Chapter 439: The Trial That Defies Fate - 4
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 439: The Trial That Defies Fate - 4
Those who sin shall be punished. It is a simple proposition, so self-evident as to be beyond doubt. It is often regarded as a sacred rite, carried out as a matter of course.
But fundamentally, sin is an act. Punishment is a judgment upon that act. The phrase “it should not have happened” is negated the moment it does.
The same holds true even for vampires. One must clearly distinguish between the two.
That which cannot happen, and that which one wishes had not happened.
“Let me ask one question. What was the defendant's motive?”
The Ain answered my question without hesitation.
“Revenge for Lily, who was her mother. As she herself stated.”
“Revenge? How interesting. Do you remember the wind from your human days, Harpy?”
I casually spoke the name no one had told me. It should have been impossible, but Harpy simply assumed I had heard it somewhere. It was only natural. Who would ever suspect I'd learned her name through mind reading?
Harpy replied, “That has no bearing on this matter.”
“Of course not. Why would anything before becoming a vampire matter? For one who has experienced death and been reborn from spilled blood, what use are memories from before they died?”
I shrugged and continued. “You claimed that Lyre attacked Luscynia to continue her revenge, holding onto a grudge from her mortal life… is that right? But isn't that giving a mere Yeiling far too much credit?”
“Lyre is no mere Yeiling. She was classified as one because she received Lily's blood, but since Elder Luscynia also shared his blood, if you truly examine it…”
“An excellent point! But wasn't it Elder Luscynia's will that created such a muddled lineage in the first place?”
She may have said it in rebuttal, but it was the very statement I was waiting for.
A war of words isn't a battle between you and your opponent. A true war of words is making your opponent fight themself. You must seize upon a slip of the tongue, wait for them to misspeak, then use that mistake to pit them against their own words. One can face an enemy, but never themself.
“Luscynia made Lyre attack him, made her defy her master. Now, whether that aligned with Lyre's own will or was done by force, I don't know… but in any case, it's something that would not have happened unless the Elder himself intended it. Am I wrong?”
“…There is a possibility that Lyre escaped the Shackles through some unknown means.”
“And what means would that be?”
“The means, you ask? That is for Lyre herself to explain.”
“No. You yourself said it earlier. Merely presenting a possibility is not enough.”
Having caught her misspeaking, I pressed my advantage relentlessly.
“Until now, have vampires not operated under a strict hierarchy, under the so-called Blood Shackles? Lyre's case is the exception, and my argument is the most rational and logical explanation for that possibility. Yet you claim some unknown method of escaping the Shackles exists, but have failed to present what that method is.”
Despite my sarcastic reply, Harpy protested, as if she still had something to say.
“She wields a strange power. When it comes to preserving life, she is even more skilled than Elder Luscynia. It would not be strange for her to possess an unknown power.”
“So, she has a power no one knows about, and she used that power to commit this act. That's the devil's proof, isn't it? Your Honor, what are your thoughts?”
If the other side insisted on being stubborn, there'd be no way forward, but this was a court of law. And the judge, Tyr, was very much on my side. She would listen even if I were being unreasonable; there was no way she would ignore a valid, logical point. Tyr nodded and replied.
“The counsel's argument is valid. It seems impossible for her to have attempted to Defy Fate without Luscynia's tacit, or even active, permission. Furthermore, there is sufficient circumstantial evidence to suggest Luscynia intended for it to happen.”
The other vampires felt the same. While vampires may not be one hundred percent rational, their cold blood does not allow empathy to cloud their judgment. They couldn't care less about the feelings of a mere Ain, who wasn't even an Elder.
Her situation growing dire, Harpy cried out desperately. “Even a Kindred does not move solely according to their master's will! In cases like my own, where the master has disappeared or is sleeping, a Kindred can move freely! Therefore, Lyre is not free from responsibility!”
“Then it would be all the more impossible for her to ‘kill’ him, wouldn't it? Not without her master's permission.”
“Her master would not have ordered her to take his original blood!”
Ooh. A good improvisation. She shifted the focus from motive to outcome.
“As the Consort said, it may have been what Elder Luscynia intended. Of course, it's also possible it wasn't. That is something we cannot know.”
We? I wonder. I know.
“But whether it was intended or not, an Elder's original blood is something only the Progenitor may handle. To take that original blood after the Elder's annihilation is undeniably treason! I implore you to reclaim that blood!”
