Javier smirked slightly, his head still lowered in a bow.
"Your Majesty, I believe we can extract useful information from her."
Garius leaned back in his throne, his expression unreadable as he studied the girl carefully.
"Hmmm…"
His sharp eyes locked onto Zania.
Still bound, Zania tried to remain defiant, but Liana wouldn't allow it. With a sharp tug on the leash, she forced Zania to kneel properly. Zania gritted her teeth, rage boiling within her.
Everything she had heard—everything she believed—told her that Garius was nothing but a count. A re noble, not soone worthy of the throne. Her blood boiled.
Unable to hold back any longer, she shouted, "Since when can a re noble beco a king?!"
The air stirred as her voice dripped with venom. "A tyrant!" Her words echoed through the hall.
"A rciless lord who slaughters innocent people!"
Francesca's eyes narrowed dangerously, while Alf and Erinnette stiffened imdiately. Fueled by anger, Zania continued,
"A monster who tortures his own villagers! Who burns people alive! Who cuts off the hands of those who refuse to obey!"
Her voice grew louder.
"The great butcher of Armand! The demon in noble's clothing! A man who allies with devils and sacrifices—"
Then—
BOOM.
Everything stopped. The air grew heavy, and a crushing force filled the hall. Garius's aura exploded—not with rage, but with raw, overwhelming power. The pressure was imnse, making the air feel thicker, heavier.
Zania froze, her body refusing to move. Her lungs struggled to breathe. For the first ti, she felt fear.
Then—a single footstep echoed through the silent hall. Alf moved forward slowly and deliberately, his own aura darkening and rging with Garius's. It was cold, sinister, and unforgiving.
His eyes—sharp, deadly, furious. His voice was quiet yet controlled, filled with danger.
"What did you say about my lord?"
The entire hall felt like death itself had arrived. Zania shuddered. For the first ti, she realized sothing terrifying—she had no idea who she had truly provoked.
The air was heavy. The mont Alf stepped forward, Zania felt an icy grip clutch at her soul. Her instincts scread at her to run, but her body refused to move.
"Alf."
A single word from Garius made Alf halt. With a slow breath, he stepped back.
"Sorry, my lord."
Zania barely had ti to process her relief before a deep, calm yet terrifying voice addressed her.
"Now, girl."
She shuddered as Garius's eyes locked onto her—sharp and piercing, a gaze that felt capable of stripping away all lies and excuses.
"Tell …"
The weight of his voice pinned her down.
"Where did you hear about these bad things that I supposedly did?"
His tone wasn't angry or furious; it was worse—cold, calculated, absolute.
Zania's breath hitched. She could feel the eyes of everyone in the room watching her, judging her, daring her to lie. Her body stiffened under Garius's unwavering gaze.
His voice was steady and filled with absolute authority.
"Do you have any proof?"
Zania's lips parted slightly, but no words ca out.
"Do you have any witnesses?"
"Have you seen my people suffer?"
The room fell silent, and even the air felt thick.
"Have you ever seen a holess person in my territory?"
Zania's breath caught in her throat.
"Have you ever seen a child begging for food?"
The weight of his words pressed down on her.
"Have you ever seen my people steal because they were starving?"
Zania's mind raced as she desperately searched for an answer—yet there was nothing. No slums. No starving people. No desperate thieves.
Garius leaned forward slightly, narrowing his eyes.
"Did you see anyone secretly fleeing my region?"
He spoke of hidden paths—the smugglers' roads used by desperate people trying to escape oppressive lands.
Zania's hands clenched into fists because she had seen none of it.
Garius delivered the final blow.
"And knowing my youngest son, I'm sure he stopped sowhere before coming here."
"Sure enough… you saw it, didn't you?"
Zania's heart pounded because she had. She had seen villages thriving, rchants laughing, children playing freely—people living without fear.
Zania's mind spun as she desperately searched for any kind of justification—any answer. But nothing ca.
Garius's eyes bore into her, his presence suffocating. Then, in a voice cold as steel, he said,
"And not just that."
Zania flinched.
"When you ca here—who helped you?"
Silence filled the air.
"How did you and your people even get inside?"
Zania's throat felt dry. She didn't know. She had never questioned it. All she knew was that their passage had been arranged.
Garius leaned forward, his voice dangerously low.
"Now, girl."
Zania stiffened.
