The holy relic is a fake.
With that one sentence, the atmosphere in the hall turned cold.
"Duke Winteren, no matter how hard it is to accept the result, this is blasphemy."
The Emperor himself stepped forward to rebuke Lennox.
And it wasn't just the Emperor.
Everyone seemed unwilling to believe Lennox.
"You did well to bring this."
At Lennox's gesture, Pippin brought forward a balance scale identical to the one Helios was holding.
"This one is real."
"That's impossible."
"You can check for yourself. Isn't that right, Princess?"
Ignoring Helios's rebuttal, Lennox turned his gaze to Alice.
If the relic loaned from the Imperial treasury was a fake, then who could have pulled such a trick?
Naturally, it would have been the temple.
Alice looked at the two men with doubtful eyes.
"Good. I'll verify it myself."
At Alice's words, Helios held up both scales in his hands.
"My name is Alice."
Both tilted to the right.
"I am a commoner."
Both tilted to the left.
"With such trivial facts, it's hard to discern the truth. It seems I'll need to reveal a secret that no one else knows in order to make a judgment…"
Alice crooked her finger at Helios.
"From now on, I'll reveal secrets known only to me, directly to the relic. You must channel divine power into it."
"Understood."
"Everyone, cover your ears!"
"..."
"You too, Father."
Once she confirmed that everyone had their ears covered, Alice whispered so that no one else could hear.
"I like Minimyu, the plays mostly watched by children. Very much."
The two scales tilted in opposite directions.
"I like righteous protagonists."
Again, they tilted in opposite directions.
"This one is real."
Alice, who had been carefully examining the two scales, pointed with a tone full of certainty.
At her fingertip was the scale Lennox had brought.
It was the one that had marked truth when she said she liked Minimyu, and false when she said she liked righteous protagonists.
"This one is definitely the real one. I guarantee it in the name of the Imperial family."
What kind of question did the Princess ask to be able to declare that with such conviction?
No—more importantly, the relic borrowed from the temple turned out to be a fake!
The hall erupted into murmurs.
Helios forced a smile, straining to hide his unease, while Alice looked calmly at Lennox.
"Priest, the matter of the relic will be addressed once the banquet is over. For now, we'll continue with questions using the real relic."
"Princess, but—"
"Priest, what did I just say?"
"After the banquet…"
"Good. Then stop wasting words and channel your divine power into this."
Without pause, the Princess began her questioning.
"Does Lennox Winteren love Estellelele?"
"…Yes."
It was the same answer as before.
And the scale…
"It's the truth!"
The scale tilted to the right—pointing to truth.
Everyone was stunned, and even Lennox found himself shocked.
What?
For an instant, he almost blurted it out, but with sheer will he managed to hold his tongue.
Lennox truly loved Estellelele.
That was the truth revealed by the genuine relic.
As both the subject and the onlookers reeled in disbelief, Alice, her voice trembling, turned to Estellelele.
"Estellelele, do you love Lennox Winteren?"
Her expression was already one of utter defeat, as though the realization that Lennox's feelings for Estellelele were real had dealt her a heavy blow.
"Yes."
Estellelele replied in the same tone and with the same expression as she had to the first question.
But the scale tilted the other way.
Left.
False.
"..."
"What… what just happened?"
"But they said that was the real relic!"
The banquet hall erupted into murmurs once again.
Estellelele, too, had to fight desperately to keep from showing her surprise.
Didn't I think the Duke tampered with the relic? Wasn't that why it showed 'truth' when asked if he loved me?
Countless questions swirled in her mind.
And Lennox…
No, what is this?
He, too, was filled with doubt.
Contrary to Estellelele's suspicion, Lennox had done nothing to the genuine relic.
Normally, it should have tilted to 'false' for everything.
Lennox's original plan had been simple:
Reveal the real relic.
Expose that the relic borrowed from the temple was a fake.
Naturally shift everyone's focus away from House Winteren.
So why did it turn out like this?
With his plan falling apart, Lennox was forced to improvise.
"Displeasing."
That was it—he chose to brazen it out.
Lennox snatched the relic straight from Helios's hands.
"You shouldn't touch it carelessly before we've properly verified—"
"I was the one who fell for her first, and the one who confessed first."
Lennox mercilessly cut Helios off mid-sentence.
