And as soon as morning came, news of a disturbance in the student council spread through a suitable route. She casually approached, feigned ignorance of the matter, and came to the student council room.

Everything went according to plan until Neris was summoned.

Megara thought it was very fortunate that Neris had been caught in her room, even though she didn’t know when she had returned.

Perfect.

If there were two annoying things to Megara, the first was Idalia, who caused a fuss saying she would follow and ended up sitting useless in the student council room. The second was Neris’s expression.

“But that will be resolved soon.”

Anticipating Neris’s expression to distort in confusion, Megara maintained a pretty smile like a doll.

After observing, Abelus slowly asked, “Where were you last night?”

“I was in my room.”

Alright! Megara’s eyes twinkled with joy for a moment.

Idalia grabbed Megara’s sleeve. Just in case Idalia didn’t say anything unnecessary, Megara warned her with a glance.

Certainly, there would be something like, ‘But you said there was no one in the room.’

Actually, whether Neris Trude was in her room last night or not, what difference did it make? To lie about it now meant that last night’s affair was something difficult to tell others.

Then, she probably couldn’t provide an alibi. Can it be more perfect than this!

“From around 9 o’clock to when?”

“Until morning. I stayed in my room the whole time, Your Highness. Then where else could I have gone?”

The questioning tone was defiant, but Neris’s expression was so calm that no one focused on that fact. Natasha wore an expression of suspicion and confirmed.

“Didn’t you say you were going to the social class last night?”

“Yes, on the way, I met Senior Natasha. But after that, I suddenly got a headache and went back to my room.”

Some of the simpler student council members looked at Neris with disdain, confidently considering it an excuse.

On the other hand, Abelus and Nellusion’s gazes became more careful than before.

The two men knew that they had missed a very good opportunity last night.

Hudis Tipian, that cunning and ruthless old man, tried to offer his grandson as a sacrifice to the royal family. Abelus didn’t hesitate and accepted that deal without much thought.
If we can kill the monster called Claidwin and finally get hold of the Mainland, wouldn’t it be a great favor to Lord Tipian to give him a little piece of land as he wishes?

However, after barely surrounding Claidwin and inflicting a fatal wound, the little mouse trapped in the poison disappeared.

It was even more infuriating because Abelus and Nellusion had sent their most trusted knights to track Claidwin.

Does that monster even fly in the sky? We received reports of deep wounds in various places, including the thighs and abdomen. How did it manage to hide?

Abelus, who was disassembling, also showed irritation at Ralph’s report that stated, ‘During the search of the Remnant Hall, he encountered the Elendria family’s Jann girl.’

What did it matter if the first-year kids witnessed the dispute between the royal family and the ducal family! Shouldn’t they have thoroughly searched the area!

However, fearing that they might have really been exposed, Ralph, who knew that lightning would have struck if they were caught, conducted a night search and hadn’t returned yet.

Abelus’s speculation about whether Claidwin had escaped from the Remnant Hall and the disappointment based on that grew.

But what if Claidwin didn’t escape alone but received help from this brat?

The same possibility flashed through the minds of the two men. Nellusion unusually tensed, and Abelus shot a glance of anger at Nellusion.

If Neris helped Claidwin, the probability that it was her crime alone was low. The little kid had no reason to help a strange senior in such a bloody state unless Nellusion betrayed.

Abelus asked as a test, “Is there anyone to prove that?”

“No.”

Neris shook her head calmly.

Megara enjoyed that sight. Anticipation for the joy of finally seeing Neris cry unjustly arose in her heart. The excitement derived from the expectation of being able to finally get rid of Neris from her sight.

“Neris Trude, we are currently looking for a criminal.”

Abelus’s choice of words was clearly meant to intimidate the kid. Doubt arose in Neris’s purple eyes.

“A criminal?”

“Yeah. Because a thief broke into the teacher’s office last night. If you don’t tell us ‘really’ where you were last night, you’ll be the culprit, and it’s expulsion.”

Neris, who entered the academy by paying astronomical tuition fees, probably didn’t want to be expelled. Abelus thought he had sufficiently threatened the kid and was satisfied with Neris’s awkward expression.

He believed that he would soon hear the truth, whether it was about the stolen exam papers or Claidwin.

However, to hear the truth, other students in this place were in the way. It shouldn’t be widely known among other high-ranking nobles that the royal family was trying to exterminate the ducal family.

Abelus signaled for the other students to leave. The student council members quickly left the student council room, and the two servants who had been accompanying Idalia and Megara for their mission came inside for a moment.

Idalia regretted following Megara here all the way from this point. She had come here to catch Nellusion’s eyes, but he didn’t even glance in this direction.

Having been unable to sleep properly due to Megara’s plan last night, Idalia, tired, staggered for a moment. The servant, Simon, who was Idalia’s aide, caught her.

“It’s okay, Simon. Let’s go out.”

Simon, Idalia’s aide, had been to Neris’s dormitory twice last night to check Neris’s absence and had put the stolen exam papers in the room.
Midway, Idalia claimed not to have encountered Neris, and since all the work was completed before the lifting of the first-year curfew, Neris wouldn’t recognize Simon, but it took a little time for no reason.

Timid Idalia unconsciously glanced at Neris. Seeing Neris’s eyes slightly widen, Idalia felt uneasy for no reason.

“What’s wrong? Why is she staring at me?”

Neris soon returned to her usual expression. Idalia blinked her eyes a few times in confusion but soon reassured herself.

Yeah, there was nothing Neris could do now. That’s why Idalia lent her the timepiece just as Megara wanted.

Neris’s presence was the strangest and most wrong “phenomenon” in this school. Idalia was a good person, and at first, Megara’s request seemed wrong.

However, for such a wrong thing, maybe it was okay to use a little wrong method.

Yeah, once the problem disappears… she can behave nicely again, just like before. She will go to the temple, pray earnestly, and reflect on her actions.

The door closed behind Idalia.