Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor

Chapter 212

The charges against First Prince Mariv Verocion are as follows: Centered on treason and the attempted assassination of His Majesty the Emperor, they include rebellion, usurpation and loss of the imperial seal, assault on a member of the imperial family, violation of mana sealing stone management regulations, special property damage…”

The list of crimes recited by the chief judge seemed endless.

Even matters that would normally have been pardoned due to his status as a prince were now being applied in detail. It was also the will of the Judicial Department to make him bear all his sins as he falls into the abyss anyway.

The paper was turned over halfway through, but the names of the crimes continued to ring out clearly in the courtroom.

“In total, there were thirty-two charges.”

Ian clicked his pocket watch. Although they had started early in the morning, if Mariv didn’t cooperate, there was a high possibility it would continue until night. Jin, seemingly surprised by the longer-than-expected list of charges, kept staring at the back of Mariv’s head.

“Mariv Verocion, do you acknowledge these charges?”

“Some I acknowledge, some I don’t.”

“…Let’s proceed one by one then.”

This is going to take a while. Sighs erupted here and there at Mariv’s bold denial. The judges also briefly exchanged glances, looking perplexed. Since it was already public knowledge that Mariv had behaved disgracefully during the interrogation process, everyone had to be on edge, so to speak.

“First, the charge of treason. On the fifth night of this month, Mariv Verocion colluded with the Imperial Defense Department, unlawfully invaded His Majesty the Emperor’s quarters, injured the guards in the process, and inflicted harm on His Majesty the Emperor. Do you acknowledge this?”

“…”

“Commander Riama of the Imperial Guards was also with you, wasn’t she? With her at the lead, you neutralized Beols, and then after usurping the imperial seal, you entered the conference hall in the morning. Is this correct?”

“What if I say it’s not?”

“We will overrule it. Even without the defendant’s admission of guilt, there is sufficient testimony and evidence to prove the crime.”

“Haha. Then why bother asking?”

“It’s a sacred procedure of the empire.”

“Sacred procedure? How laughable. It’s just an act to give legitimacy to those twin princes sitting over there. Only when I and Gale die through this trial can those fellows stand properly, isn’t that right?”

Jin, suddenly pointed out, flinched. The gazes of the nobles pouring down from the second floor shifted from Mariv to Jin and Arsen. Arsen was looking straight ahead with an impassive expression.

“Maintain your dignity!”

“What do you want? Do you want to know every detail about that day? Whatever is written in those documents, though I can’t see from here, is probably mostly true. I confronted Gale, and I tried to kill Dilaina, who had colluded with that Gale.”

The unfiltered statement amplified the murmuring sounds from here and there. Dilaina frowned and covered her face with a fan. Her jaw was tensing up, indicating she was quite uncomfortable.

“But I decided to show mercy and kill only one of the twins. Then Dilaina, seizing the moment, pushed one of them.”

“That’s not true!”

“Lady Dilaina, be quiet!”

The chief judge banged his gavel roughly at Dilaina’s outcry. Although it had been mentioned in the grand council, hearing it firsthand was quite different from just hearing about it. The nobles whispered among themselves, questioning Dilaina’s qualifications as a guardian.

“So I struck. Jin. That wound was not inflicted by me, but by your mother, so don’t resent your older brother.”

At Mariv’s words, Jin bit his lip hard. It was truly pathetic to see him spewing such nonsensical sophistry in the sacred courtroom, without even a hint of remorse.

Perhaps reading the child’s mind? Mariv rose from his seat with a bitter smile.

“If you want to judge my crimes, go ahead. But before that, let me ask you first. If either I or Gale had emerged victorious here, what do you think you would have done? Would you have followed the aging emperor to the end and rebuked me?”

Of course not. If either Mariv or Gale had firmly secured victory, they would have rushed to prostrate themselves, proclaiming the dawn of a new era.