“Couldn't that have been Elder Luscynia's will as well?”
“I'll return your own words to you.”
Merely presenting a possibility changes nothing. I know. I had no intention of letting it end so anticlimactically.
“You're right. Regardless, the defendant is the one who possesses the original blood now, and that in itself is a sin.”
“Exactly!”
“…In that case!”
I spun around and looked up at Tyr. She must have found it to be rather fine entertainment, as she was watching me with a subtle smile.
Just as the other vampires thought, the truth of the matter held little meaning in this trial. Facts and logic were merely tools to persuade the Progenitor; she made all the decisions, and no one could defy them.
Because of the Blood Shackles.
“This is no longer a trial for the murder of an Elder, is it? The game has changed. This trial was never about interrogating and punishing the one who killed an Elder. It's about deciding what should be done with the Progenitor's original blood.”
And I am the Progenitor's Consort. If it comes down to pillow talk, I've already won.
Realizing her defeat, Harpy's face crumpled. It wasn't a lie that a Kindred without a master finds freedom. Look at her. How free does she look now?
“Your Honor, it seems the focus of this trial has shifted. We have moved from finding the killer of Elder Luscynia to discussing how to handle his death.”
“And?”
“If the focus has shifted, we need time to prepare accordingly. I propose a recess.”
It was a bit of a stretch, but the more time I could buy, the more advantageous it would be for me. I decided to push it. But Tyr asked in surprise.
“A day? Is such a short recess truly enough?”
“…I'm not sure if that can be called a short time, but that much seems necessary.”
“Hm. If you say so.”
In any case, I was her Consort, and Tyr was openly on my side. Nodding, she rose from her seat and declared.
“We did not convene today to avenge Luscynia's grudge. We convened to ascertain what has befallen him and to determine how to respond.”
Vampires are sensitive to the death of a comrade simply because it is a rare occurrence. The other vampires partially agreed with the Progenitor's words.
“However, having heard the arguments, there is merit to Hu's words. It is clear Luscynia was either attempting to Defy Fate or conducting an experiment of similar magnitude, going so far as to sacrifice his own life. If Luscynia acted with a certain intent, asking him directly would be the surest way to know… but the annihilated cannot answer.”
The dead tell no tales. And so, the living try to resolve their grudges by guessing what they might have said.
But vampires are those who have already died once. They have no interest in such heartwarming tales.
“Therefore, the conversation must now change. Does Lyre Nightingale have the right? What is to be done with the original blood? We shall recess for a time and discuss it again.”
A declaration so cold it was chilling, but that is what it means to be a vampire. Honoring and mourning the dead is something ordinary humans do.
Yes, like Harpy, who was currently unable to control her emotions.
The feathers that had bristled during the trial now drooped as if soaked in water. Harpy, who now seemed three or four times smaller than when I first saw her, clenched her sharp fingers and spoke.
“…Oh, Progenitor. Do you forsake us?”
“I have never forsaken you.”
“Lyre Nightingale is a Yeiling. She inherited Elder Luscynia's blood, mixed it, and twisted it. We, the Ain, cannot serve a Yeiling who inherited Elder Luscynia's blood as our new Elder.”
This was more than a simple declaration of unwillingness. If a Yeiling were to become an Elder—and a Yeiling whose rank was twisted by a muddled lineage, at that—and rule over their original blood… then just like Lyre, those vampires would also be cast out from the Shackles.
It wasn't for nothing that Luscynia's Ain wanted Lyre dead. If she were to take the original blood, the Ain, who would be simultaneously her masters and her Kindred, would become alien beings within this duchy. Just like Lyre Nightingale, who was forced to cast off the Shackles by an Elder's will, an entire bloodline would be freed from them.
Seeing the Ain trembling in anxiety, I made a guess.
Perhaps Elder Luscynia… had planned for this very scene.
“That, too, is not for you to decide. It is a matter to be discussed in this hall tomorrow. I will make my decision after hearing from all related parties.”
Tyr's proclamation allowed no room for rebuttal. In the depths of despair, Harpy bowed her head and answered.
“…I shall obey.”
It seems there's nothing more to be said. That's it for today. On behalf of everyone, I shouted.
“Then, this court is in recess!”
Thud. With a heavy sound, the trial came to a halt.