“Can we get a topographical map that shows the students’ positions in real time?”
“…What?”
The assistant flinched at Seira’s question.
“Did you get that advice from the upperclassmen?”
“No, it’s not like that.”
“Well, even if you did, it shouldn’t matter.”
The assistant snapped his fingers, opening a void.
A black space appeared in midair, and he plunged his hand into it, pulling out a map.
“Here. Take it. Your name is Seira, right?”
“Yes.”
“You’ll get extra points. This excellent hut qualifies for bonus points.”
“Thank you.”
The assistant narrowed his eyes and studied Seira.
A topographical map showing the real-time positions of other students.
The fact that she requested this meant she truly understood the core of this class.
The instruction to survive for seven days wasn’t really about surviving the “strange environment.”
It was about surviving “other students,” who could become your enemies at any moment.
“So there really is one exceptionally clever freshman, huh? Just as I heard.”
His eyes sparkled.
“I’ll have to write a recommendation.”
Assistants could recommend students they noticed while helping with classes.
They dreamed of a bright future.
“Maybe a junior will join in a few years.”
In <That Girl Game>, there were destined encounters.
Naturally, “destined encounters” referred to the meeting of the heroine and the male lead.
“During the survival class, Germiel accidentally meets the heroine, Ailin.”
That happened because Ailin’s roommate had a severe cold.
Being skilled in herbal medicine, Ailin went up the back hill to collect lupin mushrooms, good for treating a cold, and got lost.
“The next part is predictable.”
Injured and having lost her glasses, she wandered until Germiel rescued her.
Germiel immediately fell for Ailin when he saw her without glasses.
“There are so many possible routes, but this scene always appears.”
<That Girl Game> had numerous variables and routes.
Even if the same scene appeared, the characters’ emotions might differ.
“But in this episode, it’s inevitable.”
If the scene appeared 100 times, Germiel would fall for the heroine 100 times.
It was the first button leading to “a world filled with all beauty.”
“Some minor steps seem to have been skipped… but whatever, the important thing is that he falls at first sight.”
Having examined the map, Seira spoke.
“This is surprisingly close to the dorms.”
“Really? I thought it was a remote forest.”
Dorphina was fascinated, and Germiel just smiled gently.
Seira felt a chill again.
“Right, Germiel must have instinctively known all along.”
This place looked like a primeval forest but was actually just the hill behind the dorms.
It was hard to navigate, but if you knew the way, it would take only a few hours to reach the dorms.
“Actually, the professor probably wanted to send us somewhere dangerous and far….”
Though the professor was capable of such madness, fortunately, this was still within the academy.
The academy’s unique nature seemed to curb some of the professors’ mania.
“If we move while following this map, we can reach the bottom without running into other students. The hidden star badges are marked too, so finding them would be even better.”
Germiel tilted his head in surprise.
“Not going to steal from the others?”
“….”
Seira herself felt the same confusion.
“Germiel seems to finish this experience in an instant…?”
Germiel was precisely the student who understood the essence of this “7-day experience.”
When asked about other classes, Professor Napin just said he would “get permission from the other professors.”
In reality, he didn’t actually get permission.
No professor would allow someone to interfere with their class, especially for seven days.
So Napin was, in effect, deceiving the students.
“You need to find the path straight to the dorms, right?”
The extra points from collecting star badges were just a trick.
Sure, extra points were given, but that wasn’t the essence.
“The true hidden meaning of the ‘7-day experience’ is returning to the dorms and resuming daily life as quickly as possible.”
Along the way, survival actions like making a hut or finding water would earn bonus points.
“Ah, am I being tested? To see if I understand the essence of the ‘7-day experience’ or not?”
Wow, it was so natural I didn’t even notice it was a test!
She suddenly felt alert.
“Do you think we should steal from the others?”
“That would make it easier to get a higher score.”
“There’s no need to go that far. I might have done that alone, but now we’re in the same team.”
“What difference does it make with me?”
“You’re the representative of the miscellaneous class. There’s no need to make other students dislike you over such a minor exercise.”
Germiel smiled.
“I hadn’t thought of that. Thanks, Seira.”
A lie—he knew all along.
Seira hid her thoughts and continued studying the map.
“Let’s see… the heroine should be near this cave. Then… this way is south, so let’s head this direction…”
Reading the map was also excellent practice.
Germiel reflected slightly.
“I was only thinking about giving Seira a good score.”
Focusing too much on one thing often blinds a person to other aspects.
Even competent people sometimes experienced this.
Germiel was exactly like that.
His desire to give Seira extra points made him lose sight of the bigger picture.
This Germiel, unlike the one in <That Girl Game>, couldn’t think from a distance.
He reflected deeply.
“I’m really lacking.”
Seira pointed out what he had overlooked.
“I hadn’t thought of that. Thanks, Seira.”
Only then did Germiel fully realize what he should do.
He kept observing Seira as she studied the map intently.
“When I’m with you, I get this clumsy.”
He was so focused on Seira he had no time for anything else.
“But this clumsiness… isn’t unpleasant.”
Watching Seira concentrate on the map, Germiel smiled.
Seira moved toward the dorms, avoiding the other students.
Soon, familiar scenery appeared.
Scenes often seen in games.
“This is it!”
A small stream with crystal-clear water.
A tall cliff visible in the distance.
A cave beneath the cliff.
“Ailin must be wandering near that cave entrance!”
This was where Ailin and Germiel’s fateful first encounter would begin.
Seira led the way.
“Let’s take a short break in the cave over there.”
They reached near the cave.
“Germiel, can you check inside?”
“Got it.”
Germiel entered the cave.
Seira inwardly rejoiced.
“Yes. The heroine, Ailin, must be shivering from the cold inside. Like a little daffodil! Her lost glasses will finally reveal her hidden beauty.”
It felt as if the gentle OST from <That Girl Game> played in the background.
The heroine and male lead’s fated encounter.
Thinking of it made her heart flutter.
Germiel’s inner voice seemed audible:
“The cave was quite dark. A girl, having lost her glasses, was chasing away that darkness. That was my first memory of her. Her name was Ailin.”
Dorphina tilted her head.
“Why isn’t she coming out?”
“Well, let’s wait a bit longer.”
Germiel was busy with his fated first encounter!
They needed to wait without interfering.
After a short while, Germiel came out.
“Huh? Why alone? Shouldn’t he be helping the heroine, who twisted her ankle, walk out?”
Germiel stood before Seira.
“Seira. I have a gift for you.”
“A gift?”
He smiled brightly and extended a clenched fist.
Seira, caught off guard, reached out her hand.
“Take it.”
“What is this?”
Seira was stunned by the object Germiel gave her.
“A star badge?”
There weren’t supposed to be any star badges hidden in the cave.
“Wait a minute…”
Students participating in the “survival skills training” ultimately didn’t find one of the hidden star badges.
It would only be revealed where it was after a long time.
“The star badge… the heroine found it?”
No, wait.
“So…?”
Seira made an unbelievable assumption.
“He took it from the collapsed heroine? The star badge?”
Hiding her shock, Seira asked:
“Was someone inside?”
“You sensed it. Yes. There was a girl. Seems she isn’t taking the survival class.”
“Let’s go.”
Why did Germiel return alone?
Was it not the heroine?
“Right. With a slight plot change, it could be someone else instead of the heroine.”
Thinking that way made more sense than assuming the male lead snatched the star badge from the heroine.
What romance game has a male lead stealing something from the heroine?
Seira hurried inside and saw:
“What? The heroine… it is her?”
The true heroine of <That Girl Game>, Ailin, was crouched, sniffling.
Wearing her round glasses, which should have been removed.
