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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: Parent Observation Class
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「Parent Observation Class Notice」
My eyes widened at the bold letters.
“Parent observation class?”
“Yes. It’s an event held at the beginning of every semester to help first-years adjust to the academy and to ease the parents’ worries. We received an invitation as well.”
Now that I thought about it, I seemed to recall something like that. We all graduated from the National Academy, but it was so long ago that I didn't remember it well.
“The date’s not far off, is it?”
It was next week.
“Wait a minute. This starts in the morning. For me to take a day off…”
“Isaac, you can’t take time off right now.”
“W-What about half a day? Couldn’t I manage that?”
I doubted it. I wasn’t sure if His Highness the Crown Prince would grant permission.
“Should we go without Isaac?”
“Emily, are you free?”
“My work as a scribe is pretty flexible. One day won’t be a problem.”
“Are you really going to go without me?”
Isaac pouted. Unfortunately, since he wasn’t wearing his glasses, he didn’t look pitiful at all.
Instead, his sharp gaze made it look like he was threatening me.
“We’ll go and check if his friendships are okay and if his first love is progressing well!”
“That’s not comforting at all…”
Isaac slumped against the back of the sofa.
Regardless, we were thrilled at the thought of getting a glimpse into Andrea’s academy life.
We had a mountain of things to do, like greeting the teachers we hadn’t seen in a while.
And soon enough, that excitement of mine was shattered to pieces.
***
“Next Wednesday, you mean?”
“Yes, that’s the day. I was planning to take just one day off. Would that be all right?”
Tristan, looking as handsome as ever, was poring over some documents. I wondered how he maintained such a large frame while processing paperwork all day.
Tristan stroked his chin as if in thought, then lifted his gaze from the documents.
“May I go with you?”
“Pardon?”
For a moment, I thought I had misheard.
“You’re going to the academy that day.”
“Y-Yes. But what business does Your Highness have at a parent observation class…?”
I stressed the word ‘parent’ just in case he hadn’t heard me properly. Tristan might not have, but Werner seemed to catch my meaning and let out a soft chuckle.
Then, Tristan spoke nonchalantly.
“I have something to investigate.”
“…”
I tried my best not to let my expression harden. There was only one kind of ‘investigation’ that would require the Crown Prince’s personal attention.
“So, I would like you to accompany me, my lady.”
He seemed reluctant to be direct, but his meaning was clear.
He was saying that traces of black magic had been found at the academy.
Of all places!
***
Murmurs rippled through the crowd.
“What is His Highness the Crown Prince doing here…?”
“Isn’t today the parent observation class?”
“And the young lady next to him is… that one from House Walker…”
Whispers erupted from all around. It was understandable.
It was like seeing a single, ownerless shoe on the side of the road and instinctively wondering, ‘How on earth did the owner get home?’
When you see someone who shouldn’t be in a certain place, the question ‘What is that person doing here?’ naturally arises.
The only problem was that I was at the center of all this gossip.
“Could it be that the Crown Prince and that Duke’s Daughter are…?”
“His Highness isn’t engaged, and the Duke’s Daughter doesn’t have a suitable marriage prospect, but…”
It was expected that two unmarried people of marriageable age walking side by side would lead to such misunderstandings.
I felt sorry for those letting their imaginations run wild, but to that man, I was probably nothing more than a magic detector.
‘Still, the stares are particularly sharp.’
I suppose it was only natural, with two people who become the subject of rumors just by existing now together in one place.
“Didn’t you say the Duke of Walker would be joining you?”
Tristan, however, looked unconcerned, as if none of it mattered to him.
“Ah, Edmond and Yulia decided to move separately. We were worried they might get in Your Highness’s way.”
“How considerate.”
It was common sense, known even to a stray cat, that putting the Crown Prince who hunted warlocks in the same carriage as a zombie was not a very wise choice.
“Then where should we go?”
“You should probably head to where the traces were found first.”
Just go already. To be honest, I wanted to get as far away from him as possible.
“No. Not that.”
Tristan continued calmly.
“Did you not come to see your brother? It is a parent observation class, after all.”
“…”
He’d only talked about his own business, as if he hadn’t understood that I was going to my brother’s parent observation class, so I thought he genuinely didn’t know.
I didn’t know whether to be surprised that he knew, or to be surprised by the sheer nerve he had to drag me along despite knowing.
