## Chapter 61 – The Blood-Tracking Hound
“Anne, are there any bowls over there?”
“Yeah…”
“The soup’s done, so could you bring some bowls out?”
“Okay…”
“We heard back from Mom and Dad after they got our news, and they sent an express package?
They said the merchant guild is getting some breathing room and things are gradually improving. But…”
Holding the pot, Marie slowly turned around, her gaze settling on Anne, who was awkwardly picking out bowls.
It was a different look from her sister, who she was used to seeing act coy and spoiled.
“You’re acting strange today? Is something wrong?”
“No, it’s nothing like that…”
“I’m your sister.
Do you know what that means?”
Marie set the pot down on the table and sat down, slowly leaning forward.
Only then did she make eye contact with Anne, who had been looking down, and Marie stared intently at her with deep, meaningful eyes.
When did she grow up so much?
Her younger sister, only a year younger than her, born in the same year.
As the eldest daughter, she had naturally matured quickly, but there wasn’t much she could do for Anne.
Her sister, who knew how to be spoiled and sometimes cried in front of her, telling her about her hardships, how had she ended up like this?
“It means I can sense how you’re feeling right now.
Wouldn’t it be better to talk about it together than to keep it all to yourself?”
“You’re going to try to do everything alone again this time…
I don’t want you to… I don’t want you to do that anymore…”
“Anne…”
Despite Marie softly calling her sister’s name, Anne raised her voice and continued to speak, as if on the verge of tears.
“Last time too… you didn’t even tell me and worked alone…
You collapsed, and it just cost us more in medical bills…”
“Because Anne is precious to me…
That kind of thing is nothing to me…”
“I don’t like it when you do that… You’re more precious to me…!!
I’d rather… like during the special evaluation…!! I want to stay with you so you can’t overdo it…”
“You know that’s not possible…
Anne, you have your own path to follow…”
“But…!!”
A shadow gradually deepened in Marie’s eyes as she spoke firmly.
“I chose the Magic Application Department because of my own ambition…
I wanted to succeed… to be like Father…
I didn’t want to keep clinging to the increasingly difficult merchant guild…
I thought it would be better to do something unrelated to the family.”
But as if she didn’t want that shadow to reach Anne.
“But Anne… the reason you chose the Swordsmanship Department…
Wasn’t it just to reduce the number of mercenaries hired by the merchant guild?
Because you felt sorry for our parents, who never have enough, and wanted to be a source of strength for our family…”
Marie gently whispered to her beloved sister.
“So… Anne… my sister is such a good girl that I’m ashamed…
So I wanted to protect you so you wouldn’t have to worry about the things you want to do…”
Marie, struggling to maintain her composure and gently wiping her eyes, reached out to Anne and handed her a spoon.
“Oh, geez… why am I talking about this on a day like this…
Hurry up and eat… it’s going to get cold…!!”
But Anne, unable to accept it and lost in thought, slowly opened her mouth, and Marie’s eyes, which had been watching Anne, began to waver.
“I… I’ve been involved in something lately…”
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A little earlier than that, before the vacation arrived, a day at St. Francina Academy was, as always, bustling with energy.
Perhaps because it was a place where young blood gathered, it was inevitably full of hope and enthusiasm.
But even at such an academy, serious and difficult things could happen.
That was the feeling I had the moment I first saw them.
A group of people walking in, wearing black uniforms.
And I instinctively knew that they were headed for where I was.
“We appreciate your hard work.
I’m an investigator from the Public Safety Police Department.”
Although she said it was nice to meet them, the guards were clearly taken aback by the woman’s voice, which was already cold.
Neatly styled, silver-white bob that felt sharp.
Despite her sharp jawline, her face had a cute rather than angular feel.
She wore simple makeup, not flashy, but her natural beauty already seemed to surpass a certain level.
However, her impressively red, vibrant lips unconsciously stole one’s gaze.
A black miniskirt that came up to mid-thigh, paired with a black uniform jacket.
Her straight, firm legs, covered in coffee-colored stockings with garter belts, were quite slender and alluring, perhaps because she was wearing high heels, but no one, including me, would dare to look at them.
Even though her unique appearance was quite innocent and cute, the atmosphere of her cold, deep blue eyes was ‘menacing’ itself.
“Vivian de Grenot, Lanie de Berdran’s disappearance and Delena de Drouella’s stabbing death, as well as the escape of a beastman and the murder of a guard, I’m here to investigate.”
She stated the facts in a businesslike tone, then shook her head as if there were too many incidents.
The people in uniform followed her as she walked past the guards and inside.
An academy where four incidents had occurred in such a short period of time, how scary.
