My Youngest Keeps Bringing Home Male Leads - Chapter 86

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

Chapter 86
Leonard’s testimony had effectively decided the direction of the trial.
The contract had been forged.
Moreover, a child’s voice had relayed that Count Valdemar and his wife had conspired together.
Yet the Crown Prince had reverted to his original indifferent demeanor.
Without the slightest sign of agitation, he rose slowly from the bench.
Looking down at everyone in the Trial Court, the Crown Prince declared his verdict.
“I render judgment. The evidence presented by Laberose is relatively clear, and particularly when compared with documents prepared a year ago, the plaintiff’s contention that the contract in question bears irregularities appears incontestable. Therefore, I find the contract’s authenticity indeterminate, and I declare that no debt owed by Laberose House exists.”
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Three sharp strikes echoed through the Trial Court.
It was Agnes’s victory.
Before elation could break free, the Crown Prince twisted his lips and fixed his gaze on Count Valdemar.
“It’s remarkable that even one so meticulous as you should have an opening. You’ll naturally need to submit to an investigation regarding the contract forgery.”
“I apologize for the trouble, Your Highness. I shall proceed with complete sincerity.”
Despite losing the trial, Count Valdemar appeared remarkably composed.
The penalty too was lighter than expected.
‘Document forgery ought to be a grave crime.’
She wanted to protest, but Agnes still held another card in her hand.
She couldn’t afford to act rashly.
‘He must have assumed we would naturally lose.’
The evidence had been far too obvious; it was inevitable. Even the Crown Prince likely came intending to declare Valdemar’s victory.
Perhaps she had let slip some disrespectful glance.
The Crown Prince suddenly turned to look at Agnes and smiled faintly.
His eyes were unmistakably wide and his lips curved upward, yet something about it felt cold and dark.
A strange sensation.
An unpleasant feeling crept upward from her stomach.
“Agnes…!”
At that moment, Leonard called out to her.
He tried to approach with a pleased expression, but an unfamiliar man quickly drew near and whispered something in Leonard’s ear.
Leonard’s face paled rapidly.
After glancing back toward his father once, Leonard’s shoulders drooped in dismay as he turned away.
“Leonard…!”
She called out to Leonard as he followed the man toward the exit, but.
Count Valdemar stepped forward and blocked her path.
Creak. Thud.
The door opened and closed coldly in that brief moment.
“Count Valdemar…!”
She glared at him, and Count Valdemar replied with a cold expression.
“Young Lady, Leonard is my son. I would prefer you refrain from approaching him privately.”
“You won’t even allow a brief conversation?”
“Of course not. Is it proper for a child to meet someone without parental consent?”
“I have never met him without permission.”
“Of course. I’m speaking of now.”
Count Valdemar glanced surreptitiously toward Kesenor and spoke in a measured tone.
Agnes realized then that she and Kesenor were suspected.
‘He thinks we met Leonard and influenced him….’
In that case, it was almost fortunate.
If he believed Leonard had been persuaded by her, perhaps he would be less harsh with the boy.
‘Given his cold nature, he’s shown no interest in what Leonard and Cedric do.’
Though she doubted a parent could be so indifferent, she found herself worried about whether he might treat the child roughly for bungling the matter.
“Young Lady.”
Then a voice came from behind her.
Agnes, who hadn’t sensed his approach, startled and spun around.
The Crown Prince, descended from the bench, stood directly behind her.
He was as tall as Rupert, but his gaze bearing down on her felt far more oppressive than Rupert’s ever did.
He bent forward, meeting her eyes, and spoke in a low whisper.
“Until now, I had interest only in your sister. But you are most intriguing as well.”
The moment he mentioned Amy, her heart sank.
She’d guessed that might be why he’d descended from the Capital to the distant Southern Region.
But why?
‘Hasn’t the Marquis been keeping you informed about Amy?’
The Crown Prince held her gaze, watching the anxiety flood Agnes’s eyes, and reached for her.
“……!”
There was no time to pull away.
The Crown Prince seized Agnes by the chin and forced her head up.
It was a brutal touch.
Her entire body burned with revulsion, and Agnes instinctively knocked his hand away.
