Akuyaku reisoku ga hametsu furagu o sakeru tame ni kishidan ni haittara, nazeka hiroin-tachi no hō kara chikazuite kita ken ni tsuite [Prologue] (Patreon)

There's a game called Akashic Academy, a school-based action fantasy.

The premise is simple: the protagonist tackles various events at the academy, levels up, and clears different storylines. But the real draw isn't just the action—it’s the romance. As you progress, the heroines' affection levels rise. It became a hit by blending high-octane combat with dating sim elements. Plus, every single girl in the game is written to be incredibly cute, to the point where each one has her own die-hard fanbase.

Stats, Action, and Romance. The game is packed with everything a player could want. However, there’s one specific character, other than the protagonist, who shows up in every single route.

Sometimes he’s laughing at a heroine’s misfortune, sometimes he’s hunting them down, and sometimes he’s standing in your way as a mid-boss or even the final boss. Arrogant, disrespectful, short-tempered, and a total womanizer—he’s the black sheep of the nobility, the second son of a Count: Yulis Blanche.

In this story, he is the ultimate, irredeemable villain.

One afternoon, amidst the pleasant chirping of birds, inside a room within the Blanche estate...

"If you really think about it, dodging every single death flag is basically impossible."

A black-haired boy sat at his desk with his arms crossed, looking dead serious.

"I mean, the protagonist and the heroines are right there. Since we’re in the same grade at the same academy, we’re stuck in the same box. We’re bound to run into each other."

He looked to be about ten years old, a bit chubby, but with sharp eyes. Even so, there was a refined quality to his features that made you think, He’d actually be pretty handsome if he lost some weight.

He paused for a beat before speaking again.

"So, I’ve been thinking... if I just don't go to the academy, I won't die, right? What do you think about that?"

"I’m sorry, I honestly have no idea what you’re talking about."

The girl in the maid outfit, who had been half-listening while pouring tea, finally spoke up.

She had glossy blonde hair tied in twin tails, an adorable face, and big, round eyes. She looked to be about the same age as Yulis and was on the shorter side. You could tell at a glance she’d grow up to be a real beauty. Her name was Iris, and she shot Yulis a flat, unimpressed look.

"At the end of the day, what are you actually trying to say?"

"I don't want to go to school."

"I can't believe you said that with a straight face. You sound like a kid trying to get out of class after summer break."

To be fair, he couldn't help it.

It had been a week since he’d been reincarnated as the villain Yulis. Since then, he’d dealt with nothing but looks of contempt and whispers behind his back. On top of that, once academy life started, he’d be forced to constantly worry about protecting his life from the "doom flags" triggered by the heroines.

He didn't even know why he’d been reincarnated in the first place, yet here he was, suddenly facing a dead end because of his character's past behavior. It was only natural to want to run away.

"...Do you really hate studying that much? I mean, I know you’ve been blowing off your tutors until now."

"No, I don't actually mind studying."

"Oh? There goes the number one reason kids hate school."

That wasn't what Yulis was worried about, though. What he was truly afraid of was much simpler.

"There are just a lot of people I’d rather not meet..."

"Ah, I see. Say no more."

Iris nodded, looking completely convinced as Yulis stared off into the distance with a hollow look in his eyes.

Despite her bluntness, Iris placed the freshly brewed tea in front of Yulis.

"I mean, it makes sense. People really do hate your guts, Master."

"I guess you're right."

"…Why don’t you try looking back at your life for a second? Then you’ll see if there’s actually any room for 'guessing' left."

Technically, Yulis was a hardcore player of Akashic Academy. He had a decent grasp of what the character "Yulis" had done up to this point. But the reason he asked Iris anyway… was probably because he was desperately hoping there was still some shred of hope to cling to.

"…Just out of curiosity, what exactly have I done again?"

"Well, for starters, didn’t you just scream a bunch of profanities at the Princess recently? If you want more details crammed into that empty head of yours, I can put together a report and show you later—"

"Okay, I get it! I don't remember doing it, but I definitely understand that I have a past I can't outrun!"

"Looking at the list again, it’s a miracle you haven't been stabbed in the back yet. I totally get why you want to make a run for it."

"Exactly. That’s why I’m planning a strategic retreat."

"It’s hard to act cool when you aren't even planning to fight back."

As expected of the notorious villain, Yulis. It seemed he had already reached the point of no return regarding any relationship repairs with the heroines.

"So, there you have it. Like Iris just said, I’m probably not going to make a hundred friends at the academy. Therefore, let's figure out how I can skip out on going entirely."

"Why don't you just try apologizing to everyone?"

"Why the hell would I do that?!"

"See, that attitude right there? That’s the first thing you should think about."

