My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! Volume 2 Read online

  Table of Contents

  Cover

  Color Illustrations

  Chapter 1: My First Day at the Academy Approaches!

  Chapter 2: I’ve Arrived at the Academy of Magic!

  Chapter 3: Summer Break is Here!

  Chapter 4: The Approaching Footsteps of Destruction

  Chapter 5: The Final Event is Here!

  Side Story: She Who is Dearest to Me

  Afterword

  About J-Novel Club

  Copyright

  Chapter 1: My First Day at the Academy Approaches!

  My name is Katarina Claes, eldest daughter of Duke Claes and the Claes family heir.

  When I was eight years old I hit my head hard on a rock, and in doing so caused all the memories of my previous life to flood into my mind. It didn’t take long for me to realize that I had been reborn into a familiar world — one of Fortune Lover, an otome game I was playing before my untimely death.

  In fact I, Katarina Claes, am one of the main antagonists of the game. Katarina is supposed to be a villainous noble lady who often gets in the protagonist’s way and bullies her.

  Katarina’s fate in Fortune Lover is naturally most unfortunate: She is either exiled from the kingdom, or meets a gruesome end at the hands of the protagonist’s love interest. Talk about catastrophically Bad Ends!

  Of course, I definitely don’t want to die! Although the possibility of death is high even if I just get exiled from the kingdom. That’s terrible! I don’t deserve that!

  Due to my early death in my previous life, I want to live a long and ripe life this time, preferably with a cat on my lap as I quietly bask in the sun! Ah, such is the elegant retirement that would be! I don’t want to be involved in these social politics of love and intrigue, much less get killed by them! I will definitely overcome all these Catastrophic Bad Ends, and live a full life!

  And so, I became determined to come up with countermeasures against these unfortunate endings. Firstly, there was the matter of the one who may bring such a Catastrophic Bad End upon Katarina Claes’ head — to be precise, her fiancé Jeord, the third crown prince.

  In the events of Fortune Lover, Katarina, who had been bullying the protagonist all this time, would either be exiled by him or die by his blade in retaliation for pointing her own at the protagonist.

  I’ve planned some countermeasures against Jeord, of course; if I were exiled from the kingdom, I would use my magical abilities to earn a living. From what I recall, magical aptitude is rare in the surrounding kingdoms.

  Should Jeord come at me with a blade, I would utilize my highly realistic projectile snake to strike fear into his heart. Jeord really hates snakes, you see. So in that moment, I would gracefully dodge his attacks.

  To this end, I’ve tried my best to improve my magical capabilities, in addition to constantly refining the appearance of my highly realistic projectile snakes with the assistance of the head gardener, Grandpa Tom. I’ve also been taking my swordplay training seriously — all so that I could dodge when the circumstances called for it.

  Another individual of concern is Katarina’s adopted brother, Keith Claes. He too could potentially bring a Catastrophic Bad End upon my head. Katarina, as usual, bullies the protagonist terribly, and Keith responds in kind. To be precise, he either exiles his own sister, or ends her life with his own powerful magic. To be fair, Katarina does leave a deep scar upon the protagonist in that scenario.

  Of course, I had my countermeasures when it came to Keith... to ensure that he was never lonely, I kept him company, inviting him out to play day after day. In the setting of Fortune Lover Keith lives a constantly isolated and alienated life until he is healed by the protagonist’s gentle nature; of course, he then falls in love with her.

  All I have to do is ensure that Keith is never lonely — that much is simple! He would never fall for the protagonist then. With those thoughts in mind, I took him with me everywhere I went within the manor, and eventually outside its walls too.

  And so, I put in a lot of work in these last seven years. All this had to be done before I enrolled in the Academy of Magic!

  Indeed, it has all paid off. On my fifteenth birthday, I was praised for my skill at the sword, and my highly-realistic projectile snakes were indistinguishable from the real thing. Keith, too, has been raised lovingly by my hand, and is no longer lonely or sad.

  Truly a commendable effort, if I do say so myself! There is, unfortunately, just one thing that didn’t work out — namely, my magical capabilities. Although my original plan was to bury my head in magical studies and strengthen my hand at magic so that I would have a means of earning a living if I were exiled from the kingdom, reality was not quite so kind. No matter how hard I tried or how much I practiced, my magical powers did not increase — and other than “Earth Raiser,” the one spell I was capable of casting, I was seemingly unable to learn any other type of magic.

  In the light of this, it seems impossible for me to earn a living with my magical capabilities — or lack thereof. I had to alter my plans due to this unfortunate development. As of now, it is my intention to till the fields as a hardworking farmer if I ever get exiled from the kingdom.

  With all this in place due to my hard work over the past seven years, the countermeasures to all these Catastrophic Bad Ends are now complete, and it will soon be time to enroll in the Academy of Magic.

  Slowly but surely, the white breath of winter was drawing to an end. The gardens of the Claes manor, already mostly enveloped in the warm embrace of spring, were also filled by a sizable amount of fields — my work over the past seven years, of course.

  It would soon be time for me to start my boarding school life at the Academy of Magic’s dormitories, so I would have to say goodbye to these fields for quite some time. I felt a slight hint of loneliness creep into my heart as I looked out at the familiar fields.

