Chapter 61: Townsman A Falls for a Scheme

Amy and the Crown Prince’s entourage approached while we were in the middle of lunch with Ana and the others in the cafeteria.

“Anastasia Kleiner von Ramslett. You will fulfill your responsibilities as a noble, won't you?”

With those words, the Crown Prince handed Ana a written order bearing the stamp of the Imperial Seal.

The document read as follows:

Anastasia Kleiner von Ramslett is hereby ordered to be wed to Gunter Werner, Commander of the Est Empire Magic Division.

Ana’s eyes went wide as she read the contents.

“Wh—! Your Highness, I cannot accept an order like this!”

Ana protested, as any sane person would, but the Crown Prince remained utterly nonchalant. In fact, he wore a dark, triumphant smirk.

“As the Imperial Seal has been applied, this is a Royal Command. Refuse, and both you and House Ramslett will be branded as traitors.”

“Ugh...”

Beside him, Amy watched us with a look of pure, smug satisfaction.

Has this girl lost it? Has she reached the point where she doesn't care about the consequences anymore, as long as she can ruin us?

“Take Lady Anastasia to the Royal Palace,” the Prince commanded.

“Understood. My Lady, if you would follow us.”

“Wait!”

I shoved my way between Ana and the knights to block their path.

“Lady Ana!” Margaret cried out, glaring at the Crown Prince. Isabella stood by, trembling and looking lost.

“Calm down, Allen,” Ana said. “I don't believe for a second that Father approved of this. Go to him and tell him what's happened. Margaret, Isabella—make sure everyone knows what took place here today.”

“Ugh… Y-yes, understood!”

I took the written order from Ana and stepped back. Immediately, she was surrounded by the Crown Prince’s knights.

As they began to move, Amy leaned in close to me and whispered in a low voice.

“Too bad for you, right? This is what happens when you overstep your bounds, even though you aren't even a mob character. The Villainess is destined to be violated until she breaks, and then turned into a weapon. Didn't you know?”

Blood rushed to my head. My hand went to my sword instinctively, but Ana’s voice cut through my rage.

“Allen, I’ll be fine. Trust me.”

“Tch...”

I was forced to stand there, powerless, watching the knights surround Ana and usher her into a carriage.

I headed straight for the Duke’s Royal Capital Residence at a breakneck pace.

“Oh? Mr. Allen?”

“It’s an emergency! Take me to the Duke, now! It’s Lady Anastasia!”

“The young lady?!”

I chafed at the seconds lost dealing with the gatekeeper, but I was granted an audience with the Duke almost immediately.

“What is it? What happened?”

“So you really didn't know! Lady Ana... the Crown Prince presented a command stamped with the Imperial Seal. He’s ordered her to marry the Commander of the Est Empire Magic Division! His knights have already taken her away!”

“What?! I have no memory of agreeing to such a thing!”

I threw the order down on the table for the Duke and stood up to leave.

“I’m going to go scatter those knights and bring Ana back right now.”

“Wait!” the Duke shouted, stopping me in my tracks. “This Imperial Seal is the real thing. Besides, the fact that you’re here means Ana told you to come to me, didn't she? I understand how you feel, but stay calm. Even if she was taken in a Royal Family carriage, they'll be heading for the Palace first. It’s impossible to transport her to the Empire immediately without any preparation.”

I glared at the Duke, resenting him for refusing to let me go.

“First, I will verify this order with His Majesty. It won't be too late to act once I have the facts. Even if she’s left the city, we can bring her back as long as we lock down the borders.”

“...”

“Stay here. Is that understood?”

“...”

Leaving me with those orders, the Duke hurried off to his own carriage in a panic.

It was several hours before the Duke returned.

The report was grim. King Vuitol had flatly denied issuing the order, claiming to know nothing about it. The Crown Prince had refused to testify, feigning innocence and claiming he had done nothing untoward. However, half the student body had witnessed him handing the order to Ana.

On the other hand, it turned out that an official overture regarding Ana had indeed been made by the Empire. It had apparently been at the stage where the Palace was just about to consult the Duke on the matter.

In short: the Crown Prince had forged a Royal Command.

Furthermore, the carriage Ana had been tricked into boarding hadn't gone to the Palace at all. It had headed straight out of the East Gate. According to the gatekeeper, the carriage had accelerated to a dangerous speed the moment it cleared the gate, which was the only reason he remembered it.

“That piece of shit!”

“Wait! Allen!”

“You’re too slow!” I barked at the Duke, my temper finally snapping. “What kind of father puts bureaucracy over his daughter’s safety?!”

Blinded by rage, I hurled the abuse at the Duke and bolted out of the residence. I heard him calling after me, but I ignored him.

If anything happened to Ana, I would never be able to live with myself.

I cleared the city gates and immediately launched Vuitol.

I didn't give a damn if I exposed the craft's existence anymore. I pushed the engine to the limit, flying at a dangerously low altitude right above the highway. Compared to Ana’s safety, everything else was a triviality.

Gliding at several times the speed of any horse-drawn carriage, I overtook traveler after traveler. It took less than an hour to catch up to the carriage from the school.

I set Vuitol down several kilometers ahead of its path and geared up to intercept it.

These bastards had kidnapped a Duke’s daughter using a forged document. Legally, that made them no better than bandits. If I killed them all here, no court would convict me.

I waited in the brush until the carriage drew near, then I squeezed the trigger.

The coachman dropped with a single shot. The knights guarding the carriage were thrown into chaos as the horses, startled by the report, began to thrash. Before they could even locate me, I systematically pumped bullets into the guards one by one.

Once the resistance was neutralized, I rushed forward and tore open the carriage door.

It was empty.

No matter how much I searched the interior, the woman I loved wasn't there.

That was when it finally hit me: I’d fallen for a decoy.