Is there something more blessed than the coronation of the crown prince? We all watched her, confused, as she beamed proudly.
“I would like to introduce you to the future fiancée of the crown prince and our future king,” she said. She gestured with her hand, and as people followed her gaze, we all landed on one lady. “Noah von Lindenburg!”
I almost screamed, but I managed to keep my mouth shut. Noah flashed a dazzling smile as she executed a beautiful bow.
What in the world?! Okay, so Prince Rena is dressed like a man, but she’s actually a lady, and she’s now engaged to Noah, who’s a man dressed like a lady… As I tried to organize my thoughts, I realized why Noah acted like a lady. Admittedly, I’d always been concerned about the crown prince’s fate as well; when she became king, she couldn’t simply traipse around like a man forever, but it seemed this was the solution to her woes.
If she were engaged to a man dressed like a lady, she would have no issues forming a union. Members of the royal family usually married a prince or princess of another nation to solidify international ties, but in Prince Rena’s case, she needed a trustworthy noble of her own nation who could keep a tight lid over the truth. The house of the grand duke was related to the royal family and could maintain her secret. While everyone was clapping warmly and blessing Prince Rena and Noah’s engagement, I felt Vil lean closer to me.
“The culprit’s here in the grand hall,” he whispered in my ear.
At once, I shuddered. I guess Vil came back since he tracked the faint traces of mana. All we needed to do now was find someone wearing a wig, but that was difficult to do in this crowd. The wig was brown, the most common hair color in the nation, and I could only look at the sea of heads in front of me and pick out which hairline looked fake. I guess I just have to look closely… Is anyone’s hairline askew? Or does it look fake?
I glanced around desperately while Prince Rena and Noah formed a happy couple to wave to the guests. Everyone was eager to catch a glimpse of this royal union, and they pushed forward, hoping to burn this scene into their retinas.
“Aaaah!” I cried.
“Misha!” Vil shouted.
The wave of people jostled me and almost pushed me down, but Vil jumped to my rescue and pulled me close to him. As the crowd shoved one another more violently, a small riot broke out. The knights tried to control the guests, but that was a tall order; the long-awaited reveal of the crown prince and her ceremony, combined with the announcement of an engagement, made everyone eager and excited. No one was calm enough to listen to the knights’ orders.
Still, I tried to keep my mind on the task at hand, though I could barely remain on my feet. Then, I caught something glimmering from the corner of my eye. A diamond necklace? No… That gleam was…
I whirled my head around and noticed a man with thick hair readjusting his glasses. He was the only one who didn’t seem at all interested in Prince Rena and Noah as he kept his posture low and headed toward us. He was wading against the crowd, and a large man, possibly finding this bespectacled gentleman a nuisance, gave a sharp tug on his hair to yank him away. I didn’t miss it—the hair of the man in glasses clearly shifted. A wig!
“What?!” I gasped.
The man, undeterred, expertly weaved through the rest of the crowd. It was then that I noticed a glimmer of cold steel—he had a knife in his hand. He drew his arm back to thrust it into Vil’s body, and I barely had time to react. Knowing that Vil wouldn’t be able to dodge in time with all the people around us, I turned to my accessories.
“Gem! Please! Please protect Vil!” I shouted.
My familiar acted instantly. It stretched toward Vil’s torso and formed a shield. A sharp clang implied that Gem made it in time and blocked the attack before it stretched out like a thin rope, grabbing the knife and the assailant’s arm and locking the culprit into place.
“Aaahhh! An assassin!” I shouted at the top of my lungs.
Even I was surprised by how loud I could scream. The people around me whipped their heads around to see the fuss. They noticed a man with a knife in his hands and shrieked as they fled from us. Vil just stood there, stunned by the series of events.
“Vil!” I cried. “Are you all right? Are you hurt?”
“No, I’m fine.”
“Thank goodness!”
All the while, Gem stretched out one of its appendages and smacked the bespectacled man’s head like a mother giving a harsh scolding. The blow whacked the wig and glasses away, along with some hair extensions underneath. His disguise busted, the man was revealed before us, clear as day.
“You’re Count Raid!” I gasped with surprise.
“I-I’m not!” he stammered.
But the crowd murmured to themselves, agreeing that he was unmistakably the count.
“You’re the one who tried to murder Vil,” I accused.
“I-I-I was not!” Count Raid insisted.
I’m appalled that he could deny it when the blade is still in his hand.
“Were you trying to kill me during my time at Vizer as well?” Vil asked.
“I-I’ve never poisoned anybody!” Count Raid shrieked.
“I never said anything about poison.”
And that sealed his fate. Under Prince Rena’s orders, the knights restrained Count Raid and escorted him away. Still, the count refused to give up and kept shouting that he was being falsely accused.
“Vil, are you all right?” Prince Rena asked as she rushed over to us.
“Yeah. Misha saved me just in the nick of time,” Vil replied.
“That so…”
Vil claimed he didn’t notice his assailant, but with the hustle and bustle of the crowd, I couldn’t blame him.
“Count Raid crouched low when he approached you,” I said. “He was barely in my line of sight, that’s all. I was just lucky I noticed him.”
“Misha, thank you. Truly,” Vil said.
It seemed he needed to be questioned for a bit, and he went off with Prince Rena and the knights to head to a separate room and explain his side of the story. I was left behind, all by myself, when someone gently tugged my dress. I turned around and spotted Noah.
“Is something wrong?” I asked.
“Thank you,” he whispered.
“What for?”
“Thank you for saving my brother.”
“B-But of course.”
I was a touch surprised he acted so meekly while he thanked me, but I noticed the hand tugging my dress trembling ever so slightly.
“We’ll be questioned as well, just to get our side of the story,” I said. “Shall we go?”
I clutched the frightened and frail hands of Noah as I guided him into a different room.