By Zephyria 
Not long after Garam’s death, the guard stormed in. Most of the Servants were also awakened. They first collected Garam’s body and assessed the situation.
As Garam had said, the culprit was likely someone from within Talim. But there were many incomprehensible aspects.
Committing the grave crime of assassinating the Crown Princess would inevitably lead to death. But why did they bother to burn sleeping herbs in Talim, putting everyone to sleep? The fact that Garam was the only one dead made it even more puzzling.
To increase the chances of success? No, if they were acquainted, wouldn’t it have been better to approach and kill him quickly? Were they planning to kill him secretly and escape? Were they dreaming of a perfect crime?
But if the culprit wasn’t caught, the investigation wouldn’t end. This kind of act could only have been committed by a group with a specific purpose, and I didn’t want to live exposed to such danger.
That’s why I couldn’t understand why the culprit had escaped. They should have taken their own life on the spot or been caught. Those guys from earlier were probably hired or servants, not the ones who orchestrated the whole thing.
The sleeping herbs and the escaped culprits left too much evidence, which didn’t make sense. Or perhaps they were in a position where they wouldn’t be suspected no matter what they did, or where they couldn’t be touched easily even if they were suspected…
“Your Highness.”
One of the guards called me. I thought they had already arrived and turned my head, but I didn’t see them. Then the guard looked at me hesitantly and stammered.
“Well… as you ordered, we went to escort him, but…”
“But what?”
“He was lying in bed…”
Listening to him stammering, I felt something snap in my head. I tightened my grip on the sword and stood up.
The guard knelt before me and lowered his head.
“I’m sorry!”
“Speak clearly without stammering.”
“Yes, yes! I’m sorry! When we went to escort him, he was already… already dead…!”
“What?”
“That is, well… already…”
It didn’t make sense at all. Could it be that the Crown Princess’s assassins had even broken into Garam’s house? Why?
I knew I shouldn’t leave, but I mounted a horse and rode out of the Imperial Castle. When I arrived at the place where Garam’s mother lived, I saw guards.
Ignoring those who approached me in surprise, I entered the house, where the door was open. A physician was beside the woman who lay with her eyes closed as if asleep.
I asked the physician, who was about to kneel as soon as he saw me, “What’s her condition?”
“Well, she had been improving recently, but her basic energy was weak, so she couldn’t withstand even a small shock.”
“What shock?”
The physician showed me something with a nervous expression. In his gloved palm was a small glass bottle about two finger joints in size.
“What is this?”
“It’s poison. The toxicity is so weak that death is rare, but considering the patient’s condition… Please look at this.”
He handed me a folded piece of paper. When I unfolded the rough, stiff paper, there were crooked letters written inside.
[I will pay for my ignorance, born of lack of learning, with my life, so please forgive me. I don’t want to hinder my son’s future. I am sorry, and sorry again. I am truly sorry.]
It was as if a light had gone out and my vision was suddenly darkening, flickering rapidly. I read the same words several times and asked,
“What is this?”
“It seems to be a suicide note.”
“So, it wasn’t murder, but she took her own life?”
“That’s what we presume.”
Sweat was constantly flowing from the physician’s forehead and temples. He was panting with a pale face as if he were about to collapse, his head bowed.
“Why are you sweating so much?”
“Yes?”
I put the paper I was holding on the side table and drew my sword.
“Did you kill her? Why are you trembling so much?”
“Your Highness! No! I’m just an ordinary physician who was called here! I run a small pharmacy over there! I absolutely didn’t kill her!”
The physician prostrated himself on the floor, banging his forehead and shouting desperately. Seeing that, I suddenly felt dizzy and my vision spun. Fortunately, I moved my legs and changed my posture before I staggered. I pressed my eyes with my hands and stood there for a moment.
“I know, so get up. I just asked why you were trembling, why are you making such a fuss?”
“Thank you…”
He mumbled with an expression as if he were about to faint, then got up, looking exhausted.
“Did you usually prescribe medicine for her?”
“Yes, yes… I have been prescribing all the medicine since the lady’s illness began. I have a habit of keeping records when prescribing, so I can bring them right away if you wish. And our pharmacy doesn’t handle poisons…”
“Then you’ve known her for a long time.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
The most important thing was to investigate the cause of why this happened. And the culprit had to be caught. I also had to find out why an elderly woman who had been ill suddenly left such a strange suicide note and took her own life.
