1. TLed from: https://www.wenku8.net/novel/2/2542/index.htm
2. V6c0: https://pastebin.com/EWw4Wmuy
3.  
4. Chapter 1: Enter "Jack The Ripper"!
5.  
6. Dawn came for Christina in the Hope Manor, located within the royal capital of Midgar.
7.  
8. For her, sleeping in the dorms or at home was essentially up to how she felt that day. Recently, however, she had been spending all her nights at home.
9.  
10. This was not a question of her mood, but a matter of self-defense.
11.  
12. “So it’s morning already, huh…”
13.  
14. After noticing the rays of sunlight filtering in through the gaps in the curtains, Christina looked up.
15.  
16. There were faint black circles under her eyes. It would seem the details of the incident had been haunting her dreams.
17.  
18. Christina placed her pen on the table and vigorously stretched herself.
19.  
20. Then, she picked up her notes and sighed.
21.  
22. “It would seem that getting her found guilty will be very difficult, huh…”
23.  
24. While these notes summarized the critical facts and testimony of the incident, under the present circumstances, Eliza’s actions would be judged as an accident and not as a criminal case.
25.  
26. A group of teenage students had been embroiled in a life-threatening terror attack, and under the immense pressure they had lost their cool and an unfortunate accident had occurred.
27.  
28. Apparently that was the angle they were going with.
29.  
30. “Gete Mono is the one hiding the evidence and fabricating the facts. I can’t believe the “Thirteen Night Blades” have so much influence.”
31.  
32. Since concealing and falsifying evidence was their stock in trade, she had no doubts that they would commit murder without hesitation if the need arose.
33.  
34. In truth, Christina could sense an unsettling presence around her, which was why she was sleeping in her family manor.
35.  
36. “The rot is growing. I can’t do anything about it with my power alone. Even if I mobilized the power of the Hope family…”
37.  
38. Her father had shown no interest in the matter. “What good would helping a minor noble’s daughter?” he had said,
39.  
40. Everyone had chosen to avert their eyes from the matter of the corruption.
41.  
42. It was precisely because The Thirteen Night Blades had their power that their brutal ways had been overlooked.
43.  
44. “I need… more power…”
45.  
46. Whether it was authority, force of arms, wealth, or the backing of a powerful organization… as long as you had power, you could do anything you wanted. That was the state of this country now.
47.  
48. “What good would helping a minor noble’s daughter… huh?”
49.  
50. It would not affect the situation at all.
51.  
52. The world would not change because of it.
53.  
54. As a noblewoman, she understood that what her father said was correct.
55.  
56. However, that did not imply that she had accepted such a fact.
57.  
58. She could not accept this sense of powerlessness, of being unable to punish someone that had blatantly committed wrongdoings.
59.  
60. Neither could she accept the disappointment of not being able to help the girl who had come to her for aid.
61.  
62. Not even Christina knew how to deal with those feelings.
63.  
64. Could she slay those evildoers if she had enough power?
65.  
66. For instance… yes, if she had Shadow’s power.
67.  
68. Christina envisioned how she would use that overwhelming might to defeat the Thirteen Night Swords, to cut down the wicked, to protect the weak and to defend the nation.
69.  
70. At that point, Christina couldn’t help but laugh at herself.
71.  
72. “...I should just forget about it.”
73.  
74. This would only make her more miserable.
75.  
76. She exhaled heavily and closed her sleepy eyes.
77.  
78. After that, in order to take her mind off the subject, she put the documents on Eliza and the Thirteen Night Swords back into her drawer and took out another set of documents.
79.  
80. “Shadow… and Shadow Garden…”
81.  
82. The new set of documents Christina had retrieved contained what she had managed to learn regarding Shadow Garden.
83.  
84. “Shadow Garden’s activities were only discovered a year ago, but their detailed situation is unclear. Back then, Shadow was regarded as the organization’s leader… but the details on that are also unclear. They really are a collection of mysteries.”
85.  
86. She flipped noisily through the documents.
87.  
88. They contained many abandoned arrest warrants and newspaper cuttings.
89.  
90. “The information collection in the northern part of the kingdom isn’t very good. Even though Shadow has been confirmed to be active in the region, the number of portraits of him are few and the quality of those are poor.”
91.  
92. As she grumbled to herself, Christina’s mood improved as she read through the documents.
93.  
94. “With a weighty mission on his shoulders, he walks along a blood-drenched road, unable to return to the sunlit world… Yet they are able to strike down evil, unlike us…”
95.  
96. And then she laughed at herself again.
97.  
98. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
99.  
100. “I’m coming in.”
101.  
102. A middle-aged man entered the room.
103.  
104. Christina used her skills as a magic swordsman to their greatest extent and slipped those documents back into her desk with all the speed she could muster.
105.  
106. “Good morning… Father…”
107.  
108. “Not getting enough sleep, are you, Christina?”
109.  
110. “No, I was just thinking about some things. Is something the matter?”
111.  
112. “I believe you know well enough not to anger the Thirteen Night Swords. Becoming enemies with them will be very troublesome.”
113.  
114. “...”
115.  
116. Christina nodded silently. This was the only form of resistance she could muster.
117.  
118. “Things are going to become unstable soon. If we do anything foolish, not even I can tell what will happen to the Hope family.”
119.  
120. “Father, what exactly has become unstable?”
121.  
122. “Ah, I didn’t tell you, did I?”
123.  
124. Her father sighed before continuing.
125.  
126. “Gete Mono is dead.”
127.  
128. “Eh…”
129.  
130. “All the nobles are in an uproar. The Night Swords are out for blood. The entire royal capital has become unstable.”
131.  
132. Christina watched as her father left, and quickly proceeded to the scene of the crime after changing her clothes.
133.  
134. ========================================================================
135.  
136. Alexia was pacing back and forth in the Mono Manor.
137.  
