Death, Devotion, Dissonance

Chapter 160 - Trial (pt. 1)

Alvich regarded Kasna with a level gaze before replying.

"It is true, that your son has been killed. And as we all know, Horn-bearer Ssatsko here admitted to his murder. That doesn't mean we can simply charge him for a murder and tow him away. There are many reasons a man should kill another."

Endra found it interesting that the old man would use the same words as he did. Kasna must've noticed it too, as he went off in a rage.

"You're with that boy, aren't you? This is all a conspiracy, isn't it?" he bellowed.

"What are you saying?" Alvich responded.

"The boy said the exact same things to me earlier! That means you two must be in cahoots with each other!"

"People say similar things all the time," Alvich sighed. "Please don't jump to conclusions."

"Then what's the point of this trial in the first place? Why are there so many people gathered around listening to this bullshit when my son's murderer is sitting right there?"

"Sir Kasna, I understand why you would be angry, but you must know that the circumstances of your son's death are most suspicious. Why would he appear in a 3rd grade's house in the middle of the night? Do you have any ideas on that?"

"Of course I do! These people are all lying! They must've killed my son and brought them to their house so they can concoct this plan!"

'This guy's really something, isn't he?' Endra thought with a smile, before taking control of Evin's body.

"Objection, your honor. We've found traces of World energies inside the house and we also have witnesses who saw the event unfold."

"And who might you be, young man?" Alvich asked.

"My name is Eviendra, son of Lora, grandson of Ssatsko. I'm also representing the Viscount's authority and am overseeing this murder case," Endra said, pulling out a letter from the Viscount and showing it to the old Inspector. As Alvich was reading through it, Evin explained the Viscount's intents to prepare the future generations.

"And what would you be doing as the overseer of this trial?"

"Of course, I will make sure proper justice is delivered."

"Bullshit, that boy's only there to save that murderer from true justice," Kasna interfered. "And isn't he the man's grandson? This is blatant nepotism, Inspector!" 

"This is slander against the Viscount," Endra said, hiding his urge to sigh. "He is a man of principle, of desire for fairness, and of truth. He noticed the dubious details in this murder case and wanted to get to the bottom of it. As his representative, of course I shall not abuse his powers to help my family. If Ssatsko is found guilty by your honor, then I shall accept the outcome with grace. Same as the Viscount."

Endra noticed Bella rolling her eyes at his side, but the girl had to swallow her protest. 

"You say these grand things, but you still stand on your grandfather's side?" Alvich asked, smiling.

"Of course," Endra replied. "Just as baron Kasna believes wholeheartedly his son is innocent, I also believe my grandfather is innocent. I will defend his honor… But like I said, the decision lay in your hands."

"Very well," Alvich nodded. "You mentioned witnesses?"

Endra then prompted the few witnesses he'd gathered to speak. 

"It's true, your honor. Woke up in the middle of the night hearing some noise from ol' Ssatsko's house. Thought he was getting robbed or something and decided to go help, but just as I was coming, I saw a masked man frantically running out of the house, stones flying behind him. I noticed he was a mage and decided to get as far away as possible. Woke up my wife and kids and went as far as possible."

"I saw the same thing as well!" another woman spoke. "After the man ran away, I walked in to check inside their house, only to see Ssatsko over there standing next to a corpse of a man! I got scared I just witnessed a murder and I went to the guards to tell them about it, your honor!"

The woman said it in a rather dodgy way, but it was good enough. She was honest and Alvich wouldn't think that Endra just paid a bunch of people to help with the trial.

Couple other people spoke of their stories, with similar contents.

"From these witness accounts, it's obvious that your son has infiltrated a 3rd grade's house with someone else," Alvich concluded. "Any objections?"

"This is slander! These people must've been paid by that Evin boy over there."

"In that case, here are two more witnesses that have come out, telling the same story," Alvich said.

It was a young couple, who looked weirdly ashamed. With Alvich's urging, they spoke of what they saw.

"Us two were, uh, meeting in an alleyway near Mr. Theor's house, when we saw two men walking to the house. It was night, so we tried not to make any noise, since you know, they could be dangerous and all and just watched. But then one of them opened the lock through some kind of device. We don't know what it was. It made a soft clanking sound and the door's lock just fell to the ground. 

"We know Mr. Theor's house has a very strong lock, so we realized that they may be mages. We ran away the moment they entered the house, afraid of being spotted by them. We knew we should've spoken out about it earlier, but we were just too afraid, thinking we'll get killed by the mages."

Endra couldn't help but grin listening to the story. With this, he just had to prove that Ssatsko was acting in self-defense when stabbing the dead mage in the head.

"As you've heard," Alvich said. "These two and the other witnesses have proven that your son and another man infiltrated the house last night. Or would you call me a liar as well?" 

"…"

"Finally, we can get to the second point. Do you have any idea why your son would do this?"

"No…" Kasna said, practically growling. "But even if he has infiltrated their house, there's no reason for him to be killed like that."

"Hmm, Mr. Ssatsko says he did it in self-defense," Alvich replied.

"But from what I've heard, he attacked them first! How is that self-defense? Who just kills a stranger in their house? I'm not saying it's normal to trespass into someone's house, but to kill them because of it?" 

Endra grinned when he heard Kasna say this, but he did not show it on Evin's lips.