Chapter 37

The day of the trial had arrived.

The large courtroom buzzed with people—officials, spectators, and curious onlookers who had come in groups to catch a glimpse of the lord responsible for the mess. Most were here to ridicule or scorn, but Bechdelrace's Earl himself seemed oblivious, trembling with worry for his daughter.

Clutching Viretta and Iola’s hands in turn, the Earl pleaded, his voice quivering with emotion.
“Please… bring Lucy back to me. You’re the only one I can rely on now, Viretta.”

“Of course, my lord. I’ll do my best for you and your daughter. If we succeed, I trust you’ll uphold your promise.”

“Yes, yes. You can use the road as much as you need. I’ll even lend you men—and the paintings… I don’t know why you want them, but they’re yours.”

He shook Viretta’s hand fervently, while Iola’s expression grew slightly strained. Nearby, Lanken sat among the audience, gnawing on his nails with visible anxiety.

“You’ve brought a new lawyer again?”

From across the courtroom, the Earl’s wife, Elena, entered with Lucy cradled in her arms. The little girl waved enthusiastically at her father.

“Papa!”

“Lucy! Oh, Lucy! Are you eating well? Sleeping properly? Do you miss me?”

“Papa! Why are you not home?”

“Lucy! W-why is your hair longer now?”

“Hair grows, naturally,” Iola muttered sensibly beside the sobbing Earl. Viretta jabbed him lightly with her elbow to stop him as she stepped forward to take the lead.

“Don’t come closer. The case hasn’t been settled yet,” Elena snapped, turning sharply to shield Lucy from view.

Carrying a child as old as Lucy was no small feat, but it was clearly a deliberate provocation. It was a statement—my child is with me, and you’ll never have her.

Elena cast a sharp glare at the Earl and his companions, especially at Viretta and Iola.

“After losing twice already, you still haven’t given up? Or have you just run out of lawyers and brought anyone who would come?”

“Elena, please, come back—”

“No. I won’t let Lucy grow up under an irresponsible father like you. She needs parents who believe in her potential.”

“That’s not true! I care deeply for our family. I—”

The Earl, too caught up in his emotions, started moving toward Elena, seemingly forgetting about the trial altogether.

Viretta quickly stepped in front of him, blocking his path and meeting Elena’s glare head-on.

“My lord, please minimize contact with the opposing party before the trial. Besides, Lucy will soon leave the unfit hands of her mother and come to you.”

Viretta’s cheery tone carried biting words that made Elena’s eyebrows shoot up in fury.

“What did you just say?”

“As the Earl’s legal representative, I’m simply stating the facts. You only won the first two rounds because I wasn’t here. With me, the undefeated Viretta, on the case, victory is assured.”

0 wins, 0 losses, and 0 attempts. Yet Viretta declared her undefeated status with absolute confidence, pointing a finger directly at Elena.

Elena’s fists clenched and trembled, but her lawyer, a seasoned man, gently held her back, leading her toward the courtroom.

The Earl, left behind, turned to Viretta with a nervous expression.

“Viretta, what do you think you’re doing? Provoking Elena like that—”

“My lord, a marriage is about showing strength. If you don’t display confidence, how can she trust and follow you? That’s just the kind of person Elena is.”

“What do you know about Elena? You didn’t even attend my wedding!”

“You told me about her yesterday, didn’t you?”

“For five minutes!”

The Earl, who had been teary-eyed moments ago, now looked thoroughly exasperated. He couldn’t fathom where Viretta’s unshakable confidence came from.

Despite having lost twice already, she carried herself with a certainty that was almost dizzying.

“Even without a law degree, I can piece together a case with just a few details,” Viretta said breezily.

“But you’re not even a lawyer!”

“It’s a figure of speech. You need to be more optimistic.”

“Optimistic—ugh! My neck!”

The Earl clutched at his neck as his blood pressure spiked, collapsing to the floor. Without lifting a finger, Viretta had floored him, earning scattered applause and cheers from the onlookers.

“She’s amazing!”

“Fantastic!”

“Do it again!”

