Ethan clenched his hands into a fist. That was ridiculous. He was saying all the proofs were fraud?
And still all of them believed this foolish thought instead of him.
"If you do have any doubt, then you can ask the experts! But this problem could not be addressed just by words!" Ethan would not let it go after coming this far!
The man just scoffed and took all the documents from the hands of Ethan.
"Very well, then I will confiscate all these as the proof of the future. You will be notified when the result would come out.'' His voice was leisurely and careless.
Ethan's hands tightened on the files. The reason was clear. He would manipulate all the proofs and then prove him wrong.
"Wait! Why don't we check it here in front of everyone.'' He sat down indicating that he would not relent no matter what when the man laughed hard.
"That is great! Do you think that the organization works according to you? We are free and have no work or responsibility.
You should leave or we will call guards now!" said the man as he waved his hands.
Four knights followed him and stood behind Ethan. Though they were still not holding his hands, their weapons were ready.
Ethan gritted his teeth. His jaws clenched. He was the new duke of the empire, yet he was treating him leisurely. It was only because they all thought that he was a fool. And yet he did not know how to prove it.
But before he could find proper words, the sound of clapping and laughter filled the room.
Ethan looked back! His eyes widened and then a smirk formed on his lips. The face bloomed suddenly that was in contradiction with his previous mood.
But that could not be said about the others. They looked confused and then frowned when they saw Andrew coming in with a cold laughter and with a loud applause.
"Your highness!" though confused, they still bowed their head with respect,
He walked in but he was not alone. Soon Lee followed them but even he was not alone.
He was dragging a man bound by ropes. He was dragging them like a sack of potatoes. Most of them were unconscious while one was awake with tears in his eyes.
He was wincing with pain.
The scene was spectacular. Everyone stared at it with confusion and horror but when their eyes met his, a cold chill ran down their spine.
"Were you asking about the authenticity of the proof?" asked Andrew with a tile of his head when Leo walked in and stood behind him.
All the three were staring at them. Ethan, Leo and Andrew. All three of them looked so confident and with that cold look on their face, it was a sight to behold.
Leo was stained with blood yet his eyes were filled with blood lust. The desire to kill was prominent in the air.
He stared at the group of people like a wolf stared at its prey forcing them to take a step back.
"Your highness, I request you to wait for his majesty to handle this matter. I am sure he would explain how these reports are nothing but lies." his voice had a pleading touch, he stared at the crown prince with bewilderment.
Even if the family of the duke was trying to malign his majesty, why was the crown prince supporting them?
"Do you think these half dead men wait for that long?" Leo scoffed as he kicked another man to bring him back to his senses.
"They are here as a proof against your so-called majesty. And so as that physician?" Leo pointed at the door when Reynold dragged his family physician who was trembling with fear. "Do you think all these are fake witnesses and fraud proof too, like you were telling my brother?"
He asked with such a cold tone that everyone trembled around him. But Ethan, his head snapped back to Leo with a mixture of emotions on his face.
"And you do need to waste your time calling experts, as the one and only son of my father, I know his signature and writing very well. This is indeed planned by my father.
He wanted to kill the family of Thawyne so that he did not face any competition in the future. It was all his plan.`` His voice was so calm as if he was talking about the weather but his words were enough to create an uproar in the room.
"And as his son, I am ready to leave the throne for the family of Thawyne, the real owner of the palace." He took the small crown from his head and then passed it to Leo.
"Gasps!" murmurs and loud voices started to fill the room. Even the man gulped. He did not know how to handle the situation now.
He stared at others for help but others were more shocked than him.
"From now on, i leave the position on the crown prince in the favor of Leo, who have suffered the most by the evil plans of my father.'' His words earned complete silence.
Many were not even taking loud breaths, afraid that they would affect the present scene. The man gulped. He had never thought it would even turn out like this.
"What.. What are you talking about? Who will have the position of the crown prince is not something you can decide.
I am asking you last time, wait till his majesty comes back and then we will handle the situation. I beg you to try to understand!" Andrew paid no attention to the begging man as he took out the paper from his coat. He signed each of them and passed it to Leo who took them with an indifferent look on his face.
"One more thing.. If my wife or daughter would be attacked again, i promise that i would burn the whole empire."