Alliance and Enmity (Double Chapter)

"Please forgive my father's previous rudeness, Lord."

At this moment, [Silver Princess], who was standing to the side, suddenly spoke up, "Father only lost his composure because he was overwhelmed with grief over the news of my sister's sudden death."

[Silver Princess's] voice eased the atmosphere somewhat. Taking this opportunity, Lord Byron seemed to have calmed himself down a bit, raising his head to look at the Lord El-Melloi II:

"So what do you want, Lord El-Melloi II?"

"I don't deny that I met with [Golden Princess] a few hours ago, and I must admit that it was Reines and the others who discovered [Golden Princess]'s death. Therefore, [El-Melloi] is indeed the most likely perpetrator..."

The Lord El-Melloi II then spoke in his usual tone:

"Then, for the sake of [El-Melloi's ] reputation, let me find the culprit, Lord Byron."

"You are absolutely right, Lord."

Upon hearing the Lord El-Melloi II's speech, Lord Byron, looking grave, said:

"But I can't allow you to move around freely. After all, you're still suspects."

"But if they want to move around freely, you can't stop them, can you, Lord Byron?"

Touko Aozaki's voice rang out again at an inopportune moment, and as if to echo her words, Wang Xiaoming, who was standing next to Touko Aozaki, also coughed to acknowledge his presence.

"How about this, Lord Byron?"

Seeing the stiff expression on Byron's face, Touko Aozaki, suppressing a laugh, placed her hand on her chest.

"Let me keep an eye on them. What do you think?"

"I'm sorry, Miss Aozaki, have you forgotten what you just said? You are also a suspect."

"... See, I'm out of ideas too."

Touko Aozaki shrugged at the man beside her, indicating that she had done her best. Then she stopped there, without intending to put pressure on him using her [Grand] Grand.

"Well then, I'm sorry, Lord El-Melloi II..."

Before Byron could finish speaking, a noise from outside the door interrupted him again.

"--What do you think, sir?"

Chapter 330. Alliances and Enemies (Two-in-One)

"--What do you think, sir?"

A voice, impossible to ignore, came from outside the room. Only then did everyone realize that an "important figure" had been missing from the very beginning.

"Teacher Inorai"

Touko Aozaki smiled and greeted the newcomer.

--Inorai Baruereta Homu

One of the three great noble families. The Lord at the pinnacle of the Baruelletta Faction.

Indeed, there is no one here more trustworthy than her right now. Even if the Clock Tower comes to investigate later, her testimony will be almost impossible to doubt.

"Sorry I'm late, but I already have a general understanding of the situation."

The old woman, who had walked to the center of the room, turned her gaze to Byron:

"As for the supervision, how about leaving it to me, Lord Byron?"

Faced with his Lord's emotionless question, even though Byron harbored countless grievances, he could only nod meekly in response:

"Of course, Lord..."

"The rest of you should have no objections, right?"

The old woman looked around at everyone and asked in a calm and unhurried voice.

No one would object. In this tragic scene, the woman's authority rendered no one worthy of dissent.

"Alright, let's dismiss everyone then."

The old woman nodded in satisfaction and clapped her hands to signal everyone to disperse.

"--Next, it's time for [the detective] to make his appearance."

It was the [Lord's] authority that made the remaining onlookers leave the room without any objection after Lord Baruereta dismissed them.

Even Wang Xiaoming and several students from El-Melloi Classroom who wanted to stay and help were kicked out by the Lord El-Melloi II on the grounds that they were "in the way." At this point, only the two [Lord] who could have an equal conversation at the [Rank] remained in the room.

"So, where do you intend to begin your investigation, Lord El-Melloi?"

"If possible, I would like to add 'II.' I feel that I am not worthy of that name."

While surveying the room, the Lord El-Melloi II answered the old woman's questions:

"If possible, start with the room layout and the corpse..."

As he spoke, the Lord El-Melloi II took a pair of white gloves from his pocket and put them on. He tiptoed to the bed where the body lay, his gaze once again focusing on the shocking yet heartbreaking scene.

"It was divided very thoroughly."

The body was completely dismembered; the torso and limbs were neatly separated, the cuts sharp and showing no signs of resistance.

"However, it is currently impossible to determine whether the victim was killed before she could resist, or whether she was killed and then dismembered."

After thinking for a moment, the Lord El-Melloi II said to the "maid" beside him, "Trim, could you collect the body parts?"

"Understood."

Upon hearing the Lord El-Melloi II's orders, "maid" Trim began to act.

"This is actually a useful [tool], isn't it? I heard it's from the [previous generation]?"

Watching the "maid's" nimble movements, the old woman narrowed her eyes slightly and asked the Lord El-Melloi II. The young master didn't deny it, nodding in reply:

"That's right, this is the [Mystic Code] that our teacher used to wear."

[Volumen Hydrargyrum], a [Mystic Code] that the previous Lord El-Melloi was so proud of, has now been given to his disciple. Under the "improvement" of the Lord El-Melloi II, Volumen Hydrargyrum has evolved into a multi-functional Maid Golem, which serves Reines by her side.

However, before leaving, Reines specifically left "Trim" behind, hoping it would be helpful to the Lord El-Melloi II's investigation.

"However... cut like this, it's impossible to tell what the [murder weapon] is."

Upon hearing the old woman's pointed remark, the Lord El-Melloi II, far from being alarmed, nodded in agreement:

"I understand what you mean. Trim does indeed have the potential to be the [murder weapon]."

