That World of Otome Games is Tough for Us - Volume 1 - Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

Stephanie Fou Offrey

THE ACADEMY was the number one destination for the country’s aristocracy to send their children to further their education. It also served as the backdrop for the otome game that haunted me. Ordinarily, only the upper crust was allowed to attend, but a special exception had been made for a certain common-born girl. Her enrollment as a scholarship student sparked the start of the game’s story.

I had no idea what story beats were traditional for otome games, but this one felt pretty innocuous as a scenario for a dating sim. That said, the game’s world was bizarre, to say the least.

I was strolling down a school corridor when a woman leading a whole platoon of loyal followers came striding in my direction. She walked with unflappable confidence, her head held high. Her blonde hair was pulled into braided loops on either side of her head. The unique hairstyle complemented her traditionally attractive features. None of that made up for her horrible personality, though. 

The girl was flanked just on either side by female students hailing from knight houses or baronetcies, who kept just a step or two behind. In Japan, a student’s background didn’t have that much impact on their relationships, but at this academy, the influence of one’s house was everything. From day one, it was common for cliques to form based entirely on family connections.

The girls were also followed by personal servants—demi-human slaves. There were three of them total: one elf and two beastmen. Calling them slaves wasn’t entirely correct. They had contracts with their masters and received a salary for their service.

For the most part, only women of a certain rank—specifically daughters of barons or viscounts—had servants like this, who saw to their daily needs at the academy. And among the demi-human races, the most commonly employed were elves and beastmen. Their men were reliably handsome. In fact, just about everyone who hailed from these races was extremely attractive, which was what made them such popular servants for these girls.

I should probably also mention (in case it wasn’t clear) that these contracts typically included sexual relations. In short, if a girl was flaunting one of these personal servants, she was essentially parading her own lover around.

This world really sucked. As for how specifically, why don’t we start with the fact that, unlike women, men were forbidden from having personal servants? Only women could take these demi-human lovers. If a man were to do the same thing, he’d be treated like a pariah and people would question his humanity.

So what would you call that kind of world, anyway? A matriarchy, I guess?

If I’d had the luxury of choosing a world to be reborn into, I definitely wouldn’t have picked this one.

This girl and her followers had to know they were a serious inconvenience for everyone around them, marching down the middle of the hallway like that. Malicious smiles crossed their faces as they watched men and lower-ranking women duck to the side. 

I followed the crowd’s example and stepped to the wall. I didn’t want to start anything. The group sneered as they passed. Male students were no more than worms beneath their feet.

Once that nuisance was over and done with, Luxion—who was still employing his cloaking device—said, “I will admit it is mildly entertaining to watch slaves look down on you, Master. Though I do struggle to understand a society in which servants are in a position to condescend to nobility.”

I was careful to make sure no one was close enough to hear me before I muttered, “Us guys are the ones who gotta bust our butts getting those girls to marry us. If you ask me, this academy is basically a forsaken hellhole.”

“It certainly is a unique arrangement. Even so, it is rare to see a group so openly arrogant.”

He was right about that. Academy girls enjoyed a more favorable position than the boys, but most of them weren’t as outright haughty as the ones we’d just seen.

I scrunched up my face. “Hmm. I’m pretty sure I’ve seen that girl somewhere before. Who was she again?” Why was she so familiar? I was pretty sure she made an appearance in the game. Or maybe she didn’t? My memory was awfully fuzzy.

While I scratched my head, puzzling over my memory, a trio of girls began whispering about the leader of the group who’d just passed.

“That was Earl Offrey’s daughter.”

“Offrey? As in that house that forced their way into the aristocracy?”

“Yeah, they used to be merchants. I sure wouldn’t want to get even a little close to someone like that.”

The girls had delayed their gossip until the group was far enough away.

“It’d be one thing if they achieved their status through being accomplished adventurers, but, I mean…they basically stole the position, right?”

“Not to mention, there’s not even a drop of aristocratic blood running through their veins.”

“The audacity, calling herself one of us. Doesn’t she feel ashamed, attending the academy?”

They snickered, their voices growing louder and louder.

“For being an earldom, they’re almost never summoned to the palace.”

“That just proves the palace hates them, too, then.”

“Of course. They’re not true nobility.”

I pulled a face and glanced over my shoulder, looking back at the group of girls, who I assumed would have receded into the distance. For a moment, I stopped breathing. 

