LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 207
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Da-eun spoke sternly and seriously.
“Defendant, what is your name?”
“… No, Joanie. What are you doing? Let’s set this aside for now, okay?”
“Kim Do-hyun. My name in Silia is Pine.”
“… Why are you blabbering about someone else’s name?”
“Well, it’ll show up in a search anyway.”
“That may be true, but—”
“Silence!”
Thump, thump, thump!
Da-eun banged the wooden sword Yuki was holding against the floor.
Do-hyun, the man revealed by Yuki, opened his mouth to say something but gave up and shut it tight.
He probably felt Yuki’s grip on his arm tightening, after all.
Crunch, crunch.
I pulled out a snack from my pocket and munched on it while watching the farce unfold.
Director and lead role, Da-eun.
Supporting roles, Yuki and Do-hyun.
Audience, just me.
Watching this felt like I was the only one for whom this play was prepared.
The most satisfying part was that I wasn’t included in that farce.
As Do-hyun reluctantly kept his mouth shut, silence filled the room.
Seeming pleased by the quiet atmosphere, Da-eun nodded satisfactorily and raised the wooden sword.
“Verdict, death penalty.”
BANG BANG BANG!
“… Huh? No way, what kind of ruling is that? Which judge decides on a verdict just because they heard a name?”
“Ooh.”
That was a pretty reasonable reaction.
To put it another way, one could say it was cliché, but for me, who was always with Da-eun, Do-hyun’s reaction felt refreshing.
“Are you really doing this? Have you already forgotten the last time I helped you?”
“… Respected judge, the defendant is sidetracking the discussion with unrelated comments and insulting the judge.”
“I never insulted….”
“Tsk.”
If you were to rank the words Do-hyun has said the most in the gym, “no” would definitely take the top spot.
He must be exhausted, yet he kept interrupting every time Da-eun or Yuki spoke.
“… Ahem.”
“Judge?”
Still, his efforts weren’t entirely in vain.
At the very least, he managed to momentarily hold Da-eun’s momentum back.
“I’ll consider what you just said as not heard. Defendant, please pay attention to your comments moving forward. Now, let’s resume the trial.”
“Wasn’t a verdict already given?”
“That was first trial. Since the defendant appealed, we’ve moved to the second trial.”
“Aha.”
Yuki pretended to understand.
Do-hyun’s expression of disbelief only deepened, but no one here cared about his face.
I was content to just watch, having no intention of intervening as the play masquerading as a trial continued.
“What are the charges against the defendant?”
“Child abuse, solicitation of murder, attempted murder, assault. And several other charges.”
“… Are you trying to make me out to be trash?”
“Silence.”
“No—”
“I will now declare the verdict.”
“… .”
What on earth is happening?
Do-hyun wore an expression that clearly revealed his confusion yet kept his mouth closed obediently.
Da-eun pronounced solemnly.
“Death penalty.”
“… It’s the same thing!”
“Did you really think you could commit such heinous acts and expect forgiveness?”
“No, when did I ever say that?!”
“Prosecutor.”
“Yes.”
Acting as prosecutor, defense attorney, and security officer….
To put it simply, Yuki said.
“Do you admit that the defendant has conspired with others to harm the victim?”
By the way, the target she’s talking about is me.
Do-hyun’s gaze briefly flicked over to me, realizing that.
“… I did, but that’s—”
“Furthermore, did the defendant wield a weapon and engage in malicious words and actions toward the victim? Do you admit this fact?”
“That part is true, but… just hear me out—”
“That’s all.”
“Defendant. What is your final statement?”
“… This isn’t a trial; it’s a people’s trial.”
At last realizing the truth, Do-hyun let out a resigned laugh.
Phew. I’m really glad I’m not the one in that spot.
Crunch!
Nodding, I opened a new snack.
“That was just a game! I’m not a crazy psychopath that would do that in real life! Or are you saying I’d behave like that in real life just because I did it in a game? Can a game streamer really say stuff like that?”
“… The defendant is confusing the judge by making unrelated statements.”
“It’s already been ruled as a death penalty; what does it matter?”
“Defendant. There are still two more trials left. Don’t lose hope.”
“Just one, just one. And what assault? I was just the one getting beaten up… I should be the one suing here.”
