[Intermission]

The intermission between the acts lasted for 30 minutes as the casts rested for a while, with the audience could be seen going in and out of the hall. 

 The performance had gone better than expected, as Renge was not as nervous as before. It was the second time she performed on the stage after all as she had the Concert back then to thank. 

 

Inside the hall, the two parents and Konomi-sensei got to know each other further as their introduction was cut short by the stage play earlier. Most of the conversation revolved around their daughters, especially with how they felt grateful that Renge and Suzuyuki met each other. The parents had never expected that the two would actually initiate something like this. Renge had changed for the better compared to the past year, and it was certainly thanks to the first-year student. At the same time, the older girl had been a good mentor for Suzuyuki and made her comfortable in adapting to the new city. Konomi-sensei seeing that casually commented that the two looked like soulmates, to which the parents seemed to agree about it.

 

At the same time, the Headmaster, who also sat in the front row, could be seen talking to the alumni and the IP holders, thanking them for their permission. The chit-chats between them continued until another announcement, as the second Act was about to begin.

 

[Start of Act 2]

 

Aliza spent her time as Fal’s aide knowing the lady better as she was together with her every moment, from dawn to dusk as she went around the country in the campaign. They even stayed in the same room as Falerys requested so, the lady seemed to be at ease in Aliza’s presence. It was different from her maids who did the job of taking care of her only because they were getting paid, Aliza accompanied her because she cared about Falerys.  The brown-haired girl was a secretary in her past life, after all, so she knew what the boss (in this case, Fally) wanted from her. 

 

They might have just met for a while, but spending quality time with each other truly shaped their bond together. With how attentive and caring Aliza was to the lady, she did not even need to bring any of the maids on the travel. The two of them found that they needed each other more than they thought as if they are fated to meet each other.

 

To add, even as a Ruler candidate, Falerys was different from the rest. Even when she had a lot of people at her command, Falerys did everything she could on her own. She planned to lead by example, as her subordinates, including Aliza, were all inspired to do better for their leader. Fally was even very supportive of the suggestions Aliza gave, which made her felt all appreciated. Something that the brunette never really experienced during her time working in the company, or even from her family.

 

Aliza’s presence was pretty influential, especially in the neutral zone as it was easier for them to relate to the fellow commoners rather than the royalty. Every time the lady had her speech, the people were supportive of them, as they believed her idealistic, yet relatable ideals. The statements genuinely came from Falerys’ heart, after all. 

The people were getting tired of the wars as well, so the Knight Faction, as the initiator, was not as popular as the Magus Guild. Aliza also suggested uniting the Magus Guild’s voice through a council, since with one voice they had a better chance to win. It was something the Knight Faction lacked since they were fighting against each other in forms of violent display of power, which would end up breeding contempt and bad blood instead.

 

Day by day passed as the Magus Guild, now united in the lead of Falerys, was on a cruise of winning the election. Despite the fact that the result of the election did not matter to Aliza, who was going home after the election was over regardless of the result, the aide was pretty much invested in it. Serving for Fally was pretty exciting, especially when the lady valued her contributions and did not take things for granted.

 

    Time passed as they got closer to the election; the candidates were gathering in a neutral city at the centre of the Kingdom, where the election would be held together. Aliza used the time to know the other faction’s candidates better as she wanted to know what they stood for. As a result of her information gathering, the aide found out that all of them were actually from the same main family as the late King. The strongest and main candidate from the Knight faction was the crown prince (played by Subaru), although it was rumoured that he was the one that started the war in the first place by assassinating the King. Hearing that made Aliza believe that her Lady should be the one who wins this, for the sake of the people that they had spent their time with throughout the campaign. The Magus Guild was also confident of Fally’s chance of victory, especially with Aliza’s undying support for the lady. 

 

The moment before the election started, Aliza excused herself to do a final scout of the other candidate: the Crown Prince whom she was worried about. Her suspicion was on point as while she walked closer to their camp, she overheard their plan for foul play. The Knight Faction had prepared carts full of fireworks that were going to be aimed at the crowd amidst the busy election. The effect from the gunpowder would look like a magic attack, and so people would certainly vote for the Knight Faction. 

 

These kinds of people sure are everywhere, even in another world… I can’t let them ruin our hard work with such dirty tactics! Aliza decided to foil them before they executed the plan, as she returned to her Lady’s side in order to avoid getting found out. 

 

The voting was about to begin as Aliza was on the lookout, observing the streets for the familiar-looking cart. As they mentioned before, the carriage was stationed on the hillside that was facing the city’s election area. When the carriage was in sight, Aliza immediately interrupted the election process. 