But because I was involved in all of them, I was the most nervous person right now.
‘The Public Safety Police Department…’
Just hearing the name made me smell the cops.
‘No, wait a minute… cops…?
Am I already tainted with a criminal mindset…?’
In some ways, it might be too late for them to appear now.
But the fact that people had rushed in to investigate, and that they were investigating a pile of incidents, meant that the possibility of my identity being revealed had also increased.
“Team 1, reconstruct the scene of the Delena de Drouella incident.
Teams 2 and 3, conduct inquiries with students and faculty. Execute.”
“Yes!!”
At her quick and concise orders, the mixed-gender uniformed personnel began to move like clockwork.
Watching them, desperately pretending to be a harmless flower, I was dripping cold sap as I watched a group of people approaching me.
‘This is… ruined…? Is it really ruined…?’
Just looking at them, there were eight people who seemed well-trained.
Including the leader-like woman who was watching them from behind, there were nine.
It was only because they were scattered that it was that many, but if the others returned, it would be a force of thirty.
Even just considering the ones in front of me, it was a similar number to the guards I had attacked.
But the problem was that they weren’t distracted by something else, like the guards who were fighting the beastmen.
Moreover, just looking at that woman, there was a strong smell of danger, and my instinctive danger sensor was firing off red alerts like crazy.
‘Fighting or running away seems impossible…’
I heard that animals have instincts, so maybe I’ll be able to move someday, but I’m a plant rooted here.
I can’t run away, so I have to fight, but how strong am I to defeat all these people?
Even the colossal adult Enic, who looked like a giant sandwich made for the World Cup stadium, was slaughtered, so what about me, a tiny Enic who’s nothing more than a callus on its foot?
Even if I used everything I had to defeat these people, it would only prolong my life for a moment.
Since I can’t escape with my roots planted, I’m living a life with a limited time, no, a plant-life.
As I was lost in thought, I was startled by a sudden rustling sound next to me, and when I sensed it, I found the woman who was staring up at me with those cold eyes, standing in the flower bed next to my flower stalk.
‘Hiiiik…!!’
“What kind of flower is this?”
“It’s probably a flower that came over from Chaoxing.
I don’t know much about it, but they do so much genetic modification over there, so ornamental flowers that are hard to identify also come over.”
“I see. Those Xing bastards never get tired of it…”
The woman, who had been looking up at me with narrowed eyes because of the sunlight, finally lost interest in me, and I was able to burst into cheers of joy in my heart.
But the crisis was still not over.
When I heard the conversation that two officers were having next to the silver-haired woman, I had no choice but to seriously consider whether I should do something now.
“From now on, we’ll be conducting a time-lapse reverse mana reconstruction investigation, or a reconstruction investigation.
You learned that mana residue with a special structure created by specific individuals stays in that place for a long time, right?”
“Yes, Senior Bedel!!”
“Good. We’ll use this to sense the frequency of the individual mana residue, then reconstruct and reproduce the mana residue to recreate what happened at this scene.”
Perhaps because they had brought a new employee for training, a woman in uniform was explaining to a man who seemed clueless, and I felt my leaves turning blue.
‘You’re going to recreate what the tentacle did…?’
In her hand were several small glass bottles with cork stoppers.
Looking at the red liquid inside, its unique scent, and the approximate number of bottles, which seemed to have some regularity, I realized that it was the blood of the female students involved in this incident.
“The suspect student’s blood will be drawn when she’s confirmed to be at school, so the story has been passed on to the academic affairs office.
So all we have to do is get that student’s blood.
Shall we try running it once as a test before that?”
The suspect student was clearly referring to Anne.
I don’t know what mechanism the reconstruction works with, but since it’s a world of magic, it must show the situation at that time as it is.
Probably, judging from the way it looks, it seems like they’re recreating something using the target’s blood, so it seemed unlikely that I would be the target.
But if they reconstruct Anne’s appearance as it is, then that’s a different story.
The fact that Anne, who didn’t have any weapons, is taking a stance to fight with a sword will raise questions, and I won’t have solved any problems.
Rather, this area will be suspected of being a hiding place for weapons. The entire flower bed will be turned upside down, and my identity will be revealed.
While I was watching for an opportunity to do something now, a new voice suddenly appeared and caught everyone’s attention.
“See you later!!”
“Have a good time!!”
A girl who suddenly appeared with a group of girls was walking confidently, separating from the group.
And then, standing in front of Investigator Bedel, she stared intently at the glass bottles in her hand and shook her head, causing the people’s gazes to be filled with questions.
“I wouldn’t recommend doing that.”
