After choosing to leave, they regretted it.

Page 79

If you can't figure it out, don't think about it. The most important thing now is that he is still alive, but how do you find him?

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After being taken to Sheen's mansion, Heidi first took a good bath to wash off the dirt and dust on her body.

Her previous clothes were burned a lot due to the heat of the explosion and could no longer be worn, so the servants prepared a new dress for her.

After everything was packed, she came to the reception room of the house, where Duke Brian was already waiting.

Facing Heidi's arrival, he took the initiative to stand up and greet her:

"It's a pleasure to see you, Your Highness. It's been a while since we last met. You look as beautiful as ever."

Heidi was in no mood for such flattery.

After such a long time and a good bath, she calmed down, but her inner irritability did not subside in the slightest.

On the contrary, it got worse.

Because Aize is dead.

In front of him, he was unexpectedly blown to ashes.

Regarding this fact, a kind of anger and dissatisfaction that was extremely unfamiliar to Heidi herself was spreading in her heart, even to the point where she could no longer suppress it.

Even she herself couldn't explain why.

After sitting down opposite Brian, she picked up the cup of black tea that had been prepared on the table and took a big gulp in an ungraceful attempt to calm herself down.

But to no avail.

She glanced around the room and asked:

"Why are you alone? Where's Viscount Edgar?"

Although Brian is a duke, this is Sheen's house after all. As the owner, he did not show up, and even the butler was not present. It was really unusual.

In the room, besides the Duke and Heidi, there was only the blue-haired butler Rufus, whom he had met once before.

Brian replied respectfully:

"Viscount Edgar has already brought all his capable subordinates to the scene to deal with the recent incident. Before he left, he said that this place is at our disposal."

"Ah."

Heidi frowned and said nothing more.

After a period of silence, Brian spoke first:

"Your Highness, I am deeply sorry for the misfortune that befell Lord Aize."

"..."

Heidi's face twitched, and she didn't respond. Brian tentatively continued:

"Please rest assured, I will investigate this matter thoroughly and will definitely give Lord Aize justice. I wonder if Your Highness has any thoughts on the identity of the criminal?"

Heidi shook her head. Her excessive anger made her emotions on the verge of getting out of control at any time.

"No, there are too many possible people. The Church, the demons, and the Duke's alliance who are preparing to force the emperor to abdicate. Any of them could do such a thing! Damn it!!!"

Seeing her like this, Brian's mouth corners rose slightly, but soon returned to normal.

"Princess, please calm down and think carefully. Perhaps there are other clues."

"What clues could I possibly have!? If I had any, would I just sit here and wait?!"

With no outlet for her frustration, Heidi slammed her fist on the coffee table in front of her.

The exquisite wooden coffee table, which looked not cheap, collapsed instantly after being struck by the brave man.

All the cups on the table were broken except for the one Brian took.

The Duke sighed and quickly advised:

"Don't be like this, Princess. You're so angry, you might hurt yourself. Think about it again, has Lord Aize been in contact with any strange people recently? Did you see any contact when you visited his house?"

Heidi dropped her gaze.

weirdo?

The strangest thing is probably the damn purple-haired woman next to Aize.

But she had already been turned into ashes along with Aize in the previous attack, so there was no need to worry about it.

The rest—

Suddenly, she caught a clue, and Heidi's heart sank and turned cold.

She slowly raised her head and looked at Brian.

Duke Brian asked curiously:

"What? Did your lady princess remember anything?"

The red-haired princess nodded and asked:

"Duke Brian, how did you know?"

"Um?"

"How did you know that I visited Aize's house many times?!"

Brian had just arrived in Tafia today, and his butler, Rufus, had only arrived a few days ago, and he hadn't told him any information.

So, it stands to reason that he couldn't possibly know that I was going to see Aize.

Unless, he is hiding something.

Faced with the questioning, Duke Brian fell silent, and the smile on his face slowly disappeared.

After several seconds, he asked:

"Princess, what do you mean by that? Are you doubting me?"

"How else? How else did you know about what happened a few days ago? And why did you appear at such a perfect time today? Are you calling it a coincidence?"