The Offrey girl and her lackeys had stopped moving. The Offrey girl stared at the gossiping trio, a dangerous gleam in her eyes. She stood there for a straight ten seconds before she finally peeled her gaze away and stomped off.

***

After school, Stephanie Fou Offrey summoned the girls who’d slandered her in the hall.

“There you are.” Stephanie spoke in a sweet, almost singsong voice as she leaned toward the terrified girls, who trembled before her. “Seems like you were really enjoying yourselves this afternoon, saying all those awful things about me.” Her three personal servants were arranged in a semi-circle behind her. The rest of her female followers stood guard around the perimeter to make sure no one interrupted.

The girl at the fore of the trio desperately protested, “N-no! We were gossiping a little, sure, but I swear no one said anything bad about you!”

Stephanie paused and glanced at one of her servants. “You heard them. What do you say to that?”

The beastman traced a finger along the edge of his ear—a feature in which he and his race took great pride for its superior sensitivity. “No negative word was spoken about you personally, but they did disparage your house.”

The corners of Stephanie’s lips curled into a smile. When she returned her gaze to the trio, however, all feigned pleasantness evaporated. Her face flushed with anger. “He has incredible hearing, you know. Heard every word of your little conversation. So…” Stephanie seized the closest girl by the collar. “What the hell’d you say about my house, huh?! Go on, spit it out, you dirt-poor losers!” Stephanie repeatedly slammed the girl against the nearby wall as she bellowed. Her eyes were bloodshot and angry. Throbbing veins protruded from her forehead.

The terrified girl dissolved into tears as her legs turned to jelly. When Stephanie released her, she crumpled to the ground, sobbing. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry!”

Stephanie clicked her tongue and glowered at the other two. “You girls have no business acting all high and mighty. You’re nothing more than backwater nobility with barely a gold coin to your names! Your ancestors accomplished all the great things that got you where you are. You’ve done less than nothing, and yet you have the audacity to act with such arrogance. Makes me sick.”

“My lady,” said one of her servants, “you’ve let your anger get the best of you. Such remarks are ill-suited to one of your station.”

Stephanie pulled a face and reluctantly paused to regain her composure. “You’ll pay for demeaning my house,” she said once she had, her voice low and threatening. “I won’t allow anyone from such poor, insignificant houses to look down on us.” 

The girl who’d collapsed managed to pull herself back to her feet, but like the other two, her legs shook. The Offreys were a powerful family. Having provoked their ire, the trio were beside themselves with fear.

Once upon a time, the Offreys had presided over a viscounty. They’d incurred so much crushing debt that they’d been forced to sell their noble status to a merchant. This deal had come in the form of adopting the merchant’s child as their own. Legal though this method was, it was clear to the rest of the aristocracy that the Offreys had sold themselves and their position. From then on, the merchants had taken over House Offrey. Their status had risen from a viscounty to an earldom. They’d snagged this more prestigious title in record time, though it had been won by underhanded means: blackmail, threats, and the like. There were even whispers that the Offreys had connections to air pirates. The rumor mill constantly churned with terrible things about this family.

All this had instilled Stephanie with a sense of inferiority. She had been born into the aristocracy and yet had never truly been accepted by her peers. She couldn’t sit idly by and ignore the derision when people brought up the lack of noble blood in her veins.

Everyone tries to defame me! I’m engaged to Lord Brad of House Field, and yet you people still refuse to accept me as an aristocrat?!

Stephanie had been engaged since before her enrollment. Her husband-to-be was Brad Field, the heir of a border region. The Fields were among the most esteemed of the kingdom’s houses, having existed since Holfort’s founding. For the Offreys, Stephanie’s marriage to Brad was the perfect opportunity to integrate noble blood into their line.

While Stephanie inwardly debated how best to retaliate against the trio, one of her followers sprinted frantically toward her. This new girl’s name was Carla Fou Wayne; she had long, straight, navy-blue hair and was the daughter of a baronet. She was more intelligent than the rest of Stephanie’s lackeys, so Stephanie often ordered her to do her dirty work.

“My lady!” Carla cried.

Stephanie frowned. “What?” she spat.

Carla shrank back, but fearful as she was of her mistress’s sour mood, she had to make her report. Gulping, she said, “A girl tried to make a pass at Lord Brad.”

“What?” Stephanie’s voice was quiet but menacing. It sent a chill through Carla, who snapped her mouth shut—but that was the wrong move. Furious, Stephanie seized her by the shoulders. “Who? Who was it?” she demanded.

