Chapter 36: Legal Aid

Chapter 36: Legal Aid April 2nd, Sunday.

Hastur woke up at eight o'clock, dressed, had breakfast, and took a carriage to Beckland University.

On the carriage,Hastur quietly pondered the extraordinary gathering that would take place tonight.

For the barbarian potion formula, he had collected all the extraordinary materials needed except for the solid horn crystal of a great earth rhinoceros.

The pace of material collection at the Brave's Bar was too slow; there had been no news of the great earth rhinoceros' solid horn crystal.

Moreover, there was a lady there who was also about to be promoted to a barbarian, collecting the same extraordinary material, making it difficult for him to gather it in a short time.

To complete the barbarian potion sooner, he planned to attend the extraordinary gathering hosted by Mr. A tonight.

Although the people of the Aurora Society were quite eccentric, their gathering was of a higher caliber than that of the Brave's Bar, and purchasing the great earth rhinoceros' solid horn crystal there should not be too difficult.

He could prepare a bit more gold pounds for this purpose.

What troubled him now was how to conceal his true identity as much as possible at Mr. A's extraordinary gathering.

While it was normal for a noble to embark on the path of the Black Emperor, he did not want too many people to know his sequence before he truly became powerful.

Of course, he had another option: to seek Gray 's help.

As the heir to the Duke of Negan, he was not lacking in extraordinary protection, and perhaps he himself was an extraordinary person on the path of the Black Emperor.

Although the great earth rhinoceros' solid horn crystal was difficult to purchase, the Gray family surely had plenty in stock.

After much thought,Hastur decided to put seeking Gray 's help as the last resort and try his luck at Mr. A's gathering first.

The carriage traveled swiftly and soon arrived at Beckland University.

Professor Wayne was already waiting in the classroom, writing today's legal knowledge on the blackboard.

"Did you finish reading the three books I recommended last time and remember them?" Professor Wayne asked casually while writing on the blackboard.

"Yes, I've remembered them."

"Let me test you."

Professor Wayne began to ask about the content of the three legal books to verify whetherHastur truly grasped the knowledge within.

After a series of seven or eight questions, whichHastur answered one by one, Professor Wayne nodded in satisfaction and put down his chalk.

"Very good, your memory is not bad, indeed suitable to become a lawyer."

Hastur replied with a smile, "It's all thanks to the teacher's good teaching."

After the last incident at the almshouse, he also started calling Professor Wayne 'teacher' along with Instructor Folan, a more intimate title.

"I'll accept that praise. Emperor Roselle once said: 'The student surpasses the master.'"

Hastur's smile stiffened slightly, and he couldn't help but complain inwardly, 'Emperor Roselle, why are you everywhere?'

And besides, the teacher's words were meant to praise me, not yourself.

"Come on, let's start today's lesson."

After a brief chat, Professor Wayne entered teaching mode.

After finishing today's studies,Hastur did not leave the classroom but stayed in his seat to copy the knowledge points from the blackboard.

This gave him a feeling of being back in high school, where after each class, the teacher would end early and leave a blackboard full of knowledge points for them to copy.

They claimed it was because the corridors would be crowded with students rushing to the cafeteria at that time, and it was easy to get injured. It was better to dismiss class ten minutes late to avoid the peak period.

This reasoning sounded logical, but other teachers thought the same way.

Hastur silently copied the content from the blackboard, rested for a moment, glanced at the time—11:40 AM—and after about ten more minutes, Instructor Folan appeared.

"Mr.Hastur, please forgive me for the delay today."

"This timing is just right; I've just finished my coursework."

The two exchanged pleasantries with a smile, and Instructor Folan joinedHastur for lunch in the cafeteria.

A week had passed since the last Gray banquet, and during this week,Hastur often enjoyed lunch with Instructor Folan.

Both were students valued by Professor Wayne and got along well in many aspects, especially Instructor Folan, who was very good at chatting and telling stories.

He could turn an ordinary legal story into something fascinating and engaging.

He could also simplify complex legal cases, making them easy to understand.

He was indeed well-suited to be a legal instructor.

Besides these, every afternoon, as long as Instructor Folan had free time, he would takeHastur to the Chorwood District to serve as a legal aid, offering free help to those who could not afford legal fees.

This action greatly helpedHastur digest the lawyer potion, and in a few more days, he should be able to fully assimilate it.

Chorwood District.

This area was home to a large number of Rune civilians. Although their lives were not wealthy, they could maintain basic food and clothing, not as chaotic and poor as the East District.

Instructor Folan andHastur arrived by steam train at two o'clock in the afternoon.

As a lawyer with a strong sense of justice, Instructor Folan had established a legal association with other lawyers, named the Justice Implementation Research Association.

