0p0 #163 - Face Fruit
#163 - Face Fruit
A great man once said.
Some people are alive, but they are already dead.
Some people are dead, but they are still alive.
Kazuma Satou, this cowardly guy with the heart of a thief but none of the guts, is currently in a bizarre state of being worse than dead. Even after he dies, he will surely live on in other people's hearts... in the form of after-dinner jokes that will last for a long time.
"N-No!"
He shouted as if vomiting blood, "This kind of world, it's better to just destroy it!"
Ding——
That lie detector magic tool rang again.
Hey, Kazuma!
You guy, you wouldn't be secretly enjoying saying you want to destroy the world, would you? Do you have the same fetish as Darkness!?
"—In summary."
Yunyun raised her head and chest, looked directly at Sena, the kingdom prosecutor who didn't know how to refute, and spoke to the judge in the seat.
"My defendant is definitely not a minion of the Demon King's army!"
"Hmm..."
The judge tapped his temple.
Just now, it could be said that Yunyun's argument that disregarded the kingdom's laws was sophistry, but now the judge is also a bit stuck and unable to step down. If he dares to sentence him, he will anger the adventurers of Axel, and he will not be able to escape the blame from the kingdom.
"There is no substantial evidence at present, so..."
"Wait a minute."
Before the judge could pronounce the verdict, Sena interrupted.
Aqua slammed the table angrily and shouted, "Are you done yet? I've already said that Kazuma is not a minion of the Demon King's army, why are you still arguing here!? No one will ever want a woman like you!"
"Shut up, you idiot!"
Kazuma Satou twisted in fear, covering his face and making an expression of 'The Scream'.
Fortunately, Sena didn't get angry.
She probably understood that this was the sacred seat of judgment, so she didn't lose her temper on the spot, but glared at the idiot goddess, scaring her into hiding behind Darkness.
"Do you have anything else to say, Prosecutor?"
"Your Honor, I have something I want the defendant to answer. There has been eyewitness information indicating that the defendant can use the skill 'Absorb Touch', which only the undead can use. If you are not a minion of the Demon King's army, please explain why you can use this skill."
"Ugh!"
Kazuma Satou closed his mouth.
"Then, the biggest basis is that during the interrogation at the Security Bureau, I asked you if you had any contact with members of the Demon King's army. At that time, you said you had no contact, but the magic tool detected a lie. This is the best evidence!"
Unlucky, unlucky, unlucky!
Kazuma Satou was finally at his wit's end and speechless, and at this moment.
"—That's all bullshit!"
A confident voice came from Yunyun.
Kazuma Satou shouted to Yunyun, "Quick, quickly think of a reason to refute her! Quickly refute her! Quickly present your decisive evidence to prove that I am innocent!"
His eyes lit up as if he had found a savior. Yunyun signaled the socially dead coward to be calm.
"First, to answer Miss Prosecutor's first question, why my defendant can use the undead's 'Absorb Touch' is because he learned this skill. He is the lowest-level adventurer and can learn all skills, it's that simple."
"But without someone teaching, it is impossible..."
"My defendant only needs to take one look at most skills to learn them. My witnesses are Chris, who taught him 'Steal', Taylor, who taught him 'One-Handed Sword', Keith, who taught him 'Snipe', and Laila, who taught him 'Basic Magic'. Every skill has a trace to follow. If you don't believe me, you can ask them."
Hearing Yunyun's words, Chris and the others shouted one after another, admitting the truth of this matter.
Sena was speechless for a moment.
"As for you saying that you asked if he had any contact with members of the Demon King's army, that's even more nonsense. If just talking to a member of the Demon King's army counts, then everyone is a minion of the Demon King's army. Miss Prosecutor, haven't you ever talked to a member of the Demon King's army?"
"Of course! I have never... !"
Ding——
As if refuting her, the lie detector magic tool immediately made a sound, proving the feasibility of Yunyun's words.
"Heh heh."
Yunyun's light laugh was extremely ironic.
"If you still don't believe it... Kazuma, why don't you admit it yourself?"
After speaking, she winked at him.
Kazuma Satou is not an idiot either.
His excellent brain turned very quickly, and he immediately noticed the flaws in the lie detector magic tool, and instantly understood how to prove his innocence.
"That's right! I have nothing to do with the Demon King's army! Nor am I a terrorist! Being saddled with debt certainly makes me very angry, and it makes me resentful, but even so, I didn't deliberately send the Corona Stone over! Listen carefully, you carefully look at that magic tool! I'm going to say it! I am not a minion of the Demon King's army, and I have nothing to do with them at all!"
——The scene was silent.
Kazuma Satou's words did not make the lie detector magic tool sound. Seeing this, the lord was also speechless.
Sena frowned even more and bit her lower lip.
She was about to cry.
If the results of the interrogation assisted by the magic tool could be used as evidence, like now, Kazuma Satou's words did not cause the magic tool to react, which is naturally also a kind of evidence.
