Chapter 162
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 162
Lauren’s death rendered Roxana’s painstakingly prepared "counterattack" useless.
Harriet, who had helped gather the evidence, felt a bit deflated. However, when Trisha and Roxana decided to quietly close the case, she couldn't bring herself to object.
As Harriet sorted through the documents piled on Roxana’s desk, she asked with a hint of disappointment, "You’re cutting off the living expenses paid to the House of Marshall, right?"
Roxana glanced at her and gave a cool nod.
"That was, after all, money given to Lauren Marshall in her capacity as a collateral relative of the Fellon Family."
"What about the town house? I heard the Fellon Family provided that as well."
"The ownership has already been transferred, so we cannot reclaim it."
"Tsk."
Baron Marshall and Jaden, who had been cleared of all charges thanks to Lauren’s suicide, were infuriating.
Although Lauren was said to have masterminded the crime, it was impossible that her family hadn't known or assisted her. Jaden had even come along to mock Trisha, and when Lauren visited the Imperial Aristocracy Bureau, Baron Marshall had reportedly accompanied her.
Seeing Harriet more indignant than herself, Roxana let out a small laugh. She added, as if to console her, "If the living expenses from the Fellon Family are cut off, the House of Marshall’s only source of income will be the taxes from their small estate. It will be difficult for them to maintain a lifestyle accustomed to the standards of Genoa’s high society... they’ll likely be forced to sell the town house before long."
"The House of Marshall will completely decline then."
"Let that be your consolation."
Harriet smiled bitterly and nodded.
Just as she was about to focus on the documents again, Andre suddenly entered, clutching a stack of newspapers.
"Young Lady! Have you seen this?"
He spread the newspapers—the ink still seemingly wet—across the table.
[The Illegally Traded Drug <Angelic>: Is This Acceptable?]
[The Abnormal <Angelic> Craze! What Is the Truth?]
[Over 200 Cases of Suicide and Attempted Suicide! The Cause: Drug Addiction!]
Every front-page article was targeting <Angelic>.
"I went out to the city earlier, and since these were issued as extras, I bought them all. I heard this drug called <Angelic> is related to the medicine Great-aunt Trisha took before."
Instead of answering, Roxana picked up a newspaper.
As soon as she saw the headline, Harriet realized this was the "big incident" Cedric had mentioned. She stood beside Roxana and read through the article.
...As a result of investigating the cause of the rapidly increasing suicide cases within aristocratic society, it was revealed that most victims had incurred massive debts to purchase <Angelic> or to attend so-called 'Angelic Parties'...
...The supply of <Angelic> has become scarce, leading to it being traded at exorbitant prices by unlicensed traffickers. It has also been confirmed that certain doctors were diverting the drug for profit instead of prescribing it to patients in need...
...Although <Angelic> is being identified as the cause of the 'illness' currently spreading through the nobility, the manufacturer, <Kingsley Pharmaceutical Company>, claims that only side effects similar to other common drugs have been reported and that they cannot control individual cases of abuse...
Roxana scanned the text quickly, her expression darkening as she shook her head.
"This will be a massive scandal."
"Commoners don't know much about <Angelic>, so their reaction has been lukewarm," Andre replied. "But the nobles were all shaken. They were scrambling to buy the papers."
"Of course. So many of them take it, after all."
Harriet took the newspaper from Roxana, carefully checking even the back pages before speaking.
"Duke Kailas said we might have to testify in connection with this case. The medicine Great-aunt Trisha took was made with the same ingredients as <Angelic> and by the same company."
"You mean testify that it was a drug used in a murder plot."
"Even with all these problems, Kingsley Pharmaceutical Company will try to use His Imperial Highness the Second Prince as a shield to escape. We can't let them do that, can we?"
Roxana nodded.
Because she had been the one to approve the use of that drug for Trisha, she still lived with the regret of that day. How could she ever forget the grudge of almost killing Trisha—her benefactor and mother figure?
"Tell them to contact me whenever I am needed. I will gladly go and testify."
Looking at Roxana—who felt just as strongly, if not more so—Harriet smiled faintly.
Two days later, the newspapers carried another massive headline.
[His Imperial Majesty’s Wrath: "Arrest Albert Kingsley!"]
* * *
As Roxana had expected, the <Angelic> incident became a scandal that shook the very foundations of aristocratic society.
Whether they were people who had been prescribed it for treatment or those who took it for pleasure, chaos ensued.
The former were terrified, having only now learned of the side effects of the drug they were consuming; the latter were desperate because Kingsley Pharmaceutical Company had ceased operations, cutting off the supply.
