Chapter 40
40. Clue
Fermos nodded and opened his mouth.
“Yes, as I said…”
“No, I should ask this first. What happened to your face?”
Liene was startled as Fermos approached to answer. One side of his face was badly bruised. It was a perfectly fine face when he grabbed Lyndon Kleinfelter by the scruff of the neck and left the office.
“Don’t tell me you were hit? By whom?”
“Ah, this is…”
Fermos glanced at Black.
“I’m grateful it ended at this level.”
It was impossible not to see that Black was the culprit. Liene grabbed Black's arm in surprise.
“You hit him? Why?”
Black glared at Fermos, but it was already too late. Fermos quickly opened his mouth while he hesitated to answer.
“I deserved it. Because I didn't stop that guy in time. It's all my fault that the Princess got a bruise on her wrist.”
“……”
Liene frowned and looked at Black.
“That doesn’t mean you had to hit him. That's um… not something to praise.”
There must have been a reason why Fermos was dragging his feet, and Liene already had a hunch. He wouldn't want to be caught entering the office without permission. And he must have been planning to listen to what Liene was talking about with Lyndon Kleinfelter. Thinking about it again, it was a dizzying moment. If she had shown that she was cooperating with the Kleinfelter Family instead of being threatened, she didn't even want to imagine what would have happened.
“I didn’t intend to hit him either.”
Black said in his usual emotionless voice. But somehow, he seemed a little embarrassed.
“Then?”
“……”
Black's silence contained the explanation that he had come to his senses after listening to the story and had already punched him. Fermos, who was staring at the troubled Black with his mouth open as if he was amazed, stepped in to smooth things over.
“Let me say again, it's my fault. I am very grateful that you only did this much. Of course, it's also thanks to the guys who tried to stop him… Ah, I'm not complaining.”
“Haa…”
Liene sighed and shook her head.
“I can't judge Tiwakan's military discipline, so I'll stop here. But I cannot condone Fermos entering the royal office without permission. I will impose a reasonable punishment later.”
“Ah, yes. I will humbly wait.”
“What were you doing in the office?”
“Well, um… I had something to look for in the royal archives. When I try to handle the work that my lord has entrusted to me, there are things I need to know about Nauk. I can't ask the Princess about everything.”
It wasn't an unreasonable excuse. The only valuable thing in the office was the royal seal. That was not something Fermos would covet, even if Lyndon Kleinfelter would.
“I see. I hope you will ask for permission in advance next time. What happened to Lyndon Kleinfelter?”
Fermos, who had been looking guilty all along, breathed a sigh of relief at the change of topic.
“I put him in the same room as the bastard. I don't know how a noble can be so energetic, but the prison was quite noisy for a long time.”
“It's not hard to imagine. He's not someone who would accept it quietly. …What about the other Kleinfelters?”
“They're still quiet. I tried to see if they knew about the evidence that the older one was talking about, but they didn't seem to know.”
“I see.”
“This is just my opinion, but I don't think there is any evidence. I think it was a fake bait to seduce the Princess.”
“I think so too. If there really was evidence, they wouldn't have been holding on to it quietly until now.”
“That's right. They could have used it as much as they wanted. They could have claimed that the betrothal was invalid.”
“That's right.”
Liene was quite surprised by the short conversation. She had expected Fermos to be smart, but she wondered if he was more than that. He seemed to have seen through Lyndon Kleinfelter's tendencies even though he hadn't been in Nauk for long.
“But he seemed to have something to rely on. He kept talking about the Lisebery Treaty, do you know about it?”
“Yes. Unfortunately.”
“Unfortunately? That doesn't sound good.”
“It is a peace treaty signed with the elders and advisors of the Grand Council of Nauk during the reign of the late King. Most of the rights that the Kleinfelter Family enjoys now are based on that treaty.”
“A peace treaty… Was there a civil war or something?”
“As far as I know, yes. The drought lasted too long, and the King was the only one to blame.”
Fermos clicked his tongue.
“It's more than just bad.”
The peace treaty, which Liene didn't even remember, was in name a peace treaty, but in reality, it was nothing more than a humiliation for the royal family. Due to the prolonged drought, the late King suffered from financial difficulties and tried to impose taxes on the nobles. The nobles, who rebelled against this, formed a force centered on the Kleinfelter Family and went to the brink of rebellion, and the late King, who could not withstand it, had to sign a treaty that was like a royal gag order.
“He was babbling that according to that treaty, in order to punish the Grand Council Head, a unanimous verdict must be reached in the Grand Council trial, is that also true?”
“Unfortunately, yes. That's also true.”
“We'll have to stomp all the nobles in the Grand Council to death, or get rid of the treaty itself.”
“No noble will agree to abolish the treaty.”
“Ah, then would it be better to kill them?”
Liene, who thought it was nonsense and took it as a joke, calmly shook her head.
“Then Nauk will be cut in half.”
“It's not that many… Ah, right. Nauk is a place where the bonds between families are strong. We have to consider the loyalty of the workers employed by the noble families. Those workers will have family and relatives.”
“That's right.”
Fermos sighed as if he wasn't joking at all.
“I forgot that politics was such a complicated thing. War would be better.”
