Ch.7575. Unbroken Shackles (3)

“If you wanted to leave the Kutelli household, you should have just said so. I would have personally sent you off.”

The Count pressures the three knights who failed their mission with a low voice.

His words about “personally sending them off” were tantamount to saying he would eliminate them without a trace, which terrified one of the three knights prostrated on the floor, causing him to speak up.

“I-I’m sorry…”

“Sorry? Haha. I seem to be hearing that word a lot lately. But do you know something?”

“Yes…? Gack!!”

Kicking the speaking knight’s jaw with his boot, the Count continued.

“‘Sorry’ is the word I hate the most. Doesn’t it mean you failed to properly carry out what I ordered?”

The other two knights notice this and remain silent, but their fate still lies solely in the Count’s hands.

Trying somehow to break through this situation, another knight speaks up.

“I have a way to bring Lady Silvia back!!”

“A way?”

“Yes! It seems that the commoner girl I brought instead is currently Lady Silvia’s closest friend…!”

In other words, he was suggesting they take Hena hostage.

***

“What happened to your friend?”

“Well… they’re saying it’s Stage 1 mana exhaustion.”

“Phew. That’s a relief.”

Fainting is a typical symptom of Stage 1 mana exhaustion, and there are no other external or internal injuries.

With sufficient rest, she should wake up soon. But that’s not the issue right now.

“Here. I thought we might want to wet our throats, so I bought some simple drinks.”

“Thanks.”

“What on earth happened that Senior Silvia is being chased by knights from her own family…”

Ignoring Renias, I tried to recall what had happened around this time.

‘…I’m certain. By then, it was already too late.’

There was a time when Senia shouted that she needed to go there without knowing why.

At the time of the incident, neither I nor the other team members knew what was happening, and we had no choice but to follow Senia who immediately rode off on horseback.

All the Tembris members were puzzled, but when we followed Senia to the Count’s mansion, we realized it was already too late.

If this incident was related to Silvia… it’s not something I can just let go.

But I still can’t be certain. The festival proceeded normally unlike before the regression, and my actions have accelerated the timeline.

Making assumptions and barking up the wrong tree would create its own problems.

-Creeeeak.

The sound of the door opening came from the hospital room, and Renias carefully went in to check on the progress.

“W-wait a moment! Where are you trying to go in that condition?”

“What’s going on?”

“Senior Junon…”

Renias called my name with a bewildered voice. Seeing it with my own eyes, I understand why she’s acting this way.

“…Silvia. Are you really trying to move around in that state?”

Silvia had changed into casual clothes.

Mana exhaustion occurs when one pushes their magical power beyond its limits, putting strain on the body, so rest is recommended when symptoms appear.

Yet there she was, having changed clothes shortly after experiencing mana exhaustion, and even trying to leave the hospital room. No wonder Renias was blocking her way.

“It’s the festival. I don’t want to waste time like this.”

“…”

“…”

The festival? Is that really what she’s saying right now? What’s with that awkward smile as if nothing happened?

One thing is certain: the Silvia making that expression is not the face of the person I’ve grown familiar with.

Seeing that forced, awkward smile, I realized once again that Silvia had reverted to being a mannequin.

And somehow, Renias seemed to have intuitively sensed this dissonance as well.

“Senior Silvia. I’m sorry to say this, but it’s obvious you’re trying to cover something up with that forced smile.”

“Forced smile? I’m not…”

“Why don’t you just tell us what’s going on and ask for help? With your magic unstable, you must be suffering from muscle pain and dizziness. How do you expect to enjoy the festival in that condition?”

As Renias pressed her with sharp words, Silvia looked at me as if asking for help.

Sorry, but I had no intention of helping her either.

The cold, expressionless Silvia was nothing but a plaything and doll of the Count’s family.

It’s no lie when I said I didn’t want to see you like that, Silvia.

But why have you gone back to being that way?

“Just be honest. Silvia, what are you afraid of?”

“Junon… why are you doing this too? If you keep this up, I’ll talk to the hospital.”

The hospital, huh? Right. If she contacts the front desk, we as outsiders would no longer be able to interfere with her.

That’s exactly how events unfold in the worst possible way.

Nevertheless, the solution is simple. I could counter by saying I’ll call Princess Ophelia.

As the student council president and disciplinary committee head who listens to students’ concerns, and as the daughter of the duchy’s ruler, she would be the perfect person to resolve this situation.

