Chapter 76 – 076. Public Trial (3)
“Shall we go through each one? After Elvin entered Aether and graduated, how she was treated in the Magus Court Wizardry.”
Eunhyun shifted her gaze and glanced at the audience sitting in their seats.
Aither’s officials, graduates, and nobles belonging to the current Court Magic Division who had at least a little connection to Erwin trembled and avoided Eun-hyeon’s gaze.
For those who were envious of him, jealous, obscenities, assaults, and those who did not hesitate to take actions that undermined his personality by mentioning his status as a commoner, Eun-hyeon’s words felt like arrows flying deep into his heart.
“Are you advocating criminals now?”
“It is not an advocacy. Learning black magic is evil. There is also a unification bill that states that ‘the existence of black magicians is resolutely excluded and punished’ that applies to the entire continent. It is definitely evil and illegal to use black magic, which is taboo among wizards. By the way.”
Eun-hyeon smiles and continues.
“Aren’t the acts of blaspheming people’s personalities, mentioning differences in social status, aristocrats assaulting commoners, and inventing and manipulating facts that don’t exist to harm people, not crimes, but evil?”
All of the unfair treatment that a commoner magician who had no power suffered and had to endure.
“I am not defending criminals. Just thinking that this is against the law and evil, and taking for granted what they are doing and enjoying, the ideology of the chosen people is so funny and absurd. Yes?”
There is a word called ‘Stockholm Syndrome’ or ‘syndrome’.
A phenomenon in which the emotional part rather than the rational part is deeply involved, in which many people listen to the criminal’s story and become influenced by his story and defend the criminal.
However, Eun-hyeon was not moved by Erwin’s story and felt sorry for him.
Alvin is a criminal.
No matter how sad and pitiful the story may be, breaking what is specified in the law and touching the taboo of black magic is against the law and is an evil act.
That’s why Eunhyeon killed Erwin without hesitation.
I explained it to Erin as well.
But that doesn’t mean that his whole life had to be denied.
Since the punishment for breaking the law has already been paid with death, it was unfair to be denied all the traces he left behind, so Eun-hyeon made this a place where he could wash away his stigma.
“There is no evidence anywhere that they persecuted and slandered the warlock! Besides, how can you trust the uncertain information that reveals the identity of a sinner! Don’t cloud the sinner with unconfirmed facts!”
“You’re saying you can’t believe the story I’m telling you because I’m a sinner.”
Eunhyun grinned as if she had waited.
Count Orba, who saw that smile, immediately opened his anxious eyes, but Eun-hyeon’s mouth opened faster.
“Then you wouldn’t believe the information I’ve been researching about demons either.”
“What, what… ?”
“According to my research, the demon lurking in the capital Pernin is not the only succubus discovered this time. There is a possibility that more than one, or even multiple demons, exist.”
“Hey, don’t lie! On what basis do you speak such nonsense!”
“I will ask the opposite. On what basis can you be so sure that there will be no more demons in Pernin?”
“That… Case…”
Count Orba couldn’t even reply and just glared at Eunhyeon.
It was revealed through this incident that once the devil had succeeded in infiltrating Pernine, it had reached out to Aether and succeeded in nurturing a warlock, and had been dormant for a long time.
It succeeded once, but isn’t there a good chance that demons have already been lurking for Pernin since then?
It is not for nothing that it is said that the first is difficult and the second is easy.
The atmosphere in the courtroom became chaotic again, and the atmosphere began to change to chaos as the aristocrats came out.
Count Orba caught Erin because she was giving false testimony and tried to calm her down somehow, but like a stone falling on the surface of the water, a calm wave that created a wave swept through the hall, amplifying doubt and anxiety.
The nobles who were watching the trial denied the words of Erin and Eunhyeon, saying that they were nonsense, but their minds already knew that what Erin and Eunhyeon said was the truth.
“Tell me. What information did you get?”
“Were not the words of a sinner worth listening to?”
“This is not a place for sinners to play with words!”
“Don’t be angry. Your hair comes off quickly.”
“This… This… !”
“Aren’t you old enough to take care of yourself now?”
“You cheeky bastard,hee hee!”
“Puff…”
In an instant, Erin’s face turned red and she couldn’t help but laugh when she saw Count Orba glaring at Eun-hyeon as if she were going to kill her.
Up until now, she had been holding back the unknown feelings boiling over Count Orba, who had spat out insults on her brother, Elvin.