The gaze of the rookie investigator who was receiving Bedel’s teachings reached the eyes of a female student who was smiling brightly and warning her.
“Yes…? Why…?
More than that, are you… a student…?”
Long, green hair with a strange feel and sparkling green-blue eyes.
And a girl who was wearing a school uniform but had a dignified demeanor for some reason.
I’ve seen her standing here occasionally, but I always thought she was a friendly girl who freely mingled with many girls.
But at the strange level of confidence that this girl, who seemed to be just a student, was showing, the moment he asked the question.
“Charlotte de Polignac. The daughter of the Polignac Marquis.”
“Oh? You know me, Investigator Deborah?”
It was a girl who looked slightly surprised as she stepped forward and looked at the chief investigator with grayish-white hair who recognized her.
“I can’t just come here without knowing the Polignac Marquis family, who have been the chairman of St. Francina Academy for generations.
I express my condolences for the recent passing of the former Polignac Marquis.
More than that, I’m surprised that you know a mere investigator like me.”
“Ah~ Investigator Deborah is a celebrity.
I hear a lot of stories here and there?
I’m Charlotte, the acting head of the current Polignac Marquis and the chairman of St. Francina Academy.
And since I’m also a student here, I’d like to say first that I came here because I don’t want to disturb the learning grounds of me and my fellow students.”
“Then… why did you stop us…?”
“St. Francina Academy is a place of learning.
Here, we explore and experiment with diverse and countless fields of study.
But that’s why we often face dangerous situations.”
“Dangerous situations mean…”
“That’s right. Once you enter the academy, the use of magic is only allowed in designated indoor buildings, the outdoor training grounds that you can see far away, and the student control area?
If you use magic in the academy in any other place, you’ll be recognized as an external intruder, and the designated ‘punishment procedure’ will be automatically carried out.
That’s why the mischievous students here never play pranks with magic here.”
Watching the girl’s green-blue eyes narrow as she smiled, Investigator Deborah’s eyes gradually hardened.
“You didn’t know because you’re from the swordsmanship department?
Graduate of the 164th class, Deborah?”
“Th-that’s right, Your Excellency Charlotte.
When I was learning with gratitude, I always emphasized training.”
‘The atmosphere is intense…’
Even though they were making expressions that weren’t anything special, it was an atmosphere as if they were glaring at each other.
I, who had noticed that the cold-looking woman named Deborah was also from the academy, was just watching the confrontation in front of me with a trembling feeling.
“I’m sorry, you might not know.
It’s something that the magic department students and professors always say until their ears bleed.
I heard that the usual investigation procedure is a reconstruction investigation, but if you can’t do it because of these restrictions, I need to fulfill my responsibility as the chairman.
So I’ve made preparations?”
When Charlotte turned around and waved her hand gracefully, the guards who I had seen that night were appearing from somewhere.
Since they weren’t there on the day the beastmen were rampaging, it seemed like they had been spared their lives.
“Of course, if the situation flows like this, you might suspect the intentions of Danga and the academy…
But I and these people are all people who work at the honorable St. Francina Academy, and I promise to tell only the truth in the name of that honor.
These are the guards who witnessed the situation that day.
Since they’re experienced mercenaries, they’ve also analyzed the scene in their own way, so let’s listen to that too.”
“I see…”
As Charlotte said with her own mouth, the situation was prepared to her liking.
In cases where testimony is presented instead of circumstantial evidence, it’s natural to suspect that the side that has made these preparations thoroughly has some intention.
However, it was also unreasonable to doubt the information provided by the acting head of the Marquis family, who had staked the family’s honor.
It was the same as saying that she was confident enough to stake her family’s honor, and at the same time, it meant that if you recklessly doubted it, you would be insulting the family’s honor and turning her into an enemy.
“I, too, have been taught at St. Francina Academy.
I remember that the academy was always noble and honorable.
I’m grateful for your kindness.”
Suspicion is the basic principle of investigation, but the ability to distinguish between personal suspicion and information was also an ability.
With the judgment that she would accept the information as it is and then suspect it later if a loophole was revealed, Deborah bowed to Charlotte, who was entrusting the guards and turning around.
“Hmm hmm hmm~”
The daughter of the Polignac Marquis, Charlotte de Polignac, was humming as she walked away.
She seemed like a cheerful girl who could be easily seen anywhere, but I heard that she was a dark-hearted person, and she was indeed a girl who was in charge of the family at such a young age.
With the thought that this investigation would not be easy with her thorough appearance that seemed more than I had imagined, Deborah’s gaze was once again directed to the flower bed.
“So, as ‘honorable’ academy guards, I hope you’ll tell me the facts you know.”
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