We returned to the second-floor gallery to observe the trial.

Fortunately, Count and Countess Maynard didn’t question me further about what had happened earlier.

Relieved, I looked down at the courtroom where the trial had begun.

Even though he must have known about the commotion earlier, Duke Franz sat with his head held stiffly.

As the trial began, Miss Veronica and Duke Anstis came out together and testified in detail about the attack that had happened a few days ago.

Miss Veronica seemed to have a hard time just recalling the incident. Even watching her was uncomfortable for me.

After the testimony of the two, Alex finally took the witness stand. He was denouncing one by one the atrocities Duke Franz had committed so far.

It wasn’t just the threats against him.

Duke Franz’s atrocities that hadn’t been revealed outwardly were flowing out one by one through Alex’s mouth.

Among them, the fire incident at Count Robelin’s house, which Sir Kruger had mentioned earlier when he took the witness stand, was also mentioned.

As unbelievable facts were revealed one by one, the spectators were struck with astonishment.

M＊rder, instigation of m＊rder, arson, blackmail, and more.

Duke Franz remained silent even as evidence for all these crimes was coming out.

At first, he had denied it, but now it seemed he thought there was no use in denying it anymore.

After finishing all his testimony, Alex finally checked Duke Franz’s face. Then, after looking at him with a cold expression, he came down to the waiting area.

“Then, defendant, do you have anything to say in rebuttal?”

The judge gave Duke Franz a chance to defend himself.

However, Duke Franz still remained silent.

“It seems you don’t. Then can I assume that Duke Berzel’s testimony just now is all true?”

Duke Franz glared at Alex with sharply raised eyes.

“If I rebut, will you believe me?”

He asked the judge in a highly sarcastic tone.

The judge frowned as he looked down at Duke Franz.

“If the defendant’s words are true, there’s no reason not to believe them. And what I believe is solid evidence. The plaintiff’s side has also brought evidence, so if you want to rebut, you should provide evidence to the contrary, shouldn’t you? But the defendant hasn’t submitted anything so far. Rather, didn’t you try to bribe me by sending someone to give me money under the table?”

Hearing the judge’s words, the courtroom started to stir once again.

It seemed that Duke Franz had tried to bribe the judge behind the scenes.

Despite all this evidence, the trial could have been unfavorable.

I stroked my surprised chest and looked at the judge again.

Judging by the fact that he mentioned here that Duke Franz had tried to bribe him behind the scenes, it seemed he had rejected that money.

The money Duke Franz would have offered must have been quite a large sum, yet the judge who rejected it seemed impressive.

Although refusing was the right thing to do, human greed isn’t so easily controlled.

Come to think of it, I wondered if the judge’s initial prickly attitude towards Duke Franz when he first entered the courtroom was related to this incident.

As thoughts continued to connect, the judge opened his mouth towards Duke Franz.

“Do you have anything more to say?”

“……”

However, Duke Franz ultimately couldn’t defend himself. It was as if his true nature had already been exposed, so there was nothing he could do.

“I see you don’t. Alright. Then I will make a decision based on what I have observed so far.”

The judge who finished speaking looked around for a moment.

The murmuring people finally closed their mouths and began to wait for the judge’s declaration.

After clearing his throat, he began to recite the verdict.

“The evidence for m＊rder, instigation of m＊rder, arson, kidnapping, imprisonment, theft, and ab＊se committed by the defendant, Duke Charon Franz, has been clearly presented, and the fact that the defendant shows no signs of remorse and even tried to bribe the judge with money, among other things, shows that the nature of the crimes is extremely vicious and cannot be overlooked.”

The judge continued in a voice more solemn and powerful than ever before.

“Therefore, eight-tenths of Duke Charon Franz’s title and property will be confiscated, and his business rights will be revoked for 10 years.”

“What…!”

I too was surprised and gaped at the judge’s declaration.

No matter what, the Franz ducal family was a family with a long history. And during that time, it was also a family that had greatly influenced and exerted influence on the empire.

Therefore, I thought that even if a result came out, confiscation of some property or demotion of title would be the maximum level of punishment.

