Chapter 98 – Can You Really Change My Mom?

“Dake is not guilty.”

The throne room is in commotion.

There were witnesses, and the Queen had declared so clearly that Dake’s conviction was almost a fait accompli for the elves gathered here.
However, what I actually heard from the Supreme Court Justice was the exact opposite, so I couldn’t help but feel embarrassed.

Not all the elves in the throne room were surprised.
Not only Agnes and Lise, who trusted Deike, but also Iril, who was more anxious than anyone else, sighed in relief.

And one of the key figures in this situation is the queen.

“Did I mishear? Not guilty, not guilty?”

She furrowed her eyebrows as if she had not yet accepted the situation.

“Yes. That’s the answer I got.”

“So you’re saying the author didn’t admit to the crime and persisted until the end? You’re a more toxic person than I thought. Or perhaps your heart has weakened after returning to the Supreme Court after such a long time.”

“…”

“I’ll give you more time. It may take a few days, but let the author be honest.”

Despite the Queen’s order, the Supreme Court Justice did not change his position.

“No matter how much time I spend, my judgment will remain the same, because the truth does not change.”

“What… Are you saying that I was deceived by her maid’s lies and framed her as an innocent person?”

“That’s not true, but this person’s testimony that he helped the maid in the warehouse was very specific, and the motive for the crime was also unclear. And above all, he maintained his innocence during the interrogation that lasted all night. So, in my judgment –.”

“That’s ridiculous!”

The Queen stood up from her throne, interrupting the Chief Justice, and spoke with an expression of displeasure.

“When the maid came to me and appealed to me, anyone could see that she was sincere! She had no reason for the child to lie in the first place, right? Or does she really think that I am lying?”

‘Oh my…’

Lil, a child, had complicated feelings when she saw her mother raising her voice.

I couldn’t tell if the sight of her yelling at Kiella was because she sympathized with the pain of her poor maid or because her own plans had gone awry.

The queen, unaware of her daughter’s thoughts, simply continued to shout, looking down at the stern-faced Supreme Court Justice.

“Kiella, answer me! Are you telling me I’m lying?”

The pressure weighing down the entire throne room.

Dake just silently lowered his head, pretending that the internal injuries from the torture had not yet recovered, and soon Kiella’s subdued voice cleared the silence.

“Did the other sisters see the scene where the maid appealed?”

“…I beg your pardon?”

“I was wondering if the other sisters who saw her maid also felt the sincerity.”

“Oh, no. Coincidentally, I was the only one. You can’t really doubt me, right?”

“Please let me meet that maid.”

“Yes?”

“I will meet and talk to the maid who said she was raped by Dake. She may have been lying with her own intentions, or she may have been confused due to mental problems.”

“That…”

Unlike the Queen, whose momentum suddenly diminished, Kiella’s words were unstoppable.

“It is unreasonable to doubt the Queen. I just want to solve this case as a Supreme Court Justice who protects law and justice. If you let me meet her maid, I will definitely reveal the truth to her.”

“Uh, um… What should I do about this? I sent the boy back to the village he came from. He seemed to need some peace of mind.”

“Then, if you tell me the location-.”

“No! You’re probably still having a hard time remembering yesterday, but I can’t bring up your wounds. Get enough rest and talk about it when you come back.”

The queen continued speaking as if she was in a hurry to get her place in order.

“I guess we’ll have to put this case on hold until then. In the meantime, detain the author in the basement.”

“Oh my! Kiella said Dake is innocent! Detention is unreasonable!”

The queen, who sensed that something was unusual at the cries of her child Lil, who was quietly listening to her, glanced at her surroundings.

The atmosphere is no longer suspicious of Dake, but of the maid who reported him.
He was in a situation where if he tried to be more forceful, the arrows of suspicion might come back to him.

“Hmm, hmm. Okay, then there will be no detention. But it’s not completely resolved yet, so everyone, keep a close eye on the author. We’ll talk about this again when the maid returns. You can all go back.”

The elves begin to disperse following the queen’s words.
The crowded throne room became increasingly empty, but an inexplicable feeling of discomfort continued to linger.

—

Same night.
Even though it was late at night, Ilil was unable to sleep because of work in her throne room.

Aside from the fact that her mother was furious when she heard that Dake was innocent, her actions in hastily ending the situation after hearing her request to meet her maid were very suspicious.

‘Really, I really want Dake… ?’

