Chapter 71

It's difficult to update every day, isn't it? (I'm sorry)

During lunch break the day after someone dropped a potted plant, Cecilia was in the infirmary, opening an old diary and reading the words of the promise written there.

The reason she was there, even though she had no injury to be treated, was—

"Mr. Mordred, do you remember everything from last night?"

"Huh?"

She had suspected that the person who dropped the potted plant might be the Killer.

Mordred, who seemed to be at a loss, made a sound as if he didn't understand. Cecilia, still sitting in the armchair, leaned forward.

"If you don't remember, please tell me! I won't be angry at all! I want to help Mr. Mordred!"

"…I don't really understand what you're talking about…"

Mordred, who didn't know he was the Killer, sighed and took off his glasses to rub his forehead, a habit he had when something troubling happened.

"I was wondering what you'd come in and say… You really do things that are hard to understand all the time…"

"That's…"

"Besides, what do you mean by 'I won't be angry even if you don't remember'? It sounds like you're saying I might have caused you trouble when I lost my memory."

(That's exactly what I mean, Mr. Mordred!)

But she couldn't say that.

Mordred adjusted his glasses with his index finger. His eyes, behind the lenses, narrowed as if he was suspicious of her actions.

Cecilia, not to be outdone by his gaze, pressed on.

"Anyway, where were you last night?"

"Last night? Emily, Grace, and I were having dinner together…"

"By the way, from what time to what time?"

"…We gathered before six and stayed until around eight, I think."

(It seems to overlap with the time…)

She didn't have a watch, so she couldn't be sure of the exact time, but since she had parted with Lean after six, the potted plant must have been dropped after that.

(Then, the person who dropped the potted plant might not be the Killer…)

She thought that for a moment, but at this stage, the only person who might harm the candidate for the priestess was the Killer. Of course, this assumption was based on the idea that 'if the Killer is still in Mordred…'

"Then, did you notice anything strange during dinner, like a lot of time passing or being in a different place?"

"No, I didn't."

"Really?"

"…Really."

The voice wasn't from Mordred in front of her, but a woman's voice, several tones higher and calmer than his.

Cecilia turned her head toward the source of the voice. There, Grace was standing with one eyebrow raised, closing the door behind her while holding a man's coat.

"Ah, Grace!"

"What are you doing here, Cecil?"

Grace approached her with a look of exasperation, and Cecilia stood up to greet her.

"What are you doing here, Grace?"

"I came to return this."

She held up the man's coat and handed it to Mordred, saying, "Thank you."

"I borrowed it from Mr. Mordred last night. He said it might be cold."

"Oh, I see!"

"That's why I said we were having dinner…"

She wasn't really suspicious of that, but she nodded in agreement with Mordred's explanation.

Cecilia put her finger to her chin and thought.

(But if that's the case, it wasn't really the Killer, was it?)

Grace's appearance had made the Killer's alibi perfect. If the Killer wasn't in Mordred, that was a good thing, but then who dropped the potted plant yesterday? She couldn't figure it out.

"Did something unexpected happen?"

Seeing Cecilia's thoughtful face, Grace whispered to her in a voice only she could hear. Cecilia nodded, and after a moment's thought, Grace took her hand.

"Huh?"

"Let's talk over there, Cecil."

"O-Okay!"

"Hey! You two!"

Mordred, confused by what was happening, briefly stood up, but when he realized they weren't stopping, he slumped back into his chair.

"What is going on…"

His complaint didn't reach the two of them, who had already left the room.

A few minutes later, the two of them were in the back of the school building, a damp and deserted area where no students would go, the same place where Zwey and Coco had been saved before.

Leaning against the wall, they talked.

"…Something happened. I thought the Killer might have appeared again, so I came to Mr. Mordred…"

"I understand the situation, but you really did something dangerous."

"Dangerous?"

Grace narrowed her eyes at Cecilia's puzzled expression.

"Didn't you think that if the Killer was still in Mr. Mordred…?"

"Oh…"

"Especially, going alone. That's like asking to be killed. It's suicide."

"True…"

If the Killer was gone, there would be no problem, but if the Killer might still be there, the situation would be completely different.

Being killed on the spot after starting a conversation.

The Killer was a character who could do such things.

"Well, in the end, it seems the Killer is no longer in Mr. Mordred, so there's no problem. But I'm surprised Gilbert allowed such a plan."

"Eh? Gilbert?"

"I thought he would have stopped you when he heard about the plan…"

"Wrong assumption, huh?" Grace continued. It seemed that in Grace's mind, Gilbert was in the position of Cecilia's watchdog.

Cecilia scratched her cheek with a troubled look.

"Well, actually, I haven't told Gilbert yet."

"Eh?"

"You know, I don't want to worry him unnecessarily. So, I thought I'd investigate on my own first and then discuss it with him later."

The moment she said that, Grace's eyes hardened, a look of anger rather than exasperation.

"That's exactly what makes you more worrying."

"But Gilbert has been busy lately…"

Maybe because they were talking about moving back to the Colson family, he had been busy lately. Even though it was a time when she needed to think about her future, he couldn't be bothered with her, an incompetent step-sister.

"If that's the case, you should have asked Oscar to come with you. He would be happy to help you if you asked."

"But Oscar seems busy too. Besides, it would be awkward."

"…Do you really want to protect your own life?"

Cecilia scratched her cheek with a wry smile at Grace's tense expression. Grace sighed and said, "Well, never mind."

"Anyway! The person who dropped the potted plant is not the Killer. I guarantee it."

"Okay…"

"Besides, wasn't it just an accident? Maybe they dropped the potted plant by mistake and felt awkward, so they ran away."

"I thought about that too…"

The eyes that looked at her after the potted plant was dropped seemed to contain some negative emotion.

(But it's all just my intuition, I guess.)

If it was an accident, that would be better. As long as it doesn't happen again.

Grace stepped away from the wall.

"Anyway, if you really want to find the culprit, it's more efficient to work with others. There are many people who would help you if you asked, so you should use that."

"Okay, I'll talk to Gilbert."

"Good."

Just as the conversation was winding down, something suddenly fell on Cecilia's head, blurring her vision.

"Huh?"

The moment she realized it was water, an empty bucket fell on her head.

"Ah!"

With a sound like metal being kicked, Cecilia crouched down. The next thing that hit her was a wave of heat.

"Hot! This isn't water, it's hot water!?"

"Are you okay!?"

Grace, sounding worried, knelt down next to Cecilia and checked her skin, noticing the warmth of the water on her knees.

"Any burns!?"

"I'm fine. It wasn't that hot…"

Cecilia laughed and looked up, but the nape of her neck, which had been directly hit by the hot water, was bright red.

"It might be a good idea to cool your neck, just in case."

"…Okay."

Grace looked up from where Cecilia was crouching and narrowed her eyes at the window above.

"It seems that someone really is targeting you, Cecilia…"

The second volume of the manga adaptation will be released on December 28th.

Thank you very much.

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