To Duke Ignis’s Territory

Turning back time a bit, Brimton City in Duke Ignis’s territory.

Andrew Ignis lifted his face, full of emotion, and looked at the main gate of Brimton City.

Andrew, who had been imprisoned for a long time, with his consciousness coming and going.

In his mind, he recalled the appearance of Brimton City as he had seen it before leaving with his father.

Though there were signs of repair here and there, tears unwittingly flowed at the sight of the city gate that hadn’t changed much.

“Mother… we’ve finally returned home.”

“……”

But his mother, Duchess Rachel Ignis, who was being carried on his back, still hadn’t regained consciousness.

Andrew was simply waiting, believing the doctor’s opinion that there was no major threat to her life.

“Phew… we’ve finally arrived.”

Priestess Alicia, who got out of the carriage a bit later, approached with Lilu.

At that moment, Lilu said as if something was strange.

“Huh? Why are knights guarding the gate?”

At those words, Andrew looked back toward the main gate.

Indeed, the city gate that would normally be guarded by ordinary armored guards.

But now, knights wearing luxurious armor, who were clearly well-trained, were standing at the city gate instead of guards.

Alicia clapped her hands and said:

“Since Princess Aine is stationed in Brimton City right now, could that be the reason?”

“No matter what, having knights handle city security is a bit strange…”

Andrew disputed Alicia’s words.

In the end, Lilu suggested ‘Let’s go see for ourselves,’ and they approached the gate.

“Halt, please state your identity and purpose for coming to the city.”

The knights, raising their vigilance upon seeing the group.

Though Andrew felt a bit tense from such knights, he soon straightened his chest proudly and opened his mouth.

“Andrew Ignis, the eldest son of the Duke’s family that rules this city. I’ve just… returned.”

Andrew’s breath caught a bit at the word ‘returned,’ but he managed to finish his sentence.

At those words, the knights’ eyes widened.

“Lord Andrew…?”

“Um, please wait a moment.”

One of the knights hurriedly ran inside the gate.

The knight who remained alone, with a bit of wariness still left, but with a more respectful attitude, spoke to Andrew.

“I apologize. It must be difficult, but please wait for a moment.”

“…That’s fine, but has something happened in the city?”

At Andrew’s words, the knight, who had been pondering for a moment, sighed and explained.

Currently, for some reason, the soldiers who were supposed to be guarding and patrolling the city couldn’t move.

Princess Aine, who couldn’t ignore the state of the city, was dedicating herself to restoring city security as a special measure.

Regarding the ‘some reason,’ the knight apologized that it was still confidential and couldn’t be shared, and Andrew shook his head, saying it was okay.

“Um… Is that person by any chance a priest of the World Tree Church?”

“Ah, yes, that’s correct, but… is there some major issue…?”

Alicia was startled when the topic suddenly turned to her.

Looking at her, the knight scratched his cheek and said:

“Ah… it’s not like that. Actually, there’s been an issue between the kingdom and the church… so orders have been issued to be cautious with church personnel.”

“Is… that so?”

Alicia remembered that before she left the church, a covert unit had been dispatched according to that absurd nonsense.

Could it be that the covert unit had done something in the kingdom?

…Could the covert unit have actually succeeded in kidnapping Riel Ignis?

No. The kingdom was clearly wary of the church, and if they had really succeeded in the kidnapping, it wouldn’t have ended at just the level of caution.

She judged that the church might have failed ambiguously and been caught.

“Lady Alicia is the benefactor who saved my mother and me. I don’t think you need to worry.”

“Is that so?”

As the atmosphere became awkward, Andrew defended Alicia.

Seeing this, the knight also lowered his guard somewhat, and Alicia sighed in relief, feeling more comfortable.

At that moment, the knight who had run into the city returned.

“They said to bring you immediately!”

Alicia’s group, boarding the carriage again and running through the city, went straight to the Duke Ignis family mansion.

The Duke’s mansion, located somewhat away from the city center.

Normally, they would have frequently encountered servants or the Duke’s private soldiers on the way, but they reached the mansion without such encounters.

Andrew’s expression stiffened as he got out of the carriage and looked at the mansion.

“This… what on earth…”

The Duke’s mansion, which would normally be meticulously managed by servants and gleaming.

But now, dust had accumulated here and there, and some walls were even being repaired due to aging.

As Andrew was at a loss for words at the changed appearance of the mansion, a blonde woman approached.

“I’m sorry, Lord Andrew. I tried to repair it as best I could, but I’m rather clumsy compared to the professionals.”

A woman with long blonde hair, purple eyes, and wearing a uniform embroidered with elaborate patterns came out of the mansion.

Aine Gine Palaginya. The kingdom’s second princess had come out to greet them.

“It’s… it’s been a long time! Princess Aine.”

Andrew immediately paid his respects and greeted her.

Following him, Alicia also paid her respects, and Lilu, who didn’t quite understand the situation, awkwardly followed the two and paid her respects.

“…It certainly is Lord Andrew. Is the person on your back Duchess Rachel?”

“Yes, Your Highness. She’s weakened from not having proper meals for a long time…”

“I see. Let’s have the Duchess rest first and then talk.”

Princess Aine said, turning around.

As she turned, she briefly fixed her gaze on Alicia, but soon turned her head.

“…It seems there are complicated circumstances.”

Having received the telegram from the princess, I immediately went to the faculty office with Riel.

