The Protagonist’s Party is Too Diligent – 62
EP.62 Forced Training (5)
Field training evaluations varied greatly depending on the student’s personality.
Those who enjoyed being outdoors and didn’t particularly like sitting at a desk to study would naturally love the field training. The academy’s classes were far from easy. In fact, without proper tutoring from a young age or having attended school before, keeping up with the lessons could be overwhelming.
Even the children who had already received formal education wouldn’t take the classes lightly. Academic rankings were tied to the honor of their families, so most noble students worked hard to at least maintain above-average scores.
For those who found the rigid academic environment stifling, field training, which offered a break from the structured curriculum, would feel like a refreshing change. Especially for commoners, who might find traveling burdensome, the opportunity to go outside the academy’s walls could be quite liberating. Then again, if their families were struggling to such an extent, they likely wouldn’t have been able to attend the academy in the first place.
On the other hand, students who were more introverted, uncomfortable with approaching strangers or asking questions, or who simply disliked being outdoors, would find field training evaluation a poor fit. They’d probably prefer to be holed up in their rooms reading books. Those with groups could at least blend in and get by, but those without any support would struggle to even earn the minimum required points.
As for me, I belonged to the latter category.
I was the kind of person who could replay games several times, each with a playtime of 50 to 80 hours, just for the initial playthrough. In my spare time, I consumed spin-off novels, comics, and setting guides, and when I wasn’t absorbed in Chronicles of Aetherna, I was either reading books, watching movies, dramas, or anime.
Occasionally, I went on trips, but even then, I’d book the coziest accommodations I could find and minimize my time spent outside. If there was no set plan, I simply wouldn’t go out—that was my way.
“Sylvia!”
“Huh?”
“…Sylvia, sis?”
So, having my bedroom door burst open at four in the morning by a younger sister I hadn’t seen in over a decade—and one I wasn’t even blood-related to—was not something that matched well with my personality in any way.
Again!
*
Why did I choose the “cool beauty” persona again?
Wouldn’t it have been better to go for a more emotional and optimistic personality? The kind that’s usually laid-back and easygoing, but when the situation calls for it, effortlessly handles tough challenges? That kind of character could have worked too.
At first, I picked the cool beauty concept because it meant I could minimize facial expressions and hide my thoughts easily. But in hindsight, I could have taken on a personality like Lucas or Jake, just with an added layer of “hidden cunning,” and still made it work as a solid character.
If I hadn’t committed to the cool beauty persona, I wouldn’t have needed to wake up 30 minutes earlier than Claire barging into my room, get washed up, and pretend to be cleaning my weapon.
“Sylvia! Oh, you’re already up, as I expected.”
To be honest, that last part—“as I expected”—was totally unnecessary.
Claire had been extremely flustered by my startled reaction when she barged in. There was no reason for her to widen her eyes slightly at seeing me up and cleaning my gun at this hour.
“Well, you did wake up earlier than us last time.”
She said.
……When did I?
……Oh.
Could she be talking about the time I completed my first assignment after enrolling? The time when Leo and Claire mentioned that I had already been outside by four in the morning, hunting down that elemental poison? It seemed that was what Claire was referring to.
After that, I didn’t bother to wake up before them to complete assignments. It was better for my mental health to get up when Alice did and focus on my studies. If I had something extra to do, I’d ask for their understanding and handle it separately.
Just the thought of some of the side quests I knew about, which involved waking up at 3 a.m. and suffering through the task, made me weary. If I tried to complete those assignments ahead of these two, without them even being hinted at in the game, I might end up running around without sleep for real.
“Leo and I are heading out now. What about you, Sylvia? Want to come with us?”
“……”
I paused to think. What quests were available if I went out at this time?
Unless it was an emergency mission, most assignments had been pre-gathered by Jennifer. In the game, these came in the form of “quests.” Unlike the tutorial-like first week, we were now at the point where we’d slowly start delving into the main story during this first field training.
The game’s plot didn’t revolve solely around the protagonist characters. While some quests, like hunting missions, could be done at any time without affecting the storyline, any quest involving people would need to be done at the appropriate time for that particular scenario.
My goal in this world was to experience the game’s story as a character while ensuring that those doomed to die would be saved so I could achieve a happy ending.
……Since I hadn’t done anything particularly wrong, I decided that would be my objective now that I had somehow ended up in this world.
“What about the princess?”
“The princess? Oh, Alice.”
At my question, Claire’s expression darkened slightly.
Claire likely didn’t harbor any ill will toward Alice. It was just that she had bonded with me first as if we were sisters, but now Alice and I shared a similar connection, that probably made her feel a bit bitter.
