Trails with Cuddle-Cuddle Osbon
Translator: Tsukii
Editor: Helen
Read at Watashi wa Sugoi Desu!
Author Note:
I got some time to write, so here’s a surprise upload.
I was thinking that I should let it sit for a day and reassess the chapter before uploading it, but this fanfic was born out of impulse to begin with, so I guess the important thing was to keep it at that.
Chapter 55 – Fufufu, son. There’s No Time to Stop [A]
“What do you mean by that!!”
Rean was in the principal’s office, and he banged the table as he confronted Vandyck.
The anger that appeared on Rean’s face was something everyone had never seen before.
Even as Rean’s gaze mixed with killing intent, Vandyck tried to calm him down by speaking in a gentle voice.
“It’s as I have just said. The fragment of Salt Pale was stolen, and Rosine-kun is named as the suspect.”
“And I ask why that is……!”
“Of course, I’ll tell you why. Is that okay, professor?”
“Aah,” said Schmidt standing next to Vandyck with his arms folded.
Even when faced with Rean, whose eyes were fixed on him with fiery pupils, Schmidt continued speaking without showing any sign of being shaken.
“The remains of Salt Pale were basically managed by that witch and I. We moved the box to different locations, and kept them secure with a password key and magic lock, and we always make sure one of us will keep watch when the other was away —— even so, the culprit managed to outdo us.”
“The location was the Old Schoolhouse …… or rather, it was careless of us to choose a spiritual place like that. The culprit interfered with this spiritual place and indirectly used the fragment of Salt Pale to create a temporal singularity. Naturally, we were able to quickly settle the situation, but in order to do so, it was necessary for us to leave Schmidt’s side for a while.”
“That’s what the culprit was aiming for.”
According to Schmidt, it was possible to interfere from a distance by irradiating the area with a special wavelength that interacted with the spiritual field like a sonar.
In addition, the singularity split into two, which sent both Roselia and Schmidt to different locations.
Roselia would have been able to return immediately, but it seemed like the crime was committed while she was rescuing Schmidt.
Upon hearing the story, Rean felt as if it was similar to the singularity that happened in North Ambria.
“I never thought they actually used our barrier against us……”
“Used your barrier against you?”
“The barrier got inverted, and what was meant to be a protective shield was transformed into a singularity that acted as a barrier to seal us off. In other words, the vessel, called the barrier, was being poured water on, called singularity, creating something that served the sole purpose of sealing off our movements.”
Roselia gritted her teeth in frustration.
Rean knew a little about her power, such as controlling his power of ogre.
Furthermore, with regard to tracking, it only had an effect on the box that contained the fragment, and any interference with the actual object was repelled.
The fact that she was outwitted meant that her opponent was just as skilled.
“I suddenly lost consciousness. Thinking back, I must have been forced to sleep. Then when I woke up, I realized that the witch had helped me and that the fragment of Salt Pale had disappeared.”
“The thief was never found, but a broken Templar sword was left behind at the scene.”
“Templar…… sword……?”
Rean didn’t understand why that had come up.
“A Templar sword, you mean a sword with wires attached and can change trajectory……?”
“I heard that, along with a bowgun, is the standard equipment for many Gralsritters.”
“The Gralsritters sometimes even consider murder when retrieving an artifact. The Septian Church may indeed be the guardian of law in Zemuria, but there are some who mistake themselves as the messengers of the goddess.”
Roselia’s words left Rean’s mind blank.
That, does that mean,
That sounded as if Rosine—— Rean’s friend belonged to that group.
Rosine is a member of Gralsritter? A group in charge of rough cases that cannot be made public? A group that sometimes even carried out murder to achieve their goal? That delicate girl is part of that group?
Confusing information swirled around in Rean’s mind.
Rean couldn’t understand why Rosine was being suspected just because a Templar sword was found on the site. It could have belonged to another Gralsritter.
Rean asked that, but the answer he got was cruel.
“This is what was left at the scene.”
“………‥?!”
As Schmidt said that, he turned his gaze at Vandyck, who looked at Rean with a pained expression and placed the broken sword on the table.
Rean recognized it at a glance.
The details that Rean could see from its appearance, such as the condition and location of the small scratches, and the degree of wear on the scuffled handle, proved that it was Rosine’s Templar sword.
“That girl was at the entrance to the old schoolhouse, and was at the scene at the time. Her main weapons were the Templar sword and a bowgun. Finally, a background check revealed that she is actually a member of Gralsritter. It would be impossible not to suspect her.”
The facts left Rean speechless.
Apparently, Rosine was now being quarantined in a certain location as she was the prime suspect.
Even Rean didn’t know the location, and it seemed that Roselia was the only one who knew about it among the people in the room.
“That said, she’s still merely a suspect. Even if she is truly a Gralsritter, she’s too short on personnel to carry out the crime.”
“Does that mean she was being used?”
“That’s highly possible. But there’s no denying that the girl is a member of the church. Her activities of helping in the church is probably just a camouflage while she’s still a student.”
“…………Please let me speak with Rosine.”
“It’s useless. That girl is now in a state where nobody can lay a hand on her. Neither us nor the culprits can do anything to her at this moment.”
