Side Character Who Became the Pseudo-Protagonist

Chapter 9: Still A Midgard

I awoke in a room that could only be described as a grand bedchamber.

Because honestly, why the hell was it so gigantic?

The entire place was decorated from floor to ceiling and was very much giving "old money" vibes, with a lot of blue motifs like sheets, curtains, and upholstery.

’Urgh...my head...’

It was painfully obvious now that [Overload] disperses Logos sequences, but with the data and energy having nowhere to go, it runs straight to the nearest processor...

Thankfully, my Spell Driver managed to absorb most of the impact, or else it could’ve gone straight to my brain and—

Yeah, let’s not think about that.

The thing I should be thinking about, was the fact that I was somehow inside my room, or well, Nolan Midgard’s room.

After such an incident, I was expecting reporters or investigators to be swarming me with questions like what they did with Leon.

But I guess I shouldn’t be complaining about peace when I’ve got it.

Though when my mind finished processing the aftermath, it went straight back to the conflict itself.

’Irregular State, huh...?’

Maybe it wasn’t something that was supposed to happen? Then again, I knew the plot from here, so the change didn’t come out of nowhere exactly.

The prologue event was caused by an Anti-Operator Group called White Noise, a terrorist group that wanted to dismantle every system giving Operators preferential treatment.

In this world, Operators were extremely valuable assets.

Due to a mutation in the person’s brain called the Logos Cortex, the brain is able to store and process Logos for use in casting magic.

Or at least...that’s what the tooltip said every time I was in a loading screen. It was boring information, but well, I was playing the game on an old HDD.

So...I had plenty of time to read.

If so, how does the mutation even happen in the first place? I guess a biological trait such as that would be hereditary, would it not?

Or maybe it’s exposure-based with the Gates? One of the heroines became an Operator after being a civilian for a while after all.

Ahh, never mind all of this! I’m just gonna rest for a while, enjoy this peace and think about my role as the protagonist later—

’Something’s heavy on my lap.’

"..."

Slowly, I looked down, only to find a girl casually asleep on the side of the bed.

I didn’t know who she was, but from her similarly colored blue hair with side-swept bangs and a little accessory of a blue flower pinned on her hair...

One could guess she was my little sister.

In the game, it was mentioned that Nolan Midgard was the middle child of the Midgard house. However, only the eldest sister, Nora, even had an appearance at all.

Though for some reason, I remembered her name as clear as day—Namie Midgard.

The girl must’ve sensed my movement, as her head lifted groggily, raising a hand to wipe at her eye. But when she saw that I was awake, she immediately shot to her feet in surprise.

"Brother! You’re awake!"

Ahh...I have no idea how to deal with her. I had been an only child, so experiences with siblings were completely strange to me.

Though it didn’t stop my mouth from moving on its own.

"Yeah, somehow..."

Namie instantly got closer, lifting my blanket and inspecting my arm by bringing it closer to her face.

"You’re sure? The doctors said you were injured pretty bad."

"Ouch...!"

She flinched, slowly dropping my arm down and throwing the covers over them again.

"Aha...whoops..."

"Anyways Brother, what even happened?"

Before I could say anything, the doors to the room opened with a soft click, and in came an old man wearing a suit.

He was neatly groomed and immaculately dressed, carrying a silver tray with a pot of tea and a few cups before setting them on the bedside.

"Young Master Nolan, Lord Midgard requests your presence as soon as you are able to stand. His words exactly."

Namie’s expression stiffened as she saw the butler.

"Already? But he just woke up."

"It’s fine."

I said, already swinging my feet over the bed. It still hurt a little, but I was able to stand. And really, those were his instructions, were they not?

Still, I knew the Patriarch of House Midgard well, and it would be best not to keep him waiting in a time like this.

"Lead the way."

I walked through this ridiculously large house that was so gaudy that I had to try to focus on something else.

Though my eyes immediately focused on the portraits lining the corridors, depicting what seemed to be past patriarchs.

