Seeking Clues Northward
Aria Owen could not hide the discomfort twisting in her chest. The man she trusted and followed more than anyone else—the one whose anger on her behalf brought her such joy—was none other than Alan Ludwig.
Yet this wound had been inflicted because of her own fault. The opponent had done nothing wrong.
She had planned to treat it quickly on her own, without telling anyone, and only apologize later.
But the worst timing: Alan had shown up before she could finish.
She had always been the one to approach him. He had never come to her first.
“Why… why now of all times…?”
If she had known, she would have endured everything and gotten the treatment first.
Honestly, Aria had no desire to make a scene. The incident was her fault. She was terrified that if things escalated and Alan lost his temper, her secrets would spill out to the surrounding students.
Look. Even now, the chaos Alan was stirring had gathered a crowd of onlookers.
And there, at the very end of the line, Kyou Ventus and Riel Ignis were both staring straight at them.
Since the commotion had reached the very people involved, they had to calm it down at once.
“Aria, what exactly happened?”
“Alan, this is a wound I received because of my mistake. It’s not that serious.”
“No matter how you look at it, it’s a wound inflicted by a human hand! Who did it?!”
“Alan, please…”
Aria’s heart burned with regret.
Of course she understood perfectly how cowardly and unforgivable her own act had been. She would not avoid punishment.
But she did not want anyone—especially Alan—to find out what she had done.
If the noise continued like this, the truth might slip from Kyou Ventus’s lips.
Anxiety made Aria glance sideways at the distant Kyou Ventus.
He seemed to have lost interest and was back at his line, waiting his turn.
That was precisely the problem.
Alan Ludwig, too sharp-eyed for his own good, noticed the person Aria had been glancing at.
“…That guy?”
“Yeah?”
“Is it Kyou Ventus who gave you that scar?!”
Aria’s face drained of all color and went rigid.
That reaction alone was enough for Alan to confirm his suspicion.
Alan strode straight toward Kyou Ventus.
“Alan! Stop!”
Aria, having realized what Alan was about to do, grabbed his arm.
Peris, following behind, also clung to him.
“Aria, Peris. Let go.”
“It’s a wound I received because of my mistake! He did nothing wrong!”
“No matter whose fault, you cannot justify wounding a woman’s face!”
“Alan…”
Aria sensed that Alan had no intention of stopping.
In the end she had no choice but to say one of the words she least wanted to utter.
“Alan forgot that he is not allowed to approach the person he lost to in a duel, right?!”
“!!”
Aria did not want to rub Alan’s wound in the face of the version of him who had been powerless after his defeat by Kyou Ventus.
After the duel, Alan had been stripped of his victory and forbidden to approach Kyou Ventus anywhere on academy grounds.
Of course, he would not face massive punishment for the violation, but breaking the conditions of the match was considered a devastating blow to honor.
For a knight’s son like Alan, it was a colossal humiliation.
Eventually the strength drained from Alan’s body.
“Alan, this is my problem. I’ll handle it myself, so please don’t worry.”
“……”
Alan’s expression remained one of disbelief, but seeing Aria’s resolute face, he turned away and left the spot.
Only then did Aria and Peris both sit down, relieved yet drained of energy.
A short while later, Aria opened her mouth with determination.
“Peris.”
“Aria, why?”
“I probably won’t be able to leave the academy for a while.”
“…That’s likely.”
Magic use against a magically disarmed and defenseless opponent.
It had ended only as a miss thanks to his quick reaction, but even if it had worked, it would at least have been a draw.
…If he had failed to react and suffered injury, he might have been expelled.
“If that happens, Alan might start acting up again. Please handle it then.”
“…Leave it to me.”
Aria smiled faintly at Peris, her face half-hearted.
Although her actions were meant to help, and although her intentions had been just, Alan was still the man who possessed that fiery, stubborn streak.
How had I come to like Alan…?
Aria briefly entertained the thought, then immediately erased it from her mind.
The next day, as expected, the news that Aria had received a one-month suspension reached Alan. Peris and Yohan could be seen desperately holding him back.
Alan’s face remained unconvinced, but when Peris said with earnest conviction that Aria had made a huge mistake and almost caused someone to get hurt, he finally broke.
He had not been lied to, yet Peris had skillfully omitted that Aria had attacked first.
Alan stared at Aria from time to time, but due to the penalty from his duel defeat, he never picked a fight.
Once the outdoor training ended and two weeks passed, the reply to the investigation request she had sent to her mother arrived.
It concerned Duke and Duchess Ignis and their successors.
The result was far from favorable.
Since she needed to discuss it with Riel, Aria and Riel entered the secret chamber of the library with Phyllis.
“I still can’t figure anything out?”
“Yeah. Mom used every information network she could to investigate…”
My mother, Countess Silvia Ventos, was unusually well-connected—royal blood, and even in her younger days she had served in the Magic Division.
Even she could not uncover what the duke and duchess were up to.
The only scraps of information she had managed were that they had gone somewhere several months ago and had been there until recently.
Still, it was not entirely useless.
“Yuril Dria Palajinia.”
“Princess Yuril…?”
Riel’s mouth fell open at the name that left Aria’s lips.
Yuril Dria Palajinia was the third princess of the kingdom and currently ranked first in the line of succession.
“Princess Yuril met Duke Ignis two weeks ago.”
Among the results Mother had sent, the closest eyewitness account was that.
They had only exchanged light pleasantries, yet they had met in person. Could Princess Yuril possibly know something?
Therefore, it was necessary to meet her.
Riel opened her mouth hesitantly.
“But… how do we meet Princess Yuril?”
“Riel, did you forget?”
Princess Yuril has two older sisters.
Both are also daughters of the current queen and twin princesses who, fearing chaos over the succession, renounced their own rights and supported Yuril.
And one of them is…
“Lady Eve Ignis’s older sister.”
“Ah!”
Aine Guine Palajinia.
A capable mage and warrior who, despite her royal blood, leads the knight and magic corps and hunts monsters.
She had appeared in the original story as the villain who opposed Alan.
…She was also a person whose past connection with me made things awkward.
Still, contact was necessary, so Aria told Phyllis, who was waiting behind them.
“Phyllis, contact Lady Eve immediately.”
“Master, miss, there’s no need to.”
Phyllis smiled and replied.
“Lady Eve and Princess Aine are both in the north right now.”
“Eh…? North?”
Riel blinked in confusion as Phyllis nodded.
“Yes. Both are currently at Ventus County.”
Ventus County.
Now that she thought about it, this was the season when monsters began to stir in the north.
Always during this time, Princess Aine would come to the county to hunt monsters.
The memory of the princess stirred an unpleasant feeling within her.