??? POV

“They told me there is no need to mingle with them, because I’m above them. They told me that those people are uncultured, that they are weak, that they want what’s mine....”

“…”

“They don’t give me due respect, behaving like that. They should show it, show they know.”

“…”

“I’m not wrong, I’m not.”

“…”

“Recently, there is this girl who makes me mad. Even though she has noticed our eyes on her, how can she still act so calm? Even though nobles like me look at her like she is a bug, how can she always hold her head high and ignore it like it’s nothing? Why? Why does she enrage me so much?

“…”

“I’m getting more and more irritated. A girl like her… will misbehave eventually. It’s alright; if she ever forgets her place I will remind her. That’s right, like always, I will make sure I’m respected, because that’s how it should be. ”

“…”

“Hey…”

“Meow~”

*******

I still can’t believe the size of this school. Having spent my life as a commoner, this is a really big change, and although not unwelcomed, it makes me a bit uncomfortable.

While walking in the garden and avoiding certain places, I find myself turning to paths with less and less people. And that takes me to my current predicament. In an edge of the school, nearing the forest, where I came across a rather suspicious conversation.

“Should we kill the cat?”

I see a group of people, both boys and girls, talking in a circle. One of them holds a white cat in his hands. The white cat has long lustrous fur and blue eyes like jewels. On its delicate neck there’s a blue collar that matches its eyes. Said cat looks very expensive no matter how many times I look at it. Despite appearing very weak, the cat has been using all its strength to escape, but to no avail. One girl firmly grabs its collar, to avoid it escaping for real.

“Eww, I don’t want to kill a cat!” One of the girls says.

“But think how awful it would be for her to never see her dear cat again, this is just the way to guarantee it. She is always so conceited … isn’t it fine for her to suffer a little? It’s just a cat anyways.”

“We could just take it far away.”

“But would she really not find it?”

Vicious things leave their mouths one after another and I start feeling sick to my stomach.

Deciding I have had enough, I pick up a rock and throw it at the metal fence, aiming to make as much sound as I can.

Pang

My simple tactic works quite well, as the group, which was already on edge, immediately starts panicking.

“C-Could someone be here?!”

“Whatever, just leave the cat, it’s not worth the risk. If we are found…! A pampered cat like this will just die on its own anyway! Quick, take the collar off!”

The girl that has been holding the collar takes it off as fast as she can manage and throws the collar into a nearby bush. The girl then immediately joins her already retreating friends. The guy holding the cat nervously looks at his friends running ahead and unceremoniously throws the cat over the fence into the forest, running away immediately after.

My disgust doesn’t seize and the most I think about killing a pet because you hate the owner the more my head rejects the idea.

Making sure there’s nobody in the vicinity I get out of my hiding place and walk to the bush to retrieve the collar. It reads ‘Christine’. Even the name screams rich cat.

It is true that a cat like this could never survive on its own, and by leaving it into the forest you do reduce the chances of it being found. I can feel the height on my conscience.

“Meow~”

It’s still close. I run to the fence to gain balance and jump over.

Going deeper into the forest, I keep following the sound. I can’t believe I’m following a cat…

However, the first thing I find is not the cat, but a boy sitting the ground with his back reclining on a tree. I would say it’s Michael if it wasn’t for his yellow eyes.

This is Michael’s twin brother, Noah, normally referred to as ‘evil twin’ by the fanbase. His black hair is just like his brother’s. His eyes however, are yellow. But not always. Sometimes his eyes are same pinkish red as Michael. In the game it was a known fact that to resemble his brother as much as possible he liked to have red eyes, but sometimes also appeared with yellow eyes.

There was never a confirmation about which was his real eye colour, creating many theories. While Noah seemed to see use in both eye colours, the fanbase liked to speculate which came first. Such a small detail seemed almost insignificant, but this was deemed something important in the analysis of the character’s psyche. I myself believe his eyes were originally yellow.

“Will you keep staring?” The boy grumpily says.

“Wha-? S-Sorry, I didn’t mean to!”

What a mistake, I don’t normally lose myself staring, but finding a villain of the game so early surprised me.

“Say, you’re acting oddly. Could it be… you recognize this face?” He shows a hint a smile, but not quite a smile.

I flinch. How did he know?!

“Is that really so? I see, so you’ve meet Michael before” I see dangerous glint in his eyes.

Ah, of course he is sensitive to that…

This game had more than one villain, though some were more dangerous than others. Noah is one of those villain characters and has a fundamental role in Michael’s route. He is someone who despises his brother and is always trying to create problems for him. Not someone I want to be around from that description alone.

“I’m Noah Edlestone, it’s a pleasure. This kind of place isn’t good to be wandering around. You should be careful.”

“I’m Sophia Andrews, the pleasure is mine. Hum, have you seen a cat?”

“A cat? So you are following a cat, I see you are already ignoring my advice. Don’t go following animals around, you will get lost.”

“I’m fine, I won’t get lost.”

“A shame. Getting lost it’s about the better outcome people could have in this place.”

I can’t even tell if he is showing concern over me or trying to scare me.

“Then what are you doing here, in this dangerous place?” I say, looking at him with doubt.

He looks me in the eye for a moment and then lightly chuckles “This type of conversation has no flavor don’t you think? It won’t go anywhere.”

“Is that your way of ending a conversation?”

“Do you see it that way? I just got bored.”

“Well, I’m sorry for being boring.”

“No, I wouldn’t call you boring.”

My eyes widen. Mm, that’s probably bad.

“So, have you seen the cat?” I ask again.

“So you went back to that point. Well, I appreciate how direct you are. I’ve been hearing one meowing, but I haven’t seen it.”

All this trouble and that’s all you have!!

“I see… “ I use all my strength to keep being polite “Thank you anyway. Then I will take my leave.”