Patran Family Party (4)
I had no intention of arguing with anything Tabol said.
For the Duke to accept my resignation, the suspicions he raised had to carry at least some shred of credibility, after all.
So my plan was to let the accusations wash over me and simply watch whatever nonsense Tabol came up with next—but partway through, the situation changed.
The one who started it all was Phoebe.
By making her presence known, she quelled the arrows of blame being aimed at me entirely.
When the Saintess of the Church of the Main God herself asks everyone to calm down and hear the story out, who on earth could interject?
The moment Phoebe laid the stage for a rebuttal, other people raised their voices before I could.
Arthur picked apart the flimsy evidence Tabol had presented, Frey attested to my strength and talent, and Joy even wiped away the suspicions about magic.
If you asked where Tabol went wrong, I'd have to say it was his lack of preparation.
The points he raised were, in themselves, correct.
There were limits to my personal abilities, and it was true that I'd surpassed them by borrowing the power of an artifact—the Bracelet of Play.
But he had no proof. No evidence that I had actually used the artifact.
Had this been the old days, when Lucy received no one's protection, that lack of evidence wouldn't have mattered in the slightest.
Such a trivial detail could simply be trampled under the rolling waves of accusation.
But now, that was impossible.
The Saintess of the Church of the Main God. A leading candidate for the next Sword Saint. The Third Prince of the Soladin Kingdom. The daughter of Ducal House Patran.
With names this illustrious stepping up to defend Lucy Aln, how could anyone bury a person on suspicion alone?
What an idiot! If you were going to smear me, you should have prepared properly!
Thanks to you, the way everyone's looking at me now has gone lukewarm!
The people who hate me are still glaring daggers at me, but the others aren't!
Except for the ones whose hostility has hit its absolute limit, everyone's just watching how things play out!
At this rate, I can already picture myself standing up on that stage!
Sorry to the four of you who helped me, but honestly, I was rooting for Tabol until partway through.
Of course, I am grateful.
When Phoebe first stepped forward, I was moved. When Arthur, Frey, and Joy all came out ahead of me to defend me, my heart squeezed tight.
People were actually helping me—the me who'd thought making even a single friend would be impossible! If it weren't for the Mesugaki Skill, I would've burst into tears on the spot!
But gratitude is gratitude, and reality is reality.
Tabol had to WIN the argument for my promotion to be canceled, didn't he?
I do NOT want to stand in front of that stage and spew lines like 'A bunch of scrubs who got flattened by a girl who hasn't even had her coming-of-age ceremony♡' at all the big shots, First Prince included!
Despite my heartfelt cheering, Tabol lost the argument, muddled his way past the artifact question, and then brought up the dungeon instead.
Listening to his uselessly loud, clear voice, I sighed inwardly.
Haah. This is why I can't stand meatheaded muscle-brains.
He should've just kept gnawing on the artifact angle to the very end. The suspicion itself was true, so he'd have had a real shot.
Maybe I'd have even quietly slipped him a clue or two.
You want me to pretend there was foul play in the dungeon clear?
I could do it. Just stumble over my words a bit and that would be that.
But listen. If I admit to that suspicion, what happens to the old stall vendor? He'd suddenly become a criminal who beat the First Prince through fraud, that's what.
And another thing. Most importantly, my pride as a hardcore veteran simply won't allow it!
How DARE you open your mouth about dungeons to me?! To me, who has memorized the clear routes of every single dungeon in the Soul Academy setting?!
This is where I draw the line. How could I possibly let this slide when it tramples on over ten thousand hours of research and study?
I'd rather hear every big shot in this party hall call me a lunatic than be branded a dungeon ignoramus. Seriously.
"You already knew it, then. Are you confessing to the suspicion?"
"Pffft~♡ Wrong answer. So wrong. About as feeble as a certain scrub knight's balloon muscles♡ At least THINK before you speak? Your head isn't as empty as a balloon too, is it♡"
Since I was no longer rooting for Tabol, I provoked him with everything I had, and his face flushed bright red.
I'd barely said a few words, and already his fist was trembling. Hey old man, isn't your reaction a little too good? It makes me want to tease you even more.
"...Then what do you mean by 'you already knew'?"
"It means I knew that pathetic excuse for a dungeon before it was even a question. Unlike the balloon-brain knight, I'm actually smart♡"
I laid it all out in front of Tabol, who was waiting with bated breath for me to slip up.
The dungeon's name. Every last bit of its layout. The types of monsters that spawn inside and where they appear. The kinds of traps, their locations, and how to disarm them. The strategy for the boss.
All of it, memorized perfectly.
"That's impossible!"
Tabol raised his voice before I'd even finished speaking. Was I trying to deceive him with nonsense, he demanded.
"Oh nooo♡ You caught me?♡"
"Of course I did! Nothing like that could possibly be possible!"
"I was talking about how your empty balloon head got exposed♡ Wow, your comprehension's terrible too♡ Poor. You♡"
Was he fighting to keep the ugly words from spilling out? I could see the veins bulging up his neck.
He looks about ready to pop if I tease him any more, so maybe I'll pause here.
Turning away from the quivering Tabol, I raised my voice so the whole party hall could hear me.
"The first floor layout of the Creepy Vermin Dungeon is..."
And then I began reciting the information about the dungeon that had appeared on the exam.
The dungeon's structure. How to decipher that structure. The various pieces of information that changed depending on the layout.
I'd originally planned to cover all seven patterns, but Tabol opened his mouth around the time I was explaining the fourth one, so I failed to reach my goal.
"I will concede that Lady Aln knows the stall's dungeon well."
"Only NOW? Your comprehension is seriously lacking. Imagine working under a man like this. I pity you."