“So you’re saying we should just watch silently as Rosine is being locked up over false charges?!”
“Calm down, Schwarzer-kun. I also don’t think that Rosine-kun is the real culprit. But I can’t deny that she is in a position where she can be used as the culprit.”
“……What are you trying to say?”
As Rean was suppressing his emotions, Roselia raised four fingers at him.
“Schwarzer. The time limit is four days. In four days, the Gralsritter summoned by the prince will visit Trista. That girl will be taken in as a witness at that time. If things go wrong, she will be framed as the culprit. As for what will happen after that…… we don’t need to tell you, right?”
“……Unless we find the real culprit within four days, Rosine will be used to cut off the tails as it is?”
“Let me tell you in advance, there’s no point in going to Holy City or the church. There’s no evidence to begin with.”
“The fact is that Rosine is being held captive over circumstantial evidence, isn’t she……!”
“But she’s not completely unrelated to this matter either. She concealed her identity as a Gralsritter. As long as that fact remains, we will not be able to stop the pursuit after her.”
Seeing the adults remaining calm throughout the whole situation, Rean took a deep breath.
He tried to calm his mind through Spirit Unification, but the power of ogre seemed to instead increase in inverse proportion to the aura it emitted.
“Screw it……”
Roselia heard the sound of the pendant she made for Rean crack.
This is bad…… To think he would be so emotional over it. We certainly understand that he can’t remain calm if his friend is in danger, but at this rate, the deterrent pendant won’t last.
Roselia took a step toward Rean.
Roselia considered forcing Rean to sleep and as she was about to take her wand out of space——
[“Fufufu, son. Are you sure you’re just going to do nothing but spread your anger?”]
Osbon’s words were heard only to Rean and Roselia, and the leakage of power of ogre stopped.
As he heard those words, Rean’s fiery eyes returned to their normal color and his breathing calmed down.
{“Rean. You are the only one who can clear up Rosine’s situation.”}
[“Accept that fact and think about what you can do from there. Miss Rose already said so earlier. You have four more days. While you are yelling there, your precious time is running out, you know?”]
Instead of words of comfort from Osbon and Valimar, Rean was greeted with scolding.
[“Above all—— do you really think it is Miss Rosine who stole the fragment of Salt Pale?”]
“There’s no way that’s the case!”
Rean suddenly screamed, leaving Vandyck and Schmidt suspicious.
Therefore, Roselia, who could hear voices of Osbon and Valimar, filled in the gaps.
“What do you mean by your words?”
“Rosine is my friend. That’s the only reason I need to not suspect her.”
“But she didn’t seem to have told you about her being part of the Gralsritter, though?”
“Everyone has their secrets. The difference is whether their secrets would cause trouble to others or not, and Rosine would never cause trouble to others —— I will prove that.”
A flame of determination lit up Rean’s eyes.
As Rean bowed and turned to leave, Schmidt called out to him.
“Schwarzer.”
“……What is it?”
“I’ve equipped the Ashen Knight with a new EX Orb. Go gather some data on it.”
It was a roundabout way of giving permission to use the Divine Knight.
Rean’s voice halted as he realized the professor’s intention.
“……………?……………! I understand. I will submit the data later, so I will excuse myself for now.”
With that, Rean finally left the principal office.
After that, a heavy sigh was heard from Vandyck.
“Phew, I guess that’s a harsh reality for a youngster.”
“So, what’s actually going on?”
“You mean?”
“Don’t play dumb, witch. You really don’t think it’s a Gralsritter’s doing, do you?”
“Umu…… you’ve confirmed that the brat has left, right? It’s okay now.”
As Roselia spoke, there was a knock on the principal’s office.
Vandyck gave his permission and Thomas entered.
Vandyck frowned slightly as he saw the man entering, wearing his usual thick glasses and easygoing smile.
Schmidt even said, “Are you planning to waste more time now?”
“Well~ I heard the details from Roselia-san. For now, let’s talk about the incident.”
After saying that, Thomas snapped his fingers.
In an instant, the room that should have been the principal’s office disappeared and the surroundings were dyed black.
Vandyck gasped and Schmidt narrowed his eyes as the light rose and disappeared into the dark sky like bubbles floating in the ocean.
Above all, a girl dressed in a nun outfit was standing next to Thomas.
The girl’s name was Rosine.
She was the current prime suspect of the theft of the fragment of Salt Pale.
“Rosine-kun?!”
“What’s going on here?”
“I used ‘partition.’ At the moment, only five of us can perceive this space-time.”
“Let us introduce ourselves again,” said Thomas.
“No. 2 Dominion of Septian Church’s Gralsritter, ‘The Partitioner,’ Thomas Lysander. That’s my official title and alias.”
“——I also belong to the Septian Church’s Gralsritter. I am Rosine, an apprentice who supports Sir Lysander.”
Thomas’s cheerful smile suddenly changed to that of a veteran soldier.
Next to him, Rosine, who suppressed her emotions, bowed her head.
“We’ll just say they are the identities of our connections.”
“So basically—— the culprit of this case isn’t Gralsritter? If so, why——”
“There are various circumstances regarding that, but I would first like to explain our current circumstances.”
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