The royal palace was steeped in grief.
The rescue and transfer of King Richard and Prince Henry, both gravely injured in the bombing attack, had just been completed.
The healers residing in the palace immediately began treatment, but their conditions were so critical that an urgent request for support had even been sent to the Lambart Diocese of the Aeon Order.
With the fate of the king and the royal heir now left to the heavens, no one dared to speak carelessly; only quiet sighs filled the air.
Then, breaking the silence, the sound of footsteps approached the treatment chamber.
A single maid walked forward, as if treading on thin ice.
“Your Majesty, Princess Estelle has arrived at the palace.”
At the report, sparks seemed to flash in Queen Bridget’s eyes.
“Yes, have you captured that wretch?”
“N-No, Your Majesty. The princess is…”
After carefully gauging the queen’s expression for a long moment, the maid continued.
“She is walking here on her own two feet.”
“What did you say? And Sir Vangini? Did I not order Sir Vangini to seize Estelle and bring her before me at once?”
“It is said that Sir Vangini has fallen after sustaining severe injuries.”
“What?”
“He was defeated by Princess Estelle’s escort knight…”
“You expect me to believe that? The finest knight of the royal family was beaten by a mere escort? Just who is this escort?”
Sensing that admitting she did not know might earn her a slap, the maid chose her words carefully and remained silent.
At that moment, Queen Bridget’s bloodshot eyes, which had been glaring at the maid, shifted.
Someone new had appeared before the treatment chamber.
“Father! Where is Father?”
It was Princess Estelle.
As Estelle hurried down the corridor, Queen Bridget stepped in front of her, blocking her path.
“How dare you… How dare you show your face here! You vicious wretch who tried to kill your own father and brother just to seize the throne!”
“Don’t pin such a ridiculous accusation on me. Assassinate Father? I haven’t left Isola Palace or met with anyone for the past month. You, of all people, should know that better than anyone, considering you had me under surveillance.”
Queen Bridget’s eyes grew even more venomous.
“You insolent little thing….shameless and brazen to the end. Royal Guard! What are you doing? Arrest that traitor at once and force her to her knees!”
At the queen’s command, the soldiers moved, but none dared approach the princess.
Because of the knight standing firm behind her.
“Lady Josephine.”
“Please have your men stand down, Commander Donau.”
Commander of the Royal Guard Donau placed a hand on the hilt of his sword and glared at Josephine.
There was no visible trace of battle on Josephine, who had just defeated Sir Vangini of the Royal Knights.
Only a single drop.
Like a splash of ink mistakenly flicked onto a blank white canvas, a lone drop of blood marked her left cheek.
Yet that single spot was more unsettling than if she had returned drenched in blood.
The Royal Guard soldiers, well aware of Josephine’s skill, did not tremble. But their faces had stiffened.
Donau decided not to make a rash decision merely to quell the queen’s fury.
“The Royal Guard will not act recklessly. Our duty is to guard the door of the treatment chamber and ensure that no one here enters without authorization.”
“So now I see the palace is crawling with traitors! You will all pay dearly for this!”
Queen Bridget raged, but nothing changed.
Emboldened, Estelle stepped past the queen and approached the commander of the guard.
“Where is my father now?”
“He is in the chamber before you.”
“I heard he is in critical condition. Please let me go in and see his face.”
“That is not possible. Even for you, Your Highness, I cannot grant permission.”
“Why not?”
“You may interfere with the healers. I assume you would not wish to risk the treatment failing, even by the slightest chance.”
At that answer, Estelle could not press further.
“Are the healers trustworthy?”
“She is known as the Saintess of Eon, of the Order of Eternity. You would not find a healer more skilled than her anywhere in the capital right now.”
“I see…”
Despite answering as though she understood, Estelle bit her nails, clearly unable to feel at ease.
Just then, the door to the treatment chamber opened and a woman stepped out.
All eyes turned toward her.
“Saintess Sophia, the treatment…?”
“It has been completed safely.”
At those words, gasps broke out here and there.
“Oh my goodness.”
“Thank the heavens.”
“However, it is too soon to feel relieved.”
Sophia’s next words froze everyone in place again.
“What do you mean by that…?”
“Healing through divine power restores only the patient’s physical body, returning it to the form granted by the Creator. The mind and the soul, however, are another matter.”
As the listeners tilted their heads in confusion, Sophia continued.
“Their hearts are beating, but they have not regained consciousness. You said the King and the Prince were caught in a massive explosion, correct? Their minds must have suffered a tremendous shock in the process. When I first saw them, their bodies were so torn apart that it was a miracle they were alive at all. Under such circumstances, it is only natural.”