Or perhaps I should be impressed by his talent for always doing the opposite of what I expect, just to mess with me?
“So, let’s head there first.”
He then strode off. Beside me, Werner smiled brightly and whispered.
“He may not look it, but he can be quite considerate.”
Considerate? This?
I barely managed to swallow the retort that was about to escape my lips.
***
Having been delayed by my conversation with Tristan, the class had already started. I silently opened the door and slipped into a spot at the back. Tristan and Werner promptly took their places on either side of me.
From a distance, I could see Edmond and Yulia glancing my way. I gave them a nod and then scanned the classroom.
Diagonally to my right, I saw Andrea, his eyes sparkling.
“…!”
When our eyes met, he shot his hand up and waved enthusiastically. He was so clearly happy to see me that I gave a small wave back and signaled for him to focus on the class.
Andrea grinned and nodded.
“You seem to have a good relationship with your brother.”
Tristan whispered softly.
“We’re quite close.”
“How fascinating.”
Then he fell silent.
As the sole legitimate heir of the imperial family, Tristan had grown up as an only child, and he seemed unable to comprehend the strong sibling bond in my family.
The class continued without any particular incident, aside from the teacher being unusually nervous due to the Crown Prince’s sudden appearance.
‘His friendships seem fine.’
Even with the uninvited guest, I hadn’t forgotten my original purpose. I had to find out why Andrea had been so down these past few days.
‘Juri? The second daughter of House Akmone… Is that her?’
The brilliant red hair, characteristic of that ducal house, immediately caught my eye. Though her face was youthful, her beauty was a cut above the other children.
However, Juri and Andrea, paired in the same group, were chatting affectionately and seemed to be getting along well.
‘So that’s not it either?’
While I was flustered by the unexpected situation, a grinding sound came from beside me.
“…?”
It sounded exactly like someone grinding their molars.
I turned my head to see a handsome boy with a flamboyant appearance chewing on the corner of a handkerchief, gnashing his teeth.
“How dare he… to my princess…!”
Judging by his red hair, he seemed to be the eldest son of House Akmone. He was glaring daggers at Andrea, who was joking around with Juri.
“Sob… I thought she wouldn’t bring home her first boyfriend until she was at least eighteen…”
Boyfriend? Wait, Andrea is Juri’s boyfriend?
It seemed Andrea’s love life was progressing smoothly. Much more smoothly than I had thought.
“My lady.”
“Yes?”
“Do you feel anything?”
While I was reeling from the news of my youngest brother’s romance, Tristan asked an odd question. If I felt anything?
No, this was a classroom full of students. There couldn’t possibly be any traces of black magic in a place like this…
‘…There shouldn’t be.’
As my expression stiffened, the Crown Prince nodded as if he had expected it.
“I thought so.”
“…You knew?”
“Of course not. You are the only one with that ability.”
But he hadn’t even taken out his detector.
“We’ll discuss the details later. Which direction?”
“Well, the feeling is strange. I can sense it, but it seems very far away. The direction is… down.”
I instinctively looked at the floor. The academy’s first-years used the ground floor of the building to prevent them from getting lost.
So, what lay beneath us should have been nothing but earth. Not something like black magic.
“Below ground.”
That seemed to be an unexpected answer, as Tristan furrowed his brow.
“Is that possible?”
“I wonder.”
Ah. Of course, he wouldn’t be well-versed in black magic. It was absurd for a warlock to be asking about black magic.
“This is strange indeed.”
Werner interjected.
“I was certain the detector’s reaction was a trick by the Holy See. But for that to be the case, there are too many things that don’t add up.”
“…”
“The pieces don’t fit. Lady Walker, you claimed the attack that night was the work of the Holy See. That the traces of black magic were a fabrication.”
Werner wore his usual bright smile. That made it even more chilling.
“If that’s true, then how do you explain the presence of black magic felt during Sir Walker’s duel?”
If, as I said, the remnants of black magic were a trap set by the Holy See, then the detector going off during Isaac’s duel should also have been a lie. But hadn’t I acted as if I’d seen something?
Conversely, if I was the one lying, it wouldn’t make sense for me to have detected those traces during Isaac’s duel without a detector.
“If one is true, the other makes no sense… I simply cannot tell which is the lie.”
Werner’s eyes glinted. Sweat beaded in my clenched fists.
What do I do?
