Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 908

Lenok couldn’t easily dismiss Conrad’s message that the mayor might be attending the hearing, and he paused to think.

Despite having been in the city for quite some time, he had never seen the mayor’s face.

Come to think of it, the mayor’s existence was rarely mentioned in Balkan in the first place.

It might be because most of the work was concentrated in the Central Council, leaving little for the mayor to do, but Lenok still remembered.

The past Kaise he had met in the closed-off District 25.

He had mentioned the Black Consumer Project and referred to the mayor as one of the deeply involved parties.

“It’s been over ten years since the Mayor of Balkan has appeared in public,” Conrad said, as if pondering something.

“I don’t know why he doesn’t show himself publicly. Only a few senators, maybe the elders, have an idea.”

“So, you’re saying you can’t be sure if the mayor is here.”

“Considering the stakes of this matter, and the price of the Judgment Covenant [a magically binding agreement], there’s a very high chance he’ll be at the hearing,” Conrad replied with a serious expression to Lenok’s question.

“The current mayor took office a long time ago, so few people know his face. Be careful.”

“……”

“If he’s really here, he might try to interfere with the hearing using his authority.”

“I doubt it.”

Lenok chuckled, and Avenia flinched at the unexpected reaction.

“If the mayor is really at the hearing, he wouldn’t do anything that foolish.”

“Foolish? His authority is probably the greatest in this city-”

“What do you think is the reason I’m attending this hearing?”

Whoosh…!

Even though he was sitting in a wheelchair and being helped by Antares, the mage’s presence weighed heavily on Conrad’s shoulders.

Lenok smiled, seeing Conrad’s faintly stiffened face.

“The city council can’t win against me in this hearing. If you don’t know that, there’s no need to explain it.”

“……”

Was it possible that such a powerful cause, enough for Kyunroe to be so confident, was already on his side?

Conrad seemed to want to ask more about it, his lips twitching for a moment, but he checked the time and sighed.

“…If that’s what you think, then there’s no need for me to warn you any further. Are you sure you don’t need any special consideration for your injuries?”

Conrad said, looking at the door to the hall with his arms crossed.

“If you want, we can reduce questions or mentions related to that through prior consultation.”

Did he have the influence to intervene in the procedures and processes even before the hearing started?

However, Lenok shook his head at Conrad’s words.

“No need.”

“Alright. Then there’s nothing I can do.”

Conrad shrugged and slowly stepped back.

“I’ve confirmed your attendance, so they’ll start as soon as they’re ready. Wait here, and come in when the door opens.”

“Understood.”

“Good luck.”

Conrad said that and disappeared through a side door next to the hallway.

The moment Avenia bowed and disappeared after him, the door in front of Lenok rumbled loudly.

Thump!

The huge door slowly trembled and opened on both sides. Antares immediately started walking, pushing the wheelchair.

Whoosh!

A pure white light engulfed the two of them, swirling around before revealing the scene of a grand temple.

Crystal-clear, dazzling marble. A huge hall with thick pillars lined up on both sides.

In the spectator seats on both sides, there were dozens of people sitting, and in front, a dozen city council members were sitting, looking down at Lenok.

In the center of the hall, there was a small table for one person, and around it, dozens of observers and city council members were looking down at the center.

Hundreds of cameras and recording devices were broadcasting the hearing live from all sides of the temple.

“So, Kyunroe really came…”

“That’s Antares, the leader of the mercenary group. I heard he’s been out of Balkan for months.”

“Did he return to the city to accompany Kyunroe to the hearing?”

“It’s strange. The two of them have completely different personalities, how are they friends?”

Click.

Antares stopped the wheelchair in front of the table where the chair had been removed and took two steps back.

Lenok leaned the staff he was holding against the side and quietly raised his gaze, looking around.

Among those gathered here, the heads of the Central Council, the Elders, and the Judiciary were each present.

And if the Mayor of Balkan was present at the hearing, where would he be sitting, watching Lenok?

Just as Lenok was thinking that, an old judge sitting in the front row opened the thick law book he was holding and said,

“The Judgment Covenant oath in front.”

