Chapter 111 CHIEF CONSPIRATOR
King Adrian sat upon the smaller throne reserved for private hearings. Not the grand seat of ceremony, but one meant for decisions that required fewer witnesses and sharper truths.
Maeron stood to his right.
Kaelion stood slightly below the dais.
Lord Vaelor was brought in between two guards.
His once immaculate robes were wrinkled, but his posture remained rigid. Proud. Angry.
The heavy doors shut behind him.
Adrian watched him silently.
Kaelion was the one who spoke.
“Do you understand why you are here?,” the prince said.
Vaelor’s jaw tightened. “Because someone poisoned your cup. Of course, I do.”
“And because that poison was poured from a servant who said you requested him to,” Kaelion replied calmly.
“But I have already denied involvement. I really have nothing to do with it. You all have to believe me, please.”
His voice echoed against the chamber walls.
Kaelion studied him.
Not like a child confronting an elder.
Like a scholar examining a text.
“Do you want the king dead?,” Kaelion said.
“I do not, I swear.”
The answer came immediately.
Firm.
Kaelion tilted his head slightly.
“Then, can we say perhaps you only considered it.”
“Believe me, my prince. I wouldn't.”
Maeron watched closely.
Vaelor was angry. But he was not afraid.
That mattered.
Kaelion took a slow step closer.
“Tell me the truth! Did you not conspire with Lord Casvian?”
The name caused a ripple among the witnesses lining the chamber walls. And there were murmurs among the nobles in the hall.
Vaelor’s eyes flashed.
“No. You are mistaken, my prince. I would never...”
Kaelion’s gaze sharpened.
“Not even when he asked?”
Silence hung.
Then Vaelor spat the answer.
“I refused.”
The word landed like a thrown blade.
Several murmurs rose among the nobles again.
Kaelion’s voice remained even.
"What do you mean by that, Vaelor." Adrian asked.
"Forgive me, your Majesty." Vaelor said kneeling. "I never thought I will be able to hear as enemies plan the kings demise."
"You devil headed snitch..." Casvian thundered racing towards Lord Vaelor in fury.
"Guards." Adrian thundered. "Protect Vaelor."
Before Lord Casvian could touch him, the guards caught him and pinned him.
"How dare you...Vaelor."
Vaelor knelt ashamed.
“Forgive me. He had pressured you. I tried to talk them out of it but they wouldn't listen.”
"So they pressured you?"
“Yes.”
“Both of them, with Lord Veld?”
“Yes, your majesty.”
Vaelor lifted his chin defiantly.
“They came to me with their whispers of stability,” he said bitterly. “Their talk of bloodlines and rightful succession. They believed I would support their little rebellion but I am only loyal to you, my King.”
Adrian leaned forward slightly.
“And I'm glad you did not compromise, Vaelor.”
Vaelor looked directly at the king.
“My loyalty is to the throne,” he said. “Not to frightened lords who panic at shadows.”
The insult passed through the chamber like a faint draft.
Kaelion did not react.
Instead he asked quietly, “Where is Lord Veld?”
Vaelor snorted.
“I have no idea.”
A pause.
“Because I do not walk with devils.”
The statement echoed.
Maeron glanced at Adrian.
The king’s expression had grown very still.
Kaelion turned slowly to the gathered nobles.
Then he spoke clearly.
“Lord Casvian planned treason.”
The chamber stirred.
"Rumors have it that he approached several houses,” Kaelion continued, “seeking support to remove the king.”
Another pause.
“And his heir.”
That word caused several nobles to stiffen.
Kaelion’s gaze swept the room.
“If the poison had succeeded today, the servants would have been discovered.”
He spoke the next words with deliberate clarity.
“But Lord Vaelor claims no right to this charge. It only means one thing."
"They were instructed to blame the one man who refused their alliance.”
He turned back toward Vaelor.
“You.”
The realization hit Vaelor like a physical blow.
His face darkened with rage.
“That snake...”
He stood headed towards Casvian who was pinned and gave him a punch.
Casvian tried to defend himself but instead spat at Vaelor. Then there was another punch.
“Enough,” Adrian said sharply.
The doors opened behind the nobles.
Another group of guards entered.
Between them walked a disheveled nobleman.
Lord Veld.
Dust clung to his cloak.
His hands were bound.
Maeron spoke for the first time.
“Lord Veld was apprehended attempting to leave the city.”
The room erupted into whispers.
Veld avoided everyone’s eyes.
Especially Vaelor’s.
“Coward,” Vaelor muttered under his breath. "To even think you planned treason with the Kings uncle. Outrageous."
Kaelion looked from one man to the other.
Then finally toward the king.
“Lord Casvian is the architect, of it all.” he said.
Adrian nodded once.
The guards shifted.
Maeron stepped forward.
“Lord Casvian will be brought before the crown and charged with treason against the king.”
The word treason fell heavy.
Some expected execution.
Others feared it.
Adrian rose slowly from his seat.
The chamber quieted.
“Lord Casvian sought to divide this realm,” the king said.
“He attempted to murder his sovereign and frame an innocent lord to conceal his betrayal.”
His voice hardened.
“For that, he will be stripped of title, lands, and authority.”
A long pause followed.
Then Adrian finished.
“He will be executed by dawn.”
The decision rippled outward.
Some looked relieved.
Others surprised.
"Let this be a warning to those against me and the crown prince." Adrian continued.
Vaelor bowed stiffly.
Not in gratitude.
But in acknowledgment.
Justice had been done.
Yet as the guards prepared to escort the prisoners away, Maeron’s eyes drifted toward Kaelion.
The prince stood quietly beside the dais.
Expression calm.
Hands folded behind his back.
Watching the court reshape itself around truths he had drawn out like threads from tangled cloth.
Maeron felt a chill again.
Because Kaelion had not shouted.
He had not threatened.
He had simply asked questions.
And somehow—the entire conspiracy had unfolded exactly where he wanted it to.
But as much as it justice was served. It wasn't pleasant to it's chief conspirator and flame.
Noble Consort Celine.
She was in confinement, but that wasn't enough to cease her influence in the palace.
Ever since the Prince's arrival, she had not rested.
"Whose child is he and where did he get a stranger to sit on the throne.?"
She needed to act fast and Casvian was her best bet.
But now he was gone. How could she get rid of this thorn that was before her throne.