Chapter 12:
Court of Inquiry
"MASTER, I am sorry..."
Even as Amagi prepared for her own destruction, she was thinking
about Liam, the young man she would be leaving behind. She knew how
hurt he would be by her loss. Other nobles disapproved of Liam placing so
much importance on a "doll," and she always knew that she would have to
leave his side eventually, but this seemed like the wrong time. Amagi was
filled with guilt at the thought of how saddened Liam would be by her
absence.
That was when one of the accessories incorporated into her dress
activated, deploying a shield around her. This defensive field was the same
type often used by nobles in their clothing, and it protected Amagi from
the laser beam the Guide fired at her.
Still, the Guide wasn't discouraged. "Ha ha ha ha! I know accessory
shields like that are single-use! If I just keep attacking you...and attacking
you..."
The Guide pulled his handgun's trigger again and again, shooting
countless laser beams at Amagi, but no matter how many times he did so,
nothing penetrated her shield. The gun eventually ran out of charges,
simply clicking pathetically and no longer able to fire. The Guide's
expression twisted into something unreadable, and Amagi wasn't sure
herself how to react.
"Were you not going to destroy me?"
Her impassive face took on a subtle look of exasperation. The man
had been so enthusiastic about taking her out, and yet he only had a single
handgun incapable of penetrating her shield. She expected him to be much
better prepared, but apparently that wasn't the case. Even the strange black
mist that held her in place didn't seem to have enough strength to actually
crush her further.
Frankly, the stranger's attempt was just too pathetic.
The Guide was getting agitated now, unable to withstand her chilly
gaze. "D-don't look at me like that!"
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The Guide threw his gun aside and ran off. "Dammit! I'm too low
on negative emotions! I need to gather more and then throw them at Liam!
No more backwards schemes! I'll use everything I've got to kill him!!!"
Amagi watched the Guide run off, ranting wildly. Once she was able
to move again, she cocked her head. "What exactly was that man...?"
Had she met some sort of supernatural entity? It made Amagi
anxious that the thing had mentioned Liam. "Has Master been keeping
some sort of secret from us?"
In the past, she had occasionally noticed unexplainable phenomena
that seemed connected to her master. A being like the one she just
encountered might explain some of those phenomena. While frightening,
the being was also strangely incompetent, but that didn't stop Amagi from
worrying about what it said to her.
"Is Master really as gifted by fortune as he believes?" This new
knowledge that some sort of supernatural being had it out for Liam spurred
her to act. "I will need to change my plans. It is all for Master's sake..."
Learning of the Guide led Amagi to make a decision of her own.
***
Liam had brought down a spaceship with a sword. Normally, no one
would believe such a preposterous claim, but unfortunately it was the
truth, and was witnessed by numerous individuals. There was even video
footage, which immediately circulated far and wide. Liam's feat was soon
known not just throughout the Capital Planet, but the entire Empire. The
event forced everyone to acknowledge the true might of the Way of the
Flash.
Calvin sat with his elbows on his desk, his fingers entwined in front
of his mouth. "Attacking the Capital Planet with a spaceship. I can't
believe they did something that stupid."
The attack had been planned by the upset nobles who lost loved
ones in the war and left Calvin's faction to pursue revenge. Calvin didn't
expect them to do something quite so idiotic. He made a big mistake by
not monitoring them. Even though these nobles severed their association
with him, everyone knew they were previously associated.
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Calvin's current reputation was that of a coward who ran from the
war and forced the burden of fighting onto his younger brother. Now, his
reputation also had to suffer the accusations that he was the fool who
failed to assassinate Liam.
The prince eyed the box that sat before him on his desk. It was full
of broken cores—the corpses of his ninjas. When they had been whole,
these cores allowed the ninjas to burst into flame and alter their shape. The
box was waiting for him on his desk when he got up this morning. There
was only one thing it could mean.
"They're saying they could kill me whenever they want."
He underestimated Liam's operatives. Between this and his ruined
reputation, Calvin was in deep trouble.
"So now I'm the one who's been driven into a corner."