138. “There are bloody footprints here too…
139.  
140. A set of reddish-black footprints continued down the carpet.
141.  
142. “Alexia-hime, please do not touch the crime scene. The evidence hasn’t…”
143.  
144. “I know that.”
145.  
146. Alexia glared at the knight watching her.
147.  
148. “Alexia-hime!!”
149.  
150. Alexia turned back to look at the person who had called out to her.
151.  
152. “Christina.”
153.  
154. There stood Christina, the person she had come to know during the previous incident.
155.    
156. “I heard Gete Mono was dead… What happened here?”
157.  
158. She tried to calm her breathing as she asked her question.
159.  
160. “It looks like someone killed him. The knight orders are investigating the scene.”
161.  
162. “I see…”
163.  
164. “Since I can’t enter the crime scene yet, I’m investigating the corridor.”
165.  
166. “The corridor?”
167.  
168. “Yup. Don’t you think these footprints are really weird?”
169.  
170. Alexia pointed to the bloody footprints on the corridor as she spoke.
171.  
172. “You mean how they’re very clear?”
173.  
174. “That’s strange too, but what’s even more strange is how the culprit didn’t seem worried at all. They had already killed several people, but they were still walking like everything was normal.”
175.  
176. Alexia began walking at the same pace as the footprints.
177.  
178. “Or rather, they seemed to be moving very slowly.”
179.  
180. “That’s really strange, right? Normally, people would take the opportunity to flee. Maybe they’re wrong in the head or something.”
181.  
182. “Perhaps they were absolutely confident of not being caught or something.”
183.  
184. “...You might not be wrong.”
185.  
186. “What do you mean?”
187.  
188. “Gete Mono was silenced by the Thirteen Night Swords.”
189.  
190. “You mean…”
191.  
192. “He stood out too much in this whole affair, so it wouldn’t be strange if he was eliminated.”
193.  
194. “But why did they pick this time to do it…”
195.  
196. “That’s the part that I don’t get…”
197.  
198. Just as the conversation stalled out, the knight on sentry duty called out to Alexia.
199.  
200. “Alexia-hime, we have permission to enter the crime scene.”
201.  
202. “Let’s go, then.”
203.  
204. “Alright.”
205.  
206. ========================================================================
207.  
208. The knight supervisor guided Alexia and Christina to the scene of the crime.
209.  
210. “I am the site supervisor, Gray of the Knight Order Investigation Branch. Please refrain from touching the corpses or moving anything.”
211.  
212. “Understood.”
213.  
214. “I will be carrying on with my work, then. Please inform me if anything happens.”
215.  
216. “Yeah.”
217.  
218. The first thing that hit them upon entering the room was the incredible stench of blood.
219.  
220. That was only to be expected.
221.  
222. There were several corpses beyond the doorway, and further within was Count Gete Mono, face up with blood flowing down his head.
223.  
224. “He died from a single strike between his eyes. However, the murder weapon was quite unusual…”
225.  
226. Alexia said this as she squatted by the corpse.
227. There were other members of the knight order working hurriedly around her.
228.  
229. Christina stood dumbly at the entrance to the room.
230.  
231. “What’s wrong, Christina? You can come in.”
232.  
233. “Huh? Ah, okay.”
234.  
235. Christina snapped out of her daze and then hurriedly entered the room.
236.  
237. “If you’re not feeling well, you should go back.”
238.  
239. “No, I’m okay. So that thing on the corpse’s skull is… a poker card? It’s design seems pretty unusual too.”
240.  
241. Christina tilted her head as she spoke.
242.  
243. “That’s a high-end poker card made by Mitsugoshi. It might even be a limited-run item.”
244.  
245. “In other words, we can find out who the buyer is.”
246.  
247. “Who knows? For a company of Mitsugoshi’s size, even a limited production run might still contain thousands of items.”
248.  
249. “Looks like we’ll have to spend a lot of time on this, then… Is that an ace of spades?”
250.  
251. CHristina murmured to herself as she looked down on Count Gete.
252.  
253. The count had died with his eyes wide open and a stunned look on his face.
254.  
255. Between his eyes was a poker card, the ace of spades.
256.  
257. The skeleton knight picture on it seemed to symbolize his death.
258.  
259. “Why did they go out of their way to use a poker card… Count Gete had scored quite well in the academy’s tests. Yet someone used this paper card and stabbed it right into the head of a capable magic swordsman, You’d need a lot of mana for that.”
260.  
261. “Normal paper sheets have less than a 10% mana conduction rate. You can’t compare it to mithril at all. Also, extreme mana control techniques are needed to suppress this resistance. Why would they go out of their way to do something so troublesome?”
262.  
263. “Who knows? However, this cuts down on the range of suspects. The enemy is a magic knight with great mana and great mana control.”
264.  
265. “In that case, this might not be a simple murder. Because normally speaking, a killer wouldn’t go out of their way to use a poker card.”
266.  
267. “They’d have gone for a more efficient method, yes.”
268. “I guess they must have had something in mind. A lot of things don’t make sense, from the poker card to the footprints. Perhaps there’s some kind of message hidden here that only people in the know would understand.”
269.  
270. “Maybe it’s a warning, or a grudge, or something else… It could be a lot of things.”
271.  
272. The two of them fall silent for a while as they stand in front of the corpse.
273.  
274. A knight’s voice breaks the silence.
275.  
276. “Did you say there was a witness? Really?”
277.  
278. The speaker was Gray, the Knights’ supervisor.
279.  
280. “Yes. It seems the servants were only knocked out. By the time they came to, they said they had seen the culprit.
281.  
282. “So what did they look like?”
283.  
284. Alexia and Christina turned to listen.
285.  
286. “Well… It seemed to be a bloodstained clown.”
287.  
288. “What? A bloodstained clown?”
289.  
