Sir Kruger walked straight towards the witness stand.

As he moved, people’s heads could be seen following him.

Among the murmuring sounds, there were words doubting his identity.

It was understandable.

This case would have been sudden for other people too. In such a situation, it wasn’t strange to have doubts when Jade Robelin, who had been missing for 10 years, appeared and said he would be a witness in this case.

Depending on the perspective, Alex and Duke Anstis’ side might have bought someone separately.

However, since the situation was more favorable to Alex and Duke Anstis than to Duke Franz, no one came forward to raise issues.

But even so, as long as one had ears, it was impossible not to hear the low murmurs.

Sir Kruger climbed onto the witness stand without stopping his steps despite such sounds.

Roaman approached Sir Kruger.

“Are you Jade Robelin?”

As though he already understood the people’s doubts, Roaman first asked Sir Kruger.

“Yes, I am.”

“How can you prove it?”

At Roaman’s question, Sir Kruger took out an item he had prepared in advance.

It was the locket he treasured.

“Wouldn’t it be difficult to prove your identity with the portrait here?”

“I didn’t give you the locket to look at the portrait.”

As Sir Kruger fiddled with the locket, a ring appeared in mid-air.

Sir Kruger, holding the ring in his hand, removed the earring he was wearing. Then his face changed instantly.

I too was quite surprised and checked Sir Kruger. I already knew that he was hiding his true appearance with a magic artifact from what I had heard.

But it was my first time seeing his real appearance.

It was an attractive face with gentle-looking eyes, a straight nose bridge, and firmly closed lips.

If I had known Sir Kruger’s true appearance, I would have recognized Christine right away, as the two looked so similar.

The murmuring among the people grew louder.

Meanwhile, Sir Kruger calmly held out the ring to Roaman.

“This is the seal proving the Robelin family. Please check it.”

Roaman handed the ring he received from Sir Kruger to a staff member. The judge who received the ring from the staff looked at it and opened his eyes wide.

“It’s real. Alright. Now that we’ve confirmed the witness’s identity, let’s proceed with the questioning.”

At the judge’s words, Roaman nodded and turned to Sir Kruger.

“Witness, you infiltrated Duke Alexander Berzel’s household under the orders of Duke Charon Franz. Is that correct?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Your intention of infiltrating the Berzel ducal household was to kill Duke Alexander Berzel. Is that correct?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Ridiculous!! How dare you misunderstand on your own and now try to frame me! You ungrateful, shameless bastard!”

Duke Franz shouted in anger at Sir Kruger’s affirmation.

Sir Kruger looked at Duke Franz with a tired expression.

“I don’t understand why you’re denying it. Wasn’t it you, Duke Franz, who presented me with evidence that Duke Berzel was the culprit of the Robelin family fire incident? But what was the reality? That fire, didn’t you start it, Duke Franz?”

Although it was a calm voice, the burning anger mixed in it was conveyed even to me who was far away.

“You killed my parents, and not satisfied with that, you even committed arson on the mansion. Didn’t you?”

“It wasn’t me! It was all Duke Berzel…”

“There’s evidence, isn’t there!”

When Duke Franz tried to pin everything on Alex, Sir Kruger shouted, unable to bear it.

Sir Kruger, who had been suppressing his anger while breathing heavily, glared at him.

“Why did you imprison Christine?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about!”

Duke Franz turned his body as if avoiding Sir Kruger’s gaze.

“Ten years ago… It was because Christine witnessed you killing my parents and committing arson, wasn’t it? Moreover, since I appeared, you must have thought Christine might be useful as a hostage someday. As a hostage to use the moment I betrayed you, Duke Franz, or gave up on this revenge.”

“……”

As if he had no more words to refute, Duke Franz remained silent, looking elsewhere with his mouth shut.

At first, I thought he would continue to insist it wasn’t him, but it seemed difficult for him to deny it in front of Sir Kruger.

“Acting according to Duke Franz’s will is the biggest stain on my life. I caused irreparable harm to Duke Berzel, and it was an unforgivable act to those who were sacrificed because of me.”

