Reborn To Change My Fate-Chapter 333 - Three Hundred And Thirty Two

The Great Hall of the royal palace was a massive room built from gray stone and dark oak. Huge banners bearing the royal crest hung from the high ceiling. Large windows let in the pale, cold morning light, casting long shadows across the polished marble floor.

It was the morning after the bloody night at the Prince’s residence. The court was in full session. The air in the room was incredibly heavy, thick with tension and whispered rumors. Hundreds of nobles, lords, and military generals stood in the hall, dressed in their dark, formal clothes.

At the very front of the hall, sitting on a raised platform made of white stone, was King Alistair the Fourth. The King looked very old today. He wore his heavy golden crown, but his face was deeply lined with sorrow and anger. He was a father who had just learned that his own son, Prince Liam, was a traitor who had murdered his own soldiers and even planned a revolt.

Standing perfectly still at the bottom of the King’s platform was Grand Duke Derek.

Derek was wearing his formal military uniform. It was a crisp, dark blue jacket with silver buttons and thick shoulder pads, decorated with the medals of his past victories. He wore it because it was Marissa’s last wish. I love seeing you in it, she had whispered before she died.

Underneath the thick fabric of the uniform, Derek’s back was heavily wrapped in white linen bandages. The wound from Liam’s arrow burned with a terrible, throbbing pain with every breath he took. But Derek did not show his pain. His face was like a mask carved from pale marble. His dark eyes were completely empty, hollowed out by a grief so deep it could not be measured. He was functioning on pure, cold duty. He was here to see justice served.

In the center of the hall, surrounded by four heavily armed royal guards, stood Father Adams.

The High Priest of Strathmore no longer looked holy. His white religious robes were dirty and torn. His hands and feet were bound in heavy iron chains that clanked loudly against the marble floor whenever he moved.

The Royal Chancellor, an old man in a long black robe, stood near the King. He held a long scroll of parchment in his hands. He unrolled it and read the final judgment in a loud, echoing voice.

"For the crimes of high treason, the hoarding of illegal weapons, the theft of royal taxes, and the conspiracy to murder the Thompson army," the Chancellor read, his voice ringing clearly through the silent hall.

The Chancellor looked down at the disgraced priest.

"Father Adams," the Chancellor declared, "is hereby sentenced to death by execution."

The Chancellor paused for a second, letting the heavy words sink in.

"He will be paraded through the streets of the capital before his death, tomorrow at noon," the Chancellor finished, rolling the scroll back up.

The verdict immediately caused a ripple of murmurs to spread through the Great Hall. The nobles whispered to each other behind their hands. It was a highly unusual and shocking event. Executing a High Priest was a massive scandal. Some nobles looked afraid; others looked satisfied. The noise grew louder, filling the large room like the buzzing of a disturbed beehive.

King Alistair the Fourth leaned forward on his golden throne. He hit the bottom of his heavy royal scepter against the stone floor.

Thud.

"Silence," the King spoke. His voice was not loud, but it carried the absolute weight of the crown.

Instantly, the Great Hall went completely quiet. No one dared to speak.

Derek turned his head slightly. He looked Father Adams dead in the eyes.

Derek’s gaze was cold and piercing. He thought of his brave brother, Commander Theodore, who had been slaughtered in a that was supposed to be a sanctuary. He thought of his loyal soldiers who had died trusting a priest. Derek did not blink. He stared at the broken man in chains, letting Adams see the pure hatred and the promise of death in his eyes. Father Adams could not hold the Grand Duke’s gaze. The priest trembled and quickly looked down at his dirty feet in shame.

The Chancellor unrolled a second, smaller scroll to finish the religious matters.

"To ensure the spiritual guidance of the people," the Chancellor continued, "the Bishop of the capital’s Cathedral will appoint a new priest to Strathmore to maintain stability in the region."

The Chancellor turned around and looked up at the King for his final approval. Everyone in the hall looked at the King.

King Alistair the Fourth slowly nodded his head. He agreed with the decision.

"Take him," the captain of the royal guard ordered.

The guards grabbed Father Adams by the arms. They turned him around roughly. The heavy iron chains dragged across the floor as they marched the disgraced priest out of the Great Hall, taking him straight to the dark dungeons to await his public death tomorrow.

Derek watched him go. Justice for his brother was finally achieved. But as he stood there, feeling the empty space beside him where Marissa should have been standing, the victory tasted like ash in his mouth.

The heavy wooden doors of the hall opened again.

More guards entered. This time, they were escorting a different prisoner.

Lord Colton, the Governor of the western region, was brought up to the dais. He was a tall, broad-shouldered man with graying hair. Unlike the priest, Lord Colton did not look like a coward. He walked with his head held high, even though his wrists were bound in thick iron cuffs. He wore simple, dark clothes, having been stripped of his noble governor’s coat.

The guards brought him to the exact spot where Father Adams had just stood. They forced him to stop.

The Chancellor looked at him. "Lord Colton. You are charged with aiding Prince Liam in a rebellion, and supplying illegal magical weapons to his secret army. How do you answer?"

Lord Colton did not look at the Chancellor. He looked directly up at King Alistair.

"I confess, Your Majesty," Lord Colton spoke. His voice was deep, calm, and surprisingly steady. He did not try to deny the evidence Derek had provided.

"But," Lord Colton continued, his voice growing passionate, "I confess to being tricked by Prince Liam. I am guilty of making a deal, but I am not guilty of wanting to destroy Eudora."