Chapter 57

Due to his morning antics, Janobi, feeling uneasy, drank heavily to forget that bit of fear. The official drink of the party was champagne from the Gallico Kingdom. After downing one glass after another of the refreshing, bubbly fruit wine, by evening, Janobi was in such a state that he could hardly remember his mother's face.

When people suddenly swarmed in and bound him, dragging him to the VIP seat at the center of the tent, he was terrified, but due to his drunkenness, he could not put up any decent resistance and was tightly bound, forced to kneel on the bare ground and prostrate himself.

"Janobi de Rossi of Taranto!"

The one barking orders in front of him was none other than the sole sun of Etrusca, the majestic Emperor Leo III himself. The face he had only seen on commemorative coins was now speaking and moving right before his eyes, making the situation feel utterly unreal. Janobi answered in a daze.

"Yes, yes!"

"Ah! You do not show proper respect to His Majesty the King!"

Thinking of the Gallico delegation watching, Leo III was even more rough than usual, and his ministers were even stricter about formality and etiquette. A kick from somewhere hit Janobi's back, causing his head to hit the ground. The person who kicked him wanted Janobi to perform the greeting, "I see the sun of Etrusca," but Janobi, too drunk and shocked, seemed unable to do so. Leo III, giving up on receiving the greeting, quickly pressed on with his questioning.

"Is it true that you shot a crossbow at Ariadne de Mare, the second daughter of the de Mare family?"

Janobi, drunk, or perhaps even more so because he was drunk, felt a strong certainty that he should not affirm this.

"No, no! I absolutely did not do it!"

He rambled on, adding more words.

"I was only inside the tent, how could I have shot an arrow at Ariadne's horse's rump?"

Cesare looked at Janobi with a disdainful expression, as if he were a lower life form. Ariadne intervened at this opportune moment.

"Your Majesty, I am deeply sorry to trouble you with such a trivial matter."

With the victim herself stepping forward, Leo III nodded, granting her the right to speak.

"Cesare, Count, only said that Janobi de Rossi 'shot a crossbow' at me, but he never mentioned whether it hit me, grazed me, or hit my horse."

People murmured as they realized the point Ariadne had made. Leo III frowned and nodded. Janobi, who had been forced to kneel on the ground, suddenly lifted his head and protested.

"No! It's a misunderstanding! I just thought the arrow hit the horse when I saw Ariadne walking on foot without her horse!"

His quick thinking was impressive. However, there was clear evidence. Ariadne nodded to Cesare, who then took out Janobi's arrow from his coat and respectfully placed it before Leo III.

"Your Majesty, this is the arrow that was embedded in the horse's rump."

The arrow, still stained with the horse's dried blood, was marked with the de Rossi family's colors and crest to distinguish the hunter's trophy. Moreover, Janobi had, unfortunately, shot his first arrow, which was typically engraved with the family crest and name to wish for good fortune, at Ariadne. Janobi's arrow clearly bore the de Rossi family crest and name.

When Leo III, whose eyesight was failing, could not read the de Rossi name engraved on the arrow, his secretary, standing beside him, quickly read it out.

"Janobi de Rossi of Taranto...! This is indeed an arrow of the de Rossi family."

The secretary, having heard a whisper from a nearby attendant, loudly announced it for everyone to hear.

"Today, the only participant from the de Rossi family of Taranto in the hunting competition is Janobi de Rossi!"

The audience gasped again.

- "Why would he tell such an easily exposed lie?"

- "A man who can't even control himself, of course he shot a crossbow at someone in the hunting competition."

- "It's not just a bow, it's a crossbow! Good heavens! Is he crazy?"

Ariadne poured oil on the fire.

"Janobi de Rossi followed me without warning while I was walking on a path near the hunting grounds in the morning and shot a crossbow at me from behind! This is an attempted murder!"

At that moment, a piercing scream came from the crowd.

"It's a misunderstanding, it must be a misunderstanding!"

It was Lucrezia. She slipped in and stood next to Janobi, waving her finger at Ariadne.

"Ultimately, it hit the horse, not you! Our nephew Janobi is such a gentle and kind boy, how could he shoot a crossbow at a person! And you must have done something to upset him! That's why he shot the horse!"

Janobi, feeling emboldened by Lucrezia's help, agreed.

"Yes! I mean, when I scolded Ariadne for bullying Isabella, she didn't listen, so I shot the horse as a warning! As an older cousin, I thought this was a reasonable way to discipline her... cough!"

Before he could finish, one of Leo III's ministers, who had not been given permission to speak, kicked Janobi to silence him. He also wanted to kick Lucrezia to silence her but dared not lay a hand on the Cardinal's mistress.