Yunyun's hint allowed him to escape the predicament.
Seeing the successful refutation of the two, Darkness, Megumin, and Yunyun all seemed relieved. Aqua even went so far as to put on a show of spraying water on the spot.
"Silence! Silence!"
The judge slowly shook his head.
"Based on the results of the magic tool's lie detection, it will always be ambiguous like this. The prosecutor's claim is based on the reaction of the magic tool as a reason. Judging from this, this seat cannot recognize the validity of this evidence. In any case, the evidence is too weak. Therefore, defendant Kazuma Satou, this seat determines that your criminal suspicion is insufficient—"
It seems that he is quite fair and wise.
Kazuma should be released safely.
Everyone relaxed and their expressions eased.
But before the words 'acquitted in court' could be said, the bald-headed lord Eldar interrupted the sentencing.
"I don't recognize it! That guy is related to the Demon King's army. He is a minion of the Demon King's army. Quickly sentence that man to death."
"No, there were no casualties in this incident. No matter what, it's not serious enough to demand the death penalty... No, that's right. The death penalty is indeed the most appropriate... right?"
Sena, who was being stared at by Eldar, suddenly changed her words.
Her own reaction was also very strange. Even though the words came from her mouth, for some reason, she herself was tilting her head with a confused expression.
This caused public outrage.
An aura of disgusting evil enveloped this courtroom.
The gavel that the judge wanted to drop could not be dropped no matter what. After struggling for a long time, he opened his mouth again.
"...Defendant, Kazuma Satou. In view of your repeated inhumane and inappropriate behavior, as well as obvious anti-social behavior that disrupts the town's security, and your own admission that you are a minion of the Demon King's army... This seat determines that the prosecutor's request for sentencing is appropriate. The defendant is guilty and sentenced to death."
With a snap, the gavel fell.
Kazuma Satou was immediately dumbfounded. He turned his head little by little and looked at Yunyun beside him.
"Didn't you say that I would be acquitted safely in court? Why am I still being sentenced to death!? And it's too strange! What's going on with such a hasty trial!?
Bring out more conclusive evidence! You're just randomly sentencing people to death in such a messy way. I think there's something wrong with your brains!"
"Please be careful with your words, defendant!"
This time, Kazuma Satou couldn't hold back completely.
He was clearly close to victory, only one step away from being acquitted in court, but he was changed at the last moment, and his mentality must have exploded.
Darkness looked at Yunyun.
She asked with her eyes if there was still a way, and the response she got was a helpless one.
In this situation now.
If Yunyun had Alice's personal belongings, she could still use the tiger's skin to intimidate and turn the tide, but the problem now is that she doesn't have them.
Darkness saw this.
As if she had made some kind of determination, she took out something from her chest.
It was a necklace with a very noble material and some kind of badge. Except for Kazuma Satou, everyone in the courtroom knew what this thing was.
Sena and the judge stared at the badge that Darkness took out, their eyes widened and their bodies stiffened.
"Y-You are... !"
That expression was no different from seeing a dragon king with a hidden identity.
Unfortunately.
Darkness didn't have the cold smile of a dragon king returning, nor did she use her power to bully others because of this, but instead expressed that for her sake, the trial would be postponed for a period of time, and also expressed that she would compensate for the mansion.
In short, she activated the 'Face' fruit.
Now, not to mention Sena and the judge, even Eldar had to give her face.
"But even if you request..."
"Eldar, as the victim, this can be considered me owing you a favor. As long as it's within my power, I can promise to do anything for you. I won't ask you to withdraw the lawsuit, I just hope you can wait for a while."
Owe you a favor, activate!
"A-Anything!?"
"That's right, anything."
Hearing Darkness's words, Eldar's eyes lit up, and he looked at Darkness's body lustfully.
Then, he sat back in his chair.
"Okay, since it's your request, I'll give that man some time."
In the end, Kazuma Satou was released.
The group glared at Eldar very unhappily and left this dirty and filthy seat of judgment.
"Damn it, I really want to purify this place!"
After leaving the seat of judgment, Aqua wailed and shouted, and didn't know where she took out salt from, constantly sprinkling it on everyone.
"Enough, enough!"
Kazuma Satou shouted in annoyance, while looking at the noble lady who had made a sacrifice.
"Darkness, do you perhaps know that uncle just now?"
"...I guess so. He was very obsessed with me when I was very young. Since his wife passed away, he has proposed marriage to me several times. However, my father always refused on the grounds that the age gap was too large."
"What is that, that's too scary!"
Megumin and Yunyun were already scared.
Kazuma Satou asked with concern, "Y-You're okay, that uncle's eyes on you were very ominous, will he take the opportunity to do something excessive to you... Wait, you wouldn't be fantasizing about strange things and getting excited, would you?"
"N-No!... Very excessive things... Ha... Ha... !"
You guy...
Give us back our worries!