At that moment, young boys dressed in ornate robes walked forward, carrying stone tablets on their backs.

The boys, wearing the same robes as the judge, came forward with expressionless faces and quietly placed the stone tablets down in front of Lenok.

Thump!

Complex rules written in ancient characters and a signature line at the end of the stone tablet.

While Lenok was silently looking at the stone tablet, the judge asked in an aged voice,

“Do you swear by the promise set by Ars Nova [a powerful magical organization] to faithfully participate in this hearing?”

“I do.”

“Then, place your hand on the stone tablet.”

As Lenok placed his hand on the stone tablet, he felt an invisible, intangible force covering the back of his hand.

Clack!

A strange restraint, like an invisible chain, binding Lenok’s hand and trying to shackle his inner self.

‘I can resist it using Target Designation Resistance. But…’

As Conrad had said, the Judgment Covenant was a geas [a magical compulsion] that the leaders present had activated by paying a price, not just for Lenok.

If Lenok didn’t accept the covenant here, they would immediately know that the covenant hadn’t been properly bound.

Whoosh…!

Just as Lenok was watching without resisting the restraint, the wheelchair he was riding on began to vibrate faintly.

At the same time, one of the three chains trying to bind Lenok’s inner self loosened on the spot and then lost its power and disappeared.

The nullification of the restraint that prohibits the use of mental imagery during the hearing.

However, the moment the geas was adjusted, Lenok realized that the other rules of the Judgment Covenant did not greatly affect him.

Even though the covenant was clearly on Lenok, all that Lenok felt inside was a slight urge to answer the questions.

Could it be that the geas itself, which binds the mind, doesn’t work properly on Lenok, who has the Kaleidoscope mental imagery [a unique mental ability]?

While Lenok was pondering this fact, touching his wrist after taking his hand off the stone tablet, the old man spoke again.

“The attendance of Archmage Ban is confirmed for the last time. I hereby certify in the name of the Chief Justice that all personnel for the proceedings have completed their oaths.”

“……”

“From now on, we will begin the testimony hearing regarding all the charges against Kyunroe, Ban, in Balkan.”

* * *

“It’s called a hearing, but I haven’t heard any explanation about the specific procedures or methods.”

Lenok asked, tapping the stone tablet in front of him.

“At least you should explain what you’re going to do from now on, shouldn’t you?”

“Don’t worry, Kyunroe.”

At that moment, someone among the city council members sitting in the upper seats answered.

“Now that you’ve signed the Judgment Covenant, you’ll have to answer our questions today, whether you want to or not.”

“……”

“Of course, we can’t ask about secrets you don’t want to reveal or your private life.”

The city council member pointed to the stone tablet with a nod.

“What the Judgment Covenant can force is only questions directly related to the agenda of the hearing. Therefore, we can only ask about the various illegal acts you committed in Balkan and decide whether you admit to the charges.”

“Is that so?”

Lenok chuckled.

“Then, that means the things I did in Machina weren’t even going to be discussed at this hearing in the first place.”

“……”

Did that casual remark from Lenok accurately pierce the invisible inner workings of this situation?

Someone among the judges, who were at a loss for words, opened their mouth.

“You are well aware of what you have been doing in this city.”

“Did you doubt my memory?”

“We were thinking that.”

The old judge’s eyes sank deeply.

“Otherwise, it would have been difficult to attach logic to your indiscriminate violence that didn’t distinguish between friend and foe.”

“……”

“You were busy making past enemies into allies, and fighting and killing new enemies. Is it true that all those atrocities, which lacked any reason or logic, were the result of your proper judgment and memory?”

The judge asked.

“If you know that, why did you attend this hearing yourself?”

“You’re speaking as if you wanted all my actions to be accidental.”

Lenok smiled.

“I’ve never planned everything meticulously, nor have I impulsively grabbed anyone and fought them.”

“……”

“There was a reason I could accept for everything I’ve done so far, and that’s why I remember it all.”

“Disrupting social norms and order with your own reasons and making the peace unstable. Don’t you know that’s the mindset of a madman?”

Perhaps because they judged that Lenok had sworn to the Judgment Covenant, the judge’s assertions were unhesitating.