If it were something he had actually done, he’d feel like apologizing. But it was the "pre-reincarnation" Yulis who did all that; he hadn't even touched the guy. No matter how much he didn't want to die, bowing his head was out of the question.

"Anyway, the options I’m considering right now are 'Run Away From Home,' 'Move Far Away,' or 'Become a Monk.' What do you think?"

"From where I’m sitting, those all look like the same option."

"Hmm..."

Iris crossed her arms and tilted her head, deep in thought. Then—

"Oh, I know. How about joining the Knights?"

"The Knights?"

"Yeah, the National Order. They take anyone, noble or commoner, and the entry requirements are the same as the academy. If you’re serving the country, surely the Count won't have anything to complain about?"

The Knights were a group that only got a brief mention in the original game. They had branches everywhere, working to keep the peace. While it was standard for nobles to attend the academy, some did join the Knights—usually younger sons who weren't inheriting the estate or those from long lines of military families.

In the Blanche family, Yulis's older brother was already set to inherit the title and was already attending the academy. Plus, the game’s story focused entirely on the school—meaning the protagonist and every single heroine were there. Not one of them was in the Knights.

"THAT’S IIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTTT!!!"

Yulis accidentally jumped to his feet, letting out a roar that echoed through the afternoon quiet.

"Genius idea, Iris! Exactly! If I join the Knights, I don't have to go to the academy... which means I can totally ignore the plot! I can grow up without ever running into the characters meant to execute me!"

"I... have no idea what you're talking about, but I’m glad you like the idea. You know there’s an entrance exam, right?"

"Yeah, no problem!"

"…I wonder where all this confidence comes from, considering you’ve never even swung a sword in your life?"

Iris tilted her head in confusion. However—

(Heh heh... I've got game knowledge on my side. It might be a bit of a cheese move, but I can start training right now! I don't know how high the bar is, but if I work my ass off until the sun goes down, I can make it happen!)

Yulis’s eyes practically burned with the fire of a sports-anime protagonist.

(If I join the Knights, I can even get away from Iris, the secret heroine. There's no way a personal maid follows someone into the military!)

Besides, he figured Iris probably hated him too, so it was a win-win. Overjoyed by his own logic, the "villain" Yulis couldn't stop his creepy grinning.

"It's settled! Time for special training! I'm heading to the training grounds right now!"

"Sigh... I'm your handler, so I'm guessing I have to go too. I know how this works."

Iris watched Yulis bolt out of the room, gave a heavy sigh, and started chasing after him.

(To hell with the story! I’m skipping school so I can stay alive!!)

Five years flew by in the blink of an eye.

"Hey, Iris... do you really think I can make it into the Knights?"

Yulis had grown quite a bit. The once chubby boy had leaned out into a slim, toned physique with just the right amount of muscle. He asked the question while slowly sheathing his sword in the middle of a silent forest.

"I’ve worked my ass off every single day until now. I’ve swung my sword, built muscle, and fought countless battles. I’ve literally put blood, sweat, and tears into this training."

"Well, you definitely aren't the same person anymore, Master. You haven't skipped a single day."

"I know, but I can’t help being anxious. I haven't exactly been invited to any social galas, so I have no clue how good people my age are. Besides, they don't exactly post the specific entry requirements for the Knights anywhere."

"Now I’m just getting depressed," Yulis muttered, covering his mouth as his eyes welled up with tears over his total lack of friends.

"You’ll be fine! You’re super cool now, Master, so there's zero chance you'll fail!"

"Sorry, I think I dropped the ball on that one. Can we try a conversation that’s a little easier to catch?"

Like Yulis, Iris had grown up too. She was beautiful—or perhaps it was more accurate to say her "cute" factor had skyrocketed. Her adorable face was enough to make anyone stop and stare, and her body was starting to show the curves of a young woman.

Though, for some reason, her eyes had a certain feverish sparkle to them lately. Maybe that was just part of growing up, too.

"But seriously, you really don't have anything to worry about, right?"

"I mean, look," Iris said, gesturing downward.

Spread out before them were the mangled corpses of a massive horde of monsters.

"...If you can't get in, then I guess the world must be at total peace."

"Huh? Why are you giving me that 'you’re an idiot' look again?"

Yulis genuinely had no frame of reference for the Knights' standards. He tilted his head in confusion, while Iris just watched her master and let out a long, heavy sigh.

◆ ◆ ◆

Iris wasn't a main heroine.

She was what you’d call a "hidden character"—someone who only unlocked after clearing every single route and didn't have much to do with the main story. In her original script, her role was dark: after Yulis murdered her family just for kicks, she would fall into despair and become a sort of "hidden boss" character.

Of course, that storyline was only supposed to trigger after they entered the academy. Before the main game started, the character "Iris" hardly appeared at all.

But just because she didn't appear much didn't mean she liked Yulis. Back then, she felt the same way about him as everyone else did.

