At the same time, in the capital of the Okam Empire—Monsell.
Royal City, Royal Palace.
“Your Majesty! The culprit who attacked Her Highness the Princess has been found, but some remnants have fled.”
Rhodomenlin, an Inquisitor of the Church of Judicature, was respectfully reporting to Emperor Rubas.
“Oh? Who is it?”
Inside the rear hall, Rubas was adjusting his attire with the help of a maid, preparing to attend court.
“It is Vice Dean Mark of the Royal Academy, as well as two professors—Dolan and Vicks Todd!”
Rhodomenlin answered respectfully.
“They colluded with the Revolutionary Army within the Empire and the Glorious Restoration Church, sold out Her Highness the Princess’s whereabouts, and then jointly plotted these assassination attempts.”
“Mark?”
Emperor Rubas seemed a bit surprised. “Did he really participate in the assassination?”
“Yes! The Second Princess captured Mark and the others on the spot during the battle in Yufeng Valley the night before!”
Rhodomenlin explained.
Yesterday, Chief Normankev of the Church of Judicature, along with another professor named Tapur—said to have turned to the light—escorted Mark and Vicks Todd back to Monsell.
After reporting the matter to Rhodomenlin, he entered the palace early this morning to explain it to Emperor Rubas.
Recently, Rubas Egbert had been putting constant pressure on the Church of Judicature.
There was even a sense that if the culprit was not brought in, the Church of Judicature would be forced to relinquish the authority of the Imperial Intelligence Service.
It was precisely because Rhodomenlin heard rumors that the Emperor wanted to establish another [Church of Judicature] that he paid such close attention to cooperation with Willis this time.
“Hmph!”
Upon hearing this, the Emperor snorted coldly.
But the target of his anger was not Mark.
“The three thousand troops I gave to Sielyou were not for her to protect Willis! That fool! How dare she disregard her father’s words!”
“Your Majesty, please calm your anger!”
Rhodomenlin hurriedly bowed, pleading for Sielyou.
“Your Majesty, Her Highness Sielyou and Her Highness Willis share deep sisterly affection and mutual care. It is only natural. Please do not blame the Grand Princess.”
Rubas glanced coldly at Rhodomenlin.
“Enough.”
He waved his hand, signaling the maids to leave.
“You said Willis caught Mark and the others at the scene of the attack?”
Rhodomenlin nodded. “Yes!”
“Moreover, this morning, more than a dozen young women, together with several teachers from the Royal Academy, publicly condemned them at the Academy… They said…”
Seeing Rhodomenlin hesitate, the Emperor knew his thoughts well.
But what he hadn’t expected was that Willis would go so far, leaving no room for mercy!
Rubas asked with a grim expression, “What did they say!?”
“They said Mark abused his authority as Vice Dean for personal gain, misused public resources, not only raped students and harassed other teachers, but also embezzled imperial funds and committed malfeasance…”
“During his tenure, he used his power to oppress other teachers, steal achievements, and even killed people for it.”
Rhodomenlin prostrated himself deeply on the ground.
“Your Majesty! Assaulting the Imperial Princess, betraying the Empire, defecting to the enemy, and countless other crimes—heaven itself cannot tolerate!”
“Now the news has spread from the Royal Academy to the surrounding area. Soon, the entire Monsell will know of this scandal!”
“Such an evil villain—if his nine generations are not executed, it will be difficult to quell public outrage, Your Majesty!”
These were the words Willis wanted to say.
Naturally, they were also what Rhodomenlin wished to convey at this moment.
After all, since the attack on Willis, the Church of Judicature had been constantly scolded by the Emperor for incompetence.
Now there was finally a scapegoat—a massive one at that.
And Mark himself was not innocent.
As long as this matter was settled, the danger of the Church of Judicature being purged could be safely averted.
He, as an Inquisitor, and the officials beneath him could all be preserved.
The Emperor could no longer use this matter as a weapon, and might even reward them!
But what the ultimate outcome would be depended on the Emperor’s attitude at this moment.
