Chapter 114 – Part 2 Nobility – Elizabeth (4)

The honorary count challenged the crown prince to a duel.
In an unprecedented situation, the party president fell into a panic.

“You, you, the count, I have never been beaten by my father…!”

The Crown Prince’s face turned bright red and his body trembled with anger.
Then he threw the glove that hit him in the face back to the Count, but the Count calmly took his glove and put it back on his hand.

“Count, please wait. The heir to the throne is prohibited from dueling. The request I just made is invalid.”
“Really? Then there’s nothing you can do about it.”

Count Brillante accepted my words casually.
Does he now know what he’s up to?

“And Your Highness. I can’t just pass over what Your Highness said. But Count Brillante also made a mistake with Your Highness, so let’s pretend it didn’t happen together.”
“What?! I got hit in the face! Is that something to be treated the same!”

Your Highness’s words are right. But I couldn’t let the count be punished because of me.

“That wasn’t a hit. Throwing a glove is a sacred act to challenge a duel. To dismiss it as an act of violence is tantamount to denying the entire history of dueling. It is wrong to charge the duel challenge itself.”
“According to what you said, it would be wrong to challenge me, the heir to the throne, to a duel!”
“The Count has only been a nobleman for a month. Just like Lady Remilia Frost, Countess Brillante didn’t know the rules of a nobleman. Just like the young lady, Your Highness will understand, right?”

His Highness glared at me with angry eyes.
But I wasn’t afraid.

I had given up on everything just a moment ago, but I didn’t even have the energy to resist, but now, surprisingly, my energy surged.
Why? His chest was hot. There was also a strong enthusiasm that he did not want to lose.

There was a person who intervened in the confrontation between me and His Highness.

“Stop! Stop fighting for me!”

There was only one person here who would do such a bold thing, Lady Remilia Frost.

“Ugh.”

Count Brillante, seeing the young lady for some reason, stepped back in fright. Fortunately, in the Count’s eyes, the young lady did not seem very attractive.

…Fortunately? Why did I feel lucky about that?

Anyway, Lady Remilia Frost intervened as if trying to stop the fight, and then approached Her Highness and whispered something in her ear.
Then, the Highness smiled as if she had regained her composure and began to speak.

“…I can’t. I’ll pass on this matter with an open mind. But!”

Her Highness pointed a finger at me.

“Elizabeth!
“Attempted murder?”

Count Brillante frowned.
Of course, I’ve never done anything stupid like that.

“Your Highness. I have not committed any crime.”
“Hmph. Let’s see if I can say the same after hearing the witnesses.”

His Highness called the witnesses. Then three women stood side by side behind Her Highness.
It’s natural, but they were people I didn’t even know.

No, there was one familiar face.
A woman who briefly worked as a maid in our mansion before. I don’t remember her name, but I remember she was caught stealing something from the mansion and she was fired.
It’s just that she didn’t turn her over to her guard because she was in a bad situation, she just fired her, I never thought this would happen.

When her eyes met mine, she sighed and lowered her head.

“So, can you tell me what sins I have committed?”

A woman from one of her witnesses took a step forward.

“Three months ago, I was ordered by Elizabeth’s maid to harass Remilia. It was because Remilia-sama was friendly with His Highness the Crown Prince. To harass Remilia-sama until she quits school… I didn’t want to, but I couldn’t disobey Elizabeth-sama!”

She lowered her head as if in agony as she spoke.
Her Highness comforted such a witness.

“Thank you for having the courage to testify. Your safety will be guaranteed in the name of the crown prince.”
“Thank you, Your Highness!”
“Do you have anything to say, Elizabeth?”
“Your Highness. I have no idea.”
“Hmph. Are you still thinking of pretending? But if there is one witness, I don’t know, but if there are two or three, you won’t have anything to say. The next witness, onward!”

A second witness stepped forward.

