Fredderich Kaine's trial had resumed in the very Throne Hall.
At the center of the chamber now stood a guard named Knyyt Rye, delivering testimony.
"And for several days before his death," the young guard continued nervously, "Lord Rudeus kept more guards than usual. We rotated shifts outside his chambers at all hours. He dismissed his servants early. Locked the doors himself each night."
Fredder Kaine yawned loudly from the Kaine gallery. The sound carried far. Several heads turned.
Isla Kaine shut her eyes briefly in irritation while beside her, young Eobard struggled not to grin.
Boren ignored the disruption. "Describe the night of the murder." He asked Knyyt Rye.
Rye swallowed.
"'Twas a quiet night, my lord. Nothing unusual. My watchmate and I were present all night. No scream nor struggle. No visitor — at least not through the door." He hesitated. "His doors were locked from the inside. Had to break it down the next day when we found him, as you know."
Abigail leaned slightly forward upon the throne.
"Your watchmate, would he provide this same testimony before the court?"
Rye froze. His face drained of colour. His eyes flicked toward the right gallery for a quick moment, then back to the Queen.
Boren interjected before he could answer. "The second guard disappeared shortly after Lord Rudeus's body was discovered, Your Majesty. He remains missing. Most likely the fool fled in panic. Retainers are often blamed when their lord dies under their watch."
"How convenient," Abigail remarked.
Boren nodded once. "Indeed, I shared the same suspicion initially. Until Headmaster Esq personally inspected the chamber for Runic residue." He turned toward Esq in the right gallery. "And he confirmed Runecraft had indeed been used inside the chamber."
Quiet murmurs stirred in the right gallery. Whispers that Rudeus wasn't a Runecaster, then concluding that the killer entered his chamber using Runecraft.
Abigail called on Esq next.
The Headmaster descended from the section for Councilmen on the right gallery.
Meanwhile, Fredder rose casually from the Kaine gallery.
Isla noticed. "Fredder—" she called.
He ignored her and began walking.
Esq stopped before the throne and bowed his head respectfully. "What Boren speaks is true," he confirmed. "Runic residue was thick in the chamber. Unfortunately, distinguishing one Runecaster's residue from another is impossible."
Fredder continued walking down the gallery stairs.
"However," Esq continued, "to infiltrate a guarded place without disturbance, not many Runes can accomplish such a feat. The surest would be Shadow Conjuration."
Now the hall grew attentive.
"Doors and walls mean nothing to a Conjurer of shadows. The Academy has not produced a student capable of learning that Rune for generations."
Fredder reached the floor below.
"The only living Runemaster we know who wields it is currently under Kaine employ… Lord Kaine's own Sealbearer."
Master Leef condemned Esq's testimony as immaterial conjecture.
"I had heard of the nameless Conjurer in the Kaine employ," said Abigail. "Can he account for his whereabouts on the night of the murder? Can you, Master Leef?"
"The Sealbearer is currently absent, Your Majesty. But myself and many others can alibi for him. The murder occurred hardly a full day after his return from the Black Batch expedition. He suffered fatal wounds and was being tended to at the time. All in service of Elsem, I might add."
"By 'many others,' you mean other Kaine retainers, correct?" said Boren.
"If only prejudice were a crime, Lord Boren," Master Leef retorted.
A sudden squeal silenced the hall all at once as Fredder dragged a chair across the floor.
Every eye turned.
The squeal echoed unbearably long before he finally stopped directly across from Abigail's throne.
Then he sat like he owned the court.
Shock blanketed the room. So quiet you could hear a needle drop.
Even Boren was speechless for several moments before fury overtook him. "How dare—"
Fredder raised a finger without even looking at him. "You know," he interrupted, "it has always fascinated me how men misjudge their personal limitations for laws of nature."
He leaned back comfortably in the chair. "A man fails at a thing, and suddenly thinks nobody alive can accomplish it."
His eyes drifted toward Esq. "Interesting philosophy for an educator."
Esq looked bitter.
"For those of you who may not remember him, let me tell you about my friend, Caelis."
"We will not suffer your impudence nor digression today!" Boren barked.
Fredder continued regardless. "Caelis could distinguish residual Runestrings of casters. It really isn't impossible as the esteemed Headmaster would lead you to believe."
Boren's face reddened with uncontainable rage. "General, detain the insolent boy!" he barked toward Tobii.
Tobii wanted to more than anything. Guards glanced toward him, waiting for the order. But today he would not act on impulse. He turned instead toward the Queen.
Boren too looked to her urgently.
She did not respond. Outwardly she maintained regal composure, but inwardly her thoughts raced through every possible consequence of handling the situation incorrectly.
As if Fredder could read the thoughts behind her eyes, he leaned back farther, crossed his legs, and sighed. "I suppose that says something unfortunate about the Rune Academy's standards."
