WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Order

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◈ I Became the Dark Knight in the Game World ◈

Chapter 41: Marriage Scam (3)

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I was screwed.

That was the conclusion I reached after much deliberation.

I was screwed.

Three days had passed since I sent Morgina a letter, but there had been no reply. Damn it. I thought she was still somewhere at the order's headquarters or in the Sacred Kingdom. Had she left already?

As a thriving city, the Duchy of Argetlam attracted priests from nearly every religion.

Eve Kaha's faith had somewhat unusual teachings, but it was also true that it set a fine example by taking the lead in the war against the Abyss. Its influence was not vast, but it was well-established enough to have a sanctuary in the Duchy of Argetlam.

I had sent the letter through the priest in charge there, but that impatient Saintess apparently had not stayed by the Head of the Order's side for long before leaving. Not a single word had come back.

[So the original plan to make a priest commit perjury has failed.]

[But that is for the best. Lies harm a knight's honor, do they not?]

Orisin and Tuon chattered away on either side of me. Annoyingly, they were both right.

Then the only thing I could do was...

"Knights are armed thugs by nature."

There was no choice but to appeal through force.

[Master... Take that back!]

Tuon protested furiously. Whether on Earth or in Tirnanog, violent knights who were little better than bandits did exist. Unlike those thug-like knights, there were also exemplary knights who followed chivalry, so my words were not entirely true.

But they were not entirely false either.

I could not take back what I had said, but I had a way to calm Tuon's anger by adding just one word to that sentence.

"Dark Knights are armed thugs by nature."

[Hmm. An accurate assessment.]

I was probably the person in this world who hated the Dark Knight class most, yet I felt strangely bitter.

Setting that bitterness aside, I considered what came next.

During the three days I waited for Morgina's reply, Armede and I searched through Empire law to see if there was any legal loophole that could get us out of this situation.

The conclusion was that escaping through conventional means would be extremely difficult. Her own family, who should have been on Armede's side, had actively cooperated in trying to marry her off. It was hard to find any opening to invalidate the proposal.

Still, as I had already declared, knights were armed thugs.

"In the end, it means we're a profession that solves problems with swords."

"What does that mean?"

"It is a law that has nearly become a dead letter, but Empire law still has a provision like this."

I pointed to a section of the law code. Armede looked at me as if I had lost my mind, but I was serious.

* * *

The court appearance date announced by Mazhar Gabi drew near. Since the matter was closely tied to both sides' private lives, the trial was to be held as an informal summary hearing.

In Tirnanog, marriage was a sacred rite formed under a god's blessing. Therefore, the judge handling this case was not an ordinary official from the ranks of the Robe Nobility, but a Religious Judge qualified as a priest.

Armede, Mazhar, and the Religious Judge sat around a rather large table instead of in the solemn courtroom one normally imagined when hearing the word trial.

The Religious Judge sat in the center, Mazhar to the left, and Armede to the right. Since it was a summary hearing over the deeply personal matter of marriage, it could be held behind closed doors.

The young Religious Judge flipped through the documents with an exhausted expression. They had taken an accelerated course in priestly education, three years even then, because it would help them find a job. It seemed they had chosen the wrong field.

Matters became complicated and unpleasant whenever a noble family's political marriage clashed with an individual's wishes.

Mazhar Gabi sat in the plaintiff's seat, looking at Armede with ease. Armede thought to herself.

'Why is that idiot so obsessed with becoming head of the family?'

The Gabi Family was not some iron-blooded house where only the strongest survived. Even if he failed to become the family head, he would not die. He might not be able to spend his life doing nothing, but he would never have to worry about putting food on the table.

'Is it ambition?'

Yet his desperation seemed too strong for it to be simple ambition. If she knew why he was so fixated on inheriting the family, perhaps they could settle this more peacefully.

After thinking for a moment, Armede shook her head. She had neither the time nor the reason to find out what Mazhar was thinking.

The young Religious Judge adjusted their glasses. It was time.

"Um, we will begin."

