Chapter 161 - Verbal Abuse

"Have you said your piece!?"

Veins bulged in Duke Yurei's neck.

His eyes blazed.

"So you passed summary judgment on him right there?"

Ferda looked away from Duke Yurei and answered.

"I did not kill him."

"Is that not different from what you just said?"

"I said he committed a crime worthy of death, but I never said I killed him."

"From now on, please answer clearly, Regent Ferda."

It was a word game whose purpose of getting under his opponent's skin was plain to see, so Akkad warned him.

He did not let his emotions sway him and asked Ferda,

"What was that crime worthy of death?"

"Young Master Yurei insulted the great Aspect of Fire and Power, Valdrova."

At that, the accusing voices that had been rising little by little vanished.

Most of the people present here were people of authority, so they understood.

Insulting a dragon was a challenge to authority.

Just as a commoner who challenged a noble would not be forgiven, dragons were the same.

No, if anything, they were even more brutal.

They showed no mercy and ruled by making an example of one to warn a hundred.

Even Silverwind, who had been gentle and friendly toward humans, showed no mercy when it came to the fact that someone had insulted a dragon.

That was why such cases had now been reduced to things that existed only in history books.

Recognizing the gravity of the situation, Akkad asked in a slightly trembling voice.

"If he insulted a dragon, is there anyone who can prove it?"

"There is."

There were two main witnesses.

Luri, a dragon spawn.

And Malcolm, who had happened to hear it.

He could not put Luri forward.

She had already turned the imperial capital upside down once as a warning.

If she had to step forward once more, she would have to be prepared to destroy the Golden Council completely.

That was the duty of a dragon spawn reborn through a bond of blood.

If she had simply been Valdrova's attendant, she would have done it without hesitation.

However, instilling fear when a human town had been created and was running smoothly would cause chaos.

'And Luri must not do that.'

All she had to be responsible for was Valdrova alone.

Ferda had to resolve this matter.

So there was only one name Ferda could call.

"I will put Sir Malcolm of Peach Hill forward as a witness."

"Is he here now?"

"Yes. He is."

"Then please call him."

Ferda looked behind his seat.

A man who looked like a country bumpkin no matter what he wore, and awkward no matter what he did.

Ferda jerked his chin at that man, telling him to come over.

"Witness, please introduce yourself."

"I-I am Malcolm of Peach Hill! I s-serve in Lady Valdrova's territory, no, in the R-Regent's territory, and p-previously served as an Imperial Knight!"

"An Imperial Knight... you say?"

The one who asked that question was Oldin Ruster.

He, too, had been an Imperial Knight.

"Ah, yes! That is correct!"

"How were you able to become an Imperial Knight?"

"Ah, you mean that? I passed the exam!"

"I mean, how could someone like you do that?"

"I became one by passing the retest."

"The retest...?"

Oldin Ruster's eyes widened.

"Surely... you do not mean the one where you retrieve the imperial flag planted at the summit of the northern Ice Storm Mountains?"

"Yes, that's the one."

He scratched his head and smiled brightly.

Those who did not understand looked as if they were wondering what the big deal was.

But those who understood could not hide their shock.

Concillus was among them.

"That fellow went all the way to a place like that...?"

"How impressive of a feat is it?"

"Regent, do you know of Sir Gaius?"

As someone who had dreamed of becoming a knight, he knew him well.

He had been a pillar of the Arken Empire, and his deeds were so unrealistic that he was regarded like a legend or myth.

"Among the Imperial Knights, there is a legend that Sir Gaius planted the imperial flag atop the Ice Mountains, the highest mountain peak in the world, and returned."

"Is that so? But what does that have to do with this?"

"They give those who failed the Imperial Knight exam a chance to redeem themselves, and the test is to pull out the flag atop the Ice Mountains using only the equipment provided."

The summit was covered in clouds, and beneath the clouds, endless ice storms raged.

For high-ranking mages, the Ice Storm Mountains were nothing special.

But for those who competed through pure physical strength and had to climb honestly from the bottom to the summit, it was a hellish place.