As Eunhyeon teased Count Orba with words and changed her mood, Erin also felt strange and her pulse went out.
Alex cautioned her Erin by tapping her elbow on her arm and making her weird expression.
“Sorry, sorry…”
“This is a bit difficult for me to bear.”
Seeing Alex, who hastily apologized to her and tried to keep her serious expression, but desperately tried to hold back her laughter, Erin formed her queer expression, and Erin hurriedly took her own. Covered the mouth
Thinking she was in for some trouble, Erin hurriedly looked around her.
She stared straight ahead at her, relieved in her heart that fortunately no one seemed to have witnessed her own mistake.
“Ah…”
As soon as her gaze met that of a woman, Erin gave a small sigh.
Because she met eyes with Queen Diane, who is currently the highest authority in the country, who is sitting on a throne higher than the podium of the moderator who is conducting the trial.
‘Look, did you see… ?’
She trembled a little and looked at Queen Diane’s expression, but Diane only glared at herself with her eyebrows narrowed.
“…”
A look I don’t like.
Receiving that gaze from her queen, Erin was taken aback.
She really didn’t like that she couldn’t hold back her laughter in this courtroom. The queen was only looking at Erin.
‘You must have been very angry… What to do…’
Erin reflexively looked at her Eunhyun.
Now it has become Erin’s habit to seek out her Eun-hyeon whenever she seems to be in trouble.
However, since Eun-hyeon was still having a one-sided argument with Count Orba, she was not in a situation where she could solve Erin’s problems.
Sensing her embarrassment, Erin eventually lowered her head, avoiding Queen Diane’s gaze.
As Eunhyeon unilaterally angered Count Orba, the quarrel between the two who had the initiative in the conversation came to an end soon.
It was because one person intervened in the conversation between the two.
“Stop.”
“… Yes. Queen Mama.”
Count Orba, who was glaring at Eunhyeon unable to overcome his anger with a short word, quickly withdrew.
“Sinner. Is the information that another demon is lurking inside Pernin reliable?”
“If you’re not sure, would you just let them die?”
“Never answer a question with a question.”
I wonder if Eun-hyeon’s words were jarring, and Diane frowned at him, so she spoke with the meaning of a warning.
Eunhyeon, who understood Diane’s implied meaning, along with the meaning of ‘don’t mess around anymore,’ smiled and nodded his head.
“I see it as very, very likely.”
“Right.”
Queen Diane nodded her head slightly at her silver words.
“I will complete the interrogation of the criminal, Eun-hyeon, and withdraw this trial.”
“Wow, Her Highness the Queen!”
The most surprised by Diane’s declaration was Count Orpah, who was leading the trial.
Up until now, the plan to condemn Riod, the Artia Knights, and Illyana Kennifer to be held accountable under the pretext of the execution of Eun-Hyeon as a criminal has all gone back to nothing.
Not paying attention to his gaze and shouts, Diane continued her words.
“It is definitely a great thing to chase after the traces of the black magician since the Baron Hersha incident, and to kill the demon who is the main culprit of the serial raid that took place in Pernin this time.”
After listening to the queen’s words, the countenance of Orba and many nobles begin to change rapidly.
Because she knew what she was trying to say through what she was referring to, because of the throne she was sitting on and the position she held, no one could stop her and stare blankly at her queen. I was just watching.
“I declare that Eun-hyeon, who has accumulated high achievements, will be given the title of ‘honorary noble’, baronet, and return the ‘Hersha’ family of Erin Hersha to the line of a baronet.”
“Her Highness the Queen!”
“Nonsense!”
“How can you do such a lowly thing!”
After a moment of silence, the atmosphere in the courtroom became noisy as the astonished nobles stood up in groups and protested to Queen Diane.
Eunhyun and Erin, who were at the center of the topic, just stayed still.
To be precise, the reactions of the two were different.
Erin didn’t really realize that the title of her family had returned, which she hadn’t expected, though she had an expression of confusion rather than joy.
In Eunhyeon’s case, she was just laughing at what was interesting.
“Wow, wow…”
“Congratulations.”
Alex’s congratulatory voice came from beside her, but Erin only stared blankly at Alex with a complicated expression.
“Uh, that… Gotta love this… ?”
Erin falls into the category of ‘fallen aristocrats’, who fell when her family titles were confiscated by the country because of her father and her brother’s affairs.