The sight of people confidently asserting and believing that Lenok was insane.

However, instead of getting angry, Lenok just shrugged indifferently.

“Enough, let’s start. If it’s as you explained, it seems like you’ll need a lot of preparation time?”

“…We were going to do that anyway, so don’t rush us.”

Only then did the judges in charge of the hearing’s question-and-answer session come forward one by one.

“We have confirmed that your answers are working in accordance with the Judgment Covenant, so we will now begin the full hearing.”

It was not the city council members of the Central Council who were in charge of this hearing, but the judges belonging to the Supreme Court.

To be precise, it should be said that they were the ones who had the authority to officially present the charges against Kyunroe, which had been vaguely presumed until now.

Meanwhile, the observers who had been watching the conversation between Kyunroe and the judges exchanged words.

“He looks much more normal than I thought. Is he really crazy?”

“It’s been well known that he can communicate normally. Kyunroe’s notoriety comes more from the things he’s done.”

“The profilers in District 17 assessed the fact that Kyunroe can communicate normally as even more dangerous. We’ll have to see how he acts from now on.”

“Does that mean a monster that can communicate is more dangerous? It’s like a horror movie.”

One of the judges cleared his throat and slid a judgment document through the projector, and a blurry video appeared.

[Crack, crack!]

[KABOOM!!]

The image of a huge lightning bolt falling on an old power plant and the building being shattered to pieces.

The shockwave indiscriminately smashed the streets and roads around the power plant.

Water gushed out from the broken water pipes, and the entire area quickly turned into chaos.

“This video is a record of the charges against you for attacking a public facility under the city government’s jurisdiction when you were working as a freelancer in the shadows.”

The judge said after finishing the short recording.

“Due to the damage to the power plant at the time, a part of the 40th district was completely blacked out, and it is estimated that 40 employees who were managing the facilities died.”

“……”

“The electric mage, who is presumed to be the perpetrator of this incident, left the scene without any punishment or responsibility. What do you think?”

The judge asked, looking at Lenok sitting in the wheelchair with a stern gaze.

“Archmage, Ban, do you admit to the charges of massacring power plant employees and damaging public institutions under the city government, and will you accept the sentence?”

At the judge’s weighty words, the city council members and reporters sitting in the hearing hall looked at Lenok with tense expressions.

The archmage known to be the most bloodthirsty in Balkan.

The first question where he officially faced and admitted his charges.

Because no one could predict how Kyunroe would react to that fact.

Of course, the city council was not demanding compensation for the damaged equipment or public facilities at this point.

If they were to demand compensation or responsibility in that way, there would be more people in this city who would be held accountable before Kyunroe.

What the council was trying to confirm through this question was not anything else, but Kyunroe’s response itself.

It was about the true intention of his attendance at this hearing.

“Ah…”

And Lenok, who had been watching the video with his chin resting on his hand, nodded as if he had remembered something belatedly.

“I remember. Was that when I killed the electric mage named Eden? You’ve brought up something quite old.”

“If you admit to the charges-”

“But it’s an old matter, so there are some inaccuracies.”

“…What?”

The judge paused at the completely unexpected answer. Lenok said calmly,

“It wasn’t 40, it was 103. The gang occupying the power plant was so resistant that it was a struggle.”

“……”

“Was it the Cigar Bang Gang? I remember trying to supplement the magic power of the electric mage who was the boss with the power plant’s output.”

Lenok murmured as if recalling an old memory, leaving the silent hall.

“I thought the power plant’s output was too strong, but later I found out that they were bribing the district office and illegally drawing power from other districts-”

Beep-

At that moment, the microphone that was transmitting Lenok’s voice suddenly cut off.

The person in charge of broadcasting the situation in the hearing hall cut off the audio when an unexpected story came out.

However, Lenok’s voice was quite clear and audible despite the sudden microphone malfunction.

“The electric mage I killed back then was colluding with a city council member from that district. His name was definitely Haten-”

“Wait, wait!!!”

At that moment, the judge shouted, cutting off Lenok’s words.

Only then did Lenok, who had been lost in thought, frown and turn his gaze.

