What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 904

…gulp.

It felt like I swallowed way too loudly.

-Swish…!

“……”

The moment we entered the courtroom, hundreds of gazes crashed down on us, and the room fell as silent as if it were frozen solid.

I didn’t open a Circle, but I had committed to releasing my Aether [a magical energy or life force], so there must have been a dazzling halo hanging behind my head by now.

I reflexively clenched and unclenched my right fist, blinking.

Everywhere I looked, there were people, people, people… The gallery, the witness stand, the seats for the bar and the guarantors, and even the aisles and standing room were packed with people who had gathered to watch the trial.

I thought I was starting to get used to this kind of setting, but seeing how nervous I was today, politics and socializing were still too far away for me.

“Shall we walk now?”

Prince Yeser, supporting my hand, asked cheerfully.

The violet gaze of the royal family was fixed straight ahead without wavering, and his May-like lips were drawing a faint curve.

I glanced at him and nodded slightly.

“Yes… I’m good at walking.”

“Haha.”

The man chuckled briefly and escorted me.

I straightened my neck, kept my gaze steady, and stepped forward confidently.

Today’s trial was not just a place to judge criminals.

His Majesty Frederick wished that today would be a new beginning for the two of us and the complete end of Wilhelmina Sneider.

The heinous ambition of a murderer who yearned to become the god of the world, collapsing pathetically before a vividly existing miracle.

A prince resurrected from death, and the evidence of a true god, shattering even the last hope of the sinner.

-Step, step, step…

“Oh, Lord God…”

“Indeed, they are different yet somehow alike. Even their physique…”

“So that story was true! That the two of them are the twins of the Lord God…”

“Shh!”

That’s why he wanted my six wings to be revealed to all the world, and he wanted Prince Yeser Venetian to stand by my side without fail.

His Majesty ordered that we shine more brilliantly than anyone else.

So that not only the audience but also all the people gathered here would not forget today’s miracle.

A heinous criminal who dared to steal and trample precious lives, and destroy the long-standing peace of the continent…

“No way, no… No way…”

…would desperately despair and be discouraged as they looked at us. That was what he wanted more than anything.

I walked diligently, looking at the old woman muttering to herself in the defendant’s seat.

Today was the first time I had faced her directly.

First time.

-Thud, thud, thud!

“……”

As we began to pass through the aisle, the Imperial Knights snapped their heels together and bowed their heads in salute.

Then, a noble sitting in the audience also rose from her seat and bowed to us.

Starting with her, everyone in the courtroom rose up and began to bow in a wave.

I could clearly recognize her bright and radiant face.

“I greet the Full Moon and the New Moon of the continent.”

“……”

The wife of Duke Fabrice Berang, Duchess Anne Berang. Beside her was her daughter, Grand Duchess Elodie.

Seeing their faces after so long strangely filled my heart.

Perhaps it was because the earliest days I spent here flashed through my mind like a panorama.

The attempted murder in Juliette, which was called the Cold Palace, and the deaths of the two servant children that were revealed as a result.

The first orphanage built in the Berang barony soon after.

The Baron’s family rescuing and caring for the people of Shin-guk [a nation or region] who risked their lives to cross the border…

“I greet the Full Moon and the New Moon of the continent.”

“I greet the Full Moon and the New Moon of the continent…”

“May you enjoy the divine grace of the Lord God.”

‘Good people’.

Yes, at some point, I wanted to be like them.

As I engraved the familiar faces in the audience one by one in my heart, I suddenly thought.

‘Jeong Yeser,’ the third grader who wanted to become an adult as soon as possible while looking at his big brother’s back…

…seemed to have finally gained a precious realization in another world.

…Not a perfect adult, but a good person. That’s enough.

“Your Majesty, this way, please.”

“Ah, yes. Thank you.”

When I woke up from my reverie, we were already right in front of the high seat.

A couple of familiar Imperial Palace servants led the prince and me to the stairs.

Just as I was about to step on the last step, I met his eyes again.

The prince, who had read all my emotions through the vessel [likely referring to a magical or spiritual connection], smiled and lightly kissed the back of my hand.

Then he gently led it over and handed it to the Crown Prince. A baton touch, I guess.

“Your Highness, I brought this to give to you.”

“……”

While the prince was taking his seat, I quickly rummaged through my pocket and handed a handful of gifts to Cedric on the other side.

The man lowered me into the chair, tilting his head with curiosity…

“……I’m not a child.”

No, don’t frown.

“I couldn’t give you a proper one back then. Take one out when you’re tired.”

“……”

Soon, the Crown Prince, who had received the ABC chocolates, took his seat.

Then everyone in the courtroom sat down again with a rustle.

Finally, I bowed politely to His Majesty the Emperor and my teacher, and with the help of the servants, I straightened my posture.

The long skirts and sleeves, and the six wings that I wore to match the prince, were soon neatly arranged.

As I slowly withdrew my Aether, the rays of the halo seemed to fade as well.

The wide courtroom filled my now clearer vision.

At that moment.

“……No way, no, no way……!”

-Clatter!

The prisoner, bound in ropes in the defendant’s seat, jumped up. I was startled and strained my neck.

I immediately met Wilhelmina Sneider’s eyes, but before she could move any further, the Imperial Army quickly suppressed her.

The audience fanned themselves busily in shock.

