A Storm of Betrayal
A few days before the trial, Canna spoke to Sylvien.
“His Majesty the Emperor will do everything in his power to reduce Prince Cassil’s crimes. He will likely propose a compromise that lessens my own offenses as well.”
“Yes, that is probable.”
It was something anyone could have predicted. Canna quickly added, “Please accept that compromise.”
“……”
Watching Sylvien fall silent, Canna clasped her hands together in a pitiful gesture. Her voice trembled with desperation. “I don’t want to go to prison. Please help me.”
Sylvien observed her for a moment, as if savoring the sight. It had been a long time since Canna had ever appeared this desperate.
“Only the fact that Councilor Izek tried to kill me on Prince Cassil’s orders has come to light. The truth—that he also attempted to poison the sailors—is known to very few.”
Only Canna, Izek, Alessandro, and a handful of his direct knights.
Alessandro had personally ensured their silence, so no one else knew.
“Keep this matter hidden. Then, when the compromise is offered—”
“……”
“—strike with new charges at that moment. Make sure only Prince Cassil’s crimes are increased.”
Sylvien stared at her intently. Then the corner of his mouth curved upward.
“Lady Canna.”
“Yes?”
“Why should I do that? I can pin grave charges on His Highness without resorting to such measures.”
Yes. She knew that. It was precisely because she knew that she was making this request.
“Moreover, you are the one who placed me on the witness stand, Lady Canna.”
“……”
So he had known after all.
“I was surprised. I never imagined you would plunge a dagger into my back.”
Sylvien smiled more tenderly than ever before. It was the kind of smile that seemed capable of offering up his own heart.
He had noticed her secret maneuvers long before now.
The day she sent the letter to the Empress. The day he had inspected it and felt a vague boredom at its predictable contents.
For some reason, something had felt off the entire time—like a puzzle piece forced into the wrong slot.
“It seems the task of preparing the medicinal tonic will not be easy.”
That single sentence from the letter refused to leave his mind.
So he had made an assumption.
The moment he imagined that the letter had been written not by the Canna he knew, but by a completely different person—one he had never met—the answer came far too easily.
That night, laughter had burst out of him without warning. He realized he had been properly played.
“If it had been the Lady Canna I knew, she would never have been capable of such a thing.”
“……”
“It seems I misjudged you.”
Canna lowered her head, staring at her own feet.
She knew. She knew that Juhwa would never have done something like this even if it killed her. And she knew that Sylvien had saved her life.
That was why she felt sorry.
Sorry… and yet.
In truth, she wasn’t sorry at all.
Canna lifted her head. She lowered her neatly clasped hands. The desperate expression vanished from her face. The pleading tone disappeared from her voice.
“You called it a dagger?”
She smiled. She couldn’t help but smile.
“Your Grace, this is nothing to you.”
“What do you mean?”
“Is this truly a crisis for you, Your Grace?”
“……”
“No. It’s merely a minor annoyance, isn’t it?”
Sylvien did not answer. Because it was the truth.
“But Your Grace, that crisis which you could end with a single breath—”
Canna paused, then continued.
“—is a storm that will shatter my life.”
“……”
“You’re not so naive as to believe Prince Cassil would simply leave me alone, are you?”
Sylvien would certainly know as well.
Anyone who understood Cassil’s nature could easily predict what would happen.
“As long as Prince Cassil remains in good health, I will continue to face threats to my life.”
For some reason, laughter escaped her again.
“And as you know, I am a person despised by both my husband and my family. I will be completely exposed to that danger.”
At her mocking tone, Sylvien’s fingertips twitched. He didn’t even seem to notice the reaction himself.
“So this is my only chance to protect myself. Is there any other way for me to suppress Prince Cassil?”
Canna shrugged.
“Even though you knew I would be in danger, you chose to bury this matter, didn’t you?”
“……”
“I simply did the same. Only, I was far more desperate than you.”
Because what was at stake for me was my life. What was at stake for you was nothing more than the humiliation of being summoned to the witness stand.
“In any case, I am hardly in a position to ask for your help. I was shameless. I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking clearly. I…”
Canna swallowed the rest of her words.
Still, perhaps.
Even if he felt no responsibility or obligation toward her.
She had wondered if he might still show her some kindness, some mercy.
Even she knew it was an utterly vain and shameless hope.
“You said that if I cured the sailors from the Eastern Continent trade ships, you would grant me anything I desired.”
Canna spoke clearly and firmly.
“As you know, the sailors’ conditions have improved. They will likely make a full recovery soon.”
“……”
“Therefore, I will now demand my payment.”
Canna smiled.
“Duke Sylvien Valentino. Accept the compromise, and afterward, bring forward new charges.”
After a long silence, Sylvien answered.
“Understood.”
He was smiling. It was a smile as beautiful as a painting.
“I will follow Lady Canna’s wishes.”
The days that followed were like a storm.
“No! I—I didn’t do that!”
Cassil screamed in denial like a madman.
“H-His Highness the Prince ordered me to do it.”
Izek testified, his face pale with terror.
Honestly, Canna had not expected him to cooperate this much. She had thought he might cling to Cassil until the very end.
Whoever tortured him really broke his spirit completely. Well done, whoever you are.
She didn’t know who it was, but she offered them silent praise. Good work, interrogator.
“H-here is the evidence. This is the letter His Highness gave me.”
The judge examined the letter. He immediately called for someone to verify the handwriting against the Prince’s.
“It matches. This is Prince Cassil’s handwriting.”
“That’s not true! I—I didn’t do it!”
Cassil slammed his fists on the desk. He beat his chest. He looked as if he might die from the injustice of it all.
“You bastard! Where—where are you spouting these lies! When did I ever give you such an order!”
“Your Highness, Councilor Izek has already received an even harsher punishment because of this testimony. What reason would he have to frame you?”
At Canna’s words, Cassil’s bloodshot eyes flew toward her.
“Then it must be you! You’re the one behind all of this!”
“I nearly died trying to stop Councilor Izek from adding the poison.”
She pointed to the scar on her neck, as if presenting clear evidence.
“If this were a scheme I devised, it would mean I willingly threw myself onto Councilor Izek’s blade. I am not a woman with that kind of courage.”
“N… No!”
Cassil shook his head violently.
“It’s really not true! I didn’t do it!”
But no one in the room believed him. Not even the Emperor. After all, it was exactly the kind of thing Prince Cassil would do.
What a foolish boy…
The Emperor felt every last ounce of fighting spirit drain from him.
Foolish, foolish, foolish boy!
How could he have done something like this!
Attempting to poison the sailors of the Eastern Continent trade ships—and then trying to pin the blame on Canna, who had been treating them.
It was a vicious idea, utterly typical of Cassil.
If we let this matter slide, we will make an enemy of Count Devor.
The man who had discovered the Eastern Continent.
The man recognized by the Great King of the Eastern Continent and granted exclusive trading rights. Count Raspael Devor.
If the flood of new goods and enormous wealth pouring in because of him were to turn away from the imperial family?
It was unthinkable.
The Emperor’s mind grew coldly clear. The culture of the Western Continent was changing because of Eastern goods. In the midst of this upheaval in culture, lifestyle, trends, and the flow of money, the imperial family could not be left behind. They could not be cast aside.
He could not allow that to happen.
“It would be best to confine him to the Northern Tower,” the Empress said, sounding genuinely sorrowful. But the Emperor knew.
In this very moment, the Empress was rejoicing.