"Urgh... I used up all my mana to get here on time. My head is kind of spinning," Esdeath thought, subtly touching her forehead. "It's good to stay close to Lortell, just in case any attack happens!"
"Well then, I shall repeat myself again!" Cassandra said, forcing confidence into her voice to hide her rising panic. She brought Luna's sister and Caelum Nyvari back into the dock and explained everything again. But knowing that Corin had turned out to be normal, she didn't say a single word about him being Esdeath's slave.
She also repeated about allegations towards lortell and maruti, Yet she didn't say a single soul about maruti guessing the right number.
Hearing this, Esdeath put a palm to her mouth and chuckled in a mocking way.
She looked at Caelum.
"On what basis are you saying that I blackmailed you? To be honest, there is no honest proof against me," she said, turning to look at Queen Maddie. "How can everyone believe the words of a six-year-old child? If I had really done it, I would have surely used magic to change my hair colour. Isn't that obvious?" Esdeath said with a confident smirk.
She turned back to Caelum and asked, "Can you tell everyone what words I used to threaten and blackmail you?"
"I... um..." Caelum immediately started stuttering. Other than revealing his own past, Esdeath hadn't said anything else. It had been a wise, unspoken conversation between two people where Caelum had understood her intentions without her needing to say a word.
"Can't say anything? Did I bribe you? Did I say I'd kidnap your family? Kill you? Anything?" Esdeath's voice grew higher and sharper with each word.
"No!" Caelum shook his head, because he had no answers.
"See? The real reason he released me was because there was no way I could have done it!" Esdeath admitted shamelessly, without a care in the world.
"Anything else?" she asked, looking directly at Cassandra.
Cassandra smiled faintly and pointed at Luna's sister. "What about her? You yourself said that people can change their hair colour with magic. And guess what? In the library's entries, it was written that you borrowed books for changing hair and eye colour, and even your voice!" she said, thinking she had finally led Esdeath into a perfect trap.
"She herself admitted it earlier. Let's see how you can deal with it now!" Cassandra thought to herself, smug satisfaction bubbling up inside her.
"Luna... Luna..." Esdeath started muttering, looking up at the ceiling and rubbing her chin as if she were completely lost in thought. Then, she looked back at Cassandra and nodded.
"Yes, I killed her. So what?"
Silence.
A deep, heavy silence fell over the entire courtroom. It was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.
"It seems the captain's partner is even more daring than she is!" Verdes laughed dryly from his seat in the audience. Even Cassandra was slightly shocked by how easily Esdeath had just admitted to murder.
But what Cassandra didn't realize was that this was exactly what Esdeath had been aiming for from the start.
Her main goal was to save herself from the blame for Eldon Karanthis's death. Unlike Luna, Eldon was a noble. Esdeath wasn't afraid of being blamed for a commoner's death. So, she decided to take the blame for Luna's death to save herself from the much more serious case of Eldon's murder.
"So what? You killed a person!. Isn't that a grave mistake?" Cassandra replied, a slight anger in her voice.
"Of course not," Esdeath replied with a genuine, bright smile. "My mother said that nobles don't make mistakes, because they always make up for them!"
"How much compensation do you want?" Esdeath continued, her tone turning arrogant as she looked down at Luna's sister. "Ten thousand gold coins? Twenty thousand? Or fifty thousand? It's more than anything she could have earned in ten lifetimes!"
A single tear rolled down Luna's sister's right cheek as she clenched her fist so tightly her knuckles turned white. "You ruthless witch!" she shrieked, losing all composure. She lunged forward, trying to attack Esdeath.
"Guards, take the mother and daughter out!" Maddie ordered with a bored yawn.
The guards immediately grabbed them and dragged them out of the courtroom.
"We'll deal with that case later!" Maddie added dismissively.
"This girl... I still don't know if she's the real Esdeath or not. If she's an imposter, how am I supposed to find out?" Cassandra thought, but no answers came to her mind.
Esdeath casually walked out of the defendant's area and stretched her limbs like someone who had just been released from prison.
"Now it's my turn!" she announced. She turned to look at Maddie and the other rulers. "Ms. Cassandra said quite a lot of bad things about my partner. Doesn't that sound more like sibling rivalry than real allegations? Well, everyone wants to be the Arch Duke, after all!" Esdeath said with a chuckle.
"I have no interest in such a position," Cassandra swiftly replied.
"We'll see, we'll see!" Esdeath said, a playful smile on her lips.
