Chapter Text
. . . loading prologue : 20% (in which she let her inner otome novels addict rise from the ashes)
Yuu was such an interesting person to get to know with. She possessed quite a character within her, which somewhat suited to this overall college’s dynamic.
Was it her circumspection in the first instance when Riddle realized that hanging out with such an outstanding student turned out to be quite a pleasant pastime? In any case, she was a constant guest at unbirthday parties, infecting everyone with her good-natured laughter and striking Heartslabyul students with interesting stories from her world.
Was it her obstinacy when it came to Leona? Oh Sevens, was it that necessary for her to be so sly and so impermissibly entertaining to have around? Not to mention her lap was just as comfortable for Leona to spend hours on it, sleeping as if he hadn’t had such sweet dreams ever in his lifetime.
Was it her erudition which Azul was ready to praise (even if not voicing it outloud)? He wondered if she knew everything he was spending time on thinking of just right in the moment she entered Mostro Lounge, ready to give an unprecedentedly brilliant advice.
Was it her liveliness Kalim grew to adore so much? It wasn’t hard to befriend him, yet the smile on his face shone brighter every time he saw her on the Scarabia’s threshold, preparing to meet her with a bustling festive parade. And even Jamil looked more relaxed in her presence.
Was it her eagerness , which Vil related to completely, respecting this stunning trait of her and admiring her? Her fashion was on spot, and also she promised Vil he never ever hears a lie from her, and she keeps her word to this day, jokingly noticing how yesterday's lipstick shade suited him better than today’s one.
Was it her intrepidity Malleus wondered about, spending sleepless nights and trying to figure out how their next late night walk will turn? Never had he someone to talk with so freely, without thinking about how he appears before people and what they think of him. She saw him under that fearsome veil, willingly listening to his stories dedicated to gargoyles.
Nevertheless, Yuu never knew how exactly she got befriended with Lilia Vanrouge. It’s not like it was a miracle at any rate, no, not to that extent of something unbelievable. He himself said that Diasomnia guys would love to talk with anyone when they two first met in the cafeteria. There was no one to believe him but Yuu. Lilia, who resembled a bat a bit too much with all mischievous tricks and hanging from the ceiling things of his, and had quite alluring yet suspicious gaze - yeah, that Lilia Vanrouge Yuu befriended.
Was it because she was quite unexpectedly familiar with all of that fan culture she has shown on their concerts with Cater and Kalim? Lilia never hid his interest in her outer world features and it was surprisingly cute figuring out Yuu had idol groups in her world too. To think she even stanned some!
Or was it because Yuu has shown no fear for Malleus? No words were said and yet she still figured out there was something more than just a lasting friendship between two faes. Not in a romantic way, but rather parental adoration, she would say.
The way Lilia treated even her as if she was his real daughter got Yuu smiling every time. Still, many thoughts were running through her head, and her fellow classmates would catch Yuu pondering something real hard, trying to provide her with a safe return from the realm of deep thinking by not-so-gently snapping the girl on her forehead with their fingers.
Anyway, it’s still nice to actually have him as a best friend here. To be completely honest, Yuu’d never say she had trouble socializing with people. Yuu was the embodiment of the magnet - alluring, attractive, always smiling and cordial, people were drawn to her, as if butterflies striving for the salvatory light, when all she did was being friendly towards people. Sure thing, having magic users as your friends is definitely beneficial, no matter how you look at it.
Maybe being not just the only girl here in all-boys school, but even magicless in addition, was amusing? But Lilia neither has ever laughed at her nor interrogated, trying to figure out if she has a boyfriend or if she was interested in dating at all, approaching with a sugary smile, full of pretense.
Moreover, Lilia's presence around was surprisingly beneficial to the both of them. Lilia has genuinely enjoyed spending his free time with Yuu, while she has sensed the aura of strong protection. Students, especially that cute first-year ones, who were seeing her for the first time in their lives (she was already a second-year, after all), absolutely magicless yet endearing , were absolutely scared when Lilia’s messy bangs with bright pink strands flashed behind girl’s back when he was quick to reappear right before confused faces. Human beings’s reactions were so funny!
Yuu was craving some silence, and Lilia was just at her service most of the time. She could say he was perfect, but…
“Oya, Yuu, thanks for saving some tarts just for me! How prudently of you!~'' Lilia snitched tarts, gently baked by Trey which she was about to eat during a break, but bat fae appeared out of nowhere, leaning over her face upside down and giving out a sly smile.