But the words I had confidently promised Garam just before his death kept echoing in my head.
“Does she have any other family?”
“Yes?”
“Family, I mean. Relatives or anything.”
At my words, he seemed to hesitate for a moment, then shook his head.
“I don’t think she has any other family. No one has visited her while she’s been ill… I once heard her say that she had cut off contact with her relatives due to some bad blood, so they were no different from strangers.”
Everything went dark again. I desperately sought a way to keep my promise, no matter what it took.
“Or even a dog or livestock she raised…”
“Your Highness.”
Just then, someone came in and found me. I turned my head with a tired expression. Abyss was standing there with red-rimmed eyes and a hardened expression.
He looked at me and asked, startled, “Are you alright?”
“About what?”
“Your eyes are bloodshot.”
No wonder I kept having trouble seeing earlier. No, maybe it has nothing to do with my eyesight? Anyway, that wasn’t the important thing.
“Why are you here?”
“The culprit has turned himself in.”
“…”
Turned himself in, not caught? Cold sweat began to run down my back. I tried to ignore the ominous feeling and asked,
“Who is it?”
“Five guards from Talim. Three of them are complaining of extreme anxiety… I think you should go see them. Crown Prince is questioning them directly…”
¸.•¨•¸.•¨•¸.•¨•¸
Of the five who turned themselves in, three only muttered apologies before taking their own lives before the day was over. The remaining two both confessed, and their stories were the same.
It was all Garam’s orders, and they turned themselves in because they couldn’t bear the guilt. They claimed they had been subjected to frequent beatings, threats, and extortion. Testimonies emerged that the training process was very rough, lending credence to their claims.
Garam was taciturn and not very sociable, so he didn’t get along well with people. He also valued expressing emotions like gold, so he didn’t have any close friends.
Whether successful or not, anyone involved in the assassination of a royal family member would be executed in the most painful way for three generations. Combined with Garam’s narrow social circle, no one tried to defend him.
“Isn’t it well known in the Imperial Castle that he had deep loyalty? His excessive loyalty must have led him to make the wrong choice. There are testimonies, and it would have been easy for him to know the routes, so there’s nothing more to investigate.”
“That’s ridiculous! Are you daring to suspect the Prince? Besides, everyone knows that the Crown Princess often visits Talim, so what routes are you talking about?”
“Then, if what you say is true, why would a mere knight dare to do such an outrageous thing!”
“We have obtained information that he recently bought a small island in the east under his name. If he received that much money, he might have been swayed. I wonder what crazy person planned this.”
“We must immediately dig up the body again, dismember it, and brand the skull with the mark of a criminal. The same goes for his parents. Search the entire world for their bloodline…”
The nobles, divided into two factions, fought almost every day. It was almost certain that Garam had done it, but no one asked me to be held accountable.
Just when the incident was about to be concluded with Garam, who had received a large sum of money from a third force, ultimately betraying even the Prince he had sworn allegiance to.
The Crown Princess, who was recuperating under tight surveillance, appeared at the meeting and argued for Garam’s innocence, but opinions were not easily narrowed.
“Isn’t it true that he received payment and bought land under his name with that money?”
“We have investigated several times, but there is no evidence that the documents were forged. Even his mother’s suicide note shows that she feared the Imperial law and ultimately took her own life!”
“The Crown Princess seems to be kind-hearted. Who can’t be deceived by someone who can deceive even the lord he swore allegiance to? If the attackers hadn’t repented out of guilt, what terrible things might have happened by now… It’s fortunate that he was executed with a poisoned sword just before.”
“Since Your Majesty also wants this matter to be resolved as quickly as possible…”
Mahir repeatedly urged me not to act rashly or speak carelessly while he was investigating the case himself. But when I came to my senses, I was already in front of the Duke’s residence.
“Abyss.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“Seal off all entrances and exits so that not even an ant can get out.”
“Understood.”
When I clenched my fist, the cold hilt of the sword appeared in my grip. Transparent, sharp ice sprouted like thorns from my fingertips to below my elbow.