Chapter 210
Leticia's body, brought into the throne room, was pristine.
They must have prepared it so the castle servants could present it to the Emperor without issue. Yet even so, something felt off.
"She's beautiful, and it's heartbreaking to look at her. A woman did this. No doubt about it."
"Be quiet, Konrad. That is irrelevant right now."
Erik admonished Konrad for making light remarks.
Henrik looked away as if he couldn't bear to look at it, while only Father, Erik, and Gordon were studying it closely.
"...Gordon. Do you sense anything?"
"I don't sense anything."
"Erik. What about you?"
"There is a slight discrepancy. It's vague, like a sense of déjà vu, but when I look closely, I can somehow tell that something is wrong."
"I feel the same. As Arnold said, something is off about this body."
For an instant, Gordon's face twisted, and he glared at me.
Normally, I would have looked away, but today I'd decided to give this my all.
So I gave him a mocking smile.
"Wha—!? What's so funny, Arnold!?"
"Nothing, really. I just assumed any member of the Imperial family would notice. After all, even a good-for-nothing like me noticed."
"...You must have a death wish."
I thought I heard something snap.
Gordon, his face bright red, came at me. He ignored even Father's and Erik's attempts to restrain him.
The one who stopped Gordon was Alida, who had been waiting at the edge of the throne room.
Alida instantly stepped between Gordon and me and said quietly.
"You stand before His Imperial Majesty. Calm yourself, Prince Gordon."
"Shut up! I won't be satisfied until I crush that worthless piece of trash!"
"If you resort to violence, I will stop you by force."
It was a warning.
The Imperial Guard was the Empire's finest. Every captain among them was monstrous, but the captains of the top three divisions were genuine monsters.
Alida was one of the few people who flatly declared that Elna couldn't win without the Holy Sword. The only person Elna rated as highly was her father, the Valiant Duke.
Naturally, Gordon had no chance. When people called Elna the strongest in the Empire, they meant with the Holy Sword. Without it, Alida would probably be the Empire's strongest swordsman.
Of course, I couldn't say what it would be like in a few years, but at present, Alida surpassed Elna in swordsmanship alone.
Some people said Father kept her by his side because she was Elder Vaitling's daughter, but anyone who said that should see her swordsmanship for themselves.
She was so fast that, even during training, you could barely tell what she was doing.
"Tch..."
"Please step back, Prince Gordon. And Prince Arnold, don't provoke him too much."
"I'll be careful."
Since I was warned too, I responded with a shrug.
Well, no more provocation was necessary. Gordon and Henrik had been talking about punishing me without listening. If Father accepted that, even by some chance, I'd lose my chance to explain.
So I angered him. Gordon's opinion would not carry the day here now.
"...My apologies, Your Imperial Majesty."
"Hmm."
Gordon apologized, and Father urged me with his eyes to explain.
So now we came to what exactly the body was.
A fake that only members of the Imperial family could sense was clearly abnormal.
Father was asking for the answer.
"This body was probably disguised with illusion magic. A doll would be noticed, so they must have used a real corpse."
"What!?"
"Is that true, Arnold?"
"It's only Leo's and my guess. We have no proof."
"Without proof, it is worthless! Imperial Guards! Dispose of this corpse at once! Your Imperial Majesty! There is no need to indulge Arnold's ravings—"
"Who gave you permission to take charge? Since when did you become Emperor, Henrik?"
"Eek!? I-I apologize!!"
Father glared at Henrik, who contorted his face in fear and fell to his knees.
Seeing that, Father snorted and shifted his gaze to me.
"There is no proof. It is speculation piled upon speculation. I see nothing worth believing. But—it is also a fact that this body has been tampered with. What is needed to resolve this discrepancy, Arnold?"
Phase two cleared.
This was no longer my request.
If I asked him to summon them, he might dismiss it as ridiculous.
But if I said they were necessary to find the answer the Emperor sought, it would be different. They would not be able to refuse.
"Could you summon the elves? Only elves could probably use illusion magic on this scale. They are shrouded in mystery: they suddenly accepted the Empire's invitation, and no one knows where they disappeared to along the way here. Please interrogate them, Your Majesty."
"Very well. Summon the elven delegation."
■■■
There were seven elves summoned. The same number as when they arrived; not one was missing.
At the center was Wendy, disguising her appearance with illusion magic. Krista had also been summoned in her capacity as hostess.
Since this was a meeting restricted to the Imperial family, Fine was waiting outside.
Krista looked anxiously at me after being summoned so suddenly, and I gave her a gentle smile.
"Brother Arnold..."
"It'll be all right."
At my words, Krista quietly nodded.
Then Father's interrogation began.
"Now, Lady Wendy. I summoned you because I have some questions."
"What would you like to ask, Your Imperial Majesty?"
"First, I would like you to look over there. Ah, Krista, you needn't look."
"Yes..."
She must have imagined what was there, because Krista kept her face pale and looked only straight ahead.
Meanwhile, Wendy and the others were looking at Leticia's body.
For an instant, Wendy sadly furrowed her brows. The other elves showed no reaction.
"Saint Leticia... It is a shame."
"That may not be so. Someone suggested that it may actually be disguised with illusion magic. What do you say to that?"
"Your Majesty... Do you believe we elves are the culprits?"
"I am asking about a possibility. Wouldn't it be possible for people like you to disguise one person's corpse as someone else's?"
"That..."
As she said this, Wendy glanced at the elven woman standing beside her.
She was the elven attendant who had entered while Leo and I were talking, if I remembered correctly.
Her name was Paula, I believe.
Wendy kept checking Paula's expression. It looked like a master-servant relationship.
