Mori Kogoro followed behind them. As he listened, he gradually got the gist of it. "Hmm... So Girard killed the Queen, then killed the Prince and staged it as suicide. Sounds pretty simple..."
"With him being this suspicious, why not just interrogate him directly?"
Hearing Mori Kogoro's words, Kairu's expression turned troubled. "Our Royal Guard has no authority to arrest anyone. We are only responsible for the Royal Family's protection and security..."
"In other words, they only guard the Royal Family. Even if they had law enforcement authority, they couldn't use it against the Royal Family."
Fujino turned back and explained to Mori Kogoro, "This involves the Royal Family, so the ordinary police-prosecutor-court system cannot handle it. In most countries, the standard procedure is for the police to make an arrest, transfer the case to prosecutors, have the prosecutors bring charges before a court, and finally let the court conduct the trial."
"But Vespania cannot follow that logic."
"Vespania is an absolute monarchy. It is no different from the imperial autocracy of ancient times, and even its framework has barely changed."
"Girard is a noble. Never mind whether the Royal Guard has law enforcement authority—his status as the Queen's younger brother alone means no one may arrest him without evidence. Even with evidence, he cannot be tried while there is no King."
"The police, prosecutors, and courts have no authority over cases involving the Royal Family. Those with titles can only be tried by the King in place of a court. It is like how, in ancient times, the Ministry of Punishments could not handle members of the imperial clan; only the Imperial Clan Court could pass judgment on them."
Mori Kogoro finally understood. "So the King takes the role of both prosecutor and court, but without a King, there