Chapter 151: The Tin Knight and The City of Scales (11)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 151: The Tin Knight and The City of Scales (11)
It was only natural, but not everyone was friendly toward Sophia as she went about her tirades.
The officials and soldiers of Justitia, annoyed by Sophia’s actions that continuously tarnished their reputation, treated her with a prickly attitude. Even among those not affiliated with Justitia, quite a few tried to pick a fight with her.
‘The Lord of Justitia and the priests may be silent, but there’s no way they’re comfortable with this situation. If I take it upon myself to subdue that woman here, couldn’t my family earn the favor of Justitia’s lord?’
‘I heard that just one shower in holy power can cure all sorts of minor illnesses and even extend your lifespan. I’m not asking for much, just once!’
‘The scale is a bit of a concern, but since I’d be taking care of a troublesome opponent for Justitia, it’s a win for them too, right? They’ll surely show some consideration.’
‘You think we don’t have complaints about the law? We’re all putting up with it because having it is better than not. Who does she think she is, running her mouth like that?’
Those who wanted to curry favor with the great power that was the Kingdom is Heaven, or those who were personally jealous or displeased with Sophia’s actions.
Their reasons varied, but they confronted Sophia without hesitation.
Had they seen Sophia with Adelaide, they would have been conscious of the Lion Duke’s bloodline and refrained from acting rashly. However, Adel had recently been spending more time at Maris’ mansion preparing for their operation, so it wasn’t widely known that the two were in the same party.
“Look here, young lady. Does it feel good to act so high and mighty? If the lord grows angry because of your actions and brings disadvantages upon us, how are you going to take responsibility for all this noise you’re making?”
“Thank you for your meaningful opinion! It’s a bit much to talk while standing, shall we stop by a café? Oh, a tavern would be fine too.”
“Huh? Oh, uh, sure.”
“And you don’t need to worry so much about the matter you mentioned. If my actions were a great sin, the scale would have judged me, but as you can see, I’m alive and well with all my limbs intact. The perpetrator is perfectly fine, yet you think others would be punished while I’m left alone? The just and fair Kingdom is Heaven would never do such a thing, would it? Ah, perhaps you have a different opinion, sir? Are you suggesting the lord would mete out unjust punishment based on personal anger alone?”
“Wh-what are you talking about! Of course not!”
“Right? I’m so glad we share the same opinion.”
“But, still, it’s not right to speak so carelessly just because the other party doesn’t punish you, is it?”
“Have you ever been taught by someone, sir? Conversely, have you ever taught someone?”
“I’ve done both.”
“Let’s imagine you’ve given a student a problem. The problem has a hidden element that can be found if the student paid attention in class. Would you be pleased if your student failed to notice it at all?”
“I suppose not. If I hid it for them to find and they couldn’t, doesn’t that mean they’ve been slacking off in my class?”
“Exactly, right? So, if the Great One in Heaven created a system with ‘loopholes,’ was it intentional, or was it a simple mistake?”
“That is…”
“Assuming it was intentional, which is the proper course of action for a disciple? To fail to realize it or pretend not to know, or to point it out and explore it?”
“Umm…”
But they failed to achieve their goal.
Those who challenged Sophia with words were either persuaded by her or found themselves discussing a completely different topic, the original point of contention having faded into obscurity.
Of course, some among them gave up on conversation altogether and simply insisted they were right.
“Hah! How dare an individual judge the will of the great Lord as right or wrong! It is simply a matter of course, like the sun rising and setting!”
“I see, so that is what you believe, sir. But don’t you think this part of this past ruling is a bit unfair?”
“Hah! Did I not tell you not to judge the will of the Great One with your shallow insight!”
“Aha, I see. By the way, sir, you—”
“S-Silence!”
And so, those who boasted an undefeated record in debates (they never lost because they never truly competed) had to admit defeat for the first time.
No matter how loud they shouted, how many times they repeated themselves, or how stubbornly they insisted the answer was already decided, Sophia continued the conversation without a single change in her expression.
These people, who derived pleasure from watching others clutch their chests and scream in agony at their words, thinking, ‘I did it! I can control this person’s emotions!’, were utterly overwhelmed by their first encounter with a boss immune to verbal damage.
Some among them were the ‘real deal,’ not even properly aware that they were at a disadvantage. But even they were forced to drop from sheer exhaustion of mind and body before Sophia, who showed no sign of ending the conversation even as the sun set, the stars rose, and others tucked themselves into bed.
It reached a point where some even begged her to admit they were wrong and just let them go.
“Shit, shut the fuck up, you bitch!”
Finally, there were those who disagreed with the proposition that the pen is mightier than the sword, who resorted to violence regardless of what Sophia was saying.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ greets them with a delighted ‘what took you long enough?’!]
Thwack! Crack! Crunch!
Such individuals were brutally crushed by the hands of the Tin Knight, a counter-attack-type boss character who had been eagerly waiting for an opponent to strike first.
“Agh! Aaargh! Aaaaaaaah!”
“That’s enough!”
The city guards, as if they had been waiting for this very moment, moved to restrain the Tin Knight, but they were soon to be disappointed.
“What, there’s barely anything…?”
The person beaten by the Tin Knight was screaming so horribly that they had expected grievous injuries—mangled limbs and ruptured organs, for sure.
But upon checking the condition of the screaming individuals, the wounds they had sustained were extremely minor.