“Hey!! It was mine!” Yuu tried to defend her tarts, but all in vain - Lilia already licked his lips and chuckled.
“No worries, I came with a replacement. Here, would you try my cooking? I saw a new recipe yesterday on the MagiCam! Silver is yet about to take a bite though… But it means you’re the very first one to enjoy it!”
“Aha… You know what, I wasn’t that hungry after all. Thank you very much.”
“Aww, what a pity! Next time then!”
Yeah, maybe he wasn’t that perfect after all.
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“Right, Yuu.” Lilia said, watching the girl finish her tea. “Have you seen the new Neige LeBlanche post?”
“The one he took during rehearsals on VDC? I saw his stories where he said he was browsing his gallery and was eager to post our photos with me, Vil and others… If so, then yeah, I already liked it.”
“Fufufu!” Lilia chuckled. “Sometimes I think Neige is your fan, not you’re his. But no, I’m not talking about his cute little post during VDC. I’m implying a commercial one.”
“Eh? I thought all of the commercial posts were posted on official accounts, not his own?”
“It seems so, but I believe he genuinely liked the new project. Anyway, take a look then!”
Yuu reached forward towards Lilia’s phone and MagiCam on it. To her surprise, Neige was dressed in a rather unusual uniform - the dark tones of the clothes contrasted well with his pale skin. Neige is so pretty , she thought, admiring his makeup and outfit choice, dwelling on small details. It seems that he was presenting a character that he’s voicing in a new project.
“... So come to me, my little star.” The screen began to fade as Neige whispered the last sentence. The promotional video ended with Neige saying the game’s actual name.
Nap of a star ★
Despite sounding oddly familiar, Yuu thought something was off. The way Neige whispered alluringly, the invitation, the game’s name… Isn’t it strange for Neige to participate in such an event?
“Even I'm kinda surprised.” Lilia immediately got into the comments section to find out the opinion of the public about the announcement of a new game. “It’s not typical for Neige to advertise games, I believe.”
Yuu paused meaningfully and sank into thought. A short teaser of Neige and his rendered anime version looked more like a character announcement for a novel. Plus, that catchy phrase…
“Oh, the game is out in two weeks. Let's take a look at the official website.” Lilia put the phone back in the center of the table, getting her attention. "Huh? Is this an otome game? I wonder if Schoenheit was invited too, fufufu.”
Lilia went through the profile of each character. Yuu’s sharpened gaze lingered on the very last one. The character was immersed in a fog, his features were unclear, yet all that could be seen at the moment was only the character’s long hair.
Given her knowledge of otome games, she immediately realized that the most mysterious character would definitely be one of the most popular among the players respectively. It’s also interesting that he vaguely reminded her of Idia with his long hair and lifeless complexion.
“Oh, Monsieur Curiosity!” Rook appeared right in front of them both out of nowhere, scaring the girl off.
“Oh my god, Rook!” Yuu exclaimed, taking a deep breath before continuing. “Please at least use the door when you’re entering, I didn't even see you coming!”
“My apologies to you! But I actually entered through the door.”
“That… Alright, that’s beside the point. You saw Neige’s new advertisement too, I presume?”
Yuu couldn’t say Rook was as close to her as Lilia was, but after all that happened in S.T.Y.X. and stuff, they obviously were no strangers to each other. Besides, she never judges him for his rather peculiar behavior, no wonder they were talking to each other so willingly.
“Oui, Roi du Neige shines like never before! No matter how great my desire was to notify you earlier, I could not bring myself to do it. The information about his new project was a VIP one for members of a closed fanclub only.”
“Oh, right, it’s unforgettable that you’re his biggest fan. No blaming though, I had someone I stanned before entering Twisted Wonderland, too.”
“I wish you could tell us more regarding this matter if you wish!”
“It’s Neige who stan her now,” Lilia stated, drawing his palm to his mouth in order to hide his smile, which of course never slid off Yuu’s sharp gaze.
“Yeah, alright, but this could wait, let’s listen to you first. We’re talking about Neige, after all.”
“To tell you the truth, Roi du Poison was suggested with voicing one character, but he turned it down, citing the fact that the villainous role wouldn’t reflect his charm properly. To be honest, I was upset. In any case, I think that we will soon be able to get an opinion on this game from Roi de Ta Chambre!”
