The Spirit Said, 'You're Unworthy as My Master, Cancel the Contract!' So I’ll Give It to My Sister Who Wants It - Episode 2.27

As soon as Mistia and the others disappeared, the black ropes binding Gilbert vanished as well. Doran stood up and picked up a wine bottle that had rolled onto the floor.

Then, he approached Gilbert and pressed the bottle against his lips.

“Drink.”

“…!”

Gilbert firmly pressed his lips together, refusing to drink. Seeing this, Doran’s face twisted as if he were about to cry.

“Hah, so you can’t drink, my son?”

His voice was dry, as if he had given up on something. The bottle slipped from Doran’s hand and fell to the floor with a hollow sound.

“Judging from the situation, it’s clear what you were planning. You feared losing your right to the throne, so you tried to kill me, didn’t you? A curse? Ridiculous. Besides, I lost consciousness right after drinking the wine… The one you offered me, wasn’t it?”

“You misunderstand, Father! Why would you suspect your own son? Why won’t you punish them instead?”

“Because there’s no proof, fool. If I were to imprison foreign heroes just for being present, it could lead to war.”

“Hah…! War would be welcome! It’s a perfect excuse!”

“…Enough.”

Doran sighed deeply and held his head. At that moment, the doors to the banquet hall burst open, and the royal guards rushed in. Doran called one of the soldiers over and pointed at Gilbert.

“Lock him up. Do not release him until his innocence is proven.”

“Yes, sir!”

A guard bound Gilbert’s hands behind his back and dragged him away. Gilbert’s face turned pale as he desperately shouted at Doran.

“No…! Father! I am innocent! It—it was Chancellor Thomas! He’s behind this! It wasn’t me…!”

“Thomas?”

Hearing the unexpected name, Doran’s eyebrow twitched slightly.

He gazed at the wrecked banquet hall and murmured,

“This has turned into quite the mess…”

—

Upon returning to Asteria, Mistia and her companions immediately went to report what had happened in Terre to King Aurant.

The audience chamber was made of white marble. Aurant sat on his golden throne, facing Mistia and the others.

“…That is the situation. We are currently waiting for the true culprit behind the attempted assassination of Terre’s king to be identified.”

“I see… You’ve gotten yourselves into quite the predicament,” Aurant muttered with a troubled expression. Mistia also looked at him seriously.

“But the King of Terre does not suspect you, does he? It’s only a matter of time before the real culprit is found. For now, you should rest here in Asteria. No matter what happens, I will protect you. There is nothing to worry about.”

“Your Majesty…”

Mistia was touched by Aurant’s reassuring words, her eyes welling with emotion.

Then, suddenly, Aurant cleared his throat. He glanced around hesitantly, seeming a bit uneasy, before finally speaking.

“Actually, there’s something else… As a reward for preventing the famine in the Redfield territory, a grand ball was planned in your honor…”

“A ball?”

Mistia blinked in surprise at the unexpected word.

“I know that things are tense with the whole assassination attempt situation, but… The ball is scheduled to be held in three days…”

“Three days?”

Mistia repeated Aurant’s words in disbelief.

“The original plan was to hold it as a surprise celebration upon your return. But now, canceling it seems wasteful. We’ve already spent quite a bit of the national budget, and the guests are all excited. If the guests come and the guests of honor don’t attend… Well, that would be a problem.”

“…I see.”

Understanding Aurant’s dilemma, Mistia sighed slightly. However, Skia immediately objected.

“I can’t believe you expect us to attend a ball in this situation.”

Hearing Skia’s blunt words, Aurant slumped his shoulders as if to say, “I knew it…” Seeing this, Mistia quickly stepped in to mediate.

“Since you went through all this trouble to arrange it, we will attend—at least for a little while. It will also be a good opportunity to introduce Solm to the public. Right, Solm?”

“Y-yes! If that is what Lady Mistia wishes, I have no objections.”

“Mistia, as always, you are too kind,” Skia muttered.

And so, Mistia and her companions decided to attend the ball hosted by Aurant.

Little did they know…

At that ball, they would hear an astonishing piece of news—