There were no windows in the interrogation room within the Imperial Office.

Demian had been left for hours in a place surrounded on all sides, where the only light came from lamps hung on the walls.

In fact, this treatment wasn’t too bad for him. It was an opportunity to calmly organize his thoughts.

As he sat quietly with his arms crossed and eyes closed, the door suddenly swung open after a long wait.

Demian slowly opened his eyes. A silver badge on an Imperial Knights uniform. Raising his gaze a bit further to confirm the other’s face, he spoke softly.

“Lord Diack did not come.”

“The commander is currently busy. And there’s no need for him to personally confront a disgusting person who betrayed his family and killed his brother.”

“You’re treating me as a criminal when the crime hasn’t been clearly proven yet. Is this the code of conduct for the Imperial Knights?”

At the rather sharp retort, Joseph Miller, the vice-commander of the Imperial Knights, furrowed his brow. He had been assigned to interrogate Demian instead of his superior, Ben Diack.

Unlike Ben Diack, there was no special friendship between Joseph and Demian. Rather, Joseph had been wary of Demian, who was growing in power to rival the Imperial Knights.

“Lord Demian Vandermir, your crime has been clearly revealed. You abandoned the spirit of chivalry and brutally murdered your brother.”

“I did no such thing.”

Demian retorted curtly. Joseph then raised the corner of his mouth as if amused and said:

“There’s no use in denying it. We’ve already found traces of someone crossing from your room’s balcony to the young master Vandermir’s room.”

“How do you know it wasn’t an intruder who secretly crept into my room? Perhaps they deliberately left traces to frame me.”

“Lord Vandermir, that’s enough. This is disgraceful.”

Joseph leaned back leisurely. Demian maintained his arms-crossed posture and stared at him intently.

The confident smile on his lips, unwavering gaze, arrogant and assured attitude.

‘Whatever it is, it sounds like they’ve found evidence.’

The Imperial Knights wouldn’t have brought him here just on suspicion alone. They must have found evidence, whether fake or real.

Demian barely swallowed the sigh that was about to rise. Oscar Vandermir’s death was one huge trap to drag him down.

But right now, Demian doesn’t know how to escape this snare.

“Do you know why I came so late? It’s because I was investigating the room where you and your wife stayed.”

“……”

“How about it, are you feeling a bit anxious hearing this? You’ll feel even more so when you know what I found in the room.”

Joseph took something out from his chest. He placed something wrapped in cloth on the table. Demian watched what he was doing with an expressionless face.

Joseph carefully unfolded the cloth. What emerged was a blood-stained dagger. With the Red Hawk Knights emblem engraved on the handle.

Recognizing it immediately, Demian secretly clenched his fist tightly. He felt as if his breath was being choked off, but he didn’t show it at all.

“This was found under the carpet in your room. It seems you hastily hid it without being able to dispose of it properly.”

“I have never used that dagger.”

“Lord Vandermir, are you going to keep playing dumb? This isn’t just any dagger, it’s one only used by your knighthood. It’s an item that ordinary people can never possess.”

“How can you be so sure about that?”

Demian spoke sharply, examining the dagger only with his eyes without touching it at all.

“Previously, when I was unjustly embroiled in an illegitimate child scandal, the other party brought a handkerchief with the ducal emblem as evidence. But it wasn’t mine.”

“……”

“Just as I’m not the only one in the Vandermir ducal family, I’m not the only one in the Red Hawk Knights. This is not my dagger.”

“Then, are you saying another knight from the Red Hawk Knights killed the young master? Ah, on your orders?”

Hearing the words dripping with sarcasm, Demian quietly narrowed his brows. Realizing that his subordinates could potentially be implicated, he couldn’t easily give an answer.

Joseph wrapped the dagger in cloth again and put it away, then lifted his chin. He felt superior, as if he had one of the empire’s top sword masters under his feet.

“Even if this dagger truly isn’t yours, we have another piece of evidence that proves you are the culprit.”

“What is that?”

“It’s……”

“This letter.”