(...Master has been acting really weird lately.)

This was back about six months after Yulis had been reincarnated. Iris was sitting with her chin in her hand, watching her master run laps around the training grounds.

(One day he suddenly starts shouting about how he doesn't want to go to school, and then the moment I mention the Knights, he starts training like his life depends on it. Plus, he hasn't thrown a single temper tantrum in ages.)

It was a welcome change. He used to take his frustrations out on her, which was a massive pain to deal with. The only reason she hadn't quit being his personal maid was because her family had served the Count for generations. If it weren't for that, she would’ve bailed on him a long time ago.

But lately, life had been easy. He spent every day from dawn till dusk swinging his sword or practicing magic, leaving her with plenty of peace and quiet.

(I guess having more free time is a bit of a downside? Maybe I should start joining in on the training sessions once in a while.)

As she was thinking that, a group of other maids walked past behind her.

"Look, there he goes again."

"Is he still trying to suck up to the Count?"

"Who knows why he’s doing it. Not like it matters to us."

They giggled, their words laced with the same mockery as their stares. Iris didn't bother defending him; she just sat there blankly waiting for her master to finish his run.

After a while, Yulis stopped and approached her, drenched in sweat.

"Phew... Water... towel, please... If I smell this bad... people will think I'm just some... sweaty gym rat...!"

"You need to drink something or you're going to drop dead."

"...Water, please."

He gulped down the water Iris handed him and wiped his face with the towel.

"By the way, we’re heading out to buy a new sword today, right?"

"Yeah... I just can't find one that feels right. They're all so heavy."

"Maybe you're just lacking muscle because you're more the 'bookworm' type?"

"Urgh... Does that mean I’m still not training hard enough?! I can handle the magic stuff, but there’s no shortcut for raw strength. Alright, time for some push-ups—"

"The carriage is already waiting. Do that when we get back."

Her master said some pretty weird things sometimes. She was used to it by now, but it had definitely been a shock at first.

"Let’s go, Master. Those sweaty clothes aren't going to toss themselves into the laundry basket."

"…You know, having a girl tell you that you smell like sweat actually hurts a little."

"A bit late to start caring about that now, don't you think?"

Iris gave him a firm shove toward the exit of the training grounds, guiding him along.

A short while later, after Iris had made sure Yulis got changed and cleaned up, the two of them were in a carriage heading toward the Royal Capital. As planned, they were going to pick out a sword for him. He still had a few years before he’d be eligible for the Knights, but he had to be ready by then.

"I’m so bad at memorizing things... but I heard there’s a written exam too. If I don't start catching up now, I'm screwed..."

Sitting across from her, Yulis was staring intensely at a textbook as if trying to win a staring contest with it. Since he had chased away every single tutor in the past, he couldn't exactly hire a new one now without it being a whole ordeal. That’s why he was spending every spare second buried in study materials.

(Man, he really has changed.)

The old Yulis wouldn't have touched a sword or a book. But look at him now. He was working so hard it looked like he barely had time to breathe, all in an effort to erase his past failures. It was genuine effort, plain and simple.

The only reason she couldn't bring herself to actually praise him was that his previous behavior had been that awful.

(With an attitude like this, maybe going to the academy wouldn't be so bad after all—)

That was when it happened.

CRASH! The carriage suddenly lurched and flipped violently.

"What—?!"

The impact was so sudden that Iris was thrown right through the door. She managed to break her fall, but she ended up tossed into a wide-open field, leaving her master behind in the wreckage.

(What... what just happened?!)

She looked up. Her eyes met a gruesome sight: the horses had been decapitated, and the driver’s body lay nearby in a pool of dark red liquid.

And then...

"Heh. What’s this? Just a little girl all by herself?"

About a dozen rough-looking bandits had appeared out of nowhere, surrounding the area.

"Man, I thought we hit the jackpot with a carriage that fancy. All we get is one servant?"

"Probably nothing valuable inside, then."

"Well, in that case, we might as well take the girl. We can have some fun with her, or just sell her off to some noble later."

Iris’s mind went blank for a split second, but her expression quickly shifted into a cold, icy stare.

(Ah... I see how it is.)

In that moment, she didn't give a single thought to her master trapped in the carriage. Her only instinct was self-preservation—a natural reaction born from the fact that her "affection level" for Yulis was still rock bottom. She didn't feel the slightest shred of loyalty toward him.

Clink. From beneath Iris’s skirt, a whip-sword slid into her hand.

"Honestly, there’s always trash like you crawling around everywhere."

From there, things moved fast. She gripped the hilt and swung it in a wide horizontal arc. The blade, which started small, extended instantly, slicing right through the bandits' torsos.

"You little—?!"

"I’m the one who should be mad here! I’m way too cute for a 'bloody' scene like this, yet here I am, being forced to work!"

