AWWL Chapter 140

 

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

When I decided to become the crown princess, I was deeply troubled.

What situation would allow me to gain the support of the nobles without being bound by my hair?

And I found the answer easily.

It was simply…

‘To expose the treacherous traitor with impure motives and widely reveal his misdeeds. Just as you did to earn the Emperor’s trust, Reinhardt.’

However, Reinhardt turned out to be a more challenging opponent than I had anticipated, and my trauma regarding my hair was stronger than I thought.

I had no choice but to acknowledge my shortcomings.

‘I thought I could handle it myself, but that was arrogance.’

Yet, even in that hellish situation, there was a Savior who protected me and ultimately lifted me up.

It was my husband, Erich Lennon Blant, sitting right next to me.

However, people did not praise his achievements in exposing Reinhardt’s misdeeds.

“By the way, wouldn’t it be right to reveal the duke’s identity as well?”

“Indeed. Breaking into someone else’s home without permission…”

“Everyone, make sure to lock your doors well.”

He had to endure mockery and criticism simply for breaking into someone else’s mansion.

I clenched my fist.

‘If it hadn’t been for you, I might have just collapsed. But thanks to you, I found the courage. Yet you…’

Erich, despite receiving the scornful glares of many, was constantly watching over me.

As if I were the only one in his eyes.

‘You fool…’

I no longer wanted to passively rely on his help.

I also wanted to be of assistance to him, who had revealed the truth for my sake.

‘And this is a problem I must solve.’

With those complex feelings, I brought up the revelation I had originally planned.

“I asked him to find evidence there. I had a suspicion that Reinhardt Adolf Tarrant was plotting treason.”

As soon as I finished speaking, Reinhardt glared at me with a fierce gaze.

I lifted the corners of my mouth.

‘He looks like he wants to strangle me.’

However, he quickly regained his composure, as if nothing had happened.

“Your Highness the Princess, how could I commit treason? You must speak clearly. It was you who said you would make me Emperor.”

I nodded in agreement.

“Yes, that was true.”

As I acknowledged it instead of denying it, he asked with a look of grievance.

“Then why do you call me a traitor? I have devoted myself to the imperial family for a long time…”

The moment I pulled something out, I saw his brow slightly furrow.

‘Yes, he’ll recognize it at a glance.’

What I pulled out was a candle.

One that he had poisoned to extinguish my father’s life.

“Y-Your Highness, I don’t know what that is…”

He seemed to be trying to feign ignorance again.

I interrupted him before his serpent-like tongue could move again.

“Since you will deny it anyway, it’s better to speak through a witness. Bring them in.”

 

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

When Cornelia mentioned him and brought up treason, Reinhardt felt an uncontrollable rage.

‘How dare you stab me in the back?’

It was infuriating.

The fondness he once had vanished completely, replaced by a desire to inflict pain on that woman.

‘Anyway, if I deny the candle, that’s the end of it. I’ve already disposed of them in my mansion.’

For some time now, the candles had not been effective on the Emperor.

So, with a sense of caution, he had disposed of all the candles and left no evidence that he had made them.

‘I even heard that the attendant died when Karon invaded. What a relief that was.’

As Reinhardt was thinking this, the witnesses entered.

‘That guy… the Princess’s alchemist?’

Reinhardt furrowed his brow at the unexpected appearance of Parakel, whom he thought was dead, and then laughed.

‘So it was you who orchestrated it.’

While pretending to lean on him, she had been sharpening her claws behind his back.

Feeling a sense of indignation, Reinhardt stared at Cornelia.

Without caring, Cornelia began to interrogate.

“Parakel, what were the components of this candle?”

“Beeswax, and it contains a poison that damages the bronchial tubes and lungs, gradually consuming life force. It’s exactly the symptoms that His Majesty is experiencing.”

His testimony stirred the crowd.

However, Reinhardt remained calm.

‘No matter what, there’s no evidence that I placed that candle in the Emperor’s bedroom…’

But then he widened his eyes at the sight of the next person who entered.

An attendant he thought was dead was walking in.

‘Why is he here…?’

Reinhardt clenched his fists and glared at Cornelia.

‘What on earth have you done?’

She might be a bit clever, but she was still just a woman.

So he had always dismissed Cornelia’s role as that of a pretty doll smiling beside him.

But…

“This attendant is the one who put the candle into the Emperor’s bedroom. I became aware of it because it was suspicious that he was holding something that didn’t belong to the royal family.”

As she revealed what the attendant had done, she soon turned to him and asked, “Reveal who was behind you.”

