The man's voice echoed throughout the hall, harsh and severe, full of pressure.
Celitia did not kneel.
The girl slightly raised her head, her delicate and beautiful face still composed, showing no effect from Viscount Herbert's demand.
"Father, your daughter doesn't know what wrong she has committed."
Before Viscount Herbert could speak, Lady Herbert had already begun scolding her in a shrill voice:
"You dare say you don't know what you did wrong? Look at poor Oral. He's been frightened by you and has fallen ill! You vicious woman, Oral is your only brother. How could you do such a thing?!"
"Is Mother referring to Oral falling into the water?"
Celitia replied calmly, "That's truly unfair to me. Although I was present at the time, Oral ran into the pond himself."
Oral roared in anger: "Nonsense, you clearly pushed—"
He stopped himself mid-sentence.
Recalling the scene, he had indeed tried to rush over and grab Celitia.
But after she suddenly disappeared from his sight, Oral inexplicably couldn't stop his momentum and somehow tumbled into the pond.
Whether Celitia had pushed him or not, to be honest, Oral himself wasn't clear.
"Why would Oral rush into the pond?" Lady Herbert didn't believe it at all. Who knows, perhaps he felt too hot and wanted to cool down in the water?"
Celitia laughed, "Many people saw it at the time. If you don't believe me, you can ask them."
Turning to look at her son, seeing Oral seemingly dazed, Lady Herbert thought his illness had affected his mind. She grew even more anxious and angry, shouting at Viscount Herbert:
"Charles, this is the fine daughter you've raised!"
"What do you mean the daughter I've raised?"
Viscount Herbert was now angry too.
"She's your daughter as well. You're the lady of the house; guiding her is your responsibility as the mistress!"
This statement left Lady Herbert speechless. Viscount Herbert took a deep breath, suppressing the anger in his chest.
He looked at Celitia standing quietly before him and was suddenly taken aback.
Unlike before when she would only cry weakly, the girl now appeared calm and composed. Though her head was respectfully lowered, her back was straight as a rod, her fragile figure filled with an unyielding pride.
Unconsciously, Viscount Herbert's heart softened slightly.
Viscount Herbert knew that a few days ago, Oral had thrown Celitia into the water, causing her serious illness, yet he and his wife had protected Oral, which was somewhat biased.
If that was the case, he would give her a chance to defend herself this time.
Viscount Herbert pondered for a moment before saying to the servant standing nearby:
"Call over those who were present at the time!"
Shortly after, Luna and two male servants hurriedly arrived.
Seeing Celitia standing alone at the foot of the hall, appearing to be scolded by the three, Luna's face was filled with anxiety.
"Tell me, how did Oral fall into the pond?" Viscount Herbert asked gravely.
The two male servants exchanged glances, and the one who had rescued Oral spoke up bravely:
"We were quite far away and didn't see clearly, but at the time, Young Master Oral suddenly rushed forward angrily. Miss Celitia was frightened and dodged, then the young master ran straight to the edge of the pond and fell in."
"That's right, that's what I saw too."
The other servant nodded, agreeing with the first one's account.
Viscount Herbert pondered: "So it wasn't Celitia who pushed him in?"
"Master, it really wasn't Lily's doing!"
Luna was so anxious that tears were about to fall.
"Young Master Oral lost his temper and tried to attack her, Lily just dodged in self-defense. Think about it, how could she possibly have the strength to push the young master?"
Seeing the three unanimous in their accounts, and finding Luna's argument quite reasonable, Viscount Herbert fell into an awkward silence for a moment before lightly coughing and looking at Celitia:
"Well then..."
Before he could finish his sentence, Lady Herbert screamed:
"So what? As his sister, when you saw your brother about to fall, why didn't you grab him?! Oral is ill like this, it's all your fault!!"
"Enough!"
Before Celitia could respond, Viscount Herbert lost his patience and shouted at Lady Herbert.
"Doesn't Oral not want to go to that academy? Now that he's sick at home, it's perfect to delay for a few more days. What more do you want?!"
Lady Herbert asked in surprise:
"Could it be that you never rejected it and still plan to send Oral there? That's a military academy! Oral is still young, how can he endure such hardship? And do you want him to go to the battlefield after graduation?!"
"Exactly! I won't go!!"
At the mention of this matter, Oral also became anxious.
Oral had been happily living as a pampered young master at home when his father suddenly told him he needed to go to school.
Reportedly, it was a military academy where attendance required boarding, with no short-term returns home allowed, and very strict management.
This was bad enough, but the academy also admitted nobility and commoners equally, and after graduation, everyone was uniformly assigned to the military system, which the self-important Oral found completely unacceptable.
"What do you know?" Viscount Herbert raged. "This matter isn't for you or me to decide!"
The academy they spoke of was newly established this year in the name of Princess Sophia, called "Samuel National Academy."
Currently, Princess Sophia and Saintess Ariel were becoming increasingly opposed to each other. Sophia wanted to use the academy to build her own forces to counter Ariel.
Viscount Herbert had no desire to be caught in the struggle between the two, but when Sophia personally invited him, he couldn't refuse.
The only solution Viscount Herbert could think of was to delay. Even if Oral hadn't been sick, he would have had him pretend to be ill, delaying as long as possible.
Otherwise, given his son's intelligence, if he really entered the academy, he might be used as a pawn. If that implicated himself and the family, it would be troublesome.
Hearing his father speak this way, Oral became even more anxious. His pea-sized brain rarely worked so quickly, but suddenly he had a flash of inspiration and pointed at Celitia's nose, shouting:
"Doesn't that academy accept everyone regardless of gender or status? Our family has an older sister than me, why not send her instead?!"
Viscount Herbert was stunned, suddenly feeling that his son's suggestion wasn't entirely unreasonable.
If his son got into trouble, he would have to worry and clean up the mess, otherwise Lady Herbert would tear the roof off the house.
But if it was Celitia...
She was just a disposable pawn.
Looking at the three different expressions, Celitia's misty eyes flickered slightly.
If Viscount Herbert really wanted to send her away to that academy, Celitia would be more than willing.
No matter how bad the environment might be, could it be worse than the home she was currently in?