“Your Majesty! I am here to present my counsel regarding the murder committed by Amelia Johnston, the fiancée of His Highness, the First Prince Eldred!”

Amelia was the first to react to Nate’s words.

Amelia’s surprise at Nate’s words lasted only a moment. She quickly glanced around, looked up at the special guest seating where the royal family was seated, and without waiting for His Majesty’s words, she bolted towards the exit. While everyone was stunned by Nate’s sudden appearance, Amelia, taking advantage of the confusion, dodged the knights stationed by the stage. Instead of using the stairs, she leaped from the center of the stage, which was about half her height, and dashed through the audience. Thanks to her school uniform rather than a dress, Amelia moved at an astonishing speed towards the exit.

As Amelia’s short skirt flipped up, revealing her well-shaped legs, Brei muttered, “How alluring,” and Carrie glared at him.

Melissa was able to observe this calmly because she had been informed beforehand that Nate would accuse Amelia of past murders. The new students and their parents were unable to keep up with the situation, all wide-eyed and unable to move.

“Just as Connie said, she really did run away.”

Brei muttered this. Connie refers to Brei’s uncle, none other than His Highness Prince Cornelius. Half a year ago, at the end of summer, when Melissa revealed her plan to become a commoner and a pianist in the empire to the three of them, Brei disclosed that he was the Third Prince.

“Actually, I’m the Third Prince that Carrie mentioned earlier. Since I can sign the application for the competition as a royal, why don’t you enter next month’s competition? Mel, you could definitely win the Apollon Prize!”

As soon as Brei said this, the piano practice room turned into a scene of chaos. Carrie screamed upon realizing that Brei was actually a boy. Fortunately, the room was soundproofed, or else someone would have rushed in thinking it was an emergency.

Brei often hugged Carrie and Melissa or linked arms with them. They even used the same changing room during dance classes. Enraged by this, Carrie confronted him fiercely, and even Noah and Melissa got angry. Brei then removed the magical item that changed his gender and bowed before us in his female school uniform. Seeing him bow like that, the three of us doubted if he was really the Third Prince, but when Brei looked up, he had indeed transformed from a beautiful girl to a handsome boy.

Thanks to that bow, the three of us didn’t feel awkward around Brei, and our friendship continued as Brei, not as Prince Aubrey. Carrie is still angry about Brei’s inappropriate behavior, but she is grateful to him for helping her get a job at the royal castle after graduating from the magic academy, allowing her to enroll in the Wainwright Kingdom’s magic academy without becoming a commoner in the empire.

“What do you mean by ‘just as His Highness Prince Cornelius said’…?”

As Melissa asked Brei this, Amelia was caught by the knights waiting near the exit. Despite being unarmed, Amelia managed to fend off one of the three knights, showing her exceptional martial skills.

“The fact that Nate was able to make that declaration is strange. Normally, the knights would stop him before he could get on stage. If the knights didn’t move even after seeing Nate, it means the highest-ranking royal present must have allowed it beforehand. That’s why Connie said he would choose to run if he were in her place.”

Thinking about it, it does make sense. It’s unusual for Nate to still be standing on stage in front of the royal family and distinguished guests from home and abroad. Amelia probably looked up at the royal seating to confirm who was allowing this situation. Realizing it was His Majesty, she must have decided that running was her only option.

“Does running away mean she has something to hide?”

As Amelia was brought back to the stage by the knights, His Majesty questioned her, but Amelia ignored him and stared at Nate, deep in thought.

Looking at the Queen and Prince Eldred, they were visibly confused and troubled beside His Majesty. Melissa had been taught to always remain calm in her princess education, but she had never seen the Queen show such emotion in public before. Prince Eldred was calling out to Amelia, but she ignored him completely.

“Let’s hear your story.”

As His Majesty urged Nate to speak, Amelia suddenly laughed. Even though Nate was the one being urged to speak, Amelia began to talk.

“Hehehe, I had a strange feeling since this morning, and now I know why. I couldn’t see his expression because his bangs were covering his face. Hiding Nate’s face with his bangs was a bad move. If he’s acting all nostalgic for Melissa from half a year ago, it means the person who was lusting after me until yesterday was a fake, and they must have switched places about half a year ago.”

Amelia’s expression gradually faded. Although she was laughing, her beautiful face devoid of emotion was eerily doll-like. Combined with the surreal situation of being held by the knights, it was unsettling.