A low voice suddenly interrupted as the interrogation room door swung open.

Joseph, who had been sitting with his legs crossed, hurriedly stood up and bowed. Demian deliberately didn’t turn around to greet the other person.

Because he knew without looking that the figure walking in holding a paper was Frederick.

“I greet Your Highness the Crown Prince!”

“Yes, Lord Miller. You’ve worked hard interrogating Lord Vandermir. Aren’t you tired?”

“I’m fine, Your Highness.”

“Still, you must be exhausted. Go and rest a bit. I’ll take over the interrogation.”

Frederick patted Joseph’s shoulder with a gentle smile. Though the words were phrased as a suggestion, it was essentially an order to leave. Joseph, catching on, tactfully vacated his seat.

Frederick leisurely sat down opposite Demian and faced him with a smile that only reached his lips.

“It pains my heart to see a promising talent, expected to become a pillar of the empire in the future, transform into a criminal who murdered his own kin.”

“…What is this letter you mentioned?”

“Curious? I can’t give it to you directly since you might destroy the evidence, but I can read it to you.”

Frederick lightly waved the letter held between his fingers and chuckled seeing Demian’s completely stiff face.

He began to read the words written inside the letter with deliberately slow movements that would irritate Demian.

“To Grandmother. It’s Oscar, Grandmother. Are you well while we’re away? The reason I’m writing to you during the New Year’s Festival is because I have a favor to ask.”

The letter was written by Oscar, addressed to the Dowager Duchess Vandermir. To summarize its contents:

He won the equestrian competition and gained the good opportunity to attend the banquet. This time, he wants to be rightfully acknowledged as the heir, surpassing Demian.

But in fact, he deliberately put Demian in danger during the competition to defeat him, and it seems the other side has noticed and is preparing for retaliation. He would like her help to be prepared for that.

“It seems the struggle for succession within the family was quite fierce. The elder brother tried to kill the younger, and the younger responded by killing the elder.”

Frederick said in a pleased voice as he folded the letter. Demian let out a hollow laugh. Looking at Oscar’s letter alone, he had sufficient motive for murder.

Moreover, Oscar had also subtly implied that he was suffering under life-threatening pressure from Demian.

In effect, both physical and psychological evidence had all come out.

“No matter how bad the relationship between brothers, how could you commit murder in the sacred imperial palace?”

“…I did not kill him.”

In response to Frederick clicking his tongue softly, Demian shot back in a voice that seemed to barely suppress his anger.

“In the first place, during the equestrian competition, because Your Highness defended Oscar, his crime couldn’t be accurately revealed and had to be passed over vaguely. How could I have known to prepare for retaliation?”

“Indeed, how did you know to prepare? Did you think it was a good opportunity because you had ill feelings towards the young master from before?”

Frederick asked mockingly, exaggeratedly raising his voice. At this point, Demian realized perfectly.

This was all planned by the Crown Prince.

‘There’s really no way out now.’

Even before the New Year’s Festival, Frederick had been bringing up the succession struggle of the Vandermir ducal family in front of people. Back then, he thought it was just to provoke, but…

Now that the situation had come to this, the hidden true purpose was visible.

Frederick wanted to implant in people’s minds that the half-brothers were engaged in a fierce succession struggle. So that it wouldn’t be strange if one of them killed the other.

To hang the yoke of kinslaying on Demian.

Demian, who never imagined the Crown Prince would pull such a reckless act at an imperial event, felt a bitter sense of defeat. The muscles in his jaw clenched as he gritted his teeth.

With bloodshot eyes glaring fiercely, Demian opened his mouth in a low, seething voice.

“What do you want?”

“You know without me having to say it, don’t you?”

Frederick got up, removing the smile from his lips.

At this point, he was in a position to take whatever he wanted anyway, but there was still something he wanted to receive as cleanly as possible.

Of course, even if Demian returned it, he had no intention of letting him off at all.

Frederick reached out and firmly gripped Demian’s shoulder. His face showed no trace of guilt despite committing such a vile act, appearing gentle on the surface.

