140. Of Course, She Must Be Held Responsible

The council’s agenda was the tax system the Empress Dowager had put into effect. Complaints about the farmers’ unrest rose louder than expected—grumblings and doubts about whether the policy was right echoed here and there. Larael listened, and before she knew it a snort of derision escaped her. She found it absurd that they hadn’t even foreseen such a predictable reaction.

“Did the Empress Dowager really think she could fix peasant complaints by fiat?” Larael muttered to herself, resting her chin on her hand.

“Any policy meets resistance at first. To gain large returns you must accept some losses. Their thinking is so shortsighted… tsk.” 

Duke Anderman clicked his tongue. Larael could not help smirking inwardly at him—people seldom see what lies immediately ahead, and his failure to foresee even what might happen to him was laughable.

“If the thing you lose is the people’s hearts, that’s another matter.” Impatient, Larael snapped. The chamber fell silent at once. Larael had never, in all the councils she had attended, broken her usual tight-lipped composure—but now every eye in the hall fixed upon her.

Slowly she rose from her seat and walked to the center of the chamber. Her sudden move stirred a murmur through the assembly.

“Empress Consort, what are you doing? Do you have something to say?” the Empress Dowager demanded, frowning.

“I have come to make a grave and serious accusation.” Larael’s voice was clear.

“An accusation should be handled through proper channels—” the Dowager began.

“No. I must make it here. The person I intend to accuse is Duke Anderman. If I do not do this publicly, he will find a way to slip away.” 

Larael faced Duke Anderman as she spoke. She rarely raised her voice like this; her words, however, were dignified and carried authority, and the nobles in the hall stared as if entranced. When they recovered their senses and reexamined what she had said, horror spread among them. To dare to touch Duke Anderman—many sighed and averted their faces.

Duke Anderman’s narrow eyes widened; he broke into an incredulous, nervous laugh. 

“Now… Empress… I am so startled that words fail me.”

He recovered his composure and rose to approach Larael, but at that instant Joy and the rest of her guard, who had been posted at the doorway, entered and drew swords to block him.

For a long moment the Empress Dowager simply stared at the armed guards—more specifically, at Berser—without speaking. Her brows twitched. Then she slammed her hand down on the desk with a sharp thud and stood up abruptly.

“What do you think you’re doing?” the Empress Dowager demanded angrily. It was understandable that she would see an armed retainer who had not been ordered by her as a direct challenge to her authority—after all, she now wielded powers nearly equal to the Emperor’s.

“Your Majesty, please calm yourself,” Dean said. “You surely know that slave trading is a grave crime in the Kazel Empire, do you not?”

“That is beside the point—” the Empress Dowager snapped; her voice grew hoarse with rage. She had noticed, if only for a moment, Anderman’s expression flicker.

“It was Duke Anderman who turned a blind eye to and tacitly covered up this slave trade. Count Winters?” Larael called.

At that cue, Dean rose and, together with Kali, placed the prepared dossiers on the desks of the nobles and before the Empress Dowager: documents detailing the collusion between Duke Anderman and Count Briznay, records of the phantom companies used in the slave trade, and the like. Anderman rushed back to his desk and hurriedly examined the papers placed there.

Larael gave them ample time to read. Only the rustle of pages broke the hush.

“Your Highness, I do not know what misunderstanding you have, but—” Duke Anderman began, skimming the documents, his face visibly paling.

“These papers include the ledgers obtained from Count Briznay’s domain,” Larael cut in, holding up the magical ledgers Joy had delivered.

“If you read them, you will understand. But for those who cannot grasp it as quickly as Duke Anderman, allow me to explain briefly. Count Briznay has been involved in slave trading since his academy days here in the capital. A significant portion of the proceeds has been paid over to Duke Anderman, who covered for him.” Larael spoke evenly, each word hitting its mark.

“Your Highness!!!!” Duke Anderman roared.

“Empress Consort! Do you know what you’re saying? Can you take responsibility for such claims?” the Empress Dowager snapped, throwing the documents from her desk to the floor. She stormed out, stepping before Larael—who did not even blink as she met the Empress Dowager’s glare.

“Yes. I will take responsibility. Arrest Duke Anderman at once. Marquis Argen has already gone down to Count Briznay’s holdings. When the council began, they were to seize him and bring him to the capital. I will accept responsibility—issue the arrest order immediately.” Larael’s voice did not shake.

The Empress Dowager’s eyelids fluttered. She drew a ragged breath and looked hard at Duke Anderman.

“……”

“If these records prove false, I will take full responsibility.”

The Empress Dowager’s eyes widened at Larael. Herwen stepped closer to her side and whispered something in her ear. After glancing once more at Duke Anderman, she returned to her seat with Herwen.

“Very well. However, given Duke Anderman’s position, he shall be confined to his estate. I will send the Imperial Knights to guard him there.”

“No. What criminal is afforded such privilege? My knights will arrest him immediately and hand him over to the Imperial Knights. Like every other criminal, he must be imprisoned.”

“Your Highness… You must be prepared to take responsibility for those words.”

Duke Anderman nodded respectfully toward the Empress Dowager before turning to Larael, his voice icy. From his brazen demeanor, it was clear he expected to escape unscathed once again.

“Arrest Duke Anderman and hand him over to the Imperial Knights.”

At Larael’s command, Joy and Berser re-sheathed their swords and firmly seized the duke’s arms. Duke Anderman glared at them in turn with a look of deep displeasure before being dragged out of the council chamber.

The sudden turn of events cast a heavy silence over the room. The Empress Dowager’s long sigh echoed through the hall. Larael, her footsteps crisp and steady, returned to her seat and looked at the Empress Dowager with a composed expression, as if nothing had happened.

Beside her, Herwen watched Larael with gleaming eyes, a smile playing on his lips. When Larael happened to meet his gaze, a chill ran down her spine, and she quickly turned away. She could not fathom why he was smiling. The fact that he could smile in such a situation made it seem as though none of this concerned him.

Larael clenched her fists tightly. What infuriated her most was her inability to deal with that devilish Herwen immediately. Once Edward awoke, the assassination attempt would be reinvestigated. At that time, Cloud’s recording stone would serve as crucial evidence.

She only hoped that delaying matters until Edward regained consciousness would not prove a grave mistake.

With Duke Anderman’s sudden arrest, the council dissolved in disarray. Not long after he was dragged away, the Empress Dowager formally adjourned the meeting. Rising from her seat, she approached Larael as the latter made her way toward the chamber doors.

“Empress Consort, I believe it would be wise for us to speak privately.”