Listen to My Lady’s Story Chapter 31

 The heroine felt a sense of confusion.

"We've arrived!"

Maria had just reached the city of Marle. She stepped out of the carriage and stretched her stiffened body, squinting in response to the strong sunlight.

"It took quite a while, didn't it?"

"Sorry, Maria. We could have arrived much faster if I could have borrowed a summoned beast from my father..."

Prince Albert, who disembarked from the carriage after Maria, expressed his regret. They had decided to leave the capital for a trip to the seaside about a week ago. Despite taking breaks in towns along the way, they had been continuously jostled in the carriage, which left them physically fatigued. Albert's apologies were quite understandable, especially considering that if they had access to summoned beasts like Pegasuses, they could have arrived in just half a day.

"It wouldn't hurt His Majesty to be a bit more flexible"

"Summoned beasts are essential equipment for the Knights Order; they shouldn't be used as mere transportation for travel. This is why you're such a musclehead..."

"Oh, really!? Then why didn't you ask your father to lend one?"

"Do you not understand that it would have been impossible!"

After them, Leon and Julius disembarked and began to argue. Leon was the son of the Kingdom's Knight Commander, and Julius was the son of the Prime Minister. They often clashed, but their animosity had lessened, and now they engaged in playful banter. There was a time when not only they but also other harem members had tense relationships, but thanks to Maria's patient persuasion, they had managed to reconcile.

"Hey, you two. It's okay to have fun, but how about we start moving?" 

Those were the words of Prince Wilhelm, the younger brother of the king, as he scolded the playful pair. He was the only adult among the group and had come along as the trip's supervisor. Without him, this journey might never have happened.

"...Maria, shall we go?"

Ignoring the noisy commotion of the others, a timid boy, quite different from the rest, tugged at the hem of Maria's dress. He was Gino, the son of the Kingdom's Chief Magician, and the only junior character within the game. Maria, with a mental age exceeding forty, surrendered effortlessly to the innocent puppy eyes of this younger boy, both in this life and her previous one.

"That sounds like a plan. It looks like Leon and the others are busy, so should we head to the mansion first?"

"Yes.....!"

"""Whaaaat?!"""

As Maria took Gino's hand, he blushed with shyness.

They quickly headed to the mansion, leaving Albert and the others behind as they realized they had been left behind.

"By the way, there are so many different shops here."

After dropping off their luggage at the mansion, Maria and her group decided to explore the town. They arrived quite late, and the sun was already beginning to set, but the city was still bustling with life, which piqued Maria's interest.

"This area is for visiting nobles from outside, Maria. Do you want anything special?" 

Maria recalled the game's scenario and replied, "Hmm... Since we've come all this way to the seaside, I'd like to get a swimsuit."

Maria replied, recalling the game's scenario. She remembered that visiting the swimsuit shop in this town triggered an event. It was a straightforward event where they had to catch a peeping tom shopkeeper, but whether or not they completed this event would have a significant impact on the next chapter, so Maria wanted to make sure they did it.

"A s-swimsuit? Well, in this area..."

However, Albert, who seemed unaware of Maria's intentions, became flustered and avoided eye contact. Indeed, going to buy a swimsuit together might be a challenging proposition for him.

"If it's a swimsuit shop, it should be on the street over there. I'll guide you."

"Thank you, Julius!"

"Grrr...."

Not missing this small chance, Julius took Maria's hand, leaving Albert grinding his teeth. Maria headed toward the desired shop, enjoying Albert's reaction.

"What... is this?" Maria muttered in astonishment as she was led by Julius and arrived at the scene in front of the intended shop.

In front of the target store, knights were standing to seal it off, and a crowd of people had gathered around.

The bustling atmosphere from earlier disappeared in the face of this solemn scene.

"What on earth is going on?"

"Oh, are you nobles? Well, it seems the owner of this store has been murdered."

"Eh.....?"

When Albert asked the gathered people about the situation, Maria's thoughts abruptly stopped at their response.

This event shouldn't have been in the game. In the original scenario, they were supposed to capture the shop owner and gather information about the criminal organization to advance to the next stage. The scenario appears to be in complete chaos.

