Gloomy and Timid Princess Heads to the Academy

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“Oh dear, are you friends?”

I was genuinely anxious, wondering if I might actually bite down before that ominous feeling dissipated.

This didn’t happen without reason, though.

“…You truly are friends, right? You’re not being blackmailed by some weirdos or anything, are you?”

My brother had dropped the hostile vibe but still kept a suspicious gaze. It wasn’t entirely incomprehensible; I had given him plenty of reasons to doubt my judgment.

After all, I had a history of doing less than trustable things.

When I thought back to my earliest memories, I could recall that he never seemed particularly fond of me, yet if I ran toward the river or climbed onto a desk, he would panic and rush me back to safety.

In hindsight, I realized that I had a knack for getting him and my father to freak out.

For instance, approaching noble elders, complimenting them on their looks without a care in the world, or jumping to help commoners in urgent need—those kinds of things.

Still, it felt a bit unfair. The noble elders genuinely complimented me, and commoners did have real emergencies.

Most things had ended on a good note, but having my brother immediately reach for his sword whenever someone approached wasn’t entirely my fault.

“They’re not strange or bad people.”

So I had to clean up the mess.

“If the Princess says so, then that’s that… But what brings you here?”

“To… buy some clothes!”

“Oh, you came here to buy clothes. Well, you could have brought some of those clothes your parents gave you.”

“Shut up!”

It wasn’t that I didn’t like my dad, but… the clothes he gave me were a bit much.

Why was that? Back when I was little, I gladly accepted whatever clothes he gave me, but at some point, what he bought just didn’t appeal to me anymore.

My mother didn’t buy clothes often, but she always picked out durable and comfortable outfits, unlike his.

No! More importantly, why did I have to admit that in front of my friends? So embarrassing!

I couldn’t help but feel resentful towards my brother.

“I just assumed you were being dragged away by some bizarre ruffians since you were going somewhere you shouldn’t. Thankfully, it doesn’t seem to be the case.”

Seeing my brother relax his grip on the sword eased my worries a bit.

Of course, in that state, he could probably slice through a bunch of kids in a blink, but I could sense he wasn’t in the mood for that.

Since Ho-yeon was around, he seemed like he might just observe for a little while.

“Dad and brother are always overly protective. I’m grown up now!”

I sent a slightly chilly message that I didn’t need babysitting, but I was still happy to see him. It had been nearly a month since I last saw him.

“Oh dear, when you put it that way, it feels like just yesterday when I was carrying you on my back.”

Seeing him chuckle like that made most of my resentment melt away.

…But when I thought about what I had done to get here, I felt a little uncertain.

Still, how could I hate my brother who came all this way out of concern?

“…By the way, about that ‘brother’ thing… Who are you? What’s your relationship with Ho-yeon?”

Anya, who had been quietly listening, finally couldn’t hold back her curiosity and broke the silence to ask him.

She had held off for a long time; I figured she was just waiting for the right moment to ask.

If I were in her shoes, I would probably be curious about someone suddenly acting friendly.

“Oh, I’m the leader of the Royal Guard, Black Wolf—I’m pleased to meet you… friends? Is that how I should refer to you?”

“My name is Anastasia. But feel free to call me however you like.”

“Anastasia… That name sounds familiar… Oh! You’re the only daughter of the Duke from the Northern region. Oh dear, Ho-yeon, you’re also the only daughter, which makes you friends!”

Just moments ago, he looked like he might lash out, but now he had this friendly demeanor. Honestly, it was a bit strange, but as long as things were amicable, I was fine with it.

“Then you must be the so-called leader of the guards.”

So-called leader of the guards.

I had anticipated rumors would emerge since he had fought against the knights and taken hostages, but this was the first confirmation I received.

“Ah, it’s nothing to worry about. I simply asked someone to step aside since they were blocking the way.”

He didn’t seem too concerned about it himself. He had a personality that didn’t care about such things, but he should at least feel a little awkward or proud of it.

Instead, he appeared completely unfazed, which was very much in character.

“…So you are indeed the leader of the guards.”

Why was the guy on the verge of death pretending to know this?

– – – –

The young man before me seemed more trustworthy than the description given in the source material, yet he was actually one of the key supporters of season two.

And not just any supporter, but a crucial one in the final battle.

Jeong-ho wiped out his tribe for unknown reasons, and while fighting fiercely until the end, he appreciated Black Wolf’s skills enough to name him the leader of the guard.

Despite his intense objections, Byeolbi had used some unknown method to make him comply.

