Once he finished, Kaijin let out a tired sigh.
I could understand his perspective. There must’ve been a lot of resentment built up over the years from that.
Still…man, Vester’s just a total storybook villain, isn’t he? They don’t come easier to spot than that. As far as the minister was concerned, Kaijin could make a comeback in the military and threaten his position at any time. That kind of thing.
Didn’t he deserve the death penalty, really? Maybe not, but…
“So,” Kaijin concluded, “maybe he’ll settle down a bit if I leave the country for a while.”
He sounded a bit forlorn about it, but at least he had backup. The three brothers with us were just as aware of the truth, and there was no love lost for Vester among them, either. Hell, even I hated him now.
Still, Kaijin did sock a noble, so I kind of wondered whether they were just gonna release us and wave good-bye.
“I wouldn’t worry about it,” Kaijin reassured me. “I’m out of the army now, but I did make it up to the corps leader. As far as my social position goes, I’m just below baron. If it were strictly commoner versus nobleman in the courts, well, hanging might’ve entered the picture.”
He accentuated that morbid fact with a hearty laugh.
Meanwhile, I just sat there. If things got rough, I’d hightail it outta here—but otherwise, I was happy being a good little slime until cooler heads prevailed.
✦ ✦ ✦
Our day in court arrived soon after, and the entire lot of us were brought in front of the monarch.
The Heroic King of the dwarves.
Now that I was seeing him in person, his stately aura was almost awe inspiring.
His Majesty Gazel Dwargo closed his eyes and sat deeply upon his throne. He was stocky, dwarflike in appearance, and his exposed armor-like muscles positively radiated energy. His skin was a deep, dark brown, and his black hair was pulled back on his head.
He exuded pure strength. My fight-or-flight instincts kicked in all the way for the first time in ages.
Two knights were stationed near him, one on each side. They were equally muscle-bound, no doubt, but they still looked wispy compared to their ruler. Seriously, this guy was a monster. I’d been planning to beat a hasty retreat if I needed to, but now… Not so much. The moment I was placed in front of him, my every nerve was wound taut.
It might have been the first time in this world that I actually sensed a clear danger to myself.
✦ ✦ ✦
A man knelt in front of the king, checking over something with him. After receiving permission, he stood up and read the affidavit.
“We will now begin the trial! Silence, everyone!”
For the next hour, both sides presented their cases. As criminal suspects, we weren’t allowed to speak—in the royal court, that right was reserved for those with a rank of earl or greater. Otherwise, you needed the king’s express permission. If you did speak out of turn, that apparently proved your guilt on the spot and earned you a bonus contempt-of-court charge.
Whether you were innocent or not, that was the way this place worked. We were stuck having our representative speak for us. He had paid us a few visits during our two days in custody, discussing the nature of our case. Our kind-of lawyer, basically.
Could we trust him, though? Anxieties like that had a tendency to crop up for a reason…
“So there Sir Vester was,” he continued, “sitting back at this club and enjoying an alcoholic beverage, when this gang pushed their way into the place and exposed him to dreadful violence! This is not the kind of behavior that should ever be forgiven!”
“Is that the truth?”
“It is, my liege! I heard it from Kaijin himself, and I also have written testimony from the owners of the club. There can be no mistaking the course of events that night!”
…Um, what? What did he just say? I thought he was on our side, and it took all of five minutes for him to go turncoat. That can’t be good, can it?
I shot a look at Kaijin—his face turned bright red, then slowly began draining of color.
I’ll bet. Our lawyer wasn’t even bothering to make excuses for us.
It went without saying that representatives for the accused weren’t allowed to lie in court. If they were found out, that would be another hanging. It was impossible to think any would-be lawyer would attempt it, barring extreme circumstances, and yet ours was doing it right in front of us.
“My liege!” Vester exclaimed, egging him on. “You have heard it for yourself! I beg of you to deal with these miscreants harshly!”
He flashed us a smile of supreme confidence.
Bastard. Maybe I should’ve hit him after all.