At that question the attendant, with trembling hands, pointed to someone.

“It’s… it’s Archduke Tarrant.”

Reinhardt stared at Cornelia, then flinched.

Right now, Cornelia was looking at him with clear hostility.

Finally, she parted her lips.

‘What do you think? Isn’t it a lovely gift I prepared?’

The woman he had wanted to cherish was trying to stab him in the back.

 

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

Reinhardt’s face was always filled with an inexplicable ease and confidence.

Even when I mentioned him and brought up treason, he didn’t show any signs of distress.

So I revealed the cards I had prepared.

‘It was a good decision to make the attendant appear dead. Otherwise, he would have died at Reinhardt’s hands.’

Of course, this plan was possible because Reinhardt was focused on Sardin.

If it hadn’t been for that, Reinhardt would have already sensed something was off and relentlessly pursued the attendant’s whereabouts.

‘In the end, your arrogance has brought you to this point, Reinhardt.’

Reinhardt was a meticulous person.

Even while using countless people, he managed to keep his strings from being detected by anyone.

If he hadn’t underestimated me and had paid attention to my actions from the start, this situation wouldn’t have occurred.

And I knew well why he had let his guard down around me.

‘Because he thought I was his.’

But now, having been dealt a heavy blow from someone he dismissed and realizing that I was a means for him to become the Crown Prince, how angry must he be?

He was finally looking at me with a distorted expression.

Yet, even with that shallow mask stripped away, he remained cunning.

“Your Highness, I was trying to help you! Why are you framing me like this? Even going as far as creating a false witness!”

“False witness?”

“Yes! There’s no evidence of collusion between that person and me! How can you believe that person and accuse me of treason?”

Yes, I expected him to respond this way.

The greedy attendant had received jewels that weren’t his.

“Marquis Arzen.”

At my call, my uncle, who had been silent all along, flinched and answered.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Jewels crafted by Twinkle were found on that attendant. They belong to the jeweler you possess.”

“T-That’s just a coincidence! Our jeweler has such a high market share in this system!”

At his words, I couldn’t help but smirk.

“Is that so? Then is the assassin sent to my territory also a coincidence?”

“W-What do you mean by that?”

As expected, my uncle was pretending not to understand.

But there was much more to address beyond that.

“Fine, that’s acceptable. But tell me, what was the reason for coming to find me in the Baron Lacne’s territory?”

“It was because I believed Your Highness was Countess Herde, and I intended to persuade you to sell the mine.”

My uncle’s excuse was that he didn’t know it was me.

Since I had hidden my identity from the beginning, he argued that any persecution I faced was my own responsibility.

“Right, that’s true. You only knew me as Countess Herde. I won’t blame you for your rudeness. However…”

I fixed my gaze on my uncle.

“How did you come to realize my identity and stage a protest at the capital’s gate, claiming that Countess Herde was actually me? We didn’t even cross paths in Baron Lacne’s territong.”

Marquis Arzen stammered in response.

“T-That’s because when Baron Lacne first met Your Highness…”

“To recognize me upon first meeting, you must have remarkable perception. But here’s the thing: I certainly received Baron Lacne as Countess Herde. On the other hand, when you came to intimidate me at the hotel, the Countess Herde you saw was my maid.”

“T-That’s because my subordinate reported seeing a black-haired woman wandering the town…”

“Your story suddenly changed. You said the Baron Lacne recognized me, but now you’re saying it was your subordinate. And you think that just this one thing confirms I’m alive? You haven’t even seen me yourself?”

I smirked at the marquis, who looked at me with fear.

“Doubt was possible, but there was no evidence anywhere that I was alive. So how could you be so sure that I was Countess Herde?”

Seeing his flustered expression, I smiled to myself.

‘There are only two choices here. Either admit you knew my identity from the start and face execution for attempted royal murder, or reveal the identity of the one who manipulated you that day.’

I then turned my gaze to Reinhardt.

‘Right, I never intended to capture you using a mere attendant. His status as a witness isn’t high enough to be effective, and you could just deny everything. But… if the witness is a significant figure, that changes everything.’

I silently asked my uncle.

‘So, what will you do now?’

Of course, there was a sufficient possibility that my uncle could falsely name another person.

Since Reinhardt had a hold on my uncle’s weakness, if my uncle named a false mastermind, Reinhardt might be safe.

However, I knew my uncle well.

‘The uncle I know would never face a crisis alone and die.’

As expected, my uncle opened his mouth.

“The Archduke of Tarrant informed me.”