Retribution

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At the venue for the academy competition, representatives from participating teams began to enter for the opening ceremony. As students from both countries, especially from the Oran Knight Military School, entered, loud cheers arose from the audience seated around.

Saxon’s Earl Crush and Roy’s Blue Shell were welcomed with applause, but the expressions of the two were tense. Although they were using mock paint bullets, for safety reasons, the audience seats were at a distance that wouldn’t raise suspicion among citizens. Even if any citizens had good visibility, they would have only recognized that the nervous first-year team was anxious.

Saxon and Roy stood at the venue with military nobility accompanying the Deran Household, keeping watch over the event hosted by the Faser Household.

“If you make any strange moves, your captured comrades’ safety is not guaranteed.” (??)

The two stood there with a sense of frustration. They had reached this day without being able to devise an effective plan for Bianca, who had won a medical absence by injuring herself.

While feelings of regret welled up, without any options available, they could only grit their teeth and approach the competition with a calm demeanor to protect their own safety. Compounding the feelings of the two was the presence of Mogi.

Mogi had sold Catrap and casually stated to Saxon and Roy.

“I look forward to working with you on the day.” (Mogi)

In that instant, it was surprisingly Roy who instinctively tried to lash out. Had Saxon not stopped him, there would have been quite a commotion.

Of course, Saxon wasn’t entirely calm either. To be honest, he had thought about striking first before Roy. But at that moment, the face of Noris flashed in his mind. If anything happened to Lux, Noris would be heartbroken. That single thought was what held Saxon back.

However, at this opening ceremony, Mogi was nowhere to be seen. He was likely called away by Bowman Deran Baxwal.

Is Mogi’s absence unrelated to Catrap? What is the reason for not being in this place?

Saxon’s feelings of impatience wouldn’t settle.

In reality, at that moment, Mogi was unable to reach Baxwal and was lying low in the old school building due to Lux’s actions.

Regardless of the intentions, Saxon and the others displayed a flawless formation. After all, they could not show a disgraceful appearance in front of an audience.

Representatives from the Principality of Rozan and the Principality of Solar gathered in one place. In reality, a few members were absent, but still, when they all assembled, several important figures climbed up to the podium set up.

One was the younger brother of the princess of this nation, Follet. Following him were the ambassador of Solar, Minka, and the princess of Lemnos, Beretta, alongside her fiancé, Orfas. Once the four stood in line, Follet raised his hand. The cheers and chatter that had filled the venue gradually quieted down.

Waiting for a certain level of silence, Follet spoke through the amplification stone.

“I am Branza Kuran Follet. As you all know, I am delighted to welcome such a historic day in this land. I wish our nation’s young heroes, as well as Solar’s young heroes, the best of luck!” (Follet)

At the moment Follet began his address, while still standing in formation, Saxon and Roy felt a slight tremor beneath their feet. Then, right before Follet, smoke rose from Mount Paro, and a black mass approached.

This is bad!

Before I could think any further, the black mass drew closer!

But just then…

“DoOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNN!!!!” (Sound)

With a thunderous roar, the black mass exploded in mid-air!

Startled by the sound, everyone in the audience turned to look in the direction of the noise. The shock that shook the air still resonated with a lingering “oooon” sound.

For a moment, Follet was taken aback, but then he said, “…… That was a salute sent from our Principality of Rozan to the princess of Lemnos and her fiancé. It seems a somewhat overeager soldier fired it earlier than planned…” (Follet)

Follet’s light-hearted remark relieved the citizens, and it even sparked small laughter.

“Follet-sama?” (Beretta)

Feeling something was amiss, Beretta asked Follet, who was next to her. Follet, pulling the amplification stone further away, whispered to her.

“…… I’m sorry, but let’s continue with the greetings. However, I believe we have won this gamble.” (Follet)

With that, beads of sweat dripped from the palm of Follet’s hand.

 

—

 

“Baxwal’s figure is nowhere to be seen?” (Lamie)

Having swept away the soldiers of the Deran Household who had gathered around the Oran Knight Military School, Lamie, leading the Via Household’s forces, found herself in a position where the surrendering soldiers of the Deran Household lay scattered on the academy grounds, awaiting the capture of the school building.

In the midst of this, the information came that Bowman Deran Baxwal was missing. They already knew where Baxwal’s room was from the surrendered soldiers, but only a few close aides were present there. Those aides also did not know where Baxwal had gone when he said he would “step out for a moment.”

“The commander fled himself… no wonder there was no resistance.” (Lamie)

As she said, the Via Household had faced little resistance since their entry, and while the Deran Household had managed to regain their footing for a moment, they ultimately fell without substantial opposition. It was likely that by the time they attempted to steady themselves, Baxwal had already fled. In this situation, a military without its commander stood no chance against Lamie.

“Where could Baxwal have gone?” (Maria)

Inquired Maria, who had been waiting in the rear with Lamie.

“Well, Baxwal did not appear to be the type to escape in a military manner. He likely hasn’t gone far. We should send a pursuit party after him later. More importantly, about the situation at the venue… I suspect that explosion we heard earlier was…” (Lamie)

“The positional relationship is strange, so I doubt it occurred at the venue.” (Frank)

“Oh? Hmph! Frank, what a clear assertion.” (Lamie)

“My ears are an essential tool for a craftsman. I make sure not to miss any subtle differences when assembling guns. Therefore, I believe the explosion happened further ahead. In other words…” (Frank)

“Lux did it, I suppose, degozaru.” (Hana)

Hana murmured, unable to contain herself.

“Probably. He really pulls off amazing feats.” (Frank)

Frank’s  words laced with sarcasm, yet he wore an unusually innocent expression as he smiled.

 

—

 

“Fuh~” (Lux)

I let out a deep breath and slowly lowered my beloved gun (Counter).

I’m glad it worked out well.

I was honestly quite tired. This might be the most focused shot I had ever taken.

Once the tension eased, the coldness suddenly brushed against my neck. I instinctively reached for my scarf, only to realize I wasn’t wearing one and chuckled to myself.

I wondered if Sonia and the others, as well as Gellar, are safe. The sounds of battle were gradually subsiding from behind. However, considering that they were getting closer to the school building, it seemed that the attacking side was winning.

I stretched widely and then surveyed the town of Rodon. I was truly relieved that the people of this town were safe. Though I didn’t know many, there were farmers I helped during the harvest festival and people who read our newspaper during the school festival living here. I was really glad.

While I was lost in such deep thoughts, something caught my eye at the edge of my vision. A man, his large frame shaking as he ran through the sparsely populated streets of Rodon. His behavior made it appear as if he was escaping from the academy.

Curious, I looked through the scope again. It was clear from his attire that he wasn’t an ordinary citizen. Most likely, he was a noble. Moreover, the fact that he was fleeing from the academy at this timing indicated a high possibility that he was connected to the Deran Household.

I thought for a moment and peered through the scope again to see his expression. Yeah, he looked quite infuriating. Then, I took out all the paint bullets I had in my pocket and I shot all the paint bullets toward that man.

A little while later, soldiers who had been dispatched to chase Bowman Deran Baxwal, following Lamie’s orders, discovered Baxwal on the street, covered in paint, face down, making strange sounds as he trembled, “keheh, keheh”.

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