The Male Lead Is Trying To Tame Me With Money - Chapter 62
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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62.
“Of course there is, if Your Majesty permits it.”
At my words, the Emperor’s face showed the pleasure of watching entertainment.
In contrast, Countess Hanella and the young countess shouted toward the Emperor with faces that said this couldn’t be possible.
“Your Majesty, you must not be swayed by honeyed words! Isn’t the evidence of this traitor so clear! Every single thing that came out of these envelopes is terribly wicked!”
“That’s right, the invitation sent to me had the Peony Palace Hall written on it, which Your Majesty absolutely told us never to mention!”
However, the Emperor looked only at me with a calm face despite their words.
“I am very curious about what words you will use to escape this predicament. So I permit it.”
As expected, experience counts for a lot, and that’s why you can remain so composed, isn’t it?
You’re thinking that if you don’t give me a chance to speak, you’ll face an even bigger problem.
Naturally, I had prepared for the possibility of being captured.
I had already told Joan that if I didn’t return tonight, she should send press materials summarizing this incident in terms even a child could understand to each newspaper.
If that were published, I had put great effort into the tone so that His Majesty the Emperor and the Hanella family, who branded me a traitor without proper investigation, would become complete bastards, so I felt slightly disappointed.
An overnight exotic prison experience wouldn’t be bad.
I shook off my regrets and opened the binder.
“First, when did Countess Hanella search our house?”
At those words, the Countess snorted as if asking what kind of evidence that could be and spoke.
“This morning, right after the advisor went to work! Don’t tell me you plan to call the advisor’s maid as a witness—”
“Ah, of course I didn’t consider it since it would naturally have weak effectiveness as testimony.”
I smiled brightly and had a document delivered to the Emperor.
The Emperor who saw the document burst into quiet laughter, and the Countess looked at the Emperor in bewilderment.
The Emperor whispered his command only to a servant with a mischievous face, and soon after, a Royal Guard from the Sun Palace left the audience chamber.
“Good, what else do you have next? Someone who values efficiency like you wouldn’t claim innocence with just that.”
“Of course not. Next is the gold mold casting order status.”
“Hooo…”
“I knew from the beginning that the imperial seal stamped on those envelopes was forged. How could I not know when I’ve seen it worn thin from looking at it throughout my entire service?”
At my words, several advisors coughed briefly.
Especially among the First Prince’s Palace advisors who had come to watch me get my comeuppance, all sorts of sounds emerged.
In contrast, Countess Hanella forced a laugh and shouted loudly at me.
“Look at this, Your Majesty! Unless she’s the one who forged it herself, how could she have seen the seal!”
“How rude of you, I haven’t finished speaking.”
“You’ve been going on and on—!”
“Through the tracking skills of mages and division of labor among Winter Palace administrators, we were able to reveal where that seal was made. And we could also identify who ordered the casting.”
As I cut off her words again, Countess Hanella’s face became like a volcano before eruption.
Regardless, the Emperor was leaning sideways against his armrest, flipping through my documents.
“It reads as Salice?”
“That’s correct, as Your Majesty knows, that’s different from my surname.”
At my rebuttal, Countess Hanella opened her mouth as if incredulous.
“Of course, who would boldly write their real name for such a thing? They’d use a false name!”
“Exactly, what fool would use a name that could be traced back to them?”
I continued the story while shooting a sneer.
“Therefore, we analyzed the handwriting. According to the mages, it cleverly imitated my handwriting, and they said they could find the original handwriting owner.”
I placed the magical tool on the floor.
However, he maintained a calm demeanor. And rightfully so.
He too had used his head, having his servant place the order with a guild, and that guild subcontracted to another guild…
Well, he arranged it so it would pass through many hands like that.
However, there was something Countess Hanella had overlooked.
“So we found the owner of that handwriting and brought all the contracts. Countess Hanella probably didn’t know because of past precedents and having little business with our Winter Palace.”
While we had exposed quite a bit of corruption among various nobles and even caught tax evasion, the Hanella family had been exempt from this.
Because they were the family of the person who would become the First Prince’s consort.
However, they probably didn’t know this would become a blind spot in this incident.