I don’t even want to imagine that her beloved mother could have done something so cruel.
Contrary to that wish, various circumstances kept leading the princess’s thoughts in an ominous direction.

The more it goes on, the more the frustration builds up in her chest.
Eventually she got out of bed and left her room.

‘I’ll have to ask Mama directly.’

She walks steadily through the quiet castle.

Entrance to the hallway leading to the Queen’s bedroom.
The guard who was on watch there was startled by the unexpected visit and came running.

“Princess?! Princess, what are you doing at this hour?”

“I have something to tell you. Is that okay?”

“Ah… Yes. Please come back.”

The steps past the guards and towards her mother’s bed are heavy.

I want to know the truth, but at the same time I feel afraid to face it.
Still, she didn’t stop her feet because she had to bump into it.

She finally arrived in front of the door and was about to knock gently, fearing that her mother might already be asleep.

-Aww, I’m so annoyed!

A nervous voice that cannot be taken lightly.
Iril muttered her footsteps and put her ear close to her door.

Meanwhile, Ner Media, who did not know that her daughter had arrived, picked up her hand mirror that was visible to her and held it up.

She was about to slam him to the floor, but she barely held back, and couldn’t help but huff and puff.

“Why doesn’t something like this happen?!”

She knows that even if she mutters to herself, no one will listen and no one will comfort her.
Still, she felt like her heated head would explode if she stayed still, so she had to express her anger, even if only by talking to herself.

“What happened to Kiella? She used to do everything on her own without having to say anything, so why has she become so oblivious?”

In fact, if the situation is to this extent, she is justified in doubting the relationship between Kiella and Dake.
However, the reason NerMedia could not do that was because she had so much faith in Kiella.

She has become a little calmer these days, but I think that she, who was so violent that she was worthy of being called a mad dog, would never take the side of humans out of selfishness.

“If she knew this would happen, she would have revealed it to Kiella. She said it was all done to drive that human away.”

She’s the queen of talking to herself without even realizing that her own voice is leaking out.
Even if she did notice, her words had long since reached the ears of her daughter, who was holding her breath outside her door.

‘Really, oh my… !’

I wish this moment was a dream, but unfortunately, waking up doesn’t happen.

Child Lil covered her mouth in shock and struggled to get out on her shaky legs.

—

“Hmm…”

She snorted while lying on the bed in my room, looking up at the ceiling.

First of all, thanks to Kiella, her immediate crisis has been overcome today, and now it’s time to find evidence that the queen instigated her maid to falsely accuse her.

But we have already run into difficulties.
While I was locked in her room under the pretext of torture, Kiella searched for the maid without success.

Listening to the words of the other maids, it seemed as if the queen had really sent her to her care.

Kiella searched for the place where she was convalescing, but she said it was the Queen’s order and no one told her, so she ended up finding out nothing.

‘No way, she killed her maid to get rid of the evidence… Oh, that can’t be possible.’

She is kinder than anyone else to her fellow elves.
I don’t know if that maid was really playing with me, but she was just following my orders, so I won’t hurt her.

‘Then what should I do now?’

She can’t just wait for her maid who doesn’t know when she will come.
There was also a possibility that the queen would do something else before that.
If her maid returns, her own position will be at a disadvantage.

While I was wondering how to attack her queen, someone knocked on my door.

“Kiella? Come in.”

“…Dake.”

“Princess?”

This was the first time she came to my room in person, so I jumped up from her bed.

“What’s going on?”

“Well… Are you feeling okay?”

“Yes. Actually, I just pretended to be tortured by talking to Kiella. Look, you’re fine, right?”

She turned her shoulder as if to ease the princess’s worries.

“Thank god…”

She was always full of energy, but now she has no energy at all.
It would be hard to say that she was simply worried about me, but not only did she come to visit me at this time, but her slumped shoulders were unusual.

“Why are you doing this? What’s really going on?”

“Dake… Do you still have the same desire to get revenge on Momma?”

“…”

“I asked something so obvious. Something like that happened yesterday and today.”

Only then could I guess why she had come.

She must have come to stop me, as her antipathy towards her queen must have grown even more because of this incident.

“…Yes. I’m sorry, princess, but you’re right.”

How will the princess come out now?
Will you try to comfort me with your body again like you always did?

No, since the situation is the same, you might beg for forgiveness.

If that happens, you have to be prepared to make the princess sad.

While I was mentally preparing, the words I heard were unexpected.

“Dake… Can you really change my mom?”

“…Yes?”

“Please. Take revenge on Mom.”