The Harvest Mouse Exits the Fairytale Together with Cinderella-Chapter 106

The people gathered in the banquet hall were utterly shocked by Geno’s lack of decorum.

Calling her "Redhead" and addressing her as "you"?

"Zenovia Valkyrisen...?"

A once-in-a-lifetime genius who had never failed to win gold in swordsmanship tournaments since childhood.

A prodigy whose skill with the sword was unparalleled.

And yet, a cursed mind that failed to match his innate physique...

Many people recognized Zenovia, as he was famous for many reasons.

Completely ignoring the reactions around him, he leapt from the terrace railing and strode forward without hesitation.

Toward Sera and Rose.

The boy positioned himself in front of Sera and abruptly leaned toward Rose, forcing her to take an involuntary step back.

His speech was rough, like that of a common thug, but his face—refined and delicate—drew closer, making her cheeks flush without her realizing it.

"Hey, you were in the same grade as me, right? Your name was... Red, was it?"

Geno plucked the most similar-sounding word from the faint traces of his memory.

"How can a person’s name be Red?"

"......"

"Red Bluewood? That’s just cruel, don’t you think?"

He had come up with the name himself, yet he now looked at her with a pitying gaze.

Rose gritted her teeth and spoke in a suppressed voice.

"...It’s Rose."

"Is that so."

Geno responded absentmindedly, as if he had lost interest, then grinned widely, revealing unusually sharp fangs.

At that moment, Rose forgot even to maintain her usual act—her back shivered with an uncontrollable chill.

"Young Lord Valkyrisen. Stop harassing the lady and step away."

The one who suddenly intervened was a follower of the Silvarian prince.

"Even indulgence has its limits. Are you siding with someone just because they have Valkyrisen’s backing?"

The others in the banquet hall remained silent, yet their silence seemed to align with the speaker’s sentiments.

Given the fragmented understanding of the situation, Sera inevitably appeared to be the villain.

Lately, rumors about her had begun spreading.

And those who had been waiting for the downfall of a genius were all too eager to spread them further.

At first, people dismissed them as baseless.

But rumors that refuse to die out tend to create uncertainty.

The most prevalent rumors surrounding Sera were as follows:

First, that she had fallen in love with a beastfolk and was secretly planning to marry him.

Second, that she was abusing the authority of House Valkyrisen to oppress the Bluewood family.

And most notably, that she harbored an intense hostility toward her stepsisters.

Not only did she strike them openly, but she also forced them to serve her alongside the household staff and prevented them from attending the academy.

It was said that she was solidifying her claim to the countship and eliminating any potential competitors.

Sera had always had a good reputation.

Which was why these rumors were even more damaging.

Standing slightly away from the heart of the commotion, Cesare smiled quietly to himself.

"It seems to be working well."

He needed to erode the nobles’ trust in Sera in a short amount of time.

He had discussed the plan briefly in advance with Rose Bluewood, and everything was proceeding exactly as they had intended.

"For this moment alone, they just need to believe me."

He had chosen today deliberately.

To take advantage of the nature of a banquet hall—where a few voices of persuasion could lead to collective agreement.

The tide of public opinion had already turned against Sera.

Even if someone later realized something was amiss, by the time they did, the damage would already be done.

This was Cesare’s favorite method.

"Now, it’s your turn."

The situation had reached its peak.

The prince waited in silence, expecting Sera, backed into a corner, to make one misstep after another and ultimately destroy herself.

Like a fisherman patiently waiting for his catch.

Quietly.

Patiently.

For the moment to arrive...

And just as Sera, unable to hold back any longer, opened her mouth—just as the prince’s eyes gleamed with satisfaction—

"Hah, shut the hell up."

Geno spoke.

A crude, unrefined insult.

For a moment, everyone lost their words, unable to close their mouths.

Even the young noble aligned with the prince, who had just been attempting to sway the crowd to his side.

"Th-This is outrageous...!"

"No, what’s outrageous is all of you. Condemning someone without a shred of evidence?"

What kind of uneducated nonsense is that?

Geno muttered as he pulled out several small orbs from his pocket.

The recording orbs, which had shrunk to the size of fingernails, suddenly expanded to fit in his palm before rolling onto the floor.

The nobles gathered in the banquet hall were bewildered by his bizarre act of tossing the orbs, yet they instinctively picked up the ones that rolled to their feet.

"Oh... dear god..."

A collective murmur of disbelief filled the room.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Some nobles looked between Sera, Rose, and the recordings, their mouths agape in shock.

Others squeezed their eyes shut, as if unable to bear what they were witnessing.

"What the..."

Rose began to feel uneasy.

Things had been going exactly as planned.

"The prince himself said he would thoroughly ruin that Cinderella wench."

And if everything went well, he had promised to make her his queen.

Yet now, all of a sudden, the way people were looking at her had changed.

Sometimes, a single glance or a mere expression could hold more meaning than any spoken words.

Without realizing it, Rose took a step back.

She stumbled as her foot landed on one of the orbs scattered on the floor.

"...Shit!"

Cursing under her breath, she instinctively looked down at the orb.

And there, projected within it, was a scene from her childhood.

More precisely, it showed her, veins bulging at her neck and forehead, slapping Sera’s face with practiced ease.