"Is it possible or not? Which is it?"
"It is possible... But there is no one with that level of skill here..."
With that, Wendy looked away.
It was a typical reaction when lying. And her reaction to Paula showed fear.
Their relationship had become clear. Beside Father, Franz wore a stern expression as he signaled the Imperial Guards.
The Imperial Guards naturally closed in on the elves. Those present were all captains and elite knights, led by Alida. Even if the elves tried to flee, they wouldn't get away.
Amid this, I addressed Wendy.
"Princess, is that true?"
"I-It is true... Prince Arnold."
Wendy's eyes wavered.
Her gaze moved back and forth between me and Paula.
Her eyes pleaded with me to stop, but I couldn't. I couldn't leave the relationship between Wendy and Paula unaddressed, either.
I would resolve every problem here and now.
"You are disguising your appearance with illusion magic. Couldn't you do the same?"
"Th-That..."
"What does this mean, Lady Wendy?"
Pressed by Father, Wendy wore an expression of resignation, dispelled her illusion, and revealed her true form.
"I apologize for deceiving you, Your Imperial Majesty."
"This is a surprise..."
"My grandfather ordered me to change my appearance with illusion magic, as it would be disrespectful for a child to serve as our representative. Please forgive me."
"That is not the issue. The issue is that you can use illusion magic of that caliber, and we failed to notice."
"I know you will not believe anything we say in this situation, but this was not the work of us elves, Your Imperial Majesty."
Saying this, Wendy knelt, and the other elves followed suit.
Father crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes.
Having seen so many people, Father could probably see through Wendy's lie. The question was why she was lying.
Father couldn't imagine why the elves would have any reason to be involved in this incident.
"Assuming I believe you... couldn't you dispel the illusion magic placed on that corpse?"
"I don't know. If you order me to try, I will, but..."
She was buying time.
It would be unwise to go along with this.
So I made my final proposal.
"Father. I have a proposal."
"How many times must I tell you to call me Your Imperial Majesty...? Ah, never mind. Do as you please."
"My apologies. May I use something from the treasury?"
"Don't tell me... the Imperial Banner?"
"Yes. A barrier has been placed over this throne room to prevent magic from being activated, but it does not affect magic that has already been activated. Therefore, I request permission to use the Imperial Banner, which nullifies all magic within its range."
The barrier in the throne room was among the highest class.
Even I would have difficulty entering using teleportation magic, and casting magic here was impossible. But magic already in effect was another matter. That was by design.
If it nullified everything, the Emperor wouldn't even be able to use magic tools. So the barrier didn't interfere with magic already cast. The Imperial Guards could handle threats at that level.
But the treasury contained a magic tool more powerful than that barrier.
Known as the Imperial Banner, it looked like an ordinary national flag at first glance. It appeared to be nothing more than an exquisitely crafted flag bearing a golden eagle.
But by offering Imperial blood, it nullified all magic within a certain area.
For all its power, it was a magic tool almost never used. Usually, the Empire would be the one disadvantaged if all magic were nullified.
It also required Imperial blood. It wasn't something one could use casually.
"It demands a considerable amount of blood. Are you offering yours?"
"That is my intention. In return, if this corpse does not belong to Saint Leticia, I ask that you acknowledge Leo's actions were justified. I also request that the Third Imperial Guard Division be dispatched as reinforcements."
"...You would go that far for your brother?"
"I go that far because he is my brother. Leo is doing what is right. It is a brother's duty to prove it."
"Well said! I authorize use of the Imperial Banner!"
The moment Father said that—
The doors to the throne room opened. When I turned around, Brother Trau was standing there.
In his hand was a flag bearing a golden eagle.
"You authorize its use!? Just as expected of you, Father! You foresaw Traugott's actions! To repay that trust, I shall use it myself!"
"What!? Wait, Traugott!?"
"Haaaaaaah!!"
"Wait! Brother Trau!"
"Arnold! It is a brother's duty to prove his brother innocent! Leave it to this Traugott!"
"No, will you listen to me!?"
He was completely intoxicated by his own grand gesture.
A cord extended from the Imperial Banner and began sucking up Brother Trau's blood.
By the time the Imperial Guards reached Brother Trau's side, it was already too late.
The Imperial Banner activated, nullifying every spell, including the barrier in the throne room.
The illusion disguising what we had thought was Leticia's body was dispelled, revealing the corpse of the escort captain. But it clearly looked as though the corpse had been dead for several days.
Wondering how long ago it had been replaced, I looked at the elves.
Then I saw Wendy pushing Krista toward me.
"Run!"
Wendy shouted.
The elves surrounding her had completely changed.
After all, their skin was black.
They were the wicked elves who had once sided with the Demon Lord and bathed in demonic power.
Dark elves stood there.
Those dark elves pointed the daggers they had concealed at Wendy.
I had thought she was being threatened, but this was far beyond anything I'd imagined.
I moved instinctively to protect Krista, but Wendy wouldn't make it in time.
Just then, the Imperial Banner struck the elf pointing a dagger.
"What are you doing to Lorif!?"
Naturally, it was Brother Trau who had thrown the Imperial Banner.
To offer so much blood and then act immediately despite staggering—one had to admire him. Though his reason for doing so was what it was.
"This is the Empire! We won't let you do as you please!"
"The one acting as he pleases is you!!?? Who told you to activate it here, you blithering idiot!?"
"Whaaa!? Why am I the one being scolded!?"
While this utterly tension-free exchange between father and son was taking place, the battle between the dark elves and the Imperial Guards began.
That said, it probably wouldn't qualify as a battle.
After all, magic couldn't be used here. This was the worst possible situation for the dark elves.