“Maiki was an herbalist. He loved plants deeply and discovered several ways to prepare them or use them that others didn’t know. But because he didn’t consider his knowledge anything special, he shared it only with family and a few close friends.”

After briefly explaining about Maiki, Marin began the real story.

“The reason I mentioned Maiki’s profession and the things he loved is because among the few people he shared his knowledge with... was ‘little Kichi.’”

“Why must we keep listening to this absurd nonsense?! Kironne la Diarca! Are you not the one who should be protecting me above all others?!”

At last, Kachian called Kironne’s name. But the eldest son of House Diarca didn’t respond. He simply gave the Emperor, seated far away on the upper dais, a single fleeting glance. Those seated around Kironne did not react either.

“Why is everyone silent?! Duke Diarca! Where is Duke Diarca?!”

“......”

Each time Kachian cried out in desperation, the only one who responded was Kiolle. Yuder watched with disdain as Kiolle flinched every time Kachian’s voice rose, like a man being pricked by needles.

‘Keeping your face stern won’t hide the fact you’re terrified. Why not just scream it already?’

The amusing part was that every time Kiolle flinched, the moderate nobles seated around him looked increasingly confused.

‘We were sure Kiolle had sided with the Emperor... then what is this? Why is Kironne ignoring the Crown Prince, and why does Kiolle look so uncomfortable? Have we misunderstood something all this time?’

‘We have no idea what’s really going on. Whose side are we supposed to be on?’

Their faces made it blatantly obvious they were thinking just that. No wonder Kishiar was radiating his amusement. If even Yuder found their expressions laughable, Kishiar must’ve been enjoying it tenfold. The fact that he wasn’t openly laughing was almost impressive.

Fools incapable of judging the situation for themselves. They claimed to be “neutral,” but in truth, they did nothing and cared only for their own safety. Yuder doubted such people would last long under Emperor Keillusa’s reign.

Still, even fools like them held some power and influence for now. If, after witnessing the Emperor’s and Kishiar’s strength today, they began to distance themselves from the noble faction, then House Diarca wouldn’t be able to act with the same arrogance as before.

“Interrupting another’s testimony after your turn has ended is a violation of Room of Truth regulations. The Crown Prince has repeatedly violated those rules beyond the allowed limit. Therefore, his speech will be temporarily suspended until Marin finishes.”

“What—!”

Before Kachian could even react fully, one of the knights standing behind his chair activated a magic sigil embedded in it. At once, the magic engraved into the chair activated, and though Kachian continued to shout, it was as if his voice hit an invisible wall—inaudible to anyone else.

“—! ....... ------!”

As Kachian turned red in the face and silently screamed, Marin continued her story, ignoring him completely.

“My brother Maiki died around harvest season, a few months ago. At the time, he was excited at the thought of seeing an old friend, and he was even drying a plant he normally wouldn’t bother with.”

But not long after, Maiki was murdered in the mountains. His body was found in a horrific state, with not even a single belonging left behind.

“The local lord declared it a beast attack and closed the case without an investigation. I had been away at the time and only learned of it after returning. But I couldn’t believe the official conclusion, so I searched for the culprit myself.”

Though her village was deep in the mountains, it was near a scenic lake often visited by nobles. That alone proved the area wasn’t dangerous.

There hadn’t even been a single monster sighting or known predator in the region. For an herbalist to be found brutally killed like that was unnatural.

No one else before or after had died in such a way. And yet, the lord stuck to his forced conclusion.

“I later found out that before Maiki’s death, he had met with a merchant—someone we’d never seen before—at the foot of the mountain. I became certain he had been killed over the plant he was drying. But I could never find that merchant. I thought the truth of what happened would be buried forever.”

“A tragic story. But from what we’ve heard so far, it’s still unclear how this connects to the recent attack on your village.”

“After surviving the attack and learning that the man who hired the mercenaries was the Crown Prince’s attendant, I heard about an incident His Highness was involved in—one that occurred around last year’s harvest.”

Kachian screamed soundlessly in rage.

Marin, with ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) crisp enunciation that left no room for doubt, spoke clearly for all to hear.

“The poisoning incident involving the dudulem mushroom. When I heard that, even the gods could not imagine how horrified I felt.”

Because—

“In our region, we call it dudulem, though in apothecaries it’s known as ‘puto.’ The mushroom itself isn’t poisonous. But if dried in a specific way and ground into powder, it causes intense thirst in a short amount of time. If you then slip something else into the water of a thirsty victim... That trick was discovered by my brother, Maiki. As a child, he and little Kichi once used it to play harmless pranks on the villagers.”

Yuder listened as Marin reconstructed information he already knew.

“And... the plant Maiki had most recently dried before his death—was that very mushroom.”

Everyone in the gallery involuntarily held their breath.

Everyone here knew what that incident referred to. It was the scandal involving the late Second Prince of House Apeto, Lenore, who died suddenly during the harvest festival. At the time, House Diarca claimed that the Crown Prince’s attendant had acted alone, and the alleged culprit left a confession letter before dying—conveniently.

But everyone who knew anything knew that wasn’t the truth.

In fact, hadn’t Duke Peleta appeared at Prince Lenore’s funeral and claimed—alongside the now-seated Third Prince Revlin Shan Apeto—that the real killer was the Crown Prince?

But because House Diarca denied it, the matter had been buried. Just like everything else before.

Later, the Crown Prince was attacked by an assassin, and Duke Apeto collapsed in illness and disappeared, leaving the political world in chaos. With so much happening, that case had been deprioritized. No one had the time or energy to focus on such a “minor” affair.

And yet, here it was—resurfacing again?

And this time, even Duke Diarca wasn’t present to shield the Crown Prince?

All eyes naturally turned to Revlin Shan Apeto, seated in the audience. Though many curious gazes landed on him, Revlin simply stared at Marin with an unreadable expression.

“Maiki died during harvest season. The same time that a murder took place here. The method used—Maiki’s mushroom—was identical. And the one person who knew that method, little Kichi, is here. So is it truly too far-fetched to believe that Maiki’s death occurred in the exact same way, only earlier?” 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

“......”

“I believe this case should be investigated as part of the same string of events. Even if it was just the death of one commoner... please, Your Majesty, I beg you to show him compassion.”

With those words, Marin bowed deeply. Until now, she had spoken with the utmost confidence, but only now did the agony and desperate grief she had held beneath her composure finally show.