***
Even after the recess was called, not a single spectator left their seat.
Some nobles from Eastern Houses had turned pale and continued to denounce Miro in harsh tones.
“Was it your doing to file a lawsuit for damage to the House’s honor this time as well?”
“No matter how good money is, there are lines that must not be crossed!”
On the other hand, strangely enough, no one approached Eren, whose surroundings reeked of blood, as if an invisible barrier had been erected around him—except for Valen.
Perhaps because of his visually ominous state, even his usual expressionlessness looked somewhat frightening.
“You should have been stopping Duke Gloria, not sitting there as his representative as if you had done something right!”
The unending shouting made Liselotte feel as though her head were ringing.
“Wow, what a mess.”
When Liselotte returned to the plaintiff’s bench, clutching her throbbing head, she saw Valen staring straight at her from the gallery before sharply turning his head away.
His lips moved as he said something.
“I came because I received your letter.”
Perhaps because the surroundings were so noisy, Valen’s voice didn’t carry well.
Liselotte tilted her head slightly and asked again.
“What did you say?”
“You sent me the hearing date and time. So I came.”
With the defendant’s bench in such an uproar, his words were drowned out by curses and raised voices.
Unable to stand it any longer, Liselotte glanced sideways and muttered shortly.
“It’s too noisy… no matter what, this is still a courtroom…”
Watching this quietly, Eren spoke a single low, curt word.
“Quiet.”
Thud. The courtroom fell terrifyingly silent.
Before the thought ‘Did he use the Word of Command?’ could even cross her mind, Eren answered first.
“I did not use the Word of Command.”
In the meantime, the spectators had shifted their attention to the Crown Prince’s younger sister speaking with Valen.
With Valen taking a seat directly behind the plaintiff’s bench, it looked, for all intents and purposes, as though the Imperial Family was backing Liselotte’s claims.
Now, the speed of their change in attitude was almost surprising.
‘It just happened that Valen’s interests aligned with mine. Does it look like I’ve outwardly reconciled with the Imperial Family?’
After the Emperor last time, and now Valen as well, it was an easy misunderstanding to make.
Still, this misunderstanding was necessary right now.
Once the courtroom quieted down, Valen fell silent.
Liselotte smiled brightly and asked him kindly.
“Brother, what did you say?”
Valen, on the other hand, scanned her with a look as if he were seeing a strange person and asked.
“Why are you suddenly acting like this…?”
While he was recoiling in distaste, someone tapped on the plaintiff’s bench table.
When she turned her head, Miro had approached at some point and was smiling awkwardly.
“My apologies, Your Highness. Might you be willing to consider a settlement?”
Who would seek a settlement in a case they had already won?
Liselotte shrugged and blinked her eyes mischievously.
“Well. Unless the settlement offers something better than control rights…”
“Control rights include the authority to subjugate monsters, which is an inherent right of the defendant’s House. Would it not be acceptable to instead provide the Magic Tower with high-grade byproducts from the designated region free of charge?”
“My client does not trust the East.”
“It would be under the Senate’s orders. Surely you do not believe we would mishandle it. If you wish, an area even broader than the region you designated would be acceptable.”
As if.
She had already heard everything about how he violated his confinement and frequented back alleys.
Liselotte maintained a polite smile and let his words go in one ear and out the other.
“Then how about providing high-grade byproducts without specifying a region at all…”
Did he not realize there were no monsters in that area?
He seemed to genuinely believe the pretext she had given to obtain control rights.
Miro truly appeared to be thinking only about preserving House Gloria’s authority.
“The Magic Tower has little experience participating in subjugations, so if you wish, in addition to the byproducts, the East can act as a proxy upon discussion. There is also almost no precedent of transferring control rights…”
For a territory to be forcibly taken from its ruling House for a certain period.
In the Perida Empire, where monster subjugation symbolized power, this meant not merely disgrace but the downfall of a House.
Compared to indiscriminately filing lawsuits for defamation, a single loss of control rights would have far greater repercussions across the continent.
Knowing this, Miro was trying to give up everything else while still begging to retain at least the outward appearance of authority.
She had anticipated this and investigated beforehand.
“Why? The East already has a history of transferring control rights.”
Liselotte widened her eyes and asked back instead.
“A long time ago, House Diconu, a collateral branch of House Gloria, failed to repay its debts and transferred control of its land to investors for a certain period, didn’t they?”