If it hadn’t been for Lucas, I might have ended up at the Grace household. In that case, I might have formed a sibling-like trio with Leo and Claire, and I wouldn’t have felt the need to adopt the “cool beauty” persona.
But what was done was done, and I liked Alice as a character, so I was enjoying the current situation well enough.
“Alice still seems half-asleep. I stopped by her room before coming here, but all I got was a groggy mumble. I couldn’t really make out what she said.”
“……”
Hmm.
Still, I figured Alice would join us eventually. The reason was simple—she could be added to the party in the game. If the setting had her still asleep, it wouldn’t have been possible to include her in the party for the first quest.
“Understood. I’ll be down shortly.”
“Got it!”
Claire’s face instantly lit up at my response. Was she that happy?
Then again, Claire hadn’t had anyone resembling family in her original story. So maybe, with me playing a family-like role, it made her genuinely happy, even if it diverged from the original plot.
I was wondering what happened to those orphanage kids who were barely mentioned in the original story? Could they still be at the Grace household? Perhaps some of them were employed there as retainers, servants, or maids. Given Claire’s current demeanor, she would treat those from the same orphanage like siblings. It was a comforting thought, imagining such a scene. Since the story takes us to the Grace estate later on, maybe I could check on them then.
“I’ll go downstairs first and order breakfast!”
“Understood. I’ll finish what I’m doing and come down shortly.”
“Okay!”
Claire nodded enthusiastically and carefully closed the door. I heard her footsteps quickly moving away from the door.
Was she excited?
Well, she might be. She had two people who were like family with her, and all her close friends were here too. From Claire’s perspective, it probably felt like a fun outing with everyone. Maybe like a training camp?
“……”
I slowly began reassembling the gun parts I had been cleaning previously.
Well, even someone as introverted as me was looking forward to it, so it would be silly to think someone like Claire wouldn’t be.
“Yaaawn.”
……Still, the tiredness wasn’t something I could ignore.
*
Pretending to be thorough by disassembling and cleaning my gun at dawn wasn’t a bad thing. It gave me a chance to check the condition of the gun before we got into the real tasks. If the gun were to malfunction during a critical moment, it could mean hours of disassembling and reassembling the weapon all over again. Since we weren’t heading out immediately, I left the gun safely in my room and stepped outside.
“Ah… Sylvia…”
I heard a cracked voice calling my name, different from the usual.
“Your Highness.”
“We may be… on a field training, but… I’m still an academy student. Call me by my name…”
Though she could barely keep her eyes open and sounded half like a zombie, Alice still found the energy to correct me.
“Are you alright?”
“Do I… look all right?”
Alice turned her face toward me in response to my question. I say “turned her face” because she couldn’t open her eyes properly.
Her face wasn’t swollen, and aside from her slightly messy hair, she was still as pretty as ever. But even for someone as strict as Alice, it seemed waking up at four in the morning was no easy feat.
“Your hair is sticking out a bit.”
“I know… but I don’t have the strength to fix it right now…”
Despite my words, Alice simply replied and began walking slowly. As she spoke, it seemed like she was gradually waking up, her cracked voice returning to normal.
I followed behind Alice, carefully watching her steps as she descended the stairs with her eyes barely open. Fortunately, she didn’t stumble and managed to maintain her composure.
When we reached the first-floor dining area, we found several round tables similar to those we had seen near the station earlier. However, the surrounding atmosphere was different from that previous place.
Unlike the somewhat dark inn we visited in broad daylight, this place was brightly lit, even though the sun had yet to rise. The floor here was wooden as well, but instead of being old, creaky, and stained, it was made of high-quality timber, expertly maintained. Even the hotel lobby we passed through was a marvel of craftsmanship.
It was clear this place had been built with significantly more money and finer materials, but despite that, I couldn’t help but be reminded of the northern region’s typical architecture. No matter how elegant, it was still the North.
“Good morning.”
Leo, already seated and waiting for us, raised a hand to greet us.
“……”
Next to him, our other classmates sat in a state similar to Alice’s — like zombies.
Mia Crowfield, in particular, looked as if she might as well be dead. Though seated in a chair, her head rested on the table without a single movement.
Jake was furiously rubbing his eyes, and Charlotte was barely maintaining enough composure to not lose her royal dignity, just managing to stay upright in her chair.
……Thank goodness.
It turns out I was the normal one.
Well, Leo was originally the protagonist after all. The protagonist’s party always moves at the pace of their leader. The problem was that this particular protagonist had a habit of starting his mornings far too early.