I'm Trapped Inside a Prince as the Most Powerful Entity-Chapter 77: Accusations and Plans

The moment Eric said, "I saw many soldiers of the Roland Kingdom," the whole feeling in the Estorian throne room changed dramatically. It was like a loud thunderclap in the heavy silence.

King Noor IV, who had been leaning forward, listening closely, suddenly straightened up. His eyes blazed with a new, fierce light.

He stood up from his temporary throne, his voice booming across the hall. It was filled with a sudden, urgent energy that made the air shake. "Eric! Are you telling the truth? Are you absolutely sure of what you saw?"

Before Eric could fully answer, Alina spoke up. She had been watching them with wide eyes. Her voice was clear and firm, even though the situation was very serious.

"Yes, My Lord King! It is true! I saw them too! Soldiers in Roland’s uniforms, inside that awful place!"

Hearing Alina’s definite confirmation, the King’s eyes lit up with a sharp, almost scary clearness. The broken pieces of the puzzle, which had been swirling around in his mind, suddenly snapped together.

They formed a clear, terrifying picture. Now, he thought, his mind racing, now, I understand.

The Spider Syndicate. That sneaky, widespread criminal group, a constant pain for countless kingdoms, including his own Estoria. They caused a lot of ongoing trouble even for the mighty Empire itself.

Their influence spread across borders, and they did everything from smuggling and blackmail to kidnapping, assassination, and many other horrible things. For years, their real leaders, the ones truly behind them, had been a secret, a shadowy mystery. frёeωebɳovel.com

But now, with Eric’s and Alina’s stories, it was horribly, undeniably clear to King Noor IV: the true source, the hidden hand guiding the Spider Syndicate, was none other than the royal family of the Roland Kingdom itself. Their bitter rivals, the kingdom that had so recently welcomed Estoria’s traitor, Sir Karlos, with open arms.

Then, another, even scarier thought dawned on the King, adding to the first one. He spoke aloud, his voice dropping to a very low, almost secret whisper, more to himself than to anyone else in the hall,

"So... James knows. King James of Roland knows that his treacherous lie, his whole story of lies, cannot last much longer. He knows Eric have seen the truth. Before we could even start to make a plan, before we could do anything decisive against him based on this discovery, he took action against us. He struck first, using the Emperor’s own laws as a weapon."

Queen Isadora, hearing the King’s muttered words, looked at him closely, her face full of worry. "But Noor," she said, her voice filled with a desperate hope, "you can prove it to the Emperor, can’t you? Eric and Alina are eyewitnesses. Their testimony..."

The King placed a hand over his mouth, looking grim. "It’s not that simple, my dear," he said, his voice heavy.

"Yes, Eric saw Roland Kingdom soldiers there. Alina confirms his story. But that, by itself, cannot be easily proven to an Imperial court, especially when Roland will definitely deny everything, maybe even bring their own ’witnesses’ make up evidence."

His gaze, however, fell upon Alina and then her parents, who still knelt respectfully before the throne. A tiny, almost invisible smile touched his lips. An idea was forming.

Still standing before his throne, King Noor IV spoke directly to Alina. "Alina," he said,

"the summons from the Emperor is for this week. We must leave for the Empire of the Mountains. This kingdom, the royal family of Estoria, we... we need your help. Your testimony could be very important. Will you help us in this serious matter? Will you come with us?"

Alina was quite surprised by the direct, formal request. She looked from the King to Prince Eric, who was watching her with an expectant, almost pleading look in his eyes.

She then looked at her parents, who gave her small, encouraging nods. She understood how important the King’s words were. She took a breath, then a small, determined smile touched her own lips. "My Lord," she replied, her voice clear and steady, "I will definitely go. I will help in any way I can."

Eric felt a huge wave of relief wash over him. He had been preparing himself for a lonely, terrifying experience, facing the Emperor’s judgment alone.

But now, with Alina agreeing to go with him, to be a witness, he felt a small but important sense of reassurance. He looked at Alina, a genuine, grateful smile appearing on his lips for the first time since the Imperial Captain’s brutal attack.

Inside Eric’s body, in his inner world, Adam heard all of this. When he heard Alina’s confirmation and the King’s plan for them to go to the Empire of the Mountains – the very name, the very center of power, that made even the strong King of Estoria act carefully and fearfully – Adam’s burning anger from the earlier humiliation lessened a bit.

It didn’t disappear, but it changed, becoming a cold, calculating, and much more dangerous fury.

He roared internally, a promise of future revenge echoing in the silent spaces: ’I will rip the tongue from that Imperial warrior’s throat! I will personally cut off the hand that he dared to place upon my head! He will pay for this insult, a thousand times over!’ Adam was still incredibly, hugely angry. His inner gaze burning with intent fell upon the ghostly form of Millennia, the System Interface.