"W-What is this...!"

Rose gasped and looked up.

Every noble present held a recording orb in their hands.

And they were all staring at her.

Like she was something indescribable.

A monster.

"Ah..."

The recordings were all taken on different days.

Yet every single one of them contained the same thing—young Sera, blatantly suffering under abuse.

Sera stood with her arms crossed, watching the recordings play one by one. Then, she let out a quiet chuckle.

"What’s wrong? Do you feel disgusted that I exposed your past without your permission?"

Geno, who had stepped up beside her, asked. His words were rough, but there was an underlying concern in his voice.

"No. If it hadn’t been shown this blatantly, no one would have believed what I said."

Even though public sentiment was currently in Rose’s favor, the truth would eventually come out.

It wouldn’t take much investigation to figure out who had been abused.

But most people prefer to chew on gossip rather than listen to the pleas of the wrongly accused.

Turning the tide of public opinion here and now was the best course of action.

Sera lowered her voice, speaking in a subtle whisper.

"Where did you get the recording orbs? From the Bluewood servants?"

"No. The current servants have all been silenced and are only spouting nonsense."

That was to be expected.

If they were trying to frame her without real evidence, they would at least put in the effort to fabricate some.

"Then?"

"There were plenty of former servants who had worked for the previous Countess but were kicked out by the current one."

One of them had steadily recorded and preserved footage of Sera.

Hoping that, someday, it would be used for her sake.

All Geno had done was track down that person and retrieve the evidence.

"This wasn’t your idea, was it?"

"...Why do you think that?"

"Well..."

Should I really have to say out loud that someone like you couldn’t have come up with such a clever solution?

Sera simply stared at him, her expression making it clear what she meant.

"Ah, fine. I get it. I know exactly what you’re trying to say."

Geno clicked his tongue in irritation, having caught on to her unspoken words.

"You’re right. It wasn’t my idea."

"I’ve only made them worry again."

Sera had figured out who was pulling the strings behind the scenes, but even as she murmured those words, she couldn’t suppress her smile.

A smile like a flower bud waiting for spring to come.

She had no idea why Elodie was here, nor how she had anticipated this exact situation and brought the most crucial evidence at the perfect time.

But that was a question for later.

"They told me not to hold back and to give them hell, so go ahead and have your fun. And..."

Geno suddenly leaned down and whispered something quietly into Sera’s ear.

"Aha! You really are impossible."

Hearing his words, Sera let out a bright, delighted laugh, unable to contain her amusement.

Then, as if nothing had happened, she turned back to face the crowd and spoke.

"It seems I’ve proven my innocence."

She didn’t spare Rose a single glance.

Instead, she locked eyes with the one person who had orchestrated everything yet was now standing a step behind, merely observing.

She curled her finger, gesturing him forward.

"Prince Cesare Silveria."

"......"

"I no longer have any reason to endure you. So I’ll just get straight to the point."

By now, the banquet had reached its peak.

Sera glanced at the professors and the headmaster, who had entered the hall to celebrate the graduation ceremony, only to be utterly bewildered by the unfolding chaos.

"Bring me His Highness’s answer sheet. I can prove, right here and now, who used forbidden magic to cheat."

...Perfect.

Cesare’s lips curled into a satisfied smirk.

Truthfully, he had planned to lead her into saying those very words.

Just moments ago, he had started to feel uneasy about the way things were turning against him. But now, she was digging her own grave.

"If it’s something you can determine just by touching the answer sheet, then isn’t the ‘proof’ entirely based on your testimony?"

That’s not evidence at all.

Cesare spoke in a slow, measured tone, feigning regret.

"You’re not unfamiliar with my ability, are you?"

"Of course, I know you have an extraordinary ability. But what if you were the one who tampered with my answer sheet?"

"You’re saying it was me?"

"My answer sheet suddenly turned into scribbles after you threw a quill at me."

"I did that to dispel the forbidden magic you used to cheat."

"No, you did it to frame me using your ability."

Neither side was willing to back down.

"My lady, I don’t know why you’ve developed such deep resentment toward me, but haven’t you done enough? I wish you would stop now."

Cesare attempted to sway the crowd’s opinion again.

But Sera didn’t let him.

"Then, as long as I’m not the one proving it, there’s no problem, correct?"

"What?"

Caught off guard by her unexpected response, Cesare blurted out a dumbfounded question.

At that moment, something tiny popped out of Geno’s pocket.

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It was so small that, for a second, people thought it was an insect.

But then—bang—a puff of white smoke filled the air.

As the smoke cleared, a small child with round ears appeared.

"If the next High Priest of Animallia says it, will you believe it?"

Elodie clung to the hem of Sera’s dress and spoke.

"A b-beastfolk?"

"A beastfolk in Terranolia...!"

"Guards!"

Some nobles, seeing a beastfolk for the first time in their lives, caused a commotion.

"Gracia Ratson!"

Among them, Cesare—one of the only people who recognized Elodie—immediately realized that everything had fallen apart.

Panicked, he shouted, desperate to seize control of the situation.

"A beastfolk has entered Imperial territory without permission! Detain her immediately—!"

"Here, take this—my official ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) entry permit for Terranolia."

Elodie casually pulled out a freshly issued document from the day before and flung it right into Cesare’s face.