But no one pointed it out.
Because what followed was far more shocking.
"But she refused me. Of course she did. With the stigma of being accused of killing her husband, it wouldn't have been easy for her to accept."
Nods, nods.
Everyone listened intently to his words.
"Even so, I told her it didn't matter."
"Gasp…!"
Exclamations burst out here and there.
"I said I didn't care about her past, and proposed marriage anyway. In return, I offered her a great fortune—just for one year."
"One year?"
"Yes. With the condition that if, after one year, she still felt nothing for me, she would be free to leave. And since it seems she still has no feelings for me, I suppose I'm still lacking."
A man who looked as though he'd never even loved anyone before… now begging for love.
Alice was aghast.
"But Duke Winteren! Then what of Lady Hazel Langster's claim that she heard you were seeking a one-year wife?"
"Seems someone wanted to make a fool of me."
"I have many enemies, so all sorts of strange people tend to gather around me. Lady Langster, do you have proof that the rumor you heard was started by me?"
"N-no… I only happened to overhear it in passing, and even then I half-doubted it…"
"So, no proof."
At that moment, the murmuring in the hall grew louder.
"W-wait a moment!"
If things went on like this, she would look like someone who stirred up trouble for nothing. Hazel hastily raised her hand.
"Back then, the Duke pointed his sword at his wife! I saw it with my own eyes!"
"Ah, that."
Lennox's response was indifferent.
"What was his name again? Right—Daniel Nultia. He was pestering my wife, so I drew my sword. But my wife has such a kind heart… she actually defended that scoundrel instead."
As he recalled the memory while speaking, Lennox's irritation seemed to flare again. He raked his hand roughly through his hair and turned to Alice.
"How many times do I have to repeat that I'm the only one who loves this woman before you'll finally let it go?"
A heavy silence settled over the hall.
"Let's end the chatter about my private and dull love life here. The real problem right now is the temple, which has been providing false relics."
"..."
"According to the Princess's noble convictions, shouldn't the temple be held accountable before a husband who merely loves his wife one-sidedly?"
"I…"
Alice's face turned pale, and she cried out like a scream.
"I can't believe this!"
"Alice!"
Alice fled.
The Emperor hurried after her, and the hall erupted into noise.
Seizing the moment, Lennox raised his voice.
"Priest, now that it's been revealed the relic is a fake, how do you feel? Shouldn't you at least make a statement here?"
"I… I feel truly… embarrassed and regretful."
"Is that all?"
Lennox's brow furrowed.
"Yes. I haven't been a high priest for long. That makes it difficult for me to provide a clear explanation of this incident."
Cough, cough.
As Chelios answered, he broke into a fit of coughing.
His delicate features only drew more sympathy from those watching.
"Brother, you must rest!"
Unable to stand it any longer, another junior priest rushed forward to support the staggering Helios.
"Brother Chelios has exhausted himself by using too much divine power. He is unwell and must return to the temple."
Lennox let out a derisive laugh.
The Helios he knew was not the kind of man to collapse this easily.
"We must return to the temple and report to His Holiness at once."
"But your complexion is poor."
"This is a matter concerning the possibility of a false relic. Surely that must take precedence over my health."
Saying this, Helios looked directly at Lennox.
"Duke, since the relic must be verified, please hand it over to me…"
"And trust you?"
"…What?"
"What guarantee is there that a swindler who deceived once won't deceive again?"
"…Very well. I will do my utmost to regain your trust."
Judging that persuading Lennox now was impossible, Helios left with the junior priest supporting him.
"Running away with his tail between his legs."
Lennox sneered at Helios.
As the situation settled down somewhat, Estellelele gestured toward Duren, who was standing awkwardly by himself.
"Duren."
"Hm?"
Wandering among strangers, Duren immediately turned to Estellelele.
Seeing that, Lennox, who had been hesitating at the side, also beckoned.
"Son, come here."
Son? Me?
Is he calling me?
Duren's eyes seemed to ask the question, and Lennox gave him a nod.
But Duren's gaze was still suspicious.
Son doesn't sound like my name…
"Son."
Lennox called again, and this time, to show he meant it, he formed a small circle with his thumb and forefinger.
Duren stared intently at the gesture, then suddenly dashed forward.
And then—
Hop!
He popped his nose right into the circle.
"Here!"
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