Reincarnated Princess Wishes To Avoid Death
chapter-476

Fair and Impartial King of Justice

Sion Sol Sunkland, the Penal King, had a lot of enemies. People who didn’t like him would often say bad things about him, both in public and in private. But even his harshest enemies couldn’t deny one thing about him: that he made fair judgements. He did the right thing. They did this without stopping, regardless of their own feelings or interests. Whenever he was talked about, everyone would always say the same thing.

“His Majesty the Penal King is fair and right. There is no question about it. If he thinks you are guilty, he will kill you, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. After all, he did the same thing to his own brothers, one by birth and one by nurture. His royal sibling. His most reliable attendant. Both of them were killed by him. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing, but he did it.”

On that day, an old nobleman went to see the king.

Sion quietly looked up as a servant told him that a guest had arrived. He had known the face of the man in front of him for most of his life.

“Count Lampron. How have you been all these years?”

The count smiled. Sion noticed that his cheeks were tense from nervousness. “All right, Your Majesty. I’m glad to see that you are healthy, too.”

Count Lampron used to be leader of the most conservative lords in Sunkland. He was Echard’s teacher for a while as well. Not too long ago, he finally stopped being in the middle of politics and went into what was basically a half-retirement. In the process, he seemed to lose his authoritative air and attitude, leaving behind an old man with a much calmer personality.

Sion looked at him with interest, wondering what business the old count might have. “All right. But why are you here right now? If you want to talk about old times, I would be happy to if there wasn’t a rebellion going on. There is still a lot of work to do to clean up the mess. I’m afraid I don’t have much time for small talk.”

In one part of Sunkland, there was a revolt ten days ago. Fed up with Sion’s strict rule, a group of lords gathered around Echard, the former second prince, and used him as a flag to try to start a large-scale uprising. They had picked a bad fight, though, because their opponent was Sion Sol Sunkland, who was a king, a genius, and a cruel defender of justice. As soon as he heard about the plot, he sent his personal army against the people who were planning it. It didn’t take long to catch everyone under his direct guidance. All of the criminals were sent to the underground prison. Echard, his own brother, was one of them.

“I want to talk to you about the uprising, Your Majesty.” Before he looked at Sion, Lampron bowed out of respect. “Please think again about killing His Highness Prince Echard. He couldn’t have agreed to do this on his own. I’m sure he did everything he could to stop the other leaders from committing crime.”

“You say… But I don’t think that’s the case. Echard has always thought of himself as inferior to me, and he has fought a lot with this idea. He could have been convinced by the others, and he could have jumped at the chance to get rid of me.”

“But…”

“In either case, what he did brought useless chaos to the kingdom. Because of this, innocent blood was spilled. He needs to be held responsible for what he has done.”

“Your Majesty, he’s your brother! You’re related to him—”

The Penal King cut him off, which took away his last chance. “Even so, no, even more so. Because he is related to me, Count Lampron, he should not get a lighter sentence. Lampron, don’t you see? You spent your whole life arguing that Sunkland’s king must rule in a fair and just way. You of all people should be able to get it. I am the king.”

Absolute power must be used in a totally fair way. As the king, he can’t let his own feelings and goals affect how he rules. If someone does something that is punishable by death, they must be put to death, no matter who they are. That was what being fair meant.

“I see… All right. As is, so shall it be…”

Count Lampron went away without saying anything else.

That night, an incident happened. There was an effort to get Echard and a few of his fellow plotters out of jail. When it was found out that Count Lampron was the main culprit, Sion didn’t feel much of anything. Nothing surprising or moving. Echard was taught by Lampron when he was young, and they have been friends ever since. It was natural for the old man to like the boy who used to be his student. This sort of thing happened. It was obvious.

Given these mitigating factors, it might be possible to reduce the count’s term out of compassion. As he thought about how this might affect the law, a second report came in. He didn’t take this one with the same lack of care. Keithwood, his friend and trusted vassal, was one of the people caught when they tried to free Echard.

He went down to the dungeons the next morning and stopped in front of Keithwood’s cell. He made a small frown when he saw his childhood friend, who was dirty and worn. His bottom lip twitched a little because the pressure of his teeth hurt it. The man behind the mask seemed to show himself for a split second. His eyes were shiny, which looked like tears. Then the moment was over, and the king came back with all of his strict dignity.

“You did something stupid, Keithwood…” He spoke in a soft way. Steady. Too cold to feel.

Keithwood smiled, looking tired as ever. “Yes, I think I have. I had no way to stop you.” He gave a shrug. It made him look happier, but couldn’t hide the deep sadness in his voice.

“You… let me down, Keithwood. I wanted you to be my right hand for a long time to come…” Sion told us. “Why?”

“You really don’t know?”

“No. Not me. This kingdom is based on the king’s right behavior. It is the foundation of Sunkland, both as a country and as an ideal. It is who we are. Echard has to go. If you don’t do this, you’re letting justice fail.”

He was the king. He had to be a good person. Be the one to stand up for what’s fair and right.

“And if justice isn’t done…”

He saw it once more. He thought about that scene. It was always there on the edge of his vision, always ready to be seen. It looked like the world was bathed in the red light of the setting sun. Bitter anger rang through the air, coming from many mouths. They fell on a single person who was hunched over the guillotine. Her head fell with the blade. No… He let the blade fall. He killed the princess.

She had to die. The death penalty had to be used. And right. It was a must. He just had to. Justice, his justice, can’t be shaky. No matter what it takes.

He gave a head shake.

Keithwood told the king, “Your Majesty… If words can still move you, could you spare His Highness Echard’s life in exchange for mine?”

Sion looked sad.

“Why? What do you see in Echard? You weren’t close. Why do this for him?”

“Because if you kill him… If you kill your own brother, Your Majesty, you’ll really become—”

“I am already the king, Keithwood. I have a responsibility to rule Sunkland in a fair and just way. “That duty says I have to kill Echard, so I have to,” said Sion. “In addition…”

Then there was a short period of quiet, which was broken by a soft, steady, and very cold voice.

“Goodbye, Keithwood. “Thanks for everything.”

So, Sion became a great example of a king. He stopped being biased in his decisions. He got rid of all emotion. He made himself into a righteous vessel that only cared about how fair its choices were. So he ruled, always fair but less of a man than an ideal one. When people saw him, they turned away from him. This could have been because people respected and feared his unwavering morality.

Sion never got married.

People needed other people. Not kings. He was always alone, as if to prove that being with other people was too expensive luxury for a King of Justice.

Tragedy comes in many ways, and its roots are just as varied. One of them was Sion’s life. As long as the seed stayed in the royal family of Sunkland, disasters would keep happening. They might change how they look and when they come, but they would always come. The assassination was a bad fruit, but it was still a fruit. The event could be stopped, but the seed would still be there…

Who could dig deep into Sunkland’s dirt and find the seed of misfortune? Who else but our princess, who doesn’t know anything, and her group of happy friends? She and her friends were right in the middle of dealing with the tangled web of trouble in the Sunkland royal family. Could they finally pull the unlucky seedling out of the ground?

“Hm… Is it just me, or does this dress feel a bit snug around my waist? Did they get the measurement wrong?”

Good question? That is, the one with the plant. Not the one about measurement.

“How very strange. I had it made too just a few days ago… Oh wait. Oh, I get it. It’s the weather here! I heard that things can get smaller when it’s cold. That must be the case here…”

It was indeed an excellent question.

This must be another timeline. In Mia’s timeline, Dion was the one who guillotined her.

And in Tiona’s timeline, Sion got married to a Sunkland noble.