NOVPUBI think.
You might have forgotten someone.
When Lanci was in the Shadow World, there was also another person who was living through hell on earth every day.
Lanci had turned off the three-week live broadcast of the Shadow World and hadn’t opened it again.
Dean Loren is now calling a press conference every other day, bowing an average of five times a day, most photos of which in the newspapers show him with a sweaty forehead and a look of utter despair.
Today marks the twenty-eighth day since Lanci Welfort, a student at Ichrite Academy’s Sage Academy, along with Hyperion Alansar and a seventh-order loaf of bread, entered the seventh-order Shadow World.
In the Hutton Kingdom, within the Capital City Ekrite, the Old Buri Court.
In this grand and ancient courtroom, the light filters through the high ceiling windows, dyeing everything a somber hue.
Old Buri Court was originally established near the walls of Ichrite City a century ago as a criminal court.
The name comes from the street it’s on, Old Buri Street, which stretches for a full two kilometers along the route of the ancient city walls of Ichrite.
The history of the court dates back to at least the solar year 1605, but the current building was reconstructed in 1702. Initially, it primarily handled cases involving petty criminals, but it gradually became the center for major criminal proceedings.
Statues of the God of Light and Law stand tall at the end of the hall, as if their gazes too are fixated on the impending hearing.
In the center of the hall.
Loren stands, donned in a black suit and white shirt with a gold tie, with diamond cross patterns of Cross Holy Radiance around the buttons and collar area.
His figure appears exceptionally isolated.
As the heart of Hutton Kingdom’s criminal justice, Old Buri Court is one of the most important criminal trial centers, dealing with cases including murder, fraud, terrorism, and other serious crimes.
Many cases of historical significance, encompassing terrorists, serial killers, and important political trials, have been heard here.
The modern facade of the Old Buri Court is adorned with sculptures of many great judges, symbolizing justice, courage, and wisdom. Inside, traditional wooden paneling and heavy red curtains decorate the space, while the high judge’s bench gives off a powerful sense of authority.
Usually, Loren would be invited to sit on the bench.
But today, he is looking at it instead.
Lavisseir, the student council secretary seated in the public gallery, has put away her pen and notebook, unable to continue writing.
As a reporter for the "Hutton Times," as well as a senior to Lanci and Hyperion, she has been closely following content related to the Shadow World of Ichrite Academy every day.
The Old Buri Court’s proceedings are usually open to the public, an important display of the legal transparency and fairness of the Hutton Kingdom.
Due to the handling of many high-profile cases, Old Buri Court often attracts intense media scrutiny and has even become a focus of overseas reports and analyses.
Lavisseir also senses that journalists from other countries of the Kingdom Joint Council have filled the seats beside her.
She glances briefly at the notebook of a reporter next to her.
It reads—"Judgment Day Revealed: Loren, the Hidden Truth Behind the Catastrophe and the Enigma of Fate."
Lavisseir: "..."
Lavisseir silently takes out her notebook, crosses out the original headline she wrote, and changes it to: "The Enigma of Judgment Day: The Man Behind the Catastrophe—Loren, Hero or Criminal? His secret will shake the entire kingdom!"
Old Buri Court and the cases it tries often appear in various Southern Continent literary works and dramas, such as novels and detective shows.
As such, it has also become an excellent place for sourcing material, not just an important landmark in the legal history of the Hutton Kingdom.
Finally, the bell begins to toll.
The sparse light, the heavy atmosphere, it solidifies into something nearly tangible.
The walls are no longer the light refuge but become the faces of judges, exerting a silent pressure on Loren at the center of the courtroom.
For this hearing, the semi-circular prosecutors’ bench opposite is filled with judges from high-level departments; not only officials from the South Continental Kingdom Union Council, Shadow World Management Association, Southern Continent Disaster Prevention Department, Hutton Kingdom Security Bureau, but also Hutton aristocrats filling all available seats.
"Now that student from Ichrite Academy is treading on thin ice with every step. An outsider, he is tasked with managing the colossal artifact that is the Palante Empire, with its long history. Like two fierce beasts, public sentiment and the council are forces he tries to balance so cautiously, yet he can only protect one at the expense of the other, possibly losing both. The prospect of increasing military or financial power in a short time is almost hopeless."
Discussions from the jurors’ seats echo through the dimly lit conference room like whispers of ghosts.