Each and every one of them wore a serious expression and was probably decorated as important military assets. Yet what caught my eye was the fact that they all wore an eyepatch, some on their right and others on their left, but wore one all the same.

’A coincidence...?’

No way, right?

Without thinking, my hand drifted toward my own left eye, before shuddering and continuing to walk down the path.

"Young Master, we have arrived. Do take caution, however, as I noticed the Lord is not in a particularly good mood."

"...Noted."

Taking a deep breath, I pushed the door and stepped inside.

The man inside was doing paperwork at his desk, but even from here, I could feel his presence.

He wore a dark blue pinstriped suit that matched his similarly colored hair, accompanied by a white officer’s cloak decorated with various medals.

A cane leaned against the side of his table, but most importantly, he wore an eyepatch on his left eye.

’Yeah...definitely not a coincidence.’

Nathan Midgard, a recurring character who showed up a lot in the mid-game acts, usually as a quest-giver.

I remembered from a few character dialogues, that he was no doubt the strongest military asset within the Ygg Empire.

Well, except for the protagonist, of course.

Making my way over to the guest chair in front of the main table, I sat there patiently, twiddling my thumbs and trying to think of what to say.

"Nolan..."

"Father."

I responded instinctively. Even I was surprised by how fast the words came out of my mouth.

"If you’re talentless, you need to stop getting into trouble. I’ve used my authority to silence any questions, but doing so makes it look bad for the Midgard Family."

What? It’s not like I asked to be involved in a Dungeon Outbreak!

"The credit for resolving the incident will go to the Alfine boy. You will stay low, avoid attention, and keep yourself away from trouble until this matter subsides."

My first instinct was to boil over. No one likes having their achievements handed to somebody else.

But the more I thought about it, it might be more beneficial for me to lie low, not draw too much unnecessary attention, and follow the main route.

Still, it does sting.

"Yes, Father."

Silence passed by for a while before the man finished his paperwork and pushed the stack to the side.

"Nolan...have you not considered a civilian academy instead?"

Ahh, there it was.

This was actually dialogue from the game.

Or, well, not dialogue I had heard directly. It was something Nolan Midgard had apparently told the protagonist later on, explaining why he was hesitant when joining Asgard Academy.

Though hearing it now felt a little strange.

There was a connotation that I couldn’t quite catch, but it didn’t feel like scolding...more like real advice given from experience.

Still, as tempting as it did sound, there’s no telling what would happen in this world without the protagonist’s driving force.

And sadly...I was the one chosen to step up, when it clearly should’ve been someone else like Aidan.

"I’ve considered it, but not anymore."

"...Why is that? You didn’t inherit our Innate Spell. Surely you understand what that means?"

"Yes, my life as an Operator will be filled with hardships and I’ll constantly be compared to Nora day in and day out."

"...So why?"

"Because I’m still a Midgard."

"..."

’Please believe it, please believe it, please believe it...’

I really needed to go to the academy.

The next event could definitely spiral into a massive game over if the protagonist weren’t there. And since he was currently very dead...

Unfortunately, that meant I had to be there instead.

After a moment, Nathan simply sighed before pulling out a small letter from the stack of his paperwork.

On it was a symbol of three triangles interwoven with each other and sealed in wax, the insignia of Asgard Academy.

"...!"

"Since your Operator Evaluation was interrupted, the academy has granted you permission to retake it on their grounds tomorrow during the public evaluations."

’Nice! He bought my pride story!’

I just barely managed to stop the relief from showing on my face.

"Ahem...thank you, Father."

Standing up quickly, I grabbed the letter and took a small bow before leaving the room. The paper felt light in my hand, but the expectations did not.

Asgard Academy was the true beginning of Act One. And unlike the prologue, the stakes were high from the very start.

I really didn’t want to step in.

But it couldn’t be helped.

After all, the next event involved one of the heroines.

Her survival, the collapse of the main route, and even the spark of an all-out war between nations...

All of it now rested in my hands.