The game was a resounding success among its fans. However, outside of that circle, many wondered, "How did it manage to conquer them?" This is how the heroine, Lydia, did it.
It all began years ago, when Prince Kyle was just twelve years old. His mother forced him to attend a boring noble party, an event he would have gladly escaped. To avoid feeling so alone, he invited Matt. Inside the luxurious hall, filled with chandeliers and fake laughter, Kyle watched with disinterest from a corner. All those boys and girls were only socializing to form alliances and factions, a political game that disgusted him. He yearned for true friends, and until then, Matt was the only one who felt like the brother he had always wanted.
Taking refuge by a pillar, he listlessly ate snacks while Matt acted as his guardian, shooing away the young ladies trying to approach the heir.
"I want to go home," Kyle murmured, counting down the minutes until he could escape.
Fed up with the atmosphere, he decided to stretch his legs and headed to a solitary balcony. The chilly night air brushed his face, a momentary relief for his discomfort. It was then that he heard a peculiar noise: a soft munching sound that grew louder. Intrigued, he followed the sound to behind some bushes in the palace gardens. There, under the faint moonlight, he found a golden-haired girl eating pastries with absolute calm.
"What are you doing here, eating?" he asked, surprised.
The girl swallowed her bite and looked at him naturally.
"Eating. Inside is really boring. Do you want one?"
The girl's simplicity and oddity fascinated him immediately. He decided to stay by her side, listening to her talk enthusiastically about food and anecdotes from her life. For the first time, Kyle was genuinely interested in someone else. As the night was about to end, he offered her his hand.
"Will you grant me this dance?"
"I don't know how to dance," she admitted honestly.
"I'll teach you," he replied with a smile.
Even though she stepped on his feet countless times, it was the most enjoyable dance of his life. Before saying goodbye, possibly never to see her again, Kyle gave her a heart-shaped brooch. His mother had given it to him to gift to Eliza, his fiancée, but since he hadn't invited her, he preferred to give it to the mysterious pastry girl.
◇◇◇
Years passed, and Prince Kyle was now at the academy. On the day of the opening ceremony, seeking a moment of peace, he took refuge by a pond, watching the koi fish draw circles in the water. His thoughts wandered until someone's splash snapped him out of his reverie.
He saw a girl who had gotten into a fountain to retrieve her purse. He looked at her like she was a weirdo, but when she emerged from the water, soaked and with her blonde hair stuck to her face, an image from the past struck his memory. She wore a heart-shaped brooch in her hair. Was it possible?
He approached her to make sure, but in her haste, the girl tripped. Kyle caught her instinctively, grabbing her chest for an inadvertent moment. Terrified, she gave him a loud slap.
"You slap me?! Do you not know who I am?" he exclaimed, more surprised than angry.
"I don't know who you are, but you're clearly not a polite person!" she retorted, furious.
Seeing her anger that way, he had no doubts. It was the same girl; she had complained to him in exactly the same way for not telling her she was hurting his feet while dancing. Kyle couldn't help but laugh.
"Hahaha, you're really interesting. I like you a lot."
"Eh? Are you a weirdo? How disgusting!" she exclaimed with genuine contempt.
"Is that how you speak to the crown prince of your country? I should punish you for that," he said, playing with his superiority.
The girl paled, ready to beg for forgiveness, but Kyle stopped her with a gesture.
"Don't. It was a joke. I'm sorry. But I'm glad to see you're still the same fun girl."
She didn't understand, but after staring at him fixedly, a memory clicked into place.
"It can't be! Is it you?"
"Calling someone 'you' like that is very poorly viewed," he said, amused. "But we never formally introduced ourselves that time. I am Kyle Bertrand Phil Lynneburg, the crown prince."
"P-pleased to meet you. I am Lydia Ford Bellman, the baron's daughter. I came to the academy because my father went into debt so I could enter as a noble girl."
"The pleasure is mine," Kyle responded, and for the first time in a long time, a genuine smile lit up his face.
