Chapter 717 – #96. Jinhaesol (21)
The interrogation of those who framed the prince for the crime continued.
Alchemists weren’t the only ones torturing people.
As time passed, the number of people who were brought before the king and tortured increased.
All of them were entangled in the false accusations that were laid on me.
He summoned the attendants who were managing the gifts received from the nobles and inquired if there were any suspicious ones, and found an attendant who had been spending too much lately and made him the head of the government.
The attendant, who thought it was just a matter of getting money and taking out an item, obediently confessed everything he knew.
Of course.
“You don’t know what’s really helpful.”
What the attendant knew was not even worth the snow.
The king, who had robbed her servants and drained her soul, disapprovedly called her alchemist again and confessed to her.
Since the alchemist’s mouth did not open, it was natural for the nobles to punish them again during that time.
Of course, the nobles were not alone in the king’s unilateral counterattack.
He began to argue that the prince should be investigated, not just the criminal who is suspected of providing the alchemist’s medicine to the prince.
“The prince is innocent! What do you guys think about investigating the victim! He must have other plans!”
“Your Highness!!! Please accept my advice!”
“You must investigate the prince!!”
Once in the pouring rain, the eyes of the nobles who were tortured after standing in the scorching sun for many days were poisonous.
The king dismissed the nobles’ objections as if they were absurd, then pretended to be unable to overcome them.
“As Jim pondered, it occurred to him that there must be some other reason that the guilty man would not confess his crimes all this time.”
At the king’s words, the nobles came up with the idea, ‘The thing to come has come.’
The fundamental reason why alchemists do not confess their sins.
In order to scold the nobles, he is finally about to talk about the ‘contract’ the king was pretending not to know.
‘It’s finally over.’
‘There’s too much to lose than I thought.’
‘Damn it, I touched the wrong prince once and my body was crushed!’
There is no way to reverse what has already been contracted.
It is impossible to cancel the contract no matter how good a wizard is.
Confirming that the contract was hanging on the alchemist, the only key to finding the beast, meant ending the friendship.
“Anyway, the sinner must have made a contract with the beast.”
“I think Your Highness’ insight is right.”
The nobles quickly added their will to the king’s opinion.
Disappointment appeared on the face of the sinner, the alchemist.
Despite the severe torture, there was not much left in his life that he could not bear to let go of.
‘You lose your life because of greed. At least I have to get revenge on the guy who made me like this…!’
The moment she tries to say even one letter of the culprit’s name, her head explodes! And it will explode
So even if I wanted revenge, I couldn’t.
All that was left was to decide whether or not to commit suicide.
Depending on how much mercy the king shows, the alchemist decided to decide his end.
“Jim thinks the same. Surely a sinner must be unable to speak by contract. Her head will explode the moment I mention the name of the beast.”
“Your Highness, please do not leave dangerous people around!”
It was a situation where a person who did not know when his head would burst from being friendly was near the king.
When the nobles worried about the safety of the king, the king laughed for the first time in a long time.
“The prince seems to be worried about Jim’s body, so he nags more, but you guys also nag a lot more.”
“I apologize.”
“Majesty.”
“Yes, the prince.”
“You said that the reason why the criminal cannot confess is because of the ‘contract’? Then, if the contract becomes invalid, will we know who the beast is?
Some of the nobles secretly laughed at the prince’s innocent question.
Although the king punished them in the scorching sun and disciplined them, there were nobles who still couldn’t throw away their crooked feelings.
“Unfortunately, there is no way to invalidate the contract. Criminals who cannot open their mouths are useless, so we only rule with beheadings.”
“I’m sorry, but it doesn’t seem like there’s a way.”
“…Isn’t there a way?”
“Yes, there is one special item I have. Its use is to absorb curses around you and get a reward instead.”
“Absorb the curse and get the price instead?”
“I said earlier that the head exploded, so if you absorb that contract, the head of this thing will explode instead.”
So far, there has been no way to void the contract.
So there were many times when I couldn’t find the evidence even though I had a clear heart attack.
In fact, I was quite fond of using the royal road contract.
Usually, the knights who escort the king in close proximity had to write a loyalty contract, but it was a contract that made the king’s life more important than his own.
However, that absolute proposition collapsed in the hands of the prince.
‘Surely, the son of God.’
For a moment, an ugly feeling of jealousy surged up, but I suppressed it.
Because he was also the son of a king.
He couldn’t think of anything else about having a child who looked exactly like him in his youth.
