The show during the audience (part 4)

"Hmm."

The king turned his head and frowned while observing the pixie-cut girl and his son, giving Charlotte the opportunity to check on his neck... where indeed, a small scar could be seen in the exact spot that Medea pointed out to her before.

"Father, besides what brother is preparing, do you have a test for me?"

The girl spoke up, keeping it together splendidly and looking the king in the face.

"There's no need for that between us."

The real king smirked with approval, instantly noticing the change in the way that he was addressed and nodding with approval.

"!!!"

Such a reaction caused the gathered nobility to begin murmuring amongst themselves, which in turn caused the first prince to start sweating bullets.

...the king basically just declared that he believes that the pale-blond-haired teenager present is his child...

Wouldn't that make it seem like what the first prince was doing was basically attempting to prove the monarch wrong...?

The attempt itself was already troublesome, but wouldn't confirm it makes the king's ability to judge others really bad?

Noah was faced with a great problem...

Making it seem he has no spine and backing off without trying to test out the truth potion.

Going with the truth potion option and proving his father's judgment to be correct.

Going with the truth potion option and proving his father's judgment to be wrong, and showing that he is more capable.

Of the three options, only the first one was fully in his control and could prevent potential problems... but it got the heavy demerit of being a double loss for the first prince.

Not only would he be seen as uncertain and lacking, but also his bringing up Ava just to send her away would infuriate the gathered nobles even more as it would be seen as him showing off how much he disrespects the aristocrats below the royal family.

With that in mind, the first prince Noah made a choice.

He stepped back and let Ava finish the process.

"...!"

"...~"

With the vial containing the ready product, the first prince stepped towards the pale-blond-haired teenager, intending to hand it over and...

...froze up with his eyes bulging out while Medea smiled.

The first prince realized that the second and third options were traps far more dangerous than the first one.

After all, he was the real perpetrator of the kidnapping.

If the second prince knew about his involvement, he would blurt it out under the truth potion – it was over for Noah.

If the second prince was a fake that by any chance got prepared by Theodore or one of his people trying to go his own way... wouldn't they be told of the first prince's involvement anyway? In that case, it wouldn't be just over – because if this was the truth and the real James was dead or still missing, the crime that Noah would be put on trial for would be much, much more serious...

"Thank you, brother."

"...ah...!"

While the first prince was hesitating, Charlotte nodded at him and took the vial right out of his hand, and gulped down its content in one go, making Noah let out a panicked gasp before he could control himself.

"I am ready. Ask me whatever you want."

Charlotte straightened her back and nodded, voicing out her readiness to begin the test.

******

"What are you talking about? Why wouldn't the first prince ask me directly about who I am? If they really give me a truth potion, it will be over with one question – Are you James Allsworth!"

The previous night Charlotte sitting on her feet on the hard floor, asked Medea, casually sitting on the bed.

"He will not. Instead, he will ask some questions trying to feel out whether you are the real second prince or not and whether you know he is behind everything. I believe you will not have trouble answering most of them."

"But... we're still done if he does that, though... aren't we? If I'm forced to speak only the truth, there is no hope... I'd much prefer if you just kill me quickly right here – I've heard that they torture prisoners in the royal castle's basement..."

Medea assured her lightheartedly, but Charlotte trembled and lowered her head in defeat.

"Stupid. Do you think that the truth potion is a new invention? You just focus on doing things exactly how I instruct you."

"!!!"

Medea scoffed and leaned forward, firmly grabbing the girl's head and staring into her eyes as if he was peeking into her soul.

"Now, since we can guess what kind of questions the first prince will ask, let's get back to making you memorize everything properly. The answers you have to give will be..."

******

"Are you the person that was kidnapped over a week ago?"

"...?"

The first prince cleared his throat and asked, causing the gathered nobles to look at each other in confusion over his choice.

"Yes. A little over a week ago, I was abducted and placed in a building that bandits turned into their hideout. Besides me, there was another girl who was taken hostage."

"..."

Charlotte nodded to the question and provided additional details, she felt a bit distant while speaking, but it was the first prince who seemed actually nervous for some reason...

...some reason being the inability to control how much the pale-blond-haired teenager will say...

"That girl, what happened to her?"

The first prince perked up and asked, acting as if he saw some deeper meaning behind the statement.

"We tried to escape; I was adamant about being the distraction myself because I believed no matter what, the kidnappers would not try to harm the second prince and the other one being less important, would be able to escape and get help, but it wasn't the case... The thugs who kidnapped us waited for some sort of signal, but when it turned out that their plan got ruined, they chose to kill us off. That girl... she got in the way of the man wanting to kill me and received a mortal wound... They... they put her body in a barrel and used fire pellet to cremate it..."

"..."

"..."