Chapter - 16

"Even though you managed to finally recover from your cold, you're giving out such an extreme killing intent, Stella-chan."

The one who spoke to Stella without hesitation and sat down next to her was a tall and thin beauty, Nagi Arisuin. From a distance, voices cried out things like

「Aah, Nagi-sama is doing such a dangerous thing….」. That was probably his fan

s.

But however much she was irritated, even Stella would not injure her friends by venting her anger. Simply put, the manner and speech became as rough as usual.

"…Of course I am. Did you think I'd be smiling while they write that nonsense as they please?"

When Stella said "that", she meant the evening paper from that day. That paper which put down tons of lies about Ikki, and wrote herself like some dimwitted girl who was tricked by a villain. Just remembering that page made her guts boil.

"I heard about how harsh it was, but this country's level of mass media is really the lowest, right?"

Stella spat those words out, and….

"Nya ha ha, my ears are burning."

One more person, a female student wearing glasses, sat down on Stella's other side while making an unpleasant face.

"Kagami…."

"Can I join you too?"

"Go ahead. I don't really know why, but this is the only place that's open."

"Nya ha ha, thanks."

Putting down on the table her tray with a lunch sandwich on top, Kagami Kusakabe continued her words with an apologetic expression.

"Well, it's natural for Stella-chan to get mad. For Vermillion's princess to find a lover while studying abroad, it would be a scandal, you know? But for a reporter to disregard a princess's judgment and treat the association between two people as a scandal, it's too rude. This is very much an international problem, you know. …Well, the information would come out understanding that much, probably."

"Oh my? What are you saying?"

"…Well, I have just a biiiiit of a lot of influence with the local newspaper reporters, and was able to use my connections to do some investigation, but as expected the Ethics Committee seems to be exerting some mighty pressure worthy of the organization. It's creating the negative image that the news emphasizing the Vermillion imperial princess's scandal is based on. It's just talk between us here, but it seems the Ethics Committee used their power to bully their way into inserting a special bulletin into the King of Knights formal performance broadcast."

"…Because the KOK is completely bound to the League, they can do such bullying, right? I see."

There was no way to insert a special bulletin into the world's biggest form of entertaniment. Even the occurrence of a shocking death would not give a news event that kind of priority. This kind of move was like thrusting a dagger at their throats. No doubt, it was something inevitable. And that truth given by Kagami, it was evidence of more than just the Ethics Committee, but also a flanking attack from Itsuki Kurogane seriously trying to snatch away Ikki's qualifications as a knight.

"Unbelievable…."

Knowing their seriousness, Stella couldn't stop that word from coming out.

"Ikki isn't just some student! Just to corner him like that, why does Ikki's father, the Japanese branch director, go that far!?"

Moreover, what the heck kind of advantage was there in this? If he denounced Ikki to this extent, wouldn't it also harm the reputation of the Kurogane house? What was the reason for cornering Ikki this far despite that issue?

"Even though Ikki is his son, why?"

"Because he is that kind of father."

The voice that answered came from the opposite side of the school cafeteria table. It came from directly in front of Stella, not unlike the chime of a bell, a small and sweet voice. It was—

"Because he is that kind of man, he did this. And it isn't just what you mentioned."

"Shizuku…."

"Honestly speaking, what Father is thinking, why he has such prejudice against Onii-sama, I can't understand any of it, because that crookedness is beyond my comprehension. But that is why nothing he does seems strange."

While announcing such cold facts dispassionately, Shizuku laid her tray with her Japanese meal set lunch on the table. And she sat down at the table in front of Stella.

While Stella was a little bit hesitant to speak to her when she was like that, Shizuku still spoke as usual. Because Shizuku hadn't shown her face once after the match with Raikiri, Stella hadn't spoken with her since then—

"Umm, Shizuku…. I'm sorry. We haven't talked to you about the relationship."

Stella knew how strongly Shizuku loved her brother. Therefore there was no helping it, whatever kind of attack she'd receive from Shizuku. Stella was content to face it with resignation.

But Shizuku's response was alarmingly light.

"It's not like there's a problem, you know. I mean, I knew about it."

"Eh?"

"I can tell with a glance, you know. That the relationship between you two changed after the night of Onii-sama's debut battle. Isn't that right, Alice?"

"Ha ha, Well, it was delightfully easy to tell."

"Yep, yep. Heck, even I could figure it out."

"Wow…."

