Chapter 302: Am I an Attorney, or a Prosecutor?

“Even if we’ve proven that Feyt didn’t drink the drug,” I said as Carine, “that doesn’t end this case at all.” I leaned forward, resting my palms on the wooden table.

“What are you talking about, Lady Carine?” the volunteer said calmly. But I could tell his heart was beating like crazy. I knew there was more behind this.

I glared at him specifically, mimicking how Mother would look at Feyt in our earlier days of meeting. “It’s clear what I’m talking about, isn’t it? Though Feyt clearly didn’t drink the concoction…” I turned and stared at the empty cup and the wooden container still on the table. “The fact of the matter is… that drug is still here in this very room.”

I straightened myself and looked directly at the director. “Now then, one question remains… How did it get in the academy?”

The volunteer recoiled as if I’d physically struck him. His [Tempered Front] Talent, already fraying at the edges, completely broke down.

The color drained from his face so fast he looked like someone squeezed the blood out of him.

Director Aella didn’t flinch. In fact, she didn't look the least bit surprised. She remained slouched in her chair, a slow smirk spreading across her lips as she twirled a messy strand of brown hair around her finger.

“Well, well,” Aella purred, her earlier dismissive tone suddenly replaced with a bubbly one. “I was planning on turning over that rock sooner or later myself… but tell me, Lady Carine. Do you perhaps have an idea where to look first?”

I offered a calm nod. “I have plenty of time before my next match, Director. I would love to personally assist you in this investigation.”

More like, I want to see the person behind this myself.

Give em’ a slap myself if I need to.

Aella’s grin widened for just a fraction.

“However, I do have an appointment with some friends,” I announced as Feyt, pushing my chair back with a scrape that made the volunteer jump out of his skin. I gave Director Aella a respectful bow. “I’ll be taking my leave now. Thank you for your time, Director.”

I nodded back to myself as Carine, approving my own leave, before turning my gaze to the maid standing at my side.

“Leila. Please accompany Feyt to his destination.”

Leila took a moment to process my words. Her eyes darted between the both of me, a flicker of brief hesitation crossing her face. It was clear her instincts screamed at her not to leave me alone in a room with a potential criminal. But it seemed her trust in me won out in the end.

“Understood, Lady Carine,” Leila bowed deeply. “I shall ensure Sir Feyt’s safety with my life.”

The second Feyt’s boots hit the cool stone floor of the outer hallway, I broke into a rapid walk.

There was zero time to waste. Leaving Carine in the office was a calculated move to extract information out of the volunteer. My title as the ducal heir was bound to help out in pressuring him to tell the truth.

But Feyt needed to be on the ground now, and I needed to move around fast, as I intended to find a certain someone to further the volunteer’s questioning and immediately seek out the one behind this before they could catch on to what was going on and get away.

Behind me, Leila’s footsteps matched my pace perfectly. “Sir Feyt,” Leila murmured, “Are we returning to the spectator stands to rejoin Lady Carine’s classmates? Or do you have another destination in mind?”

“We’re going to look into something. We need to find that girl who gave that forged letter to Carine,” I said to Leila as Feyt. “But, as much as I want us to split up to extend our search, things might get dangerous, so we need to stay close.”

I heard Leila’s pace stop for a moment, as if surprised, before resuming her pace again.

I turned to her. “Is something wrong, Leila?”

She shook her head, her face still flat and expressionless, even more so without Carine’s eyes to see all the micro-movements. “It’s nothing, Sir Feyt. Let us move forward then.”

“Right.”

The two of us headed out, towards the spectator stands. I could only hope we could catch her in time.

—

Back at the northern office, the atmosphere had turned ice cold. But for the first time, it didn’t come from Mother, but from me.

Director Aella hadn't changed her position, still resting her chin on her hand, watching the scene unfold with an amused smile. On one side of the table, the volunteer student stood completely frozen, his eyes wide, his breathing short and quick.

I stood just before the volunteer on the other side of the table, standing straight, looking down at him.

"So," I began, my tone light. "Where were we?"

The volunteer flinched. "L-Lady Carine—"

"Director Aella," I cut him off without taking my eyes off his pale face. "What is the standard academy procedure for a student caught smuggling controlled substances into a Royal Academy?"

“Hmm…” Director Aella let out a theatrical hum, tapping her chin. "Oh, you know, it’s pretty simple. Expulsion, naturally. Immediate stripping of any academy merits. A permanent mark on the royal registry so no other academic institution would even think of accepting them..."

She paused, flashing a sharp smile.

"...And, of course, depending on whether the affected party chooses to press charges, various other things could happen. One could be jailed, have their family title marked or stripped, or perhaps even face execution."

Wow, that escalated quickly.

THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP

THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP

THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP

And that’s another thing that escalated quickly.

But seriously, man, is your heart okay beating that fast?

The volunteer's heart slammed against his ribs so hard I could practically hear it without even using Feyt's ears. His sweating was basically giving him a shower right now, drenching his face all the way to his shirt.

At the same time, I was scouring the stands as Feyt, along with Leila, for the girl who gave me that letter. I kept my focus divided between interrogating the volunteer and looking for that girl.

“Now do you get it?” I leaned forward, firmly pressing a single hand onto the table. “If you refuse to speak up about whoever ordered you to do this, you will be seen as the sole person responsible for smuggling that substance inside academy walls.”

The volunteer's mouth opened, then snapped shut. He forced a heavy breath through his nostrils, trying desperately to pull whatever composure he had left. He looked at me, then at Director Aella, before his eyes narrowed.

