Virgin Knight Who Is the Frontier Lord in the Gender Switched World - Chapter 80

To put it bluntly, the culprit is indeed the leader of the wandering tribe.

Everyone made that judgment with faces full of agony.

Only Queen Liesenlotte remained uninvolved in the investigation, bedridden from despair.

She no longer wanted to hear anything.

Without listening to our judgments, she locked herself in her room, clutching numerous bottles of wine.

Well, it was bound to happen.

Everything must feel unbearable for the Queen.

“We will arrive at the opera house soon.”

“Is that so?”

In a carriage owned by Lord Wesperman, not the royal family, with modest decorations.

Inside the carriage, a simple bench is fixed, where Lord Polydoro and I sit together.

The situation was reaching a climax.

The questioning of the troupe leader and its conclusion should hopefully serve as a remedy.

I wish it could cure the Queen’s illness.

But, that was no longer my job, Michael, but rather something for Lord Polydoro, sitting beside me, to handle.

In the carriage, I touched my lips with my fist and my index finger, entering a whirl of thoughts.

The knight, a favorite bureaucrat of Her Majesty, and a former colleague, once a servant of Robert-sama.

The couple remembered well the events of that time.

The representative of the wandering tribe and leader of the opera, who had enraged Robert-sama, was struck across the face.

I have testimony that he was left in the royal rose garden to cool his head.

There was indeed a gap to implant poison among the thorns of the roses.

“Lord Michael?”

“What is it?”

Lord Polydoro, looking extremely nervous, muttered without meeting my eyes.

“Why are you smiling, my lord?”

“Conversely, why does Lord Polydoro have such an agonized expression? In my case—”

I understand.

This outcome is displeasing.

No one is saved.

It was clear that no one would be saved.

Even if we quietly kill the leader of the opera now.

No one will be saved.

I am smiling because—

“It must be a desire for ruin. My regrets in this life will be settled with this. Once this is over—”

I expressed my honest feelings.

I wanted to avoid lying to Lord Polydoro, who bore a strong resemblance to Robert-sama.

I reveal my true feelings.

Once this revenge is accomplished, I can close this chapter of my life.

“You must not die. No one desires that.”

“My life and death are for me to decide. That’s all there is to it.”

I try to be considerate.

After I am gone, I think about being considerate of what comes next in the world.

I want to provide something that can heal the ailing Queen.

Even if the outcome isn’t something to be proud of, I want to give Lord Polydoro a conclusion to this situation.

Even to Lord Wesperman, as a predecessor, I wanted to reveal the truth about this palace murder drama.

Far from cursing the world, I could even say that I am filled with kindness towards those around me.

However, I wanted to die.

“I think it is enough. There is nothing left for me to do in this world.”

After the vengeance, there is nothing left.

After the flames of this vengeance burn like hell, even the ashes will disappear from this world.

I believe my existence is worthless, and I have lived my remaining life as such.

After Robert-sama was killed.

“What about the rose garden? Lord Michael, you have been managing it as a gardener, haven’t you?”

“I’m not managing the entire rose garden alone. I can’t imagine Queen Liesenlotte allowing incompetent people to manage that garden. It will be fine.”

All is well with the world.

I had no regrets.

Lord Polydoro, with a face full of agony.

It was clear he was trying to figure out how to persuade me.

He’s a kind man.

While closing my eyes, I recalled the figure of Robert-sama, still etched in my memory.

Although they both have robust physiques, Lord Polydoro’s massive body does not overlap with his.

But his demeanor, wishing to be as kind as possible to people within his reach, was very much like Robert-sama.

I smile.

It was fortunate to meet Lord Polydoro before ending my life.

Because of you, I can end my life without any reservations.

Lord Polydoro will handle the aftermath well.

He must understand that words no longer reach me.

Until the end, Lord Polydoro does not give up on persuading me.

“Would Robert-sama wish for you, Lord Michael, to end your life in this manner? Please consider it once more.”

A cliché phrase.

I thought he would say it.

Even Lord Polydoro himself must think the clichéd words he speaks are trite.

He wouldn’t desire it.

Neither the revenge we are about to carry out nor my death was desired by him.

Robert-sama was such a person.

“Lord Polydoro, you should not utter words you yourself find futile.”

I admonish him with a laugh.

All your words are futile.

There is nothing good left in living on.

I have determined that my life’s conclusion is here.

My resolve will not waver.

“…”

Lord Polydoro seemed about to close his mouth.

I thought he might never open it again.

As we sat in silence, it seemed we would arrive at the Opera House, which is both the residence and performance venue of the wandering tribe.

Then, Lord Polydoro muttered softly.

“I would like to ask you, Lord Michael.”

“Please, go ahead.”

I answered lightly.

Lord Polydoro, neither with a voice full of sorrow nor one of sadness, asked a question devoid of all emotions, trying to be sincere towards my resolution.

“Is this—truly a fitting end for your life?”

“Yes.”

My answer flowed smoothly, without hesitation.

I need nothing more.

There is nothing good left for me in life.

As someone deprived of the ability to have offspring, I have nothing left to protect or gain in life.

Ah, now that I think about it, the only thing I didn’t dislike was singing.

Just that, only that.

It was the only thing I could take pride in.

“It seems I cannot sway your resolve, Lord Michael.”

Lord Polydoro’s words of resignation.

I didn’t respond.

Responding with a simple affirmative seemed crude.

Something instead of a crude word.

Well—words from my shallow knowledge.

