Narsha asked Lizbette, who was still gasping for breath,
"How in the world did you get off the train?"
"Trine and I got off for a moment to look at the herd of water buffalo, and then..."
"Be more careful. You aren't little children."
"Hahaha. Sorry."
Barbara, who was sitting beside Narsha...
No, the fake Barbara carefully asked Lizbette,
"Only the two of you got off, right?"
At that, Lizbette said with a calm face,
"Yes. I did not see any other passengers get off."
The fake Barbara felt a little relieved.
There had been somewhat of an incident, but it seemed her identity had not been exposed yet.
It also seemed Lizbette and Trine did not know that the real Barbara had disappeared.
When the train began shaking slightly, Lilian, who sat across from her, said,
"Ah, it looks like we are finally departing."
If she could enter the grand library with them without being discovered, the mission would be a success.
Just as she relaxed and leaned back in her seat,
A messenger bird flew in.
Then it sat on Lilian's shoulder and spoke in Princess Sia's voice.
"Trine and I got off the train. We will go on a cozy date separately, so please go on ahead."
At that, Lilian shouted in confusion,
"This time, Princess Sia?! What in the world is everyone thinking?!"
The fake Barbara panicked and sprang to her feet.
Could Princess Sia have noticed something and be trying to run away?
If that was the case, she had to chase after her immediately and cast hypnosis on her if necessary.
"Just in case, I'll get off and follow the two of them too!"
"Even you, Barbara?!"
Lilian shouted from behind her, but the fake Barbara ignored her and jumped out of the train.
However, no matter how much she looked around, Princess Sia and Trine were nowhere to be seen.
In the end, the train departed again and left the area.
Having missed her timing, Barbara stared blankly at the train as it moved farther away for a while.
Then she soon realized the truth and screamed.
"I was tricked!"
Left all alone, the fake Barbara collapsed onto the spot.
***
Lying prone in the grass, Trine turned on the camcorder and smiled to himself.
On the camcorder screen, Barbara's despair was being recorded.
Trine murmured inwardly,
'As expected, royal camcorders are nice because they can record clearly even at night.'
All of this was Trine's petty scheme.
First, they would send a false message that Princess Sia had gotten off and lure out the fake Barbara.
In the end, what would the fake do after missing the train alone like this?
She would surely try to tell someone that she had failed.
If they could secretly witness that scene, everything would be resolved.
For that purpose, Trine had taken some risk as well, getting off and immediately hiding.
"All right. Now hurry up and reveal your identity."
Trine murmured as he focused on the camcorder screen.
The fake Barbara spent some time clutching at her own hair and lamenting her situation.
Then she soon stood up and summoned a blue bird with magic.
After that, in a somewhat irritated voice, she began recording her voice into the bird.
"I missed Princess Sia. It seems I was discovered midway. I am sorry, Lord Benheim."
As the fake Barbara recorded the detailed situation into the bird,
Trine diligently filmed with the camcorder and murmured softly to himself.
"Benheim... Benheim... I feel like I've heard that name somewhere."
"He is the director of the grand library."
At the voice that suddenly came from beside him, Trine nearly screamed.
He quickly covered his mouth with his own hand and glared beside him.
For some reason, Princess Sia was lying prone in the same position as Trine.
"Did I not tell you to stay on the train?"
"If I had, then I would have been lying, would I not?"
"You got off the train for a reason like that?"
"Besides, I thought being with you would be safest, Trine."
"Does this look like a joke to y-"
Just then, the fake Barbara tried to walk toward where Trine was.
Trine immediately closed his mouth and flattened himself against the ground as much as possible.
The fake Barbara spun around in front of them and murmured,
"What should I do... At this rate, Lord Benheim's entire scheme will come to nothing..."
At that, Princess Sia quietly laughed beside him and said,
"She is a rather unreliable spy."
"Be quiet."
Just then, a blue bird flew to the fake Barbara from far away.
"It does not matter. As long as you and Princess Sia are safe, the plan can continue."
The bird's voice, presumably belonging to someone named Benheim, gave simple instructions.
Return to the grand library as quickly as possible.
And do not show yourself until it is confirmed whether Barbara truly died.
At those words, the fake Barbara released her disguise.
Pointed ears characteristic of the elves.
Short silver hair tied neatly back.
Large-lensed glasses that made her look older than her young age.