However, to Rhodomenlin’s surprise, after listening, the Emperor was silent for a while—and then laughed.
“Hehe… Willis, oh Willis!”
The Emperor sighed, then his tone calmed.
“Issue the decree!”
The Emperor spoke in a low voice, and the civil officials at his side began to record.
“Throughout history, wise kings have ruled through virtuous ministers, yet countless nations have fallen to treacherous villains!”
“Today, the Dean of the Royal Academy, holding high office, failed to emulate the sages, betrayed the Empire, sought to bring it down—a sinister scoundrel with the heart of a wolf and the lungs of a dog!”
“He allied with rebels, assaulted the Imperial Princess, was defeated in the Academy, bringing harm to the Empire and disgrace to sacred learning! Unforgivable crimes!”
“Now, let his sins be known, shake the world, and execute his nine generations as a warning to all!”
Not long after, the imperial edict was issued, and Monsell was in an uproar.
A dignified Vice Dean of the Imperial Royal Academy—so depraved, so utterly lacking in conscience!?
It was truly unbelievable!
And when Mark and Vicks Todd heard this decree…
They collapsed, limp as boneless flesh.
At once, the City Defense Army mobilized en masse to arrest the family members and relatives of Mark and Vicks Todd.
All were branded as traitors.
“Innocent! We’re innocent, Your Majesty!”
In the crowd of those arrested, cries of injustice rang out.
Some even begged Mark and the others to quickly enter the palace and plead their case.
But at this moment, Mark’s heart was filled with despair. He knew that once the Emperor issued this imperial edict, it could not be withdrawn.
Moreover, with people and evidence in hand, there was no defense.
“Mark! You traitor! If you want to die, don’t drag us down with you! You dog bastard!”
A relative cursed angrily, which ignited Mark’s own fury.
“Shut up! What right do you have to curse me?”
“When I became Vice Dean, I committed plenty of misdeeds with you all!”
“Can you claim to be innocent? How much of the embezzled money did you take?”
“How many times did you defile those forced students!?”
“Yet you still dare point fingers at me—ptui! I’m no saint, but how many of you are clean?”
Mark’s words left his relatives speechless and ashen-faced.
Then, among the bound people, a woman began to weep.
“Mark, we are guilty, we took dirty money, but my child is innocent!”
She pointed to a boy nearby, who was so frightened he had soiled himself.
“He’s young and doesn’t understand. If he dies, our family line ends!”
“Shut up!”
Mark sneered. “When your son abducted those two little girls in public, why didn’t you say he was young then?!”
“Wasn’t it me who cleaned up your mess? Innocent? Innocent, my ass!”
At this moment, they were being escorted to the Execution Ground, their curses flying.
The people along the way, hearing the mutual accusations and revelations of these villains, had their outlooks completely overturned.
At first, it seemed many innocents were implicated, but seeing this, it was clear that all were evildoers.
They deserved death!
“Kill them! Kill them!”
A civilian threw rotten vegetable leaves, and then came countless insults and kicks.
Spit, dung balls…
Mark had risen from a commoner to Vice Dean, and under his protection, few among his friends and relatives were clean.
Drowned in this storm of anger and denunciation, Mark’s regret reached its peak.
He had once been a young man who loathed evil…
But now, he had become the very villain he once despised.
The world is unpredictable, the human heart hard to fathom, and even oneself can become helpless.
And at the Execution Ground, a girl stood with more than a dozen girls behind her, looking with satisfaction at Mark and his followers about to be executed.
“Our revenge is finally complete!”
Among these girls, some were Academy students, others were women who had been bullied by Mark or his family.
And surely, there were many more whose stories were unknown.
Today, new and old grudges alike would be settled!
“Noon has arrived. Execute them!”
At that moment, Mark suddenly recalled the cold, mocking gaze of Willis in the Academy that day.
As if she were saying—
[Do you dare cross me? Then your fate is eternal damnation, Vice Dean.]
She had never intended to spare him.
Now, as he looked at the gleaming blade descending upon him…
It was truly eternal damnation.
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