She could stop Silvia from insisting on leaving the hospital to enjoy the festival,

She could listen to the concerns of a single student,

And from her position as the Princess of the Ardelion Duchy, she could extend a hand of compassion to a citizen. If I were to relay exactly what I heard during the end-of-term evaluation, it would be even easier.

But Silvia is hiding something. She’s desperate enough to insist on going somewhere with that body, even telling clumsy lies.

The moment I contact Princess Ophelia, Silvia would feel that much more pressured, and I don’t want to make her feel more hunted. If I’m not careful, a mentally fragile Silvia might do something reckless.

So, I grabbed Silvia’s shoulders again and spoke slowly, as if comforting her.

“Silvia. I don’t want you to go back there. Even if that’s not it, I can help you as a friend, right?”

“…”

“I’m not trying to get in your way. I’ve told you many times before, haven’t I? If you have any troubles or difficulties, talk to me. Am I not even that much of a friend to you?”

At that moment, Silvia’s shoulders trembled. And then.

“What can I do… no matter how I think about it, this isn’t something you can help with…”

With a sobbing voice, Silvia’s cheeks were once again wet with tears.

Now I was certain, and I could assure Silvia.

“Trust me and tell me. The things you’re worried about will never happen.”

The Kutelli Count’s family and Silvia. Senia who suddenly rushed to the Kutelli mansion before the regression. The situation inside the Kutelli mansion when Tembris arrived.

All of these can only be explained as connected events.

Moreover, even if the dates have been moved up, the sequence of events remains unchanged.

That unrecognizable form at the Count’s mansion was the final appearance of someone who had despaired at reality.

I instinctively realized that the name of someone who was never heard of again after that day had been buried on that very day.

To prevent the repetition of what happened before the regression, to avoid arriving just after the events had already unfolded.

I absolutely must not let Silvia go.

***

Although the empty lot seemed deserted, Senia could tell there had been a battle from the traces left behind.

Comparing the battle traces and magical energy lines, the configuration appeared to be 2:2.

Since the magical energy of the person who kidnapped Hena wasn’t dispersed, it was correct to assume that someone had intervened in what was initially a 2:1 situation.

The two individuals were presumed to be knights based on their use of enchantment-type magic. They were likely from the same family as the knight who kidnapped Hena and fled.

Reading the battle traces, she found evidence of compressed wind magic being wielded, which made her certain about one person’s identity.

There was only one student at the academy who fought using compressed wind weapons.

Silvia Kutelli. The daughter of the Kutelli Count family.

But… something was strange.

“Aris. Where is the Kutelli Count family located?”

“Hm? The Kutelli family… they’re located in the eastern part of Algenib Province.”

The direction was correct. If she traced where the knight who took Hena was heading, it would indeed be toward the eastern part of Algenib Province.

“Anything else?”

“Anything else… well, they’re notably part of the Noble Alliance faction. As I mentioned earlier, they’re among the worst when it comes to despising commoners, right up there with the Flocan Viscount family in openly displaying their contempt.”

If they were a family that despised commoners to such an extent, it made even less sense.

A third-year female student from the academy with no connection whatsoever. And a commoner student at that, one who served as a vanguard position.

While Hena was known for making good bread, nobles employed patissiers far more skilled than her.

In other words, taking Hena was contradictory in itself.

“Senia. Wouldn’t it be better to just report this to the academy? If we say a student has been kidnapped, Princess Ophelia might help us.”

“No. That’s absolutely out of the question. If Hena has been taken hostage, the moment that fact becomes known, she’ll disappear without a trace.”

“I-I see…”

If one were to consider what connection Silvia had with the Count’s knights, wouldn’t it be obvious?

The relationship with the kidnapped Hena was that they had recently become closest friends. But that’s just a surface reason. It’s insufficient as evidence.

Then why did the Kutelli Count’s knights point their swords at the Count’s daughter whom they should be serving?

This is the key point.

The person the knights were trying to kidnap was probably Silvia. But because of someone who intervened, they were unsuccessful and reluctantly took Hena instead.

This was the hypothesis formed by Senia’s deductions.

No matter how you look at it, this stinks of something more than just the kidnapping of a single student.

If Hena has truly been taken hostage, no one except Silvia herself and those who were at the scene should be informed.

“For now, don’t tell anyone. That includes the Tembris team members. Understood?”

“…Understood.”

After convincing Aris, Senia was walking alone somewhere.