Even if you're a corrupted magical girl, you still have to try to redeem yourself.

She left a will, and then she was asked to come and pay her respects. Mizuno Yu couldn't understand the situation at all.

Regardless of the monarch's purpose, if he wanted to receive an audience, he could have simply sent a servant; there was no need for the Minister of the Interior to come in person.

Could this be another of Nishio Ryūji's tricks?

“Lord Mizuno, don’t worry. The Lord isn’t meeting with you alone; I’m with him too. We just happened to be passing by, so I took Lord Mizuno along.” Nishio Reki said, “And also to give Lord Mizuno a little reminder.”

"Where does Your Majesty intend to meet me?" It sounded perfectly reasonable, but Mizuno Yu's doubts could not be completely dispelled by these few words.

"Your Majesty, the main hall." Nishio abandoned his life (Shi Mengli replied).

Without the monarch's order, it would be impossible for an ordinary person to enter or leave the monarch's palace openly at night, let alone enter the main hall.

Thinking this way, Mizuno Yu believed Nishio Reki's words a little more, and began to wonder again why the monarch would summon her at this special time of night.

But whatever questions Mizuno Yuu may have that are currently unanswerable, the truth should come to light once she meets the monarch.

Although Mizuno Yu is now working for the monarch, she still feels somewhat resistant to meeting that monarch who is like a drunkard and a rogue.

Despite her resentment, she could not disobey the monarch's orders. Amidst her doubts and anxieties, Mizuno Yu, led by Nishio Reki, arrived smoothly at the gates of the monarch's palace.

Before entering the monarch's palace, the guards patrolling the gate searched Mizuno Yu's body and only allowed her in after confirming that she did not have any weapons that could harm the monarch.

But she wasn't the only one who was searched; even Nishio Reki received the same treatment.

This happened again before they entered the main hall, but this time it was done more carefully. However, the two men weren't carrying any weapons, so they couldn't find anything.

After successfully entering the main hall, there were no more guards on duty.

This was Mizuno Yu's first time entering the main hall, and even her first time entering the monarch's mansion. The hall, which was far more spacious and luxurious than the general's residence, gave her a sense of unreality when she stepped in.

But Mizuno Yu had no interest in appreciating the spacious mansion; as soon as she entered, her gaze was drawn to the monarch.

The monarch sat regally on her throne, and behind her stood the silver-haired girl clad in silver armor.

The dangerous aura emanating from Baqi alone made Mizuno Yu feel that even if all the guards outside rushed at her, they probably wouldn't be a match for this girl.

In the vast main hall, waiting for her were not only the monarch and her guards, but also two other figures that Mizuno Yu was also familiar with.

The pink-haired intelligence chief, Yuuki Yukino.

And Helica Tenrai, whom Mizuno Yu knew all too well.

The two people stood quietly at the bottom of the steps, looking in their direction.

“Your Majesty…” Nishio Reki took the lead and stood on the opposite side of Tenrai Herika, then bowed to the monarch.

Mizuno Yuya followed Nishio Reki's movements and prepared to bow, but the monarch waved his hand, interrupting both of them.

"no."

Without saying a word, Nishio Reki stood up straight, while Mizuno Yu, who held no official position, stood further back, on the same level as Yuuki Yuki.

Since he didn't hold any actual position, and neither did Yuuki Yuen, his current stance should be in accordance with the rules and wouldn't give anyone cause for gossip or expose his true intentions.

This strange combination left Mizuno Yu puzzled. All the people she suspected were gathered together, and the monarch had left a will in advance. All these anomalies made Mizuno Yu really unable to guess what would happen next.

"Everyone is here." The monarch sat up straight on the throne, which, despite the presence of lamps, remained incredibly dark, and her face was mostly hidden in shadow.

"I have gathered you here today to announce something."

As the monarch spoke, the imposing aura he exuded even overwhelmed Inuyama Tomoe, who was standing behind him.

“Among you, some have betrayed me.”

Chapter 109 Everyone's a Villain

"I have gathered you here today to announce something."

The monarch on the throne spoke in a deep voice, making Mizuno Yu feel as if she were seeing the monarch's majesty at the banquet once again.

“Among you, some have betrayed me.”

As soon as the monarch finished speaking, the huge main hall fell silent. The quiet Mizuno Yu could even hear her own heartbeat clearly.

She could hear her heart beating very fast.

The monarch summoned me as well; was he doubting me?

But why would the monarch doubt him? Had he done something he shouldn't have?

Is it because I met with the other three people in the main hall that I am to be treated the same as them?

Mizuno Yu wanted to loudly defend herself and declare her loyalty.

But since no one else spoke, I shouldn't be rude and rush to prove my innocence.

Although the innocent are innocent, just the thought of being suspected by the monarch made Mizuno Yu's heart leap out of her chest.

"Don't you have anything to say?" The monarch's stern gaze swept over the girls below the steps, and Mizuno Yu also followed the monarch's gaze, stealing glances at the expressions of the others out of the corner of her eye.

Everyone present remained calm and composed, as if they were the only ones feeling panicked.

This is bad. My panic feels like a hand trying to push me into the sinner's seat or into the fire.

Seeing that no one responded, the monarch loudly called out the name of his Minister of the Interior.

"Nishio Reki!"

When his name was called, Nishio took a few steps forward and came to the middle of the steps, where he nodded slightly to the monarch on the throne.

