To deliberately seek out and consume the most excruciating poison…

Jedran jumped at the unbelievable statement, but Ariel remained calm.

She had already suspected it.

Ordinary poisons wouldn’t be enough to bring him down… so he must have chosen the strongest.

But why would he go so far as to sacrifice himself?

Lowell had clearly mentioned finding the Black Eagle’s master.

Ariel couldn’t understand that part.

Then the answer slipped out of Aster’s mouth.

“The Grand Duke said that: No matter how much I think about it, the only one who can completely destroy the Duchess of Viasteus is me.”

Ariel’s face hardened.

She, too, was fighting with everything she had, but he insisted on doing things his way to the end.

“Truly, how arrogant.”

“Arrogant indeed. But after hearing his reasoning, I couldn’t dismiss it as mere arrogance.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Aster opened her lips heavily.

“My lady, if His Majesty were to acknowledge that the Duchess of Viasteus killed your father, what punishment do you think he would impose? Do you think His Majesty would sentence the Duchess to the highest penalty under the law?”

“Of course he would…”

“No, my lady. I’m sorry, but the Emperor would never do that. I hate to say it, but on His Majesty’s scales… the death of the Marquis weighs less than the death of the Duchess of Viasteus.”

Ariel’s green eyes wavered, but Aster drove the point home.

“The Duchess of Viasteus is a key player in the coup and the Emperor’s only remaining cousin.”

“…….”

Ariel clenched her cold, trembling fingertips into a fist and remained silent.

Aster’s words were true. The Duchess of Viasteus had only survived the bloody purge because she had betrayed her own brother and sided with the Emperor.

Even when her brother was about to die, she is said to have never begged the Emperor to spare his life.

Instead, she is said to have said that not a single seed of rebellion should be allowed to survive.

The Emperor certainly felt indebted to the Duchess.

And the Duchess of Viasteus probably knew that the Emperor couldn’t bring himself to kill her.

If the Duchess admitted that she had poisoned Ariel’s father and tearfully begged for forgiveness…

The Emperor would probably settle the matter by expelling her from the capital and banishing her from the royal family.

Just to strip her of her honour, nothing more.

Perhaps even that… as time passed and her father’s death faded from everyone’s memory, it might come back to her.

Ariel let out a shuddering breath.

“Ha…”

And then she let out a bitter laugh at her own foolishness.

To think that uncovering the truth would lead to everyone receiving their just punishment.

How naive.

The Emperor had already failed her father once more by covering up Kylance’s crimes.

The Emperor was no different.

And yet Ariel had foolishly believed in him, thinking that only the Emperor, the ruler of this nation, could bring them to justice.

She had believed in the power of truth.

But such a thing… was utterly useless.

He would probably protect Kylance even more than the Duchess.

“…So stupid. Acting noble and all… like an idiot…” 

Ariel muttered, burying her face in her hands.

“My lady… it’s not your fault. They are the ones who are wrong. Those who commit crimes should face the punishment they deserve.”

But how?

Ariel swallowed the words that came to her.

How on earth could she punish them?

The ruler of this nation, the one who should be judge and punisher, was already on their side.

Her sense of justice couldn’t bring the Duchess of Viasteus down. Not unless she stained her hands with blood and went down with them…

Ariel froze.

Blood… 

The image of Kylance violently coughing up blood flashed before her closed eyes. 

Ariel began to understand. 

Why he had staged such an exaggerated spectacle. And why he’d said she couldn’t do it. 

It wasn’t arrogance; it was the truth. 

He was as desperate as she was. 

Desperate enough to deceive the Emperor and the Duchess and to sacrifice himself. 

After all, the Duchess of Viasteus had also killed his parents. And the ultimate reason for his actions… 

“…The destruction of the Black Eagle.” 

Aster nodded. 

“Yes. The Grand Duke found the master of the Black Eagle, Duke Piedu, but… the Black Eagle’s assassin group had already been burned to ashes without a trace. Duke Piedu must have been terrified. After all, one of the Black Eagles might have revealed the truth about the former Grand Duke’s death.”

Ariel looked at Aster with a subdued expression.

“…Accepting orders to kill nobles is a serious crime, but it doesn’t compare to the crime of killing the late Grand Duke, the Emperor’s younger brother.”

“Yes. Duke Piedu probably only confessed to the murder of the Marquis Blante and remained silent about the death of the late Grand Duke. For if he had spoken of it, he wouldn’t have survived in the Empire. But if Duke Piedu kept his mouth shut, the Duchess would also survive. That’s why the Grand Duke made his decision.”

“To use himself as bait to force Duke Piedu, who knows all about the Duchess’s crimes, to talk…” 

As Ariel quietly put the puzzle together, Aster replied bitterly.

“Yes. Duke Piedu believes that the person who ordered him to get the poison was the Duchess of Viasteus. The secret message he received said that he was to prepare a mild poison to incapacitate theGrand Duke and that he would be released from the Grand Duke’s custody in the meantime. That’s what it said.