290. “They all said something along the lines of “a bloodstained clown suddenly showed up in front of me and then everything went dark. By the time I woke up, it was morning.” Since all the testimonies were the same, I doubt they’re wrong.”
291.  
292. “...In other words they didn’t see this clown’s face, then?”
293.  
294. “Yes. They said the clown’s face was hidden by a mask. Although the clown seemed very tall, it might have been due to his clothing.”
295.  
296. “Is there anything else?”
297.  
298. “No… We asked around the neighborhood, but we haven’t found any other eyewitnesses yet.”
299.  
300. “Keep asking, then. Since our culprit is dressed as a clown, he should be very distinctive. Seriously, what kind of joker is this, anyway…”
301.  
302. Gray sighed as he watched his men leave.
303.  
304. “So our killer dresses up as a clown and uses poker cards as a weapon. I can’t make any sense of it.”
305.  
306.  
307. “Oh my, if it isn’t Alexia-hime. Eavesdropping is rude, you know.”
308.  
309. Gray frowned.
310.  
311. “I believe the perpetrator was sending a message. What do you think, Chief Gray?”
312. “Alexia-hime, there’s no need to overcomplicate things. This was a simple killing.”
313.  
314. “Simple?”
315.  
316. “The killer was a wealthy man who hated Count Gete. He spent a lot of money to hire a skilled killer, but the killer turned out to be a crazy murderer. That’s all. Outsiders often overcomplicate things, but human motivations are actually very simple. Leaving messages behind and whatnot is the stuff of Natsume-sensei’s novels, like the Charlock Homes series. Do you like reading those, Alexia-hime?”
317.  
318. “No, I don’t…”
319.  
320. “They’re pretty interesting. I actually bought the full set myself. Thing is, they’re interesting because they’re stories. Real life, however…”
321.  
322. “I told you, I don’t read Charlock Homes novels or whatever! Why should I be interested in that woman’s stuff?!”
323.  
324. “Oh my, then are you a fan of Detective Conyan? You know, the one where the famous detective is turned into a cat by a dangerous experimental potion…”
325.  
326. “Like I said, I am not! I was just worried if there was someone else behind this matter!”
327.  
328. “I see. In that case, you don’t need to worry. Like we said earlier, we’ve finished painting a picture of the culprit. A wealthy person who hates Count Gete… Like Christina-san, for instance.”
329.  
330. Chief Gray had a smug smile as he said so.
331.  
332. “How could it be? It wasn’t me!!”
333.  
334. “Ah, but you panicked. By the way, I’m not the only one who suspects you.”
335.  
336. “What is that supposed to mean?”
337.  
338. “I’m talking about those people. You should understand, right?”
339.  
340. “Is it the Night Swords…”
341.  
342. “Alright, I ought to get back to work. I need to properly collect evidence to catch the perpetrator.”
343.  
344. Chief Gray turns away as he utters that iconic line.
345.  
346. “There can only be one truth… Natsume-sensei’s books are quite interesting, so please give them a read.”
347.  
348. With a gahaha laugh, Chief Gray vanished into the distance.
349.  
350. “I have to say, the person who should be happiest that Count Gete Mono was killed ought to be you.”
351.  
352. “LIke I said, it wasn’t me!”
353.  
354. “Of course I know that. But that’s how it looks to the people of the world. Be careful.”
355.  
356. “Looks like the Night Swords have their eyes on me.”
357.  
358. “I wish I could help you out more… But it’s not good for the royal household to interfere in legal matters.”
359.  
360. “It’s alright, I understand your situation, Alexia-hime. All you need to do is speak up for me when giving testimony.”
361.  
362. “Sorry about that.”
363.  
364. “There’s no denying that Count Gete’s death was useful for me. I’ll think about how best to make use of this.”
365.  
366. “Perhaps it might help at trial.”
367.  
368. Christina nods.
369.  
370. “Alexia-hime, there’s something I need to show you.”
371.  
372. “What is it?”
373.  
374. Guided by Christina, Alexia walks over to Count Gete’s desk.
375.  
376. “There are coffee stains on the table.”
377.  
378. “Yes, as well as fragments of a cup everywhere. However, I think it’s natural that the contents would be splashed on the desk, right?”
379.  
380. “But what about this shape? There’s a neat, rectangular mark here.”
381.  
382. “I see! So you’re saying that there used to be something here, right? Like a document or something…”
383.  
384. “The document was splashed with coffee, and then someone else took it away. That left a rectangular coffee stain that looked like it had been cut off. That makes more sense.”
385.  
386. “But the crime scene ought to have been undisturbed.”
387.  
388. “In that case, did the culprit do it, or the knights?”
389.  
390. Christina lowered her voice as she said so. Alexia’s face turned serious.
391.  
392. “Looks like it might be dangerous to trust the knights. Let’s both keep our eyes open.”
393.  
394. “Yes. You take care too, Alexia-hime.”
395.  
396. The two of them looked around the scene quickly, and then left.
397. ========================================================================
398.  
399. After school that day.
400.  
401. Christina was waiting in a Midgar Academy classroom to discuss the incident with Kanade.
402.  
403. Kanade was the girl who had revealed Eliza’s villainy during the white fog incident. Naturally, the Night Swords were hostile to her.
404.  
405. “S-Sorry to keep you waiting, Christina-san.”
406.  
407. Kanade looked extremely timid as she eyed her surroundings.
408.  
409. Although the classroom still contained some students who were preparing to go home, she had to consider that the Darkaigan Faction might have decided to take extreme measures.
410.  
411. “Have you heard about what happened this morning, Kanade?”
412.  
413. “Yes, I did. I didn’t expect that to happen to Count Gete Mono…”
414.  
415. “The situation has changed now, both for the better and for the worse.”
416.  
417. “It’s changed for the worse?”
418.  
419. “Yes. They have their eye on you now. There’s no doubt about it.”
420.  
421. “...!”
422.  
423. Kanade’s face turned pale.
424.  