Lucrezia was not only a nuisance to the military but also to the civil officials. Marquez, Count, who had endured a difficult day of negotiations and had just returned to the hunting tent, scolded Lucrezia in a low voice, mindful of the Gallico delegation and the King.

"Madam! Do you think this is a safe place to act so recklessly!"

Despite the support from the ministers, Ariadne was now in a life-or-death situation. She was effectively silenced. Since Lucrezia was publicly known as Ariadne's stepmother, Ariadne could not publicly argue with her.

Janobi claimed that Ariadne had bullied Isabella, and Lucrezia argued that Janobi's actions were merely a misunderstanding. There was no way to clarify the situation.

It was Cesare, Count, who came to her rescue.

"Your Majesty! Fortunately, the crossbow hit the horse, but the horse's wild movements caused Lady Ariadne to fall off and nearly die in the depths of the Orte forest. If I hadn't saved her, she would have died. Whether it hit a person or a horse, it is still an attempted murder."

And he added one more point.

"In the process, I nearly died as well. Rescuing a person from a wild horse is a dangerous task. This is an attempt to kill a noble with a legitimate Etruscan barony. What is he? A viscount? A viscount's son? Ah, not even a viscount? Does he even have a title?"

Although he called him a noble, everyone present, including Leo III and the Gallico delegation, knew Cesare's true lineage. This was a matter of a royal bloodline, albeit a half and tainted one, nearly being killed.

Janobi, even in his drunken state, instinctively realized that this was a serious matter.

"This arrow is mine, but... it's a misunderstanding...!"

Leo III's minister kicked him for the third time, and Janobi, hit squarely in the side, finally shut up. Leo III, suppressing his rising anger, weighed the factors he needed to consider in punishing the man before him.

First, it was true that Janobi had shot an arrow at the Cardinal's illegitimate daughter, but it was impossible to confirm whether he had targeted her or her horse. Was it attempted murder, or property damage? Or, as Cesare suggested, was shooting the horse itself an attempted murder? The judgment would determine Janobi's punishment.

Second, Cesare's injury was a result of his own decision to rescue Ariadne, not something Janobi could have predicted. It would be difficult to charge Janobi with attempting to kill royal blood. Moreover, with the Gallico delegation watching, he could not acknowledge Cesare as royal blood.

Third, he wanted to maintain a good relationship with Cardinal de Mare. Although his cousin's child had nearly been in serious trouble, if he ignored Lucrezia's public defense of Janobi and imposed a severe punishment, he was unsure if Cardinal de Mare would approve. Men, after all, tend to be more lenient towards the women they share a bed with than their own children.

Fourth, despite all this, Janobi was a liar who could not even tell the truth when his mouth was open, and his character was thoroughly rotten.

Fifth, with the Gallico delegation watching, Leo III felt the pressure to appear as a merciful and wise ruler, and to deliver a wise judgment to maintain his authority.

After weighing all these factors, Leo III decided on Janobi's punishment.

"Janobi de Rossi, you have not only harassed a lady, whom you should have protected as a knight, but also lied to cover it up. Furthermore, you have attacked your cousin, showing a lack of familial affection."

Up to this point, it sounded like he was affirming the attempted murder of Ariadne. However, Leo III's judgment continued.

"Therefore, for shooting the horse with a crossbow, you will receive 20 lashes; for lying, 10 lashes; and for betraying familial affection, 10 lashes, totaling 40 lashes."

A commotion arose in the crowd. People seemed surprised by the relatively lenient punishment. The lash was, of course, a dangerous punishment that could be fatal if not administered properly, but it was typically given for minor crimes like theft. Janobi, who had been kneeling, and Lucrezia, who had been watching anxiously, sighed in relief that the charge was for shooting the horse, not attempted murder, and that the punishment was lashes rather than a fine or exile.

His honor was not tarnished. This was a mere incident that would be forgotten over time. If Janobi were sent back to his hometown, no one would know about it.

However, Leo III's judgment was not yet over.

"However! It seems that Janobi de Rossi does not understand the concept of chivalry. Giving a dull person a sharp weapon is only harmful to the people. Therefore, I hereby ban Janobi de Rossi from being knighted for life. So be it!"

Janobi, in shock as if hit on the head with a hammer, forgot all about proper etiquette and lifted his head to look at Leo III.

"No!"

Janobi let out a long, pig-like scream.

"I can't! Knight! Knight! I have to become a knight!"

"Ah! Enough! Take him away!"

Leo III's secretary urged the surrounding soldiers. Six fully armored soldiers rushed in, grabbed the hysterical Janobi, and began to drag him away from Leo