"What... does this mean?" She tried to make sense of it, but it didn't add up. While there had been changes in the scenario due to Maria's actions before, this was the first time they had arrived at a place where she hadn't done anything yet. Despite that, the scenario appeared to be significantly affected. Could such a thing even be possible?

"Is something bothering you, Maria?"

"Well, um... I'm just a bit frightened by the idea of murder in such a peaceful town."

Albert, misinterpreting Maria's contemplative expression, leaned in with concern for her well-being. Maria, in a state of confusion, couldn't tell them the truth, so she skillfully devised a suitable excuse to navigate the situation.

"Alright, Maria, please wait here. I'll go and inquire about the situation with the knights."

"Your Highness, I will accompany you."

"In that case, I'll join as well. My medical knowledge might be of use."

Following Albert, Leon, the bodyguard, and Wilhelm, the doctor, decided to accompany him. With these two along, it should be sufficient.

"Sorry, we're entrusting Maria to you two."

"Of course."

"Understood..."

With Maria now under the care of the remaining two, Albert and the others decided to make their way through the crowd and approach the knights stationed in front of the store to inquire about the situation.

"Excuse us, but we'd like to know what's going on."

"Y-Your Highness! Please wait a moment, I'll fetch the captain. Captain!"

Upon addressing the knight standing in front of the store, the surprised knight hurriedly went inside and returned with the middle-aged captain.

"Huuh? What is it, especially at such a busy ti... Your Highness!? Why are you here, Your Highness?"

"My apologies. We heard about a murder, and we came to inquire about the situation."

"I see. Anyway, please come inside."

Led by the knight, the captain, who had initially been surprised by the sudden appearance of royalty, quickly regained his composure and guided Albert and the others into the shop.

"Hmm, I heard there was a murder, but it seems the inside of the shop is quite clean."

Albert, after being shown inside, looked around. He noticed various swimsuits on display but didn't see anything particularly unusual.

"The crime scene isn't here; it's in the back in the staff area."

"Can I see it?"

"The crime scene? You'd better not. It's a nightmare. If someone like Your Highness sees it, they might faint."

"Are you implying that I'm weak?"

"I didn't mean it that way. It's just..."

Albert, feeling his pride as a man hurt by the comment, was about to respond, but the captain scratched his cheek with a troubled look.

"Then it would be fine. Don't worry, I've been through my fair share of tough situations. I won't be rattled by something minor."

"It's not exactly 'minor,' but if you insist, I'll show you. Just be ready to step out if you start feeling queasy."

"Got it, lead the way."

Finally, giving in, the captain guided Albert and the others into the back room.

"Ughh.....!?"

Upon entering the room sealed by the barrier, Albert immediately gagged at the overwhelming scent of blood.

"What is this..."

What met Albert and the others was a gruesome sight: a room drenched in blood with dismembered human limbs scattered about. At the center, a lifeless body lay with its insides brutally torn out.

"Ugh... ugh..."

"Your Highness!"

Overwhelmed by the horrifying scene, Albert couldn't hold back his urge to vomit and knelt down. Despite his efforts to suppress the sour sensation rising in his stomach, the gruesome image remained etched in his mind.

"This is worse than I imagined... Leon, take Albert outside. This is too much for you both."

"I'm sorry. We'll leave it to you."

After Leon escorted Albert out of the room, Wilhelm, who remained, donned gloves and approached the bodies to examine them.

"It's not surprising; even our young ones were deeply affected by this sight. Are you all right, Lord Wilhelm?"

"Well, given my profession, I'm used to seeing corpses. However, it's been a while since I've seen something this gruesome."

"You're right. Even bodies torn apart by monsters wouldn't be as horrifying as this."

While conversing with the captain, Wilhelm examined the body. There were no traces of magic on the corpse, and it had been repeatedly stabbed with a sharp blade—likely a knife due to the depth of the wounds.

(Perhaps they first took the magic stone catalyst to render the victim powerless...)

Although there were signs of resistance, there was little evidence of a struggle within the room. The victim had likely been overwhelmed. Judging from the remaining equipment, they were probably a capable magician themselves. Who could have so completely dominated such a person?

"Do you have any leads on the culprit?"

"Not at all."

"Not at all... huh?"

