AFRPR 52

Episode 52

“Ally, we already finished talking about that.”

Saying something in private is one thing, but saying it in front of many people has a completely different weight.

The emperor raised his eyebrows and looked stern.

“Let’s move somewhere else first.”

“There’s no need. The truth will come out soon.”

“Ally!”

“The Winterlen couple got married only for the sake of adopting a child—they don’t even love each other!”

Alice pointed at Estelle.

Suddenly, everyone’s attention turned to her. Estelle froze in surprise.

Lennox, on the other hand, crossed his arms and openly showed his displeasure.

Alice continued without caring.

“Because of people who abuse adopted children or treat them like slaves, a law was made—only couples who have lived together for at least one year can adopt.”

“…”

“But if they got married only to fill that one-year requirement, don’t you think there might be problems? For the child’s future, the truth must be revealed.”

“…”

“So, Father, please bring out the holy relic.”

For the child’s sake.

Alice’s words sounded noble and pure—on the surface.

“That’s what I really want for my birthday.”

The Libra Scale was a holy relic the royal family had borrowed from the temple with a huge donation. It was usually used only in serious situations, because each use required a massive amount of sacred power.

“My lovely daughter, still, this is…”

The cheerful music had long stopped.

In the heavy silence, everyone stared at the Winterlen couple.

They all looked doubtful of Alice’s accusation.

After all, they had just seen a very loving couple with their own eyes today.

“This is difficult. Truly awkward.”

Even if it was her birthday, humiliating the Winterlen couple in public was going too far.

“You don’t need to feel awkward, Father. I have a reliable witness.”

Alice called out to someone.

“Lady Langster, come here.”

A woman stepped forward—someone both Estelle and Lennox knew well.

In the past life, she had been Lennox’s contract wife. In this life, she had also tried to become his contract wife, but after seeing Lennox point his sword at Estelle, she ran away.

Ah… I forgot to silence her, Lennox thought when he saw her.

In his past life, she had been so unremarkable that he didn’t take her seriously. That carelessness was now coming back to bite him.

“This woman will tell the truth. Bring out the relic.”

“Very well, let’s hear her story. There’s even a priest here, so all we need is the relic.”

“Your Majesty, it’s excessive to use the relic for something like this. We’d need a high-ranking priest, wouldn’t we?” Lennox tried to stop the emperor.

“Will you really call the Pope just to dig into a couple’s private matters?”

“Your Majesty, I must disagree.”

Before the emperor could change his mind, Helios—who had been silent until now—spoke up.

“This concerns a child’s life, and if it’s true, it’s a serious matter of deceiving the royal family. Even if the Pope himself knew, he would gladly allow the relic to be used.”

“…”

“And my sacred power alone is enough to use it.”

Helios spoke with confidence and a gentle smile, gaining everyone’s trust. No one suspected that he was the one who had set all this up.

A while ago, Lady Langster had gone to confession after suffering from terrible nightmares.

Helios had been the priest behind the screen.

“It’s a grave sin to be close to a demon. To be forgiven, you must repent.”

“Repent? How?”

“For example… you could confess that day’s events to the royal family. Since it’s related to Winterlen, you could tell Princess Alice, who is very interested in Winterlen’s affairs.”

In the end, a servant brought the relic.

Alice signaled with her finger.

“Priest.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Helios, hiding his dark intentions, received the relic—a statue of the goddess Reltasia holding a scale. If the right pan went down, it meant truth; if the left pan went down, it meant lies.

The questioning began.

“What is your name?”

“Hazel Langster, Your Highness.”

The scale tilted to the right. Truth.

“Lady Langster, what did you see on the night of the Winterlen duke’s monster-slaying celebration?”

“I saw the duke and Lady Bellonsa—now Duchess Winterlen—together in the garden.”

Right. Truth.

“Why were they together?”

“They seemed to be talking about a contract marriage.”

“Contract marriage?”

“That day, I heard a rumor—that the duke was offering a huge sum to anyone willing to be his wife for exactly one year.”

Right. Truth.

“I was tempted by the money and went to see the duke. But the duchess was already there. The next day, they got married.”

Right. Truth.

Alice took over.

“And the duke had already begged my father to let him adopt a child.”

“…”

“Still think there’s no problem here?”

Right. Truth.

“This is no different from buying a woman and a child with money. It’s degrading to both women’s and children’s rights.”

The crowd murmured.

Suddenly—

Thud thud thud!

Woof!

Durin, the little boy, ran over and bit Alice’s hand.

“Don’t hurt Mommy!” he shouted with unclear words because his mouth was busy biting. Only Estelle and Lennox understood him perfectly.

‘This person is bad!’ his eyes seemed to say as he glared at Alice.

He had been playing happily with friends, but then he noticed everyone speaking badly about his mother. He didn’t understand all the words, but when he saw his mom’s sad face, he was sure something bad was happening—and that Alice was the cause.

“Durin, you can’t bite people!”

“But…”

“No.”

“…Fine.”

Durin let go.

“You must be that poor child,” Alice said, pretending to be sympathetic.

“I’m not poor!”

“…”

“I’m happy!”

—As long as Mom is there.

“What about Dad? Are you happy with him too?” Alice asked quickly.

“Dad is… not really. Maybe not happy.”