episode_0036

So time passes.

“Then, from now on, we will hold a trial for the defendant Hans.”

Let me shout that out as I sit on the judge’s bench.

A guard roughly drags a chained man out.

The man had black bruises on his face and swollen lips, as if he had been severely beaten.

“Ugh!…”

In a corner of the audience, a middle-aged woman sheds tears at the sight of her son’s tragic death.

“Defendant Hans. Do you admit to the charge of killing your wife Milina?”

Hans slowly raises his head at my words.

“Big black… Big black…”

I say this to Hans, who can’t speak properly.

“Then what did you do on the day Milina died?”

In a corner of the audience, a handsome brown-haired man stands up and shouts.

“Your Highness!, this trial is meaningless!”

I feel a little offended that a man who was not given the right to speak comes forward, so I ask him a sharp question.

“Who are you?”

“My name is Leopard Equines, heir to the estate where Hans and Milina live.”

I remember him as an important witness that I read in court records.

“Leopard, I never gave you a say. Do you know that if you interrupt the proceedings one more time, you will be punished for contempt of court?”

After giving that warning, he looks at Hans and says.

“Now, at this moment, you are not a criminal. Tell me about what you did that day.”

Let me say this as if I were admonishing you nicely.

Hans grabs his neck with both hands and then draws an X with his fingers.

Are you dumb?

With that thought in mind, he looks at Hans’ mother and says.

“Is it possible that Hans can’t speak?”

He shook his head harshly at my words.

“Ugh… No.”

At those words, I look at the guard and say.

“Check whether the neck was damaged due to torture.”

At my words, the guard looks at Hans’ physical condition and says.

“That… Your Majesty, there is a large stab wound on your vocal cords.”

-Wiggle.

I speak loudly in unexpected situations.

“Who is it?, Who tortured the accused?!”

I scream loudly, but there is no answer anywhere.

“Bring in a torture technician right now.”

I said to Hans as he saw the guard hurriedly leaving the courtroom at my words.

“Does the defendant know how to write?”

I force myself to sigh as I see Hans shaking his head at my words.

“Call a priest right now, we will adjourn until then.”

Saying that, he strikes the hammer.

-Tang, tang, tang.

After declaring a break, I looked to the side and saw Theodora with a sullen expression on her face.

“Do you really think that person is not the culprit?”

I say that in a nonchalant tone.

“You don’t know that, do you?”

I say this, but it’s true that I feel uncomfortable, so I’m just confirming.

Because that is the duty of those in power.

“After you said that, I looked at it again. I think Hans is the culprit. So many testimonies all agree, right?”

I nod my head and say that.

“That’s right, that’s why I feel uncomfortable.”

Theodora asks me with a puzzled look.

“Why is that?”

I answer that question.

“The trial process is strangely clean.”

The most puzzling part is.

Even if he is a cruel murderer, he may have his own excuses or excuses.

According to the trial record, defendant Hans easily acknowledged his charges and reflected on his actions.

but…

His mother came all the way to Rome and petitioned the emperor, claiming that Hans was innocent.

She truly thinks Hans is innocent.

In that case, I asked whether Hans’ mother actually observed Hans’ trial.

She said she couldn’t attend. They said it was because of the lord’s son who presumptuously interrupted the proceedings.

This is suspicious, right?

And another significant thing.

You need 100 signatures to petition the emperor.

If 100 people were needed to petition the emperor, it could be considered extremely small.

I’m usually hesitant to lend my name because if a problem arises, it could spark a fire among those 100 people.

This can be seen as a sign that she is well-liked by the people around her, to the point where she willingly lends her name to Hans’ mother upon hearing her mother’s circumstances.

It is not easy to understand that the son of such a person would kill his wife who had just been married.

Aren’t we supposed to kill each other during the honeymoon phase?

“What are you doing?”

Theodora called me in a low voice. I come to my senses and look straight ahead.

Before you know it, the torture technician has arrived, right?

The courtroom resumes with the torture technician sitting on the witness stand.

“Keuhum. Torture Technician. We were informed that Hans’ vocal cords were severed. Wasn’t the torture too harsh on the defendant during the retrial?”

The torture technician, shaking at my words, says:

“Your Highness!, no. The defendant’s vocal cords were severed before he arrived at Roman. When I took over from him, it was already disconnected.”

“What?”

Let the torture technician’s words play out in your head as you think about ways to advance this situation.

Hans cannot speak or write.

– His Highness the Grand Duke. The priest arrived.

“Hurry up and stop by.”

At my words, a priest enters the court.

“First, take Hans and examine him.”

And after a while.

The priest who was trying to restore him with divine power opens his mouth in embarrassment.

“Great… Your Highness the Archduke? It’s a big deal!”

At the priest’s urgent words, I stand up from the judgment seat and approach the priest.

“What’s going on?”

As I approach, he whispers in my ear.

“There is a curse on the injured area.”

“What?”

I ask, surprised by this unexpected story.

“A curse?”

When I said that, the priest showed me the area near the wound and said,

“If you look at the torn scar here, it looks like the wound was torn with engravings on the top and bottom. This is definitely a sign of a curse.”

