The nobles gathered once more in court.
This time, the entourage came more prepared than ever. They would not make the same mistakes. Seven witnesses were present, each representing one of the missing houses. It was a symbolic number, and perhaps also a message. The judge was not the same as last time. He wore the Rising Sun badge attached to his chest —a coat of arms of royal authority. This meant that the Crown was paying attention, and that this trial had already gone beyond the limits of a simple dispute between families.
Accompanying the judge were two Masters of Combat. Experienced warriors, with a hard expression, ready to protect the integrity of the one who would judge my fate.
The audience had also grown. The hall was packed, murmurs hung in the air like flies over fresh meat. The tension was palpable. The entourage of Casa Violeta stood out among the others. A tall, broad-shouldered man stood out in the midst of his elegant attire—his brown hair and golden eyes, as arrogant as they were cold, followed me intently as I entered. He wore baggy clothes, of noble linen, but the muscles under the fabric betrayed that he was not just a politician or advisor. Probably a warrior of noble blood.
The presentation ceremony followed the protocols. The trial began at dawn, as tradition dictates, with the windows at the top allowing the first beams of golden light to illuminate the center of the hall.
This time, I was called to speak first.
My footsteps echoed in absolute silence as I walked to the center of the courthouse. I felt everyone's eyes on me—curious, fearful, judgmental.
I kept my hands behind my back, my posture upright, firm. My armor was heavier than the last time, custom-made for me now. The high shoulders and the rigid collar gave an imposing that I never had before. I've grown in the last two months—not just in stature, but in presence. The transformation in me was visible, and that's what I wanted.
My hair flowed down my armor halfway down my back, dark as the smoke of a night fire. My skin, once scarred by country life, now had a pale, grayish hue, an unusual, almost unnatural coloration. But it was my eyes that bothered me the most.
No shine. Without humanity.
I noticed the uncomfortable looks. The whispers. The eyes averting. It was enough for them to look at me once and they already knew what they meant: evil. That was the word that pulsed in the back of their throats.
And you know what?
I let them say. I wish they thought that. Because what would come next would require them to fear me more than they loved me.
"Look at that" my counselor murmured, leaning slightly toward me as we watched the silent courtroom. "As soon as he starts defending, do as we trained. There is no reason to fear suspicion, we naturally have the advantage. Everything has already been decided"
His words rang hollow to me. I knew exactly what to do. The plan was already laid out, the card game open—now I just needed to play them firmly.
The judge straightened up in his chair, cleared his throat and gave me a stern look.
"Zaatar Udrak" said in a solemn, almost theatrical voice. "Do you own up to the crimes you are being accused of?"
I looked around the room. The silence weighed like lead. I could feel the eyes on me: judgment, expectation, hatred disguised as virtue. I took a deep breath, felt my chest expand, and spoke in the deepest, firmest voice I could muster that morning:
"Yes. I take over"
The murmur of surprise could barely break through the ice of the moment. I continued, keeping my gaze firmly on the judge, but listening to the sighs and small noises of incredulity that came from the prosecution's entourage.
"I started the advance. I had relations with Victoria while still in school. I was immature at the time, I'm not going to lie. She would say 'no' and yet I would drag her into dark corners and... I paused briefly, swallowed, and then completed with a cold shrug: "Sorry. I couldn't control myself"
The impact was immediate.
The prosecution's entourage froze. Their faces turned pale, their eyes wide. They expected denial, they expected crying, they expected me to thrash like a cornered rat. But no. I threw everything in their laps. And he smiles inwardly as he sees the panic grow in silence.
Arsino, one of the nobles seated next to him, leaned slightly and muttered something I heard even in the distance:
"Young people are really immature and hot-blooded..."
He looked... surprised? Admired, even. Not out of sympathy, but perhaps because I see courage in admitting what no one expected.
Tenehir, next to him, also relaxed her shoulders a little and crossed her arms, nodding slowly.
"At least he didn't deny it like a spoiled child" he said, in a tone that bordered on respect.
"Admitting the mistake is the first step" murmured another nobleman, without looking away from me.
All three turned almost at the same time to the seven representatives of the court, as if silently asking, "What now?"
I broke their minds.
Two whole months — bribes, bought officials, corrupted teachers, forged evidence, even a bought judge. Not to mention the gold that gushed from the pockets of the Primavera family, trying to move the gears so that everything would work out.
But now... It was all in vain.
Every coin spent, every effort made, thrown down the drain.
I could smell the frustration coming from their rep. The man gasped, he seemed about to have a heart attack just thinking about the money wasted, the effort lost.
Did he work like a convict, just for nothing?
Then the judge's voice cut through the silence.
"Miss Victoria accused you of physical assault, is that true?" the judge's voice sounded firm, cutting through the silence of the room.
I just raised a crooked smile, a disgusting smile, the kind that shows what I really think.
"Precisely" I replied, letting the arrogance drip from every word. "When she tried to resist my advances, I punched her belly and threatened to rip off her ears. I don't know why she's angry, considering how she moaned like an animal"
My gaze met the audience's, looking for a reaction, causing discomfort. I didn't care about judgments, or indignation. At that moment, I had nothing to lose.
"Blasphemy!" I heard the representative shout, his face red with fury, completely losing his composure.
"Stop telling lies!" the surrounding audience roared, the murmur turning into a chorus of indignation. But I just smiled, calm, almost defiant.
I waited for their anger to calm down a bit, so I turned to the nobles sitting in the courtroom, eyes fixed, voice steady.
"I'm not telling lies" he said. "Otherwise, why wouldn't she report it sooner to her family? I crossed paths with her like a horse for months, and they were good times. The way she shuddered every time I came inside her will be etched in my memory"
The face of the man from the Violet house entourage, brown hair and golden eyes, went completely crazy with what I said, the almost visible fury pulsing on his skin.
I could see the hatred burning there, but the truth, that raw truth, had been told. And there was no turning back.