Duke Franz, who had been grinding his teeth, turned his head to glare at Sir Kruger.

“Wasn’t it all your decision! Are you saying I deceived you? Wasn’t it you who first asked for help?”

“That’s because you presented me with fabricated evidence!”

“What’s the difference? In the end, you made the judgment.”

Sir Kruger faltered at Duke Franz’s words.

“All I told you was that the person who entered and left the Robelin house that day was Duke Berzel. But when did I ever say I didn’t visit there? I just didn’t mention it. Wasn’t it you who misunderstood?”

“Your Grace!”

Sir Kruger shouted loudly, unable to contain his anger.

“Both the witness and the defendant, please calm down now.”

The judge, who had been watching this, intervened between the two.

At those words, Sir Kruger clenched his fists tightly and contorted his face.

Duke Franz maintained a calm expression, but judging by his dark complexion, he seemed to regret his recent statement.

“So, does the witness admit to attempting to kill Duke Berzel together with the defendant?”

“Yes, I admit it. And I would like to take this opportunity to apologize once again to Duke Berzel, who suffered greatly because of me. My judgment… Yes. I committed a crime against the Duke due to my wrong judgment. I’m sorry.”

As Sir Kruger bowed his head in apology, the courtroom suddenly fell silent.

Alex quietly fixed his gaze on him. Then, after a short while, he nodded briefly.

“I’ve already accepted the apology, so it would be best to wrap up this matter for now.”

Only then did Sir Kruger raise his head.

“And it seems that through the statement just now, it has also been revealed as fact that Duke Franz supported this.”

“That’s…!”

Duke Franz, who was about to refute, hesitated. However, the words he had already spoken couldn’t be taken back.

Duke Franz looked around. The spectators who had already heard the conversation between the two were looking at him with disapproving eyes.

Duke Franz’s eyes, realizing his mistake, reached me on the second floor.

“Is the testimony over?”

At the judge’s question, Roaman shook his head.

“No, I will continue.”

“Go ahead.”

“The witness also attacked the carriage carrying Duke Edwin Anstis and Veronica Maynard. Is that correct?”

“Yes.”

“Whose will was it?”

“It was Duke Franz’s order.”

“……”

Even at Sir Kruger’s confession, Duke Franz remained silent. He was just trembling slightly with his mouth firmly shut.

Duke Franz, who had been shouting all along, was quiet, making me feel uneasy for no reason.

Is it okay?

Hoping that this uneasiness was just my unfounded worry, I watched the trial proceed.

To Roaman’s questioning, Sir Kruger spilled everything that had happened without missing a single detail.

The trial time was longer than expected. Because Duke Franz had committed so many acts, the trial was getting longer and longer as all this evidence and testimony was repeated.

“We’ll take a short break here.”

Finally, it seemed to come to a temporary conclusion with the judge’s recess.

“We’re going down to meet Veronica, do you want to come along, Claire?”

“Yes!”

“Then let’s go together.”

I came out into the hallway following Count and Countess Maynard.

Unlike the leisurely second floor, the first floor was noisy with people. As we were quickly heading towards the waiting room, a small scream was heard from somewhere.

And it happened in an instant.

“Be careful!”

Kain of the Rose Knight Order shouted urgently.

When I turned my head towards the direction of the sound, a large shadow fell over me.

Clang!

Before I could realize what was happening, a sharp sound of metal clashing was heard.

I reflexively shrank back.

When I belatedly raised my head, what I saw was someone’s back.

In a situation I couldn’t possibly adapt to, my body froze involuntarily.

“Are you okay, Claire?”

A familiar voice rang in my ear. With trembling eyes, I confirmed the owner of the voice. The one showing his back to me was Alex.

“Kain, take care of it!”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

Alex ordered Kain. Then he examined me with eyes full of concern.

“I thought something was strange. I’m glad you’re safe, Claire.”

The moment I heard Alex’s words, the tension dissipated.