425. “You were not in danger until now because the Darkaigans were still taking things easy. There was no need for them to take a risk and do anything to you. However, Count Gete’s death has changed that.”
426.  
427. “So it’s become bad for them now… Is that what you’re saying?”
428.  
429. “Yes. As a result, they can’t just sit around and react anymore. Of course, they might have their eye on me too. Therefore, I have a suggestion for you, Kanade.”
430.  
431. Christina was just about to continue, when…
432.  
433. “Uwaaaahh?! W-What’s that!!”
434.  
435. The pathetic cry of a male student filled the classroom.
436.  
437. “...Did something happen?”
438.  
439. Christina directed her words at the student who had screamed just now.
440.  
441. Right now, Christina, Kanade and the male student who had screamed in that pathetic way were the only three left in the classroom.
442.  
443. “C-Christina-san…”
444.  
445. The black-haired boy frantically turned around.
446.  
447. He was holding something that looked like a document.
448.  
449. “You must be Claire Kagenou-san’s little brother… You’re Cid Kagenou, aren’t you?”
450.  
451. Christina spoke his name like she was squeezing something out of her memories.
452.  
453. He was an ordinary male student, but there had been much talk about him, so she had remembered his name.
454.  
455. “Ah, yes. Please take a look at this. Something fell here.”
456.  
457. “What is that…”
458.  
459. It was a stained document.
460.  
461. There were two kinds of stains on it, black ones, and reddish-black ones.
462.  
463. The black stains smelled faintly of coffee, while the reddish-black stains also smelled faintly of something… namely, blood.
464.  
465. “This is…”
466.  
467. Christina’s face tensed up the moment she received the document.
468.  
469. It contained a summary of the dealings involved with the Eliza case, as well as the fees for covering the matter up, as well as a list of people who were involved and their interests in the matter.
470.  
471. There was no doubt that this was the document that had gone missing from the crime scene of Count Gete’s death.
472.  
473. Christina hurriedly looked around to make sure nobody else was around.
474.  
475. “Cid-kun, where did you find this?”
476.  
477. Christina lowered her tone as she asked him.
478.  
479. “Ah, I saw it peeking out from that shelf over there… I was wondering if someone had forgotten something.”
480.  
481. That was a classroom shelf. Every student had their own slot on it. Cid was pointing to Christina’s slot on the shelf.
482.  
483. “It was from my slot…!?”
484.  
485. “Ah, so it was your slot, Christina-san. Sorry I just went over and…”
486. “No, I’m glad you noticed this.”
487.  
488. “Yeah, fortunately you didn’t forget to take it.”
489.  
490. “Cid-kun, did you see what was inside it?”
491.  
492. “Huh? Ah, I kind of glanced inside it.”
493.  
494. “I see… So you read it, then.”
495.  
496. Christina lowered her voice again.
497.  
498. “Ah, would it be a very bad idea to read that document?”
499.  
500. “Yes. It would be a very bad idea to know what is inside it.”
501.  
502. “Well, I just glanced inside, so I basically didn’t read it. That’s it then, see you tomor…”
503.  
504. “Wait!”
505.  
506. As Cid prepared to make his exit with surprising speed, Christina grabbed him by the collar.
507.  
508. “I”m sorry, but I can’t let you go.”
509.  
510. “Eh… But that’s not fair.”
511.  
512. Cid sounded very put-upon as he said this.
513.  
514. “It’s for your own good. You don’t want to get your head chopped off in your sleep, do you?”
515.  
516. “But why? Are you going to chop my head off?”
517.  
518. “No, I won’t. But there’s no telling if anyone else saw you. If they knew you read this, they’d probably want to cut your throat.”
519.  
520. “They? I don’t quite know what you mean, but I think it should be the fault of the person who put this document on the shelf.”
521.  
522. “I didn’t put it there.”
523.  
524. “Huh?”
525.  
526. “I don’t remember putting a document like this on the shelf.”
527.  
528. “In that case, who could it be…”
529.  
530. “Someone who wanted me to see this document.”
531.  
532. An indescribable sense of silence and unease chilled the air in the classroom.
533.  
534. There was a person here who had stolen an important document from the scene of the crime, and then they had deliberately placed it in Christina’s shelf in the academy.
535.  
536. Perhaps that person was watching them at this very moment.
537.  
538. While she hadn’t done anything wrong, she couldn’t help but feel a little spooked because she didn’t know who this person was or their true identity.
539.  
540. “Hey, isn’t there something written here?”
541.  
542. Cid suddenly said.
543.  
544. “What, what did you say just now…”
545.  
546. Cid should only have been able to see the back of the document from where he was standing.
547.  
548. “There are red and black smudges on the back… But if you look closely, aren’t they words?”
549.  
550. “This is…?!”
551.  
552. After flipping the document over, she found that someone had written something on the back in blood.
553.  
554. However, the smudging had made it hard to read…
555.  
556. “Jack the Ripper. Is that a name…”
557.  
558. “Maybe that’s the guy who put the document on your shelf, Christina-san.”
559.  
560. “Who is this… And why did he send it to me…”
561.  
562. Christina held her breath and began to think.
563.  
564. “Anyway, I need to go back.”
565.  
566. “Please wait.”
567.  
568. Christina grabbed Cid before he could flee.
569.  
570. “Ah, I’m kind of worried about how my big sis is still in a coma. I want to get back and look after her as soon as possible…”
571.    
572. “I know about your sister’s condition. But for your safety, I can’t let you go back.”
573.  
574. “I can take care of myself.”
575.  
576. “If I’m not wrong, your grades are only the lower end of the spectrum, right? I’m saying this out of concern for you.”
577.  
578. “Even if you say that…”
579.  
580. Christina ignored Cid and turned around.
581.  
582. “Kanade, you can’t go home either.”
583.  
584. “Eh? Me too?”
585.  
