Can You Please Keep the Original Setting?

“Just call me Mikael, Princess. I don’t exactly have a last name. And please address me informally.”

Mikael’s voice from behind was as sweet and warm as ever.

“What? You don’t have a last name?”

Ingrit quickly gasped, as if she had heard something incomprehensible.

“I’ll tell His Majesty right away! I heard you are going to do something big in the future. This goes against that!”

“That’s not the case. I’m not that noble of a person, so I’m comfortable with this now. I will only accept your unlimited grace. And as I said, please address me informally.”

“Hm.”

She hesitated for a moment, then spoke again.

“Still, it would be more comfortable to have something like a last name in the future. Your first name is a precious thing that is only allowed to those who are close to you.”

“I’m really fine. Thank you very much for your attention, Princess.”

“Alright. If you really say so… I understand.”

Ingrit answered sullenly, then turned around again and looked up at me.

“Is something the matter?”

“Is it really alright? Personally, it’s uncomfortable.”

My ears tickled as she stuck close to me and whispered softly.

“Mikael is just Mikael. It’s fine. Of course, a name is important, but I think the thoughts of the person concerned are the most important.”

I said Celina’s lines from the novel.

Mikael has no surname until just before the end. He continues to be called ‘Mikael’ but, when he reaches the ending after his hardships, his surname is determined by which man he connects with.

It doesn’t matter if the ending with the target character is happy or sad.

In one case, however, there is an exception. The most devastating endings he can get are the ones that give him the name ‘Dell’, the Archmage and Hendrik’s endings.

“I understand. If Celina thinks so too. But if Mikael says he wants one, you can tell me anytime, alright? I have that much power too.”

She said triumphantly.

“Yes, I will.”

I answered as casually as I could, turning to the hallway leading to the left.

While I looked around with a sideways glance, we arrived at our destination. The door was so big that I had to bend my head backwards to capture it at least at a glance.

The knights who were waiting on either side bowed down and opened the door of the reception room.

In an extravagant space intertwined with all sorts of plants and ornaments, there stood a man, majestically, whom I had greatly desired to see.

His dark, sleek eyes turned straight towards me. The color was the same as that of Ingrit’s, but the texture was distinctly different.

The man’s black hair had a faint shine in the bright sunlight. His beautifully tanned skin was smooth. His body lines in the uniform were bold, and the angles were clear.

The sword’s handle, which was hanging from his waist in an oblique line, contained dozens of jewels. From a distance, it looked like he was wearing a luxury accessory, not a weapon.

As expected, he’s much cooler in person!

I shut my mouth tightly because a joyful scream was about to erupt at any moment. If Mikael was described as a glamorous and docile handsome man, Cain was an example of a well-tamed beastly man.

“Welcome.”

Cain made a short salute and walked slowly towards me. He was in a position to lead all the knights of this country. It was due to the setting that he was too talented, and it was a waste for him to take on the prince’s duties alone.

In the dating sim game, Cain occupies the center spot with the largest size in the group shot of target characters, and he is also the one placed at the front on the detailed introduction page.

He was also a character I cherished as a writer. People are really cunning. When I saw him in person, I thought it was really nice to still be inside the dream. I stared at Cain as he turned to Mikael.

“We meet again, Your Highness.”

Mikael greeted him first. Cain replied with an expressionless face.

“That’s right. It’s not so bad to see you again.”

“It’s an honor.”

I listened carefully as the two of them shared a short conversation. The overall atmosphere wasn’t bad for now, although it could be due to the place we were in.

They had obviously talked a lot during the banquet the other day.

In fact, I was very supportive of both of them.

Because of my biased selflessness, the route that could give the most perfect happy ending for Mikael was exactly Cain’s. He had enough capacity to reach the perfect ending because of his position as the next emperor.

“Celina.”

The next person he turned to was Celina. As he got closer, I tried to look as natural as possible while facing him. Though being conscious of the word in itself, acting ‘natural’ was already out of the question.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“You haven’t come here lately, so I was afraid you were upset with me. Even at the banquet held at the Archmage’s castle, I didn’t get a chance to see you. I heard you were not feeling well at the time.”

Speaking in a low voice, Cain grabbed my hand and held it up, kissing my wrist briefly. Not the back of the hand that is normally kissed, but the wrist. Because of the intense gaze that I faced, my knees were getting numb.