“Are you talking about Idia?” Lilia seemed to also be rather perplexed for a split second, just like Yuu. “As far as I know, Idia is good with all kinds of games except an otome ones.”
Yuu remembered Idia well. It was hard not to remember him after everything that happened at S.T.Y.X headquarters. Despite his introversion, she felt that they had a few things in common that were worth discussing. She still remembered the subtle tapping of his fingers on the joystick on the day everyone gathered at the Ramshackle dorm and Idia showed off his skills. She admired it and the proficiency of his, but after that, to her disappointment, the opportunity to consult with Idia about some games never presented itself. Alas, this image was the only one that remained in her memory.
Something flicked impatiently in her chest when it came to otome though. Dating simulators were Yuu’s outlet, a break from the real world and just a storehouse of pleasant stories, even if silly sometimes.
"For real?" she asked.
“Huhu, you know I have a great hearing.” Actually, the word “great” itself was such a pathetic understatement to what could describe her friend’s hearing in fact. Magnificent, unhuman (unfae even, maybe beyond ?..) - yes, truly. “It happened that I overheard the conversation between Shroud and Ashengrotto.”
“Dude, sometimes it seems that we’re high school girls gossiping over other people’s boyfriends or something… Not that I’m complaining though.”
“Oh my beloved!” Lilia claimed playfully. “It’s called gathering information!”
“Monsieur Curiosity is quite discerning as always.” Rook added to Lilia’s words with a shade of a sly smile on his face.
“Fine, fine. So, what did you gather ?”
“As you already know, Ashengrotto is in the same board game club as Shroud. Last year, due to the extreme popularity of one voice actress, Ashengrotto had to put up a stand of the dating simulator character she voiced in the Mostro Lounge. He decided to consult with Shroud about which of her skins would be more appropriate and appealing to her fans.”
Yuu was listening with quite an interest she has never shown before regarding Idia, which came to amuse Lilia.
“For the first time he heard from Shroud that he did not know something. When it came to games, he always started rambling and giving out an immense amount of facts. Anyway, he said otome games are out of his league. He doesn't want to waste his time on them."
“HE WHAT?!”
“Yuu?!” if it wasn’t Rook’s amazing reflexes he would actually recoil from the table in shock at her sudden jump.
“Ha, what an amateur. Out of his league, my ass! And he calls himself a gamer ? Just look at who the real normie is!”
“Hey, language.” Lilia chuckled. “I think we've reached Yuu's hidden core.” He guessed and exhaled. Looks like there was still something he didn't know about her.
“Yes, this is just ridiculous! My pride is hurt!” She continued to exclaim in indignation, not noticing Lilia’s sly smile at all.
“Why don’t you explain it in detail to Idia directly?”
“Excellent thought. Next time I see Ortho, I will tell him that we’ll have a rather interesting conversation with his brother.”
“You are plotting very interesting schemes, Monsieur Curiosity.” Rook leaned over to Lilia’s ear, winking conspiratorially.
Yuu’s desire to prove her point grew more and more.
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To her great regret, Ortho sank through the ground. Even though Ortho was included in the first-year student program and now was a full-time second-year student, she still hasn't had concurrent lectures with him. At some point, she even thought about just visiting Ignihyde dorm, but quickly changed her mind. No, she was not that desperate yet .
Yuu happily devoted her free time to exploring the universe of Nap of a star . Character teasers were releasing every day. The art shone with its professionalism, the video effects were mesmerizing, and the voice actors, including Neige, were extremely famous Twisted Wonderland’s individuals. What amazed her the most that even the main character was voiced! Her voice actress’ name seemed vaguely familiar, but she didn't go into too much detail.
One evening, when the tired Grim was peacefully sniffling on the edge of the bed, Yuu was getting ready for bed and as usual looking at the teaser of the mysterious character. No doubt, this was the true route. Sure thing, the other romanceable boys and girls were charming to look at, but she was itching to find out what kind of quirks this long-haired character had in his pocket.
Accidentally scrolling the site to the very end, she saw the system requirements for the game. A noisy breath escaped her chest, almost waking Grim up.
“PC only?! Who the hell is even doing PC limited versions nowadays!” She exclaimed.
