Oran Knight is out (2/3 chapters for today)
Letter
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A day filled with various events has passed, and we spent our days in an uneasy calm.
During this time, the pairings for the selected teams were announced. Each grade contributes three teams, making a total of nine teams, which were then combined into three mixed teams. Although the announcement was made about the senior team we’d be working with, my mind was elsewhere. At the very least, I noted that Saras-senpai’s team, Eagle, wouldn’t be part of the same team as ours or so I thought.
Even though I was distracted, while Heinz, Maria, Saxon, and Roy, the children of noble families, were busy gathering information, there wasn’t much we could do. That said, I wasn’t simply sitting around waiting for information to arrive. I decided to try contacting someone on my own.
I wrote a letter. The recipient was General Isaiah, who had helped us at the northern fortress over the New Year. I expressed my gratitude for his assistance and asked if the bandits had been captured. I entrusted the letter to an instructor heading toward the fortress. Fortunately, many soldiers from various fortresses come to this academy for rest and recreation, and there were always soldiers returning to the northern front. Therefore, finding someone to deliver the letter wasn’t difficult. Thanks to this, General Isaiah’s reply arrived sooner than expected.
I quickly opened the letter to read its contents. It stated that not only had the bandits not been found, but no leads had been uncovered. After reading the letter, I carefully folded it and placed it on my desk, murmuring.
“Hmm.” (Fort)
The letter raised a troubling question.
In the northern front, which was effectively in a state of ceasefire, where there was an abundance of manpower, how could the seasoned soldiers of the northern fortress fail to find the bandits? If so, what reasons could explain this?
The first possibility that came to mind was that the fortress soldiers weren’t properly searching and that is, they might be secretly in cahoots with the bandits. Hmm. From my impression of General Isaiah, this seems unlikely. Besides, if the northern fortress soldiers were in on it, Beretta-san and the others could have been attacked again on their way back. But Heinz had told me that Beretta-san and the others returned safely.
Other possibilities come to mind, but the next most likely scenario is that the bandits fled north. In this case, there are also a few issues to consider. Even during a ceasefire, the northern conflict zone isn’t a place where dangerous groups can casually come and go. They had a decent number of people.
How could a small troop’s worth of people move across such a tense region…? For example, if there were collaborators in both Rozan and Solar, capable of either pushing through or suppressing any opposition, wielding enough authority to make it happen. If we take this further, though assumptions are risky, if the situation with Rita-san is related, could it mean that Bowman Deran Baxwal is connected to northern nobility?
It may sound far-fetched, but let’s try considering everything under the assumption that Bowman Deran Baxwal is the key figure. Suppose the bandits who attacked us in the north and Gellar Zell are allies, with Gellar Zell acting under Bowman Deran Baxwal’s orders. Then, they targeted the lives of either Lamie-senpai or her uncle. If that’s the case, what is Bowman Deran Baxwal’s goal? It would have to be to prevent the ceasefire. Both Rita-san and Beretta-san were working toward that goal. But in the case of Lamie-senpai and her uncle, is there another reason?
At that thought, something clicked in my mind.
What if, just what if, Lamie-senpai’s uncle, Nork-san, was a “comrade” of Rita-san? In that case, all three would have a reason to be targeted by Bowman Deran Baxwal. But am I connecting unrelated incidents too forcefully?
“…I guess I’ll have to ask Lamie-senpai…” (Lux)
I muttered to myself as I began writing another letter at my desk.
—
The next day, I went to the soldiers’ wing and found Lamie-senpai, Saras-senpai, and Bianca together, as usual. However, upon seeing me, Bianca excused herself.
“I’ve got something to do.” (Bianca)
Watching her leave, Lamie-senpai asked.
“Did something happen.” (Lamie)
I responded vaguely.
Then, I formally told Lamie-senpai.
“I have something I’d like to ask.” (Lux)
Saras-senpai, noticing my expression, offered, “Shall I leave.” (Saras)
Showing his consideration. However, given that I had already shared the story of how we found the Duke Lengrad’s journal at the mansion, I decided it wasn’t necessary to keep this a secret, probably. Rather, I asked Lamie-senpai if it would be okay for Saras-senpai to stay, just in case, regarding her uncle.
“You mean Uncle Nork? Sure, go ahead. Saras doesn’t need to leave. Let’s hear it.” (Lamie)
Prompted by her, I shared my near-baseless speculations from yesterday. It wasn’t a long story, but after hearing it, Lamie-senpai remained silent, her head lowered. As I waited quietly for her response, Saras-senpai placed a hand on her shoulder. She gave a small start, then slowly raised her head.
“…Have you told anyone else about this?” (Lamie)
“No. I thought I should ask you first.” (Lux)
“I see… That’s good.” (Lamie)
“Did I say something wrong?” (Lux)
I asked, concerned by her unusually serious expression.
“Well, it’s not ideal. If a prominent relative of the Via Household were suspected of aiding rebellion, it wouldn’t be a simple matter.” (Lamie)
Realizing my carelessness, I felt ashamed. Of course, such a claim shouldn’t be made lightly. If not careful, Nork-san could face the same fate as Rita-san, detained and accused.
“…I’m sorry. I didn’t think it through.” (Lux)
I apologized earnestly, bowing my head.
“There’s no need to apologize. Honestly, considering Uncle Nork’s personality, what you said is quite plausible.” (Lamie)
She replied, refraining from using the word “rebellion” but continuing.
“And if we consider it that way, your theory cannot be dismissed… All right. Let me look into it.” (Lamie)
“Yes. I won’t mention this to anyone else until then.” (Lux)
“That would help. But if your guess turns out to be true…” (Lamie)
She trailed off before stating firmly.
“It means Bowman Deran Baxwal has declared war on the Via Household.” (Lamie)
Her face bore a fierce smile I hadn’t seen in a long time.
—
In the northern fortress’s office, General Isaiah was immersed in paperwork when a letter arrived. The sender was “Fort Lux,” the grandson of an old comrade. This time, inside the envelope was another sealed letter.
“Another one, huh.” (Isaiah)
General Isaiah muttered, noting he’d only recently sent a reply to this boy. Curiosity piqued, he opened the two letters and began to read. As he was reading, a soldier entered the room, seemingly with something to report. However, Isaiah silenced him with a glance and prioritized the letter. After finishing, Isaiah let out a long sigh.
“What’s the matter, sir.” (Soldier)
The soldier asked after waiting patiently.
With a wry smile, Isaiah responded.
“Sorry, but I need you to run an errand. Just a little trip. To the ‘north,’ that is.” (Isaiah)
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