I Wasn't Trying to Seduce with the Male Lead - Episode 100

Standing on the podium, Adrian involuntarily swallowed at the sight before him. The square was packed with the most people he had ever seen in his life. The public holds an overwhelming power, and it was even more so for Adrian, who was not used to it. Just as his legs felt like they would give way from the tension and he gripped the podium with his arm, he felt a dull pain and bit his lip.

It’s already been a while.

He was still not used to not having a hand and kept making the same mistake. Seeing the empty end of his arm still brought an unspeakable feeling. He tried hard not to show it, but he had shed tears for far more days than people knew. Adrian lifted his gaze, which had been cast down with a bitter expression. His sadness turned to rage towards the person who had done this to him.

Everyone needs to know this.

Right in front of him, that person wore a detestable expression. Adrian swallowed and took a deep breath.

“It was the night the birthday celebration ended.”

As he opened his mouth, the atmosphere in the hall became quiet. Adrian continued in a low but clear voice.

“I was preparing to return home. As I was packing, someone knocked on my door. When I went out, something blunt struck my head, and when I opened my eyes, I was already there.”

The feeling of waking up there was still vivid. Adrian struggled to convey the situation as he recalled the memory.

“The place was dark, damp, narrow, and filthy. But what tormented me the most were the scratch marks etched into the walls.”

The marks of fingernails scraping the wall. The bloodstains still remaining below them. The pleas for help carved in various places. The marks estimating the dates. And…

“I was not the only one who was trapped there and suffered a terrible fate. Linea, Fallen, Cesare, Christina… Unlike me, those who couldn’t escape and passed away desperately carved their names on the walls. Lipiel, Dana, Hans…”

They must have left their names, wanting to somehow let others know that they had died there. Adrian knew their despair better than anyone, so he tried his best to remember all their names. It was Eleanor who suggested he call out all the names he remembered in front of everyone. Despite the long list of names, the public did not show any sign of boredom. By Adrian’s naming, those who had died in the underground became not just victims, but human beings with names.

“Oh, Violet.”

The cry of a noblewoman echoed from somewhere.

“The walls were full of curses directed at the Princess. For the first few days, I still had faith in the Imperial Family, but after a while, I, too, began to carve my anger onto the walls.”

After that, Adrian listed the torments he had to endure in the underground. As the poor conditions, constant torture, and verbal abuse came from his mouth, the audience gasped. Even after Biancasta’s words were revealed to be false, the public listened attentively to Adrian’s story. His seething emotions made it impossible to be an act, but perhaps everyone had someone with the same name as one of the many names he mentioned. Even if they weren’t actual victims, his calling out of the names naturally made the audience substitute their loved ones for them, and as a result, they fully empathized.

“She smiled and said she needed a gift to send to Lady Biancasta Weiss. After that, a knight appeared from behind her and drew his sword.”

As the story reached its climax, tears and screams erupted from all sides. Then, the Princess, who had been covering her mouth with a handkerchief and bowing her head, stood up abruptly.

“No! How could I do such a thing!”

The Princess stood up, shaking her pale face.

“That’s so mean. I can’t even imagine such a horrible thing.”

Claude interrupted the Princess’s shouting.

“Your Highness the Princess, please be seated. We must listen to Adrian’s testimony now.”

“But that’s so unfair! Just now, he tried to frame me with a ridiculous lie about some kind of magic!”

“That part has nothing to do with the current testimony…”

“It does! Adrian and Biancasta are close!”

When the Princess shouted, the hall stirred again.

“They’re working together to ruin me. This is so unfair. How dare you, after everything I’ve done…”

“Stop it!”

This time, it was Adrian who shouted. With an icy fury in his eyes, he continued to yell.

“How dare you say you’re being wronged in front of me! In front of me, who lost a hand because of you!”

Adrian stepped away from the witness stand and approached the Princess. The guards tried to block him, but his voice rang out regardless.

“What I lost because of you isn’t just a hand! I lost the swordsmanship I had practiced my whole life, I can’t hold a quill to write a letter, and I won’t be able to hold my lover’s hand to dance! All of that might have just looked like a piece of meat to you!”

The anger that erupted from the depths of his body had an overwhelming power. Even the guards who stood in his way didn’t dare to try and stop his voice.

“I didn’t do that. It must be a misunderstanding…”

“It is absolutely not a misunderstanding. Even if I can’t remember the owner of the horrible sword hilt that cut off my hand, I distinctly remember the movement of your lips commanding it to be cut.”

Adrian stared directly at the Princess. There was no trace of the cruel smile from that day on her face. She was just a frail, trembling girl who looked scared. However, he could clearly see the dark shadow cast behind her.

“No matter how much you deny it, you cannot deceive the heavens. The blood of those you killed is unmistakably stained on your deceitful face.”

Even after all this, the Princess was still shaking her head. At this point, it was enough to make one wonder if she had a split personality and truly believed her own crimes were not real.

“How can you say you didn’t do it? In front of the people of the empire you are supposed to rule, in front of me who bled because of you, you offer deception instead of an apology.”

Adrian shook off the guards who were holding him and turned around. He raised his voice towards Claude, who was seated on the podium.

“Chief Justice, I have evidence that will show the Princess’s ugly true nature more clearly than anything else.”

“What is it?”

