The Duke of Danzel trembled for a moment at the king's sword curtain but quickly recovered and licked his thick lips.
"Have you forgotten, Your Majesty? Our Danzel family trades wheat. Isn't it only natural that I know about Black Death Wheat? It would be a great loss if the wheat I have arranged for you were to contain Black Death Barley."
Duke Danzel looked at Mariabelle meaningfully.
"More than that, that Black Death Wheat must be from Berkeley's territory. I have always been suspicious of the Marquis of Berkeley and had him secretly investigated. Please check the warehouse in Berkeley's domain. I am sure they are hiding the Black Death Wheat."
"It is clear from the belongings that the Duke's subordinates possessed this within the territory of Berkeleys'."
When Cedric said this, Duke Danzel thought for a moment before opening his mouth.
"No, but it was found in Berkeley's territory... Perhaps he had secretly killed the men I had sent to investigate in order to frame them, and then used what they had to pass himself off as someone else. Oh, oh, oh, yes, Your Majesty. Surely this must be Berkeley's plot to drag me down from Your Majesty's trusty throne."
The Duke of Danzel had no intention of admitting his guilt, but was trying to get away with it.
"That is impossible, Your Majesty, here are the birth certificates of the men who carried the Black Death Wheat. They were all born in the Danzel territory."
Kane, who was standing behind Cedric, handed a copy of the birth certificates he had prepared to Frederick III, who was sitting on the throne.
Frederick III took one look at them and then turned his stern eyes to the Duke of Danzel.
The Duke of Danzel, however, replied with a brazen attitude, "Even if that were true, what on earth could I possibly be guilty of?"
"Even so, what crime am I to be blamed for? Even if it was my own people who had the Black Death Oats, it could be that they had discovered some unfamiliar oats and were simply trying to inquire about them with the wheat expert, the Marquis of Berkeley."
The Duke of Danzel was good at evading the question.
That's why no one has ever been able to charge him with a crime.
He thought he could get away with it this time, too.
If he could get away with it, all he had to do was use his faction to sway the king. If he delayed his work just a little, the administration of the kingdom, which was short of human resources, would soon come to a halt.
The duke cursed Frederick III in his gut, saying that he would double his humiliation if he were freed from the rope that had been tightened around his neck.
"You continue to pretend that you don't know. But you have gone too far. Black Death Barley was found in the canulé you presented at the royal feast. Look..."
Frederick III said and rolled up his right sleeve.
There were several blisters on it.
"Well, isn't that because of the plague...?"
"Yes, it is. I thought so too ten years ago. But the blisters caused by the Black Death Oats appear concentrated on parts of the body, not the whole body like the plague. Clearly, this was not caused by the plague."
"It was Berkeley who put the Black Death Oats in that canulé! He switched it somewhere else. My God, that is horrible. I am sure he did it out of spite for his daughter's broken engagement. I am innocent!"
Duke Danzel appealed, but Frederick III did not seem to be moved by his words.
"Ten years ago... Even before the plague spread, black bread was popular in one of the central countries."
The Duke of Danzel's throat twitched at the quiet voice of Frederick III.
"The bread that became popular at the royal court was originally introduced by you to the kingdom, wasn't it? It was a little hard on the outside, but soft and tasty on the inside, and it quickly gained a reputation. When a plague broke out and the royal capital had to be sealed off, you delivered a large quantity of goods to the eight noble families. Among them was a loaf of black bread. And it contained Black Death Wheat."
"What are you saying all of a sudden? Then it is as if I have plotted a massacre... That's ridiculous. It's just too ridiculous. First of all, do you have any proof that I committed such a mortal sin?"
"If I had... I would have beheaded you already."
"Huh. Your Majesty is trying to kill this great noble, Vladimir Danzel, on a false charge without any evidence? If you do something like that, my family won't be silent. The other nobles will also be skeptical that their heads will be beheaded at the whim of His Majesty. If that happens, the kingdom will become a place of civil war. Does Your Majesty intend to destroy the kingdom!"
The Duke of Danzel smiled wickedly and looked back at Edward, who was still standing like a stick, confused by all the information he had heard at once.
"It seems that His Majesty is ill and unable to make proper judgments. I think it would be better if His Highness the Crown Prince Edward were to take over the reigns of the throne. Wouldn't that be better for His Highness?"
Duke Danzel's voice, like poison, clung to Edward's body.
Not knowing what to do, Edward looked alternately at his father, the king, and at the Duke of Danzel, searching for the right words.