Feeling somewhat embarrassed, Stella covered it up. It was probably very easy to tell that they were flirting. In the doom room or the in the forest, they had tried to hide it from casual sight, but….

"Stella-san has her position. Announcing that kind of thing always causes an uproar. It's understandable that you two would think about not bringing such a disturbance during the busy Sword-Art Festival season, and even I would think about the best thing to do. Therefore it's not like we're thinking about blaming you for it. The crucial thing is what you will do after this."

Saying that, Shizuku turned her sight to Kagami who was sitting next to Stella.

"Kusakabe-san. The discussion is moving toward things that people who know my family circumstances to a certain extent would understand, but…."

"Nya ha ha. Clear information is a journalist's life, you know? Well, just as far as the situation goes."

"In that case, I want us to speak our minds without holding anything back, but in this case, it could possibly lead to Onii-sama's expulsion, right?"

Kagami declared without hesitation toward Shizuku's question.

"It is unlikely to, presently."

"Oh my, is that so?"

"After all, Alice-chan. It's not like Senpai and Stella are both doing something bad, right? Even though we just talked about it now, mere news reporters are disregarding the feelings of Stella who is royalty, and rudely calling her relationship a 'scandal', you know. This story was from start to end a 『The Princess of Vermillion found a lover while studying abroad. Eek! What kind of person is he~? Yay yay!』 kind of thing. The company that wanted to forcibly make this a 'scandal' is just instigating a pointless disturbance. With that kind of composition, those people would lack legitimacy after all. At present, they have nothing but huge false accusations. And naturally, those people understanding that much would manipulate this kind of impression, and to do it they'd go trawling for faults by holding an inquiry. Senpai is no fool, so no matter how many times they try to simply find fault in him, they probably won't collect anything, and it's hard to imagine the League headquarters choosing expulsion. Because the League very much considers expulsion a last resort."

"Last resort? Hey, Kagami, what do you mean?"

"The League has never expelled anyone without inquiring about a student knight. To put it in a way Stella-chan can easily understand, look, what about Donrou Academy's Kurashiki-kun?"

"Yes."

"Even with people as notorious as he is, the League's response ends at reprimand."

"…It is extremely light, true."

"I wonder what reason there is for that?"

Kagami nodded, and answered Shizuku's question.

"The knights who receive expulsion, they are generally those who become criminals."

Mage-knights who acquired their license are, of course, Blazers who as student knights considered how to be successful in life using the strength of their superpowers. Those kinds of people, what happens to them if their privileges are permanently revoked? The answer was that they are very likely to become criminals who use their Blazer abilities for unlawful activities. It was a reality that statistics from numerous investigations had already made clear.

"Well, it's natural. Although this is absolutely human nature for those who make such a mess that they are expelled, it's safer to have a chained mad dog than an unchained one, right? That's why the League wanted to lay down the rule that all knights are to be supervised, you know. Receiving that intent from the League, almost every League member nation created laws to proceed that way with all the Blazers in their country. Although Japan has human rights organizations clamoring, and hasn't taken that plunge yet."

In doing that.

"By quickly expelling someone, the League would create criminals with its own hand, and in doing so leave those criminals unregulated. Therefore even the League deals with expulsion decisions very slowly. And in particular, expulsions of student knights who are still in the position of learning and studying are extremely rare cases."

However—

"But this time, it seems that a rare case serious enough for expulsion has arisen. That's why I'm worried, you know. What kind of suffering Senpai is going through right now, and such."

The inquiry is to find fault in how he is responding in attitude and tone; that was the ultimate goal of the Ethics Committee. But if Ikki himself recognized that he had been thoughtless, that would become a truth that everyone accepted. That truth would become strong support for expulsion. Therefore, the Ethics Committee would without a doubt try to get that conclusion no matter the method.

Everyone there sank into silence at Kagami's meek words. The Ethics Committee hearing was going on in deep underground where sunlight didn't reach. That place was Itsuki Kurogane's territory. And the Ethics Committee was a position monopolized by generations after generations of the Kurogane house's bloodline. A sacred ground, so to speak. There was absolutely no one in the vicinity except for people close to the Kurogane house. There was no way that Ikki would receive decent treatment in that kind of place. Though he would probably not receive physical torture like in a true inquisition, they could use methods to run a person down as much as they liked.

The more Stella thought about it, the more her head filled with unpleasant guesses. In truth, she hadn't slept decently for two days. Whenever she closed her eyes, she would imagine what kind of days her beloved was spending deep underground. But that was….

