Chapter 97 Trial
“It is true that Prince Caspian mingled with them, but he was merely on the sidelines and did not actively participate in any of the violence, that much is clear!”
Sandra continued, wiping away tears with her handkerchief. Her voice crackled with appeal.
“All of the evidence and testimony so far points to those five as the perpetrators of the assault, but nothing has been able to definitively identify which of them was the mastermind!”
Her stomach began to churn. Sandra had a point. The faces of the Caspian on the stand contorted strangely.
“I ask that we weigh the guilt of those who are guilty of violence against those who are not, for if the prince is guilty of anything, it is of choosing the wrong friends, and the prime mover in all of this violence is Count Louis Farren!”
As soon as Louis’s name left Sandra’s mouth, he leapt to his feet. Louis’s tightly balled fists trembled as he glared at Sandra and Caspian with bloodshot eyes.
“Louis Farren, Marquise of Frida Mitchell, was interested in Lady. But when she refused to accept his advances, he planned the assault to get back at her. Prince Caspian was merely on the sidelines.”
Here and there, the murmurs grew louder.
“If what the Empress says is true, this must be very unfortunate for Prince Caspian.”
“But still, sire, doesn’t it make sense that you would go along with Count Louis Farren’s plan? You’re in a position where you shouldn’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.”
“That’s what I’ve heard, but…”
Doubt began to settle on their faces.
Veronia could see the corners of Sandra’s mouth curl up ever so slightly at the sight. It seemed she had achieved her goal of planting a shred of doubt in their minds.
‘Indeed it is, and for once I will not let you get your way.’
When Sandra had finished her testimony, she returned to her seat, and this time Louis Farren’s father, the Earl of Farren, rose to his feet.
A middle-aged man, heavily built in contrast to the petit Louis, he strode briskly to the witness stand. When his gaze met Veronia’s, he nodded his head in greeting, his demeanor relaxed.
‘Looks like you’re ready.’
Veronia breathed a sigh of relief as she remembered her visit to him a few days ago.
The Earl of Farren’s eyes had been filled with hostility and suspicion when he first saw her. It was a look that told her she had come to the wrong place.
‘Do you trust Prince Caspian and Empress Sandra?’
‘What do you mean by that?’
‘Prince Caspian is in the greatest crisis of his life, nay, the first crisis of his life, and he will no doubt try to get out of it by any means necessary, one of which may be betrayal.’
‘Are you trying to divide us, Lady Nia? It won’t be easy.’
Louis had been one of the perpetrators, and Veronia was less than keen to help him, let alone speak to him face to face.
Still, Veronia had come to the Earl of Farren for one reason only. She had one final goal: to make sure Caspian didn’t get away with it this time.
‘In the past, the Empress and the Crown Prince would have been able to get the minor earl out of any crisis, and I’m sure he would have been very grateful.’
‘…’
‘But this time is different, because you’re unexpectedly cornered, and there’s only so much you can do. Betrayal is the last thing the Empress and Prince would consider when they’re at a dead end.’
Count Farren’s eyes fluttered helplessly. There was nothing Veronia had said that was wrong.
‘My advice is not to attack them. My advice is to be on the defensive. If you trust them blindly and prepare nothing, and they attack unexpectedly, what are you going to do then? Are you going to lose the Earl in a fit of panic?’
That was it. Having said her piece, Veronia rose to her feet. Whether or not they took her advice was their choice, she turned and left the mansion.
‘You may have raised your children poorly, but you’re not a complete idiot.’
Veronia pricked up her ears and waited for Count Farren to speak.
“Hmphh.”
Clearing his throat, Count Farren slowly opened his mouth.
“I do not stand here to exonerate my ugly son. My son has committed a sin, a long and vicious sin, and I believe he deserves all the blame and punishment he can get, but I cannot accept the false claim that he was the mastermind.”
Count Farren glared at Sandra and spoke in a bellicose, declaratory voice.
“I have prepared a rebuttal to the Empress’s statement that my son is the mastermind of this violence.”
Count Farren gestured, and three servants who had been waiting appeared, each carrying a large box. After they had presented the boxes to the judge, Count Farren resumed his remarks.
“Their relationship began when Louis was ten years old, when he became a friend His Royal Highness Prince Caspian, and these are the documents and film footage of the testimonies of those who have witnessed your relationship in the ten years between then and now. I’ve been doing a lot of footfall in the last three days.”
Count Farren gestured to the box. Veronia marvelled inwardly at how many testimonies had been gathered in such a short time.
“Some of them are from teachers who taught political science, history, and other classes, and some are from other nobles from the city, people you met at various events and parties, and some are from the costume rooms, clubhouses, and hotel staff.”
Count Farren straightened his back and spoke curiously.
“They all spoke as one. His Highness the Prince of Caspian and Louis were friends, but they still maintained a strict master-servant relationship; when the Prince gave orders, Louis obeyed.”
The Earl of Farren’s voice rose in anger. He was quite good at controlling his emotions, but by the looks on their faces, they seemed to be getting sucked into the sound of his voice.
“The Empress has said that Lois instigated the violence, and that His Highness the Prince was only there because he had no choice, but of all the testimony here, not a single person witnessed such a scene.”
The Count looked Sandra straight in the eye. The determination in his eyes, the will to never lose, made her furious.
‘How dare you!’
Sandra slowly rose to her feet. She remained standing and raised her voice.
“They say there are exceptions to everything. For the past ten years, your relationship has been one of friendship and servitude, but in this case, the Earl of Farren may have been the instigator. He has a grudge against the Marquise of Frida Mitchell.”
The Empress and the Earl of Farren argued for a while longer. They both raised their voices in defense of their son.
Then it happened. With a hiss, the door opened and five or six people walked in.
‘Oh… No way!’
Veronia’s eyes widened as she turned to the direction of the sound. The faces were all ones she recognized .
‘Lady Julia, you’re here!’
Lady Julia Richter, standing at the front of the group, smiled weakly at Veronia. The others looked at her and greeted her with their eyes. They were all people Veronia had met a few days ago.
‘I thought I hadn’t convinced you…’
Every single one of them had responded negatively. They had shaken their heads, saying that their voices would not make a difference.
They had turned away, saying that the other side was too strong, that too much time had passed, that they didn’t want to remember anymore. And now they were here in the tribunal.
‘Welcome, everyone, and thank you for your courage.’
Veronia made eye contact with each and every one of them and thanked them in her heart.
Julia Richter was the first to take the stand. Taking a deep breath, she slowly opened her mouth, her trembling voice echoing quietly in the courtroom.
“My name is Julia Richter. Five years ago, I was the victim of an assault. Just like the Marquise of Frida Mitchell. It happened suddenly during a picnic party, and as a result of that day, I have lost a lot of vision in my right eye, which makes it difficult for me to see distant objects or read for long periods of time.”
Julia’s testimony elicited sighs from some, and gasps from others. The tremor in Julia’s voice had lessened, perhaps because she was slowly getting used to the atmosphere.
“The five assailants were all masked, but I knew who one of them was: Prince Caspian. He couldn’t hide his hair, eyebrows, and eyes, and I could easily recognise the perfume, shoes, bracelets, and rings that His Highness bragged about having specially customized.”
She frowns, finding it difficult to recall the horrific circumstances. But today, she hasn’t forgotten who she is and continues her testimony.
“It was a very easy task for me. Because I have attended parties as His Highness’ partner on many occasions, and also…”
She paused, momentarily choked up, and took a deep breath to calm her chest.
“Because I liked His Highness.”