Heidi's eyes were wide open with anger, and she wanted to rush up and pin the old bastard to the ground.

Duke Brian also stood up and laughed:

"As expected of Her Highness, you are as clever as ever. It's a pity that you are too smart a little too late."

"You admit it!? You admit you did it!? What do you want to do!?"

“What are you doing!? Haha ...!?”

Brian laughed wildly and raised his hand holding the teacup.

"Of course it's to take back the throne that belongs to me, Your Highness."

Hands, loosened.

As the teacup shattered on the ground, the door of the living room was kicked open and a large group of fully armed guards rushed in, blocking Heidi in the room with weapons in hand.

Chapter 96 Heidi, the End of the Road

Looking at the scene in front of her, Heidi was stunned for a moment.

Even if she discovered the flaw in Brian's words, she just thought that he had some little calculations of his own and was hiding something from her.

I didn't expect it to be so big.

If Heidi hadn't seen it with her own eyes, she would never have believed it - even now, after seeing it with her own eyes, she still couldn't believe it.

“…You, really want to rebel!!?”

"Rebellion? Don't say such harsh words, Your Highness. I just saw that you have too much responsibility, and I wanted to share it with you. Besides..."

Brian smiled disdainfully:

"Who do you think has allowed you to sit on the throne for so long? Is it that useless hero? No! It's me! It's the status and power of our family! Now, it's time to repay your debt, Princess!"

Immediately following Aize's death, Brian defected, and the arms he had always relied on were broken almost at the same time.

Two huge blows in less than half a day have pushed Heidi's mental state to the limit.

Her blood pressure rushed to her head, she felt dizzy and almost passed out.

But she gritted her teeth and stood firm.

Brian sneered nonchalantly:

"Oh? Not bad! I thought you'd faint from the shock."

"...I have always regarded you as a reliable elder."

Heidi lowered her gaze and spoke in a weak voice.

But this only earned Brian even louder laughter:

"You are quite a naive kid, then. However, I am indeed very reliable. You can rest assured that the country is in my hands."

As he spoke, he waved his hand, and the butler beside him immediately took out two documents written on luxurious paper, along with a pen, and handed them to Heidi.

"Sign them, give yourself a decent look, and give me a convenience, so you can still survive, Your Highness."

One is an edict announcing that the Arte family has permanently given up its right to inherit the throne.

One is a confession of assassinating the brave Aize.

Seeing this, Heidi finally understood that when Brian was facing the crazy Uriel before, he had not protected himself to clear his suspicion at all.

On the contrary, it is to prove his guilt.

Although the situation at that time was chaotic, there were many outsiders present, including Uriel, so he still had a chance to defend himself.

So he wanted to bring himself here, muddy the waters, and then confess his sins in a place where there were no outsiders.

As long as he signed his confession and made it public, Uriel and the onlookers, who were already suspicious, would suddenly become witnesses.

The charge of murdering Aize and her fiancé was now a foregone conclusion.

It's so cunning.

And as a princess, she became Brian's tool to get rid of Aize.

What a shame!

and--

"...So, you killed Aize?"

"Of course, the existence of that useless hero is really an eyesore. I've wanted to kill him for a long time, but unfortunately I didn't have the chance. Haha, if it weren't for your captain's letter to the Holy City, I really wouldn't have known there was such a good opportunity, hahahahahaha——"

Brian laughed wildly.

The mess that Leah's letter brought... No, it wasn't entirely Leah's fault.

Heidi clenched her fists and pursed her lips.

As early as a year ago, Aize had warned himself that Duke Brian had bad intentions and was not trustworthy.

The results of it?

She was overconfident and didn't take it seriously at all. She even thought that her fiancé Aize was causing trouble out of jealousy.

Ridiculous.

Heidi raised her head, her gaze drifting upwards. She sighed deeply, smiled wryly and muttered to herself:

"...Aize, what were you thinking at that time?"

"What nonsense are you talking about!? Sign it now!!"

Duke Brian was already getting impatient. He picked up the document and pen and threw them directly in front of Heidi.

Heidi picked up the document and looked over it expressionlessly.