“Make sure the wave that’s crashed over you doesn’t sweep away innocent people as well.”

“……”

“Then at least I won’t touch the people around you.”

A small, mirthless laugh escaped Demian’s lips. He rubbed his face with his palm. His jaw was so tense that the bone was protruding.

Thinking of the people he had to protect, he couldn’t choose any other option. Demian didn’t ponder long over the question whose answer was already decided.

After all, he couldn’t let innocent people suffer harm from the storm that had struck him.

After Demian was dragged away, Arasila was soon kicked out of the room as well.

The Imperial Knights insisted they needed to search the room and forcibly removed her. Her protests were ineffective against those backed by the Emperor’s orders.

With an indignant face, Arasila first went to her parents’ room.

As soon as she entered, the knights stood guard at the door, strictly controlling movement. Arasila was trapped inside with her parents, anxiously waiting for news of Demian.

‘I hope Demian is released safely.’

However, the situation unfolded contrary to Arasila’s wishes. With the murder weapon found in their room, Demian was formally imprisoned.

Arasila thought it was absurd, but before she could argue, she was practically expelled from the imperial palace.

The sudden murder had brought the New Year’s Festival to an abrupt end, with the imperial side sending all participants home.

In the carriage she was forcibly put on after insisting she had to meet Demian before leaving, Arasila asserted with an indignant face:

“Demian didn’t kill him. The one who killed the young master Vandermir wasn’t Demian.”

“Calm down, Arasila.”

The marchioness calmly soothed her daughter. But her voice trembled faintly at the end.

The marquis couple had also been quite shocked to hear the news of Oscar’s death that morning. Meanwhile, their son-in-law Demian had been dragged away as a suspect, and now was confirmed as the culprit.

They were no less worried, feeling overwhelmed by the current state of affairs.

“It really wasn’t Demian. They say the young master was killed at dawn. But Demian was lying on the sofa from 11 o’clock last night.”

Arasila said in an excited voice, tightly grasping her mother’s hand.

“I know better than anyone because I shared the room and couldn’t sleep until late. Demian never left the room. He didn’t even go near the balcony.”

“But Arasila, your testimony won’t be very credible because you’re husband and wife. And Demian could have gone out while you fell asleep later.”

“Mom, Demian doesn’t use dirty and cowardly methods to kill people. Someone must have framed Demian.”

“Who on earth? Why? Come to think of it, wouldn’t Demian inherit the duchy if the young master died? In a way, the young master’s death is advantageous for Demian.”

At her mother’s sharp question, Arasila’s lips quivered.

Her mother was right. If Demian managed to escape without being sentenced for murder at the trial, he could inherit the title as the sole heir.

Oscar’s death was advantageous, not disadvantageous, for Demian. But Arasila believed in him, as she always had.

Demian is not the kind of person who would commit a horrible murder with her by his side.

“…I don’t know right now who framed him, but I believe in Demian. Please trust me too, Mom and Dad.”

Arasila pleaded earnestly.

The Vandermir ducal family will never protect Demian. If even the Hugo marquis family turns their back on him at a time like this, he will truly be driven to the edge.

As the marchioness was sighing in perplexity, Marquis Hugo, who had been silent until then, opened his mouth.

“We always believe in you, Arasila. If you truly think Demian has been unjustly framed, I have advice for you.”

“What is it, Dad?”

“As soon as we get home, steal away the documents Demian usually kept important.”

The marquis’s eyes glinted coldly.

Though he always seemed to be laughing and smiling, he was a proper head of a noble family. He was several steps ahead of his talented but inexperienced daughter in grasping situations and reading the flow of events.

“If they’re going so far as to frame him for murder, they must want something more than just his downfall. Especially since Demian recently uncovered illegal slave auctions and has been poking around here and there, so we need to be careful.”

“Ah, I understand.”

Arasila nodded, finally calming down at her father’s stern voice that she hadn’t heard in a long time.

She felt relieved for now, seeing that her parents didn’t seem likely to immediately turn their backs on Demian, given this advice.