They Hated Me in My First Life, But Now I Have the Love System

Chapter 622: The Very Best

"Mom, please, stop it," Obinna pleaded, his voice breaking as he reached toward her.

Obinna straightened, swallowing his emotions. "The funeral will be tomorrow. Since there is no body to bury, it will be done quietly. I don’t want the court or the kingdom to know exactly what happened."

But Queen Chioma surged forward, unwilling to be silenced. "So we’re just going to bury him silently and move on?" she spat. Her eyes snapped to Nnenna, sharp and merciless.

"About a year ago, right after his coronation, he left with you. And when you return? You tell us he fell off a cliff. You recover only his clothes. And we’re supposed to believe he’s dead?"

"Mom, please!" Ebere’s voice cracked as she grabbed her mother’s arm. She had seen the color drain from Nnenna’s face, seen her flinch under each word like it was a fresh wound.

But Chioma pressed on, relentless. "Somto has always been careful. What business did he have near a cliff in the first place? You were supposed to save him, pull him up, but you failed. And now you expect us to believe he suddenly sacrificed his life for you and Prince Arthur?" Her voice shook with bitter disbelief. "That’s impossible. That’s not my son. He knew how important he was to this kingdom, to his family. He would never throw his life away like that!"

The hall trembled with her fury.

Then, sharp as a whip, Darius’s voice cut through. "Then you don’t know him at all."

Every head turned.

He rose to his feet, his tone searing. "How can you call yourself his mother and not know him as well as we do? I wasn’t even as close to him as these three, yet I knew. I knew he would do anything for the people he loved. Without hesitation."

"Stop."

word froze

was quiet, almost fragile, but it carried. Everyone turned to her. Her pale face was

"She’s right."

quiet, but they fell like a stone into

her wheels as she forced the words out.

unable to bear their eyes,

Chioma’s cry cracked through the air, sharp with vindication. "My boy has been alive

young voice rose suddenly, his eyes darting to Arthur, Carl, and Darius. "You were my brother’s

Arthur’s jaws tightened, because they knew what really happened that day. They understood what Nnenna meant, her guilt tied to Athena. But to Chidera, it sounded

just admitted to killing my brother and your friend. Shouldn’t you, shouldn’t

sides, but he stayed silent, his gaze locked on Nnenna’s back. Carl’s chest rose and fell,

softened just slightly, recognizing his age, his pain. After a

said carefully, his voice steady, "she had nothing to do with your brother’s death. She just

lips pressed together, but he

stop jumping to conclusions. What you’re doing is pure slander. And regardless of your title, you

lips parting as if to retort, but the weight in Darius’s tone

Obinna cleared his throat and leaned forward, his voice