It was clear that he held a grudge against the royal family, so when the protagonists’ group figured this out, they managed to convince him to breach defenses and confront the royal family.

Black Wolf had planned to restrain Jeong-ho while Byeolbi left the handling to the protagonists, but…

Well, as it turned out in the conclusion, it ended in a hellish failure.

Byeolbi didn’t even view the confrontation with the protagonists as a fight and, after picking them off one by one, the protagonist met their end as Jeong-ho walked onto the scene, and with that, the story concluded.

How was that even a harem ending?

Anyway, given the dark backstory, I had lost nearly all hope when he first appeared, but this futility felt distinctly different.

It didn’t feel like there was a lack of hope; it felt more like I was observing a crafty old man deliberately playing humble.

Was this all just a snowball effect because of Ho-yeon?

There was nothing I could do about that, so for now, I had to make a good impression on Black Wolf.

He may look like that, but he was someone capable of holding Jeong-ho at bay for half a day.

“Oh, so you’re Ho-yeon’s boyfriend? Didn’t you used to say only men like me and Dad should meet you, Ho-yeon?”

“No way! Well, yes, he is a friend, but…!”

He seemed to find it amusing as he looked back and forth between me and Ho-yeon, and it looked like he had established a good first impression.

“Yes, just friends, as Ho-yeon said.”

I didn’t add any unnecessary details about how she visited my room frequently.

He didn’t seem keen on that either, but he clearly cared for Ho-yeon.

I didn’t want to accidentally draw misunderstandings with needless words.

“Yes! Just friends! Well, not just friends; we’re best friends, actually…”

Ho-yeon was vigorously affirming his statement and, hearing her defend it like that made it easier.

“Ah, I see… Well, then, can I know your male friend’s name?”

“Han Dogon.”

“Oh? From the East?”

“More accurately, my parents are from the Eastern continent. They fled here from the turmoil and gave birth to me.”

“I see… It sounds like you’ve suffered a lot due to the war. But aside from that, could you help carry some of these bags? I can see your legs starting to shake.”

I had been channeling mana into my body just to hold myself up, but it seemed an expert’s eye couldn’t be fooled.

I hadn’t thought much about it when I first grabbed the bags, but as the number of bags increased, my thoughts multiplied.

Was Anya’s wallet okay? Was she really going to buy everything she picked? Was Ho-yeon silently wearing everything again?

Of course, my worries had somewhat faded, but joy of the spirit couldn’t heal the pain of the body.

I had been lugging around bags heavier than my own weight for two hours, so my legs were slowly giving in.

When I seriously wondered how I would get back to our lodging, I had no reason to refuse his offer to help.

“…Yes, I’d be grateful if you could lighten the load a little.”

Just as he stepped closer to take the bags from me, he said:

“…If you mess around, you know what will happen, right?”

“…Yes.”

It was just a fleeting moment, but I felt a pressure similar to Ho-yeon’s aura.

But I could still sense the intent behind it.

He wasn’t spreading his intent all over like Ho-yeon; he had compressed it and sent it straight towards me, which made me involuntarily shrink back.

“Do well.”

I couldn’t precisely determine the meaning behind those words, but it felt like a warning that if I touched Ho-yeon, he would deal with me.

Within that frozen moment, Black Wolf had already taken nearly half of the bags and returned to looking like a young man who was just a bit silly.

“…Oh dear, ladies. Is it time to stop buying clothes? That boy’s shoulders must be about to give out.”

“Stop with the theatrics, brother.”

“I mean it. It’s just that he’s toughing it out without saying anything, but if you held them, they’d probably break right away.”

“…Is it really that bad?”

“Yep. Anastasia, do you have a way to carry the clothes?”

“Umm… I thought Dogon could manage it… but…”

“Sorry, Anya. I’m really struggling.”

If we turned around for just one more layer, I felt like I’d be buried in a heap of clothes.

“…Ho-yeon, is this enough? It feels a little lacking…”

“…To be honest, it feels like we bought way too much. Let’s head back now.”

“Wha… Was I the only one who was excited…?”

Oh, right.

Even Ho-yeon, who had come with the purpose of shopping, said she bought too much, causing Anya to lower her head in embarrassment, realizing she was the only one enjoying herself.

“Then… shall we go…?”

With Anya being the only one keen on staying in the department store, the atmosphere shifted toward leaving.

I wondered if one of the beastkin traits was an ability to generate hostility.

As I pondered this, I continued to move my heavy legs.