“I was also ordered by Elizabeth-sama’s maid. It was an order to push Remilia-sama up the high stairs. If possible, inflict serious injuries, and if she dies, it doesn’t matter… The duchy will take responsibility, that’s what I heard.”
“Under.”

A sigh comes out at such an absurd testimony.
What was the reason to care about a mere viscount daughter?
Do you really believe in these words? Otherwise…

“Elizabeth.”
“I don’t know, Your Highness.”
“I thought so. Next, the third witness is forward!”

Third witness. She took the woman who had previously worked as a maid a step forward.

“I-I…”

Even at first glance, she was trembling with fear.
Many people, including Your Highness, will think of it as fear of me.
It’s mind-boggling.

“I used to work as Elizabeth-sama’s maid. One day, Elizabeth-sama asked me to quit my job and go to the Royal School as a cleaning maid. Then I…”

She swallowed her dry saliva, hesitant several times as she spoke her words.
If you don’t even have the courage to tell a lie, you better not come out to a place like this.

“He gave me this strange medicine, and he saw the opportunity and told Remilia-sama to give it to me…”
“Do you have that medicine?”
“Yes. Here…”

He took out a small glass bottle containing white powdered medicine from his bosom.
Her Highness accepted the bottle and nodded her head. You must think that the witnesses and the evidence are ready.

I spoke to the maid who gave false testimony.

“…You were fired for stealing jewelry when you were working as our maid. You said you were stealing to pay for medicine for your younger brother who was sick. So I ended up firing me without any punishment, and after that I secretly paid for the medicine. But how can you lie like that in front of so many people. Was the story that your younger brother was sick also a lie?”

The maid was silent with her head bowed.
It seems that he has no intention of telling the truth.

“Elizabeth. There are so many witnesses. Why don’t you confess now?”

She had a confident face. She seems to think that her own victory is already certain.
But she has to learn, too, that things in the world don’t always go the way she thinks.

“Your Highness, do you know about the existence of the ‘Mirror of Truth’?”
“A Mirror of Truth?”

The Highness, of course, did not know.
Other nobles might not know, but the crown prince shouldn’t know. How much do you study?
I explained to Your Highness.

“It’s a mirror that tells whether anything is true or false. Only His Majesty the King can use it, but due to severe legal restrictions, I don’t normally use it. However, when the situation is about to subvert the state, it’s a different story.”
“National overthrow? What does this have to do with state overthrow?”

I ask back while making an impression.

“Don’t you know? If I step down as my fiancée, then Your Highness, who has no powers, should step down as crown prince. Then, Prince Edward, who is still only 10 years old, will be the next crown prince. And the Duke of Knightna will not be able to take care of his daughter who has been accused of innocent crimes. “I’m going to lead a revolt by leading the troops of the territory. Who will benefit from the country falling into chaos? The Empire? Or the Kingdom of Wilheim, who is aiming for this country?”
“Rebellion? I guess you said rebellion now! Elizabeth, you were going to start a rebellion!”

It wouldn’t be that important now. This crown prince is only blind to putting me down.

“No. That’s the story when my crime is confirmed like this. To prevent that from happening, it is necessary to make sure that my crime is true or false. In such a case, the Mirror of Truth can be used at the discretion of His Majesty the King. .”
“Hmph. That would only make your sins more clear.”
“Well, how about it. I wonder if what they say is true.”

When I shifted my gaze to the ‘fake’ witnesses, they were visibly bewildered.

“If it was a lie, all of them would be beheaded for the crime of subversion of the state, and that would be the 3 major involvements, including the family.”

At my words, the fake witnesses were shocked and started to tremble.
Wasn’t he prepared to do that when he framed the duke’s daughter?

“If you reveal the truth even now, the guilt may be mitigated. At least… So that the family is not harmed.”
“It’s no use trying to appease them! These witnesses have already…”
“Elizabeth-sama!!”

His Highness the Crown Prince was saying something else, but someone interrupted him.
She worked as a maid in our house, and she was the woman I had instructed to poison.
She jumped in front of me and knelt down on her knees and bowed her head.

