I Married the Beautiful Female Protagonist In Order To Survive

35. Drink More Lava (Voting Time~)

A beautiful, aloof, and statuesque maiden who, whether one liked it or not, was undoubtedly in the “same echelon as Philora,” after introducing herself with an earth-shattering identity, pointed directly at him, and then said, “My brother told me to marry you, and I don’t mind…”

Zerola felt that even the novels he had read before didn’t have such outrageously cheesy plots, yet… it was happening, so vividly, right now.

After a moment of stunned silence, the surrounding students erupted! Zerola’s friend, who just a second ago had been discussing with him “how incredibly special the new girl was, and if he was at all interested,” the next second backpedaled as though he had discovered a traitor, jumping into the ranks of the single men, and yelling out alongside the equally disbelieving female students.

“Zerola! I knew something was up with you!”

“You were acting the fool, but you were actually a wolf in sheep’s clothing!?”

“I never thought that you, a regular guy on the surface, were actually one of those people who won before the race even started! I thought you were just a typical loser trying to win the heart of the goddess! You tricked me!”

Zerola was also dumbfounded, because… he was certain: he only thought that Henry the Fourth looked familiar, probably because she resembled her brother, but he had definitely never met her before! Therefore, Zerola quickly came to a realization: this Henry the Fourth’s behavior, actions, pronouncements, and objective could be summarized in a single phrase!

【All part of Brother Henry’s plan, I see.】

Goodness, like siblings, truly Henries through and through. Who knew? The brother’s insidious, and the sister’s just as cunning! It figures they’re from the same family! Trying to use this to make me look a fool, or even completely ruin my reputation within the academy!

Hmph! Too green, little sister! Thinking you can use a honey trap? Honey traps only work when the trapper is prettier than the trapped, and you don’t hold a candle to Philora! Besides, what makes you think I’d even bite?

How shallow! I won’t just not bite, I won’t even be affected! Why? Because I’ve never been one to care about face, and now that Philora and I are even closer, I have even less reason to!

Taking a deep breath, in the moment the crowd fell silent, Zerola flipped the bird.

“Piss off! I have no interest in you, and you haven’t a prayer!”

Even those who weren’t involved were speechless, stunned by Zerola’s words, which were more than just arrogant, they were practically suicidal.

But he wasn’t done yet!

“And if you want to know why! It’s because! Haha! Philora and I are now…”

Zerola didn’t finish his sentence, because in the next instant, a familiar figure, one Zerola hadn’t seen in too long, unexpectedly appeared outside the classroom.

A single sentence was enough to extinguish Zerola’s “blazing arrogance” without a trace.

“Zerola! What’s with all the yelling in the classroom!? Professor, I need to take Zerola to the student council office, ahem! What are you looking at? Get over here!”

“Hehe~”

Without a word, Zerola scurried over.

And so ended the farce, a performance that didn’t even reach its “climax” before abruptly concluding, leaving only a single, major question: Had Henri IV truly come to find Zerola for “marriage”?

And, after a good while, once everyone had calmed down, another, more subtle issue was noticed.

Something was off. Just now, the interaction between Lady Philora and Zerola, while still ending with Zerola being taken down a peg, was…

Somehow, the “atmosphere” between them felt different?

Zerola, who had already run off, didn’t care about any of that, because from the moment Philora appeared, all thoughts of studying, of Henri IV, had long since fled his mind.

Keeping pace with Philora, as he walked beside her, at long last, he asked with a touch of worry.

“Why did you come? Shouldn’t you still be resting? How’s your body feeling? And…”

“So chatty… were you just about to say ‘drink more hot water’?” Philora rolled her eyes at Zerola, though it lacked her usual annoyance.

“My body’s recovered, and there’s no point in staying home, so I came. And… there are other people I care about…”

Philora only “looked” fine right now. In reality, her magic and everything else had completely vanished! Still, since Philora was willing to come, Zerola naturally wouldn’t blab about her secret.

Besides, Philora’s subsequent “question” left Zerola with “no time” to think further.

“I heard that Henry had his little sister come to the academy, and I felt something was off, so I rushed over…”

Pausing for a moment, Philora glared at Zerola, even she didn’t realize she had been biting her lip, her voice carrying a hint of sourness.

“But, I didn’t expect it, Zerola. I thought you just came to the academy like normal, but who knew you were actually…”

“No!”

Even a fool would know what Philora was about to say, so Zerola rushed to defend himself! After all, if you didn’t explain “misunderstandings” the instant they arose, you were doomed!

“I swear to the heavens and the earth, I’ve never even *seen* this Henrietta the Fourth person! I haven’t the foggiest what kind of muck-and-mire concoction that woman has for brains, to say such things to me! And I certainly don’t know what sort of brain thrombosis Henry the Third suffered, to suddenly decide to send his sister to ‘marry me’! I…”

“Alright, alright, shut it already. This is a public place, and you dare insult a Royal of the Great British Empire right in front of me? Are you *trying* to get yourself killed?”

Even as she said it, a subtle curve played at the corner of Flora’s lips. “Actually, this ‘sister’ you speak of, I haven’t seen her all that often myself. Henry must have sent her to the Academy because of what happened before… As for why she dragged you into it, perhaps it’s a disguise of sorts…”

“Poppycock! It’s gotta be him, scheming with his sister to undermine me, to tarnish my image in your eyes! That wretched Henry the Third, next time I see him, I’ll turn him into a little Piglet George… Ow! Ow!”

“I told you not to insult the Great British Royal Family!”

Flora pinched Zerola’s ear, dragging him toward the Student Council room.

“I’ll be staying at the Academy, of course. As someone directly involved, I wouldn’t want to miss anything. But…”

“Don’t worry.”

Zerola, who had just been yelping and squirming like a monkey, suddenly fell quiet. And Flora felt it too: indeed, at certain times, the person beside her truly did become “taller.”

“I know what you want to say. I’ve told you before, if you ever wanted, I would…”

“So, it’s time for me to prove myself.”

“That ‘thing’ they stole from you… I don’t know what I am going to do to him yet, but, Flora, after I drag the attacker out and give him a beating he won’t soon forget, I’ll personally take it back and give it back to you.”

A new week, everyone remember to toss a few monthly tickets and likes our way.