Our homeroom teacher, Professor Leonora, was sitting at her desk, holding a pen and scribbling something.

“Professor Leonora!”

When Riel called out to the professor loudly, Professor Leonora, who turned around with a slightly surprised expression, opened her eyes wide.

“Oh my, it’s Miss Ignis and Mr. Wentos! Is something the matter?”

When Professor Leonora asked about our business with a gentle smile, Riel answered in a loud voice.

“Yes! We’d like to leave the academy for a bit!!”

The atmosphere around us instantly cooled at Riel’s words.

Yeah. Right… you spoke too directly.

See, Professor Leonora’s face has turned pale.

With a pale face and a dazed expression, Professor Leonora collected herself with a “hah” and spoke with an anxious expression.

“Miss… Miss Ignis? Is it because of the intruder that appeared in the dormitory recently…? I understand your anxiety, but…”

“Um… Professor? That’s not it…”

Professor Leonora started to ramble with an expression that looked like she was about to cry.

“So… Mr. Wentos came with you for that reason too…? I… I suppose that’s right? It could be seen as our negligence in management, but… still…”

“……”

No, she doesn’t just look like she’s about to cry—tears are already welling up in her eyes.

She didn’t seem to be hearing my words well.

“Ugh… Miss Edwin and Mr. Ludwig have already left… if you two leave as well, I will… ugh…”

“Professor!”

“Yes?!”

Feeling that this wouldn’t end at this rate, I finally raised my voice.

Professor Leonora, who had been in a panic, was startled and looked at me. Good.

“We’re not withdrawing from school; we just want to write an absence note because we have somewhere far to go for a while.”

“Somewhere far…?”

“My mother has returned, she says.”

Hearing Riel’s words, Professor Leonora opened her mouth as if she had suddenly come to her senses.

“Ah… Ah! That’s… that’s what it is!! Ahaha… what was I saying…!”

Professor Leonora quickly composed her expression, which had been on the verge of tears.

Then, her gaze shifted to me.

“Um… what about Mr. Wentos?”

“Pardon? Me?”

“Yes, I understand that Miss Ignis wants to be absent because her family has returned, but I’m curious about why Mr. Wentos would be absent.”

…That’s true.

Come to think of it, this is an issue with the Ignis family, and it’s not related to me.

I can’t use this as a reason to write an absence note.

As I was racking my brain about what to do, Riel suddenly grabbed my arm from beside me.

Then she hugged my arm tightly.

…I felt a slightly soft sensation.

“We… we’re going to my house together!”

“What? But Mr. Wentos…”

“We’re… we’re practically family, so it shouldn’t matter, right?!”

The atmosphere became quiet again at Riel’s sudden outburst.

After a few seconds, what broke that silence was Professor Leonora.

“Ah… Ah!! That’s… so that’s what it was!”

Professor Leonora suddenly smiled broadly as if she had realized something.

Wondering what situation this was, I turned my gaze toward Riel, who nodded her head.

“Yes! That’s! That’s what it is!!”

“If that’s the case, then it’s fine! Please sign here! I’ll take care of the rest.”

Professor Leonora rummaged through her drawer, took out two sheets of paper, and handed them over.

After confirming that they were absence note forms, Riel and I signed them, and Professor Leonora moved them to one side of her desk and looked at Riel.

“Miss Ignis. Come here for a moment.”

“Yes.”

As Riel approached at Professor Leonora’s gesture, Professor Leonora whispered something in her ear.

Riel nodded with a bright red face, and Professor Leonora smiled and looked at me.

“Well then, Mr. Wentos, do your best.”

“…Yes…?”

???

…What am I supposed to do my best at?

I don’t know what conversation took place between the two, but anyway, we were able to get the absence processed somehow.

Things were a bit busy after that too.

We had to pack our luggage with Luca’s help, and we also needed to briefly explain the situation to acquaintances we were close with, like Emilia and Senior Iris.

Phyllis had already reserved the train to Duke Ignis’s territory.

Brimton City, where the Duke Ignis family mansion was located, wasn’t as large as a metropolis, but as the central city of the Duke’s territory, there were many train services.

“See you when I get back!!”

Even though there was no need, Riel waved her hand to Emilia, who had come to see her off.

Currently on the train were the four of us: me, Riel, and Phyllis and Luca who had come to serve us.

Now that we had reached the stage where we just needed to take the train, Riel, perhaps with her excitement subsided, wore a slightly tense expression.

“Are you okay?”

“…Yeah.”

Come to think of it, I remembered what happened during the outdoor class.

At that time, I had heard about Riel’s family.

“Speaking of which, you said you don’t remember much about your brother, right?”

“…Yeah. I haven’t seen him except when I met him when I was very young.”

“What about the Duchess… your mother?”

“Unlike my father, mother came back a few times… and she would hug me each time.”

Riel, who had been wearing a nostalgic expression, said gloomily.

“But… not long after that, she stopped coming home at all.”

“……”

“At that time, I thought… mother had also lost interest in me… and I was really sad.”

In the original story, regarding Riel’s family, there was no proper mention of anyone other than her older sister, Eve.

At that time, I thought it was strange that there was so little mention of the main heroine’s family…

Considering the bizarre events that occurred in the Duke’s family, I wonder if something had happened.

“But I talked with my sister and learned that she didn’t hate me.”

Riel smiled.

“I’m going to talk with my mother too. You can’t know someone’s heart unless you hear it directly from them.”

“…That’s right.”

The train ran diligently southward.