Esq's eyes widened in outrage.
General Schar rose from his seat so abruptly that his chair toppled backward.
Satorii turned.
A torrent of sand surged across the hall like a charging beast.
"SCHAR! NO!" Abigail shouted.
Too late.
The large mass extended from Schar's living sand arm and rushed toward Fredder.
Fredder merely turned.
The sand stopped abruptly. The entire construct froze in midair. Every grain motionless. Schar himself frozen with it.
A moment of utter, confused silence ensued.
Kaine bodyguards rushed to Fredder's side.
Royal guards raised weapons. Only then did Esq realize what had stopped Schar.
Light Conjuration.
Before he could react, a bolt of shadow streaked through the hall and struck the immobilized General.
Schar vanished. Erased from existence.
Gasps rippled through the chamber.
From the direction of the attack, shadows erased a nearby wall. The Sealbearer stepped through.
Order in the Throne Hall fractured.
Soldiers shifted forward. Weapons rose.
Runestrings flared from Esq's fingertips.
Knyyt Dravane stepped protectively before the Queen.
Every shuffling boot threatened bloodshed.
Royal guards held formation.
Kaine men stood ready.
Both sides on the verge of conflict.
No one moved. No one wished to be first.
Then Fredder rose. "Enough." The single word cut through the tension.
Silence deepened.
Fredder stood slowly from his chair, letting his authority settle across the room. Then he bowed his head toward Abigail with affected humility. "Forgive our aggression, my Queen. It is only instinct that my kin would defend their lord. After all, it was an agent of the Crown who attacked first. But rest assured, the… passionate General will be returned shortly. Out of fealty to the Crown, Kaine Sect shall not seek retribution for the attack."
Boren snapped. "Curse you, boy! I should have your head on—"
"Boren!" Abigail's voice cracked through the hall. Her expression matched her tone. "You will be quiet or be removed from this court."
Boren fell silent.
"You all will be quiet!" She added. Only then did she turn back to Fredder, calmed her anger. "The Crown acknowledges your restraint, Lord Kaine."
"I am but your humble servant," he replied. "Might I propose a swifter method of resolving this volatile affair?"
Guards still surrounded the Sealbearer. Abigail ordered them to stand down.
"Do you intend to confess your crimes?" she asked.
"Not particularly."
"Then what are you proposing?"
"A duel. The Crown's champion against my champion."
"No." Her refusal came immediately. "Those old ways have long been abolished."
"And a wise reform it was. Innocence and guilt should only be determined by innocence or guilt. Never by strength." He began pacing slowly before the throne. "However, what I propose is not a Trial by Combat. Rather, an Oath-Bound. The form of settlement our ancestors often employed to prevent wars between their peoples."
The hall listened.
"If the Kaine champion loses, I shall accept lifelong exile from Elsem regardless of this court's verdict. I will renounce my title as Lord Kaine and succession shall pass to either of my siblings, whom I trust the Crown will find more agreeable."
"Fredderich!" Isla snapped from the gallery. "What are you doing?"
He raised a hand to silence her. His eyes never left Abigail.
"And if your champion wins?" the Queen asked.
Everyone waited.
Fredder smiled. "Should my champion win, His Majesty King Eielhart shall allow the High Council to appoint his regent. There are councilmen who believe the King too young to have made such an important selection. Let these experienced councilors vote for the best regent until Eielhart comes of age." He paused. "Exactly three days after the duel. One vote for each council seat — including Your Majesty herself."
Boren's eyes brightened at the opportunity. The decrepit old man nearly leaned forward in anticipation.
The Queen's silence lengthened. Her eyes scanned the hall.
To Valda.
To Tobii.
To Esq.
To Satorii.
Then to Boren.
In her eyes, all their faces seemed darkened by the shadows of self-interest. Yet she also understood that if Fredder's trial continued in its current form, only war waited at the end of it.
Fredder exchanged a brief glance with the Sealbearer.
The Conjurer released his Rune.
General Schar reappeared instantly. Exactly as he had vanished.
The mass of sand he had thrust forward slammed into the floor.
The hall shook.
Fredder's abandoned chair smashed to splinters.
Immediate regret overtook Schar. His conjuration lost shape and collapsed across the cracked stone. Confusion followed as he now saw Fredder standing unharmed several paces away. His mind struggling to understand what had happened.
Then Abigail raised her voice. "Remove yourself from this hall, General!"
He had never seen her so visibly furious like this. Schar lowered his head. He obeyed without argument, disappointed in his own lack of restraint.
Yet as he passed the Sealbearer, he exchanged one final challenging scowl with him.
"So?" Fredder asked to Abigail. "What say you, Your Majesty?"