“It’s noisy. Don’t keep interrupting me.”

“…This hearing is a place to confirm the charges that are presumed to have been committed by you and to officially acknowledge them,” the judge said, desperately clearing his throat and looking around.

Because no one wanted the corruption of city council members or district offices to be suddenly revealed in this place.

“We will not tolerate any attempts to arbitrarily change or modify the charges. Especially, the act of reversing or distorting statements without evidence-”

“Ah, did you need evidence?”

Thud!

At the same time, an old notebook fell in front of the judge.

Lenok said, watching the judge pick up the notebook with trembling hands.

“It’s the research log that the gang’s boss wrote before he died. It has what I said written in it, so take a good look.”

“……”

The judge was not bold enough to damage or steal the evidence in front of so many people.

While the judge, whose face had turned pale, was handing the research log to the other judges, Lenok began to ponder with his chin resting on his hand.

“That electric mage. He was from the Torben Magic Tower, and it seems he hit a limit while researching the change in the nature of magic power. Most of the log was about that. It seems he was trying to form an organization in the shadows and get involved in the arms market. His ideas and skills were good.”

“……”

“Now that I think about it, there would have been an easier way to kill him, but I overestimated my power while dealing with the gang’s executives. Still, the decision to force a one-on-one at the end wasn’t bad even when I look back on it.”

In the silent hearing hall, only Lenok’s quiet voice echoed clearly.

“Hoo…”

The sight of the city council members, mages, and reporters listening to Lenok’s words with pale faces.

They were more surprised by Lenok’s answer than by the evidence Kyunroe had submitted, and they couldn’t even manage their expressions.

They also knew why Kyunroe was recalling and sharing his thoughts about what happened back then.

The three rules due to the geas of the Judgment Covenant.

The fact that there was not a single lie mixed in all the answers that Kyunroe was giving now.

That the mage was literally so obsessed with fighting that he was not in his right mind, remembering and relishing the details of a battle that had happened years ago.

Everyone gathered here was deeply aware of that with just that one answer.

“…The verification of the evidence is complete. The measurement of the preservation magic power shows that there is no damage to the evidence.”

Meanwhile, the judge, who had finished analyzing the research log, slowly returned with a face as if he had bitten into a bug.

As if he had no choice but to do so, the judge grabbed the microphone and spoke to the audience in the hearing hall.

“It has been confirmed that Congressman Hatenstein was involved in the case at the time. We will postpone the judgment on this charge and handle it by seeking cooperation from the Central Council later.”

“He’s completely insane…”

“We shouldn’t have come here in the first place.”

“Is this how things are going to go from the start of the hearing?”

If the corruption of a Central Council member was involved from the beginning, what kind of words would come out of that mage’s mouth in the future?

Of course, among the city council members gathered here, there was no one who was not guilty in any sense.

They didn’t know which of the results of all the corruption and irregularities they had sown in this city was connected to that mage.

The council members were already regretting attending the hearing, and the hearing began again.

“Then, let’s postpone the judgment on this matter and move on to the next one.”

It seemed that each judge was in charge of a different matter. The first judge stepped down, and a young judge walked out.

“Ah, is it already over?”

Only then did Lenok, who had been recalling his encounter with Eden until just now, wake up from his reverie.

“That’s a shame. I still have a lot to say about what happened back then.”

“……”

“Aren’t you curious about how the brains of the criminals in the gang who were impersonating power plant employees were cooked?”

The young judge did not answer the words of the archmage, who seemed to be out of his mind.

He just unfolded the judgment document and the projector at the same time in front of Lenok with a very tense expression.

“Well, fine. Let’s move on to the next one. But from now on, make sure you don’t interrupt me unnecessarily when I’m testifying.”

Lenok leisurely clenched and unclenched his fist, watching the scene.

“I’m starting to get used to how the restraints of the Judgment Covenant are manifesting. You can all look forward to it.”

“……”

Lenok’s absurd remarks, as if the hearing had been turned upside down.

At the strange sight of him seeming to have loosened his tongue thanks to the oath of Ars Nova, one of the council members muttered weakly.

“…It feels like I’m the one being punished, not that mage. Is it just me?”