“Heh. Is this what you meant by ‘absolute’?”
“I am terribly sorry! But the situation is still...”
In the Chamber of Judgment, the Chief Arbiter shook his head in amusement.
“Do you think all we need to do is swap out the person taking the blame?”
“Yes...”
Before he could finish his sentence, the Chief Arbiter suddenly stood up and slammed Cyril's face into the desk. Instantly, blood splattered everywhere.
“We were already planning to discard Sevis, and now you come running to tell me that if we kick him out, the spearhead of public backlash will turn against us instead?”
“Does that mean we have to invite him back with open arms?!”
“Do you have any idea that the public already assumes Sevis is no longer part of the Titan Prosecution Office?!”
Cyril clenched his teeth, unable to utter a word.
How could he have known that in just a single night, the voices of support for Sevis would multiply so drastically!
“Do you think this is just a matter of us losing face? Wrong! I don't give a damn about that!”
“Doing this only makes us look like a pack of tail-wagging lapdogs, shamelessly sucking up to those noble families!”
“We originally planned to use this incident to dispel headquarters' doubts by blaming everything on Sevis's incompetence. But now, it looks like we've tortured him to the point where he'd rather be dead.”
“How do you think headquarters will see this? If they come down to investigate, your head will be the first to roll!”
Suppressing all the emotions in his heart, Cyril barely managed to say, “Understood, I will invite him—”
“Even if it kills you, you keep him anchored in the Prosecution Office! Right now, he isn't some criminal! He's a hero! A great hero of this entire incident!”
Having vented his frustration, the Chief Arbiter fell silent once more, his expression dark.
“At the very least, nothing must go wrong on the witch's end.”
“She must die.”
...
Inside the academy, a light shone from an exceptionally tall tower.
The Tower of Starry Abyss.
Loretta sat at the head of a round table, with August seated beside her. Around them were several professors and elders of the academy—some relatively young, others well advanced in years.
“That is everything I have to say.”
Before the words could fully settle, an elder spoke up.
“Is that all? Loretta, if you are merely trying to satisfy your pathetic self-righteous sentimentality, you are welcome to take your performance elsewhere.”
“The Council has always valued absolute interest and order; it is not a stage for cheap emotional dramas.”
“As long as that witch is still alive, new organizations will follow suit tomorrow! You think you are protecting a student, but in reality, you are dragging the lives of every faculty member and student in this academy down into the grave with her!”
August couldn't bear to watch any longer and interrupted with deep dissatisfaction, “Is this really the only way the academy can fend off external intrusions?”
“Is this the conduct of the empire's greatest academy? Truly laughable!”
“Oh, August, I hope you understand the wisdom of choosing the path of least resistance. Furthermore...”
A cold gleam flashed in the elder's eyes.
“The Council has always decided its rules by vote.”
Seeing this, another professor chimed in.
“Everyone, you must understand that in the history of the empire, the death of a single witch doesn't even amount to a footnote.”
“But the value of 'that thing' is enough to write all of us into the history books!”
“The Rift has already loosened. Loretta, if you truly want to save more lives, you must understand that the death of one person is always better than the death of a crowd!”
Just then, another elderly man spoke up.
“A person?”
“If she can even be called a person anymore.”
Suddenly, the elderly man rose from his seat, his originally cloudy eyes flashing with an irrepressible frenzy and ecstasy.
“None of you understand the value of life! That is a witch who has existed for over a century! The organs inside her are of the highest grade! Just gouging out her eyes alone would be equivalent to a Tier 6 potion!”
“The secrets within her body are far more precious than you think! It is merely killing a monster! Aren't such things happening every single day?”
At this point, yet another professor in the room spoke up.
“The witch's bloodline has been cursed by the gods since its inception. Her death is merely the gods using our hands to carry out this purification.”
“May the Goddess of Light show mercy, and may this final end be a true redemption.”
“Let the vote begin!”
Soon, most of those present cast a particle of magic toward the magical lamp hanging overhead.
A number materialized in response.
“9.”
The vote passed.
One of the professors sneered with disdain, saying, “Heh, those useless fools from the Nightingale Secret Order are probably still gloating over the success of their plan.”
“Let them... offer up their final shred of value for us.”
...
“My lord! Everything is ready!”
In the dark of the night outside the Echo Forest, several figures in black robes gathered.
“Very good! In another hour, we will go inside and rescue our Saintess!”
Leading them was an elderly woman who clenched her fists, her eyes filled with excitement.
“A bunch of idiots who only know how to hide behind their disguises! Did they really think we didn't know what they were planning?!”
“Trying to use us to seize Lady Witch's value? How superficial!”
Deep within the night, another middle-aged figure clad in an Arbiter's uniform slowly emerged.
The moment she recognized the newcomer, the frenzy the leading woman had suppressed for so long could no longer be hidden. An uncontrollable, excited grin spread across her face.
“Who could have imagined it? Could they have? The Titan Prosecution Office within the academy actually has our people hidden inside!”
The woman slowly stepped forward and handed him a set of long black robes.
“My dear Lord Arbiter, how are the preparations coming along?”
The man nodded.
“They are set.”
“Hehe... Hahahahaha!”
“Those fools sitting in their offices really think they have everything under control?”
“In the end, the one who gets the witch... can only be!”
Pfft.
A blood-red chain pierced straight through the woman's chest.
She didn't even get the chance to raise her wand.
“You...”
Without a word of nonsense, the man twisted the woman's head off. At the same time, other chains surged from the magic circle beneath his feet, instantly slaughtering the remaining members nearby.
After finishing all this, the man pulled the black robe over his Arbiter's uniform and walked toward the depths of the Echo Forest, step by step.
...
“Yo.”
Ain looked toward a large tree and saw a young girl in the academy uniform standing quietly beneath it.
Dense mana wrapped tightly around her like a deep purple veil of flowing silk, transforming into a mysterious magical coat. A pointed hat, condensed from pure mana, floated quietly above her head.
She slowly raised her head, her eyes already red and swollen. It looked like she had just finished crying.
“Want a wrap?”
Ain pulled a wrap packaged in a bag from his coat and offered it to her with a smile.
“This one's from the place on the second floor.”
Rate on N.U.
