“Are you Lady Flozeth?” asked one of the men, a fierce look on his face. He seemed to be of the highest rank in the group.
“I have no name to give someone who would barge in here without permission.” Though Estelle replied coldly, she was filled with apprehension and nervousness on the inside.
Arcrayne was out on official duties with Claus today, and he wasn’t coming back until that night. Which meant Estelle had to deal with this group herself.
“How rude of me. But stating your name is for your own sake. Her Majesty Queen Regent has issued a warrant for Lady Flozeth’s arrest,” said the man.
Queen Regent? A warrant? Estelle furrowed her brows, unable to comprehend the meaning of his words.
“Queen Regent...? His Majesty the King is in good health, is he not...?” she asked.
A regent was a person performing the functions of the king on his behalf. It was a temporary position created when a boy under eighteen became king, or when the king was in need of long-term recuperation due to illness.
“His Majesty fell into a coma in the early hours of yesterday morning,” explained the man. “In accordance with the Regency Act, by the combined will of Her Majesty the Queen, the leader of the House of Lords, and Lord Chief Justice, Her Majesty the Queen has become regent.”
While the king’s condition took Estelle by surprise, she was also astonished that Queen Truteliese would go over the head of Arcrayne and become regent herself.
“I beg your pardon, but in the event that a regent is required, does His Highness Prince Arcrayne not have higher priority than Her Majesty for that role, as the first in line for the throne?” asked Cian.
Estelle didn’t remember the details of the Regency Act, but it was clearly strange that the queen, who was merely the spouse of the king, would be granted precedence over Arcrayne, the first one in line for the throne.
While Estelle stood confused, the man glanced coldly at Cian.
“The brandy that His Majesty drank before bed last night had poison in it. That’s what put him in his current state.” The man paused for a moment. “His Highness Prince Arcrayne is suspected of attempted assassination. And so are you, Lady Flozeth.”
“Me?” Estelle’s eyes widened in surprise. “There is no way His Highness would do such a thing!”
“What does Lady Estelle have to do with this?!”
A commotion spread through the room.
“We are only here to carry out the arrest warrant. She may defend herself in court at a later date,” said the man.
“That is tyranny!”
“His Highness has been so busy recently that he could not have set foot anywhere near the Leo Palace! What would call for such a warrant...?”
“Wait! You can’t disobey them!” Estelle hurriedly stopped her attendants who’d started arguing back.
Members of the Sovereign’s Guard were known as elite soldiers. They were all brawny and had more mana than regular guards. Attempting resistance was sure to have dire consequences for everyone.
“If there is a warrant for my arrest, then I shall obey you,” said Estelle. “May I leave my valuables with my attendant?”
“Certainly. I’m glad you are a sensible woman,” said the man.
Having received permission, Estelle gave Leah the mana pistol she always had on her, as well as her engagement ring. Weapons would definitely be confiscated, and she wanted to make absolutely sure not to lose the ring.
Thus, Estelle had come quietly with the guards and had been brought here, to this prison.
She’d heard that there were hidden passages here and there in the Libra Palace that led outside. Perhaps it might have been possible to somehow buy time and escape through them, but Estelle hadn’t been able to make that choice because, had she done so, it would definitely have caused great trouble for not only the staff of the Libra Palace but also the people of House Flozeth.
Allowing herself to be arrested and insisting on her innocence would surely lessen the harm to the people around her, as opposed to a poorly planned escape.
Perhaps the silver lining in Estelle’s situation was that her cell wasn’t so terrible.
The clothes and accessories she’d worn at the Libra Palace had all been confiscated when she’d been brought here, and she’d been forced to change into different clothes—but said clothes, while plain and completely bereft of adornment, were of high quality.
There was also a window here, though there were iron bars on it. Apparently the cell was ventilated and cleaned on a regular basis. While the place looked old overall, it was hygienic.
There was a rug on the floor and a mana lamp on the ceiling. And while the top half of the wall separating it was made out of glass, there was a toilet here too.
