Just when I thought that I was doomed, Lucy’s expression changed dramatically and she burst into tears.
“This is all Prince Rufus’ fault! I was sleeping in my room peacefully when Prince Rufus suddenly rushed in and attacked me in his wolf form. The baby’s safety was my priority, so I struggled against him desperately, but I was no match. He was like a monster. It was so horrible. Fortunately, I managed to escape.”
“Nonsense!” Sylvia pointed a finger at Lucy angrily. “This was clearly Richard’s doing. You know everything. Why aren’t you telling the truth? You almost died for Christ’s sake!”
Lucy trembled and looked at the angry Sylvia with fear. But she continued to cry pitifully. “I’m not talking nonsense! Prince Richard sent me to the manor to rest quietly for the sake of the baby. No one could’ve expected such a thing to happen. Fortunately, my child was not hurt. But my face… I’m afraid I’ll be disfigured for life.”
Tears streamed down her mangled face.
At this moment, I felt as though my soul had returned to my body. I was so shocked that I nearly burst into crazed laughter. In the end, Lucy took my side.
It didn’t matter whatever her ulterior motive was. As long as she took my side in a moment as critical as this, I was willing to help her fulfill her wish to keep on living.
Sylvia’s POV
I couldn’t believe my ears. Lucy had actually lied in Richard’s favor. I really thought that she would have a conscience, especially after surviving the jaws of death. But it turned out that I had thought too highly of her.
“Prince Richard has always respected Prince Rufus as his older brother. I simply can’t understand why he would attempt to hurt Prince Richard’s child.” Lucy touched her belly and said in a pitiful tone, “Prince Richard has been looking forward to having a child for the longest child. Now, his wish is about to come true. Does Prince Rufus really hate us that much?”
“You’re insane!” I was so angry that I burst into cynical laughter. Pointing at Richard, I spat at Lucy, “This jerk wanted to have you killed, yet you still help him! Is he threatening you somehow?”
Lucy didn’t respond. She just wiped her tears and looked at us piteously.
Richard sneered and his eyes were full of smug joy. “Come on, Sylvia. Drop the act. It’s okay if you want to slander me, but to slander Lucy too? The note and the video were all faked by you, and then you framed me. You just wanted to drag my name across the mud, didn’t you? What a vicious she-wolf you are!”
“Aren’t you afraid that this is all going to bite you in the back?” I scolded him harshly, grief and indignation surging in my heart.
I couldn’t understand what Lucy was up to. If I hadn’t showed up in time, she would’ve died. She had to know the truth, right? Why did she refuse to reveal the truth? Why did she still side with Richard?
Richard smiled smugly. “We’re innocent. You should worry about yourself.”
After saying that, Richard rushed over to hold Lucy in his arms like a loving fiance. He started to comfort her gently, “I’m sorry for being late, Lucy. I’m sorry you had to go through that. Thank you for protecting our beautiful child. Don’t worry. Father will give us justice.”
Tears streamed down Lucy’s face. She buried her head into Richard’s arms and said dramatically, “Thank God you’re here. You don’t know how scared I was!”
“I’m sorry, honey.” Richard planted a kiss on the top of Lucy’s head. “It’s my fault for not protecting you well.”
I couldn’t stand to watch such a hypocritical couple anymore, so I turned to Ethan desperately. Ethan was looking at Richard and Lucy with an unreadable expression on his face. I had no idea what was on his mind.
“Please investigate the whole thing thoroughly. You know that Rufus would never do such a thing. His madness was too out of the blue. Someone must have set him up,” I pleaded to Ethan sincerely. He was my last hope.
Ethan’s expression softened. “Of course I’ll investigate it further. Rufus is my son after all.”
That was good. I let out a sigh of relief. As for what would happen next, there was nothing I could do but wait and see.
Just then, a soldier in a crisp green uniform came running towards us.
“Your Majesty!”
“What happened?” Ethan asked in a low voice.
The soldier’s face was covered with sweat. Panting, he looked anxious and breathless. “We found severed limbs in the forest. They seemed to belong to a child. It seemed it had been ripped to shreds by a wild beast.”
My heart sank to my stomach. I had a bad feeling about this.
The soldier seemed to want to say something more but hesitated. Finally, he said, “The child’s family and some other werewolves think that it was Prince Rufus who did it. They’re gathering in front of the palace gate to protest. They’re demanding an explanation, and…
They’re asking you to execute Prince Rufus.”
Ethan’s POV
When I heard the soldier’s report, my heart sank. I really didn’t think that this issue would escalate beyond my control.
As Sylvia had said, I believed that although Rufus was aloof, he would never allow himself to go crazy in front of others, let alone kill an innocent child.
Besides, there was still a week left before the next full moon. The curse had never taken effect so early before… Normally, there would be some signs before the curse attacked, and Rufus would lock himself before the attack to prevent harming anyone.
So Rufus’ sudden outburst was very strange.
And truth be told, I was quite suspicious of Richard. His explanation was nowhere near convincing. He was my son after all. I could tell at a glance whether he was lying or not. And right now, he was too fidgety and nervous. The more anxious he was to hide something, the more guilty he seemed.
As for Lucy, I couldn’t see her through as easily. Her tears might be real, but I didn’t know how true her words were.
I had planned to go over the whole thing after I went back to the palace, but now that a child’s corpse had turned up, the public was aggravated.
It could’ve been easier to deal with private family affairs, but when the public was involved, things would be difficult and uncontrollable. One wrong move and I would be accused of covering up the crimes of my family.
In this particular case, if I couldn’t prove that the child wasn’t killed by Rufus, even if I managed to spare Rufus’ life, I would have to imprison him for the rest of his life to appease the public.
“The child wasn’t killed by Prince Rufus!” Sylvia was so anxious that she tried to stand up, but her legs buckled and she immediately fell. “Your Majesty, please find out the truth! I followed Prince Rufus’ footprints all the way here, but I didn’t come across any signs of the child’s corpse.”
“How convincing,” Richard spat sarcastically, holding his chin up arrogantly. He had let go of Lucy and walked towards Sylvia, chest puffed out like a fighting cock. “Do you really think you can protect Rufus? A life for a life. Even though Rufus is a prince, he’s no exception to that rule. Even a three-year-old child knows this. Don’t you?”
Richard’s arrogance was unacceptable. I shot him a glare in the hopes of shutting him up, but he didn’t seem to notice and continued to berate Sylvia.
“Just who do you think you are? You’re just Rufus’ sex slave. It was thanks to him that you even entered the Royal Military School in the first place. Do you think you have the right to interfere in the lycan king’s decision?” Hearing Richard’s elitist sentiments, my frown deepened. I stepped forward to stop him, but then Sylvia spoke first.
“Did you see Prince Rufus kill that child with your own eyes? If not, just shut your loud mouth.” Sylvia looked at Richard seriously. “Do you have the evidence to back up your claim? You’re a prince too, remember? You have to set an example for the public instead of slandering your own brother. I might be a mere slave, but I know this. Don’t you, Prince Richard?”
I sighed silently, knowing that Rufus had found a good mate who was willing to protect him to the end.
But as his father, it looked as though I wouldn’t be able to protect my own son. A sense of sadness began to creep into my heart.
“Your Majesty, what should we do about the angry mob?” the soldier asked furtively.
Only then did I come to my senses. Looking at the unconscious Rufus, I made up my mind and ordered coldly, “Arrest Prince Rufus. Anyone who resists my decision will also be arrested.”
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