“Are you denying the charges?”
“I’m not denying; I’m stating facts.”
“The victim is in such pain! Does the defendant have no conscience as a human being?!”
“Huh?”
Suddenly shot at by an arrow, I tilted my head.
Wait, this is an audience-participation play?
As I glanced at the three pairs of eyes, all directed at me.
“Nom.”
Acting as if I heard nothing, I stuffed a piece of snack into my mouth.
“The victim is suffering from the memory of that day and can’t even eat properly!”
“No, she’s been eating just fine.”
“…She’s just surviving on snacks since she can’t eat proper meals.”
“Oh, come on, make some sense….”
Do-hyun rubbed his face…
only to realize he was still being held by Yuki and sighed with a tired expression.
It looked like he was aged at least a year more than when he entered.
“Aren’t you satisfied yet? Why don’t you explain a bit? What the heck is going on? Is this a hidden camera show?”
“You already know, right? It’s Kana. My real name is Canaria.”
“So it’s cosplay? Wow, the resemblance is incredible.”
“No. It’s not cosplay; it’s the real deal.”
“Didn’t we agree to stop with the jokes?”
“I’m not joking. It’s Kana.”
“Yeah.”
Swish.
I sucked the grease off my finger.
Before Da-eun could say anything, I quickly summoned my mana.
Unlike how much trouble Da-eun had, in the brief moment of breathing out… or perhaps blinking, the pink mana wrapped around my hand transformed into the shape of a long sword.
“… Huh?”
A voice of confusion was heard, but as they say, if you draw a sword, you should cut something; I had no intentions of ending things here.
If I ended it just like that, they might not believe me, so I had to show them clearly.
It wasn’t like I wished to take it out just for the sake of ending it; I wasn’t that sappy.
Unfortunately, there was no weapon in the gym, so I had to find something else.
A punching bag hanging in a remote corner of the gym.
I swung the sword lightly, trying to keep my strength to a minimum, almost casually.
Swish.
The gesture had the playfulness of a child’s game.
It was a lightweight action, but the result was anything but.
Slash.
Whoosh!
The clean cutting sound rang out, and the bisected punching bag fell to the floor.
It had been installed quite close to the wall, yet as the sword cut through it, it lost its strength the moment it was sliced in half.
“Yeah.”
Nod.
I have to say, that was a perfect control of my strength.
Returning the sword to my mana, I looked around.
“… .”
Do-hyun stood there with his mouth agape.
“Kana, amazing!”
Da-eun exclaimed, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
She was impressed, but it seemed she didn’t realize how delicate my control had been.
As expected of Da-eun.
I pouted slightly and turned my gaze to Yuki.
I thought, surely Yuki would recognize it.
“…”
Yuki stared silently at the punching bag without saying a word.
She neither gasped in shock nor cheered, remaining quiet.
She seemed to be lost in deep thought.
“Kana.”
After a long time, Yuki parted her lips.
“Yeah.”
She must have realized it.
After all, it’s a pain, but I do have talent.
I thought maybe I’d agree to a duel today.
Just as I was thinking that.
“That’s expensive.”
“… .”
The words that came out of Yuki’s mouth were completely different from what I expected.
“… How much?”
“Um, approximately….”
Yuki held one hand wide open.
“About this much.”
“… 50,000 won?”
“50.”
“… .”
A mere punching bag costs that much?!
In disbelief, I looked into Yuki’s eyes, but she met my gaze unwaveringly.
It was an already proven fact that Yuki wasn’t good at acting, so I knew she wasn’t lying.
“… .”
“… .”
Yuki just stared at me, saying nothing.
But paradoxically, that calm gaze felt like it was holding me accountable.
Rustle—
I rummaged through my pockets, but all I found was a snack bag.
… Of course.
There’s no way I would have any money when I’ve never received any.
Even if I had some cash, there was no way I would have fifty thousand won ready in my pocket.
So I made a determined expression and said.
“Da-eun… help me….”
… I know it’s shameless.
But in this cold capitalist society, with nothing else but my own body to my name, I can’t possibly do anything.
If only I had taken the money when Edel asked if I needed any….
Regret always comes too late, as usual.
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