Chapter 139
Chapter 139
Episode 139
I entered and was walking through the village where the goblins lived.
Bihyeong stood right behind me, monitoring my every move, and every time I saw his clenched fists, it was threatening enough to send shivers down my spine.
Is this what they mean by me still being a suspect?
If I were to even move mana, that would be the end.
“Master, Master.”
“Yes, Noah. You didn’t cause any trouble while I was gone, did you?”
“What do you take me for? I was well-behaved, you know?”
“Oh, really. This kid is openly lying, isn’t she?”
Immediately, a voice full of disbelief came from behind.
It seemed Bihyeong had been quite tormented by Eleanor.
It’s so typical of Eleanor not to care about the representative of a country. I wish she would gradually realize that she herself is royalty, but… Well, that’s Eleanor’s charm.
Still, when Chrysos is rebuilt, I’ll have to persuade her to definitely appoint a regent.
“Master, look at this instead. They say it’s clothing from the Federation. Isn’t it pretty?”
“…Well, yes. It’s pretty.”
Eleanor was wearing a hanbok with colorful sleeves. I think kids usually wear that…
Well, she likes it herself, so it probably doesn’t matter. It suits her too.
“Bihyeong, I wonder if it’s appropriate to play pranks on guests.”
“I know nothing about it.”
“Ha! I’m sure you don’t.”
“No, this is genuinely unfair…”
I don’t believe it. If the goblin leader wasn’t playing a trick, who would?
“Oh, speaking of clothes, I just remembered. I told Marie to wait a moment while I brought Master, but I completely forgot.”
“How long ago was that?”
“I think it’s been about 4 hours.”
“…Marie’s going to cry.”
She’s already a girl with low self-esteem. It’s obvious what would happen if her friend said they’d be right back but didn’t return for hours.
“She’s nearby, so I’ll go get her.”
“Alright.”
While Eleanor was away, I gave Bihyeong a meaningful look.
Since she said, ‘speaking of clothes, I just remembered,’ Marie probably isn’t in ordinary attire either. I need to know what kind of prank was played so I’ll be less surprised.
“No, seriously, I really don’t know anything.”
“That’s why the goblins have such a bad reputation.”
“This is driving me crazy…”
Bihyeong pressed his forehead as if he were genuinely wronged.
What amazing acting skills. As expected, the king of goblins has a different level of acting.
To think I can’t even figure it out with [Contemplation]; isn’t he a master of deception?
“Master! I brought Marie!”
“Hmph… I waited and waited, and you didn’t come, so I thought I was abandoned…”
“Right, well. As expected… No, beyond expectation.”
Marie, brought by Eleanor, had tears welling up in her eyes, as she had apparently been on the verge of crying.
The more I look at her, the more pitiful she seems.
“Bihyeong, would you care to explain why such an outfit was prepared?”
“Alright, I admit it this time. This elder certainly taught the children wrong. But you know more about the Federation than I thought, don’t you?”
“You’re blaming others until the very end, aren’t you?”
“This kid is really annoying too. Like master, like disciple.”
Just like Eleanor, Marie was not in ordinary attire. In a way, couldn’t you say it was the complete opposite?
But somehow, it also subtly suits her. Yes, the clothes Marie was wearing were perfectly fitting for the title of the princess of the Death King… It was the attire of a Death King’s emissary.
“Oz, how is it? They say this is a popular outfit these days.”
“…I think it suits you well.”
I could feel Bihyeong barely suppressing a chuckle from behind me.
Every single one of these damn goblins has a rotten personality.
“What about Arietta?”
“The Saintess didn’t come.”
“The Saintess had a hard time moving after entering the goblin forest.”
“Ah, this place has a strong yokai energy, even if it’s not as much as the Samdo River.”
Areas inhabited by yokai have strong yokai energy.
It’s not that the yokai energy is strong because yokai live there, but rather that yokai live there because the Yokai energy is strong.
Generally, it can be said to be a difficult area for humans to live in.
Normally, a skilled person like Arietta would be less affected, but she cannot see.
With strong yokai energy, it would be difficult to control space, making it hard to maintain balance.
Even so, it would probably only require a period of adaptation, not an inability to endure. Why would she be a Saintess for nothing?
“It’s a shame we can’t get help, but…”
The student council’s calling card was not just for show. In a situation like going through this kind of interrogation, Arietta’s help would have been reassuring.
“Well, it’ll be fine. Noah, go back with Marie and take care of Arietta.”
“What about Master?”
“I’m going to be interrogated now. You… go back with Marie first.”
“Master, be honest. Am I in the way?”
“Yes, I think you’ll only be in the way, so could you please go back first?”
