The Weight of Power
The answer was obvious. From Sylvien’s perspective, this trial would not be difficult at all.
‘Cassil has committed far too many sins until now. Many nobles will protest this incident, and if Sylvien decides to fan those flames, he can amplify the backlash tenfold.’
If the Duke of Valentino truly wished it, every noble in the empire would sign the petition.
‘And you are strong.’
If Sylvien resolved to attack Cassil and defend Valentino, he would carry it out with terrifying perfection.
So of course it would be easy.
To him, a trial like this was nothing more than a pebble caught under his shoe. It might have blocked his path for a moment, but with a little force, he could kick it aside whenever he pleased.
A bitter smile rose to her lips.
What was a matter of life and death for her was, to him, merely that insignificant.
“Then I shall take it that we depart tomorrow.”
“Yes.”
“You may leave now.”
Canna bowed deeply at the waist in farewell and rose from her seat. Just as her hand touched the doorknob—
“Miss Canna.”
She froze. Her movements halted completely. A chilling laugh drifted from behind her.
“You really are quite entertaining, Miss Canna.”
Canna swallowed hard. She forced her voice to sound as carefree as possible.
“In what way?”
But no answer came.
After lingering for a long moment, Canna simply left the room. Fortunately, Sylvien said nothing more.
‘I thought I’d been caught…’
Canna pressed a hand to her chest, trying to calm her racing heart.
The fact that she had used the Empress to uncover the truth behind this incident.
‘Did he notice after all?’
“Father, this is unfair!”
Cassil wailed, clutching desperately at the Emperor’s arm.
“It’s unfair! Why must I stand trial? Why!”
“Let go.”
The Emperor barely held his fury in check. But it was difficult; his voice carried clear traces of rage.
“I said let go, Cassil.”
“Father!”
The Emperor’s anger bubbled and boiled. He glared at his son with ferocious eyes.
“F-Father…”
Cassil flinched, shoulders trembling.
Seeing that, the Emperor’s heart softened. It was a face that mirrored his own as if it had been stamped from the same mold.
“You crossed the line, Cassil.”
“Father…”
“The only reason I’ve been able to cover for your actions until now is because you targeted families too weak to fight back. But this time—”
The more he spoke, the hotter his fury burned once again.
“—you touched the Valentino family.”
“Father, I… I didn’t know that woman was one of Valentino’s people.”
“That doesn’t matter!”
The Emperor’s roar shook the entire room. Overwhelmed by the violent aura, Cassil trembled violently.
“What matters is that you—you tried to hunt her down! The mistress of House Valentino!”
“B-But!”
Cassil clenched his fists until they threatened to shatter as he protested.
“A-Anyway, isn’t that woman basically a puppet? I heard she was treated like trash in both the Valentino and Addis households…”
“You pathetic fool! Is your head truly that empty?!”
The Emperor genuinely wanted to strike his son.
To think his own child could be this utterly brainless!
“Every noble in the empire now knows what you did! The very nobles who already despised you!”
“…”
“Do you really think they care who Canna is? What matters is the justification! You tried to kill a daughter of one of the empire’s greatest houses—while she was in exile, no less!”
“…”
“You handed them the perfect excuse to destroy you!”
The Emperor seized Cassil by the collar and hurled him onto the desk in his office.
“Look! These are the petitions submitted by the nobles!”
A mountain of documents towered before them.
Cassil stared at them in a daze.
“Every single noble in the Aslan Empire! Every last one of them has submitted a petition!”
The Emperor felt as if he had aged a thousand years. His shoulders slumped. His head throbbed.
All the nobles demanded his son’s punishment.
Even the nobles who favored Teresa, Argon, and Lilienne had joined the chorus.
‘Because to them, removing Cassil would be more beneficial.’
The Empress’s faction, Teresa’s faction, even the Emperor’s own faction—everyone had united as one, demanding that Cassil receive the harshest possible sentence.
The nobles had risen up in unison!
“W-What about Marquis Krantz? Isn’t he close with Mother—and therefore with Brother Argon? Couldn’t Marquis Krantz persuade the other nobles to—”
“Marquis Krantz suggested we execute you.”