WhenHastur first heard the name of the association, he wanted to change it directly to the Justice League.

But then he thought better of it; after all, Instructor Folan and the others were just ordinary people, and fighting evil was better left to the seven great churches of the true gods.

The Justice Implementation Research Association had a secret base in Chorwood District, unknown to ordinary people.

According to Instructor Folan, this was not an ordinary base but a place where the future legal hopes of Rune converged.

It was the soil where justice was born, the long spear that implemented fairness.

Well, it was actually just an ordinary law office.

The entire Justice Implementation Research Association, includingHastur who had not yet officially joined, had only five people.

Instructor Folan andHastur went to the law office, where the other three were busy with their own affairs, so today it was just the two of them providing legal aid to those in need.

Hastur chose to offer legal aid near the Holy Wind Church, while Instructor Folan originally wanted to set up near the almshouse, where more people needed help.

But this proposal was directly vetoed byHastur.

The almshouse was not likely to be safer than the area near the Holy Wind Church.

Although Storm Pigeon was sometimes very irritable, he would never stand by when it was time to act, providing a sense of security.

Moreover, if faced with an irresistible force, one could call upon His holy name for help.

The clergy of the nearby Holy Wind Church, knowing the purpose ofHastur and Instructor Folan's visit, sent two people to provide some assistance.

In two temporarily rented rooms,Hastur and Instructor Folan each chose one as their workplace for the day.

Hastur sat in his chair, hands naturally on the table, with a cup of Earl Grey tea and his substantial cane beside him.

After adjusting his mindset and drawing the black curtain,Hastur's eyes sharpened, his expression serious, as he looked towards the door and said in a deep voice, "Come in."

The first time he came here to serve as a legal aid, his smiling face and gentle demeanor, coupled with his somewhat youthful appearance, made it easy for people to doubt his professionalism.

Male seekers of help were okay; they would subtly express that they would consider his advice, then turn to line up at Instructor Folan's door.

Female seekers of help were more troublesome; those in need of legal aid often harbored pain they wanted to vent.

FacingHastur, they naturally treated him as a listener and a receptacle for their tears.

Some would be crying heartbreakingly one second, then the next, beggingHastur for a hug.

Others would talk about their tragic experiences while quietly approachingHastur.

This made him uncomfortable, and it was difficult to harshly dismiss them, so it was quite distressing.

Later, he discussed with Instructor Folan and decided to hang a black curtain in front of the table to block the seekers' gazes.

This method worked well, not only blocking distrustful eyes but also saving a lot of unnecessary entanglement, increasing secrecy, and making seekers more willing to reveal their thoughts.

After about five seconds, the first seeker of the day walked in.

Hastur could not see the other party clearly and could only guess their identity from their speech and behavior.

Today's seeker was probably a middle-aged man in his forties, troubled by issues of property distribution.

He had three children, two boys and a girl; the eldest son was twenty-three years old, the youngest son was eleven, and the daughter was seventeen and not yet married.

Originally, his family's conditions were just above the subsistence line. Although they were not materially wealthy, their relationships were good.

But after he made a fortune last year due to luck and insight, subtle changes occurred in the once happy family.

The eldest son was already married with a child and, logically, should have been the best choice to inherit the property. However, the eldest son's mother had passed away, and the youngest son's mother was his current wife.

Regarding the property division, she naturally wanted to fight for her son's share.

Dividing the family was her proposed solution, suggesting the eldest son's family move elsewhere and be given some money, with the rest of the property inherited by her son.

The eldest son's family naturally disagreed, and he even repeatedly threatened his stepmother that if he

could not inherit the property, he would not care about brotherly affection.

The implication was that he might harm his own brother.

Such incidents are not uncommon when facing huge property disputes; eliminating other potential heirs makes one the sole inheritor.

The seeker was most afraid of a tragic fratricide, so he hesitated to make a decision.

Hastur listened silently to the middle-aged man's story and already had an idea in mind.

Such cases are quite common, especially more pronounced in noble families.

Fortunately, Rune's laws only guarantee the inheritance rights of the eldest legitimate son; how much the other descendants receive depends on the generosity of the eldest.

Even if they give nothing and drive the others out, there is no legal issue.

However, such actions are not dignified, and nobles usually do not go to such extremes. Instead, they give a considerable portion of the property to their siblings to show their generosity.

Another point is that stepmothers cannot directly interfere with the property distribution of nobles, no matter how favored they are. Their children cannot inherit titles unless there are no other suitable heirs ahead of them.

Commoners usually do not have much property to inherit, often just debts. In such cases, property disputes are rare.

More common are cases concerning the care of the elderly.

(End of Chapter)