I Don’t Trust My Twin Sister

“Then the trial will begin now.”

 

The order passed one by one behind the judge’s voice announcing the start of the trial. Each time the labels attached to my crime were presented one by one, people’s reactions varied. Some people tilted their heads with a calm expression, while others got angry and gestured with their fingers. On another side, I saw faces cheering for me, probably from the Safeldrick family. Anyway, I thought there were quite a few people at the trial. Since it was often used as an important precedent when it was not a general trial, all major nobles involved tended to attend. In particular, the trials held in the name of the imperial family were of an extraordinary scale. By estimate, there were more than fifty people watching the trial and slowly raising their voices. Most of those who participated in this trial were emerging powers, led by Crown Prince and the Alpensia family. Because of that, the atmosphere was not going well for me. I rolled my eyes and looked at the people. 

 

‘That person…’

 

My eyes were drawn to one person who particularly stood out. Each and every person around where he sat was a giant. And that face, that look, that dull gray hair meant that the book came from the most special lineage. This was my first time actually seeing it. In the past, when I visited the imperial castle to inherit a title, I simply went through the formalities and went down. I never thought I would take such heavy steps to a place like this. I almost laugh out loud. The next successor to the Lirus Empire. There were many qualifications before and after his name, but there was only one thing that was important. Being a crown prince. That man was a powerful figure in the imperial family who held the highest power outside of the duke family. He is quite capable and has held the position of Crown Prince Ji for about 10 years. He knew that if he didn’t have more than 10,000 brothers under him, he would be quite capable. Since he was that kind of person, he dreamed of building a new power and seeking to strengthen the imperial power. As I looked around at the people and was listening to Beralt’s bullshit, I heard a voice putting a final stop to my ear. He turned and looked at the praetor. He nodded his head and then approached me.

 

“I heard he brought evidence to refute it. I would like you to submit it.”

 

I handed him a bundle of documents I had prepared in advance. He looked a little surprised at the amount of paperwork and the people around him did the same. The magistrate took the document, which weighed quite a bit, and handed it to Duke Safeldrick as evidence. He had already read it all, but he kept his mouth shut and pretended not to notice and pretended to read it again. It took a short while for Duke Safeldrick, who had been flipping through the documents, to stop his hand and turn his head to me. I knew that he was someone who could help me, but when I actually faced him like this, I felt like my body suddenly stiffened. The cool-headed duke’s eyes pierced me.

 

“Lady Lawrence.”

 

“Yes, Your Excellency the Duke.”

 

He tilted his upper body.

 

“You are here in response to a summons written in the name of the imperial family. You understand that, right?”

 

“Yes, I know.”

 

Thanks to this, I now know exactly who I am dealing with. I glanced at the crown prince. Although I never had any conversation with the crown prince, I was certain that he was not a person who at least had favor with me. There is an open possibility that the crown prince may have been the one who gave the order when the imperial family attempted to conduct a tax investigation in relation to a previous relief project.

 

“If this evidence is correct, the charges against you will be dropped, and the imperial family will be tarnished with its name. Do you understand?”

 

People held their breath at his blunt remarks. There was a world of difference between knowing something and saying it out loud. In the quiet courtroom, the duke nodded his head calmly.

 

“I know.”

 

“Good.”

 

He smiled softly and this time looked at Berylte. The gazes of the two people seemed to cross in the air.

 

“Marquis Beralt Alpensia.”

 

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

 

“It is the contents and documents you mentioned earlier that suggest that there is clear evidence for this charge. Let’s look at it again. You say that Lady Lawrence of the Ajstain family made a huge amount of money with illegally manufactured counterfeit currency. You mentioned that she purchased quantities of sulfur and titanium. Is that correct?”

 

“That’s right. Manufacturing counterfeit currency in itself can be seen as a treasonous act that destroys the foundation of the country. However, the fact that a large amount of sulfur was purchased in addition to that is unusual. If this is abused, it can cause enormous casualties. there is.” 

 

“Why do you think so?”

 

“Sulfur is a raw material for explosives. It is the main ingredient in gunpowder. Of course, sulfur has various uses, so it is possible that it was purchased for other purposes. This will need to be investigated to find out. However, the fact that counterfeit currency was manufactured and distributed was used with that money. Given the purchase of sulfur, my argument is that the purpose is probably not very sound.”

 

People nodded at his firm voice, saying it was true. It has sometimes been said that the Aztain family’s wealth was built with illicit money. It felt like a laugh would come out of my mouth. The Aztain family’s wealth and reputation, built up over hundreds of years, were built with the above artificial currency? That wasn’t even funny. In that case, it means that this country has been running on counterfeit currency manufactured by our family for hundreds of years. In other words, it was a clear expression of how incompetent the country was. It was to the point of lamenting how low the intelligence level of the nobleman, who didn’t know that and kept talking about whatever he could, was so low. Duke Safeldrick pressed his snowball with his thumb and opened his mouth again with a tired look on his face.

 

“The evidence that underlies that claim is this document that Ajtain Myeong-ae made a transaction, and the stamp on it. This means that the currency used in that transaction was counterfeit. Is that accurate?”

 

“You’re right.”