Other people probably didn’t have a different reaction from mine.

But the judge handed down a sentence more severe than that.

It wasn’t strange that Duke Franz, who had been exercising his right to remain silent, suddenly stood up in surprise.

“Do you think His Majesty the Emperor will sit idly by this result?”

Duke Franz’s teeth-grinding sound seemed to echo up to the second floor.

He threatened the judge in a savage tone.

The judge snorted as if it was ridiculous and answered without avoiding Duke Franz’s gaze.

“The court’s decision is entirely up to the court.”

“I will report this matter to His Majesty the Emperor…!”

“And, do you think His Majesty the Emperor would know nothing about a conflict that has broken out between the three dukes of the empire?”

“……!”

The judge’s words meant that His Majesty the Emperor also knew about this matter, and that his opinion was not much different from the judge’s.

Duke Franz looked at the judge with a shocked expression as if he had been hit on the head.

“I regret to say this, but you’ve done a lot behind the scenes, so His Majesty the Emperor has been troubled.”

“But!”

“Didn’t you find it strange? Why did His Majesty the Emperor allow Duke Anstis and Duke Berzel to move troops within the system?”

“……”

“Just as you need to cut out the rotten part for new buds to grow, His Majesty the Emperor wanted to cut you out.”

The judge finished speaking and let out a short sigh. Then he looked around and continued.

“Then I will now conclude this trial.”

As the judge struck the gavel, only silence lingered in the room.

Duke Franz, who had stood up in surprise at the result, sat down on the chair with a dejected face as if his legs had lost strength.

“This can’t be. This can’t…”

Duke Franz’s small voice echoed clearly up to here.

Alex looked at that sight and then began to leave the waiting area. Miss Veronica and Duke Anstis did the same.

“Let’s go down now too.”

Count Maynard suggested as he stood up.

I got up from my seat with the Countess and left the courthouse.

Outside, Miss Veronica, Alex, and Duke Anstis were waiting for us together.

“It would be best to return to the mansion for now.”

“That would be good. We’ll take our carriage.”

Count Maynard said to Alex.

He glanced at me with regretful eyes and then nodded.

“Please do so.”

He got into the Berzel ducal family’s carriage first.

“Let’s get in our carriage too.”

Count Maynard said to Miss Veronica and me.

Even though I hadn’t committed any crime, I felt nervous for no reason and nodded while swallowing dryly.

“Yes, Count.”

When everyone got into the carriage, it slowly started to move.

“It’s fortunate that Duke Franz’s matter was handled well.”

“Yes, it’s really fortunate. Claire went through a lot because of this.”

“No! Miss was seriously injured due to the attack more than me.”

“You both went through a lot.”

As I waved my hands in response to Miss Veronica’s words, Countess, who had been watching, comforted us with a bitter smile.

“If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have sent not only Veronica but also you, Claire.”

Regret was heavily laced in the Countess’s voice.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t serve the lady well.”

I answered in a gloomy voice while the Count and Countess looked at each other. Then they turned their gaze to me.

“We’re not blaming you, Claire.”

“You’ve been through a lot too.”

The two comforted me in kind voices.

Still, I couldn’t help feeling dejected.

“I’m still sorry.”

“No. Don’t you know how dearly I think of you? You’re the daughter of my maid and close friend Margaret. I promised Margaret I would treat you like family, but I’m sorry you had to go through this.”

The Countess said with a gentle smile.

“We’ll have to talk separately with Duke Berzel about future matters.”

“Yes…”

“By the way, Veronica, don’t you have anything to say?”

The Countess’s gaze turned to Miss Veronica. Suddenly finding herself the center of attention, Miss Veronica opened her eyes wide.

“Me?”

“Yes. Earlier, I noticed the atmosphere between you and Duke Anstis was unusual. What’s going on?”

“That’s…”

Miss Veronica’s face instantly turned as red as a ripe apple.

“You’ll have to explain what’s going on when we get back.”

“…Yes.”

Miss Veronica answered in a tiny voice.

Meanwhile, the carriage passed through the gates of the Berzel ducal estate and rushed inside.