Chapter 5

"Huh? No, I frankly admitted my guilt and honestly revealed your name as the mastermind. Since it was an attempt, the punishment is the same as yours—exile. You... You used the lives of your family as a shield and ordered the son of a good merchant to commit the crime, didn't you?"

"How terrible," the young nobles began to murmur again.

"Did I really want to kill that young lady?"

"...Why are you talking as if it's someone else's business?"

"That's right. I was really scared, and if the prince hadn't been there..."

The prince hugged Mirabel again as she started to tremble once more.

"Oh, it was convenient that the prince was nearby, wasn't it?"

"Enough! What's wrong with being nearby? I'm also a witness. With both a criminal and a witness present, there's no way to deny it."

The prince finally decided to be straightforward.

"Then, that person should still be executed. They aimed to kill the future queen and framed me, a duke's daughter. Ah, until just a moment ago, I was also the future queen. Hehehe. In that case, even execution isn't enough."

"What! Don't try to cover up your own crimes amidst the confusion. And don't make me repeat myself, your guilt is undeniable."

The duke's daughter's "You're saying something strange" face intensified the underlying terror.

"Phew, Your Highness? Please listen carefully. If there was another intention, that's different, but if I really wanted to kill that young lady, well, I could do it myself, but I would order this Alan. Such a kind and innocent son of a merchant. Hehehe. Right, Alan?"

After speaking to the prince as if addressing a child, she turned to the guard.

"Hmph, if it's an order, I can do it any way you want. A mere duke's daughter is easier to kill than a monster. I will finish her off with certainty and will never leave any evidence."

Scary!

Mirabel's face turned an unbelievable shade of blue. She might faint.

"Your Highness? My holy magic has the power to destroy life. Look, too much medicine can be toxic to the body, right? It's the same. This Alan also has sword skills capable of exterminating monsters. Yet, are you going to entrust your fate to someone so unreliable who can be easily swayed? I recommend a thorough investigation."

Fate... not to be entrusted... The prince and his party were completely at a loss for words.

"...Then, what do you mean by the harassment of Mirabel?"

"Your Highness, since none of your answers were correct, let's check the answers. Please open page 8."

The prince weakly turned the page.

"I, in fact, have a hobby of cooking."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

The prince stopped turning the page and asked.

"Just listen. At the temple, the soup distributed to the people was actually all made by me."

The holy maidens looked at each other.

"You made it, right?"

"Ah, I thought it was you because it was already prepared."

"I always pray for increased happiness when serving the soup and cast healing magic to fill people with energy."

"...Isn't that a good thing? What's the problem with that?"

The prince's face showed confusion.

"Just by serving and distributing the soup, the young lady appeared to the people as a shining holy maiden, didn't she?"