The Debt Of Fate-Chapter 286: justice bell

General Ernest resident.

Anastasia did not pay attention to the rumors. It was only a few months ago when the royal city had condemned her; she understood that the mouths of people could not be trusted. She had spent her first year as queen taking care of the people, but in the face of power, she understood that one could not care too much about reputation.

The reason she had refused to see the duke was because she guessed that he was there to find her and ask her to come out and explain, but she refused to be the scapegoat.

When had gossipers ever cared about the truth? It was always the one who dared to take the initiative and tell the better story. Even when Ernest had told her about Duke Thompson’s statement, she was not surprised.

The king was someone who cared about his reputation. Perhaps if she had not had the repeated nightmares, she might have trusted him.

"My lady, guess what I heard," Miss Magdalene said. She had finally found the opportunity to bring her news of their business, so she was in the estate that day.

"What?" Anastasia asked. Seeing the smile on her lips, she guessed it was some kind of good news.

"That mistress knelt at the palace gate the other day, asking to see her son. She said she was worried about him, since she had not seen him for a few days," Miss Magdalene said. Having lived in the palace for so long, she could still get some inside news.

"How do you know this?" Anastasia frowned. Although she did not pay special attention to the rumors around her, Rosa was keen on listening and brought back every piece of news. Besides, given the peculiar time of the kingdom, Dorothy showing up at this time in front of the palace did not seem good for her or the king.

"I heard from some old acquaintances in the palace. His Majesty was very swift and concealed the news from spreading, but I heard that the king let her stay for a few days to see her son," Miss Magdalene continued.

Anastasia could not help but be surprised, but then again, she remembered that Ernest had brought her news back then—that the king wanting to marry her and Elizabeth at the same time was a trap he had set. He was hoping that she and Elizabeth would fight to the death while his love reaped all the benefits, so sending the mistress away had only been for show.

Her heart could not help but shudder just thinking about it. Fortunately, she had left the palace.

"I also heard that ever since the king married your sister, he has not shared a room with her. But as soon as the mistress arrived under the guise of visiting his son, he spent the night with her. Fortunately, you left the palace," Miss Magdalene said. She could not help but wonder what grievances Anastasia would have continued to suffer if she had not dared to ask for a royal divorce.

While on the surface it felt like she would be ruined, she had indeed gained a lot by leaving.

Hearing these words, Anastasia’s face paled. She had once felt her nightmares were exaggerated, but hearing this news, she could not help but feel scared.

"Let’s not talk about other people. My sister had always wanted the marriage. Now that she is queen, I want to see how she handles it," Anastasia said.

"You are right," Miss Magdalene nodded.

"My lady," Miss Magdalene suddenly lowered her voice, "did you ask the general about your wedding dress? Perhaps his connection to the Lord of the Dark Waters?" Miss Magdalene suddenly remembered this important issue.

"No," Anastasia shook her head. "There has not been a right time," she answered.

Hearing this, Miss Magdalene wanted to say something else, but she held her peace. Even when she brought reports about their business, she had not dared talk about them. She had everything written, and she and Anastasia spoke in the code they had established before.

Seeing Anastasia’s gesture, Miss Magdalene immediately understood.

Anastasia had not dared ask Ernest because he had told her about the presence of the king’s men in the house.

They had not been alone, and she felt that discussing a figure like the Lord of the Dark Waters might raise suspicion.

The two quickly changed the topic to other trivial matters. At that moment, Rosa hurried in.

"My lady, bad news," she announced as soon as she entered.

Miss Magdalene frowned at her actions. "Did all you learned staying in the palace disappear once you stepped out?" she questioned.

Seeing Miss Magdalene, Rosa was embarrassed. She had no idea her lady had a guest, but the news this time was truly shocking.

"I apologize," Rosa said, trying to compose herself.

"Speak. What happened?" Anastasia said, shaking her head. Rosa had grown more steady after staying in the palace, so she understood that whatever had scared her so much must be important.

"My lady, a man committed suicide at the Crown Tower. Before he did, he confessed that he was the drunk man who had spoken nonsense while intoxicated. He said someone had paid him to say such things. He had no choice but to accept because his wife was sick and he could not afford to treat her. The person promised to pay for his wife’s treatment and offered him silver that could help them survive hard times. He was desperate, so he dared to speak. He did not expect his words to cause so much trouble. He felt guilty for harming the innocent and did not dare continue living, so he confessed and took his own life," Rosa spoke very fast.

Anastasia frowned when she heard the story. Of course, she understood that someone was pulling the strings from behind, but this method seemed extreme.

"Why are you so flustered? This has nothing to do with us," Anastasia commented after a while.

"My lady, if it were just the man throwing himself down, then it would indeed have nothing to do with us. But I heard that as soon as Duchess Anita heard of the man’s words, she hurried and rang the Justice Bell. She claimed that being a stepmother was hard work without gratitude. She said she was willing to adopt you into her family when you had to marry the crown prince to ensure your status was not too low. Her family had even taken you in as another granddaughter. While she understood that a stepmother was never loved like a mother, she did not know how she gained the reputation of a vicious stepmother. She said a lot; it was as if she were deliberately pointing at you as the one who paid the drunk man," Rosa said, upset. The more she spoke, the angrier she became, but she was also worried that her mistress’s peaceful days were about to be destroyed.

Anastasia was shocked to hear those words, but after thinking carefully for a while, everything became clear. Her father had come to seek her out to speak up, but she had refused, so they decided to put on a whole play. What she had not expected was that Duchess Anita, a dignified duchess, would ring the Justice Bell. Although anyone could ring it, it was usually only commoners who used it. Given her status, it was indeed not a good choice, but then again, Anastasia understood that in some situations, only extreme measures could be used.

"That woman can indeed say anything," Grater, who had been listening from the side, commented, then quickly felt embarrassed and tried to comfort Anastasia.

"My lady, do not pay attention to her. Her tricks mean nothing. Nobody will believe her act."

"Yes, everyone in the royal city know you have a kind heart," Rosa agreed feeling assured.

"I am afraid it is not so simple now," Anastasia shook her head. No one had ever met the drunk man. With him jumping to his death, everything was already in their favor. If the man were still alive, perhaps he could have been questioned and the truth revealed.

Duchess Anita pointing a finger at her in this situation seemed logical. After all, Anastasia appeared to be the only one who had motive and benefited from the scandal.

"Then, my lady, what should we do?" Rosa became anxious again.

Anastasia shook her head. She had no idea what to do. The dead could not talk.

"My lady, I will immediately send someone to investigate. All we can do now is look for clues to prove that you did not pay the man," Miss Magdalene said. She understood that the situation was quite tricky.

"Let’s do that," Anastasia said calmly. She already knew that being anxious would change nothing. Things had already developed to this extent, she can only plan for various possibilities. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

Miss Magdalene left immediately to start investigating. After all, the sooner they acted, the better the chance of finding evidence.