“If even his voice and ear shape are the same, it must be a magical item. I’ve never heard of such a magical item, so this must be the work of a spy. I know that spy has a hobby of making and modifying magical items.”

Amelia’s sudden outburst before being accused left His Majesty, Nate, Melissa, and others bewildered. Those who didn’t know Amelia’s true nature were utterly confused. No one could look away from Amelia’s solo performance.

“If they’re going this far, they must already have evidence, right? If a spy is involved, escaping with Walt’s help is impossible. If I can’t escape, there’s no point in trying to cover it up.

I don’t want to stay silent and end up having to use a confession magical item. Those things are notorious for their side effects in every book. A month of headaches and nausea? I can’t handle that. Well, I don’t know if they’ll keep me alive for a month without execution.

If a Nate who looks like me wants to condemn me, it must be someone. Maisie, Cyril, Sonia… Yes, it’s Sonia.”

Maisie was Melissa’s former maid. Cyril and Walt were unknown to Melissa. Sonia is the name of Nate’s mother. Amelia must have noticed Nate’s reaction to the name Sonia when he lifted his bangs.

“That burn scar on your forehead, you were at the scene of the fire, weren’t you? How did you figure out it was my doing?”

“So you admit it was your crime.”

“You have evidence, right? Can you tell me the details little by little?… I only have the pleasure of figuring out how this happened. At least let me deduce it.”

“Don’t mess around!”

Nate shouted. It was understandable, given that the person who killed his mother was trying to enjoy the situation.

“Nate is the child of Chester and Sonia. Nate also lived nearby and got burned in the fire, learning something.

I thought he grew out his bangs to hide the burn scar on his forehead. Not considering why he had the burn scar in the first place was my first mistake.

Nate went to Lawton after the fire. Since Lawton is on the way from Mills to Reeves, it’s true that he had relatives in Reeves. Misreading the messy report and mistaking Nate for the illegitimate child of the border count was my second mistake.

Not realizing that Nate was a fake for the past six months was my third mistake.

I can’t see the connection between Nate and the spy. Is it from Melissa’s side? That unnatural burn scar only on his forehead. The rest of his body was healed by Melissa’s light magic. If a burned man looked just like me, even Melissa would notice. I don’t think Melissa would directly tell the spy, so it must be the Third Prince, who was in the empire.

…In that case, the biggest mistake was driving Melissa out of the house.”

Chester is the name of Nate and Amelia’s father, Viscount Mills. Melissa learned about it from a letter from Prince Cornelius to Brei, but Amelia seemed to have mistaken Nate for Noah. The illegitimate child of the border count refers to Noah, making Nate, Amelia, and Noah second cousins. Melissa was surprised by this unexpected connection.

In this venue, only those who knew about this condemnation beforehand, like Melissa and Nate, would understand Amelia’s words. The new students and their parents, though confused by the tense atmosphere and His Majesty’s silence, remained quiet.

“Are you talking about me when you mention the spy?”

Prince Cornelius, who had emerged from the side of the stage, was glared at by Amelia.

“Nate, don’t let this venomous woman control the pace. You need to explain everything clearly for everyone to understand.”

Prince Cornelius urged Nate, who then began to speak the prearranged lines to His Majesty.

“My mother, Sonia, worked as a maid at the viscount’s residence in Mills, the birthplace of Amelia Johnston. Amelia’s parents died in a fire, but another victim of that fire was my mother, Sonia.

I saw the viscount’s residence engulfed in flames and rushed in to save my mother.

In the intense flames, there was one room burning with blue fire. When I entered, I found the viscount and his wife unconscious without any burns, and my mother, whose upper body was burned black. There was a fireball on the back of her head, and even though everything around it had burned away, it didn’t extinguish. When I grabbed the fireball to put it out, a small magical item appeared.

My mother always wore a hairpin at the spot where the burning magical item was found. On the day of the fire, before going to work, my mother’s hairpin had a large blue glass ornament. She said Amelia had given it to her and insisted she wear it.

When I consulted Prince Cornelius about my long-held doubts regarding the fire, he investigated for me.”

Amelia looked bored during Nate’s story. Her beautiful, expressionless face gave off a cold and merciless impression. It seemed Amelia usually kept up a facade of expressions.

“The ignition magical item that Nate held and extinguished had traces of Amelia’s magic.”

