The Lord's Judgment
"Respected Lord. I seek your fair judgment. Not the drivel coming from that viper-like bastard."
Baul's face twisted into an ugly grimace. Lord Yanggol let out a soft chuckle and said, "I know absolutely nothing about this incident. And yet you still want my judgment?"
I nodded slowly. If I let that snake Baul seize the initiative, it was obvious he'd try to throw us straight into prison. Better to force Lord Yanggol to get actively involved.
"My lord, please do not listen to that man. He is a wicked necromancer."
"Oh? A necromancer?" Baul hissed like a serpent. "The one from the rumors—the 'Necromancer Who Summons Death.' That's him right there."
Yanggol's gaze shifted toward me with clear interest.
"...You know me?"
"Well. I've heard the name. The Necromancer Who Summons Death."
Lord Yanggol stroked his double chin as he spoke. "The one who sent Lord Doil's son to his grave inside a dungeon? That you?"
"..."
I didn't do that! It wasn't me who killed him!
Baul quickly added, "My lord, why not arrest this fellow and present him as a gift to Lord Doil? I'm sure he'd be delighted."
Fuck. What am I, some hunting trophy? Present me as a gift? What the hell?
Roa and Maya's expressions darkened. They both knew the rough outline of my past—including what had happened when I went to hunt those goblins. If things kept going this way, we were screwed. I needed some kind of leverage.
"Respected lord," I said to Lord Yanggol. "I swear on the second finger of every necromancer that if you render a fair judgment, I will do anything you ask."
"Anything?"
"Free of charge."
For a moment, both Roa and Maya lowered their heads. The tips of Roa's ears flushed bright red. Lord Yanggol burst into laughter.
"Free of charge?"
"Yes. As unimpressive as I may look, I am a Bronze-rank explorer. My normal hiring fee starts at a minimum of 1,000 ron. And let me state this clearly here and now—I will reach Gold rank within three years."
Yanggol's laughter suddenly stopped. He stared at me with a much more serious expression.
"Gold rank is no joke. Even combining every exploration party, there aren't even five hundred of them. And you're telling me a Bronze-rank explorer like yourself will reach Gold in three years?"
Lord Yanggol was skeptical. He clearly thought it was impossible for me to achieve Gold rank. After all, climbing through countless dungeons in just three short years was practically impossible by this world's common sense.
But that was only the common sense of people in this world. I was the guy who'd poured a thousand hours into this goddamn roguelike game. Growth? Not hard. Dungeon strategies? I had every monster spawn and boss gimmick memorized. Item farming? I knew exactly where every fixed unique dungeon appeared.
I would absolutely hit max level and clear the final dungeon. So why would becoming a mere Gold Badge explorer be difficult?
"I dare say this is the perfect time to invest in the explorer named Hajun. The truth is, I hit rock bottom not long ago. There's nowhere left to fall. From here on, it's only upward."
"Hmm."
Yanggol wore an unreadable expression. Please believe me. I'm about to skyrocket, okay?
"My lord, this conversation no longer holds any—"
"Enough. Stay out of this."
"...Pardon?"
Yanggol spoke in a firm voice to Baul, who had been trying to stir up more trouble. "Haven't you done enough? No matter how much of a secretary you are to me, there is a limit to what I can overlook."
"M-My lord!"
"I will decide the rest."
Lord Yanggol solemnly looked around at everyone present. In the midst of total silence, the master of this land spoke.
"As the lord who governs Jerad, I have a duty to involve myself in all matters that occur upon this land. My word is law here, and His Majesty the King has recognized my rights. As a lord with proper authority, I ask you—explorer alchemist!"
"Yes, my lord."
Maya quietly stepped forward.
"Did you impersonate an alchemist?"
"I swear on the heavens that I did not."
"Good. Now then, Baul."
"...Yes?"
"What do you mean, 'yes'? Step forward."
Baul shuffled forward hesitantly.
"Why did you claim this young lady was a fake alchemist?"
Baul rummaged through his robes and produced some documents. "Here. According to these papers, Maya has already been expelled from the Alchemist Guild."
Maya countered sharply. "That is merely an error in the documentation!"
"Even if it is an error! It was Maya who arbitrarily performed medical treatment and demanded payment! The Oricil Elixir Alchemical Artisan Union prohibits all non-guild members from manufacturing, distributing, or commercially using alchemical potions. Therefore, Seoryang had no obligation to pay Maya!"
Baul shouted triumphantly. But Yanggol responded indifferently.
"I never prohibited business activities, did I?"
"My lord!"
"Well. If that young lady had been selling potions arbitrarily inside Oricil, it would be illegal. But this is Jerad, is it not?"
"Jerad falls under the same jurisdiction! Have you forgotten that this place is also under the Oricil Guild's authority?"
"That would be true if she were an 'alchemist.' But did Maya perform medical treatment in her capacity as an alchemist? If so, where is the evidence?"
"..."
"Let me repeat myself. This is Jerad. Maya is not a guild member—she is an explorer affiliated with a party who simply saved her comrade's life in a moment of crisis."
Baul stood there with his mouth agape. Yanggol shrugged.
"Did I say something wrong?"
"That is..."
"The medical treatment occurred right before the battle ended. That falls under [An explorer treating another explorer and requesting compensation.] I am not idle enough to bother prohibiting every little thing like that."
Baul rolled his eyes around nervously in front of the lord for a while. But when it became clear Yanggol wouldn't take his side, he slumped his shoulders and returned to his spot.
