Episode 63. I am innocent! (1)
Silvertown was a large area within the empire.
Although it was not as large as the empire’s capital, Kraków, it was a city that had developed to a similar level.
Silvertown’s geography was that the city was built on terrain that appeared to have been created by a meteorite impact, surrounded by mountains and flat on the inside.
From the north end to the south end, a large river flows all the way to the sea. When I turned my gaze to the east from the center of the city, I saw a complex of facilities such as a shopping mall, an art gallery, and a shopping mall.
There are five schools as educational facilities, and as you head out of town, you can see a railroad stretching all the way to the horizon.
‘Is that a magic locomotive? It looks like it’s not finished yet.’
Our family was taken away in a carriage, taking in the sights of the various facilities. Amy was excited, saying it was amazing, but the driver scolded her to be quiet.
Silvertown is a place you visit from time to time while playing as Jenny. Seeing it in person brings out different emotions.
While most other towns built huge walls to protect their inhabitants, this city was already surrounded by mountains.
It was a geographic feature that boasted the best cost-effectiveness militarily, as there was no need to build a defensive wall.
The carriage stopped in front of the Chainsilver Mansion, where the lord who ruled over all resided. When I looked down, a very welcome face was waiting for me.
“Hi Jenny.”
“uh…?”
“I didn’t come to play… I was caught.”
“….”
Even though I finally greeted her, Jenny didn’t show any emotion.
* * * * *
The land area of Silvertown was large enough to build anything. Thanks to this, the size of the Chainsilver Mansion was inflated without much trouble.
The walls surrounding the mansion also included barracks where knights were stationed. On the first floor was a spacious knight training ground, and in the basement was an interrogation room.
Those who harmed the Chainsilver family are captured and interrogated, and their treatment is determined based on the results of the investigation.
My parents will be taken there now and questioned. They won’t be spared punishment, but I hope there will be at least a good outcome.
“So… the conmen who were caught a little while ago were your parents?”
“that’s right.”
In the backyard of the mansion there was a garden full of flowers.
On the other side, there was a barracks for adrenaline-pumping knights, while this place was a place where the mind could be purified endlessly. It was a place Jenny had liked and visited often since she was young.
I was invited there and sat down at the garden table with Jenny. From her perspective, it was a welcome but also somewhat absurd encounter.
“You were famous for lying to your students… but your parents were also con artists?”
“…I have nothing to say.”
When she met her friend during the vacation, she greeted him with an angelic look. But now, she had a very sullen expression on her face.
The reason is none other than what happened to his younger brother, Ray.
“You know, Radon. I can’t forgive those who put Ray in danger.”
Jenny rested her elbows on the table, her hands clasped together and covered her mouth. The posture was profound and created an atmosphere that made it difficult to tell if this was a garden or an interrogation room.
“But they are your parents, so they will be given one chance. If they can just give a proper explanation, they can go free completely. Besides, you have a younger sister, so I don’t want to treat your family badly.”
Amy was playing in the flower bed in the garden. She looked happy to see her little sister picking flower petals and making a coffin.
The incident started because Amy had labeled it wrong, but it was hard to blame the child who was still naive.
But in the case of my parents, I couldn’t just let it go because their own fraudulent activities had been revealed.
“I’ve actually been wondering for a while now. Why do you keep committing such frauds? Up until now, I’ve kept quiet because you’ve done no harm, but after your parents came here, I can’t ignore it anymore.”
It’s a good thing she sponsored Silver Age Control. If it weren’t for that, I wouldn’t have been gentle enough to receive the Silver Badge from her.
“Your family too, why on earth are you lying? That’s why you and I fought in the first place.”
“….”
“Please be honest with me. I don’t want to fight with you like before.”
I feel the same way. It’s because I don’t want to break off the hard-earned bond with the Chainsilver family. Jenny, who cares for her friends, probably feels the same way.
Even if we don’t break up right away, it’s difficult if my relationship with Jenny becomes strained because of this incident. If that happens, it’ll be like having a pair of scissors that will cut off our relationship.
The news must have reached the owner, Gerard Chainsilver.