  “We will enroll into the Academy of Magic soon. Very soon indeed, fufufu. I do look forward to it,” Mary Hunt said, her usual lovable smile flitting across her beautiful features. In the setting of Fortune Lover, Mary was a rival character just like Katarina.

  “Y-Yes... I suppose...” To me, setting foot into an academy where I could very well meet my doom was no laughing matter — but of course, I couldn’t say something like that to the gently smiling Mary. And then...

  “I am really... looking forward to it, too...” Sophia Ascart said, smiling in a way that suggested a sincere happiness from the depths of her heart. She, too, was yet another rival character in the original setting of Fortune Lover.

  “Y-Yes... Of course.” Surrounded by their eager smiles, I found myself enveloped in a blanket of silence.

  To begin with, these two individuals never had any points of contact with Katarina Claes in the events of Fortune Lover. If anything, they would have disliked her for her villainous ways. However, Mary and Sophia were now my close friends, having visited me in my manor regularly for the past seven odd years.

  “And what exactly is it that you’re all so enraptured by?” A familiar voice, and an equally familiar suspicious smile — the voice belonged to none other than Jeord Stuart, third crown prince of the kingdom, and my fiancé.

  Originally, Jeord was relatively uninterested in Katarina and hardly had any interactions with her. But for some reason he had started visiting me at my manor for days at a time, and now was an important friend of mine as well.

  “Ah, Prince Jeord. We were just talking of the anticipation we felt towards our enrollment in the academy.”

  “Ah, I see. But of course, yes. It is
worth looking forward to indeed,” Jeord responded, a seemingly genuine smile on his face.

  Hmm. It would seem that even Jeord is looking forward to this... As for me, however, this entire academy affair wasn’t so enjoyable.

  There was the issue of me recalling how things went in Fortune Lover, which made me feel depressed — after all, I would be willfully setting foot into a place where many Catastrophic Bad Ends seemed to be waiting for me! Even setting that aside, it was an academy for magical studies, so I would have to work diligently there. I really couldn’t see academy life as anything to look forward to. Why exactly was everyone so fired up about this whole thing?

  “Um... why is it that all of you seem to be so eager about this whole academy thing...?” I asked my friends, unable to understand their seemingly overflowing levels of happiness.

  “But of course, so that I can spend all that time together with Lady Katarina...!” Mary said. She was visibly excited, her cheeks a healthy shade of crimson.

  “Yes...! Exactly! We’ll be able to spend all that time together... with Lady Katarina, once we go!” Sophia declared, her expression strangely similar to Mary’s.

  Now that they mention it, I suppose they do have a point. Due to the fact that I had been preoccupied by thoughts of Fortune Lover all this time, I had all but forgotten all about the warm days that I would spend at the academy with my dear friends.

  Upon realizing this, I couldn’t help but feel that sadness that had blanketed my being mere moments ago slowly lifting.

  “I am sure that we will be in the same dormitory as well, Katarina. Do feel free to visit me in my room. For you, Katarina, I will prepare the most special snacks and treats,” Jeord said with a strangely charming smile.

  But, yes... Ah... The most special snacks and treats! Prepared by a prince! Intriguing. Most intriguing indeed.

  “Yes. I would love to—”

  “But you mustn’t, Big Sister! Living spaces in the dormitories are segregated by gender! You must never do such a thing...!” Keith said, suddenly coming between Jeord and me with a flustered look about him.

  Although Keith hated Katarina in the original setting of Fortune Lover and did his best to avoid her, he had long since grown attached to me — perhaps due to all those times I had dragged him around. Now, Keith was the very image of a considerate younger brother, always on the lookout for his big sister.

  “Ah, Keith. You are correct to a certain degree — while it is true that living spaces are segregated by gender, visiting another individual’s room is hardly an issue as long as permission is given.”

  “That is if it is given! Relatives would be one thing, but having Big Sister enter the room of a stranger? A man, at that? Surely that is all but unforgivable.”

  “What is all this talk of strangers about? I am engaged to Katarina, if you recall — hardly a stranger, wouldn’t you say? What about you, Keith Claes? Are you not merely her adopted brother?”

  “At the moment you are nothing more than her fiancé, Prince Jeord. Should the engagement ever be cancelled, Big Sister and you would very well be nothing but strangers.”

  “Ah, but do you think I would simply cancel the engagement?”

  And there they went again — Keith and Jeord having their own merry conversation, with faces full of smiles. Considering that these two hardly had any points of contact in the original game, I was surprised at how they were now the most steadfast of friends. In fact, they often left me out of their little conversations... oh, what fun they seemed to be having!

  Given how well my adopted brother got along with Jeord, it would be a true tragedy if they both ended up falling for the protagonist at the academy... Ah, what a sad thought. It would really be tragic if one girl divided such a pair of friends! I hope they’ll find some other wonderful girls in their lives — just hopefully not the protagonist, of course.

  “...But yes... there would be such dangers in a dormitory setting... we have to think of some sort of countermeasure as well...”

