The Silent Truth
"Now, we shall commence the trial of the defendant, Hans."
As I called out from the judge's bench, the guards roughly dragged out a man bound in heavy iron chains. His face was covered in dark blue bruises, and his lips were swollen and split, suggesting he had been severely beaten.
From a corner of the gallery, a middle-aged woman wept bitterly at the wretched sight of her son.
"Defendant Hans. Do you plead guilty to the murder of your wife, Milina?"
At my words, Hans slowly raised his head.
"Cough... cough..."
Seeing that he was unable to speak properly, I prompted him further. "Then tell us, what were you doing on the day Milina died?"
From a corner of the gallery, a handsome, brown-haired man stood up and shouted, "Your Grace! This trial is meaningless!"
Slightly annoyed by the man speaking out of turn without permission, I asked sharply, "Who are you?"
"I am Leopard Equines, the heir to the estate where Hans and Milina reside."
I recalled him as an important witness from the court records.
"Leopard, I have not granted you the floor. If you disrupt these proceedings once more, you will be charged with contempt of court."
After issuing the warning, I looked back at Hans. "At this very moment, you are not a criminal. Tell us what you did that day."
As I spoke to him gently, Hans clutched his throat with both hands and then drew an 'X' with his fingers.
Is he mute?
With that thought, I looked at Hans's mother and asked, "Is Hans unable to speak?"
She shook her head vigorously, sobbing, "No... he isn't."
At her response, I turned to the guards. "Check if his throat was damaged during torture."
The guard examined Hans's condition and reported, "Uh... Your Grace, there is a large laceration on his vocal cords."
My brow furrowed. Surprised by this unexpected development, I raised my voice. "Who did this? Who tortured the defendant?!"
I bellowed, but no one answered.
"Bring the torturer here immediately."
As the guard scurried out of the courtroom, I looked at Hans. "Can the defendant write?"
Seeing Hans shake his head, I barely suppressed a sigh. "Summon a priest immediately. We shall recess until then."
With that, I struck the gavel.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Having declared a recess, I looked to my side and saw Theodora wearing a sullen expression.
"Do you really think he isn't the culprit?"
I replied casually, "Who knows?"
Though I spoke lightly, a lingering sense of unease prompted me to investigate. After all, that was the duty of a ruler.
"After you said that, I looked over the case again, and it seems Hans is indeed the culprit. All the testimonies align perfectly, don't they?"
I nodded and said, "Exactly. And that's precisely why I find it suspicious."
Theodora looked at me, puzzled. "Why is that?"
I answered, "The trial process is suspiciously clean."
The most baffling part was that even a brutal killer usually has some sort of excuse or defense. Yet, according to the court records, the defendant Hans readily admitted to his charges and showed remorse.
However... his mother had traveled all the way to Roman to submit a petition to the Emperor, claiming Hans was innocent. She truly believed in his innocence. When I asked if she had attended Hans's trial, she said she was unable to. She claimed it was because of the lord's son, who had just presumptuously interrupted the proceedings.
This was highly suspicious.
And there was another telling detail. To submit a petition to the Emperor, one needed a hundred signatures. While a hundred might seem like a small number, people are usually hesitant to lend their names because any backlash could easily sweep them up as well. The fact that so many people readily lent their names after hearing her plight meant she was highly respected in her community.
It made no sense that the son of such a woman would murder his newlywed wife. Aren't newlyweds usually head over heels for each other?
"What are you doing...?" Theodora called out to me in a low voice.
I snapped out of my thoughts and looked ahead. The torturer had already arrived. Seeing him sitting in the witness stand, I reconvened the court.
"Ahem. Torturer. I have been informed that Hans's vocal cords have been severed. Was it not too harsh to torture a defendant whose case is undergoing a retrial?"
Trembling, the torturer replied, "Your Grace! No, it wasn't me! His vocal cords were already severed before he arrived in Roman. They were already cut when I took custody of him."
"What?"
I pondered the torturer's words, trying to figure out how to move the situation forward. Hans could neither speak nor write.
"Your Grace, the priest has arrived."
"Send him in."
At my command, the priest entered the courtroom. "First, examine Hans."
A moment later, the priest, who had been trying to heal him with holy power, spoke up in panic. "Y-Your Grace! This is terrible!"
At his urgent tone, I rose from my seat and approached him. "What is the matter?"
As I drew near, he whispered in my ear, "A curse has been placed on the wound."
"What?"
Surprised by this unexpected revelation, I asked, "A curse?"
The priest pointed to the area around the wound. "If you look at the torn scar here, there are runes engraved above and below it, keeping the wound open. This is undoubtedly the mark of a curse."
Indeed, small runes were visible around the laceration.