 

In response to his firm reply, Duke Sapeldric raised his hand and brought out the scales that had been prepared in advance. The appearance of gold coins can be made similar, but their weight is different. The densest gold was heavier than other metals. Duke Safeldrick slowly adjusted the weights on the scales, and then the counterfeit money rang on one side and the properly issued gold coins rang on the other. The moment his hands left both sides, the gold pendulum began to move so that there was a clear difference. The slope was so clear that it could not be considered a difference that could have occurred during the production process. In an instant, a murmur grew louder around me. Duke Sapeldrick stared at the scales, then set them aside and stretched out his chin.

 

“The exact details will need to be investigated separately, but just by looking at this, the authenticity of the counterfeit currency seems certain.”

 

I saw it correctly. When Beralt grinned, the Crown Prince behind him also smiled. They play well together.

 

“Marquis Alpensia, just in case, I’m asking, if the Ajstain family has been producing and distributing counterfeit currency, where do you think they would have produced it?”

 

“I guess we can only find out by investigating. The numerous mines owned by the Aztain family, and the amount of gold mined there is enormous. They could have laid the foundation for counterfeiting gold coins.”

 

“I see. Okay, then let’s compare the seals. Come here.”

 

The seal given in advance was handed over to Duke Safeldrick. He leisurely dropped the pencil on the paper and pressed it down with his stamp. There were ink pads and various other tools, but the one with the most distinct patterns was candle wax. Decisions made to capture very subtle differences

 

Duke Safeldrick looked alternately at the pattern that claimed to be my seal and the candle wax with my seal stamped on the document that Beralt held out, then nodded.

 

“It matches.”

 

Is this what it means to feel like your heart is sinking? My mind seemed to have stopped to the point where he couldn’t think of anything. Only the heartbeat could be heard loudly. When he turned his head, Beralt was smiling bitterly. The sound of criticism from people also hit my ears hard. I had to say something, but his mouth couldn’t fall because of his shocked heart. Still, he forced himself to bite his lip and open his mouth with difficulty.

 

“That… is a frame-up.”

 

Duke Safeldrick turned his gaze to me.

 

“Does this mean my argument is wrong?”

 

“No, that’s not what I meant. I have never used my seal to purchase sulfur.”

 

“But it’s stamped here.”

 

I focused my gaze on his hands fluttering documents.

 

“If you look at the evidence I gave you, you will see that our family’s name has never been mentioned in the ledgers that have purchased large amounts of sulfur in recent years.”

 

“It must have been someone else’s name borrowed or a false account.”

 

Beralt refuted my statement from the side. I glared at him.

 

“That’s not even funny.”

 

“What?”

 

After seeing that his expression was crumpled, I spoke next.

 

“According to what you said, I would have carried out the work very carefully and tried not to reveal my identity to others, but why did I use a seal that could reveal my identity in this transaction?”

 

I glared at him, his expression becoming even more grim. The Beralt I knew was clearly a man of great ability. Yeah, that’s for sure. However, as far as I know, Beralt did not have a particularly logical way of thinking. He knew that his claims were the truth, so he was a person who could not be found to be logical. Just like me in the past.

 

“What do you think? I think Marquis Alpensia’s claims are absurd and unreliable.”

 

“Do you want to claim that I’m lying?”

 

“No, I’m saying that’s not true. Do you lack understanding?”

 

“What nonsense are you talking about now…!”

 

The moment his expression, which always treats people with a gentle face, collapsed, those around him reacted in surprise. How many people know his true identity? Most people have only seen Beralt’s false mask.

 

“I have never used the seal to purchase sulfur and titanium, and I have never distributed or manufactured the counterfeit currency used in that transaction. There has been no illegal activity whatsoever in the transactions that the Ajstain family has been conducting for hundreds of years. “

 

I turned to face Duke Sapeldric, not Beralt. He looked at me quietly. He lifted his chin.

 

“I maintain my innocence.”

 

“It’s bullshit, Your Excellency, the evidence is clear, but it is clear that she is doing this to cover up her own sin.”

 

“It’s evidence…”

 

“…”

 

Duke Sapeldrick rubbed his chin and looked briefly concerned. As all attention was focused on his mouth, Duke Safeldrick chuckled and this time looked at Beralt.

 

“Marquis Alpensia.”

 

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

 

“Your evidence clearly points to Lady Lawrrence’s infidelity, doesn’t it?”

 

“That’s right. These are clear pieces of evidence that deserve to be punished!”

 

Duke Sapheldrick responded to Hung’s voice with cold, resentful eyes.

 

“That’s up to me to decide.”

 

Beralt flinched at the cold remark. Duke Safeldrick opened his eyes again.

 

“Yes, solid evidence. However, I believe that the evidence presented by Lady Lawrence as a rebuttal is more realistic and credible. Other judges are of the same opinion. Moreover, as Lady Lawence said, if she had wanted to hide her identity, she would have used the seal in a different form.”

 

“?”

 

“That’s why I ask.”

 

Duke Safeldrick, cupping his hand and cupping his chin, spoke the last word.

 

“Is there any other evidence to prove Lady Lawrence’s guilt?”

 

Beralt met his gaze with a frown. It was refreshing to see the trial not go his way.

 

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