Even back then, the area around Gelloa Village in the East had been treated as nothing more than a useless wasteland.
The investors received control rights over land where even farming was impossible, so in effect, they had merely lost their money.
When the period ended, the authority returned to the East, but the land remained neglected.
It seemed that Miro was unaware of this fact.
“I-is that so? Then you are saying that a settlement regarding control rights is not possible?”
Of course.
Liselotte nodded without hesitation.
***
Inside the court, in the presiding official’s waiting room, Drayden tapped on a round crystal embedded in the wall.
It was a magic tool used to send an alert to the Senate.
After confirming that a white light blinked several times, Drayden headed toward a bookshelf that filled an entire wall.
When he put strength into pushing the shelf, it slid aside like a sliding door, revealing a teleportation magic stone.
Drayden stepped toward the magic stone in haste.
After the surroundings flashed white for a moment, he had already moved into a conference room inside the Imperial Palace.
At the long rectangular table sat the Senate members who had arrived first.
Ollas brushed aside his long hair that covered the corners of his eyes with both hands and checked Drayden’s face.
“Drayden, your expression looks terrible. Calling us so suddenly like this is troublesome. Can a scholar of magical theory really act without principles like this?”
“Ahem, the situation is rather urgent…”
“What urgency is there? If things had been handled fairly all along, the outcome of how the judgment would go should have been clear long ago.”
At the pointed remark, Drayden fell silent.
Even if he played the fool, there was nothing to gain from arguing law with Ollas.
Ollas stroked his long beard and let out a hearty laugh.
“Others are busy today, so many couldn’t attend.”
As he said, only three or four senators entered through the teleportation magic stone, leaving more empty seats than occupied ones.
At that moment, click. The conference room door opened, and the Emperor, Larde Perida, entered.
The senators rose from their seats, placed a hand over their chests, and bowed toward the Emperor.
Receiving the greeting with a light raise of his hand, the Emperor smiled and took his seat at the head of the table.
“An emergency Senate meeting. It has been a long time. Professor Drayden. What is it that you needed to say so urgently?”
“Well… evidence of statements insulting the Imperial Family was revealed during the trial.”
Standing there and staring only at the floor, Drayden continued haltingly.
“The plaintiff’s side is also demanding control rights over part of the Eastern territories as compensation for damages.”
“Was there not already discussion of the plaintiff’s losses when the provisional injunction was granted?”
The Emperor asked gently. Drayden thought that the sight resembled Liselotte closely.
No matter how much he disliked mages, he should have exercised moderation.
Biting his lip tightly in belated regret, he listened.
Yet the Emperor’s voice remained light.
“Grant it.”
“…Pardon? Y-you mean the control rights? To the Magic Tower?”
“Yes. If the Tower Master has suffered such severe losses, compensation must be provided.”
“The defendant is the Ducal House Gloria. Th-the ruler of the East…”
“Then they should not have allowed it to come to a lawsuit.”
The Emperor spoke without hesitation. His tone was so calm that even the weight of transferring control rights sounded light.
“If they had consulted with the plaintiff early on and revised the contract, or terminated it, it would never have come this far.”
“Th-that is true…”
It wasn’t incorrect, yet it strangely sounded as though the matter had been decided from the very beginning.
Toward the flustered Drayden, the Emperor smiled and tilted his head.
“So the results of the emergency meeting are out, then.”
***
Crash, a series of shattering sounds rang out inside the Gloria estate.
“Right now, you’re telling me to hand over control rights… control rights to the Magic Tower?!”
A book flew with a smack past Miro, who stood straight beside him.
A long gash opened along Miro’s cheek where it grazed past, blood streaming down.
Yet Miro was still smiling, so much so that his eyes were no longer visible.
That sight only further stoked Anix’s fury.
“I will appeal. Find someone among the subjugation force who can be put to use!”
“I do not recommend an appeal.”
“Why not?!”
“It is said that Her Highness the Grand Duchess was ambushed on her way to the court.”
“What does that have to do with me?!”
Shouting sharply, Anix flinched as if something had just occurred to him.
One corner of his mouth twisted grotesquely.
“Don’t tell me… they think I ordered that ambush?”
Miro answered with silence instead of words, affirming it.
At that, Anix hurled the items on his desk to the floor with a crash and roared.
“What kind of idiot would order an ambush at that timing, practically telling them to arrest me?!”