“Let’s try it once to see if the stuff you have will work.”
Malevolent malevolent-
A commotion began among the nobles.
The nobles shouted, unable to believe that the prince had something that could void the contract.
“Your Highness! It may be a peculiar thing! You must never let it near you!”
“Your Highness!!! There must be a warlock playing tricks through the prince!!! You must never use that thing!!!”
The king, who looked closely at the nobles who were particularly reluctant, smiled.
How could a son of a god get along with a warlock?
The sinner’s eyes were also quite ferocious.
If the restrictions imposed by the contract were lifted, he was ready to confess the brute force that made him like this.
The king waved his hand to stop the clamor of nobles as if he was annoyed.
“Noisy! Noisy! Everybody shut up!”
“Well, Your Highness! No. You shouldn’t do such a thing!!!”
“Whoever sees it will know that Jim kills innocent people.”
The king ordered the prince
“I need to see what that thing looks like. Can you get it right away?”
“Yes, I will bring it.”
The prince rose from his seat.
He said that he would not be able to find it even if he ordered the courtiers, and he moved directly.
Shortly thereafter, the prince returned to the provincial office.
In his hand was a dainty human doll.
♧ ♧ ♧
To be honest, watching people being tortured all day wasn’t comfortable.
I wanted to finish this as soon as possible, but the king was more relaxed than I thought.
‘The smell of blood is disgusting.’
I could smell the burning flesh and hear the sound of bones breaking.
The torture scenes made people tired simply by watching.
The nobles who had to stand and watch it in the scorching sun would be appalled, but this was really not something a human would do.
So he spent some of the coins he had collected while hugging the women with long spears in Jugu.
Even if it was not possible to invalidate what is commonly called a ‘contract’, it was possible to receive a price instead.
I made the excuse that I would bring something to the king, and pretended to have bought it from a store.
The king and nobles laughed at me as if I was ridiculous when I brought a doll that only children would play with.
“Your Highness, I’m afraid that the prince may be indulging in absurd fantasies.”
The king said to the nobleman’s cheeky words.
“It is night now.”
“Yes?”
“I ask you. Is it daytime or nighttime?”
“…”
With the sun still rising, the nobleman was speechless at the king’s question.
Of course, it is correct to say that it is daytime.
But the king clearly said before asking the question.
It’s night now.
Then, what should the nobleman answer?
“Why is there no answer? Is Jim’s Xiamen so funny?”
“That, that, that… That’s why…”
“I’ll ask again. Is it daytime or nighttime?”
“That… Bar, the night is coming.”
The aristocrat finally gave up his pride and answered.
The noble looked around and asked for help from other nobles, but no one met his eyes.
The tide has already turned to the king.
‘There must be someone like that. If I stayed still, I would have gone even halfway, but I’m the one who goes out and uses poison.’
That person laughed at what I brought, but the effects of this doll will make you think.
How many necks could this cute doll have?
A small number of nobles would not have intervened and tried to cut my throat.
So far, many nobles have attached to me, but there are still many nobles who are hostile to me.
“Tell me how to use it.”
“It’s simple to use. Just put it on that person’s lap.”
It is a doll that absorbs curses around it on its own.
The courtier took the doll from me and placed it on the prisoner’s lap.
The alchemist, who had been tortured for days and his face was haggard, stared at the doll on his lap.
All that was left was the choice of the sinner.
If he dies one way or the other, it would be much better for that person to take revenge and die.
And, as if the sinner thought so, his chapped lips finally began to move.
“I… Needed research funding. I went around looking for research funding, but no one showed interest in my research. Then one day, a lady-in-waiting came to visit me. I mean, I’m willing.”
The complexions of the nobles were growing paler.
It was impossible not to know what the alchemist was preparing for.
‘It’s good if that doll shows an effect, or else it’s an expression.’
It was no exaggeration to say that he had already given up his own life.
“Instead of sponsoring research funds, he said there was something he wanted me to do. At first, he said it was nothing special. Just go to the palace and give him a suitable gift and come out.”
“It was too much money to refuse,” Said the alchemist in tears.
“It was just to visit the prince and give him a gift. I couldn’t bear to refuse it. I never imagined that it would be a vile attack against the prince! I didn’t know anything! Could you have imagined that you would do it!!!”
The alchemist was speaking with a feeling of vomiting blood that he had been tortured and regretted.
However, the eyes of those around her who were looking at her were cold.