"Can it not be healed?"
The priest shook his head. "It can, but it will take a considerable amount of time."
Looking at it from another angle... could this have been done to silence Hans?
With that thought, I sat back down. I had assumed it was a simple case. I had only ordered a retrial to clear my own lingering doubts, but this was far more serious than I had anticipated.
My intuition told me... the real culprit was right there in the gallery. And they had cursed Hans to buy themselves time. If I let this slip now, I would never catch them. The culprit would surely flee. The curse on Hans's throat was meant to facilitate their escape.
So... what should I do? As a ruler, I had a duty to respect the law and conduct a fair trial. But was it right to use a trick to catch the real culprit? I agonized over the decision.
There is no other way.
Rather than letting an innocent man be punished, I had to use a trick to find and arrest the true culprit. Recalling the plan I had prepared in advance, I resumed the trial.
"Although Hans cannot speak at the moment, we shall proceed with the trial. Defendant Hans, is the person who injured your throat present in this courtroom?"
He nodded.
"Then who is it? Point to them."
At my command, Hans pointed his finger directly at Leopard Equines.
"Leopard, step up to the witness stand."
As Leopard took his seat with an easy, unbothered air, I asked, "Did you inflict that wound on Hans's throat?"
"Yes, that is correct, Your Grace. He had already been sentenced to death by the local court, and I authorized torture so he could pay for his crimes. I believe his throat was injured during that process."
"Hmm..."
Torturing a condemned criminal was common practice here, so it wasn't a major legal issue.
Clank! Clank!
At the harsh sound of chains, I turned my head to see Hans glaring at Leopard with eyes full of rage. Prompted by his gaze, a sudden thought struck me.
"Hans, do you believe Leopard is the real culprit?"
Hans nodded vigorously.
"Your Grace! How can you accuse a noble of murder? No matter if you are the Grand Duke, you cannot frame an innocent aristocrat!" Leopard protested.
He was technically correct. Accusing someone of a crime in court without evidence or witnesses was unacceptable. Especially in the Empire, a nation ruled by law, there was a strong public aversion to such judicial manipulation.
"We shall examine whether you are innocent or guilty, step by step."
There were several witnesses present, but all of them were commoners living on the Equines estate.
"Under imperial law, there is no precedent for turning a witness into a suspect! Your Majesty, please say something to the Grand Duke!" Leopard appealed to Theodora, acting aggrieved.
"I had no interest in this trial," Theodora spoke up, "but at this point, even I have my doubts. Why did the defendant Hans confess to his crimes until now, only to point to you as the culprit in this very moment?"
It seemed Theodora also sensed that something was amiss. Hans's vocal cords had been damaged during torture, and a curse had been placed to prevent them from healing. Coincidentally, the injury had occurred while he was in the custody of the Equines family before coming here. She was likely suspicious of that connection. She was no fool, after all.
"Of course, you will not be judged without evidence or witnesses. Now, Mirine, the witness who claims to have seen the defendant Hans murder the victim Milina, please step forward."
At my words, Leopard returned to his seat, looking resentful, while a blonde, freckled girl sat in the witness stand with an anxious expression.
Looking at the trembling girl, I declared, "I declare to all witnesses: if you gave false testimony in the previous trial, I shall forgive you. However, if you lie now in the presence of Her Imperial Majesty, you will be charged with contempt of the imperial family."
"I... I..."
As the girl hesitated to speak, I interrupted, "Wait. Clerk, bring the crystal that detects lies, as I instructed."
At my command, an official from the Grand Ducal Department brought out a crystal about thirty centimeters in diameter.
"Now, this crystal is an artifact developed by the Magic Tower that detects lies."
The courtroom erupted into murmurs.
"R-Really? Such a thing exists?"
"How does it work?"
"I wonder..."
Just then, Leopard stood up and shouted, "That's a lie! Don't lie, Grand Duke! I've never heard of such an artifact in my entire life!"
I shook my head in disapproval. "How dare a mere baron's son raise his voice in this court? Guards! Drag that man to the dungeons for contempt of court and contempt of the imperial family!"
At my command, the guards seized Leopard.
"Let go of me! You filthy commoners! Do you have any idea who I am?!"
He struggled violently against the guards, but the court guards, well-accustomed to such outbursts, easily subdued Leopard and dragged him out of the courtroom.
"Now, activate the Lie-Detecting Crystal."
At my instruction, the clerk nodded and touched the crystal, which began to glow with a brilliant light.
"Mirine, tell us what happened that day."
Mirine could only tremble, her face pale with panic.
"If you lied before, I shall forgive you. So speak only the truth here."
At my words...
"Actually... I was threatened to lie..." Mirine began to confess in a small, trembling voice.