"Wandering Knight Seoryang."
"Yes, my lord."
"I ask you. This entire incident ultimately occurred because you refused to pay the medical fee. If you simply pay the alchemist, everything will be resolved. Do you intend to pay the alchemist?"
Seoryang knelt on one knee. What a needlessly dramatic bastard.
"Respected lord! If you command it, I am prepared to pay any amount of money as many times as necessary. However, if Your Lordship chooses to believe the words of that wicked necromancer and that money-grubbing alchemist over your loyal subject's words, then I cannot help but question Your Lordship's decision!"
"So what you're saying is that Baul is correct, and the explorers are wrong?"
"Exactly, my lord!"
"You're not just making excuses because you don't want to pay, right?"
"Absolutely not!"
Seoryang remained on one knee, striking the ground with his sword. He looked like a knight making some solitary decision to save the kingdom. I genuinely couldn't understand why he was acting like this.
"Knight Seoryang! If Your Lordship sides with Baul's opinion, I shall offer my sword to you!"
Yanggol looked back and forth between me and Seoryang.
...He seemed to be genuinely weighing which side to take.
The whole thing had started over something trivial. Just 1,200 ron. This ridiculous situation had escalated over an absurdly small amount of money. A few measly coins had snowballed into this mess. At this point, even I wasn't sure what was happening anymore.
"Very well. After hearing everyone's stories, the conclusion is clear."
When Yanggol spoke, all eyes focused on him at once. Maya, Baul, Seoryang, and me. Everyone held their breath, hanging on the lord's every word. What conclusion would he reach?
"Knight Seoryang!"
"Yes!"
"You are correct."
For a moment, a chilling silence fell like ice water had been dumped over everyone. Seoryang was... correct?
Seoryang twitched the corners of his mouth repeatedly, unable to contain his joy. "A wise judgment, my lord!"
Maya hung her head, completely frozen. Her small hands were trembling.
What could I even do in a situation like this?
I couldn't hold back any longer and shouted, "My lord!"
"Yes, Necromancer!"
"Your statement just now—"
"Necromancer. You are also correct."
"..."
Excuse me? What did you just say?
Yanggol declared boldly, "Seoryang's words are correct, and the necromancer's words are also correct! I hereby declare that everyone has spoken only the truth!"
I was stunned. This lord was genuinely out of his mind. Was he trying to play the role of some wise mediator? After all that buildup, this was his conclusion? For real?
"However! If I end the matter with this conclusion, you will all feel dissatisfied, will you not?"
"..."
Of course. No one wanted an ending where everyone was somehow right. We needed a clear answer.
"If you want a conclusion, I can give you one anytime. But obtaining it will have to be done with your own hands."
Yanggol shouted, "Tomorrow at noon! I shall hold a trial in front of the village hall! Knight Seoryang! And explorers! You shall prove your innocence with your own hands in the arena!"
My heart pounded.
"Understood? This is a trial by combat!"
This was one of the events that appeared in Dungeon Overseer.
Trial by Combat event triggered.
"My lord. Please reconsider. A trial by combat?"
"Only the gods know the outcome of this foolish incident. The innocent shall be victorious in combat, and the guilty shall return to the gods' embrace."
"But my lord!"
To Baul, who kept clinging to him, Yanggol spoke with a cold expression. "This matter no longer concerns you, does it?"
Yanggol departed with the soldiers. Seoryang also drew his sword and left for his quarters.
Our party gathered in the inn to discuss countermeasures.
"The lord seems completely insane," I said. Maya replied with a gloomy face, "He means it doesn't matter who wins."
That was right. From Yanggol's perspective, whether Seoryang won or I won made no difference. In fact, simply not unconditionally siding with Baul was already something to be grateful for. For some reason, Yanggol hadn't immediately arrested us.
...I really hoped it wasn't because of me.
"So, will you participate in the duel?"
Obviously, we still had a choice. Yanggol had clearly said 'both are correct.' If we gave up on the duel and simply left the village, he was the type who would just let it slide with a 'Well, I guess Seoryang was right after all! Good thing I listened to Baul!'
Running away like this was certainly an option.
"What do you think, Mr. Hajun?"
"I believe we must participate no matter what."
A trial by combat wasn't a battle royale. While you could die fighting, surrendering would simply spare your life. Seoryang wasn't the type to kill someone who had cowardly surrendered.
"Running away without even fighting would be foolish."
"...But to duel over 1,200 ron..."
Maybe her resolve had weakened, because Maya spoke timidly.
"Maya. Sometimes you have to risk your life over dirty, trivial matters. I think this is exactly one of those times."
"Will you be fighting personally, Mr. Hajun?"
"Who else is there?"
"I could do it."
I slowly shook my head. At Maya's current level, she couldn't beat Seoryang. No matter how much of an idiot he looked on the surface, his actual specs were quite formidable.
Note that five is the average stat for an ordinary human. Seven in strength meant he was quite strong, while four in intelligence suggested he was a bit slow. The wandering knight class wasn't particularly portrayed as powerful since it wasn't an explorer class. If pitted against an orc warrior, he'd probably get dragged around and killed. That kind of feeling.
The highest-level member of our party was me. A Level 3 Necromancer. Maya, Roa, or Haneul all lacked the specs to step into the duel.
"It seems Lord Yanggol wants something from me."
"Pardon?"
"He might want to see what I'm capable of. Or there could be another reason. Either way, this works out nicely. I'll need a few noble connections while working as an explorer anyway."