"Actually, the real truth is, my partner Lortell is as innocent as a newborn baby. Her righteous and kind nature is widespread among all the nobles!" Esdeath said, her voice taking on a holy, devoted tone.
"Let me show you some proof that is much better than forged testimonies!" Esdeath said, turning to face the audience. Her gaze swept through the crowd and landed on a few specific individuals. "Lady Jiona, armoury merchant Mr. Dugerchaff, you, and you..." Esdeath called out their names. "Would you care to share your honest opinions about our dear Archduchess?" she asked politely.
One by one, Jiona, the merchant Dugerchaff, and the others she had named walked into the testimony area.
"Lady Archduchess learned about my husband's business struggles and immediately invested one lakh gold coins to save us. Thanks to her, our family is still able to maintain our title as nobility!" Lady Jiona confessed, her voice filled with gratitude.
"Lady Mariette invested in my armoury business to help strengthen the kingdom's power from within. She even paid extra to open a sub-branch that trains young talents who will be of great help to the kingdom in the future!" Dugerchaff stated proudly.
These were the very people Lortell had helped during the announcement party for her marriage. One by one, a few others came forward and shared their positive experiences.
After they were all finished, Esdeath added, "See? These are the words of respected nobles and famous merchants, not some no-name commoners with little to no background!" she snorted coldly.
"As for all the other allegations, this is all someone else's doing," she said, turning her gaze directly to King Augustus. "I would like to invite King Augustus to the dock area. I will expose what kind of beast he truly is!" Esdeath pointed her finger directly at the king.
"Me?" the king repeated, a visible shudder of fear running through his body.
"What if you attack me the moment I go over there?" Augustus asked, his voice full of suspicion.
"What? Are you scared?" Esdeath mocked, giving him a sideways glance.
"Behave yourself! You are speaking to the King!" a guard immediately stepped forward, stomping the butt of his spear on the ground, trying to intimidate her.
"Verdes, kill this guard if he says another word," Lortell ordered calmly.
The guard heard the order and his breath caught in his throat. He scrambled back into his position without another word.
"Huff... don't worry," Maddie said, her voice full of authority. "As long as I am the judge of this case, I will guarantee everyone's safety until it is over."
"Okay," Augustus finally said, gathering the courage to walk into the testimony area.
-----
Mourya's barbarian army had already arrived at the academy's side. They didn't wear flashy armor or carry master-class weapons. Most of the warriors' upper bodies were bare, their skin marked only by leather straps crisscrossing their massive chests.
Only the high-ranking ones wore iron or steel armor, their finely crafted weapons gleaming in the sun. But compared to a normal army, every single one of them was a giant, standing over 190 centimeters tall.
Their broad shoulders, thick thighs, and rock-solid muscles made them look like monsters from a nightmare. The normal soldiers stood no chance against them, and this was a complete surprise attack.
Most of the academy's Powerful teachers or professors had gone to the capital to assist the king, and Mourya had already killed most of them.
The academy was officially shut down for a break because of an important trial, but most students still lived there.
They watched in pure horror as a thousand barbarians broke through the main gates and swarmed into the academy grounds. In just a few minutes, the entire academy was under their control. A few brave teachers tried to fight back, but they were no match for the overwhelming numbers and raw strength.
Right now, there was only one person who had the power to save everyone.
"Mourya? I should have killed him myself when I had the chance!" Lilith heard the terrible news from her assistant.
She gritted her tiny teeth, a fire of rage burning in her eyes. She stood up and marched over to pick up her sword. The sword itself was almost as big as her small childish body, yet she lifted it with ease, as if it weighed nothing at all.
But the moment she turned back to the door. A woman stood there, blocking her way. She was over seven feet tall, her face set with a look of grim determination. It was Sasha.
"You will not go," Sasha said, her voice solemn and heavy.
"So this is it," Sasha thought to herself. "Father is using this situation as the opportunity to finally attack. No wonder he said it was a "good thing" when I complained about Maruti. I can't let his plans falter." She understood her father's intentions perfectly.
When she send letters to him, complaining about Maruti's reckless decisions, Mourya had simply smiled and said it was good. He wasn't just doting on his youngest daughter; he had a much deeper plan.
So, Sasha had decided to be his backup. She even gave barbarian army detailed maps of the academy and the surrounding territories to make their invasion easier.