“Stop it right there. I found traces of cheating in the election process.” Aliza stepped in front of the committee, to everyone’s surprise. Doing so would put a risk for Falerys, her candidate’s electability, but the aide could not let it pass by. She asked them to immediately go after the carriage. The crown prince’s expression made Aliza even more convinced that she was right.

 

The carriage tried to escape when they were found out, but they were caught by the teamwork of the Magus Guild as well as some of the Knight Faction which was not under the prince’s command. As Aliza expected, the Knights were not that united after all. It was foiled that the carriage was filled with fireworks and cannons, which were aimed at the crowd. The cannoneer was the Crown Prince’s personal guard so he could not even deny it. He got disqualified from the election, which meant that the candidates were just Falerys of the Magus Guild and other candidates of the Knight Faction. 

 

Before the guards could arrest him, however, the Crown Prince did not take his defeat kindly. He drew his sword and tried to attack Falerys, whose aide was responsible for foiling his plan. Aliza did not even hesitate as she defended her lady from the strike, causing her to get stabbed as a result. 

 

As Arisa opened up her eyes, she was in a familiar place. It was the place where she met the Goddess, as she appeared not long after. 

 

“I didn’t expect to meet you this soon. You should have waited for the election to be over.” The Goddess said, extremely curious about the girl’s action.

“Like I can do that. Fally is going to lose, otherwise.” Arisa tried to explain her action. Although deep down, she knew that the Goddess was right. The fact that she was here meant that she had lost her life, once more.

“Don’t you want to go to a better world? At this point, I have nowhere to send you right now. Waiting here feels like forever, you know.” The Goddess let out a soft sigh.

“Can I take a look at the nation, again? I want to see how it ends.” Arisa could not think about where she wanted to go yet, but she was certainly curious about the outcome of her sacrifice.

The Goddess brought Arisa to another room with projector-like equipment. She set it up as moments later it displayed the Kingdom’s world to Arisa. 

The election resulted in Fally’s victory as she was the new queen of the Kingdom, and the land was in prosperity from the rule of both the Magus Guild and the Knight Faction. Falerys was certainly missing her aide though, as occasionally she visited Aliza’s grave in her spare time. But at least the world ended up being a happier place, so it was all good for her.

Hearing how she managed to make the world a better place gave Arisa an idea though. She looked at the Goddess as she said,

“Can you return me back into my world? I need to make amends.”

 

The Goddess was surprised, once again, at Arisa’s decision as she nodded not long after. The girl certainly never failed to amuse her. “Sure, I owe you that much at least, after all. It may not be a better place but if it’s your decision.” The Goddess created a portal in front of Arisa as the brown-haired girl stepped forward without hesitation.

 

Arisa opened her eyes as she was on top of a bed, once more. This time it looked like a hospital bed as she apparently had been in a coma for a week. Apparently, someone found her floating across the river. Arisa felt bad about making her parents worried, as they were the first faces she saw when she was conscious. They also felt guilty for pressuring her, as the coma was an eye-opening moment for them. 

 

What about work? Arisa apparently still had unused days of leave (as she was always covering for her colleagues before), so she was still able to maintain her position at work. Although, with everything that happened to her in another world, the secretary had learned to have more self-care. She had learned to say no, and establish proper boundaries with her colleagues. They were surprised by the changes, some of them even unamused, but Arisa did not care. Being herself more and expressing what she wanted instead of being a doormat like before helped in making her life less tiring. It also made her perform better as a secretary as with a clear mind and no hesitation, she managed to communicate her mind and ideas to the company.

 

It was one day when Arisa get headhunted by another company because of her great job. To her surprise, instead of being the boss's secretary, she was chosen to be one for his daughter. The girl was said to be one of the future heirs of the family business, and Arisa was employed to assist her. 

As she entered the room, Arisa met her new boss for the first time. The girl was younger and shorter than her, with long black hair as she introduced herself to be Akine (Fall). Arisa could not believe her eyes as the girl certainly looked like Falerys, as she could not help but smile brightly as she said,

“My name is Arisa, and I will do my best as your aide, my lady.” 

Akine was surprised when she heard that. She chuckled as her first impression of the new secretary was amusing her. Although from that introduction, she had a feeling that the two would definitely be able to get along.

 

[End of Act 2]

 

The scene ended the play as the audience, especially their parents and classmates, clapped. They clearly enjoyed the performance, as it gave them a preview of how the live-action would be, albeit with amateur actors. The higher-ups of the publisher company were also amused, as the collaboration ended up a success. The supporting casts from the three clubs appeared first, bowing to the warm reception from the audience. Suzuyuki, and lastly Renge, followed not long after.

 

The curtains fell and they turned on all the backlights to help the audience make their way out of the hall. Behind the curtain, Suzuyuki and Renge stole a quick kiss amidst the dark, to celebrate their successful performance.