"…Entirely my fault."

If she was just a normal girl. She wouldn't have been used by Ikki's enemies. That kind of unavoidable regret swirled and spread through her mind. She had become Ikki's noose. A restriction on his appearance at the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival, she was hold him back during this important time. That was painful, painful—

"Should I separate from Ikki…."

From Stella's mouth, a few words spilled out in such complaints.

"After all… isn't it my fault? If I were an ordinary girl, this kind of thing—"

"Stella-chan!"

In an instant, what penetrated Stella's ear was Arisuin's voice in a blade-sharp cry. Her spine shuddered at that voice, and Stella raised her gaze, taken aback.

And she became aware.

That the points of icicles as sharp as lances had approached before her eyes.

Stella had already reflexively donned her Empress Dress, and blocked the strike from icy spears by crossing both her arms. But that strike was fast and heavy, lifting Stella's body off her feet and knocking her body into the dining room wall, smashing through it, and blowing Stella's body completely out of the dining room itself.

「Eeeek!」

「Wh-What are you doing!?」

Panic filled the dining room at the unexpected situation. In the middle of the noise, Stella asserted her personal ability that had received the ice spears, and…

*Crack*

…frowned at the pain reverberating through her bones. It seemed that a bone in her arm had been fractured. Stella's flame would seize and vaporize even a rifle bullet, but the best it could do was melt and blunt that sharp spear-point. Only one person here could use water magic to that degree.

"Wh-What are you doing, Shizuku!?"

Stella protected her injured arm, and at the same time roared at Shizuku who was standing imposingly on the table with Yoishigure in one hand. And Shizuku….



"And I ask the same of you. What are you saying?"

Shizuku's eyes flew through Stella's mind, and sent Stella's spine trembling so much it couldn't compare to what it was like not long ago.

Shizuku's tone was quite calm, and that expression was as composed as always. But Shizuku's eyes had a chilly brilliance that Stella had never seen before, and her whole body seemed to be frozen in wrath.

"You, do you not understand the reason Onii-sama has gone along with this farce? For Onii-sama, the option of sticking to silence and not responding to the hearing exists. At any rate, the inquiry is nothing more than an inquisition in name. It is a farce coming to fruition. Those people will not listen to anything Onii-sama says. Knowing this and facing their request, it is because he can't stomach people exploiting the opportunity to cast vulgar intentions on your relationship with him. It is because he thinks the relationship between you two are just that important. If you betray Onii-sama without understanding that―I won't forgive you for it."

That icy fury, it made Stella very conscious of her own slip of the tongue.

"…I'm sorry. I was being stupid just now."

Stella obediently bowed her head to Shizuku.

How could I say such a miserable thing?

To this day, she had never considered her relationship with Ikki to be a mistake. The fact that Ikki was in the middle of the enemy camp, it was proof that even now he was still still proud of their relationship. The enemy's intention was to sow doubt on Ikki's responsibility, and an adult who is called a knight would be able to stand his ground. Therefore, if negative testimony like "it was reckless" and "it was a mistake" was taken, it would be impossible to make an official announcement of their friendship. Because if words like "I am a meager fool who can't take responsibility" were confessed by Ikki himself, those words would become proof.

「Stella, I love you, and I want to say so proudly in front of everyone.」

Ikki was putting into practice the words he said that day as he always did. His love for her was just that strong. In that case, what should she do? To his strong feelings, how should she answer them?

I can't do anything, not a single thing–

That was—

"Sheesh, you two are destroying the school building without a care, aren't you?"

Suddenly, a voice mixed with a sigh came to Stella and Shizuku. The owner of the somewhat husky voice was Kurono Shinguuji, who had weaved her way toward the two of them through the murmuring students.

"I'd like it if someone could also fix the body over here too."

While grumbling under her breath, Kurono came outside through the hole that Shizuku had opened, and she gently snapped her fingers.

Thereupon, the scattered debris of wall material floated up, and installed themselves into the hole that Stella had broken through. It was as if someone had played a video in reverse. In a few seconds, the large hole had been filled in entirely

.

"That should do it."

Nodding her head approvingly at her own work, Kurono turned her gaze from the filled wall to where Stella had fallen. And—

"Vermillion. I have a bit to say about the Kurogane matter. Will you come to the chairman's office?"

She told Stella to come the place where she herself worked.