He thought he had Liam cornered before the events of the war with
the United Kingdom, but things worked out differently in the end. Still,
Calvin couldn't simply give up. He needed to gather the nobles who
remained in his faction to discuss his strategy.
"There are still protests going on in Liam's domain. We can force
him to take responsibility for those..."
If he couldn't win on the battlefield, he'd just have to fight in
another arena. Calvin now had his sights set on the one weakness Liam
still faced: the unrest raging through his domain.
"The Empire won't let a democracy movement stand. If I can
mobilize the army to squash the protests, there'll be nothing left of Liam's
domain but a handful of razed planets. Let's see how much influence Liam
has after that."
As long as he could get rid of Count Banfield, Calvin had nothing to
fear from Cleo. Now was the time to make use of the secret card up his
sleeve.
***
An emergency court of inquiry was being held on the Empire's
Capital Planet. A group of idiot nobles had used a spaceship to launch an
attack on the Capital Planet, and they needed to be dealt with. I had been
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called as a witness to testify.
Well, I thought I was just being called to describe what had
happened, but for some reason, I was the one being portrayed as the
perpetrator of the event!
"I won't forget this humiliation." I ground my teeth in rage,
frustration eating me up inside.
I entered the court of inquiry in high spirits, but Calvin—who was in
attendance too—turned the tables on me. It pissed me off that he wore a
cool look on his face and pretended to be looking off into the distance, as
if he had nothing to do with this. I knew he was the reason I was in this
mess in the first place.
Calvin had shamed me in front of the court, making me into a
laughingstock. Lately, I was thinking he was incompetent, but he really
pulled one over on me. I vowed to get my revenge.
I'll kill you with my bare hands! You won't get away with this,
dammit!
As I hung my head and quaked with anger, the prime minister and
the important nobles who were in charge of the investigation looked down
on me from their higher positions in the courtroom. Most of them only
looked to be in their thirties, at least in terms of my past life. I couldn't
stand all their eyes on me.
"Let's wrap this up, shall we?" the prime minister said.
The assembled nobles began to reprimand me.
"Honestly, I can't believe you, Lord Liam."
"You really should take your position as a noble more seriously, you
know."
"You are a future duke, after all. You should act like one."
At first, the inquiry focused on the attack on the Capital Planet, but
Calvin suddenly brought into question my ability to govern my own
domain. It should have been clear that nobles who had formerly been part
of Calvin's faction were responsible for the attack, but Calvin had changed
the subject by demanding I take responsibility for an unrelated matter. The
nobles aligned with him joined in with his criticism. He used his status as
the crown prince to completely shift the topic of the hearing.
Now, important nobles stared at me with disapproving eyes, while
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the people directly responsible for this defamation of my character weren't
even looking my way. Did they think I wasn't even worth looking at
anymore?
I know your faces. None of you are getting away with this!
There were also nobles who were aligned with me at the hearing,
but they just gave me looks of pity.
Baron Exner tried to console me. "Lord Liam... I'm sorry."
Don't just apologize—do something! Help me, someone! Calvin...
you're the first one who's ever put me in such dire straits!
The prime minister banged his gavel to quiet everyone down. He
began, "As for Count Banfield..."
"Ugh." I clenched my fists, my head still bowed.
This can't be happening! This should never have happened!
I had taken Calvin too lightly. If only I hadn't underestimated him, I
wouldn't have had to suffer such bitter humiliation during this court of
inquiry. For now, I could do nothing but admit my defeat.
But only for now!
***
After the hearing, the nobles of Calvin's faction held their heads in
their hands. They made a big fuss during it, calling into question Liam's
abilities as a leader in order to drive him into a corner. They used whatever
means they could to interrupt the proceedings so they could turn things in
their favor, and the subject they forcefully brought up was the democracy
movement underway in Liam's domain. House Banfield's subjects were
undermining the Empire's rule, they claimed. By bringing up a topic the
Empire was sensitive about, they attempted to make Liam look like the one
who was on trial. However...
