Prologue

Chapter 00 – Prologue: The Young Lady who has Two Personas

Translated by Hikaru

Edited by VampireKnight

The Imperial Academy is one of the three most prestigious schools in Japan. In the past, the academy has produced Prime Ministers, CEOs of famous companies, and other leaders of the nation. Even today, many children of rich and powerful millionaires are enrolled here.

Most students are divided into either politics or business courses, and the content of the classes is inevitably, very advanced. The academy may look like an extravagant mansion, but the students there are not raised to be butterflies and flowers. At the Imperial Academy, the top-notch classes are always taught by top-notch teachers.

However, even in such a special academy, there is a school caste. Currently, there is one girl who reigns at the top of the Imperial Academy.

The Konohana Group is a conglomerate with total assets of about 300 trillion yen. The group is known to everyone who lives in the country. And this girl is the daughter of that group, Hinako Konohana.

“Konohana-san, how do you do?”

“How do you do?”

With her amber hair fluttering, she greeted the other person with a prim smile.

“Oh, she looks lovely today too…Konohana-san.”

“I think I will be happy for the rest of the year just because I’m in the same class as her…”

The girl walked through the school with her back straight, exuding a sense of elegance. She attracted attention just by walking down the corridor. When she entered a classroom, there was sometimes a line of people who wanted to talk to her before she got to her seat.

“Hey, Konohana-san! I’m going to hold a tea party in the garden after school today… If it’s okay, would you like to join us?”

“That’s wonderful. I’ll definitely join you.”

“Konohana-san. There was something I couldn’t figure out in the class the other day…”

“Is that so, I’ll be right there.”

She was beautiful, educated, and talented. She was so impeccable that some people call her the perfect young lady… She was popular and always surrounded by people, and I was watching her from afar.

“Yo, Nishinari. Were you looking at Konohana-san again?” A male student sitting next to me called out to me.

“… Did you get caught?”

“Stop it. As expected, that person is beyond your league, isn’t she?”

Someone beyond my league… For me, the only commoner in the academy, every single girl in this school is out of my league.

“Well. Next is the moving class. I want to stop by the bathroom, so I’ll go first.”

And with that, my classmate left the classroom. It was the break time between classes, and I slowly approached her.

“Konohana-san, we need to get moving or we’ll miss class.”

There were only two people in the classroom, she and I. The girl, who was even called the perfect young lady, was lying down on her desk and did not move a muscle.

“Konohana-san?”

“…… tone.”

“…… This is no time for selfishness. Come on, let’s go.”

“Tone.” She spoke a little more strongly.

I made sure that there was no one around me and then decided to comply with her request.

“…… Hinako. Let’s get a move on.”

When I said that, the girl’s face broke into a smile.

“Ehehe…….”

Far from being a perfect young lady, she looked full of life. The girl slowly raised her upper body and stretched her hands towards me.

“Give me a hug.”

“…… Give me a break. What if people see you doing that?”

“I don’t mind…”

“I will be killed by the Konohana family.”

The girl’s lips twitched when I said this.

“I don’t want to go to class.”

“No good.”

“I want to go home. I want to sleep. I want to eat potato chips.”

“If it’s potato chips, I’ll prepare them after I return to the mansion, so please move.”

“Noー…”

I let out a sigh at the girl who just wouldn’t move. It couldn’t be helped, I had no choice. I’d just have to force her out of the classroom. Just as I was thinking about it, the door of the classroom suddenly opened with a bang.

“Oh, you’re both still here? You need to move classes next, right?”

The homeroom teacher said, looking at me and the girl who remained in the classroom.

“Oh, no, that―”

“―I’m sorry. There was something I didn’t understand in class, so I was discussing it with Nishinari-kun.”

The girl who had stood up before I knew it explained, instead of me who had no excuses. The expression on her face was not that of a spoiled young lady, but that of a perfect young lady well known to the students of the academy.

“I see. I’m impressed that you study so hard during your breaks,” The teacher nodded and said.

I looked at the girl with a bitter look on my face.

“What’s wrong, Nishinari-kun? Let’s head to the classroom.”

“……………………………… right.”

As usual, when she was standing in public, she gave a perfect performance. I nodded uncomfortably and left the classroom with her.

I was not a genius, I was not a brilliant person, and my family was not rich, but rather the opposite of rich. How did I, a commoner, end up attending such a prestigious school? To explain the reason, I needed to explain the incident that happened a month ago.

It all started when I ― became the caretaker of Hinako Konohana.