“Tch…….”
The Crown Prince clicked his tongue coldly.
But living buried in the countryside had not taught her to ignore disrespect.
No matter how close Laberose House had come to ruin, it remained a noble lineage recognized by the Emperor himself.
His behavior was plainly improper, whatever his station.
“I too have honor to uphold, Your Highness. I ask only that you show me the basic respect that my station deserves.”
“Respect, you say?”
As the Crown Prince repeated her words with an air of disbelief, clicking his tongue, Kesenor hastened toward them.
“Kesenor of Celesta. I bow again before Your Highness.”
“So. Is it only you today? I heard the Laberose Mansion was full of intruders from across the border.”
“Yes, only myself, Your Highness.”
“I was curious about the Young Lady who supposedly captured your affections—this would be her, then? I was intrigued to hear that even the foreign races have fallen under her spell.”
The Crown Prince withdrew a handkerchief from his pocket and cleaned his fingertips.
As though contact with Agnes had left him soiled.
Handing the handkerchief to a knight at his side, the Crown Prince murmured coldly.
“Unexpectedly stubborn, though.”
It was a transparent insult.
Though rage boiled through her mind, her heart froze in its grip.
‘So this is the Crown Prince of The Empire…….’
Kesenor stepped forward quickly, perhaps fearing Agnes might voice her fury.
“Your Highness. I ask your mercy. Agnes possesses a clear sense of right and wrong, a forthright character—she treats even me without pretense.”
“How curious. A Young Lady worthy of the Marquis of Celesta’s defense. At least the rumors about you seem to hold truth—was that why you omitted certain details from your reports?”
“I’m not certain what you mean, Your Highness.”
“Have you reported recently on the child who returned from the Rift?”
It was indeed about Amy, but Kesenor answered without hesitation, his composure unshaken.
“As you know, I’ve been occupied with the duties you recently assigned me.”
“Such duties exist, yes, but I could find nothing of substance in your reports. How long did you think I would tolerate this?”
Perhaps he had seen through Kesenor’s intention to answer only in vague terms.
Agnes watched him with anxious eyes.
Kesenor seemed to reach the same conclusion, abandoning his placating tone to meet the Crown Prince’s gaze directly.
His manner grew almost insolent as he spoke.
“You need not speak in riddles, Your Highness. I could not bear the suspense of waiting in silence, so I did not initiate this visit out of deception. Do not blame me for your own impatience.”
The Crown Prince clicked his tongue sharply and nodded slowly.
“Yes. You’re right. I wanted to see for myself.”
Then, without warning, he reached out and seized Kesenor by the throat.
Kesenor’s face flushed crimson as his breath was cut off.
“Marquis!”
Agnes lunged forward in shock, but Kesenor’s bloodshot eyes flickered toward her.
A brief shake of his head.
A warning not to approach.
As Agnes froze, the Crown Prince released his grip on Kesenor’s throat.
Livid finger marks remained where he had held him.
‘To treat a Marquis of The Empire with such violence……!’
As Agnes trembled with rage, she felt Rupert shift forward slightly from his place behind her, a steadying presence.
But Agnes had no intention of interfering.
Only now did she truly comprehend the rumors she had heard—that the Crown Prince was domineering and brutal.
‘Could he have always treated the Marquis this way…….’
If his manner toward the ministers around him was similarly harsh, then it was not her rusticity that provoked him.
Indeed, the knights standing nearby showed no sign of alarm, nor did even Valdemar himself.
‘If such a man becomes Emperor, he truly might wage war.’
As Agnes forced down her rising fury, the Crown Prince watched Kesenor cough and struggle for breath, and smiled coldly.
“Everyone knows you were my friend in childhood, but if you grovel like this in public, don’t I look foolish? Do be more careful.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Yet Kesenor’s gaze flickered with barely concealed insolence, fixed upon the Crown Prince like a blade.
Satisfied with this, the Crown Prince tapped his cheek lightly and reached for the handkerchief again, wiping his hands clean.
He accepted the gloves and drew them on, then immediately turned to Valdemar, who stood at his side, issuing his command.
“Valdemar, proceed with the plan as arranged. Make for the Laberose territories.”

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