586. Kanade exclaimed in surprise.
587.  
588. “Yup. I was planning to mention this from the start, but the two of you will be living in the Hope manor from now on.”
589.  
590. “Eh–”
591.  
592. “That’s great, now I won’t have to be worried anymore.”
593.  
594. The two of them reacted in dramatically different ways.
595.  
596. “It’s for your safety, so it can’t be helped. As long as you live in the Hope Manor, I can protect you.”
597.  
598. “Eh–”
599.  
600. “Thank you very much, Christina-san.”
601.  
602. “Now then, let’s sort out our things and then head to the manor.”
603.  
604. And so, the three of them started living together.
605.  
606. ========================================================================
607.  
608. When I started killing people, I set a few rules for myself and I’ve been obeying them ever since.
609.  
610. One of them was to avoid killing anyone if I felt sorry for them.
611.  
612. Another was that killing bad guys was fundamentally OK.
613.  
614. “Yup, no problems.”
615.  
616. Once again, I had stuck to my rules. That was for sure.
617.  
618. “A lot of surprising things have happened.”
619.  
620. As a result, I was currently sitting in Christina-san’s living room.
621.  
622. “Aren’t you going to drink some, Cid? This is Mitsugoshi’s best coffee. You might not be able to have any for the rest of your life after this, so you should drink up your life’s worth now.”
623.  
624. Now where did that scaredy-cat act of yours go? The poor noble Kanade was happily downing a cup of coffee. She was an ordinary, cute girl with black hair and black eyes.
625.  
626. “You can have mine.”
627.  
628. After all, Gamma was giving me more than I could possibly finish.
629.  
630. “Eh? Seriously?! I love you, Cid-kun!”
631.  
632. After receiving her discount-priced love, I slumped back onto the sofa and sighed.
633.  
634. I didn’t expect to end up living in Christina-san’s home.
635.  
636. As a mob, would this be a good or bad thing… I’d thought of that before, but right now, Kanade-san was the very picture of a mob as she enjoyed a life’s worth of coffee, so it ought to be fine.
637.  
638. “Yup, it should be fine.”
639.  
640. Looks like I’m living an ordinary, easy life again today.
641.  
642. “Cid-kun, can I have the chocolates?”
643.  
644. “Nope.”
645.  
646. “Ehhhh, you’re so petty. I hate you, Cid-kun.”
647.  
648. I quickly retrieved my portion of the chocolates from Kanade-san.
649.  
650. They were apparently the newly-released high-end matcha truffle flavor. Gamma gave me a trial batch last month. I heard the preorders were backed up for a whole year, but as it happened, there were some in front of me now.
651.  
652. Is this the power of the great nobles? …I’m pretty jealous of it after all.
653.  
654. “The sofa is also a high-end Mitsugoshi brand… Same with the chandeliers, the carpet, and the dining utensils. They’re all high-grade Mitsugoshi products…”
655.  
656. What kind of Mitsugoshi fans were they, anyway? Speaking of which, how much of the industry have you conquered already, Mitsugoshi?
657.  
658. Just as I popped a matcha truffle into my mouth, there was a knock on the living room door.
659.  
660. “I’m coming in.”
661.  
662. It was Christina-san.
663.  
664. “I’m very glad that you invited me here!”
665.  
666. Kanade changed attitudes with lightning speed and then bowed deeply to her.
667.  
668. “No need to be so formal around me. The room is ready, so I’ll take you there.”
669.  
670. We followed Christina down a hallway.
671.  
672. The carpet was beautiful, while the walls, ceilings and the corridors were decorated with countless objets d’art. It was a luxurious home that a poor noble like Baron Kagenou could not hope to replicate.
673.  
674. “17 million, 54 million, 9 million, 200 million…”
675.  
676. Kanade was muttering to herself.
677.  
678. “What are you doing?”
679.  
680. “Eh?! Did you hear me?”
681.  
682. “Yup.”
683.  
684. “I was guessing how much these art pieces were worth.”
685.  
686. “Huh.”
687.  
688. I engraved the sight of that vase which was worth 200 million into my retinas.
689.  
690. “This is the dining room. We will be eating here tonight, as planned. Beside it is the…”
691.  
692. Christina-san showed us around this luxurious estate as though she had done this countless times. After that, she led us up a spiral staircase and stopped in front of a pair of double doors. There were two magic swordsmen standing in front of them who seemed to be guards.
693.  
694. “This is the room.”
695.  
696. Saying so, she opened the doors, revealing a spacious bedroom within.
697.  
698. “Wow~ It’s just like a princess’ room.”
699.  
700. Kanade excitedly ran over to the bed,
701.  
702. “Ah…”
703.  
704. “Cid-kun, your bed is all the way on the left.”
705.  
706. Christina-san had already decided.
707.  
708. “Ah…”
709.  
710. “Christina-san, can I have this one?”
711.  
712.  
713. “Huh, sure. In that case, I’ll take the one in the middle.”
714.  
715. “Ah, why are there three beds?”
716.  
717. I blurted out the question that had been churning in my mind ever since I entered the room.
718.  
719. “Because there are three of us.”
720.  
721. Christina pointed to me, herself and Kanade, like she was counting us.
722.  
723. “I see, it’s true that there are three of us.”
724.  
725. “It’s more efficient to keep the protection targets together, right?”
726.  
727. “Mhm.”
728.  
729. A perfectly acceptable answer.
730.  
731. “While we’re all sharing the same room, your bed’s been fenced off by the bookshelf. That should be enough, right?
732.  
733. “Cid-kun, your practical grades were nothing much. I’m like, hundreds of times stronger than you. If you try to do anything funny, I’ll beat the crap out of you. Whooshwhooshwhoosh!”
734.  
735. Kanade put on an arrogant attitude and jumped around while throwing punches at the air.
736.  
737. “Yes, yes, I know.”
738.  