The handwriting, of course, was forged by our Mage Tower.

Aster added in a low voice, and Ariel quickly grasped the situation.

“The herbalist must have been someone Kylance had prepared in advance… Duke Piedu would have thought that the Duchess of Viasteus was trying to use him to kill Kylance. Since he already knows that she killed the late Grand Duke… it’s easy for him to misunderstand and believe that she’s trying to pin everything on him.”

“Exactly. He’s well aware of the Duchess’s cruelty…”

Aster checked his watch before continuing.

“By now, Duke Piedu, enraged by the herbalist’s testimony, would have confessed to all the Duchess’s crimes.”

Ariel also looked at the time.

1 PM.

She had arrived at the party in the evening.

Ariel asked quickly, her voice tense.

“Don’t tell me… has it been several days since I collapsed?”

“No, it hasn’t even been a full day. You collapsed last night and just woke up now.”

Jedran glanced between Ariel and Aster before speaking carefully to Aster.

“…Tower Master, the conversation seems to be coming to an end, so perhaps Ariel should rest…”

But Ariel interrupted Jedran in mid-sentence.

“No, I don’t need to rest. It’s not like I’ve ingested any real poison, and thanks to Lord Aster I’m fine.”

“Even so…”

Jedran tried to protest, but Ariel called firmly to Aster.

“Lord Aster.”

“Yes, my lady?”

“Is Kylance awake?”

“No, not yet. But Seoden is by his side. He’ll wake up soon.”

“I see.”

Ariel sighed heavily and got off the bed.

“Could you both step outside for a moment so I can change?”

Jedran frowned.

“Where are you going?”

Aster followed with another question.

“Are you going to visit the Grand Duke?”

Without a moment’s hesitation, Ariel shook her head.

“No.”

“Then…?”

“I can’t stay a fool forever. I may have unintentionally let the Duchess slip into Kylance’s grasp, but… Kylance is mine.

“…So you won’t forgive the Grand Duke.”

Sure, someone could say that after all he has done, and considering that he is also a victim, it wouldn’t be wrong to forgive him at this point. But Ariel wasn’t that person.

She hadn’t forced him to make that choice, and the wounds of the past were too deep to offer a shallow forgiveness born of fleeting emotion.

And she wanted to face her father without shame.

This was no time for forgiveness.

Now that she understood reality, it was time to end things accordingly.

With unwavering determination, Ariel replied.

“He doesn’t want forgiveness anyway.

At least not yet.

“Shall I accompany you?”

Aster offered, having guessed where she was going, but Ariel declined with a smile.

“This is something I have to do. Besides, I don’t want to fuel the marriage rumours any further.”

“Ah-how careless of me. I’ll take care of it soon.”

“Please do.”

With that, Aster and Jedran left the room and Ariel turned to Mila and gave her instructions.

“I’m going to the Imperial Palace. Prepare something that doesn’t make me look too casual.”

***

The Imperial City of the Pentium Empire.

The Sun Palace, in front of the Emperor’s office.

“My lady, you cannot do this.”

The steward said, standing in front of Ariel with a troubled look on his face.

But Ariel didn’t move an inch.

“I will not move from this spot until His Majesty agrees to see me.”

“Lady Blante…”

“I have heard that His Majesty personally interrogated Duke Piedu, the accomplice of the Duchess of Viasteus. Surely you were at his side and know what happened. You must know that I survived after ingesting poison.”

Ariel lied with a calm expression.

The Chamberlain, unaware of the truth, couldn’t hide his startled reaction.

“If that’s the case, what reason is there to deny me an audience with His Majesty?”

“It’s not that you can’t see him… it’s that you’re being asked to return tomorrow. Surely you’re aware of how much His Majesty cares for you.”

“All the more reason he’ll want to know I’m awake.”

The chamberlain, faced with Ariel’s unyielding gaze, seemed to make up his mind. He leaned closer and spoke in a low voice.

“My lady, His Majesty is in a foul mood today. A new crime of the Duchess has… come to light… and His Majesty is not in a state to see anyone at the moment…”

Ariel stared at the chamberlain before suddenly raising her voice.

“Are you referring to the murder of the late Grand Duke and Duchess Seyerd by the Duchess of Viasteus?”

“Gasp!”

“W-what!”

“My-my lady!”

The chamberlain and the nearby staff were thrown into confusion, their reactions a mixture of shock and panic.

It was still top secret, known only to the Emperor and the Chamberlain. 

But Ariel’s voice was loud enough for all the palace staff nearby to hear. 

The staff and the Chamberlain were horrified, but Ariel stood tall and determined. 

Any moment now… 

Bang! 

“Ariel Blante!!” 

The doors burst open and the Emperor appeared. 

Ariel stepped past the chamberlain and approached the Emperor. 

Without a hint of trembling, she lowered herself gracefully into a formal bow. 

“I greet His Majesty the Emperor, the sun of the Empire.”