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“That is far too broad an inquisition. Even at this moment, the threat of vampires may be approaching Sandokar, so could you not clearly narrow the scope of the inquiry? You summoned a field commander and said you would dig into every trivial matter from decades ago. Is that not far too much of a waste of time?”
Everyone was flustered by Azadine’s bold words. An inquisition was originally something where, once it began, the one summoned would tremble and not know what to do.
However, Azadine criticized the unproductive nature of the inquisition with an indifferent attitude. For someone summoned to an inquisition, he was far too confident.
“Sir Azadine. You have been summoned now for the crime of private war. The crime of arbitrarily raising the Order’s banner and waging war against the Banreung Kingdom is a grave offense for which burning at the stake is possible. To speak frankly, you should be grateful that we have not killed you immediately and are at least holding an inquisition like this.”
Bishop Sehnat argued that Azadine had committed a mortal sin. Ordinary people would be shocked and flustered if execution was mentioned even in passing like this.
But Azadine, who had experienced every hardship under the sun, calmly defended himself.
“So I am saying that we should hold the inquiry only on this part about the crime of private war. Letting this drag on too long is unproductive.”
“Nonsense! What I am saying is that your crime is great, so you should bow your head!”
“I am claiming innocence, yet Your Excellency already seems to consider me a criminal. Then why are you holding an inquisition at all?”
“You insolent—! You claim innocence? After invading the Banreung Kingdom and slaughtering its prince? Not only are you lawless, you are brazen as well!”
“I did not fight the legitimate Banreung Kingdom. I fought the vampires hiding inside the Banreung Kingdom.”
“You expect us to believe that absurd report claiming Prince Kalzmati of Banreung was a vampire?”
“Well, the absurd event of the Northern Emperor’s children and members of the Rescue Knights Order grinding up angel statues and reincarnating as Celestials is also happening. Compared to that, is this not a far more believable testimony? From the look of it, Your Excellency also seems to be doing this after receiving a promise that you will be reincarnated as a Celestial….”
“You?!”
At Azadine’s counterattack, Bishop Sehnat’s face hardened.
He had never seen a subordinate challenge him so openly. Moreover, Azadine seemed to see right through the promise that had existed between him and the Northern Emperor as clearly as if it were in the palm of his hand.
Azadine had merely guessed that this was probably the case, but from Bishop Sehnat’s reaction, he could tell that it was true.
“Y-you dare….”
The bishop’s hand trembled.
“Isn’t the reason you are trying to hold an inquisition ultimately because your own filthy side was exposed, and you are angry about that, so you are taking it out on me? From the look of it, you did not even read the statement and came running here excitedly because you thought this was your chance to beat this fellow down. If you are going to hold an inquisition, should you not hold one for the people who ground up angel statues and drank them before holding one for me? You leave them alone and apply strict standards only to me. Your true intentions are far too obvious.”
“…….”
The Tercio soldiers and the gathered Fire Guards flinched in surprise. Since these facts had not yet been revealed to them, few people properly understood what Azadine was saying in this inquisition.
But the problem was that they had already heard it.
“Um. Sir Azadine. There are many listening ears for such confidential matters….”
Prince Kalintz tried to stop Azadine.
“Then remove the troops.”
“…That would also be difficult.”
“Then shall we continue this inquisition in a broad direction? Very broadly, without limiting it to this crime of private war? Would you be satisfied if I spoke here of what I saw in Saint Mallory while all these people watched and listened?”
“…….”
Bishop Sehnat was choking and gasping. To think that this bloodstain, this soulless blasphemer, this ugly clan member of god-king slayers, would insolently defy him, a bishop.
And yet, Azadine actually had the hilt in his grasp. He could not allow Azadine to speak as he pleased.
“…Let us limit it to the crime of private war.”
Triodana asked the bishop to accept Azadine’s proposal. As a Celestial, he did not welcome the Celestial secret being exposed to the whole world.
“Then good. Since you have narrowed it to the crime of private war, the possibility that this useless inquisition will end a little earlier has increased.”
“Useless, you say. Do you intend to insult the members of this inquisition?”
Triodana rebuked Azadine on behalf of Bishop Sehnat, who could not speak.
“Is the key issue not whether what I testified is true or false? But in reality, Count Sandokar requested my help. If Count Sandokar is not a traitor to the Banreung Kingdom, then naturally it means my claim is correct, and that is why he sought my assistance, does it not?”
“There are suspicions that in that matter, you annexed Sandokar by force.”
“Then dispatch an investigation team, inspect Sandokar on-site, and summon Count Sandokar to ask him. It seems the inquisition should be held after that. Right now, you do not seem to be prepared yet.”
Azadine pointed out the inquisition’s sloppiness. From the perspective of a fair trial, he was pointing out that the prosecution side had made no preparations at all.
Of course, an inquisition was originally not a fair trial. It was a formal procedure in which the prosecution side kept throwing out suspicions, the defendant answered those suspicions with sincerity and effort, and then they decided whether to punish him.
In other words, the moment one was put under inquisition, the accused defendant had one foot on the execution platform.
However, Azadine calmly claimed his innocence and shifted the burden of proof onto the prosecutors. Bishop Sehnat, who had barely caught his breath, raged in a metallic voice like some harpy.
“How rude! Know that I can punish you based solely on the rudeness you have shown toward your superior just now! Do you have no intention of explaining the suspicions pouring down upon you?”
