CRUEL FAITH
I slowly opened my eyes, only to find myself bound to a heavy chair in a room swallowed by oppressive darkness.
Only two figures stood in the dim light. One was my sister, Erina. The other was Sir Gurberr. He was a lesser noble—far lower in standing than the House of Novalanch—but he carried a secret that could destroy the entire country. He was the man guilty of the assassination of Princess Diana, the first princess of the Krane Kingdom.
As my sister stepped toward me, the horrifying memories of the courtyard flooded back. Reality crashed over me. I didn't have time to weep. My top priority had to be survival. I needed to get out of here, remove these suffocating anti-magic shackles, and hunt down the corrupt knights who had framed me.
But looking around, I knew they would never listen to the truth. If I wanted to live, I had to accept the crimes. I had to play the villain. And Gurberr, standing arrogantly in the shadows, was the perfect pawn for my escape. Besides his own inner circle, I was the only living person who knew exactly what he had done.
THUD!
Without warning, Erina’s armored boot kicked me squarely in the guts. I gasped, coughing up a spray of saliva and blood as the chair rattled against the stone floor.
“Why did you kill them?!” she screamed.
Tears were streaming down her face. Looking at her broken expression, I knew the corrupt guards had fabricated a flawless lie. I had no choice but to lean into it.
“Why act like you don’t know?” I muttered, forcing a cold, defiant smirk onto my face.
“They found your magic traces all over this!” Erina slammed a thick parchment document onto the table in front of me. “This is our father’s official will. It states that I am to inherit everything, and you get absolutely nothing. Your aggressive magical signature was burned all over it!”
She grabbed her hair, her voice trembling with a mix of fury and utter confusion. “I didn't want to believe the guards' reason at first. Killing them wouldn’t have changed anything! It’s a legal will! Even if you destroyed this copy, there were bound to be backups in the royal registry! If you wanted the estate... if you wanted everything... you could have just asked me! Now tell me the truth!”
I didn't have a backup lie prepared, so I spun the truth into a weapon.
“I killed them because our father was a wicked man,” I said, my voice deadpan.
“Wicked?!” Erina gasped.
“Yes. He hid the crimes of lesser nobles and took massive bribes to bury the evidence, and I was disgusted by him” I lied, keeping my tone perfectly calm. “It didn't matter how horrific the crime was. He would cover it up... even if it was something as treasonous as the assassination of Princess Diana.”
As I uttered that name, I shifted my hollow eyes and locked my gaze directly onto Gurberr.
“Stop lying!” Erina shrieked.
In a flash of absolute fury, she drew her rapier and drove the blade straight through the back of my hand, pinning it to the wooden armrest.
“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!”
The agonizing scream tore from my throat. Yet, as the blood began to pool on the wood, the physical sting paled in comparison to the agony in my chest. My hand didn't hurt nearly as much as my heart. The sister who used to tackle me playfully on my bed was now stabbing me.
“I will keep punishing you until you tell me the actual truth!” Erina growled, twisting the blade slightly. “That nightshade poison can easily be obtained by high nobles, so it’s highly unlikely anyone else was involved. Now speak!”
She was never going to believe me. Her grief had made her completely blind.
Bleeding and panting, I ignored her and stared straight through the darkness at Gurberr. My message was silent but crystal clear: If you don't get her out of this room right now, I am going to spill every single one of your dirty beans.
Gurberr’s eyes widened in sheer panic. He swallowed hard, realizing his entire life was hanging by a thread. He quickly stepped forward, placing a hand on Erina's shoulder.
“He spoke, Lady Erina,” Gurberr said, his voice tight. “We have gotten a confession. Let’s leave.”
“Not yet!” she snapped, trying to pull away.
“Lady Erina, you may be a higher noble than me, but in the hierarchy of the Knight Order, I am your superior officer,” Gurberr commanded, his tone hardening into a strict military bark.
