Once again, I have the urge to hit my past self. Due to my actions or in this case, the lack of action, I had become the center of attention, however, the reason why this happened is not that I did something attention-grabbing like wearing flashy clothing but rather I was the only one not wearing flashy clothing. Once again, both my ignorance and being a cheapskate have resulted in very unwanted events. This all happened because I thought that it was a good idea to skimp out on spending all of the money Papa gave me to buy clothes. I can't believe my first thoughts were "That's a lot of money for just clothes. Fufufu, looks like I'm making some money today". Well, time to just suck it up I guess. As if he doesn't know of my current predicament, the staff guiding me speaks. 

"Over to the right is where the freshmen's seats are located. Please choose any seat you like. If you have any other questions, please do ask them right now."

"No, it's fine." (Riel)

"Well then, I will be going now. Please enjoy your stay here Mr. Lostbelt. We look forward to your future."

He then walks back to where I had initially met him. As I slowly make my way to where the freshmen are, I could feel some gazes that are focused on me. While some are those that felt like they were sizing me up, most of them felt more like ridicule than anything else. It felt like they were locking onto their prey. When I got close to where the freshmen were, a familiar voice calls out to me.

"Master! Over here!" (Tsurugi)

"Hey hey, not too loud. Also, what's with calling me Master in public?" (Riel)

"But I want everyone to know that I'm Master's disciple." (Tsurugi)

"Geez, you can't do that here. What would other's think if one student calls another student of the same age their master? And to make matters worse, think of our difference in status. I'm a mere commoner while you're a noble." (Riel)

"Status? But in the Empire, you're technically above me in terms of status." (Tsurugi)

"Ha? What do you mean?" (Riel)

"Well, in the Empire, swordmasters have their own political power, especially awakened ones. We also have noble families, but unlike those ones, swordmaster titles are non-inheritable. So even though I'm a noble, you technically have a higher status than me, according to the Empire at least." (Tsurugi)

"So what you're telling me is, I'm a pseudo-noble in the Empire?" (Riel)

"Basically, yeah. Well, of course, you aren't recognized as one right now since you don't belong to the Empire, but if you wanted to, you could move there." (Tsurugi)

"No thanks. I feel like I'd turn into a military slave if I did." (Riel)

"Well, that's if we went to war. If." (Tsurugi)

"Please don't say something like a death flag." (Riel)

"A what flag?" (Tsurugi)

"No, nothing." (Riel)

"Oh, I almost forgot to introduce you to my two friends. Guys, say hi to Master." (Tsurugi)

As he says that, the two people he was talking about stand up and face me. The white-haired boy then speaks to me.

"My name is Gushiken Haru." (Haru)

Following him is the black-haired girl.

"And I'm Gushiken Yoru." (Yoru)

Both of them are attractive, but that doesn't matter seeing as everyone in this school is attractive as well, but these two are especially good-looking even among the other students. If I'm correct, everyone who is considered to be part of the good guys, which is basically everyone who is close to any of the reverse harem members, is considered to be above average(of the school) in terms of looks. From what I remember, Ota-chan said that the closer you are to the top of the pyramid of characters, the better looking you are. At the top are the reverse harem members, below them are the reverse harem member's friends, below them are the mob characters, and below them are the minor villains. As for the main villains, well, Ziechs wasn't the most good-looking person, but some of his minions were pretty good-looking so it's kind of weird.  Back when it was just a game, I thought that it made sense, but now, I'm pretty confused as to how this works. Anyways, back to the topic.

"Both of you are Gushiken?" (Riel)

"We were adopted by the Gushiken Family so we also carry their name." (Yoru)

"Yes. But even though we are considered to be family members, we mainly serve as Tsurugi-sama's aides." (Haru)

"Well, that's what they say, but I still treat them like family." (Tsurugi)

"And we've told you time and time again to stop that bad habit." (Haru)

"I won't ever stop." (Tsurugi)

As the three were engaging in banter, a loud voice came from the podium in the front.

"Well, either we're all here, or some people are late, but we still need to start so..."

Ah, yes. How nostalgic. The good old boring, sleep-inducing, long-winded speech that every headmaster gives during the opening ceremony. It's been what? 15 years since I've last experienced this? I then start to look around the freshmen's area, scanning everyone's face but to no avail. I guess Liz isn't here. What a shame. I mean, I'm not surprised, but I was hoping. Well, I guess I should console her the next time I see her if I see her. As these thoughts were going through my head, the person next to me suddenly called out to me.

"Master, look. They're gonna introduce the members of the 5 great families on stage." (Tsurugi)

Oh yeah, there was that part. I need to see this. This is where they show off the members of the 5 great families that are in our year. This includes the reverse harem members including the prince. I need to stay away from these people so that I can enjoy my peaceful high school life. 

"Please welcome, Luke Tempest, Anya Strom, Markus Agnis, and-"

At that moment, time stopped for a second. I could feel my eyes had widened by a lot and I'm not surprised. Of course I'd be that surprised, it's a face that's very familiar to me. It's a face that annoys me yet gives me happiness. I knew she was a noble, but what really took the cake was her true identity.

"Elizabeth Harmonia."

Elizabeth Harmonia. The only daughter of the Harmonia family. And the main character of "Only I can see love".

DurianKing

Just like what I said in the chapter after this one, I changed the last names of Anya and Luke.