The Accusation
The palace was too quiet.
No celebrations.
No victory drums.
No warmth.
Only silence.
Eugene noticed it the moment she stepped inside.
Her armor was still stained from war, her body heavy with exhaustion—but none of that mattered. Something felt… wrong.
Terribly wrong.
The guards didn’t greet her.
They didn’t bow.
They didn’t even meet her eyes.
Instead, they walked beside her like she was something to be watched.
Something dangerous.
Her steps slowed.
“Where is His Majesty?” she asked.
No one answered.
That was the first crack.
The throne room doors opened.
And everything shattered.
The court was already gathered—dressed not in celebration, but in mourning.
Black.
Everywhere.
Eugene’s breath caught.
Her gaze snapped to the throne—
Empty.
For a second, her mind refused to understand.
Because that throne was never empty.
Not when he was alive.
Not when he was waiting for her return.
Not when he always—
“General Eugene Kurenai.”
The voice that called her name was not his.
Eugene turned.
The new king sat where he shouldn’t.
Where he had no right to sit.
Her chest tightened.
“…Where is he?” she asked, her voice lower now, quieter.
No answer.
Only eyes.
Watching her.
Judging her.
As if they already knew something she didn’t.
A chill ran down her spine.
Then—
“He is dead.”
The words landed without warning.
Flat. Cold. Final.
Eugene didn’t react.
Not immediately.
Because her mind refused to process them.
Dead?
No.
No, that wasn’t possible.
He was supposed to be here.
Waiting.
Annoyed that she took too long.
Telling her she looked terrible in bloodstained armor.
Telling her—
“You are accused,” the new king continued, cutting through the silence, “of murdering the former king.”
Everything stopped.
This time, completely.
Eugene blinked once.
Slowly.
As if the world had suddenly become distant.
“…What?”
The word barely left her lips.
A murmur spread across the court.
Not shocked.
Not confused.
Certain.
As if this had already been decided.
Eugene’s gaze moved again—searching, scanning—
Faces she knew.
People who had once stood behind her.
People who had seen her fight for him.
For the king who had taken her in.
Who had given her a name.
A place.
A purpose.
Not one of them spoke.
Not one denied it.
Something inside her chest tightened—
then snapped.
“Say that again,” she said, her voice quieter now.
Dangerously so.
The new king leaned back slightly, his expression unreadable.
“You were the last person seen with him before his death,” he said. “And now, you return from war the moment he is gone.”
Each word was precise.
Calculated.
Cruel.
Eugene stared at him.
Not in anger.
Not yet.
Just… disbelief.
Because of all things—
All possible accusations—
This?
Him?
The one person she would have—
Her fingers trembled slightly.
She clenched them into fists.
Not to fight.
But to hold something together.
Something already slipping.
“I didn’t,” she said.
Simple.
Flat.
True.
No one believed her.
She could see it.
In their eyes.
In their silence.
In the way they looked at her like she had already became something else.
Something they no longer recognized.
Traitor.
Murderer.
The words weren’t spoken again.
They didn’t need to be.
Eugene exhaled slowly.
And in that breath—
Something changed.
Not loudly.
Not visibly.
But enough.
The grief didn’t come.
The anger didn’t rise.
Nothing did.
Because the one person who would have stood between her and this accusation…
Was gone.
And with him—
Whatever part of her that still believed in this kingdom.
“…I see,” she murmured.
Her voice didn’t shake.
Didn’t break.
Didn’t carry pain.
Because pain required something to hold onto.
And there was nothing left.
The king raised his hand.
“General Eugene Kurenai,” he declared—
“You are hereby stripped of your title and declared a traitor to the crown.”
This time—
She didn’t react at all.
No denial.
No resistance.
No anger.
Because it didn’t matter.
Not anymore.
Her gaze drifted once more to the empty throne.
And for the first time—
It truly sank in.
He was gone.
And they had turned him into a weapon against her.
Eugene lowered her eyes.
Not in submission.
But in quiet understanding.
This kingdom had already decided her fate.
The guards stepped forward.
She didn’t move.
Didn’t reach for her sword.
Didn’t speak again.
Because what was there left to say?
The man she would have died for was dead.
And now—
They wanted her to die for it.
Author's note:- hello dear readers,this is my first time writing so please forgive me for any kind of errors (English is not my first language so pardon me🥺)
Spoiler:- (HE should have killed her that day😏)