“How can those who change their allegiance according to the world judge me? It’s absurd, so I’d like you to stop this show trial.”

“No.”

It was Ian who directly refuted Mariv’s words. He raised his hand to the judge to gain the right to speak, then stood up.

“Condemnation should, by nature, be conducted as a show. That way, in the future, some fool won’t follow in His Highness Mariv’s footsteps. It’s a powerful warning from Bariel that if you go down that path, this is the end that awaits you.”

So, he meant that the judges should not get caught up in nonsense and proceed as they were.

Mariv was testing the waters right now. He was quickly calculating what attitude to show in the trial to make it even slightly more favorable for himself.

The worst-case scenario would be stripping him of his imperial family name and hanging, the next worst would be mere beheading, and if a miracle occurred, they might postpone the trial.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

“Mariv Verocion, next I will ask about the charges related to the violation of mana sealing stone management. Is it true that you knew the unregistered amber-colored raw stone named ‘Idgal’ absorbed mana, and used it for treason?”

Mariv merely nodded his head briefly instead of answering.

“Where did the funds to purchase this come from?”

“Hmm. Well…”

Mariv delayed his answer for a moment, wiggling his crossed arms. Then he looked up at the second floor and smiled amusedly.

“There, Marquis Jalton’s brother-in-law gave me quite a precious gem for proceeding with the central repair construction last year. Did I sell that to make it?”

“What? Me? Your Highness Mariv, this is Jalton you’re talking about.”

“Right. Ah! No. Besides that, I did make a profit by officially approving the medicine made in Bisgard. You know, the one that was supposed to have pain-relieving effects.”

Oh? See that? Ian unknowingly sneered and tilted his head. The parties Mariv mentioned stood up in surprise and protested.

“It’s slander! Absolutely nothing like that happened!”

“Calm down, Marquis Jalton.”

“This concerns my honor, so please clarify it clearly. His Highness Mariv. What are you trying to do now? Huh?”

Vehement denials could be heard from the second floor, but Mariv just shrugged his shoulders as if uninterested. When he asked the chief judge for order, the judge had no choice but to dismiss Jalton.

“Marquis Jalton, leave the courtroom for an hour.”

Bang bang!

“No, wait! Wait!”

While the agitated man was being dragged away by the guards, the other nobles maintained silence and wore tense expressions. They had realized what Mariv was trying to do now.

As he had been the most powerful person in Bariel after the emperor, he could recite the nobles’ private shames even with his eyes closed.

“Shall we continue?”

Mariv elegantly gestured, instructing the chief judge to proceed. By this point, some of the judges also had skeletons in their closets. They rolled their eyes at each other with a sense of “surely not.”

“I understand that an opportunity for a final statement is given after the sentencing. That, more than anything else, will prove my innocence. I’m looking forward to it.”

It was a kind of threat, implying that after the judges, imperial family members, and palace officials impose punishment on Mariv, they would give him a chance to speak.

“Let’s see. Many have changed due to the incident, but there are still quite a few faces I recognize.”

“Mariv Verocion, speak only about matters related to the trial!”

“I answered sincerely when asked about the source of funds, so why are you like this? Or is there a different answer you want? You’re the ones desecrating this sacred court by putting me, a prince, in this position.”

His words flowed like water. The chief judge continued in a much more subdued tone.

“How did you come to collude with the Imperial Defense Department and Riama?”

“Colomo from the Administrative Department, are you here?”

“…Gasp.”

“Ah, there you are. It’s been a while, nice to see you. It was thanks to that fellow, Colomo, that the three of us met in one place. Colomo was on very good terms privately with the Minister of the Imperial Defense Department. And Riama was also Colomo’s ex-lover, although he had a wife at the time-“

“It’s not true! It’s not!”

“Well, when I speak, everyone just denies everything. I wonder if my testimony even has any legal effect.”