“At least here, you should say I’m not in the way, even if it’s just empty words…”
No, that would spoil you.
Do you think I’d put you in the defense attorney’s seat with my brain?
Me? You? Haha!
I’d rather put Alexios in the defense attorney’s seat.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The goblins’ courtroom.
Well, even calling it a courtroom, it wasn’t a particularly special place.
It was just a large square in one corner of the village where everyone had gathered.
I stood in the center, and the goblins surrounded me, taking their seats. It felt familiar.
It shouldn’t be familiar, but I’ve experienced it relatively often in Scientia, so it is.
“Ahem, ahem… The reason I’ve gathered you all today is…”
“Cut the pretentious act and get straight to the point!”
As Bihyeong tried to explain in the most dignified manner possible, boos rained down.
From that alone, I could tell what Bihyeong’s reputation was like.
He’s probably more like a friendly village elder than a dignified leader.
“Oh, come on, we have guests, what kind of talk is that to ruin my image?”
“Image, what image, you ugly fellow.”
“No, who was that just now? No matter what, I’m your chieftain, isn’t it too much to say that?”
Bihyeong shouted, sounding wronged, as if he couldn’t refute it.
“…Goblins sure have sharp tongues.”
They went straight for an appearance attack. They couldn’t be more malicious.
It seems the goblins were greatly dissatisfied, as if they were dragged out while doing their own things.
However, there were presences among them whose guard couldn’t be let down.
“That person should have been in the cave. I, lacking in understanding, don’t know why you brought him.”
A strong-looking man with black hair, as if imbued with shadow.
[SR Black Goblin]
Heukri.
“He’s handsome. You said he was Baekyang’s friend? See? That girl pretends not to, but she’s totally into good-looking faces.”
A red-haired woman with a passionate impression, like a flame.
[SR Red Goblin]
Jeokmae.
“A trial… So are we going to figure out right from wrong?”
And a blue-haired boy with an innocent-looking impression.
[SR Blue Goblin]
Cheongmang.
Elite members of the [Goblin King] who are at least SR-grade in skill.
The Imemangryang.
They were scrutinizing me with suspicious eyes.
Especially the red-haired noona, she’s no joke.
Did Baekyang once say that Eleanor reminded her of her colleague when she tried to break a fire hydrant?
At least it’s clear that the two of them don’t get along.
So, it’s only natural for her to look at me, introduced as Baekyang’s friend, with dissatisfaction.
“Baekyang brought him, didn’t she? Then shouldn’t we just ask Baekyang? If he’s the same guy who caused trouble in the forest.”
“Well, she said he wasn’t, so that’s why I brought him here, didn’t I? So let’s all think about it together.”
“Chieftain must have brought him because you don’t want to take sole responsibility when something goes wrong.”
“Oh, Cheongmang, where did you learn such naughty words?”
It’s light-hearted.
No matter how I think about it, this isn’t a courtroom but a village hall meeting.
Given the complete lack of even minimal formality, it seems the outcome of my trial will be decided emotionally.
“First, bring in the investigative materials.”
Still, a trial is a trial.
They must have tried to understand me. Since I’m a famous person, my major actions would be well-documented.
I haven’t done anything particularly wrong, so I just need to be confident.
A moment later, newly appeared goblins handed documents to Bihyeong and the Imemangryang.
The amount was surprisingly large. For a group that seemed like a backwater, their intelligence gathering was unexpectedly good.
“First, shall we look at his actions over the past six months or so? Hmm…”
Bihyeong was so huge that even documents of ordinary size looked small enough to fit in his palm.
“Escaped from Spellerge as if being chased… Why? He’s a prince, isn’t he?”
“It must be for political reasons, Chieftain.”
“So he’s not a prince anymore?”
“It seems he’s still a prince.”
Bihyeong seemed clumsy with mental work, just as he looked. Cheongmang seemed to be assisting him.
“Used large-scale annihilation magic during the entrance exam, causing terror…”
“No, that information seems a bit distorted.”
“He blew up the examination hall with large-scale annihilation magic, didn’t he?”
“That’s correct, but he didn’t commit an act of terror…”
“Next.”
Huh?
Uh oh?
Just moving on? Without even hearing a rebuttal?
Following Bihyeong’s suspicious gaze, the next one to recite my actions was the goblin called Jeokmae.
“Killed a professor during practical training.”
“Wow~ It seems he also turned Baekyang into pulp at that time?”
“It was Alexios who turned her into pulp. Not me.”
“They say he grabbed her by the head and slammed her into the ground?”
“That’s correct, but…”
“Well, personally, I found it exhilarating, so it’s not bad; let’s move on.”
“Yeah? Then next.”
