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"Shut up, Emma!" Lazarus growled. "You don\'t have to say anything."

"Why not?" Viktor countered. "She will answer to this court and since she was a witness, her answer will hold the final weight. She has to answer!"

A growl escaped Lazarus\'s chest and he came to stand in front of her as if to protect her. "I brought her here because it was desired by you, but you cannot force her into being a witness. She has the right to choose otherwise."

Emma knew why Lazarus was shielding her. He was afraid that she would go against him. Or was he really protecting her? Confusion warred with anxiety on the inside. She lowered her head as more tears rolled out. She clasped her hands as Lazarus stood like a rock in front of her.

"In that case, I have no choice but to send you to the dungeons, Lazarus!" King Viktor growled. "And I have my men to torture you to find out the truth. You have killed two of my sons and I won\'t take it lightly."

"You know that this is all staged!" Lazarus snarled. "The reason that Anton is giving about assisting me to the palace is laughable. I was never close to Antonius and Bardo and nor did I have cordial terms with them. Why would they come to help me in something as mundane as helping me in going to the path? There was no blizzard that night nor was I stuck up. They attacked me and my group of soldiers just to do away with Emma!"

"He is insinuating my dead brothers!" Anton shouted.

"Your dead brothers?" Lazarus scowled. "You never even asked about them when they were alive. Suddenly you remember them? Suddenly you sent them to help me? Are you even listening to yourself?" At least he had the guts to acknowledge that he wasn\'t close to his brothers and sisters. But Anton— he was a viper in the sleeve.

"You don\'t know anything," Anton hissed. "They meant a lot to me. And even if that is not true, then they were princes. You don\'t go around killing royalty just like that!"

Lazarus flinched. Memories of how his mother was killed flashed across his mind. Viktor had killed her in the cruelest way possible. She was sent to the blood forest where she was buried alive. The trees of the blood forest sucked her blood till she died. A shudder passed through him and he spaced out for a moment, but he instantly recovered.

His eyes boring into his father\'s, he said, "Yes, you can\'t go around killing royalty just like that!" He wanted to see his father\'s reaction, but the man was too wicked to show any emotion.

Viktor said, "I want Emma to speak. She holds the key to this trial. Her statements are important!"

"But humans can lie, Your Majesty!" Anton growled. "How do we know that she is speaking the truth?" He gave Emma a look full of animosity as if warning her to speak otherwise.

"It will be easy for me to detect if she is speaking truth or lies," Viktor replied with indifference. If she spoke lies, he would be able to hear her increased heartbeat and the scent of her blood would change. He straightened and leaned forward. "Let Emma speak, Lazarus," he ordered, asking him to move aside to reveal her.

"She has no business—" Lazarus hissed, but Emma placed her hand on his back and he became quiet.

"I want to speak," she murmured.

Lazarus clenched his teeth. With a rough exhale, he stepped aside. "Are you sure?" he asked.

She nodded her head. This was her chance to throw him in the dungeons and be free. When she looked at King Viktor, she saw that his face had a half smile. It was as if he knew what she was going to say. No one liked Lazarus in this hall.

She started, "When Lord Lazarus was bringing me to the palace from the village, we were attacked by his brothers. Lord Lazarus asked me to sit inside and not come out of the carriage. He jumped out and fought with others. While sitting inside I heard sounds of battle going on outside. I—" she paused. "I wanted to escape!" she said, lowering her head. "And so I jumped out of the carriage. I saw soldiers battling with each other. Lord Lazarus wasn\'t around but I know that he had gone to defend his group of soldiers."

"Emma, you are speaking lies!" Anton accused her, staring hard.

She whipped her head at him. "Why will I speak lies about something that I am not even concerned with? It seems that you want me to tell lies or you don\'t want to believe the truth."

"Emmalyn!" Anton growled.

Lazarus peeled his lips back and his claws grew. "Keep your voice down, Anton," he hissed.

Anton backed down.

Emma continued, "I jumped out of the carriage. Taking advantage of the situation, I started to run, but Lord Lazarus found me and brought me back to the palace safely." There. She gave up her last chance to be free of him. If she spoke against him, she would have been set free. She took a deep breath in, her head pounding with a headache. Right beside her, Lazarus was standing like a rock. She could feel his chest heaving.

The king rested back on his throne and said, "Emma\'s words have settled it. Antonius and Bardo, indeed attacked Lazarus for no reason other than to kill him or Emma. And so, all charges against Lazarus are dropped. You can go, Lazarus." He looked at Anton who was about to protest. "You will see that Antonius\'s wife get proper care after this."

Anton glared at Lazarus and then bowed to his father. "Yes, Your Majesty."

Lazarus didn\'t wait for a minute after that. He grabbed Emma\'s upper hand and dragged her out of the throne hall. He didn\'t want to stand in the den of vipers who were all assembled there to see his downfall. It looked like it was all staged. He was aware of it. He knew that all his brothers and sisters were in cahoots with the General. He was going to teach them a lesson. Soon.