739. I raised my hands to indicate my surrender, and then sat down on my bed. My luggage from the dorms was set down beside it.
740.  
741. In order from the window, it was my bed, then Christina’s then Kanade’s.
742.  
743. “And the window is in front of the door. If anything happens, the person there will be the first to die. Perfect for the son of a poor noble baron like me.”
744.  
745. I muttered to myself.
746.  
747. “That’s because the chances of you being targeted are lowest. Cid-kun.”
748.  
749. “Ah, sorry, I didn’t mean anything bad by that.”
750.  
751. Rather, I was actually very happy instead.
752.  
753. “There are two guards at the door and three more outside the window. All of them are strong fighters who made it into the main competition of the War God Festival.”
754.  
755. “Huh.”
756.  
757. “Relax, it’ll be much safer than staying in the dorms.”
758.  
759. “Alright, then. I think I’ve pretty much learned the general situation before coming here, but can you tell me again about what happened this morning?”
760.  
761. I asked.
762.  
763. “Ah, sorry about that, I need to go to the bathroom…”
764.  
765. Kanade said. Clearly she had drunk too much coffee.
766.  
767. “There’s a washroom and toilet next door.”
768.  
769. “Thank you.”
770.  
771. After watching Kanade hurry off, Christina began speaking.
772.  
773. “Someone killed Count Gete Mono. They’ll probably be talking about it in school tomorrow.”
774.  
775. “Ehhhhh!! You mean a murder happened?! Sounds dangerous. Now that you mention it, there was that name written in blood on the document…”
776.  
777. “That’s probably the one which went missing from the crime scene.”
778.  
779. “Seriously? Oh man that’s so scary! Writing in fresh blood is too cruel.”
780.  
781. Count Gete was killed in a very unusual way too. This isn’t just a simple murder. The killer probably has some kind of plan in mind.”
782.  
783. “I can’t believe an ordinary student like me, which you could find anywhere, got wrapped up in such a vicious incident…”
784.  
785. “I know it must be hard on you, but please bear with it for a while. After all, they might target you too.”
786.  
787. “I’m sure I won’t be able to sleep tonight. After all, they might be after my life…
788.  
789.  
790. “Cid-kun…”
791.  
792. Christina gently patted my trembling back.
793.  
794. A cool gust of night wind blew in through a gap in the window.
795.  
796. ========================================================================
797.  
798. After coming back from the bathroom, Kanade shared a late dinner with us.
799.  
800. It was a luxurious meal featuring modified items from a high-end Mitsugoshi cookbook. I was genuinely shocked when what looked like salmon sushi was served. I hadn’t had anything like sushi before in my past life.
801.  
802. “They’re all new dishes. How delicious!”
803.  
804. Kanade looked very happy as she returned to the room.
805.  
806. “Mitsugoshi’s food does not disappoint. You should try some when you get home, Kanade.”
807.  
808. “Eh?! But, but I can’t afford all those fancy ingredients…”
809.  
810. “They also have recipes that use lower-priced ingredients. Things like tuna burgers and so on that use fish which would have been thrown away in the past…”
811.  
812. And so, this world’s food culture was further degraded.
813.  
814. Soon, we end up talking on our beds like we were out on a field trip.
815.  
816. Shortly after that, as the fireplace crackles merrily, Christina-san turns off the lights in the room.
817.  
818. “It’s time to turn in. For some reason it feels like we got too excited and talked for too long.”
819.  
820. “Ehhh, but I want to talk some more.”
821.  
822. It was almost midnight. Despite muttering under her breath, Kanade obediently crawled back under the covers.
823.  
824. “Goodnight.”
825.  
826. I turned in after Kanade did.
827.  
828. “Goodnight, you two.”
829.  
830. Just as Christina said so, there was a loud knocking on the door and a maid strode in.
831.  
832. “Christina-sama, the master is asking for you.”
833.  
834. “You two should go get some sleep first. I need to speak with Father.”
835.  
836. “Got it.”
837.  
838. “Zzzzz–”
839.  
840. Kanade was already asleep.
841.  
842. “Say, Cid-kun…”
843.  
844. At the threshold of the doorway, Christina turned back to look at me.
845.  
846. “Hm? What’s wrong?”
847.  
848. “Have we met before?”
849.  
850. “In the classroom, I guess.”
851.  
852. “That’s not what I mean. I just get the feeling that we’ve spoken before.”
853.  
854. “Hm, I doubt it.”
855.  
856. “You just give me that impression. For some reason, you remind me of someone… Sorry to ask you this all of a sudden.”
857.  
858. Christina smiled, as though she was trying to paper over what she had said just now, and left the bedroom.
859.  
860. ========================================================================
861.  
862. –Late at night.
863.  
864. Christina was in her father’s study.
865.  
866. “The situation has gotten very bad.”
867.  
868. Her father’s hands trembled as she turned the document over.
869.  
870. “With this as proof, the trial can move in a fruitful direction. That way, we can find Eliza Darkaigan guilty.”
871.  
872. “Of course I know that!”
873.  
874. Her father slammed the table and his tone grew harsh.
875.  
876. “Doing this will make enemies of the Night Swords. Ultimately, it was your obsession with protecting a lesser noble that led to this…!”
877.  
878. “Father, the Night Blades have always had their sights set on us. After all, the Hope family stands to gain the most after the death of Count Gete Mono.
879.  
880. “And like I said, we’re being targeted because you did unnecessary things! No, could it be that you were the one who–”
881.  
882. In the midst of his fury, her father’s expression suddenly changed and he looked at her with fear in his eyes.
883.  
884. “No! I didn’t do anything! It was Jack the Ripper.”
885.  
886. “B-But…”
887.  
888. ‘Father, let’s lend Kanade a hand. With this evidence, we can find Elisa Darkaigan guilty. That will weaken the Night Swords and the more nobles will support the Hope family.
889.  