The Knight Order wasn't incompetent, especially in such an important city. The knights stationed here were among the kingdom's best. The fact that they had no leads was troubling.

"Well... there was definitely someone other than the victim in this room, but we couldn't find any traces. They probably went to great lengths to erase any evidence, so there's not much we can do."

The captain sighed in front of Wilhelm. The fact that the culprit could erase evidence so thoroughly suggested they were highly skilled.

"If they're that skilled, maybe we can narrow it down by considering anyone who might have had a grudge against the victim?"

"Indeed, there are several potential suspects, more than one might imagine. It's a bit embarrassing, but this man had a warrant out for his arrest in the capital five years ago due to his involvement with a nobleman's daughter. While hiding in this city, he apparently rigged the dressing rooms with recording crystals to capture footage of unsuspecting women."

"Recording?..."

"Yes, and he was linked to a criminal organization that was secretly selling the footage. Many people might have fallen victim to this guy."

Wilhelm was aware of such crimes, but he was surprised to hear that such activities were happening in an ordinary shop.

"I see... So, it could be revenge from the nobles he wronged or retaliation from the members of that criminal organization."

"All we know for sure is that this man had earned quite a bit of resentment, nothing more."

"I see....."

Yes, this victim had many wounds, but the direct cause of death was having their throat cut at the end.

It seems the victim was alive before that. Maybe the perpetrator didn't kill them right away but chose to dismember their body slowly, causing despair and suffering.

How much could the perpetrator have hated this man?

"Hmm?"

Despite the challenging investigation, as Wilhelm examined the body, he felt something odd in the scars, but he couldn't quite figure it out.

"Seeing a scene like this reminds me of twenty years ago" 

"Oh, you mean the last war with the Empire. Indeed, that was a dreadful time"

In response to the captain's words, Wilhelm looked up. Given the sea of blood all around them and the scattered human remains, it was understandable that this scene would evoke memories of that nightmarish war.

"Oh, Your Highness, were you also part of that battlefield?"

"I was just in the medical unit in the rear"

While peace had been achieved today, back then, the Empire, the Kingdom's arch-enemy, initiated wars nearly every year. That year, what had initially seemed like a minor skirmish had escalated into a quagmire, causing significant damage to both countries. The cause still remained unclear.

However, the Kingdom had lost many skilled nobles, including Duke Azurite, who had been the Commander of the Kingdom's Knights at the time. The Empire had also suffered heavy casualties.

Following the aftermath of that war, peace was eventually brokered between the two nations. However, Wilhelm, who had served as a medic during those harrowing days, couldn't forget the gruesome scenes he had witnessed.

(Yes, this wound is just like the ones I saw back then, caused by Imperial magical tool...)

"──Hah!"

As this realization dawned upon him, Wilhelm began to question his own sanity.

After all, those who typically used magical tool came from a specific background...

──Commoner

So, had a commoner done this?

A mere commoner had killed a noble, and not just any noble, but a former royal magician?

"This can't be..."

Wilhelm muttered in denial, but the evidence laid out before him confirmed that his thoughts might not be wrong. All the wounds on this corpse were inflicted by blades enhanced with the same magical power. Magical devices had the characteristic of emitting a constant level of magic, even though their output was weak. Nobles, on the other hand, would inevitably create fluctuations in their magic when using such tools. Yet, there were no such fluctuations in the wounds on this body. Besides, if they were nobles, they could use their own magic without relying on such tools.

"Did you find anything?"

"No... nothing. I'm sorry I couldn't be more helpful."

"I understand. It can't be helped. Thank you for your cooperation."

"Yeah..."

In the end, Wilhelm couldn't bring himself to share his thoughts with the knight in front of him. He found the idea absurd, and he doubted anyone would believe him even if he did.

But...

(What if, hypothetically, there were commoners who could kill nobles...)

That would become a significant threat to the country. The nobility held positions of power in this nation primarily because of their strength, derived from their extraordinary magical powers. Commoners revered them out of fear of that power. So, anyone who could challenge this norm, an irregular of this magnitude, could have unimaginable consequences for the country.

"........."

There's no concrete evidence; it's all just a wild imagination.

But Wilhelm couldn't help but feel a cold sweat running down his back.

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