“Shouldn’t the side raising the suspicions be the one to prove them? If that is how it works, then I, too, feel suspicion that Bishop Sehnat has joined hands with the Northern Emperor and is selling off the Rescue Knights Order in exchange for being reborn as a Celestial after death.”
“What?! You rude wretch! What are you all doing?! There is nothing more to see! This man is a traitor! He is clearly a spy planted in the Order by the Messenger Clan!”
When the enraged Bishop Sehnat jumped up and down and gave orders to those around him, Triodana and Gareth were placed in an awkward position.
Azadine’s remarks were clearly provoking the bishop, and on top of that, they were rebellious. But he was telling the truth.
It was true that Bishop Sehnat had been tempted by the Northern Emperor’s enticement, using reincarnation as a Celestial as bait. Then it was likely also true that Azadine was blocking Banreung’s vampires in Sandokar.
Given Azadine’s abilities, having suddenly appeared when the Grain Transport Ships were in danger of burning and saved them, the Rescue Knights Order would have to pay a tremendous sacrifice if they tried to kill him.
No, his absence itself would be a loss of military strength and a loss of talent.
“What are you all doing! This is an order! Shoot this man!”
When the soldiers hesitated, the bishop gave them an order.
The Tercio soldiers glanced at Gareth to read his mood. Gareth looked over them and the bishop, then gestured.
The Tercio soldiers positioned in the audience seats all aimed their guns at the defendant’s seat at once.
“So you are saying you can shoot me dead at Your Excellency’s whim without even holding a proper trial? Are you not ashamed?”
Azadine mocked the bishop’s conduct.
“You brought this on yourself! You rude wretch!”
“…….”
However, at that moment, Fireglyph’s soldiers, the Fire Guards who had been guarding the inquisition hall, aimed their spears from behind the Tercio soldiers.
“Stop this. A brawl in my chapter’s jurisdiction, and in a sacred courtroom at that. I absolutely cannot permit it.”
Prince Kalintz had stepped forward.
“Kalintz.”
Triodana was flustered as he looked at Prince Kalintz, who had sided with Azadine in this situation.
He had clearly gone to Kalintz separately before the inquisition and given him notice, yet Kalintz had sided with Azadine.
The Tercio soldiers of the Courage Order flinched in surprise when the Fire Guards aimed spears at them. The Tercio Regiment was famous for its terrifying power, but at close range, they had to fight with cold weapons.
Since the Fire Guards stood behind them, they could not make use of the advantage of firearms.
“If all of you do not take your hands off the triggers, this courtroom will be stained with blood. What will you do?”
When Prince Kalintz said this and gave a hand signal, the Fire Guards moved swiftly. Seeing that there was not the slightest wavering in them, it seemed they had already been prepared to strike the Tercio from behind in the worst-case scenario.
‘He told us to leave it to him because it was his brother, but he failed to win him over completely.’
Sir Gareth knew that Triodana had arrived at Fireglyph first in order to win Kalintz over in advance. But that persuasion had failed splendidly.
‘There is no need to shed pointless blood.’
Sir Gareth knew Prince Kalintz was serious and gestured to his subordinates.
“Everyone, stop. If anyone fights inside this courtroom, I will not permit it, no matter who they are.”
When Sir Gareth stopped them, the Tercio soldiers withdrew their weapons. The Fire Guards saw that and also withdrew their arms.
“Then, Sir Azadine. Continue.”
Gareth withdrew the Tercio soldiers and asked Azadine to continue speaking.
“Y-you blasphemous scoundrels!”
Bishop Sehnat was furious at Gareth’s act of betraying him.
From Bishop Sehnat’s perspective, there were three men committing insubordination—Gareth, Kalintz, and Azadine—so he could not endure it.
“Out of consideration for the labor of the inquisitors who came all this way, I also showed sincerity. But wicked vampires may be attacking Sandokar even now, and I am worried that I may fail to fulfill my duty because of my absence. Is the most important mission of the Rescue Knights Order not to protect innocent humans from the hands of evil? Therefore, if you intend to prosecute me, I hope you will gather more evidence before doing so. Prosecuting someone on mere suspicions and then verbally squeezing the defendant until he confesses to a crime is something barbarians would do, not something the Rescue Knights Order should do. Then, may I go?”
“How insolent! Sir Azadine! Until you properly answer my suspicions, we will continue holding this inquisition! Sit down!”
Bishop Sehnat shouted that.
“This is serious!”
Jan, Prince Kalintz’s trusted subordinate, rushed into the inquisition hall in a panic.
“What serious matter? Where do you think this place is….”
Bishop Sehnat, who was already irritated, felt anger as well when he saw a messenger daring to barge into the inquisition.
An inquisition was an extremely solemn event within the Rescue Knights Order. Yet here, not only was the one receiving it rebellious, but now a messenger had entered as well. Everything was a mess.
“If I do not inform you immediately, it will be difficult to handle.”
But Jan spoke with a grave expression, did he not?
“Excuse us, Your Excellency. Let us hear him.”
Prince Kalintz asked Sir Gareth and Sir Triodana for their understanding, then questioned him.
“What is it that you are making such a fuss? To dare barge into the inquisition hall. If it is a trivial matter, you will not escape punishment!”
“They say the Banreung Kingdom has fallen!”
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