890. “No, on the other hand, if we give this evidence to the Night Swords, they might be favorably disposed to us…”
891.  
892. “Would the Night Swords truly let someone who knows their secret go free?’
893.  
894. “(Coughs) …No, wait a minute. You invited that lesser noble to our home, right?”
895.  
896. “Yes. Kanade is in our home, under guard.”
897.  
898. “Excellent. Then if we hand her to the Night Swords, we will show our sincerity…”
899.  
900. “I will not let you do that. And if you do, I will not forgive you, even if you are my father.”
901.  
902. “Are you mad, Christina?! I am the head of the Hope household!”
903.  
904. Christina glared at her father after the latter shouted at her.
905.  
906. He was the first to look away.
907.  
908. “Let me take care of this for now. Since we don’t know who this Jack The Ripper is, there’s a chance it might be a trap. We need to verify this evidence.”
909.  
910. “But Father…!”
911.  
912. “Since Gete Mono has been killed, the Thirteen Night Swords will make their move. It’ll probably be Barons Kuzaya and Grehan next.”
913.  
914. “They’re from the militant faction.”
915.  
916. “They are younger members of the Thirteen Night Swords. That’s why we have no idea what they’ll do next. Sorry, but I don’t want to die yet.”
917.  
918. Saying so, her father left with the document in hand.
919.  
920. Christina looked at the fireplace and sighed.
921.  
922. “So this is a great noble of the Kingdom… He’s been completely corrupted.”
923.  
924. Christina laughed, as though she had completely given up.
925.  
926. “We’re fools… Both Father, who only cares about sucking up to the Night Swords, or me, who’s powerless to do anything…”
927.  
928. Christina had an idea why Jack the Ripper had put the evidence in her locker.
929.  
930. “Did he want me to go public with it? Was that why he delivered the proof of the Night Swords’ misdeeds to…”
931.  
932. But Christina could not do anything by herself.
933.  
934. One would need power to have others acknowledge this proof, but she lacked that power. Someone who showed off that evidence without the power to back it up would only end up destroyed.
935.  
936. “If I had that power…”
937.  
938. It would feel great to wipe out all the parasites infesting this kingdom.
939.  
940. Just then, she remembered the way Gete Mono died. He had a poker card stuck in his head, his eyes wide open and staring blankly in a ridiculous way.
941.  
942. “Hehe…”
943.  
944. Christina chuckled to herself.
945.  
946. Back then, she had been staring at his face until Alexia got her attention.
947.  
948. Quiet laughter filled the study in the middle of the night.
949.  
950. ========================================================================
951.  
952. Baron Kuzaya and Baron Grehan were talking in a darkened secret room.
953.  
954. “So nobody has any idea who killed Gete Mono, then?”
955.  
956. Kuzaya said as he chomped a cigar.
957.  
958. “All the witnesses said it was a clown. That bastard’s a regular joker.”
959.  
960. Grehan replied disdainfully.
961.  
962. “He’s pretty cunning. All eyewitness testimony was suddenly cut off halfway. We couldn’t find any trace of him even with our veteran mana trackers.”
963.  
964. “Looks like it was professionally done.”
965.  
966. “Yeah. Gete Mono has a lot of guards, but he still died in one blow. That implies he’s on the level of a knight order captain.”
967.  
968. “He might be from the Lawless City. Don’t they have that assassin group “Zetsurou” over there?”
969.  
970. “Zetsurou is strong enough to do it, but I’ve never heard of powerful assassins who dress up as clowns before.”
971.  
972. “Could it be someone new?”
973.  
974. “Who knows? Still whoever this clown is, we can guess who hired him.”
975.  
976. Baron Kuzaya laid several documents out on the table.
977.  
978. “We’ve got a few candidates. The Hopes are quite suspicious, but we don’t have any evidence.”
979.  
980. “Oh, what a shame, we don’t have evidence.”
981.  
982. Baron Grehan grinned evilly as he said that.
983.  
984. “We’ll just kill them as usual. They’ll keep quiet if we torture them a little.”
985.  
986. “Don’t be hasty. What are you going to do if we mess up?”
987.  
988. “Heh, we just need to make up some proof. Dead men tell no tales, after all.”
989.  
990. “We’re dealing with the Hopes here. Cleanup will be very troublesome.”
991.  
992. “Hah? We’ve killed great nobles before, haven’t we?”
993.  
994. “That was before. You know the Fenrir Faction got wiped out, right?”
995.  
996. “The Fenrir Faction? Ah, that religious group that helped out the Thirteen Night Swords, right?”
997.  
998. “Yes. Since they were wiped out by Shadow Garden, I’m pretty sure getting backup from them is going to be very difficult. We’re negotiating with another faction now. We need to be cautious until this matter is over.”
999.  
1000. “What a pain. It’s just a little cult getting wiped out, right?”
1001.  
1002. “You have no idea how strong that cult is and how frightening they are…”
1003.  
1004. Grehan couldn’t help but hold his breath as he heard the seriousness in Kuzaya’s voice.
1005.  
1006. Then, he replied in annoyance, as though disgusted by his momentary wavering.
1007.  
1008. “Keh, it’s all because Gete died and caused us so much trouble.”
1009.  
1010. “Relax. So far, our instructions have been to carefully observe the movements of the Hope family.”
1011.  
1012. “Aniki, I heard their Christina-ojousama is kind of hot. When we get the kill order, can I have her?”
1013.  
1014. “Do whatever you want. However, make sure you clean things up.”
1015.  
1016. “You’re the best after all, aniki.”
1017.  
1018. Baron Grehan laughed in a vulgar way.
1019.  
1020. “Guhyahyahyahyahya...”
1021.  
1022. “Oi, shut the fuck up, Grehan.”
1023.  
1024. “Sorry, aniki.”
1025.  
1026. “Guhyahyahyahyahya.”
1027.  