“Marie!” Carla blurted. “Marie Lafan—she’s the one who tried to flirt with him! There were several other witnesses present, and they confirmed it was definitely her!”

Stephanie gritted her teeth, nostrils flaring. Her rage had hit an all-time high. A wrinkle formed on her forehead as she knitted her brows. She turned to her lackeys. “Find out everything you can about this Marie,” she ordered. “She’s obviously picking a fight if she’s trying to cozy up to Lord Brad.”

There was no other way to interpret Marie’s actions; it was common knowledge that Brad was already engaged. Why else would she approach him, if not to mock the Offreys? If Stephanie backed down, it would only encourage the scorn. Carla hated the way they whispered about her with true ferocity. Brad was her ticket to acceptance, and she wasn’t about to sit on her hands while someone attempted to rob her of that.

“I’ll do whatever it takes to crush anyone who disgraces me,” Stephanie hissed.

***

When I retired to my room in the dorm that night, I cracked open an old notebook. After regaining my memories, I had recorded everything I could remember about the game. Back then, when I’d first really realized where I’d landed, I was at a total loss. I’d scribbled everything down on the off chance it would benefit me later, knowing that if I waited to do so, I’d have a harder and harder time recalling it clearly.

By now, this thing was practically a walkthrough for real life. Gotta hand it to my younger self. Really did me a solid with all this record-keeping.

I thumbed through the book until I arrived at the page on House Offrey. “I thought I’d heard that name before. Stephanie appears halfway through the game.” I had practically forgotten about her, but reading my notes refreshed my memory.

Luxion floated in the middle of the room. His lens turned toward me. “So you do remember her.”

“Do now. Her name was bugging me, so it’s a relief to figure out why it seemed so familiar. On the other hand, I think I might’ve preferred not to.”

“That remark suggests she is an unsavory individual.”

I nodded. “That’s one word for it. Halfway through the plot, she gets jealous of how the guys are always fussing over the protagonist and sics some air pirates on her. Real nasty piece of work. Looks like nothing’s really changed.”

As unfortunate as she was, it was actually comforting that her personality matched up with my memories. The less unpredictable variables in the grand equation—like, say, Marie—the better. But it was still less than fun knowing someone as dastardly as Stephanie was one of my classmates.

“She has connections to air pirates, does she? This strikes me as unusual,” said Luxion. “I would have thought the nobility would take a hard stance against banditry.”

He was right about that. The aristocrats of Holfort, particularly the regional noble lords, absolutely despised air pirates—and by extension, all thieves. That was only natural, of course. Criminal elements subsisted on the riches they stole from those very lords. But there’s an exception for every rule.

“Some of my peers are willing to strike a deal with pirates if it’ll benefit them later on down the road. Pretty sure the whole Offrey line goes down after those pirates lose to Olivia and company.”

The event with Stephanie was the mid-game climax, which made her one of the game’s antagonists—rather than a mere background character like me. She was actual side cast material, with a notable role to play.

“Oh yeah,” I said, “and she’s also Brad’s fiancée.”

“If I recall correctly, Brad is the heir of an incredibly prominent house of Holfort. It seems rather reckless to engage in criminal behavior when one is engaged to such a notable figure.” 

Luxion’s reasoning was sound. If Stephanie left Olivia alone, she’d still be in a position to marry Brad, provided he didn’t start a relationship with Olivia. In the game, her rash behavior lost her everything. I had no sympathy for that. I just pitied her and her choices, you know?

“That’s just the kind of character she is,” I said with a shrug. “No use wasting time thinking deep thoughts about it.”

“It appears to me that you value your knowledge of the game far too highly, thereby taking reality—and the real people in it—far too lightly.”

“I don’t see the issue. Not if my knowledge proves accurate.”

There was a short pause before Luxion reluctantly conceded. “I only hope you don’t come to regret your take. Regardless of the outcome, it is of little consequence to me.”

That wasn’t surprising to hear. Luxion could wipe out the entire world all on his lonesome. Of course these issues seemed insignificant. I had only woken him up because I was desperate to preserve my own life—but part of me regretted that decision now.

“Anyway,” I said, changing the subject, “what’s up with Marie?”

“She has continued attempting to seduce the men you mentioned, with no success. In fact, she intends to make another move on one of these ‘love interests’ again today.”

“Today, huh? Let’s see…” I flipped through the pages of my notebook, searching for the next love interest on the docket.