  “Hmm? What is it, Mary?” I asked, noticing her murmuring. While my attention had been sidetracked by Jeord’s and Keith’s intense discussion, Mary’s features had turned considerably dark. She seemed to be thinking of very severe matters.

  “Ah, it is nothing, Lady Katarina... just some things on my mind... but yes! But of course! Master Nicol, would you happen to know the general floor plan of the academy’s dormitory?”

  The one Mary had called out to was Sophia’s brother, Nicol Ascart. Under normal circumstances, we should never have crossed paths at all. He was a potential romance interest who never had a single word with Katarina Claes.

  Nicol, however, had ended up becoming one of my good friends as well. Due to the fact that he was a year older than the rest of us, he had already been at the academy for a year, and was visiting the Claes manor because it was currently spring break.

  Mary’s sudden question hardly flustered him — Nicol simply delivered a cool, collected answer, all the while maintaining his usual stoic expression. “To a certain extent.”

  “Master Nicol, I hardly mind if it is a rough image — may I trouble you to enlighten me on the matter? We have to take the necessary precautions so that the enemy doesn’t do anything untoward during our stay...!” Mary said.

  “...I understand.”

  “Lady Mary, Big Brother, do allow me to assist as well!”

  Mary, Nicol, and Sophia called for the servants to bring them pens and paper, before setting it all down on a table set up on the side of the fields. They all then promptly sat down and engaged in some sort of serious discussion.

  “Hmm...? What are Mary and the rest doing all the way over there...?” I turned to the only person left next to me — he had been left standing on the spot, much like myself.

  “You’re asking me, now? I’ve got no idea at all,” Alan Stuart said, shrugging. He was Jeord’s twin, and the fourth crown prince of the kingdom.

  Originally, I shouldn’t have had anything to do with Alan, but for one reason or another, he had also become one of my good friends.

  As for Alan’s response... I could only say that I had expected as much. “I know, right...?” I said, gazing at Alan warmly.

  Alan was always kind of pure and childish in his own way, and he could be particularly thick when it came to developments around him. In fact, he was this way in the original setting of Fortune Lover too, never noticing the feelings he had towards the protagonist. Alan the childish prince. If I can’t figure something out, there’s no way Alan could.

  “What’s with those eyes of yours?” Alan said, looking surprised. Did he pick up on the fact that I was ridiculing him in secret?

  “Ah, it’s nothing, Prince Alan. It’s just... you’re fifteen years of age now... Wouldn’t it be best to act a little more like an adult...?” If Alan remained childish and block-headed forever, he would never be able to capture Mary’s heart. That was why I offered him my advice.

  “...Look who’s talking. I’d throw those words right back at your face.” Such was his terribly rude response. This is why people think you’re childish, Alan!

  I, however, graciously responded to him. “Ah, how silly of you, Prince Alan. Whatever do you mean? I am quite the noble lady, don’t you know?”

  He started mumbling something like “Eh? But no matter how I think about it you’re more...” But being the adult I am, I elegantly let it slip by. Amidst all this, Jeord and Keith’s intense conversation continued, while Mary and the Ascarts remained immersed in their serious discussion.

  While I did still feel somewhat uneasy about starting life in this Catastrophic Bad End Academy, the fact that I would be able to spend time with all my friends was a relief — and the slightest hint of anticipation began to bloom in my heart.

  If at all possible, I want to overcome the otome game hell that may unfurl before me, and then spend my days peacefully with my dear friends.

  ★★★★★★★★★

  My name is A
tsuko Sasaki. As of this year, I am thirteen years old. I just started at the local middle school a few days ago... and ended up in the last seat at the back of the classroom. Since then, I’ve spent my days alone, never truly settling into the new environment.

  I’m surrounded by girls who came from other grade schools, and they’ve all formed new cliques and groups. I want to have a nice group of friends to spend time with too... but it seems that I’m not very good at that sort of thing. I... don’t know how to speak to them. I don’t quite know how to try to be friends with them. I don’t understand things like that.

  It was the same thing in grade school — I was always troubled by it, and before I knew it, I was alone, excluded from everything and everyone. The other girls saw me as an oddity and often ignored me. Sometimes they would bully me, or even hide my things... As this went on, I eventually realized that I had become afraid of people. Before long I had started keeping to myself, never speaking to anyone around me.

  And so... even though middle school is a new place and a new beginning, I can’t bring myself to speak to anyone... or even say hello. And so, I shifted my gaze from the classmates around me who all seemed to be enjoying themselves. Instead, I read books that I brought from home.

  These were my favorite books — manga and light novels. Books I loved reading. If I imagined myself slipping into these stories as I read them, I could forget all about my loneliness... about how I had no one to talk to. I imagined myself as the protagonist of the stories I read. Even I, who was lonely, shy and unhappy, could become a popular girl who was well-loved by everyone in these stories.

  This was why I opened my book today, and set it down on the table before me, as I always did. All to escape the cruel loneliness of reality...

  And so the days went on, and a few weeks had passed since I had enrolled into middle school. After the last homeroom period of the day ended, I walked towards the library, intent on borrowing books to take home with me. This had been my daily routine for the past few weeks.