Fermos was muttering and complaining when Black spat out a word.
“Enough.”
“……Oh, yes.”
Then Fermos quickly changed his attitude as if nothing had happened.
“The Grand Council trial is useless. We need to find a way to change the treaty.”
That was something Liene had been thinking about for a long time. However, Liene did not have the power to do so.
“The only exception is the temple.”
“The temple?”
“Yes. The temple has the power to overturn all trial verdicts. Because it is a place that conveys the word of God.”
“Aha.”
“But the problem is that the Lisebery Treaty grants the Grand Council Head the authority to nominate the next Cardinal. Since then, the Cardinal has become a man of the Kleinfelter Family.”
“Ah.”
Fermos' monocle sparkled.
“Isn't the position of Cardinal currently vacant? Has the next Cardinal been decided?”
“Not yet.”
A shadow appeared on her calm eyes.
“He probably didn't appoint one on purpose. Lyndon Kleinfelter was planning to postpone the wedding.”
“Hmm… Then could it be that he killed the Cardinal for that reason?”
“Probably.”
“Ha! The King is there, but the Grand Council Head has been diligently playing the tyrant.”
“……”
Liene twisted her lips as if she had swallowed something bitter. The treaty signed by the late King was a huge woodworm that was eating away at the royal family. It was rapidly and unrestrainedly gnawing away at this small kingdom and the royal family. Liene watched it every day, but she couldn't do anything. All of that was her weakness. She felt ashamed and miserable, as if she was exposing it all in front of Black.
“Then postpone the trial and solve that first.”
Black intervened again.
“Find the culprit and reveal that it was the Cardinal who ordered it. If the priests aren't stupid, they'll figure out which way to survive on their own.”
Fermos groaned.
“Ugh… it's harder than I thought. There's not much progress in the investigation. All the priests and subdeacons wear the same clothes, and their routines are erratic… Anyway, I need more time.”
“How much?”
Black subtly raised his voice, and Fermos flinched, tilting his shoulders back and shaking his eyes.
“Well… I'm not sure yet…”
“Not sure?”
“I don't know… No, that's not it, my Lord. I'll find him no matter what. Actually, there was one clue, but I was putting it off because the method of confirming it was a bit tricky. If the Princess allows it, I'll use it right away.”
“What is it?”
Liene asked before Fermos could even finish speaking. She probably didn't realize it, but her voice was full of excitement.
“Princess.”
Black called out to Liene.
“Yes?”
When she turned to look at him, he grabbed her wrist and lifted it.
“This will cause another wound.”
“...?”
Liene was unknowingly clenching her fist tightly. Black placed the fist Liene was holding onto his palm and used his other hand to unfold her fingers one by one.
“I don't want any more wounds on your body that I didn't create.”
“……”
Fermos silently gaped. Liene was also slightly surprised.
“Are you going to wound me?”
The wounds that lovers inflict on each other are diverse, and what Black was saying was closer to a metaphor for intense caresses rather than a literal wound. But looking at Liene's expression, it was obvious that she wasn't even thinking in that direction. Even Fermos, who had no interest in affection between humans, understood what he meant, but Liene didn't.
“Don't you know what I'm talking about?”
“I don't think so. Logically, it would be a joke, but Lord Tiwakan's expression doesn't look like he's joking at all.”
“……I let my guard down again.”
Black sighed briefly.
“I didn't mean I would create painful wounds. You don't have to misunderstand.”
“I know you wouldn't. I know you care about me a lot too. I don't misunderstand.”
“……”
Fermos couldn't bear to watch the expression Black would make upon hearing those words, so he turned his head away.
“Then tell me what I need to allow now.”
Fermos nodded quickly, trying not to look at Black.
“The clue I found is a bloodstain. Judging by the amount of blood that was dropped, the wound wouldn't be too small.”
“Blood?”
“Yes. But when I examined the Cardinal's body, there were no traces of wounds that would cause bleeding.”
“Then…”
“It seems to be the culprit's blood. The culprit must have a wound. And circumstantially, the culprit is likely someone affiliated with the temple.”
“That makes sense.”
“So, if you allow it, I'd like to take off their priest robes. If there's someone with an unhealed wound on their body, that person is likely the culprit. That's the only clue we have right now.”
“So, we have to take off their priest robes and check them one by one. That won't be easy.”
“That's right. I don't know if those stubborn guys will obediently take off their clothes.”
Black threw out a word.
“Then make them take them off.”
“Well… of course. I can make them take them off by force or intimidation… But it's a temple, after all. I wanted to ask the Princess in advance because doing it unilaterally could potentially create an unpleasant situation. Do you allow it?”
“It's not just any matter, it's about finding the culprit who killed the Cardinal, so even if it's uncomfortable, we have to do it. Then… Ah, perhaps?”
Suddenly, a thought flashed through her mind. The blood seeping out from under the thick priest robes. The child of God who stood still even when hit, offering prayers of repentance. It was the acolyte Klima.
“There was an acolyte who was bleeding yesterday.”
“Yes?”
Fermos's face lit up. He didn't really want to take off the priests' clothes. He couldn't be unhappy that it might not be necessary.
“Who is it?”
