I took out the letter from her Highness Theresa first, opening it and starting to read through her neat handwriting. The letter consisted of three paragraphs, one apologizing for her inaction, the second talking a little about matters we had an agreement about back then. But it was the last part that caught me off guard.
It focused solely on Amiya. She asked me to take care of that girl, as she would often mention me after our first meeting. From the wording of the request, I felt that her Highness knew that something would happen to her in the near future, so it had the atmosphere of a last wish. I was unsure how to feel about that request, remembering the little rabbit I saw back then.
I met Amiya a year after her parents died, just as she and that Evil Spirit officially started making moves for Babel. She accompanied Old Lynx and the Evil Spirit for one of the negotiations about our agreement, but as she wasn't even ten back then, she was kept away from the official matters.
One day, when I was strolling on the quiet street rarely visited by other Sankta, so as not to be annoyed by their emotions and prayers, I ran into her, also looking around the city. She truly looked like a spooked rabbit back then, almost running away when I passed her by. But after noticing that I ignored her, she, for whatever reason, decided to follow me.
After walking in silence for a few minutes, I couldn't stand her eyes on the back of my head, so I talked to her, only receiving nods and shakes of the head as a response, but her inner thoughts were rather engaging and full of imagination, making this quite entertaining. It all ended with her coming to my residence and eating some of my pastries, enjoying them to the point of asking for a recipe, the only sentence she spoke to me out loud the whole meeting.
Our 'talk' ended when Old Lynx returned from negotiations, looking for her. When she heard that I took her, she charged in and started to accuse me of tricking young girls and such, starting our first argument and setting the precedent of how we would interact from now on. I have never seen her again after that. I only heard about her again after my disappearance, learning that she was now the leader of the ruins of Babel, Rhodes Island.
After this short reminiscence, I decided not to do anything now, deciding how to treat her after our first official meeting. While I respected her Highness Theresa, our relationship wasn't good enough to warrant mentioning her last wishes to me, let alone asking me to care about her heir.
I opened the letter from Old Lynx next. It was much shorter. She didn't waste ink for explanation or apologies, knowing that those were meaningless now. She only wrote one paragraph, explaining some of her experiences with Originium. She felt that my arm was somewhat similar to her pet, so she gave me notes explaining how it worked and such.
I looked into the envelope and found a small memory device, most likely containing everything she mentioned in the letter. I linked it to my terminal and sifted through the files. I quickly found some strange documents, I opened them, and almost stood up in surprise. Those weren't just any random files, but a detailed documentation and research into something named Assimilated Universe. I never heard about it before, but seeing an image in one of the documents made me connect it to the place I've seen, the golden sea.
I knew that all of this was a form of a peace offering from Old Lynx, but it was too good to pass. I sighed and made a decision. I'll truly treat Rhodes Island and Babel like separate entities, nor will I think about Old Lynx being their deputy leader. Truly a new start, no stains from the past.
Then I turned my attention to the last letter. I opened it to find two pages of clean handwriting, it wasn't neat like that of her Majesty Theresa, nor almost print like that of Old Lynx, but letters of a normal teenage girl, readable and standard, with few signs of her own handwriting style forming.
She greeted me politely, but in just two lines switched to a casual tone, referring to me as 'Big Brother' from that point on. She didn't write about any work-oriented matter, nor about our identities, but purely talked about her experiences and things that interest her. She especially focused on the baking, as after eating my pastries back then, she also wanted to learn how to make such tasty and sweet food.
The small package that had been delivered to me with the letters contained a few cupcakes and cookies she had made. She also asked me to send her feedback along with my own pastry. Before I knew it, I finished reading her letter, a slight smile on my face the whole time. Such casual correspondence reminded me of my time writing with Cellinia, making me feel nostalgic.
To not waste the young girl's feelings, I decided to respond, writing a letter of my own and preparing some tasty sweets while trying her cupcakes. I had my Spectral Hawk deliver them to Amiya, the first letter in what will soon be my regular correspondence.