“Your Majesty, you should not doubt me. As your Minister of the Interior, my responsibility is to maintain the stability and prosperity of the country. The country you lead is so powerful, I have no reason to betray such a powerful country.”

"Ha, nonsense, of course my country is the most powerful." The monarch curled his lip, his eyes widening in the darkness: "But are you deaf? I'm not talking about treason, I'm talking about betraying me, betraying me! Did you hear me?"

Despite the monarch's harsh insults, Nishio Reki remained unmoved, only lowering his head even further.

"You know I would never betray you."

"Don't give me that! If simply expressing loyalty were enough, governing a country would be far too easy."

The monarch roared, her voice growing louder, so loud that Mizuno Yu's ears began to ring:

“I didn’t call you all here to put on an act with me! You should know who you are! You’re not clowns! Understand? Stop pretending! Tell me the truth!”

“Since you put it that way…” Nishio Reki raised his head again after lowering it.

Mizuno Yu once thought that Nishio Reki would reveal his true colors and confess his crimes, and then be taken down by the guards behind the monarch.

But things were far more complicated than she thought.

“Your Majesty, my fate is inextricably linked to that of this place. In order to maintain stability, I will certainly not do anything out of line.”

"Good." The monarch gritted his teeth and repeated several times, "Good, good, good, closely connected."

Then, the monarch, who seemed unable to refute Nishio Reki's words, turned his attention to Helica.

"And what about you? What do you have to say? If you're going to say something polite like Nishio Reki, then shut your mouth!"

The monarch said so, but Mizuno Yu didn't think Helica would obediently shut her mouth.

In this situation, no one can provide sufficient evidence to prove their innocence, so all they can say are polite words.

Helica is, and so is Mizuno Yu.

Mizuno Yu knew that no matter what she said, she might not be able to gain the monarch's trust. Now, all she could do was use the information she already had to find loopholes in other people's self-defenses.

Of course, it would be even better if it could be proven that Helica had nothing to do with this.

Like Nishio Reki, Helica waited until Nishio Reki returned to his starting position, then took two steps towards the throne before stopping at the bottom of the steps, and then lowered her head as well.

“Your Majesty, even though you have taken away someone who is extremely important to me, you have still kept me here until now. I will certainly not let you down.”

"Swear allegiance? Who here hasn't sworn allegiance to me? Forget it, your words are just like Nishio Reki's, complete nonsense!" The monarch snorted coldly, his nose held high.

No matter how much the monarch berated her, Helica remained silent with her head down.

That's fine too. Helica isn't the type to be eloquent or flattering, so getting her to say anything is practically impossible.

Mizuno Yu had the least suspicion of Helica. She believed that even the monarch wouldn't doubt Helica that much, otherwise the monarch wouldn't have kept Helica by his side until today.

"Enough, go back." The monarch seemed tired of scolding, gave a cold snort, and leaned back on her throne.

After Helica retreated, the monarch's gaze turned to Yuuki Yuki behind Helica.

Before the monarch could unleash his fury again, Yuuki Yukino stepped forward first.

“Your Majesty, I believe you know me well enough.”

"Hmph." The monarch snorted coldly, raising his chin as if urging Yuuki Yukino to continue.

“Since you want us to be honest with you, then I don’t need to hide anything anymore.”

Yuuki Yu is Mizuno Yu's number one suspect, and Mizuno Yu will definitely consider every word she says carefully.

Although Mizuno Yu didn't think Yuuki Yui would obediently admit her crimes, judging from Yuuki Yui's tone, was she preparing to expose herself?

Yuuki Yukino did indeed reveal herself, but what she revealed was not that she had designs on the monarch, but rather her true identity.

“My tentacles can indeed reach throughout the entire country, but Your Majesty, they have never extended to you, not a single one. Why would you doubt me?”

This should have been a bombshell. The girl who had been staying in the Monarch City had almost revealed her other identity, but the others remained completely unmoved.

No one was surprised by Yuuki Yuki's true identity, and the monarch was not annoyed that Yuuki Yuki had revealed her other identity.

Perhaps this was something Yuuki Eri had no choice but to do in order to prove her innocence, but although the monarch was not angry, he did not intend to accept it.

"I've said it many times, don't give me this fake talk. I want the truth, the truth!"

“Your Majesty.” Yuuki Yukino’s eyes curved slightly, revealing a cunning glint in them: “If you don’t want to be hypocritical, shouldn’t you at least be more honest? Your Majesty shouldn’t be a tyrant, should you?”

Calling a monarch a tyrant is the most direct provocation. Even if the monarch may have wronged Yuuki Eri, or even if Yuuki Eri is really the monarch's secret lover, it is still going too far.

Mizuno Yu couldn't understand why Yuki Yuki would say such stupid things.

But then, something even more perplexing happened to Mizuno Yu.

The monarch didn't respond to Yuuki Yukino's comment. Instead, he took a deep breath, waved at Yuuki Yukino, and then looked at himself.

Although she didn't know why the monarch had let Yuuki Yui off the hook, Mizuno Yuu shouldn't be thinking about that now, but rather how to exonerate herself.

"Your Majesty... Father Leng"

Just as Mizuno Yu took a half-step, mimicking the others, the monarch interrupted her statement.

"You don't need to say that you have nothing to do with these things."

If the monarch says it has nothing to do with her, then what did she call her here for?