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“WELL, Your Highness. We haven’t seen each other in a bit, but your manner has certainly changed.”
Foreign Minister’s wife, Lady Beatrix, tilted her head in greeting as Crown Prince Fritz and Chancellor Yggdrasil entered the audience hall.
With the empress out of commission and the “culprit” imprisoned, this was a waste of time, but considering Beatrix’s lineage, Fritz knew that it would be folly to treat her poorly, so he had no choice but to accept an audience with her.
However, he could still make his displeasure known. Stalking past his visitor, he took the seat reserved for the empress and eyed Beatrix coldly.
“Lady Beatrix, I don’t really want to say this to you, but I’m very busy right now. If you have any concerns, I’d appreciate it if you made it quick.”
“Oh, of course.” Beatrix nodded sagely. “Erdal’s fate is in the balance; we don’t have time for long stories.” With this, she placed a hand on her cheek and sighed in annoyance. “It’s just that the Heillander guest residing with us hasn’t returned since last night. Since he’s such an honored guest, I’ve been so worried about him…”
Fritz stared at Beatrix before his deep green gaze turned piercing. “…No need to worry about your guest. He’s locked up in our dungeons. Didn’t someone already come by with the news?”
“What?!” Lady Crowne exclaimed loudly. “So the news is true! Oh dear, I just couldn’t believe it… But what is he imprisoned for?”
“Stop this! Are you making a fool of me?”
Fritz stood up in anger but stopped and gulped when he saw the look on Lady Crowne’s face. Beatrix was still smiling, but it was clear it was only a mask shielding her true emotions.
Beatrix tilted her head as she watched Fritz try to reel in his anger.
“I’m not making a fool of Your Highness. I truly don’t understand… The news said that Her Majesty was poisoned. Are you saying that Lord Riddhe was the culprit?”
“…Yes.”
“Did someone see Lord Riddhe do it?”
“No.”
“I see. So, did he harm Her Majesty after she was poisoned and unable to protect herself?”
“No, but—”
“Oh dear, then was Her Majesty the one who ordered his arrest…?”
“He was there when Mother collapsed! He and his servant were the only ones present when it happened!”
Beatrix only shrugged as Fritz’s voice rose in panic. “But poison doesn’t work that way. Don’t you agree, Eric?”
“…Yes, you’re right, Lady Crowne.”
But before the chancellor could continue, Fritz had lost his patience, interrupting with rage.
“The empress collapsed in the presence of a foreigner! Isn’t that suspicious enough? What’s wrong with putting suspects in prison?!”
“Oh, I see. So Lord Riddhe is just a suspect!”
Fritz stared in confusion as Lady Crowne’s face lit up. Chancellor Yggdrasil’s brow twitched in annoyance as Beatrix smiled brightly despite the tense situation.
“Then, Your Highness. We must hold a trial as soon as possible.”
“…A trial?”
The crown prince frowned as he parroted the words, not understanding. But Lady Crowne’s eyes had moved to Eric Yggdrasil as if she were addressing the chancellor.
“Yes, a trial. You must be familiar with those, Your Highness. When someone is a suspect in a crime, we call upon witnesses in a trial and decide on a judgment.”
“But we can’t do that. Mother needs to rest—”
“If the ruler is absent, they can select three representatives who will make the judgment on their behalf.”
The crown prince stared at Beatrix, then turned to the chancellor with confusion in his eyes.
“Is that true?”
“I guess it’s natural that you’re unaware.” Beatrix shook her head ruefully. “Her Majesty has always been so active in politics that we’ve never experienced her absence. I only know about it because I’ve witnessed it once.”
“You’ve witnessed it…? Could it be?!”
The crown prince’s eyes widened as he remembered. At a recent point in Erdal’s history, shortly before his own birth, Erdal had been without a ruler, and there was only one major incident that required a trial.
“…The assassination attempt on Mother.”
“Yes. At the time of that incident, a trial was held with three representatives as judges. That’s right, Eric. I recall you applied to be one of the three, but it wasn’t granted, was it?” Beatrix taunted.
“So you knew this was going to happen?” Fritz rounded upon the chancellor with a furious glare.
Yggdrasil had known and chosen to remain silent. Driven by doubt, Fritz stared at the other man. Met with no response, Fritz gritted his teeth and turned back to Lady Crowne. He’d deal with this troublesome visitor first, and then he’d have plenty of time to confront Yggdrasil later.
“In any case, there is no time to spare now. Ostre and Reinsus to the south are on the brink of forming an alliance,” he said. “We cannot let our empire’s power be questioned at a time like this. If a foreign ambassador has poisoned Her Majesty, we should retaliate with force to make our presence felt far and wide.”
“A reasonable decision, Your Highness, but we are not above the law set by our ancestors.”
“Fine! Then let us do this representative trial thing as quickly as possible!”
Fritz rose to indicate that the conversation was over, instructing Yggdrasil to select two representatives. The third representative would, of course, be the crown prince himself.
“If you really believe that man is innocent, then you may stand witness,” Fritz told Beatrix. “However, your priority is to carry the news of his arrest to Heilland along with the foreign minister, so you may participate if you return in time for the trial.”
“Do not worry, Your Highness. I can still ride hard when the need arises. Oh, there is one more thing.”
“What now?!” Fritz spat in frustration as she prevented him from leaving again. Lady Crowne, however, looked unperturbed as she smiled and clapped her hands twice. The sound echoed in the large room, and after a moment, the door to the audience hall creaked open slowly.
The person who appeared at the door stunned the crown prince to his core.
“…Charlotte?”
As the shocked prince watched, Charlotte Yggdrasil slipped quietly into the room and bowed her head. Then she looked at the crown prince and her father, the chancellor, in turn, with no trace of fear or hesitation in her gaze.
Fritz was still speechless as Lady Crowne waved a hand in Charlotte’s direction.
“Until the trial is concluded, Lord Riddhe is still our honored guest, so please allow me to assign someone to watch over his care. I believe both Your Highness and the Lord Chancellor are well acquainted with this young lady here? I made sure to select someone that all of us can trust.”
“…So even you are not on my side?” Fritz’s expression twisted in hurt as he looked at Charlotte, but aside from a flash of sadness in her narrowed gaze, her stance remained determined and strong. An awkward silence filled the room before a calm voice spoke up.
“I agree,” the chancellor declared as he moved to stand before Lady Crowne as if shielding the shocked crown prince. Turning to Charlotte, he gave her a small smile. “Lady Crowne is right. Our guest must be treated with respect until proven guilty. Normally, I wouldn’t have agreed to let him out of the dungeons…but if you are in charge, then I have nothing to worry about. Will this arrangement do, Your Highness?”
“…Do whatever you like. Serve Erdal well without slighting our ‘guest.’”
“Yes, Your Highness. Thank you.”
With that, Charlotte politely bowed as Fritz stepped off the dais. Brushing past the girl, he whispered a few words in her ear and left the audience hall without waiting for an answer.
The sound of his footsteps echoed dryly on the hard floor. His heart felt as cold and tight as a winter morning.
No one truly wanted him. That was why he sought to find a place of his own.
But perhaps his trauma of being unwanted had tainted his interactions, for Fritz could never truly trust another. Not even the chancellor, who was supposed to be his ally.
…Now, even the only girl whose heart he wanted to win had turned out the same way.
“…But I can’t stop now.”
His murmured words reached nobody as they disappeared into the chilly air.