Chapter 120

“Judgment regarding Aitor Turner will be temporarily withheld.”  

The Emperor finished speaking and rose from his seat. Declaring that he would take a short break, the Emperor left the courtroom. As soon as the Emperor departed, the knights, who had been exchanging glances, dragged Marquis Cloak out of the courtroom, while Aitor was led to the wooden chair where he had been sitting earlier.  

Some deliberately hurled harsh words at Aitor, while others openly displayed their displeasure at the sudden appearance of the Empress and her entourage, creating a cacophony of noise.  

Laila clutched tightly onto the hem of Vivian’s dress as the atmosphere grew tense.  

“Laila. Are you alright?”  

When Rosie asked, Laila nodded. The Empress glanced around the courtroom with a cold expression before approaching Vivian and Laila.  

“It seems we’ll need some time before the trial resumes. I don’t think it’s good for Laila to stay here.”  

Vivian nodded as she looked at Aitor, who was being returned to the chair reserved for the accused.  

“Then I’ll take Laila outside for a while.”  

“Alright. Alina, please take care of Laila and Vivian. I’ll stay here with Lady Rosie.”  

Following Alina, Vivian made eye contact with her father, who was sitting at the far end of the courtroom’s long bench. Seeing Duke Tereon Dinever nod slightly, Vivian steeled herself and squeezed Laila’s hand tightly.  

“You’re hurting me.”  

“Sorry.”  

Laila pouted as she spoke. The place they arrived at was a room adjacent to the public courtroom, a space prepared for nobles to rest.  

“It may be uncomfortable, but I think this is the most suitable place for now, my lady.”  

“It’s not uncomfortable. Thank you, Alina.”  

After preparing snacks and drinks for Laila, Alina excused herself, saying she would return to pick them up before the trial resumed.  

As soon as Alina left, Laila eagerly popped a cookie into her mouth. Watching her, Vivian thought of Ian and gently stroked Laila’s hair.  

“Were you scared earlier?”  

“A little?”  

Her words were muffled by the cookie filling her mouth, but even that was endearing. Smiling faintly, Vivian handed her a drink made from green grapes and apples. As she watched Laila gulp it down, someone knocked on the door, and Vivian turned her head.  

“Who is it?”  

“It’s me, Vivian.”  

Hearing Louis’s voice, Vivian stood up. Laila, having emptied her drink, wiped her mouth and blinked her curious eyes, sparkling with interest.  

“Just a moment.”  

Reassuring Laila, Vivian quickly went to the door and opened it slightly.  

“Louis?”  

“May I come in for a moment?”  

Glancing back at Laila, Vivian nodded and opened the door wider.  

It had been a while since she last saw Louis, and he looked sharp. Not just his eyes but also his jawline appeared more defined, as if he had lost weight.  

Noticing Vivian’s worried gaze, Louis smiled faintly and tousled her hair.  

“So, what’s going on today?”  

Louis’s sharp face and demeanor instantly softened the atmosphere. Vivian felt a pang of sympathy for him but decided to feign ignorance for now.  

“It’s a long story.”  

“Can’t you make it short?”  

When Louis smiled awkwardly, Vivian chuckled and pointed to the chair opposite where Laila was sitting.  

“I’ll explain as quickly as I can, so please sit down for a moment.”  

Nodding, Louis moved toward the sofa Vivian indicated. On the way, his eyes met Laila’s, who was chewing a cookie with her cheeks puffed out, staring intently at him.  

As Laila and Louis sized each other up, Vivian stepped in.  

“Laila, this is the only son of His Majesty the Emperor and the next Emperor of this country.”  

Hearing Vivian’s introduction, Laila blinked her large eyes slowly and bowed her head slightly.  

“Well, about Laila…”  

“No need. It’d be stranger to receive a proper greeting in this situation.”  

As Louis sat on the sofa, Vivian offered him tea. When he declined with a shake of his head, Vivian began explaining what had happened, starting from the time Aitor was captured and how she and Rosie happened to be there by chance.  

Duke Tereon’s remark that the chances of Rosie and Vivian being called as witnesses were slim reminded Vivian of Laila, whom she had coincidentally met there.  

The next day, Rosie and Teresa went to find Laila, while Vivian sought out Hugo. Hugo provided information about the public trial and materials on similar past cases.  

With Teresa’s cooperation, finding Laila turned out to be easier than expected. They found Laila in an orphanage far from that place.  

It was Teresa who noticed Laila’s extraordinary memory. Observing Laila closely after hearing why she had gone to such a distant place during a game of hide-and-seek with the other children, Teresa quickly realized that Laila was a special child.  

It was a miracle that such a remarkable child had ended up in that place. Teresa, moved to tears, declared that her pupil was not one to die so easily.  

“We all worked together. Without them, it would have been impossible.”  

Even with her mouth still full of cookies, Laila slyly reached out for a macaron, her eyes still fixed on Louis.  

“The timing of our entry into the courtroom was entirely Her Majesty the Empress’s idea.”  

“Her Majesty the Empress?”  

“Yes. She thought it would be disadvantageous to reveal the card of Laila too early and decided to wait for the right moment.”  

Struggling to avoid Laila’s piercing gaze, Louis shook his head.  

It wasn’t the worst-case scenario. The worst-case scenario Louis had envisioned was execution. While exile wasn’t ideal, it was better than death.  