"Millennia," he commanded, "throughout this entire journey to the Empire, and during our time there, you are to prepare Eric. Under any and all circumstances, you must make sure that the kind of foolish, self-destructive thing he pulled today in the throne room – refusing your help – he never repeats in the future. He must learn to accept your help without question when I think it’s necessary. His weakness is a problem I will no longer put up with."

Scene Change: The Roland Kingdom – Royal Throne Room

Far away, in the capital city of the Roland Kingdom, King James sat on his own fancy throne, his face a mask of controlled anger. Before him, his oldest son, the First Prince, stood with his head bowed so low that his chin nearly touched his chest.

The throne room was filled with the kingdom’s ministers, advisors, and the heads of all important noble families. They looked nervous and were trying to seem calm.

King James’s voice, when he finally broke the tense silence, was a shout that echoed through the hall.

"How many times did I warn you?! How many times did I specifically order you not to do anything, anything, that could put our kingdom’s stability at risk, and especially, my sacred dream for Roland to become great! But you never listen to me! You act without thinking, out of arrogance, and look where it has led us!"

Hearing his father’s angry yelling, the First Prince, whose head was already bowed low in submission, seemed to shrink even more, lowering it further. He managed to say in a very soft, almost unheard voice, "My Lord... Father... please forgive me. It was a miscalculation."

King James let out a deep, frustrated sigh. The anger briefly gave way to a tired frustration. He looked towards his Prime Minister, a man named Lebens, who stood calmly to the side. "P.M. Lebens," King James demanded, "give me your opinion. Do you think the Emperor will rule in our favor in this... mess? Or not?"

Prime Minister Lebens, a man known for being cunning and always calm, offered a small, confident smile. "Your Majesty," he replied smoothly,

"in this whole unfortunate incident, we are presenting ourselves, quite convincingly, I believe, as the victims. The ones who were wronged. Young Prince Eric of Estoria, trespassing in our land, attacking a... business that, while maybe controversial, was operating under our quiet, if not officially acknowledged, protection. This story will be quite helpful for us in the Imperial Court. And," he added, his smile widening slightly,

"as far as our spies can tell, I don’t believe they have any solid proof of our... deeper involvement with the Syndicate’s activities."

Hearing this optimistic view, the First Prince dared to raise his head slightly.

"My Lord, Father," he chimed in, his voice a bit more confident, "when we... when our forces fought Prince Eric at the... the facility, all the members of the Spider Syndicate present in that specific headquarters were... eliminated. No one is left alive who could directly testify against us from within that particular group."

A murmur of relief, and even a few faint, inappropriate smiles, spread through the assembled nobles and ministers at this news.

King James, however, seeing these looks of misplaced satisfaction, slammed his hand down hard on the armrest of his throne. The sharp crack echoed through the suddenly silent hall.

"Do you find this amusing?!" he roared, his face turning red with new anger.

"Do you honestly think we have won anything here? A single, inexperienced boy-prince from Estoria, who we only ever heard was their weakest, most spoiled brat, a prince who hasn’t even stepped foot inside the United Academy yet, came into our kingdom, into our territory, and completely destroyed a vital asset, an operation years in the making! Even many of our own elite soldiers, stationed there to provide security, were killed or badly hurt! And despite all that huge loss, despite that humiliation on our own soil, you all think this is somehow our victory? You should all be hanging your heads in shame!"

Hearing their King’s furious and accurate words, everyone from Prime Minister Lebens to the First Prince, along with all the assembled nobles, bowed their heads in genuine shame.

The First Prince himself had been there during part of the chaos at the Syndicate base, and yet he, with all his training and experience, had been unable to stop the young Third Prince of Estoria. The reality of their failure was undeniable.

Prime Minister Lebens cleared his throat, breaking the heavy silence.

"My Lord King," he said, his tone now suitably serious, "we are, of course, all deeply saddened by this... regrettable loss. It was a significant blow. But, as Your Majesty knows, we must also think about the future, about reducing the damage and turning this situation to our advantage before the Emperor."

King James leaned back heavily in his throne, resting his chin on his clasped fingers, his eyes narrowed in thought. "What do you think they can present as evidence, Lebens? What cards might Estoria hold?"

Prime Minister Lebens looked to his left. Standing beside him was another man, thin and sharp-featured, with eyes that seemed to miss nothing.

This was the Roland Kingdom’s chief strategist, a man famous for his complex plans and sneaky intelligence, named Gautam. As the Prime Minister looked towards him, Gautam bowed his head respectfully, then stepped forward to stand before the King.

"My Lord," Gautam began, his voice smooth and confident, "while the situation is indeed... complicated, I believe I have come up with a good plan. We still have a significant advantage in this situation, if we play our cards correctly."

Hearing this, a flicker of genuine curiosity, and perhaps a tiny bit of hope, entered King James’s eyes. He gestured with his hand, a silent command for Gautam to explain his proposed plan.