Unable to contain his anger, Elliot glared back defiantly. “Whose side are you on, Sir Ursuline?! This whole thing is ludicrous. Why should our commander lose his knighthood because of that snake? You know as well as anyone how dedicated Sir Riftan is to Anatol. We cannot allow them tosnatch away the lands he has poured his blood, sweat, and tears into for the past decade. We should go ahead with the war as we originally intended!”
Elliot’s face was flushed with anger. Before Ursuline could say anything, the princess spoke with an imploring tone.
“I understand your anger, but I ask that you spare a moment to listen to what I have to say.”
Grasping at a shred of hope, Maxi looked at the princess. “D-Do you…have a s-solution in mind?”
“We must make the duke withdraw his case. That is the only possible solution,” the princess replied, her eyes glinting with determination.
Her resolute demeanor sent a chill down Maxi’s spine. The princess held Maxi’s gaze for a long time, as if peering into her innermost thoughts, before continuing.
“We can only win by overturning the crux of the duke’s defense. And to do so, we need you to make a decision, Maximilian.”
Maxi looked baffled. Was the princess asking her to testify for Riftan during the trial? Had she not just explained that it would not be enough to point to the duke’s violence as a justification for his assault?
Maxi urged the princess to continue. “If there is anything I can do…I would be happy to. Please tell me exactly wh-what I must do.”
The princess hesitated before she answered.
“I intend to get the Mage Tower involved.”
Maxi’s eyes widened.
From the corner of the room, Ruth let out a snort. “And how exactly are you going to do that? The tower strictlymaintains its neutrality. It is their rule not to interfere with the internal affairs of the Seven Kingdoms, no matter the situation.”
The princess gave Ruth a disparaging glare as if to tell him that he had no right to make such comments. She sighed and said, “There is one thing that would prompt them to step in.”
“What are you—”
Ruth stopped mid-scoff and gaped as realization dawned on him.
“No…you’re not planning on recruiting her ladyship to the Mage Tower, are you?”
This time, even the knights grew wide-eyed. Maxi was about to chide Ruth for his nonsensical comment when the princess nodded.
“If Maximilian were to become a pupil of the tower, we can charge the duke with mage persecution. Nornui takes protecting its mages very seriously. If there is a trial, they will send a representative to investigate. The moment the claims of physical harm are corroborated, not a single mage will remain in the duke’s service.”
“B-But…But…” Maxi stammered, unable to follow the rapid developments. “I-I don’t understand…. Even if…I was to register with the tower now…the incident…has already occurred. C-Can we still accuse the duke of mage persecution…wh-when the assault happened earlier?”
The princess shook her head. “No, but I intend to falsify the record to show that you registered last spring. The story will be that the last time I visited Anatol, I urged you to register as a mage of the tower, and you agreed.”
“B-But…”
At a loss for words, Maxi turned to Ruth with a disconcerted look. She still remembered what he had told her about the Mage Tower’s training regimen.
“I-I heard that one is required…to study at N-Nornui for four years…to become a mage. My father is aware th-that I’ve never been there. I’ve only spent a year in Anatol…and before then, I’d n-never left Croyso Castle.”
Simon broke his silence as Maxi finished her point.
“A number of people register first before entering Nornui to begin their studies.” Without bothering to ask permission, he took the seat next to the princess and continued calmly. “It won’t be difficult coming up with a reason to explain your late entry. We can say that you registered last spring at Princess Agnes’s recommendation. Although you intended to depart immediately, the monster army invaded, so you decided to delay your studies to offer what assistance you could.”
“Can she still receive the tower’s protection without formal training?” Ursuline asked.
The princess nodded. “One receives Nornui’s protection the moment they register. They have assured me that they will turn a blind eye to the falsified date.”
The conversation seemed to be spiraling out of control. Maxi almost felt steam shooting from her ears as she tried to keep up. She looked over the participants’ faces one by one—the princess’s determination, Simon’s calmness, and Ruth’s stoniness.
“Th-Then…does that…?”
