A Cruel Beast's Leash

“Ahh.. my lord, you came! How can you put me through such suffering?!” Countess Karina,  dressed in black with a grief-stricken look, quickly raised her head when Irvan  confidently led the Knights into the audience room. She frowned bitterly at Irvan as he walked down the blue-carpeted central aisle.

“You called.” Irvan replied, expressionless and calm as usual. He stopped at a moderate distance.

“Yes, that’s right. Thank you for coming, Knight Commander,” Karina replied.

As soon as their eyes met briefly, Karina grabbed the armrest of the feudal lord as if she couldn’t control her emotions for a moment. She then raised her chin and spoke with a dignified voice, “It has become quite complicated because of a number of overlapping issues.. So, I thought about holding a council, but recent events have shown that the castle is in a state of turmoil, so I invited the bishop to listen to the facts.”

Karina stared at Irvan with a cruel gaze. She introduced the bishop seated at the seat of honor to him. In the Kingdom of Berken, priests with peerage were a force to be reckoned with. What they see or hear spreads directly to the royal capital through a clever network.

“I greet Bishop Albert,” Irvan said.

“Hoho, it’s been a while, Commander Irvan,” the bishop replied, whose white beard hung down to his chest.

Irvan bowed his head toward the bishop and placed his palm on his left chest in a reverent manner. Karina glanced at him distastefully, wrinkled her brows and looked down at the audience. The vast room was filled to the brim, leaving no space except for the passage in the center.

Even as the elders, vassals, and major officials watched the situation, Irvan stood straight with the knights lined up behind him. The Black Awl Knights followed Irvan wherever. They arrived the day after Irvan’s arrival and were a part of the core force; although there were only twenty of them, each one was a terrifying knight as they were the most skilled in cutting down monsters. This was both provocation and demonstration against the Muns’ faction. Specifically telling them not to be reckless. Countess Karina’s face was hard as she gave a brief gesture to start the session.

“Today we will open the in-house court.” When the secretary gave a solemn announcement and then blinked at the judge, the sound of a gavel hitting a wooden board calmed the audience room. The prosecutor then raised the agenda.

“There have been two terrible incidents in the past four days. It’s a serious matter that has cost many lives and must be addressed by the court.” The prosecutor, who wore thick glasses on his nose, took out a thick file and quickly turned the page with his finger.

“The first was the escape of a werewolf, who had been secretly held in a dungeon. Brave knights and soldiers had tried to stop the rampaging werewolf, but it was not enough. The damage was huge,” he read, then quickly turned the page again.

“The second incident is the death of the respected Chairman Collin. Coincidentally, the incident occurred yesterday morning while he was with Commander Irvan. Based on the investigation and careful examination of the location of the incident, the Prosecution strongly asserts that there are clear questions about Chairman Collin’s death.”

“I have an objection!” Vice-Captain Roham’s voice boomed across the room as akin to his bulky size. “What happened to Mr. Collin was regrettable, but I have heard that his death was self-inflicted. There were several witnesses.”

Hearing Roham’s thick voice, the prosecutor wiped cold sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief and shook his head. It was not because he was frightened by Roham or the Knights, who had a lot of years of experience, it was solely because of Irvan. Irvan’s presence – standing confidently with broad shoulders and a set stare –  sent shivers down his spine. His unnatural blue-gray eyes, which had no warmth in them, were quietly directed at him.

Like the eyes of reptiles or birds, it was hard to know what he was thinking. His fear betrayed him and he wondered if coming to deal with the human butcher was a mistake after all. Just standing in front of Irvan made him tremble. As he faced his indifferent eyes, cold sweat flowed down his cheeks, and the nape of his neck felt cold, as if it would be cut by the blade at any moment.

However, his household debt was enormous, and his extravagant and impulsive wife had already received a large sum of money from Countess Karina and used it to pay off the debt in an instant. He had no choice but to go through with it.

“U-um… What Vice-Captain Roham said is absolutely not true.”

The prosecutor tried to fix his eyes on the papers and wrung out his scared throat to make a voice. The butler, who delivered the documents to him, said the evidence was so clear that winning would be a piece of cake, so now he had no choice but to believe as he was told. Moreover, he heard that the Countess Karina had promised a huge donation to Bishop Albert, who was present today. Because of that, there was not going to be any detailed nitpicking or disagreements.

It would be worth the money if the trial proceeded without him being too ashamed or questionable in the eyes of others. The prosecutor glanced at Countess Karina and opened his mouth, “It is inaccurate to say that there were several witnesses. The very first witness was Commander Irvan. Isn’t that right?”