I Was Reincarnated As The Older Brother Of A Villainess Destined to Die, So I Want To Change The Future By Raising My Younger Sister With My Own Hands. I Am The Strongest In The World, But My Little Sister Must Be The Cutest In The World - Volume 4 Chapter 2.6
Arianoth, the First Princess, is a renowned Light Mage who represents the kingdom. Considering her royal lineage, it’s only natural for her to possess such abilities.
In fact, Arianoth manifested her Light Magic at the age of one, a year earlier than Caron. Her birth marked the first appearance of a Light Mage in nearly fifty years, and her existence was widely celebrated. As a result, many people associate Arianoth with being the Light Mage of the Holy Kingdom.
Arianoth’s accomplishments go beyond just her title. She is involved in various activities.
One notable example is the “Tour of Healing” she conducted throughout the royal domain, as well as the story of her eradicating a new epidemic before it could spread. Her skills as a Light Mage are of an exceptional level, and she seems to possess a deep understanding of illnesses, comparable to that of a physician.
Additionally, she possesses wisdom, particularly in political matters. It can be deduced from the fact that several policies she devised have been adopted in the past six years.
Another evidence of her influence is the fact that she has not faced any significant obstruction from other nobles. To maintain such power and remain unscathed, one must possess considerable political prowess. Unlike me, a cheat-like reincarnator, Arianoth is undoubtedly a genuine genius.
Thus, Arianoth has come to be known by the nickname “The Holy Ice Intellect.” This moniker takes into account her overflowing wisdom and her preference for ice-based spells within Water Magic.
—Such a famous person, arguably more famous than us, stood before me.
Suppressing the urge to grimace, I stood up and performed the noble greeting. Naturally, Caron and Minerva followed suit.
“I apologize, Your Highness. Normally, we should be the ones to greet you first—”
In reality, Arianoth was a student belonging to Class A1. As mentioned before, it was customary to greet the royal family members who became classmates, but there were circumstances that prevented us from doing so.
She seemed to understand that and interrupted our apology.
“No, it’s fine. You belong to my brother’s faction. If you were to approach me, it might cause unnecessary misunderstandings among others. Your judgment is very much correct.”
Indeed. We, the Foranada, support Prince Wimrey as the next Holy King. If we were to become friendly with Arianoth under such circumstances, it would needlessly provoke other factions. Intensifying the conflict between factions was inevitable.
If she were just an ordinary princess, we wouldn’t have to worry to that extent.
However, she possesses both positive and negative influences. On the other hand, I am treated as an outlier within the palace faction. It was expected that even a slight exchange of words between the two of us would disrupt the power balance.
That’s why I had refrained from getting involved with her until now. Well, there were other reasons as well, but the main one was to avoid unnecessary conflicts.
“Thank you for understanding. However, since you do understand, may I ask why you decided to approach me?”
Yesterday, I was talking to Judai and other classmates, so what prompted this sudden change?
“I have finished the necessary arrangements in that regard. I have already made the necessary negotiations.”
Seriously? She managed to persuade the inflexible members of the palace faction. Truly befitting of the ‘Holy Ice Intellect.’ Her political influence is unparalleled.
“Why did you go to such lengths? It must have required a considerable amount of effort.”
“It’s a shame that we finally became classmates but haven’t had any interaction. Besides, I’ve been interested in the Foranada House for quite some time,” Arianoth said with a bright smile.
When she, usually as cold as ice, suddenly smiled like that, it made a stronger impression. Arianoth’s sparkling smile seemed to convey her genuine desire to become our friend.
In fact, Caron and Minerva seemed completely convinced. They expressed their gratitude to Arianoth with an appreciative demeanor.
“It’s nice to meet you, Your Highness. I am Caroline Flamelle Ga Sa Ri Foranada. I am truly delighted that you have shown interest in us,” Caron said.
“Pleased to meet you, Caroline. Let’s get along well as individuals who bear titles including ‘Sunlight Maiden’,” Arianoth replied.
“Long time no see, Your Highness,” Minerva added.
“Minerva-san, it has been a while indeed. It must have been around ten years. Due to the factional relationships, there was no helping it. But I would be happy if we could get along during our school life,” Arianoth said.
“I would be delighted to,” Minerva responded.
They exchanged greetings and smiles with each other. It was a moment when new friend was made for my sister.
It should have been a scene where I genuinely felt joy, but I couldn’t bring myself to be sincerely happy.
It was partly because Arianoth’s character was as rational and calculated as described earlier, but fundamentally, it was different.
“So this is the charm of the number one in the popularity poll,” I mumbled to myself.
As you may have inferred from my impression just now, Arianoth is one of the heroines in the original game and ranked first in the popularity poll exclusively for the heroines from the hero’s side. If I remember correctly, she had a considerable lead over the second place.
As I have mentioned multiple times before, Arianoth is a logical thinker. It was depicted in the original game that she coldly discarded others for the sake of protecting the country.
However, as she interacted more with Yudai, her inner thoughts were revealed. While it was true that she sacrificed others for the sake of the country, she didn’t do it without regrets. It was revealed that she lamented the circumstances that forced her to impose sacrifices on others.
Her personal route focuses on supporting each other and growing stronger together through the struggles caused by her internal conflicts.
Gradually, Arianoth’s attitude softened, and combined with the voice actress’s compelling performance, she became incredibly adorable. The True End, called “Thawing of the Snow,” was a moving finale and a highly well-crafted story. It can be said that her first place in the popularity poll was well deserved.
However… since playing the original game, Arianoth has always felt uncanny to me. After all, her story was far too perfect…
One of the first things that comes to mind is the fact that the enemies’ levels increase gradually in her route. It requires less effort for leveling up. Additionally, while other routes have events where the protagonist loses due to the appearance of powerful enemies, Arianoth’s route lacks such events. It’s even recommended to choose her route for the first playthrough on some strategy guides because it’s relatively easier.
This alone might be a nitpicking level of criticism. It could be seen as a coincidence that her route happened to be set as relatively easy in game design. In fact, I don’t recall seeing any other players who were bothered by this sensation, except for myself.
However, there are other discomforts as well. Arianoth’s lines in crucial moments of the story feel unsettling, as if she knows what will happen next and provides advice. Following her instructions, the story progresses swiftly. Her route truly lacks any wasteful elements.
Once you start doubting something, you begin to question everything. Even the charming character who captured the hearts of many players and gradually thaws out seems to make you wonder, “Is it all a meticulously calculated performance?” The lack of depiction of Arianoth’s internal struggles from her perspective only added to the sense of unease.
It’s not that I dislike her. I didn’t dislike her, but I couldn’t deny feeling an indescribable fear towards her existence.
That’s why I couldn’t be happy about Caron and the others getting along with Arianoth.
“Big brother?”
“Ah, sorry. I was lost in thought.”
Because I was lost in my own thoughts, the three of them were looking at me. In response to Caron’s worried voice, I simply replied, “It’s nothing.”
Shaking my head lightly, I tried to push away those unpleasant thoughts.
Even now, I possess the power that can be called the strongest in the world, and I have capable subordinates. It’s necessary to be cautious of Arianoth, but being excessively afraid would be the height of foolishness. If I were to make a foolish mistake because of that fear, it would be counterproductive.
I can’t continue carrying the baggage of my aversion from my past life. I need to be careful.
After that, I decided to join in their conversation. I couldn’t discern anything particularly unnatural in Arianoth’s words and actions. I hope that this uneasiness I feel turns out to be groundless.