What about the professor's incident? Aren’t they going to hear a rebuttal about that?
The signs were not good from the start.
Should I prepare some magic?
If things go wrong, it might be better to just destroy everything and run.
“Information about the timing of the final exam has many holes. The most noticeable information, if any, is…”
The baton was then passed to Heukri. The rock-like man frowned with suspicion.
“He was seen carrying around two girls who seemed mentally disoriented, for whatever reason. Hmm…”
“Wait a minute, that’s malicious editing no matter how I look at it, isn’t it? Who’s the bastard who got that information?”
“Do you think we’d tell an outsider such facts? Moreover, protecting information about witnesses is a natural thing.”
“No, the atmosphere is like a village meeting, so why are you so proper about this?”
Are you going to be cowardly like that? That’s too much.
That’s malicious editing. The two girls I was dragging around at that time were Lucia, terrified by Tia, and Marie, who was dealt with by Arietta.
I took care of them because they were both in a precarious state, and such a description, implying I did something to them, was malicious editing.
“Anyway, it’s not true. I only looked after them; I didn’t do anything strange to either of them.”
“It wasn’t written that way. But you’re refuting it, so you must have something to hide, no?”
“No, the flow of the document was clearly leading to that conclusion, you sons of bitches!”
“…Let’s move on for now.”
“No, I told you not to move on!”
I’m not done talking.
Arietta was needed.
If I had known it would be such an unfair trial, I should have asked for her help, even if it meant being a bit unreasonable, to overcome this difficulty.
“Finally… Wow! There’s good news, though. There was a clear alibi at the time the incident occurred.”
Next was the innocent-looking boy, Cheongmang. This one, however, seemed to be taking my side for once.
Now this feels more like a proper trial.
“Your activity at the Papal States was brilliant, Apostle of Dawn.”
“…”
It wasn’t.
“Hehe… Ap-Apostle of Dawn. How cool. I wish I had a title like that too.”
This wasn’t a trial; it was simply a public execution. The tremendous malice hidden behind the innocent smile of a child seemed to be suffocating me.
Besides, what’s wrong with “Apostle of Dawn”?
Even if it’s not a title I made up, you didn’t bat an eye at [Successor of the Mage King] or [Fist King].
Why are you applying such strict standards to only that?
I don’t know.
I truly don’t know.
I can’t bring myself to like this damn fantasy world.
“How about everyone gives a round of applause to the ‘Apostle of Dawn’ who journeyed to save the Papal States in crisis?”
Clap, clap, clap, clap!
Now I see, that bastard is the most malicious of all. Hiding behind a child’s mask, he stabs the sharpest dagger.
Should I kill all those goblins snickering over there?
I shouldn’t have even thought about having a goblin trial in the first place.
I’m an idiot for trying to talk to these guys who are masters at provoking and deceiving people.
“Then, since an alibi has been secured, my innocence is confirmed, right?”
“Yes, Apostle of Dawn. There will be no detention now, so you may leave.”
“…”
[Contemplation - Activated]
Yes, it should have been like this from the start.Talking to a goblin? That was a ridiculous thing to do.
“Yes, this damn world was always about the survival of the fittest, after all.”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
I was thrown into the prison by Bihyeong’s hand.
“Go in there and cool your head. I’ll let you out soon.”
“Ugh.”
He should have thrown me more gently; it’s an unnecessary act of anger. Isn’t it too much to get angry just for teaching the kids?
“The kids got hurt a lot…”
“Oh dear, that’s unfortunate.”
Those guys have a safety-insensitivity. They knew what kind of person I was, given their investigation, yet they picked a fight.
I merely gave just punishment to those who challenged my authority.
Tia taught me that!
“Anyway, don’t try to escape just because there are no bars. Just be quiet for a little while.”
“If you want me to be quiet, I’d appreciate it if you admitted that this incident was a mutual fault.”
“Fine, I admit it. So just stay there for one day. Got it? Just one day, okay? You can endure that much, right?”
“Of course.”
With those words, Bihyeong sighed deeply and left.
The cave had no bars, perhaps because I had cut them off once before.
My neighbor across the way was staring at me with squinted eyes.
“What, why?”
Don’t just stare, speak, Alexios.
“No, I just thought it would be better not to talk to a crazy person like you after all.”
Across from me, Alexios was looking at me as if I were a bug. So now he doesn’t want to talk to me? What a funny guy.
But it’s fine.
Isn’t he a simpleton?
He’ll understand on his own if I just say something plausible enough.
“Everything went according to plan.”
“No, you crazy bastard. No matter what, I’m not such an idiot to fall for words like that.”
Strange…
Why did this guy get so smart? Is he perhaps a fake?