Romandro bit his lip hard and turned to look at Ian. Not just him. All the high-ranking officials of the palace were glancing at Ian, subtly hoping for help. It’s said that those with nothing to lose are the most frightening, but isn’t this going too far? Their expressions clearly showed their desire for someone to shut the mouth of that crazy prince.

The mages whispered and added a word each.

“I-Ian. The situation is getting a bit awkward.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to take action? The palace is already in turmoil, and if it’s shaken by all sorts of nonsense, that’s also harmful to Bariel.”

“Lord Ian. Everyone is just staring at us.”

“This is driving me crazy. Is he going to be like this until the end? Has he thrown away all dignity and honor as a prince to the dogs?”

Ian clicked his tongue as he watched the out-of-control Mariv. Some of the nobles on the second floor were hurriedly leaving their seats, afraid they might be mentioned. His cunning was truly supreme. Ian reluctantly raised his hand again.

“Oh, Lord Ian!”

“If I may, please look at the report prepared by the Ministry of Magic. Throughout the interrogation, Prince Mariv testified to things clearly different from the facts, and this is considered a strategy to disrupt the trial.”

Rustle.

At Ian’s words, the sound of papers being turned could be heard here and there. It was written that everything was done on Ian’s orders, that they had met Ian in Bratz territory before, and other completely unreliable things, along with objective data refuting these claims, all neatly attached.

“I ask that you take this into consideration when making your judgment.”

It was a tacit agreement. Mariv was now doing all sorts of outrageous things to survive, so let’s all agree not to take his words as truth.

In other words, it was a signal to endure the humiliation together for a swift and accurate trial proceeding, as whether Mariv’s testimony was true or false wasn’t immediately important.

“Hmm. I see. Indeed.”

“In this case, it might be good to change the form of questioning.”

“Understood. It’s a reasonable suggestion, so we’ll accept it. Prince Mariv, from now on, answer only with ‘Yes’ or ‘No’. Everything else will be overruled.”

Bang! Bang bang!

Although Mariv seemed a bit disappointed, he showed no signs of yielding. Everyone knows it’s all true anyway. The anxiety about the revelations will continue to linger.

“Next is about the special property damage. The list of imperial palace properties destroyed due to the rebellion is as follows. The entire first palace and the right wing of the main building, second floor,…”

It would be best to be thorough but quick. The judge made this decision and spoke rapidly. Whenever Mariv tried to say anything other than “Yes” or “No,” he quickly brought down his gavel to cut off his words. Perhaps this judge also had some weakness that Mariv could exploit.

Bang bang!

“That concludes the thirty-two charges against Mariv Verocion. Following the laws of the imperial palace and the instructions of His Majesty the Emperor, I propose to strip the prince of his imperial family name and sentence him to hanging. Everyone, show your will.”

Stripping of the Verocion name and hanging, is it? Mariv closed his eyes tightly and sighed. He had struggled to the end, but was it futile?

“Show your will.”

At the chief judge’s words, Mariv opened his eyes and looked back. Strangely, no one was raising their hand first to agree. They were avoiding being the conspicuous first, afraid that Mariv might self-destruct to the very end.

“Haha. What are you all doing? Come on, show your agreement.”

Mariv shouted, draping one arm over the chair as if he had caught them all perfectly. Dilaina, too, glanced at Arsen while covering her face with a fan.

“…Arsen?”

“There’s no need to go first. Why step in filth and get into trouble? Wait a bit.”

Even Arsen didn’t know as intimately as Mariv what his followers had been up to behind the scenes. Everyone tacitly knew that the revelations were true. Even if ignored in the courtroom, they would eventually return as a blade.

Swish.

In a moment of truly heavy and strange silence.

“I am Jin Verocion, the Fifth Prince.”

Jin raised his small hand to show his agreement. Ian, sitting to his left, had discreetly given him the signal that it was okay. When no one steps forward, being the first to do so is worth the risk in many ways.

“I agree with the court’s judgment.”

Especially for someone aiming for the imperial throne.