"Can someone explain this to me?"
A tired Calvin glanced at the faces of the other nobles, who sat with
him in a breakroom near the courtroom where the hearing took place. No
one could meet his eye.
He smiled weakly. "You know, the prime minister pulled me aside
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when he left. I was advised not to disgrace myself any more than I already
have."
He was smiling, but it was more of a mask. It was more accurate to
say that smiling was all he could do at this point.
One of the nobles attempted to make excuses. "Your Highness, our
agents in Liam's domain definitely did send us reports of a democracy
movement there. We were fooled, somehow."
"Does this look like a protest for democracy to you?"
A video had been played for the court of inquiry as evidence of the
democracy protests said to be taking place in Liam's domain. In the video,
Liam's subjects could be seen marching and holding placards. Calvin
replayed the video in the breakroom now, and his noble allies were forced
to watch the true nature of the protests in Liam's domain.
"Fulfill your duty as a noble!" a protestor chanted.
"Treat Lady Rosetta right! And give Miss Eulisia some attention
every once in a while too!"
"Yeah! Remember meeeee!!!"
At the end of the video, it showed that even Eulisia had joined the
protests. What Calvin's faction had thought was a democracy movement
was actually a movement urging Liam to sire an heir.
Calvin covered his face and laughed. In truth, he felt like crying, so
he had to cover his face to hide his true emotions. "I look like a fool now
for using this as evidence that Liam isn't competent to govern! Why did
anyone think this was a democracy movement in the first place?"
Calvin and the nobles had faraway looks on their faces like they
were avoiding reality. They had no idea what their video evidence really
depicted before they brought it up.
"Why did no one think to watch the entire video?"
Everyone in the room had been sure they possessed solid proof.
One of the nobles blamed the problem on their information network.
"A viscount who defected from our faction was the one who sent the spies,
you see. When he defected, we took his data and were supposed to take
over his spying operation, but..."
Human error. The operation hadn't transitioned to new hands
smoothly, and as a result they presented evidence to the hearing that
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wasn't properly vetted beforehand. The video had depicted a protest, sure,
but it was nothing like the one Calvin and his faction had anticipated.
After they played the video at the inquiry, the courtroom's hostile
air completely changed. Before the video, people were critical of Liam for
not quelling the democracy movement. That had also made them
unsympathetic toward him regarding the ship's attack on the Capital
Planet. They were ready to demand he be punished in some way.
After watching the "evidence" and seeing how Liam reacted to it
with embarrassment, those same people who reprimanded him softened
their tones greatly. Instead, they said things like, "Just try to be mindful of
your noble standing when possible," and, "Please be careful from now on,
would you?" The older nobles in attendance ended up looking at him
fondly, as if he were an adorable grandson. Some nobles even teased him,
as if the protests were the funniest thing they ever saw, while others simply
felt sorry for him.
When the dust settled, Liam got off far easier than it seemed he
would. That is to say, he was left completely unpunished. It was as if
Calvin actually protected Liam from any consequences he might otherwise
have suffered. On the other hand, the nobles' impression of Calvin
plummeted after viewing the video evidence. They felt he tried changing
the topic of the hearing just to get the heat off himself. So, even fighting in
this new, preferred arena, Calvin had again lost to Liam.
To Calvin, it felt as if a puny faction rallying around Cleo had crept
up right behind him, suddenly revealing itself to be big enough to present a
real challenge. It never should have been a faction that had any chance of
success, and yet...
Has fortune betrayed me? he wondered.
Being unlucky was more than enough reason one might end up dead
in the Empire. That went for crown princes as much as anyone else. Even
now, though, Calvin couldn't bring himself to give up quite yet.
"At this point, we can't afford to worry about our reputations
anymore," Calvin said, and the nobles of his faction steeled themselves for
what might come next.
***
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The world was full of idiots. After the attack on the party venue and
with the investigation and hearing concluded, the palace told me to take
some time off from my government internship. Now, I just luxuriated at
my hotel every day. I was even taking a break from throwing parties too.
