I Was Hired by the Black-Minded Prince for My Life's Ransom - Chapter 34

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 34. The Fall
While the crowd descended into chaos, familiar footsteps echoed slowly across the stage.
I found myself lifting my head as if in a trance.
Beneath the moonlight, Yuri’an was ascending the stage with an unhurried gait.
A flawless, beautiful smile.
It was a face too elegant to believe belonged to someone who’d just sent a man flying, tent and all.
…Wait, hold on.
‘Your Highness threw the Baron?’
Surely not.
Truly?
[My apologies. My hand simply slipped for a moment.]
A lie.
I laughed awkwardly, my gaze darting between his hand and Baron Brannon.
The Baron was rolling across the ground, emitting strangled cries.
“Nngh! Ugh-ugh!”
Cloth was stuffed into his mouth.
Thanks to this, the sounds the Baron produced resembled an angry wild boar’s snarl far more than human speech.
…Which is to say, it was quite loud.
Yuri’an glanced down at the flailing Baron and smiled gently.
“Oh dear, how rude of me.”
Though his face showed not a shred of remorse.
He smoothly took the Amplification Device from the master of ceremonies.
Then, surveying the Festival Square, he opened his mouth with composed warmth.
“I do apologize for the disturbance to those of you enjoying the festival.”
His languid, affectionate voice spread gently across the entire square.
People stared this way, entranced.
Those who had been noisily confused moments before now hung on his every word.
“However, some rather fascinating facts regarding Rueern have come to light.”
At those words, the crowd’s attention naturally shifted toward the Baron.
The shackles binding his wrists, his soiled clothes, and his mouth gagged shut.
Everyone began murmuring with interest.
“Fascinating facts? What could they be?”
“And why is the Baron bound like that?”
“More importantly, who is that man?”
“…Doesn’t he look a bit like the god of the sea in the paintings?”
Whispers rippled through the crowd like waves.
“Ugh! Ughhh!”
Baron Brannon thrashed about, rolling his eyes as he surveyed his surroundings.
He rubbed his face hard against the ground several times until he finally managed to dislodge the cloth from his mouth.
Then, with bloodshot eyes, he bellowed at the top of his lungs.
“You insane bastards―!”
His massive voice rang through the square like thunder.
“How dare you touch me―release these shackles at once!”
He writhed and thrashed madly.
Ugh, oh no.
I quietly shifted to position myself behind Yuri’an.
At that, he seemed to suppress a laugh, his lips curving upward ever so slightly.
Just then, Olivia and Lein emerged slowly from behind the stage.
In stark contrast to the disheveled Baron, they were impeccably put together.
“Father.”
Olivia spoke with cold amusement.
“Though I suppose I needn’t call you that anymore.”
“You… you… Olivia!”
“How does it feel to be back where you belong?”
“You wretched bitch!”
The Baron lunged forward with wild eyes, but the Sea People held him firmly in place.
The sight of him struggling, restrained from all sides, looked pitiful enough to anyone unfamiliar with the truth.
Every eye in the Festival Square fixed upon the two of them in an instant.
Lein stepped forward calmly.
“Good evening, everyone.”
The face revealed beneath the moonlight was nothing like the wretched slave of before.
He breathed an air of remarkable composure and uprightness as he opened his mouth quietly.
“The current Baron Foltz Brannon is a fraud.”
Whoooosh—
“I am the true heir, Lein Brannon, and I present myself to you.”
The sea wind riding the waves tousled his hair.
The Baron’s face flushed crimson, as if ready to burst.
“Don’t be absurd, you wretch who crawled through slave markets! What right have you?”
“It was you who made me a slave.”
The crowd stirred with unease.
Olivia laughed coldly, her voice dripping with scorn.
“Didn’t you know? The Sea People never forget a grievance.”
“You accursed thing….”
“The man you tried to kill has merely returned.”
Lein stepped in front of her, shaking his head as if to tell her enough.
Then he continued, his tone measured.
“This man murdered my parents—the true Baron and Baroness Brannon—and stole their title.”
“It’s a lie!”
“I sold myself to slave traders for a high price, and squandered all of House Brannon’s treasures on a life of luxury.”
“Silence!”
The Baron shrieked, his eyes rolling wildly.
“Where is your proof? Do you have any proof?!”
Breathing heavily, he turned his rage upon the crowd.
“Surely you won’t believe the words of these wretches! It’s all fabrication—a scheme this girl cooked up to seize my position!”
Confusion rippled across the faces of the gathered people.
Eyes darted uncertainly, unable to settle on whom to trust.
