A Failed Knight Who Went to the Academy To Get Married

026 Investigation for a Frame-Up

The sight turned stark white and ears rang with a loud tinnitus.

Immense pain felt across the back.

Shelves burning bright red.

Amidst the acrid smoke, the clamor of screams.

And through it all, a numbing helplessness clouded his mind.

Train realized immediately that he was dreaming.

“Train! Snap out of it, Train! Please, open your eyes!”

Of course, what was happening before him couldn’t be real.

That Yuril was crying out for him like this.

It had to be a dream.

Even if it was a dream, he hated to see her in distress.

So, with all the strength he could muster, Train barely managed to respond.

“Yuril… don’t cry… I’m okay…”

Her expression changed at his words,

But before he could see what it was, the scenery suddenly shifted.

“…Is this heaven?”

Everything was white.

A vast empty space with no ceiling, no floor.

Just a few windows floating aimlessly.

“…Did I really die?!”

I tried to rise, but my body wouldn’t obey.

All I could do was roll my eyes around to survey my surroundings.

Upon closer inspection, what I thought were windows turned out to be elaborate stained glass.

“Damn it! I don’t know where this is, but I must get back!”

No matter how fiercely I struggled, I couldn’t even twitch a finger.

In the end, Train screamed.

“Help me! Is nobody there?! Yuril! Yuuuriiiiil!”

***

“Yuuuriiiiiiiiiiiiiiil!”

“Be quiet.”

Suddenly, I felt a smack on the back of my head.

When I opened my eyes, I was in an unfamiliar place.

For some reason, Train was lying face down on the bed, uncovered.

“This place is…”

Train only turned his head to look around.

Judging by the atmosphere, it seemed to be the village inn.

Looking outside, it appeared to be broad daylight.

Next to me, a clerk from the Quartz Pharmacy was sitting, reading a book.

Without taking her eyes off the book, she asked,

“Are you feeling any better?”

“…Yes, except my back stings a bit.”

“It’s a second-degree burn.”

“Yikes.”

“Stay put for a while in that state. Don’t lie on your back, though.”

Only then did Train realize that his entire body was meticulously wrapped in bandages.

“Did you treat me by any chance?”

“I was the only one nearby who could.”

“Thank you.”

“Why are people so careless? Please, be more mindful.”

At those words, Train felt a slight surge of annoyance.

If his memory served him correctly,

he was certain he had been injured trying to protect the clerk.

Traine sighed shortly, as if resigned.

Then, without taking her eyes off the book, the clerk murmured in a calm voice,

“The store was completely burned down. Fortunately, you were the only one injured.”

“…I’m sorry.”

“There’s no need for you to apologize.”

“I feel somewhat responsible, so please let me know if there’s anything I can help with.”

“By the way, I heard your servant, Cat, was caught as the suspect.”

“What?!”

Traine tried to rise abruptly but ended up writhing like a stepped-on worm as his back scraped against the bed.

Eventually, he managed to return to a prone position and exclaimed as if arguing,

“No, that can’t be, that’s impossible!”

“Is that so? I find it quite suspicious, actually.”

“Well, it’s true that we’re not on good terms, but…”

“If I hadn’t noticed you were there at that late hour, it could have been possible, right?”

“No. That would never happen.”

“How can you be so sure? Do you know her that well?”

I couldn’t bring myself to answer that.

After all, I hadn’t even known Cat was a girl until recently.

But…

“That guy, he’s full of secrets.”

“Is that so?”

“He’s definitely strong, but he always hides his strength, and he never talks about his past.”

“That sounds like a trustworthy person.”

“But at least he’s not someone who would hurt others over something like this.”

The clerk sneered at Train with a sidelong glance.

“It seems you’ve taken quite a liking to that one.”

“He’s a comrade who saved Princess Shia with me.”

“Dumped by Princess Shia, now you’re trying to cozy up to that beastman, huh?”

“Now’s not the time to be saying such things.”

After groaning and fully rising from the bed,

For some reason, he began to put on the casual clothes that were prepared beside him.

“Where are you going?”

“I have to meet Cat.”

“It’s going to be terribly painful if you move recklessly now.”

“I don’t care about that.”

“…Really, you’re stubborn to the end.”

“I could say the same to you.”

“If it’s Cat, she must be confined in the town’s security office.”

“Thank you.”

“You need to finish your treatment, so come back immediately.”

Just before Trine stepped out of the room,

He took a deep breath and said,

“I’ll be back, Yuril.”

“Me? Just a moment—”

And with that, she dashed out, slamming the door behind her.

***

Traine immediately left the inn and headed for the police station.

Yuril’s advice that moving would be painful was all too accurate.

With every step she took, her back stung to the point of madness.

Yet, she persevered and walked on, finally arriving at the small police station,

where a soldier at the entrance asked with a fierce look,

“State your business.”

“Ah, I, um, came to visit someone.”

The soldier glanced at Traine from head to toe, then suddenly recoiled in surprise.

“You’re not Traine, are you?!”

“Yes, I am.”

“Wow, I never thought I’d see you in person! I’m a huge fan!”

The soldier’s expression softened dramatically as he eagerly offered Traine a handshake.

As Train awkwardly smiled and accepted the handshake, the soldier released his grip and spoke with a bitter expression.

“Talk about bad luck, getting caught up in a terror attack out of the blue.”

“Tell me about it.”

“But why would you want to meet the perpetrator in person?”

“Well, he is my servant, after all.”

At that, the soldier furrowed his brows.

“Your servant? He didn’t mention anything like that.”