"Samsara!" Lilith screamed her name, her voice shaking with anger. But coming from her small body, the furious shout sounded more like a child's cute pout. Compared to Sasha's towering height, Lilith didn't even reach her waist.
But Lilith was not afraid. She took few steps toward Sasha, and as she did, her entire body began to grow. Her simple clothes vanished, replaced by a sleek white body suit that hugged her new, curving form as she revealed her true self.
Gigantic dragon horns, more than forty centimeters long, burst from her forehead. Her height shot up until she was eye-to-eye with Sasha, her gaze now sharp and intense.
"Are you sure you can handle me?" Lilith said, her voice no longer that of a child, but a mature, powerful woman.
The assistant immediately looked away, squeezing her eyes shut and hugging her head, terrified of what she knew was coming next.
"I won't know unless I try!" Sasha replied with a dry chuckle.
"As you wish!" Lilith declared, finally deciding to make her move.
But before she could take a single step, another voice echoed from behind her.
"No need!"
It was Mourya's voice. The next second, the stone walls around the doorway exploded inward as he casually stepped through the opening. He refused to duck to enter.
His height was even greater than Lilith's in her true form.
"An S-Rank..." Lilith realized in an instant. "No wonder you dared to attack!"
"Yes. And that's why I'm telling you to stay here and waste each other's time," Mourya said, his heavy, masculine voice booming in the room.
"You yourself know that during the Hero's time, this land was gladly given to us by the King of the Arc Kingdom!" He paused, letting his words sink in. "Yet after the Arc family's lineage died and the current thorne royal family took over, they thrashed us out as much as they could. We are only taking back what was ours. Nothing more, nothing less!"
Lilith looked away, unable to meet his gaze. She knew he was telling the truth. The history was on his side.
"But I swear to him, peace will remain in this land!" Lilith said, her voice filled with a deep, weary sigh.
Mourya gently placed his massive hand on her shoulder, a gesture that was surprisingly soft. "Bringing peace doesn't mean staying silent while your king commits wrongdoings," he said, his voice a low rumble. "You have already done more than enough. It's time for you to retire from this burden."
Lilith didn't say anything. Her eyes darted back and forth as she thought, her pupils flickering left to right, then right to left, several times. After a long moment of silence, she finally spoke.
"But promise you won't harm the students or anyone who isn't your enemy!" Lilith demanded, her voice firm.
"Pftt!" Mourya let out a short, deep laugh. "As a dragon, you should have known that these cowardly moves only humans use," he said as he turned his back and started to leave. "Sasha, come and assist me!"
Sasha immediately followed him.
"Huff..." Lilith let out a deep breath, and as the tension left her body, she shrank back down to her small, childlike form. Her sword suddenly felt incredibly bigger again, and she let it clatter to the floor.
"What are you going to do now?" the assistant finally asked, her voice trembling with fear.
"Stay quiet, of course," Lilith said, her voice small and tired. "I had already decided that the moment I found out, he have become an S-Rank."
-----
At the capital city, with the help of their newly gained barbarian soldiers, the revolutionary group's pace became even faster. They marched relentlessly, their spirits high, as if victory was already secured.
But then, something unusual began to happen. It was still daytime, just about to become afternoon, yet the sky started to change. The clouds began to turn dark, swirling in on themselves as if forming a giant vortex. The world was plunged into a strange, shadowy twilight, making it feel like evening had come far too soon.
Ducton, who was riding at the very front, was the first to stop. He pulled his horse to a halt, his eyes fixed on the distant horizon.
"What happened?" Cleric questioned, riding up beside him. After Mourya had left for the academy, Cleric had rejoined the group.
Ducton slowly raised his hand and pointed into the distance, his voice a shaky whisper. "Are... are those demons?"
The single word hung in the air, sending a ripple of tense silence through the entire army. Cleric looked in the direction Ducton was pointing, and his heart froze.
He saw them—about a hundred or so horned figures, rushing directly toward the royal palace. They were about the same distance away as the revolutionary army was from royal palace.
But then, Vesilisa's sharp voice cut through the fear. "Forget about the demons! Look up!" she commanded, pointing a trembling finger at the swirling vortex in the sky.
Beams of pure, golden light pierced through the darkness of the clouds. And descending through that heavenly light were a few figures, their forms radiant and majestic.
"Are those... angels?"
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[author]
Lol Esdeath ragebaited angels so hard that they descended here...
Btw although I'm showing both sides but that doesn't mean everything is happening in same timeline, The revolutionary party is slightly in the future...
[/author]