He is a wealthy man who has raised his two daughters like precious jewels since losing his wife. He cannot lightly overlook the actions of the scoundrels who defrauded his daughters.
Depending on his mood, he could be sentenced to rot in prison or be forced to serve a year on an ocean-going fishing boat.
“It’s not too late. Explain it quickly.”
Clarification. The request is very simple.
If you explain why you’re lying, that’s it! It’s not difficult at all. And since there’s a justification attached to the reason, you can tell it freely without showing any signs of being hurt.
‘If I had put so much effort into explaining it… this wouldn’t have happened at all.’
Unfortunately, it has come to this point because the explanation is impossible.
If that were possible, his parents would not have sold sleeping pills to Ray. Furthermore, before Bing, Radon lied about being a descendant of the Black Sword at the beginning of the semester and then met Jenny.
Furthermore, there was no case of the Crowler family relinquishing their title as count. It is highly likely that Radon would not have entered Alighieri.
So, it’s safe to say that most of my current relationships and abilities were created by the Liar’s curse.
Even though it’s a fucking curse… if it weren’t for this, I wouldn’t be where I am today.
But I still want to explain. As I spent that time, I felt a strong desire to clear up this grievance.
Even if we can’t solve it, we must at least explain it. This is especially true now.
How great would it be if the Eternal Flame appeared right before my eyes… .
‘Hold on, the Eternal Flame is burning brightly as the seal on the Alighieri diploma. If it’s that diploma, then definitely…!’
It’s right here. Inside this Chainsilver mansion!
There was still hope.
“If you want an explanation, I can give you one… but there’s something I need before that.”
“What is that?”
“Jenny, do you know how many Alighieri Academy graduates there are in your family?”
“Why all of a sudden…?”
“That’s because it’s absolutely necessary.”
* * * * *
Originally, Jenny was planning to happily guide me when I came to visit.
Because one thing she had always wanted to do was invite a friend she had made at the academy.
Now that the Silver Age is no longer running wild, there’s no need to isolate yourself. It was great to invite the friends who made it happen.
“It’s a hallway where you’re supposed to walk with a smile. But nothing ever goes as planned.”
“sorry.”
Her wish to be guided had come true, but she was still in a bad mood. Jenny was still full of regretful thoughts. And she didn’t have much time.
“Your father will call you and your parents in a little while.”
“You must be really angry, right?”
“Of course! Even if you do, your parents will definitely be punished.”
The place Jenny firmly guided us to was the information center in the basement of the mansion.
It was a library, but it was also a place where family details were recorded. There must have been traces of the family members from past generations.
“How many people in your family have a diploma from the Alighieri Academy?”
“There will be about nine people. And… including the mother…”
10 people, including the deceased mother. So there will be 10 diplomas in this information center.
The Chain Silver family has a long history, so the number of ancestors is probably incalculable. Among them, there are many who were unable to secure the position of head of the family and split into separate branches.
Even people like that could have left behind a diploma from Alighieri.
“That’s it.”
There were things hanging on the wall with small picture frames. Unlike ordinary appointment certificates, they boasted ornate gold borders.
There were several diplomas framed in what appeared to be the work of a senior official.
“There are many other places besides Alighieri.”
“Of course. There are more than one or two magic organizations on the continent.”
Numerous diplomas and certificates filled the walls.
Among the achievements of Chainsilver’s people working in various organizations, Jenny and I found only the diploma from the Alighieri Academy and took it off.
“There are only nine. What about the other one?”
“That… will be hanging in my father’s room.”
“….”
Perhaps because it is a trace of his deceased wife, he cherishes it with great care. If you actually go into his room, you will see a picture frame that looks like a diploma on the shelf.
Anyway, I looked at the 9 diplomas that I had removed. Among them, there must be a blue flame burning on the seal.
“doesn’t exist!”
“what’s the matter?”
“There was no fire at all.”
The Eternal Flame wasn’t burning in the seal. I checked all nine of them, but they were all the same.
The name is Eternal Flame, but it’s not a flame that burns forever. What a reversal of roles!
“fire?”
“Yes, the blue flame attached to the diploma.”
“Blue flames….”
