Chapter 2 - Otome Game?

Who am I? My age is…. 7? No, it's 24? I’m the sole successor to an Earl title- no wait, I’m just an office worker...

“AH!”

Where am I? I should’ve died a moment ago but, I'm still alive? My surroundings are too elaborate for a hospital, this can only mean one thing... This must be one of those famous isekai troupes from all of those famous mangas! Do I have any cheat abilities? Will I get a harem?!

“Argh!”

My brain... What is this? I’m... Perle Schatten. The name Perle Schatten sounds familiar.

“Oh!”

Perle Schatten, my sister mentioned something about him being the best character in the game. I remember spending 4 hours trying to beat him for my sister, it was very difficult since he was the last boss but I'm him now.

“So, this is an otome game world…”

According to my memories, Perle Schatten is 7 years old now and his parents died recently. Perle had some mental problems in the game because of his parent's brutal and anti-climatic death but the heroine was supposed to resemble his parents. Perle fell in love with the caring heroine after a while, he was the hardest target to raise affection for.

“Oh my, have you finally woken up from your long nap? You were asleep for 2 days straight.”

A melodious voice interrupts my thinking, I quickly looked up to find someone who looked strangely familiar standing at the luxurious door…

“I’m the First Prince, Goldenloss Seggotta. I already know your name so you don’t need to introduce yourself. Perle Schatten, correct?”

If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

I stared blankly before giving him a slight nod. Prince Goldenloss didn’t show up much in the game, he was an easy capture target and defeating him for the first in-game battle can help guide you to the Second Prince’s route. He was considered a side character by some players because of his lack of screen time.

“You might have some mental traumas from what happened but I need to discuss with you about an important matter that will affect your future. I can talk about it tomorrow if you aren't feeling well right now.”

“Not at all, we can talk about it now.”

“It seems you can talk, that’s a relief. Firstly, your entire family is dead. You’re now the head of the Schatten Earldom as the only survivor of the Schatten family.”

“That’s…. Really blunt.”

“I apologise, I'm not good at sugar coating things.”

“No, it's perfectly fine.”

“Moving on to the main topic, you're currently too young to manage an Earldom by yourself, hence I’m here to offer you a proposal. You just need to sign this contract and the Royal family will protect you.”

“So, what’s the catch here?”

“I’m glad you’re quick to understand. The Royal family is looking for a private agent and guard. I heard you were pretty good with the sword.”

“So you want me to guard the Royal family? I'm the same age as Her Highness the First Princess and only a year older than His Highness the Second Prince. My age allows me to guard them personally in the academy.”

“Amazing, I knew you were perfectly fit for the job.”

I feel like I'm cheating using my memories of the game now that I'm complimented. Perle in the game was set to guard the Royal family because he was young and was capable despite his age, he was usually found around the First Prince and the Second Prince.

“I’m guessing you will agree to the deal? The Royal family will protect you and help manage your territory. You don’t have anything to lose from it.”

The Prince is right, I have nothing to lose from this deal except my freedom. I want to escape my fate but I barely remember the game's plot, the country's politics, the management of a fief and worse yet, assassins still prowling about trying to kill me, I won’t last long in this world alone. My best bet is to trust the Royal family.

“It's a deal, I'll sign the contract.”

The prince gave me the contract and a quiver, I dipped the quiver in a small container of ink to sign it using the signature of the Schatten family.

“You will have some training at the 8th bell tomorrow morning. I will pick you up and guide you to the training area.”

The Prince left the room after I handed him the contract. Since I'm all alone now with nothing to do, I should make a plan on what to do in the future. The game should have 4 capture targets excluding me, the First and Second Prince are the obvious two but...

“Who were the other two….. Ah!”

The sons of famous people! Typically, otome games use high ranked noble sons as capture targets, it’ll likely be the son of the Prime minister and knight commander since they're commonly used as captured targets.

“I can't remember their names but I remember their physical features. I'll have to research them once I'm allowed to go out of this room. My goal will be pushing the heroine onto one of the two, I can live my childhood escaping the political world for now."