Published: August 10, 2026
...Wash away all the dangerous items brought in from Lanzenave!
Even if the contents of the silver tube were not Instant Death Poison, washing everything away should solve the problem. As I thought that, I poured mana into the auxiliary magic circle for the wide-area magic and cast "waschen," and of course, a tremendous amount of water began pouring down all at once from near the ceiling like a waterfall.
"What is this water!?"
The astonished voices of the Central Knights Order were mixed with my Guard Knights' voices shouting, "Whoa!? It's swirling!? Why!?" Since this auxiliary magic circle had been designed to wash over the entire auditorium, the water summoned by mana naturally filled the hall. That much was exactly as I had planned. I had intended to simply pinch my nose and wait until the auditorium was filled with water and the magic disappeared.
However, perhaps because I had imagined a washing machine when I thought of "washing everything away," the water inside the auditorium began swirling at high speed, engulfing everyone inside, friends and enemies alike. By the time Anastasius's shout of "What is this, Rose... glub glub!" was swallowed by the water and disappeared, I too could no longer stand and was being carried along by the current, my body floating and with no sense of up or down, left or right.
...Eek! It failed! Somebody help me!
I want to praise myself for having managed to pinch my nose before completely drowning. Both I, the caster, and my Guard Knights and Raobroot and Anastasius were all spinning round and round in the vortex like laundry in a washing machine. This was completely outside my expectations.
...I'm getting dizzy! Air! I need air! Eep!
Just as I was screaming silently, I was suddenly tossed out into the air. The water surrounding me vanished, and air rushed into my open mouth. Breathing became easier, and my vision suddenly cleared. Even though I had just popped out of the water, I was no longer wet, and I could see my hair swaying smoothly.
...Huh? The ceiling?
What had come into view alongside my hair was the ceiling. It was so close that I felt like I could reach out and touch it. The moment I realized that the water current had lifted me much higher than I had thought, gravity caught hold of my body. My distance from the ceiling began to increase without mercy, and the blood drained from my face all at once.
...I'm falling!
"W-wah, wawa!"
Even though gravity had caught me and I was falling, everything around me felt strangely slow. I desperately stretched out my arms to grab onto something, but there was nothing within reach.
Then, from below, I heard someone's pained "Gwah!" and Ferdinand's anxious voice calling, "Rosemine!" My two amulets on my wrist reacted. Before I could even wonder whether someone had attacked me, a counterattack of light flew from the amulets, and a streak of light wrapped around me. Was this also an attack? I wondered, and then I was tugged hard, thrown off by a force unlike gravity, and my falling angle changed.
"Kyaaaaaa!"
While I was still screaming, I apparently flew straight into Ferdinand's arms on the altar. He told me, "Be quiet, you're noisy," and before even asking if I was all right, he began scolding me with, "You idiot, what in the world were you doing?"
"W-well, I mean, a silver-filled tube was pointed at Lord Ferdinand, so I used waschen, and then I got caught up in a water current I hadn't anticipated and was thrown out and fell, but if you ask me to explain it again, it's rather hard to answer."
"That is enough to answer, but did you think I would be caught by the same trick twice?"
Ferdinand twisted his face in irritation as he jerked his chin toward Gervasio, who was holding his head and groaning. It wasn't that I didn't trust him. I had just used waschen because I was worried. I wished he wouldn't make such a displeased face. My heart was busy switching between relief that I had been saved and tension over being lectured.
"E-even so, why was only I sent over here? Everyone else is still spinning..."