A Failed Knight Who Went to the Academy To Get Married

030 The Party for the Jailbreak

“Mr. Train… If this is how you’re going to play, then I have my plans too. You better be prepared.”

At Princess Shia’s words, Train flinched involuntarily.

In truth, Train was also in attendance at the party.

Dressed as a butler, he pulled a tray laden with food and drinks,

even wearing a blindfold designed to impair recognition.

‘This is bound to cause trouble later.’

Yet, he could not reveal his identity.

He was to remain quietly until the party ended, as per Master Elford’s command.

Train tried to slip away, but Princess Shia blocked his path.

“Could you serve me the strongest liquor you have?”

As Train hesitated, Prince Siran intervened.

“Hey! You know you’re terrible with alcohol!”

“What’s the problem with me wanting to enjoy my own party?”

“It’s precisely because it’s your party that you shouldn’t!”

“Just leave me be, the main star hasn’t even arrived.”

“I’ll make sure to catch that Train fellow later!”

Watching their squabble, Train let out a short sigh.

And so, instead of alcohol, he poured grape juice into a wine glass and handed it to Princess Shia.

“I’ll serve you juice instead of alcohol.”

Princess Shia glared at Train and retorted,

“You’re not defying my orders too, are you?”

“Your Highness suits the purity of juice more than fermented liquor.”

“How would you know whether I’m pure or not?”

“Let’s keep it moderate. There are many eyes watching.”

Princess Shia glared at Train as if she could kill him, but after a long pause, she regained her smile and said,

“…I’m sorry. I got too excited.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

Princess Shia took the juice demurely.

Then she whispered softly into his ear,

“You’re taking your jokes too far, Lord Train.”

“What? No, that’s not it?”

Princess Shia turned around with a bright, sunny smile.

“There’s nothing I can do about it. I’ll question you later, Train.”

Only then did the other students breathe a sigh of relief.

No one knew why her mood had suddenly improved, but

at least it meant the party wouldn’t be ruined.

However, the person who would soon spoil Princess Shia’s mood appeared.

“Oh, Princess Shia! You look even more beautiful today!”

A hearty yet thoughtless voice.

Bronzed skin and a muscular figure.

Princess Shia barely maintained her smile as she spoke to him.

“Prince Kumchuck of the Romer Empire, thank you for coming all this way.”

“No need to feel burdened. It’s just you and me, isn’t it?”

As Prince Kumchuck laughed out loud,

the students from the Knight Academy glared at him in unison.

Feeling the pressure, Prince Kumchuck coughed awkwardly.

“Ah, anyway, today is a day of celebration, so let’s forget any old grudges.”

At those words, Prince Sirian stepped in front of him, sneering.

“What audacity brings you here?”

“Hmph, I should be the one receiving thanks for graciously erasing your misdeeds, shouldn’t I?”

…After the knight academy students caused a ruckus in the Romer Empire and returned.

The Emperor of the Romer Empire decided not to hold any grudge against the Kingdom of Altoria.

After all, making an issue out of it would only expose his own son’s shameful acts to the world.

Thanks to that, the somewhat precarious relationship between the two nations was maintained.

Of course, Prince Kumechuck had nothing to do with the resolution.

“Hey you! Come here and pour me the best drink you have!”

Train, upon being called, sighed briefly and approached him.

If he had known, he wouldn’t have bothered approaching Princess Shia.

Nevertheless, his identity must not be revealed, so he poured the drink as calmly as he could.

“This is a distilled spirit, boasting a lineage from the Altoria royal family, with only three bottles in existence.”

Of course, Train knew little about the drink.

Following the master’s advice that ‘the taste of liquor is decided by its description’,

I brought out the cheapest and strongest liquor, mixed with an absurd lie.

Of course, it was a common drink in Altoria, so all the surrounding students were shocked,

But Prince Krumchuck, without any suspicion, guzzled down the drink.

“Kuh… Hmph, to think this swill is the best Altoria has to offer. As expected, it’s nothing compared to my empire!”

Soon after, he staggered from the intoxication and collapsed with a thud,

His guards hurried to support him and cleared the space.

Then, the students quietly sent their applause to Train.

“Well done!”

“That’s some sharp wit!”

“Serves him right!”

Even Prince Sirian, with a delighted laugh, handed over a cheque.

“Good job. Let’s have a chat sometime, just you and me.”

Train hesitated to accept the cheque offered by his friend,

Princess Shia poked him in the ribs with her finger and whispered.

“You’ve been taught that it’s rude for an employee to refuse a royal’s gratitude, right?”

“…Then I’ll gratefully accept.”

Upon receiving it, 100 gold,

an amount that easily surpassed ten times the entirety of Traine’s fortune.

‘The royalty really is something else.’

Traine suddenly realized the abnormality of his situation.

Royalty, by nature, was an existence beyond the reach of commoners.

It was only because the academy was a special place that he could be friends with Sirian,

had they met outside, they surely wouldn’t have even spoken.

Whether that was luck or misfortune, he couldn’t tell.

But at least then, Traine was able to escape from the two royals and their friends.

***

After busily serving food and attending to the nobles for a while,

the party eventually ended, and the banquet hall quieted down.

