“Tia, may I come in?”
Upon receiving Charles’s report, I immediately headed to Bertia’s location. Fortunately, it appeared her dress had cushioned her fall, and Kuro had quickly cast a protective spell, preventing any serious injuries. By the time I arrived, she had already returned to her own room.
Entering the girls’ dormitory as a man normally required a special application and permission from the dorm supervisor, and there were several restrictions on top of that. However, under these circumstances, and as her fiancé, I was surprisingly able to visit her room quite easily.
“Prince Cecil, you came all the way here for me!” she exclaimed. Although she was laying on her bed, she greeted me in her usual manner, which oddly relieved me.
“Tia, what exactly happened?” I inquired, sitting down in a chair beside her bed.
The corners of her eyebrows slightly lowered as she gave me a troubled smile. She responded, “I made a little blunder.”
According to Bertia, she had been assisting a male student named Fannir Road with some student council work. They were carrying supplies out of the student council room. After finishing the task and parting ways with him, she was descending the stairs to return to the student council room when she collided with a girl who was running down the stairs behind her, causing her to fall.
The female student who collided with her apparently just ran off. Bertia hadn’t seen her face because she was looking down, but she mentioned that the girl had a similar stature and the same hair color as Baroness Hironia.
“I guess the villainess must always confront the heroine!” Bertia exclaimed with a determined clench of her fist, although her hand trembled slightly and her expression lacked its usual vitality. Understandably so. Even though Kuro had quickly activated a defensive spell, falling down the stairs must have been a terrifying experience. Especially if there was malice behind it…
A confusing mix of emotions began to stir within me. It felt as if some part of my mind was smoldering with heat. “Hey, Tia. I can’t just stand by any longer, can I?” I asked.
“Uh?”
As she trembled, still trying to face the challenge head-on, I gently took her fist in my hand. I remembered what Shawn had said before I came here. Whether I harbored the same feelings toward her as Shawn did toward Joanna, I wasn’t sure. But for the first time, seeing her harmed, I understood the pain of seeing something you cherished being hurt. And knowing she was suffering, I indeed wanted to eliminate the cause of it.
“If you refuse my help and choose to act on your own, then I should be allowed to act on my own will, shouldn’t I?”
“Prince Cecil…?” she responded, unsure of what I meant.
I smiled back. “Don’t worry about it.” I had thought about leaving her to handle it. But I couldn’t do that anymore.
Then, there is only one thing left to do.
✦ ✦ ✦
“Hey, everyone, would you mind helping me with a bit of personal retribution?”
I gathered my close aides, Shawn, and Bertia’s friends right after visiting her.
“Ah, so the general has finally decided to make a move,” Charles remarked with a knowing smirk as soon as he saw my face.
“It’s rare for His Highness to ask for help… Of course, we’ll assist you,” Courtgain said, pushing up his glasses with a smile that was unusually expressive for him… He must have been quite angry. Well, it made sense—despite everything, he seemed to think of Bertia almost like a real sister.
Joanna and the rest of Bertia’s friends, not to be outdone by Courtgain, were exuding an equally dark aura. “Leave it to us, Your Highness. Anyone who dares to harm our dear Lady Bertia will be promptly dealt with.”
Valdo and Nelt nodded silently.
Shawn, pleased with my words, said with a satisfied smile, “Big brother, you’ve finally decided to take action!! Then let’s quickly deal with Lady Hironia…”
“Ah, first, let me correct that,” I interjected.
“Huh?”
I had to put a stop to his misassumption. Everyone gathered here must have been under the same misconception. That included Joanna, who I assumed had been keeping tabs on Viscountess Eirin from the Bertia Fan Club meetings.
“The one who harmed Bertia isn’t Lady Hironia,” I clarified.
“Eh?!” My words seemed to shock everyone to some extent.
Hmm, this group is competent, no doubt, but still lacking… It seems they too easily focus on the most obvious enemies.
Despite having various clues at their disposal, they must have inadvertently stopped thinking thoroughly, caught in the trap that was Baroness Hironia.
“While it’s true that Lady Hironia has been setting various traps for Bertia, those actions were aimed at tarnishing her position, not directly harming her. But recently, the direct harassment has increased. And now, this incident. You understand what this means, right?”
Charles, ever-perceptive, caught on immediately with a look of surprise. “So, you’re saying there’s another culprit?!”
“Correct.” He was always the quickest thinker in moments like these.
“Who could it be?” Joanna pressed, leaning in close to me. Shawn, perhaps displeased by our proximity, hastily pulled her back by the arm.
I chuckled at that and then named the lady in question. “Lady Eirin Silbertz.”
Silence swept through the room.
“Eirin? That Eirin?” Joanna muttered in a daze, clearly shaken by the oversight despite having been supposed to be marking her.
But then, clenching her hands into tight fists, she looked at me with a mix of anger and regret in her eyes. “Your Highness, this is my fault. I apologize,” she said, bowing her head deeply and biting her lip.
Watching her, I truly realized how capable she was. Being able to quickly grasp the situation and admit her fault was proof of that.
“It’s good to be able to reflect, but right now, my retribution is more important. You’ll help me, right?” I said with a reassuring smile.
Joanna and the others exchanged glances, then nodded firmly. As I turned my gaze to my prospective aides, they too accepted with smiles.
Now, how shall we deal with this?