“Let me go, no way! This is a scam, all a scam!”

“What a rude person!”

“Defendant! Control yourself!”

“I am the one who received the sacred revelation! Not those swindlers! Me! It’s me―!”

A piercing scream.

-Crash! Clatter!

“Defendant!”

“The prince was definitely dead! He died at Werner’s hands! You dirty, lowly swindler! Won’t you let me go!”

-Clang, clang!

The restraints on her right wrist and ankle clanged annoyingly, and a more terrible metallic sound erupted from the prisoner’s throat.

I stared at her with wide eyes.

“Aaaagh! Aaaagh…!”

“Priest! Papal Priest! Calm her down!”

“Yes, Chairman!”

Wilhelmina Sneider did not seem like the person we had once communicated with through the black magic crystal ball.

Her composure and nobility, which had once shaken my vessel with anger, had now completely disappeared and could not be found.

Arrogant and presumptuous, as if she had the whole world at her feet…

“Don’t believe it! The Lord God has abandoned us! God does not bestow any grace on this land―!”

-Clang, clatter!

[Duke Sneider, we will now calm your soul. Breathe slowly and accept the power.]

“God is not merciful to you! He doesn’t give you the same happiness, the same love! Doesn’t God truly know unfairness!”

“Hold your shoulders tight! Hold your shoulders tight!”

[Breathe! If you reject the power, your vessel will break!]

“I am! I am the savior who came to correct that…!”

The duchess who used to speak with authority in every sentence was gone now.

I felt miserable as I looked at her bloodshot eyes, disheveled hair, empty left arm and left leg—the burn-streaked face wrinkles and scabbed lips.

Of course, it wasn’t because I felt sorry for her.

It wasn’t that I suddenly felt sorry for the infamous murderer, or that I suddenly became curious about her story.

It was just…

“Isn’t she a very insignificant old woman?”

“……”

At the prince’s words, which seemed to penetrate my heart, I suddenly turned to the side.

His darkly sunken eyes were gazing at the one who was once his aunt.

Sneider’s guarantors, who had turned pale, stepped back several paces and watched the situation.

-Swish…!

“Aaaagh! Let me go―! Do you know who I am! You scoundrel!”

“Someone with no outstanding qualities in terms of physique, strength, appearance, or voice… A noble that can be seen anywhere.”

“……”

“The fact that such a person killed so many people, disrupted the order of the country for decades, and lived among us as if nothing had happened…”

“……”

“Isn’t that utterly miserable?”

“……”

Instead of answering, I carefully reached out and wrapped my hand around the back of the prince’s hand.

Feeling sorry that he could not regain the relationships he had lost forever.

Hoping to offer even a small comfort that our hearts were of the same color.

“It’s okay.”

Then the prince folded his eyes and smiled at me.

I knew it wasn’t a lie.

“Because I will start anew… with you from here.”

-Thud!

“Oh…!”

Flustered! I quickly turned my gaze at the exclamation that erupted from the audience.

Good heavens, I could see Duke Sneider, who had finally lost consciousness and collapsed, being escorted somewhere.

The priest and Imperial Knights were moving in perfect order.

Before the prisoner’s guarantors could point fingers with red and blue faces—

-Bang, bang, bang!

“We will adjourn for thirty minutes. Thirty minutes adjournment!”

Marquis Cisse declared in a resounding voice.

I let out a long sigh and leaned back against the backrest.

“Cedric, just one chocolate for me.”

“……Amazing.”

Hoo… A lot has happened in a short time.

Exactly thirty minutes later, the trial resumed as scheduled.

The duchess, who had regained consciousness in the meantime, returned to the courtroom with a pale face.

As soon as she returned, she sharply warned her guarantors to keep their mouths shut, and then declared that she would defend herself from now on without anyone’s help.

Then, before the Imperial representatives’ questioning could begin, she said this.

“I was… an agent of His Majesty Frederick, the Emperor of the Great Liester Empire. This is as pure a truth as the ancient spring from which the Unite River springs.”

“……”

The courtroom became as cold as if a ghost had passed through.

I clasped my hands tightly and looked around the room.

Ms. Gain and Isabel were sitting in the audience closest to our seats.

At the word ‘agent,’ the two people’s faces immediately hardened, and the imperial nobles, who had undergone court trials related to this, glanced at the upper ranks and remained silent.

Regardless, Wilhelmina continued to speak.

“The incidents that the Imperial representatives have presented as evidence, claiming to be my crimes, were mostly done for His Majesty the Emperor.”

“……Are you now admitting to committing treason against Princess Elysee?”

“Don’t misunderstand. I acted only for His Majesty’s victory and glory, not for anyone else. Even appearing to betray Shin-guk and plotting rebellion against Princess Elysee was all for that reason.”

“……”

The Imperial representatives exchanged glances silently, and Marquis Cisse maintained a calm attitude throughout.

The Liester audience, who were known for their murmuring and whispering, were also making strange expressions.

Soon, His Majesty Frederick opened his mouth.

“……An interesting hypothesis. What is the evidence?”

“……What did you just say……?”

“I asked if there was any evidence that I hired you as an agent.”

“……”

A typical Sneider method of erasing all evidence and brazenly claiming innocence.

For a moment, the duchess’s face went blank.

The rebuttal ended there.

From that point on, the trial gained momentum.