Before they could even reach the halfway point, they would either be eaten by monsters or freeze to death.

"They call it a second chance, but in truth, it is no different from telling those without the qualities of a knight to give up."

"... Are you saying that fool pulled it out?"

"It seems so."

What had he been like when Ferda carried him away?

He had been nothing more than a nuisance.

If he had climbed up after overcoming something designed to make people give up, he deserved some respect.

'But pride would never allow that.'

Just look at him now.

That awkward smile was more likely to invite a fist than praise.

"In any case... if you were once an Imperial Knight, I trust you understand what that honor means."

"Ah, yes! Of course!"

"Then I will ask you. This matter could cause major friction between the Empire and other kingdoms. In the worst case, responsibility may fall not only on you, Sir Malcolm, but also on Regent Ferda."

Akkad spoke of responsibility, pressing down on his shoulders.

It was a ploy to make him grow even a little frightened and retract his words.

Ferda was not worried about that.

Ferda had once asked him something similar.

How had he answered then?

"Yes. I heard it clearly."

Even frightened, he answered firmly.

When a person starts thinking, those thoughts tend to make him afraid.

But the man Akkad was facing was different.

'He does not do anything like thinking, so he has no reason to be afraid.'

Akkad looked at the confident Malcolm and asked again.

"Did he specifically point to Her Highness Grand Duchess Valdrova when he said it?"

"Yes. I did not know at the time, but it was when Her Highness Grand Duchess Valdrova and the Regent were dancing."

"Could he not have been looking somewhere else when he said it?"

"No. That man was clearly looking there with both eyes."

"... Are you certain, swearing by Altes?"

"I can swear not only by Altes, but by my mother's name as well. If you wish, I can right here—"

He was about to make some strange gesture with an extremely solemn face, but Akkad stopped him.

Only then did Akkad realize he was dealing with someone he could not communicate with and gave up on interrogating him.

"That is enough. You may step down, witness."

"Yes, sir!"

After giving what he considered a knightly salute, Malcolm withdrew.

For some reason, the blood, sweat, tears, and hair of Burnel and the researchers who worked busily for Malcolm drifted faintly through Ferda's mind.

As if he had prepared for failure, Akkad said this.

"Sir Malcolm's testimony does have force, but to prove this matter, we need someone a bit more objective."

The logic was that since Malcolm was a knight under Ferda, of course he would try to sacrifice himself for him.

It could not be called an unreasonable argument, because there were very many precedents of that kind.

"He must have told his own knight to say that!"

Duke Yurei shouted in a voice filled with spite.

"Regent Ferda had been building a town since before last winter. To build a town, he needed commoners to work beneath him. In order to gather those commoners, Regent Ferda bit by bit drew in the people of every territory across the continent!"

He hid his shamelessness behind emotion and made Ferda out to be a brazen scoundrel.

Ferda stayed still even after hearing that.

"I cannot stay silent at those words!"

It was Concillus's role to object to such things.

"Those who came to Regent Ferda's domain are refugees who fled in order to survive from nobles who offered no measures even in the face of poor harvests! You kept your mouths shut during the brutal winter, and only now that spring has come do you come forward like this! Have you no shame!?"

"Count Concillus, obtain the right to speak before you speak. I am warning you."

Concillus, unable to swallow his anger, sat down, and Akkad gestured for him to continue.

"I request that Crown Prince Alexander, who knows the circumstances of the far east, be placed as a witness."

He had become a criminal only yesterday and been placed under disciplinary confinement.

However, only his political activity had been restricted; it was possible for him to attend as an observer.

He had planted himself in the seat beside Olivia.

When Akkad granted permission, Alexander rose from his seat as if he had been waiting and stood at the witness stand.

"I am Crown Prince Alexander. My punishment took place only yesterday, so I apologize for standing in a place like this again..."

Contrary to his words, the corners of his mouth looked as if they could hardly contain his delight.

He laid out the information he had gathered in bundles to pin on Ferda and spoke.

