[This concludes the semifinal examination. We will now announce the teams advancing to the finals.]
Thus, we smoothly advanced from the round of 16 to the quarterfinals and then to the semifinals.
Well, to be honest, the difficulty spiked noticeably in the round of 16, and we had a hard time.
But in the end, we managed to go further than our initial goal.
"S-Semifinals...?"
"...Did we really make it to the semifinals? I'm pretty sure our goal was just the round of 16."
"Come on, when did we pass that point already?"
Narce laughed carelessly as he shoved his hands into his pockets.
It was unclear whether he had foreseen the results of the tournament using his abilities earlier or if it was just his usual personality.
As I was pondering this, Narce draped an arm over my shoulder and spoke.
"You shouldn't be thinking about me right now."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"You're the one who's the most laid-back here. We were up against the best alchemy school in the Empire, and you didn't seem nervous at all~!"
Starting from the quarterfinals, all our opponents had been from the prestigious Bavaria School of Alchemy.
Even Leo, who had been calm throughout, showed subtle signs of tension from the quarterfinals onward, likely due to the weight of our competition.
"Ahhhhhh!"
"Woooooahhh!"
Suddenly, cheers erupted from the section where our school's students were seated.
I looked up at the scoreboard, and there it was—our school's name shining brightly.
'We made it to the finals.'
I felt satisfied.
That perfectionist of a brother wouldn't tolerate being unaware of such developments. He was surely observing this, too.
Thus, I had already achieved my goal of acting in direct contradiction to his plans.
Of course, technically, we'd already done so by entering the round of 16.
As I smiled faintly at the scoreboard, a student from Class 1 slapped my back.
"Man, I didn't know you were this chill~ I'm jealous!"
"I was about to start crying when you didn't show up earlier..."
"Gross."
Leo cringed at the exaggerated description.
I responded to the Class 1 student's remark with a smile.
'There's no reason to be nervous.'
Knowing the places we could win and the places where victory was out of reach helped avoid disappointment.
Some fields could be won through pure memorization, while others couldn't.
Given that we'd crammed for this competition, it was almost impossible for us to beat the top students from the Empire's best school in the highest-difficulty sections.
'Still, we made it to the finals....'
Luck was undeniably on our side.
The fact that we had advanced with a mere 0.5-point lead over the other team was proof of that.
Another 30 minutes passed, and we finally withdrew our hands from the table.
[This concludes the final examination.]
"Phew..."
Even Leo, usually composed, looked visibly nervous, as if the situation didn't feel real to him yet.
By making it to the finals, our team had already secured a prize as representatives of the Imperial Second Academy.
At this point, the results didn't matter much, yet it seemed impossible not to feel nervous.
[We will now announce the scores for each team.]
[Second-year representative team from the Imperial Second Academy: Experiment Score, 28.5 points.]
[Second-year Team 1 from the Bavaria School of Alchemy: Experiment Score, 29 points.]
[With each team receiving an additional 10 bonus points... The winning team is the Bavaria School of Alchemy's Second-Year Team 1!]
'Hmm.'
I'd expected a 2-point difference, but only 0.5?
We did better than I thought.
'Though what concerns me is...'
I might be the only one satisfied with this outcome.
Even reaching the semifinals was a stroke of incredible luck, but the people directly involved often fail to see that.
I turned my gaze from the scoreboard to look at my teammates.
"Great work, everyone~!"
"It's finally over!"
Thankfully, none of them seemed disappointed with second place.
Hoping for victory after just a week of preparation would have been unreasonable.
Our school's students exchanged light greetings with the opposing team.
Leo, looking thoughtful, muttered while gazing at our school's name on the scoreboard.
"This is the first time in this tournament's history that an out-of-region school has earned an award."
"His Majesty will be proud. Even if it's from a Prussian school, it's basically your accomplishment."
"Well, His Majesty expanded this competition for other reasons, so he's probably satisfied with those outcomes and not thinking about my role in this."
"No way. He's still your father."
"Hmm, he'll probably be pleased."
For once, Leo responded with a student-like smile.
[In 10 minutes, the award ceremony will begin. All participants, please proceed to the waiting room.]
As we were heading toward the waiting room, a staff member approached us in a hurry.
"Lucas and Narce, please."
"Yes?"
"Follow me for a moment."
***
"This is unacceptable. There are 10,000 people waiting because of you, sir. Let's wrap this up quickly."
"..."
"Sigh..."
The investigator shook his head in frustration.
Currently, both the arena and the lab were under restricted access.
This was because the man Narce reported had remained completely silent the entire time.
Indeed, there had been someone monitoring me outside our team's lab. According to Narce, they fled the moment they saw him.
"You said the door locked the moment you arrived?"
"Yes."
"And this gentleman confirmed Lucas was trapped inside?"
The investigator turned to Narce for confirmation.
"Yes, there was a lock spell on the door handle. The lab supervisor verified it as well."
"That's right. We keep getting corroborating testimonies, yet staying silent like this will only make things worse. You realize how quickly the headline '10,000 People Delayed by One Man' can spread?"
"..."
"Sir, do you even understand what you've done? The person you locked up isn't just any noble; he's the son of the Duke of Anhalt. If Askanian hears about this, they won't take it lightly."
