LBC Chapter 1: My life is a lie

Title: Loved by Crazies

This is the first chapter for an original story and my first attempt at writing a borderline evil/manipulative main character. It's gonna be harem, of course, with main focus on yandere characters. Hope you guys like this!

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I was excited about my upcoming birthday. Not for the sweet cake, and certainly not for the annoying cheers and childish songs. The eighteenth birthday celebrations happened differently here in the Agarvan Duchy of the Gallus Empire.

On that day, I will contract a special being.

A Seelie!

For starters, Seelie was an ancient race with unknown origins. Enigmatic and whimsical, the restless sovereigns of the realm beyond, only bonded with those they deemed worthy. Contracting a Seelie was the same as receiving the blessing of a god.

As a member of both the human and the drow race, I had a high chance of receiving the blessing of a high-ranking Seelie. Blessing equaled power, and power meant more chances of survival.

Survive.

That’s what I had been doing since the day I woke up in the body of a teenager who would succeed the recently deceased duke. The boy’s naïve character gave me less room to act like my usual self.

A knock on the door pulled my eyes away from the lithic book on the table. The library entrance, an elegant wooden door, creaked open.

“Shion,” a name left my lips before I saw the intruder.

A maid decked in black armor from head to toe came into the room. No one would expect a girl to wear a white frilly skirt under the heavy armor.

She was Shion, my personal maid.

She had mastered the art of reclusiveness. Maybe she was so ugly that she needed to cover her face behind a demonic helmet. Unlikely, considering ninety-nine percent people of my duchy looked above average.

I had observed her for the past six months. Shion probably used this heavy armor to conceal the identity of her contracted Seelie. You see, contracting a Seelie had a few potential drawbacks, such as a change in appearance that varied from Seelie to Seelie.

A prime example would be the Valkyrie Regiment under Duchess Agarvan’s command. All of them had wings on their backs, thanks to their contract with various valkyrie Seelie.

Hiding one’s Seelie was sometimes important to avoid external conflicts.

Shion joined her hands. As she pulled them apart, a black paper emerged with white letters intricately woven on it.

(Lord, you have been in the library since dawn.)

“I lost track of time again.”

It was a white lie.

The library has become my dwelling for the last couple of months. Six months, to be precise. I had become a scholar for the sake of learning more about this world. I devoured every book I could find on this world’s history, geography, and anything that could pose a threat.

The paper in Shion’s hands vanished, and her magic spell engraved a new message on the paper. (We have to delay your training today. The Duchess wants to see you.)

I couldn’t help but frown at the message. “Why?”

Combat training may not be the most fun thing a man could do, but it worked wonders on improving my constitution.

(The Duchess wants to discuss the upcoming ceremony.)

“Anything else?”

I watched as Shion gave another message; this one sent my soul back to Heaven.

(Lady Helen will return from the Nepheline Wall in a few days.)

“Oh s—” I shut my mouth before I spouted any profanity.

Helen was my sister. Emphasis on ‘was’ as she had cut ties with the Duchess after Duke’s death. She was a fierce warrior and a war hero adorned with many titles for her victories against the giants in the north.

Her achievements didn’t freak me out. Her relationship with the previous owner of my body sure did. Out of everyone in the palace, she had the highest chance to see through my act. I had to up my game and act flawlessly in front of Helen. What if this world had a spell to read through someone’s memories? It wasn’t my mistake that I came to possess this body. Yet everyone will hold me responsible for ‘killing’ the boy named Enwyld Agarvan.

Suddenly, a heavy hand landed on my head and ruffled my hair. Shion’s gauntlet-covered hand was rubbing me as if she was consoling a kid… the ticklish feeling wasn’t that bad, actually. It would be better without that thick metal gauntlet, of course.

I felt like Shion was smiling under that demonic horned helmet? The drow race was blessed with enhanced senses. As a drow-human hybrid, my senses sit right in the middle. Perfectly balanced, as some might say. My magic talent, however, was nearly the best out there, or so my mother told me before.

Shion stepped back and showed me a new message. (Lady Helen wants to be here when you form your contract. The young lords of the other guardian families are also coming to attend your ceremony.)

Those retarded young masters and spoiled rich kids who think the world revolves around them. They were most likely coming to scout information for the upcoming ‘Blazing Trials of the Monarch.’

A contest to decide the next emperor. I had yet to decide if I wanted to be part of that fiasco.

Shaking my head, I got up from the chair. “One last question. Are Venessa and Arthur invited?”

Shion nodded at my question. (Certainly.)

I breathed a sigh of relief. Not all young lords were eyeing each other as competition. The Fae Siblings were my childhood friends. Those two always supported me and above all, they had mastered many magic spells. They won’t reject me if I ask them to teach me a few spells. Their guidance will put my magic talent to use.

Contracting a Seelie, training with swords and spears, meeting with my sister and the young lords, and scouting talented people—an awful lot of pressure was suddenly placed on my shoulders.

Shion didn’t question further and moved in to tidy up the mess on the desk. She was nimble like a cat, despite the chunky armor weighing her down. Her diligence had given her this aura of “I’m strong and reliable. Count on me any time!” A baseless thought that stemmed from my instincts. With her around, I always felt secure. It could have been because of this kid’s memories messing with me.

To be frank, I wanted her as my subordinate. I had sought a few powerful individuals in the palace. All of them were women, as the Duchess only allowed a handful of men in the palace. These subordinates would be my backup plan just in case I ended up with a weak-ass Seelie.

Either way, for an aristocrat, having strong subordinates was a must. Who would want to meet the same fate as the Duke and my so-called father?

Shion found me staring at her, so she started a staring contest. As a bonafide knight with a helmet, she easily won the contest. So, I took my defeat as a cue to leave the library.

The glittering corridors of the palace once again reminded me of the disparity between this world and my previous world—a little planet named earth.

In six months, I almost forgot about who or what I was. My most vivid memory was having a cardiac arrest during a volleyball match and then somehow losing all passion for that game.

Then I almost died in an accident.

The memories after had a deep shroud over them, as if nothing that happened was of importance. Except for one event. The spectacle of my death. It wasn’t any impressive. I’d call it mundane. A simple death from suffocation or perhaps another cardiac arrest. The feeling had saturated every ounce of my being, and the fear of death had given me the will to live.

How ironic and cliche.

As I walked, the maids and servants occasionally greeted me, but I ignored them. Only a few maids in this palace were worth my time for their strength and influence in the mainland.