This small but extremely important detail burned all her simping-over-2D-boys-and-girls plans to ashes in an instant. Yuu hardly managed to buy a phone with Cater complaining he can’t follow her on MagiCam. Quite a story how she got Azul convinced to let her do some job to accumulate money and finally get a phone. But getting a PC is a new category of her wishful thinking. She doesn't think she’ll be allowed to download a dating simulator on a library computer. Even if an extraterrestrial miracle happens and she’ll really find a way to do it, then there are no guarantees that some random normie will not ruin her entire walkthrough.
Yuu smiled nervously. Passion for otome forced her to turn on the inner Idia in her, and she chuckled at the comparison.
“Maybe it will be possible to play through the emulator ...” she frowned in frustration and put her phone away, climbing under the blanket.
She still had to debate with Idia, but the competitive spirit was swept away...
The next day, she dug into her lunch with a fork, looking absolutely dejectedly.
"Hey, Yuu." Deuce called out to the girl, not at all pleased with her melancholy appearance. "What happened?"
Yuu nervously thought that it would be nice if Lilia was here right now, but she supposed he was busy keeping his Diasomnia family happy at the moment.
“Even the ghosts got scared of her today.” Grim mumbled indistinctly, chewing on a piece of fish.
“Nervous about Trein’s test, aren’t you?” Ace poked her on the shoulder and laughed. But she remained still.
Rook, who appeared in the aisle with Vil, bowed gallantly and approached their table where ADeuce and Yuu were sitting.
“Good afternoon gentlemen and our dear Trickster! Oh, did something happen? My heart hurts excruciatingly at the sight of our friend’s dejected appearance.”
“Good afternoon, Rook-senpai.” Deuce looked away from her drooping gaze and greeted the senior. “Yuu looks… Yeah, you can see it clearly. We can't figure out what's wrong.”
“Hmm… Yuu, my dearest. Could the issue lie within the game we talked about with you and Monsieur Curiosity the other day?”
"ARGH!" she howled, putting her hands to the forehead.
“I guess I’m right.” Rook smiled sadly, placing his hand on her shoulder. “There, there. Maybe we can help?”
“Good afternoon everyone!!”
A familiar, cheerful voice shook the room. Yuu raised her head and saw him .
Ortho, her savior. She managed to forget that she wanted to ask him to give Idia's contacts in order to confront him. Yuu definitely still mentally insisted on explaining her point of view to her senior, but the original idea was quickly replaced by a new one.
Jumping up, she ran up to Ortho. Before even speaking, Yuu impulsively pressed the blue-haired boy to her. Every time she saw him, all the sad thoughts were blown out of her head. Ortho was a ray of light in a dark realm. If she dreamed of having a younger brother, she would like him to be like Ortho.
“Hey, Yuu!!” she pulled away from Ortho and nodded back at him with a smile.
"Hey. How are you? Are you all right? I haven't seen you in college for a long time."
“Ah, right. My big brother needed me for some time to help with a project assignment. I attended the classes remotely. But now we have more free time!”
"It's great! I’m a little embarrassed, but I have something to share with you…”
Ortho drew his hands to his chest.
"What happened? I will definitely listen to you!!”
"Thanks, I appreciate it! Well, you probably know that one game is coming out the day after tomorrow…”
Her friends saw from the outside that she somehow perked up and calmed down a bit. The only thing is that many questions arose. Somehow it was Ortho out of all the people (or not exactly human beings, but ok…) who actually managed to cheer her up.
After explaining the situation to the boy, Yuu sighed heavily at the end. Ortho, who nodded more willingly as she talked, asked her to wait just a second. After doing something that was outwardly comparable to how the program reads the received data, Ortho snapped his mechanical fingers.
“If you really want to play, then we still have one of the computers in the lobby unoccupied! At Ignihyde, every student has a computer in their room, but the PCs in the lobby are used when teachers are setting up group projects. My big brother and I just finished one! I think he'll let you play as long as you don't disturb the rest of the students too much.”
Theatrically wiping a tear from her cheek, she hugged Ortho once again and quickly became effusive in her gratitudes.
“Heehe! Great, then the day after tomorrow we'll meet at the entrance after class. I will explain everything to everyone!”
She decided to postpone the debate with Idia until later. In the end, she has to find out as much information about the characters as possible in order to choose her first route to play!