Therefore, it is true that she has accomplished a great feat in that she has resurrected her fallen family, but Erin herself has never been very interested in her family from the beginning.
With no real conception of her title, and her memory of her family being only those horrible memories overlaid by her abuse of her father, Erin was very proud of her own family. Never had an attachment.
Her surname Hersha, like her older brother Elvin, was the only connection between her now and Erin and Elvin, so there was no particular meaning to her using the surname Hersha other than that.
From a national point of view, it was a very unconventional reward to restore the families of high treason criminals who made the country riot back to the nobility, but it was not such a big reward for Erin.
Besides, now the only remaining person in Hersha’s baronet family is herself, a woman.
“At least in restoring your brother’s honor, it would be more effective for you to become more famous and build up merit.”
“That…”
It’s as if my brother became that way because of the nobility of this country.
The idea of doing something good for the country to clear her brother’s name was emotionally repulsive to young Erin.
As Erin had such complicated thoughts, she asked Eunhyun to speak up as she raised her hand that was handcuffed to her.
Seeing Eunhyeon’s actions, Queen Diane opened her mouth.
“Do you have something to say?”
“I mean that. The title is a bit difficult, isn’t it?”
“… What?”
Queen Diane’s eyebrows twitched for the first time as she narrowed her brows and gave a consistent expression of her frown.
“That honorary noble title. I will not accept it.”
“What?!”
“How dare you, lowly commoner!”
“To refuse the mercy bestowed by the Queen, the mother of this country!”
“There has to be a certain amount of arrogance!”
When the aristocrats, who protested that she should not be given the title, refuse to accept the title this time, the way she stares at Eun-hyeon as if to kill her is quite funny.
‘Which rhythm should I play it to?’
Eun-hyeon, who had a puzzled look on her face even thinking about that, opened her mouth to the queen who was sitting on the throne and glaring at her.
“For now, me? Still, I have a witch as my boss. If my witch finds out about this, I will die. So please can’t you save me? Queen? Yes?”
The man who had been fooling Count Orba with words until now had gone, and the man in front of him begging him to save his life was shabby.
Even though they knew that Illyana was with them at the courthouse, Alex and Erin also put on an amazing expression at Eun-hyeon’s acting, even changing her facial expression and begging for her life.
“So is that devil, and here, again, there is a woman who preys on others.”
“…”
At the sight of Illyana slowly walking toward the center of the judge, towards Eun-hyeon, all the nobles around her stepped back behind her and made a path for her to pass.
Jamot, paying no attention to the attitude of the nobles around her who seemed to be serving the queen of this country, Illyana walked towards Eunhyeon and stared at Queen Diane.
“If you are acquitted, just go there. What reward, you dare to put a title on her leash?”
Illyana, frowning, grabbed Eun-hyeon by the collar and pulled her towards herself.
“… Illyana?”
To her sudden action, Eunhyeon didn’t even have time to react, Illyana proudly covered his lips with her own.
“Town?!”
Even her surprise was startled for a moment, and Eunhyeon tried to take her lips off Illyana, but Illyana took another bite and put her tongue in her mouth.
“Uhhh… Chu.”
“Wow, wow…”
It was Erin who was most embarrassed.
Even though her face was dyed red, she couldn’t take her eyes off the intense kiss Eunhyeon and Illyana shared, and it wasn’t just Erin, but the others as well.
Soon after, a brief silence came in the courtroom until the couple separated their faces after a short kiss.
That short silence soon causes a great uproar.
“What is this!”
“How disrespectful!”
“Eh, the witch has a lover… !?”
“Quiet!”
Once again Queen Diane’s roar broke out and the judge’s turmoil subsided.
Queen Diane, frowning, glared at her Illyana and opened her mouth.
“Witch, no matter how you are, it is unacceptable to show such obscene behavior in a gathering of many nobles.”
“It’s a mark.”
“Mark… ?”
Illyana, licking her own lips as if savoring the touch of her silver lips and her tongue, snorted at her and showed her confident demeanor.
“He is mine. Don’t even touch me. Oh, it doesn’t matter if he takes it. Because she was the daughter of an aristocrat in this country in the first place. How is it? Congratulations.”
“Iliana-sama… It’s too much.”
Erin pulled the collar of her silver bow towards herself and looked at Illyana as she warned Queen Diane with a beastly expression marking her territory, and put on a really sad expression.
