Chapter 45: Recently, I’ve Actually Been Carrying Lily in a Princess Carry
“What do you mean, an arrest warrant!? Don’t be ridiculous! That must be a fake!!”
In stark contrast to Duke Lecherie’s furious outburst, Prince Slay was intently studying the arrest warrant.
“Brother Slay, you’re not mistaking the name of our father written here, are you?”
“That is…”
Prince Slay clenched his fists and fell silent.
He was clearly troubled. Should he declare the arrest warrant presented by Prince Lucas to be a fake here and now, or acknowledge its authenticity? If he did acknowledge it, what stance should he take?
“What are you doing, Slay! Hurry up and throw this fool out!”
“B-but, I…”
“Slay! You need my power, don’t you!? If you want to become king, you must obey my orders!!”
“…”
Prince Slay bit his lip and turned to face Prince Lucas.
“Lucas, if that arrest warrant is indeed genuine, then show us the evidence that Duke Lecherie is involved in human trafficking! If you’re pursuing charges without evidence, then this is nothing but a conspiracy to tarnish my faction!”
“Very well, shall I present the evidence?”
With a snap of his fingers, Prince Lucas summoned about ten knights clad in armor with blue lines on a white background from the back of the hall.
Leading them was a knight with messy brown hair and a scruffy beard. Behind him stood Alissa, waving at us with a smile.
“The Sword Master!?”
“It’s Roan Ashblade…!”
The appearance of Roan sent the nobles into a frenzy. As the vice-captain of the Royal Knights Order, he commanded a certain level of respect among the nobility.
“The Royal Knights Order…!?”
“Impossible, why are they here…!?”
Prince Slay and Duke Lecherie stared in shock at the arrival of the Royal Knights. This series of events must have been completely unexpected for them. They were interrupted by Prince Lucas, had their engagement with Lily annulled, and now the knights had shown up.
This soirée had already been taken over by Prince Lucas, just as planned.
“Hey, Roan. Did you bring what I asked for?”
“Here it is, Your Highness. A secret letter exchanged between Duke Lecherie and a human trafficking organization, along with a detailed account of substantial funds obtained from a foreign merchant. Both were discovered in Duke Lecherie’s study.”
“Wha…?”
Duke Lecherie was left speechless by the evidence presented by Roan.
Meanwhile, the nobles, who had been quietly observing until now, began to stir. If this evidence was genuine, then Duke Lecherie was a major criminal. There was no way he could dismiss such an accusation in front of so many people, even with the power of his noble house.
Prince Slay, who had allied himself with a major criminal, would not escape unscathed either, and the throne he sought would slip further from his grasp.
“But, my engagement with Duke Lecherie has been annulled. So now, I can shift all the responsibility onto the duke.”
Yes, that was the crux of the plan devised by Prince Lucas and Lily.
“Explain what this means, Duke Lecherie!”
Prince Slay raised his voice, directing it not at Prince Lucas but at Duke Lecherie. It seemed he had settled on a course of action.
“Y-you must be joking! This is absurd! There’s no way that’s true!!”
Duke Lecherie desperately denied the evidence presented by Roan. His expression was more one of confusion and panic than anger.
“Then let’s have someone with the Skill of Appraisal examine it right here. There happens to be someone in the knights with the Appraisal Skill. Also, Brother Slay, if there are any participants in tonight’s soirée with the Appraisal Skill, I would appreciate their cooperation. That would provide us with more certainty, and you would find it more trustworthy as well, wouldn’t you?”
“…Very well. Those with the Appraisal Skill, step forward!”
At Slay’s call, two nobles from the soirée stepped forward near the stage, joining the knight. The three of them gazed intently at the evidence presented by Roan. Their eyes glowed a faint light blue, a clear indication that they were using the Appraisal Skill.
After examining the evidence, they displayed three different expressions.
The knight wore a determined look, while the two nobles appeared pale, each reflecting their own feelings of anxiety and confusion.
“What were the results?”
“Indeed! All of these were written by Duke Lecherie without a doubt!”
The knight answered without hesitation to Prince Lucas’s inquiry.
“D-don’t say such foolish things! I know nothing about this! There’s no way that exists!”
“…What are you doing? Hurry up and announce the results.”
Ignoring Duke Lecherie’s outcry, Prince Slay urged the nobles to share their findings. They exchanged glances, then cautiously spoke up.
“There’s no mistake.”
“Both are in Duke Lecherie’s own handwriting…!”
“N-no way… that can’t be…!”
Duke Lecherie staggered back, tripping over his own feet and falling to the ground. His expression was one of utter bewilderment, shaking his head repeatedly in denial.
Duke Lecherie truly had no recollection of the evidence Roan had presented. Yet all three with the Appraisal Skill insisted it was indeed his handwriting. It must have felt like being caught in a fox’s trick, as one might say in a previous life.
But there was no doubt that those two pieces of evidence were in Duke Lecherie’s own handwriting. And it was understandable that he was unaware of it.
After all, I had made him write those documents using my Brainwashing Skill.