The Herb King

151 Confession

Hugo sighed inwardly. This was the result of his greed. He willingly became the Northern Viper Group’s dog in exchange for more power. He got addicted to the feeling of being at the top that he had forgotten that the Ward Household was still nothing to the Imperial Family’s might.

With a look of resolve, Hugo stood up as he faced the furious Aethelwolf. “I apologize for this matter, Sir Aethelwolf. I will make everything right. I just hope that everyone forgives my Ward Household. They have nothing to do with this.” He muttered in a low voice. He decided to confess his sins. He knew that it was already late, but this was the only thing he could do to save his son.

Everyone revealed confused expressions when they heard his words.

“What do you mean?” Aethelwolf asked in a cold tone.

Hugo stared at him with a calm look as he replied. “I will explain everything after the battle event is settled.” He then turned his gaze to the second prince and said. “Your Highness, please announce that Alec will forfeit the match.”

Prince Calvin furrowed his eyebrows when he heard this. He then looked at his father to see his opinion.

Emperor Ragnar nodded his head.

After seeing his signal, Prince Calvin excused himself and stepped out of the room.

The prince jumped to the stage and landed in between Janrose and Alec. “Stop!” He shouted.

.....

Janrose halted her steps in surprise. Why was the prince here?

Alec felt a sense of foreboding when the second prince interfered in their fight. Was he discovered? Was his identity already exposed?

The crowd was also shocked by the sudden appearance of the second prince and they wondered why he had interrupted the fight.

“The Ward Household has forfeited the match. Follow me.” Prince Calvin said while looking coldly at Alec. He then moved his gaze to the referee and said. “Announce Miss Janrose’s victory.”

The referee had a lot of questions, but he refrained from asking when he saw how serious the second prince was. “Yes, Your Highness!”

Prince Calvin grabbed the stunned Alec by the shoulder and dragged him to the VIP room.

“What’s happening? Why did His Highness bring Alec away?”

“Is there something going on?”

The referee quickly announced in a loud voice. “Due to certain circumstances, the Ward Household has forfeited the match. The champion for this battle event is Janrose Yanez! The awarding ceremony will be held in ten minutes.”

It was a questionable victory, and those who placed their bets on Alec were discontented by the results. However, no one dared to protest since it was the second prince who took Alec away from the stage.

Soon, Janrose’s supporters cheered joyously after the announcement and they all jumped from their seats while waving their hands victoriously.

Janrose sheathed her sword and left the stage with a perplexed look on her face.

Meanwhile, Prince Calvin brought Alec to the VIP room and he was shocked when he saw the people inside. All of them were the family heads of noble households and merchant families. Alec also saw his father among them, but his face was difficult to describe.

Emperor Ragnar who was sitting expressionlessly on his seat suddenly said. “Hugo, explain everything properly to everyone.”

Hugo bowed his head at the emperor. “Yes, Your Majesty.” He then looked at his son and when he saw that he had no injuries, he forced out a smile.

‘What is happening here?’ Alec looked at his father in confusion.

Under the shocked gazes of everyone inside the room, Hugo fell to his knees and confessed. “It was me. I ordered Alec to kill Janrose. It was the command of Gustavo, the Leader of the Northern Viper Group. Alec and the Ward Household have no idea that I have been secretly meeting with the bandit group. I’m prepared for any punishments, Your Majesty. I just hope that you spare my Ward Household. They are clueless about this matter.”

The eyes of everyone present turned wide when they heard his words.

Duke Baron couldn’t hide his agitation and he furiously lifted Hugo by the collar as he bellowed. “You goddamn traitor! Those people killed many of our people and you even dared to work with them?! You must be fucking tired of living!” He then punched Hugo’s face, sending him flying to the corner of the room.

Bang!

Hugo wiped the blood at the corner of his mouth and remained silent.

Some family heads who had also lost their soldiers against the Northern Viper Group joined Duke Baron in beating up Hugo.

Pah! Pah! Pah!

“Father!” Alec wanted to help his father, but Prince Calvin prevented him from stepping any further. His father was shouldering the sin of their entire family and it made him feel remorseful.

“Enough!” Emperor Ragnar shouted after a long time. He was also furious by the betrayal of Hugo, but the confession sounded suspicious to him. He then stood up from his seat and walked towards Hugo who now looked unrecognizable with all the bruises on his face. “Hugo, you have betrayed the empire for your own benefit! This is a crime punishable by death! I, Ragnar Leone, emperor of the Leone Empire, sentence you to death by beheading!”

Emperor Ragnar turned his head to Baron and commanded in a cold voice. “The execution will be done three days from now and your task is to investigate this. The Ward Household is also a prime suspect so they can’t escape punishment. I will tell you what to do with them after the execution. For now, focus on investigating this matter first.”

Duke Baron nodded his head solemnly. “Yes, Your Majesty.” He then grabbed Hugo by the neck and before he left, he handcuffed Alec. He then dragged both father and son out of the room.

“Proceed with the awarding ceremony.” Emperor Ragnar muttered to the second prince.

“Yes, Your Majesty.” The prince immediately left the room.

Emperor Ragnar faced the family heads with a grave look. “The betrayal of the Ward Household is a very controversial matter. It will cause panic among our citizens so I hope that everyone will not disclose what happened inside this room to the public.”

Aethelwolf’s eyes narrowed as he watched the whole scene unfold. The war is close by. He could sense it.