Unfortunately, Viretta Medleridge was supposed to be on the Earl’s side.

The trial commenced in the grand hall. At the center stood the judge, while the two opposing parties entered the courtroom slowly, taking their places at opposite stands.

The audience filled the gallery, and a man with a funnel-shaped device amplified his voice to announce the proceedings.

“Let the trial begin!”

The announcer acted as a kind of master of ceremonies, energizing the atmosphere and setting the stage for a lively trial.

Seeing him, Iola blinked in confusion and asked, “Does Fillian’s legal system really use announcers?”

“Of course. Trials here are entertainment,” Viretta replied.

“Really? I thought trials were meant to be sacred spaces for determining right and wrong.”

“They used to be. But twenty years ago, my father’s press conference changed everything.”

Cadellen Medleridge, the second head of the Medleridge Trading Company, had revolutionized Fillian’s trial culture with a notorious press event two decades ago.

Appearing in simple yet refined attire, he declared that the fault lay not with him but with the world, unleashing a storm of accusations against various influential figures. The spectacle dominated the nation’s newspapers for an entire month, and the culture of trials in Fillian shifted to become a performance, with the most persuasive party often winning.

“I am Cadellen Medleridge’s second daughter. Controlling the courtroom is second nature to me.”

Though Viretta was always confident, her flair for showmanship ensured she never lost in this arena.

As Viretta puffed out her chest with pride, Iola struck a blow to her composure.

“Then why didn’t you become a lawyer?”

His question was calm, earnest—and devastating.

Viretta gritted her teeth, her face contorting slightly in frustration.

“For people like me, there are always… circumstances.”

Specifically, the “circumstance” of not being smart enough to pass the bar exam.

Thankfully, Iola didn’t press the issue further, as the announcer had moved on to introducing the participants.

“In the blue corner! Our lord, who lost twice already and locked himself away in his manor—Earl Bechdelrace!”

“Die!”

“Write your will and drop dead! Or get to work!”

“Work or die! Work or die!”

The gallery erupted in jeers and insults, seizing the opportunity to mock the Earl mercilessly.

“And representing him, we have none other than Medleridge’s second daughter, Lady Viretta, and her fiancé!”

“They’re the ones who floored the Earl!”

“She’s a Medleridge daughter? Amazing!”

“Knock him down again!”

“Go for it!”

Thunderous applause greeted Viretta and Iola as they entered the courtroom. Though their achievements primarily involved toppling the Earl repeatedly over the past two days, they walked in with heads held high.

Lest we forget, Viretta Medleridge was still supposed to be on the Earl’s side.

“And in the red corner! Rising from humble beginnings to become the Countess of Bechdelrace—Elena Bechdelrace! And she’s brought her daughter!”

Elena held Lucy high for all to see before setting her down. The three-year-old toddled along, led by her mother’s hand, oblivious to the courtroom’s gravity.

“A mother’s resolve to raise her child well, even if separated from the Earl! How will this trial conclude?”

Viretta studied Elena, armed only with the scant details she’d gleaned from the Earl and Moslin.

Elena Bechdelrace, formerly Elena Elfreid, had risen from nothing.

Born the daughter of a farmer in a remote village, she was the eldest of seven siblings. With no parental support, she had to work alongside her siblings just to survive.

Yet she had boldly left for the magical city, determined to become a magician.

There, she toiled at odd jobs to afford spellbooks, driven by her desire to succeed. It was said that she never wasted a single day, and her diligence eventually caught the attention of a renowned magician who became her sponsor, allowing her to formally train.

This was the woman now standing opposite the Earl in court.

“She must have been reluctant to marry the Earl, despite what people say,” Moslin muttered, propping her chin on her hand as she watched from the gallery.

Lanken turned to her with wide eyes. “Why’s that? Marrying an Earl would be a dream come true!”

“That’s the problem,” Moslin replied.

She had briefly crossed paths with Elena in the magical city and had observed both her and Viretta.

“Elena is a lot like Viretta. She doesn’t like living under someone else’s shadow. Viretta’s resistance might be stronger, but Elena’s no pushover, either.”