Why had she been so afraid of him? After their reunion, there had been no reason for her to cower before him. She had the means to protect herself now. Her magic could blocka Remdragon Knight’s blow; her father’s cane could not be more powerful than that.
Maxi swept a placid gaze over him. “It doesn’t matter whether you believe it or not. I am…a mage. If you insist on p-putting my husband on trial…I will also use every means available to me to fight it.”
Maxi felt Riftan’s fierce glare boring into her cheek. Although his eyes glinted dangerously, he kept his mouth firmly shut as if he could not bring himself to call her out on her deception. He seemed inclined to keep his silence for now. Maxi let out a surreptitious sigh of relief, then flinched when the Duke of Croyso’s shrill voice cut through the room.
“You ungrateful wench! Go ahead! Let’s see who wins! We’ll see who is telling the truth!”
“You cannot be serious.” King Reuben, who had been watching the situation unfold with avid interest, heaved an irritated sigh. “Lord Croyso, things will become exceedingly cumbersome for both of us if the Mage Tower gets involved. Do you realize that you are about to be accused of persecuting a mage?”
“How can I be accused if I was not even aware that my daughter was one?!” the duke screeched.
“Whether you did it knowingly or unknowingly does not matter,” Princess Agnes retorted coldly. “After all, that is not something you can prove. What does matter is whether physical violence was inflicted on a mage of the tower.”
Simon nodded his agreement. “Her Highness is correct. The tower will draw its verdict based solely on whether or not an act of violence was perpetrated.”
The duke’s face was now almost purple with rage. Amusement rose on the king’s face.
“Thus is the quandary, Lord Croyso. You must know how vexing the Mage Tower can be. If they turn their back on you, the majority of the mages in your duchy will leave. It would be futile for you to expect the tower to ever send any to you again. Are you still going to demand a trial even in the face of such sanctions?”
The duke opened his mouth to protest before clenching it shut without a word. Though he was practically foaming at the mouth with rage, his years as a high-ranking nobleman seemed to hold him in check. He rolled his eyes upward as though trying to calculate the potential losses in the event of this unforeseen scenario.
King Reuben quietly observed the duke. Then, as if to drive his point home, he said, “If you go ahead with this trial, your house will lose not only its prestige, but also many of its high mages. Quite the predicament for you, seeing as you have to keep Dristan at bay.” He leaned forward. “And that’s not all. If the Mage Tower decides to move on this, even I will not be able to disregard it.”
The duke’s face stiffened. “You mean…”
“That Nornui will prevent the royal family from taking your side during the trial.”
“Y-Your Majesty, you have a duty to preserve the dignity of your nobles. Are you not concerned about the royal family earning the enmity of all the houses?”
A moment of tense silence hung in the air.
“I grow tired of your threats, Lord Croyso,” the king finally said, his eyes turning cold. “My only wish is to maintain Wedon’s unity and safeguard the peace of the Seven Kingdoms. To think that you would use that against me…I cannot help but doubt your loyalty.”
“Your Majesty, my life was threatened by the man you personally knighted,” the duke whined. “To whom would I turn for justice if not you?”
“Is that not why we have been tolerating your whining thus far?”
The duke’s lips turned white with humiliation at the king’s irritable response. Seeing this, King Reuben softened his voice.
“I do think that what happened to you was unfortunate. Calypse did go overboard. But I have heard both sides, and it’s clear that it was your actions that instigated it. Calypse will no doubt be condemned by many of the nobles if this goes to trial, but so will you. It will be harder to determine who is at fault if the Mage Tower gets involved. What good will come from taking this further? Would you not be making a mockery of yourself if the verdict does not land as you wish?”
The duke was beside himself with rage, his shoulders shaking. He seemed to be in denial that his plan was on the verge of falling apart. His bloodshot eyes darted furiously between Riftan and Maxi.
Maxi was afraid that her father would burst into belligerent protests, but the sense of propriety ingrained into his core somehow managed to contain his boiling anger. The duke clenched his jaw in a desperate attempt to collect himself.
It was then that the king made his offer.
“Still, it would be unfair of me to let this matter slide after all you’ve been through. So how about this? Allow this affair to pass quietly, and I will halve the dowry you pledged for Rosetta.”
The duke’s fury was so all-consuming that the king’sproposal seemed to fall on deaf ears. He pressed his lips into a thin line, refusing to answer.
“But if you insist on going against my will,” the king continued imposingly, “I will be obliged to nullify the engagement between our houses. You cannot expect me to link the royal family with a disloyal vassal.”
With that, the duke was left with no choice. He clutched his cane with so much force that it was surprising it did not splinter.
“I understand,” the duke growled, forcing the words from his mouth as though vomiting blood. “I shall…withdraw my suit…as Your Majesty wishes.”
Maxi exhaled the breath she had been holding. Though she had heard it with her own ears, she still could not believe that her father had caved.