“That can’t be…”
“Then does that mean the King and the Prince will never wake up?”
Sophia slowly shook her head.
“It is too early to draw conclusions. There have been cases of recovery from unconsciousness. For now, all we can do is carefully tend to their bodies.”
“Thank you, Saintess. Truly, thank you.”
Even Queen Bridget addressed Sophia with respect.
She knew very well that her son’s life rested in the Saintess’s hands.
“Then I will return to the treatment chamber. At the very least, I will remain here today and observe the patients’ condition by their side.”
Sophia disappeared back into the room, and soon after, the court ministers arrived.
Unlike the restrained courtesy she had shown to Sophia, the queen confronted them in an agitated voice.
“Well? Do you have the results of the investigation? Don’t tell me you’ve come back empty-handed.”
“For now, we are detaining as many witnesses as we can from the scene and collecting their testimonies.”
“And?”
“It appears the explosion occurred directly beneath the carriage His Majesty was riding in. The culprit must have tampered either with the carriage itself or with the road beneath it.”
“That much I could have guessed myself. Is there anything else?”
“A few days ago, there was an unscheduled road maintenance project carried out under the pretext of inspecting the drainage system. That area is highly suspicious.”
“I’ll give you one more day. Dig into it thoroughly. What else?”
“Based on the forensic analysis, the explosion has been determined to have been caused by magic. Accordingly, we are first securing the persons of Court Mage Wendrick and Professor Winter Winslet of the Royal Academy.”
Josephine who had been listening to the exchange between the queen and the minister widened her eyes.
***
“Thank you for your cooperation with the investigation, Baron Winslet.”
“May I take it that the suspicions against me have now been cleared?”
“Of course.”
Soldiers armed with swords and armor and with tense expressions to match had come to see me.
They were investigators from the Public Security Bureau, accompanied by armed troops, and they were pursuing the culprit behind the Royal Mile bombing.
Caraphine leaves a distinct trace when it explodes.
That meant the bombing targeting the King and the Prince’s parade had to be the work of a mage, and it was only natural that Winter Winslet, the most well-known mage in the country, would fall under suspicion.
Fortunately, when the armed forces of the Public Security Bureau surrounded my residence, I appeared behind them.
I explained that I had been away on a long journey and had only just returned to Lambart today.
Decisively, testimony from the captain of the returning ship confirmed that I had been aboard a vessel at the harbor at the time of the explosion, and much of the suspicion against me was lifted.
Although I had delayed in the Winslet County and therefore witnessed the bombing without being able to stop it, the irony was that my failure to prevent it ultimately cleared me of suspicion.
“I apologize for the inconvenience. However, given the gravity of the matter, I ask for your understanding.”
“How is His Majesty?”
“He was rescued immediately after the incident and received treatment, but… he has yet to regain consciousness.”
“I see.”
At the very least, it was a relief that King Richard was still alive.
In the original game, Candela of Judgment, both the King and the Crown Prince die on the spot in the bombing incident.
As a result, the kingdom is thrown into even greater turmoil.
Had the outcome changing from instant death to unconsciousness been a result of my intervention?
I had tampered with the caraphine that fell into their hands, so perhaps that had weakened the force of the explosion.
“Then I will take my leave.”
As soon as the soldiers from the Public Security Bureau disappeared, I headed to Rose Bly’s newspaper office.
Sure enough, the newsroom was operating in an atmosphere that resembled a battlefield.
Rose Bly merely greeted me with a glance when she saw me.
“Hey, you’re here? I’d love to catch up since it’s been a while, but I don’t have the time. As you can see, the newsroom’s in this state.”
“Understandably. The King and the Crown Prince of this country were nearly assassinated. There’s no way the entire city wouldn’t be in an uproar.”
“We’re printing special editions every time new information comes in, and that’s happening almost every thirty minutes. It’s driving me insane.”
New information.
“Do you happen to know where the explosives used in the attack came from?”
I asked without much expectation, but Rose Bly rummaged through her desk and handed me a newspaper clipping.
It was part of the June 6th issue of the Lambart Daily.
“This is…”
“Do you remember the train robbery two months ago?”
“The train robbery?”
“Mhmm. The one your fiancée was on.”
“I remember.”
“Afterward, investigators found that the robbers didn’t take any valuables or hostages. Instead, they stole the fuel from the engine room.”
“Don’t tell me that fuel was…”
“High-concentration caraphine. That train was a new model.”
“So that’s how it happened.”
Leave a Reply