Iris was a hidden character—one of the heroines. In her specific route, she held the position of a final boss. Born into a family of servants trained to protect their masters, she was the most gifted combatant they had ever produced. She had enough raw talent to make a pack of bandits look like a joke.

As the bandits charged with swords and axes, she swung her whip-sword, maintaining her distance and absolutely tearing through them.

(Haha! This is what happens when you act tough despite being weak!)

But no matter how much talent she had... she was still only ten years old.

When it came to actual combat experience, the gap was massive—and it wasn't in her favor.

"Take this!!"

"What—?!"

One of the men suddenly hurled a spherical object at her. Her reflexes kicked in, and she tried to swat it away by flexing her whip-sword—but the second it made contact, a thick cloud of smoke erupted, blanketing the area.

(A smokescreen... cheap trick!)

With her vision cut off, Iris momentarily faltered. The bandits weren't about to miss an opening like that. One of them lunged out of the haze, tackling Iris’s small frame to the ground.

"Hah! You’re light as a feather, kid!"

"Ghaf—!"

The air was knocked out of her lungs as her back slammed into the dirt. Between the weight of the man and the sheer difference in size, she couldn't break free no matter how much she thrashed.

This was bad. Really bad. Iris realized in that moment that turning this around was going to be nearly impossible.

"Damn... how many did we lose?"

"Ten? Christ, we’re taking heavy losses for a carriage that looks like it's carrying nothing but air."

"Well, that just means the girl’s gonna have to work extra hard to make it up to us—in more ways than one."

The men let out disgusting, guttural laughs, completely unfazed by their dead comrades. The sound only fueled her terror.

"........."

"What’s this? You crying now, brat?!"

Tears welled up in Iris’s eyes. In a situation like this, who was going to save her? The driver was dead. There was no one else around. The only possibility was Yulis, assuming he was even alive inside the wreckage, but—

(...As if Master would ever come to save me.)

She hadn't even intended to save him. Iris slowly began to accept her reality, staring up at the sky through her tears. Her eyes were filled with a cold, hollow sense of resignation that didn't match the clear blue above.

(I guess this is karma... I get it.)

And yet, despite everything, the girl named Iris couldn't help but pray.

(Someone... please, help me...)

Then—

"You pieces of trash... Who the hell do you think you’re talking down to?"

The world transformed in an instant.

The field was dyed a brilliant, chilling blue. The men who had been laughing a second ago were suddenly frozen solid in blocks of ice as the temperature plummeted. It was as if a winter wonderland had spontaneously manifested in the middle of spring.

(It's... beautiful...)

Despite the terror that had been clouding her mind just moments ago, Iris found herself completely captivated by the sight.

"W-What the...?!"

The only survivor—the man pinned on top of her—gasped in shock. But in the next heartbeat, a thin white line flashed across his neck. His head slid off his shoulders without a single drop of blood being spilled.

"Ouch... dammit. I think I blacked out for a second. I finally understand why roller coasters need seatbelts."

Iris couldn't wrap her head around what had happened. Instinctively, she pushed the man's lifeless body off her and scrambled up as she heard footsteps approaching.

Emerging from the wreckage of the carriage was Yulis.

"Uh... so, you okay? Actually, I can see from the 'everything' here that you’re probably not okay. And honestly, I’m mostly just vibrating with terror because there's a guy cut in half over there... You aren't gonna stab me in the back for this, right?"

Iris’s mind was a whirlwind of confusion. Why? How? Sure, she had no idea how Yulis could use magic like that. But more than that...

"W-Why?"

"Huh?"

"Why did you save me...?"

She hadn't planned on saving him. The Yulis she knew would never put himself in danger to save a mere servant. And yet, the face looking back at her right now was filled with nothing but genuine concern. She couldn't understand it. It made no sense.

But Yulis just shrugged.

"I mean... you always have a towel ready for me and stuff, right? I actually really appreciated that."

"…What?"

"I don't care if you're the girl who might kill me someday. I’m not just gonna stand by and watch you die. That’s all there is to it."

He reached out a hand to her. It was trembling slightly, and the worry on his face was being replaced by a sickly paleness. It made sense—this was the first time he’d ever killed anyone. He wasn't a trained combatant like Iris. Even so, he had stained his hands for her sake.

There was no way she couldn't feel moved by that.

(He's not... he's not the Master I used to know.)

He had changed. Without a doubt, the Yulis standing before her wasn't the one she remembered. She didn't know why, but right now, the reason didn't matter.

"M-Master...!"

"…Let’s just go home. I don't think we’re exactly in the mood for a casual date after this."

Before she knew it, Iris had lunged into his chest, burying her face in his shirt. Her sobs echoed across the field as a cool breeze brushed against their skin.