A bed, a desk, a chair, and a cupboard. It was a very simple set of furniture, but it met the minimum criteria. There were books here too, which Estelle could use to kill time.
The window had a good view of the city below—she could tell that she was rather high in the Tower of Albion. The view made Estelle recall something.
While the tower was notorious for its poor conditions, there were apparently special chambers for royals and nobles on the top floor. This must’ve been one of them.
The entrance had a plain metal door. There was a barred window in it, located at eye level.
Patrols came and looked inside on a regular basis. So far there had only been female guards. Estelle felt someone’s consideration behind that too.
The conditions here were completely different from the underground jail of the Libra Palace, where Diana had been put after pretending to be Leah.
Estelle wondered why her treatment was different. Was it because she was only a suspect so far?
She sat down on the bed and then lay on it in an ill-mannered way.
It’s completely impossible that Lord Arc would poison His Majesty... she thought to herself. Estelle was convinced that the charges were false.
While Arcrayne had a cunning side, he wasn’t the kind of man who would use dirty tricks to get rid of his political opponents.
And it was strange enough in the first place that the Sovereign’s Guard would come while he was away. Arcrayne was an Awoken. He wielded telekinesis and, as a member of royalty, had a high amount of mana. Now that Sachis was comatose, the only one who could stand up to him was Liedis. His maternal relative, Duke Marwick, was an Awoken too, but the infirmity of his age made him a nonfactor.
In other words, in order to shut down Arcrayne—the strongest person in Rosalia—someone must’ve waited for him to be away, then seized the Libra Palace and taken Estelle and its employees hostage.
While Estelle didn’t want to jump to conclusions, she couldn’t see it as anything but a plot by the second prince’s faction. Arcrayne was currently the first in line for the throne, so if something were to happen to Sachis, he would normally become king. He couldn’t wield the title of crown prince because the queen and the second prince’s faction supporting her wouldn’t allow it, but since the law of inheritance had yet to change, he was the closest to the throne.
Which meant that if Sachis were to perish now, Arcrayne would be the one who benefited from it the most.
Are they trying to force people to believe Lord Arc is behind all this simply because he would benefit from it...? wondered Estelle. That must’ve been it—it couldn’t have been anything else.
The thought filled her with anger. It was obviously the queen who would’ve had the easiest time poisoning Sachis, as she lived in the Leo Palace with him. It was also too suspicious how she’d secretly proclaimed herself regent without telling Estelle or Arcrayne anything.
Estelle recalled historical events from her education as a princess, which she was currently revisiting.
A duke had once been charged with high treason and executed, simply because the writing engraved on a belfry that was donated to the church had smeared his name.
A queen had lost the affections of the king and had been executed on suspicion of adultery and incest. For various reasons, the king had married five times during his life and executed three of his wives. He was remembered as the worst tyrant in Rosalia’s history.
Such events had seemed comically outrageous to her at the time, but now that she was involved in one of them, there was nothing funny about it.
Hopefully Arcrayne would manage to prove his innocence. For if he couldn’t...
The thought of the gallows sent a shiver up Estelle’s spine.
She didn’t regret meeting him. But if she was executed because of her connection to him, it would cause trouble for Sirius.
You lied to me, Lord Arc, Estelle said inwardly. He’d told her he’d run before things became dangerous.
She wondered what he was up to now. Had the Sovereign’s Guard surrounded him just like they’d done to Estelle, wherever he was?
Did he allow himself to be arrested? Or did he run? Estelle wondered.
If he were on the run or fighting back, her treatment would probably have been worse, so he must’ve done as he was told. Arcrayne was distrustful of people, but he treasured those he allowed near himself. He probably wouldn’t do anything if Estelle or his close aides were taken hostage. Or rather, he surely couldn’t.
While Estelle had been caught by surprise, she was sorry to be a burden on him as a result of her decision.
Should I have run...? Estelle immediately shook her head. No. What would’ve happened to everyone else if I’d done so?
The uneasiness about her future, her attendants, Arcrayne, and her family was overwhelming.
Estelle shut her eyes tight and covered them with her hands.