During that afternoon, the King's voice echoed throughout the hall with overwhelming authority. After so many arguments and responses that already sounded like music to his ears, it was declared:
— Goulartte Fleonis, Vollveria Roadin, Jeoman Souso, and Maprisius… guilty of committing serious crimes against the heroes Shizu Mark and Anin Thaillor, along with their companion!
Napolix turned around and, as he left the courtroom, spoke words that made all the nobles tremble:
— All of you nobles… I expect the four of you in my private chamber so I can decide what I will do with you.
After that, the King left the room, and all the Ferals present began to disperse. Some of them looked visibly dissatisfied. A Feral with rabbit-like features commented to another:
— This trial was madness! But the fact that the humans were declared innocent leaves me very disappointed…
A frog-like Feral walking beside him replied:
— Yeah… now we just have to wait and see what will happen to the nobles. They represent 60% of the country's economy. If they get imprisoned, things could turn out really bad…
Those thoughts faded among the Ferals as they left the courtroom. Still inside the hall, Shizu was talking with his companions:
— Thank you so much!! Ahhhh, I almost got sentenced to prison, ahhhhh!
Sterfen was hugging Shizu while crying like a child, and Shizu tried to calm him down.
— Calm down, man… the worst is still yet to come, so stop crying and let go of me!
— NO! I DON'T WANT TO! Buaaa… — Sterfen kept sobbing.
Anin looked at him and commented with a smile:
— Sterfen is serious when he needs to be, but he still has the personality of a child, doesn't he, Shizu?
Shizu, who had already given up trying to get Sterfen off him, simply replied:
— Yeah… tell me about it. Looks like we're going to have to deal with this crying for a while…
Still looking at Sterfen, Shizu thought to himself:
"It doesn't even look like this crying baby was that serious guy during the trial… not everything is what it seems. I hope things go well for us."
Then a voice echoed in his mind, filled with anger and frustration:
— Ah, go screw yourself, Shizu! Acting sentimental now, are you?!
Shizu, furious, snapped back:
— What's your problem?! Are you mad because they didn't kill me so you could take my body, you bastard?!
Irritated, Phaul replied even more angrily:
— Of course, you idiot! But I don't care! This only proves that when I fight you for that body, I'll destroy you completely! Just wait!!
Shizu was extremely angry. Sterfen was still clinging to him, wiping his nose on Shizu's shirt, and Shizu finally lost his patience.
— Get off me, Sterfennnn!
When everyone had already left the castle and everything had finally calmed down, Shizu and his companions headed toward the exit.
Then a voice called out from the distance.
— Shizuzinho~…
Shizu stopped walking and looked back.
There was Maprisius, standing a few meters behind them, smiling as if nothing had happened.
Shizu immediately responded rudely:
— What do you want, you bastard?
Maprisius gave a small laugh and replied in a relaxed tone:
— Oh come on, Shizuzinho… don't talk to me like that. It hurts, you know?
Anin immediately stepped in front of Shizu and angrily shouted:
— You bastard! How could you betray us like that?!
Maprisius made a confused expression but continued smiling calmly.
— Calm down, Aninzinha~… it's not what it seems, you know? Not everything people speculate is the absolute truth. So I think there's no need for us to get so worked up right now.
He widened his smile slightly and suggested:
— How about we go have some coffee or tea somewhere in the city? We can talk calmly.
Anin and Sterfen remained on guard, clearly suspicious of Maprisius. Even so, Shizu answered:
— Fine. If that's what you suggest, let's talk.
Anin and Sterfen looked at Shizu with suspicious expressions but quickly accepted, trusting his judgment.
Maprisius then raised his right hand with his usual cheerful expression.
— Then it's settled! Let's go have some drinks and talk a lot~
Inside the carriage, Anin sat beside Shizu while Sterfen sat next to Maprisius.
The three of them stared seriously at him.
Maprisius, meanwhile, calmly wiped his cane with a white cloth. The cane looked more like a staff. The silence inside the carriage was heavy.
Then he decided to break the atmosphere.
— So… before you burn me alive with those looks, I should clarify a few things.
He continued cleaning his cane while speaking calmly.
— In fact, you were right about one thing. All of that was the work of the nobles. But there is one thing you shouldn't include me in… I did not plan that trial.
Shizu looked at him with even more anger.
— What do you mean you didn't?! You even lied during the trial!
Anin also raised her voice.
— You were with us until the moment of the explosion! After that we went there and almost got arrested! Or in the worst case… executed because of your lie!
Maprisius then rested his chin on top of his cane and replied calmly:
— But if you had been declared innocent… what would have happened to young Sterfen?
Shizu and Anin were surprised.
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Maprisius continued:
— If I hadn't said that, the three of you would have left the trial as innocent…
He briefly looked at Sterfen.
— But what about Sterfen?
Silence filled the carriage again.
— He would have been declared a criminal. And as the King himself said, he is a National Threat because of his power. He would most likely have received a death sentence.
Anin and Shizu were left speechless.
Maprisius then concluded with his usual cunning smile:
— Before you draw hasty conclusions about me, I recommend you think a little more carefully.
He lightly spun his cane between his fingers.
