Irene Decided to Die - Chapter 123
Upon hearing the news that the heretics had been caught, Shah-Naz thought to himself.
‘It’s all over now.’
He had only tried to serve his country, so why had things come to this? It was too late to ponder such things.
“Your Highness, Sir Allen has come to see you.”
“Is that all?”
“No, King Burt is also accompanying him.”
“I see. Let them in.”
Though anxious and uneasy, he couldn’t simply refuse their visit. Doing so could only add to his perceived guilt.
‘No.’
Thinking negatively would accomplish nothing. He needed to find a way to navigate this crisis. If he could just get through this, maybe things would be alright.
With resolve, Shah-Naz met the two of them.
“We greet Lord Shah-Naz.”
Allen made the sign of the cross as he greeted him, while Burt simply nodded his head.
“So, what brings you here?”
He asked, trying to feign ignorance, but Burt’s lips curled into a mocking smile.
“Shah-Naz, you’ve always been bad at hiding the truth.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“It’s too late. We’ve extracted information from the captured heretics and confirmed your involvement in this incident.”
“Indeed. Lord Shah-Naz, do you have anything to say about this?”
They had no intention of listening to Shah-Naz’s explanation. They were convinced he was one of the culprits and had come for confirmation.
“Already thinking of me as the culprit, I don’t see why you bother asking.”
“It’s just a simple verification process.”
Burt shrugged as he spoke.
“So, what are you planning to do now?”
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m asking if you plan to escape or resist.”
“Here?”
With Burt’s personality, he would have taken action before coming in. Someone who tried to harm the Saintess wouldn’t be welcomed anywhere. The king was no different.
Even those who served Shah-Naz wouldn’t act hastily in this situation. The people would turn their backs, and the believers would throw stones.
“Yes, exactly. No matter what, I can’t let it end like this.”
Shah-Naz decided to make a last attempt at resistance. Flames sprang from his grasp, enveloping his body, and he attacked Burt in that state.
Burt, who had always been indifferent even when a spar was proposed. He wanted to face him one last time.
As Allen moved to intervene, Burt stopped him with a hand, summoning cold. The icy frost quenched the flames, soon beginning to devour them.
“So this was the reason you never sparred with me.”
“There’s no need to fight when the outcome is already decided.”
Burt spoke calmly as he subdued Shah-Naz.
“What will happen to me now?”
“You’ll face a sacred trial. Then you’ll have a final chance to repent.”
“Hahaha, do you really think I’ll repent?”
“Then, as you wish.”
The confrontation with Shah-Naz ended more anticlimactically than expected.
* * *
A few days later, the sacred trial of confessing sins to the goddess took place. The jury was composed of half nobles and half commoners, all of whom were devotees of the goddess.
Additionally, at the highest seat sat the Saintess, Irene.
“Bring in the sinner.”
As soon as Irene finished speaking, Shah-Naz, bound completely, was dragged in.
Thud.
The holy knights who brought Shah-Naz forced him to kneel before Irene. He was once a terrifying figure, but now he appeared only pitiful.
“I will recite the charges.”
Grein, who had been prepared in advance, unfolded the parchment.
“The crime of mocking the goddess, the crime of attempting to harm the Saintess, the crime of conspiring with heretics.”
After reciting the rather lengthy charges, the observers began to murmur. Being devout believers themselves, they did not defend Shah-Naz but only condemned him.
“How could you even think of harming the Saintess?”
“Unbelievable! As a king, he failed to perform his duties properly.”
“Knowing what would happen to the world if the Saintess were gone!”
Shah-Naz heard all the accusations. People who once looked up to him with shining eyes were now hurling insults.
“Do you have a defense attorney?”
“I do not.”
There was no one willing to defend Shah-Naz, who was about to fall into hell. It was not an incomprehensible act. In this world, the goddess was an absolute presence, and no one would want to help someone who opposed her.
‘Isn’t it too much, though?’
He had thought at least a few would stand by him.
“Since there is none, we will proceed with the trial.”
At the point of having no defense attorney, this was not a trial. It was merely a venue for confessing guilt and discussing the severity of the punishment.