Louis, who had already prepared a plan to protect Aitor in case of exile, briefly pondered whether the Empress and Vivian’s timing had been appropriate.  

“In the next trial, they will probably start by debating whether this little lady qualifies as a witness or not.”  

Vivian nodded. When she mentioned that Rosie had the meticulously prepared documents, Louis stared intently at Vivian’s determined face.  

“You’ve been busy.”  

“Of course. I didn’t want to leave even a small gap. So, I prepared various other things just in case…”  

Trailing off, Vivian glanced nervously at Louis.  

“By the way, the pocket watch you gave me… does it have any special meaning, or perhaps a message from the late Emperor?”  

“What are you trying to say?”  

Seeing Louis’s puzzled expression, Vivian awkwardly smiled and shook her head.  

“I was just curious. Don’t worry about it.”  

Feeling unsettled, Louis leaned forward, urging her to explain.  

“Sister, I need to use the bathroom.”  

Having finished her macaron, Laila tugged on Vivian’s arm.  

“Oh? Oh! Okay!”  

Hurriedly standing up, Vivian left the room with Laila. Louis also rose awkwardly, sensing the sudden urgency.  

“Don’t worry. I will definitely save Aitor! Got it?”  

With those words, Vivian quickly left the lounge with Laila, who was hopping impatiently. Alone in the quiet lounge, Louis’s laughter echoed pleasantly.  

“I’m crazy.”  

He felt like a madman. His friend and subordinate was on the verge of exile, yet Vivian’s playful assurance to trust her had somehow erased his worries.  

Though he tried to suppress his smile, it kept creeping back, and Louis rubbed his mouth with his fingers.  

Then, recalling something that had been nagging him, Louis left the lounge. Out in the hallway, he saw nobles gathered in small groups outside the courtroom but no sign of Vivian or Laila.  

Ignoring the nobles who paused their conversations and bowed as he passed, Louis headed toward the restroom.  

“Your Highness the Crown Prince.”  

Hearing his title, Louis stopped and turned around. Dave approached hastily, bowing and glancing around warily.  

“I need you to come with me for a moment.”  

When Louis frowned, Dave wiped his sweaty forehead with an already damp handkerchief. Seeing Dave’s exhaustion, Louis nodded.  

Following Dave, Louis glanced back at the empty hallway one last time before resigning himself and following the Emperor’s chief aide.  

They arrived at a large terrace overlooking a garden some distance from the courtroom.  

Though the weather was clear, the strong wind caused everything in the garden to sway precariously—trees, flowers meticulously tended by the gardeners, all trembling under the gusts.  

“Did you know?”  

“What are you referring to?”  

The Emperor’s voice, still turned away from Louis, carried restrained anger. Louis calmly met his father’s fury with a question of his own.  

“To involve the Empress and storm into the courtroom at that precise moment… There’s a reason you’re rumored to be clever.”  

The Emperor scoffed incredulously and turned to face Louis.  

“How could you be so thoughtless? How many times have I emphasized this? Bringing in the Huckberry family… Are you even thinking?”  

The Emperor’s golden eyes burned with disappointment and anger as his voice rose.  

“From the moment you were born—or rather, even when you were in the womb—you were destined to be the next Emperor. Perhaps that made the throne seem trivial to you. So you brought in your maternal relatives just to save one criminal.”  

“Your Majesty!”  

“Arrogant, aren’t you? But do you know this? The Emperor’s throne is not something you can claim just by being clever. Sometimes, you must be ruthless, and sometimes you must do things worse than a beast. It is not a place to sit with your nose in the air, pretending to be noble and intelligent!”  

“Father!”  

“It’s Emperor!”  

The Emperor interrupted Louis and took a step closer to his son.  

“An Emperor is not a saint. While there are virtues an Emperor must possess, a morally perfect Emperor is not a great Emperor.”  

Though his son had grown tall enough to surpass him long ago, the Emperor looked up at him. Louis, who resembled him greatly in appearance but bore more of the former Emperor’s traits, met his father’s gaze.  

“Other than the fact that you are my son, can you confidently say you are fit to be Emperor?”  

Louis’s eyes trembled violently.  

The Emperor added one final blow, his gaze unwavering.  

“You are not qualified to be Crown Prince.”  

Between the two stood a deep chasm, so vast that its bottom could not be seen. Louis didn’t know when that chasm had formed. Was it when he was seven and cried, begging for Violet, the Imperial Consort, to be sent away? Or had it always been there, from the moment he was born?  

Louis had avoided looking down at his feet all this time. He hadn’t wanted to know the distance between himself and his father, the Emperor.  

But now he knew. The chasm had grown so wide and deep that it was impossible to ignore.  

It felt like he was drowning in a swamp, with no air to breathe.  

“Your Majesty, you are making a mistake.”  

At that moment, a clear and refreshing voice pulled Louis out of the swamp.  

“Who allowed you to enter here without permission, Lady Vivian?”  

The Emperor growled, but Vivian, unafraid, strode in.  

Dave, standing at the terrace door, anxiously tried to stop her, but it was no use.  

“How can you say such things to someone you know has worked harder than anyone to become a great Emperor?”  

Pulling Louis behind her, Vivian raised her chin and looked up at the Emperor. Her defiant peridot-green eyes met the Emperor’s furious golden gaze.

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