A few questions and answers followed. They confirmed the date the proposal had been sent and the response given.

"Defendant Armede Kett. The plaintiff claims that you rejected the marriage proposal, contrary to the Kett Family's reply. Is that correct?"

"That is correct."

"Is it true that you gave the reason for rejecting the proposal as, 'I am already engaged'?"

"That is correct."

Mazhar Gabi held out an expensive sheet of stationery. Armede recognized the seal stamped on its envelope as House Kett's seal.

"This is a statement from the Kett Family. The two ladies of the house state that they know nothing whatsoever of Lady Armede Kett's engagement."

The Religious Judge carefully examined the delicate flow of Mana within the envelope. It certainly contained considerable Mana.

They inspected the shape of the seal. It matched House Kett's seal recorded in the Empire Seal Registry exactly. The letter's contents also matched Mazhar Gabi's testimony.

"It was a secret engagement."

Armede spoke before the Religious Judge could voice any suspicion. Yet Mazhar had expected this much.

"Then where is the priest who officiated this secret engagement? I, Mazhar Gabi, clearly gave you time to bring that person here, or at least exchange letters with them."

Mazhar's eyebrow twitched.

"Now that I look, that knight is nowhere to be seen either. Did he go personally to fetch the priest? If you needed the trial postponed, you should have said so beforehand. I would have generously granted it."

Creak.

The door to the private chamber opened. The one who entered was Kriel, a pale man with white hair.

"There is no need."

Behind Kriel stood an elderly but sturdy priest. The raven-shaped holy symbol around his neck proved that he was a priest of Eve Kaha.

Mazhar's eyes gleamed. That priest had served as the chief priest of the Church of Eve Kaha's Argetlam Parish for a very long time. He was someone who had rarely even left this territory. He was an unsuitable choice for a false witness to an engagement.

The Religious Judge bowed to the priest in greeting. Though their orders differed, if they were lined up by seniority in the Sacred Kingdom, they would undoubtedly stand far behind that old priest. If they carelessly acted as though they were ignoring their senior and a letter saying, "Kids, young people these days are truly frightening," began circulating, it would become troublesome in more ways than one.

They then looked at Kriel. Since he had appeared here, his identity was all but confirmed, but procedure was important in a trial.

"Defendant, Kriel."

"Kriel. Who is the person accompanying you?"

"Daucrius, parish head of the Church of Eve Kaha's Argetlam Parish."

"Is he the priest who officiated the engagement between you and Lady Kett? How remarkable. When did someone who devoted nearly his entire life to the Duchy of Argetlam travel to officiate the engagement of the Kett count's daughter?"

Mazhar delivered the mockery in a polite tone. Kriel calmly shook his head.

"No. Priest Daucrius has not appeared here to testify to our engagement."

"Hm?"

"Let us return to the beginning of this trial, Young Master Mazhar Gabi. You questioned our engagement. Why?"

"Is it not obvious? During the years I visited the Kett Family, I never once saw someone like you. Is it not strange for a man calling himself her fiancé never to visit his fiancée's home even once?"

"Does that mean you doubt our love?"

Something felt off. Still, there was no need for Mazhar to acknowledge Kriel and Armede's love by saying something like, "I believe your love is true," when he was questioning their engagement. So Mazhar affirmed Kriel's question.

"That is exactly so. Can a fiancé who has not even met his fiancée in years truly claim to love her?"

"That is insulting."

Kriel said it was insulting, but his expression remained perfectly calm. His tone was equally flat, and everyone seated there failed to grasp the meaning of his words for a moment.

"...Pardon?"

There was nothing to gain from showing such emotion in court. Kriel did not seem like someone who would not know that. His expression made it difficult to tell whether he even felt insulted. Mazhar felt both confused and bewildered.

Kriel's next words stripped away Mazhar's confusion and shoved him into a pit of shock.

"To insult my sincerity is to insult my honor. I hereby request a Trial by Combat."

"What?"

"If you want to see what a person is made of, a duel is best."

Footnotes:

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