“B—But…”
“It’s an order. Step out.”
Erina bit her lip, glaring at me one last time before ripping her sword out of my hand and storming out of the room. Gurberr followed her, but not before throwing a terrified, calculated look back at me.
The heavy steel door slammed shut, leaving me completely alone in the freezing darkness. An hour later, a low-ranking guard opened the viewing slot of my cell and delivered the final verdict.
“Enjoy your last days, kin-slayer. Your public execution has been scheduled for exactly one week from today.”
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It was deep into the night. My execution was scheduled for tomorrow morning.
Sir Gurberr had clearly been pulling strings behind the scenes, using his authority to keep me in strict solitary confinement. He wanted to ensure no other guards could overhear us, making negotiations easy.
The heavy iron door of my cell suddenly groaned open, clicking shut immediately behind a lone figure. Gurberr stepped into the dim light, his steel blade already drawn and gleaming dangerously in the shadows.
“Talk,” Gurberr hissed, pressing the cold tip of the sword against my throat. “How much do you actually know?”
I didn't flinch. I slowly raised my head, staring directly into his panicked eyes. “Everything. I know all about you murdering Princess Diana. I know your name was on the prime suspect list, and I know exactly how my father used his political influence to save you. It was remarkably easy to gather such information... especially when your family blindly believes you are nothing but a harmless insect.”
“How dare you try to threaten me, you worm!” Gurberr snarled, his hand trembling with rage as he pressed the blade harder against my skin. “I can end your suffering right now with a single thrust!”
“Go ahead,” I whispered, a cold, breathless laugh escaping my lips. “Then the entire kingdom will discover your dirty secret, Sir Gurberr.”
“A corpse doesn’t speak, kid.”
“A corpse doesn't,” I agreed, my smirk widening in the dark. “But what if there were letters scheduled to arrive because the corpse can no longer speak?”
Gurberr’s breath hitched. “What… what do you mean?”
“Why do you think I ran away from the estate on the night of the slaughter, only to willingly walk back into the capital?” I leaned forward, letting the chains clank. “You know my father kept detailed, hidden files on every single criminal noble he ever saved. He did it specifically so those criminals would never dare think about eliminating him. Now tell me, Sir Gurberr... did you find any of those files during your thorough investigation of our manor?”
Gurberr’s face drained of all color. “No… it can’t be…”
“Yes,” I lied smoothly, watching him swallow the bait hook, line, and sinker. “I fled the house that night specifically to hide those black-market files before the knights arrived. That was also when I discovered the forged will. And don’t worry… if I die tomorrow, it will take less than a week for someone to 'unintentionally' find those hidden documents and hand them to the King.”
It was a complete bluff, but it worked flawlessly. Trembling, Gurberr slowly pulled his weapon back and slammed it into its sheath.
“I… I can’t unlock these high-security shackles, nor can I prove your innocence at this point,” he muttered, his voice breaking as he realized his life was completely in my hands.
“No, I don't want you to do either of those things,” I replied, my tone shifting into that of a true shadow broker. “Let’s make a deal instead. With this contract, you won't just save your own skin—you will also gain leverage over several other corrupt nobles. And I am well aware of how a man like you can use such leverage to climb the ranks and become a much higher noble.”
Hearing this, the arrogant knight completely broke. He collapsed onto his knees, bowing his head flat against the filthy stone floor of my cell.
“Ask anything of me,” Gurberr trembled, his pride entirely shattered. “Ask anything from this unworthy slave of yours, my Lord.”
“Raise your head,” I commanded coldly. “This is a mutual contract. What I require of you is simple. Go back to my family's ruined estate. Behind the largest bookshelf in my father’s private library, you will find a hidden lever revealing a secret passage. Deep underground, there is a ledger detailing the old royal drainage lines. It has a perfect map of the tunnels beneath this very prison. Use it.”
And with that, I laid out every single detail of my grand escape plan.
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