My daily life continued, most of my time spent on research and exchanging letters with Lemuel, Mostima, Talulah, Yelena, Aefanyl, Fremont, and Amiya. Soon, weeks passed, bringing the date of the trials of the nobles closer and closer.
I personally hadn't involved myself in the details, leaving it to Lemuen and Cellinia. But some things needed me to appear personally. The occasion today was the greeting of the judges sent from other countries, arranging their accommodation and explaining the rules and how the trial will take place. So I left my mansion in the morning, Margaret and Shining escorting me.
A car took us to the Empresses' Spires, where the reception was to take place. As we arrived a few minutes before, I spent some time on idle chatter with the Empresses, with whom I managed to finally establish a relation of mutual respect and slight friendship. While we certainly weren't close friends, we could now at least easily cooperate on some things without the previous suspicions and wariness.
Minutes later, three groups of people entered the room. The first group had a familiar appearance, the red cloaks of Yanese Censors. I looked for that silent guy who sat with Yanese ambassador in Laterano, but the Censors present here were entirely new people. Leading them was a blond woman with branching horns. I could feel her gaze on me, a mix of interest and slight resentment that I didn't know where it came from. But it wasn't the time to delve into the details now.
The second group wore clothes typical to Higashi, guards wore samurai armor, while the escorted officials wore kimonos. The main person appeared to be a short girl who was focused on her terminal, typing something at a speed that impressed me.
Last but definitely not least were people from Sargon. They wore clothes adorned with golden accessories and jewelry, keeping the style of their ancient empire. The representative was also a girl, looking young and lively, but even that couldn't hide the kind of nobility originating from ancient families.
They greeted the Empresses first, respecting them as hosts and rulers of the nation. I stood on the side, but I could feel that the atmosphere was gravitating toward me, as if the Empresses were only the background, not the main actors. The Empresses also noticed that, so they quickly moved everyone to sit down. When this was done, we started the conversation.
-"Before we begin, I hope we can get the introductions out of the way."-Empress Lieselotte started.
-"Sure, there is no need for that complicated pleasantries, I'll only make explaining everything more troublesome."-The Sargon representative nodded.-"I'm Djerwnapekhaper Saciut Hatshepsut, but if you feel it's too much of a mouthful, just call me Pepe."
-"Sarasa Nishigori, heir to the Nishigori clan."-The short girl introduced herself.
-"Lin Qingyan, of the Tianshi Bureau, a Censor."-The Yanese representative followed suit.
-"Holy Son of Laterano, Enoch."-I introduced myself with a nod.
-"Great, then let us focus on the main reason for your presence here. Due to reasons all of you should already be aware of, many nobles of Leithanien were involved in the Witch King's loyalists, so we decided that, rather than act on the spot, a fair trial would be more productive for the future of Leithanien. Because Eno was involved in the attack, he agreed to act as the prosecution, making the people under him gather evidence for the past month."
Empress Lieselotte explained while taking out sets of Leithanian law books.
-"For the trial to be legitimate and fair, Eno suggested asking the international community to jointly form a court. The trial held in Leithanien is a test for our idea of the International Court, so we hope you can help us identify issues and work together on finding resolutions."
-"Interesting."-Sarasa looked up from her terminal.-"Such a place sounds like it would bring countless dramas to light."
-"Will such a place be allowed to exist? Won't it undermine the authority of those empires?"-Pepe tilted her head.
-"Court without ability to apprehend is nothing more than a symbolic organization. It won't undermine empires, but rather, it'll allow them to gain public recognition much more easily."-Lin Qingyan explained, and then looked at me.-"But I don't understand what Laterano can gain from it."
-"Recognition. It's a foundation for other projects."-I ignored her attitude toward me.
-"Let's focus on the reason why this meeting needed to happen. As each country has a different legal system, we need to formalize how the trial will proceed and what laws will apply. Because the crime occurred on Leithanian soil, the crime and punishment will be based on Leithanian law."
-"It's understandable. What about Lateran law?"