"The seventh-order Shadow World is, after all, no simple matter. The entrenched structure of the council is like an unshakeable fortress, the whole of the Palante Empire a prison, and that part of the Northern Continent looks nothing but a deadlock."
"It’s likely that student Loren has already collapsed and doesn’t dare to open the Shadow World Record Program again."
The conclusions of the experts were like bombs of heavy news, exploding continuously in the courtroom, shaking the souls of everyone present.
As the Judgment Chief knocked to signal the beginning of the session, these voices abruptly ceased, and a repressive silence enveloped the entire space.
Loren took a deep breath, trying to calm the turmoil in his heart.
He had learned to withstand scrutiny.
Although there were many close to him in the jury and the audience who were worried about him, that was only a small portion that couldn’t withstand the storm of public opinion.
"Loren, do you know why you stand here today? Three weeks have passed, and we still cannot predict the progress and failure rate of this seventh-order Shadow World. As the primary person responsible for a disaster of this magnitude, how will you take responsibility for your actions?"
On the bench, one of the judges, the Minister of Justice of the Hutton Kingdom, Duke Agares, spoke solemnly.
As the head of the Hutton Kingdom’s security bureau, he even had reason to suspect that Loren might be in collusion with the external Rebirth Church organization.
For more and more evidence lately showed that Duke Migaya had an inseparable connection with the Night Bishop, and before Duke Migaya disappeared, he had a close private relationship with Loren.
If Duke Migaya was indeed the Night Bishop of the Rebirth Church, it would be hard to believe that Loren was unaware.
Loren’s throat felt as if it was blocked by something.
"Respected judges, I... I am fully aware of my responsibilities, but please allow me to explain... I know the personal abilities of my student Lanci Welfort, he has a unique talent for the Shadow World, and nearly a year ago he defeated the Goddess of Destruction..."
He remained calm, stating his thoughts,
"But I assure you, if any incident is indeed caused by Lanci, as his teacher and also due to my negligence for not restricting him properly, all the blame is mine."
As Loren answered, one side of the courtroom lit up with light, and a crystal ball-shaped magic device began to rotate, reflecting the last images left of the Shadow World three weeks ago.
The record projection of Magical Engineering allowed everyone to clearly see the last state of the Shadow World that they currently knew.
"Now, the biggest question is if the Shadow World fails midway, we do not have to wait until the predicted forty-five days are up to not meet the success criteria and cause a disaster. In these three weeks, each day could potentially bring a sudden calamity due to the failure of this seventh-order Shadow World. Loren, can you really bear such responsibility?"
Duke Agares pressed.
Now it was not only Loren under scrutiny, but his allies, or rather, many of the higher-ups in the Hutton Kingdom, were also facing the same immense external pressure.
The audience held their breath and exchanged glances, their expressions shifting from suspicion to contemplation, from contemplation to confusion.
"I am ready at any time to make amends for any mistakes with all my abilities; I will not shirk any responsibility."
Loren’s voice echoed in the hall, every word seemingly a struggle against destiny.
In this hearing that was both trial and defense, words like truth, responsibility, and redemption became exceptionally heavy.
As the sun finally rose, the hearing convened in the early morning finally neared its end.
When the hearing was first adjourned, everything fell silent once more.
Loren slowly walked off the witness stand; at this moment, he looked even more tired than after battling the Cardinal Bishops, almost numb.
Even the Bingxue Witch, disguised as a civilian in the audience, couldn’t help but feel sympathy for Loren.
These days she had stayed within the Temple of the Church of the Goddess of Destiny in Ichrite, bumping into Loren whenever their paths crossed.
She couldn’t bear to add pressure to Loren anymore.
Even though she spent days worrying about Hyperion, tossing and turning at the thought of him unaccounted for in the seventh-order Shadow World, unable to sleep.
But at this moment, she only felt that the poor guy seemed too honest.
No matter how the nobles harassed him, he was diligently trying to shoulder everything on his own, earnestly trying to convince the world with his sincerity.
He was completely a good man.
No, that’s not right.
The Bingxue Witch furrowed her brows tightly.
The manipulation of the hearts of the Northern Continent, the deranged last words of the Saint of Destruction, had already revealed flaws in Loren’s scheming.
Upon closer thought, if Loren was indeed the mastermind behind the scenes, such capacity to bear humiliation and his flawless acting fit perfectly with his vision for the big picture.
Assuming... all of this was within Loren’s expectations, that he knew everything would turn around in the future, then...
The Bingxue Witch felt a chill run down her spine, and she hugged herself.
