I moved my index finger and pressed the top option first.

[Demon Lord Route♥: Chris Dotton infiltrated Bedallua Academy, established by the Holy Emperor, as a spy for the Demon Lord. Your objective is to sway Michael Foxin to the Demon Lord’s side and conquer the world together.

※Characters on the ‘Demon Lord’ side will hold favorable feelings toward you.

※Characters on the ‘Holy Emperor’ side will hold hostility toward you.]

Well, at least it wasn’t a dating sim. The protagonist’s dark route, then?

Selecting this would assign me the role of pulling the protagonist over to the Demon Lord’s army. In other words, Bandage’s hunch would become reality.

I shook my head and pressed the next option.

[Holy Emperor Route♡: Chris Dotton betrayed the Demon Lord and aligned with the Holy Emperor, the Creator God’s representative, to cultivate talent at Bedallua Academy. Your objective is to ensure Michael Foxin pledges loyalty to the Holy Emperor and together prevent the Demon Lord’s resurrection.

※Characters on the ‘Demon Lord’ side will hold hostility toward you.

※Characters on the ‘Holy Emperor’ side will hold favorable feelings toward you.]

As expected, the exact opposite of the ‘Demon Lord’ route. In this case, I’d play the mentor who trains the protagonist into something resembling a holy knight to face off against the Demon Lord. Looking at the outcome alone, it might overlap quite a bit with the original story’s flow.

‘Then the last option would be…’

[Do Not Choose: Really? Running away won’t do you any good. Well, no one knows what’s truly in Chris Dotton’s heart. What could she possibly be thinking? Friend or foe? That means no one will be rushing to help you, either. Not recommended for someone as incompetent as you.

※Characters on the ‘Demon Lord’ side will be wary of you.

※Characters on the ‘Holy Emperor’ side will be wary of you.]

Look at this thing, picking a fight. So this was literally the ‘do not choose’ route.

Consequently, the pros and cons were equally ambiguous.

Seemed like the warning about not recommending it wasn’t just for show.

The System apparently wanted me to align with one side or the other going forward.

For survival, belonging to a faction was definitely advantageous. If I were some overpowered cheat, maybe it wouldn’t matter—but as the weakest of the weak who’d wince from a passing breeze, it mattered even more.

‘The people from both sides I’ve actually met so far are…’

Demon Lord’s side: Bandage. The one who attacked during the last field training.

Holy Emperor’s side: Narrow Eyes. The fellow professor who got taken down during the duel.

‘Even thinking about it simply, choosing the Holy Emperor route means making an enemy of the guy who creates monsters, and choosing the Demon Lord route means making an enemy of the guy who survived a fire fist bare-bodied.’

My future was looking so dark I couldn’t even see it.

On the flip side, it also meant those very same people could end up on my side.

‘Spy, traitor, and object of suspicion.’

I needed to be careful.

If this were merely a ‘game,’ I could have tried all three routes. Unfortunately, this was reality, and I only got one chance.

After agonizing over it again and again, I finally made my decision.

‘This is the only route after all.’

I swallowed once and pressed the option before me.

[Are you sure you want to select this route? This choice cannot be undone.]

[Yes/No]

…….

[Selection complete. May fortune favor your path ahead.]

* * *

It’s a world where the flutter of a butterfly’s wings can summon a hurricane.

So it shouldn’t be strange that a small professor’s choice would bring about her dismissal.

“…No, this is strange! Wasn’t I an Academy arc character?!”

The reason I could speak without worrying about my roleplay for once was because I was staying at a nearby inn rather than at Bedallua Academy.

I’d been kicked out of my workplace.

This was one day after I’d selected the route.

I’d returned to the faculty dormitory after finishing classes.

‘…? Where did all my stuff go?’

Not that my belongings amounted to much—just one bag and a few changes of clothes—which only made their absence more glaring.

Did someone steal them? Seriously, how much could that stuff even be worth? You’d have better luck squeezing blood from a stone!

Just as I was wondering who to contact about this—

“Oh, Professor Chris. Didn’t you say you’d be starting your leave tomorrow?”

“……?”

A professor I’d never seen before struck up a conversation.

I frowned, thinking, What do you mean, sudden leave? and the other person, looking slightly intimidated, continued as if making an excuse.

“Oh, um. Principal Bedallua mentioned that Professor Chris would be taking a month off~ She said she’d be entrusting X-Class to me in the meantime.”