Prince Cornelius took over the story, with a servant behind him holding a bag containing the small magical item for everyone to see.

“Analysis revealed that this is a simple ignition magical item, modified to be activated remotely and to continue igniting after activation. Since only Amelia’s magical traces were found, it’s presumed that she both activated and modified it.

Traces of this ignition magical item were also found on Sonia’s remains, proving that at least Sonia was killed by the modified ignition magical item created by Amelia.

Detailed investigation of the scene where Sonia and Viscount Mills’ bodies were found revealed traces of alcohol ignition. Alcohol flames burn hotter and appear blue, consistent with Nate’s testimony of seeing blue flames.

This is a brandy bottle found near the scene. It’s of inferior quality compared to the alcohol purchased by the viscount’s residence and wasn’t recorded in their purchases. Left exposed for six years after the fire, it bore no traces, but we discovered that this brandy was only sold by one shop in Mills.

Amelia, do you remember this ribbon?”

The servant behind Prince Cornelius, who had been holding the magical item and the bottle, now held up a bag containing a red ribbon.

“Oh, that unnecessary decoration. I found it bothersome and threw it away immediately, but I guess I didn’t throw it far enough.”

“That’s right. The shopkeeper noticed this ribbon and the complimentary chocolate discarded at a vegetable shop during a delivery. It’s impressive he remembers something from six years ago, but it’s your fault for being ungrateful. Disrespecting the shopkeeper’s kindness was a big mistake.”

Amelia didn’t seem particularly regretful, engaging in light banter with Prince Cornelius. If one couldn’t hear their voices, it would seem like they were discussing the weather.

“My subordinate spoke with the shopkeeper, who remembered selling only one bottle of this brandy around the time of the fire at the viscount’s residence. He also recalled selling it to a young girl and finding the ribbon and complimentary chocolate discarded nearby. He had kept the ribbon, intending to reuse it, and forgot about it.

Thanks to that, the ribbon remained in pristine condition, and we found fingerprints from the shop staff and Amelia on it.

Based on this evidence, we conclude that Amelia planned and executed the fire at Viscount Mills’ residence six years ago, directly causing Sonia’s death.

Although the viscount and his wife’s bodies showed no external injuries, traces of sleeping pills were found. Brother, I request the use of a confession magical item to ask Amelia if she used those sleeping pills.”

Amelia looked bored as she watched Prince Cornelius. She must have anticipated that the confession magical item she dreaded would eventually be used.

“We conclude that Amelia Johnston set fire to the viscount’s residence in the past, resulting in the death of a maid. Restrain Amelia.”

At His Majesty’s command, the knight holding Amelia’s hands moved them from behind to the front and placed restraints on her wrists, preventing her from using magic.

Amelia was led away. The confession magical item was to be used in the knights’ interrogation room under Prince Cornelius’s supervision.

“Why did you kill your own parents?”

As Amelia was about to leave the stage, Nate asked her. He must have wanted to hear from her directly why his mother was killed. Melissa thought Amelia would ignore him, but surprisingly, Amelia stopped and turned to Nate.

“‘If only that old hag from the duke’s family hadn’t found out about the magical item that changes hair color, I would be the duchess by now.’ ‘If that old hag hadn’t banned me from the duke’s residence, I could have handed you over to her.’ That’s what Belinda said.”

Belinda is the sister of Melissa’s mother, Vanessa, and Amelia’s mother.

“After investigating, I found out that my maternal grandmother, Dalia, and my aunt, Vanessa, who married into the duke’s family, had the same blonde hair and red eyes as me. Duchess Ada, who is obsessed with Dalia, arranged for her son Elias to marry Vanessa. Vanessa had already passed away, and her daughter Melissa had brown hair and blue eyes. That’s when it hit me.

If Chester and Belinda died, relatives would come to the funeral. If Ada, who is fixated on blonde hair and red eyes, saw me, she would prefer me over Melissa.

At the time, I thought that, but in the end, no one from the duke’s family came to the funeral. A nine-year-old’s plan is just that. It took some effort, but later, when I had my appearance described to Ada through relatives, she came to get me immediately.”

After saying this, Amelia, having lost interest in Nate, was led away by the knights and exited the hall.

Looking at her father and grandmother, who had been sitting next to Amelia’s seat, they seemed unable to comprehend the situation, staring blankly at the exit where Amelia had left.