I created a story from what Master said. Accusing Tai was out of the question, as I had no proof, but an accident… that could work."Thank you for your opening statement. I would like to invite the first witness."
Tai drifted through the crowd, holding himself with elegance and grace. He stood before the row of old men, linked his arms behind his back and puffed out his chest.
"State your name and rank."
"Chen Tai, fifth-year Cadet and Head Emperor"s Scholar."
"Mr Chen Tai, can you tell us how you arrived on the scene?"
"I heard screams from the bas.e.m.e.nt and ran to check what happened."
"Whom did those screams belong to?"
"It was hard to tell. But it sounded like Long Bao."
This lying b.a.s.t.a.r.d… I had made a monumental mistake. Tai wasn"t just a boy haunted by demons. He was sociopathic and malevolent.
I was always a forgiving person. But never in my life had someone sought to destroy me like this one boy. This… this I couldn"t forgive.
"Noted. Please describe the scene when you arrived."
"I found Schwarz first. He looked like he pa.s.sed out fleeing from the scene. Then I looked through the door and there…" his words caught in his throat.
"Mr Chen Tai, please proceed."
"Yes Sir, I"m sorry Sir… my fellow Scholar, Long Bao was there, but… he was unrecognisable."
Tai had captured the crowd"s sympathy with a few simple words.
"Thank you, Mr Chen Tai, you may sit down."
Tai strode past me without a hint of recognition. All I wanted was to break these handcuffs and rip that b.a.s.t.a.r.d"s throat out. But I suppressed my anger, my quivering fists rattling the cuffs.
Witnesses continued to come forwards. A doctor describing the injuries, teachers degrading my character, Mr Wu, Dong… even the Chairman spoke. Finally, it was Master"s chance to defend me.
"Mr Yin Xue, would you like to present your defence?"
"Yes Sir. There is no doubt that there was a battle between Long Bao and Oscar Schwarz, resulting in Long Bao"s death. However, these attacks on Oscar Schwarz"s character are irrelevant.
"None of the witnesses provided any evidence that Oscar Schwarz harboured murderous intentions. They all described actions that any child, overburdened with power, would make.
"Concealing his power at the test can be explained as his attempt to fit in. His conflicts with Mr Wu came from his inexperience with this system and were all concluded with civility.
"Now, before I address Dong Guozhi"s statement about Oscar Schwarz"s account in his office, I would like to present some evidence that this was all an accident."
Master rustled in his robes and drew out a marbled, iridescent stone.
"This is an innovative technology we have developed to guard the Vault. It allows us to record past events in perfect clarity. What you are about to see happened the day of the crime."
Whispers built behind me in antic.i.p.ation. Master channelled some qi into the stone, and a projection appeared beside me. It showed Master and Xiaogui watching me meditate.
"Oscar Schwarz practices an ancient and mysterious technique. I asked him to show me his progress, and this happened."
In the projection, my eyelids snapped open, revealing two golden orbs. The pure lack of expression on my face scared the life out of me. That thing… that wasn"t me.
As that thing readied itself to attack Master, I had to look away. After all that had happened, I didn"t want to watch myself torturing Master. The recording had no sound, but the crowd made up for that.
Master"s voice cut through them, "Don"t ya look away now! "Ere"s the important bit… Ya see that! That was two different people!"
"Mr Yin Xue, calm down."
"Yes Sir. What I am trying to say is that was Oscar Schwarz"s only technique. I confirmed that when he first became my mentee. He must have entered that possessed state when he killed Long Bao.
"Condemning a promising eight-year-old child to death for what he did when he was possessed is beyond unreasonable. It"s wicked! It"s cruel! I hope ya can see that."
Death? This trial would decide whether I lived or died? All hesitation disappeared, and I resolved to get out of this situation. I wasn"t even guilty… this was the time to lie.
"Thank you, Mr Yin Xue. I do not believe there has been a case–"
"May I continue, Sir?"
"Ahem. Proceed."
"Thank you, Sir. Now, I would like to ask Oscar Schwarz some questions."
"Proceed."
"Oscar Schwarz, what do you remember from the incident in the Vault?"
"… nothing…" my voice was hoa.r.s.e and raspy, but I pushed through, "I don"t remember… anything that happened… when I was possessed."
"And what do you remember about this case in question?"
"Even less… n.o.body woke me up… I just remember blood… wanting to help… and Tai…"
"So why did you tell Dong Guozhi that Chen Tai was the perpetrator?"
In this exhausted, deprived state, I broke down in tears.
"I don"t know… I just didn"t want to believe it was me! I remembered Tai… I thought it had to be him! But he wouldn"t do that… I"m sorry… I"m so sorry… It must have been me…"
"Sir," Master interrupted, "Oscar Schwarz is not murderous. The witnesses have failed to demonstrate that. I have shown evidence that this was an accident, so I plead that you judge it as such."
"Thank you, Mr Yin Xue. I am inclined to judge this case as involuntary manslaughter, the punishment for which is immediate dismissal. Are there any objections?"
"Yes Sir."
The crowd riled in anger at Master"s complaint.
"Mr Yin Xue, you wish to say more?"
"Yes Sir. Dismissing this child is a mistake." I felt an unnerving gaze pierce through me and knew it was Master, "Oscar Schwarz is beyond talented. He is a prodigy.
"Since arriving here, he has raised his qi force by one hundred and broken through to Low Elite Grade. He hasn"t even been conscious for months!"
The crowd fell silent.
"Mr Yin Xue, that is indeed impressive. However, if he cannot control that power, another incident will happen."
"… control it."
"Mr Oscar Schwarz, do you have something to say?"
"I can control it!"
"Is that so? Will you demonstrate?"
"Yes Sir… Master?"
"Heh, brat, are ya sure ya can control it?"
"Yeah."
"All right, then. Do yer worst."
I raised my palms, handcuffs clinking. I didn"t have much qi left, but I shot out a thin tendril. Some murmured, while others gasped, as I detached my qi and coiled it around Master"s arm.
It lay there dormant, pulsating and wriggling, but nothing more. After a few seconds, I retracted it, letting it twirl back into my palm.
"Ahem. It would be a waste to lose Mr Oscar Schwarz. However, he must still be punished. Mr Oscar Schwarz, do you accept responsibility for this crime?"
"… I do."
"Mr Oscar Schwarz has shown remorse before us. I propose one year of volunteer work. Are there any objections?"
"Yes Sir."
All heads turned to Tai, who was seething with anger.
"Proceed."
"Sir, even if you rule this as an accident, Schwarz does not fit in this school! He has repeatedly undermined authority and even killed a student! It"s only a matter of time before this happens again!"
"Mr Chen Tai, your concerns are noted. However, I am acting in the military"s best interest. This ruling will go on Mr Oscar Schwarz"s permanent record and will inform future decisions.
"I will put Mr Oscar Schwarz on probation for the next year. Any incident will result in immediate dismissal."
"Yes sir…"
"By my authority as Judge Advocate General, I sentence Mr Oscar Schwarz to one year of volunteer work on probation. Dismissed!"
The crowd filtered out, and the guards unlocked my cuffs. I stumbled while trying to get up, but Master caught me.
"Ya owe me fer this one, brat. Let"s get ya to the Vault."
This entire ordeal… it was finally over. Finally released from the oppressive tension, I pa.s.sed out in Master"s arms.