An emergency meeting was convened. Shurein sat on the throne, with ministers who had rushed to the palace on both sides below. Julius and Tsukasa stood in the center, like prisoners awaiting trial.
"Prince Julius, you say Prince Shurein's body is being controlled by the Demon Race. Do you have any concrete evidence?" a minister questioned.
"..." Julius looked at the ministers' reactions and then silently at Shurein on the throne.
He had just explained it to them, but none of these ministers believed what he said. Even if the ministers knew that he...
...wasn't lying about this matter, they didn't want to believe that this Shurein was an impostor.
Sue said: "I can prove it. The real Brother Shurein is trapped inside this."
She held up that ridiculous doll. Seeing her behavior, the ministers couldn't help but shake their heads one after another.
"Princess, as you saw before, when the two princes were controlled, the Chief used Appraisal magic on everyone. The final results proved that Prince Shurein is normal and shows no signs of being controlled."
"He provided that detection tool! How do you know he didn't tamper with it?!"
The Chief Archmage couldn't help himself when he heard this; his abilities were being questioned.
"I can guarantee there was nothing wrong with the tool!"
"Prince Shurein is right. Princess Sue, your mind is disordered. It seems that spell was very powerful, leaving an impact on the human body even after being broken."
Hearing the Archmage's words, Sue felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar. These people were actually lying through their teeth!
She hugged the Shurein doll tightly.
It seemed that by doing so, she could gain courage.
She looked at Julius helplessly.
"Don't worry, I'm here."
Julius was the only one who believed Sue.
Because he knew that the Shurein in front of him couldn't possibly be the Shurein he knew.
Shurein was his own younger brother, born of the same parents!
It was impossible for him to be mistaken!
"Let this farce end here," Shurein spoke. "Considering that you were deluded and that the front lines need the Hero's power, I will not hold you accountable."
Julius smiled. "Then do I need to say thank you to you?"
"Your Highness is wise! Prince Julius, please watch your words!"
Julius knew that at this moment in the royal palace, it was impossible for him to take down this fake Shurein. Although he could use force, doing so was meaningless because he wouldn't be able to reclaim Shurein's body that way. Moreover, the ministers were all siding with this fake Shurein now; if he tried to force an attack, he would surely end up fighting the palace's Royal Guard, which was not what he wanted to see.
"I will find the evidence!" He finally left these words behind and took Sue out of the royal palace.
Shurein did not stop them.
The main reason was that he couldn't stop them.
In the previous exchange, although Julius had the advantage of a surprise attack, in reality, even in a head-on confrontation, he was no match for Julius.
If the Royal Guard were willing to go all out, they could indeed wear Julius down.
But that was something impossible to achieve.
The Royal Guard would not go all out against Julius because he is a Prince and also the Hero; these two identities give him very high prestige within the human camp, and at that one time, no matter which country someone is from, they would never attack the Hero, because the Hero is the human race's only weapon for confronting the Demon Lord.
Now that the Demon Race and the human race have already begun their war, if he were to order the killing of the Hero at that one time, even if the kingdom's people were blindly loyal, a major problem would arise internationally.
He might have just given the order when the Divine Word Cult would issue a statement to the continent to execute him as a traitor.
So he really had no choice, which is why he let Julius go; everyone was well aware of this.
After the meeting ended and he returned to his room, Shadow Shurein contacted his master and reported this matter.
"Since that's the case, then prepare to succeed the throne. I will have those nobles support you and complete this matter as quickly as possible before Julius finds a way."
"Yes!"
"Julius should investigate the Night Sky Pavilion; I will handle the matter of the Hero."
The communication ended; this exchange was conducted directly within the mind, with no possibility of leakage.
The next day.
Shurein continued to hold meetings.
They began to discuss the succession.
With the support of the Night Sky Pavilion's power, the alliance of nobles controlled by the Witch behind the scenes exerted their influence; even though some ministers felt the matter was a bit rushed, it still passed smoothly, and that one news was quickly transmitted from the Royal Capital to all parts of the continent.
When Julius and the others, who had only just begun their investigation, received that one news, they all felt it was extremely troublesome; that one imposter was simply too fast.
"It's troublesome. It seems their influence has already penetrated every aspect. It's only been a few days, and that one imposter is already about to succeed the throne as King."
Harris said, tossing an apple.
"Do I need to report this matter to the church?" The Saint Yana thought of the Divine Word Cult; if the Pontiff were willing to stand up and testify, then that one imposter would have no way to hide.
The Divine Word Cult's public credibility is just that strong.
"But the Pontiff hasn't stood up until now, which means the old gentleman has his own thoughts."
Harris sneered.
He didn't believe that the old man hadn't received the news.
"Alright, Yana, you go back and report this matter truthfully to the Pontiff. As for how the old gentleman decides, he surely has his own reasons. We will act according to our previous plan and investigate the true identity of the owner of that one Night Sky Pavilion."
"Investigating that one mysterious Night Sky Pavilion is not an easy task."
The Thief Hoken in the party happened to hear Julius's plan as he returned with news and spoke out the intelligence he had just gathered.
"Although on the surface, the Night Sky Pavilion is just an ordinary merchant guild, in reality, the network of relationships within is extremely complex. Many nobles of the King-"},{
dom are within this web, and from what I know, even those few Dukes seem to have joined in. Even the little lover of Julius's younger brother is a member of the Night Sky Pavilion, and she is currently supporting that one imposter."
Harris said, "After all, that guy's body is at least real; it's very hard to notice."
"In short, the Night Sky Pavilion's current power is very strong, and the members of the Night Sky Pavilion have been placed under restrictions, so they will never leak news of that one person behind the scenes. Furthermore, the Night Sky Pavilion's dealings are all conducted through teleportation arrays, thus basically eliminating all methods of infiltrating inside."
"It can be said to be completely without flaws."
Uncle Giskan rubbed his chin.
"Indeed, but it's precisely because that one Night Sky Pavilion is in this situation that I can be even more certain that there is definitely a problem with that one owner behind it!"
Julius decided to investigate.
They were not intimidated; although the Night Sky Pavilion was indeed very formidable, since it stood in their way, they could only find a way to conquer it!
Sue looked at them, hugged her doll tightly, and asked, "Can you save my brother?"
"Of course."
Julius nodded firmly; they would certainly foil the Demon Race's conspiracy and save Shurein!
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