"Your Majesty?!"

Looking at Duke Esiah kneeling on one knee directly in front of Charlotte to show his submission, the nobles in the hall were all stunned.

The Parliamentary Party nobles wore confused expressions, almost as if wondering who they were, where they were, and what they were doing.

The Neutral Party nobiles widened their eyes, their faces almost filled with disbelief.

As for the Lilac Party nobles... they looked at Duke Esiah with shocked, absurd, and incredulous stares.

They rubbed their eyes hard and pinched their thighs as if they couldn't believe the scene unfolding before them was real.

Duke Wester was also dazed, his face bearing an expression as if saying, 'we were ready to die fighting, why has Your Majesty surrendered first?"

In the entire banquet hall, only Charlotte, seated high on the throne, and the two guard knights behind her, kept their usual composure.

Looking at Duke Esiah bowing his head to her, Charlotte slightly smiled and nodded, saying,

"Lord Duke, in the name of Charlotte de Castel... I accept your allegiance."

"Hold on!"

Duke Wester couldn't help but interrupt Charlotte.

He hurried to Duke Esiah and asked urgently,

"Lord... Lord Esiah, have you been coerced by de Castel?"

"No... Surely de Castel has already made a secret deal with the Bloodline, forcing you to bow to her, right?!"

Duke Esiah raised his head, glanced at him indifferently, and calmly said,

"Lord Wester, you are mistaken. My allegiance to Her Majesty comes entirely from the heart."

"Her Majesty is the Saintess of the Holy Royal Court. The internal situation in the Falling Star Kingdom is complicated. Only Her Majesty can confront those of the Bloodline, make them apprehensive, reach agreements with them, and maintain peace and order in the Kingdom."

"Her Majesty is the daughter of the devout Princess Annie. Her Majesty's blood carries the legitimate Roman lineage, she has even been chosen by the Roman Sword..."

"Her Majesty... is the rightful heir to the throne, Her Majesty... should truly be the ruler of Falling Star!"

Duke Esiah's expression was stern, his righteousness awe-inspiring.

The surrounding nobles had increasingly strange expressions.

Duke Esiah's speech was also the main reason the Parliamentary Party nobles supported Charlotte.

These words could be said by the Parliamentary Party nobles, the Neutral Party nobles, and even the Lilac Party nobles wouldn't cause much trouble by saying them.

But now, the one who said these words... was unexpectedly Duke Esiah, the second in line to compete for the throne with Charlotte.

This was quite delicate.

It was almost as if diving directly into the foundation of the Lilac Party nobles.

Realizing that Duke Esiah was not joking, the Lilac Party nobles soon fell into turmoil.

However, though they were in turmoil, no second person stood up like Duke Wester did.

The nobles were shrewd; they were not foolish.

Considering the previous agreement between de Castel and the Bloodline brought forth by Duke Wester, and combining it with Duke Esiah's current oath of allegiance, they quickly realized that perhaps this was part of the agreement between de Castel and the Bloodline.

No, think deeper, perhaps this was part of the agreement between the Holy Royal Court and the Falling Star Bloodline.

The Bloodline supporting Count Castel to become the Queen of Falling Star, accepting the treaty's constraints, while the Church needs to recognize the legal status of the Bloodline in the Falling Star Kingdom and ensure certain rights and privileges!

This was easy to deduce and very likely.

Although Duke Wester vehemently denied and though Duke Esiah never acknowledged his relationship with the Bloodline, anyone with a slight understanding of the situation knew the biggest supporter behind Duke Esiah was the Bloodline.

Thus, naturally, Duke Esiah's submission might represent not just his personal attitude but probably the stance of the Bloodline behind him!

Watching Duke Esiah submit to Charlotte, the various nobles quickly deduced the convoluted implications, and, in a way, the reality... wasn't far off.

For a moment, the expressions of nobles in the hall varied.

Nobles from the Parliamentary Party turned from shock to joy, those from the Neutral Party appeared contemplative, and the Lilac Party nobles hesitated for a moment, instinctively moving a few steps away from Duke Wester.

The behind-the-scenes power gathering the Lilac Party nobles was the Bloodline.

Even if the Bloodline had abandoned support for Duke Esiah and shifted to support Count Castel, even though some Lilac Nobles didn't want to see the throne fall into the hands of another family, they had to admit, now... no one could compete with the young Countess Castel for the throne of Falling Star.

"No! This is a betrayal! It is betrayal!"

Duke Wester also quickly came to his senses, realizing this point, and looked angrily at Duke Esiah, his expression furious.

Duke Esiah sighed, looked at him pityingly, and said,

"Lord Wester, who exactly... is the betrayer?"

After speaking, he turned again towards Charlotte on the throne, performed a respectful bow, and said,

"Your Majesty, I have confirmed that Duke Wester colluded with extremist Bloodline factions. He coated the bottom of the battleship you were boarding with Deep Sea Demon Squid marrow, intending to assassinate you..."

"Not only that, involved in this affair were also the Commander of the Kingdom Knight Order, Viscount Kasim, and the Campbell Grand Priest of the Holy Royal Court Falling Star Chapter. Grand Priest Campbell also has close dealings with extremist Bloodline factions and personally participated in and designed the conspiracy against you."