The two rushed to the auditorium just in time. Kyle, with an impatience that seemed ready to make him burst, asked if they could meet at the same spot after classes. Lydia agreed.
◇◇◇
Matt, as usual, was in the library, reading books and meticulously finding faults in them. He distrusted common historical narratives; he only trusted the palace's private archives, which he had access to as the prince's future right-hand man. For him, it was a sacred responsibility to ensure the veracity of information, a heavy burden for someone so young, but one he accepted with silent pride.
While marking with a cross the books that, in his opinion, should be burned for containing false information, he found a girl asleep on one of the reading tables. He was going to scold her for her lack of respect, but noticed the book under her was a history book, and next to it, a notebook full of notes pointing out possible historical errors. Curiosity overcame annoyance. He decided to wait for her to wake up.
Hours later, the library had emptied, leaving only the two of them under the faint lamp light. The girl, who turned out to be Lydia, woke up startled. Matt, pretending he had just arrived, gave her a light tap on the head.
"Why are you sleeping in the library?"
"Hehehe, sorry. I was exhausted. Yesterday the professor gave a history class and I came to find a book to study. But while reading it, I noticed some inconsistencies with what he said and started taking notes... sleep overcame me."
"I was going to return it now," said Lydia, somewhat embarrassed.
"No, it's fine. It's just... it's rare to find someone else who does this. I thought I was the only one bothered by misinformation causing problems."
"I know! I can't stand it when things don't add up. In novels it's common, but in history books!" exclaimed Lydia, her eyes shining.
Those words made Matt's heart race. This was unexpected.
"Excuse me, can you tell me your name?"
After introducing themselves, Matt couldn't help but ask the question that tormented him.
"Lydia-san, what do you think about justice? Do you believe those who commit crimes should always be punished?"
"Of course. Bad people deserve to pay for their actions," Lydia responded with conviction.
Matt nodded, satisfied, but she continued.
"But at the same time, I believe justice must be flexible. Because sometimes we do things that seem bad, but have a reason. If a man steals bread to feed his family, it's a crime, but isn't it also a crime that his boss fired him to avoid paying? Society isn't black and white, and justice shouldn't be either."
Matt was stunned. For the first time, someone was forcing him to see the world from the accused's perspective. His mind, always so orderly, plunged into chaos.
"I-I see. Lydia-san, you are a smarter girl than you look."
"Hehehe, I get that often... Wait, did you just imply I look dumb?"
From that day on, their meetings in the library became a habit.
◇◇◇
Lydia was walking through the academy halls when an achingly beautiful melody floated in the air. She followed the sound to an empty music room. There, in the center, on a platform, a figure with very long hair was playing the piano with sublime mastery.
Mesmerized, Lydia approached. When the music stopped, she burst into applause.
"That was beautiful. Sublime, and all the nice words there are."
The figure, who was actually a young man named Keith, turned with a disdainful air.
"Something like that is normal for me. Your praises are unnecessary."
"But I have a doubt," Lydia insisted.
"Which is?" asked Keith, expecting a superficial comment.
"Why does it sound like something is tormenting you?"
Keith froze. His fingers, still resting on the keys, tensed slightly.
"What do you mean?"
"The melody... it sounds like pain. Like something that hurts you a lot," Lydia said softly.
No one had ever seen beyond Keith's perfect technique. He used music to escape his own insecurities, from being treated as a mere ornament. That this girl could sense his anguish left him speechless, captivated.
"What's your name?"
"Lydia."
"Lydia, huh... I'm Keith."
"Keith-chan! It's a pretty name."
Keith couldn't help a brief laugh.
"Just to be clear, I'm a man."
Lydia nodded with a smile, and then, a second later, her face transformed into a picture of absolute astonishment.
"Whaaaaat?!"
After that, they met often. Keith played, and Lydia listened, understanding the emotions his heart never dared to confess to his fiancée.
◇◇◇
It was night, and Lydia had gone out to buy snacks in the capital. She quickened her pace, aware that the streetlights were beginning to go out. The darkness grew thicker with each minute. Turning a corner she thought was a shortcut, she realized her mistake. Upon returning, she encountered two men staggering along, a bottle in hand.