"L-Lady Carine, I assure you, I have nothing to do with this," he stammered, his voice trembling despite his attempt to sound calm. "Perhaps I was mistaken about seeing Feyt entering the room with a cup, but I swear that I hadn’t even touched that cup once!”

If only fingerprint-detecting magic existed, this would’ve been a slam dunk for me, but…

I had another piece of evidence up my sleeve… Or in my pockets, to be more literal.

I quietly pulled a small folded letter from my pocket and opened it. Director Aella and the volunteer watched my every move. I placed the forged letter from “Ravilenna” onto the table, facing it toward the volunteer.

“What is that?” Director Aella asked, raising an eyebrow with mild curiosity.

“A forged invitation,” I replied calmly, resting my fingertips on the paper. “A letter delivered to me right before Feyt’s match, supposedly written by someone I knew, requesting a spar on the third floor of the main building.”

“Hmm, and how does this relate?” Director Aella hummed, leaning in slightly.

“I’ve already confirmed with the person whose name and handwriting were used that she never wrote this. Thus, my only conclusion is that this letter was meant to ambush me, or at least ensure I would be isolated far away when Feyt’s match and this incident took place.”

I slid the letter across the table, stopping it right under the volunteer’s nose.

“And yet, if I heard correctly while waiting outside this office, this volunteer was remarkably confident that I had left the arena. Why?” I asked coldly, glaring at him.

Instantly, his eyes shot wide open.

Seeing the sheer panic break through his face, I pressed forward without giving him a second to breathe.

“The answer’s simple. He knew about the letter. He was so confident I had left because he was in on the plan to lure me away!”

His breathing quickened as visible panic began to set in. It seemed I finally cornered him. He looked frantically between me and Director Aella, searching for a single scrap of leverage, a single loophole to crawl through.

But I doubted he found any. He had built his entire defense on the idea that Carine was isolated in another building. With that premise destroyed, his entire narrative collapsed like a house of cards, blown by the wind.

"I-I…" His hands trembled as he gripped the wooden table firmly, perhaps seeing it as the only thing he could hold on to now. "I didn't bring the drug into the academy! I swear it! It was given to me!"

"Given to you?" Director Aella chimed in lazily, leaning forward on her elbows. "By whom?"

The volunteer froze. His lower lip trembled violently, but his mouth snapped shut. He stared down at the table, his knuckles turning white as his grip tightened on the edge of the table.

"Who gave you the bottle?" I demanded as Carine.

He didn’t answer. He swallowed hard, tears of pure terror welling in his eyes, but he refused to let a name slip past his teeth, even as he trembled like he was on the verge of collapse.

Okay, hold on, you really need to relax. If you faint, Imma lose my witness.

If I had him cornered like this and he still refused a name, then whoever it was that hired him had to have something against him. Either a powerful threat or a powerful presence.

I kept up the pressure to break him down, but it was clear that harsh words alone wouldn't force his mouth open. Fortunately, up on the stands, I had just gotten my breakthrough.

…

While walking around the spectator stands with Leila as Feyt, she tapped my shoulder.

“What is it?”

“I found her.”

“Really? Where?!”

Leila quickly led both of us to her. It didn't take long. Sitting near the aisle, casually chatting with a group of her peers and watching the arena floor, was the student who gave me that letter earlier that day.

I stepped directly into her line of sight, blocking the sunlight.

"Excuse me," I said as Feyt, with a warm smile.

The girl looked up, expecting another spectator, but the moment her eyes landed on me and the imposing figure of Leila looming right beside me, her eyes widened in sheer surprise. "S-Sir Feyt? What are you doing here…?"

"The girl who handed Lady Carine a letter right before my match. That was you, wasn't it?"

“A letter?” Her face paled instantly. "I-I don’t know what you’re talking about! I’ve been here since—”

“Do not lie,” Leila cut in. “I remember your face. You are indeed the one who gave Lady Carine that letter.”

“Ack!” She recoiled.

"Relax, I'm not accusing you of anything yet," I said smoothly, keeping my expression relaxed. "I just need to know who gave it to you."

The student looked between my calm face and Leila's cold glare.

"I-I knew it was sketchy! I-I don't know her name, but!" the girl blurted out. "Someone approached me near my dorm this morning! She paid me five whole gold coins just to walk over and hand that letter to Lady Carine! I was told to say it was from a classmate of mine!"

She shot her hands out before I could respond, waving them in sheer panic.

“B-But! I swear I didn’t know it was going to cause trouble! I thought it was just a secret admirer letter or from a fan of hers! Maybe they’re just too shy and let their maid do the work?” She lowered her head, bowing frantically in her seat. “A-Anyway! I’m so sorry!! I didn’t mean to interfere with your love life! Please forgive me!!!”

L-Love life?!

I blinked with my mouth hanging open, even as Carine did, though only slightly.

“N-Nevermind that,” I blurted out as Feyt. “But you said something earlier. Something about a maid?”

She still looked panicked, but she eventually sat up straight and offered what she knew.

“Y-Yes, the one who gave me that letter, it was… a maid. I don’t know whose maid she was or her name, but I’m pretty sure she was a maid.”

“A maid, huh?”

…

I took a deep breath as Carine. Then, with one swift motion, I pressed both of my palms onto the wooden table.

“The person who gave you that bottle,” I began softly as Carine, facing the volunteer. “Was it… a maid?”

“H-How did you—?!” The volunteer’s head snapped up violently, his eyes bulging as if I just punched him in the gut.

Dude, are you really okay?!