They don't want me to try anymore.

This means I need to be even more careful with my hands and feet!

Richard knew very well that he could easily win the favor of many women, but he felt that such relationships were unstable and improper!

Reality is not a simulation; happiness is better earned through one's own efforts.

"Alice-senpai."

Seeing the other person turn around, Richard asked seriously, "You've finished your medicine, but I still want to ask, what's the status of the charges against me?"

Alice suppressed her complicated emotions and answered seriously:

"After investigation, it was confirmed that the Ash Giant was indeed hit by the Shock Scroll. The school visited the Pointy Hat Magical Supplies Shop, and the shop owner also claimed that you purchased the scroll."

Richard frowned involuntarily.

"However, I believe you and I have protested to the school. Although you are an exchange student, my words still carry some weight. In addition, the principal also believes that the evidence provided by Hamilton is not conclusive, so she does not intend to expel you."

Richard breathed a sigh of relief.

He was relieved that neither Alice nor the witch headmistress sided with Hamilton.

Otherwise, based on his understanding of the Imperials' way of doing things, as long as the teachers reached a consensus within a small group, he would most likely be implicated in an unsolved case.

However, if we think about it more deeply...

This false accusation is both a predicament and an opportunity!

If the poisoning occurred within an illusion, the act would be swift and subtle, making it difficult for him to investigate the mastermind behind it.

But now Hamilton's accusations have a longer chain of events and involve more people, making it more likely that he will find out the mastermind behind it!

"Junior Richard, the danger isn't over yet."

Alice's tone revealed a hint of heartache as she softly said, "Although there is no conclusive evidence, you are still a suspect, so the principal has decided to hold an internal hearing tomorrow afternoon to decide this matter."

An internal school hearing...

Is this the script for "Scent of a Woman"?

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Friends and Family in Action!

A hearing, huh? That's fine...

However, the so-called witness is a bit of a headache.

"Junior, if you don't mind, would you be willing to listen to my advice?"

"Senior, please tell me."

"Actually, the day before you woke up, I had already asked some friends to investigate, and everyone was very enthusiastic."

Alice took out two sheets of paper from behind her: "These are the possible testimonies of those people that I have collected. You may want to look through them and see if there are any loopholes."

Looking at the neat handwriting on the paper, clearly written by hand, Richard was truly moved this time.

"Senior Alice, I really don't know how to repay you..."

"Hehe, it's no problem, I'd be happy to help, junior, don't be so polite~"

By this time, the sun had already set by more than half its zenith.

Alice gazed at Richard's slightly flushed profile in the sunlight and suddenly recalled a proverb from the Far East, which roughly means that a debt of gratitude can only be repaid with one's body.

Well, although I said Richard there was no need to be so polite, in my heart...

She really wanted Richard to see that sentence by accident.

Richard then continued to talk to Alice about the hearing.

Although they tried not to disturb Zoe and Katyusha, the two girls woke up midway through the conversation and joined in.

Around 6 p.m., the nurses from the school hospital brought in dinner and asked all the girls to leave the ward so that Richard could get some rest.

Alice had other important business to attend to after leaving the school hospital, so she said goodbye to the two men.

Zoe and Katyusha arrived at the restaurant looking worried.

"Hamilton is a monster, and those perjurers have no conscience at all!"

Zoe was worried about Richard's hearing, but couldn't think of a good solution, so she vented her frustration on the bread on her plate.

Katyusha, on the other hand, felt more self-blame and shame than Zoe.

"I'm a terrible maid..."

"Ah? No, Katyusha, this isn't your fault."

"However, I have neither protected Your Highness nor upheld Your Highness's honor, and I have not even been able to choose underwear that satisfies Your Highness..."

"Wait, what's the last one?"

Zoe, who had originally intended to comfort the little maid, suddenly became a little unsettled.

After Katyusha finished recounting the details, her facial features couldn't help but contort slightly, which Katyusha interpreted as Zoe blaming her for not being a good maid, causing her to become even more depressed...

Just then, Hepel appeared out of nowhere and interjected with a smile: "Your name is Katyusha, right? I think Richard's decision not to do that wasn't because he was dissatisfied with you; on the contrary, it was a sign that he valued you."

"cherish?"

"That's right. He doesn't treat you like an ordinary maid, and he doesn't belittle your personality and value. In that sense, he really is a good man. Haha, I'm just being objective."

Seeing Zoe looking at her again, Hepper quickly waved her hand and said to Katyusha, "If you want to meet Richard's expectations, why not start by making yourself better?"

Zoe immediately chimed in, "No, that's right! Let's stop with the lingerie displays and stuff!"

Katyusha stared thoughtfully at a smear of cream on the plate.

At this moment, Zoe looked at Hepper and Tom, who was also approaching from behind, and suddenly realized what was going on. She asked, "Do you have something important to discuss? Is it related to Richard?"

"To be precise, it concerns matters related to the witnesses at the hearing."

Tom explained, “I’ve known the owner of the hat shop for five years and know where he keeps his mistress in the suburbs, so I came up with a plan… We’ll sneak over there tonight, ambush him, avoid the school, and pry out some useful information.”

Zoe immediately agreed.

She then asked everyone to wait a moment, went back into the house, took out a large bag of things, clattered it out, and tried to stuff it under her skirt.

Tom looked around and saw, good heavens, chains, pliers, a branding iron, and a spiked club...

"Uh, Zoe, these are..."

"Aren't we trying to get that man to talk?"

"As a mage, I know a few spells..."

"Spells must be used, and so must spiked clubs; only then can one be considered complete!"

"...?"

Tom looked at the smiling young girl, then glanced at Katyusha who had already skillfully picked up the spiked club, and couldn't help but wipe the sweat from his brow.

The women around my junior... are all quite something.

After the sun completely sets.

The four of them quietly left the school.

They first passed by a nearby hat shop and noticed several people standing there who were clearly keeping watch—presumably either Hamilton's friends or school staff.

Obviously, it's impossible to barge in and interrogate the store manager before the hearing.

But even the best witness protection can't protect a witness from making a fool of themselves.

About an hour later, a hidden little door opened on the side of the Pointy Hat Magic Supplies Shop.

The shopkeeper, crouching low, carried his wife and protectors out, boarded the carriage parked on the street, and headed away into the distance.

"This guy has a serious addiction. He goes to see his mistress several nights every week without fail, but because his wife's family has some influence, he has never dared to expose it."

Under Tom's guidance, the interrogation team followed the carriage and arrived in the southern district of Idaril.

This neighborhood was even more dilapidated than the bakery Zoe had seen before. Beggars and garbage were everywhere along the roadside, rats and excrement were rampant in the dark corners, and the air reeked of decay.

Hepel instinctively covered her nose: "I never imagined Idaril had a place like this..."

"Of course there are. No matter how glorious a city is, there are always places of poverty and hardship... I grew up in this area."

"what?"

For the first time ever, Tom, who was usually shy and introverted at school, was speaking fluently and frankly...

Perhaps this is his true self in familiar surroundings and in front of his real friends.

He even joked with Hepellu, saying, "Junior, you've come all this way to the Empire, how can you only see St. Goethe and the bustling Central Avenue?"

Hepper seemed to be deep in thought.

Zoe and Katyusha also thought of the time Richard took them to the bakery...

The Holy Empire... isn't as holy as it seems.

Soon, they crossed the three streets and entered a slightly cleaner and more presentable area.

The shopkeeper's carriage was parked in front of the small building on the street corner.

"action!"