After confirming that appearance, Princess Sia murmured,
"As expected, it was Librarian Dopplezinger, Director Benheim's close aide."
"Do you know her?"
"A little."
Librarian Dopplezinger clapped once loudly.
At that, a spirit beast resembling a deer was summoned.
"Please carry me to the grand library."
Dopplezinger mounted the deer and vanished from sight in an instant.
Only then did Trine stand and murmur,
"Brainwashing magic, disguise magic, and even summoning magic. She's terrifying."
Princess Sia, standing beside him as well, brushed off her clothes and said,
"Librarian Dopplezinger is famous for being excellent even among the elves."
"I will return this to you."
Trine held out the camcorder, but Sia shook her head and said,
"I will give it to you as a gift."
"You just mean you want me to carry it because it is heavy, don't you?"
"Hehe. As expected, you understand my true feelings well, Trine."
"Anyway, what are Director Benheim and Librarian Dopplezinger after?"
Princess Sia paused once before answering.
"Actually, two years ago, Director Benheim sent me a letter saying that he had deciphered the Book of Walpurgis."
"What?!"
"After that, he kept asking me to come to the grand library, saying he would break my curse."
"No, then..."
"Naturally, I ignored all of it. Do you know why?"
Trine scratched his head for a moment and organized his thoughts.
Then he soon murmured as if realizing something.
"The flower of the Unfallen Cactus was said to bloom this year, so it would have been impossible to break the curse two years ago."
"Furthermore, the fact that the flower was needed was top-secret information that Brother Sirean had barely managed to discover."
"In other words, Director Benheim did not actually decipher the book, so he did not know the flower was needed."
When Princess Sia smiled silently,
Trine narrowed his eyes and asked,
"Then does that not mean it is dangerous for you to go to the grand library in person, Princess?"
"Did you know that the authority to lend books from the grand library rests entirely with the director?"
"In other words, he was trying to lure you out, Princess, by holding the Book of Walpurgis hostage?"
"In truth, part of the reason no one has deciphered the Book of Walpurgis yet is because of Director Benheim."
Without Director Benheim's permission, even royalty could not borrow a book.
In other words, because he had not lent the Book of Walpurgis to anyone, no one had even been able to try deciphering it.
"Why the hell would that bastard do something like that..."
"Lord Benheim requested marriage with me as the condition for breaking my curse."
Trine's expression twisted further.
If Benheim's goal really was marriage with Princess Sia,
And if he had monopolized the book in order to personally decipher the Book of Walpurgis,
Then perhaps there would have been no problem.
But Benheim had not actually deciphered the Book of Walpurgis.
"If you die, Princess, then the marriage would be meaningless anyway."
"Then here is the question! Why did Benheim lie and say he succeeded in deciphering it?"
"Why are you asking me that?"
"The hint is Librarian Dopplezinger."
At that moment, Trine's face went pale.
"He plans to kill you, Princess, disguise Dopplezinger as you, and conduct a sham marriage..."
Princess Sia smiled brightly and said,
"Correct! As expected of you, Trine."
"No, why are you only telling me something this important now?!"
"I only realized it today after seeing Miss Dopplezinger."
"Even so, you should have told everyone in advance that Director Benheim was scheming something!"
"To be honest, I still do not trust the other members of the knight department either."
It was only natural that Princess Sia could not trust anyone.
She must have been tossed around by countless schemes and intrigues until now.
That was why she had been waiting all this time for someone she could trust completely.
"I have decided to trust only you, Trine."
Trine glared at Princess Sia and said,
"What do you even know about me? Do you have any guarantee I will not betray you?"
"That is why I went out of my way to test your character during the sports festival."
"No, even so, relying on someone you have barely known for any time at all-"
Princess Sia wiped the smile from her face and said,
"Please. If it is not you, Trine, this is as far as I go anyway."
Trine bit his lip slightly at that line, which he had heard from Prince Sirean as well.
These royal siblings were by no means incompetent or lazy.
Even so, no, precisely because of that, they had decided to rely on Trine.
On Trine, who was a commoner of no origin and only knew how to read grimoires a little.
That surely was not because Trine himself was impressive.
They had simply arrived here after countless attempts, failures, and betrayals.
In front of Princess Sia, who had endured all of that, he could not bring himself to show weakness.
"...Understood. I will make sure to uphold that trust of yours, Princess."