"I'm so sorry," murmured Lydia, trying to pass by, but one of them grabbed her arm firmly.
"Hey, girl, what are you doing out alone at this hour? Don't you know there are bad people around here?" he said with alcohol-laden breath.
"I know, that's why I must go..." she tried to break free, but the other man blocked her path.
Suddenly, a shiny coin flew through the air and hit each man on the forehead. Following its trajectory, they saw a young man standing in the shadows, looking at them with absolute contempt.
"Don't you understand that when a girl says 'no', it means 'no'?"
"Huh? Looking for trouble, brat?"
The young man, unfazed, snapped his fingers. From the shadows emerged several thugs who immobilized the drunk men in an instant. When a lantern's light illuminated the young man's face, the men paled.
"Y-you're Ricky, from the House of Dudley!"
"It's a little late for apologies," Ricky replied coldly.
As the men were taken away, Ricky approached Lydia, who hugged him tightly.
"Rickun! Long time no see!"
"Lydie, you're a trouble magnet. In trouble again."
Ricky and Lydia had known each other since childhood, when she and her mother worked for the house of Baron Dudley. Although Ricky initially tried to keep his distance, Lydia's tendency to get into trouble made him her protector almost by instinct. She was his ray of light, the only one who saw beyond his rank and fame. He walked her back to her dormitory.
"I'm glad we're both here, Rickun."
"Me too, Lydie."
For Ricky, distrustful by nature, Lydia was the exception. "Let's go to the city tomorrow to eat steak," he proposed.
"Sure, but control yourself a bit. It's really hard on my wallet when you order more than ten."
Ricky no longer cared about the cost. He just wanted to protect her, even though he knew that, like a shadow, his place would never be equal to her light. And despite his own promise.
◇◇◇
Zach was training fiercely on the practice field when Lydia appeared with a water bottle and a towel.
"Zach, I'm glad to see you training so hard again today."
"Oh, Lydia. It's good to see you," he replied, stopping his sword.
Zach had met her through the prince. At first, she was just an excuse to escape the constant demands of his fiancée. One day, he arrived at training with a superficial wound. Lydia, who was passing by, used her healing magic—exceptionally fast and powerful—to heal him. From then on, it became a routine: he would get hurt, and she would heal him.
One day, Zach, frustrated, snapped at her:
"Why are you doing this for me? You're nobody to me. I don't need you."
Lydia, her eyes shining with indignation, responded:
"Because we're friends! I don't want to see you hurt. If something serious happened to you and I could have prevented it, I wouldn't be able to sleep at night!"
Those words, full of genuine warmth, were a balm for Zach, who had only known the coldness of his father after a humiliating defeat. From then on, he allowed her presence.
"Fine. You can come. But don't bother me."
"Understood," she replied with a smile that he, in secret, began to appreciate more than he would admit.
◇◇◇
"Enough, Eliza!"
Time passed, and the five young men met with Lydia more and more often, finding in her a sincerity their oppressive fiancées never offered them. It was inevitable that, upon confronting their feelings, they would reach the same conclusion: they all loved Lydia.
The final spark flew at the semester's closing ball. The five fiancées, led by Eliza, cornered Lydia in a hallway. Seeing the situation, Kyle, Matt, Keith, Ricky, and Zach could no longer contain themselves. They intervened, confronting the women they had never loved.
When it was Kyle's turn, his voice resonated with final determination:
"Eliza, in light of your black heart and your actions, I have no choice but to break off our engagement. And before everyone, I announce that I will become engaged to Lydia."
"Us too!" the other four exclaimed in unison, finally freed from their bonds.
Lydia, with tears of happiness streaming down her cheeks, responded with an open heart:
"Me too."
It was the moment the players loved: the group confession of the capture targets towards the heroine. That was how it should have happened.
But now, in this reality, the characters' behavior was different. And Rex, a witness to this entire farce, could not take it anymore. His intervention, challenging them to a duel, would forever break the established script. From that moment on, nothing would ever be like in the game.