---
"What?"
Archduke Richard's eyes widened when I said I had found the dagger.
A murmur erupted from the audience.
Even the Crown Prince, who until now had seemed very unmoved, this time suddenly rose from his seat and stared at me with wide eyes.
So I smiled at him.
This did not actually mean that I had found the Archduke's missing dagger.
“And also, a lot of other things.”
When I opened the bag next to me and flipped it over, dozens of daggers, exactly like the one given as evidence, spilled onto the ground with a loud thud.
“I wandered through the weapon shops in the capital, and the dagger in question was a ready-made piece, enough for the entire Imperial Army.
This means that anyone who can obtain one could be a suspect.
Do you have any evidence that the murder weapon belongs to the accused?”
There was no name written on the dagger, and in an era where scientific investigations were not developed, the Archduke's fingerprints or DNA could not be discovered.
How will they prove that the dagger used in the crime was the Archduke's dagger?
This is nonsense.
Then the police chief protested.
“The defendant does not have a dagger!
This must be because he used it as an instrument of crime!”
"It was not used as an instrument of crime, it was stolen so it is missing.
Even the judge acknowledged that there was no evidence to support this claim."
The judge looked shocked.
Because his statement, which he made coldly because he believed that the lawsuit was settled in advance, caught his nerves.
For a moment, the police chief looked confused, then he raised his chin.
“How do you explain the fact that the accused is left-handed?”
I laughed sarcastically.
“If you knew how many left-handed people there were in the empire, you wouldn’t be so confident.”
The trial is not an evidential theatrics.
Guilt or innocence is determined by clear evidence.
Scenes of extracting a criminal's confession using random inferences, such as why the criminal is left-handed, or why he lost his belongings at this particular time, are only permissible in detective novels such as Sherlock Holmes.
“Are you really planning to target every lefty who attended that banquet as a suspect?”
Then I looked up directly at the protagonist sitting at the top of the hall, Lawrence.
When I saw Crown Prince Lawrence enter the courtroom, I immediately knew that he was left-handed.
Because a sword symbolizing the imperial family was hanging on his right side.
Suddenly, Lawrence's lips curled into a distorted smile.
I pretended I didn't see that expression, and looked again at the police chief.
The police chief, who understood my intention to ask whether he would make even the Crown Prince a suspect, merely cleared his throat and remained silent for a while.
But he gathered his strength to the last drop.
“The accused has strong motives for the crime.
It is revenge for the Crown Princess’s rejection of him!”
“If this is what you mean, then I would like to point out that this is a very wrong approach.
His Majesty the Archduke has never loved Her Highness the Crown Princess.
Therefore, he has no reason to take revenge.”
What a pity.
I looked at the police chief who was playing the worst move with sympathetic eyes.
Then, with a serious expression, he raised several newspapers in his hand.
“These are scandalous articles saying that the defendant is in love with the Crown Princess, Her Highness.
It is a very well-known fact in the empire indeed.”
“Ah, so you want to confirm that what was published in the articles is true.”
I placed a very thick scrapbook on the desk next to the police chief with a loud thud.
It was ten times thicker than the material provided by the police chief.
“How about this then?
By that logic, these articles seem more valid than yours.”
These were the results of the war of public opinion that I had been working so hard on over the past few weeks.
Evidence is created.
If rumors are published in newspapers and become documents, they are themselves evidence.
People instinctively trust stories printed in ink.
They believe that the story published in the newspaper is true.
This is how the story that many believe in naturally becomes true.
This becomes even clearer when they see it themselves.
“Wasn’t the person Archduke Richard loved his current wife?”
“We've seen that before.
“They declared their love here.”
“How close they are to each other to show that...”
As I expected, voices consistent with my words poured out from the spectator seats.
The audience who had previously heard my confession were more affected by my claim.
They were more interested in the current scandal than in the past.
“Ahh...”
I took a step towards the police chief, who was groaning silently, and asked him.
“Now, let me ask again.
Is there any evidence that the accused killed the victim?”
At my words, a strange look appeared on Lawrence’s face.
Vivian was next to him, her lips pursed tightly and just staring at me.
In this unexpected situation, the judge sighed deeply and held his temples.
Finally, the police chief, whose face was very red, pointed at me angrily.
“Hey!
Let's assume you're right.
Who do you think the culprit is then?
If you are so confident, why don't you tell me now!"
I smiled confidently.
“Well...I don't know either.”
"What?
And yet you assert that the Archduke is not the culprit?”
“Should I reveal who the criminal is?
"I'm just a defense attorney."
“……!”
“It is the duty of the police department to uncover and identify the perpetrator.”
“What nonsense is this?
If we release the suspect like this, where will justice go?
Shouldn’t anyone standing in court respect the law and stand for justice?”
I slowly tilted my head as the police chief shouted reprimandingly.
Then I shrugged.
“There seems to be a misunderstanding, I am not on the side of justice.