“I’m sorry, Elizabeth-sama! I was threatened and gave false testimony! I did something to avenge Elizabeth-sama’s favor! I don’t care what happens to my life. But please, please, save my sister!”
“What, what? False testimony!”

Astonished prince.
Maybe I really didn’t know.
I thought that the crown prince himself might have plotted it, but it seems that he was simply fooled.
Under. How stupid are you?

“Elizabeth!”

And the other two who had given false testimony also ran out and knelt down side by side.
His Highness the Crown Prince was watching the scene with his mouth wide open.

“Sorry! I couldn’t help holding my family hostage!”
“I’ve been caught with a weakness…!”

Witnesses who turned around too easily.
It’s a shocking look to convey there.

“This, this, was all lies!”
“Majesty.”

Call such a Highness and face it.
Is the blushing face caused by anger from being deceived, or is it because of embarrassment?

“When Your Highness ascends to the throne, far more people than now will try to deceive You to take advantage of your own interests. At that time, it is impossible to say that I did not know or that I was deceived. An innocent person could lose his life with just one word from Your Highness. “
“Ugh…”
“But now, there is still a chance. If you don’t forget today’s mistakes and use them as fertilizer, Your Highness will be able to become a great sage.”

His Highness clenched his fists so tightly that they turned white.
Then he parted his lips, which trembled with anger, and raised his voice.

“Remilia…Did you cheat on me too…?”

Lady Remilia Frost shook her head with tears filling her eyes.

She doesn’t know at this point if she is her ringleader or if she’s just being taken advantage of. It will be revealed gradually in the future.
Could it be that Her Highness gave her her heart with her sincerity? I hope this doesn’t hurt too much.

“Your Highness. If you investigate everything, you will find out everything. But before that.”

I raised my head and looked around the crowd.

“All of you here.”

Everyone in this venue was listening to what I had to say.
I raised my voice for all to hear.

“Thank you for watching our lackluster play today. Everything that just happened here was a play we specially prepared for National Day.”
“Theater?”
“A play?”

The children of the aristocrats, who had been watching with bated breath, began to hum and chatter.
Of course, this wasn’t a play. However, I had a ‘nobleman’s duty’ to take care of this position.

Do everything as if it never happened. I don’t know if it’s the Empire or the Kingdom of Wilheim that is behind the scenes, but there are definitely forces that want this country to be confused. Because I can’t let them go their way.
This can be left to adults like Grandpa or His Majesty the King. That’s all I can do.

“This play is an adaptation of a popular novel called ‘True Love, False Engagement’ and decorated as a play. Please give applause to everyone including His Highness the Crown Prince for his wonderful acting.”

I clapped first, and the crowd started clapping along with dazed faces.

‘True love, false engagement’.
It is not a lie to say that this is a popular novel.

A crown prince about to marry the daughter of a high-ranking aristocrat. However, the prince meets the heroine at the royal school and awakens to true love.
In this process, the daughter of a high-ranking aristocrat, who was the subject of an arranged marriage, interferes with the two and is condemned by the crown prince, leading to her downfall. Except for the ending, it was almost the same as our current situation.

Was the person who plotted this a fan of the novel? Or perhaps he deliberately popularized such novels to attract public opinion.

“Your Highness. Let’s talk about today’s matter later.”
“Uh, that, yes…”

He spoke in a voice so low that only His Highness could hear it.
The Highness was perplexed but agreed. Her Highness must have felt that I had covered up her flaws in my own way.

“What happened?”

Meanwhile, Count Brillante was frowning in the background.
That look didn’t fit the current atmosphere so I stopped laughing.

“Count Brillante.”
“Yes?”
“The play is all over, so I want to leave now. May I ask for an escort?”
“Oh. Anything.”

I put my hand on the count’s arm and slowly walked off the stage.
The applause of many seemed to bless us.