It was the result of the Tin Knight, who wanted to enjoy the battle for as long as possible, selectively striking places that were excruciatingly painful but caused almost no actual injury.
Of course, violence was still violence, so a punishment was handed down. But since the opponent had attacked first, the sentence wasn't nearly as severe as the guards had hoped.
The authority of the scale was gradually chipped away, and the dignity and power of the guards diminished with it.
But even amidst all this, the Lord of Justitia remained silent.
*
“He probably can’t move even if he wants to,” Maris von Lennart declared.
“The very act of going out to that square, refuting that woman’s words one by one, providing evidence, and persuading the people around him is an act that denies the absoluteness of the scale. If he could overwhelmingly crush his opponent in a debate, the damage would be minimal. But if he shows even the slightest hesitation, or by some chance loses, the shattered authority could never be restored.”
An undeniable note of admiration colored her voice.
“She’s incredible. Honestly, I feel a sense of defeat. If she weren’t Adelaide’s companion, I’d be tempted to recruit her as our strategist.”
At Maris’s assessment, her bodyguard knights offered a quiet rebuttal.
“It is nothing more than base rabble-rousing.”
“You cannot compare a young lady who must act for the benefit of her family with an individual whose sole purpose is to cause chaos. If it’s just about spouting plausible-sounding words, who couldn’t do that?”
“Is that so? Then can you two go stand in front of Father’s private office and spout criticisms about the main family’s etiquette or training methods?”
The knights’ mouths fell shut.
“Knowing my father’s personality, he wouldn’t get worked up over every little thing you say. He’d probably just let it slide. So, can you do it? Well?”
“…Regardless of whether the Duke would be angered or not, the act itself would be one of sacrilege.”
“Even if he remained silent, the other elders of the family would be out for our heads.”
“Right. That’s what authority is. It’s something you don’t even think of approaching in the first place. Even if the one whose authority is challenged is unfazed, those around them get anxious and try to crush the challenger, as if not doing so would make them guilty of the same crime.”
Maris wondered if she could have provoked the Kingdom is Heaven if she didn’t have the Lennart family behind her.
The answer was ‘no.’
Because she admitted that, Maris could offer a heartfelt tribute to Sophia from the bottom of her heart.
“Well, we can’t lose either. In a way, the situation has become more convenient.”
With Sophia and the Tin Knight rampaging so loudly, the attention of all of Justitia was focused on them.
Even those who had been picking fights with the Lennart contingent had their gazes turned elsewhere. There was no better time to make a move.
“Preparations?”
“All documents within the dojo have been moved out or destroyed. All personnel not essential to the operation have left the city.”
“Good. Well done.”
—Sins within Justitia are not questioned from without.
Originally, it meant that they would punish their own criminals, so outsiders shouldn’t interfere, but Maris couldn’t care less about that.
What was important was that once they committed the act and got outside, their pursuers couldn’t question them unless they themselves went back on their word.
Maris lifted a mask and put it on.
The perception-hindering magic imbued in the mask shrouded her form in a hazy fog.
“The two in the central square?”
“It appears they are about to conclude their speech.”
“She said they would leave the city after this final speech, so commence the operation to coincide with their departure.”
“It’s a bit late to say this, but wasn’t it an excessive favor to align our schedule with theirs?”
“It would be a bit awkward to ignore them, wouldn’t it? If those two are still here after we’re done, they’d undoubtedly take the blame. It was only a day’s difference from our original schedule anyway, so just bear with it.”
A short while later.
“The two have exited the city.”
“Good, let’s begin. Send the signal to the other teams.”
*
On the outskirts of Justitia.
You were walking down a road with Sophia.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ asks if it’s okay that you never got to meet the lord in the end!]
“Hmm, it is a little disappointing. Honestly, after causing such a ruckus, I thought he’d at least show his face.”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ insists that maybe it would be better to storm the lord’s mansion directly!]
“Even so, if we did that, Miss Dorothea would be angry, don’t you think?”
By now, the Lennart Mask’s delightful action-packed spectacle should be in full swing inside Justitia.
If you had your way, you would have loved to run wild with Adelaide, but you suppressed the urge, thinking it was important to sometimes work with people other than yourself.
You were a teacher capable of restraining your personal enjoyment for the sake of your pupil’s growth.
The plan was that in a few dozen minutes, Adelaide would finish the operation, split up from the other bloodline members, and exit the city. Then, you and Sophia would pick her up and head to where Dorothea was waiting.
After that, as previously arranged, you would rendezvous with the Lennart family members in another domain where the Lion Duke’s bloodline held strong influence, receive your reward, and the operation would be complete.
You were waiting for Adel to appear, gazing toward Justitia, when something strange caught your eye.
Flash, flash. A turquoise aura began to shimmer in the sky above Justitia.
What at first seemed like a mere weather phenomenon soon solidified, imbued with distinct mana and substance, and descended toward the ground.
Rumble-rumble-rumble-rumble!
Huge emerald slabs settled around the outskirts of Justitia, encircling it.
The utterly surreal sight was like a painting, but you had no time to leisurely appreciate its beauty.
You could only think of one reason why something like that would appear at this exact moment.
Thud. Sophia came to a stop beside you.
Her blood-tinged eyes stared at the city, now trapped in emerald.
For some reason, it felt as if she were superimposing a distant past onto this place.
“Let’s hurry, Sir Tin. If this continues, Lady Adel, no… —everyone in the city will be in danger.”