Suspended from my duties, I had to chill out for a few months.
"Now my only problem is the people claiming they practice the
Way of the Flash."
According to the newspaper articles I saw, there were two of them,
and supposedly they launched attacks on the headquarters of the Ahlen and
Kurdan styles. Was this the price of fame? Impressive if so, but if they
were faking their credentials, I'd kill them myself.
This was an intergalactic nation, however. It might seem easy to
locate people with the level of technology we possessed, but it was
actually very difficult because of the sheer size of our territory. I didn't
have a clue where the two fakers might be.
Tia was making tea for me in my room, as if trying to win some
brownie points. When she returned from the war, she said to me, "Please
gift me with your praise, Lord Liam!" so I bluntly replied, "It's a gift
already that you work for me, isn't it?"
You know what she did after that? She nodded her head and
trembled with joy. You're that happy to be treated so coldly? I thought at
the time. Why don't you learn some class from Kukuri? Anyway, I was
keeping her nearby and putting her to work as her reward.
Tia handed me my tea and asked, "Isn't there the matter of the
protests as well, Lord Liam?"
"I'll crush them as soon as I go back to my domain. Who the hell do
these people think they are to make a fuss about my bedroom matters?"
I was furious with my subjects for demanding I make an heir with
Rosetta already. That's none of your damn business! Screw you! I'd take
care of those people as soon as I got home.
My troops were taking some well-earned time off now that they
were back from the war. It might surprise you, but I treated my troops
pretty well for being an evil lord. You could even say I was extra careful
with them. After all, I was only able to be so evil due to the overwhelming
military might they provided me with. I couldn't throw my weight around
like I did if I didn't have the power to back it up. Therefore, it would be
stupid not to value the military that provided me with that might.
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So, when it was time for my troops to rest, I had them rest properly.
I wouldn't put them to work again right away, but as soon as I did I was
going to have them stop those protests!
Tia laughed approvingly when she heard my response. She's pretty
evil herself if she's laughing about that.
"Well, it's a good thing there was no real democracy movement in
your domain, Lord Liam. Then you'd really have to suppress it instead of
just joking about it...or the Empire would be sending the regular army to
do it for you."
"I'm kind of wishing they'd just do that anyway, to be honest."
Calvin's faction brought up the protests at the court of inquiry as if
to make up for their own shame. The hearing was supposed to be about
them, but they put me on the spot instead. Calvin was well aware that he
had a better standing in the palace than I did, so he used his position to
throw a fit about a democracy movement in my domain. The Empire had a
real problem with democracy, so he successfully shifted the whole hearing
to that subject. When the Empire actually viewed the evidence, however,
what they found was not a democracy movement, but the protests about
my lack of an heir.
Why, though? What had happened to spark this? It was so
humiliating to have that whole court see my subjects clamoring about how
I hadn't fathered any children. The video proved that even Eulisia was
participating in the protest! I was completely speechless when I saw that. It
seemed she always misbehaved when I left her to her own devices.
Anyway, when they played that video, I was embarrassed beyond
belief. I remember the looks everyone gave me at the time. People reacted
with amusement, exasperation, pity...but most of all, I could still see the
weary look the prime minister gave me.
Tia's smile faded and was replaced with a more serious expression.
"Anyway, Calvin's faction is cornered now. Prince Cleo's faction has
gained a lot more ground. It's gone just as you planned, Lord Liam."
Well, some unexpected things happened, but I fulfilled my goal.
Then again, fortune was on my side.
"My own good luck scares me," I said, though I knew my luck was
all due to the Guide watching over me. Even if things looked hairy at
times, I knew it would all lead to my victory in the end. I was living life on
easy mode, and that was my privilege as an evil lord.
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"Well, I'm getting tired of behaving myself," I sighed. "Guess I'll
go out and have some fun since it's been a while. Bring the car around,
would you?"
"Aren't you supposed to stay home to rest?"
"I can go out for a walk, can't I? You're coming too."
"I am?!"
When she heard she could go out with me, Tia rushed out to
summon the car.
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