What…? The news came so out of nowhere that my head spun.

A memory of my former scumbag convenience store manager flashed through my mind.

Back then, too, I’d shown up for work as usual, only to be told unilaterally, Didn’t they tell you? You don’t need to come in anymore.

I remembered wanting to report him to the labor board but dropping it because I was too busy just trying to make ends meet.

I was certain. This wasn’t a leave I’d requested—it was one forced upon me.

‘Why would the Principal do this suddenly? What did I even do!’

As for the official reason, I could actually hazard a guess.

The most recent incident. Namely, accountability for failing to prevent the protagonist’s rampage.

But would someone who never raised a peep even when I was picking my nose during self-study suddenly take that seriously? Besides, it wasn’t a full dismissal—just a one-month leave. Which meant…

[※Characters on the ‘Holy Emperor’ side are wary of you.]

‘Did the route change her attitude?!’

That would make sense.

Truth be told, the biggest takeaway from checking the route options was Real Chris’s backstory.

Someone who was once the Demon Lord’s confidant but had since turned to the Holy Emperor’s side. At least, that was how it appeared on the surface.

But now she no longer enjoyed the full trust of either side. Because the route I’d chosen was…

‘Status window.’

[<Unchosen> Chris Dotton

Recognition: 10 / Heard through rumors, seems a bit suspicious?

Mana: S / Human Magic Core

Strength: F / No muscles to lose

Agility: F / Friend of the snail

Defense: F / Wet A4 paper]

‘This is what happens when you’re ambiguously suspected.’

The Principal had grown suspicious of ‘Chris’s’ motives due to the recent incidents surrounding her. This leave of absence was apparently her way of taking me down a peg.

Something like a threat: Behave yourself and don’t cause any more misunderstandings. Just as I brought you in, I can kick you out anytime.

That said, I didn’t regret my choice.

Whether the ‘Demon Lord’ or the ‘Holy Emperor,’ turning either faction into a complete enemy carried too much risk.

In fact, what kept ‘Chris’ safest was the very ambiguity of not knowing which side she was truly on.

Besides, the ‘Demon Lord’ was the absolute villain of <Hero Rampage>. He was the one who had stripped the protagonist of everything. And they wanted me to persuade the protagonist to join that mortal enemy? I’d have better luck learning to use magic myself.

The ‘Holy Emperor’ route also rubbed me the wrong way with its instruction to make the protagonist pledge loyalty. I recalled the Holy Emperor’s zealots appearing in <Hero Rampage>, and they were… well, let’s just say they looked like they’d had their skulls cracked open and their brains swapped out.

So ‘Do Not Choose’ was indeed the best option.

‘Even if I hadn’t expected to be evicted from my room the very next day.’

Given ‘Chris’s’ roleplay, I couldn’t even file a complaint. Of course, the Principal probably expected her to come crawling back with her head bowed, but that woman’s pride was far too high—she’d sooner say Fine, if you don’t want me, I’m out and walk away.

And so, true to character, I did go retrieve my belongings that someone had dumped outside without so much as a fuss.

“I mean, seriously. I finally collected all the Bedallua maps, and now they’re completely useless just like that?”

With nowhere to go, I’d wandered aimlessly until booking a room at this inn was the best I could manage.

Now what? Of course, if I just kept my head down, the Principal would probably reinstate me on her own eventually.

So I could just enjoy an early vacation! …Or so I tried to convince myself, right before a problem reared its head.

[Main Quest: Request of the Earth God 2-1]

[Did you know? A ‘Parent Observation Class’ is scheduled to take place soon!]

N-no, I didn’t?

[Parents naturally want to verify that the hefty tuition they’re paying is being put to good use. As a professor who receives their money, you have an obligation to successfully complete X-Class’s observation class.

Success Reward: Choose 1 from a gift bundle

Failure: Become a warm corpse

Time Remaining: 72:00:00]

“Aagh! These damn! Quests! Quests! Quests!”

The timing was absolute garbage, seriously! Unable to contain my frustration, I pummeled the innocent pillow. Gave up after a few hits when my fists started hurting.

What kind of parent observation class was this, with fully grown students?

And what exactly would ‘Chris’ have to show them? All she could do was make them self-study! Were we all going to have a group meditation session with the parents?!

Regardless, the message this quest conveyed was crystal clear.

‘If I don’t want to die, I need to get reinstated within 72 hours.’

…Ah, how exactly am I supposed to do that!