Traine, glancing around, stepped into the kitchen and said,

“We’ve run out of Belcoeur wine, so place an order for more.”

An elven chef approached him.

“How many bottles do we need?”

“Enough to intoxicate a dragon.”

“I’ll need to check the stock in the warehouse. Follow me.”

But the chef didn’t lead Train to the warehouse.

It was the stairs heading down to the dungeon.

Once sure they were alone, the chef asked Train.

“You know what needs to be done, right?”

“I’m aware, but…”

“Just take Benhaim and Doppelginger and flee.”

At those words, Train furrowed his brows in silence.

Benhaim, the former librarian, and his assistant Doppelginger.

He couldn’t refuse his mentor’s request,

Yet he still hadn’t heard why they needed to be rescued.

“Anyway, it’s quite the event that Elford has taken on an apprentice.”

“Do you know the master?”

“If I did, would I be in this mess?”

As the chef laughed out loud, Train hurriedly looked around and whispered.

“Keep it down! If we get caught, it’ll be chaos!”

“I’ve already slipped the soldiers some sleeping potion in their drink; we’re fine.”

“You think that’ll work? Is it okay for the palace security to be this lax?”

“It’s not lax at all. I’ve been undercover here for ten years just for this.”

…There were mountains of questions he wanted to ask, but he decided not to let his guard down for now.

What Train was doing was a serious crime.

If caught, execution was as certain as seeing fire.

Not even Sirian or Shia could save him.

‘Ha… What am I really doing?’

Nevertheless, the journey to the underground dungeon went very smoothly.

Since all the soldiers had indeed fallen into a deep sleep,

The two would soon reach their intended destination.

Even the prisoners seemed to have fallen into slumber, as the jail was very quiet.

“Alright, shall we open it?”

The chef used the key he had prepared in advance to swing open the iron bars.

Then, he kicked the two elves who were shackled and sleeping on the floor to wake them up.

“Rise, you disgraces of the elven kind. It’s time to go home.”

Startled, Benhaim and Doppelginger quickly stood up.

“What, what’s this?”

“What’s happening?”

“Both of you, shut up and follow me.”

The chef grabbed their hands and cast a perception-inhibiting spell on them.

Together, they all slipped out of the jail.

“After climbing the stairs, we’ll quietly escape through the castle’s back door.”

…Just then, as they sensed someone above on the stairs,

All four of them quickly hid behind a pillar in the corner.

But it seemed the other party had already noticed, as a voice called out.

“Who’s there?”

The chef glanced upwards and muttered.

“Damn! Are we going to be discovered? Trine, you go and take care of it.”

“Me?”

Without hesitation, the chef kicked Trine in the rear.

In the end, Trine floundered and fell over,

and the sound of footsteps approached right in front of him.

“Trine? What are you doing here?”

Trine scrambled to his feet and retorted.

“Princess Shia, what brings you here?”

“I was naturally looking for you, Trine.”

“I was just taking a walk.”

“In the underground dungeon?”

“I got lost.”

“The soldiers are all asleep, and it seems you’re not alone.”

“It does seem that way.”

“I thought you disguising yourself as a butler was a surprise for me.”

“I, I’m sorry about that.”

Princess Sia drew her gun and aimed it at Train.

“What should I do in this situation?”

Train stepped back and, touching the flower in his lapel, replied,

“Please pretend you didn’t see anything. I don’t want to fight with you, Your Highness.”

“And if I refuse? Are you going to kill me?”

At that cold question, Train hesitated for a moment, then,

he sighed shortly and said,

“That would be difficult.”

“Thank you for saying that.”

“Still, I could manage to give Your Highness a bump on the head.”

At those words, Princess Sia let out a small laugh.

But soon, she regained her composure and said,

“I can kill you, Mr. Train. I’m colder than I look.”

“That’s too much.”

“I’ll give you one minute.”

Princess Sia lowered her gun and closed her eyes.

“In exactly one minute, I’ll call the knights. You can escape by then, right?”

“…Everyone, run for it!”

At Train’s small cry, the elves scrambled out.

As they ascended the empty staircase, Train grumbled to the chef,

“Using me as a decoy, that’s just cruel, isn’t it?”

“Elford attached you to me for such occasions!”

“That’s just reckless.”

“Don’t complain to me, take it up with that Elford guy!”

In the end, they barely managed to escape the castle,

And thankfully, Princess Sia did not call the knights after all.

Stepping outside the castle, Elford the butler was waiting with several horses.

“Everyone, mount up. We are pressed for time.”

After each person caught a horse and mounted, they started to gallop.

For a while, only the sound of horse hooves continued in the dark silence,

Until Train, riding alongside Butler Elford, asked,

“Could you start explaining now?”

After a brief pause, Butler Elford replied,

“I have been entrusted with a request from the Elder of the Elves.”

“To rescue Benhaim and Doppelginger?”

“More precisely, to save the Elven Princess and her cousin.”

“What?! Both of them were of the Elven royalty?!”

“We’ll discuss the details once we reach the Elven village.”

After that, Butler Elford remained silent.

Benhaim, Doppelginger, and even the chef maintained their silence,

Leaving Train to grumble to himself as he resignedly drove his horse alone.

“Everywhere I go, it’s always those royal pains causing trouble.”