-"Not applicable."-I shook my head.
-"Why? Is Son dissatisfied with the Lateran law? Or there is something else?"-Lin Qingyan jumped at my answer.
-"I actually am. But if you want to include the Lateran law, then there is no need for any of you."
-"What?"-She was about to act offended, but I continued speaking.
-"Have you forgotten what the Law in Laterano is? Law is the god, and as the Holy Son, I'm god incarnate. Whatever I speak is the law. Whatever I think is the law. Tell me, is such a law good to use?"
My words silenced her.
I looked at her, wanting to understand why she was so antagonistic. Instantly, the thoughts in her heart appeared in my mind, causing my smile to become a little forced. It would seem that her becoming a judge for the trial was only a secondary, the main objective was to gain my favor, becoming my knight or better... I could only sigh at the Yanese political landscape.
She must have felt the change in my emotions, looking at me with a questioning look. Our eyes met, and she quickly looked away, but her reaction was somewhat cute. Especially her complaining at me in her heart, annoyed that I wasn't some hateful noble scion, so that she could hate me without trouble. I accepted that as a compliment, deciding not to get annoyed at her.
-"Ok, let's return to the subject. The trial procedure will be based on a slightly modified system from Leithanien. The prosecution will be tasked with presenting the evidence, while the accused will be granted the right to prepare a defense with the assistance of experts if needed. The difference will lie in ensuring that only the truth is presented in the trial."
-"How will that be done?"-Sarasa asked, knowing that truth is a rare thing.
-"Geas."-I wrote a rune in the air.-"Contract that, if broken, brings a rather painful demise. I'll have all those who present evidence and speak as witnesses do so while bound by the vow of truth. Shall they lie, let's say that the court won't need to worry about them anymore."
-"Won't that make them afraid?"-Pepe asked, worried that that would make defense too hard.
-"They don't have to speak. The right to defend themselves is based on the idea that they have evidence opposing our, not lies that can be anything."
-"True. Lies and feelings have no place in the court."-Lin Qingyan surprisingly agreed with me without any nitpicking.
From that point, we started to seriously discuss the details. The task of arranging everything from combing through the law to making the whole process understandable for the general public was not so easy, but it wasn't impossible.
In our group, Sarasa and Pepe were the most experienced in city networks and explaining complicated things to the public, so they focused on this aspect. The Empresses coordinated with them, arranging venue, equipment, and even personnel to act as experts for the broadcast.
Meanwhile, Lin Qingyan and I focused on the law aspect. She was well-versed in how courts worked, so she could easily prepare court proceedings and give those trials more structure. I was focused purely on the rules. Leithanian law was based on Güldenesgesatz, making it horrendously hard to decrypt. Luckily, I had progressed in my research on it to the point that I could play it backward without any issue, so the task was just tiresome, not hard.
It took us five days to complete the preparations. In those past days, aside from sleeping, we spent almost all our time together, so any awkwardness and even that animosity disappeared. What surprised me the most was that Lin Qingyan apologized to me on the second day, frankly explaining that she had vented her frustrations on me and was sorry about it.
I accepted her apology and suggested eating dinner together to talk and clear the air. She agreed, but we decided to do it after all the work was done, so as not to be occupied with work. And so, after everything was done, the time for our meeting came.
I waited for Lin Qingyan in the Ludwigs-Universität, as my appearance there was no longer attracting any eyes. She appeared on time, no longer in her Censor cloak, wearing her own casual but still elegant clothes. I could feel the shyness and unfamiliarity with such situations, but I also felt anger, not at me, but at the person who required her to do so.
Her thoughts were also full of complaints, but there was much more resignation. She knew that if she succeeded in approaching me, she would be turned into a political offering, but if she failed, her carrier will be over. Either way, there was no future for her in Yan. I felt pity for her, especially as this situation was caused indirectly by me, but there wasn't much I could do. If we truly get along during this upcoming days, I'll suggest she be my guide in Yan during my upcoming visit, this should be enough to buy her more time to decide her next steps.