23
It was the same object that had happened to tumble right to his feet when Ruseria was arrested under the charge of treason. At the time, Herscherik’s eyes were drawn to it like a magnet, and before he knew it, the watch was in his hand. Now, the silver dully reflected the moonlight that had snuck into the room through the gap in the curtains. He had brought it all the way back to his room without anyone stopping him. Well, no one had noticed him carrying it amidst the commotion, at least.
Herscherik crawled out of bed and took the watch. It opened with the press of a button, revealing the watch face. Just as he had assumed from his life so far, days in this world seemed to be divided into 24 hours, too. While they differed from those of the old world, twelve numbers did occupy the watch face in their familiar positions. Judging by the hands on the watch, he discerned that the time was just past ten o’clock at night.
...Why did father look so sad when Count Ruseria was declared a traitor?
His father’s sorrowful expression was burned into Herscherik’s memory. In that situation, any king would certainly have been angry over the count’s betrayal. While his kindhearted father might have been saddened by it, his expression was more dejected than anything else.
Besides, the count didn’t look like a bad person...
To Herscherik, Ruseria looked like he was sincerely concerned for his country and, at the same time, like he had been backed into a corner.
Something’s not right about this.
That hunch he had at the scene of the arrest had been keeping Herscherik awake. It made him more nervous with time and had culminated in a sense of growing urgency. Desperately trying to uncover the meaning of his instinctive suspicion, Herscherik pored over every aspect of the incident. The paper Ruseria had produced, his father’s astonishment, Barbosse’s sealed letter... the contrast between Barbosse’s confidence and Ruseria’s hopeless expression. In order to recall every last detail, even the ones that he didn’t find important at the time, Herscherik replayed the scene over and over again in his mind.
...Oh!
As soon as the revelation hit him after several mental replays, his sense of urgency dissipated. The pocket watch fell from his hand, which he’d relaxed without realizing, but he couldn’t be bothered by it.
The evidence the minister presented doesn’t match the count’s reaction.
The minister’s evidence was definitive. But, would someone trying to seek refuge in a foreign nation take the risk of presenting false evidence to the king just to frame someone else? If Herscherik had been in the count’s shoes, he would have made a run for it as soon as he could. It would have been easier and less risky than trying to frame another man for the crime. What kind of burglar would walk into a police station, evidence in hand? Come to think of it, some parts of the minister’s reaction didn’t make sense, either. How was he able to determine that the count’s evidence was falsified without even looking at it and supposedly not knowing the contents?
...Did he already know what was on that paper?
Once Herscherik noticed this discrepancy, he couldn’t stop noticing all the suspicious moments during the encounter. Most of all, he couldn’t get Barbosse’s final expression out of his mind. It rubbed him the wrong way that the marquis looked like some kind of TV villain mocking the protagonist.
...He was one step ahead.
Ruseria’s final whisper haunted his mind. Herscherik climbed out of his bed and picked up the watch from the floor. Perhaps from the shock of the fall, it had opened. Seeing its contents, Herscherik’s eyes widened in surprise. The watch face was no longer visible, but a small portrait could be seen in its place. Herscherik thoroughly inspected the watch to find that it had two layers. Pressing the button lightly opened it to show the watch face, and holding down the button while opening the lid revealed the portrait. The painting depicted a youthful and healthy-looking Ruseria with a woman that appeared to be his wife holding a baby in her arms. All three were smiling happily.
The count will be executed, surely...
He recalled a conversation between two nobles that he had overheard on his way back to his room.
He must be locked up in a cell by now. Should have kept his mouth shut.
Herscherik closed the watch and returned it to the nightstand before crawling back into bed.
I doubt I could see the count. Not right now.
It was easy to imagine that he was currently being interrogated.
Tomorrow, I’ll wake up early and go see him.
For some reason, Herscherik felt like he absolutely had to see the count. Even though he didn’t feel like he could sleep at all, he still closed his eyes to make an attempt.
Two years had passed since Herscherik had regained his adult consciousness after being reborn in this world. His royal life so far had been one of inconceivable luxury compared to his previous life. Food was brought to his table without having to lift a finger, and all of his clothes were made-to-order from the highest quality materials. Even though his mother had passed away, his nanny Meria was kind to him and his father was a gentle and handsome king. He’d thought his world would always be just as dream-like, and he’d continue to be fed everything in his life with a silver spoon... It was as if he had won the lottery.
The world around him, as he was beginning to realize, wasn’t quite the sweet dream he thought it was. Come to think of it, there had been plenty of indications before this that the world around him was not quite as perfect as it seemed. Still, he had pretended not to notice. He feared that if he were to accept those things, he would entirely move on from his previous life and forget everything about it. Maybe he had been drowning himself in the surface-level bliss of this world in order to deny the reality that Ryoko was dead and she could never see her family again.
For the first time, Herscherik faced the emotions he had been turning his back on. Righteous curiosity struggled viciously with the fear of facing his reality within his mind.