— After all… if we can judge the means instead of the result… then perhaps we should doubt the ends before doubting the means.
Shizu remained silent.
He only looked down at the floor, as if he had completely lost himself in that game of words.
At that moment, they all understood something.
Maprisius was far more than he appeared to be.
The carriage then stopped.
Maprisius opened the door and asked calmly:
— So? Shall we?
The three of them looked at him again.
Before, there had only been anger and distrust.
Now…
there was distrust and fear.
All because of Maprisius's cunning and convincing smile.
They stopped in front of a drink shop. Maprisius looked at the name of the place for a few seconds before heading toward the entrance.
Shizu and his companions followed him.
For a moment, Shizu had a strange flash in his mind — as if he had already been there before. But he ignored the feeling.
When they entered, they saw an empty table and quickly sat down.
Maprisius raised his hand to call the attention of a Feral waitress. She noticed him and approached to take their order.
— Excuse me, may I take your or—
She stopped mid-sentence when she looked at Shizu and Anin. Her face showed clear disappointment.
— Didn't I ask you not to come here again…?
Shizu and Anin then remembered.
That place had been the first place they visited when they arrived in the Kingdom.
With nothing to say, they both looked away.
Maprisius gave a small laugh and spoke to the waitress.
— Oh, I see you already know each other. Don't worry, miss. These three are with me, so I guarantee there won't be any trouble~
She made an annoyed face but asked for their orders anyway.
Maprisius answered first:
— Hmm… I'll have an apple juice with green mixes. And you all, what would you like to drink?
Shizu replied:
— Just a coffee with milk is fine.
Anin ordered tea, while Sterfen ordered a bitter coffee.
The waitress excused herself and left to bring the drinks.
After a few seconds of silence, Maprisius spoke in a serious tone.
— Alright… this is probably the moment when the real conversation should begin, isn't it?
Shizu, Anin, and Sterfen witnessed something unusual.
For the first time, Maprisius was not smiling.
He continued speaking without pause:
— Today, the other nobles and I will be judged by the King himself. That means things may get bad for us… and consequently for the Kingdom as well. So there is something I must tell you.
Shizu replied with a serious expression:
— Indeed… every action has a consequence. Being nobles doesn't put you above the law.
Sterfen and Anin simply watched, letting Shizu lead the conversation.
Maprisius continued:
— As you know, the other nobles and I are figures of influence. We represent around 60% of the country's economy through our businesses and financial support for the Kingdom. This has been the case since the very foundation of this nation…
Shizu listened carefully before asking:
— Does that mean if you fall… the country will go bankrupt?
— Not necessarily. — Maprisius replied while looking down.
— We represent a large portion of the economy, but there are also many areas where we depend on the King's support. That makes our position… unstable. In the worst case scenario, we may be sentenced to Devaluation.
Sterfen frowned.
— "Devaluation?"
Maprisius looked at him and explained:
— That means we could lose our noble titles and 70% of all our assets. There is a high chance of that happening, since the King believes this was a possible political offense against the Kingdom by bypassing his authority like that.
Shizu thought about everything and asked:
— So you're telling us all this to make us feel guilty somehow?
Maprisius looked at him seriously.
— In a way… perhaps.
He paused briefly.
— Because the blame isn't entirely yours.
Then he said something that made the three of them pay even closer attention.
— There is one last very important thing you must know… Anin, Shizu, and Sterfen.
The three noticed something strange.
Maprisius was not smiling.
Nor was he using his usual playful tone.
— Tonight, the other nobles and I will be judged. So… starting today, it's possible that our relationship may change.
He continued:
— Regardless of the King's decision… it's possible that we will no longer be, as you know us…
He finished the sentence slowly.
— Allies.
At that moment, the waitress returned with the drinks and placed them on the table.
— Do you need anything else?
— No, dear. We don't need anything else~ — Maprisius replied, now with his usual smile.
Then he returned to his usual tone.
— Please, help yourselves, my guests~
After finishing their drinks, the four of them stood up and left the shop.
Before they walked too far away, the waitress spoke again.
— Please… don't come back.
Maprisius simply laughed at her request and walked toward his carriage.
After entering it, he sat down and said calmly:
— Now I will head to the castle.
Then he looked directly at Shizu and spoke in a serious tone.
— I hope you truly become a first-rate hero… because the days that are coming…
He paused briefly.
— …will be the first hell this Kingdom will face.
The sound of a whip cracked through the air.
The horses neighed and the carriage began to move.
Maprisius put his hand out of the window and waved as he departed.
— Good luck to you all!
Anin looked confused and asked Shizu:
— Shouldn't he be wishing luck to himself right now?
Shizu continued watching the carriage disappear on the horizon.
Without taking his eyes off the road, he answered in a serious tone:
— No… we are the ones who will really need luck.
He paused slightly.
— A lot of luck.
Not far from there, a man was watching everything in silence.
He wore torn clothes, a hood covering his face, and chains hanging around his neck.
When he saw the scene, he let out a quiet laugh.
Inside the carriage moving away down the road, Maprisius also began to laugh.
— Indeed…
His laughter echoed through the interior of the carriage.
— The days that are coming… will truly be brutal…
— Hahaha… ahahaa!