“Is that so? Could you perhaps explain how Cat was apprehended?”

“Items crafted by alchemists retain remnants of magic, akin to fingerprints. That’s how we arrested the suspect.”

“I see.”

“You don’t think he committed this act to kill you and free himself from servitude, do you?”

At this, Train’s expression turned serious.

“There’s absolutely no chance of that happening.”

“Hahaha! Just kidding. We’ve only detained him as a suspect since the real culprit hasn’t been confirmed yet.”

“Is that so.”

“Normally, visits with prisoners aren’t granted so freely, but…”

The soldier stepped aside with a slight wink.

“It seems you have a story, so I’ll make an exception just this once.”

“Th-thank you.”

Perhaps because it was only a small village guardhouse,

the only one locked up in the jail was a single cat.

Traine sat down in front of the iron bars and let out a short sigh.

“…I’m relieved to see you’re unharmed.”

To that, Cat replied with an incredulous look.

“That’s my line, you rotten owner.”

“What happened?”

“It seems someone stole my bomb and pulled off this stunt.”

“Got any suspects?”

“Not a clue.”

“It’s probably someone who holds a grudge against me, or Yu… No, it must be that apothecary clerk.”

“Moreover, he’s someone who clearly knows I’m an alchemist.”

Traine furrowed his brows in thought for a moment before muttering.

“Wow, if we’re just looking at the clues, it’s gotta be one of our Knight Academy kids, right?”

“You’re not suspecting me?”

“You’re definitely not the type to do such a thing.”

Cat looked at Traine with a complicated expression, then soon smirked and said.

“What a sucker. Keep that up, and you’ll end up being scammed or betrayed big time someday.”

“Just leave it.”

“For your information, the bomb was placed on Lizbeth’s desk in her room, but it got stolen the day before yesterday.”

“If it’s such a dangerous item, you should have taken better care of it.”

“There’s no place in the world safer than that guy’s room, right?”

“…That’s true.”

No one would dare to invade the room of a duchess from a noble family without fear,

Especially not the friends who know Lizbeth’s personality.

“Besides, that bomb wasn’t really dangerous; it was just an ordinary flash bomb.”

“Really?”

“Of course, I intended to imbue it with monster-repelling effects, so it became a bit too powerful.”

“Are you an idiot?”

“The fire started because those dried herbs are prone to burning, you know.”

“So, it’s possible that the perpetrator didn’t really intend to kill anyone.”

“Maybe they were just trying to give someone a hard time.”

At that, Train chuckled bitterly and said,

“Kat, no matter how I think about it, you seem like the culprit, so let’s turn ourselves in.”

“Look at this guy, trying to switch sides?”

Train laughed once and stood up from his seat.

“Then I’ll go ask Lizbeth if she knows something.”

To which Kat waved her hand dismissively and replied,

“Take your time. It’s surprisingly pleasant here, so it’s nice to stay.”

“But you have to come out before Princess Shia’s party.”

As Train was about to leave, Kat added one last remark from behind him.

“Thanks for everything, you rotten boss.”

“If you’re really thankful, you could at least drop the ‘boss’ part.”

***

Upon returning to the dormitory,

I saw several classmates in the lounge, their faces a picture of shock.

“Train?!”

“Are you alright?!”

“We were worried about you!”

Train waved off their concerns with a playful gesture.

“Worried, my foot. When I came to, there was only the pharmacy clerk.”

Then Prince Sirian remarked with an indifferent expression.

“That clerk kicked us all out, using the excuse that you needed to rest.”

“Is that so.”

“More than that, didn’t that clerk seem to take peculiar care of you?”

“It’s probably because he thinks it’s his fault I got hurt.”

“Why were you alone with that clerk in the store last night?”

Under the piercing gaze of the students, Train cleared his throat before replying.

“Well, we were just discussing a negotiation.”

“You didn’t betray our pharmacy, did you, Train?”

“Of course not. More importantly, Lizbeth, have you heard about what happened?”

As Train changed the subject, Lizbeth replied with a bitter smile.

“The soldiers came this morning and searched my room.”

“Did they search mine too?”

“No. It seems like Cat deliberately didn’t say anything to avoid causing you harm.”

“I see.”

Lizbeth stood up and said,

“You’re here to investigate too, right? Let’s go to my room.”

“Is that okay?”

“You’re smarter than the soldiers, so you might find some clues.”

“Even so, rummaging through a lady’s room is a bit-”

“Be quiet and follow me.”

In the end, Train was practically dragged to Lizbeth’s room as if under arrest.

Lizbeth’s room was impeccably tidy, just like her.

Though it was about three times the size of Train’s room, as befitting a duke, there was not a single piece of unnecessary furniture.

There was also a makeshift bed prepared for Cat.

…He decided to ignore the giant teddy bear that seemed hastily hidden under the bed.

Train cautiously made a round of the room before asking,

“Was there anyone else in this room with you and Cat the day before yesterday?”

“Hmm, there might have been, or there might not have been.”

“That’s not a very clear answer.”

Suddenly, Lizbeth stealthily locked the door,

and without warning, drew her greatsword.

“Train, I’m sorry.”

…It was then that Train realized something was terribly wrong and cautiously stepped back.

“What are you doing?”

Lisbeth tossed the handcuffs at Train’s feet.

“If it were up to me, I would have ambushed you, knocked you out, and then tied you up. But I feel sorry for someone who’s injured.”

“You can’t be serious. You want me to put these on myself?”

To that, Lisbeth replied with a cold face.

“Yes, I’m asking you to.”