When reasoning failed, the investigator resorted to invoking my family name.
Of course, I knew Askanian wouldn't care much about this incident—but that was my secret to keep. The man sitting in front of me, however, grew visibly more anxious.
"...It wasn't me..."
"Sure, sure, of course not. You didn't do it?"
"..."
The conversation stalled again, and the investigator's expression darkened further.
At this rate, the building might still need to be sealed even after today's competition ended.
A simple matter could escalate into an international incident involving the imprisonment of a foreign noble from a ruling family, right in the heart of Bavaria. I couldn't blame the investigator for feeling overwhelmed.
Though I lacked insight-based abilities, the look on his face suggested he was considering seeking a warrant to use Divine Power. Not that it would do any good—there weren't any investigators here capable of wielding it.
'It doesn't matter much to me if this blows up....'
The real issue was Bavaria's position.
No matter how insignificant Luca might seem, he still held a title that couldn't be ignored.
If this incident were to be publicized as a foreign noble from a ruling family being detained in the middle of Bavaria's capital, it would be Bavaria facing the fallout.
'It's unlikely this man is the mastermind. My brother's involvement suggests at least two or three intermediaries.'
Perhaps this man was afraid of retaliation from the true culprit if he said the wrong thing. If that was the case, he might open up to someone more trustworthy.
Someone with the authority to protect his identity, for instance.
While the Investigation Bureau excels at protecting identities, it isn't trusted by the public.
'If we want someone more approachable... Nicolaus might work. Should I give it a shot?'
Just then, Narce lifted his head sharply.
"Oh, that could work."
"Pardon?"
"..."
He was reading my thoughts again, wasn't he?
Narce gestured to the investigator, suggesting a private conversation.
Picking up on the cue, the investigator instructed a colleague to watch the suspect and moved to a back room with us, locking the door behind him.
"Thank you. I've got a question. Doesn't Lord Ernst work with the Investigation Bureau?"
"Lord Ernst? You mean Lord Nicolaus? No, he's with the Royal Army. This is the Bavarian Federal Government, after all."
"How about letting him handle the interrogation? If you get a warrant for Divine Power, he could conduct it."
"What? But he's not part of the Bureau, and..."
The investigator tilted his head, clearly uncomfortable with the idea.
"Is it against regulations?"
"No, not exactly. He could assist with the questioning, but isn't he supposed to be guarding the Crown Prince?"
So it wasn't forbidden, but summoning the Crown Prince's escort to interrogate someone felt excessive.
Narce and I exchanged glances.
***
If we got approval, it was possible.
Hearing this, we dashed back to the waiting room.
Though the investigator offered to make contact himself, we decided to inform Leo and get permission directly.
'It's not like I can contact myself, right?'
Nicolaus couldn't be both present and absent at the same time.
Leo stood as soon as he saw us enter.
"You're back? Who's behind this?"
"We haven't found them yet. Leo, I'm heading to the Investigation Bureau."
"Now?"
Leo raised an eyebrow as if to ask why I hadn't already gone.
—"I'm borrowing Nicolaus."
"Oh, him. Do as you like."
I nodded and turned to leave, but Leo called out.
"Lucas."
"What?"
"Just in case, tell them you have my permission. I'll back you up if needed."
"Thanks."
"Need anything else from me?"
"You've done enough. See you."
Leo gave me a puzzled look, then nodded as he figured it out.
I quickly prepared myself and teleported to the Investigation Bureau.
Knock, knock—
The door opened almost immediately.
The investigator from earlier greeted me warmly.
"Ah, it's an honor to meet you, Lord Ernst. Thank you for coming so quickly after our request."
Having just seen him, his formal greeting felt oddly stiff.
Adjusting my altered voice, I responded, "I was informed this could escalate quickly. Where should I go?"
"This way, please."
The investigator led me down a corridor while explaining the situation.
"He refuses to talk. The only thing he's said is his name, and even that took ten minutes after mentioning potential punishment."
He handed me a file.
"Is this the case summary?"
"Yes, based on witness statements. However..."
"Yes?"
"There's a spell blocking Divine Power. We discovered it while inspecting him for a warrant."
"...Where is it applied?"
"The arteries. We don't yet know how to undo it. As you know, there aren't many Divine Power mages in the kingdom."
'They're pulling out all the stops.'
Someone had gone to great lengths to prevent this interrogation.
"If we can't use Divine Power, is there any issue with trying other methods to make him talk?"
"Our current understanding says no. But he remains stubbornly silent."
"I see. Thank you."
I pushed open the heavy iron door and stepped inside.
The man from earlier sat slumped over, his head hanging low.
"Good evening, Mr. Jürgen Edder."
He glanced at me briefly before lowering his head again.
Not being able to use Divine Power wasn't a problem.
I could resolve this calmly, relying on the information in front of me.
'First, let's confirm one thing.'
[Jürgen Beck] Favorability +6
'Huh.'
I still couldn't get used to it. Even someone involved in such shady business didn't have a terribly negative impression of Nicolaus.
Well, that wasn't the issue now.
"...Or should I say, Jürgen Beck?"
"...!"
He visibly flinched and looked up.
Noting his expensive suit and gleaming watch chain, I spoke softly.
"By reacting like that, you've just proven your last name isn't Edder. What do you think of that?"