"You and your people rushed in here without even investigating?"
She opened her mouth, but no words ca out.
"You didn't check anything?"
Zania felt her breath hitch because she hadn't. None of them had. They had taken the hero's words as truth and charged in blindly.
Garius's voice dropped lower, colder.
"And from the reports I read…"
A pause followed, and his gaze darkened.
"From the direct communication of my bases around the region…"
A deadly silence filled the room.
"Your people arrived—and imdiately attacked my guards."
Zania's entire body stiffened.
"Not just guards. Innocent villagers. rchants. Farrs."
"And the remaining forces—including you…"
The air grew heavier. Garius's next words were absolute and unforgiving.
"Directly targeted my family."
Zania's body trembled from realization and fear. Garius's eyes pierced through her, unrelenting. Then, in a sharp voice, he said,
"You rushed to judge without evidence, punishing before you even knew the truth."
His tone dripped with disdain. "You let your anger blind you—drawing conclusions based on hearsay rather than understanding the reality of the world around you."
Zania's mind raced, grappling with the weight of his words. Was she truly so blinded by rage that she failed to see the bigger picture?
"That's why your queen…"
"Your country…"
"Your entire race…"
The hall was silent.
"…are ignored by the other kingdoms."
Zania's eyes widened.
"Because you do not check. You do not investigate. You do not learn. You do not improve."
Each word landed like a hamr, shattering everything Zania had believed.
Garius leaned forward slightly, his voice calm yet absolute.
"You and your people cling to the sa old ways—outdated, stagnant, unchanging."
Zania's heart pounded painfully in her chest because it was true. For years, decades, even centuries, the Amazarak people had refused to adapt. While the world around them changed, advanced, and grew stronger, they remained trapped in the past.
"Your queen, your ruler, even the previous leaders, only think about power. Power. Power. Blind judgnt. Blind hatred. Blind ambition."
Zania's chest rose and fell rapidly, the weight of Garius's words crushing her.
She had co here without investigation.
She had attacked without questioning.
She had trusted only what she was told.
Garius smirked.
A small, knowing grin.
As if he had just discovered sothing amusing.
His eyes lowered slightly, scanning her.
And then—
His gaze locked onto her arm.
The special markings.
A unique pattern—the Amazarak royal patern.
Garius chuckled softly. "Oh… interesting."
Zania froze.
Sothing felt wrong.
"A royal Amazarak bloodline, huh?"
Her breath caught in her throat.
"That ans you hold high rank in Amazarak… Perhaps…"
Garius's grin widened slightly.
"A princess?"
Zania's entire body stiffened.
Her mind went blank.
W-What…?!
How?
How did this Armand noble know?!
She had never introduced herself.
She had never spoken her full na.
Her true status was known only to Amazarak!
And yet—
Garius spoke it so casually.
Like he had known all along.
He leaned back slightly, watching her reaction.
"Hmm… From the information we've gathered…"
A brief pause.
Then, his next words sent ice through her veins.
"The Amazarak royal bloodline, from the last queen…"
Zania bit her lip, the weight of his knowledge pressing down on her.
"Two daughters. Five sons."
Her heart pounded violently in her chest.
"And now, the current queen is Zephyra."
Garius's eyes locked onto hers, intense and unyielding.
"That ans you are the last princess…"
A slow, deliberate pause, the room hanging heavy with expectation.
"Zania."
Zania felt as if the ground had shifted beneath her, instability threatening to swallow her whole.
She couldn't comprehend how a noble from Armand had uncovered her lineage. A mix of fear and disbelief coursed through her veins, rendering her montarily speechless.
Garius leaned forward, the predatory gleam in his eye making her skin crawl.
"You see, girl," he continued, his tone almost sing-song, "knowledge is power. And ignorance? That can be a weapon against you."
He straightened, the atmosphere in the hall shifting once more.
"Your current queen, your previous queen and your previous ruler, refuse to change or to recognize the realities of this world, has endangered not only themself but entire kingdom. Do you understand?"
Zania's chest tightened, swallowed by his relentless scrutiny.
"You're here, on my land, making baseless accusations against . And what have you to show for it?"
"Your people have been so blinded by pride that they failed to notice how deeply your actions affect others."
Zania opened her mouth to protest, but no words erged. The truth felt inescapable.
( End of Chapter )
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