All of a sudden, the Royal Grand Theatre crumbled as though something exploded within it. People on Nock Avenue were stunned as they watched the scene unfold.

Even Inglis, who was inside the building when the explosion took place, was just as stunned. She looked front, back, right, and left,yeah, she couldnt deny it. It was totally in ruins now.

Th-, this might be kind of bad, ahaha

She never thought that Diego would absorb too much power and literally explode. She couldnt even fight him in the end, so not only was it an utter disappointment, the damage she caused was more than enormous. There wasnt even a silver lining to it.

Yoink!

Inglis ears were tugged from behind her.

Dont give me ahaha, you Glis, youuuu!!! This is because youre getting too carried away!! You couldve stopped feeding him after hes reasonably strong enough!

B-, but I wouldnt be able to get stronger if I didnt push him to the limitsNot to mention, he looked so happy all the while! He didnt tell me he could explode or anything

Excuses, excuses! What are you gonna do about this?!

Rafinha was fuming. The once magnificent Royal Grand Theatre was not but an empty husk of its former self.

Just how much devastation is there, financially speaking

The building was large and ornate, and would obviously cost many times more than the entire Knight Academy building.

Wh-, what are we going to do if they send the reparation bill to us?! Who can say the Principal wont revoke our all-you-can-eat privilege in the cafeteria as punishment?! Were going to starve again! And Im sure Count Weissmall wont come to save us this time!

UghTh-, that is bad!! Th-, then, we can just be upfront and say that its the assassin who targeted His Majesty who did itcant we? Im sure we can weasel our way out if we just say the assassin blew himself up when he was cornered.

Had the damage been minimal, they could have just covered it up and acted like nothing ever happened. They could have just said that Principal Miliera brought them all to the subspace as a security concern or maybe just a stage direction and then ad-libbed from there. The final scene was already over anyway, they just needed to bring the curtains down.

However, should the King know he was targeted by assassins affiliated with the neighboring country Alucard, the whole thing would surely elevate to an International Affair. If they had the choice, they would choose to hide the incident from ever getting to the publics ear, but it seemed that it was impossible now.

Yes, be upfront and say that you were having fun playing with the assassin, letting him absorb your power for your own games, and then the assassin exploded instead because he absorbed too much power.

Thats not true! It wasnt for fun or games. It was because I wanted to fight a strong enemy in all seriousness.

Thats the only thing you could refute! My goodness, Glis, youre just too much of a Glis! Aaaah, my head hurts!!

Rafinha took a deep, deep sigh.

I believe its important to have a code to live up by.

If you didnt blow apart the entire theatre, that is! But, haah, I guess we have no other choice but to blame it on the assassin now

Yeah. Ill do the explanation in detail.

You should. Then, Leone, Liselotte, well go with that story, okay?

S-, sureIf Inglis didnt come, we would be in danger either way

Be that as it may, at the end of the day, what I feared to happen really did happen

Ever since the start of the whole ordeal, Liselotte had feared that the whole theatre would break down due to Inglis shenanigans.

Wow, youre right! Ah, Alina. Are you okay? Are you hurt?

At the moment of the explosion, Rafinha made sure that everyone was protected from flying debris and the blast. From the looks of it, Alina and the other children didnt suffer any serious injury.

I-, Im okayBig sis, thank you for protecting us

Im sorry, it was scary, wasnt it? Its all right now

Rafinha tightly hugged Alina who still looked frightened.

Lahti, you might want to hide somewhere until the heat dies down.

Th-, thats right! Inglis is correct, Lahti!

Inglis words were met with affirmation, not from Lahti, but from Pullum who stood beside him. Lahti was a Prince of Alucard. Considering the assassins belonged to Alucard, as their prince, Lahti wouldnt be in a safe position if his identity was revealed.

Imprisonment was only natural, being treated as a prisoner of war was still favorable, but he might even be entitled to execution. If not, he could be taken hostage and used as a negotiation pawn.

Lahti, are you really an Alucard Prince?

Lahti affirmed Rafinhas question.

Yea, heres proof.

He then displayed a pendant with Alucards coat of arms from under his clothes.

So its trueIt doesnt really feel that way, though

I agree. I dont feel the dignity of a prince from mister LahtiAah, of course, I mean it as someone who is so friendly and easy to talk to!

Leone and Liselotte said respectively.

Excuse me then, for being a prince and all. Ive got no Rune, and Im scraping at the lowest standing as a RoyaltyI was brought up poorly because of that.

Lahtis voice didnt sound particularly sad.

Well, Im a Runeless and a failure, and thats why I hid my identity and enrolled here to find the thing I can do by myself. But, if I knew such a thing would happen, I shouldnt have left the countryWho can say, maybe I couldve stopped this incident if I stayed

I-, it was inevitable, Lahti. Dont blame yourself! At any rate, we should go. Inglis and the others will take care of the aftermath

No. Even if Inglis explained, they might not believe her without proof. Ill reveal myself and testify for her. Only then will they believe

Not you, Lahti! Ill do it!

A melodic voice of a young man rang.

!!! Ian?! Y-, youre alive?! I thought all of you have wait, where are you?! Are you hiding from us?

Ians voice was heard, but he was nowhere to be seen.

I-, Im here! At the pillar on the far right!

There he was, Ian being carried under the arm of Yua, who herself was sneaking away.

Senior Yua?! What are you doing?

Well, he said I can take one of him home soeverythings over, right?

Y-, yesBut still, how come that one Mister Ian is fine?

G-, good question I dont know how she did it, but

Simple. I punched the dangerous-looking pattern thing.

She must mean the Submittance Sign. In other words, in that split second, Yua sensed something dangerous and completely destroyed the insignia alone. As expected, Yua was a superhuman when it came to manipulating the disposition and the flow of mana. She saved one Ian at pinpoint accuracy to take him home.

See ya later then

W-, wait a minute, Miss Yua! I still have a business to attend to!

Dont listen to him, senior. Please bring him away. Sorry, Ian, but after what youve done, I cant let you be in the presence of the King so easily!

Lahtis point made sense. Ian had plotted to assassinate King Charleas. If he was put right in front of his own target, who knows what he would do?

B-, but still, LahtiDont tell me, youre planning to bear all of our sins by yourself?!

Well, thats the least a failure of a prince can do.

You-, you mustnt Lahti! Dont do that! Youre innocent, you did nothing wrong!Right, Inglis?!

Said Pullum, looking at Inglis as though asking for help.

Yeah. Besides, I think its already too late to take the blame now.

Eh? What do you mean, Inglis?

Im just saying that this incident wont be concluded so neatly. Theres more that will follow.

Wh-, what will happen?

Well

Right when she said so

KYAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH?!!!!

A high-pitched feminine shriek could be heard. It belonged to Principal Miliera who had just returned from the subspace that she used as an evacuation means.

Ththis is awful, indeed!

Y-, youre rightSo the evacuation was the correct course of action, after all?! However, by the gods

There were Redas, the Commander of the Imperial Guard Order, as well as King Charleas. There were also Selena, Irina, as well as Marquis Wilford.

D-, do your thing, Glis!

Yeah!!

Now, lets put my mind into making some excuses! Not just to cover up my misdeed, but also to secure a bright future ahead!