"At present, a town has been formed in Grand Duchess Valdrova's territory, and its name is Hestia. Hestia is the name of a woman who guarded fire in ancient times..."

Alexander padded out his words with useless history.

Erdes, who had been watching with her chin propped in her hand, raised her hand and received the right to speak.

"I am not curious about that, so why don't you get to the point?"

It was a rude remark, but not a few people agreed with it.

"Ah, in any case, the reason Regent Ferda gathered people..."

He showed hesitation as if wondering whether he should say this, then answered.

Ferda knew what words would come out of those filthy lips.

"I heard dark magic was involved."

"Dark magic!?"

The council chamber was completely overturned.

The Empire had the Order of Altes as its state religion, and its principle toward dark magic was zero tolerance.

Nobles were no exception to that.

If one was suspected of being involved with dark magic, one had to donate a massive sum to the Order or receive a token of repentance using holy power.

Of course, Ferda could not do that.

He truly did use dark magic, and he could not give it up.

"The claim that he used dark magic is not a matter with ordinary repercussions. Can you bring that informant as a witness?"

"I cannot tell you. There may be retaliation after this council ends, so I earnestly ask that the person be treated as an anonymous informant."

Akkad tilted his head and exchanged opinions on that request.

Even if the person was anonymous, who could have told him such a thing?

As far as Ferda knew, there was no one but Erdes.

'But that feels a little strange.'

If Erdes had exposed that dark magic, she would have done it with her own mouth.

At the very least, she would not have used that pathetic Alexander as her mouthpiece.

In the meantime, the senior assembly members seemed to have finished their discussion, and Akkad reached a conclusion.

"For now, we will accept it anonymously. Continue."

"Yes, thank you."

The kite Alexander had launched caught the current and rose.

"Regent Ferda's savage temperament can be seen through the reports submitted thus far."

He tapped a weighty stack of documents and exposed Ferda's actions.

"Before the engagement ceremony took place, Regent Ferda gathered the nobles of the far east and began his first conference. At the time, he was not even the Regent, but merely a prospective fiancé, and he had no authority. Then, he mocked Baron Thessalos Vulture as a magic user and summarily executed him on the spot!"

That must have been information handed over by one of the officers of the far east.

Young Master Yurei was one thing, but Thessalos Vulture had not insulted a dragon.

"I object to that information. Chairman! Please grant me the right to speak!"

Concillus leaped from his seat.

Akkad gave permission with a nod.

"Thessalos Vulture's summary execution is certainly something difficult to condone in noble society, but there were circumstances behind it. Thessalos Vulture was plotting an unprecedented catastrophe in which he attempted to merge demonic creatures with dark magic! If not for Regent Ferda, we would never have uncovered it!"

Alexander did not back down and refuted him.

"Of course, they say there was such a plot, but is the order not wrong? If he was a demon's lackey, then you should have clarified the circumstances first and executed him afterward!"

"At the time, Regent Ferda was inexperienced in communication. Nor could he trust the lords of the far east, so even if he had said that, it would only have created an opening for Baron Thessalos Vulture to escape."

Ferda felt something subtle in Concillus's statement, but he put it out of his mind.

The battle of nerves was tense, and Alexander decided to pull out his trump card here.

"It is extremely regrettable that Count Concillus, who has served the far east longer than anyone, would offer such an opinion. However, there is someone who can prove that Regent Ferda is an extremely dangerous man. Chairman, please permit me to call him to the witness stand!"

"Who is that?"

"William Miller."

Ferda did not know who Miller was, but he knew William.

"Granted."

Alexander's expression brightened as if he had seized victory.

When he gestured, a man who had been waiting outside the door came in.

Ferda and Duke Yurei, of course, as well as Concillus, knew that man's face.

"That man... is he not the security captain of Hestia village?"

"He is."

"Why would that man be the Crown Prince's witness..."

The first emotion to well up in Concillus's chest, ignorant as he was of the information, was betrayal.

As a knight serving his lord, he was quick to rise from his seat, and if he had had a sword, he would have wanted to cut off that head immediately.