“…”
“He advised that only by cutting you off completely would there be no future repercussions for Argon.”
Cassil’s face turned deathly pale.
Execution? They wanted to execute him?
“What… what did I even do…”
“What did you do?”
The Emperor let out a laugh before he could stop himself. The absurdity was simply too much.
“Do you even know how many noblewomen you’ve violated?”
Probably dozens.
“And do you know that more than half of them took their own lives?”
“W-Weren’t they from insignificant families?”
“My son, even rainwater can become an ocean if enough of it gathers.”
The Emperor let out a long sigh.
There was nothing more he could do. This was the first time in his life he had seen the nobles unite so completely behind a single opinion.
Ignoring them would lead to a catastrophe of unimaginable proportions.
Moreover, the Duke of Valentino stood at the very forefront of this movement.
A family of holy knights whose bloodline was nobler than that of the imperial family itself. If the descendant of such exalted blood decided to move against the imperial house—
The justification was more than sufficient.
‘It could become the seed of treason.’
If they tried to suppress Valentino and the nobles now, a tidal wave would crash down upon the imperial family.
There was simply no way out.
“Father, execution?! Are you really going to kill me?”
“How could I ever kill my precious son!”
The Emperor pulled Cassil into his arms.
Though he was utterly detestable, he was still his beloved child.
The son born from his beloved Teresa. His youngest, who resembled him so closely. That was why he had to save him somehow.
Fortunately, there was still a path to survival.
“Canna Valentino struck you first, didn’t she?”
“Y-Yes, that’s right. She started it!”
“Good. Then there is still a chance.”
He sighed once more.
“I will do everything in my power to ensure the sentence ends at exile.”
Even as he spoke, he knew it wouldn’t be that simple. A long period of exile would likely be the least of it…
‘They’ll probably demand corporal punishment as well.’
But if he mentioned the flogging, his son would surely be terrified. Feeling a pang of pity, the Emperor swallowed those words.
However—
“Exile?”
Even that displeased Cassil.
Again?
He had only just returned from exile. Now they wanted to send him away once more? And that would surely mean another ban on drinking, wouldn’t it?
He wanted to complain, but the Emperor’s face was unusually stern. Cassil swallowed his grumbling.
The trial began.
Last time, she had sat in the defendant’s seat. This time, Canna sat in the witness stand.
‘What happened to him?’
Izek was so horribly disfigured that she could barely recognize him.
His face was swollen beyond recognition, and his entire body was covered in bruises. If not for the nameplate in front of him, she might not have known who he was.
‘He must have been tortured.’
She clicked her tongue.
He had probably refused to give up the information he held. That was why he had been beaten so severely.
“Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress have arrived!”
The Emperor and Empress entered. Once they took their seats upon the imperial dais, the trial officially began.
The proceedings unfolded exactly as expected.
“Your Highness Prince Cassil. You kidnapped the Duchess of Valentino and attempted to murder her. Do you admit to these charges?”
“I admit them.”
Cassil nodded. Just as his father had instructed.
“Your Grace the Duke of Valentino. You fired three arrows at His Highness Prince Cassil. Do you admit to this?”
“I do.”
Sylvien nodded with a smile. At once, a noble in the gallery shot to his feet.
“This was legitimate self-defense! When a man’s wife is on the verge of death, what kind of husband would stand by and do nothing?!”
Another noble immediately rose and shouted.
“Moreover, His Grace the Duke could not possibly have known his opponent was Prince Cassil!”
“Who could have guessed? Who would ever imagine that the scoundrel who kidnapped and tried to kill his wife was none other than His Highness the Prince?!”
As if they had rehearsed it beforehand, the nobles rose one after another to defend Sylvien.
Sylvien simply sat there leisurely. He didn’t even need to open his mouth. There was no shortage of people willing to speak on his behalf.
‘That is power. How enviable.’
Just as she was once again reminded of the true weight of authority in this world—
“I didn’t know that woman was the Duchess of Valentino.”
Cassil, who had been sitting with arrogant confidence, suddenly pointed a finger at Canna.
“Because she beat me first.”