Chapter 31: An Innocent Man

It was cold, dark, and restricting. Kanaru sat inside his cell, hearing how Eann cried from the next one. Laughter came from the others as if they figured more concubines were sent there again. There were no conversations as the warden told them not to speak to one another.

Pure rage. Kanaru didn't know he could punch Rodnir like he was trying to snap the unicorn's neck in one blow. He was lucky he wasn't wearing Gannett's gift, or else those gauntlets would have amplified Kanaru's strength. Kanaru then burrowed his face against his knees.

"I hate you. Not only did you not come to see me anymore, but you also behaved like you didn't care about the innocent." His teeth clenched tightly. "What happened to that man I traveled with? How could you change in just a day? As much as I remember, I should be the one telling you off. All those bold words and actions… how could you lose those when someone gets wrongfully punished for real?"

"Kanaru?" Someone called out from somewhere, and Kanaru only moved his head up. It was their chef knight, Sir Magus. Footsteps came to his cell, and keys rattled as if opening the door. "Kanaru, how could you punch His Grace like that? I thought you two were friends."

"I didn't like what he said," Kanaru whispered as the door opened. "Am I getting kicked out?"

Sir Magus shrugged his shoulders before walking to the next cell and opening the door for Eann. He just chuckled. "Eann, do you remember me? Up you go. The king will hear the case now."

Eann looked up. "I didn't steal anything! Please, believe me, Sir Magus. I swear I can never take anything from the king without his consent!"

"It's all right. Just follow me." Sir Magus pulled the lizard prince up and walked him to the king's throne chamber. Kanaru just followed them as if he should be at the hearing as well.

Unlike the living spaces, the throne chamber was filled with the domineering aura of the unicorn race. The soldiers standing guard were nothing less than the knights when it came to their presence. The crying Eann only hugged himself a lot more, but Kanaru didn't show weakness. It was as if he was so used to using indignance as his armor.

Inside the chamber, six ministers bore witness to the trial. Ushka and the inner court maidens were also present, along with Natucha. Rodnir stood next to the king's chair, but he was just massaging his swollen cheekbone. The punch was so hard that he was happy none of his teeth fell out.

During trials, the king was supposed to be the most imposing as the judge. However, Fenris only lounged at his chair with an amused smile. On his head was the black crown, and in his hands was the handcrafted lamp. Kanaru could only imagine how they opened the vault in his room.

"The people present Eann Glasswind and Kanaru Burdett to the court of Middlemist." Melaka was the one heading the prosecution since Rodnir couldn't even talk properly. "Eann Glasswind, on the charge of grand larceny, how do you plead?"

"Not guilty! I didn't steal it, Your Majesty! Please believe me!" Eann would cry out some more, but Fenris held a hand out to make him stop.

Melaka nodded at the silent cue before continuing, "Kanaru Burdett, on the charge of physical assault against the sole other facet of the king—hence a direct attack to the king; how do you plead?"

"Guilty," Kanaru answered without begging. It even made Eann and the others flinch.

"My, my, what a couple of troublesome newbies." Royal Adviser Vulcan only chuckled as he gazed at the two princes. "You are only here for a day, yet you're already in trouble. Hmm, what can I say? Has our little system of instantly choosing concubines gone faulty? Aren't you two accepted by the ambassadors without the temperance tests?"

The two ambassadors glanced at the adviser before glaring at the king's ward. They were supposed to test every candidate, but this year's recruitment was solely dependent on Rodnir's 'yes' or 'no' as if he knew best. Right now, two of his choices were facing court charges on their second day.

Eann didn't know how to answer the question. He only looked in Rodnir's direction as if hoping to remind them that it was Rodnir's call.

Then again, Fenris got up from his throne, gently placing the lamp on the seat. His lips were kept on a smile as he walked down the steps to get close to the two defendants. Then, he stood in front of Kanaru, who just stared at the floor even if Fenris was already standing in front of him.

"Kanaru, can you walk me through your thoughts when you hit Rodnir?" Fenris tried his best not to laugh. However, the bird prince didn't say anything. He then reached out and gently touched Kanaru's chin to make him look up. At this action, Kanaru flinched and let the king guide his face, his eyes inevitably meeting those of Fenris.

"Kanaru, I hope you'll remember not to hide your face from me next time. I like seeing it." Fenris smiled deeply, making Kanaru twitch at those words. Then, he moved away and stroked at Eann's head once as if consoling the scared lizard. "Go on, Kanaru. Tell me why you hit Rodnir."

The bird prince glanced at Rodnir, who didn't look at him, and then at Eann, who grew confused. Then, Kanaru looked at Fenris as the king stood in front of Eann. However, his gaze and his smile were heavily on Kanaru as if showing support.

So, Kanaru answered: "Rodnir implied it was more important for him to hide the fact that the crown is in my possession… than to save Eann, an innocent man."

"You had the crown?" Eann whispered, and Kanaru nodded. The lizard dropped his jaw in disbelief. "You were the one who stole it? Why?"

"I didn't steal it, Eann. He left it in my room along with his other personal effects because he crashed there last night." Kanaru just kept on looking at Eann, ignoring the ministers and the members of the inner court. "You must have noticed how exhausted he was after checking in on everyone in the males' living quarters. No one noticed he visited more than one person, so he must be hiding through magic.

"When he got to my room, he just decided to sleep there instead of traveling all the way back to his chambers." Kanaru looked at Sierra next, only sweeping his gaze past the frozen Ushka. "When Eann came to wake me up, he was still in my room. He must have heard how the inner court was causing a ruckus because they didn't find him. He escaped my room to return to his."

Rodnir finally scoffed. "Doesn't tell me why you had to sock me."

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