Page 159 of The White King's Favorite

“She’s clearly innocent!”

“You’re the one who wanted a death match to begin with! You forced this fight to get to a proper end! So your candidate’s dead, it’s the Princess’ victory!”

“There’s no need for disqualification! It was a fair fight!”

“Your stubbornness killed your candidate!”

The cave’s benches were turning into a complete chaos of shouting. There were three clear sides: those who believed Cessilia had won fairly, those who wanted to free her from Ashra’s death foremost, and the Yekara Clan who were sure this was worth her disqualification. Their plan was now clear: since Ashra hadn’t been able to beat the Princess in combat, they were entirely relying on her death to kick Cessilia out of the competition. Tessandra clenched her fists, furious. Now, if she touched the body again, they’d say she tampered with it to make her cousin appear innocent. Sabael was right; they were stuck in a trap laid by the Yekara Clan.

“...I d-didn’t kill her.”

Cessilia finally turned around to face the Yekara Clan, her eyes still red. All traces of her tears were gone, but she was clearly angry. She’d overcome the terrible experience she had just gone through to be mad at Ashra’s death. She didn’t want the candidate dead, and despite her anger, she was still clear-minded enough to know she was innocent. Although she hadn’t been quite herself, she could remember her fight perfectly, she knew she hadn’t wounded Ashra mortally. Moreover, Ashra had stood back there for several seconds while Ashen had hugged her; it made no sense for her to drop dead when she could probably have resumed the fight.

“She d-didn’t die from the injuries of our b-battle,” she said.

“That’s easy for you to claim,” retorted Lord Yebekh. “However, you have no proof! You’re the only one who harmed our candidate for the last few minutes! Who else could have–”

“Earlier, something s-stabbed me,” declared Cessilia. “D-during our fight, I lost my f-focus for a second b-because something p-pricked my back.”

Without hesitation, she quickly undid the laces of the top of her dress and turned around, revealing her naked back. There was a little red spot in the middle of her back. Something had indeed pricked her, it was obviously an external wound. It wasn’t bigger than a spider bite or a small dart. Tessandra frowned. That explained her cousin’s sudden grimace in the middle of the fight, but there was no way to know where it had come from, aside from a general area near the arena’s stairs. The hole was much too small and whatever had caused this was nowhere to be seen. However, if some projectile had done this, whoever had sent this was good enough to take aim at a moving target, from quite a distance too. They could have used a device to send this without being seen while everyone was focused on the fight itself. It was much too late to find them...

“This could be anything!” retorted Lord Yebekh. “You have no proof!”

“You don’t have any either,” said Tessa. “Nothing proves my cousin killed your candidate when she just collapsed by herself. It could be anything... even a very well-timed assassination.”

“The Princess killed our candidate! Didn’t we all see it? His Majesty tried to step in to stop her, but it was too late! The Yekara Clan requires reparation for the loss of our lady, and for the foreign candidate to be sent back! We don’t want a murderer for a queen!”

“You’re really trying to bark too loudly,” scoffed Tessandra. “Your candidate requested this fight, how could this even be called a murder? She was aiming for Cessilia’s life in the first place!”

“D-don’t you even feel s-sorry for her at all?” suddenly said Cessilia, stepping forward. “Your own kin just d-died and you’re only f-focusing on me b-being eliminated? C-can’t you even p-pretend her death p-pains you?”

Lord Yebekh turned red with anger. Now that she had said this, everyone else in the audience was staring at him like a real monster. It was clear he wasn’t very surprised by Ashra’s death, nor very sorry. He seemed more afflicted about Cessilia’s presence in the competition than his own niece’s passing. Even Safia had gone mute and a bit white behind him. If this had been the plan all along, she wasn’t involved in it.

“A true Yekara will remain proud even in death,” her Clan Leader retorted. “My niece did her very best to serve this clan, and she made us proud, but a fallen soldier has failed their duty. My niece is no different, neither is my daughter. Even in death, she has to serve her clan’s objectives. Now, our candidate is dead, and you have broken the rules of this competition. We want justice for her life!”

“I said no.”

Ashen stepped in front of Cessilia, glaring at the Yekara Clan Leader with all his might. “I’m still your King, Lord Yebekh, and the ultimate decision is mine. I declare the Princess is innocent, and your candidate’s death is not her doing.”

A grin appeared on his opponent’s face.

“Then my King has betrayed his most loyal subject for a foreigner!” shouted Yebekh.

Those words sent a chill down everyone’s back. The tension rose immediately, everyone getting ready for whatever was coming next. All the Yekara Clan members were acting a bit oddly. They were sitting straight, eyes on their leader and tense, as if waiting for some sort of signal or something. Tessandra and Sabael exchanged a quick glance, having noticed the same thing as well. He swiftly took the sword and handed it to Tessa without looking at her, and pulled his sister to come a bit closer to him. Naptunie’s eyes were still riveted on the body, wondering just how Ashra had possibly died.

“Watch your words, Yebekh,” hissed Ashen, getting tense as well.

“Oh, I am watching them, Your Majesty. In fact, I have been watching you for quite some time already! Your Majesty always relied on our clan, but ever since this foreign Princess came, you have been acting odd and ignoring your own subjects!”

“On the contrary. I’ve finally been listening to those I’ve ignored for too long.”

Ashen seemed calm on the surface, but right behind him, Cessilia could feel his tense shoulders. She glanced to the side to notice all those who weren’t from the Yekara Clan had moved a bit away from them. By now, everyone could tell something was afoot.

“...Well, it seems to us, the Yekara Clan, that His Majesty has lost sight of what it takes to lead this Kingdom.”

“Watch what you’re saying, Yebekh!” retorted the Pangoja Clan Leader, slowly standing up. “His Majesty might not always agree with us Lords, but he is still the rightful heir to the throne!”

“He might not be the only one.”

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