102. Becoming a Witness at the Trial (2)

Joy’s eyes sparkled at Larael’s words. A faint smile appeared on Larael’s face, but she quickly became serious and continued.

“Anyway, go back now. If you do this again, I’ll never see you again. Understand?”

Joy nodded eagerly. Larael remembered that she had planned to contact Kali tomorrow. Since Joy was here, she would have him deliver the message.

“Since you’re here, could you deliver a message to Kali when you return? Tell her to finish her work and bring Hobbs back to the capital…”

“What? We can really return to the capital? With Mr. Hobbs too?”

Hobbs was someone Larael had thoroughly tried to hide and protect. Even Joy, who usually disliked complicated thinking, tilted his head in confusion at Larael’s sudden order that came without any warning.

“Yes. The situation has changed. For now, bring him back and protect him well.”

He was skilled enough to enter the palace. While she was angry about his unauthorized intrusion into the palace, she also developed a certain trust in him.

“Yes. I understand.”

Joy answered immediately, showing no sign of being modest about his abilities or reluctance about Larael’s request.

“Now go!”

When Larael spoke firmly, Joy lowered the corners of his eyes and, with a dejected expression, threw himself out the window.

“Joy!!”

Larael screamed. She hadn’t meant for him to leave through the window. At Larael’s scream, there was a knock on the bedroom door.

“Your Highness, are you alright?”

It was Berser’s voice.

“Yes. I’m fine.”

Larael called out loudly and looked with empty eyes at the window where Joy had disappeared. She closed the open window tightly again and went to the fireplace, standing there for a while, staring blankly at the burning flames.

***

The next day, as Marquis Argen had said, a request for Larael to attend as a witness at the trial arrived. Larael sat at her desk and slowly read the request.

In the Kazel Empire’s judicial system, the Emperor and six judges appointed by the Emperor deliver verdicts. For less significant, routine trials, only the six judges proceed without the Emperor, but for serious crimes or cases where the judges’ opinions are evenly divided, the Emperor also participates as a judge. When the Emperor participates as a judge, his opinion naturally carries the most weight.

Edward had participated as a judge in Baron Layton’s trial as well.

Larael placed the attendance request on the desk, stood up, and went to the window. Looking outside, she became lost in thought. The sunlight pouring through the window spread around her delicate figure.

“Your Highness, His Majesty the Emperor is coming to Abella Palace.”

Kara hurriedly entered Larael’s bedroom to inform her that Edward was coming.

Larael nodded slowly, taking her gaze away from the window without showing any excitement. She had anticipated that Edward would want to see her today because of yesterday’s trial. If Edward hadn’t come like this, Larael had planned to visit him in the afternoon.

If she met Edward, she wanted to first explain that she didn’t know why her name had come from Baron Layton’s mouth. Larael left her bedroom and walked down the corridor to welcome Edward. Edward appeared from the opposite direction. Never before had it been so uncomfortable to see Edward. Usually, just seeing him would make her smile, but today she couldn’t even show a welcoming expression.

Edward, on the contrary, had his face instantly filled with a bright smile the moment he spotted Larael, despite having looked gloomy before. That smiling face was so dazzling that Larael even stopped walking and stared blankly as he approached.

“I pay my respects to His Majesty the Emperor.”

As Larael, who had come to her senses, hurriedly greeted him, Edward, who had already reached her, embraced her tightly.

“Don’t you think we can skip the formalities between us now?”

Edward buried his face in her hair. Larael shook her head and pushed Edward away firmly. Only then could Edward examine her stern expression closely. Edward took her hand and led her back to her bedroom, where they sat side by side on the sofa.

Larael lowered her gaze, avoiding eye contact with him.

“Larael, did you hear from Marquis Argen about what happened at the trial yesterday?”

“Yes. Don’t you have questions for me, Your Majesty?”

“Indeed. It’s my heart’s desire to know even one more thing about you.”

“Your Majesty! This is not a joke.”

Larael raised her downcast eyes to look at Edward. Meeting Edward’s eyes made her heart ache again.

“If I have questions, I’ll ask after the trial is completely over. The reason I came to see you today is not to interrogate you, but because I was worried you might be suffering alone again.”

Today, Edward’s concern solely for her wasn’t entirely welcome.

“Your Majesty, please don’t think about my feelings and do what you wish. But even if you ask, the truth is that I don’t understand why Baron Layton requested me as a witness. Above all, what troubles me is that Your Majesty’s name is once again on people’s lips because of me.”

“Larael, how could I not think about you?”

Edward looked at Larael with worried eyes and gently stroked her hair.

“…Your Majesty, actually, there is something I need to tell you.”

Upon hearing those words, Edward’s heart sank.

He thought he trusted Larael, but strangely, a sense of anxiety crept over him. Fortunately, Edward thought Larael hadn’t noticed the momentary concerned expression he showed, but that wasn’t the case at all.

“Actually, I’ve been producing a cure for the Krauf disease through my aide, Kali.”

“The Krauf disease??”

Edward’s voice trembled slightly. The words from Larael’s mouth were completely unrelated to the trial, contrary to his expectations, but Edward’s heart continued to pound.

“Yes. You must have heard of it. It’s an endemic disease in the Kalia region, where Grand Duke Vellaus’s territory is located. Many deaths occur every year. It’s truly a nightmare disease for the people living in the Kalia region. By chance, I became interested in this disease, and I’ve been secretly helping Hobbs, who developed a cure, to produce it.”

Edward’s mind became complicated. Since Larael had once been engaged to Herwen, she could have taken an interest in the endemic disease of her territory as a potential grand duchess. But even knowing this, Edward wasn’t entirely pleased.

As the Emperor of the Kazel Empire, he should have been overjoyed at the news of a cure being developed for the troublesome Krauf disease. But instead of being happy, he felt chilled by his own thoughts.

“Is it really a cure that can completely heal the Krauf disease?”

Edward asked with a delayed expression of surprise on his face. Larael looked at him and slowly nodded.

“But recently, a problem arose.”

Larael lowered her eyes, recalling when Kali had come to see her.

***

The day after Larael had instructed Kali to focus on producing the cure, Kali came to see Larael again. It was early dawn, before Larael had even stretched. Larael faced Kali with just a shawl hastily wrapped around her, not having changed into a proper dress. She thought Kali must have had some urgent matter to visit so early in the morning, so Larael couldn’t afford to take her time.

And as she thought, Kali appeared with a haggard face, as if she hadn’t slept a wink all night, biting her lips nervously. She greeted Larael weakly with her head bowed low. When Kali raised her head as if having made a decision and met Larael’s eyes, she shed a tear that she had been holding back.

“Kali, what’s wrong?”

At Larael’s words, Kali began to sob and prostrated herself at Larael’s feet, begging forgiveness.

“Your Highness, I’ve done wrong. Please whip me and cast me out.”

Larael looked down at her with a calm gaze, neither surprised nor flustered by Kali’s behavior.

“…Grand Duke Vellaus came to see me personally.”

As the name Larael so despised came from Kali’s lips, Larael closed her eyes and let out a long sigh.