Reborn as the Psycho Villainess Who Ate Her Slave Beasts' Contracts

Lord Marcus swallowed. "She came to my residence uninvited. Threatened me. Said she had evidence of crimes I’d committed—embezzlement, illegal trade—and that she’d have me arrested unless I helped her."

"What did she want you to do?"

"Break into my grandmother’s residence and steal from her private safe. I refused at first, but she pressured me. Said if I didn’t cooperate, she’d destroy me." His voice shook convincingly. "I was terrified. So I agreed."

"And you went through with it?"

"Yes. I stole a letter from my grandmother’s safe, gave it to the Fourth Princess, and then immediately reported the crime to the authorities. I couldn’t live with what I’d done."

"Thank you, Lord Marcus. No further questions."

The prosecutor sat down.

Duke Romian stood. "Lord Marcus, you testified that the Fourth Princess threatened you with false criminal evidence. But was the evidence false?"

Lord Marcus hesitated. "I... I don’t know if it was false or real—"

"You embezzled twelve thousand gold from the merchant guild over the past two years. True or false?"

"I—that’s not—"

"You engaged in illegal trade of restricted magical artifacts through intermediaries. True or false?"