“And I never was.”
“What…!”
“I am only on the side of Archduke Richard.
Which I love very much.”
It wasn't entirely a lie.
The lawyer is always on the side of his client.
He also likes the money the client will pay.
As I was speaking, my eyes met those of Archduke Richard.
His expression was a little complicated.
I turned my gaze again to the judge.
“Article 17 of the Empire’s Constitution, a guilty verdict must be based on evidence.”
Therefore, no judge in this situation could convict the Archduke.
Because all evidence proving his guilt has been invalidated.
The judge looked with difficulty at the Crown Prince.
The Crown Prince was whispering something into his servant's ear with a hard face.
Finally, the judge opened his mouth with a determined expression.
“I will announce the verdict now.”
All eyes in the courtroom were focused on the judge's mouth.
The judge quickly read the sentencing document in a somber voice.
“The defendant, Benedict Richard, was charged with the murder of the victim, Devon Hayden, without evidence of the facts of the crime, and therefore the court decided to release the defendant.”
Finally!
Out of my joy, I immediately grabbed the Archduke's hand.
The thought of receiving a huge salary and enjoying a luxurious life in this world after his acquittal filled me with joy.
“But.”
'What else...?'
I stopped moving suddenly at the fateful word that followed.
“This case is a very serious crime, and the need to uncover the truth is very urgent...”
The judge, who had received something from the Crown Prince's servant, wiped the sweat running down his forehead again and again.
I stared at the judge blankly.
“Until the identity of the real perpetrator is determined, the acquittal will be postponed, and the confiscated property will not be returned but will be kept as collateral.”
I opened my mouth in shock at these words that I could not understand, even after hearing them directly.
'There is no… property to be returned?'
In an instant, the sky shook and the earth spun around me.
And I fainted.
***
In a quiet, empty bedroom.
Benedict was staring quietly at Elena's face, who was sleeping like a dead woman.
“Her body is very weak.
It seems that she overexerted herself, and after the stress went away, she lost consciousness.
"She's just sleeping now, so don't worry, Your Excellency."
This was the diagnosis of the doctor who examined Elena, who suddenly collapsed in the courtroom.
Benedict's gaze fell on her thin wrist protruding from under the cover.
Traces of blue bruises that had not yet disappeared were visible on her pale white skin.
He suddenly frowned.
'She wasn't in good shape, but she also tired herself out.'
The trial was difficult even for him, who wandered the battlefields and suffered all kinds of hardships.
Moreover, other than the police side that was supported by the imperial family and dozens of people stationed together, Elena was alone, with no one to help her.
“However, she won in the end.”
Benedict muttered under his breath.
It was originally a trial in which he was supposed to be sentenced to death.
But now he was sitting in the bedroom of his palace, free, without iron chains or ropes.
Although there is a condition, giving up his property practically means acquittal.
'To do it all to this extent just for me...'
Although he should draw a line with Elena, his awareness of her feelings made him feel anxious.
This morning, he explained to himself that he cared more about his appearance than usual just for the sake of the trial.
But the result made Elena fall in love with him again.
So he was not free from guilt.
Even when Elena looked at Lawrence with burning eyes, he felt his heart sinking subconsciously.
He thought she fell in love with him at first sight.
It was Lawrence, not he, who always had the upper hand in social circles.
The gap between the crown prince and the illegitimate son was natural.
“I saw how good it was, but it was nothing significant.”
Fortunately, Elena seemed to think he was more attractive than Lawrence.
Although he was underestimated in aristocratic society due to his being an illegitimate son, he was also a good man.
At least from his point of view, he was more manly than Lawrence.
His muscle mass is also greater.
In the end, Elena couldn't hide her feelings and declared her love in front of everyone.
“I am only on the side of Archduke Richard.
Which I love very much.”
He rubbed his fingers slowly.
From the moment he was born, there was no one by his side in this world.
Others thought he joined the army to gain the Emperor's admiration, but they were wrong.
At least, the soldiers fighting with him on the battlefield were by his side.
This fact is what made him stay on dangerous battlefields.
But Elena said she was on his side.
She added the word 'darling'.
The moment the judge announced his release, the feeling of her small hand squeezing his remained in his mind.
He subconsciously extended his hand to Elena's slender fingers, then shook his head vigorously.
“It's just weakness.”
He gripped his hand tightly.
He did not have the luxury of playing with emotions such as feelings of love.
Every day he lived was war and threat.
Benedict turned his head towards the documents on the table as if to escape.
There was the contract he made with Elena.
‘This false relationship must be ended as soon as possible.
It is right for a woman to sort out her unrequited feelings.'
Benedict placed the divorce papers he had filled out on top of their contract, as if he were throwing them away.
Then, as if making a promise, he muttered to himself.
“As soon as she wakes up, I will give her half of the remaining property and divorce her—”
“No!”
At that moment, the woman suddenly got up from the bed.