1028. A bout of bone-chilling laughter echoed through the dark basement.
1029.  
1030. The smile on Baron Grehan’s face was gone. Baron Kuzaya put down his cigarette with a serious look on his face.
1031.  
1032. “Oi, someone’s messing around.”
1033.  
1034. Baron Kuzaya spoke in a low, forceful voice.
1035.  
1036. The only people in this dark, hidden room were Kuzaya and Grehan. Few others knew that it existed.
1037.  
1038. “Guhyahyahyahyahya.”
1039.  
1040. But the laughter was coming from this room.
1041.  
1042. Both of them drew their swords and cautiously scanned their surroundings.
1043.  
1044. “Stop fucking around and get the hell out here, asshole!”
1045.  
1046. Kuzaya growled.
1047.  
1048. “Guhyahyahyahyahya.”
1049.  
1050. Yet the laughter kept coming.
1051.  
1052. They pricked up their ears, trying to find the source of the sound. It wasn’t coming from the right, or the left, or the front, or the rear.
1053.  
1054. And then, they both looked directly upward.
1055.  
1056. Just then, they heard a “picha”.
1057.  
1058. Something fell from the ceiling.
1059.  
1060. Reddish-black liquid spattered the table and stained it. The intense stench of blood assailed their noses.
1061.  
1062. They looked up at the ceiling. A bloodstained clown was standing there.
1063.  
1064. “Guhyahyahyahyahya.”
1065.  
1066. The clown was looking down at them and laughing.
1067.  
1068. “The hell?!”
1069.  
1070. “It was the clown?!”
1071.  
1072. Kuzaya and Grehan immediately thrust their swords upwards.
1073.  
1074. Being part of the militant faction, their movements were quite practiced. Their swords stabbed through the clown and blood splattered everywhere,
1075.  
1076. There was a splat.
1077.  
1078. The blood-stained clown fell on the table.
1079.  
1080. “We got him!”
1081.  
1082. Kuzaya and Grehan grinned as they swung down.
1083.  
1084. Every time their blades cut into the clown, it would spray large quantities of blood.  
1085.  
1086. And then, after twitching violently, the clown stopped laughing.
1087.  
1088. “...Did we kill him?”
1089.  
1090. Kuzaya looked down on the brutally murdered clown and asked.
1091.  
1092. “Did this guy take out Gete? Isn’t he just trash? Or rather, aren’t we too strong?
1093.  
1094. Grehan arrogantly flicked the blood off his blade.
1095.  
1096. “I did pretty well at the War God Festival too, you know? We aren;t like Gete’s guards. Looks like our opponent just wasn’t good enough.”
1097.  
1098. Kuzaya smiled too. He felt like his old sharpness had finally returned.
1099.  
1100. “Now then, little clown. Let’s see what you look like…”
1101.  
1102. Grehan laughed and made to peel off the clown’s mask.
1103.  
1104. “Oi! Grehan!!”
1105.  
1106. “What’s the matter, aniki?”
1107.  
1108. He looked back in annoyance.
1109.  
1110. “Y-Your head…”
1111.  
1112. “What’s on my head?”
1113.  
1114. “Th-there’s a poker card stuck in the back of your head…”
1115.  
1116. “Hah?”
1117.  
1118. Grehan frantically felt toward the back of his head.
1119.  
1120. A playing card was lodged deeply into the back of his skull. He wiped dumbly at the blood streaming down his neck.
1121.  
1122. “A-aniki… Why, why is there a card on my…”
1123.  
1124. Saying so, he slowly collapsed forward.
1125.  
1126. The card embedded in the back of his head was a 2 of spades.
1127.  
1128. As Kuzaya watched Grehan twitch uncontrollably on the ground, he sensed something getting up.
1129.  
1130. It was the bloodstained clown.
1131.  
1132. “You, you… why are you still alive…”
1133.  
1134. Kuzaya shivered in fear as he saw the clown who had risen emotionlessly from what should have been fatal wounds.
1135.  
1136. Kuzaya backed off.
1137.  
1138. Picha. The clown advanced.
1139.  
1140. “Wait, what the hell are you up to?”
1141.  
1142. Picha picha. The clown moved forward.
1143.  
1144. “Do you want money? Who hired you? How much did he pay?”
1145.  
1146. Picha picha picha.
1147.  
1148. “W-Wait! I’ll pay double! I’ll give you money, women, anything you want!”
1149.  
1150. Thunk. He felt a slight impact behind him.
1151.  
1152. Kuzaya had backed up into a wall.
1153.  
1154. He had backed up to the end of the room without realizing it.
1155.  
1156. “Stay back! I’m an authorized successor of the Bushin-ryu!”
1157.  
1158. Picha picha picha picha.
1159.  
1160. “If you step into my range, you’re going to suffer–!”
1161.  
1162. Kuzaya attacked, his swing sharp and forceful.
1163.  
1164. This was his ideal attack range.
1165.  
1166. Kuzaya imagined the clown’s head flying off his body.
1167.  
1168. However, his blow missed.
1169.  
1170. “What– How did you, how did you dodge at that range?”
1171.  
1172. The clown had simply taken half a step back.
1173.  
1174. However, that movement defied all understanding. It had surpassed the limit of reflexes.
1175.  
1176. “You, who the…”
1177.  
1178. A whoosh filled the air.
1179.  
1180. “Ah, hyu…”
1181.  
1182. A poker card stabbed into Kuzaya’s throat.
1183.  
1184. It was a 3 of spades.
1185.  
1186. He swung as he coughed up a bloody froth.
1187.  
1188. The blade missed the clown’s nose and fell to the ground.
1189.  
1190. “Mon…ster…”
1191.  
1192. And then he fell forward. Blood spewed from his mouth, and he soon stopped moving.
1193.  
1194. The bloodstained clown picked up their corpses and vanished into the darkness of the night.
1195.  
1196.