“Merchants and workshops in the capital, including all of them, now absolutely refuse to do business without contracts. It means they don’t carelessly proceed with verbal agreements like before.”
“What, what?!”
They would have been even more unaware since they probably just told their subordinates to handle it smoothly without problems.
The original contractor was Baron Hanella’s subordinate, who had also written with his left hand and changed his address to avoid exposing the Hanella family. However,
‘The guild they commissioned happened to be one that had been raided twice by the Winter Palace.’
The Guild Master felt suspicious and tracked it down, demonstrating thoroughness by attaching the original address and handwriting samples.
Indeed, preparing all documents without future problems is the best approach.
“I will show Your Majesty the original contractor in writing. Also, even though it was made upon request, creating a forged seal is a great crime. If Your Majesty just gives the word, we’re fully prepared to make arrests.”
Information about the courier who went to collect that seal had also been completely gathered.
At my words, the Emperor laughed loudly.
“Hahaha! Interesting, Advisor Salice. But there’s still no evidence that you’re completely innocent.”
The Emperor tapped his armrest.
I nodded at those words. While other nobles might escape at this level, I knew well that I had to prove more than others.
I wasn’t unaware that Casian and I were like burdensome assets to the Emperor.
Just then, the audience chamber opened and the Royal Guard who had been watching my house arrived.
“Shall you hear the first piece of evidence first?”
At my words, the Emperor nodded to the guard, who immediately began his report.
The guard straightforwardly proved my innocence.
Known as the most upright and incorruptible guard in the Sun Palace, no one doubted his words.
After his testimony was completely finished, I knelt and bowed once to the Emperor, then began speaking with a composed expression.
“Your Majesty, were you satisfied with what I prepared?”
“It was quite enjoyable, but it seems there’s still something left.”
“That’s right, I saved this for last because I wanted to maintain Your Majesty’s enjoyment for longer.”
I took out a thin card-shaped magical tool from inside the binder.
“I carry recording devices wherever I go. It’s an occupational hazard.”
At my words, the young Countess Hanella flinched and trembled.
“Of course, the same was true when I went to Hanella’s tea party. You all already know from what they said that she spent time alone with me that day.”
“That’s right.”
“This is a recording of our conversation that day.”
At my words, the young Countess Hanella tried to rush toward me.
However, since she was nominally accused of treason, the nearby Royal Guards easily restrained her.
“Why are you acting this way, Hanella?”
I looked at her while drawing a bewitching arc at the corner of my mouth.
“When it’s time for your claim of being deceived and wronged to be revealed.”
“Sa, Salice!”
“Please enjoy listening?”
With a click, the recording device began to play.
It was the sound of enjoyable entertainment coming to an end.
*
“Tr, treason! I absolutely never had such intentions, Your Majesty!”
“Th, that’s right. We were just playing a little prank!”
The situation immediately reversed.
—About this envelope with white snow-like patterns in bright blue, stamped with something like the imperial seal used by the royal family…
Anyone could tell that the envelope shape described through the recording device was identical to the envelope they had presented as something I had made.
“Just moments ago you called her a clear traitor, and now you say she’s not?”
The Emperor chuckled at their excuses.
Though it seemed benevolent at first glance, the Empress was extremely tense.
Because that appearance revealed that the Emperor was on the verge of true anger.
“Empress.”
“…Yes, Your Majesty.”
“What do you think?”
The Emperor asked with a smile, as if demanding a proper answer.
“It seems there was a misunderstanding…”
“Has the meaning of ‘misunderstanding’ changed these days to properly disgracing and killing a person?”
“…”
At the Emperor’s cold words, the Empress hurriedly shut her mouth.
The Emperor clicked his tongue briefly at the sight.
Soon he spoke solemnly toward Countess Hanella.
“Since I am a generous ruler, I try to listen carefully to my subjects’ words.”
“Your, Your Majesty.”
“So it would be right to return the exact crimes they claimed.”
The Emperor’s hand lightly tapped the armrest.
Countess Hanella’s face turned deathly pale.
“No, that cannot be! I had no such wicked thoughts!”
And immediately, he shouted as if desperately grasping for a lifeline.
“Your Majesty the Empress!!”
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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