Instead of answering, Adrian turned his head and raised his arm. It was a prearranged signal.

“What are you doing?”

The Princess, who had been tilting her head in confusion, stiffened. She had seen the knights in dark metal armor appear from behind her. They were the underground knights who were subservient to her and followed her commands.

“Who are those people?”

Count Edelce asked, seeing the knights climbing onto the podium. Before Adrian could answer, the Princess shouted in a sharp voice.

“What are you doing here! Go back at once!”

However, the knights with vacant eyes did not stop. The Princess seemed very flustered that those who had sworn an oath of servitude to her were not obeying.

“What! Why aren’t you listening to me! I said disappear right now!”

When they didn’t listen no matter how much she shouted, the Princess immediately commanded the guards.

“T-those people are from the underground dungeon and are not supposed to be in front of the public! Get them out of here at once!”

However, Claude stopped the guards who were moving to seize the knights.

“Stop. I will adopt them as witnesses for this trial.”

“That’s ridiculous! Stop it right now!”

The Princess’s voice completely broke.

“One must be quiet in the courtroom. Escort Her Highness back to her seat.”

At Claude’s command, the guards led the Princess back to her seat. Adrian raised the corner of his mouth, watching her struggle as she was dragged away.

“Who are you?”

“We are knights of the Imperial Guard who work in the underground passage.”

“Have you ever seen Her Highness the Princess in the underground?”

“Yes, we have.”

The murmuring in the hall did not subside with the appearance of the knights. Claude banged his gavel to quiet them down and commanded, “Tell us everything you saw, heard, and did in the underground dungeon.”

As the command was given, the underground knights began to speak.

“We captured Adrian and imprisoned him in the underground at the command of the Princess.”

“I cut off his wrist with a sword.”

“We put it in a box and moved it to Rosagrande.”

The monotone voices speaking simultaneously were chilling. Claude, who had been listening seriously to their testimony, raised his strict-looking nose and asked, “You are knights of His Majesty the Emperor. Why did you carry out such a terrible command for Her Highness the Princess?”

“She put us under a magical oath of servitude.”

The quiet hall was once again thrown into a commotion.

“It’s a lie!”

As the Princess shrieked, Adrian stood up to stop her outburst.

“There’s a simple way to prove it. We have the Stringstone.”

Claude was already wearing the Stringstone he had received earlier to check Biancasta’s oath.

“If you are truly innocent, extend your hand toward the Chief Justice.”

Adrian’s voice was full of confidence, but inside, he was completely tense. This was a kind of gamble. From what he had heard of the situation behind the scenes, the underground knights were subservient to Sky. Naturally, the lines extending from them would not lead to the Princess.

Refuse the verification, Adrian prayed inwardly. Unlike other oaths, an oath of servitude could not be undone on the spot by the caster. While it wasn’t a very complicated ritual, doing it right now with all this attention was out of the question. There was no way for the Princess to escape right now. I hope she doesn’t get caught.

Given that the underground knights had disobeyed her command, she might have realized something was wrong. If she confidently extended her hand, Sky would have to step forward and take the risk himself. A tense wait continued for a while.

“Your Highness the Princess, please allow the verification.”

At Claude’s urging, the Princess, who had been stiff, finally opened her mouth.

“N-no!”

The Princess shook her head and stepped back.

“Don’t touch me!”

After shouting in a tearing voice, she retreated. However, the gazes of those around her were now completely cold. The Princess, seeing her own supporters turn away with pale faces, was at a loss for what to do and soon turned around. And she ran and clung to the one and only person she could trust and rely on: the Emperor.

“Your Majesty! Please, save Aileen from this, from this group of crazy rebels!”

The Princess’s desperate tears wet the Emperor’s hand. The Emperor stared blankly at it, then bit his lip. Minaz, who had been sitting quietly in the VIP section, stood up and approached the podium.

“Your Majesty, as you know, Count Calabria has been freed from the oath of servitude.”

The words Count Calabria and oath of servitude were mentioned at the same time, but the hall was already in such an uproar that no one paid attention to that part. However, the next words captured everyone’s attention.

“If you believe in Her Highness the Princess, please verify it with your own eyes, Your Majesty.”

On the tray Minaz knelt and held out to the Emperor was the Stringstone. If Roan’s oath had been released, not a single red line should appear from the Princess. The line would not be connected to the knights who had sworn the oath of servitude. However, she must have used Beatrice to make countless oaths and manipulate people. The Emperor would see countless red lines extending from his daughter.

“Your Majesty! I… I…”

The Princess sobbed and shook her head. The Emperor did not look at her. Nor did he reach out his hand to the tray.

“Zeppelin.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The Emperor’s command fell upon Zeppelin, who bowed his head.

“Take the Princess and imprison her in Rosagrande.”

“Oh, Your Majesty! Don’t do this! Please believe Aileen! I…”

Zeppelin gestured to his subordinates to pull the struggling Princess away from the Emperor. Claude, seeing this, intervened.

“I apologize, Your Majesty the Emperor. The Princess cannot leave her seat as the trial is still in session.”

“No, this trial is over.”

The Emperor cut off Claude and rose from his seat.

“As the final decision-maker of the empire, I will pass judgment.”

The Emperor’s eyes, which were a spitting image of the Princess’s, took on a cruel glint.

“Imperial Guard, surround the square.”

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