Chapter 22

Never admitting her own guilt, Katharina only wailed and cried.

As she was carried away by the guards, silence returned to the courtyard.

In a corner of the garden, the young ladies who used to be Katharina's followers gathered awkwardly.

Deciding to let them disperse after informing them that their stories would be taken later, she waved to Pamela, who left with a worried look, and Cordelia sighed.

With this, Katharina's rampage should be over, and she could breathe a sigh of relief, but there was still a significant worry.

"Your family didn't show up, did they?"

As if sensing Cordelia's thoughts, Leonhardt murmured.

"To ignore their own daughter being involved in a commotion in their own garden..."

"...I think it was better than having them meddle and make things worse."

It was a true sentiment, but she couldn't help feeling a tinge of loneliness.

(Father and Mother probably don't care about me at all...)

To her father and mother, their only daughter was Priscilla. They likely only recognized Cordelia as a distant relative.

Even if she got involved in trouble, they would simply turn a blind eye.

Looking at the window of a room in the mansion's study, she thought she saw a pair of blue eyes peeking out from the edge of the curtain. Eyes that matched Priscilla's and her own. They quickly disappeared into the shadow of the curtain, but it was probably her father.

It was pitiful that he only peeked, but family is family.

As long as they were blood relatives, she couldn't easily cut ties like Katharina, and it was troublesome.

"I'll explain the general situation to my parents."

"Thank you. If they're not satisfied with just your explanation, I'll visit the mansion and provide additional details."

"Thank you. ...Will Your Highness return to the palace now?"

"Yes, I will. I need to lay the groundwork for Katharina's punishment."

"Perhaps a decade of house arrest in the duchy and a lifetime ban on contact with me?"

"It will probably be something like that. You might think the punishment is too light..."

"No, it's fair. I think that's appropriate."

While it might be a fitting punishment for attempted murder, it was as expected.

Katharina's father, Duke Arbold, was known for doting on his daughter. If the punishment was too severe, Duke Arbold might rebel and claim that Zayed was involved in today's incident in the forest.

If that happened, the situation would not remain as "a duchy's daughter harassing a baron's daughter favored by the second prince," but could escalate to "the first prince trying to harm the second prince's favorite baron's daughter," leading to a conflict between the princes.

Since Leonhardt had no intention of a full-scale confrontation with Zayed, that was not a desirable outcome.

(And even a decade of house arrest is a heavy punishment for Lady Katharina...)

Most noble daughters marry by the age of twenty, and most are settled by their mid-twenties. At 18, Katharina would miss her prime marriage age. Her current fiancé would likely leave her, and even after the ten years of house arrest, her criminal record would not be erased. Even though it was self-inflicted, it was a harsh punishment for a noble daughter.

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"You've caused quite a mess, haven't you?"

Duke Arbold said this with a voice full of bitterness. The place was a room in a stone tower on the outskirts of the capital, a luxurious cell for high-ranking prisoners.

"Father!!"

Katharina raised her head and ran to her father.

"I knew you would come!! Now, please, get me out of here!!"

"Katharina."

"Quickly, turn that foolish girl into charcoal—!!?"

A dry sound echoed as Katharina's cheek was slapped. She opened her eyes in shock and looked up at her father, who had struck her.

"Father, you... hit me...?"

"Have you still not understood your own guilt?"

"What...!?"

Katharina, holding her cheek, burst into a tantrum.

"Why are you saying such things, Father!? I haven't committed any sin!!"

"You tried to kill Cordelia with a fireball. Understand that you have challenged His Highness."

The duke, pressing his forehead, sighed deeply.

He had always known his daughter was arrogant and emotional. He knew she used the family's power to bully lower nobles and commoners out of passion. He thought her tantrums were just the selfishness of youth, a passing phase. Feeling guilty for not spending enough time with her due to his work, he had overlooked it.

"......Is this the result?"

The duke smiled weakly, filled with deep regret. Katharina, sensing the change in her usually doting father, swayed uneasily.

"Father, what's wrong? If you're not feeling well, let's go back to the mansion—"

"It's impossible, Katharina. You are no longer allowed to set foot in the mansion in the capital."

"What!?"

"Ten years of house arrest in the duchy. That is the punishment demanded by His Highness."

"Why should I suffer such a fate!? It's unfair!!"

"......This is a lenient punishment, you know."

The duke, feeling helpless, lowered his head. Katharina had repeatedly harassed Cordelia and even tried to take her life. Leonhardt, despite his inner rage, had considered his brother and the duchy's relationship and settled for house arrest. Cordelia, the victim, had also shown a dignified attitude without harboring any grudges against Katharina.

Cordelia and Katharina, the same age, yet the gap between them was so vast that the duke sighed deeply.

---Where did I go wrong?

The duke had five children, but his only daughter was Katharina. She was a spitting image of his late wife.

Their marriage had started as a political alliance, but the duke and his wife had fallen deeply in love. He had loved Katharina, his wife's only remaining child, deeply. Feeling sorry for her early loss of her mother, he had tried to fulfill all her wishes.

Katharina, being a duchy's daughter and blessed with magic, would not have trouble finding a fiancé even if she was a bit spoiled. He had turned a blind eye to her flaws until today.

"......Just loving her wasn't enough."

He covered his eyes, feeling he had no face to show his late wife.

Thank you for reading. The next chapter will be posted tomorrow, so please look forward to it.

Katharina's father, while a competent public figure, was also a rare loving husband among the nobility, and his love for his daughter was genuine. However, his love had blinded him, leading to a failure in her education.