Perhaps Sia had not expected Trine's firm answer, because she looked a little surprised.
Then she soon smiled brightly again.
"Thank you."
"So how should we move inside the library?"
"We should question Director Benheim's crimes and have him arrested."
As long as Benheim was the director, borrowing the Book of Walpurgis would be difficult.
In that case, they had to arrest him and remove him from the director position.
"However, to hold him accountable for his crimes, we need solid evidence."
"Certainly, without evidence, we cannot do anything."
"Furthermore, if I seem even slightly suspicious before then, he will quickly become wary."
"In other words, should we play along with Benheim until we find evidence?"
"I believe that is the only way."
Trine scratched his head and replied,
"Then for the time being, I will pretend I know nothing."
"I will pretend to trust Benheim completely."
"Please do not overdo it. If you die, Princess, everything is over."
At that, Princess Sia smiled brightly and said,
"Yes. I will also keep believing that you will definitely save me, Trine."
After that,
Trine and Princess Sia took the next train from a nearby station,
And safely reunited with Lizbette and the others.
***
Early the next morning.
A tall man in a suit, with somewhat pale skin, welcomed the students.
"Welcome to the grand library. I am Benheim, the director of this library."
Short silver hair slicked straight back.
Pointed ears characteristic of the elves.
And even a slightly arrogant smile.
Director Benheim took Princess Sia's hand on his own and said,
"I am deeply honored that you have finally come all this way to meet me."
At that, Princess Sia smiled softly and replied,
"I apologize for being unable to come sooner because I was busy."
"The fact that you have come now is enough. More importantly, I heard there was a slight bit of trouble on your way here..."
When Benheim glanced at Barbara among the group,
Princess Sia replied calmly,
"It seems someone tried to switch places with one of my companions and infiltrate the library."
"I am glad you are safe nonetheless. Did you find the culprit?"
"Unfortunately, we missed them. Still, with you here, Lord Benheim, surely I will be safe."
At that, Benheim smiled and said,
"Please be at ease. As long as you are inside this library, no one will be able to harm you, Princess Sia."
In truth, there had been a discussion about Barbara before they arrived at the library.
Should they hide Barbara as she was and use her later as a trump card?
However, that idea was rejected for Barbara's safety.
Moreover, the other students still knew absolutely nothing about Benheim and Dopplezinger's conspiracy.
Princess Sia's decision was that they should not invite suspicion by trying to be unnecessarily clever.
"And... you must be Mr. Trine, who became engaged to my Princess Sia?"
Director Benheim stood before Trine.
Then he glared fiercely at him and asked,
"Are you aware that I was the one who proposed to Princess Sia first?"
At that, Trine replied without even twitching an eyebrow.
"Anyway, whoever breaks Princess Sia's curse first will be the one to marry her, won't they?"
"Ho. Are you saying you can break Princess Sia's curse faster than I can?"
"I may not look it, but I know a thing or two about grimoires."
At that, Benheim smiled wickedly and said,
"I have already completed all preparations to break the curse. Did you not know?"
At that, Trine put on a startled expression.
"Eh? R-Really?"
"For a rootless upstart noble to even think of marrying Princess Sia. You should know your place."
Trine sank limply to the floor.
At that, Benheim laughed loudly and turned around.
"You have come a long way, so I will not drive you out. Please enjoy your time here."
Then he took Princess Sia's arm on his own and began pulling her along.
"Then shall we go discuss today's schedule together for a moment?"
"Yes. Let us do that."
Princess Sia smiled, ignored Trine, and began walking with Benheim.
At that, the other students hurriedly followed from behind and whispered.
"What? Can he really break Princess Sia's curse?"
"It is a relief if it works out well."
"But if that director marries the princess, what happens to Trine?"
At those words, everyone honestly could not feel happy.
After all, the love of Trine, who had supposedly been devoted to one person, had been shattered.
Lizbette placed a hand on Trine's shoulder and said,
"A-Anyway, it is fortunate enough that Princess Sia will not die."
"...Yeah."
Trine stood up, pretending to be reluctant.
With his head lowered deeply as if in despair,
He began calmly turning his thoughts inwardly.
'Good. For now, I have succeeded at acting pathetic enough to lower his guard.'
Then he soon took one deep breath and followed the others.
'The real work starts now, so stay sharp.'