Chapter 7
The entrance to the dungeon was eerie.
As with any cave, it was damp and dark. The ashen city outside had been spooky, but at least bright.
“Now do you realize your mistake?”
I spoke seriously to Max as we walked deeper inside.
“Friends should get along. You must not say bad things to friends. Hurry up and apologize to Sir Sian.”
To be honest, both Max and Sian said nasty things.
The difference was that Sian’s were correct but mean, while Max’s were wrong and mean.
My words naturally drew the group’s attention to the strategist Sian, who was walking at the rear to keep watch for mechanical dolls outside.
Just then, we glanced back at the outside.
The path leading right, toward the city, collapsed inward.
‘See? Wrong, as expected.’
It was a hidden trap.
Machinery appeared, and below the gaping hole were blue spikes and spinning saw blades.
Had we gone that way, we would have been shredded to death instantly.
Outside, the mechanical doll boy rattled his eyes, as if disappointed.
Everyone shuddered.
Feigning ignorance of the trap, I spoke innocently to Sian:
“Sir Sian, you must have felt very sad and upset, right?”
He looked at me with a strange, unsettled gaze.
‘Is he afraid I’ll grab his hair too?’
At last, Sian asked:
“Why did you just take my side?”
“Side?” I tilted my head.
“Wasn’t it one-sided support for me? …Never mind. Just don’t raise your hand against others again. Especially not because of me.”
What a thing to say to someone who just defended him.
Still, I reminded myself: I need to raise their favorability anyway.
“Why not?”
“It’s called common sense. What if Sir Max demands compensation from House Sharon? You cannot act recklessly just because of emotions.”
“But Sir Sian was sad.”
My brother had said April’s charm points were: caring for friends, innocence, and true friendship.
“If April hears bad things, she goes home and gets angry. I don’t know why, but still, friends must protect each other.”
“Protect… you say?”
The always-cold strategist’s sky-blue eyes trembled faintly.
“Yes!” I answered brightly, looking up at him.
“I’ll protect you, my friend Sir Sian.”
[Strategist Sian’s Favorability has greatly increased!]
Maybe I should’ve read the story first.
Now I finally understood how to roleplay April.
Too pure, sometimes troublesome, but never abandons friends.
Even if she dies helping the player, she smiles until the end.
While thinking that, I opened my palm—something was caught there.
“Huh?”
It was a tuft of Max’s hair, falling out in clumps.
“My hair!” Max screamed in despair.
Sian, still unsettled, asked quietly:
“What is it that you want from me, Lady?”
“There’s no reason when a friend treats another kindly. My father said friends should always be cherished unconditionally.”
I gave him a radiant smile.
I treat you as a friend—so treat me the same.
Sian faltered, then pressed his lips tight, icy once more.
“…That won’t be necessary. You interfered on your own. I never asked you to protect or cherish me.”
His sharp tone chilled the air.
Even Yeniel seemed ready to step in, and the Crown Prince, even Max, glanced nervously between us.
But I alone stayed calm.
Because—
‘Like I’m supposed to be scared of a little frown.’
Despite his rejection, the status window kept updating.
[Strategist Sian’s Favorability has greatly increased!]
[Strategist Sian’s Favorability has slightly increased.]
[Strategist Sian’s Favorability has greatly increased!]
His conflicted gaze, the faint blush on his ear—he had no clue his favorability was spiking.
[Strategist Sian’s Favorability has slightly increased.]
[Strategist Sian’s Favorability has greatly increased!]
[Strategist Sian’s Favorability has slightly increased.]
But why was it fluctuating so much?
The party pressed forward into deeper danger.
No longer natural stone, but constructed walls appeared, chilling air flowing from within.
Sian stopped us.
“From here, mana flows shift drastically. This must have been the dungeon’s lobby. We’ve seen no monsters yet—they must all be inside. No reckless moves. Especially you, Lady April…”
During the journey, Sian’s favorability kept climbing bit by bit.
My brother would’ve been so jealous if he saw this.
In his first playthrough, he obsessed over romance and did the wildest things.
Yeniel’s shocking act of picking up and eating food off the ground has raised suspicion!
Suspicion +40%! Current suspicion: 45%!
Yeniel’s awkward deer-like dance to seduce the Crown Prince has raised suspicion!
Suspicion +15%! Current suspicion: 60%!
Tip: Maintain at least minimal dignity as a human!
Looking back, those were insane moves.
Anyway, once affection exceeds 90% with gifts or events, you can become lovers—whether you confess or accept their confession.
<Status Window>
Player: Yeniel Jenes (Nickname: Light-pril)
HP: ■■ / MP: ■■
Trait: Memory Collector
Equipped: Necklace of Life
Status: Baron’s daughter
Lover: Crown Prince (Azeph Aquilium)
Affection: ▼ Expand
Crown Prince: 90% (Lover)
Strategist Sian: 57% (More than friends, less than crush)
Suspicion: 65%
Condition: Potion Overdose
I want to go for Yeniel’s route. Once listed in the status window, she becomes a permanent party member. And in romance-fantasy fashion, there’s no break-up system—she’ll always stick around.
But raising her affection wasn’t simple.
Maybe sensing my distraction, Sian asked sharply:
“Did you understand?”
“Yes!” I answered cheerfully—then added:
“But April didn’t understand your words. They were too long and difficult. I think I ended up counting sheep instead.”
“……”
“……”
“……”
“April counts sheep when speeches drag on. Father taught her to do that whenever bored or sleepy.”
It was such a perfect April impression that even the Crown Prince and Yeniel were struck speechless.
[…]
They said April’s nickname was “Silence Maker” because of these awkward pauses.
“To think I wasted breath explaining to someone who doesn’t even understand… haah.”
Sian sighed and turned away.
[Yeniel’s Favorability has increased.]
Why Yeniel’s favorability rose from that, I had no idea.
Then, from deeper within, growls echoed, chilling our spines.
The true dungeon had begun. The smell of blood drifted toward us.
“Stay sharp. It will be dangerous.” Sian warned quietly.
We walked on, tense once more.