Jenny was thinking about something and she was thinking about it. One of the traces her mother had left behind was Alighieri’s diploma. Sometimes, when she looked at the part where the seal was, a blue flame would burn a little.
“But why is that necessary?”
“That way I can explain it.”
Jenny tilted her head, not knowing what was going on. Even if she tried to explain the reason, it would just be silenced.
The reason for finding the Eternal Flame is to explain it in the first place.
“There you are, miss.”
At that moment, a maid opened the door to the information office and looked for Jenny. Her name was Katia, and she was the head maid of this mansion.
An NPC who appears wherever you go while walking around this mansion in the game. Talking to her allows you to use convenient systems such as equipment repair and storage.
“What’s wrong, Katia?”
“I heard that the master called those conmen into his room a little while ago. It seems that he wanted to talk to them since they are the parents of a close friend of his.”
“It’s faster than I thought.”
It’s faster than I thought. But this gives me a chance to enter Gaju’s room.
If you try to just go in, you’ll be kicked out by the servants guarding the door, but as the son of those conmen, you have a reason to go in.
“Let’s go too.”
“huh.”
Where in Gaju’s room was the diploma… .
* * * * *
“I hope you can answer properly.”
“….”
The Crowler couple, who had been called to the master’s room, were unable to say anything.
Actually, it’s easy to say. But the problem was that it was silenced regardless of one’s will.
The person they are now meeting is Gerard Chainsilver, the head of the Chainsilver family.
Her brown hair was the same blue as her daughters’, and she was wearing a suit as befitting an aristocrat, but she didn’t seem to have an extravagant personality, as there were no jewels or accessories hanging from her head.
It indirectly showed that he got to this position through strength and effort rather than luxury.
It may not be obvious to the average person, but the Crowlers, who had been through a lot, knew it right away.
‘As expected, you are a monster.’
The more experienced a magician is, the more he can tell how much mana a person is constantly emitting. That man is several levels above himself, having reached the 6th circle. Even dragons and divine beasts would be cut down with a single stroke of his sword.
“I’ve heard reports that you remained silent like this during the interrogation. Do you really plan on doing the same thing in front of me?”
“….”
“I heard that you are the parents of the friend Jenny was dating, so I arranged this private meeting for you. I would be quite upset if you came out like this.”
Lotus and Scylla lamented inwardly, for the situation reminded them of the events that had hastened Crowler’s downfall.
If this continues, I will be embarrassed again and lose my son’s friends. If things go on like this, there is no other way.
“sorry.”
“I’m so sorry.”
Suddenly, when the couple apologized somewhat politely, Gerard tilted his head.
Was the explanation that difficult?
“The apology is enough, so just tell the truth…” Gerard tried to say.
“Your Majesty. This is the young lady and her friend.”
Gerard told them to let him in because of the noise coming from outside the door. When the door opened, his lovely eldest daughter and a boy he had never seen before came into the room.
“Nice to meet you. My name is Radon Crowler, a first-year combat student at Alighieri.”
“Are you the friend Jenny was talking about?”
“Yes.”
It seems he told his father about his academy experience.
“I heard from Jenny that thanks to your cooperation, our daughter’s silver age was controlled. I am truly grateful for that.”
“you’re welcome.”
“But… I never dreamed that our first meeting would end up like this.”
“….”
I never expected that my parents would have such an accident. But now is the only chance to solve the problem.
“Can I explain this on behalf of my parents?”
“You?”
After saying that, I quickly looked around the room.
There were a few books and several picture frames on a shelf against the left wall, and I walked over there at a half-moon pace, holding the picture frame containing my diploma.
I accidentally dropped another picture frame on the floor, but I didn’t really care. Then I took the diploma out of the frame… I could see the blue flame still burning.
“What are you doing now?”
The crowd was shocked by my unexpected behavior. Even if it was my daughter’s friend, damaging the Duke’s belongings would not be tolerated.
The servants ran over and tried to restrain me, but it didn’t matter anymore.
“It’s because of the curse! It’s because of the liar’s curse!”
Once again, the audience looked surprised.
The Chain Silver people wondered what on earth he was talking about, but my parents almost screamed at the fact that he hadn’t been silenced.
Surviving as an Academy Fraudster
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