I Became a Veteran Heroine in a Harem Story

‘He was someone who carried a lot of burden. And he had the qualifications for it.’

Just before it began, I suddenly recalled the image of Erich from the original work, searching through my memories.

Though he was a harem protagonist with flowers in both hands, if such a being existed in reality, he wouldn’t be without burdens.

After all, it’s nearly impossible to win people’s hearts without any plausibility. And the burdens he carried became trials that weighed him down, raising the tension of the story.

‘It’s none of my business.’

The same goes for me. The moment the story became reality, I am the one who has already proven through my first possession that being a protagonist or an extra ultimately doesn’t mean much.

Therefore, I didn’t care. I had no intention of yielding to whatever karma or incidents might come my way as I stepped forward like this.

In the end, what I truly desire while pursuing power is ‘freedom.’

Having been manipulated and used by entities greater than myself, such as Constellations, since my first possession, I’ve now resolved to break through anything—be it people, systems, or whatever—that infringes upon my freedom.

This was my conviction as I experience my second possession.

“…!”

At the same time, Erich lunged at me. A movement of a completely different dimension compared to others who still have much awkwardness. A level that can only be shown by those who have experienced battlefields and actual combat.

“As expected…!”

He grinned as he read and deflected the blow I had cleverly delivered.

“Your ambition to become the strongest is justified. With talent like this, it’s natural to pursue strength.”

“Are you acknowledging me? You acknowledging me?”

After rapidly exchanging a few blows, he spoke while flinching with his tingling hands. I wondered if this was the beginning of the protagonist’s natural flirting.

At the same time, a question arose. If I beat him up here and now, what would happen to my heroine score?

Given his personality, Erich didn’t seem likely to resent me for defeating him. Once I had entered his radar, there was a high probability he wouldn’t let go of me even if I genuinely detested him.

But what about the readers? These unknown individuals who are enjoying themselves watching us now—would they like a heroine who defeats and beats up the protagonist?

“Acknowledgment is something the strong give to the weak. The reverse is just meddling.”

“It’s not over yet.”

He lunged at me again. Clearly, it’s an intense exchange requiring concentration. In a moment, we swung our weapons to pierce each other’s openings, and the pressure and shockwaves spread consecutively, blowing dirt into the surroundings.

‘There is a difference.’

The level of innate talent in our bodies was certainly similar. No, perhaps he, born with the fate of a protagonist, might be more exceptional.

But talent alone is insufficient. Although he’s a reincarnator, what he has seen, heard, and experienced is ultimately limited to this world.

I, who have come from rolling through a world of a completely different genre, am vastly ahead in that aspect.

“Kuk!?”

When I swung my spear shaft down, one of his knees buckled as he tried to block it.

* * *

“The verdict is clear.”

“Everyone stop. Today’s schedule ends here for now.”

The instructors, who had been watching the duel in a daze, stopped the fight. They quickly dispersed the students who couldn’t take their eyes off the scene.

In the middle of it all, Erich, who had almost knelt on both knees trying to block the spear that kept coming down, was panting.

“Erich!”

Several students rushed to him. They were his fellow swordsmanship students, as well as Lunara, Deina, Karin, and others who had been building relationships with him.

“I’m fine. The instructors ended it appropriately.”

He smiled at his friends’ concern and stood up on trembling legs. He was looking at Kiina’s back as she was leaving without looking back.

“She’s too strong.”

“Is that the famous Adenberg spear technique? There was mana infused in her spear. She’s already on a different level from us.”

Other students also whispered as they watched her retreating figure. Kiina’s skill, revealed in the brief genuine duel against Erich, was literally a wall in itself.

Erich was also an unapproachable talent among them, but Kiina was already a person far ahead of them.

“…I can’t deny her strength, but she’s an extremely arrogant and dogmatic person. I’ll acknowledge her, but I think we should be prepared with her as the year representative.”

“She might appear that way. But she’s not a bad person.”

‘She certainly won’t reject the overwhelming authority that comes with ruling over people, but she’s not someone who would abuse it for her own desires and self-interest.’

Erich shook his head with a bitter smile at Deina’s words of caution.

Though Kiina was certainly a deep being that even Erich couldn’t fully grasp, he believed that her essence was definitely different from her outward appearance.

“Hmm, she really dislikes it.”

In reality, Kiina was already forgetting all about the duel, her mind preoccupied with other thoughts.

[Currently Registered Heroines: Lunara, Deina, Kiina, Karin]

[Protagonist’s Heart Index: Lunara (30%), Deina (20%), Kiina (40%), Karin (10%)

Reader Evaluation Index: Lunara (55%), Deina (15%), Kiina (20%), Karin (10%)]

[Ranking: Lunara, Kiina, Deina, Karin]

‘It’s become clearer. What those so-called readers want. They don’t like seeing someone who obstructs the protagonist’s path like a sweet potato, giving no leeway and unnecessarily playing hard to get.’

Kiina, examining the status table, snorted after observing the gap between the two indices that had widened after the recent event.

As she expected, Erich’s heart didn’t change much even right after his defeat. But the reader index had dropped significantly.

Based on this, she began to get a sense of what she needed to do to gain points and what mistakes would cause her to lose points.

Literally, acting like a heroine earns points, and otherwise loses them.

And the path Kiina had shown so far was definitely not the image of a heroine that would appeal to readers.

‘While heroine attributes can be diverse, ultimately, one must open their heart to the protagonist in some way to be accepted. But why should I play along with this nonsense?’

She had no intention of showing the heroine-like moves that the status window, or more precisely, the mentioned readers wanted.

This inexplicable status window and penalties were elements that infringed upon the ultimate freedom, the most important value she desired.

“Go to hell.”

With a smirk, she dismissed the status window.

After all, she was a person whose rebellious nature had been maximized against ‘unknown somethings’ that forced actions and gave orders, having experienced the first possession with a Constellation background.

She had no intention of moving according to their intentions.

She was determined to face whatever penalty head-on and smash it rather than submitting cowardly.

“Do you have something to say to me?”

As she was about to pack her things and return to the dormitory, she tilted her head, seeing someone waiting for her.

The waiting person was none other than Lunara.

“I wanted to congratulate you on your victory, and I also have something to say.”

Lunara, with an expression that anyone could see was one of gathered courage, struggled to speak. From a chance meeting to even bathing together, she was the closest person to Kiina besides Erich, but Kiina was still a difficult person for Lunara.

“People are misunderstanding you. I want to correct them and say it’s not true, but… honestly, I can’t convince them. So, I think if you were a little kinder to others, everyone would follow you well.”

“I don’t care how others think of me, especially classmates with no particular influence. I don’t particularly want anyone to defend me either.”

“But I think this is a public matter. You’ve become the year representative. If people fear you, that’s one thing, but if they dislike you, we can’t unite.”

Lunara carefully chose her words to persuade Kiina. Her heart simply wished that her friend would adopt a more friendly attitude toward those around her, avoiding making too many enemies.

“If you don’t follow orders, there’s punishment. If a superior says strip, you strip. That’s the military.”

“Th-that’s…”

“I’m joking. I understand what you’re saying.”

Of course, Kiina couldn’t have missed such a naive intention. With a faint smile, she raised her hand and slowly stroked Lunara’s head.

It was a reflexive action toward a harmless and cute creature, but Lunara, who flinched, raised her eyes to look at those white and slender hands touching her head.

“I appreciate your sincerity. So don’t worry. I’ve experienced both hurt and healing from people.”

Kiina lowered her hand and passed by Lunara, whose face had reddened.

However, unlike usual, a smile still remained on her lips, suggesting that Lunara’s courage wasn’t in vain.