While the price of <Angelic> skyrocketed in the back alleys, the Emperor himself was interrogating Albert in the Room of Mirrors—the Imperial Palace’s courtroom.
"Your Majesty! As I have repeatedly stated, <Angelic> is an innovative drug created with the best of intentions! The fact that those suffering from depression were able to live vibrant lives again thanks to <Angelic> can be proven by the numerous case studies we submitted!"
"You mean the prime example is my son, Michael, don't you?"
"Indeed, Your Majesty!"
Albert asserted this confidently and bowed his head, but Emperor Durein did not look convinced.
"Yes, I know well. That is why I provided you with considerable support as a reward, did I not? For example, allowing you to build a second factory on Imperial land for ten years free of charge, or exempting your pharmaceutical license fees for three years."
The Emperor threw the bundle of papers he was holding at Albert’s feet.
"But it turns out this was no different from a narcotic. And you have known that for a very long time."
The documents on the floor were filled with details regarding the various side effects and the severe addictiveness caused by <Angelic>. Though the papers looked familiar, Albert decided to deny it for now.
"These must be fake experimental results created by someone trying to frame me!"
"Haha, really? Look at the very last page."
Albert hesitated for a moment before flipping to the final page. There, the seal of 'Kingsley Pharmaceutical Company' was stamped clearly. Below it were the signatures of the researchers who had developed the drug.
It was a top-secret internal document summarizing the concerns raised when the first experiments were conducted with Darsenger extract.
"Th-this... why is this here...!"
"You cannot even recognize documents from your own company? Have you gone mad from the drug yourself? Or does this mean you manufactured the drug without even reviewing this vital information?"
Albert felt as if he had been struck in the back of the head. He hadn't recognized it because it was something that should never have left his possession.
Why are the documents from my study’s safe here?!
He was so flustered his mind went blank, unable to process a single excuse.
But just then, the Second Prince, Michael, appeared like a savior.
When he burst open the doors to the interrogation room, Albert almost burst into tears of relief.
"Father! Sir Kingsley is not at fault! Why on earth are you conducting such a biased interrogation, listening only to one side?"
Durein, as if he had expected Michael to show up, looked at the guard by the door with an unperturbed expression.
"I told you not to let anyone in, didn't I?"
"I-I apologize! His Imperial Highness said he was an essential witness to this interrogation...!"
"Tsk, tsk."
The Emperor clicked his tongue in exasperation and turned to his son. "What is it you want to say?"
"Thanks to <Angelic>, I am finally able to function as a person, Father! You watched that transformation yourself, yet you doubt its efficacy? The problem arose because people abused it, not because of the drug itself!"
"Are you saying you suffered no side effects because you only used it as prescribed?"
"Absolutely!"
At Michael’s confident declaration, Durein scoffed. The scoff soon faded into a bitter smile.
"I should have listened to Anastasia from the beginning..."
He sighed and gestured to the official standing beside him. The official spread two notebooks onto the table.
"Michael, look. This is your purchase history of <Angelic> over the past months, and this side is the 'original' record of prescriptions from the Imperial Physician."
At that, Michael, who had entered so boldly, fell silent.
All this time, he had forged the Imperial Physician’s prescriptions, obtaining the drug by inflating the records. Forging the documents had been so easy that he believed deceiving his mother and father would be just as simple.
"The illnesses of the Imperial Family are confidential to outsiders, but internally, they are handled with the utmost importance. Did you really think that prescription slip was the only record kept?"
"No, I..."
"Believing your attendants' words... it is also my fault for not checking the prescriptions myself. But Michael..." Durein’s expression turned somber. "I hoped you would solve the problem yourself. I even warned you subtly several times. Each time, you boasted that you were managing it well, that there was no problem."
Cold sweat began to trickle down Michael's forehead as he finally realized his parents had merely been tolerating his behavior all this time.
"Your dosage increased far beyond the forged prescriptions, and your purchase amounts skyrocketed. At one point, I too had hope as your condition seemed to improve, but now? I hear you cannot even get out of bed without this drug."
"But if I just take <Angelic>, I can do anything...!"
"Yes, that is what we call addiction. Being unable to do anything without a drug. A prince of a great empire, being swayed by a mere noble, yet unable to utter a single word of protest. Throwing his honor into the dirt just to get his hands on a pill, yet feeling no shame!"
At his usually lenient father’s roar of anger, Michael flinched, his shoulders trembling.
But Durein did not stop there.