In the end, about the only thing I could be proud of.

“May I sing one last song?”

Lord Polydoro started to move his lips as if to ask what I meant, but then he forcibly closed them.

He had sensed there was more to my words.

“I think I will sing a requiem. I cannot become a guardian of Robert-sama’s grave. Therefore, the next song I sing will be my last.”

Lord Polydoro’s face filled with sorrow again.

I understand what he wants to say.

Why not live as a guardian of the grave?

Keep singing a requiem for Robert-sama until your life naturally ends.

But now, Lord Polydoro did not try to say anything more.

He understood everything.

I think he is a good person.

If he remains, I need worry no more.

He can surely bring peace of mind to Her Majesty the Queen.

“…”

The silence continued.

There wasn’t much time left.

Soon, the carriage would arrive at the opera house.

“I have one request.”

“What is it?”

“If you are to sing a requiem, could you make sure Her Majesty the Queen can hear it?”

How odd.

Lord Polydoro says something I cannot comprehend.

“What are you thinking?”

“I have been asked to bring peace of mind to Her Majesty the Queen. But I anticipate great difficulty in reporting the outcome of this case. The report will only cause Her Majesty pain. However, if a song plays in the background, it might provide some distraction. I want you to keep singing the requiem until I tell you to stop.”

“I honestly cannot grasp what you are thinking, Lord Polydoro.”

Well, it’s fine.

If it’s Lord Polydoro’s request, accepting my death, and if it serves to bring peace to Her Majesty the Queen, then I had no reason to refuse.

“I will do it.”

“Thank you. Well—it seems we have arrived. I cannot leave the carriage.”

Lord Polydoro could not show himself on the public stage.

This case had to be settled secretly.

“I understand. Leave everything else to me.”

This concluded our conversation.

Now, all that was left was for me to finish singing the ending.

Let’s bring this case to its conclusion.

※

In the familiar office of the opera house director, which also serves as her living quarters, I enter.

The area had already been cleared of people.

“Michael, what brings you here today—”

“Today, I stand here not as Michael the opera singer, but as an emissary of Lord Polydoro.”

I swiftly conveyed the purpose of my visit.

The director’s shoulders shook slightly, but no other reaction was visible.

“Lord Polydoro has seen through everything. It’s all over. Are you prepared to confess?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about—”

“I know how it was done. I also know that you are the culprit.”

I simply relayed the facts.

The truths that Lord Polydoro had deduced.

“He even knows that there was no malice in it. Do not try to escape the truth.”

“Michael, I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

“It’s the motive. That’s the only thing I don’t understand. Lord Polydoro seeks peace of mind for Her Majesty the Queen. To achieve that, all truths must be revealed.”

I confronted the director, standing in the center of the room.

I grabbed her collar and pulled her face close.

I did not shout.

I whispered so that only the director could hear.

“I have no intention of making this public. The only ones who need to know everything are me, Her Majesty the Queen, Lord Polydoro, and Lord Wesperman. Just the four of us. You understand what this means?”

“—Michael”

“If you confess your crimes honestly and take your own life, the wandering tribes will be spared punishment. I find this distasteful, but Lord Polydoro does not want to stir up trouble.”

I murmured.

So that no one else could hear, so that the world could not hear.

I murmured quietly.

“Die. Confess everything quickly and just die. If the poison that killed Robert-sama is still available, drink it and end your life. That is what Lord Polydoro desires.”

“Really?”

The director’s hesitation vanished, revealing her heart.

The thin veil that had covered her face peeled away, revealing the figure of a cowardly criminal.

“Really—”

I let go of her collar.

The director’s body lost all strength, and she collapsed to the floor, bowing her head while trembling and with tears in her voice.

“Is that all it takes? If I die, everything—my tribe will not be persecuted?”

“That’s right.”

I knew it.

I knew it, but the answer Lord Polydoro had derived was indeed everything.

With the knife hanging from my waist, I wanted to cut up and kill the sinner clinging to my feet.

With the knife that Robert-sama had given me, which had pierced my own mother’s heart.

I wanted to trample on everything this woman desperately tried to protect.

But I couldn’t.

That was the only brilliant way to not make void what Robert-sama had done in his lifetime.

“If you tell me to die, I will. If it is desired, I will open my chest with a knife and remove this heart. Even in death, I will atone for a fraction of my sins. But soon, Her Majesty the Queen will pass the throne to Princess Anastasia. What if the princess finds out about this?”

“I told you, only the four of us need to know the truth first. There’s no need to tell others. Those who can understand the situation will remain silent to the end.”

How tiresome.

Even if Princess Anastasia comes to know, that wise lady, like Her Majesty, will choose not to reveal the truth.

But I have no obligation to explain that to her.

Die in fear to the very end.

What I wanted to know was—

“Now, confess everything. What happened, what you thought about what Robert-sama said. The knight and servant present at your petition remember clearly. But your motive for poisoning the rose—that’s the only thing I don’t understand.”

I didn’t understand.

To the very end, no one understood the motive of this sinful woman.

Not the wise Lord Polydoro, not me, another member of the wandering tribes.

Why she harbored such a twisted desire to kill a single rose.

The “darkness” of the human heart, as Lord Polydoro said, could not be understood until the criminal herself revealed it.

The reason for killing Robert-sama, who pursued the ultimate ideals of truth, beauty, and goodness until his death.

If only I could know that.

I have no attachment to this life.

Lord Polydoro would surely manage the aftermath.

I just waited, earnestly, for the director to open her mouth.