In truth, it was unreasonable to expect them to believe, at the mere word of some stranger, that the Baron was an impostor.
This was why, even after three years of gathering evidence, the two of them had not yet moved against him.
But then—
Tap.
The tip of Yuri’an’s finger brushed lightly against mine.
I looked up in surprise, and he smiled, his eyes crinkling warmly.
Yes—this time, this man was here.
Yuri’an, the Prince beloved by all.
“And so, I took the liberty of making some inquiries.”
Yuri’an spoke slowly, deliberately.
His soft voice fell like a hush over the entire Festival Square.
He withdrew a single document from his robe.
Rustle.
“This is the Imperial Investigation Bureau’s report on House Brannon.”
…When did he even obtain this?
My eyes widened in astonishment.
Yuri’an unfolded the document with perfect ease.
“It has been confirmed that the current Baron, who has assumed the role of head of House Brannon, murdered the previous Baron Brannon and fraudulently forged his identity to usurp the title.”
“Wait, just a moment….”
“Furthermore, continuous evidence of smuggling and illegal slave trading operations have been confirmed at Rueern Harbor.”
The Baron’s face drained of all color, turning ashen.
Yuri’an calmly turned to the next page.
“Moreover, the true heir, Lein Brannon, who was believed to be deceased, is confirmed to be alive—”
“No….”
“And through a Ring bearing the family seal and the personal Letter of Appointment from the previous head of house, his legitimate right of succession has been verified and is hereby announced.”
“That’s a lie!!”
The Baron howled.
“Impossible—the Imperial Palace Investigation Bureau couldn’t have arrived this quickly!”
How indeed?
It had only been days since we sent the evidence, and the report is already here?
‘…Could it be?’
No, surely not.
I stared up at Yuri’an in a daze.
Yet Yuri’an remained perfectly composed.
“Is that so?”
He smiled softly.
“You were lucky. This time it went quite fast.”
The crowd had already begun to murmur.
“If the Imperial Palace investigated it, isn’t it settled?”
“Good heavens….”
“You’re telling me he’s been answering to pirates this whole time? The world’s gone mad!”
Sharp eyes turned toward the baron.
The completely ruined baron shook his head.
“No…. No! I really am Brannon!”
He struggled to say something more.
“Should you wish to lodge a complaint, we shall hear your testimony along with evidence in court.”
With a gentle smile, Yuri’an spoke those words, and the pirates silenced him, dragging him away without allowing him another word.
Yuri’an laughed.
“Then farewell.”
It was a radiant smile bright enough to thaw even the coldest heart.
* * *
The festival drew to an unexpected and triumphant close.
Baron Brannon was handed over to the Investigation Bureau, and the port of Rueern was turned upside down overnight.
The baron’s household staff rushed frantically to sort ledgers and warehouses, and the entire harbor descended into chaos as those involved in smuggling were rounded up.
And I…
“…Your Highness.”
“Yes?”
“When did you receive that report?”
I was regarding Yuri’an with eyes full of suspicion.
Yuri’an smiled wryly and lowered his head.
Then, in a voice barely audible over the din of the surrounding commotion, he whispered close to my ear.
“Why ask what you already know?”
“Then really….”
“Even the Imperial Investigation Bureau couldn’t analyze documents in two days and bring them here.”
Just as I suspected…!
I looked at him with eyes tinged with a hint of betrayal.
Our gazes met precisely at eye level.
“Then what was that yesterday?”
“Well, to be precise, I never actually said ‘Imperial Investigation Bureau.'”
Yuri’an shrugged.
I stood there with my mouth hanging open stupidly.
Now that he mentioned it….
— This is an investigation report regarding House of Brannon from the Imperial Palace.
He’d said “Imperial Palace investigation” rather than “Imperial Investigation Bureau”…!
“Since I am the Imperial representative, it’s not an inaccurate statement.”
“That’s… that’s fraud.”
I stepped back with a weary expression.
Absolutely, this man could never be turned into an enemy….
A hundred times over, binding myself to him through contract was the right choice, even with my soul on the line.
Yuri’an laughed as if amused by my face.
“What’s with that look?”
“It’s the expression of someone grateful to be your person, Your Highness.”
“Quite foolish, really.”
This is too much.
It was just as I stood there, my lips pouting in exasperation.
“Vanillin.”
At the familiar voice, I turned to see Lein standing there, somehow tidily dressed.
Still with those sorrowful eyes, he looked at me carefully and spoke.
“Could we talk for a moment? Just the two of us?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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