CHAPTER 100: TRIAL

His face immediately turned pale upon hearing the guard’s words. He had no idea why he was in court, especially since he hadn’t committed any crimes. Damn it, what’s going on?

"What about the others? Are they going through the same thing as me?"

"Just come with me now." The guard removed the shackles from his feet and placed another pair on his hands. "We’re going to the courtroom."

"Wait, wait a minute. This is all a misunderstanding," Shaan said. "I haven’t committed any crime at all."

"Say all that in front of the council," the guard said, forcibly pulling Shaan’s hand. "Now, come with me."

"But..."

"Shut up!" the guard yelled. "If you talk one more time, I will surely punch your face! Understand!"

"I...I get it."

They walked for several minutes in silence until the officer stopped in front of a large, thick iron door. The door appeared to be designed to block any sound from escaping the room behind it.

’Knock! Knock! Knock!’

"I have the prisoner with me. Open the door—I need to enter the courtroom."

A few seconds passed, and then the iron door creaked open. Behind it stood a large, dimly lit hall.

’God... I didn’t expect this. I never imagined this place would be so full.

As Shaan walked alongside the guard toward the center of the room, he noticed that nearly every seat was occupied. The entire crowd stayed silent as he passed by them, and their eyes fixed on him with cold, piercing stares. No one spoke a word.

’Why do they look at me like that? I’m not an intruder. But why are they all staring at me like...like I’m a criminal?’

It felt like Shaan wanted to say everything in his head about the truth. The truth they should know is that Doppleshade was there and made all this chaotic, but unfortunately... Without evidence, it was all just nonsense, and everyone would think he was crazy for saying it.

"Now, sit here." The guard directed Shaan to a chair in the middle of the room. "The trial will begin soon."

Shaan sat down and began to look around, but he didn’t see Nalira, Chelsie, or Mr. Courier anywhere. Damn, he thought I’d find them here.

"Where are they ?"

"They already faced their trials and received the punishment they deserved for their actions," said a black-haired woman as she revealed herself from one of the tall chairs in front of Shaan.

Shaan fell silent for a moment, and his face turned pale. ’W-wait, how does she know what I’m thinking? Who is this woman really?’

"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Madam Yashina Justicia, leader of the Twilight Conclave faction," she said calmly. "I will be presiding over the trial, Mr Shaan Devansh. It is time to begin today’s proceedings."

The sound of the hammer striking the table instantly silenced the room. The woman then picked up a sheet of paper from her desk and read each line aloud.

"Defendant Shaan Devansh, were you involved in the attack at the gate?"

"No, I was not involved in that attack at all," Shaan explained. "My friends and I had already passed through the gate long before the explosion occurred."

Hearing Shaan’s words, the woman simply nodded. "I understand. However, this document clearly states that you committed several violations. One of them was ignoring the guards and forcing their way through the suspension bridge. How do you explain this?"

"...."

"Defendant, you are welcome to explain what happened in front of all the witnesses."

Shaan was silent for a moment before finally speaking. "I did violate the rules by ignoring the guard’s warning, but I did so because I wanted to save myself and my friends from the dark creatures that were trying to kill us.

"Alright. How can you explain the accusation of attempting to steal Manacite crystals from the Twilight Sanctum underground mine?"

"Alright. How do you explain the accusation of attempting to steal the Manacite crystal from the underground mine of Twilight Sanctum?"

"Theft?" Shaan furrowed his brow. "No, no. That’s all a misunderstanding. I had no intention of stealing anything."

"So, what were you doing there? Why were you in the underground mine?"

"When I fell from the suspension bridge and was trying to find a way out, I saw a large hole near the cliff. I tried to inspect the hole, but ended up falling into an underground cave containing the Manacite crystal."

"SLAM!"

"Liar!" shouted a man with spiked silver hair, breaking the silence. He sat beside Madam Yashina. "He’s lying! He attacked the cave guards and destroyed several Manacite crystals. I received the report by myself!"

The atmosphere in the room grew increasingly tense as everyone listened to the man’s words. Everyone in the courtroom stared cynically at Shaan, realizing that he had not said anything to them at all. Damn, it seemed that everyone was beginning to think that Shaan had deliberately hidden this from them.

"N-no, it’s not what you think," Shaan said, his face turning pale as he looked at the witnesses. "I-I didn’t steal anything. I just tried to survive when the guards suddenly attacked me after I opened the door that held the Manacite crystal."

"Then how do you explain the chaos in the cave that left several guards dead?"

"I had nothing to do with the chaos in the cave," Shaan said firmly. "When I managed to escape from the Manacite crystal room, there was a sudden mysterious explosion, and it turned out there was a dark creature—"

"A dark creature?" The silver-haired man laughed derisively. "Nonsense, what are you talking about? How could a dark creature possibly—"

"Sir Kael Huegen, please do not interrupt the defendant before he finishes speaking."

"Alright, Madam Yashina,"

"Defendant Shaan Devansh, please continue your statement."

"Yes. Madam Yashina." Shaan nodded his head. "The dark creature I saw at that time was not an ordinary dark creature. It...it was doppleshade.

"Doppleshade?"

"That’s right. A doppleshade that has mutated."

’Hhhhkh!’

Everyone in the room gasped simultaneously upon hearing Shaan’s words. None of them had expected that the chaos in the cave was not caused by a dark creature that had managed to enter that place.

"Wait a second," Sir Kael interrupted. "If you’re telling the truth, then why didn’t the guards find any trace of a Doppleshade like the one you described?"