After all, once Magecraft is involved in a murder case, the victim's cause of death becomes infinitely possible.

"That's precisely why I want to clear [El-Melloi] of suspicion!"

"Heh, what an energetic young man! I'm even a little envious of Kayneth."

Seeing the Lord El-Melloi II's resolute expression, the old woman instead revealed a pleasant smile.

"You flatter me, Lord Baruereta."

While echoing the old woman's praise, the Lord El-Melloi II's gaze continued to scan the surroundings, searching for clues within the room itself.

[Golden Princess]'s room is about the size of a regular café. The main furniture in the room includes a bed with a canopy, a desk with a lamp shaped like a jellyfish, and several paintings by Impressionist masters. On the elegant bookshelf are some beginner Magecraft books. Every item is a luxury worthy of the name Golden Princess, but in terms of variety, it gives the impression that only daily necessities are available.

There's a window and a door inside. There's also a skylight, but it's impossible for anyone to get in or out through it. If we're going to consider that, we should think about Magecraft that allow people to pass through walls.

The door had been vandalized; it was Gray's doing. Reines and Gray, who had come to visit the [Golden Princess] for a late-night talk, found that no matter how much they knocked, no one answered.

Sensing something was wrong, Reines immediately ordered Gray to break down the door, and then she witnessed a scene that sent chills down her spine.

"Hmm, this is..."

As he bent down to examine the broken door, the Lord El-Melloi II master keenly noticed something between the fragments and the stone floor.

He reached out and gently touched his fingers, then lifted them to find some powdery substance on Lord El-Melloi II.

"Any discoveries?"

The old woman, noticing the Lord El-Melloi II's unusual behavior, immediately asked.

"Because we discovered something strange."

The Lord El-Melloi II carefully scraped the ground with his gloved hands, gathering the powdery substance together. He took out a handkerchief from his pocket and slowly collected the powder, then took a magnifying glass from his small bag.

He stared at the object as if he were bewitched. First, he looked at it through a magnifying glass, then after a while he moved the magnifying glass away and stared at it directly, and finally he even picked up a bit and put it in his mouth.

"..."

His mouth moved for a moment, then he spat the substance into his hand. After examining it again, the Lord El-Melloi II's brow finally relaxed slightly.

"Finally, we've made some progress."

"Hey, Lord El-Melloi II. I've just remembered something..."

Just as the Lord El-Melloi II was about to put the powder into his pocket, Lord Baruereta's voice rang in his ears again. However, this time, the other party's words almost made the Lord El-Melloi II Prince drop the important "evidence" in his hand—

"Speaking of which, my foolish apprentice is almost being lured away by your [Guardian] from El-Melloi. How about we form an alliance when they get married?"

Achoo! *2

Two sneezes rang out simultaneously in the room. After exchanging a puzzled glance, Wang Xiaoming and Touko Aozaki stopped paying attention to it.

At this moment, the two were in the room that [Iselma] had prepared for Touko Aozaki in the Moon Tower.

While most of the other guests stayed at the Sun Tower, it seems that Touko Aozaki was the only one staying at the Moon Tower because she arrived before the social party. Sometimes she would offer advice on Magecraft when her master needed help, which makes her seem more like a diner in nature.

"How long has it been since you cleaned your room...?"

Upon entering the room, Wang Xiaoming looked around with an expression of unbearable disapproval.

"It doesn't seem like... that's been that long..."

Touko Aozaki blinked and said, but her answer didn't seem very confident.

"So why did you bring Fujino Asagami back?"

Because Touko Aozaki had previously taken Fujino Asagami with her on her travels, Wang Xiaoming hadn't worried too much about her food, clothing, and lodging. But now—

An old globe, stationery piled haphazardly, a hodgepodge of gossip magazines, philosophy books, and Magecraft books from roadside stalls, a huge pile of wind-up tin toys that were almost indistinguishable from junk, and all sorts of personal items took up almost every inch of the room.

It's no exaggeration to say that apart from the bed, there wasn't a single spot in the room that could be considered clean or tidy.

"Never mind, there probably isn't anything important here, right?"

After sighing, Wang Xiaoming asked Touko Aozaki...

There's nothing there.

Having already guessed what Wang Xiaoming was going to do next, Touko Aozaki answered after making sure she had a place to sit.

Seeing Touko Aozaki sitting obediently down, Wang Xiaoming wore a look that was both funny and exasperating:

"You woman..."

Despite saying that, his hands didn't stop moving.

Looking at the man in front of her who was chattering away while cleaning her room, Touko Aozaki's lips curled into a slight smile despite her expression of disgust.

"Speaking of which, what exactly is this [amnesia] you mentioned before?"

While tidying up his room, Wang Xiaoming suddenly remembered the interrupted conversation he had just had with Touko Aozaki.

"It means exactly what it says, a sudden [memory fragment]. I guess it's something interesting about signing some agreement with Lord Byron. I just don't know the details, which is making me a little irritated."

Touko Aozaki replied in this way. However, judging from the nonchalant expression on her face, she clearly had no awareness whatsoever of being the person involved.

"So that's why you brought Fujino Asagami back."

After hearing Touko Aozaki's answer, Wang Xiaoming suddenly realized—

"I knew it! With your ability to take care of yourself, how could you bear to let her go?"

"Why do you talk so much nonsense!"

Enraged by Wang Xiaoming's teasing, Touko Aozaki looked around, preparing to find something handy to throw at him.