"...However, that is nothing more than proof of fraud. One could only study the dungeon in such detail if one had known about it in advance."
Ha. I started to ask what on earth he was talking about, but the answer was so pathetic it wasn't worth responding to—laughter just spilled out of me.
No, THIS is when you should've dug your heels in, not during the artifact talk. There might have been a glimmer of hope then.
"And why, might I ask, are you laughing?"
"How could I NOT laugh?♡ There's a stupid clown putting on a show right in front of me♡"
"You have no confidence in your answer, so you're changing the subject."
"Hey. Heyyy, Balloon-Head Knight♡ Name any dungeon you know♡ Though I doubt you know any."
"The Mountain That Worships the Dragon."
Whoa. I wondered which dungeon he'd pick, and he goes with THAT one.
A place so ludicrously rare in its spawn rate that it's hard to even learn about. I can feel the sheer will behind making it so I absolutely couldn't answer.
But what am I going to do about this, hm?
"THAT'S what you came up with?♡ How petty can you get♡"
"Do you not know it?"
"Nope? I DO know it?"
Because I know that place.
Danger rating: A-Rank Upper Tier. Primary spawns: dragonkin. Total dungeon patterns: thirteen.
Just like with the stall's dungeon, I rattled off the whole explanation, and Tabol's expression froze solid.
Hey. Don't tell me you asked about a dungeon YOU don't know, figuring I wouldn't know it either since you didn't?
Right? You're not that much of a piece of trash, are you? Are you?
As I stood there reeling from the thought that had flashed through my mind, a voice rang out from somewhere else.
"Correct! It's a dungeon that almost never appears, so not knowing it would be the norm—yet she remembers it in such detail!"
That voice... is that the Claw Mercenary Commander?
His face looks a lot brighter than it did in the game. His personality was a bit darker in the original, if I remember right.
Just as everyone stood unsure how to react to this sudden outburst of support from the crowd, a man who'd been observing from a distance called out to the mercenary commander.
"Claw Mercenary Commander."
Why is the First Prince butting in NOW?! What is this? Has he spotted an angle to smear me? Is that it?!
Anxiously, I kept my eyes glued to the First Prince after his sudden intervention, but he paid my gaze no mind whatsoever.
He simply looked the mercenary commander in the eye.
"Is it accurate?"
The commander's smile stiffened at the First Prince's question, but only for a moment—before long he stammered out his reply.
"Yes. Of course. It was the most difficult of all the dungeons I have ever conquered, so I remember it well."
"Is that so. Very well. Mercenary Commander. Ask Lucy Aln about other dungeons as well, besides that one."
The commander had been forced into this mess by his own exclamation of admiration, but he faithfully carried out the First Prince's orders.
"Well, first of all..."
Haha. Hey, Rene Soladin. You thought that if you kept questioning me like this, a crack in my armor would eventually show, didn't you?
You're dead wrong. Ask me about ANY dungeon in existence, and I can answer!
Thank you, First Prince! Thank you for making me a chance to prove my competence!
My mouth has been itching to talk ever since you so cleanly stepped back, so this works out perfectly! Shall I show off a veteran's knowledge, then?
How many times did I answer the mercenary commander's questions before the First Prince spoke again?
"Knight-Commander Tabol."
"...Yes, Your Highness."
"It seems clear to me that Lucy Aln possesses detailed knowledge of countless dungeons. Including, mind you, the very dungeon featured at the stall."
Tabol could not answer that voice. But the First Prince paid him no heed and continued.
"The reason you conceded your defeat at the stall was because you acknowledged Lucy Aln's ingenuity."
...Huh?
Why is he DEFENDING me?
Did he switch directions because he couldn't find an angle to smear me?
"Safety was thrown to the far winds—an audacity only possible in a simulation. But you were the one who chose to face her with it, so you have no room to complain."
"Your... Your Highness. A moment, please."
"I wondered what you were going on about in your effort to drag her down, but this is where it ends. If this carries on any further, I fear even the party's cheer will be swept away with it."
The First Prince—the one who would have suffered the greatest loss of anyone had I truly committed fraud—was telling Tabol to restrain himself.
There was only one thing that fact meant.
My innocence.
That there was no fraud whatsoever in my becoming the Slayer of the Festival.
So THIS is politics, huh.
Look at him, sitting back and watching how things flow, then picking whichever side benefits him.
He's the one who picked a fight with a first-year academy student to humiliate me, and now he's the one being praised for his magnanimity!
How is any of this a coherent situation?!
I was indignant, but I couldn't raise my voice here. When I was already under scrutiny for not offering thanks, it was obvious what would happen if I started spouting nonsense.
"Duke Patran. This should be enough, yes?"
"Thank you, First Prince. Thanks to you, Lady Aln's innocence has been proven."
The Duke's voice followed the First Prince's like a piece falling perfectly into a puzzle.
"The Knight-Commander seems to have nothing more to say either, so let us resume the party. Lady Aln?"
Huh? Why is that person calling me?
The situation's all wrapped up, so...
Oh.
Oh no no no no no!
My innocence being proven beyond a shadow of a doubt meant my promotion was all but CONFIRMED!
The shut-in prince jumped in out of nowhere and I completely lost the plot!
What do I do?! How do I get out of this?! Should I play the sickly noble girl?
Could I say that everything that just happened has worn me out so much that I can't possibly do it?
Fake a dizzy spell, twirl around, and collapse?!
It's fine! That's convincing!
But just as I tried to act it out, the Mesugaki Skill permitted absolutely nothing except brazen confidence.
You damned skill! Cooperate with me just this once! Your master is about to face a catastrophe!
"You've done well. You must be exhausted, so please rest for a while."
Oh?
...Am I saved?