A small imprint is clearly visible on the torn wound area.

“So it can’t be fixed?”

At my words, the priest shakes his head left and right and says:

“Not really, but it will probably take quite some time.”

If you think of the situation in reverse…

Can this be seen as an action to silence Hans?

With that in mind, I sit down in the courtroom.

I thought it was just a simple incident. It was just something I felt uncomfortable about, so I wanted to process the retrial and clear my doubts.

It’s not as serious as you think.

According to my intuition… the real culprit is in the audience over there.

And he cursed Hans to buy time.

If you miss here, you won’t be able to catch the real culprit.

Because it is obvious that the real culprit will run away.

He must have put a curse on Hans’ neck to escape.

Then… what is it?

As a person in power, I have an obligation to respect the law and conduct a fair trial according to the law, but I ponder and ponder whether it is right to use deception to catch the real culprit.

I can’t help it.

Rather than an innocent person being punished. The only way is to use deception to find the real culprit and arrest him.

I proceed with the trial, thinking about the plan I had prepared in advance.

“Hans cannot speak at the moment, but the trial will continue. Defendant Hans, was the person who injured your neck present in this court?”

Nod your head at my words.

“Then who is that person? Point to him with your finger.”

At my words, Hans points his finger at Leopard Equines.

“Leopard, please come to the witness stand.”

I say this as I look at Leopard sitting in the witness stand, calmly listening to my words.

“Did you hurt Hans’ neck?”

“Yes, that’s right. His Majesty the Grand Duke. He had already been sentenced to death by the court and allowed torture to pay for his crimes. I think I probably hurt my neck at that time.”

“Hmm…”

Torture of people sentenced to death is common here. It’s not a big problem.

-Slam! Slam!

When I turn my head to the harsh sound of chains, Hans glares at the leopard with an angry expression.

I open my mouth with the thought of what might happen to his gaze.

“Hans, do you think Leopard is the real culprit?”

Hans nods his head at what I say…

“Your Highness! How can you accuse me, a sacred nobleman, of being a murderer? No matter how great you are, you can’t turn a good nobleman into a criminal!”

Leopard protests against me.

That is definitely true.

It is ridiculous to make someone a criminal in court without evidence or witnesses.

In particular, in the Empire, a country governed by the rule of law, there is a strong feeling of extreme aversion to such judicial manipulation.

“Indeed, are you innocent or guilty? I will consider everything one by one.”

There are several witnesses here.

However, all of those witnesses are Yeongjimin who live in the Equines family estate.

“Under imperial law, there is no history of framing a witness as a criminal!, Your Majesty, please tell His Highness the Archduke what to do!”

Leopard complains to Theodora as if it is unfair, but…

“Jim wasn’t interested in this trial, but at this point, I’m starting to have some doubts. Why did the defendant Hans admit his crime until now, but now point out you as the criminal?”

Theodora also seems to feel that this situation is not normal.

Hans suffered damage to his vocal cords due to torture.

A curse is placed on him to prevent him from repairing his neck.

And coincidentally, I injured my vocal cords at the Equines family before coming here.

Maybe that’s what makes you feel suspicious.

Because she’s not stupid either.

“Of course, I will not judge you without evidence or witnesses. Then, Mirine, the witness who witnessed the scene where the defendant Hans murdered the victim Milina, please come forward.”

Leopard enters the audience as if he is upset by my words, and a girl with blonde hair and freckles sits in the witness stand with an anxious expression.

I say this while looking at the girl who is shaking as if she is afraid.

“I declare this to the witnesses now. If you testified falsely in the previous trial, I will forgive you. However, if you testify falsely in front of His Majesty the Emperor now, you will also be subject to the crime of insulting the Imperial Family.”

“I… I…”

I say this while looking at the girl who is about to open her mouth.

“Wait! Wait. Secretary, please bring the crystal that will reveal the lie I told you last time.”

As I spoke, an employee from the Grand Duke’s Department came with a crystal about 30cm in diameter.

“Now, this crystal is an artifact developed by the Magic Tower that lets you know the lies.”

My words make the surroundings noisy.

-I… really? Is there such a thing?

-Uh… how?

-Well… really?

At that time, Leopard stands up and shouts.

“Lie!, Don’t lie. grandee! This is the first time in my life I have heard of such an artifact!”

He shakes his head and says it’s not me when he says that.

“Where are you shouting, the son of the baron? Guard! Take the author to jail for contempt of court and contempt for the royal family!”

At my words, the guard begins to subdue the leopard.

“Let go!, you lowly people! Do you know who I am?!”

He struggles and struggles with the guards, but the court guards easily subdue Leopard and begin to drag him out of the court, as if this has happened many times.

“Now, activate the correction that tells you the lie.”

The secretary nods his head at my words and touches the crystal… and it begins to emit a bright light.

“Miri. Tell me what happened that day.”

Miri just trembles with a puzzled expression on my face.

“If you lied before, I will forgive you. So just tell the truth here and now.”

In my words…

“I was actually threatened to lie…”

Mirine begins to confess softly.